RSSMicrosoft on Win7 Beta: 'The download experience was not ideal'
By Scott M. Fulton, III | Published January 12, 2009, 10:38 AM
After adding some server horsepower to the Windows 7 beta download over the weekend, some testers did manage to receive working copies. That's not to say everything's working perfectly just yet.
In Betanews tests Monday morning on four different browsers on different operating systems -- Windows XP Professional SP3 and Windows Vista SP1 -- the Download Center applet launched by Microsoft -- which typically works just fine for retrieving smaller files than the Windows 7 beta -- would not launch. That's not to say this is the same experience everyone in the world is having, but it's an indication that getting the Win7 beta remains difficult.
In a blog post Saturday, Microsoft team evangelist Brandon LeBlanc had a phrase for describing that things had been pretty bad since Friday: "Due to an enormous surge in demand, the download experience was not ideal so we listened and took the necessary steps to ensure a good experience. We have clearly heard that many of you want to check out the Windows 7 Beta and, as a result, we have decided remove the initial 2.5 million limit on the public beta for the next two weeks (thru January 24th)."
In our Monday morning trials, using Firefox 3, we were able to retrieve activation keys for Windows 7 installations -- which is further along than we got on Friday or Saturday morning. But clicking on "Download Now" ends up reloading the same page. On Internet Explorer 7, we're given the option to install Akamai's Download Center applet -- which is curious, because on these test systems, it's actually already installed. Once we clear the download of that applet through UAC, the "Beta Download Center" page reloads again, giving us the same option to download the applet. It's the only option there is for now, as straight HTTP downloads are not being offered at the moment.
Betanews will keep trying throughout the day, and if we discover a secret or trick for folks who have the same problem, we'll share it with you.
A note to all those using Vista or Windows 7 in a virtual machine:
Do not make the mistake of judging the OS performance based on how it operates in a virtual environment. The reason for this is pretty simple:
Windows Vista runs a hardware asessment prior to first log-in. Using the scores in this assessment, it tunes the system to perform based on the computers capabilities. In a virtual envirnment, these scores are anything *but* accurate and the OS will end up tuning itself to a non-optimal state.
Windows 7 does *not* run this assessment, but in it's state prior to running the "Windows Experience Index", it is running in a poorly configured state and when you do run WEI, it again configures itself to a non-realistic state as the scores are again inaccurate. This is even more telling in Widnows 7 because the system does even more tuning than Vista did.
The point? Don't use a VM. Install it to a spare PC or on another drive in your existing PC. Run your updates, install your drivers (if needed) and then run the WEI. Only then will you get an accurate measurement of how the system will perform in a real environment.
This goes for you journalists as well... I know it's easier, but it's a completely inaccurate testing environment.
(For an easy example, try running WinSAT in a Virtual PC 2007 environment. It will tell you the same thing.)
Score: 2
|After numerous attempts to download win 7 with Fox 2, which luckily resulted in 5 !!! keys but no iso, I unlocked my old IE 7.
Downloaded win7 at first try with max DSL speed.By the way, when one uses the working link on the download page, getting the keys is a no brainer.
Luck in the long run is only with the industrious.(Fredrick ll of Prussia)
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|I think I may have been lucky - I was able to download both the OS and key Sat. am. I have it installed on a separate partication alongside Vista. Windows 7 installation went without any problems, all hardware drivers were recognized except for my Nvidia graphics card which was installed when I did a system update. So far, even though I have been trying to beat it up, there still haven't been any problems.
All of that being said, so far the only plus I see over Vista is that Windows 7 seems a bit more responsive and faster. If this is the Beta the RTM should be fantastic.
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|No problem with availability: downloaded both the 32- & 64-bit versions in just under an hour on a 20Mbps connection in the UK.
Win7 installs much faster than Vista, with no issues. Also appears to run much faster on the same hardware. It's got good potential for becoming a great OS. The initial impression is that it's got even more speed than XP & even firmer stability than Vista. It's a very pleasant surprise - especially this is still just a Beta. Well worth a try.
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|I have it installed and must say while i liked vista. This is alot better.
Score: 1
|Installed on my Lenovo notebook. No problems thus far. Runs everything flawlessly and a bit faster than Vista Business did. Currently running the 32-bit version with intentions of comparing to the 64-bit. 3D accel works flawless on half-life 2, etc... runs media server to my home theater perfectly, install was fast and simple. Liking it so far and it's still beta!
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|Wow,
It's an MS love fest once again. Can I be a bitter a****** like the people with XP who refuse to accept Vista as better in a lot of ways?
I think I'll sit here and say how bad Windows 7 sucks, even though I've never used it just like the XP crowd does with Vista.
I'm bitter because I don't want to pay for a new and better O/S than the one I have now and I feel left out. (sarcasm/)
Score: -4
|Most of the people who bash Vista are ignorant Mac morons (fan boys) and XP users with low end machines. :P
You have not used Windows 7 :o, try it. It's really great
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|I'm not entirely sure about this 100% but from what was said on multiple sites anyone who has Vista will receive a free upgrade to Windows 7 on release so thats your problem with paying for a new OS sorted.
As for Vista, almost everyone who has got Windows 7 beta installed has used it, hence the badmouthing of Vista.
Vista is as useful and compatible with everything as Windows ME (ugh I hesitated mentioning that OS for a moment).
Win7 is similar to the mac in some parts, but easier to use and faster. I tested it on a crappy Dell Optiplex for crying out loud. You should see how incompatible they are with Vista but with Windows 7 they run almost as fast as the latest high budget pc's with no problems whatsoever apart from a few which the built in Action Center fixed within seconds of the incidents happening.
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|Hollywood_
Ya dummy, this is a W7 love in, no matter how shiny you polish that turd Vista, indeed make it bling like the Boulevard, but it's a still a turd hence, the stench will linger.
The point you seem to have missed here is the out of box experience, so to speak, is greater than I'm sure all but total fanbois' expectations. it could even be deemed a Revelation.
Ok some have had problems with drivers etc, not me, only a couple of proggies, and I run notebooks exclusively, have even bootcamped my MBA and running x64 on that, and not unexpectedly runs better & cooler than OSX.
Give it a try, costs nothing and is good to August 1.
Bottom line is MSFT have a multitude of enthusiastic beta testers', a side note now know their distro servers capacity, and if its final release is anything like this beta they will have a very fine OS.
Score: 1
|...and use the "submit feedback" link frequently, people!
Seriously. Don't like that Explorer starts in "libraries"? Feedback it.
Think Windows Update should do a driver update prior to first login? Feedback it.
Think the WEI should give you the option of running prior to first login? Feedback...
Who knows, they might actually listen if there's enough of it.
Score: 3
|Max think you have the wrong info,in that purchases of Vista machines after August 1 will get free update,and it may be actually out then?
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|Release is anywhere from late '09 to 1st Q '10, and where did you get the information regarding the "free upgrade after August 1st"??
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|I was kidding about paying for a new O/S. I would gladly pay for something if it is really better than Vista, all though I have not had any problems on the three machines I have.
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|That's not 100% true.
Report: PC makers to provide free Vista-to Win-7 upgrades starting July 1: http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1791
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|Tool, I was surprised that no one gave you a positive score yet for that comment, so I did on general principle.
The 'Send Feedback' link is everywhere. I agree... use it, people!
Windows 7 is supposedly the end result of Microsoft actually listening to what their customers have to say, and in turn giving them a product (or at least a glimpse of one) that reflects those recommendations. I say take advantage of it. I've used the feedback option a few times already, but I'm really waiting until I have given myself more time with the OS and can decide objectively whether or not something really needs to be changed, or if it's something that I just need to think about and get used to over time. Some of those areas are ones that you've already mentioned, Tool.
Most of the feedback I've sent is simply to tell Microsoft that they have done an excellent job so far, especially regarding the user interface (such as the new Taskbar, which I think is a fantastic evolution over the tired design of every previous version).
Not all feedback has to be negative or critical, though. Sometimes people need to hear good news, and know that they're doing something right for a change. :)
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|...but i don't care! i'm loving it!
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|Windows 7 is the best OS out there. Games run much better on 7 than on XP/Vista.
Score: 1
|All seems well on the install I have done but my video drivers. It refuses to install anything but the standard VGA drivers for the ATI X1600 mobility on mine and as such gives a performance score on graphics of 1. It will then not run any graphic intensive stuff - this would appear to be everything!!!
UPDATED - on Tuesday the driver was provided by Microsoft update and installed correctly - now I have everything turned on. Having used for half a week now alongside Vista, XP Home and XP Pro, it is incredibly fast with all graphics on.
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|Graphic drivers aren't included I guess but you can get them easily from manufacturer ati.com or nvidia.com
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|I got the serial after registering on microsofts site, and due to the servers not working, I decided to download through bittorrent. I have never been so happy with a copy of windows ever. It works a million times faster and better than Vista and XP, the antivirus is amazing and actually destroys the vundo virus before it even touch's the pc. The response time on a dell optiplex pentium 4 1.6gHz with 756mb ram is incredible. I will definitely buy it when it's fully released. There's an odd glitch with some of the games and software, but I love the new thing on it which diverts all the memory from crashed software to running software so that it doesnt halt the entire system, while its solving the problem. The Media Player 12 takes some getting used to but I like it. As for the ObjectDock style taskbar, that is more useful than the quicktask bar. Its kinda gone towards the Mac way of doing things but I have no complaints about that. When I seen Vista and used it I near considered using a Mac, but now I'm for Microsoft again :)
Score: 1
|Installed it in a VMWare VM and it was pretty much fine till I enabled 3D acceleration and upped the "video memory" to 64MB. Then Win7 freezes up when I try to launch Solitaire. Other than that, seems to be going good so far.
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|I assume you mention your problem in VMWare for the benefit of others rather than stating a problem as otherwise VMWare doesn't actively support Windows7 and so you can't expect it to function perfectly.
A lot of development goes into VMware releases to make them compatible with the Os you wish to load into your vms, hence the need to select the OS you intend to you use when you create one.
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|Guess they should have used a Linux server. Everyone knows Windows Server doesn't scale worth spit.
Score: -6
|had no problems once they added the servers
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|downloaded it thursday evening through my technet plus account. no problems there.
testing it on a Dell Precision M70 hardest component to find drivers for was the quadro FX Go1400 video driver. was able to get it to work by using the original windows XP driver from Dell and then updated it to a beta driver through the driver update from microsoft. system only has 1 GB of ram and a 1.6 GHz Pentium-M processor. because of the processor it only scores about 1.5 for the rating. isn't as smooth as XP on this system but it seems to run a heck of a lot better than windows vista SP1 did when I tried it on this same test box
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|downloaded it thursday evening through my technet plus account. no problems there.
testing it on a Dell Precision M70 hardest component to find drivers for was the quadro FX Go1400 video driver. was able to get it to work by using the original windows XP driver from Dell and then updated it to a beta driver through the driver update from microsoft. system only has 1 GB of ram and a 1.6 GHz Pentium-M processor. because of the processor it only scores about 1.5 for the rating. isn't as smooth as XP on this system but it seems to run a heck of a lot better than windows vista SP1 did when I tried it on this same test box
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|Downloaded it easily via Technet. Only two small issues with compatibility. Skype says it's incompatible but still starts, but AOL Instant Messenger crashes every time it tries to start. Otherwise, pretty smooth install.
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|SKype will not start here, pretends to start but never does, also Rhapsody Music service does not work and Logitech Pro 9000 Webcam only work limited, all in all though I am definetely skipping Vista and getting Windows 7 if the price is reasonable.
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|I am using the skype 4.0 beta with no issues. If that is what you are running, then I don't know. Don't know about real, you might check and see if there are existing work-arounds for IE8 and see if that will fix it.
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|I have Aim 6.9.2.7 I believe installed with aim hack and aim is running fine on my win7 install
My friend has it installed on his pc the latest version without the hack and he isn't having problems either...
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|LOL, good luck Your only option since you're skipping Vista is a full version, and obviously you're going to want the "ultimate" edition, since the beta shows M$ is sticking with that scheme. Prices will no doubt be right in line with Vista's so you can except to pay about $300. When the OS adds 50% to the price of a computer, it will never be "reasonable".
Score: -2
|You call that a troll post? Ignorantworld7 could run circles around you all day long...
Windows "Ultimate" is a joke. The Home Premium (Probably just "Home" for Win7) fits the bill quite nicely and if pricing stays in line should only be around $120.
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|try installing AIM Lite 3.0, works fine on my Win 7 install using it. That or Pidgin.
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|I downloaded it fine Friday....from Neowins webstie. :) As for the key I didn't get it until Saturday but it went pretty quick.
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|Had it downloaded saturday morning around 10am EST, from Vista Ult x86 on IE7. Applet loaded without any problems, and download started right away at about 200Kb/s.... Then thank you to my 20Mbps FiOS, i was over 2Mb/s for the majority... picked it up in just over a half hour.
All but my audio/video and a second NIC driver installed right away. went into the windows updates... and were installed w/out any issues. so far so good!
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|*Duplicate*
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|Download was fine for me - P2P networks working flawless and efficiently as they always do!!
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|I believe, though don't quote me, that Microsoft suggest that only IE7 or 8 Beta 2 can be used to download the Beta.
I couldn't get it on Friday as very few could. Saturday I had no problem at all and it downloaded very fast indeed.
Alas, drivers for my video card didn't work and so it was nigh on useless trying to test it.
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|What video card?
Have you tried the vista-drivers?
Usually only takes an update or two and then running WEI to enable/tune everything.
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|A pretty old Nvidia GeForce FX Go 5200. I didn't really expect it to work, and they only made one Vista driver before dropping support for it.
I'll give it a go on my desktop one day.
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|Color me surprised.
My HP ze2000 has an old ATi Mobility 200, and not only did Windows 7 detect it, after running the WEI, it enabled Aero!
Could not believe my eyes. My expectations were that it would go about the way yours did...
Score: 1
|I couldn't download it Friday (like everyone else). Sunday went off without a hitch, downloading both betas at once. I've been using the X86 beta of W7 for the past few weeks, and feel that this is the most polished Windows beta that I can rememeber since Windows 98SE. I'm so happy with it I'm going to attempt to switch to W7 now.
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|**Installed and working under a secondary partition**
Just a quick review after the install -
It's decently fast
I installed it on a P4 with 2g/ram with x1950
3.0 performance score with lowest being disk que (Score 1.0-79)
btw 7.9 on ati x1950 AGP- - wohoo!
**Driver support**
After I got the NIC driver installed (vista driver) - Windows update found 90% of my other drivers (including an update to my Linksys NIC). It also found drivers for my Razor gaming mouse/keyboard...
**Aero interface**
The thumbnail view, automatic window resizing and overall response of the interface (with my x1950) was exceptional...
- - Soon to test in a Domain Environment - -
Score: 4
|The release notes say you need IE7 or IE8 to download Windows 7.
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|It's the only option there is for now, as straight HTTP downloads are not being offered at the moment.
Here you go, Scott:
Working HTTP Download links: Direct from Microsoft -
32-bit:
http://download.microsof...te-GB1CULFRE_EN_DVD.iso
64-bit:
http://download.microsof...e-GB1CULXFRE_EN_DVD.ISO
Hashes match, speeds are good. Some have had luck with download managers, most have not. I would advise against them for these downloads.
Score: 4
|32 bit
http://findfiles.com/lis...mp;match=All&search=
64 bit
http://findfiles.com/lis...87009024&db=Mirrors
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|first time i tried was on sunday it installed the applet then first couple times the applet tried to start it crashed itself then 3 try started no and downloaded it no problem.
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|I had to wait a day and then I was able to download it on the first try. No biggie. Let's see, trying to get my Apple TV updated to "Take 2" only took three days. Oh, but we can't pick on Apple can we.
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|I had the same problem under vista x64 a couple days back - all I did to get the download to work was make sure I kicked off the download in a 32bit instance of IE to be able to use Akamai, the 64bit IE version kept on asking me to reinstall the activex control.
\Program Files (x86)\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe - hope that helps.
Score: 0
|I too got my copy of Windows 7 Saturday and the key for it. I did a upgrade
instead of a clean install. To see what would have happened on a test system
that was running MS Vista x64 SP2 beta. Only had one small issue a app.
iTunes was causing the problem, so I removed it and the problem was solved.
Still testing, but so far " NOT BAD ... :) "
Score: 2
|I'm thinking of doing an upgrade install on Vista Home Premium, SP1 and having Windows 7 as my only OS on this machine. If things go not so good is there any reason why I cannot restore my system to the Vista originally on this machine? Will a retore point be set for me to restore to?
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|No, it will overwrite the OS completely, you will need a Vista install disc/restore disk other operating system disk.
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|Just use Norton Ghost 11.5 it's right on Hiren's Boot CD 9.7. After not liking what I saw in Windows 7 I was lucky enough to have imaged my system in Ghost and simply reverted back to it in about 15 mins. Give it a whirl.
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|Thanks for the information,everyone. Much appreciated.
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|the ISO is on bittorrent trackers everywhere with the MD5 hashes, just grab it using that method now that anyone can get a key from MS servers
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|No shoot, sherlock?
This could have been handled *so* much better. Ya think they did it as a PR stunt? "We were so overwhelmed by the demand for this new OS (because it's so great, everyone and their dogs wanted a copy!)"
Yeah... That's almost exactly what they are saying now. Go figure.
Regardless, the OS runs quite well. Installed on my desktop, my wife's laptop, and an ancient HP pavilion ze2000. Amazed by the results on the HP, but it's still just an OS, people.
The downloads worked fine for me Saturday afternoon. Was using IE8 in an older Win7 release, though. Had to reload the page only once. Simply amazed they handled it this badly...
Score: 0
|I was able to get my copy of Saturday just fine. Downloaded, installed and working great. Still testing and using on my laptop that had Windows XP SP3.
Score: 1
|I got the download from Microsoft Saturday, very good download speeds. Burned the ISO and installed on an unformatted partition of a second HD with no problems. Dual boot with XP SP3, no problem. Speed is pretty decent for a beta, likely to get better. The acid test for me is whether it will, unlike Vista, install my old Office97 and the Development tools. It did install and my Access97 stuff all works. Color me surprised and pleased.
Score: 0
|You should be slapped for even getting a '97 app close to this OS.
Downloaded both 64 and 32-bit versions Saturday. Back to back no issues. Fios rocks!!
Installed the 64-bit version. Had a ghosted image of my previous build so just copied important files, like Office 11!! over, games, music, docs. Works like a charm. Gadgets don't work but from what I've read that's because i turn off the UAC.
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|I downloaded windows 7 Saturday and had no problems, put it on my laptop running windows vista, and did an upgrade, it is working fine. did have to delete my webroot software and install another anti virus program that Microsoft recommended, but everything seems to be running fine.
Score: 1
|No problem downloading on Saturday with IE 7. Burned the DVD with the ISO file and first chose to upgrade my Vista SP1 OS. After 2+ hrs, the install completed with a 'failed install' and did an automatic rollback to my original Vista SP1, only some stuff was screwed up.
Having performed a complete disk backup prior to getting started, I said what the heck and did a 'new install' which ran and completed fine and the system booted up with only one driver not loaded - my Creative Labs Soundblaster Extreme Audio card driver - no sound. I tried three different versions of drivers for it after Windows update failed to help: the latest driver from CL, a slightly older one that I'm currently using with no problems on Vista SP1, and the original driver package that came with the card (CD). No luck! So for now I've restored my drive back to Vista SP1.
You would think MS would have covered such a basic driver, even this early in the beta. Will wait and try again after giving them a couple more beta versions to get some driver compatibilities worked out.
Score: 1
|Did you post your feedback to Microsoft? Send feedback should be on their website and one icon should also be on desktop... Beta testing is meant to give info for fixes! Fixes will be downloaded during the time when Auto Update is enabled...
Sad to hear your incompatibility with Vista driver , they wrote that Win 7 is based on Vista and all hardware drivers should work 100%...
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