Windows 7 RC Possibly Due Out May 5

Everyone’s been anxiously watching the beta builds of Windows 7 roll out, inching ever so closer to the next milestone – the release candidate.

Microsoft accidentally leaked another web page giving us a glimpse at a potential release date for Windows 7 RC.

Listed on the Microsoft Partner Program website earlier was the following text:

Download Windows 7 RC Partners: If you have a subscription to MSDN or TechNet, you can download Windows 7 RC now. Otherwise, you can download Windows 7 RC starting May 5, 2009.

The website has since been changed back to information pertaining to just the beta that was available since January.

According to Ars Technica’s report, Microsoft Online Concierge Chat had this to say to those who inquired: "Currently the Windows 7 RC has not been available [sic] through the TechNet subscription yet, only the Microsoft OEM partners such as Dell, Siemens are taking part in the RC's this period of test."

This confirms that the release candidate is almost ready for public consumption. Microsoft did not comment on the May 5 date, but it’s looking like it could be a possible if OEM partners are already testing it.

This also marks the second time that Microsoft let a webpage slip regarding the release candidate. Last month, a TechNet page slipped out early detailing the downloading of the RC, which also named May as being the month of availability.