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Windows Home Server takes its final bow, Windows Server 2012 Essentials passes the (pricey) casting call
Tucked away amongst Microsoft's Windows Server 2012 version plans is a bomb for media server PC fans: Windows Home Server is going away. Although the platform was already in something of a comatose state after HP dropped its MediaSmart servers and left the OS without a major vendor to champion the cause, an FAQ reveals the stand-alone build is going away as well. Windows Server 2012 Essentials is taking its place and will handle both media server as well as small business server duties in one package. That's all well and good, except that Essentials is currently priced at $425 -- almost 10 times the typical $50 street price of Windows Home Server. We've reached out to Microsoft to verify whether or not that's the price a media server vendor or enthusiastic media PC lover will pay. Hopefully, it isn't; we'll have until the end of 2013 to buy a stand-alone copy of Windows Home Server (and a far-flung 2025 for very conservative OEMs), but the switch of focus may lead some fans of networked media sharing to drift elsewhere.
Ask Engadget: best (Windows) Home Server and universal remote solution?
We know you've got questions, and if you're brave enough to ask the world for answers, here's the outlet to do so. This week's Ask Engadget inquiry is coming to us from Tim, who's looking to take his living room (and digital life, by the sound of it) into the future. If you're looking to send in an inquiry of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com. "A while back I was looking at getting the HP Media Smart Home Server, but some time has gone by and I'm wondering if that is still the best solution going around. I want something that is ideally priced at a max of $1000; it has to be something small, not noisy or too power-hungry, and it has to be something that I can hide away. I'll use it for network storage, backup, streaming and remote access. I was also wondering if it's worth getting a good universal remote to dim lights, turn on the TV, amp, PS3 and maybe even some home server control -- or have the iPhone / Android apps become so good that they are now the best option? Thanks!" Great Qs, Sir Tim. We're of the belief that most everything from a home automation standpoint can be done on Android or iPhone, particularly if you're starting from scratch (and aren't looking for enterprise-class services). As for Windows Home Server? You've still got a few options, but has anything come along to trump up? If you've got a say in all this, sound off in comments below!
Windows Phone 7 Connector now puts your Home Server in your hand
Ok, Windows Server Solutions Phone Connector doesn't exactly sound exciting but, if you're one of the few people out there rocking a Windows Home Server 2011 machine and a WP7 handset, you're probably gonna want to get this set up ASAP. The combination of server-side plug-in and phone app lets you remotely control your server -- triggering backups, managing users, and viewing alerts. It also lets you pull up media files stored on your server, though you can't copy them locally for your later viewing or listening pleasure. It's not just for home users either. The plug-in works with Windows Small Business Server 2011 Essentials and Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 Essentials, for smaller companies that rely on Microsoft-powered mobiles. You can download the server add-on at the more coverage link, and the smartphone app from the Zune Marketplace.
Drive Bender released, offers to fix your WHS Drive Extender woes
When Microsoft indicated it was killing off Drive Extender tech for its upcoming Vail release of Windows Home Server, many WHS fans poured a 40 onto the lid of their MediaSmart servers. In response to all the sodden warranty claims HP decided to kill off the series and, well, things were looking dire. Indeed Drive Extender will not be a part of Windows Home Server 2011, meaning no integrated ability to easily add and remove disks from a single pool of storage -- but leave it to the individuals offer your fix. You can now try Drive Bender, a sort of alternative Drive Extender developed by a company called Division-M and said to work with any flavor of Windows and offer the same sort of disk merging and replicating functionality, but do it in an unofficial way. The beta is now available if you're feeling rather more brave than we. [Thanks, JagsLive]
Vail is now Windows Home Server 2011, Drive Extender's officially dead
Microsoft announced months ago that the artist formerly known as Vail -- now officially known as Windows Home Server 2011 -- was dropping Drive Extender functionality. Though we were given hope that the feature might be reinstated, the release candidate of WHS2011 went out to testers today... sans Drive Extender's 'drive pooling for dummies' capability. In its place, Microsoft has included a Move Folder Wizard that alerts you when a new hard drive has been added (for those who were visited by the HDD fairy without their knowledge, no doubt) and walks you through formatting and partitioning your new drive. However, partition size is limited to 2TB for it to work with the server backup feature, so your massive collection of ripped Blu-rays will require a veritable alphabet of drive letters. Not all the news is bad though, as the dev team has enabled Shadow Copy in the OS to allow data time traveling in case you accidentally delete something. If that sounds good to you, hit the source link below and get your download on.
Microsoft shows off Home Server 'Vail' app for Windows Phone 7
Things may have been looking bleak for Microsoft's upcoming version of Windows Home Server, dubbed "Vail," when HP announced that it was dropping the OS in favor of WebOS last month, but Microsoft has now given it a boost of confidence that should put any rumors of its death to rest. The company is showing off an add-in for Vail that will let you manage alerts on your Windows Phone 7 phone, access media stored on your home server, and in turn send pictures stored on your phone to your server (but not other media, apparently). Still no firm word on a release, but Microsoft says it will available "soon." Hit up the source link below for Microsoft's complete walkthrough of the app.
HP dropping Windows Home Server to focus on WebOS, won't be hitting the slopes at Vail
More bad news for fans of little Windows servers for home. HP, makers of the MediaSmart boxes that defined the first release of Windows Home Server, has confirmed that it is canceling plans to support the next major release of the OS, codenamed Vail. This comes hot on the heels of the removal of storage pooling from that release, an extremely unpopular move among the relatively few but ardent fans of WHS. HP is promising to continue support for its existing MediaSmart products but apparently has already redeployed development teams to focus on WebOS devices. For its part, Microsoft will be relying on Acer and Tranquil PC to hang the decorations for the Vail release party. Anyone still care to RSVP?
Steve Ballmer looking into removal of Drive Extender from Windows Home Server
Windows Home Server hasn't exactly taken the consumer market by storm, showing yet again that people are more interested in shiny new toys than protecting their precious data. Still, there's been a huge amount of negative backlash from Microsoft's recent decision to drop Drive Extender from the next release of WHS, currently codenamed Vail. Drive Extender is the tech that enables multiple physical disks to act as a single logical volume, making it easy for even non-techy folks to add more and enable data replication. Terry Walsh over at We Got Served was similarly taken aback by the decision and took the opportunity to drop a note to Big Poppa Steve Ballmer. He got a response: From: Steve Ballmer Sent: 26 November 2010 05:30 To: Terry Walsh Subject: RE: MVP Feedback – Windows Home Server "Vail" Crisis Let's look into it Yes, it's a short response, and it course could mean anything or, indeed, nothing, but it is at least a response and a positive sign that the huge outcry among fans of Windows Home Server can indeed make its way to the top of the executive chain. Now we just wait to see what comes rolling back down...
Windows Home Server 'Vail' drops drive extender support, MS suggests you buy bigger HDDs
If you're a current Windows Home Server user there's a very good chance you've taken advantage of the drive pooling features of the OS. Need more storage? Pop in a new HDD, watch some lights blink for a bit, and then you're ready to get back to downloading... whatever it is you're downloading. Granted things didn't always work perfectly, but this tech, formally called Drive Extender, makes adding storage easy, makes it possible to replicate only the data that needs it, and is completely hardware independent. And now it's going away. Microsoft has confirmed that the next release of Windows Home Server, Vail (due in the first half of 2011), will not feature Drive Extender, indicating you'll need to simply buy bigger drives and manually handle data replication or rely on RAID to make this happen, solutions that are decidedly less intuitive for non-techie users. The reaction among WHS fans has been overwhelmingly negative, with 148 comments (and counting) on the announcement post, most telling MS where it can shove its RAID controller. Feel free to keep on venting here if you like. Update: Malcom dropped this link into comments, where Windows guru Paul Thurrott indicates the issue is related to MS trying to position this to the small business sector -- that Drive Extender can't keep up with more professional loads.
Windows Home Server 'Vail' sees new beta release, adds OS X support
It's not the biggest of releases, but progress is progress at this point. Since launching in late April, Microsoft has been rather mum on the future of its latest Windows Home Server build. This week, however, the second major beta release has been let loose into the wilds, with Vail's most recent build now available to download there in the source link. The Big M doesn't go into great detail on what all has been added and / or changed, only saying that this new version has "plenty of enhancements and improvements over the original." The so-called "Preview" also adds support for Mac OS X backups, though users should know that storage check and repair (among other things, most likely) aren't exactly working seamlessly. But hey, that's what you get for living on the beta, right?
LaCie's Windows Home Server-powered 5big Backup Server now shipping for big money
The last we heard from LaCie about its upcoming home server we didn't know much more than five bays inside, gigabit Ethernet on the back, and Windows Home Server running the show. Seven months on it's now available and we have all the details you could want. The 5big Backup Server apes the vaguely HAL 9000esque styling of earlier 5big storage devices, contains an Intel Atom D410 processor, manages up to 10TB of storage across those five bays, and offers four USB and one eSATA ports around back if you need more, more, more. Through WHS you can naturally support the backup needs of 10 PCs and there's also Time Machine support for 25 more fruity clients. The cost? You can get one with five 1TB drives for $1,199.99 (€1,239 in Europe), a bit of a premium over a comparable equipped HP Storageworks WHS box -- such is the cost of good aesthetics.
Windows Home Server 'Vail' beta now available for download, brings improved UI and streaming options
It's been a long (long!) time since we've caught wind of a substantial Windows Home Server refresh, but for those waiting on pins and needles, we're thrilled to say that the excruciating wait has finally ended. Sort of. Microsoft has revealed today its public beta of the next version of WHS, code named "Vail." The primary upgrades / changes include the extension of media streaming outside of the home or office, improvements in multi-PC backup and restore, simplified setup and user experience as well as "significantly" expanded development and customization tools for partner. Beyond that, the company's playing things pretty close to the chest, but you can feel free to grab a 64-bit copy of the beta starting today and dig in yourself. 'Course, Microsoft recommends that you install the software on a secondary (read: not important to your livelihood) machine, and on the development front, it's introducing a new SDK for those who wish to "create add-in applications using Vail's new extensible programming model." So, whatcha waiting for? That download is a-callin', and a brief demo video is just beyond the break. Update: And we've already got our first review -- good for those too chicken (or busy, frankly) to completely wipe a second PC just to see how Vail stacks up.
HP MediaSmart add-in adds TiVo compatibility, enables video transfers to and fro
For those enjoying media bliss thanks to a little MediaSmart box humming away somewhere in the corner, life just got a even more lovely. HP has announced a partnership with TiVo that allows MediaSmart users to install a Windows Home Server add-in, enabling the two devices to talk sweet nothings to each other. From within the WHS console you'll be able to suck recorded content from the TiVo onto the MediaSmart's expansive storage array and, from there, play it on any of your compatible devices (PC, Mac, Xbox, PS3, etc.). Or, when you start to miss those happy TiVo sounds, you can send that content back over to DVR to view from there. The WHS extension is available right now to MediaSmart owners, so get on with the downloading already.
HP MediaSmart EX470 and EX480 getting 3.0 software upgrade option this week
The wild world of rapid-fire phone software updates has spoiled us all, but HP's bringing just a smidgen of that to the world of home servers. This week owners of the last-gen EX470 and EX480 series MediaSmart Servers will be able to nab a DVD that updates their servers to the new 3.0 software currently available on the EX490 and EX495 models, including better Mac support and automatic media transcoding. Unfortunately, this update isn't free: you'll have to pay $25 for the privilege. EX470 / 475 owners are also encouraged to bump their unit up to 1GB of RAM if they haven't already. We aren't thrilled at the fee, but there is something a bit more reassuring in this process than Motorola's "hope and pray" OTA update model.
LaCie serves up LaCinema Mini HD, Network Server and Wuala-infused USB keys
CES just wouldn't be CES without a few new introductions from LaCie, now would it? Nah. Up first from the sexiest name in storage is a fresh member of the LaCinema multimedia hard drive family, the Mini HD. Equipped with 802.11n WiFi and a penchant for serving up 1080p video, this DLNA media player boasts an HDMI output, internal hard drive, USB socket (for uploading media or playing files back from a USB drive) and an extensive list of supported codecs that includes MKV, AVC and DivX. This one should be filtering out now in the US and Europe for an undisclosed amount. Moving on, we've got the simply titled Network Server, which sports five drive bays, gigabit Ethernet and Windows Home Server running the show. LaCie also enables users to backup their backups via its own Wuala technology, though exact pricing and availability details won't be revealed until later in Q1. Lastly, there's a new trio of USB Keys, which look an awful lot like actual keys. Sadly, these aren't ready to handle the beast that is SuperSpeed USB, but they do promise transfers as fast as 30MB/sec, and they're also waterproof and available in sizes as large as 32GB. The company's also throwing in 4GB of web-accessible Wuala storage for the first two years of ownership, with the CooKey and WhizKey available in 4GB, 8GB, 16GB, and 32GB capacities for $19.99 and up, up, up. The full releases are just past the break. %Gallery-81270%
Ask Engadget HD: Best HTPC to replace my NAS?
Just a few weeks ago, we considered combo NAS / media streaming set-top boxes, but what about those like our friend Matthew, looking for a HTPC that can function by itself as a NAS server without the extra hardware cluttering one's entertainment space? It's all too easy to have a "too many boxes under the TV" problem, maybe you can help him solve this one: "I'm looking for some advice on an HTPC setup for my home. Currently I have way too many boxes under my television and I'm trying to consolidate them to minimize clutter. One such box is my beloved FreeNAS server; it functions as NAS, a bit torrent client, and has time machine support for my laptop. Is there an HTPC available that might also function as a NAS server with all of the features I use on my FreeNAS server? I also have an Xbox 360 and have considered getting a Windows Home Media Server and using the Xbox as an extender to get the content on my television, but I like the idea of an HTPC with an internal Blu-Ray drive. Do you have any suggestions?" So what's the best setup to get all that functionality in a single box? Let us know if any of the HTPC builders out there have a solution that fits, or if a custom build (we have a few suggestions to get you started) is in order.
Windows Home Server Power Pack 3 rolling out November 24th
The name may not exactly suggest any groundbreaking changes, but we're guessing that most Windows Home Server users with Windows 7 computers will want to upgrade to Power Pack 3 as soon as they can, which we now finally know will be on November 24th. As we'd heard previously, the big news with this update is that it brings Windows Home Server up to speed with its desktop OS counterpart, including support for full backup and restore of Windows 7 computers, Windows 7 Libraries integration, "better support" for netbooks and, of course, a slew of enhancements for Windows Media Center. Best of all, the update is completely free, and should show up via Windows Update as soon as it's available.
ASUS ships Windows Home Server-packin' TS mini NAS drive
The Windows Home Server train has all but stopped this year, but with CES just around the bend (and Microsoft's software engineers free from the burden of readying Windows 7 for launch), it looks as if the steam is picking up once more. Hot on the heels of its first 3D laptop, ASUS has introduced its TS mini NAS drive for home media junkies. Outfitted with a 1.66GHz Atom N280 processor, 1GB or 2GB of DDR2 RAM, a gigabit Ethernet socket, six USB 2.0 ports, an eSATA connector and a smattering of LED indicators, the drive can be purchased as we speak in 500GB and 2TB editions. Aside from streaming multimedia throughout your home network, the device can also back up ten total PCs automatically and subtly make you dependent on its reliability. Which, as you know so well, is just a precursor for bowing down when the Robot Apocalypse gets underway.
HP MediaSmart EX490 and EX495 Home Servers beef up Mac support
Listen, son, back in our day we had a tape drive, a copy of Retrospect and a nightly schedule... and we liked it. These days HP thinks it can stuff a Dual Core processor, 2GB of RAM and up to four 2TB drives in our faces. The new EX490 and EX495 can handle up to 7TB of internal storage and up to 17TB pairing up internal drives with external hanger-ons. More interesting, however, are the new software capabilities built on top of Windows Home Server. Mac users now get admin features, media collection and bare metal recovery over Time Machine, and the servers have a built-in video converter for collecting and converting videos for a specific device. Speaking of devices, iPhone and iPod touch users can also stream media off of the servers using a free HP iStream app. The EX490 has a Celeron processor and 1TB of storage for $549, while the EX495 does 1.5TB and the Dual Core for $699. PR is after the break.
Engadget HD takes an in-depth look at Media Center in Windows 7 RTM
If you've ever thought about forcing your Xbox 360 to do double duty and in addition to all the games you require it to host for you, set it up to replace your TiVo or cable company DVR, then now might just be the time. The reason is simple, in Windows 7, Microsoft has really made some nice improvements to Windows Media Center. What improvements you might ask? Glad you did, because over at Engadget HD the team went over the changes with a fine-tooth comb. This includes a comprehensive list of improvements and shortfalls in regards to using Windows 7 Media Center as a full time HD DVR as well as a few videos to really help you appreciate what's new and what the experience is like on an Xbox 360.
