What is Digg?71 Comments
- kevyn, on 10/10/2007, -3/+27I think its a smart move from Microsoft... sure its not going to outsell any operating systems or anything, but there are so many people who have more than one PC in their homes, and it would be nice for them to have centralized storage, automated backups etc...
- CamZak, on 10/10/2007, -14/+36Don't you mean quiet? Seriously..if you're going to act all grown up and mature, show that you at least passed 3rd grade.
- larsoncc, on 10/10/2007, -2/+23Home Server does "almost everything" you'd expect a home server to do, but doesn't complete the package with Windows Media Center functionality. I realize that not everyone uses Media Center, but I sure do - it's cheaper (over time) than a DVR, it does a lot more, and it allows for portable files that you've recorded (in high def, even).
So, if I bought a Home Server device, I'd be left with 2 devices on all the time to manage my home media / file sharing / backups, or I choose between the two major sets of functionality and save some power.
It's just my opinion, but if MS could combine the DVR functionality with what they've announced for Home Server, it would be in the "ultimate product" category for me.
Ah well, at least the Home Server devices are cheap ($100-$250?). - InorganicMatter, on 10/10/2007, -1/+21I like this. Should be nice for those wanting to use the extender capabilities of their Xbox 360, as well as a simple redundant file, printer, and backup server for un-technical families with multiple computers. I know several people who are candidates for this.
- RetroRufio, on 10/10/2007, -6/+21Dude, give the guy a break, it's probably just a tipo :)
- chris9902, on 10/10/2007, -17/+32quite now. grown-ups are talking.
- ha1f, on 10/10/2007, -3/+16Youre a moron.
- weedmonk, on 10/10/2007, -2/+14Waiting on iHome server for iTards?
- wageslaven, on 10/10/2007, -1/+13If it does receive decent reviews (i see no reason why it would not, but I digress), you as sure as *F* wont hear about them here.
- uptown, on 10/10/2007, -3/+14Dude, give the guy a break, it's probably just a tipo :)
- mlemon, on 10/10/2007, -2/+11This product could really have legs. If it receives decent reviews in the press, in the next 6 months I believe we'll see thousands of small businesses around the country installing it. Peer-to-peer networking breaks at around 10 users, but offices with 15-20 users aren't ready to invest in a full-blown MS or NIX server that is ultimately administered by the office secretary. NAS units have been eating up this market recently, but your typical small business owner is still predisposed to anything with a Microsoft label on it.
- MioTheGreat, on 10/10/2007, -3/+11Oh yes, because Windows Server has proven itself to be unstable, bug ridden, and insecure. /sarcasm
Idiot. - MioTheGreat, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6"centralized storage" being the key phrase here. Without a seperate box, no, none of them have that.
- JonXP, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4Authentication through your already existing user accounts, automatic backups with the ability to restore without being able to boot, automatically setup "home" folders for users that will roam with you between computers in your house, Media Center extender functionality, ability to add more storage as an LVM with no configuration needed.
And most importantly: It's all very simple to set up. - strictnein, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4Because it's not just a dumb box. For instance it will automate backup across multiple computers without backing up duplicate copies of the same document. It can also create custom restoration discs for you. These are just two of the many things this product offers. It's not just some regular NAS product.
- Haohmaru, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4They'll need to make it REALLY SIMPLE because savvy users that see that advantage of servers at home already know what they're doing and probably won't purchase this anyway.
It's the un-savvy they'll need to cater too. Who wants to have to call geek-squad at $180 an hour to set this up? - darthsnoopy, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4More than that, your oversimplifying what the product is. There are plenty of solutions for computers for 'network attatched storage'. Some of the more expensive solutions even feature snazzy backup abilities, and drive consolidation (making 4 250 gig drives look like a single TB over the network for instance.
WHS has a feature set that goes way way beyond that. Want to remote into your home machine from work? no problem. Want to host a website at home, but dont want to deal with setting up ASP permissions on IIS? no problem, its like 4 clicks. It kinda bundles some of the stuff that geeks have done for years into a simple wizard driven package(dynamic DNS plus port forwarding to your webserver setup for example)
But the best part..its extensible. Theres a uTorrent add in already out there. Also one that uploads a folder of images to flickr every now and then. These plugins are where it'll really shine.
Anyway, so yah...NAS storage is not news. This is. - JonXP, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4I beta tested it, so I can give you some info:
For what it does and its target market, it is a great fit. It basically turns a spare computer into a server for your house that does automatic backups, easy-easy (not "Linux easy") file sharing and roaming user folders, and simple configuration. Remote access to your files from over the internet is available as well (don't worry, you don't need to have the machine directly connected outside your firewall). It has some limited Media Extender capabilities (really just music and pictures at the moment). The automatic backup allows you to "rescue" your machine in case of a failure that doesn't allow you to boot into windows. The storage system is very simple as well, if you want more HD space, just turn off the server, plug in a new drive, and turn it back on. The drive gets automatically formatted and configured for use in an LVM, so you never have to worry about running out of room on a drive and reconfiguring folders.
It's nothing that can't be done in Linux with the right amount of know-how, but WHS just makes it dead easy to do common home server tasks. - strictnein, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3What "LAMP" setup will do what WHS does? Most likely you know absolutely nothing about what WHS offers.
- austin-dude, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3I've been beta testing this and the RC is working just fine. No issues at all. It's based on Windows Server 2003, so no major platform change to get this to work. It's really just a service and a small front-end application for the functionality. I'm very happy with the product and it's something I'd recommend. Can't be too safe with your data these days when hard drives crash all over the place.
Microsoft was VERY smart in this to make it brainless to add data replication across multiple drives when a user adds another hard drive. I've got two 750GB HDs mirroring all my important data, so not too worried about losing anything. - madk, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4I'm actually really curious about this product. I haven't read too much about it to this date so I am looking forward to some hand-ons with the shipped product.
- lateralus, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3WTF? where does it state this?
- BigBunion, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2I haven't been able to come up with any good reason to have a home server. I have 6 computers running in my house, including two Linux/MythTV boxes. I consolidate all of my storage, etc on my primary desktop computer, which is on all the time anyway. What benefit would I get from installing a server? There certainly isn't a heavy usage load within a household that might degrade performance.
I've actually been trying to convince myself to set up a server, but I can't come up with any good reason to do it. - ha1f, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2He probably doesnt know much about LAMPs either...
- meshman, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2I used to run a server at home for a while. The Active Directory aspect of it made for a far more stable network than a P2P setup. But really, I discovered the same as you. Other than that any XP box with the right hardware will do the job just fine.
- Eggman, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Windows HOME Server.
- darthsnoopy, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Well, its the age old computer science argument of client vs. server. Tuning a server OS is alot differnet than a client OS. Apps, maintenance, setup, configuration, etc. are also alot different.
A mac mini, or heck, a windows machine, can be configured to be a webserver...sure. But do they do it well? Is the throughput maximized to make it efficient? Optimizing around things like 'disk throughput' and 'background' threads are what servers are best configured for. Vista, and most client OS's, have tons of services that you wouldn't want running on a server for per/security reasons. However, previously a windows based server class OS would cost you a grand.
This gives people a lower priced windows choice. The eqivalent is tuning a *nix box. A mac mini is just a form factor...having the OS tuned for file sharing, backups, redundancy, etc. is different.
The other key thing is remote management. WHS works very efficiently as a 'headless' server. It runs on 512 ram, 1ghz processor. and comes with remote mangement utilities for setting up websites, configuring asp and such. The thing is, it makes this easy. even playing with a true windows server at home, IIS was a PITA to configure asp for. This thing made it cake. I do wish i could configure PHP and such for it. and when i say it has 'add in' support, I dont mean as client applications, I mean it makes remote adminstration activities easier.
The downside to the tuning and all that is that it doesnt run as a media pc at all. a media pc would require it to be alot beefier, so i think i know why they did this. besides, my media pc relies on all sorts of drivers written by companies that i wouldnt trust in a server environment.
Anyway, if you get a chance, I'd check out the feature set and understand it a bit more. again, its not something you couldnt do before. its just really well done and packaged. A solid *nix admin can probably setup the same setup. I honestly dont know enough about mac to know if they have a 'light server' sku to offer, though i'd be interested to hear / try it out if they did. - darthsnoopy, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Here's the deal..say you have a 500gig drive and all your stuff is pointing to it, and you run out of space. What's your upgrade tactic? plug in another 500 gig drive? reformat, setup a share, setup permissions, move some stuff around, go to all the other machines in the house to point them at the 500 gig?
with WHS...plug in 500 gig drive, it does the rest. the drive arrays are consolidated, mirroring and backup is done autmatically, and you control it. remote admin is setup out of the box to be braindead simple. Its so easy a caveman can do it - inactive, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Super, you can do this of most good APs, its NOT an apple-only thing you stupid fanboy!
- damentz, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1"blocks non-generic graphics cards"
- srg13, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1What do you mean by "not "Linux easy""? Because that is an outdated stereotype (just like the hundreds of Blue screens you get every day)
- Hunterville, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1who cares, you're targeting the wrong crowd with your pitch.
- srg13, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1I know that Microsoft supporters hate everything Linux by default, butWhereAml is right.
- inactive, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1I already have a PC ready and waiting for this!
- srg13, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Probably not. He could have been doing everything this does on a Linux box for the last 5 years like I have...
- Haohmaru, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1EXACTLY.
- darthsnoopy, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1um, no it doesnt. nice try though.
- OBKenobi, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1How about LinuxMCE?
- Sven333, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0Vad i världen. Microsoft server i hemmet? Varför skulle man bryr sig? Inte jag i allifall.
- superkendall, on 10/10/2007, -2/+2It seems to have a lot of tools geared to the Un-Savvy so home users might be willing to use it... but how many people will be willing to buy something that's expensive to fill a role they hardly understand the need for?
- superkendall, on 10/10/2007, -3/+3It's the Microsoft Surface of the home computer market! A device with a feature set almost impossible to market, even though it's cool and potentially useful.
- superkendall, on 10/10/2007, -2/+1But why a special "home server" instead of just another system that does those things? I agree they have some cool management tools, but why not fold them into Windows proper instead of sticking them on a box specifically marked as "Home Server"? And many of the features you list while interesting, are not going to be nearly as widely used as storage (the automatic spanning of multiple drives there did sound like a cool feature).
Sure it's extensible, but so is the Mac mini I have stood up as a media PC. I just don't see what is going to compel the average person to buy a computer they will not be working on directly, and people who might like one are probably just as comfortable standing up any box as a server and managing that. - sjbdallas, on 10/10/2007, -2/+1I dug him up. I didn't realize it was an option and appreciated the posting.
- OBKenobi, on 10/10/2007, -2/+1It doesn't really have any spectacular features though. There's hardly any reason to use this even over plain old XP. It's still got a 5-user connection limit!
- ThatEvilGuy, on 10/10/2007, -3/+2How is this better than having a small NAS box?
- superkendall, on 10/10/2007, -3/+1The Atirport solution can be reached by Windows computers as well via SMB sharing.
- inactive, on 10/10/2007, -6/+4haha,i think i'll wait for a service pack before trying this particular product out.
- b0rg, on 10/10/2007, -4/+2It sounds like it has some cool potential, but the problem is I've never seen MCE work properly. The odds of a fairly qualified user making it work and getting another vendor's product to work with it are very discouraging.
What IE is to the web, MCE is to media - a bad way to access good stuff, designed around what advertisers want rather than users. - WhereAmI, on 10/10/2007, -5/+3MythTV does everything your probably looking for.
http://www.mythtv.org
I love mythgame, personally. -
Show 51 - 69 of 69 discussions
Check out the new & improved 
© Digg Inc. 2009
— Content created and posted by Digg users is