Geekzone is now running Windows Server 2008 RC
Indeed why not.
After asking around and receiving some good feedback I decided to apply for the Go Live licence and install Windows Server 2008 in our servers.
On this virtual machine I tried the migration to SQL 2005 and the upgrade to Windows Server 2008.
I tested it during three weeks, finding some problems during the experiment - breaking things, restoring the virtual HD file and trying again.
After all those tests I finally had the confidence to go for it on the real box. The total upgrade took about two hours on the actual machine (a dual proc Xeon 3 GHz box).
My first impression is how responsive the UI is. Also it looks like Windows Vista in many aspects and it's easy to use. There are some new features that I will be trying soon. The next thing I notice is that pages are actually faster now - to create and load.
For Microsoft this is another showcase: Geekzone is now one of the top 15 New Zealand websites in number of unique browsers, which is a good traffic to try the new OS.
The plan now I to leave the server alone for a couple of weeks, to allow it to "settle down" and make sure we don't run into anything strange on the standard install.
Other related posts:
Windows 7 and Windows 2008 R2 Service Pack 1 on Technet, MSDN now
Register for .Net Code Camp Wellington now
Windows Vista Service Pack 2 and Windows Server 2008 Service Pack 2 available now
Comment by KevDaly, on 21-Nov-2007 06:35
Once you get over the shock of how different things seem at first, IIS 7 is a big improvement over IIS 6 (especially when you run it in Integrated Mode). I would expect backup and recovery to be less painful as well, since essential settings can be put in config files rather than the fragile and mysterious metabase.
And then there's the ability to write filters without mucking around with ISAPI adapters...
Comment by Adair, on 29-Nov-2007 17:23
I work in an agency that had the chance to chat with the Microsoft developers behind Windows Server 2008.
Check out the vids http://www.youtube.com/microsoftdevelopers and meet some colourful characters...
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Comment by Stuart Maxwell, on 20-Nov-2007 16:32
Well done! I assume you did an in-place upgrade which is why you weren't able to go 64bit, or were there other factors that prevented you from going 64bit?