There are many other posts about the pros/cons of Windows Server 2008 as a client machine/desktop/laptop/workstation. Mostly false claims of faster-then-Vista performance, etc. I’m using it on a laptop in x64 strictly for training purposes (not as my main OS) and had to work out these few issues before I could fully use it in that scenario:
- WebDAV Access. Lets say you want to browse to a SharePoint site using UNC path names, or maybe use the new fabulous sysinternals \\live.sysinternals.com\tools way of getting their tools quickly… we’ll you can’t until you add the 2008 feature “Desktop Experience” which will then add the WebClient service. That service is what allows you WebDAV access to other servers. Don’t confuse this with the IIS 7 WebDAV which will allow you to serve up WebDAV content to others. Also note that in Windows Server 2003 the WebClient service is disabled by defaut so if you have the same issues in that OS, enable and set to automatic. It’s a security thing since most don’t use servers to browse web content.
- Wireless Access. You need to install the feature Wireless LAN Service to use a WiFi card.
- Hyper-V = no sleep/hibernate. It’s been said on many other sites, but once you add the Hyper-V role to Server 2008 these features are disabled… making it harder to use it on a laptop.
- Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration (IE ESC). To make the web useable from IE, you need to disable this, which you’ll find under Server Manager Summary page where the Security Information is at.
update: Have a GUI do all this for you and more! Over at the Windows Server 2008 Workstation Converter blog.
I’m hosting my 2nd year of a TechEd ITPro Birds-of-a-Feather session. Didn’t attend this BoF last year? Read my post session summary. It’s on Wednesday, June 11th at 4:30pm to 5:45pm in S330 E (vCalendar Apt.)
The datacenter is rapidly changing as we shift to vitalizing many of our application and Web servers to virtual workloads. This is a forum to discuss physical design changes from the “one box, one OS” to various options like blade heads (build out), 16-way heads (build up), and SAN storage of disks. Topic starters like “NFS, LUN, or CIFS for virtual hard drive storage?”, “Why NOT to use iSCSI?”, “What do you require before considering the jump from VMWare to Microsoft for hosting or management”, “Anyone using Citrix over the others?”, “Anyone aggressive with SCVMM and/or Hyper-V yet?”. Hear big and small shops describe what works and what doesn’t for them; how they address F.U.D., bottlenecks, disaster recovery, backups, and more. This discussion is product agnostic and focused around how we can do more OS’s with less hardware. We had this BOF last year—come by to talk about how much has changed.
If your firewall is blocking the online registration of KMS (Key Management Service) for Vista/Server 2008, then you need to activate it offline by calling. The US Number is 1-866-740-1256, but there’s a trick: The IVR system will ask for your Installation ID in “groups”, but in Server 2003’s KMS console (slmgr.vbs) you are given one long string. If you don’t pause at the right time, the IVR will get hung up and tell you “please only give me the group X”. The grouping magic number is six, so just stop between saying each six numbers, and imagine the dash between them :).
Just a matter of time before the shell replacements started rolling out for Vista. I used to be a big Object Desktop and Stardock fan and tried many of the others out there, but stability and performance were always an issue that kept me on it full time.
Here’s a new one in private beta, likely commercial but is taking on a near replica of OSX look but with vista colors (at least by default). I only have screen shots to judge it by at this point until an open beta appears.
If you know of another shell/GUI replacement for Vista please make a comment. Thanks.
This post is a record of what I’ve learned and done to make the built-in backup utility in Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows 2003 as useful as possible.
Often my clients, as well as most home users have operating systems like Windows 2000/2003 Server (or Windows XP for home users) installed and end up using a 3rd party application to backup their data. For servers, this can get expensive quickly, and often my clients don’t understand why they have to pay as much money (or more) for backups then they did for the server(s) it’s backing up (expensive software combined with expensive tape systems). With home users, or business workstations, they are very rarely backed up because of the complexity that they perceive it to be. Often, I believe the built-in backup utility of modern Windows could do the job just fine for small businesses and home, but many don’t know how to work with it, and deal with its limitations (and Microsoft doesn’t have a good wizard to walk you though the more advanced scenarios).
Continue reading ‘Utilizing the Built-in Windows Backup (ntbackup.exe) For Windows’