Updated: August 4, 2020 (August 24, 2009)

Next SQL Server Previewed

As managing vice president, Rob Helm covers Microsoft collaboration and content management. His 25-plus years of experience analyzing Microsoft’s technology... more

SQL Server 2008 R2 shipped as a public preview version in Aug. 2009. The Community Technical Preview (CTP) enables organizations to start testing applications on the updated database engine and evaluate planned reporting and management improvements. Improvements include new tools for packaging and deploying database schema objects required by applications, reporting enhancements (such as support for maps in reports and faster preview in the Report Builder end-user design tool), and the ability for the database engine to exploit up to 256 processor cores (up from 64).

The Aug. 2009 CTP does not deliver all of the features announced for SQL Server 2008 R2:

Gemini, a client for analysis of large data sets in Excel and SharePoint Server, requires separate closed previews of Office 2010 and SharePoint Server 2010, which will not be available to all customers who get the Aug. 2009 CTP.

Master Data Services, a component for synchronizing customer lists and other commonly used data across applications, has received separate previews but has not been updated with the Aug. 2009 CTP.

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