Microsoft to ship Vista SP2 beta to testers this week

Microsoft said Friday that it would deliver the beta of Windows Vista Service Pack 2 (SP2) this coming week to a limited number of testers. The company targeted SP2's ship date for the first half of 2009, well before the expected release of Windows 7, Vista's successor.

In postings to company blogs, several Microsoft executives announced that the Vista SP2 beta would be given out to a small number of testers in the Technology Adoption Program, a long-standing group of company partners and customers, on Oct. 29.

After Mike Nash, vice president of Windows product management, broke the news mid-day Friday, Celine Allee, a director in the Windows client IT team, followed with more information, including a tentative ship date.

"We anticipate broad availability for Windows Vista SP2 in the first half of 2009," Allee said.

A week ago, the Windows enthusiast site Neowin.net reported that testers had received invitations to join the beta program, while others speculated that Microsoft would deliver Vista SP2 before it shipped Windows 7.

Nash and Allee also said that Microsoft would produce a single service pack that would update both the client version, Vista, and the company's corresponding server software, Windows Server 2008. "Because we've adopted a single serviceability model, these improvements are integrated into a single service pack covering both Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008," said Nash.

They also confirmed the report by Neowin.net that SP2 will include Windows Search 4, Bluetooth 2.1 wireless support and support for Via Technologies Inc.'s 64-bit processor. Currently, Via is best known for its C7 chip, which powers some ultralight "netbook" laptops, including Hewlett-Packard Co.'s Mini-Note.

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