Small Business Server 2008

With Microsoft Small Business Server 2008, Microsoft has added big business functionality to an affordable SME tool.

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A small business is not necessarily a simple business. That rather basic lesson has taken much of the computer industry far too many years to learn.

Pros

  • Most affordable SBS yet

Cons

  • Purchase price not as low as Linux

Bottom Line

With the release of Small Business Server 2008, Microsoft shows signs of understanding that small businesses have a wider range of server options than ever before. For most small companies, SBS 2008 will provide the basic functions necessary for the business in a package that is easy to set up and administer, and that integrates readily with Microsoft Windows Vista and XP clients. The purchase price won't be as low as Linux, but the polish and ease of use are both high, and the single-user CAL makes SBS 2008 the most affordable SBS yet. Microsoft has been listening — and this time, it shows.

Would you buy this?

  • Price

    TBA (AUD)

Successful software as a service (SaaS) vendors have realised that small businesses need the same sort of functions and support that large enterprises get — just in smaller quantities. Clearly Microsoft has come to the same realisation with the release of Small Business Server 2008.

Small Business Server (SBS) is designed to be the only software sitting at the centre of a small-business network. The wealth of functionality includes Windows Server 2008, Exchange Server 2007, Office Live Small Business 2008, Windows SharePoint Services, and Windows Server Update Services. Network and server security are available with SBS, though they're not included in the basic price. You'll get a trial licence for ForeFront and Windows Live OneCare, which extend malware coverage to Exchange and all Windows clients on the network. If you want to continue to use them, though, you'll have to pay for additional on-going licences.

If you opt for Small Business Server Premium, you'll also get SQL Server 2008 configured to run on a separate server. That second server could also function as a Terminal Services server, opening up thin-client and point-of-sale options for many deployments.

Sound expensive? In fact (wonder of wonders), Microsoft has come up with a licensing model that should make it easier for a small businesses in the real world to afford SBS. Microsoft has also made it easy for IT staff - be they internal or contracted - to configure and maintain all SBS functions. Administration of the package is extremely well done.

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