Windows Server 2012 Up And Running

Introduction

The purpose of this book is to introduce and familiarize system administrators, or anyone who needs to get up and running with Windows Server 2012, with the platform’s major new features and improvements and how to implement them. First, I’ll offer a little background on the evolution of Microsoft’s newest server operating system. Three years after the launch of Windows Server 2008 R2, Microsoft unveiled Windows Server 2012, its latest server operating system. Server 2012 is the most significant server release since the update from Windows Server NT 3.51 to NT 4.0, which introduced the modern graphical interface to Windows Server.

Server 2012 is just as significant because, arguably, for the first time in a Windows Server release, it represents a server product based on the needs and wants of consumers rather than solely on the needs of the enterprise. Server 2012 is designed for compatibility with and support for three major and current computing trends, all driven primarily by consumer demand: cloud computing, virtualization, and the continued “consumerization of IT,” which is the surging demand from the workforce to use personal technology devices—in particular, mobile devices—in the work environment. Microsoft has engineered Server 2012 to meet these three market trends with several upgrades and enhancements. Virtualization and cloud computing needs are met by new virtualization technologies baked into Hyper-V 3.0. Some of the capabilities include the ability to connect a datacenter to a public cloud, and features that allow system administrators to build hybrid and multitenant private clouds. Server hardware, storage, and networks can be virtualized, thereby reducing power costs, centralizing administration, and allowing for fast and efficient scalability as an infrastructure grows.to Active Directory for Windows Server 2003.

Audience

While it would probably suffice to say that this book is for any person interested in learning about the new capabilities of Windows Server 2012, this book does assume a certain level of experience in managing or deploying Windows networks, in particular with user accounts and permissions, Active Directory, DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol), DNS (Domain Name System), and other major and fundamental Windows networking services and concepts. Anyone from novices to seasoned Windows system administrators can benefit from the small- to midsize-business test infrastructure deployment examples provided in the book.