Windows Server 2003 Readiness: Frequently Asked Questions
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This FAQ answers questions that are commonly asked by independent software vendors (ISVs) who are preparing to launch and certify applications for Windows Server 2003. Click a question to view its answer. To view all the answers at one time, select the View all answers check box.
| Q. | Should I develop or support applications for Windows Server 2003 Web Edition? |
| A. | Windows Server 2003 Web Edition, is a single-purpose Web server operating system designed for organizations that need an economical way to rapidly build and deploy Web pages, Web sites, and Web services. For application platform support, we recommend concentrating your efforts on Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition; Windows Server 2003 Enterprise Edition; and Windows Server 2003 Datacenter Edition. |
| Q. | Do I need to buy expensive hardware to support Windows 2000 Datacenter Server or Windows Server 2003 Datacenter Edition? |
| A. | No. Unless you are doing performance tuning such as benchmarks, you can replicate and resolve almost all issues on Datacenter Server by installing the operating system on any system with 8 processors of CPU and 8 gigabytes (GB) of memory installed. |
| Q. | How do the changes to the default security settings in Internet Explorer affect ISVs and their applications? |
| A. | After the second release candidate (RC2) of Windows Server 2003, changes were made to the security settings for Internet Explorer. The default settings for Internet Explorer now are set at the highest level of security. These changes are designed to limit the surface area that is vulnerable to attacks from scripts, ActiveX controls, Java virtual machines, and plug-ins. However, these changes also affect how Web-side controls on intranet and Internet sites can be run. To find out why these changes were made, how users are affected, and what you can do, see the MSDN webcast Windows Server 2003 Internet Explorer Security Setting Functionality. For more information about application compatibility, see Guide to Application Compatibility Changes in the Microsoft Downloads Center. |
| Q. | How does the announcement about Microsoft and Connectix Corporation affect ISVs? |
| A. | Microsoft has acquired the assets of Connectix Corporation, a leading provider of virtual machine technology, including the soon-to-be released product, Virtual Server. For ISVs, the short-term impact most likely will be limited. However, this transaction benefits ISVs, because customers will have more flexibility in deploying applications. In the medium term, Microsoft suggests that ISVs test their applications on virtual machines and review their licensing models, which will need to take into the account whether customers can run their applications on virtual machines. For more information, see the Virtual Machine Solution news bulletin. |
