January 9, 2009 4:52 PM PST

Where's Windows 7 beta? Microsoft posts, then pulls the download

by Jessica Dolcourt
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Windows 7 beta is late

Microsoft's message as of 4:50 PM PST.

(Credit: CNET)

Microsoft has been in the software game long enough to know that when you're announcing a release as big as an operating system to millions of itchy-fingered techies, you release it when you say you will and you have the foresight to get your servers in a row.

Yet, the general release of the much-anticipated Windows 7 beta is overdue by hours, Microsoft having first posted the files late, and then pulled them when servers buckled under the traffic. What's left now is a sort-of apologetic, but mostly noncommittal notice that there's no estimated arrival time for the download links, and a lot of angry people disappointed in Redmond once again.

A Microsoft PR representative I got hold of on the Consumer Electronics Show floor had no additional insight.

Lifehacker posted direct download links earlier Friday for your 32- and 64-bit PCs, with a few cursory instructions for installing the ISO files. We'll also host the Windows 7 beta files when we get them, on CNET Download.com.

Jessica Dolcourt reviews the latest and greatest smartphone apps, in addition to a healthy dose of Windows software. E-mail Jessica and follow her on Twitter.
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CES - Computers and hardware

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CES 2009,

Microsoft 7 beta

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Add a Comment (Log in or register) Showing 1 of 2 pages (49 Comments)
by yuppers519 January 9, 2009 5:14 PM PST
I Am downloading from microsoft right now. they did not pull the download link. They just made it unavailable to get to. But if you google or yahoo it, people that have allready downloaded it have posted the link directly to the download.
Reply to this comment
by vivalamexico January 11, 2009 9:41 PM PST
I have the clean 64 bit iso if someone needs a upload to post on cnet?
by Wei_Zhu January 9, 2009 5:33 PM PST
Thanks for the direct download it. I just downloaded it. It took less than 15 min for download the 3.7G ISO file.
Reply to this comment
by johnk300 January 9, 2009 5:46 PM PST
Where's the direct download you found?
by ZetaZeta_ January 9, 2009 5:47 PM PST
Well, I already have the ISO from other sources, but how does one get a Product Key? I'll have to wait for that. Hope I don't have to download the whole thing just for a string of text.
Reply to this comment
by bakedpatato January 9, 2009 5:50 PM PST
That's the point of these(Cnet's and other websites) posts, we who downloaded the beta via other sources have to wait untill the web site comes back with keys.
by GorvernmentHacker January 10, 2009 8:46 AM PST
check out this page to get your serial key...you need to have a Windows Live account. http://www.neowin.net/news/main/09/01/10/psstheres-how-to-get-your-windows-7-beta-key
by Lanes Merge January 9, 2009 5:53 PM PST
Is Microsoft suffering from low self esteem? I mean really! They didn't expect the requests for the Windows 7 Beta download [obviously]. Lifehacker and Neowin have the direct links to the iso download but they seem to cut out at about a quarter of the way through the download process. :-( I have no complaints about Windows Vista and I heard Windows 7 is really, really good. I want to try it (so frustrating), COME ON MICROSOFT! Get your giant corporation moving and get enough servers and/or mirror sites online. You promised us Windows 7 Beta and now we want it!
Reply to this comment
by karpenterskids January 9, 2009 6:02 PM PST
Either Microsoft under-anticipated demand for the beta, or else there are a LOT of people interested in Window 7...hopefully (For Microsoft's sake, anyways), it's the latter.
Reply to this comment
by myles taylor January 9, 2009 11:30 PM PST
Or both?
by flickrz January 9, 2009 6:35 PM PST
I downloaded from the link posted by lifehacker and installed it. It works like a charm. So far I am very impressed especially being newly converted Mac guy. It works well with VMWare Fusion.
Reply to this comment
by myles taylor January 9, 2009 11:31 PM PST
I was wondering about that. I thought about installing it in my VM. Do VMWare tools work in it okay?
by damion74 January 9, 2009 6:35 PM PST
Shenanigans! I, as many others I am sure have been hitting Microsoft's http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/ every 5 minutes since noon EST. While I was waiting and wondering did a little browsing around. Reading other sites n such making sure I wasn't missing something. Around 2pm Found a post on wired with the links to the download. I have been trying to download since with it timing out around 312mb-800mb. No luck but still trying. Also would like to point out that unless it was during that 5 min windows that I was refreshing the page it was never posted. I thought it was funny when I saw the response "We're sorry for the delay and we'll re-post the Beta as soon as we can ensure a quality download experience". RE POST? Never was posted from what I saw. Also comment was not added tell a few hours after they posted that on there http://windowsteamblog.com/blogs/MainFeed.aspx. I was refreashing well after I saw that particular post. When I saw it kinda reworded on the microsoft 7 site to say they will re post. I was like bullsh@ it was never posted.
Reply to this comment
by lyngenberry January 9, 2009 6:47 PM PST
Their serial number link (posted in lifehacker) returns a strange ODBC error now. Lets just say - this does not inspire confidence in the set of Microsoft technologies. MS downloads served from a MS web server connecting to a MS database over a MS database connection protocol. Is there any wonder that this is quickly being overwhelmed by a very small number of users. Yes, a couple of million users from an internet standpoint is very small. Could they have competed vs Firefox's world record setting Firefox 3 download day? Not a chance.
Reply to this comment
by Daral0085 January 9, 2009 7:25 PM PST
"Yes, a couple of million users from an internet standpoint is very small. Could they have competed vs Firefox's world record setting Firefox 3 download day?"<br /><br />Firefox 3 = 7.1 MB. Windows = 3.7 GB. As math goes, 1 M Windows downloads x 3.7 GB = 3.7 PB.<br /><br />3 M Firefox downloads x 7.1 MB = 21 TB. Increasing load by 100x is nontrivial. actually a 3.7 PB load on any website is nontrivial, even according to an "internet standpoint".
by lyngenberry January 9, 2009 7:37 PM PST
I think you fail to get that the thing that is failing is NOT the big download. It's the database served pages that lead up to the download - the ones that ask for a login, and provide a serial number. These are at most 400 kb in size - a trivial bandwidth size. And they fail because MS fails to code any of their web pages for large amount of traffic - not because their bandwidth has been exceeded.
by HlLLARY CLITON January 9, 2009 6:59 PM PST
working great I love it. Loaded it onto an old laptop
Reply to this comment
by gsmiller88 January 9, 2009 7:31 PM PST
This is a time when BitTorrent technology would come in very handy.
Reply to this comment
by rapier1 January 9, 2009 9:41 PM PST
BitTorrent wouldn't have helped them in this case. They have plenty of network capacity. The issue is stemming from distribution of the product keys and having them properly tied to a registered user profile. Its more of a database issue than a network issue.
by tm_anon January 9, 2009 11:16 PM PST
@rapier1<br /><br />setting up product keys direct from the website just doesn't seem like such a good idea. Having a certain number randomly created, then released as people install the beta would be a much better idea. Have a basic OS, limited, able to connect to the internet, but not able to surf. Let it get its random key, then restart. MS would know where the OS is and people wouldn't be crowding the site all at the same time.
by khymbote January 9, 2009 7:54 PM PST
If you search properly you can find the links and a how to on getting the key. The sites haven't been pulled just Microsoft taking the links off their site.
Reply to this comment
by tm_anon January 9, 2009 8:10 PM PST
Fact remains, for a new version of Ubuntu downloaded, the worst you get is a slowdown of data, not a complete loss of ability to download it. Mentioning the size of the download also shows how much of a size difference there is in comparable OS's. Ubuntu is comparable to Vista in abilities, but in size, Ubuntu kicks ass, being only 700MBs and able to run most peripherals without installing any extra drivers not already included. If the only parts of Ubuntu to be included in the download involved only the parts necessary to compete with Vista, the download would be even smaller. Sure, Windows 7 may be great, but where's all that extra fluff in the programming coming from? XP is roughly the same size as Windows 7 and I get more functionality from Ubuntu. Vista takes more system resources, not just drive space, but RAM and processor power as well, but I get all the perks minus DirectX (proprietary MS technology, Apple doesn't have it either) and I'm using many fewer system resources. I'm not saying Linux is better, I'm not saying MS sucks, I'm saying the programming sizes are really out of hand.
Reply to this comment
by spazman70 January 9, 2009 8:37 PM PST
Microsoft are so far behind its sad. Hurry along Google OS. Why can't Microsofy implement their own torrent based protocol that pools clients based on location? Its 2009 yet Microsoft are still using 1990's software distribution methods that are clearly out of date. Very very frustration Microsoft fan.
Reply to this comment
by rapier1 January 9, 2009 9:39 PM PST
Its not a network capacity problem. Its related to tying the product key to a registered user profile.
by randyspaw January 9, 2009 9:36 PM PST
Who cares?! Get over it ! We will all have it soon enough. What's the big deal? 6 months from now we'll ALL be BORED with it :o( ! You'll get it when you get it, there :o) ! Now go and find something else to complain about !!!
Reply to this comment
by JamesXFree January 9, 2009 10:05 PM PST
Gee, how could Microsoft have known there'd be such a large traffic hit to their site after they make an announcement for us all to be sure to log onto their site at the same time to make sure we get our beta copy? They seem to be far more adept these days at making excuse after excuse when things go wrong instead of making sure things go right. There are many solutions to make sure what happened to their download site today didn't happen, but that would have required FORWARD thinking and lately that's not something they've been very good at.
Reply to this comment
by zimz2689 January 9, 2009 11:07 PM PST
Yes, I finally got one!!!!
Reply to this comment
by SkateNY January 10, 2009 6:49 AM PST
Microsoft announces a delay on one of their products? What are the odds?
Reply to this comment
by sparrowhyperion January 10, 2009 7:12 AM PST
Microsoft is overdue on releasing an OS (even a Beta one), and people are actually surprised!?!?!?! We should be used to it by now.
Reply to this comment
by cshefman January 10, 2009 7:43 AM PST
Someone just pointed me to this method http://blog.hznet.nl/2009/01/10/how-to-receive-a-valid-windows-7-key which seems to work for getting a key. Don't know how they managed it, but I'm not asking questions!
Reply to this comment
by cshefman January 10, 2009 7:56 AM PST
And according to a google search anyways, it seems that they're issuing duplicate keys to people, and they're activating on multiple people's computers with no problem at all. Maybe they're scrapping the activation thing altogether?
by dabrace1984 January 10, 2009 7:56 AM PST
I got it. I am an MCP and I subscribe to several of Microsoft's weekly newsletter. Their hardware newsletter was sent out yesterday and it had an invitation code which allowed me to download it from http://connect.microsoft.com. I installed it in a VM and it's sluggish in this environment but semi-usable. My biggest concerns are related to the Quick Launch Bar and the Taskbar. I find that the redesign makes it difficult to tell the difference between shortcuts in the QLB and already opened programs in the TB. Also, the time/date section of the notification area takes up to lines by default. I have checked to see if it can be make smaller.
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