What do you guys think? Finally making WHS the product we've been wanting?

Power Pack 3 Beta

So it copies TV over, and then offers transcoding?  Well, backing up files is nothing new for Home Server.  Transcoding for Zune and Windows Mobile, fantastic, except for the fact that I can't sync those converted files to either of those devices using Media Center.  Of course it also doesn't transcode any protected content.

I'm not a fan of the upgrade from a Media Center perspective.

I think the auto-archive is great, and I think most people with a media center and WHS have yet another computer they use to do their daily activities, so not being able to sync directly from Media Center isn't a deal breaker in my eyes. I also like that the search features and library are better integrated. Hopefully that along with the upgraded WHS Connector for MediaCenter make for a better user experience from a data perspective. I also like that you can check out some WHS usage info from within the MC interface. Obviously not a big deal, but still a nice addition.

For a free upgrade I think it's great. I expect the next full release to really take it up a notch, but there's no telling when that will happen.

I like the idea of archiving TV, especially movies and having them available thru the VMC interface. I also like the idea of the transcoding/processing being performed on a box in the corner as a background task... its all good...

Chris - Moderator:

So it copies TV over, and then offers transcoding?  Well, backing up files is nothing new for Home Server.  Transcoding for Zune and Windows Mobile, fantastic, except for the fact that I can't sync those converted files to either of those devices using Media Center.  Of course it also doesn't transcode any protected content.

I'm not a fan of the upgrade from a Media Center perspective.

I hope we can modify/hack the transcode profiles to other formats at least, and when it comes to syncing with the zune and such, why not get the guy who makes "Doubletwist" to do a mmcl front-end for his application.

thezigpc:

Chris - Moderator:

So it copies TV over, and then offers transcoding?  Well, backing up files is nothing new for Home Server.  Transcoding for Zune and Windows Mobile, fantastic, except for the fact that I can't sync those converted files to either of those devices using Media Center.  Of course it also doesn't transcode any protected content.

I'm not a fan of the upgrade from a Media Center perspective.

I hope we can modify/hack the transcode profiles to other formats at least, and when it comes to syncing with the zune and such, why not get the guy who makes "Doubletwist" to do a mmcl front-end for his application.

Yes my wife would like something for her iPhone so I hope it's possible.

I've been wanting to either buy or build a WHS server for a long time. Looks like the incentives to do so are increasing steadily. Any suggestions on whther buying or building is a better alternative?

Let's start a new thread for that.

**Well, I started a new thread, but I don't see it... wonder what I did wrong**

mm60:

I've been wanting to either buy or build a WHS server for a long time. Looks like the incentives to do so are increasing steadily. Any suggestions on whther buying or building is a better alternative?

Well it depends on where you are in terms of cash, current hardware and specific use / needs.

For example if you already have some older systems that are unused, under used or in need of re-purpose / re-designation then you should be able to simply buy and install the Windows Home Server OS on said system. However, if you’re willing to buy an OEM Windows Home Server from the likes of HP (for example) you would be rewarded with specific OEM only software that cannot be found elsewhere.

Personally I’m doing both as I have re-designated an old ASUS A7N8X Deluxe / Athlon XP 3000+ based system as a Windows Home Server (used to be my Power System before it fell into disuse). I’ve also recent bought an HP LX195 MediaSmart Windows Home Server since HP had a half price (MSRP) deal on it making it only ~$199 (with purchase of netbook, laptop or desktop).

Octavean:

... old ASUS A7N8X Deluxe / Athlon XP 3000+ based system....

Had the near-same machine running for years then retired it as my server but then upgraded to a Quad-Core based home server due to the speed of transcoding.

I am anxious for the next true version of home server based on Server 2008 R2. I currently have a small side project to create a hybrid version of Server 2008 R2 (RC) with Windows 7's Media Center, if I can get it working then making it work with the next true homeserver may be easy.

Yeah, for basic use you can probably get away with lower-end hardware. However, if you want more then just backups and want to run computationally demanding activities like transcoding you’ll likely need a more robust dual or quad core. More RAM may also be advisable too.

However, just to get your feet wet for the free 120 day Windows Home Server trial then by all means the old doorstop should get the job done.

 I installed PP3 the other day and I like it...alot. I have been able to move my shows over to my server and still watch them, even through the extender boxes.  Now I can hold my shows and have enough disk space to continue recording.  It works great even with copy protected material!!! 

I am running Home Server on an old P4 2.8ghz with 1.5gigs of ram and it works great!  Granted it's power hungry but it's amazing how well it runs on older hardware.

I like the additions.  TV Archive and Transcoding don't do much for me currently since I'm a DCT user, but once the new firmware is out that'll make that a little more usefull.  What I'm really hopeing for is being able to transcode that into mpeg4 for my iphone.  If I don't get the transcode to the iphone (which I know I won't) I can always stream it to the phone using Orb.  I don't really care about or want to sync from the MC interface, the machine is in my living room so it's much easier for me to sync at my desk.  The view only console is nice too, I like being able to take a quick look at what's going on.

I have two dct's and I have used the tv archive to move my shows recorded from the dct's over to WHS and it works great. No issues with license issues, the shows runs fine. For example I moved over all of rescue me and I just recorded a mad men marathon and moved it over and they still work great.