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Welcome to the Windows 7 Beta Customer Preview Program

Jan. 9, 2009 Paul Thurrott | Paul Thurrott's Supersite for Windows

Ladies, and Gentlemen, start your browsers...

Windows 7 is…
the next release of the Windows client operating system, built on the secure foundation of Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008. Performance, reliability, security, and compatibility are core tenets of this release as we collect your feedback to meet our engineering goals of making Windows 7 the best-performing and most stable Windows operating system to date. New innovations in the product are designed to augment your ability as an IT professional to better provision and manage increasingly mobile PCs, protect data, and improve both end-user and personal productivity. 

See Windows 7 for yourself

We are inviting IT professionals around the world to work with the Windows 7 Beta in their lab environments and secondary PCs to help ensure smooth adoption when the final product is available and to gather feedback from real-world settings.

How can you get involved?

1. Take a look at some of the new features and functionality in Windows 7 as part of our Springboard Series guidance on the Windows Client TechCenter on TechNet. As a partner you can also see additional resources on the Microsoft Partner Program portal.

2. Download the Beta for a hands-on trial.  For a limited time, Microsoft is making this pre-release version of Windows 7 available to the first 2.5 million people who download. Ready to take a test drive? You can get one by trying the Windows 7 Beta.

As promised, 32-bit and 64-bit versions are available for download. Have fun!

Discuss this Article 227

darkmax
on Jan 9, 2009
@LlyodSparkes Perhaps I should reinstall it after I delete the partition and let Windows 7 Installation handles it. I just found it surprising that the x64 is slower for me, which should not be the case at all. Windows 7 is extremely stable. I would even go as far to sayt hat it is more stable than Vista retail..... lol
darkmax
on Jan 9, 2009
@kalewallace Care to share the key?! I'm tired of waiting. and by the time I finally get it, it will probably be over.
techfan
on Jan 9, 2009
I was so looking for this but now word on the Web is that XP users can't install the Beta. I guess I'll just have to wait for the final release and buy a new PC.
reddragon72
on Jan 9, 2009
FYI over here http://blogs.msdn.com/stevecla01/archive/2009/01/09/link-to-public-downl... there are link saying that there are reasons for the delay, but the links seem to be down or removed????? odd
stimshady
on Jan 9, 2009
from: http://blogs.technet.com/springboard/archive/2009/01/07/windows-7-beta-h... *Update on Windows 7 Beta Availability Due to very heavy traffic we’re seeing as a result of interest in the Windows 7 Beta, we are adding some additional infrastructure support to the Microsoft.com properties before we post the public beta. We want to ensure customers have the best possible experience when downloading the beta, and we will be updating this page once the beta goes live. Stay tuned! We are excited that you are excited!
kalewallace
on Jan 9, 2009
@darkmax Sorry... not sure about the EULA on this, and I don't prefer to pirate on public posting...
Dipsh t Admin
on Jan 9, 2009
"XP users can't install the Beta" They can, but they will need to do a new installation, and not an upgrade, which quite frankly, as Lindy and others have pointed out, is the best course of action anyway. I've been trying all day at various times. The direct link works, but at my slow connection at work, it would take a long time. I don't think that the "coming soon" sign necessarily means that they "ran out" of downloads. I just think it means they are trying to direct some traffic around.
kalewallace
on Jan 9, 2009
http://www.flickr.com/photos/31525390@N08/3182562717/
Dipsh t Admin
on Jan 9, 2009
And even the Windows Team Blog server is too busy right now. I guess people are REALLY excited about 7. I've never had the inkling to download a beta OS before. With the extra hard drive I have in my computer it will be quite easy to dual boot.
stimshady
on Jan 9, 2009
@ kalewallace how many f5's did you have to press for that!?!? lucky git!!!!!
AHackney
on Jan 9, 2009
My opinion. which isnt worth much but, if you didn't know how to install 7 if you have WinXP you prolly should not be downloading it.
kalewallace
on Jan 9, 2009
Just got in again... Gave me the same key. I was thinking about you @darkmax.
reddragon72
on Jan 9, 2009
ok so from what I gather the 2.5 mil keys are spent, there are no more to hand out, but as you all know we still have the 120 bomb extender that we can use VIA MS's own internal code(google it if you don't already know it) so it appears that on the main windows 7 site they are simply going to post a link to a download the ISO but no key. Oh well.....
stimshady
on Jan 9, 2009
@reddragon72: don't think so, i think they've pulled it cause of the load and it's coming back up later... see here: http://blogs.technet.com/springboard/archive/2009/01/07/windows-7-beta-h... (bottom of page with *)
EricBPhoto
on Jan 9, 2009
Don't give up hope. I just got my key. Just keep at it.
reddragon72
on Jan 9, 2009
@stimshady: the "public beta" will be VIA the official www.microsoft.com site and it will not include keys as the 2.5 mil keys were to be handed out to technet people and the "public beta" is to be just the download and he even states "best possible experianance when downloading the beta", so I doubt there will be keys there cause why would they offer only 2.5 mill to technet and then hand them out to every "public" download that just doesn't make since. just my take on the situation and only time will tell.
bdizzel
on Jan 9, 2009
how are you guys getting a key whats the link when i go to the link paul posted it says windows 7 beta will be available soon???? whats the link your using can someone please post it
EricBPhoto
on Jan 9, 2009
https://www.microsoft.com/betaexperience/productkeys/win7-64/enus/defaul...
techfan
on Jan 9, 2009
@Dipsh t Admin: Really? Awesome! Yeah. I had been planning on doing a clean install of the Beta. I'm going to see if I can get a copy of the Beta and try it out. I'm still going to be a new computer once Win7 comes out (my current machine is about 6 yeards old) but want to play with Win7 (Beta) NOW!:-)
stimshady
on Jan 9, 2009
************************************************* JUST GOT MY KEY - IT'S WORKING!!!!!! here for the 32-bit https://www.microsoft.com/betaexperience/productkeys/win7-32/enus/defaul... here for the 64-bit https://www.microsoft.com/betaexperience/productkeys/win7-64/enus/defaul...
JuryDuty
on Jan 9, 2009
I think it's interesting that the two of you who have got your key have downloaded the 64-bit version. Any chance the key is interchangeable between the two versions? If so, we could try to go for that one...
bdizzel
on Jan 9, 2009
those links you both listed route you to http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/ so how did you get a key???
stimshady
on Jan 9, 2009
keep trying, they are bringing it up
JuryDuty
on Jan 9, 2009
@bdizzel--I've noticed that in IE I'm rerouted to the Win7 blog, but in FireFox, where I got through Registration this morning, it TRIES to go to a download page. It may be that you have to have been through registration earlier in the day on that browser...?
bdizzel
on Jan 9, 2009
i think the links above are fake if you guys really got keys post them specially if you got 2 of them since the same key will work on either 32bit or 64bit same as vista
EricBPhoto
on Jan 9, 2009
Hmm interesting. Might be because earlier in the day I was able to do the registration form them get the server busy message. Might have saved it and just pulled it up later. No clue really
james3mg
on Jan 9, 2009
@bdizzel - I agree with JuryDuty...maybe if you went to hotmail or some other (formerly) passport site, sign in, and try again...? It might just be seeing that you're not signed in. FWIW, I've been trying the pages for both 32- and 64- bit keys, so if I get a 64-bit key, I'll let you know if they're interchangeable, as I'll probably install this on an old 32-bit machine :)
bdizzel
on Jan 9, 2009
i have been thru on both I.E. and Firefox earlier today so that rules that out
kalewallace
on Jan 9, 2009
@bdizzel See my earlier post with flickr photo. Nice try. Make sure you're signed into your Live account before you try to visit the posted links. If it redirects, keep trying. @stimshady, @EricBPhoto, and I all have it, so it is coming up.
stimshady
on Jan 9, 2009
i can tell u now it's not fake, i have just activated two 7 machines which i loaded up today... just keep trying. those are the correct links. i'm not posting the whole thing, but mine ends in -7HW87-3VQ6W - it's definitely not fake...
james3mg
on Jan 9, 2009
btw: anybody get a md5 key for either download? Be nice to verify the integrity, having downloaded it directly (without going through their pages, etc)
bdizzel
on Jan 9, 2009
never mind correction i some how got signed out of the site once i logged back into my live account it started to try and pull up the site again so back to press F5 for fun
stimshady
on Jan 9, 2009
i'm trying still for another, but getting errors, if i get one i'll post it (i dont need a second!)
EricBPhoto
on Jan 9, 2009
I'm not going to post my key here bdizzel. I'm pretty sure they are generated by you Live account. But I've have posted a screen shot of the page that will give you the key on my blog. Here is the link http://ericbphotography.com/
EricBPhoto
on Jan 9, 2009
@bdizzel Nice good luck man.
kalewallace
on Jan 9, 2009
@stimshady I've been in two times and it gives you the same key based on your Live account that you're signed into.
stimshady
on Jan 9, 2009
@kalewallace must be linked to Live Account then, like EricBPhoto says...
JuryDuty
on Jan 9, 2009
For those who got in, if your browser said "Waiting..." did you hit refresh until something else happened, or did you wait until it stopped each time?
bdizzel
on Jan 9, 2009
also just wondering did you guys get in thru IE or Firefox??
stimshady
on Jan 9, 2009
mine went in pretty much instantly, i just put the link in the address bar, hit enter and within about 4 or 5 seconds i had the page up with the key... took me by surprise... i think it's just a case of catching it at the right time. keep trying.
stimshady
on Jan 9, 2009
using IE 8 (on Win7 beta, just not activated!! - well, it is now). i got the 32 bit version.
bdizzel
on Jan 9, 2009
well to those of you who got one already i think your motor boatin son of ***** lol just kiddin
JuryDuty
on Jan 9, 2009
Had you registered through the technet page earlier in the day, stimshady?
hamiltonstallings
on Jan 9, 2009
I went through firefox. I opened about 7 to 8 tabs of that link (a few posts above.. the 32 bit version) and I kept refreshing all of them. After about 6 minutes one of them hit and I got the key. The download link did not work for me however, but I am already downloading it from another source.
reddragon72
on Jan 9, 2009
did you guys keep getting the "The site is currently experiencing technical difficulties, please check back in the next business day." statement then all of a sudden one of them worked?
stimshady
on Jan 9, 2009
@JuryDuty, yes i had, i filled the form out earlier this afternoon, (8am Easter Time) but that was on a different machine, don't think i even logged in this evening when i got it... messenger's not signed in, so not sure if it knew who i was... although my live mesh is connected, so might have picked up from that? (i'm in the UK).
stimshady
on Jan 9, 2009
"reddragon72 said: did you guys keep getting the "The site is currently experiencing technical difficulties, please check back in the next business day." statement then all of a sudden one of them worked?" Yes.
AHackney
on Jan 9, 2009
Id say this is why no one can get it. Some people ruin it for everyone. " hamiltonstallings said: I went through firefox. I opened about 7 to 8 tabs of that link (a few posts above.. the 32 bit version) and I kept refreshing all of them. After about 6 minutes one of them hit and I got the key. " Crazy. Also the 7 homepage changed to say they were adding more servers. I'm thinking I'm going to give up. I really wanted to try it the right way but I guess I'll just stick with my XP for a few more months.
hawkrives
on Jan 9, 2009
@stimshady; Yes, I did. I opened about 10 tabs to this link: https://www.microsoft.com/betaexperience/productkeys/win7-64/enus/defaul... , and after about 3 minets had a key. This key works on both 32 and 64 bit systems, and was achived on Windows 7 32bit using IE8
jjch84@gmail.com
on Jan 9, 2009
just informing everyone, window 7 page changed http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/default.aspx but I followed the comments here, open quite a few tabs in firefox and kept refreshing them. I signed into live beforehand. Got the key and have been for some time downloading windows 7 beta 64bit. also in the uk I guessing the key would work on both 32 and 64bit

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