What is Microsoft "Centro"?
IT Infrastructure Solutions
it infrastructure solutions
To better serve the more than 1.4 million midsize businesses worldwide and the IT professionals who keep their technology moving, Microsoft has begun development of "Centro"—the code name for new IT infrastructure solutions designed to help midsize businesses save time and money and enable IT professionals to do more with less.
On This Page
"Centro" will be built on Windows Server "Longhorn" technologies
"Centro" is built on the Windows Server "Longhorn" technologies and includes a next-generation e-mail system, next-generation management experience, and next-generation security technologies brought together into a single solution. Designed to help midsize businesses achieve greater efficiency, "Centro" will help simplify the management and deployment of the company infrastructure while facilitating greater integration, security, and automation of specific tasks.
Helping IT people is the primary focus of the "Centro" solution
Microsoft "Centro" is being developed to address the needs of a specific midsize business role—the overworked IT generalist. Midsize companies have anywhere from 25 to 500 PCs and only a few IT people to keep all aspects of the business running—from phones and fax machines to PCs and servers. It’s challenging for a small IT team to perform tasks across all the technologies with which they work, forcing them to be reactive rather than proactive. They don't get to spend a lot of time focusing on how to move the company IT goals forward.
"Centro" will integrate multiple technologies into single IT infrastructure solutions that will be easier to deploy and manage. Processes that used to take hours, if not days, to accomplish will be take less time and be less complex. This simplicity will allow IT professionals to be more proactive, giving them more time to focus on their company’s IT infrastructure solutions and maximizing business value.
"Centro" will allow partners to offer a single, customized IT infrastructure solutions
Business solution partners face challenges too, when helping their midsize business customers. Because midsize businesses often have multiple technology needs, partners must sell several different products, educate them about each product, and then bring them together to form a complete solution.
"Centro" will give partners a simple sales model that will allow them to offer their customers a single, integrated solution designed specifically for them—a solution that will bring customers significant business and IT benefits.
When will "Centro" be available?
"Centro" is in the early stages of development, but Microsoft plans to make this solution available to customers soon after Windows Server "Longhorn" is available. As with all other products, at regular checkpoints, Microsoft will provide information broadly to customers, partners, and the industry.
