Windows Storage Server 2008 R2

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Applies To: Windows Storage Server 2008 R2

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Windows Storage Server is enhanced in Windows Server 2012. Explore the Evaluation Guide and download the Windows Server 2012 Trial.

Windows® Storage Server 2008 R2 operating systems provide file storage and print server capabilities for client and server computers in your network environment. Storage appliances running Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 can be used in failover clusters, providing high availability storage for application servers and file storage.

Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 provides the following features:

  • Multiple Operating System Editions – Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 comes in three editions: Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 Enterprise, Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 Standard, and Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 Workgroup.

  • Automated Two-Node Failover Cluster Setup - Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 Enterprise includes wizards that enable automated two-node failover cluster setup. A highly-available iSCSI or file server can be set up in 20 minutes.

  • Single Instance Storage (SIS) Enhancements – SIS reduces the amount of storage used by data by replacing multiple identical copies with logical links to a single source copy. SIS now supports 128 volumes on a single server.

  • Windows PowerShell Cmdlets – Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 includes a set of Windows PowerShell cmdlets to manage SIS.

  • File Server Optimization – Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 enables file access over the network by using Server Message Block (SMB) and Network File System (NFS) protocols, and uses Distributed File System (DFS) and DFS Replication to make a unified namespace and file-replication for data publishing to satellite offices.

  • Remote Web Administration in Heterogeneous Environments – Remote administration of Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 appliances can be done from Internet Explorer by using an ActiveX control, and from non-Microsoft browsers by using a Java RDP control.

Library documentation

The TechNet Library contains the following documentation for Windows Storage Server 2008 R2: