Ok, so we’ve been toying around with Microsoft’s BETA of SBS Aurora. My first impressions of Microsoft’s new offering is perhaps well…pretty good so far.
It’s pretty basic but then again it’s designed for the Small Business Market after all. In most of these types of companies there is not only no IT staff but perhaps not even someone who is particularly knowledgeable about computers. Microsoft have obviously come to the conclusion that Aurora needs to operate in these environments, and I would say that it’s perfect in that scenario. There is great potential lurking behind the scenes however and Aurora really comes into its own when managed by someone who has knowledge of Active Directory and Group Policies: See through the initial user interface and you can see the usual Windows Server management infrastructure is there, waiting to be unleashed. Let’s take a look at the setup first.
Setup
The setup process is an unusual experience one for those involved in installations previous versions MS Server offerings. There is just literally a handful of steps, the most advanced setting being the one where you choose the name of the domain. Aurora assumes you’re going to install it behind a home broadband router which also sets it apart from the traditional MS Server packages. On the client side of things, Aurora has simplified the process of connecting workstations to the domain by providing a simple web-based installer, which can be found at http://server-name/connect. Then the server provisions a new user account and PC as part of the process. The PC than reboots and you can then log on to the domain. Easy enough.
New Features
Aurora introduces a new application called ‘LaunchPad’, this provides a simple way for users to access server-based resources like shared folders, backups Remote Web Access, and remote access to the Aurora management console, which is called the Dashboard. The application is extensible, so expect extra offerings to additional functionality further down the line. One major grievance with the LaunchPad is that it incessantly popped up with a warning to remind me to backup the client PC. However, it is easy enough to disable specific notifications so this was soon resolved. In most cases backups will be taken via the server anyway as most things will be saved to a network share.
Remote Web Access provides remote web-based access to the Aurora server and individual features such as shared folders, computers (Remote Desktop), and the Dashboard management console. The client connector software sits on each client PC, monitoring the system’s health and ensuring that backups run smoothly. One of the most impressive features is Drive Extender, this is a new addition in this SBS version. It combines all of the available storage devices attached to the server as a single pool of storage, instead of partitioning it into different drive letters. It even guarantees that all stored files will sit on two separate physical hard drives to help prevent data loss in the event of a hardware failure. Perhaps this is a sign of things to come in SBS 7?
Summary
Well, Aurora has fulfilled Microsoft’s mission and you can see this being a viable solution for smaller businesses. It will really only fulfill its true potential when placed in the hands of someone who really knows their way around Active Directory and Group Policies, only then will it unlock the potential under the hood. But, if the business is working with a forward-looking Microsoft partner that understands their needs then this could be quite a popular addition to the Microsoft Server Family.
