| Feb. 20, 2006 |
|
Chart shows typical types of prereleases in large commercial software projects and what customers and partners can do with each.
|
Release
|
What to Expect
|
Purpose
|
| Internal Milestone |
No distribution outside Microsoft; may have incomplete functionality and serious bugs |
Checkpoint to measure progress compared with the schedule |
| Alpha |
First distribution outside Microsoft
Incomplete features
Will have bugs, including some that may cause crashes and data loss |
Begin to share details on product with closely trusted partners and customers |
| Beta |
All features implemented
Basically stable, particularly around core scenarios, but will still crash |
Verify compatibility across broad range of hardware and software |
| Release Candidate |
Complete product with all features working and documented
Shipping quality |
Final testing
Identify last-minute "showstopper" bugs |
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