Microsoft has just unleashed the first interim beta build 3505 (after the massive Beta 2 release) of Windows .NET to several testers. Windows .NET is the brand new name, Microsoft has chosen, to distinguish its operating system dedicated to Servers. From now on Windows 2002 Server Edition (also known as Whistler or Windows XP for servers) will be called officially Windows .NET. This release will be the first incarnation of the Microsoft .NET strategy. In an email sent to testers Microsoft explained this move:

To further clarify the distinction between client and server releases and their separate shipping schedules, you will notice a new build number for .Net server builds. All 3xxx builds are .Net server builds while all 2xxx are XP client builds. Builds that have the same last three digits are built from similar components and are fundamentally the same with regards to those features which are shipped in the client release of that build, however there may be minor differences. This build number convention was chosen solely to help differentiate the products when releasing internal daily builds, and does not imply anything about future Windows XP build numbers or timeframes. The server family members are not referred to as "XP," the proper designation is .NET Server Family (or whichever member of the server family). This is not "RC1" of the server family, and it is not yet Beta 3. It is an interim build that happens to correspond somewhat with the same build of Windows XP that we released as RC1.