We use Windows Server to host applications, host files, emails, Windows server emails, and data exchange. But for the most part, we use it to host applications, directory services, and DNS services.
Senior System Engineer at a comms service provider with 201-500 employees
A server operating system with a valuable user interface
Pros and Cons
- "I like the views in the user interface."
- "It would help if Microsoft made it lighter to run on the servers and made troubleshooting much easier."
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
I like the views in the user interface.
What needs improvement?
It would help if Microsoft made it lighter to run on the servers and made troubleshooting much easier. I have to deal with unexpected errors and faults that happen in Windows. It also crashes.
When it's a big environment, especially in an industrialized environment, we see unexpected errors. They create instability, or unexpected errors happen in the infrastructure. You need to restart the server or restart the services. You don't know the root cause of these errors.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been working with Windows Server for about 20 years.
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Sometimes we have to deal with unexpected errors that create instability.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Windows Server is mostly scalable. However, you run into problems if it's going to be very big. If something happens, troubleshooting it will be very difficult.
How are customer service and support?
Microsoft technical support is good.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is mostly straightforward.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The Windows Server standard edition is affordable. But the cost of the data center edition is high, especially compared to some competitors. Some competitors are offering their operating systems for free.
What other advice do I have?
I would tell potential customers of Windows Server that they need to study it. They need to understand their business case very well. If features are available in Windows Server, they can safely go for it, but they need to study the design very well.
On a scale from one to ten, I would give Windows Server an eight.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Principal Consultant at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
Stable platform that is easy to use and integrates well, and has a supportive technical team
Pros and Cons
- "The features that I like the most are that it's easy to use and the integration."
- "In terms of support, it's pretty complicated when you have to study the documentation."
What is our primary use case?
Our use cases are usually data and analytics. We are building platforms for our clients to exploit their data. We are building the data curation.
Also, the analytics for the front end, and the presentation of the data for the end-user.
What is most valuable?
The features that I like the most are that it's easy to use and the integration.
What needs improvement?
In terms of support, it's pretty complicated when you have to study the documentation.
It would definitely be helpful if the documentation could be more straightforward.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been working with Windows Server for eight years.
We are usually working with the latest version.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Windows Server is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It's a scalable product. The number of users depends on our customers. Some customers have as many as 50 users while some others have 15 users. It really depends on the clients, but we're not in the thousands of end-users.
How are customer service and technical support?
The technical support is pretty good. We have a good relationship with our vendor's specialists. We mostly work with Microsoft and some other vendors.
Overall, they are supportive.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is straightforward.
It took approximately a month to deploy, but it depends on the number of installations we have. Some are larger and some smaller.
We need two or three staff members to deploy it. They are PDAs, they are infrastructure people who have the tech knowledge.
We have a team in our organization that we call specialists to configure the server. They are tech-savvy, and they know all about the backend.
What about the implementation team?
We are integrators.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
There are licensing costs for this solution, although it's not expensive. Microsoft is relatively inexpensive compared to other database platforms.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend this solution to others who want to use Windows Server.
I would rate this solution a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Hybrid Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Integrator
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December 2024
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AGM, Enterprise Solutions at Omgea Exim Ltd
Easy to use and install but the performance needs to be improved
Pros and Cons
- "The installation process is great."
- "There's a short availability that could be much better."
What is our primary use case?
We work mostly on the banking organization segment. In banking organizations, they are using around 40% of Windows Servers. If there is any database they will be using MySQL. Including enterprise segments. 80% of people are using Windows Server and SQL or Exchange though, actually, now people are migrating to the cloud. Groups of companies, including enterprise pharmaceuticals, are mostly using Microsoft.
What is most valuable?
The ease of use is great.
The installation process is great.
What needs improvement?
We've had a lot of problems from day one.
The security could be better. One of the banks suffered ransomware attacks and they were able to penetrate the servers.
There's a short availability that could be much better.
The performance is not up to snuff. They need to work on increasing resources.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've used the solution since the inception of our company, which has been about seven years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The performance is not ideal. It could be a lot better.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We have around 200 clients and most of them are using Microsoft in one way or another.
How are customer service and technical support?
Most of the time, we've noticed that customers can go and troubleshoot issues on their own. It seems rare to raise a ticket on Microsoft support. Due to the fact that it's so rare to need to raise issues, I can't really speak to having any direct experience dealing with them. That said, sometimes, if a patch is needed, they do need to go to Microsoft and get it.
How was the initial setup?
The installation is very straightforward and it is not overly difficult or complex. With a certain level of experience, anyone can install and configure it. It's not a problem.
You likely just need one person to handle deployment and maintenance. You can handle this solution with a minimal number of technical staff.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The license is perpetual. Once you buy the server, you don't have to continue to renew the license itself.
What other advice do I have?
Microsoft is a popular and necessary addition to any company. Most companies can't run at all without Microsoft being used at some level.
If a customer has more than 100 workstations installed in Microsoft then I recommend them to use this sort of solution. If a customer is using .NET applications then by default the choice is Windows, however, if they are using Java or Oracle I recommend that they use Linux due in large part to the security.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer:
Consultant at Botmantra
Stable and user-friendly with good performance
Pros and Cons
- "It's very easy and user-friendly compared to any other operating system."
- "The scalability could be better."
What is our primary use case?
The solution is basically an operating system for business. We use it for business purposes. that's it.
What is most valuable?
The performance of the solution is good.
It's very easy and user-friendly compared to any other operating system.
The stability has been good.
What needs improvement?
The scalability could be better.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using the solution for the last five years or so. It's been a while at this point.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability has been good. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. It's reliable. Even if we ran into trouble, we know we can rely on Microsoft to help us very quickly.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability is limited. They could make it easier to expand.
I'm working with a startup and I would say there are about 50 people or so on the solution at this time. We don't have a big setup.
Likely, we plan to increase it in the future. By how much, I can't say.
How are customer service and technical support?
Technical support is responsive. We know if we run into issues, they will respond quickly in order to help us resolve the issue. We are quite satisfied with their level of attentiveness. They are helpful.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
We did not use a different solution before setting up this product.
How was the initial setup?
I can't speak to the installation procedures. I've never participated in an initial setup and therefore cannot speak to the process or how easy or hard it was.
I can't speak to the maintenance requirements or how many people on staff look after the solution.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I'm not involved in the licensing aspect of the solution, I can't speak to the company's arrangement with Microsoft. I'm not sure how often we pay licensing fees or how much.
What other advice do I have?
We are end-users and customers.
We use multiple deployment models, including cloud and on-premises.
I'm using the latest version of the solution.
I'd rate the solution at an eight out of ten overall.
I'd recommend the solution to other users and companies. It's worked well for us so far.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Solution Architect at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
User-friendly and stable with a straightforward setup
Pros and Cons
- "The solution is stable. The performance has been great over the years."
- "It would be nice if the solution was a bit cheaper. The product is a little pricey."
What is our primary use case?
We are primarily using the solution as a domain controller for user authentication and a DNS server.
What is most valuable?
We haven't had any issues so far. It works basically without any issues.
The solution is easy to use and very user-friendly. It's simple to navigate and to work with.
The solution is stable. The performance has been great over the years.
The product has the capability to scale.
The installation was very straightforward.
What needs improvement?
It would be nice if the solution was a bit cheaper. The product is a little pricey.
For how long have I used the solution?
I use the solution daily. I've used it over the last ten years or so. It's been a decade. I've been using it for a long time.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is very stable. We upgraded from 2016 to 2019 versions and we didn't have any issues. There are no bugs or glitches. It doesn't crash or freeze. It's very reliable and the performance is good.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I have read about its scalability, however, our environment is not too big. Therefore, I don't have any experience with scaling the product directly. That said, I read that it's scalable. It's just that I haven't attempted to expand it myself.
We have about 50 users on the solution currently.
We do intend to increase usage in the future.
How are customer service and technical support?
I can't speak to how technical support is. I'm not responsible for that server. I've not experienced any issues myself that would require me to call into support.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Before using the Windows Server, I did not use other operating systems for business products. We've always just used Windows and Microsoft Office-based systems.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was not overly complex or difficult. It was quite straightforward and fairly simple.
The deployment is fast. It takes less than 20 minutes.
We also moved from 2016 to 2019 versions without any issues.
Maintenance does not require a large amount of staff. One person is responsible for the environment for the Window Servers. We have an IT administrator handling the duties.
What about the implementation team?
I handled the implementation myself. I did not need the assistance of any consultants or integrators.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The solution does require a company to obtain a license.
We would like the licenses to be less expensive. Generally, the price is too high.
What other advice do I have?
We are just a customer and an end-user. We don't have a business relationship with Microsoft.
I would recommend this solution to other organizations.
I'd rate the solution at a ten out of ten. We've been very pleased with its overall capabilities.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
ICT System Engineer at a financial services firm with 5,001-10,000 employees
PowerShell is a very valuable feature, as is the ease of scalability
Pros and Cons
- "PowerShell is a great feature of the solution."
- "Sometimes the PowerShell has an overly complicated syntax."
What is our primary use case?
I'm an ICT system engineer and we are customers of Microsoft.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable part about nowadays Windows is PowerShell. They got serious and implemented a real console which was always lacking in Windows.
What needs improvement?
Compared to Linux, Windows requires a lot of restarts. If you get a CU update every month, you have to restart. Linux is better in that regard. Sometimes the PowerShell has an overly complicated syntax.
I'd like to see some more features in the Windows administration kit - the WAC. It's this new product you got on the server and if you have a website you can manage your entire machine. It's a pretty good product, but it's still lacking some features like reporting because it's always a problem to have a dashboard for all your Windows machines, because Microsoft wants you to buy SCCM and all their monitoring services. The WAC is pretty nice but it still lacks some features. It would be great if they would develop it further.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using this solution for 20 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
It's pretty stable compared to the old Windows version, except sometimes there are problems with the CU updates. Maybe they should consider not employing so many updates and instead focus on the quality of the updates.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
From the numbers of CPU you can pop into your machine, it's really scalable, but you need to be aware that Windows still has problems with a lot of CPUs. Managing CPUs would likely be better in Windows compared to Linux.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is really straightforward, especially nowadays if you're using a WSUS server together with Microsoft deployment, you'll get it just perfect. It's faster than setting up the Linux box.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend this solution but it depends on the software you are going to use it on. When it's about a high performance web server, I would prefer Linux because you would choose to stick to engines as a web server and this product does not run very well on Windows, so you'd end up with Linux anyway.
I would rate this solution an eight out of 10.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
IT Manager at iLenSys Technologies Pvt Ltd
User-friendly solution that is both stable and scalable
Pros and Cons
- "The Active Directory and the applications where the server is installed are the most valuable features."
- "Security is the main feature that needs improvement"
How has it helped my organization?
Windows Server is user-friendly.
What is most valuable?
The Active Directory and the applications where the server is installed are the most valuable features.
What needs improvement?
The main features that should be improved are the security and it should have better performance.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using Windows Server for nine years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Windows Server is a stable solution.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
This solution is scalable.
How are customer service and support?
Every month technical support has a deployment every month making it very easy.
How was the initial setup?
The setup was very easy.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
There are software costs that are dependent on the CAL requirements.
What other advice do I have?
I would rate Windows Server a 9 out of 10. It is better than Ubuntu Linux.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Associate Manager at a consultancy with 501-1,000 employees
Reliable, easy to use, and simple installation
Pros and Cons
- "The main feature of the solution is the ease of use."
- "There should be the ability to add other databases to be installed and configured instead of going to other virtual machines. They should be better integrated so they are all in one place."
What is our primary use case?
We use the solution as a server OS. Due to security reasons, we have created some virtual machines instead of on-premise deployments and we are writing SQL queries.
What is most valuable?
The main feature of the solution is the ease of use.
What needs improvement?
There should be the ability to add other databases to be installed and configured instead of going to other virtual machines. They should be better integrated so they are all in one place.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution since I started my career, which is a long time ago.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is stable. We created virtual machines with huge configurations and based on our volume of data or jobs it is running it has been performing very well.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
It is not scalable because we are dealing with virtual machines. You just log in to the system and you can run the queries. It is not like a database, where you can integrate and process. You can only use it and let the query control the system.
We have five people using this solution in my organization.
How are customer service and technical support?
If we have an issue we write a ticket to Microsoft and they are able to help us with a solution.
How was the initial setup?
The installation is straightforward, it takes approximately 30 minutes.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
There is an annual license required for this solution.
What other advice do I have?
I rate Windows Server a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
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