In The Know - Charles Van Heusen's Weblog

Windows SBS 2008 Hands-On-Labs available for download from MS Connect

My friend and colleague, David Fabritius who works hand in hand with the SBS and EBS product teams shared some exciting news with me today and I wanted to pass it on to you.   There are now Hands on Labs available for SBS2008!  It’s a great way for you to ramp up new employees or for those of you who are just venturing into the server market, its a safe way to get your feet wet without damage a production environment. 

Here’s the information from David…

Have you been wanting to get some hands-on experience with Windows Small Business Server 2008 but weren’t sure how to get started?  We have just the thing!  Four hands-on-labs for SBS 2008 are available for download from Microsoft Connect:  Administration, Managing Clients, Installation, and Migration from SBS 2003.  To take advantage of these labs, you will need a test server with at least 4GB of RAM running Microsoft Hyper-V Server or Windows Server 2008 with the Hyper-V role installed.

To download the labs, use your Live ID to login to Microsoft Connect, select Connection Directory, and enter the invitation code SBSP-62B6-K3TH, which will give you access via the SBS 2008 Downloads page.  In addition to gaining access to these labs, joining the MS Connect community is a great way to stay informed and up-to-date about the latest developments with SBS 2008 and interact with some our most active and knowledgeable partners.

Let the SBS Product Team hear from YOU!!!

I was asked to help get as many partners to take this survey as possible to make sure we are on the right track.  I've posted the request from Kevin Beares, our Community Lead for each of you to read...

The Windows Small Business Server 2008 WW Community Survey is live

This is the third year we have published an SBS WW Community Survey to the SBS Community.

We have learned an amazing amount of information from the people who have taken the time to tell us what they thought. Some things we kind of knew already, but other things were not as clear before we had received the feedback.

Because of the previous surveys, we have made some adjustments in our community engagement. To name a few; we really worked on putting more focus on the Official SBS Blog. Our Sustaining Engineering team runs mini betas with our MVPs before KB's and Bug Fixes are released via Windows Update. We try to get more involvement in our techbetas from our User Groups. The list does go on.

To the survey, the SBS Product Team would like to hear from the Windows SBS Community again. This survey is completely anonymous. In fact, some of you may have to sign out from Live in order to take the survey. So, if you get a PAGE NOT FOUND error message, please log out of Live and click on the link to the survey again.

We want to know how valuable your experience is with the community resources and information that is available to you today as a member of the Windows SBS Community. We also want to know what you think could be done to improve your Windows SBS Community Experience. Please take a couple of minutes to provide us your candid feedback via this survey and let us know what you think.

SBS WW Community Survey 2008

Thanks in advance for your feedback.

Kevin Beares
Community Lead – WSSG

Windows Essential Server Solutions Public Preview Program is Live! Sign up Today!

Good News for Partners and Customers alike ...  You can now sign up for the preview release of Windows Small Business Server 2008 and / or Windows Essentials Business Server 2008 online at

https://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver/essential/default.mspx

You'll find a variety of resources that will help your customer's understand the potential these solutions will provide for their businesses as well as what they will do for your practice in the upcoming years ahead.

I hope everyone signs up and takes advantage of this program so you can start testing scenarios based upon the industries you support.

Happy Testing!

SBS2008 (Cougar) and EBS2008 (Centro) Pricing Announced Today!

Let me start out by saying "Don't Shoot the messenger", Good, bad or indifferent, I'm just trying to get the word out on the pricing and product details as they become available to me.  This information is so new, they have yet to debrief us as to the reasons for the pricing models that were selected.

Here's the details from the press release that is going out this morning.

Slated for general availability later this year, Windows Essential Server Solutions are much easier for small and midsize companies to implement and manage than separate products. In response to customer and partner feedback, Windows Essential Server Solutions provide flexible pricing and licensing that offer substantial cost savings over purchasing individual products like those included in the solutions. Examples of licensing improvements over the current Windows Small Business Server 2003 R2 product include these:

• Customers will be able to purchase single client access licenses (CALs), so they will pay only for the exact number of employees using the product.
• Customers can cost-effectively purchase a mix of Standard or Premium CALs, as appropriate to the technologies that individual employees are using.
• CALs now apply to other copies of Windows Server, SQL Server or Exchange Server on the network, eliminating the need to purchase additional CALs.

Also, Small Business Server 2008 Premium Edition includes additional Windows Server 2008 Standard technologies with SQL Server 2008 Standard Edition for Small Business, making it an ideal platform for critical business applications.

Windows Essential Server Solutions pricing* is as follows:

• Windows Small Business Server 2008 Standard Edition software, including five CALs, $1,089 (U.S.); additional CALs $77 each (U.S.)
• Windows Small Business Server 2008 Premium Edition software, including five CALs, $1,899 (U.S.); additional CALs $189 each (U.S.)
• Windows Essential Business Server 2008 Standard Edition software, including five CALs, $5,472 (U.S.); additional CALs $81 each (U.S.)
• Windows Essential Business Server 2008 Premium Edition software, including five CALs, $7,163 (U.S.); additional CALs $195 each (U.S.)

Microsoft also today announced rebates of up to $200 (U.S.) for solution provider partners configuring Windows Small Business Server 2003 R2 for their clients who acquire the software and purchase Software Assurance within a certain time period. With Software Assurance, customers will receive the upgrade to Small Business Server 2008 at no additional cost when it is available, as well as access to support, tools and training. Terms and conditions of the rebates are available at http://www.SBSrebate.com.

More information about the products, pricing and beta customer feedback is available at http://www.microsoft.com/ess. More information for journalists is available at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/presskits/serversolutions.

SBS Then and Now - Pain & Pleasure, Punch a Wizard

A long long time ago, in a network far far away, SBS 4.5 Wizards came to play but they didn't play well.  For many first timers to the land of SBS, this product was disparate enough to cause Cardiac Arrest!   For these first times it would be their last to look at a Server with Wizard to pass.  Upgrades and enhancements would waiver them not because SBS 2000, thought to be worthy, was not.... 

3 more years in the future the next version would be the Partner World is amazed by SBS 2000 and 3....   Components and Wizards working side by side...  Remote Web Workplace make connectivity as easy as PIE!!!   Company Web becomes a place for business harmony, a central source for collaboration makes communication flow like sweet honey.  Partner practices sprang up supporting small businesses far and wide, profits are rising, customers shouting glee, and all this occurred because of SBS2003.

Yet those from before who suffered from Wizard dismay swore off new wizards and still do today.   In comes Jeff Middleton waiving his banner, exclaiming SBS is our platform, I'll dispel those old myths, the product is solid and I'll prove it with this..  

To help relieve stress of the wizards you see, we've created a game to bash them yippee!! (Play Punch a Wizard) Hopefully this will bring you great joy, for when Cougar releases we hope you will get it deployed...

I hope you enjoyed my composition above....  I know I know, don't quit my day job.  :-) 

For those of you that know an SBSer of old that attempted to work with the product in the not so "Good Old Days", and no longer works with it, please point them over to Tom's Vlog, to see if some of the items being discussed will persuade them to give the product a second look.

Windows Essentials Business Server team has a blog site now!

If  you are looking to find some of the top resources on the newly announce Windows Essentials Business Server - Codename "Centro", look no further.  The team has their office blog site up and running at http://blogs.technet.com/EssentialBusinessServer/

You get information straight from the Product Managers themselves and its a great way for you to provide candid feedback back to them about the product and the way we are positioning it.

I suggest you sign up for the RSS feeds from the site and make it a weekly habit of checking for the latest and greatest from the team as we get closer to the product's launch

Announcing Windows Essentials Server Solutions

Discover a new family of integrated server solutions--including Windows Small Business Server 2008 and Windows Essential Business Server 2008--that are based on Windows Server 2008 technology. These solutions enable you to serve the needs of a wider range of small- and midsize-business customers more effectively while driving new revenue for your business.    

Click the Server Logo for more details on the Microsoft Partner Portal, or register for the Partner Track at an upcoming US Launch Event get a first hand look at the products. 

Cougar Name Announced..... Surprise surprise, it's Windows Small Business Server 2008

OK, today is the official PR announcement about Windows Small Business Server 2008,- Codename Cougar -   See the press release at (here)

I know I didn't provide a lot of detail last month on my post about "Cougar" so I am opening up the gates for any and all questions today.  Here's a great slide from a presentation that was delivered internally last week in our TechReady training that provides more details on the product breakdowns.   I had the opportunity to spend several hours with the Technical Product Manager and I am EXTREMLY impressed with the improvements in the product from a user perspective as well as from a partner perspective to improve the deployment and management processes.

Over the next 2-3 weeks I will provide new posts on SBS2008 and EBS2008 (Windows Essentials Business Server 2008) with screenshots, screencasts, and details on what you will be able to learn about at the Windows Server 2008 Launch events that the TS2 team will be delivering starting march 4th.  We will have an hour session dedicated to the Windows Essentials Server Solutions family and what to look forward to as we move closer to the launch and availability of both of these product in 2008. 

To find out more about the launch events, check the main website for registration at (here)

As you can see in the details of the slide, SBS2008 will support Hyper-V in both Standard and Premium editions.  The biggest thing to point is on the Premium edition is that is can be either an X64 or X86 installation which is a huge Customer Satisfaction saving grace especially for those customers who purchased SBS2003 on none dual core hardware in the past two years.  They can bring in their new x64 hardware, install the Core Infrastructure server with SBS2008, then use the SBS2003 hardware for the secondary server in to run their line of business applications.

Are you Ready for Windows Small Business Server Codename "Cougar"?

As we travel the country delivering TS2 seminars, more and more questions are coming up from Partners around the next release of Windows Small Business Server.  Since the launch of Office 2007, Exchange 2007, and Windows SharePoint Services V3, the excitement has really grown tremendously.  Partners are receiving requests for the new functionality from their customer's and when they should see it as an affordable offering.

There are many ways to implement Exchange 2007 and WSS V3 in a Small Business Environment today, but its either extremely costly, requiring a 2nd server that is a 64 bit installation for Exchange, or using WSS V3 with reduced functionality because the technology in Small Business Server 2003 is, well from 2003 and WSS V2 was the product designed for that time frame.

As we approach the Launch of Windows Server 2008 in March, the answers to many of your questions will be answered.  As for today, I will share with you what I can without getting into too much trouble with the folks on the product team.

First things first, 64 Bit is the way of the future.  So those old 32 bit systems are going to have to be reallocated for another task inside your customer's organization.  What's the reason behind that  you ask?  Among a lot of things, its Exchange 2007 coming in a 64 Bit only offering.   The upside to this is that we will be able to break the 4 GB Memory plateau (3.25 GB of actual usability in most cases) of the 32 bit systems and move well beyond that with Windows Server 2008.  This change will hopefully give the memory manufacturers more motivation to start putting out 4 GB modules and larger that are mass produced, lowering the price point for those of us in the SMB space where money matters most!

Being that it is 64 Bit ONLY there are a few things to consider... 

• No Direct Upgrades - Even if you have a Dual Core Server today, you can't just put in the CD and start an upgrade.
• Migrations Paths are being defined - The official migration path that is in the works is very similar to http://technet2.microsoft.com/WindowsServerSolutions/SBS/en/library/62e2094e-ad4e-4227-b20e-97a716ed7c861033.mspx?mfr=true  and http://support.microsoft.com/kb/884453/en-us  , which is basically manually installing Win2k8 from the Cougar media, dcpromo’ing into the existing domain as an additional domain controller, installing Exch2k7 on the Cougar install and using the native Exchange/Active Directory migration utilities to move the data to the new server and then removing the original SBS2003 server from the network. There are also plans to include migrating the WSS V2 Companyweb to Cougar (WSS V3). Currently there are not plans to have a SBS2000 -> SBS2008 supported migration path.I

I'm expecting to see something from the King of Swing, Jeff Middleton on Swing Migration once the product is closer to launch since he has been the foremost expert on migrations with Small Business Server 2003. 

"Cougar" will be split into two offerings, just as its predecessor, in a Standard and Premium edition.  (I don't know for sure what the naming will be and I know if I did, its not publicly available yet so we'll just have to wait until the official announcement later this winter). 

What I can share about the versions is the "standard edition" will include Windows Server 2008, Exchange 2007, and Windows SharePoint Services v3 out of the box.

The "premium edition" will include the same core products above, plus a a flavor of SQL Server 2008, (which one has yet to be announced), as well as support for Virtualization.  Cougar will support the hypervisor feature set (virtualization) that Win2k8 standard supports. The RAM limitations will be the same as for Win2k8 standard.

Watch for more updates between now and the 1st of March when we roll out an hour session on Cougar and Windows Essentials Business Server at the Windows 2008 US Launch events.

Small Business Specialist - Practice Builder Webcast Series - Join us for Coffee on Wednesdays

Join us for our new “Small Business Server

 Practice Builder” Webcast Series!

You are cordially invited to attend our new weekly series of webcasts focused on helping you reach the full potential of your Small Business Practice.

In these live, web-based presentations delivered by your local Microsoft team, we will demonstrate how you can build or strengthen your SBS Practice by learning best practices around selling, delivering and managing solutions based on the Windows Small Business Server 2003 platform.

Covering a different topic each week, we will show how you can frame your sales approach and identify more business opportunities per customer while increasing your status as a trusted advisor.

Unleash your business agility and add more value than ever by helping your customers level the competitive field with the most advanced technology in the market.   Move beyond “File + Print” projects and learn about the full potential SBS delivers in areas such as Collaboration & Knowledge Sharing, Mobility & Remote Workforce, Security, Document Management and others.

Click here add this event series to your Outlook calendar or read below for call details.

Recommended audience: Practice owners, pre-sales and sales staff and technical sales staff.

Upcoming Webcasts Schedule:

Call details:

When: New webcast series begins on Wednesday, Jul 26, 2006 8:00 AM (CST)

Scheduled to Occur: Every Wednesday at 8AM (Central Time)

Duration: 1:00

Click to add to your Outlook calendar:

https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/microsoft/meetingICS?id=SBS+Practice+Builder&role=attend&i=i.ics

Or use this link on the day and time of the event:

https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/microsoft/join?id=SBS+Practice+Builder&role=attend

Subject: SBS Practice Builder Weekly Webcast

Meeting URL: https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/microsoft/join

Meeting ID: SBS Practice Builder

Role: Attendee

Audio Conferencing (Toll-free): +1 (866) 500-6738 

Participant Code: 125494

Audio Portion: 1-866-500-6738

Passcode:125494

FIRST TIME USERS: To save time before the meeting, check your system to make sure it is compatible with Microsoft Office Live Meeting: http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?linkid=52354

This Live Meeting invitation is a personal invitation; it should not be forwarded.

For assistance, visit Live Meeting Help and Support:

http://r.office.microsoft.com/r/rlidLiveMeeting?p1=7&p2=en_US&p3=LMInfo&p4=support

New Small Business Technology Assessment Toolkit and Offer for a FREE copy of Small Business Server 2003 R2

Microsoft Small Business Symposium

The Small Business Symposium was a great event of networking with the SBSer’s from around the world as well as gaining a lot of great business insight from the “Who’s who” of the small business world.  The part that surprised me was how much of a focus it was on the business aspect of being a SMB Partner verses a typical technology rally round the campfire cheer leading event.  

I was impressed with several of the sessions, but the ones that stuck out in my mind were Tim Loney’s session that focused on finding and keeping quality skilled technicians in your business and the Sloan Brother’s from www.startupnation.com who spoke about the keys to success for running a small business.  I’d never heard of them before, so I logged onto their site and found several great podcast topics including one titled “what a server can do for small business.”  If you have been to their site, you should check it out.

There was a lot of marketing for Small Business Server 2003 R2 and the “Green Check”, but there was very little discussion about it out during the day which surprised me.  I was really hoping to see more about it and the futures of SBS in the Longhorn time frame, but it seemed to slip by without much fan fare.

At the after party Harry, Beatrice, and the rest of the folks from SMBNation released their new magazine which will be a FREE subscription to it for the Small Business Specialists of the world. This was great timing of its release by the SMBNation folks since this is the 1st Birthday as they labelled it on the magazine cover for the SBSC program.    Watch for more news throughout the week on the next phases of the SBSC program and what new stuff is in store for the program and what Microsoft is doing to help drive more value for the Small Business Partners that are part of the program and the companies continued focus on the Small Business market and the opportunities for growth in it for everyone.

I hung out with the Queen of SBS last week at the SBS MVP Summit Post Party!

I had the distinct pleasure to hang out and entertain the SBS MVP’s on Wednesday night with the DFW SBS Partner Group at Dave & Buster’s last week.  I was a bit disappointed because of schedule conflicts, I wasn’t able to attend the Summit with everyone, but it was great to meet a lot of the Elite SBSer’s from around the globe and to finally get a chance to sit down with Susan Bradley.  I’ve been on several conference calls, email threads and even sat in one of her sessions at SMB Nation last year, but I never had the chance to meet her in person until last week.  She’s even more impressive in person than she is on her Blog believe it or not.   She has a unique talent of making everyone feel comfortable talking to her no matter what their knowledge level is around the technology and always seems to have a smile on her face.   Before she left, she made me a SBS *** roacher.  (see the photo below).   I can proudly say that I know the guy that was killed by Microsoft BOB now and I have the shirt to prove that too.  (See Susan’s shirt below with the MS BOB shirt).

Hanging out with everyone, sharing stories from around the globe, just reinforced one thing, I LOVE my JOB, because of the great people I get to meet everywhere I go…  OK That’s enough of the softie side of Charles…  Back to reading about Windows Vista (aka.  Microsoft Longwait, I mean Longhorn).

BTW, Grizzly Adam’s below is our esteemed SBSer and Head Honcho of the DFW SBS Partner Group.

HTC Update Review - The Good, The Bad, and well, there was nothing Ugly about it...

I managed to squeeze in the ROM update (download here) between webcasts and conference calls today, and I must say it was surprisingly simple.  The download was 50 megs so those of you out there still fighting the bandwidth woes, this may take a few minutes.    The installation process was smooth as silk once I found a good USB synch cable.  I am one of those lucky people that make “Murphy’s Law” a reality.  If it can go wrong, it will.  I had two, count them two BAD USB synch cables, which took a 10 minute process into a 45 minute project. 

Once I found a good cable the installation went smoothly.  Hind sight, remember to back up ALL your files from your device prior to performing the upgrade.  I backed up all the Word documents and Excel spreadsheets, but I forgot the most important files, my camera photos, why are now lost in the 1’s and 0’s black hole, we often refer to as an I D 10 T error.

If you don’t already have ActiveSync 4.1 installed, go ahead and download it from www.microsoft.com/downloads to save you a step afterwards, because it will be a requirement for synchronisation after the upgrade.

Last but not least, make sure the battery is charged up.  One of my coworkers attempted the installation and it failed because he only had 48% battery life available.

Here are several screen shots of the upgrade process so you know what to expect.

Almost there….

And we’re finished…..

Now reload your applications and reconfigure your ActiveSync connection to the Exchange Server and your good to go.

50% off SBSC Exams at Tech Ed!

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