Installation of Windows Server 2012

Installing Windows Server 2012 is not much different from its older version of Windows Server 2008 R2. If you need to download Windows Server 2012 media, you can obtain the install ISO from Microsoft for free. The Windows Server 2012 evaluation site is located here http://technet.microsoft.com/en-US/evalcenter/hh670538.aspx. The installation media starts a Windows PE or Pre-Install Environment, which has the new Server 2012 window dressing like the boot screen.

The setup program will start and basically it looks the same as Windows Server 2008 R2. A little feature that has always been in the product is the ability to hit Shift-F10 to obtain a command prompt. This will allow you some out of band management and allows you direct access to the existing hard drive and file system. In older versions of the client operating system (Windows XP) you could bring up solitaire while you installed.

Windows Server 2012 Setup Program

Windows Server 2012 Setup Program

Windows Server 2012 Install Screen

Windows Server 2012 Install Screen

Windows Server 2012 Install Screen Shift-F10

Windows Server 2012 Install Screen Shift-F10

The edition selection screen has some new options basically Windows Server 2012 Standard edition and Windows Server 2012 Datacenter edition. Both editions can be installed with full GUI or core install. However the only difference between Datacenter and Standard edition is licensing for VMs, there are no limits within the product.

Windows Server 2012 Edition Selection Screen

Windows Server 2012 Edition Selection Screen

After selecting the edition and type of install you have to answer the familiar EULA.

Windows Server 2012 EULA

Windows Server 2012 EULA

The next screen allows you to pick if it is an upgrade or new installation.

Windows Server 2012 Type of Installation Screen

Windows Server 2012 Type of Installation Screen

You can then pick the drive to install Windows Server 2012 to. You can also load drivers for RAID controllers not picked up in the Out Of Box driver set.

Windows Server 2012 Drive Selection Screen

Windows Server 2012 Drive Selection Screen

The installation screen is when the setup program partitions the drive. Then it copies the OS files to the drive. The copy process is similar to an ImageX process or DISM process. These OS files are being uncompressed from the install.wim file located in the sources folder.

Windows Server 2012 Copying Files

Windows Server 2012 Copying Files

Windows will reboot…

Windows Server 2012 Reboot Screen

Windows Server 2012 Reboot Screen

When Server 2012 boots up with the new files on the drive, it will perform hardware detection. It will also build its registry files and ready the operating system for use. The OOBE or Out Of Box Experience pass is being done and the Generalization pass is also being performed. Server 2012 will need to reboot once more, but the next time it boots up it will have all of the drivers it detected instantiated.

Windows Server 2012 Getting Devices Ready

Windows Server 2012 Getting Devices Ready

The first run will start and you will be prompted to put a complex password in. I use for demonstration purposes a password of “Password20!”, since it uses lower case, upper case, numbers and characters.

Windows Server 2012 Administrator Password

Windows Server 2012 Administrator Password

Server 2012 will build your profile from the default profile locally. We are then prompted with the default desktop, where we can press the good old CTRL-ALT-Delete keys to logon.

Windows Server 2012 Default Desktop

Windows Server 2012 Default Desktop

Windows Server 2012 Logon Screen

Windows Server 2012 Logon Screen

Once you logon to the desktop, Server Manager will start. The first task is to do the initial configuration of the server. These tasks include changing the server name, time zone and network properties.

Windows Server 2012 Administrator Desktop

Windows Server 2012 Administrator Desktop

Windows Server 2012 Initial Configuration

Windows Server 2012 Initial Configuration

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2 Responses

  1. Galuh says:

    What a plaeruse to meet someone who thinks so clearly

  1. January 26, 2016

    […] from start to finish, including post configuration in the GUI. You can access the full article here http://www.networkedminds.com/installation-of-windows-server-2012. I detail where to download a legit evaluation copy of Windows Server […]

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