Anyone who installed the Release Candidate for Windows 7 should have known that it would eventually expire – Microsoft told you that when you downloaded it.
Well, the counter has now started… Windows 7 RC will begin to shutdown without saving your work every 2 hours starting March 1st. Here is the email Microsoft has sent out:
It’s time to upgrade from the Windows 7 Release Candidate
While most people who tested Windows 7 have now moved to the final version, some are still running the Release Candidate. If you haven’t moved yet, it’s time to replace the RC.Starting on March 1, 2010 your PC will begin shutting down every two hours. Your work will not be saved during the shutdown.
The Windows 7 RC will fully expire on June 1, 2010. Your PC running the Windows 7 RC will continue shutting down every two hours and your files won’t be saved during shutdown. In addition, your wallpaper will change to a solid black background with a persistent message on your desktop. You’ll also get periodic notifications that Windows isn’t genuine. That means your PC may no longer be able to obtain optional updates or downloads requiring genuine Windows validation.
To avoid interruption, please reinstall a prior version of Windows or move to Windows 7. In either case, you’ll need to do a custom (clean) install to replace the RC. As with any clean installation, you’ll need to back up your data then reinstall your applications and restore the data. For more details about replacing the RC, see the Knowledge Base article KB 971767 . For more information, visit the Window 7 Forum .
Thanks again for helping us test Windows 7.
The Windows 7 Team
I’m sure this will result in plenty of complaints from the idiots of this world. When I first installed it and was looking around for information I was amazed at the number of people who had shifted their entire lives over to Windows 7 – even though it was trial software and would expire at some stage. Microsoft was quite clear on that.
I used my time with RC1 to do exactly what it was intended for – to make sure I knew how to use it and what problems I might find. To date, only my G4010 scanner has been an issue, and I knew that while I was using W7 RC1.
I purchased the proper version of W7 as soon as it became available.