Builds

Builds

Milestone 1

The first known build of Windows 7 was identified as a "Milestone 1 (M1) code drop" according to TG Daily with a version number of 6.1.6519.1. It was sent to key Microsoft partners by January 2008 in both x86 and x86-64 versions. Though not yet commented on by Microsoft, reviews and screenshots have been published by various sources. The M1 code drop installation comes as either a standalone install or one which requires Windows Vista with Service Pack 1, and creates a dual-boot system.

On 20 April 2008, screenshots and videos of a second build of M1 were leaked with a version number of 6.1.6574.1. This build included changes to Windows Explorer as well as a new Windows Health Center.

Milestone 2

According to the TG Daily article of 16 January 2008, the Milestone 2 (M2) code drop was at that time scheduled for April or May 2008. A Milestone 2 build was demonstrated at the D6 conference with a build number of 6.1.6589.1.x86fre.winmain_win7m2.080420-1634. The build had a different taskbar than found in Windows Vista, with, among other features, sections divided into different colors. The host declined to comment on it, stating "I'm not supposed to talk about it now today".

Milestone 3
According to Paul Thurrott, Milestone 3 (build 6780) was shipped to Microsoft employees and close partners in the week of 7 September 2008. Described as visually and functionally similar to Windows Vista by Mary Jo Foley of ZDNet and Stephen Chapman of UX Evangelist,[28] some bundled applications in Milestone 3 now use a ribbon interface similar to that of Office 2007.

Many applications that had been integrated into previous versions of Windows have been removed, including Calendar, Contacts, Mail, Meeting Space, Movie Maker, and Photo Gallery and are available as downloads in the Windows Live Wave 3 beta release.WinFuture.de has since leaked 192 images of Windows 7 build 6780.

Build 6801
On 8 October 2008, screenshots of Windows 7 build 6801 were leaked. On 28 October 2008, Microsoft distributed build 6801 to attendees at its Professional Developers Conference (PDC). It has since been leaked to bittorrent networks.[34] It features an enhanced taskbar similar to the one in build 6933 although it is disabled by default. An unofficial patch has been released to enable the new taskbar in build 6801.

Pre-Beta 1
Microsoft also demonstrated build 6933.winmain.081020-1842 during the PDC, but did not give it to attendees. On 14 November 2008, screenshots of Windows 7 build 6936 were leaked by Winfuture. On November 20, 2008, Microsoft posted screenshots of build 6948 on the Engineering Windows 7 blog.

Beta 1
Beta 1 is to be released in early 2009.

Release Candidate
The release candidate for Windows 7 will be available after Beta 1.

Final Build
While officially Microsoft has stated that Windows 7 will be released three years after Vista was shipped, the company has indicated that it plans to release Windows 7 in mid-2009, in time for installation on PCs that will ship for the Christmas 2009 buying season.