Posted on February 24, 2014 at 6:39 AM

Which Windows OS to use for your server – Windows 2003 R2

Microsoft Windows is a series of graphical interface operating systems developed, marketed, and sold by Microsoft.

Windows Server 2003
Windows Server 2003 (sometimes referred to as Win2K3) is a server operating system produced by Microsoft, released on April 24, 2003. An updated version, Windows Server 2003 R2, was released to manufacturing on December 6, 2005. Its successor, Windows Server 2008, was released on February 4, 2008. It is based on Windows XP, basically becoming an enhanced version of XP. According to Microsoft, Windows Server 2003 is more scalable and delivers better performance than its predecessor, Windows 2000. Windows Vista, as shipped, was developed based solely on Windows Server 2003 source code.

Windows Server 2003 R2
Windows Server 2003 R2 is the successor of Windows Server 2003, released to manufacturing on December 6, 2005. It was released for x86 and x64 platforms, but not for IA-64. It is distributed on two CDs, with one CD being the Windows Server 2003 SP1 CD. The other CD adds many optionally installable features for Windows Server 2003 R2. They have new features like Branch Office Server Management, Identity and Access Management, Storage Management, Server Virtualization.