2. Datacenter management

3. Server security

5. Business-ready security with Forefront

7. Live Migration: Live Migration in Windows Server 2008 R2 provides improved availability and flexibility through the ability to migrate running virtual machines without causing downtime.

8. Performance: Windows Server 2008 R2 virtualization also provides improved performance and networking through I/O and virtual disk enhancements. Hyper-V in Windows Server 2008 R2 also provides support for up to 64 logical processors, enabling IT organizations to take better advantage of today’s latest hardware for greater workload consolidation and cost savings.

10. Active Directory Improvements: Active Directory continues to be the bedrock of Microsoft’s network, server and user management. AD in Windows Server 2008 R2 now offers better security for AD servers, new and easier management consoles with full PowerShell support for IT Pros and tight integration with Forefront Identity Manager to let customers quickly and cost-effectively implement industry-standard identity management for security and regulatory compliance.

11. Improved Remote Administration: Windows Server 2008 R2 provides an improved Server Manager and other management consoles that better support remote management scenarios, enabling administrators to be more productive in managing distributed resources.

12. Enhanced Power Consumption: Windows Server 2008 R2 improves power consumption and helps save money with better management of server CPU power use and virtualization technologies that help consolidate server hardware.

14. Identity Management: Windows Server 2008 R2 improvements to the Active Directory Domain Services and Active Directory Federated Services server roles help to ensure efficient directory management and security. Active Directory also features close integration with Microsoft Forefront Identity Manager 2010 (FIM). FIM provides a complete solution for managing identities, credentials, and policies across heterogeneous environments, making those systems easier to manage and helping to enhance security and policy enforcement.

15. Branch Office Security: The new Read-Only Domain Controller capability in Windows Server 2008 R2 Active Directory provides branch offices with a read-only version of directory information that helps to ensure smooth operations while preventing changes made at branch offices from negatively impacting the rest of the Active Directory forest.

17. Compliance: Rapidly changing data protection legislation can be a challenge for businesses burdened with Sarbanes-Oxley, HIPAA or credit card processing workloads to name a few. Windows Server 2008 R2 makes protecting corporate and customer data easier with support for better fault tolerance and new features like the File Classification Infrastructure (FCI), which automatically manages data location and security settings based on policy.

18. Management: Microsoft has invested in improvements to storage management, helping to further reduce the costs associated with networked storage. Improvements include automated deployment of storage settings, improved monitoring of the storage subsystem, and version control improvements for storage configuration settings.

20. Build processes around IT/people interaction. Taking advantage of the benefits offered by virtualization and the Dynamic Datacenter means examining the way in which your workers use IT. Architect your physical and virtual workloads based on your discoveries about this interaction.

21. Vet your management tools. While your organization likely already has management platforms and processes, remapping these to the new IT processes you designed in step 2 is critical to an efficient migration.

22. Explore on-prem/off-prem IT services. The cloud is bringing a new source of IT services to your business. Explore current and future cloud offerings relevant to your business, especially as you move applications from older Windows Server platforms or third-party server OSes into your new IT infrastructure. Considering the cloud in these situations will add a new dimension to both your workload design as well as your management architecture.

23. Next, talk to your Microsoft partner or reseller and investigate the numerous free tools and services offered by Microsoft for customers migrating to Windows Server 2008 R2 from any server OS platform. A few of these include:

24. Free infrastructure planning and design guides (IPD)

25. Free Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit (MAP)

26. Specific application technical guidance from the TechNet Knolwedge Library.

27. Free Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT)

28. Free Offline VM Servicing Tool (OVMST) Additionally, you can leverage dedicated consulting expertise from Microsoft Consulting Services (MCS). The Datacenter Services Solution from Microsoft Services enables you to reduce costs, improve operational efficiencies, and drive business agility by delivering an integrated datacenter offering that leverages industry-leading architectures and principles. The solution encompasses three scenarios that progress your IT infrastructure services from a Basic, to Standardized, Rationalized, and finally to a holistic dynamic datacenter services solution which will allow customers to effectively deliver Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) within their organization.<br />Additional Resources<br />Windows Server 2008 R2 Home Pagehttp://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2008/en/us/default.aspx<br />Windows Server 2008 R2 Migration Pathshttp://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2008/en/us/migration-paths.aspx <br />Windows Server 2008 R2 support for UNIXhttp://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2008/en/us/support-unix.aspx<br />Microsoft Support Product Lifecycle FAQhttp://support.microsoft.com/gp/lifepolicy <br />Microsoft System Center Products and Technologieshttp://www.microsoft.com/systemcenter/en/us/default.aspx <br />System Center Data Protection Managerhttp://www.microsoft.com/systemcenter/en/us/data-protection-manager.aspx <br />System Center Dynamic Datacenter Kit http://www.microsoft.com/hosting/dynamicdatacenter/Home.html<br />System Center Virtual Machine Managerhttp://www.microsoft.com/systemcenter/en/us/virtual-machine-manager.aspx <br />Microsoft Forefront Identity Managerhttp://www.microsoft.com/forefront/identitymanager/en/us/default.aspx <br />Microsoft Assessment and Planning h(MAP) Toolkit for Windows Server 2008 R2http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/solutionaccelerators/dd537573.aspx <br />Microsoft Windows Server Mixed Environment http://www.microsoft.com/mixed<br />Published: June 2010<br />© 2009 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. This document is developed prior to the product’s release to manufacturing, and as such, we cannot guarantee that all details included herein will be exactly as what is found in the shipping product. The information contained in this document represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation on the issues discussed as of the date of publication. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information presented after the date of publication. The information represents the product at the time this document was printed and should be used for planning purposes only. Information subject to change at any time without prior notice. This whitepaper is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY. <br />Microsoft, Active Directory, Aero, BitLocker, Forefront, Excel, Hyper-V, MSDN, SQL Server, Visual Studio, Windows, Windows Media, Windows PowerShell, the Windows logo, Windows 7, Windows Vista, and Windows Server are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.<br />All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.<br />