Applies To: Windows Server 2016 Essentials, Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials, Windows Server 2012 Essentials This document includes information that is specific to hosters who intend to deploy Microsoft Windows Server 16 with the Windows Server Essentials Experience role (referred to as Windows Server Essentials in the remainder of
the document) installed in their lab and intend to offer Windows Server Essentials Experience as a service to their customers. This document includes the following sections: Windows Server Essentials Experience overview Benefits of hosting Windows Server Essentials Experience Supported deployment options Supported network topologies Customize the image of
Windows Server Essentials Experience role Automate the deployment of Windows Server Essentials Experience Migrate data from Windows Small Business Server to Windows Server Essentials Experience Perform common tasks by using Windows PowerShell Email integration with Windows
Server Essentials Monitor and manage by using native tools Test scenarios Support information The Windows Server Essentials Experience is a server role that is available in the Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard and Windows Server 2012 R2 Datacenter. When the Windows Server Essentials Experience role is installed on a server running Windows Server 2012 R2, the customer can take advantage of all the features that are available in Windows Server Essentials without the locks and limits.
The Windows Server Essentials Experience enables the following cross-premises solutions for small and midsize businesses: Data storage and protection You can store the customer „¢s data in a centralized location and protect server and client data by backing up the server and client computers (less than 75) within the network. User management You can manage the users and groups through the simplified
server dashboard. In addition, integration with Microsoft Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) enables easy data access for Microsoft online services (for example, Microsoft 365, Exchange Online, and SharePoint Online) for users by using their domain credentials. Service integration You can integrate the server with Microsoft online services (such as Microsoft 365, SharePoint Online, and Microsoft Azure Backup). You can also integrate the server with your
services or services provided by third-party providers. Anywhere Access The customer can access the server, network computers, and data from virtually anywhere they have an Internet connection and by using almost any device. Remote Web Access enables them to access applications and data with a streamlined, touch-friendly browser experience. The My Server app enables them to access data from a Windows Phone or a Microsoft Store app. Media streaming If you install the Media package on a server with Windows Server Essentials Experience enabled, the end customer can store music, video, and photographs in shared folders, then access these media files from networked computers or Remote Web Access. Health monitoring You can monitor network health and obtain customized health reports. Windows Server Essentials Experience is a role in Windows Server, so you can reuse the existing deployment and management framework in Windows Server to deploy and configure the Windows Server Essentials Experience role. Hosting the Windows Server Essentials Experience role provides the following benefits: Streamlined deployment By simply turning on the Windows Server
Essentials Experience role, some of the most commonly used roles and features are turned on and configured with best practices for small and midsized businesses. You can customize the Windows Server Essentials features, or hide some of the on-premises features. If you use the Windows Azure Pack, you can download the gallery template for Windows Server Essentials Experience on Windows Server 2012 R2. Simplified dashboard The Windows Server Essentials
Dashboard simplifies common tasks such as managing server folders, server storage, backup and restore, user or group accounts, devices, remote access, and email. Small and midsized business customers can perform daily management tasks instead of calling the Help Desk for technical support. Extensibility The Windows Server Essentials Dashboard and Windows Server Essentials Connector software are extensible. You can add your own branding and service integration, so that your customers have one entry point for everything about their server and service. Monitor A new version of the System Center Monitoring Pack is available to monitor and manage multiple servers running Windows Server Essentials. To download the management pack, see System Center Management Pack for Windows Server Essentials. Supported deployment optionsWindows Server Essentials Experience can be deployed as a domain controller in a new Active Directory environment; or it can be deployed into an existing Active Directory environment as a domain member. We recommend that you first deploy Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard or Windows Server 2012 R2 Datacenter, and then install the Windows Server Essentials Experience role. With this deployment method, you get all the functionalities of Windows Server Essentials edition, without the locks and limits. For more information about installing Windows Server 2012 R2 with the Windows Server Essentials Experience role, see Install and Configure Windows Server Essentials. Supported network topologiesTo use Windows Server Essentials Experience from a roaming client, VPN should be enabled. To enable remote access to the server from roaming clients, you need to open port 443 and port 80 on the server. Here are the two typical server-side networking topologies, and how the VPN and Remote Web Access could be configured:
Customize the image of Windows Server Essentials Experience roleYou can customize the image before configuring the Windows Server Essentials Experience role. To learn about the standard Windows Server Sysprep process, see Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit. After you prepare the image by using Sysprep, you can use it or reseal it into Install.wim for a new deployment. If you are using Virtual Machine Manager, you can create a template by using the running instance. This process uses Sysprep to prepare the instance, and it shuts down the computer. After you store the template in your library, you can use it on a case-by-case basis. After you install the Windows Server Essentials Experience role, you can customize the features in Windows Server Essentials. One of the most important customizations is the IsHosted registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows Server\Deployment\IsHosted. If this key is set to 0x1, some of the on-premises features will change behavior. These feature changes include:
Automate the deployment of Windows Server Essentials ExperienceTo automate the deployment, you need to first deploy the operating system and then install the Windows Server Essentials Experience role.
After deployment, use the Windows PowerShell cmdlet Get-WssConfigurationStatus to verify if the
initial configuration was successful. The returned status should be one of the following: The server will be restarted during the initial configuration. If you need to prevent this automatic restart, you can use the following command to add a registry key before you start the Initial Configuration:
After the initial configuration starts, you can use Get-WssConfigurationStatus to check the initial configuration status, and when the status is PendingReboot, you can restart your server. Migrate data from Windows Small Business Server to Windows Server Essentials ExperienceYou can migrate data from servers running Windows Small Business Server 2011, Windows Small Business Server 2008, Windows Small Business Server 2003, or Windows Server Essentials to the server running Windows Server Essentials. Review the Migrate to Windows Server Essentials migration guide for on-premises 2migrations, and make necessary customizations based on your hosting environment.
After migration, you can upgrade your licenses to remove the locks and limits. For more information, see Transition from Windows Server Essentials to Windows Server 2012 Standard. Perform common tasks by using Windows PowerShellThis section explains some of the common tasks that you can perform by using Windows PowerShell. Enable Remote Web AccessSyntax: Enable-WssRemoteWebAccess [-SkipRouter] [-DenyAccessByDefault] [-ApplyToExistingUsers] Example:
This command will enable Remote Web Access with the router configured automatically, and change the default access permissions for all existing users. Add userSyntax: Add-WssUser [-Name] <string> [-Password] <securestring> [-AccessLevel <string> {User | Administrator}] [-FirstName <string>] [-LastName <string>] [-AllowRemoteAccess] [-AllowVpnAccess] [<CommonParameters>] Example:
This command will add an administrator named User2Test with password Passw0rd!. Add Server FolderSyntax: Add-WssFolder [-Name] <string> [-Path] <string> [[-Description] <string>] [-KeepPermissions] [<CommonParameters>] Example:
This command will add a server folder named MyTestFolder at the specified location. Email integration with Windows Server EssentialsYou can integrate Windows Server Essentials Experience with Microsoft 365 or hosted Exchange Server. If you want your customer to use your hosted email, you need to develop an add-in to integrate Windows Server Essentials Experience with your hosted email solution. For more information, see Windows Server Essentials SDK. Monitor and manage by using native toolsThis section discusses the native tools that are available in Windows Server 2012 R2 to monitor and manage the server. Group PolicyWindows Server Essentials Experience leverages the native Group Policy support in Windows Server 2012 R2 and provides a user interface to configure Folder Redirection and security settings.
System Center Monitoring PackSystem Center Monitoring Pack for Windows Server Essentials Experience monitors the health alert system to help you manage large numbers of servers running Windows Server Essentials that are dedicated to small business organizations. For more information, see System Center Management Pack for Windows Server Essentials. Backup and restoreWindows Server 2012 R2 with Windows Server Essentials Experience allows you to back up server and client computers in the network. Server BackupWindows Server Essentials supports two ways to back up the server: on-premises backup and off-premises backup. You can customize these options if you want to deploy your own server backup solution.
Client Computer BackupWindows Server Essentials Experience supports two kinds of client data backup: full client backup and File History.
Full client backupFull client backup is on by default for all the client devices that are connected to the Windows Server Essentials network. It fully backs up the system information and data for the client and supports data deduplication. The backup data will be stored on the server running Windows Server Essentials. This enables a failed client to retrieve data from a previous backup point. Some considerations for full client computer backup are:
File HistoryFile History is a feature in Windows 8.1 and Windows 8 for backing up profile data (Libraries, Desktop, Contacts, Favorites) to a network share. You can centrally manage the File History setting of all computers running Windows 8.1 or Windows 8 that are joined to Windows Server Essentials network. The backup data is stored on the server running Windows Server Essentials. You should hide the Client Restore Service task by following the steps in Customize and Deploy Windows Server Essentials in Windows Server 2012 R2 Storage managementStorage Spaces allows you to aggregate the physical storage capacity of disparate hard drives, dynamically add hard drives, and create data volumes with specified levels of resilience. You can do this on the host or on the virtual machine. If you want to hide this feature in a virtual machine running Windows Server Essentials, follow the instructions in Customize and Deploy Windows Server Essentials in Windows Server 2012 R2. Test scenariosFrom the hosting perspective, we recommend that you test the following scenarios:
Server deploymentYou can test the following server deployment scenarios:
Server configurationYou can test the following server configuration scenarios :
Server managementYou can test the following server management scenarios:
Client experienceYou can test the following end user scenarios:
Support informationYou can download the Windows Server Essentials Software Development Kit (SDK) and the Windows Server Essentials Assessment and Deployment Kit (ADK):
Additional References
Which of the following are benefits of using Windows Server 2012 R2 Server Core?Because Server Core for Windows Server 2012 installs only what is required for a manageable server, less servicing is required. Because less is installed on a Server Core-based server, less management is required. Because there is less running on the server, there is less attack surface.
What are the benefits of Windows Server 2012?Advantages. As expected, Windows Server 2012 supports more memory, a greater number of processors and more disk space than its predecessor. Additionally, the OS boasts several cloud and security enhancements well suited for cloud management.
Which of the following is an application in Windows Server 2012 R2 that is used to manage the configuration of Windows Server 2012 R2 machines?New in Windows Server 2012 R2, Windows PowerShell v4 supports Desired State Configuration, which is a new management platform in Windows PowerShell that enables deploying and managing configuration data for software services and managing the environment in which these services run.
Which of the following features must be added to a Windows Server 2012 R2 Server Core installation to convert it to minimal server?B. Removing the Graphical Management Tools and Infrastructure feature is required to convert to a Server Core installation.
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