Here’s a great YouTube video of a Windows Home Server Mini ITX build.
User Ratti3 uses a Zotac NM10-B-E DTX Atom motherboard and a Lian Li PC-Q08B case which is ideal for future expansion, is made of aluminum and takes a normal size PSU.
Microsoft executive Kevin Kean talks to Paul Thurrott about SBS 2011 Standard and Essentials. As you may be aware Small Business Server 2011 Essentials was originally called by the codename Aurora and is part of the Colorado family (Vail, Breckenridge and Aurora) and has similar features to Windows Home Server Vail.
Paul’s Q&A session can be found here.
Episode 120 of "The Home Server Show" podcasts is up, this week offering you lots of different options for Windows Home Server backups, retention, restoring and cloud backups.
Is it worth a listen? It certainly is and you can find this weeks episode here.
More Virtualization is on offer this time courtesy of ServerTheHome who have a simple guide to creating a VMware ESXi virtual machine for NexentaStor.
Just over a year ago I created The Big WHS on a platform of Windows Server 2008 R2 with Windows Home Server installed in Hyper-V. Simply put, this may have been the easiest installation ever since Hyper-V and Windows Home Server work well together. With the lack of a new Drive Extender technology in Windows VAIL server, many users are looking to other storage platforms to fill the void.
And a ZFS based system utilizing the Nexenta platform is it and we are taken through the steps necessary to easily setup a virtual machine in ESXi for a NexentaStor installation, which you can find here.
The add-in Duplicate File Finder has had an update.
Version 1.3.4026.39950 address the following:
You can download it from here.
Have a question or problem?
I can’t guarantee an answer, but I’ll try. Click “ask a question” above!
What will Sandy do for Windows Home Server? Sandy Bridge of course, what did you think I meant! Sandy Bridge is released and many people are raving about the performance increase over the original Core i* processors released, but can it really make a difference to Windows Home Server?
Well I can certainly see a place for it, the power usage will make a massive difference to a machine on 24/7/365 and with the power increase this will certainly allow innovation to flow when it comes to addins, it’s time to make that work horse work.
T.Bone Asks:
I am looking for information on how to install SmarterMail on Windows Home Server. I found this: http://whs.gs/i2q but it’s out of date they installed v5.5 and SmarterMail only offers v7.4 and I can’t find the install file they used.
How do I go about installing and configuring this for my Windows Home Server using version 7.4, any help would be greatly appreciated?
Just this week Andrew Edney over at usingwindowshomeserver.com has posted his latest guide to installing, configuring and using SmarterMail v7.4 on Windows Home Server.
You can find the guide at http://whs.gs/jlf
Paul Asks:
I know you answered ’Can I restore files from a failed WHS hard drive?’ but my Windows Home Server drives have not failed; only my motherboard has failed.
I bought have a USB 2.0 to SATA adaptor so that I can connect these drives to my PC (running XP Home Edition); however, I am unable to read these drives.
Is there a way to extract the data files from the hard drives without using WHS v1?
This is most certainly a different issue to the one I talked about last week. Windows Home Server stores your shared files across multiple drives and keeps track of that data via a database, all the files are kept in the normal raw form that you would find on any normal Windows PC, although they are hidden when on the drive.
If your motherboard has failed and you want to retrieve the data, then this is actually relatively easy, go to http://whs.gs/cqk for a full guide on how to do this.
Anonymous Asks:
Will Microsoft come up with WHS Version 2 (Vail) for 32-bit machines, if it will then when?
Unfortunately Microsoft will not be releasing there next installment of Windows Home Server Vail in a 32bit edition. Anyone currently using Windows Home Server v1 on 32bit architecture, and hoping to upgrade unfortunately this will not be possible.
Microsoft certainly have no plans to change this, I can’t even imagine it would be up for discussion.
Anonymous Asks:
I have been trying to setup a VPN over the 2WIRE DSL/Modem/Wireless router, it looks very complicated, i been trying several options, but none of those works, I have my static IP from AT&T, on the homeserver website the ’compatibles’ routers are Linksys and others but no 2wire, will this be the reason why I am unable to setup?
2wire routers are not the easiest to configure, they are very clunky and certainly cannot be called intuitive, coupled with setting up a VPN problems can easily arise.
There is an excellent guide to configuring your 2wire router over at http://whs.gs/jpo this will show you how to open the relevant ports needed to allow a VPN to establish a connection through the 2wire router, also the ports that need to be opened and pointed at your Windows Home Server are: TCP Port 1723, TCP Port 1701, UDP Port 500.
Also if you are experiencing any issues in setting up the VPN on Windows Home Server or maybe you just want to check you have the right settings, there is an excellent guide at http://whs.gs/5u6 this will walk you through creating and connecting your new VPN.
Jim Asks:
I just replaced a faulty router with a new Linksys E2000, since then I have been unable access the shared drives via Explorer (i.e. //server/public/…).
The server is running and other applications (Squeezebox) are able to connect and access files, also the server can connect to the PC’s on the network to perform backups. Any suggestions to get connectivity back?
The first thing I have noticed is the server address you are you using i.e. //server/public/ is incorrect; it should read \\server\public although having said that it doesn’t explain why you have lost connectivity to the console.
Try doing the following:
There are quite a lot of things that can cause these kinds of problems so you may need to contact me in the forum to discuss the problem further if above has not fixed this.
I know I haven’t been able to answer everyone’s questions, so those that haven’t been answered why not post them in the forum.
Have a question or problem?
I can’t guarantee an answer, but I’ll try. Click “ask a question” above!
Written by
Matthew Glover
www.matthewglover.co.uk
If your Backup Service refuses to run on Windows Home Server then website "Random Musings" has a post for you.
The post explains how to recover from this error which can also appear as a "Failed to delete backups" error message, which you can read here.
The add-in Update History has had an update.
The add-in displays the complete system update history so that you can make sure that your Home Server is fully patched and up to date.
This latest version now loses its beta status and includes the following 2 improvements since the previous release:
You can download version 0.3.2 from here.
Mashable.com has some ideas for using the popular sync app Dropbox and one of their tips is for those techno Gods amongst you ion how to use Dropbox with Vail using a feature in Vail called RemoteApp:
Basically it allows you to launch a self-contained streaming instance of an application that is installed on the server and delivered via a remote desktop session where you only see the app on the client side.
…it can be run one of two ways: via an RDP file, or taking it a step further, using an MSI installer package which makes it look like the app is installed on the local machine, complete with file associations. You can also run multiple instances from multiple remote locations at the same time. This is particularly cool for special file types like PSD’s where it may not be convenient or possible to install the app on the remote machine.
More details are available from here.
The last quarter of 2010 wasn’t a great time for WHS enthusiasts, with HP dropping the MediaSmart server range and Microsoft removing Drive Extender from Vail combining to dampen the spirits of all but the most diehard WHS fans.
HP have thrown us as all a partial home server lifeline in the shape of the ProLiant MicroServer. Designed primarily for the small office rather than the home, the ProLiant looks to be a worthy replacement for the MediaSmart server hardware.
I say hardware, as the ProLiant doesn’t ship with an operating system, and a regular copy of WHS from Microsoft won’t come with all the extra bells and whistles that put MediaSmart servers head and shoulders about all the other Windows Home servers.
Looking at the hardware, the ProLiant MicroServer is a compact and sturdy box, standing a little shorter and wider than a MediaSmart server at (HxWxD) 10.5 x 8.3 x 10.2 in (26.7x 21.0 x 26.0 cm).
Finished in matt grey and black, the front panel plays host to four x USB 2.0 ports, HDD and network activity lights, and the power button. Also we find a big illuminated HP logo that will change colour to indicate the servers status.
Unusually for a home server (sorry this isn’t a home server is it) it has more USB ports on the front than the back. I would imagine the idea of this is to allow users in a busy office to connect and disconnect USB hard disks without having to disturb the server by fishing around on the rear for spare sockets.
The front is completed by an optical drive blanking plate and a lockable front door. Opening the front door reveals the four SATA drive caddies, and exposes the motherboard which can easily be removed by undoing the two light-blue thumbscrews at each side.
The MicroServer ships with a 160gb 7200 rpm Seagate disk (I didn’t realise they still made them that small anymore) inside a simple design drive caddy, which feels secure and robust enough to hold the disk securely in place inside the server. Unlike the screwless caddies HP used on the MediaSmart, disks need to be fastened in place with screws.
One very good feature is the location of these screws. Instead of supplying them in a plastic bag, HP have bolted them and their torx key in place inside the front door. You never have to scratch around looking for the screws, as they will always be securely located within the server. A nice touch, and one that shows that HP have paid attention to the design of this little server.
Finishing off the hardware tour around the back is the gigabit Ethernet port, eSATA, VGA, two x USB 2.0 ports and of course the power input. A large fan quietly keeps everything cool.
Internally the server uses a 1.30GHz AMD Athlon II Processor Model NEO N36L and the motherboard is based on an AMD RS785E/SB820M chipset, 1gb of DDR3 is supplied, along with the previously mentioned 160gb hard drive. This all sounds a bit limited, but remember that this is a server and these specs are perfectly adequate to power a small business or simple home server.
The 1gb or RAM is provided on a single stick, leaving an additional slot available for you to add extra RAM. By upgrading both slots, a maximum capacity of 8gb is achievable.
We also have two half height, half length PCI-e expansion slots, one x16 and the other x1. Possible uses for these in a server could be anything from installing extra network cards to turn this into an Astaro Security Gateway appliance, or adding graphics and TV card for media PC duties. Having these available gives us plenty of flexibility for potential uses for the ProLiant.
There is a thumbscrew on the rear that allows the removal of the top of the server giving access to the empty optical bay.
Although the server doesn’t ship with an optical drive, installing one looks to be a pretty straightforward. Remember the hard disk screws inside the front door? Well look to the center of that picture and you will see four screws labelled ODD (Optical Disk Drive I imagine). These screws are slightly thicker than the hard disk screws, and allow a half height optical drive to limbo under the status lights and securely slide into empty drive bay, connectiong up to a spare SATA port on the motherboard.
Finally power consumption when powered down is 10w, which rises to around 35w when in operation with its single supplied hard disk.
As mentioned earlier, the ProLiant Microserver doesn’t ship with an operating system, but luckily there is plenty of free or paid-for operating systems to choose from.
I clearly had to install Windows Home Server given the nature of this website, and one thing to watch when installing WHS v1, is that the BIOS default SATA configuration is AHCI, which will need to be switched to Native IDE. With that done, WHS installed without a hitch. Well, not quite without a hitch as there is no network card driver available on the WHS installation disk.
I tracked down a suitable driver on the HP support web site called cp013021.exe which seemed to do the trick for me. You will also find that the WHS installation won’t find a driver for the VGA or the SM Bus Controller either, but not having these drivers causes WHS no problems in operation.
For basic WHS service, the AMD Athlon and 1gb of RAM performed perfectly well, but power users who require plenty of applications running might want to consider installing more RAM as 1gb doesn’t really go very far if you stray from vanilla WHS.
If you don’t want to run to the extra cost of buying WHS, then this server is perfectly at home running free server software like FreeNAS or VortexBox (although this is going to need an optical drive).
The inclusion of a motherboard based USB 2.0 port makes the ProLiant MicroServer a perfect choice for a flash memory embedded installation of FreeNAS. This option installs the embedded OS onto USB flash memory, and leaves the hard disks dedicated to storage. Quick, simple and it is almost like that USB port was installed specifically for FreeNAS.
FreeNAS works very nicely on this server, and could be a perfect solution for some users.
Finally I installed Windows 7 64-bit onto the ProLiant to see what its performance would be like as a desktop PC or a Windows Media device. Unlike the installation of WHS, Windows 7 64-bit had no problems locating and installing all the drivers it needed for the ProLiant’s hardware.
The server performed reasonably well under Windows 7, although I found the redrawing of the desktop and screen updates to be a little laboured and sluggish, but otherwise everything seemed acceptable as a low-end desktop PC.
I would expect these graphical shortcomings to be resolved by adding a proper PCI-e graphics card and some extra RAM, should you wish to use this as a desktop PC.
I mourn the passing of the excellent MediaSmart range, but HP have given us a worthy hardware replacement in the form of the ProLiant MicroServer.
With the impending release of Vail or Windows 7 Home Server, consuming very little power, running cool and silently, the HP ProLiant is well placed to offer a home server enthusiast a solid and cost effective platform to house their server.
If you are in the UK, and are very quick, then HP is currently offering £100 cash back on this server, with prices around £250 (£150 after cash back) this is a stunningly good deal if you are able to get one in time.
