In an email sent to Windows Live OneCare testers, Microsoft confirmed the imminent start of the OneCare 2.0 beta program. Designated as a "pre-premiere", OneCare 2.0 will not be available as a public beta initially.
New features we should be seeing include:
- Multi PC management - designate a hub PC and then add additional PCs to your OneCare circle using a common Windows Live ID. You can then see the status of the other PCs within the group.
- Printer Sharing - share your printer with all the PCs in your OneCare circle
- OneCare Online Photo Backup - paid storage is available online for photo backups (we're hearing 10GB but that could change by the end of the beta)
- Securing wireless networks - if your router is supported OneCare 2.0 will allow you to secure your wireless network
- x64 support
The ability to backup online is a feature we've been talking about for a while, as a potentially key part of storage in the cloud. Windows Live Folders is currently set at 500MB, but if 10GB is what is being offered for OneCare Photo backups, a significant increase for the final version seems more than likely.
If you haven't signed up for the beta already, here's the link.