Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 R2 Service Pack 1 beta 1 and related roadmap now available

Microsoft has now officially launched the Service Pack 1 beta program for Virtual Server 2005 R2.

This beta 1 features:

  • Intel Virtualization Technology (VT) support
  • VBS scripts and the related whitepaper for Host OS Clustering

A second beta is expected after the availability of AMD I/O Virtualization Technology delivered with Opteron socket 1207 somewhere in Q3 2006, and will feature:

  • AMD I/O Virtualization Technology support
  • Active Directory integration and management features
  • Volume Shadow Service support (for virtual machines hot backup)
  • Additional host and guest OSes support

The Service Pack 1 RTM is expected for Q1 2007.

Download beta 1 here.