Microsoft Announces SQL Server 2008 RTM

For those of you eagerly anticipating the release of SQL Server 2008 the wait is over. Microsoft announced today that SQL Server 2008 has been released to manufacturing. The RTM of SQL Server 2008 comes almost six months after the launch of the product on February 27 of this year, along with Visual Studio 2008 and Windows Server 2008. The other products in the triumvirate RTMed months ago.

According to Microsoft, SQL Server 2008 is available today for MSDN and TechNet subscribers. The product will be available for evaluation download on Aug. 7, 2008. SQL Server 2008 Express and SQL Server Compact editions are available for free download today.

Over the last months pre-release versions of the product have been available via download to early adopters through a vigorous community technology preview (CTP) program. Microsoft says that there have been “more than 450,000 customer and partner downloads of SQL Server 2008’s CTPs.” In addition the company says that “more than 75 large-scale applications [are] already in production and more than 1,350 applications [are] being developed by nearly 1,000 independent software vendors (ISVs) on SQL Server 2008.”

While SQL Server 2008 isn’t the giant leap forward that SQL Server 2005 was, the product offers a number of new and improved data management, business intelligence (BI), and development features including support for policy-based management, auditing, large-scale data warehousing, geospatial data, and advanced reporting and analysis services. Ted Kummert, corporate vice president of the Data and Storage Platform Division at Microsoft, notes that “SQL Server 2008 is the only major database that includes comprehensive, tightly integrated functionality for data management as well as advanced business intelligence out of the box. By offering a complete solution, we save customers time and money and allow them to focus on deriving the most value from their data assets.”

Microsoft offers seven editions of SQL Server 2008:

As Microsoft has announced previously, pricing for SQL Server will not increase with SQL Server 2008.

For in-depth coverage of the new features in SQL Server 2008 and practical information about migrating to the new release check out these articles and videos: “Migrating to SQL Server 2008,” “What’s New in SQL Server 2008,” “SQL Server as a Data Platform. . . Finally,” “How Do I Upgrade to SQL Server 2008,” “New Datatypes in SQL Server 2008,” and “Can’t Wait for SQL Server 2008.”

For commentary on the delayed SQL Server 2008 RTM see “Microsoft Pushes SQL Server 2008 RTM Back to Third Quarter 2008.”