Overview of Windows Server 2008 R2: Features and Enhancements

While it feels like Windows Server 2008 R2 was recently launched, Microsoft is gearing up for the subsequent release, Server 2008 R2. Following the established cycle, Server 2008 R2 introduces a range of new management capabilities and functionalities.

Here’s a concise look at the top ten features in Server 2008 R2:

64-bit Exclusivity:

Windows Server 2008 R2 is the first Windows Server OS exclusively designed for 64-bit architecture, necessitating x64-compatible hardware.

Overview of Windows Server 2008 R2

Enhanced Scalability:

Server 2008 R2 supports up to 256 cores, a substantial leap from the 64-core limit in the original Windows Server 2008.

Core Parking:

Introducing Core Parking, a power management feature that suspends unused cores to save power. Reactivation of parked cores occurs in milliseconds to address increased workloads.

Remote Desktop Services:

Terminal Services is rebranded as Remote Desktop Services, now supporting Aero Glass, multiple monitors, and DirectX 11, 10, and 9.

Remote Desktop Services Windows Server 2008 R2

New Hyper-V:

Windows Server 2008 R2 includes an updated Hyper-V release, allowing VMs to address up to 32 cores per VM and enhancing networking performance with TCP Offload and Jumbo Frames.

Live Migration:

A highly anticipated feature, Live Migration facilitates the movement of Hyper-V VMs between hosts without downtime, leveraging Cluster Shared Volumes technology.

.NET Framework Support in Server Core:

Addressing a previous limitation, Windows Server 2008 R2 adds support for a subset of the .NET Framework in Server Core, enabling the execution of PowerShell and ASP.NET applications.

PowerShell 2.0:

Server 2008 R2 introduces PowerShell 2.0, featuring improved WMI cmdlets, remote script execution, ScriptCmdlets, background job support, and a graphical PowerShell UI.

PowerShell 2.0 Windows Server 2008 R2

Remote Server Management:

Server Manager, a standout feature in Server 2008, can now be installed on network clients, extending its utility to manage remote Server 2008 systems.

Active Directory Administrative Center:

The significant change for administrators in Windows Server 2008 R2 is the Active Directory Administrative Center, replacing older management tools and offering scriptable actions built on PowerShell. Notably, it introduces the Active Directory Recycle Bin feature.