90-minute Test - No Installation Required

Not everyone has the option of setting up a dedicated platform just to test Windows Server 2008 RC0. In order to allow this group of users to test-drive the IIS 7, Microsoft has set up a "Virtual Lab."

The Virtual Lab is being created. This takes between three and five minutes.

Usage notes for the Virtual Lab

Microsoft lets users log on to virtual machines that are hosted on its servers. Utilizing an ActiveX control, anyone can open a remote connection and administrate and test an IIS server through their browser.

The Internet Information Services running in Microsoft's Virtual Lab.

Creating an ASP.NET Website with Visual Studio 2005 is also possible.

The sessions are limited to 90 minutes. Since the virtual machines are not equipped with an Internet connection, installing outside third-party software or saving your own files (from your remote computer) is not possible. Microsoft chose to use Windows Vista Ultimate as the operating system for the virtual computers. In addition to the IIS 7, Visual Studio 2005 professional is also installed, giving the user the possibility to try his or her hand at creating ASP.NET scripts.

Technical Data

For our tests, we used Windows Version 6.0 build 6001 of Windows Server 2008 including the pre-installed "Service Pack 1, v.275". This is the same version of the Service pack that the beta versions for Vista's SP1 currently use.

According to Microsoft server division manager Bill Laing, the Standard Version of Windows Server 2008 will support a maximum of 4 GB of RAM in its 32-bit version. The 64-bit version, on the other hand, will be limited to 32 GB.

Patrick O'Rourke, product manager for the server line, has stated that there will be no change regarding the way Microsoft licenses processors. In other words, Microsoft will continue the practice of counting not the cores in use but the sockets in a system. Thus, a quad-core system will be licensed as one processor. That would mean that a two-processor (=socket) license would allow the use of up to eight cores with current processors!

Conclusion - Many Improvements, Still A Few Rough Spots

Microsoft has used the time since the release of Windows Server 2003 very well. The new Server Manager simplifies system administration immensely. Unlike Windows Vista, whose new dialogues still confuse even experienced users, Windows Server 2008 makes the admin feel right at home and in control.

Related tasks and service are grouped together, so that they can be found quickly and easily. Also, the system points out configuration problems at the beginning of an installation of a server task, preventing many rookie mistakes. Services started by mistake are easily identified and stopped, thanks to the new view. Also, the Event Viewer filters the entries in such a way that only relevant information is displayed.

However, it's not all sunshine, either. Although our test system used a beefy Intel Core 2 Duo E6700 with generous 2 GB of RAM, the Server's user interface felt sluggish with Windows being drawn very slowly. Most likely, this is due to a lack of driver support - after all, the RC0 is still a work in progress.

Microsoft also gets low marks for failing to include SSH support in the operating system. On Linux servers, working without SSH is simply unthinkable. At least the Redmond company includes its encrypted remote shell WinRS. However, secure FTP is still a missing feature. The FTP client is being treated like an unloved stepchild, to the point where it is not even included in the Server Manager.