Windows 7 SP1 Beta Screenshots Surface

An early build of Windows 7's first service pack has been leaked, leading to thousands of downloads on a whole host of various torrent Web sites.

As with every Windows operating system (OS) release, improvements and fixes often arrive in the form of a service pack, and only last month the Windows team discussed the upcoming Windows 7 SP1 release in a blog post. The team detailed that the first service pack would feature a number of minor updates for the popular OS. However, it is worth noting that the Windows team did not mention a final release date for the completed service pack .

This leaked beta, which was compiled on March 27 and identifies itself as build number "6.1.7601.16537.amd64fre.win7.100327-0053," gives an incomplete indication as to what progress is being made on the upcoming service pack, and as such should not be seen as a complete product.

Early reports from those who have gone ahead and installed the beta have already surfaced. Downloaders say that the Windows 7 installation procedure is considerably faster than the service pack installation experienced when using Windows Vista.

Microsoft has not officially announced when the final first service pack will be available.