Article by George Norman

On 06 May 2009

While the regular user is focused on downloading Windows 7 RC and getting an activation key, OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) should rejoice as well as Microsoft has released Windows Storage Server 2008; this is on top of Windows Server 2008 R2 Release Candidate which was rolled out the same time as Win7 RC was.

Director of Storage Solutions Marketing, Bala Kasiviswanathan, comments: “I’m pleased to announce the release of Windows Storage Server 2008 (WSS08) to our OEM partners. WSS08 is built upon Windows Server 2008 – the industry-leading file services platform. WSS08 includes additional advanced storage capabilities such as file de-duplication and an iSCSI software target for unified file- and block-based storage. We deliver WSS08 through our partners as a storage appliance so that the hardware and software are delivered and supported as a complete solution that is optimized for its storage role. Microsoft customers benefit from enterprise-class storage capabilities without sacrificing the flexibility, reliability and familiarity that they expect from Windows Server. This release is a continuation of Microsoft’s commitment to deliver innovative file and storage solutions to our customers through our partners.”


According to Senior Product Manager with Windows Storage, Jason Buffington, you should compare Windows Server 2008 and Windows Storage Server 2008 to a Ford Mustang Engine. Windows Server 2008 is similar to a standard engine, which will indeed provide plenty of horse power, but it is just a stock piece of technology that can easily be improved upon. A GT for example is better than a stock engine, but it is not good enough to be compared with Windows Storage Server 2008. What would make Windows Storage Server 2008 justice is if you were to compare it with a Saleen.

"You could go buy a copy of Windows Server 2008 on DVD and build your own file server from your favorite server hardware vendor – mine being torn between HP and Dell, since I grew up in Texas. But why? This is built on the same base, but comes out of the box and serving data within 30 minutes (not including messing with server-rack rails). But Microsoft takes the OS, tweaks it from its default settings to optimize it for file services, and then adds extra file/storage capabilities,” comments Jason Buffington.

Additional details on Windows Storage Server 2008 RTM are available here.



Tags: Microsoft, Windows Storage Server 2008

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