While supplies last: A 90-day trial version of Windows 7

This is one of those good news/bad news situations. The good new? Microsoft has made available a 90-day evaluation version of Windows 7 Enterprise. The bad? It will only be made available until March 31, 2010 or, far more likely, while supplies last. The issue, it seems, is that there are only a certain, unspecified number of Product Keys available. And once they're gone, the eval version will be pulled. Microsoft's Stephen Rose explains: Many IT pros we talk to have been looking for a way to continue their work with the Release Candidate to test their applications, hardware and deployment strategies with final Windows 7 bits. In response, we have created the Windows 7 Enterprise 90 Day trial edition, available beginning today. This evaluation version is for IT Professionals who do not yet have access to Windows 7 RTM. [It] will provide a means to have the final released code for evaluation and testing. This evaluation release is specifically intended for IT professionals responsible for desktop administration; consumers will be able to purchase Windows 7 on October 22, 2009. A few things to be aware of before you download the Evaluation code. A limited number of licenses are available, so the download will only be available while supplies last. Following the 90 day evaluation period, IT Pros who wish to continue to use Windows 7 Enterprise will be required to purchase and perform a clean installation of Windows 7, including drivers and applications. Windows 7 Enterprise Edition 90-Day Trial is the final Released-to-Manufacturing (RTM) version of Windows 7 Enterprise Edition. This is the same software that is available to Volume Licensing (VL) through Software Assurance (SA) and is feature-complete. Windows 7 Enterprise 90-Day Trial is available in English, Spanish, French, German, and Japanese in both 32 and 64 bit versions. Activation of Windows 7 Enterprise 90-Day Trial is required within 10 days after installation, or t