Windows 7 SP1 RTM due before end of February 2011

Microsoft has informed close partners that SP1 has hit the Release to Manufacturing (RTM) milestone. MSDN and TechNet customers will receive the bits on February 16, followed by a general web release (RTW) on February 22. According to sources close to the matter, Microsoft sent out internal announcements to mark the RTM of Windows 7 SP1 in January. Russian site Wzor confirmed the RTM too and has leaked several versions of Windows 7 SP1 for various languages.

Microsoft has yet to announce the RTM milestone publicly. WinRumors previously asked Microsoft officials multiple times to confirm whether Microsoft had reached the RTM milestone for Windows 7 SP1 but company officials would only reply in January with “Microsoft has not released SP1 to OEMs at this time.” As always, we&’d advise against installing leaked bits on production machines but at this time we’re confident build 7601.17514.101119-1850 is the final RTM. Copies of Microsoft’s Windows 7 SP1 RTM update leaked last month to file sharing websites. Microsoft is expected to announce the official RTM shortly, including the MSDN/RTW dates.

SP1 will include RemoteFX which provides rich 3-D graphical experience for remote users. The service pack also will include a series of incremental updates, previously released on Windows Update for both Windows 7 SP1 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1.

RemoteFX is a new enhancement to RDP’s graphical remoting capabilities. The idea behind RemoteFX is to allow for a full remote experiences including multiple displays, Aero and multimedia streaming to all types of client devices including low cost thin clients. RemoteFX achieves this by using a technique known as host-based rendering. This technique allows for the final screen image to be rendered locally on the remote PC after being compressed and sent down to that remote host. The enhancements are expected to greatly improve video streaming across remote sessions which is currently one of the major drawbacks of virtualized computing.

Windows 7 recently celebrated its first birthday after selling over 240 million licenses in the first year of sales. Microsoft officials have previously promised that SP1 will be available by March 31, 2011.