Microsoft Corp. today announced the availability of Microsoft� SQL Server� 2005 Service Pack 1 (SP1), the product�s first major milestone since the launch of SQL Server 2005 only a few months ago. The release follows the remarkable reception, momentum and feedback offered by customers and partners in 92 countries. This has informed and accelerated Microsoft�s multiyear vision of Your Data, Any Place, Any Time. Microsoft SQL Server 2005 SP1 includes production-ready Database Mirroring functionality and the new SQL Server Management Studio Express, along with additional updates to SQL Server 2005 Express Edition targeted at users such as independent software vendors (ISVs) wanting to take advantage of greater functionality.

�It has been very gratifying to see the level of excitement, engagement and rapid adoption of SQL Server 2005 by our customers and partners,� said Paul Flessner, senior vice president of the Data and Storage Platform Division at Microsoft. �Along with enabling us to deliver SP1 quickly, the large volume of feedback we�ve received has been key in helping us formulate a compelling vision for the next decade of data management. The increasing mobility of work forces and the explosion of data on devices and rich clients, along with the opportunities offered by economic efficiencies in storage, drive the need for a new generation of data platform. The notion of Your Data, Any Place, Any Time embodies our multirelease vision for SQL Server to meet the current and future needs of customers.�