Now with SBS2008 everything is almost standard, just a lot quicker to set up. All of our clients have SBS2003 and we run SBS2008 internally. The integrated consoles make the simple tasks very easy while some of the more complex tasks are just not necessary as they are preconfigured. As a platform to support it is easier that the straight server and for 20+ users it is certainly cheaper.
Remember that with the SBS premium you get a second service license, so as a company grows and having all those eggs in one basket becomes a problem you can easily expand. There are a number of extras and we find that having a standard set of programs all integrated makes our life easier. I know that one of my clients has 50+ users in his exchange system and gets a single device cal for them all. The current discussions about SBS2008 are around virtualising it as well as backup options. Remember that if a client gets too big you can always transition them up to the full products. The SBS products are as stable as the standard products. Our clients that fiddle have downtime and those who don't, well they don't. If all you are offering is file and print sharing then it's not worth it, but when you put all the other bits into the mix then it's a winner. One point about the wizards is that while they used to seem like they were trivial, like the change server IP wizard, there was a lot more too them - especially as they made sure that exchange, ISA, and all the other services that depend on an IP address were updated. Mike Mike Hoffman Drum Brae Solutions Ltd -----Original Message----- From: Michael B. Smith [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: 27 January 2009 13:18 To: NT System Admin Issues Subject: RE: SMB question.. In SBS 4.5 (?? Whichever one had Exchange55), there were changes to the products themselves (small, but they were there), for both Exchange and SQL. That turned out to be a disaster for PSS. Regards, Michael B. Smith, MCITP:SA,EMA/MCSE/Exchange MVP My blog: http://TheEssentialExchange.com/blogs/michael I'll be at TEC'2009! http://www.tec2009.com/vegas/index.php -----Original Message----- From: Ben Scott [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Monday, January 26, 2009 11:10 PM To: NT System Admin Issues Subject: Re: SMB question.. On Mon, Jan 26, 2009 at 10:45 PM, Jeremy Anderson <[email protected]> wrote: > SBS has some core fundamental design changes that allows Exchange > to run "Better" and "More Secure" on a Domain Controller. Citation needed. Everything I've read seems to indicate it's just registry tuning and similar that you can do on the stand-alone SKUs. It's done for you, which is a benefit, but you can do it yourself if you know how. "core fundamental design changes" is a heck of a claim. > The biggest advantage is Licensing ... Like I said, a purchase bundle. > ... the "Connect computer" wizard ... I'm really ambivalent about those things. Their purpose is largely to let people who have no business mucking around as administrator think they know what's going on. IT management is not something you want an untrained person doing, even for a small business. Just like you don't want a small business doing their own plumbing or electrical wiring. And yes, many do all of that themselves. Doesn't make it a good idea. I'm aware of the cost arguments; I argue that the money is better spent hiring an outside contractor. IMO, YMMV, etc. You don't have to agree. > SBS is Designed to have all those component running together, Exchange > and Server 2k3 are not. Again, please explain how the Windows Server and Exchange Server that come with SBS have a different "design" from the ones that come with the stand-alone SKUs. If the design is so different, I would not expect them to run the same software, but last checked, they did. From everything I've read, the various product development groups inside Microsoft would really rather the different products not be put together on the same OS instance. Ever. They see SBS as something they would rather avoid having to do. But SBS is a business reality, because otherwise Microsoft would price themselves out of the small business market. So the various product groups have to make things work together, rather than just saying "You can't do it". This is a good thing. But it doesn't make SBS magic. -- Ben ~ Finally, powerful endpoint security that ISN'T a resource hog! ~ ~ <http://www.sunbeltsoftware.com/Business/VIPRE-Enterprise/> ~ ~ Finally, powerful endpoint security that ISN'T a resource hog! ~ ~ <http://www.sunbeltsoftware.com/Business/VIPRE-Enterprise/> ~ ~ Finally, powerful endpoint security that ISN'T a resource hog! ~ ~ <http://www.sunbeltsoftware.com/Business/VIPRE-Enterprise/> ~
