Windows Server 2022: What's new?

After around three years of development, Microsoft released Windows Server 2022 — the tenth release of its operating system — on 18 August 2021. Compared with earlier versions, the update introduces numerous new features that, among other things, extend functionality and improve security. In addition to these important arguments, other aspects also speak in favour of upgrading to or using the new generation Microsoft Windows Server 2022: these include, for example, the provision of updates through Mainstream Support or the Azure edition with native support for hosting and managing virtual machines in the cloud.

What are the most important new features of Windows Server 2022?

Although Microsoft also equips its operating systems with new features via regular updates, major and potentially fundamental changes usually only occur with a version jump. There are several reasons for this approach — two of the decisive ones are stability and a uniform base configuration as well as setup during installation of the operating system (OS). Accordingly, Microsoft Windows Server 2022 contains significant innovations from which users benefit even if they do not use the new features. Among the most important features of the update are, for example:

• Enabling secure connections via HTTPS and SSL certificates with TLS 1.3 as the default
• Improved Admin Center with more security features and other enhancements
• Faster Server Response Time (SRT) through optimised transmission using TCP and UDP protocols
• Higher speed for checking, repairing or synchronising storage media
• More efficient compression for Server Message Block (SMB) and other network protocols
• Integration of Secure DNS via DNS-over-HTTPS for secure communication with nameservers
• Support for AES 256-bit encryption for SMB
• New methods for compressing data during storage replication between source and target servers

Many of the innovations in Windows Server 2022 are not immediately visible because they operate at a technical level and introduce new security standards or optimise the performance of hardware, protocols and communications. However, they have a measurable effect on performance and noticeably improve it, especially under high load.

What other reasons are there for Microsoft Windows 2022?

In general, Windows Server 2022 offers its users many advantages and additional features compared with earlier versions: anyone choosing between different editions when taking out a new contract should, in any case, always pick the latest release. For production systems and when renewing a contract, however, whether migrating from an older Microsoft Server OS to a newer one is worthwhile depends on the individual situation. The decision must consider a number of factors, to which higher or lower priority should be assigned depending on the starting point:

• Provider-dependent costs for migration and support during the update
• Use for commercial, public or private purposes
• Integration of new standards and technologies for improved performance and security
• Amount of own work and time required for an update in production systems
• Coordination with other steps - for example a server migration on a fixed date
• Expected duration of a project over a predictable or indefinite period

Generally, switching is fundamentally worthwhile for all servers used commercially or for business in the long term, provided it does not result in clearly disproportionate costs, working hours or outages of an important website. One decisive reason is that this change will inevitably become necessary at some point anyway, because Microsoft maintains Mainstream support for Windows Server 2019 only until early 2024 and ends the paid Extended Support five years later. For long-term use, Windows Server 2022 is among the versions with a Long Term Support (LTS) that the company guarantees until at least the end of 2026.

What are the hardware requirements for Windows Server 2022?

With Microsoft Windows Server 2022, users can choose between two different editions that have different hardware requirements. The first is called Server Core and contains the basic operating system without a graphical interface. It requires at least an Intel or AMD processor with a 1.4 GHz clock speed or higher, a network connection with at least 1 Gbps bandwidth and 512 MB RAM. The requirements increase to 2 GB or more of RAM if the full operating system including a graphical user interface (GUI) is to be installed in one of the Desktop versions.

The choice also affects the required storage space on the boot medium - the Server Core versions need at least 32 GB free, while the Desktop variant requires 36 GB on the drive. As with Windows 11, released at the end of 2021, Windows Server 2022 also requires a Trusted Platform Module (TPM) compatible with version 2.0 of the standard, which is used for data encryption and verification. For security reasons, an installation without a TPM or with older chips of the 1.x specification is only possible by indirect means and requires physical access to the server and the use of a monitor to change crucial parameters during the set-up.

Which versions of Windows Server 2022 does Microsoft offer?

Microsoft offers its customers a total of four different editions, each optimised for particular environments or purposes. They include:

• Essential with a limited number of users and devices
• Standard with support for up to two virtual machines on a Hyper-V host
• Datacenter for complex networks, virtualised data centres or cloud hosting
• Azure Datacenter for integration with the Microsoft Azure platform

All versions also allow a choice between Server Core and the Desktop Edition. The latter primarily offers advantages when there is physical access to the hardware and the server has a monitor and input devices. Use on remote machines is also possible and permits the use of remote administration tools such as Virtual Network Computing (VNC) software — however, it does not necessarily provide practical configuration advantages.

Who should upgrade to Windows Server 2022?

When taking out a new contract (for example for Windows web hosting) most web hosts offer only the current version of Windows Server. The situation can be different, however, for virtual servers running within an existing system — switching can involve technical difficulties that prevent a rapid update to Windows Server 2022. Another reason for some companies is protection of existing installations. In general, updates usually do not cause problems and services such as the IIS web server for a website remain continuously available — however, this cannot be guaranteed for all configurations.

In principle, an update to Windows Server 2022 is worthwhile for all users, because the changes particularly enhance the security of IT infrastructures. In any case, an upgrade will in most cases become unavoidable at the latest when mainstream support ends in 2024. The only exception is short-term projects that can be completed within a few months or that are connected only via an intranet so that there is no external access. In these cases older versions can also be used if no new features are required and the migration would incur additional costs or substantial work.

Our article is based on our own experience and research as well as information from external sources.

Sources & further links on the topic:

https://www.microsoft.com/de-de/windows-server (Official website of Microsoft)