Windows Server 2012 Essentials announcement

• Link
  Windows Server Essentials integration module for Windows Azure Backup upgraded
  Shen_Xu Wednesday, April 10, 2013 5:47 AM

  With the announcement of the new Windows Azure Backup preview, we’re happy to announce the new release of the Windows Server Essentials integration module.

  Windows Azure Backup helps you protect important server data off-site with automated backup and restoration. You can manage cloud backups from Windows Server 2012 Essentials Dashboard by installing the integration module.

  To start using the Windows Azure Backup preview, please create a Windows Azure account. To begin your sign up, go to the Windows Azure free trial webpage. Then visit the Windows Azure Management Portal to New a backup vault, download and install the integration module, and register your server.

  If you had the previous version of the integration module installed, you must retrieve your stored data before May 4. Then you need to uninstall the previous integration module and the Windows Azure Online Backup agent, before trying the new version.

  To uninstall the integration module:

  1. Go to the Essentials Dashboard.
  2. Navigate to Applications page, Add-ins tab.
  3. Remove the online backup add-in.

  To uninstall the Windows Azure Online Backup agent:

  1. Go to Control Panel.
  2. Click Uninstall a program.
  3. Remove the Windows Azure Online Backup agent.

  Data from the earlier preview will be available until May 4, 2013. It will not be transferred to the new Windows Azure Backup preview. Please make sure to retrieve any data that you wish to retrieve before uninstalling the old integration module.

• Link
  Update Rollup 3 for Windows Server 2012 Essentials is Now Available!
  Guang HU - MSFT Microsoft employee Friday, June 14, 2013 8:08 AM

  The Update Rollup 3 for Windows Server 2012 Essentials is now available for download from Windows Update. You can read about the issues this rollup update addresses in Microsoft Support Knowledgebase http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2862551.
  

  
  
• Link
  Windows Server 2012 Essentials Resources
  Shen_Xu Tuesday, March 19, 2013 3:54 AM

  Download RTM Evaluation copy from here:

  http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/jj659306.aspx?wt.mc_id=TEC_133_1_14

  See Sinead’s post for details:

  http://blogs.technet.com/b/sbs/archive/2012/10/09/windows-server-2012-essentials-released-to-manufacturing-available-for-evaluation-today.aspx

  Read the Overview blog from our engineering team:

  http://blogs.technet.com/b/windowsserver/archive/2012/07/11/download-the-beta-release-of-windows-server-2012-essentials-today.aspx

  TechNet Center:

  http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sbs/jj159331

  TechNet Library:

  http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj200119  (Note the Exchange installation, and Transition to Windows Server 2012 Standard instructions are also included)

  More product introduction coming from our official product blog:

  http://blogs.technet.com/b/sbs/

  Product data sheet and FAQ

  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/server-cloud/windows-server-essentials/default.aspx

  Licensing datasheet on price, license, and server roles comparison:

  http://download.microsoft.com/download/0/4/B/04BD0EB1-42FE-488B-919F-3981EF9B2101/WS2012_Licensing-Pricing_Datasheet.pdf

  Additional downloads on TechNet and MSDN, including SDK and Client Restore Disk:

  https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/subscriptions/securedownloads/hh442898#searchTerm=windows%20server%202012%20essentials

  https://technet.microsoft.com/en-US/subscriptions/securedownloads/hh442904#searchTerm=windows%20server%202012%20essentials

  Thank you everyone for your feedbacks and support, please continue to use the Windows Server 2012 Essentials forum for your RTM and evaluation experience.

  http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/winserveressentials/threads

  Thank You!