Windows Server 2016 For Software-Defined Data Centers

Windows Server 2016 delivers new capabilities for managing and securing software-defined data centers, as well as enhancements to some roles of Remote Desktop Services. Upgrading from Windows Server 2012 or 2012 R2 should require minimal effort, and even customers running earlier versions of the OS may find it a worthwhile upgrade. However, some features of the new version of the OS will require new hardware and updated server applications and will be accompanied by significant licensing changes. The new version will probably appear in the second half of 2016.

Software-Defined Data Center

Compared to past versions, Windows Server 2016 offers a better software-defined data-center platform, where servers and software on-premises, hosted in Azure or other data centers, can provide scalable infrastructure for virtualization, Web applications, and other workloads, using the same tools and technology as Microsoft’s Azure public cloud. Several new features included in Windows Server 2016 make the OS ideal for delivering such a software-defined data center. Features receiving enhancements to support this direction include Hyper-V, Software Defined Storage, and Windows Containers.