Today marks an exciting and important milestone in our Windows 8 project. Our Windows team announced today the completion of Windows 8 Release To Manufacturing (RTM). Starting today we release Windows 8 RTM to our OEM and manufacturing partners as they work towards delivery of exciting new PC models that will be available this fall starting October 26th at Windows 8 General Availability (GA). Today also marks the beginning of our internal, MSIT-driven deployment of Windows 8 RTM across the company.
We have been encouraged by the breadth of Windows 8 participation and feedback we have received since deploying Windows 8 Release Preview in May – both internally and externally. The Consumer Preview and Release Preview of Windows 8 have been the most widely and deeply tested releases of any product we have developed and delivered. Internally we have deployed over 35,000 seats of Windows 8 Release Preview thus far, and seen broad engagement in .... and through all of our telemetry paths that have given us valuable feedback on Windows 8. This data and feedback have been invaluable in helping us complete Windows 8 RTM - thank you to all who have been a part of this.
We also want to take this opportunity to thank all of our partner teams across Microsoft product groups whose work has been important in developing Windows 8. In addition, our MSIT and CSS teams have also been tireless partners whose perspectives, input and work with us have helped us deliver the best release of Windows ever.
Windows 8 RTM is the final milestone in our development cycle before we bring Windows 8 to over a billion people worldwide at GA. It is also an important milestone for our partners and business customers.
· For OEM partners, RTM means they can go through final testing, certification, and prepare images for new PCs that will ship with Windows 8.
· IT professionals who are testing Windows 8 for their organization can get the final version of Windows 8 through their TechNet subscriptions.
· Developers will also soon be able to download the final version of Windows 8 through MSDN subscriptions as they continue to build compelling new apps for the Windows Store, or test compatibility with current Windows 7 apps.
To ensure that you have the best experience at work with Windows 8, it’s important that everyone at Microsoft install the MSIT image on your work machines in our MSIT environment (and not the public release). The MSIT image includes the necessary applications and settings needed to keep you instantly productive at work, including Office 2013 Customer Preview. Our MSIT team will send you an email over the next few days with installation guidelines as our internal deployments begin to roll out building by building. At that time, we encourage you to install Windows 8 (the MSIT image) yourself. As many of you have noted with the last Windows 8 milestone (Windows 8 Release Preview), installing Windows 8 is fast and easy.
In the meantime, you can visit the ITWeb Site for internal support, installation, application compatibility, internal apps, and more.
After you’ve installed Windows 8, please take time to learn about it and get involved at our internal site ... where you can ask questions, find answers, and get support from experts.
We also encourage you to share what you like about Windows 8 with customers, partners, families and friends.
Here are some great resources to help you learn more about the Windows 8 RTM and prepare for business conversations:
· Get the latest information about Windows 8 RTM on B8 blog
· Review the news and press materials: Microsoft News Center
· Get updates and information unique for Windows developers: Windows Dev Center
· Download the MSIT image of the Windows 8 RTM: Windows 8 RTM MSIT Image
· Learn about the product and get information about Windows 8 field readiness: Windows8Ready
This is an exciting milestone for everyone at Microsoft and an important step in bringing Windows 8 to market for GA this fall.
On behalf of our Windows and MSIT teams, thank you in advance for being a part of Windows 8 RTM!