Windows Home Server
Kevin Royalty – SBS MVP Total Care Computer Consulting, LLC [email protected] A few questions …
• Do you have broadband at home? • Do you have 2 or more PCs at home? • Do you have important “stuff” on your PCs? • How often do you backup your home computers?
What monetary value would you put on your documents, photos, videos, digital music and the time it took to setup all of your PCs?
2 Who needs a home server?
Households with Broadband and 2 or more PCs USA: 18+ M, Globally: 50+ M and growing
Region 2005 2009 USA 15.5 23.4 Asia/Pacific 12.9 26.6 Western Europe 11.4 21.7 Rest of World 2.2 7.4 Totals 42.1 79.2
Source: IDC – Worldwide Home Networking 32006 -2010 Forecast (#203605) Who is the customer?
2 Distinct Personas Oliver - the “Enthusiast” / Early adopter Jeff - “Likes technology when it works”
Goals Excite the “Olivers” Ensure the “Jeffs” can be successful
Incredibly powerful, yet easy-to use (simple)
4
Enabling the Platform for the Home Windows Home Server helps you simplify the way you keep and share your family’s photos, videos and music, by providing a familiar, easy and reliable way to protect, connect, and organize what’s most important
7 Windows Home Server Key Theme: Connecting Your Family Windows Home Server helps you simplify the way you keep and share your family’s photos, videos and music, by providing a familiar, easy and reliable way to protect, connect, and organize what’s most important
Protect Connect Organize Grow
With Windows® With Windows Windows Home Windows Home Home Server your Home Server you Server simplifies Server easily family’s files and can connect to your family’s expands so it will computers are your family’s documents, grow with you as backed up documents, photos, videos your needs grow. automatically photos, videos and music,
every day, so you and music storing them in
can have peace of virtually wherever one shared
mind. you are. location. Analyst Comments
The New Digital Home
Home Server Laptop Xbox 360 Media Center PC
Internet
10 Hardware Concepts Hardware Partners
To date these partners have announced intentions to launch a Windows Home Server powered product
Additionally, there are 30+ hardware partners who are evaluating Windows Home Server
12 Day 1 Experience
Connect and Power On
Install the Windows Home Server Connector software 7 Simple Steps Technical Details V1 Design Decisions
• Limit the number of “Knobs & Buttons” – Fewer options are better – make the product as easy-to-use as possible
• Focus on end-to-end scenarios driven from customer research findings – Don’t try to do 1000+ little things …
• No Active Directory / Group Policy – Consumers have Windows XP Home, Windows Vista Home Basic and Home Premium that cannot “join a domain”
16 Home Server Connector
Establishes relationship between home computer and home server – Automated Backup Configuration – Password Synchronization – Tray Icon Health Notifications – Security Center Health Reporting (Windows Vista) – Checks to see if Connector software is up-to-date and using the same version as the Windows Home Server software version
17 Home Server Tray Icon
18 Home Server Connector Tips
• 1:1 relationship between PC and home server – Re-install Connector or run Discovery.EXE to establish a new relationship from a home PC to your home server
• Password synchronization – Notifies user if password on home PC and password on the home server for a given user are not the same
19 Windows Home Server Console
• Accessible from any home PC
• Easy to setup & configure your home server
• Tab-based, acronym free user interface
• Server Settings for system-wide options
• Built-in Password Recovery option
• Extensible – new tabs & server settings
20
Home Server Console Tips
• Only trusted people should know the Windows Home Server Console password • Maximum number of users is 10 + Guest • Logon names on Home Server should be the same names used on the Home Computers – On Windows PCs, user can change the ‘description’ of the user without changing the underlying logon name • Uses Remote Desktop – Enables reuse of Windows Server UI components
22 Automated Backup Benefits
• Automated Daily Image-based Backups – Supports up to 10 PCs running Windows XP or Vista • Simple to Restore an Entire PC
• Simple to Restore individual files & folders • Uses very little disk space on your home server – Each unique cluster across all PCs is stored once – Home Server keeps track of which PCs had each cluster for each backup date & time
23 24 How Automated Backup Works
1. When a computer is backed up, a snapshot (VSS) is taken of each volume that is configured for backup 2. The client software then determines which clusters (typically 4KB in size) on the volume have changed since the last backup. 3. A hash is calculated for each changed cluster and sent to the Home Server. 4. The server performs a lookup into the central backup database to determine if this cluster is already being stored. 5. If the cluster does NOT exist in the backup database, the server asks the client component to send the entire cluster. Otherwise, the location of the cluster in this snapshot is recorded and on to the next cluster … 6. This is repeated until all changed clustered on the client PC have been evaluated.
25 26 Backup Data is Stored Once
First home computer is backed up and data is stored on home server.
If the 2nd PC has similar data, then the home server will not store a 2nd copy. Only unique data on 2nd PC needs to be transferred to home server
Each night, home server stores only 1 copy of each unique cluster that is found across all of the home computers.
27 Restore Entire PC
1. Windows Home Server ships with Home Computer Restore CD 2. CD contains WinPE plus the Windows Home Server Restore Home Computer wizard • Can be used to restore all hard drives from a given backup or simply select a subset of the hard drives to restore • Can be used to restore the primary hard drive to a larger disk if the primary hard drive fails 3. User needs to answer a few simple questions and the restore process begins
28 Restore Files & Folders
1. Open Windows Home Server Console
2. View Backup Details for a given PC 3. Click Open… to create a view into what that hard drive looked like at that date & time • Virtual Disk Driver that creates a Read/Only view displayed in Windows Explorer from the data on Windows Home Server 4. User can drag and drop files & folders from the Windows Explorer window to their PC desktop
29 Automated Backup Tips
• Turn Off Backups for PCs that you don‟t want to backup automatically
• Remove PC will remove a PC that no longer exists from the Windows Home Server Console and all backups will be deleted
• Set a reasonable number of backups to keep, e.g. last 24 months, last 5 weeks, last 7 days
• Backup Cleanup is run once per week
30 Drive Extender Benefits
• Easy to add additional hard drives – Internal or External hard drives – Any size hard drive (from 40 GB to 1+ TB) • Redundancy at the „Shared Folder‟ level – Protects against hard drive failure • Easy to remove older hard drives – Windows Home Server will move the data off of the hard drive to other hard drives on the home server • Simplified Management – Add, Remove, Repair • Previous Versions enabled for Shared Folders
31 32 33 Drive Letters are Not Needed
Windows Home Server Drive Extender creates Windows Home Server a single storage pool from multiple disks: hides the complexity of volumes and disk allocation. Users simply create shared folders:
SATA (100GB) USB (80GB) SCSI (500GB) 1394 (350GB) \\Server\Music \\Server\Photos \\Server\Videos \\Server\Software \\Server\Public 1030GB
34 Shared Folder Duplication
A new photo is saved to the Photos shared \\Server\Photos folder on the Home Server Flowers.jpg
The Drive Extender file system filter creates the reparse point (pointer) for the new file and determines onto which disk the data should be stored
Within a couple of minutes, the drive extender service will create a duplicate copy of the file and update the reparse point to include the second location.
35 Balancing Disk Space Usage
A Windows Home Server with two disks that is nearing capacity:
User adds disks
The Windows Home Server Drive Extender service balances the files across the new disks:
36 Remote Access Benefits
• Access to Shared Folders on home server • Integrated Search for quickly finding files/folders • Remote Desktop Access to Home PCs – Windows XP Professional, XP Media Center, and XP Tablet editions – Windows Vista Ultimate, Business, and Enterprise • Personalized internet domain from Windows Live –
37 38 How Remote Access Works
1. Remote Access is off by default. The home server owner needs to configure it via Server Settings in the Windows Home Server Console
2. Windows Home Server will attempt to forward the following TCP ports from your broadband router to your home server • Port 80 – Web Access via http://
4. Remote Access is granted per user, and each user that has remote access enabled needs a strong password Note: You cannot use the ‘Administrator’ account to logon remotely 5. Bruteforce dictionary attacks are mitigated by tracking requestor‟s IP address , and if the number of logon attempts from an IP is greater than the threshold, in a given period of time, the next logon attempt is delayed.
39
Media Streaming
• Stream Music, Video, Photos to devices on your home network using Windows Media Connect • Supported Devices • Xbox 360 • Windows Vista PCs • Roku Soundbridge • D-Link MediaLounge • And more!
42
Network Health Monitoring
• Health status – Green – “normal” – Yellow – “at risk” – Red – “critical” • Health of home network is equal to the worst health state of any component • Home Computer Health – Backup status of PCs running Windows XP and Windows Vista – Windows Vista Security Center status sent to Windows Home Server • Windows Home Server Health – Server is operational - Services are running – Drive Extender status – hard drives, shared folders – Windows Home Server Updates – Etc. Health Monitoring Notifications
On the home server – to change Individual home computer status for all home computers Password Synchronization
• If the user accounts on the home computers have the same name and password as the accounts on the home server, then the users have transparent access to the shared folders on the home server • We check for user accounts – If your home computer user account is not known to your home server then you are prompted to create a matching user account on the home server • We check for matching passwords – If your user password on your home computer does not match the password on your home server then you can synchronize the passwords by choosing to keep one of the two. Windows Home Server Updates
• Windows Home Server Updates
– Downloaded & installed automatically during the Backup Time
– Automatic reboot, if required • Windows Home Server Connector Updates
– Automatically downloaded to the Windows Home Server
– Installed by the Windows Home Server Administrator
47 Windows Home Server: A Platform
• New scenario possibilities: – Family web site – Home automation, home security – Family information management (tasks, phone book, etc.) – Integration with services in the cloud • Look to our hardware and software partners, MVPs, and hobbyists to help drive the innovation
48 Windows Home Server: with SBS ?
• Additional possibilities: – Back up your SBS Server (not officially supported so don’t do it!) – Back up “key” workstations on your network – Put this in Peer to Peer customer networks that aren’t ready for their first true server (SBS)
49 Windows Home Server: with WSUS 3
• Install WSUS 3sp2 on your WHS server for small customers not ready for SBS • Home customers you might want to manage • In your own WHS network at home
Look for the informative How To on this now at http://www.wegotserved.co.uk
50 Windows Home Server SDK
• WHS SDK Extensibility – Add a Windows Home Server Console Tab – Add a Console Settings page – Add Websites hosted on the home server – Send notifications to home computers • WHS SDK is managed
• Leverage the Windows Server 2003 SDK
• Documentation on MSDN
51 Software Opportunities
3rd Party Add-in
Windows Home Server SDK 3rd Party Service
Windows API
Windows Server services Server recovery Server Recovery
Recovery can be used when: – Home Server primary hard drive crashes – Windows Home Server password is forgotten – Change of locale on the server System Builders OEM device – Reboot from – OEM creates system image installation DVD – User boots home server device from flash ROM – Select “Server – Use Home Server Recovery Reinstallation” option application from one of the home computers After Windows Home Server software is installed, machine needs to be rebooted. Setup process will rebuild Drive Extender‟s primary partition and start all services. The user will need to redefine their home server settings. Innovation Areas
Revolutionary simplicity and ease of use
Smart Storage Smart
Remote Access Remote Automatic Backup Automatic
Unrivaled power and robustness Why is it cool?
• Single-instancing of backup data across home PCs • Simple restore of an entire home PC • Saves time and disk space – once a home server has a copy of a given piece of data, it just keeps track of which PC had that data on which day; the data is only stored once on the home server • Allows for remote access to PCs and files stored on server • Allows seamless addition of storage • Supports reliability by duplication of designated shared folders – so important data will be stored on 2 separate hard drives • Easily remove hard drives and have their contents moved to other drives in the system – grow and clean out the old, inefficient drives. • Works with both internal and external drives • It is a platform for 3rd party hardware and software add-ins
56 © 2007 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, Windows, Windows Vista and other product names are or may be registered trademarks and/or trademarks in the U.S. and/or other countries. The information herein is for informational purposes only and represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation as of the date of this presentation. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information provided after the date of this presentation. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION. Begin NON OFFICIAL Slides WHS Power Pack 1
• Announced 1/7/08 at CES in Vegas • Public demos began 1/15/08!!! • Shipped in the first half of 2008 • Made available to existing customers of Windows Home Server via Windows Update
Updated Feature – Connector Software
• Windows Home Server Connector will be able to be installed on home computers running Windows Vista x64 editions. • Functionality is added to detect that the version of the WHS Connector software is aligned with the version of WHS Server software. Users will be prompted to update either the home computers or their home server software under certain circumstances.
Updated Feature – Connector Software • You can also install the latest version of the Connector software over your home network from the Software shared folder on your home server via a handy web interface.
Updated Feature – Connector Software • Also, a new option has been added to the Windows Home Server Connector tray icon that allows the user to enable or disable the home computer from waking up for backup if it is in sleep or hibernation mode. Updated feature – WHS Data Backup
• While adding a hard drive to Windows Home Server, a user is now presented with an option to use the hard drive for backing up the home server.
Updated feature – WHS Data Backup
• Once this option is selected, the home server will appear in the Computers & Backup tab - where a user can decide what information they want to store on this hard drive. Updated feature – WHS Data Backup
• Just like with your home computers, you can view the backups stored on these hard drives and choose to restore the files, photos, etc. back to your home server. New feature – Database Repair
• If the backup database on the home server has a consistency error, you can now use the backup database repair wizard to attempt to correct this error. The repair wizard can be launched through the Backup Settings page in the Windows Home Server Console. Updated Feature – Remote Access
• When adding/editing a user in the Home Server Console, in addition to enabling remote access for that user, there is now a drop down list box that allows you to specify whether the user will have access to the computers tab, the shared folders tab, or both tabs when logged in with Windows Home Server Remote Access. Updated Feature – Remote Access
• A new ‘Views’ drop-down list is added for the Shared Folders tab in remote access which allows the files in a shared folder to be displayed either as a list of files (‘Details’ view) or as thumbnails (‘Icons’ view). In ‘Icons’ view, the majority of the picture files will be represented as a thumbnails, and the rest of the non-picture files and folders will be displayed as large icons. Updated Feature – Remote Access
• File upload functionality has been improved for users of Internet Explorer 6 and 7. Users can drag and drop multiple files directly into an upload area or select multiple files in the open file dialog for upload. Upload progress reporting has been improved, with the addition of a progress bar and individual file upload status. Ability to cancel the multiple upload has been added as well. Updated Feature – Remote Access
• When you download multiple files, you are now given the option to package the files in a self extracting executable (.exe) file in addition to being able to store them in a ZIP file. WHS Power Pack 2
• Announced 2/09 at CES in Vegas • Shipped March 24th 2009 • Made available to existing customers of Windows Home Server via Windows Update
New Features
Windows Media Center Connector • Computers running Windows Media® Center can now view recorded TV content that is stored on your home server by using the recorded TV gallery. • Windows Media Center music, photos, videos, and recorded TV libraries are automatically updated to include the Music, Photos, Videos, and Recorded TV shared folders on your home server. • Media Center Extenders that are connected to a computer running Windows Media Center can now access content on your home server without using the guest account. • You can control the shared folders on your home server that Media Center Extenders can access by using the Windows Home Server Console. To do this, on the console, click Settings, and then click Windows Media Center. New Features (cont)
Media Sharing • Support for MP4 audio and video files is added. • Content that is stored on your home server and that is shared via Windows Media Connect, including files with extensions .mp4, .m4v, .m4b and .m4a, now appears in the music or video library with title, artist, composer, album, and genre metadata.
New Features (cont)
New Features (cont)
Home Computer Backup • When you restore files and folders from a Home Computer Backup, the process may stop when it is 79% to 81% percent complete. This update helps prevent this issue. Home Server Backup • This update prevents you from unintentionally overwriting newer versions of the Windows Home Server Connector files. This could potentially happen if you restore files and folders from a Home Server Backup to the Software shared folder on your home server.
New Features (cont)
Server Storage and Shared Folders • It is now easier to copy large files or folders from a home computer running the Windows Vista® operating system to a shared folder on your home server. Previously, the file size was limited by the free space on the primary hard drive of your home server. With this update, the file size is limited to the free space on the target hard drives that are connected to your home server. • The number of notification messages about files that are stored in shared folders is reduced. Previously, these notifications may have caused high CPU utilization on your home server for applications that access these files. After this update is installed, applications such as the software for the Microsoft® Zune® digital media player no longer consume excessive processor resources. HP MediaSmart Server Overview
• Automatically centralize your digital media for sharing with family and friends, and enjoy your digital media while at home or away, including iTunes music libraries. • Streamline how you manage your photo libraries and publish photos to popular photo sharing or social media sites. • Automatically backup multiple computers in your home, including both Windows PCs and Macs. • Stream music and photos to your TV's or any internet- connected computer. • Powered by Microsoft Windows® Home Server - a proven platform with the ability to support new, unique home server applications. • 750GB and 1.5TB capacities available with room for $549, 750GB, 3 empty bays massive expansion. $649, 1.5 TB, 2 empty bays • Intel dual-core Celeron 64-bit Processor for fast file access and timely backups.
HP MediaSmart Server
Software Hardware
• Microsoft Windows Home Server OS • Piano-black surface with perforated steel on • Secure remote access front and back for whisper-quiet and cool • Daily incremental back-ups with selected folder operation. duplication • 4 drive bays, Tool-free, Cable-free • HP “Smart” user interface • accommodates any 3.5” SATA HDD • Streaming of personal content • 4 USB 2.0 ports • Simple, consumer friendly interface • 1 eSATA port • HP Photo Webshare • Intel dual-core Celeron processor • Server for iTunes • 1 10/100/Gigabit Ethernet port For More Information …
• Windows Home Server Website http://www.microsoft.com/WindowsHomeServer
• Home Server Blog http://blogs.technet.com/homeserver
• Home Server Forums http://www.serverplayground.com
WHS MVP Terry Walsh (UK) http://www.wegotserved.co.uk
79 Thanks!
• If you have any follow up questions I can answer, feel free to email me!
Kevin Royalty – SBS MVP Total Care Computer Consulting, LLC [email protected]