Chris Pirillo notified Bink that his new site now provides x64 bit edition of Windows Vista Beta 2. A few days ago he setup a site so people can get Vista beta 2 easier and faster.

The only official tracker for this torrent is found here at VistaTorrent.com. We're providing an MD5 hash to verify the file after download to make sure you're getting the real thing. If the torrent URL is anything other than the one from Vistatorrent.com, don't download or install the file! We're staking our reputations on providing a clean ISO torrent here. There is no registration required to download this torrent.

This is not a crack, this is not a hack, this is not software piracy - it's unofficial mirroring with official validation. You can get a Windows Vista Beta 2 product key for free through Microsoft, as the OS won't install without one.

Download: Windows Vista Beta 2 Public Preview
News source: Bink



There are 20 additional comments
Advertisement
(1 reply) Quote this comment Reply to this comment #1 Posted by kazzama on 14 Jun 2006 - 11:32
Vista is awesome.. i would recommend to anyone who does not have it yet to make the switch!
Quote this comment #1.1 Posted by Neo-Luxembourg on 14 Jun 2006 - 11:40
Switch to an Beta version? oO ?

I've tried to install the Beta2 Public ... but i get an BSoD when the Installer Starts (not the one in Windows, the one that starts at Boot after the Bootmenu) .. so ... i can't test it


PS: The Beta1 (cracked version ) worked!
(2 replies) Quote this comment Reply to this comment #2 Posted by markjensen on 14 Jun 2006 - 11:36
A torrent just made too much sense to NOT do this.
Quote this comment #2.1 Posted by noroom on 14 Jun 2006 - 12:59
Yeah, I wonder why it took so long =/
Quote this comment #2.2 Posted by advancedboy on 14 Jun 2006 - 19:11
Quote - noroom said @ #2.1
Yeah, I wonder why it took so long =/


The creator probably just finished downloading Vista this morning.
(4 replies) Quote this comment Reply to this comment #3 Posted by DN2004 on 14 Jun 2006 - 11:48
ANyone to switch from a stanard operating system like XP to a beta operating system like Vista isnt very smart! dual boot vista if you want to try it (make sure you backup the boot.ini file first)... easy enough to do then you can just format that drive with vista on and restore the boot.ini file and then you are back to XP... but anyone using Vista as a default and no other operating system installed is just asking to get in serious trouble with problems
Quote this comment #3.1 Posted by Beastage on 14 Jun 2006 - 12:31
Well, if you are a computer savvy user you might want to run vista only, yes there are problems but they aren't a life or death issue
if I had space on my C: partition I'd go for the upgrade and not the dual boot
Quote this comment #3.2 Posted by Saadu on 14 Jun 2006 - 12:37
Exactly. I would have tried it if it wasn't for all the projects i am running on Xp and low disk space and all. I'd rather wait to get the final version and not spoil the fun.
Also, Betas from Microsoft are not the most stable ones and I've seen alphas that are stable than Microsoft betas.
Quote this comment #3.3 Posted by Kheldar on 14 Jun 2006 - 12:43
It's all down to personnal choice and opinion. I've run all the Vista alphas/betas full time and feel they have been at least as stable as any XP.
Quote this comment #3.4 Posted by roadwarrior on 14 Jun 2006 - 19:16
Vista bogged down my machine to the point of being almost unusable for most things that work fine in XP. I don't have the highest performance machine, but it does rate a "2" on Vista's performance scale. Celeron D 326 2.53Ghz with 512MB of RAM and two fairly large hard drives (160GB SATA and 80GB PATA). The thing that really killed the score was the graphics (GMA 900), otherwise the system would have rated a strong "3". One thing that bugged the heck out of me was the apparent removal of List view in Explorer. That is the view that I use most often, and can't seem to find the option in Vista.
Quote this comment Reply to this comment #4 Posted by Toastyone on 14 Jun 2006 - 12:31
Nice if anyone has not tried Vista now would be a good time
Quote this comment Reply to this comment #5 Posted by DiZZySpOOn on 14 Jun 2006 - 13:04
I'm running it as the main OS on my main PC.

I quite enjoy working out solutions to the minor problems.
(1 reply) Quote this comment Reply to this comment #6 Posted by Andy-Roo on 14 Jun 2006 - 16:07
I will not be installing Vista on my laptop until Intel releases WDDM drivers for the GMA 900.

The GMA 900 meets all the requirements for Glass, yet Intel is refusing to write drivers for it. Uhh...hello? What about the millions of people with a GMA 900 in their laptop? They're going to be upset if no Vista drivers surface, and surface fast.
Quote this comment #6.1 Posted by roadwarrior on 14 Jun 2006 - 19:22
GMA 900 is the reason that my system (a desktop) rates so poorly in Vista. What's funny is that it seemed to rate higher in earlier builds that I tried. I'm wondering if perhaps there were better drivers in those builds that have since been removed for some reason.
Quote this comment Reply to this comment #7 Posted by Xavien on 14 Jun 2006 - 23:05
Quote -
We're providing an MD5 hash to verify the file after download to make sure you're getting the real thing.


I may be wrong here, but doesn't the torrent file contain a MD5 Hash? which a Torrent Client checks every downloaded piece for, to make sure its not corrupted?

so why is there a need for an MD5 hash?

Additionally the point is moot, they have already recieved a cease and desist order from Microsoft, the torrent is down and tracker dead. Sucks, because i really can't see why microsoft would *not* allow this, its virtually the same as the official way anyways.
(3 replies) Quote this comment Reply to this comment #8 Posted by MaceX on 14 Jun 2006 - 23:42
How is it not piracy?

The unauthorised sharing of copyrighted software sure sounds like piracy to me.
Quote this comment #8.1 Posted by FuhrerDarqueSyde on 15 Jun 2006 - 09:24
if i remember right (ive been out of the loop), microsoft is already distributing it and is giving out keysfor it. thus this is just a mirror of something the creators are distributing and is not considered piracy.
Quote this comment #8.2 Posted by manne on 15 Jun 2006 - 11:36
Quote - FuhrerDarqueSyde said @ #1.1
if i remember right (ive been out of the loop), microsoft is already distributing it and is giving out keysfor it. thus this is just a mirror of something the creators are distributing and is not considered piracy.


But it's still not allowed to share Beta 2 through torrent, even though it's a public beta.
This has already been discused in the newgroup and MS said that it is NOT ok, but it's ok to linkt direct to the file on their servers.

Quote this comment #8.3 Posted by MaceX on 15 Jun 2006 - 18:55
Quote - FuhrerDarqueSyde said @ #8.1
if i remember right (ive been out of the loop), microsoft is already distributing it and is giving out keysfor it. thus this is just a mirror of something the creators are distributing and is not considered piracy.


It is still piracy. Just because it's available to the public does not mean it's ok to distribute. If it were ok to mirror, we would have websites sharing copyrighted mp3's freely without the author's consent and with no legal ramifications. No matter how you word it, it is still piracy.
Quote this comment Reply to this comment #9 Posted by xxdesmus on 15 Jun 2006 - 19:45
The torrent has been pulled due to legal action by Microsoft.

For all the MS-bashers who will come out for this one...

Get over it, it makes perfect sense really. Just think about it, you can't have your operating system offered by some third party person. Even if the file has a hash check to verify it hasn't been altered in any way, it still is not being distributed by you. There is no way Microsoft could possibily take the risk of someone distributing a altered version.

They've already discussed why they did not officially use bittorrent in the first place (legal issues, implications, etc).

There is no reason or logical way to bash Microsoft on this one.
[1]

Commenting has either been disabled on this article or you are not logged in. Click here to login or register, its free!

Note: Anonymous commenting is disabled in order to keep the quality of responses to a high standard.


Scroll to the Top
....
My Preferences
....
Communicating with server
Loading
Please Wait...
....
Loading
 X 
....