Microsoft 'Breckenridge' Windows small-business storage server also RTMs

With Microsoft releasing to manufacturing a number of its "Colorado" Windows Server family members last week, it's inevitable that one fell through the cracks. That product, "Breckenridge," a k a Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 Essentials, also RTM'd at the end of March, along with Windows Home Server "Vail" and Windows Small Business Server "Aurora."

(Actually, I had been wondering when Breckenridge would RTM. But it wasn't until two of my readers sent me notes about Breckenridge RTMing on March 31, that I found mention of it on one of Microsoft's many company blogs.)

Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 Essentials, like its Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 sibling, is a platform for network-attached storage appliances. The difference is Storage Server Essentials is aimed at small businesses (up to 25 users) — companies which may or may not have dedicated IT pros on staff.

Storage Server 2008 R2 Essentials is going to be an OEM-only product, and it will likely be several months before the first servers running this operating system make it to market, Microsoft officials said. That said, Microsoft is making the Storage Server 2008 R2 Essentials bits available to MSDN subscribers in early April.

Microsoft is positioning Storage Server 2008 R2 Essentials, its entry-level storage server, as being well suited for:

•Server and PC backup, including file, folder and image based restore •Centralized storage for file data and easier sharing •Console driven administration for easier management •Access to your data from virtually anywhere through Remote Web Access •Network health monitoring for both Windows and Mac PCs •Active Directory Domain join

Meanwhile, on April 5, as previously announced, Microsoft made available to MSDN and TechNet subscribers the RTM'd bits for Windows Home Server 2011 (Vail) and Windows Small Business Server 2011 Essentials (Aurora). General availability for those products via OEMs is slated for May 2011.