Microsoft has fulfilled its promise that it made to the consumers. Now the Windows 7 Service Pack 1 is available for all via the Microsoft Download Center and soon it will also be available to consumers through Windows Update. The Service Pack that would be made available through Windows Update would be approximately 750 MB in size for the 32-bit edition and slightly over 1 GB for the 64-bit edition. The version that is available on the Microsoft website is much larger. That version is suitable for those who want to upgrade multiple machines.
Those in U.S. and Canada wanting to have the Service Pack 1 can have the original DVD from Microsoft. The only thing is that although the DVD is free, yet customers from those countries would have to pay $5.99 as the shipping cost.
Windows 7 Service Pack 1 was announced by Microsoft about a year ago and a beta version was released in 2010 in the month of July. That was followed by a “release candidate” that was built last October.
It has often been repeated by Microsoft that the Service Pack does not contain any new feature, but it is just a collection of the security patches and the non-security fixes, which have already been a part of the Windows Update. An addition that has been made is the updated version of Remote Desktop Client that is designed to work with RemoteFX, a modern technology that came with Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1. RemoteFX aims to improve the quality of graphics performance of Windows 7 virtual machines that are hosted on Server 2008 R2 SP1 system. ‘Dynamic Memory’ that was a feature in Server 2008 R2 SP1 is also supported by Windows 7.
When not needed or desired the Service Pack can be uninstalled by choosing the ‘Service Pack for Microsoft Windows’ using the ‘Control Panel’ and uninstall tool.
There are many advantages that are associated with the usage of Windows 7 Service Pack 1:
It will help to keep your PC updated by continually delivering updates.
Apart from the various updates that have been earlier included in Windows Update, it also includes client-side support for RemoteFX and also Dynamic Memory.
Microsoft has recommended that those who want to update just one PC should do so through Windows Update instead of downloading it from the Microsoft Download Center website.
A few points that need to be kept in mind while installing the Service Pack are:
Before beginning to install the Service Pack, plug in your PC to an electrical outlet.
The system will restart after the installation of the Service Pack, so make sure that you save all your work before that. Windows 7 Service Pack 1 will require a lot of space for installation. In case you fear lack of space, you can run disk cleanup before the installation.
