Windows Small Business Server Documentation

New Documentation: Windows Essential Business Server Technical Library

We’re proud to announce the Windows Essential Business Server Technical Library! This is our first public documentation for Windows Essential Business Server (WEBS), Microsoft’s server solution for midsize businesses, which is scheduled to become available in the second half of 2008. (SBS 2008 and WEBS 2008 are siblings in the Windows Essential Server Solutions family of products. If you haven’t read about WEBS, you can check out the Windows Essential Server Solutions site and the Essential Business Server Team Blog for more information.)

We published the WEBS Technical Library just in time for the public preview of WEBS 2008. If you are interested in trying WEBS in a test environment, sign up for the bits. We stocked the Technical Library with deployment and operational content to help you get started and stay running.

As with our SBS content, we value your feedback. Each page in the WEBS Technical Library has a Click to Rate and Give Feedback control that you can use to grade our content and provide detailed comments to the user assistance team. There’s a Community Content feature, too, where you can add and edit content notes, similar to a wiki. Anyone is welcome to contribute or edit content in the library. (To get started with the Community Content feature, you sign in with a Microsoft Passport or Windows Live ID and agree to the site terms of use and the participant Code of Conduct. Learn more about Community Content here.) Happy browsing and annotating!

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

New Documentation: “Adding a Server Running Windows Server 2008 to a Windows Small Business Server 2003 Network”

If you have been waiting for the release of Windows Server 2008 to add or update a member server, check out this helpful information.

Windows SBS 2003 allows you to add computers running Windows Server 2008 to your network; however, you cannot use the wizards in Windows SBS or the http://ServerName/connectcomputer Web site to do so.

Before you tackle this (not very scary) task, find out what you need to know in “Adding a Server Running Windows Server 2008 to a Windows Small Business Server 2003 Network” in the Windows SBS Technical Library. This document describes system requirements and deployment scenarios, and provides step-by-step instructions to get you through the process.

As always, we want to hear from you! Please rate our documentation by responding to the question “Was this information helpful” at the bottom of each page. Do you have more to say? Click Comments (under Page Options), and tell us specifically what you like or do not like about the information. Definitely let us know if we did not document a procedure or solution thoroughly or accurately!

 This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

"Search" function not working for SBS Technical Library

It has come to our attention that the search functionality on the SBS Technical Library Web site is not working. We are investigating the problem and will provide an update as soon as we know more. We apologize for the inconvenience.

 This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

New Documentation: “Deploying Windows Mobile 6 with Windows Small Business Server 2003”

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New Documentation: Migrating Windows Small Business Server 2003 to New Hardware

It's been a long time coming, but we have FINALLY published a guide for "Migrating Windows Small Business Server 2003 to New Hardware." Here is a brief abstract from the overview:

"If you decide that your server running the Windows® Small Business Server 2003 (Windows SBS) server software is no longer able to keep up with the demands of your organization, and expansion is not a viable option, you can use this guide to help you migrate the Windows SBS 2003 settings and data to new hardware."

So if you've been holding off on upgrading the 5 year old computer that you are running Windows SBS on, now is the time. This guide will help you get it done.

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

Introducing the Windows SBS Tech Center!

Check it out!

Building upon the ever popular Microsoft TechNet foundation, The Windows SBS Tech Center delivers a fresh new interface that helps you find the information you need - with less hassle. With fewer "navigation" pages, the SBS Tech Center quickly guides you to the technical and support information you need. And guess what? Our very own Technical Library has its own tab in a place of honor right next to the Home tab! How cool is that? No more rummaging through lists of white papers! It is truly a one-stop shop for your technical reading pleasure.

Ok then. It's time to update your bookmark for the TechNet - uhhh - Tech Center site. That would be "http://technet.microsoft.com/sbs." Take advantage of this great resource for accessing the full load of information that is available to you.

Enjoy! 

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

A kind of hush...

...has fallen on the SBS Documentation Team blog of late. Can it be that everything that can be written about Windows Small Business Server has been written? Is it possible that Windows SBS has become so easy to use that Microsoft decided that a writing team was no longer necessary to support it? Well, as for the latter - we strive to reach that point. As to the former, we continually become aware of untapped opportunities to improve your experience through new and enhanced documentation. So why the gap in postings? To put it quite simply, we've just been so darned busy that we have neglected to check in with you all. Rest assured though, that we are hard at work. We are totally heads down now working on the next Beta release of SBS. This includes writing friendly and intuitive text for the user interface as well as creating a good deal of solutions-oriented "Help" content. Additionally, in the coming days we will publish the long awaited "Migrating Windows Small Business Server 2003 to New Hardware" paper to the Windows SBS Technical Library. Look for updates to some other papers as well. In the meantime, why not check out our new sibling, Windows Home Server, set to release in the autumn.

And you thought we were just about small business! 

Searching the SBS Technical Library...

... isn't the grand experience at the moment that we know it will be shortly. In our excitement to publish, it appears that the Live Search function was not configured to properly scope and rank search results to SBS-specific content. Please accept our most humble apologies for this oversight. We're working to correct the issue and you will soon be able to enjoy this powerful feature. 

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

Introducing the Windows SBS 2003 Technical Library!

(Queue Marching Band. Great Fanfare. Tickertape. Fireworks!)

It is with extreme pleasure that we announce the launch and availability of the Windows SBS 2003 Technical Library! The WSBS Technical Library centralizes all of the core product documentation for WSBS 2003 and WSBS 2003 R2. In doing so, it significantly improves your ability to search for and discover topics of interest. By centralizing this documentation within a common interface, you are assured of getting quick access to the latest information. There is also far less chance of being confused or annoyed by running into multiple and conflicting versions of the same document.

An added bonus of this release is that it also enables you to take advantage of the built in feedback system. The feedback system makes it possible for you to let us know if you find the documentation helpful or to share your thoughts on how we can correct or improve it.

On the back end, it is much easier for us to collect and evaluate your feedback. Updates to documentation are handled more efficiently and the library is refreshed on a weekly basis.

You can access the library by clicking on any document link on the SBS Product Documentation Web pages or from the SBS TechNet site. 

In the coming months, we will introduce more features that enhance your experience with our product documentation on the Web. Stay tuned!

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

A Call to Arms! Well, fingers anyway. (tap, tap, tap)

Attention SBS Community Members! The SBS Product Team would like to hear from you. The following is from Kevin Beares SBS Community Lead blog:

"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 the following survey and let us know what you think.

SBS WW Community Survey 2007"

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

TechEd 2007 - The WOW is Now!

It was a disappointing moment when I learned that SBS would not be represented at TechEd this year. But realizing the opportunity in being able to spend so much time in one-to-one conversations with so many customers in one place was just to good to pass up. So here I am in beautiful Orlando. It's a balmy 90 degrees right now, and I've just finished up my second day of "mixing in" with some of the most insightful, interesting, and amazingly bright IT Professionals that the planet has to offer. I have the pleasure of helping to staff the "Server Manager in Windows Server 2008" demo station in the TLC Yellow Zone of the show. And what an experience it has been so far. Now, I don't have a lot of experience with Windows Server management tools, and I am not vastly knowledgeable of WS'08. So I confess to being somewhat intimidated by being asked to represent a feature without much corresponding background knowledge. However, I am here to tell you that I am totally impressed with the work done by the development team to bring this great new centralized management experience to Windows Server admins. After a short amount of time exploring the UI, learning from my peer reps, and showing and sharing information with TechEd attendees, I have become very comfortable with the interface. And the key point here is that it was easy for me to learn about and adapt to a new (though not totally unfamiliar) management interface. And if it was that easy for me, then I know that server customers are going to be thrilled. If you are visiting TechEd 2007 this year, come see me at the Server Manager demo station. I'll show you what's got me so jazzed! 

By the way. Everyone knows that Orlando is one of the entertainment capitals of the world. Some of you may even have experienced the "Back to the Future" ride at Universal Studios Orlando. But in opening his Keynote address at this years conference, Bob Muglia attempts to deliver his vision for the future of Microsoft technologies in a clearly entertaining way. Check it out.

-Steve Holland

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New Documentation: Installing WSUS 3.0 on SBS 2003

WSUS 3.0 is out and it's making a big splash. It has lots of new bells and whistles including advanced filtering and reporting, improved performance and operational reliability, flexible deployment options, and more content access through the Microsoft Update Catalog site. And what's really cool for SBS'ers out there is that Kumud (my quiet and unassuming office-mate) has just published a paper that guides you through the process of installing and configuring WSUS on your SBS 2003 and SBS 2003 R2 network. It doesn't get any better than that! Of course, we're always trying to make it better. It's an affliction with us.

Download  "Installing Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 on Windows Small Business Server 2003" today and make your job a bit easier.

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

Putting Vista clients to sleep on your SBS network

Ok. You've had a long day at the office and you just want the Vista clients on your network to go to sleep! But no. They just want to stay awake and play when you leave the office. You've tried fiddling with the power settings, but you're not getting the results you expect. Why does this happen? And what can you do make them rest and save you a bit of energy at the same time? Two words..."Group Policy." 

For the full skinny, check out "Interested in Conserving a Little Power?" on Sean Daniels blog.

 This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

Prepare Your Server for Extended Daylight Savings Time!

Are you ready for Extended Daylight Savings Time? If not, your computer's system clock may not show the correct time during the four week extension that starts on March 11, 2007.

The SBS Documentation Team strongly encourages you to read the excellent article "Extended Daylight Saving Time and SBS 2003" that Chris Puckett posted in The Official SBS Blog. Chris cites a number of key updates and helpful resources that will help you prepare for this adjustment.

Don't delay! Do it today!

 This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.

How to make Windows SBS 2003 compatible with Windows Vista and Office 2007

Not everyone is going to jump on the bandwagon at the same time, but we know that many of you are itching to take advantage of the great new features in Windows Vista and Office 2007. Well, we are pleased to inform you that an update is now available that (in addition to other things):

• Enables you to join client computers that are running Windows Vista (except Windows Vista Home edition) to your Windows SBS 2003 with SP1 or Windows SBS 2003 R2 network.
• Updates Client Deployment tools so you can configure new versions of Windows Vista components.
• Configures the Microsoft Office Outlook® 2007 messaging and collaboration client for computers that are running Windows XP or Windows Vista.
• Enables client computers that are running Windows Vista to take advantage of the full functionality provided by the Remote Web Workplace.

To ensure compatibility between Windows SBS 2003 with SP1 or Windows SBS 2003 R2 and Windows Vista and Office 2007, you need to install the updates described in the Knowledge Base article “Update for Windows Small Business Server 2003: Windows Vista and Outlook 2007 compatibility (KB 926505)” at the Microsoft Web site.

Microsoft Update will automatically install this update on your server starting in March 2007.

For more information, see "Using Windows Vista and Outlook 2007 in a Windows Small Business Server 2003 Network" at the Microsoft Web site.

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.