Free Windows 7 Service Pack beta due next month

The first service pack for Windows 7 (SP1) will be released next month as a free beta from Microsoft.

The software giant confirmed the launch on the Windows blog, but warned customers no major new features would be unveiled.

"SP1 will simply be the combination of updates already available through Windows Update and additional hot-fixes based on feedback by our customers and partners," wrote Gavriella Schuster, general manager of Windows at Microsoft.

"In other words, customers can feel confident about deploying Windows 7 now!"

Schuster also claimed Microsoft had shipped more than 100 million licences of Windows 7 since its release last year.

She also cited a study by Dimensional Research and KACE, which showed 16 per cent of IT professional were running the OS currently, with 42 per cent planning to by the end of 2010.

The beta will be available for download from the end of July.

Jennifer Scott is a former freelance journalist and currently political reporter for Sky News. She has a varied writing history, having started her career at Dennis Publishing, working in various roles across its business technology titles, including ITPro. Jennifer has specialised in a number of areas over the years and has produced a wealth of content for ITPro, focusing largely on data storage, networking, cloud computing, and telecommunications.

Most recently Jennifer has turned her skills to the political sphere and broadcast journalism, where she has worked for the BBC as a political reporter, before moving to Sky News.