Windows Server, the standard go-to operating system for most businesses.
May 08, 2020

Windows Server, the standard go-to operating system for most businesses.

Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Overall Satisfaction with Windows Server

Microsoft Windows Server is our primary OS across the organization. We use it to host most of our applications, file shares, web sites, and of course we use active directory for user authentication and security. It is and has been a stable platform over the years to centrally manage an business at the enterprise level.
  • Hosting common business applications.
  • Easy file sharing and security.
  • Simple user management and authentication.
  • As a leader in the industry it is also a target for security flaws and exploits. Regular patching required.
  • At times there are things you would expect to be able to do from a GUI but have to do at the command line.
  • Cost, competitors in the Linux world can often provide a good value alternative.
  • 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.
We have used various flavors of Linux as it is the only other real competitor in the small to large business world. In most cases it is harder to find technical expertise in the Linux server world verse Windows Server. For this reason Windows has remained our go to operating system in our business.
It has been my experience that unless there is a flaw or bug with Microsoft Windows Server, you will have to pay extra for support beyond the support web site. That said, unofficial support on the thousands of technical websites makes self-help support readily available to any technician with an internet connection. Microsoft's support website is also fairly robust, but I find using a popular search engine often returns knowledgebase articles more quickly that Microsoft's search.

Do you think Windows Server delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Windows Server's feature set?

Yes

Did Windows Server live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of Windows Server go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Windows Server again?

Yes

The majority of our applications are Windows based and thus require a solid and stable Windows OS to run on. Microsoft has provided this with Windows Server. Things like our Antivirus, electronic fax, SQL databases, etc. all require Windows to run. On occasion we will need to deploy Linux based systems for specific applications but there are often provided by or configured by the software vendor.