Windows Server Editions.

Soldato
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Howzit guys.

I want to build a server at home. So I have been looking at two different server editions from Microsoft.

Windows Home Server and Windows Server 2008. Now I could get either from work, however which one is the better of the two and why?

Thanks all. :cool:
 
I can get the Server 2008 tomorrow. What exactly am I able to do with it?

Would running the machine on Windows XP Professional FiliZilla be the same thing?


Thanks for the reply!
 
you can use it to logon to

use it as a dns server, dhcp server, file server, print server, RIS server u name it you can do it with server 2008 but i would go for sbs2003 if you dont know a lot about it because you could also use exchange and its simple to set up sbs2003
 
Ice On Fire,

Windows Server 2003 is lighter on System requirements than Windows Server 2008, and you can get the trial CD images (Burn with ImageBurn - .img files).

With Server 2003 you can create a domain, DNS servers etc, if you were to use Windows XP Professional you would only be able to JOIN domains or enable remote desktop, that is about it. In XP Pro, you could not create group policy objects for the entire domain etc etc.

MS Windows Server 2003 Trial

Free AntiVirus for Server 2003 as well is ClamWin.
 
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It all depends on what you plan on using the server for, if it is just going to be used as a file server then XP Pro would be fine. Just setup some shares then map them on all the PC's on the network.

If you plan on running active directory print server then server 2003 or 2008 would be a better route depending on the hardware available.

I have not heard many bad things about Windows Home Server, I've seen quite a few people run it on home servers so it can't be that bad. I've not used it my self though so maybe you will want to do some research on it before you make your decision.
 
Try thinking about a version of SBS as that way you get the delights of exchange to play with as well all integrated.
 
Mainly as a file server. I wanted a web server too, but I have since found out that I do not have a static IP address and it's not an easy thing to get from the ISP so I can't have a web server.

Looks like FileZilla and XP Pro then. :):(
 
You could still have a web server using a service such as DynDNS :)

Dynamic DNS (DDNS) allows you to create a hostname that points to your dynamic IP or static IP address or URL. We also provide an update mechanism which makes the hostname work with your dynamic IP address. We continue to offer this service free to the Internet community as we have done so for nearly 10 years.
 
It does not have anywhere near the full functionality of 2003. 2003 is still the better choice for more or less any kind of network.

not sure about the final release, but i found during beta testing, WHS was a fully functioning windows 2003 server underneath. i even made mine a AD/dns/dhcp server just for the hell of it.... :p
 
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