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However, until the WSSD launch event happens, Microsoft will pop up an advisory message concerning the use of features like Storage Spaces Direct and software-defined networking capabilities in Windows Server 2019, as indicated in Knowledge Base article KB4464776. Instead of waiting for the WSSD launch, it's possible to build the hardware from scratch using components listed in the Windows Server catalog, which is an approach that Microsoft supports for Windows Server 2019. There will be a WSSD launch event around that time, he added. The first certified Windows Server 2019 hardware products are expected to "launch in mid-January 2019," Darwin indicated. For details on the program, see this Q&A. The goal of the program is to produce certified Windows Server hardware.
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Microsoft has a Windows Server Software Defined ( WSSD) program for its hardware partners that's designed to validate key Windows Server features, including storage features like Storage Spaces Direct (a Datacenter Edition feature), as well as the hyperconverged infrastructure capabilities of the operating system. But it also means the hardware ecosystem hasn't had the chance to validate and certify systems or components before the release instead, they start doing so today. This change is motivated by the increasing popularity of virtual machines, containers, and deploying in the cloud. Windows Server 2019 is the first version to skip the classic Release To Manufacturing (RTM) milestone and go directly to General Availability (GA). This release constitutes the first Windows Server OS product to dispense with an RTM, according to an announcement by Cosmos Darwin, a senior program manager on Microsoft's Core OS team: "RTM" signifies a milestone when equipment manufacturers test the polished bits on hardware before releasing new integrated products. The reason that certified hardware isn't available yet from Microsoft's OEM partners is that Microsoft skipped the release-to-manufacturing (RTM) stage with this release of Windows Server 2019.
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"Later in October, we'll be adding Windows Server 2019 to Visual Studio Subscription (former MSDN) and other portals, such as the Microsoft Partner Network (MPN)," Microsoft's announcement clarified.įor details about Windows Server 2019 features, see this newly published "What's New" Microsoft document.
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Various professional subscribers and partners, though, will have to wait to get the Windows Server 2019 bits.
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