Windows 8 Developer Preview Available for download

Windows 8 Developer Preview Available for download

Given Windows 7’s mostly sterling reception on desktop and laptop computers, you might be forgiven for asking why we need a Windows 8 so soon especially one that’s a huge departure from 2009’s release.

After all, Microsoft's tagline for Windows 8 is "Windows Reimagined" and that’s a pretty bold prospect.
The impetus, of course, came in 2010, down the Pacific Coast from Microsoft’s Washington headquarters. Namely, it started in Cupertino, Calif., in the form of Apple’s first great touch-input tablets and the new industries it spawned. And it rolled north fast. With three huge trends—touch interfaces, the emergence of Android as a competitor to Apple’s iOS, and the mobile-app revolution—taking off with rocket boosters attached, Windows has been something of a third-wheel operating system (OS) at the touch-computing party.


Indeed, to date, Windows' track record on tablets—especially ones for consumers—has been mostly a flop. The touch support has been ungainly, and the overall sensation is of Windows having been shoehorned into the hardware. That's meant an uphill battle for Windows against the likes of iOS and Android, both built as touch interfaces from the ground up. Clearly, taking an OS designed for desktops and notebooks, making a few adjustments, and expecting it to run well on tablets is not the way to go. A new approach to Windows is exactly what Microsoft is rolling out, in the hopes of making mobile, touch-input Windows devices viable. Thus: the September introduction of the nascent Windows 8.

The Windows Developer Preview is a pre-beta version of Windows 8 for developers. It may not be stable, operate correctly or work the way the final version of the software will.. The features and functionality in the prerelease software may not appear in the final version. Some product features and functionality may require advanced or additional hardware, or installation of other software.

Windows Developer Preview with developer tools English, 64-bit (x64)

DOWNLOAD (4.8 GB)

Sha 1 hash - 6FE9352FB59F6D0789AF35D1001BD4E4E81E42AF

All of the following come on a disk image file (.iso). See below for installation instructions.

• 64-bit Windows Developer Preview
• Windows SDK for Metro style apps
• Microsoft Visual Studio 11 Express for Windows Developer Preview
• Microsoft Expression Blend 5 Developer Preview
• 28 Metro style apps including the BUILD Conference app

Windows Developer Preview English, 64-bit (x64)

DOWNLOAD (3.6 GB)

Sha 1 hash – 79DBF235FD49F5C1C8F8C04E24BDE6E1D04DA1E9

Includes a disk image file (.iso) to install the Windows Developer Preview and Metro style apps on a 64-bit PC.

Windows Developer Preview English, 32-bit (x86)

DOWNLOAD (2.8 GB)

Sha 1 hash - 4E0698BBABE01ED27582C9FC16AD21C4422913CC

Includes a disk image file (.iso) to install the Windows Developer Preview and Metro style apps on a 32-bit PC.

Live SDK

The Live SDK provides a set of controls and APIs that enable applications to integrate Single Sign On (SSO) with Windows Live ID and access information from SkyDrive, Hotmail and Windows Live Messenger. To learn more, sign up for our technical preview.

System Requirements

Windows Developer Preview works great on the same hardware that powers Windows Vista and Windows 7:

• 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
• 1 gigabyte (GB) RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-bit)
• 16 GB available hard disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)
• DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver
• Taking advantage of touch input requires a screen that supports multi-touch
• To run Metro style Apps, you need a screen resolution of 1024 X 768 or greater

Notes about installing the Windows Developer Preview

• You can't uninstall the Windows Developer Preview. To reinstall your previous operating system, you must have restore or installation media.

Install on:	Windows Developer Preview with developer tools	Windows Developer Preview (32-bit or 64-bit)
Windows 7 and Windows Vista	Clean install only	You can keep accounts, files, and settings
Windows XP	Clean install only	You can only keep accounts and files
A clean install is supported on all builds. You will only receive the full set of installation options when setup is launched in Windows.

How to install the Windows Developer Preview from an ISO image

The Windows Developer Preview is delivered as an .iso image that must be converted into installation media stored on a DVD or a USB flash drive. On Windows 7, the easiest way to convert this file is to use Windows Disc Image Burner. On Windows XP and Windows Vista, a third-party program is required to convert an .iso file into installable media—and DVD burning software often includes this capability.

Note: The .iso file that contains the developer tools requires a large capacity DVD called a DVD-9, as well as a DVD burner that can handle dual-layer (DL) DVDs. Most modern burners should be able to handle this format.