Microsoft on Wednesday released Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 service pack 1 (SP1) to its OEM partners and announced that the service pack will be made available to all customers on February 22.

The Windows 7 SP1 includes some minor updates including some already pushed out through Windows Update. The service pack for Windows 7 also includes client-side support for RemoteFX and Dynamic Memory for Windows 7 VMs.

SP1 does deliver some new features to Windows Server 2008 R2. The first is Dynamic Memory, which allows Windows Server Hyper-V administrators to increase virtual machine density without sacrificing performance, scalability, or security. The Windows Server Division's blog post said that testing showed a 40 percent increase in virtual machine density from Windows Server 2008 R2 RTM to SP1 achieved by simply enabling Dynamic Memory.

The second new feature is RemoteFX. This allows for the virtualization of the Graphical Processing Unit (GPU) on the server side to deliver next-generation rich media and 3D user experiences for VDI (Virtual Desktop Infrastructures). With RemoteFX comes the possibility for new, low-cost, ultra-thin client devices to enter the market. These technologies combined can potentially drive down end-point cost and power consumption.

Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7 SP1 will Release to Manufacturing (RTM) today. On February 16, both will be available to current customers of the Windows Volume Licensing program, as well as subscribers to Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) and TechNet. On February 22, both will be available to all customers through Windows Update and will also come preinstalled on new servers ordered.

Microsoft also announced a few updates that pertain more to business customers: Windows Thin PC (WinTPC) is an upcoming software assurance benefit and is a smaller footprint, more locked down version of Windows 7 to repurpose an existing PC as a thin client, and Microsoft BitLocker Administration and Monitoring (MBAM) will have customers manage and administer BitLocker. The beta is slated for release in March 2011.