Benefits of upgrading from Win2008 network server?

[badlydrawn]

I work for a real estate developing company that currently has a Windows 2008 server network connected to 5 workstations... Our IT specialist wants the company to upgrade, and I'm wondering exactly what the benefits of this are?

 

[carnageX]

Upgrading to what exactly?

 

[badlydrawn]

Windows 2012?

 

[carnageX]

Windows 2012?

Well you never specified, so I had to ask .

Could have been going from Server 08 to Server 08 R2 (because you didn't specify this either), or even to a Linux-based server. Hence why I asked.

Here's a couple articles for you:
10 compelling reasons to upgrade to Windows Server 2012 - TechRepublic

Hyper-V Comparison

2012 has the benefits of better Hyper-V implementation; so if he's planning on utilizing Hyper-V, definitely 2012. Otherwise, check the other features 2012 has to offer and see if they benefit your company or not.

I'm assuming you're already on Server 2008 R2, and not just Server 2008?

 

[Yevrag35]

I'm assuming you're already on Server 2008 R2, and not just Server 2008?

If their only on 2008, even going to '08 R2 would be a vast improvement.

 

[PP Mguire]

I work for a real estate developing company that currently has a Windows 2008 server network connected to 5 workstations... Our IT specialist wants the company to upgrade, and I'm wondering exactly what the benefits of this are?

Benefits outlined indefinitely, but what I'm wondering is why your IT specialist couldn't tell you this to begin with. If he is incapable of explaining why an upgrade is necessary in simple with the same information we can provide then you should probably look elsewhere for a supposed IT specialist.

 

[Lexluethar]

2012 has some pretty awesome features that make it a far better product then 2008 or 2008 R2. We have a mixed environment right now of 2008 R2 and some 2012 servers. I'm slowly migrating us to 2012 (2012 R2 comes out soon).

Agreed with others though, these are questions you should be asking the specialist that you are PAYING for, not random people on the internet. That's a pretty big business decision that can make or break a company - these decisions should not be made based off just what we say.

 

[Yevrag35]

We have a mixed environment right now of 2008 R2 and some 2012 servers. I'm slowly migrating us to 2012 (2012 R2 comes out soon)

Think that's bad? We have 2003's, 2008's, 2008 R2's, and 2012's. Luckily, my new boss finds this equally annoying, so we're in the midst of retiring the elders.

 

[Lexluethar]

Ya we do have a handful of 2003 servers - the issue is that they are running legacy applications that aren't compatible with 2008 r2 much less 2012.

We've put up with it until now, but now that 2003 is going to be unsupported soon we have to find alternative solutions.