Replacing WHS2011 with ???
I’ve been running Windows Home Server 2011 (WHS2011) for years primarily to back up computers on my home network. Since adding a Windows 11 PC (which won’t back up on WHS 2011) and anticipating the need to migrate to Windows 11 for the remaining computers, is there a suggested replacement path to buy scheduled backups time for a while longer?
In short, I seek to replace my WHS2011 client backup capabilities in the most economical way and get a few more years of client backup functionality with a low learning curve.
- If purchasing WSEE Installer from The Office Maven, is Windows Server 2022 Standard/Essentials included?
- Should I purchase my own copy of Windows Server 2022 and then the WSEE installer?
- Is there a basic guide or documentation to get going on this effort available for a person with basic WHS, computer and networking literacy?
Thank you!
- Samuel Woodruff asked 2 months ago
- last edited 2 months ago
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I was not aware that WHS 2011 cannot backup Windows 11 client computers. AFAIK, if it can backup Windows 10 client computers, then Windows 11 clients should work exactly the same. That being said… It would not surprise me if that is indeed the case seeing as Windows Server 2008 R2 (which WHS 2011 is based upon) reached end of support/end of life quite a long time ago now.
Windows Server 2016 Essentials is a great alternative to WHS 2011 seeing as it has the exact same feature set (and then some), and it can backup Windows 11 client computers just fine. Just be aware that it is Microsoft’s last ever release of Windows Server Essentials and it reaches end of support/end of life on January 12, 2027 (and so you may be finding yourself in the exact same boat in just a few short years from now – when Windows 12, or whatever Microsoft calls their next major release of Windows, gets released).
As for your bullet points…
I don’t sell (nor support) the WSEE Installer. It is simply made available (free of charge) as a convenience and thank you to my existing customers (i.e. to purchasers of my WSE RemoteApp and/or WSE WorkFolders software products). The WSEE Installer simply allows you to install the “Essentials bits”, taken from Windows Server 2016 Essentials, onto Windows Server 2019, 2022, or 2025.
I also do not sell, nor provide support for, Windows Server 2019, 2022, or 2025. It is left up to you to have access to (and licensing for) that. Basically, you install Windows Server 2019, 2022, or 2025 onto your server (a brand new/clean install with no other server roles, features, or applications installed is best), and then you simply run the WSEE Installer from the server’s desktop in order to install the Windows Server Essentials Experience (WSEE) (taken from Windows Server 2016) onto it. After the installation completes, the Windows Server Essentials Configuration wizard will run so that you can configure Essentials on the server (as usual).
I don’t offer a “guide” for doing that per se, but you can still find lots of information on how to install, configure, and use Windows Server 2016 on the Internet. That together with my main WSEE Installer article should be more than enough to get you goin in the right direction.
- Mike answered 2 months ago
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I appreciate the reply Mike.
The connector works and the backup gets initiated, yet the backup always fails on the WIN 11 PC. As best as I can decipher from the error messages it seems to be communication issues between the client and the server in the DCOM area. The event log messages are cryptic so as best as I can tell are issues in the DOM services. The back up usually times out after being unable to communicate.
Also thank you for the information on moving forward with a potential solution.
Best regards,
— Sam
- Samuel Woodruff answered 2 months ago
- last edited 2 months ago
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