Windows 8.1, Windows 8.1 RT and Windows Server 2012 R2 officially RTM'd

Microsoft officially confirmed on August 27 that Windows 8.1 and Windows 8.1 RT have been RTM'd.

Microsoft also confirmed that it would not be made available early to any customers, including MSDN and TechNet subscribers. The software will become downloadable globally on October 18th

Windows 8.1 will be free for existing Windows 8 users, but it's unknown what it will cost for those looking to upgrade from previous versions of Windows.

Microsoft also released to manufacturing Windows Server 2012 R2 today, August 27.  No MSDN and TechNet subscribers will be getting the gold bits until October 18.

Microsoft plans to continue to update the RTM bits right up until the time of launch. Brad Anderson said:  “Because this release was built and delivered at a much faster pace than past products, and because we want to ensure that you get the very highest quality product, we made the decision to complete the final validation phases prior to distributing the release.”

So, what is available for download today?

You can download a preview copy of Windows Server 2012 R2 here:  http://technet.microsoft.com/en-US/evalcenter/dn205286

Preview copy of Windows 8.1: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows-8/preview?ocid=blprev_pr_wom

Additional Information:

Readying Windows 8.1 for release: http://blogs.windows.com/windows/b/bloggingwindows/archive/2013/08/27/readying-windows-8-1-for-release.aspx

Today is the RTM for Windows Server 2012 R2! http://blogs.technet.com/b/in_the_cloud/archive/2013/08/27/today-is-the-rtm-for-windows-server-2012-r2.aspx

UPDATED FAB4 Links for IT Pros: http://blogs.technet.com/b/bobh/archive/2013/08/27/updated-fab4-links-for-it-pros.aspx …

Microsoft confirms Windows 8.1 RTM; no early access to final bits http://zd.net/145zghr

Microsoft releases Windows 8.1 to manufacturers ahead of October 18 launch - http://engt.co/181bG7L

Windows 8.1 officially finished, nobody to get it until launch day http://ars.to/12HugC2 

Windows 8.1 is officially finished, but everyone has to wait until October 18th
http://vrge.co/17h0upv

Microsoft: Windows Server 2012 R2 goes gold http://zd.net/145DbuG

Windows 8.1 RTMs -- but developers won't get it until October http://www.infoworld.com/t/microsoft-windows/windows-81-rtms-developers-wont-get-it-until-october-225693

Microsoft confirms Windows 8.1 RTM, but expect a large bug-fixing patch on release day http://bit.ly/15eqcNh

When RTM is No Longer RTM http://ow.ly/ojDhk

Now all Windows developers have been thrown under the bus http://zd.net/19WZFWL

Why is Microsoft keeping the final release of Windows 8.1 secret? http://zd.net/19Z0DSk


 

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Additional Resources:

Microsoft Solution Accelerators: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/solutionaccelerators/default.aspx