Edition
|
Intent
|
Major feature
|
Licensing
|
Clients
|
List price
|
Datacenter
|
Highly virtualized
environments
|
Unlimited virtual
instance rights
|
Processor x 2
|
Per CAL
|
$4,809 per 2 procs
|
Standard
|
Little
virtualization, low density
|
Two virtual
instances
|
Processor x 2
|
Per CAL
|
$882
per 2 procs
|
Essentials
|
Small business
|
Simple
administration, no virtualization rights
|
Per Server
|
25 accounts
|
$425
|
Foundation
|
Entry level, economy
server
|
General purpose
server, no virtualization rights
|
Per Server
|
15 accounts
|
OEM only
|
Editions
|
Foundation
|
Essentials
|
Standard
|
Datacenter
|
Distribution
|
OEM Only
|
Retail, volume licensing, OEM
|
Retail, volume licensing, OEM
|
Volume licensing and OEM
|
Licensing
Model
|
Per Server
|
Per Server
|
Per CPU pair + CAL/DAL
|
Per CPU pair + CAL/DAL
|
Processor
Chip Limit
|
1
|
2
|
64
|
64
|
Memory
Limit
|
32GB
|
64GB
|
4TB
|
4TB
|
User
Limit
|
15
|
25
|
Unlimited
|
Unlimited
|
File
Services limits
|
1 standalone DFS root
|
1 standalone DFS root
|
Unlimited
|
Unlimited
|
Network
Policy & Access Services limits
|
50 RRAS connections and 10 IAS connections
|
250 RRAS connections, 50 IAS connections, and 2 IAS Server
Groups
|
Unlimited
|
Unlimited
|
Remote
Desktop Services limits
|
50 Remote Desktop Services connections
|
Gateway only
|
Unlimited
|
Unlimited
|
Virtualization
rights
|
n/a
|
Either in 1 VM or 1 physical server, but not both at once
|
2 VMs
|
Unlimited
|
DHCP,
DNS, Fax server, Printing, IIS Services
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Windows
Server Update Services
|
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Active
Directory Services
|
Yes, Must be root of forest and domain
|
Yes, Must be root of forest and domain
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Active
Directory Certificate Services
|
Certificate Authorities only
|
Certificate Authorities only
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Windows
Powershell
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Server
Core mode
|
No
|
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
Hyper-V
|
No
|
No
|
Yes
|
Yes
|
On the 1st of August, 2012 Microsoft released Windows Server 2012– the sixth release of the Windows Server product family. On May 21st 2013, Windows Server 2012 R2 was introduced and is now the latest version of Windows Server in the market. Microsoft has released four different editions of Windows Server 2012 varying in cost, licensing and features. These four editions of Windows Server 2012 R2 are: Windows 2012Foundation edition, Windows 2012 Essentials edition, Windows 2012 Standard edition and Windows 2012 Datacenter edition.
WINDOWS SERVER 2012 FOUNDATION EDITION
This edition of Windows Server 2012 is targeted towards small businesses of up to 15 users. The Windows Server 2012 R2 Foundationedition comes pre-installed on hardware server with single physical processor and up to 32GB of DRAM memory. Foundation editioncan be implemented in environments where features such as file sharing, printer sharing, security and remote access are required. Advanced server features such as Hyper V, RODC (Read Only Domain Controller), data deduplication, dynamic memory, IPAM (IP Address Management), server core, certificate service role, hot add memory, windows update services and failover clustering are not available in theFoundation edition.
WINDOWS SERVER 2012 ESSENTIALS EDITION
The Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials edition is the next step up, also geared towards small businesses of up to 25 users. Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials edition is available in retail stores around the world making it easy for businesses to install the new operating system without necessarily purchasing new hardware. Similar to the Foundation edition, the Essentials edition does not support many advanced server features, however it does provide support of features like Hyper V, dynamic memory and hot add/remove RAM.
Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials edition can run a single instance of virtual machine on Hyper V, a feature that was not available in Windows Server 2012 Essentials (non-R2) edition. This single virtual machine instance can be Windows Server 2012 R2 Essential edition only, seriously limiting the virtualization options but allowing companies to begin exploring the benefits of the virtualization platform.
WINDOWS SERVER 2012 STANDARD EDITION
The Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard edition of windows server is used for medium to large businesses that require additional features not present in the Foundation & Essential edition. The Standard edition is able to support an unlimited amount of users, as long as the required user licenses have been purchased.
Advanced features such as certificate services role, Hyper V, RODC (Read Only Domain Controller), IPAM (IP Address Management), Data deduplication, server core, failover clustering and more, are available to Windows Server 2012 Standard edition. We should note that the Standard edition supports up to 2 Virtual Machines.
WINDOWS SERVER 2012 DATACENTER EDITION
The Windows Server 2012 R2 Datacenter edition is the flagship product created to meet the needs of medium to large enterprises. The major difference between the Standard and Datacenter edition is that the Datacenter edition allows the creation of unlimited Virtual Machines and is therefore suitable for environments with extensive use of virtualization technology.
Before purchasing the Windows Server 2012 operating system, it is very important to understand the difference between various editions, the table below shows the difference between the four editions of Windows Server 2012:
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