CT Droid
CT Bot
So far, I'd say I like it a lot. It's the little things....for instance, in order to "register" a PC for backing up, or just to get a console so you can control what WHS does, you type in the web address of the WHS machine and port 55000, and you're off. It brings up a web page where you can download and install the connector.
Now, that may seem trivial, but to me its a confidence building measure. You see, I could *totally* see having to take the WHS DVD around to each client machine and install the connector from there. In fact, it was what I was expecting. But instead, the connector program is actually downloaded from the server and then executed on your client. So, you get the software AND proof that the network connections are good. It's all very slick to me.
The console that comes up to control everything WHS does is very intuitive. I was playing around with settings immediately. Almost every screen that comes up also contains little help links that 99% of the time answered the question that had just come into your head.
User accounts were a bit of a puzzle though. When you first log in, it tells you that you have to create user accounts for people to use WHS. Now, if you are used to logging into every PC in your house when you use it, then that's trivial to do. Just create the same account on WHS, and they'll be linked. However, in our house, none of the every-day accounts have passwords...and my main PC doesn't even have more than 1 account on it, and that with no password. Fortunately, the WHS help also describes this very situation, and in that scenario, all you have to do is enable the guest account. You then have a no-holds-barred access to the WHS files from basically any PC. Ya, I know its not secure...but really it's no less secure that what we currently have without WHS. I just simply don't want the hassle of having to type in a password on my desktop PC.
For remote access (outside the house), you can create a separate account with a password. So that takes care one one of the more insecure features. I haven't tried that yet.
I did try adding another hard drive, however. My intial install was on a 160 GB disk, and I have 2 spare 40 GB disks just sitting there, so I powered down WHS, added a drive, and brought it back up. Open up the console, and there's the disk, waiting for what you'll do with it. You have two options...you can add it as more storage space (including file duplication), or you can add it as basically a removeable drive. So if you have external drives to hook up, WHS can use those, and then you can remove those and put the drive in safe keeping. That's really not a bad idea. Using an older PC like I am, it doesn't have eSata (or even iSata!), and I dont want to get a USB external drive...but its not a bad idea for the future.
I'm in the process now of copying all our pictures to the WHS pictures folder. This has been a long-term goal, as the pics up to this point were saved on my wife's machine...so if I wanted to view them for whatever reason (usually to see what was in the walls of the house during construction....), I'd have to power up her machine. thats a bother. Now moving them to WHS, they'll always be available.
There's another reason for moving them there. I already have them all burned to DVD, but I'd like to burn another copy of them all. However, before doing that, I want to organize the photos, and more importantly, make sure I don't have any un-needed duplicates. It's been all too common in the past to come across a directory of pic files, and think "Uh, what is this doing here??" and then wonder if its ever been saved. So, not wanting to EVER delete any pictures, you save it in a directory. So you can easily end up with multiple copies of the same pic. Well, I found a WHS add-in that goes through and finds all your duplicate files, and then lets you choose which one to delete and which to save. That sounds like just the thing! ....some day.
This thread is not open. If you wish to respond, please respond using the original blog entry link. View the original blog entry
Now, that may seem trivial, but to me its a confidence building measure. You see, I could *totally* see having to take the WHS DVD around to each client machine and install the connector from there. In fact, it was what I was expecting. But instead, the connector program is actually downloaded from the server and then executed on your client. So, you get the software AND proof that the network connections are good. It's all very slick to me.
The console that comes up to control everything WHS does is very intuitive. I was playing around with settings immediately. Almost every screen that comes up also contains little help links that 99% of the time answered the question that had just come into your head.
User accounts were a bit of a puzzle though. When you first log in, it tells you that you have to create user accounts for people to use WHS. Now, if you are used to logging into every PC in your house when you use it, then that's trivial to do. Just create the same account on WHS, and they'll be linked. However, in our house, none of the every-day accounts have passwords...and my main PC doesn't even have more than 1 account on it, and that with no password. Fortunately, the WHS help also describes this very situation, and in that scenario, all you have to do is enable the guest account. You then have a no-holds-barred access to the WHS files from basically any PC. Ya, I know its not secure...but really it's no less secure that what we currently have without WHS. I just simply don't want the hassle of having to type in a password on my desktop PC.
For remote access (outside the house), you can create a separate account with a password. So that takes care one one of the more insecure features. I haven't tried that yet.
I did try adding another hard drive, however. My intial install was on a 160 GB disk, and I have 2 spare 40 GB disks just sitting there, so I powered down WHS, added a drive, and brought it back up. Open up the console, and there's the disk, waiting for what you'll do with it. You have two options...you can add it as more storage space (including file duplication), or you can add it as basically a removeable drive. So if you have external drives to hook up, WHS can use those, and then you can remove those and put the drive in safe keeping. That's really not a bad idea. Using an older PC like I am, it doesn't have eSata (or even iSata!), and I dont want to get a USB external drive...but its not a bad idea for the future.
I'm in the process now of copying all our pictures to the WHS pictures folder. This has been a long-term goal, as the pics up to this point were saved on my wife's machine...so if I wanted to view them for whatever reason (usually to see what was in the walls of the house during construction....), I'd have to power up her machine. thats a bother. Now moving them to WHS, they'll always be available.
There's another reason for moving them there. I already have them all burned to DVD, but I'd like to burn another copy of them all. However, before doing that, I want to organize the photos, and more importantly, make sure I don't have any un-needed duplicates. It's been all too common in the past to come across a directory of pic files, and think "Uh, what is this doing here??" and then wonder if its ever been saved. So, not wanting to EVER delete any pictures, you save it in a directory. So you can easily end up with multiple copies of the same pic. Well, I found a WHS add-in that goes through and finds all your duplicate files, and then lets you choose which one to delete and which to save. That sounds like just the thing! ....some day.
This thread is not open. If you wish to respond, please respond using the original blog entry link. View the original blog entry
