Getting started with the upcoming Windows Home Server

Microsoft has released a public beta version of upcoming Windows Home Server, called Vail. Here is a first overview of the future of WHS.

Windows Home Server is a server operating system for individuals and families. It easily allows to create a point of sharing photos, videos, documents and software for the whole family, access to remote content and to safeguard the computers to simply restore them in case of problems. The first version, available in recent years is sold with equipment made by partners such as HP.

With the aid of additional tools and equipment, your Windows Home server can go even further by allowing you, for example, to see what happens to you, adjust the color of the lights of the show or to change the automatic watering!

Before you begin, the current available version requires 1 GB of RAM and especially 64-bit processor. It is a relatively large change, especially since I do not think that the old Home Servers support 64-bit.

Installation

From the first screen of the installation, we guess that Windows Server 2008 R2 is under the hood! The installation system is much better integrated than the current version of WHS, but still require two redémarages and about 20 minutes.

As was the case with the previous version, hard drives will be fully formatted during installation.

The first launch gives way to a server configuration wizard. Simple and effective, it allows a few steps to get your server up and running. This first release also allows us to look at something: the name of the product isWindows Home Server Premium, which areas suggest that several editions available.

Connecting my computer to the server

Finish the CD connection, everything is done from the browser address http://votreserveur/connect.Unfortunately, the wizard ends with an error and so I did not test this feature.

Note that I configured the server in French. What is significant is that almost the entire interface is already translated. It is also a possible cause of the bugs I encounter.

Admin Console

The administration console has undergone a slight facelift, nothing exceptional compared to the old version. IF you already done Windows Server Certification Indianapolis then admin console might be easy for you

I did this quickly as exploring new console, but I noted two new features that can be very interesting: the possibility of backing up the server, and the appearance of a subscription feature for plugins .

The web interface

The web interface has been completely revised: it is lighter and has a continuity with the Live products.

Access to the media, whether photos, videos or images, is more pleasant and smoother, thanks to Silverlight players.

Windows Home Server “2″, a book to follow?

Certainly! WHS is a great product. Although only 64 bits, this new version looks interesting and we must see if it corrects some flaws in the previous version and whether the ecosystem of plugins is ready for change.Stay tuned:)