SQL Server 2008 Won't Ship Until Q3
Microsoft disclosed the schedule change, described by the company as a "clarification on the roadmap for SQL Server 2008," in "The Data Platform Insider" blog on the company's Technet Website for IT professionals.
Microsoft still plans to formally debut SQL Server 2008, along with Windows Server 2008 and Visual Studio 2008, in a mega-launch event in Los Angeles on Feb. 27. The company has already shipped several community technology preview (CTP) releases of SQL Server 2008 and there have been more than 100,000 downloads of those early versions of the database product, according to the blog.
Microsoft will now deliver a "feature complete" CTP of SQL Server 2008 at the time of the Feb. 27 event and a release candidate version during the second quarter. But the final "release to manufacturing" version, which is what customers and channel partners ultimately get, isn't expected now until sometime in Q3, according to the blog.
The blog doesn't offer any details for the reasons behind the slipping schedule. "Our goal is to deliver the highest quality product possible and we simply want to use the time to meet the high bar that you, our customers, expect," the posting said. Microsoft officials weren't immediately available for comment.