1

Ok, so I have an odd question. (You guys who follow me probably notice a lot of those…)

I got a free license through my former school of Server 2003 R2 SP2 Standard. I felt like playing with it as some businesses still use it to learn it. Now, here is my question…what to do next? I have no need for AD in my house and my Server 2008 R2 box is already running the DHCP and DNS. Just not sure what to actually do with it. Ideas? I setup the Print and File server roles on it but don’t really have a need for those either…the other server does that already too. Is there a way to setup a failsafe or fallback for the DNS and DHCP? I know there are ways to transfer zones, etc but never done it. Thanks in advance for the help.

A.J.

Note: I should mention the servers are all virtualized on ESXi already. Just FYI.

@3CX

14 Spice ups
2

I like to pick up cert study books from MS Press and Sybex (used 2003 should be very cheap) and read the labs,skip any you already know and do any you don’t. You get some good practice that way.

6 Spice ups
3

You could use it to experiment with WSUS, MDT, IIS, and other “free” Microsoft tools/roles.

5 Spice ups
4

While it’s commendable that you’re looking to gain knowledge, IMHO stepping back that many generations to support legacy OS’s is a fools errand. Most hardware for those systems is simply prehistoric in today’s fast moving technology. It’s time to study up on 2011 and beyond.

3 Spice ups
5

Are you looking to use it in production or just for fun?

1 Spice up
6

It’s not about what I feel is right. I just want to have an idea of where to go and how to do things in it in case I ever get a job where they still use it (God forbid). I’m pretty good in Server 2008. I am wondering though: can I setup a fallback for my DNS and DHCP so if the Server 2008 box crashes it just switches over to the other??

Thanks.

A.J.

7

I really don’t know. Just more for fun but if I can get some practical use out of it, I’m not opposed…

A.J.

8

I agree. You’d normally only want to do this if you have exhausted all current learning in the field (e.g. never.) Every day fewer companies use it and those that do pay less and less as the technology gets older. Starting to learn something long dead today means that it is longer dead by the time that you are trained on it. Instead, look for something in beta today to learn so that you are prepped for the best jobs tomorrow.

3 Spice ups
9

Now what? I was thinking about a stack of blue berry pancakes, over easy eggs, hash browns, and a big pile of bacon.

Oh I guess I could have read more of your post… For giggles I abused my MSDNAA much as I could. So i setup 2 of my servers as a EXI cluster and housed many OS’ that I could. My 3rd server was my DC2 which I ran a domain in my house. Hey best way to learn is have a play environment that you can use and abuse. Granted I only have 3 other pc’s hooked up to my network but it is just fun learning new tricks that you can use in your career.

3 Spice ups
10

1 roll it out and test doing an upgrade.

2 just break it and figure out how to fix it.

3 play in the registry, Use this to break it… registry hacks change a little but are fundamentally the same.

  1. install other programs to see how it installs.
3 Spice ups
11

one thing you need to know, I don’t know if you do, but server 2003 can’t run on a 2008 environment, so you won’t be able to play with it on your current set up, you can create a new domain and try to join them and see what you can do across domains, i had a tough time learning the GPO for 2003 when going down from 2008 so i would suggest checking into that, … my company is one of those which still is on a server 2000 or 2003 environment, it sucks but it is required for an outdated piece of s**oftware we have to use, can’t wait for it to phase out. Even after it is phased out, will be some time getting all 20 or so servers up to 2008 or 2012 if we are able to get that. Probably not though, medical field isn’t very current with the OS timeline.

2 Spice ups
12

If you have it on a disc already, and the weather is nice where you are, go play a few rounds of Frisbee golf with it while you still can. ;-p

2 Spice ups
13

Since you’re already virtualized, grab a free trial copy of Server 2012 and give it a whirl. That will let you learn Hyper-V and the new file systems.

2 Spice ups
14

Took your advice and thanks to that and the following SW article:

http://community.spiceworks.com/topic/220997-windows-8-esxi-5-0-installations?page=1

I was able to get my Server 2012 trial up and running. I must say, I like task manager and it’s gonna take some getting used to but I actually think this is pretty good. Only played for a few hours so far. Just my thoughts. Thanks everyone for the ideas.

A.J

15

I’m actually doing a 3CX demo on Windows 2012 tomorrow. :slight_smile:

1 Spice up
16

I’m actually doing a 3CX demo on Windows 2012 tomorrow. :slight_smile:

I’ve been tempted to try an Asterisk VM on 2012, but now you’ve pushed me over the edge. Hadn’t been brave enough yet. I’ve got to set one up.