Windows Server

Overall, Windows Server brings a lot of positives to the company. Once I pay for a Windows Server license, I can use it for a variety of purposes in the infrastructure. Windows Server has many other integrated features that could be purchased separately (e.g., DHCP, file sharing, and permissions). Now I can take advantage of all the extra features saving a lot of money

There's a huge community around Windows Server, so finding solutions to problems becomes very easy, which is also a huge cost saver for my company because now we don't have to spend unnecessary amounts on simple issues that could be fixed with a single click.

Longevity, Microsoft really supports their enterprise products for a long time.

If you purchase software assurance you can continue to upgrade to newer versions.

In the virtual environment data center licenses can cover a multitude of virtual servers.

It has a positive business impact by allowing us to audit permissions access to confidential client data.

It has a positive ROI by allowing us to host our own backup server compared to numerous other 3rd parties.

It has a negative ROI when used for a standalone feature; Windows shines from the do-all nature the server allows you to accomplish.

Very good academic discounts

Makes server management easier for junior admins and non-technical users

Allows us to run Windows-only applications

Low startup costs.

Clear licensing and maintenance.

Positive ROI - Once set up properly, Windows Server's ability to manage an organization's users and computer drastically reduces the amount of time necessary to set up a new computer or a new user.

Positive ROI - Windows Server has a very large feature set, which can result in finding an additional use for it that was not initially intended. Specifically, Hyper-V has allowed some of the organization I've managed to create a number of virtual machines that have saved a considerable amount of time and money put into setting up a new piece of hardware.

Negative ROI - the initial setup of Windows Server is long and complicated. If your organization does not need the capabilities of Active Directory and Group Policy, the initial setup costs may not be worth it.

Negative ROI - the maintenance cost of keeping Windows Server functioning properly can be high, especially if any unforeseen issues arise. Again, if your organization does not need the capabilities of Active Directory and Group Policy, the initial setup costs may not be worth it.

Negative ROI - for many of the features of Windows Server (DNS server, DHCP server, web server, file server, etc.), there are less expensive, easier to setup, and easier to manage alternatives, especially in the NAS space.

Using Enterprise Licensing with DataCenter licenses has allowed us to deploy multiple servers without having to worry about licenses.

Be careful with the licensing changes that Microsoft brings about with every new release.

Total control over our network and users without micromanaging each user or PC.

Ability to run Hyper-V virtual servers to save on hardware and creates and much easier backup and disaster plan as we can move a VM to other hardware in the event of a failure, hardware upgrade, or move to the cloud.

It allows us to run many industry standard applications.

It's a very popular technology, so there are lots of support resources, and recruiting Windows administrators is never an issue.

I'm not involved in the ROI evaluation process.

Microsoft SQL Server needs it to run the queries more efficiently than some of the other database software.

.net allows less development time and windows needed to run this.

Windows Server is needed for the corporate office network using Microsoft endpoints and systems. Without it, the system would be unmanageable.

As all the systems used with Windows Server such as Active Directory, DNS, DHCP etc are industry standard, the experience both from an admin side and an end-user experience is great!

ROI is still good in my opinion especially with the current licensing model which allows for software assurance so we can keep up to date with the latest versions.

Reduces administration.

Offers expandability.

Virtualization.

Ability to regulate user policies to avoid misuse of company resources.

Reduce overhead on managing user authentication.

Lowest TCO compared to other proprietary or open-source server platforms.

Virtually every business application we've ever had to run was based upon Windows server.

As stated before, licensing can be a hair-pulling process.

Especially when virtualized Windows server performs reasonably well.

Backups all your data!

Due to its large userbase, it's the most targeted operating system for hackers.

Easy to maintain.

Easy to create users.

Updates office computers with ease.

Data center licensing has enabled us to meet budget on our ROI figures.

Our fileserver and domain uptime values have increased.

Allows us to quickly utilize Azure functionality such as Azure AD.

Makes setting up users easier.

Makes our network more secure and easy to maintain.

Updates our PCs.

Quick setup.

Limited maintenance.

Solid platform.

After Investing in Windows Server (or Microsoft technologies) it feels like it grabs you as time passes. As usual, such systems get mature and develops in time. You may find your self stuck in MS technologies and can't move to another platform.

If you have moderate knowledge on Windows Server it is easy to have a well-managed server. The learning curve may be lower than alternatives.

Since it is very popular and widely used, it is also popular among attackers. Don't forget to use an antivirus and keep the server hotfixes up to date. Keeping it up to date may require frequent restarts which means a decrease in uptime duration.

I have lost hundreds of gigabytes of data because of their precious

I have lost hundreds of Files over a weekend because of blue screen crashes

Give up on the.net architecture it doesn’t work for big data

Solid, reliable network server operating system. Well worth the investment.

Windows server has facilitated us deploying the applications that we want to in order to make our business units work.

Storage hardware & management cost savings.

Optimize resources.

Help secure Data.

Create dynamic virtual data centers with live migration.

File sharing has met our organisational means.

Folder redirection has been improved. Users can access the folders on the server from any means as long as they are able to save on their mapped folder.

Storage has been improved.