what is windows server 2019

What is Windows Server 2019?

Windows Server 2019 is the latest version of the Windows Server operating system from Microsoft. It is based on the strong foundation of Windows Server 2016 and brings many innovations and improvements on four key themes: Hybrid Cloud, Security, Application Platform, and Hyper-Converged Infrastructure (HCI). In this article, we will explore some of the new features and benefits of Windows Server 2019.

Hybrid Cloud

Windows Server 2019 enables organizations to extend their on-premises environments to the cloud with ease and flexibility. Some of the hybrid cloud features are:

Windows Admin Center: This is a browser-based app that allows you to manage servers, clusters, hyper-converged infrastructure, and Windows 10 PCs from a single interface. It integrates with Azure services such as Azure Backup, Azure Site Recovery, Azure Monitor, Azure Security Center, and Azure File Sync. You can install Windows Admin Center on Windows Server 2019 or Windows 10 and use it to manage servers running Windows Server 2008 R2 and later ¹.
Azure Network Adapter: This is a feature that allows you to connect your on-premises servers to an Azure Virtual Network (VNet) with just a few clicks. You can use this feature to securely access Azure resources from your on-premises servers or to enable hybrid scenarios such as disaster recovery, cloud bursting, or migration ¹.
Storage Migration Service: This is a feature that helps you migrate your file servers and their data from older versions of Windows Server to Windows Server 2019 or Azure. It automates the inventory, transfer, and configuration of file servers and preserves their security settings, identities, and metadata ¹.
Storage Replica: This is a feature that enables synchronous and asynchronous replication of volumes between servers or clusters for disaster recovery and high availability. In Windows Server 2019, Storage Replica is available in the Standard edition with some limitations (one partnership and one resource group with a single 2TB volume), while the Datacenter edition supports unlimited partnerships and volumes ².

Security

Windows Server 2019 enhances the security of your servers and applications with several features such as:

Shielded Virtual Machines: These are virtual machines that are protected from unauthorized access or tampering by using encryption, virtual Trusted Platform Module (vTPM), and a Host Guardian Service (HGS). In Windows Server 2019, you can run Linux-based shielded virtual machines in addition to Windows-based ones. You can also use offline mode to start shielded virtual machines without contacting the HGS ¹.
Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection (ATP): This is a service that helps you detect, investigate, and respond to advanced attacks on your servers. It uses behavioral sensors, cloud security analytics, and threat intelligence to provide alerts and recommendations. In Windows Server 2019, you can integrate Windows Defender ATP with Windows Admin Center for a unified security management experience ¹.
Windows Defender Exploit Guard: This is a set of features that helps you prevent malware and ransomware attacks by locking down devices against a variety of attack vectors. It includes four components: Attack Surface Reduction (ASR), Network Protection, Controlled Folder Access, and Exploit Protection ¹.

Application Platform

Windows Server 2019 improves the application platform for developers and IT professionals with features such as:

Container Support: Windows Server 2019 supports both Windows and Linux-based containers that can run on the same host using Hyper-V isolation or process isolation. It also supports Kubernetes as an orchestration solution for containerized applications. Additionally, it introduces a new base image called Windows Server Core App Compatibility Feature on Demand (FOD) that includes a subset of binaries and components from the Desktop Experience to improve the compatibility of server applications that require graphical or interactive components ¹.
Linux Integration Services (LIS): These are drivers that enable Linux virtual machines to run smoothly on Hyper-V hosts. In Windows Server 2019, LIS supports new Linux distributions such as Ubuntu 18.04, Debian 9, SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15, and Fedora 28. It also supports new features such as Dynamic Memory for Linux VMs, Generation 2 VM support for Ubuntu and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server VMs, Hyper-V Socket support for communication between Linux VMs and hosts, and more ¹.
HTTP/2 Support: This is a protocol that improves the performance and security of web applications by reducing latency, enabling multiplexing, supporting header compression, enforcing encryption by default, and more. In Windows Server 2019, HTTP/2 is supported by Internet Information Services (IIS) as well as by Windows Server applications that use HTTP.sys ¹.

Hyper-Converged Infrastructure (HCI)

Windows Server 2019 enables you to build highly scalable and resilient hyper-converged infrastructure solutions using industry-standard servers with local storage. Some of the HCI features are:

Storage Spaces Direct: This is a feature that allows you to create a software-defined storage solution using local disks on each server. It supports NVMe, SATA, and SAS drives as well as persistent memory (PMem) devices. It also supports deduplication and compression, erasure coding and mirroring, nested resiliency, and more ¹.
Software-defined Networking (SDN): This is a feature that allows you to create a software-defined network solution using Hyper-V Network Virtualization and Network Controller. It supports virtual network peering, encryption, firewall, load balancing, quality of service, and more ¹.
Hyper-V: This is the hypervisor that enables you to run virtual machines on your servers. In Windows Server 2019, Hyper-V supports new features such as ReFS deduplication for virtual machines, virtual machine resource metering, virtual network encryption, virtual machine start ordering, and more ¹.

Conclusion

Windows Server 2019 is a powerful and versatile operating system that offers many new features and enhancements for hybrid cloud, security, application platform, and hyper-converged infrastructure scenarios. It is designed to help you modernize your IT infrastructure and optimize your business outcomes. If you want to learn more about Windows Server 2019 or try it out for yourself, you can visit the official website or download the evaluation version.