April 17, 2013 Update: This virtual machine and corresponding hands-on-labs / demo scripts have been upgraded to use Visual Studio 2012 Update 2. All labs were revised slightly based on Update 2, with two labs gaining new exercises which demonstrate Update 2 capabilities. Updated labs are listed in the table below.

I’m very pleased to announce the availability of the Visual Studio 2012 RTM ALM Virtual Machine along with 21 hands-on-labs / demo scripts. This includes 9 ALM scenarios which are new in Visual Studio 2012, and another 12 scenarios which were introduced in Visual Studio 2010, giving you a single virtual environment for learning about or demonstrating a wide range of ALM capabilities.

You can download and install Visual Studio 2012 (and Team Foundation Server 2012, .NET Framework 4.5, etc.). But if you would like a fast way to understand what is new for application lifecycle management in this release, this virtual machine is pre-configured with all of the necessary software and sample data for you.

Before I get into what’s included, there are a few quick limitations to disclose:

• This is a Hyper-V virtual machine and works with Windows Server 2008 x64, Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1, Windows 8 (with SLAT-capable processors) and Windows Server 2012. If you try to load this with Virtual PC it will blue screen since Virtual PC does not support 64-bit operating systems.
• Windows is configured to set the system clock to May 16, 2012 every time you start this virtual machine. This is to support the project management hands-on-lab. If you want to work with this virtual machine beyond the specific hands-on-labs scenarios, you may need to disable the Set Date and Time task (Task Scheduler -> Task Scheduler Library -> Set Date and Time -> Right-Click -> Disable).
• Please take a few minutes to read the “Working with…” document for some important instructions on properly importing and working with this virtual machine.

With the limitations out of the way, onto the fun stuff…

This virtual machine is configured with:

• Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 Standard Edition
• Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2
• Microsoft Visual Studio Ultimate 2012 Update 2
• Microsoft Visual Studio Team Foundation Server 2012 Update 2
• Microsoft SharePoint Foundation 2010
• Microsoft Project 2010
• Microsoft Office Professional 2010 (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook)
• Microsoft Visio 2010
• Sample users and data required to support hands-on-lab scripts which accompany this download and exercise 21 ALM scenarios, including 8 new capabilities from Visual Studio 2012 and 12 capabilities which were originally introduced in the Visual Studio 2010 release.

Downloading the virtual machine and labs:
I suggest using a download manager for these files since they are very large. My download manager of choice is Free Download Manager. You can use your own favorite download manager, but you may need to adapt the instructions below as appropriate.

1. Download and install Free Download Manager. This utility provides:
- Auto-resume support for interrupted downloads.
- Multiple simultaneous download streams for (usually) a much faster download experience.
- As the name implies, it's completely free.
2. Select the URL’s below and copy (CTRL+C) them to your clipboard.

###Start - Do Not Include This Line###
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Working with the Visual Studio 2012 Update 2 RTM ALM Virtual Machine.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Agile Project Management in Visual Studio Team Foundation Server 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Authoring and Running Manual Tests using Microsoft Test Manager 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Branching and Merging Visualization with Visual Studio Team Foundation Server 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Building the Right Software - Generating Storyboards and Collecting Stakeholder Feedback with Visual Studio 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Code Discovery using the Architecture Tools in Visual Studio Ultimate 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Debugging with IntelliTrace using Visual Studio Ultimate 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Diagnosing Issues in Production with IntelliTrace and Visual Studio 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Exploratory Testing and Other Enhancements in Microsoft Test Manager 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Lab Management Improvements in Visual Studio 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Introduction to Coded UI Tests with Visual Studio Ultimate 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Introduction to Platform Testing with Microsoft Test Manager 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Introduction to PreEmptive Analytics.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Introduction to Test Case Management with Microsoft Test Manager 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Introduction to Test Planning with Microsoft Test Manager 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Making Developers More Productive with Visual Studio Team Foundation Server 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Understanding Class Coupling with Visual Studio Ultimate 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Unit Testing, Code Coverage and Code Clone Analysis with Visual Studio 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Using Code Analysis with Visual Studio 2012 to Improve Code Quality.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Using the Architecture Explorer in Visual Studio Ultimate 2012 to Analyze Your Code.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Introduction to Web Performance and Load Testing with Visual Studio Ultimate 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/Testing and Debugging SharePoint 2010 Applications with Visual Studio 2012.docx
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part01.exe
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part02.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part03.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part04.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part05.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part06.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part07.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part08.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part09.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part10.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part11.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part12.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part13.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part14.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part15.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part16.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part17.rar
http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/9/2/A9253B14-5F23-4BC8-9C7E-F5199DB5F831/VisualStudio2012Update2.RTM.ALM.part18.rar
###End - Do Not Include This Row In Your Selection###

3. Launch the user interface for Free Download Manager (either from the Start Menu or via the system tray icon if FDM is already running).
4. Click File -> Import -> Import List of URLs from Clipboard.
5. When prompted for a download group, accept the default and click OK.
6. You are now free to minimize Free Download Manager while the files download. By default, they will be saved to c:\downloads.
7. Expand the files and self-extracting RAR set and see the “Working with…” document for more instructions.

I hope you will enjoy this content as a way of learning how Visual Studio can help you improve your team’s overall application lifecycle management capabilities. If you have suggestions for how to improve this virtual machine and set of demos / hands-on-labs please let me know.