Weekend Project - Upgrade Windows Home Server

I saw the other day that HP released an update to its Media Server software. The 3.0 version had long been promised, delayed many times and now was finally available. While not every user who has a Media Smart server can or should upgrade, MediaSmartHome lays out a pretty decent decision tree. This is especially important since the upgrade isn't free. You are going to have to shell out about $30 with shipping to get this particular update.

Once you've decided to go ahead, I recommend this walk-through from the folks at WeGotServed.com. It provides a nice overview of the process with plenty of screen shots. And it works.

I will add a few items though based on my experience. After all, whether you're upgrading a server at home or at work, it still does and has a lot of information on it. You'll want to take care during that process.

• You may need to disable the firewall on your personal computer for the first step. The restore process uses some oddball ports that may create some trouble.
• I recommend documenting your current setup - at least slightly. You probably want to make note of the users you have on the system and what folders they have rights to. I'm sure a lot of people allow everything for everyone, but to those to don't...
• I also advise noting the add-ins you have and what settings they are set to. Make sure you have license files handy, etc. You don't want to restart everything and have a nice and shiny machine that you can't run your AV software on.
• Once you are complete with the restore make sure you re-enable your firewall and get AV installed on your server pronto!

I'll say the interface is much prettier, though slightly sluggish. The latter may have to do with the fact that the server is both currently backing up my computer and probably running its initial AV scan. I'll continue to monitor and see how this new version performs.