subject: Windows Home Server [print this page] A home server operating system developed by Microsoft is Windows Home Server. This Server is specified as a solution for those homes in which there are many number of linked PCs are present. It will provide them file sharing, machine controlled backups and remote access. Windows Home Server is grounded on Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 2.
Windows Home Server was launched on 7 November 2007. Power Pack 1 for Windows Home Server was launched on July 20 2008 and Power Pack 2 was on March 20 2009. Some of its features are as:
Centralized Backup - Windows Home Server permits backup of up to 10 PCs, with the use of Single Instance Store technology. This technology is used to avoid the numerous copies of the same file, even if that file is present on multiple PCs.
Health Monitoring - It is capable of tracking the health of all PCs present on the network, including antivirus and firewall status. File Sharing - Windows Home Server provides network parts for computers to store the files remotely, in this manner it works like a network attached storage device. Different categories are offered for common file types such as Documents, Music, Pictures and Videos.
Printer Sharing - It permits a centralized print server to manage multiple print jobs for all users.
Shadow Copy - It accepts the earnings from the of Volume Shadow Copy Services, to grant the older versions of files to be recovered.
Headless Operation - In it there is no any requirement of monitor or keyboard to manage the device. Remote administration is done with the Windows Home Server Console client software available in the suit. It also supports Remote Desktop associations with the server while it is linked with the same LAN.
Remote Access Gateway - Windows Home Server grants remote access to any linked PC present on the network over the Internet.
Media Streaming - It is capable of streaming media to an Xbox 360 or to other devices which supports Windows Media Connect.
Selective Data redundancy - It defends against a single drive failure, because it replicates the selected data across various drives.
Expandable Storage - It gives a integrated and easily expandable storage space and takes away the requirement of drive letters.
Extensibility through Add-Ins - Its add-ins permit third-party developers to improve the features and functionality of the server.
Server Backup - It also takes back up of those files which are saved in the shared folders, present on the server in an external hard drive.
