Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 VHD (i.e. Virtual Machine) now available for download!
Since posting the blog entry a couple of weeks ago about the MOSS 2007 Technical Resources DVD that was distributed to every TechEd Orlando attendee, numerous people have asked about how they can get a copy of it. While I'm still working out the details (the VM corruption problem has caused a delay in my original plan to make the DVD broadly available by June 15th), there is now an alternative way for you to download the VM portion of the DVD.
Here's the blurb from the download page:
This download enables you evaluate Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007. Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 is an integrated suite of server capabilities that can help improve organizational effectiveness by providing comprehensive content management and enterprise search, accelerating shared business processes, and facilitating information-sharing across boundaries for better business insight. Office SharePoint Server 2007 supports all intranet, extranet, and Web applications across an enterprise within one integrated platform, instead of relying on separate fragmented systems. Additionally, this collaboration and content management server provides IT professionals and developers with the platform and tools they need for server administration, application extensibility, and interoperability.
This fully functional pre-configured VHD provides you a trial software will automatically expire after 30 days. This is a preconfigured virtual machine contained within the Virtual Hard Disk (VHD) format. Virtual Server 2005 R2 is required to run this VHD.
The virtual machine includes a copy of the MOSS 2007 Product Evaluation Guide (right on the Windows Desktop) and is configured so that the functional walkthrough at the end of the Eval Guide works hand-in-hand with it. That's just brilliant! :-) Much thanks to Woody Windischman (a SharePoint MVP) and my colleague, Richard Riley, for making this useful resource available!
Now, go get the VHD from here!
[Update 10/17/2007 -- The following are normal characteristics of the demo VM:
- After boot and login, you get a dialog with the license terms, and the Server Manager screen.
- A few minutes later, you get two balloon messages: 1 about running Windows update, and 1 about the 30 day expiration.
- Unless you give the VM access to the Internet, ignore the Windows Update balloon.
- Unless you have an MSDN or TechNet key for Windows Server 2003 Enterprise Edition R2, ignore the activation balloon. No other license key, not even Select or Enterprise keys, will activate the VM.
- The activation balloon will count down until 30 days have passed, at which point you will either need to start over with a clean (never booted) copy of the VM, or activate it with the MSDN/TechNet key. No other methods of extending the life of the VM are supported.
- Using one of the above keys will activate the VM through October 2008.
- After October 2008 the VM will become inoperative in all cases - activated or not.
]
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