OK, I’ve done some digging and found out more details on this new small business version of Windows Server 2008. (There *is* information on Microsoft’s site but it’s spread out over several pages and there doesn’t seem to be a single, authoritative PDF.)
Basically Server 2008 Foundation is the same as Server 2008 Standard, with the following exceptions: it’s 64-bit only; there’s a maximum of 15 users; you don’t get Hyper-V; you don’t get Server Core; it supports a maximum of 8GB of RAM; and it supports only 1 physical CPU (although it can be multi-core). In other respects, the feature set is the same as Standard Edition: no clustering, but you do get Active Directory Domain Services, BitLocker, Terminal Services, and IIS. Unlike Microsoft’s Small Business Server (SBS), you don’t get e-mail or collaboration or database applications; just the server operating system.
Looks like you will be able to upgrade Foundation to other versions although I couldn’t find any upgrade pricing information for small companies (which are the target market here). You can buy the product only with new hardware (boo), for example from companies on the MS partner list (www.microsoft.com/Windowsserver2008/en/us/find-partner.aspx).
The omission of Hyper-V and Server Core are probably appropriate for the small biz target market here. I like the concept of Server 2008 Foundation, I just wish you could buy it without also having to buy a computer; but we’ll save that discussion for next time.
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