Microsoft Windows Home Server
With the proliferation of home networking since the past few years. There are still few solutions providing a good recovery in case of computer or hard disk crash. In order to have a resilient home networked desktops/laptops a good un-attended backup system is a must.
Today I listened to the Real Deal podcast, hosted by Tom Meritt and Rafe Needleman. Rafe went over his recent purchase of the HP MediaSmart EX470 running Microsoft Windows Home Server. I think it might be the right solution for most of us. (The HP is a turn-key solution, it costs about $600, but you can by the software MS WHS only for much less ($90) if you have a decent PC laying around)
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
More on the Microsoft Windows home server after the jump!
In addition to the resiliency aspect. If you have a plethora of digital media files in one or more PCs at home, Windows Home Server (WHS) could be a great solution for you as well. WHS is a variant of Windows Server 2003, this is Microsoft’s brand new attempt to win over home users. It’s designed to be as easy to use as possible, meaning that you can get on with using your files without having to worry about IP addresses, drive letters, backup utilities etc.
Microsoft promises and delivers an easy setup experience. To get started, you can simply plugged the WHS machine into an empty Ethernet port on our Broadband router. (Rafe uses a cheap ($30) Gb Ethernet switch to get better bandwidth on his home network)
Next you install a small Windows Connector application (WH Client) on each home PC that you want wanted to connect to the server.
After rebooting the PCs, each one should recognizes the WHS server, and you are done
Note that the WMS doesn’t support a monitor, keyboard or mouse – any management of the server can be done from a connected PC.
Microsoft fully supports up to 10 PCs running the Connector software per home server. Any PC beyond the maximum of 10 can link to your WHS to upload and download files. However, if it doesn’t have the Connector application running, it can’t take advantage of advanced functions such as automatic backup, access to server maintenance tools, and remote desktop access.
One of the chief benefits of the WHS is that all existing drives are merged into one centralized storage location – you no longer have to deal with drive letters, and each new drive just adds to the overall storage space as a pool
There are plainty of plug-ins such the iTunes feature, that lets you create one large library from all of the iTunes libraries on the server. IN addition, WHS lets Xbox 360 users stream audio and video content directly from the WHS rather than having to first download it. You can also aggregate Audio/Video Podcasts too.
Remote access lets you connect remotely to your home server so that you can upload and download files, or access other PCs on the network via a built-in remote-desktop application.
But WHS isn’t just about making it easier to share files. TheWHS automatically backs up all machines connected to the server. Backups are stored, and if your PC crashes you can boot it up using a special Windows Home Server disc that connects the impaired PC to your server and restores your system to a previous, undamaged state.
The WHS stores different backup images of your desktop so you can pick the right one to restore from. You can also recover files from PCs that have been backed up, regardless of whether or not the target machine is still functional.
WHS can also keep tabs on the status of firewalls and antivirus software, and it’s extremely easy to ensure that all PCs in the house are subject to the same Internet controls – instead of checking each individual PC, Home Network Health pops up a message alerting you to potential problems.
Resources:
- WHS FAQ
- Windows Home Server at a glance
- Windows Home Server: Features
- How does Windows Home Server make digital life easier?
Trackbacks & Pingbacks