Windows server 2012 editions




















Despite the change to the core license, the virtualization rules remain the same in Windows Server and later. Once you have licensed all your cores on the server, with the standard version you get 2 licenses for the Windows Server guest OS compared to the unlimited number in the Datacenter version. Also, the features in Windows Server Standard and Datacenter were the same. But some features of Windows Server , such as Storage Spaces Direct or shielded virtual machines, are only available in the Datacenter release.

Standard and Datacenter editions offer a variety of installation options. These options affect what features will be available after installation, such as a graphical user interface and a set of services.

The following installation options are available:. Desktop Experience is an installation option that most people are familiar with. This option installs most of the functions and roles out of the box, including the desktop GUI. You will receive the Server Manager, which allows you to add and remove roles and components. The advantage is that the system can be easier to manage for people who are used to using a graphical interface. The downside is that you have more updates, reboots, and open ports to deal with.

Learn more from Microsoft here. The Server Core lacks a graphical interface and several roles that are installed by default under the Desktop Experience option. The server core has less disk space and, therefore, a smaller attack area due to the smaller codebase. There are also fewer updates, reboots, and open ports to work with. This is a great option for infrastructure servers such as Active Directory domain controllers and DNS servers.

This edition lacks accessibility tools, built-in server configuration tools, and sound support. This version is no frills. It will not be amiss to make sure that you are familiar with command-line administration. You can read more about this on Microsoft's site. Starting with Windows Server , Nano is only available as a containerized image of the operating system. It is designed to run as a container inside a container host, such as the Server Core mentioned above.

If you rely on container applications designed for server OS, then you will use this version to compile these applications. Nano can be deployed using Standard or Datacenter versions, but you must have Software Assurance attached to the host server licensing. You can learn more about this on the website of Microsoft. Tutorials Instructions Windows Server: versions, editions, licensing Windows.

What is the end of support? What is the Windows Server edition? Differences between editions of Windows Server R2 To help understand some of the differences between OS editions, let's look at an example of Windows Server R2: Foundation is a general-purpose server OS that is best suited for lower-level servers. The Foundation edition not available in Windows Server is limited to 15 users, which makes it suitable only for small offices.

Foundation is only available through OEMs, which usually means it is preinstalled on computers that you buy from companies such as Dell and HPE. Essentials formerly SBS or Small Business Server is an easy-to-configure server solution that supports up to 25 users and 50 devices, making it suitable for small offices. Standard does not restrict users, but unlike Foundation and Essentials, you will have to purchase Client Access Licenses CALs separately, depending on how many people you need to support.

If you are interested in virtualization, this release will allow you to use the Hyper-V hypervisor to run up to two virtual instances of the operating system additional virtual instances of Windows Server will require additional costs on the same physical hardware, which makes the Standard edition suitable for a lightly virtualized environment. Datacenter is the best and most expensive edition of Windows Server.

Windows Server R2 Datacenter is almost identical to the standard version with one big exception. Extended support for Windows Server R2 was scheduled to end in January of , and Windows Server R2 will continue to receive updates until at least October of Therefore organizations should only really be using more recent versions of Windows Server for the sake of security.

When you buy a car, there are many different options available for the same model. For example, there might be a basic economy option, a luxury option with leather seats and a sunroof, and sport edition with bigger wheels and a more powerful engine. In other words, each edition of a car has a different price point and feature set tailored to groups of customers with different budgets and needs.

The same goes for Windows Server editions. Each option includes functionality that makes sense for companies depending on their size and budget. For example, different editions might support for a different number of users. To help everyone understand some basic differences between OS editions, let's break down the different options for Windows Server R The Foundation edition which isn't available in Windows Server is also limited to 15 users, making this edition suitable for only very small offices.

Foundation is available through OEMs only, which typically means it comes preinstalled on computers you buy from companies such as Dell and HPE. Essentials formerly SBS, or Small Business Server is an easy-to-set-up server solution that supports up to 25 users and 50 devices — which limits it to small offices. Standard has no cap on users, but unlike with Foundation and Essentials you will have to separately purchase Client Access Licenses CALs depending on how many people you need to support.

If you're interested in virtualization, this edition allows you to use Hyper-V to run up to two virtual instances of the operating system additional virtual instances of Windows Server will require cost extra on a single piece of physical hardware, making the Standard edition suitable for a lightly virtualized environment.

Datacenter is the top of the line, and most expensive Windows Server Edition. Windows Server R2 Datacenter is almost identical to the Standard edition with one big exception.

With a Datacenter license, you can run an unlimited number of virtual instances of Windows Server guests on a single two-processor computer. This small difference has a big impact, as companies might save big by running dozens of OS instances on a single server. While pricing on Windows Server R2 and are the same, if you are going with a Standard or Datacenter license Windows Server or newer, there are some key changes you need to be aware of.

So if you have a server containing 2 processors with 24 cores between them, in with Windows Server you would only have to buy a single Standard or Datacenter license. With Windows Server , you have to buy licenses to cover all 24 cores. It gets pretty complicated, as there are a lot of rules, but the key takeaway is that if you have a core server, the costs are pretty much the same.

However, OS licensing might be pricier on servers with a higher core density. Despite the per core licensing change, the virtualization rules remain the same in Windows Server and newer.

Once you have licensed all of your cores in a server, with the Standard edition you get 2 Windows Server guest OS licenses, compared to an unlimited number with Datacenter. Also, the feature set in Windows Server Standard and Datacenter were the same. But certain features in Windows Server such as Storage Spaces Direct, shielded virtual machines are only available in the Datacenter edition.

The main thing you need to know about for windows licences It is expensive to buy and also expensive to buy the CALs for In fairness to the CAL model, it would give large business an unfair cost advantage without them, it would be a bit harsh to bill a 20 user business with the exact same price as a user business. Of course, the other side of the coin is Windows Pro is needed to join a domain and costs more than home, so regardless of business size MS should probably consider that Pro already includes a CAL.

Just FYI, if you do decide you need to switch from standard to enterprise its possible to run a command line that will install the different components needed.

After the command executes you will need a reboot and then you will be done. I have done this on two servers so far and had no problems. I am not sure if the command is the same for or still, haven't had to do it for one of those server editions yet. I don't know if they have changed it but at the time I looked at LTSB, things like the calculator were windows store programs and LTSB does not have access to any windows store apps. Its oddities like this that killed LTSB for us.

We extensively evaluated LTSB for over a year and by Microsoft's own admission it is not intended for "general-purpose" use, it's intended for kiosks, embedded solutions like ATMs and the like.

Some of our vendors won't guarantee compatibility of their software with LTSB because of this. There's also the huge problem that Edge can not be installed in LTSB, and IE11 isn't going to cut it for much longer, Chrome or alternatives are not an option for us.

Long-term Servicing channel is not intended for deployment on most or all the PCs in an organization; it should be used only for special-purpose devices. As a general guideline, a PC with Microsoft Office installed is a general-purpose device, typically used by an information worker, and therefore it is better suited for the Semi-Annual servicing channel. We had a DC that blew up and I ended up having to recreate the damn thing from memory DNS was strictly manual entry, no DHCP , on , then had to replicate it to a Forest to get us back into working shape.

Thankfully it was used only for User administration. Previously in Windows Server , the only way that you could achieve this was to reinstall the operating system. This means you could essentially setup the operating system using the full GUI interface which is a lot easier than using the command line and remove the full core when you have finished configuring the server. If you were using the core interface, you could also add the full GUI interface in later on if you realized that you need additional features, for example you need to use Remote Desktop Services.

Foundation The Foundation edition is the cheapest of the Windows Server editions and thus has the least amount of features. It is targeted toward the small business and thus includes basic file and printing services. The install is limited to 15 users and, unlike the other editions of Windows Server, it defaults to a simple dashboard rather than the server manager.

The dashboard is a number of quick links to commonly used configuration options. The last difference is that the install requires a physical computer and a network card to be present. You cannot install Foundation edition into a virtual machine or a computer that does not have a working network card and a device driver available for that network card during the install.

Essentials Essentials edition is the same feature wise as the Foundation edition.



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