Windows 2008 "Workstation"

[Kralik]

Well, I've been MIA for a while now. Hours, no, days! have passed without me checking on TLHH. Mostly it has been due to increased family time and real work.

However, last night I enjoyed experimenting with Windows 2008 "Workstation" as a replacement OS for Vista. Yes, I am a bit geeky, and it's not for everyone. OTOH, it has been fun to use Microsoft's newest operating system for free. They let you use it for 8 months, perfectly legal. After 8 months you could feasibly install an alternate edition for another 8 months!

So far I've noticed, compared to Vista Premium:
--Faster (of course, it could just be in my head... but the majority who try it confirm this)
--250MB less RAM used on startup! (500MB vs. 750MB)

I do have Aero Glass and visual effects enabled.

Has anyone else tried or heard of this setup? If you have XP and want to try Vista without buying it, this would be the easiest way to get server-class performance/reliability with the UI of Vista. Lots of people are saying, "It's what Vista should have been."

[Elf_Lvr]

Vista can be a real pain sometimes. I might look into this. Thanks!

[Celebrimbor]

Is there any way to get a permanent installation of this, rather than just 8 months?

I would be hesitant trying out anything like this, because it seems like a prototype and may have lots of bugs.

I am trying to move away from windows and other proprietary software as much as possible.  I have been looking into linux, and use Ubuntu, which is awesome.

[Kralik]

Windows Server 2008 is definitely not a prototype -- It is Microsoft's newest offering to enterprises and is very stable. The posted link above just gives instructions on  how to make the server more usable as a workstation. Search around and you'll find that many people are happy with it. I haven't encountered any bugs, but keep in mind there are a few features from Vista that are not yet working.

Permanent installation? Microsoft's prices are from $999-$3999. There are ways to get around the 8-month limit, but I'll leave it up to you to find those if you feel comfortable with that... I'm just planning on using the Standard edition for 8 months and then trying the Enterprise edition for another 8, perfectly legal. By the end of 16 months I'll upgrade to another computer.

If you have a need to run Windows programs in Linux, you should definitely look into VirtualBox. You can install Windows Server for free and run your Windows applications seamlessly on your Linux desktop. Or just use it to try Windows out. Having used Linux for 6+ years, I understand the appeal behind open source software, but it's awfully fun to run one operating system inside another. If you want to run Ubuntu seamlessly on Windows, check out andLinux.

Let me know if you need any help. Still running 2008 and it works beautifully!

EDIT: Note that Server 2008 is compatible with Vista drivers, as they share the same kernel.

[CarpeGuitarrem]

Workstation? Never heard of it...

Although currently, I'm looking into dual-booting Ubuntu and XP. Should be fun.