Overview Of Windows Storage Server 2003; What Is Windows Storage Server 2003; Advantages Of Windows Storage Server 2003 - Aberdeen AberNAS 120 Manual

Overview of Windows Storage Server 2003

What is Windows Storage Server 2003?

Microsoft® Windows® Storage Server 2003 is a network attached storage (NAS) operating system
that enables original equipment manufacturers to build appliances that provide dedicated file serving
capabilities and storage on the network. Windows Storage Server 2003 is built on top of Microsoft
Windows Server™ 2003, which ensures that NAS devices built upon the Windows Storage Server
operating system have all the performance and scalability benefits associated with
Windows Server 2003.
A NAS appliance built Windows Storage Server 2003 is designed to perform without requiring a
monitor, keyboard and mouse. Instead, this "headless" appliance is remotely managed through a
Web-based user interface for the minimal configuration tasks required for setup. Unlike application
servers which require proper planning to implement well, NAS devices built with
Windows Storage Server 2003 are designed to be deployed in under 15 minutes, and can be
attached directly to the company local area network (LAN) with no interruption to services. Once
plugged in, these NAS devices require minimal maintenance.
Unlike proprietary solutions, Windows Storage Server 2003 works with standard hardware
multiple original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). This gives businesses maximum flexibility in
choosing among vendors with the hardware solution that best meets their needs.

Advantages of Windows Storage Server 2003

Windows Storage Server 2003 is designed for simplicity, reliability and performance. NAS appliances
built on Windows Storage Server operating system integrate seamlessly into the IT network to
provide one of the most economical file serving and network attached storage solutions available to
departmental and enterprise-sized businesses.
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Ease of Deployment. Depending on the expertise of the system administrator and the
complexity of the computing environment, installation of an application or general purpose server
can take anywhere from several hours to a day or more of work. Because
Windows Storage Server 2003 comes preconfigured, other than using the web browser interface
to set up users and shares, the only installation work necessary is plugging the device into the
company LAN. In less than 15 minutes, gigabytes to terabytes of storage can be made available
to users across multiple OS platforms.
•
Simple Management. Windows Storage Server 2003 can be managed remotely though Terminal
Services sessions or through a Web browser interface from any desktop on the network. Because
Windows Storage Server 2003 uses the Windows operating system, administrators already
familiar with Windows do not have to learn a new NAS operating system.
•
Dependability. Windows Storage Server 2003 is designed to fully support redundant hardware
components—disks, power supplies and fans—to provide continuous and uninterrupted
availability should a hardware failure occur. And because NAS devices are designed this way, the
potential points of hardware failure are fewer than with general purpose servers.
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Any system designed to run an operating system.
Microsoft® Windows Storage Server 2003 White Paper
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