Windows Server 2008 - who needs it?

Windows Server 2008 is a much-anticipated release into the server space, bringing a swathe of enhancements to the Window Server product range. As a result, it has generated a lot of industry interest – new features like Hyper-V virtualisation and Server Core are redefining the classic role of Window Server, and IT decision-makers now have a greater range of options which offer increased flexibility, streamlined management and opportunities to implement advanced projects without recourse to third-party products.

Recent History

Windows Server 2008 is the direct successor of Windows Server 2003, which was released on April 23rd 2003. An updated version of WS2003 - WS2003 R2 – was released two years later on December 6th 2005, five months after the Beta 1 release of WS2008.

Windows Server 2003/2003 R2 are considered Microsoft’s flagship server products and come in different versions which support various levels of hardware configuration and system performance. The most recent available market figures from IDG Australia (Q3 2007) show that Microsoft is very much in a dominant position in the server space, with a weighty 78.02% share, with Linux the next in line at 15.91%. Trends do suggest, however, that shipments of new servers configured with Linux are on the rise, while those running Windows dipped slightly. The figures may be slightly out, as many companies buy server hardware without an operating system, and instead use licenses available on corporate or other volume licensed accounts, or install a freely-available distribution of Linux. But the variation is slight, and certainly not enough to change the overall Australian picture.

The overwhelming advantage which Microsoft has in the market is its end-to-end product dominance. Interoperability between server, application and desktop gives Microsoft an extremely strong platform from which to launch more products into the market, and it is into this market which Windows 2008 makes its debut.

Industry Impact of WS2008

What does WS2008 mean for your enterprise? The best way tackle this question is to realise that just like WS2003, WS2008 has many potential roles in any organisation, and therefore much depends upon the infrastructure and system configurations already in place. Windows operating systems do have a tendency to be examined in isolation, or at least in direct comparison to previous Windows builds. In an environment where Windows is the dominant server operating system, responsible for file, print and authoritative user management, this is a reasonable approach. But for organisations where this is not the case, even if there are Windows servers present, this method of examination does not equip decision-makers with the necessary information to make fully-informed judgements. The reality of business computing is that most organisations support a number of systems of different builds and flavours, and in such cases any new product has to be assessed against the whole range of alternative solutions.

Despite the large range of features and solutions WS2008 brings to the table, a distinction must be made between the primary roles of file/print/AD and everything else. This is not to diminish the importance of all the technology arbitrarily lumped into “everything else”, but more to place the emphasis on the first three roles as primary determinants of WS2008’s impact in any organisation.

Does your business already run AD as its primary authoritative user management system? Are your files stored on Windows servers? If the answer is Yes, then WS2008 already has less work to do in convincing you of its importance, and you can afford to spend more time examining the new features it will bring to your organisation. But if the answer is No, then does WS2008 do anything to convince you to make a move towards the Microsoft way of doing things? Will it integrate smoothly with your existing infrastructure, and does it address a need which isn’t already being met? Do you even need to bother with it?

Core Features – Windows Environments

For organisations already running Windows Server as their primary provider of file and print services, WS2008 has plenty to offer and makes a compelling business case.

There are a number of enhancements to file services in WS2008. One of the most discussed is the inclusion of SMB 2.0. The version included with WS2008 is part of the Service Pack 1 code for the Windows 6.0 kernel which WS2008 is based on, and is an enhancement of the version bundled with Windows Vista RTM. Windows Vista SP1 brings it into line with WS2008, and the performance enhancements are considerable, as SMB 2.0 supports larger disk and network I/Os, makes more intelligent use of memory in the file copy process and makes use of concurrent file transfers – “pipelining”.

In fact, if a business is considering deploying Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008 is practically a must. To get the full benefit of one you really need the other – significant features like Network Access Protection, server file searches, locally-spooled print jobs, locally-cached offline files and centrally-stored event forwarding are only fully supported in a WS2008/Vista SP1 environment.

Additionally, SMB 2.0 now supports symbolic links. These are essentially objects within the file system which point to another location, but which can be used by the OS or any application as an actual location, rather than a shortcut. Symbolic links have been available to UNIX and Linux users for a very long time.

WS2008 also provides enhancements to BitLocker Drive Encryption, allowing admins to encrypt all server volumes, not just the system volume, and NTFS now has self-healing capabilities which allow admins to perform CHKDSK functions without having to take the server down.

Active Directory has been given an overhaul and broken down into individual, specific server roles – Domain Services (ADDS), Federation Services (ADFS), Lightweight Directory Services (ADLDS), Rights Management Services (ADRMS) and Certificate Services (ADCS). Each role can be installed individually, thus allowing the creation of specialised domain controllers and reduced overhead.

There is also a brand new type of domain controller available in WS2008 – a Read Only Domain Controller (RODC). Designed to improve security in branch offices where the physical security of servers cannot be guaranteed, a RODC replicates AD information from a hub DC, but the locally-held copy is non-writable and does not replicate back to the hub. Sensitive data such as administrative accounts are excluded from the replication, so if an RODC in a remote site is physically compromised or stolen, admins accounts are not compromised. Implementing an RODC requires the forest to be at Windows 2003 functional level, and the DC running PDC emulation has to be running Windows Server 2008.

The classic GUI-based operating environment of Windows Server has been completely replaced with Server Core, a minimal, headless installation option offering a command line interface with the server console. This offers significant security and deployment advantages over previous versions of Windows Server – Microsoft has estimated that the resultant smaller attack platform reduces patching requirements by approximately 60% over Windows Server 2000, and 40% over Windows Server 2003.

The idea behind Server Core is that most of the core server roles in Windows Server shouldn’t require direct GUI access to the box in order to manage. As such, Server Core supports a variety of core server roles – DHCP, file/print, AD, WMS, DNS and IIS. Additional optional roles are also available, such as WINS, Failover Clustering and Hyper-V virtualisation. The headless server is manageable via a range of tools such as Terminal Services, Windows Remote Shell, MMC snap-ins and various third-party tools. It can also be managed with PowerShell, a scripting language which allows administrators to automate tasks on the server or within AD. These management tools are also available for full graphical installations.

So for existing Microsoft-based environments, the core features of Windows Server 2008 make a fairly compelling case for upgrade. The new server roles, Server Core and RODC all allow system administrators to re-think how Windows-based servers are deployed, what function they might fill and what efficiencies might be gained.

Core Features – Non-Windows Environments

Whilst offering plenty to existing Windows environments, what do the improvements to the core file/print/AD functions in WS2008 mean for business who don’t rely on Windows-based systems for their day-to-day operations? There are plenty of enterprises with firmly-established and fully-supported systems running Netware, Linux, UNIX or Mac OS X Server. In these scenarios, what does attractions does WS2008 have?

The short answer is, Not Much. The reality is that the vast majority of core services offered in WS2008 have generally been enjoyed for a long time in non-Windows environments.

Paul Kangro, Applied Technology Strategist with Novell, commented that "…Windows Server 2008 is a good release from Microsoft, and it's good to see that they're starting to catch up to us, but we'd argue that we have some functionality and feature benefits which are still not there on the Windows platform – technologies like iFolder, iPrint, NetStorage, dynamic storage technology and a true hierarchical directory namespace.”

The traditional model of Windows Server has essentially been a platform on which you can run Windows applications, along with some file and print functionality, and later some directory services added in. Whereas other server products have a long history of using a fully-integrated model as the starting point, and then providing application support on top of that. Features like headless servers, terminal windows and read-only authentication directories have been around for a very long time.

“UNIX and Linux admins have been using terminal windows for decades, and now suddenly it’s a feature?” questions Kangro. As for the concept of RODC, he feels that while there certainly may be scenarios where you might want to deploy read-only directory replicas, most organisations with a rich security model wouldn’t need it. He states that “…"it's great that they now have a feature we've had in eDirectory for years, but it's like saying that now the server comes with a power cord. It’s nothing to get excited about. But if security was a problem, I’d make the case that a Linux server would be really good in that environment, with something like AppArmor – which is available out-of-the-box – to lock it down and make sure it stays secure.”

Craig Fiegert, a Melbourne-based systems architect and industry consultant, agrees that the core features on offer in Windows 2008 won’t tempt non-Windows customers away from their current setups:

“Businesses running another server operating system for their day-to-day operations won’t really care about Server 2008,” he says. “Although Windows Server 2008 addresses a lot of needs for Windows customers, these needs have been met in non-Windows environments for years. In these environments, you usually see Windows servers deployed as a point solution – running SQL, SharePoint or Exchange – and in these scenarios there’s often a reluctance to migrate to a new operating system especially if it requires major changes to current infrastructural investment. The only real exception to this is where a business is forced down a particular technology path by third-party products. Once application vendors catch up and start writing software which only runs on Windows Server 2008, that’s when we’ll start seeing more penetration in non-Windows environments.”

“But even with Windows customers, in terms of interest in implementing the RTM product, I wouldn’t expect to see much initial interest from the small to medium enterprise market. Unless they’re a greenfields environment looking to deploy a fresh system, SMEs will follow the usual twelve to eighteen months deployment cycle and we’ll see new instances of Server 2008 coming online alongside hardware refreshes. However big enterprises with an existing Windows investment will probably pick up the product a lot sooner – for them implementation is a low-risk, low-cost strategy, and they’ve generally got the in-house resources to make it work.”

So it could be argued that in its provision of core services, WS2008 is seeking to close the gap between the traditional GUI-based Windows experience and the streamlined UNIX/Linux experience. Martin Gregory, Director of Server, Tools and Platform Strategy for Microsoft Australia, certainly feels that rather than highlighting the differences between Windows and non-Windows systems, functionality like PowerShell and Server Core will serve to make WS2008 more acceptable to non-Windows administrators:

“At a conference of UNIX and Linux sysadmins we did a demonstration of PowerShell. The whole room started applauding…until they realised that they were spontaneously applauding a Microsoft product!”

Gregory feels that WS2008’s ease of management and centralised administration – without the need to resort to third-party products – will complement the traditional UNIX/Linux approach to system administration and will be an important marketing point for WS2008 to make an impact in non-Windows environments.

Significance of New Features

Moving on from the core services of Windows Server 2008, the operating system support a wide range of new features, like IIS 7.0, updated Terminal Services and especially Hyper-V, Microsoft’s new hypervisor-based virtualisation solution, and depending on the implementation and prevalence of existing Windows servers in a particular environment, any one of the new features included with WS2008 could easily be a compelling, knock-down reason to migrate.

IIS 7.0’s new modularity alongside support with Server Core offers a completely new outlook on deploying specialist application servers, giving businesses the opportunity to quickly deploy feature-rich application servers with a minimal footprint which will be a big win for Microsoft.

Seamless, window-less presentation sessions in Terminal Services are another key feature. WS2008 makes deploying TS applications to clients incredibly easy, and opens up a whole new range of options for businesses who want to centrally control applications while improving application delivery to clients, both internally and externally via TS Gateway.

Virtualisation

But the big ticket item, and the one which has generated by far the most interest, is virtualisation. Hyper-V, Microsoft’s hypervisor-based virtualisation solution shipped in beta format with Server 2008, with the final release due within 180 days after RTM. Virtualisation and server consolidation is easily the fastest growing sector within the IT industry at the moment, as businesses scramble to cut costs and maximise return on hardware investment, while breathing new life into legacy systems. And VMWare is the powerhouse of the virtualisation world.

“Microsoft are coming from an interesting position.”, explains Fiegert. “They are effectively a monopoly, but in the server virtualisation space they're very much a minority. However, what impact Hyper-V will have in the market has yet to be seen – Microsoft are commoditising virtualisation for customers who may or may not have seen considered it before. VMWare is still the product of choice but it’s prohibitively expensive for a lot of people. Other customers are doing good work with virtualisation, like Novell and Sun with XEN, but they don't have the same market penetration that Microsoft do and XEN penetration in the virtualisation market is next to nothing.”

Certainly Gregory is of the opinion that Microsoft’s suite of virtualisation products make a compelling business case:

“You’ve got server virtualisation with Hyper-V, presentation virtualisation with Terminal Services and application virtualisation with SoftGrid, and they’re all managed with the same set of tools which is great for admins. Microsoft is encouraging its customers to get to grips with new technology, and we’re working hard to make the experience a seamless one.”

The discussion on virtualisation options is certainly an interesting one, but at some point rhetoric has to translate into hard business decisions, and with Windows Server 2008 now presenting the possibility of out-of-the-box virtualisation, how do CIOs balance the decision between a proven track record on one hand and cost-effectiveness on the other?

According to Kangro, it all depends on what you want to achieve through virtualisation. “When you virtualise your server operating systems it allows you to focus much more heavily on applications. The virtualised OS essentially becomes just a launching platform for applications, with the underlying hardware becoming simply the means to an end, rather than the end itself.”

Certainly Novell is keen to promote the virtues of their own out-of-the-box virtualisation solution, XenSource, over Hyper-V. Featured in SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 (SLES10) XenSource supports failover of virtual machines without having to take down the virtualised host – similar to VMWare’s VMotion – whereas Hyper-V as yet does not support this. However, Novell is in no doubt as to the danger of competing head-to-head with Microsoft in the virtualisation space, and is leveraging off the benefits which have come to both companies through their joint patent agreement which was announced in November 2006. Both companies now fully support each other’s VMs – you can run a Microsoft VM on XenSource and vice versa with no reconfiguration of the VM required. You can also call Microsoft for support on a SLES10 VM hosted on Hyper-V, or call Novell for support on a WS2008 VM virtualised on XenSource.

“There’s a very strong industry demand for different platforms to interact well together,” explains Kangro. “CIOs were very pleased with our agreement with Microsoft – they said ‘Thanks goodness you guys have figured out how to play together’. What we’re trying to do is to ensure that Windows and Linux work better together – we know that ultimately the industry is going to contain a mixture of these products, and virtualisation lets us make that happen.”

But what of the mighty VMWare? As exciting as out-of-the-box virtualisation is, there’s a good chance that it may actually backfire on Microsoft. Businesses who have yet to consider virtualisation and who are now examining it seriously as it’s so readily available will, at some point, carry out proper due diligence tests of any virtualisation proposal. While Hyper-V is based on Microsoft’s mature Virtual Server product, VMWare’s enterprise solutions have been in the market for quite some time, and expense aside, they have a solid reputation for performance and functionality. It’s quite possible that in promoting the benefits of virtualisation, Microsoft may drive more customers towards VMWare.

So has Microsoft started a fight that it can’t possibly win? “Probably yes,” admits Fiegert, “Every corporate customer over 300 users that I deal with has virtualisation, whether it's VMWare Server or VMWare ESX – right down to the IT department using VMWare Workstation or Player for testing and support. But if Microsoft can carve out a 5% or even 10% market share from nothing, then it’s a worthwhile exercise for them.”

Gregory is definitely confident that Hyper-V will prove successful. “The cost factor compared with our competitors is very much in Microsoft’s favour”, he explains, “We’re very confident about Hyper-V’s performance against our competitors, and for customers who implement Hyper-V, there are significant ongoing cost benefits as well.”

So where will the fight for virtualisation take place? Almost certainly in the SMB market. Large organisations who have already gone down a virtualisation path will have invested heavily in VMWare. Virtualisation technology isn’t something which can be easily swapped out and replaced, and unless Microsoft can put forward an overwhelmingly compelling business case, they’re unlikely to make many inroads in the pre-existing virtualisation space.

Matthew Oostveen – research manager for enterprise servers, workstations, and high-performance computers arm of IDC Australia – feels that while SMBs are destined to be the battleground for virtualisation supremacy, that the lack of resources which such companies often have to endure will make the job difficult. “It's all eyes on SMB," he asserts, "Having such a complex operating system is a double-edged sword, since its success is going to depend on penetration in the SMB market. The challenge is for Microsoft to skill up the larger systems integrators to be able to support this."

Certainly Microsoft is aware of the challenge, and is pushing its education and certification offerings very strongly. Backed up by veritable armies of resellers, certified trainers, Gold and Platinum partners, Microsoft are certainly not short of resources or supporters to promote and evangelise the benefits of Windows Server 2008.

So how much impact will Hyper-V have in the market? The reality is that it is already having a major impact. Virtualisation is now available to businesses who previously weren’t considering it or who couldn’t justify the cost of a VMWare solution. But Microsoft are keen to ensure that Hyper-V doesn’t simply become the default solution for those who can’t afford VMWare, and they are in a very good position to promote Hyper-V to all customers – from small businesses with a handful of servers right up to global enterprises with a datacenter on each continent.

Conclusion

There’s little doubt that Windows Server 2008 is a highly significant product release from Microsoft, but is it for you? For existing Windows customers it’s a seamless upgrade path and a clear business strategy. It offers major feature enhancements over Windows Server 2003 R2 and provides access to plenty of new and exciting technologies.

For businesses who haven’t taken the Microsoft path, or who have only implemented Windows Server to fulfil very specific, application-driven needs, it’s very much a case of “business as usual”. Windows Server 2008 doesn’t present any compelling reasons which might entice decision-makers to take the major step of moving away from the current investments of day-to-day operational infrastructure. In its core file, print and directory services, WS2008 doesn’t present any stronger challenge to its competitors than did its predecessors.

However, the extensive application suite which this product offers, coupled with Microsoft’s existing industry dominance, makes Windows Server 2008 a force to be reckoned with. Microsoft has presented a product which gives unprecedented scope for flexibility and server specialisation which will have a major impact on the market – whether you run it or not.