Windows small business server
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Shirley Street, PO Box CB-11567, Nassau, New Providence
A small business has many ongoing needs: to better organize and safeguard business information, to communicate effectively and professionally with customers and suppliers, and to make the most of your existing computers and office equipment.
Wish that there were more hours in the day?
SBS 2008 helps your company become more efficient and flexible so you can work smarter, not harder.
Worry that your business information is not secure?
SBS 2008 helps keep your vital business data secure with antispam, antivirus, and state-of-the-art security technology.
Need to work while you are out of the office?
SBS 2008 gives you the tools to connect with customers and be responsive no matter where you are.
With limited time and resources to get the job done, SBS 2008 can simplify your daily activities while saving you time and money. For greater business capacity and a new competitive edge, the time for SBS 2008 is now.
Windows SMALL BUSINESS SERVER 2008
Windows Small Business Server 2008 (SBS 2008) is an “all-in-one” server solution designed to help you keep your data more secure, your company more productive, and gives you the tools to present a more professional image to customers. It provides many of the features used by larger companies-e-mail, Internet connectivity, internal Web sites, remote access, support for mobile devices, file and printer sharing, backup, and restore-all at one affordable price.
Use an Affordable, Integrated Solution Windows Small Business Server 2008 is designed for small businesses. It brings together the Microsoft technologies that small businesses need most into a single solution. These technologies are integrated to deliver a comprehensive network at an affordable price.
Protect Your Business data Windows Small Business Server 2008 helps protect your vital business information from loss, by backing up the data on your network and helping enable you to recover accidentally deleted files. SBS 2008 also enables you to recover data on your network in the event of disaster. With easy to use interfaces, you or your IT consultant gain better control of your data, PCs and network.
Grow Your Business Capacity Windows Small Business Server 2008 gives you secure access to business contacts, calendars, e-mail, files, and other important desktop resources from any Internet- connected PC, from virtually anywhere at any time, so you can be productive while you’re away from the office or on the road.
Discover how Windows Small Business Server 2008 is designed and priced especially for small businesses.
Both editions include five Client Access License (CAL) Suites (Standard or Premium version dependent upon the edition), and supports a maximum of 75 users or devices. Additional CAL suites can be purchased in increments of 1, 5, or 20 pack quantities for Users or Devices. 1 120 day trial included in product. 2 May not be available in all markets and/or languages. Refer to the Editions Overview page at www.microsoft.com/sbs for details on market and language availability. 3 Windows Server 2003 R2 Standard is available as an alternative version in place of Windows Server 2008 Standard until December 31, 2009. 4 Through December 31, 2009, customers using applications that are not yet certified for use on Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Standard, a copy of Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Standard will also be included in SBS 2008 Premium. SQL Server 2008 (or 2005) Standard can be installed on either server: If you install SQL on the first server then you must install the management tools on another machine.
To learn more about Windows Small Business Server 2008 and to find a Microsoft Small Business Specialist in your area to guide you with expert advice, support, and service, go to: Xennix Ltd. Business Technology Consultants
Microsoft Certified Partner
Xennix Ltd is the certified partner for Microsoft in the Bahamas.
Contact Xennix Ltd at 242-328-5503 to find out how Windows 7 Professional, Microsoft Office 2010 or Small Business Server 2008 can benefit your business today.
Xennix Ltd. Business Technology Consultants Tonique Williams-Darling Highway Nassau / Paradise Island, Bahamas
Phone : 242-328-5503 Fax : 242-328-5504 info
Microsoft Windows 7 Professional
Small Business Server Buying Guide: How to Choose the Best Option for Your Needs
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Server FAQs
Know your options before you buy, or learn more about the capabilities of your existing Lenovo server with our frequently asked questions.
Shopping Guide to Buying a Server for Your Small Business
Growth. It’s the number one reason why small businesses end up re-evaluating everything from their office space, to their benefits packages. When a business grows, its needs change, and some of the most dramatic changes happen when a one-to-three person team grows to six or more people. The office that felt cozy, now feels cramped. And the free web-based software that was “good enough,” for a plucky start-up? It now feels limiting, and a little unprofessional. Along with all of these changes, comes yet one more area for consideration: It might be time to get a small business server.
Why would you need a server in the first place?
A server, in a nutshell, is a central computer for your business. If you think of your laptops and desktops as spokes on a wheel, a server is the spinning hub in the center. It can take on a wide variety of tasks, from running your email platform, to managing the security updates and permissions on your fleet of PCs, to acting as a protected data vault for your most sensitive files. Unlike regular laptops or desktops, servers are designed to be 24/7 workhorses – always on, and always available to connect your people to the software and shared resources they need to get their work done. For some great examples of what a server can do for your small business, check out 5 Signs Your Business Needs a Server. Some businesses choose to use Cloud-based servers. These servers are located with a third-party Cloud company, and are kind of like a time-share. You rent “space” in the form of a virtual server, just like you might rent a room in a hotel. The benefit to Cloud-based servers is that they can be set up instantly, according to your needs, and can be scaled up and down in terms of power (CPU) and storage (hard disk space) as your needs change. This is all handled for you, by the third party, and should anything happen to your rented server, you won’t be on the hook to fix it – it will be the Cloud company that has to take care of it. On the downside, this flexibility, scalability, and 24/7 on-site support comes at a cost. The more employees you have, and the greater your performance and storage needs, the higher the monthly outlay. There are also certain server-based tasks that are compromised by accessing them over the internet, such as video editing, or security surveillance capture. These issues, of cost, performance, and control, are why dedicated in-house small business servers remain a viable option. Whether you choose to buy a pre-built business server, or build your own from scratch, you’ll be able to match the hardware and software to your team’s needs. If you have someone on-staff with a bit of technical know-how, you’ll save a lot of money over the medium to long term with a dedicated server.
The components of a server
A small business server is still a PC at heart. It has a power supply, a CPU, memory (RAM), storage (hard drives), USB ports, and some kind of network connection, like gigabit Ethernet. Some servers, configured for specific high-intensity applications, have graphics cards too, even though these GPUs aren’t used for actually displaying graphics on a screen. The big difference is that servers are engineered for constant and heavy use, so most of these components are built to be extra robust. Some servers can have more than one CPU, and those CPUs tend to have more cores, to facilitate multitasking. Memory is another major difference: A regular PC only needs enough RAM to handle the typical workload of a single person, whereas a server needs to keep up with the demand of an entire office, so its memory capacity and speed will be correspondingly larger. When it comes to storage, most servers will have multiple hard drive bays. This design gives you flexibility (you choose how much storage you need) and redundancy (your data can be spread across multiple physical hard drive in case one fails). On higher-end servers, the bays and drives are “hot swappable,” meaning you can add and remove them without needing to power down the server first. Entry-level business servers look a lot like tower PCs. The design is self-contained; if you’ve got room above or below a desk, you can simply plug it in to power and Ethernet. If you’re looking to the future, and suspect you may need more servers down the road, a rack-mounted design might be a better choice. Rack mounted servers contain the same components as towers, but are built to a common set of width, depth, and height standards, so that multiple servers can be mounted in a single server rack. It saves space, facilitates maintenance, and increases security by letting you place your servers in a locked cabinet.
Server spec requirements by business case
So what kind of server does your small business need? It really depends on what you’ll be asking of it. If you just need a central depository for shared files, like Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, or Excel, or other documents, you may not even need a full-fledged server; for many businesses a robust NAS (network attached storage) device fits the bill nicely. But if your needs are more complex, you’ll need a small business server, configured accordingly. Here are a few examples:
Email and productivity
Running a productivity suite of software like Microsoft Exchange, for email, calendaring, contacts etc., is not resource-intensive, especially if your team is small, i.e. 20 or fewer. A relatively modest server, with a low-power CPU could handle these features plus file sharing, as long as it has enough redundant hard drive space. Servers that offer RAID configurations, and hot-swappable drives, are ideal.
Hosting a website
For a public-facing website, you should have a dedicated server. Depending on what your website is designed to do, and how much traffic you anticipate you’ll get, you may need to consider buying two physical servers: One to handle the traffic, and another to house the database your site is built on. This is especially important for e-commerce applications. High traffic webservers will benefit from more powerful CPUs, and larger than average amounts of RAM, as this will keep the site from becoming bogged down by multiple simultaneous requests.
Domain services
Managing security and authentication for all of the computers in your company is one of the biggest benefits of a small business server. Running domain controller and active directory software (built-in features of Windows Server) doesn’t require a lot of resources, but it benefits from running in its own environment. Also, look for a server that can run multiple virtualized servers.
Shop Lenovo SMB entry-level servers
There’s a lot of choice when it comes to buying a server for your small business, but there’s also lots of great resources to pull from when making your decision. We’ve built a dedicated resource center for small businesses that covers all aspects of your IT needs, including buying your first server. One of the biggest benefits of working with Lenovo for your business server needs is how we can help you grow. From the efficient and budget-friendly Lenovo ThinkServer ST50 tower server, all the way up to our data center-grade ThinkSystem SD650 high-density system, we can help you manage your server requirements as you expand your business. Not sure where to start? Connect with our Small Business Solutions team by calling 1-866-426-0911 or click on “Chat” in the lower-right to chat with a team member now. These professional advisors can help you find the right Lenovo small business server and answer any questions you might have.
Solved: Low Disk Space in Windows Server SBS 2011
If you are using the Windows Server SBS 2011, you might meet the low disk space warning on the C drive. Thus, here comes the best solution to resolve the “low disk space” issue on Small Business Server 2011.
About Windows SBS 2011
Windows SBS 2011 refers to Windows Small Business Server 2011 released by Microsoft on December 13, 2010 and it appeared to be the last version of Small Business Server as we know it. The Windows Small Business Server 2011 is designed for small and medium enterprises, which has two editions, the Standard edition and Essentials edition. Compared with the previous versions like SBS 2000, 2003 and 2008, it comes with some new updates and features.
The SBS 2011 provides many core functionality in the application aspect, such as user management, file and print sharing, network fax, remote access based on Web, VPN, email, Sharepoint, and unified patch distribution (WSUS) function and so on.
Low disk space in Small Business Server 2011
Although Small Business Server 2011 offers lots of system utilities, features to make more use of hard disk space, the SBS 2011 occupies lots of C drive space and keeps on filling it time by time. Therefore, some users are troubled by the low disk space warning in SBS 2011.
“I’m running SBS 2011, I have 180GB HDD and about 12GB free space left. The low disk space error message always pops out and the Server is running slower now. I have checked the server over and can account for about 60GB of data, so what is using the rest space? What should I do to solve it? Thanks”
How to Build Office Network Part 1. Servers
As low disk space can slow down your computer and accumulate it with viruses, you had better solve this issue as soon as possible. The following content will FOCUS on how to resolve it.
How to solve the “low disk space” issue in SBS 2011?
To get rid of the “low disk space” issue in Small Business Server 2011, you can try to recover the missing hard drive space, or extend the drive to make it bigger. Below come more details.
Part 1. Solve low disk space by recover hard drive space
To restore har drive space in Small Business Server 2011, it makes sense to identify which folders or files takes the most space on your C drive and causes the low disk space issue:
▶Hibernation file. c:\hiberfil.sys
▶Memory swap file (c:\pagefile.sys)
▶Windows Error Reporting (C:\programdata\microsoft\Windows\wer\reportqueue)
▶SharePoint Databases (C:\Windows\SYSMSI\SSEE\MSSQL.2005)
▶Component Store. C:\Windows\WinSXS
NAS (Network Attached Storage) vs Server for Small Businesses. Features and Benefits
▶Old Log Files (C:\Program Files\Windows Small Business Server\Logs\)
▶Windows Server Update Services (C:\WSUS)
At that point, we can try to recover hard drive space with the following methods.
Method 1. Turn off Hibernation File
Hiberfil.sys is a file created by OS (operating system) when the computer goes into Hibernation Mode. This feature is turned ON by default and takes gigabytes of space (the actual number depends on the size of the physical memory). Luckily you can turn it off via Command Prompt by executing the command: powercfg.exe /hibernate off.
Method 2. Move Swap file from C drive to D drive
The Swap file is also called page file, space on a hard drive used as a temporary location to store information when RAM is fully utilized. So it is not advised to disable it altogether. What makes more sense is to transfer the Page file ( c:\pagefile.sys ) to another partition with more free space ( like d-drive).
Briefly, you can change its location in this way: right-click “Computer” and choose ”Properties”; then switch to ”Advanced”. “Performance / Settings”. “Advanced / Virtual Memory”. “Change”. Disable the swap file on the C-Drive and create one on D.
Method 3. Disable Windows Error Reporting
Windows Error Reporting (WER) is an event-based feedback infrastructure designed to gather information about the hardware and software problems Windows detects, report the information to Microsoft and provide users with available solutions. If you indeed do not want to participate in Microsoft’s Error reporting program. You can disable it:
Use the Windows KeyR keyboard shortcut to open the Run dialog box. Input ”services.msc” and press on OK.
Click ”Disabled” from the menu next to ”Startup type”.
At last, click “OK” or ”Apply”.
Besides the above, you can also try to reduce SharePoint Database, move Windows Update Services data from C drive to another, clean up old log files, etc.
Method 4. Move some apps from C drive to another drive
Besides, if there are lots of big applications on the SBS 2011 C drive, you can transfer some of them from the C drive to another drive to free up space. Then, you might need the help of AOMEI Partition Assistant Server (Windows Server SBS 2003, 2008, 2011 and 2003, 2008 (R2), 2012(R2), 2016, 2019 and Windows 10/8/7 supported). Its “App Mover” can help move applications from one partition to another partition or disk. Now you can download the Demo version for a free trial.
Step 1. Download and install AOMEI partition Assistant Server. After opening, you can see many useful functions on the main interface, click “Free up” on in the top toolbar, and choose “App Mover”.
Step 2. Choose the C drive and click on “Next”.
Step 3. Select the applications you want to move and click “Move”.
Step 4. Hit on “OK” when prompted to close running applications forcefully.
Part 2. Fix low disk space by extending SBS 2011 C drive
The above methods can help restore some space on the C drive to some degree. To solve low disk space in SBS 2011 essentially, it is better to extend C drive in Windows SBS 2011. For this task, you can make use of Disk Management if the C drive is followed by adjacent unallocated space.
However, if the Extend Volume greyed out because there is no contiguous unallocated space, you can run AOMEI Partition Assistant Server as well. This Server partition manager can combine non-adjacent unallocated space into C drive directly, and allocate some free space into another partition.
If there is unallocated space available on the disk, try the “Merge Partition” function.
Step 1. Run and launch AOMEI Partition Assistant Server, right-click the C drive, choose “Advanced” and select “Merge Partition”.
Step 2. Tick the unallocated space and click “OK”.
Step 3. Back to the main interface, click “Apply” and “Proceed” to commit the pending operation.
If there is no unallocated space on the disk, you can try “Allocate Free Space” function.
Step 1. Right-click the partition, which has lots of free space, and click “Allocate Free Space”.
Step 2. In this window, you can decide how much space you want to add into C drive and click “OK”.
Step 3. Click “Apply” and “Proceed” to execute the pending operation.
Note: a restart will be required since it involves system drive. If the C drive is formatted with NTFS file system, you can use the “Extend Partition Wizard”, which can help you extend NTFS system drive without rebooting computer.
Summary
To solve “low disk space” in Windows SBS 2011, you can take measures from two aspects: restoring drive space and extending drive space. Choose the proper method as you need. Worth to mention, AOMEI Partition Assistant Server also has other many other functions. For example, it is able to move Server operating system to new hard drive (SSD/HDD), split partitions, change SD card serial number, convert boot disk between MBR and GPT without deleting partitions, etc
Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 support ends. What to do?
A great event awaits us early next year (January 14, 2020), at least for me. Microsoft will officially discontinue supporting part of their products. Then updates (bug fixes) will no longer be available (see next chapters). This concerns:
- Windows 7
- Windows Server 2008
- Windows Server 2008 R2
- Windows Small Business Server 2011
- Windows Home Server 2011
- Exchange 2010
- Office 2010
These are products that came out shortly before I started my business. And they are still commonly used. I have a somewhat emotional relationship with them. For example, Windows 7 was a super desktop operating system, fast and stable. Until then, I had to reinstall my Win XP/Vista PC every few months. Windows SBS 2011, which allowed small businesses to legally (I subjectively perceive a huge shift in SW piracy since then) have their own MS Exchange. They had a low purchase price and everything could fit into a single server (although it was not always ideal).
However, their large representation with our customers is something that has made busy since the beginning of the year. We’ve cleared quite a lot of them, but the biggest hustle is probably waiting by the end of the year. Overall, we managed 15x Windows Server 2008R2, 6x Windows SBS 2011, 507x Windows 7 at the start of this year.
Does ending support mean a problem?
That’s the question. End of support means that Microsoft will no longer provide free or paid technical support for the products and will no longer issue updates.
Paid technical support is available as a Microsoft partner. We’ve used it three times over the years and I would consider it a waste of time. Either we were unlucky or we´ve had too specific problems – I don’t know. I, therefore, think we can spare the technical support.
Updates are a more serious issue. Microsoft fixes dozens of security vulnerabilities in its products each month. Some are critical, others less. It, certainly, will not be an apocalypse the day after. However, the longer and the more computers you run an unsupported system, the more likely something will happen. I would compare it to driving without a seat belt. For haters – yes, there are situations where not updating (fastening your belt) can save your computer (life), but the probability is so low that I´d rather bet.
Example from the past. In April 2014, Windows XP support ended. At that time a very popular system was still in use by many companies (mainly because of some older applications). In March/April 2017, a vulnerability was published in the SMB protocol (also known as EternalBlue) that allowed controlling computers running any version of Windows. Microsoft then released updates for all supported systems (Windows 7, Windows Server 2008). However, as vulnerability began to worry people all around the world (WannaCry and NotPetya took advantage of it „THE UNTOLD STORY OF NOTPETYA, THE MOST DEVASTATING CYBER ATTACK IN HISTORY“), so updates for Windows XP were released. Unfortunately, they had to be installed manually and came out with a two-month delay. Whoever did not use a system for mass patching/PC management, they certainly had some fun (we have made use of „our monitoring system“).
Not IF, but WHEN
So the big question is not “IF, but WHEN” will some serious vulnerability that will be massively exploitable found. We can then just hope that Microsoft publicly releases a patch for an unsupported system.
We are trying to keep updating and replace these products by January 2020 with newer versions. At the same time, we are working on updating our service packages, where we want to guarantee customers the functionality and security of their environment.
If you cant make the upgrades, or decide to take the risk, I recommend to at least use a good antivirus, enabled firewall and a supported Internet browser (a frequent source of initial infection). This will help reduce the risk.
How to replace Windows 7
Microsoft promises to offer Windows 7 support for the paying customers. However, it will not be cheap and will only apply to updates, not technical support („Want to keep using Windows 7 after 2020? It’ll cost you“). I will not go for this option – considering the IT standardization (We are trying to create similar IT environments for customers and reduce the amount of technology) and our patch management tool would most like not be able to support it either.
So we are left with Windows 8.1 for upgrades (which I didn’t “click” with and will stay with us “only” until January 2023), or Windows 10.
We started experimenting with Windows 10 at the time of the first release (July 2015). We wanted to know the system as soon and as well as possible. I don’t know a worse feeling than a customer knowing the system better than you do. And to be honest, I wouldn’t call the beginning of Windows 10 a “great user experience”. A half-sized system with a question mark whether this is the “last” operating system, as MS claimed.
Windows 10 has improved a lot in the four years of its existence. I got used to many features: fast booting, “zooming” for high DPI, Bitlocker in Pro version, Windows Hello (finally a unified framework for biometric verification), and improved HW support (more drivers that Windows Update finds), safer kernel/system architecture and system appearance.
We currently have about 800 PCs with Windows 10 spread over the last 3 thresholds (1803, 1809 and 1903). We encountered minimal problems when updating to Windows 10 – mostly only non-existent drivers for specific HW, or inability to run old 16b applications (MS-Dos) applications on 64b OS.
Windows 10 may be the path to follow
So if you don’t plan to upgrade to MacOS or GNU/Linux, then Windows 10 may be the path to follow. When upgrading from Windows 7/8.1, I recommend doing clean installations (this will save you a lot of trouble).
Although Microsoft officially discontinued support for free upgrades to Windows 10, it still works anyway. So you can install pure Windows 10 on your PC and activate it with the Windows 7 serial number. However, I do not know about the stance MS holds.
How to replace Windows Server 2008 (R2)
As with Windows 7, Microsoft also promises updates after January 2020. If you want 3 more years of updates, you need to migrate your server to MS Azure („Prepare for Windows Server 2008 end of support“). MS Azure isn’t exactly cheap, but it may make sense, depending on your situation.
We are upgrading to Windows Server 2016 (66 in total). This is mostly due to the CAL versions that customers have. We plan to start with Windows Server 2019, but early tests starting this year did not go well (HW compatibility and undocumented functionality).
Windows Server 2016 works nicely with a few reservations – higher HW demands (especially for terminal servers with about 50% increase) and slow updates. It takes more than an hour to install the update (you often ask yourself whether it didn’t freeze). On the other hand, I like fast booting (VMs boot in a couple of seconds) and Hyper-V ability to change RAM on the fly (add and remove)).
How to replace Windows SBS 2011
This system allowed small businesses to benefit from the functionality of the MS Exchange mail server. Entry-level server with Microsoft Windows SBS 2011 and 10 user licenses could be purchased for about 25 thousand CZK without VAT – what a great period.
Newer versions of SBS have not been released – Microsoft has decided not to release them. It was probably in part due to the pricing strategy and in part because the SBS server was such a Frankenstein monster (products/functions that normally should not run on a single server).
If we wanted to assemble similar functionality now, we would need a DC server, an MS Exchange server, an RDP GW Sharepoint shared folders server. So we would need 3 virtual servers and 1 physical. We could get up to 250 thousand CZK (branded server with Microsoft warranty and license). A decent amount, isn’t it?
An alternative is Office 365
There is an alternative in the form of a Cloud – Office 365. In particular, the Office 365 Business Essentials plan is great. For the price of 4.2 EUR/user/month, it includes Exchange, Sharepoint, OneDrive, Teams, Planner, and Flow. If you don’t mind the Cloud (your data is not so much “private” as on-prem), then you get more functionality than on-prem (productivity and security are at a different level – MFA, different authentication mechanisms than NTLM/Kerberos, extended logging, conditional access). A small company of 15 people would pay (approx. Lifetime of the on-prem solution is 5 years) 96.768 CZK (4.2 EUR 15 users 12 months 5 years 25.6 CZK per Euro)).
We recommend Office 365 as a replacement for Windows SBS 2011. As soon as they are in the Cloud, we teach customers how to use other tools (OneDrive, Sharepoint, Teams, Planner) because we see how simplified their work gets, as we use these tools in our company as well). We help with the deployment of Office 365 with non-contract customers as well. If you would like to get 00help with the deployment, supply licenses, or just need someone to cover your back, let me know (the price of the work is 1.200 CZK/hour).
Of course, some customers need an on-prem server even if they have mail and documents in the Cloud. For example, they need to run an information system, a DNS/DHCP server, or a domain controller. In this case, I would choose an entry-level server (HPE, Dell) with Windows Server 2019 Essentials (up to 25 users without the need for user licenses)).
Conclusion
How are you dealing with the upgrades? Are you holding up or are you going to accept the risk? And what do you think of Office 365? I currently see Office 365 as a technology that can help improve IT (even if it takes away some of our IT livelihoods). I would like to dedicate the following articles to Office 365 (how it helps us to improve our productivity).
