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Microsoft Extends Y2K Offerings

Microsoft Corp. today unveiled new resources and tools to help customers prepare for the year 2000. Among the new offerings are a developer Web site, a resource CD and a 120-day evaluation version of Systems Management Server 2.0. The company has also extended its Y2K product policy to include a commitment to resolve date-related issues on a number of core infrastructure products through Jan. 1, 2001.

The trial version of SMS 2.0, which may be used as a 120-day evaluation copy between now and March 1, 2000, will be distributed to MCSP’s and these partners will receive the products and training they need to help businesses prepare for the year 2000. SMS 2.0 will include a database with compliance information for Microsoft products, year 2000 queries and a report that displays the number of systems in each compliance category. A training course on how to use Systems Management Server 2.0 for year 2000 compliance analysis will be downloadable free of charge by the end of this month.

The Developer Tools Year 2000 Readiness Disclosure and Resource Center Web site contains a list of year 2000 resources to provide independent developers, software vendors and organizations with resources to create Y2K-ready solutions. The site will be accessible May 10 at http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/y2k/.

The Microsoft Year 2000 Resource CD contains product updates for Windows 95, Windows 98 and Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack 4 operating systems, as well as Office 95, Office 97 and Microsoft Works 4.5a. The Microsoft Year 2000 Product Analyzer is also included on the CD, allowing a customer to scan a computer's hard drive, or mapped network drives, looking for core Microsoft products and generate a report on Y2K-compliance. – Thomas Sullivan

About the Author

Scott Bekker is editor in chief of Redmond Channel Partner magazine.

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