A Microsoft TechNet Plus subscription is aimed at IT Professionals who want full-version Microsoft software, beta software, professional support incidents, managed newsgroup support, a technical information library, Microsoft eLearning courses, online concierge chat, the TechNet Magazine, and many other resources for evaluating, deploying, and maintaining Microsoft software. The subscription normally goes for $349 (download-only) or for $599 (download and DVD shipments). You want it free though, right? No problem: Canada link, US link, and UK link.

After clicking on the special link, hit the Buy button. Fill out all the necessary information: First Name, Last Name, Street Address, City / Town, State, Postal Code, E-mail, and Contact Phone. If you need the DVD media for the software you will be testing, you'll need a valid address in Canada, the US, or the UK. Otherwise, give an appropriate address of your choice, and enjoy the download access to tons of free Microsoft software. Once you're done all that, you will get to a thank you page with all your information that you can print for your records. However, you're not done yet. There are three more steps:

Sign In: Visit the TechNet Subscriptions Benefits Portal (you may be prompted to re-sign in using your Windows Live ID). Register: You will be required to enter your first name, last name, e-mail address (exactly as they appear in your "Ship to" information) and Benefit Access Number: XXXXXXXXXX and accept the license terms. Access Benefits: Once you have completed the registration, you will be able to access your online benefits, including Subscriber Downloads from the TechNet Subscriptions Management page. Each time you visit you will sign in using your Windows Live ID.

I did this in about 5 minutes and it worked like a charm. A few of my friends experienced connection issues during the process but after a few tries they got right on through as well. Enjoy it while it lasts!

Update

I am now hearing that this is part of a pilot program that is set to expire on September 30, 2009, which means it's more of a three month deal, but hey, free is free! Currently, the expiration date reads "1/1/1900" but Microsoft is working on fixing that.

Update 2

When attempting to get new keys or see old ones, users are now getting the following message: "There was an error error while trying to retrieve requsted key information and we cannot process your request." It's not clear if Microsoft is cutting people off or if the requests for keys simply became overwhelming for the servers (more likely). Of course, if you already got your keys, they should still work.

Update 3

Microsoft has caught on.