Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition

Designed for departmental and standard workloads, Windows Server 2003, Standard Edition, delivers intelligent file and printer sharing, more secure Internet connectivity, centralized desktop policy management, and Web solutions that connect employees, partners, and customers. Windows Server 2003, Standard Edition, provides high levels of dependability, scalability, and security.

Today's organizations expect technology to be a consistent enabler of business value. They want systems that are always up and always responsive, and they demand a level of security able to meet today's challenges. Windows Server 2003, Standard Edition, includes new features and improvements that make it the most dependable small business and departmental server operating system Microsoft has ever created.

Windows Server 2003, Standard Edition, improves on many technologies introduced in Windows 2000 Server, such as support for smart cards, bandwidth throttling, and Plug and Play support. New technologies, such as the common language runtime, strengthen security to help safeguard networks from malicious or poorly designed code. In addition, improvements to Internet Information Services (IIS) 6.0, public key infrastructure (PKI), and Kerberos make it easier to secure Windows Server 2003. The Active Directory service is now faster and more robust over unreliable wide area network (WAN) connections, thanks to more efficient synchronization, replication, and credential caching in branch office domain controllers.

Organizations look to computing technology to improve productivity across their businesses - not just for system administrators, who want flexible services that are quicker to deploy and easier to manage, but also for employees, who need powerful tools that are easier to use. Windows Server 2003 enables greater productivity for both administrators and users through enhanced capabilities in system management and storage.

Microsoft has made great strides in evolving manageability. The new, task-based design in Windows Server 2003 makes it easier to find and carry out common tasks. Improvements to the Microsoft Management Console (MMC) and Active Directory boost performance and make management easier.

In addition, the Windows Server 2003 family contains several important new automated management tools including Microsoft Software Update Services (SUS) and server configuration wizards to help automate deployment. Managing Group Policy is made easier with the new Group Policy Management Console (GPMC), enabling more organizations to better use Active Directory and take advantage of its powerful management features. Further, command-line tools let administrators perform most tasks from the command console, should they prefer that method.

New and improved file and print services in Windows Server 2003, Standard Edition, also make storage and backup easier while significantly reducing the demands on system administrators. For example, the Volume Copy Shadow Service provides point-in-time backups of networked shares. This unique technology extends to users who can now retrieve old copies of files or deleted files right from their Windows desktop. In addition, file and print services are improved with the addition of the Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning (WebDAV) remote document sharing technology. Enhancements to the Distributed File System (DFS) and Encrypting File System (EFS) allow for powerful, flexible file sharing and storage as well.

Networking improvements and new features in the Windows Server 2003 family extend the versatility, manageability, and dependability of network infrastructures. Windows Server 2003 makes it easier than ever for users to stay connected to their centralized systems from anywhere and on any device. Microsoft has built significant networking enhancements in Windows Server 2003, including Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6), Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet (PPoE), and Internet Protocol Security (IPSec) over network address translation (NAT).

Perhaps most important, though, is the optimized, native support of Microsoft .NET and XML. Windows Server 2003 represents a revolutionary step forward as the ideal platform to develop, distribute, and host XML Web services created with .NET.

Windows Server 2003 is a cost-efficient choice for both scale-up or scale-out purposes. With multiple essential services and components already included in Windows Server 2003, organizations can quickly benefit from an integrated platform that is easy to deploy, manage, and use. When you adopt Windows Server 2003, you become a part of the global network that has helped make the Windows platform so productive.