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TOPIC 1.1 : Server Operating Systems


Introduction
A server operating system, also called a server OS, is an operating system specifically
designed to run on servers, which are specialized computers that operate within a
client/server architecture to serve the requests of client computers on the network. Server
operating systems help enable and facilitate typical server roles such as Web server, mail
server, file server, database server, application server and print server.
Popular server operating systems include Windows Server, Mac OS X Server, and variants of
Linux such as Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server.

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Windows Server 2012

Microsoft Windows Server 2012 is a powerful, versatile, full-featured server operating system
that builds on the enhancements that Microsoft provided in Windows Server 2008 Release 2.
Windows Server 2012 and Windows 8 share a number of common features because they were
part of a single development project.

Microsoft releases all its operating systems in multiple editions, which provides consumers
with varying price points and feature sets. When planning a server deployment, the operating
system edition you choose should be based on multiple factors, including the following:

The roles you intend the servers to perform

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The virtualization strategy you intend to implement

The licensing strategy you plan to use


Windows Server Editions
Microsoft has simplified the process of selecting a server edition by reducing the available
products. Windows Server 2012 requires a 64-bit processor architecture. This leaves Windows
Server 2012 with the following core editions:

Windows Server 2012 Datacenter
The Datacenter edition is designed for large and powerful servers with up to 64 processors
and fault-tolerance features such as hot add processor support. As a result, this edition is
available only through the Microsoft volume licensing program and from original equipment
manufacturers (OEMs), bundled with a server.

Windows Server 2012 Standard
The Standard edition includes the full set of Windows Server 2012 features and differs
from the Datacenter edition only in the number of virtual machine (VM) instances
permitted by the license.

Windows Server 2012 Essentials
The Essentials edition includes nearly all the features in the Standard and Datacenter
editions, except for Server Core, Hyper-V, and Active Directory Federation Services. The
edition is limited to one physical or virtual server instance and a maximum of 25 users.

Windows Server 2012 Foundation
The Foundation edition is a reduced version of the operating system designed for small
businesses that require only basic server features such as file and print services and
application support. The edition includes no virtualization rights and is limited to 15 users.

These various editions have prices commensurate with their capabilities. Obviously, the goal of
administrators planning server deployments is to purchase the most inexpensive edition that
meets all their needs.


Server licensing
Licensing for Windows Server 2012 has two aspects:
Server licenses. Each installation of Windows Server 2012 on a computer requires
appropriate server licensing. Each server license can be assigned to only a single physical
server and based on
- number of physical processors
- number of virtual instances.

Client access licenses (CALs).
- Per server
One CAL is required for each concurrent connection to the server. This usually means
one CAL for every connection to that server.
- Per device or per user
A CAL is purchased for each user or device connecting to the serverthis usually
corresponds to one CAL for every user or computer that will access the server.


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Licensing requirement by Edition
Foundation can be used only with a server that has a single physical processor and allows
up to 15 users without a need for separate CALs.
Essentials can be used on servers with up to 2 physical processors and allows up to 25
users without a need for separate CALs.
Standard covers up to two physical processors. Each Standard license covers up to two
virtual instances. Thus, a server with 4 physical processors would require two Standard
licenses. CAL license is required
Datacenter license covers up to two physical processors. Datacenter license covers an
unlimited number of virtual instances. Thus, a server with 4 physical processors would
require two Datacenter licenses. CAL is required

Licensing Types
Microsoft provides several different sales channels for Windows Server 2012 licenses, and not
all of the editions are available through all of the channels. Licensing Windows Server 2012
includes purchasing licenses for both servers and clients, and there are many options for each
one. The table below shows the licencing types available for the editions.




Licenses for enterprise-class server software (such as Microsoft Exchange or Microsoft SQL)
could
also require a Client Access License (CAL) for each user that is to access the server software.
The least inexpensive license to obtain is the OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) license,
which can only be purchased with a new computer from a system builder such as HP or IBM.
Unfortunately, these licenses are tied to a specific machine and cannot be transferred later to
a new machine.

OEM license .The OEM is usually responsible for technical support on the software that you
bought.
Retail license. Purchased from your office or computer store or over the Internet, allows
you move it from one machine to another.

Disadvantages:
- Costs more than OEM software.
- Retail software from Microsoft is that you need to enter a key code to activate the
software.
- If move the software to another computer or you make semi-significant changes
such as adding RAM or a new hard drive, you may need to re-activate the software.

Volume licensing. Program available to allow companies to get newest software at a
discounted price. The Open license is intended for businesses with at least 5 PCs, and
Select License and Enterprise Agreement Plans are licensing programs intended for
corporations with at least 250 PCs.


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Windows Activation
Microsoft product activation, including Windows activation, is an anti-piracy technology
designed to verify that software products are legitimately licensed. The goal of product
activation is to reduce software piracy through casual copying and hard drive cloning. The
Windows Server family of retail products contains activation technology, which requires you to
activate your retail or volume license copy of Windows Server OS.

If you have not activated Windows Server 2012, you are reminded each time you log in and at
common intervals until the end of the activation grace period of 30 days. If you have not
activated during the grace period, the system then will be unlicensed. Persistent notifications
will alert you of the need to activate. You can view the activation status in the Server
Manager.

For retail product, you can activate your product over the Internet. Activation wizard detects
your Internet connection and securely connects to a Microsoft server to transfer your
installation ID when you submit it. A confirmation ID is passed back to your computer,
automatically activating Windows Server. Activation can also be done over the phone when
internet access is not available.

For volume licensing, activation can be performed using the following methods:
- Multiple Activation Key (MAK). MAK allows you to use a single key on multiple machines.
Each key has to be registered and activated individually
-
- Key Management Services (KMS) uses a KMS server to automatically connect to Microsofts
license warehouse and activate the key. However, any machines that activate with the
KMS host will only get 180 days at a time


Minimum Hardware Requirement
To install Windows Server 2014, the server must meet the following hardware requirements:

1.4-GHz 64-bit processor
512 MB RAM
32 GB available disk space
DVD drive
Super VGA (800 600) or higher resolution monitor
Keyboard and mouse (or other compatible pointing device)
Internet access (windows update & activation)

32 GB of available disk space should be considered an absolute minimum. The system
partition will need extra space if you install the system over a network or if your computer has
more than 16 GB of RAM installed. The additional disk space is required for paging,
hibernation, and dump files.


Server Roles, Role Services, and Features
Servers play many roles in the client/server networking environment. Some servers are
configured to provide authentication, and others are configured to run applications. Some
provide network services that enable users to communicate with other servers and resources
in the network. As a systems administrator, you are expected to know the primary types of
servers and what functions they perform in your network. The following components are
installed to fulfill the server role and functionality.

Server roles A server role is a related set of software components that allows a server to
perform a specific function for users and other computers on a network. A computer can be
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dedicated to a single role, such as Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS), or provide
multiple roles.

Role services A role service is a software component that provides the functionality for a
server role. Each role can have one or more related role services. Some server roles, such
as Domain Name Service (DNS) and Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP), have a
single function, and installing the role installs this function. Other roles, such as Network
Policy and Access Services and Active Directory Certificate Services (AD CS), have multiple
role services that you can install. With these server roles, you can choose which role
services to install.

Features A feature is a software component that provides additional functionality.
Features, such as BitLocker Drive Encryption and Windows Server Backup, are installed
and removed separately from roles and role services. A computer can have zero or more
features installed depending on its configuration.
ROLE NAME DESCRIPTION
Server Roles and services
List of some of the server roles supported on Windows Serve 2012
Active Directory Certificate Services. Provides service for creating and managing public
key certificates used in software security systems that employ public key technologies to
prove the identity of person, device, or service, which can be used by secure mail, secure
wireless networks, virtual private networks (VPN), Internet Protocol Security (IPSec),
Encrypting File System (EFS), smart card logon, and others.

Active Directory Domain Services. Transforms a server into a domain controller to
provide a directory service via Microsofts Active Directory (AD), which stores information
about users, computers, and other devices on the network. Active Directory is required for
directory-enabled applications such as Microsoft Exchange Server (email server) and to
apply other Windows Server technologies such as Group Policy.

Active Directory Federation Services. Provides web single-sign-on (SSO) technologies
to authenticate a user to multiple web applications using a single user account.

Active Directory Lightweight Directory Services (ADLDS) For applications that
require a directory to store application data as a data store without installing Active
Directory domain services.

Active Directory Rights Management Services (AD RMS). Technology that works with
Active Directory RMS enables applications safeguard digital information from unauthorized
use by specifying who can use the information and what they can do with it (open, modify,
print, forward, and/or take other actions).

Application Server. Provides a complete solution for hosting and managing high-
performance distributed business applications.

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) Server Allows servers to assign, or
lease, IP addresses to computers and other devices that are enabled as DHCP clients.

Domain Name System (DNS) Server Provides a naming service that associates names
with numeric Internet addresses. This makes it possible for users to refer to network
computers by using easy-to-remember names instead of a long series of numbers.

File Services. Provides technologies for storage management, file replication, distributed
namespace management, fast file searching, and streamlined client access to files.

Network Policy and Access Services Delivers a variety of methods (including using VPN
servers, dial-up servers,routers, and 802.11 protected wireless access points) to provide
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users with local and remote network connectivity, to connect network segments, and to
allow network administrators to centrally manage network access and client health policies.

Print Services Enables users to print to and manage centralized printers that are
connected directly or indirectly to print servers.

Terminal Services Allows users to connect to a terminal server to remotely run
programs, use network resources and access the Windows desktop on that server.

Web Server (IIS) Enables sharing of information on the Internet, an intranet, or an
extranet via a unified web platform that integrates Internet Information Server (IIS) 7.5 to
provide web pages, File Transfer Protocol (FTP) services or newsgroups, ASP.NET, Windows
Communication Foundation, and Windows SharePoint Services.

Windows Deployment Services Used to install and configure Microsoft Windows
operating systems remotely on computers with Pre-boot Execution Environment (PXE) boot
ROMs.

Windows SharePoint Services Helps organizations increase productivity by creating
Web sites where users can collaborate on documents, tasks, and events and easily share
contacts and other information. The environment is designed for flexible deployment,
administration, and application development.

Windows Server Virtualization Provides the services that can be used to create and
manage virtual machines (virtualized computer systems that operate in an isolated
execution environment that allows the user to run multiple operating systems
simultaneously) and their resources.



List of some of the server features supported.
BitLocker Drive Encryption Helps protect data on disks by encrypting the entire volume.

Connection Manager Administration Customizes the remote connection experience for
users on your network by creating pre-defined connections to remote servers and networks
via a Virtual Private Network (VPN) server.

Desktop Experience Includes features of Windows Vista such as Windows Media Player,
desktop themes,and photo management.

Failover Clustering Allows multiple servers to work together to provide high availability
of services and applications. If one server fails, a second server is available to take over its
work.

Group Policy Management A Microsoft Management Console snap-in that allows easy
management of Active Directory Group Policies to secure or standardize a network
environment.

Internet Printing Client Enables clients to use Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) to connect
and print to printers on the network or Internet.

Network Load Balancing (NLB) Distributes traffic across several servers, using the
TCP/IP networking protocol. NLB is particularly useful for ensuring that stateless
applications such as web servers running IIS are scalable by adding additional servers as
the load increases.

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Remote Assistance Enables you or a support person to offer assistance to users with
computer issues or questions.

Remote Server Administration Tools. Includes an MMC snap-in and a command-line
tool to remotely manage roles and features.

SMTP Server Supports the transfer of email messages between email systems. SMTP is
short for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol.

SNMP Services SNMP is short for Simple Network Management Protocol. SNMP is used in
network management systems to monitor network-attached devices for conditions that
warrant administrative attention.

Storage Manager for SANs Helps create and manage logical unit numbers (LUNs) on
Fibre Channel and iSCSI |disk drive subsystems that support Virtual Disk Service (VDS)

Subsystem for UNIX-based Applications Allows the user to run UNIX-based programs
and compile and run custom UNIX-based applications in the Windows environment.

Windows PowerShell A command-line shell and scripting language.

Windows Recovery Disc Allows users to restore their computer using the system
recovery options if they do not have a Windows installation disc or cannot access recovery
options provided by their computers manufacturer.

Windows Server Backup Features Allows users to back up and recover their operating
system, applications, and data.

Windows System Resource Manager An administrative tool that can control how CPU
and memory resources are allocated.