IT Pro Momentum Pilot Project- Windows 2008 R2/Windows 7

Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7 are getting a lot of airtime in the media.  I thought it might be interesting to get some insights from some of the folks who are piloting these products in their actual networks.  One sizable US based company who would like to remain anonymous at this point is working with Microsoft through the IT Pro Momentum Program to test Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7.  I asked one of their IT Architects some questions about their initial findings.

· What are the objectives of the project? 

 "Right now, just testing 2008 R2 and Win 7, hope to venture into Hyper-V with live migration."

· What products are being used in the project?

"Windows Server2008R2 domain controller & Windows 7"

· How are you feeling about the products? 

 "Currently the only part of the project in progress is piloting Windows Server2008 R2 in a domain controller in the lab. It was a pretty simple setup (even though server core isn’t the simplest to configure). Windows 7 client is a giant leap forward for Microsoft Desktop!"

· Were the objective stated at the beginning satisfied?  Did you solve the problem?

"For Phase 1, yes. Haven’t defined Phase 2 yet, but hopefully it involves Hyper-V."

· Are you going to save money?  How much over how many years?

 "Hyper-V will save us money from a hardware perspective. We are currently using Hyper-V in 2008 with 20ish machines so the hardware savings are about 5k-6k per server."

· What do you think about the IT Pro Momentum program?

"I really like the IT Pro Momentum program. I haven’t used many features, but having access to TechNet is a GIANT plus!"