I’m usually a Windows “shill” or at least a casual defender of it, as I work in a Windows environment and it’s not as bad as people pretend it is. No shade against Linux, I love it and Windows is bad. Just not like “I’d rather self-castrate” bad.
Anyway…
But for a home server? Either be super lazy and set up samba shares from your Windows desktop for the drives (avoid having a server at all) or bite the bullet and use Linux. You’ll get so much more out of a Linux server that it’s not even funny.
If you’re competent and technologically saavy enough to use a Linux distro as your daily driver, you can learn to make Windows work for you too.
Waste of effort if you don’t need to interact with any Windows environments for school or work, but definitely possible.
For me? I’m happy to get paid to automate shit using PowerShell that should have been basic built in functionality from the start. PowerShell is just the most convenient scripting language due to being packed-in with most Windows installs, and tons of built in functionality for interfacing with other Microsoft products. So as long as Microsoft keeps sucking, I’ve got a comfy paycheck.
And if the year of the Linux desktop ever finally happens? I’m ready, I’ll be cheering, and I’ll be ready to get paid helping companies to make the switch.
It’s very rough coming back after 20+ years. Easy things on Linux quickly become a wasted day going down six trillion rabbit holes on Windows before you can even accomplish your seemingly simple task. Most problems in Windows are much more easily resolved by booting into Linux to make the repairs.
Understandbly theres no real need to use powershell outside of the windows realm.
As far as my limited experience understood it: Everything powershell gives you is in a properly formatted data type (e.g. bool, text, int, etc.) and thus can be more easily manipulated than in bash where everything is treated as text.
I work with Windows and it’s AWFUL. Did you know the taskbar is a fucking ELECTRON APP? Everything is so slow. And you have to go through hoops to do what you want, and that setting isn’t available in the settings electron app, you have to go through these 5 screens to find the magic button that opens the win 95 style dialog box to set what you want. It’s so So SO BAD.
I’m using it 95% of my time with it by remoting with a program to the server and experience reduced window quality and speed anyway.
I want it finishing the task and not look pretty.
And ew. 95 theme. How old are you? At least use Aero/flat and then log off to reduce the 0.5% load from the active user session
I think they are trying to exaggerate how very outdated some Windows UI elements look (primarily dialog boxes?). I doubt they would use a 95 theme on an OS that’s hard to theme and annoying to use.
Yeah, Windows isn’t that bad, but it’s not that good either. On servers, everything requires a million clicks or some random terminal command that’s impossible to find documentation for (was just passed down from senior to junior over the ages). I had to configure one for testing (embedded product that needed to work in Windows environments as well as Linux), and it took hours to do the most basic task. Granted, none of us were sysadmins, just devs, but we weren’t familiar with Linux or Windows servers, just desktops, and Linux was by far easier to configure.
Don’t pick Windows for your server without a good reason, you’ll get much more value from learning Linux than Windows.
One day our Linux servers were hosed at work because the Windows server hosting them got all fucked up during Cloudstrike. I’ll never understand why you’d host Linux on Windows rather than the other way around.
Windows Server is less of a general use server, and more of just a staging platform for Microsoft’s other specific server based software installs. And even a lot of those don’t co-mingle on the same server well.
Exchange Server is effectively dead mid October too. Technically they have Exchange Server SE as an option, but it’s clearly not how they want people using Exchange anymore. They don’t even want hybrid setups.
Which is extra annoying because if you have Azure AD (I guess it’s Entra ID now) syncing from an on prem AD forest, half of the mailbox management shit in Exchange Online just doesn’t work and forces you to make the changes on-prem anyway.
I use it in a VM because it’s better than Windows 10, some programs refuse to run on Linux, and I don’t need to provide the VM with an internet connection.
My actual server is an old laptop and it does not run Windows.
Even my friend who insists that Windows is superior still uses Linux for his gaming server because it’s easier to set up and manage.
It was the best option at the time, and I didn’t feel like setting up Windows more than once as I gradually added new software and removed other software.
That particular VM doesn’t get booted very often anymore.
It’s on the very first page, opposite to the office server page, and they acknowledge the Author does not exist and that it’s basically an ad for Windows server.
They had me until windows
It’s what turns it from a children’s book into a horror story
Indoctrination.
Imagine growing up with a Windows home server… ugh
I’m usually a Windows “shill” or at least a casual defender of it, as I work in a Windows environment and it’s not as bad as people pretend it is. No shade against Linux, I love it and Windows is bad. Just not like “I’d rather self-castrate” bad.
Anyway…
But for a home server? Either be super lazy and set up samba shares from your Windows desktop for the drives (avoid having a server at all) or bite the bullet and use Linux. You’ll get so much more out of a Linux server that it’s not even funny.
I’d rather run a rusty nail through my sack than booting Windows
Have fun with that then. Sorry about your balls.
If you’re competent and technologically saavy enough to use a Linux distro as your daily driver, you can learn to make Windows work for you too.
Waste of effort if you don’t need to interact with any Windows environments for school or work, but definitely possible.
For me? I’m happy to get paid to automate shit using PowerShell that should have been basic built in functionality from the start. PowerShell is just the most convenient scripting language due to being packed-in with most Windows installs, and tons of built in functionality for interfacing with other Microsoft products. So as long as Microsoft keeps sucking, I’ve got a comfy paycheck.
And if the year of the Linux desktop ever finally happens? I’m ready, I’ll be cheering, and I’ll be ready to get paid helping companies to make the switch.
After learning too much about Linux it’s impossible for me to use Windows.
It hurts me at every step, making me question my life and everyones sanity who handles that stuff.
It’s very very bad and nobody will pry Gentoo from my hands.
It’s very rough coming back after 20+ years. Easy things on Linux quickly become a wasted day going down six trillion rabbit holes on Windows before you can even accomplish your seemingly simple task. Most problems in Windows are much more easily resolved by booting into Linux to make the repairs.
The few times I tried bash it was awful.
At least Powershell let’s me manipulate data more freely and organized.
But Linux has way cooler packages (Window Server 2025 finally implemented winget ootb).
I have not used PowerShell that much, because I’m so used to bash that it felt foreign.
There are other shells you can try, more modern, perhaps they will be more to your liking.
Understandbly theres no real need to use powershell outside of the windows realm.
As far as my limited experience understood it: Everything powershell gives you is in a properly formatted data type (e.g. bool, text, int, etc.) and thus can be more easily manipulated than in bash where everything is treated as text.
Linux has been fine as a desktop since i386 days.
I’d definitely rather boot windows, but to each his own.
I work with Windows and it’s AWFUL. Did you know the taskbar is a fucking ELECTRON APP? Everything is so slow. And you have to go through hoops to do what you want, and that setting isn’t available in the settings electron app, you have to go through these 5 screens to find the magic button that opens the win 95 style dialog box to set what you want. It’s so So SO BAD.
I’m using it 95% of my time with it by remoting with a program to the server and experience reduced window quality and speed anyway.
I want it finishing the task and not look pretty.
And ew. 95 theme. How old are you? At least use Aero/flat and then log off to reduce the 0.5% load from the active user session
I think they are trying to exaggerate how very outdated some Windows UI elements look (primarily dialog boxes?). I doubt they would use a 95 theme on an OS that’s hard to theme and annoying to use.
Yeah, Windows isn’t that bad, but it’s not that good either. On servers, everything requires a million clicks or some random terminal command that’s impossible to find documentation for (was just passed down from senior to junior over the ages). I had to configure one for testing (embedded product that needed to work in Windows environments as well as Linux), and it took hours to do the most basic task. Granted, none of us were sysadmins, just devs, but we weren’t familiar with Linux or Windows servers, just desktops, and Linux was by far easier to configure.
Don’t pick Windows for your server without a good reason, you’ll get much more value from learning Linux than Windows.
I must admit, my home rack server runs hyper-v, it is free and I have MSDN. Of course inside the hyper-v I run ten linux boxes.
Proxmox really didn’t exists before and I didn’t want to use VMware.
Next one I will do with proxmox.
Please dont judge me.
One day our Linux servers were hosed at work because the Windows server hosting them got all fucked up during Cloudstrike. I’ll never understand why you’d host Linux on Windows rather than the other way around.
Was Zeus mad you disnt employ Linux?
I was about to do the same, had the USB stick prepared and everything, then I tried proxmox. Just lucked out.
The book was written to sell Windows Home Server. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Home_Server
Still cool.
And actually not a bad idea from MS, but I’m sure they killed it with MSification.
True, but this book is the best thing Microsoft has made.
@MimicJar @moseschrute *touches finger to earpiece*
…hang on, I’m getting word that the most recent edition of this book will crash your nvram’s firmware
I won’t stand for this PowerShell superhero comic erasure.
Wow, thanks, I hated it!
Funny you mention that…
Wow, seriously who tf uses Windows home server?
I feel like it would be easier to learn Linux, even if you still used windows for desktop
That’s probably true if you consider Linux server vs Windows server. Windows server sucks.
Windows Server is less of a general use server, and more of just a staging platform for Microsoft’s other specific server based software installs. And even a lot of those don’t co-mingle on the same server well.
I mean, even Microsoft doesn’t give a shit about Windows server since Azure runs on Linux. :)
Companies can have multiple business lines.
Exchange Server is effectively dead mid October too. Technically they have Exchange Server SE as an option, but it’s clearly not how they want people using Exchange anymore. They don’t even want hybrid setups.
Which is extra annoying because if you have Azure AD (I guess it’s Entra ID now) syncing from an on prem AD forest, half of the mailbox management shit in Exchange Online just doesn’t work and forces you to make the changes on-prem anyway.
I use it in a VM because it’s better than Windows 10, some programs refuse to run on Linux, and I don’t need to provide the VM with an internet connection.
My actual server is an old laptop and it does not run Windows.
Even my friend who insists that Windows is superior still uses Linux for his gaming server because it’s easier to set up and manage.
Your friend is wise.
He uses the a specific tool for a specific task.
That’s actually fine. Though why not regular Windows 7, is there a special task for your VM?
It was the best option at the time, and I didn’t feel like setting up Windows more than once as I gradually added new software and removed other software.
That particular VM doesn’t get booted very often anymore.
Oh I see, it’s an older setup.
Well, considering it hasn’t existed in years, I think you can imagine the answer to your question 😅
I initially just thought it was bad english, TIL “Windows Home Server” is a proper noun.
In 2008? More than you’d think.
Sometimes I forget it’s been that long ago. -_-
Im guessing though. I remember seeing it on 4chan as a teenager so thats between 2006 and 2010 or aomething :p
Your guess is correct. It should be 2007 or so. :)
It was perfect until that second to last page
It’s on the very first page, opposite to the office server page, and they acknowledge the Author does not exist and that it’s basically an ad for Windows server.