Windows Home Server already available in the wild

Here's the deal: Microsoft has shipped Windows Home Server to both OEMs and distributors, and customers are already taking delivery outside of the US. Microsoft tells us that there is no "launch date" for WHS. Rather, after the code was released to manufacturing last month, it was passed to OEMs and distributors, and those guys are on their own schedule. Likewise, there will be no officially-announced pricing, as Microsoft does not disclose any OEM or system builder pricing.

However, Microsoft has also established a tech support availability date of August 27 for the North American market, and while the company told Ars Technica that this is not a release date, it is meaningful. Since the license that comes with "system builder" versions of WHS will require "system builder" support, that support will need to be ready. Hence, the appearance of these materials is an indication that Microsoft expects the product to be offered by US stores near the end of the month. (For more on "system builder" status and what it entails, check out this previous report on OEM Vista.)

Hardware products incorporating Windows Home Server are still a month away, according to our own sources at two different companies working on products. However, the "system builder" version of the code is already appearing in stores around the world, and pricing is showing up in several markets.