Windows Home Server

[Lazybones]

http://www.engadget.com/2007/01/08/windows-home-server-everything-you-need-features-rundown-scre/

*  Units are headless and embedded only -- you cannot buy WHS and put it on an old PC.
    * There is no common web interface. Interaction is entirely client software based, or done over SMB.
    * It cannot directly stream media to Media Center Extenders, but it can stream media directly to Windows Media Connect-enabled devices.
    * It does not use RAID, but instead uses a RAID-like drive pooling system with built-in redundancy. Expanding capacity is as simple as adding additional drives internally or externally via USB. We can't say for sure, but we have a feeling if you were to unplug that external drive, your data wouldn't go with it since it's probably spanned across the array.
    * The client software, which is installable only on Windows PCs (duh) monitors PC health, manages backups, and supports full disk images and versions. If your computer crashes hard you can pop in an restore CD and it'll pull the disk image over the network.
    * Your WHS device gets registered with your Windows Live account and is made easily-findable by authorized parties (i.e. you and anyone you designate) while on the go. You can even connect to it via Live and pipe a Remote Desktop connection to a PC on your home network through this Home-finding Live feature.

Interesting, but after reading this.. it is not what I had hoped it would be.... Not much advantage over the NAS boxes that have already been made available on the market.

[Shayne]

I gotta agree.  I was hoping for like a home server OS version of Vista, lots of flexibility and such.  I would like to see this in action though before I make some sort of decision.

[Lazybones]

* It cannot directly stream media to Media Center Extenders, but it can stream media directly to Windows Media Connect-enabled devices.

This all but kills the whole Idea for me.. I hate the way  Media Center Extenders/Windows Media Connect works as it is, the fact it CAN'T be used with Extenders just makes the home configuration complex again.

[Shayne]

Ya, and the 360 is a media extender.  Well, i agree, its pretty worthless now.