I normally post about Software Development "stuff", since that's where my area of expertise lies, but I had to post about Windows Home Server (WHS).  Recently, Microsoft took the "public covers" off of this product and therefore I can post about one of my favorite "products" for lack of a better word ever released by Microsoft.  Yes, I know that I work for Microsoft and this might sound biased, but I truly mean it. 

Home ServerI have a several (more than that is probably healthy) computers in my home (desktops, laptops, and servers) and I have used several products (e.g., Norton Ghost, True Image Backup, Windows Backup, etc.) to keep my systems backed up, but Home Server has replaced all of them.

 

 

 

 

 

Here's why (from my perspective) it is a one-shot solution for homes:

  1. It backups Desktops/Laptops (I have Windows XP and Vista Desktops)
  2. It backups my Servers (Windows 2000 and 2003), which I use for Virtual PC (Development) work.  This is HUGE because products that backup Servers are normally priced considerably higher than non-Server backup software.
  3. I can hook as many drives up to the Home Server as I want (of various types and sizes) and Home Server handles the RAID-like setup of the drives when I add them.  I don't have to worry about how to configure them.  I have about 2 Terabytes of storage on my Home Server (a bunch of 80, 100, 250GB drives hooked in via USB or internally installed)
  4. I can manage the server from any machine, as much as I have to "manage it".  I look at the server once a week or less.  It sends me messages to let me know if it is having any "issues".
  5. I can connect to it to access "Shared Folders" anywhere in the house, AND over the Internet "Securely".
  6. It will send me (the administrator) a notification when one of my machines has Security problems (e.g., Anti-virus definition is out of date)
  7. It DOESN'T require Active Directory or anything more complex than a username/password authentication scheme which it manages.
  8. With all of the computers in my house, I have the vast majority of them set to "sleep" after a certain period of inactivity, to try to reduce my echo-footprint.  Home Server (with a free add-in) will automatically wake those machines up, and performs the scheduled backup.
  9. I built my Home Server, because there was no option during the BETA cycle to buy one pre-configured, but I am now planning to buy one for my parents who have 3 computers in their house and a hit/miss backup strategy, because it is SO SIMPLE to setup and I can manage it over the Internet!

These are my main reasons for using Home Server, and yes I could cobble together a series of software products, a NAS or other network connected storage system, and some old drives, because that's what I had before Home Server.  But, I have personally found Home Server to be easier to manage, upgrade and setup.

Here's a link to the product page: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/windowshomeserver/default.mspx

Here's the link for where you can buy one: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/windowshomeserver/buy.mspx

~ Robert Shelton

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