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It's Official: 'Longhorn' Is Now Windows Server 2008

Bill Gates confirmed that the next version of Windows Server, formerly code-named "Longhorn," will be called "Windows Server 2008."

In his keynote speech at the company's Windows Hardware Engineering Conference (WinHEC) in Los Angeles, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates confirmed that the next version of Windows Server, formerly code-named "Longhorn," will be called "Windows Server 2008."

News of the new name leaked last week when Microsoft appeared to accidentally use the name in press materials posted on its site. Confirmation had been expected this morning from the show.

According to Microsoft, 100,000 downloads of Longhorn beta 3 were downloaded from the company site in the first three weeks.

Windows Server 2008 will offer customers increased support for several new technologies, including 64-bit applications, a reduced-footprint server core and virtualization.

The company said Windows Server 2008 will be released to manufacturing "later this year."

Longhorn had served as the codename for both the server -- now known as Windows Server 2008 -- and the client, which was renamed Windows Vista and released earlier this year.

About the Author

Becky Nagel serves as vice president of AI for 1105 Media specializing in developing media, events and training for companies around AI and generative AI technology. She also regularly writes and reports on AI news, and is the founding editor of PureAI.com. She's the author of "ChatGPT Prompt 101 Guide for Business Users" and other popular AI resources with a real-world business perspective. She regularly speaks, writes and develops content around AI, generative AI and other business tech. She has a background in Web technology and B2B enterprise technology journalism.

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