When it releases later this year, Windows Server 2012 will bring a stack of exciting new features and enhancements, like the fantastic multi-server management features of the new Server Manager, and of course PowerShell v3.0!
If you want to get ahead of the curve on Server 2012, then there’s no better way that digging in and getting your hands dirty, although not everyone has a whole load of spare hardware to setup a test lab, and even if you do, then it’s sometimes difficult to know where to start, especially since pre-release software tends to be lacking some of the documentation that you might want to really explore a feature in depth.
To that end, Microsoft have produced a load of Windows Server “8” Beta Virtual Labs (put together before the Windows Server 2012 name was announced). These are self-contained modules focusing on the following:
- Active Directory Deployment and Management Enhancements
- Configuring a Highly Available iSCSI Target
- Configuring Hyper-V over Highly Available SMB Storage
- Implementing Storage Pools and Storage Spaces
- Introduction to Windows PowerShell Fundamentals
- What’s New in Windows PowerShell 3.0
- Managing Branch Offices
- Managing Network Infrastructure
- Managing Your Network Infrastructure with IP Address Management
- Managing Windows Server “8” with Server Manager and Windows PowerShell 3.0
- Online Backup Service
- Using Dynamic Addess Control to Automatically and Centrally Secure Data
In addition, you might want to check out some of the Resources for IT Professionals that Microsoft have published in relation to the TechEd conference that will start in a month in Orlando.
(Thanks to my friend @Alexandair for both of those links)