Microsoft Virtual Server beta shifted to early January

As reported by BetaPlace, Virtual Server beta testers received the following email:

“The Virtual Server team has added some major pieces of functionality to the Virtual Server product since the Customer Preview build (219) was released earlier this year. These include a full security sweep and audit of the code base, new security settings per Virtual Machine and Virtual Network, virtualized SCSI hardware in the Virtual Machines and cluster failover support between Virtual Machines on the same physical server.

As can happen when large pieces of functionality are added to a product, there have been a larger than expected volume of issues reported during the first round of internal testing of the now feature complete build. We plan to hold the release of the Beta until we are satisfied that it reaches a level of stability and functionality that our customers expect from our products. As a result of this, and the holiday period, the start date for the Virtual Server Beta program has been moved out to early Q1 next year. A firmer date will be provided as we get closer to the release. We apologize for this slip in schedule, but we believe it is the right thing to do. We fully expect the beta release to be a feature complete and stable release.”