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Best of TechEd 2013 – What’s New in Hyper-V in Windows Server 2012 R2

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Didn’t make it to TechEd this year? Don’t worry!  This month, we’ll be releasing a new article series that highlights the Best of TechEd announcements and technical information for IT Pros.  Today’s article focuses on enhancements in Hyper-V server virtualization in the upcoming Windows Server 2012 R2 release.

Last week at TechEd 2013 North America, we announced Windows Server 2012 R2 – the next major release of Windows Server! We’ve already made significant virtualization improvements around Hyper-V in Windows Server 2012 – across the board, including scale, availability, management, storage, networking – BUT there’s a TON of new and enhanced capabilities planned for Hyper-V in the forthcoming Windows Server 2012 R2 release. 

In this article, we’ll provide an overview of these enhancements. After you review these new capabilities, I’m sure you’ll see why the R2 release is a MAJOR RELEASE – so MUCH MORE than “just another” Service Pack release!

Hyper-V – What’s New in Windows Server 2012 R2

Ben Armstrong, Hyper-V Program Manager, delivered an outstanding session at TechEd 2013 that provides an overview of the new and enhanced Hyper-V virtualization capabilities that will be available in Windows Server 2012 R2.  Below, I’ve provided a clickable index to Ben’s recorded session, so that you can easily concentrate on learning about the areas that are most important to your environment.

Download the deck and video for offline viewing.

Session Index – What’s New in Hyper-V in Windows Server 2012 R2

Now, it’s your turn … Let us know your feedback!

Which of the new capabilities of Hyper-V in Windows Server 2012 R2 are your favorites? Let us know in the comments section below …

- Keith

Comments

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    Hi Kristi, Hyper-V Replica cannot be used with Pass-through disks, however with the performance and scale improvements with using VHDX virtual hard disks, I haven't seen a noticeable performance difference between VHDX and pass-through disks.  As a result, I see most customers trending towards using VHDX's as their virtual hard disk option of choice with Windows Server 2012 and Hyper-V Server 2012. Hope this helps! Keith

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    Great, thanks for sharing

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    The comment has been removed

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    Hi Gridley, Actually, there's a couple recommended ways to support USB pass-through to VM's when using Hyper-V: 1 - Client USB Pass-through via RDP session ( or with R2 via VMConnect which now uses RDP over VMBus for the virtual console connection ) 2 - Use a supported 3rd Party solution, such as Digi's AnywhereUSB to provide USB device access to VMs regardless of Hyper-V host. ( See details at blogs.technet.com/.../usb-device-access-with-hyperv-child-vms-yes-itcamp.aspx ).   Regardless of hypervisor platform, I frequently see most Enterprise shops using a 3rd party solution for USB pass-through into VM's, such as Digi's solution above for a couple reasons (1) It maintains the USB connections when a Live Migration of VM's is performed across hosts ( even when restarting a VM after a Live Migration occurs - something that other hypervisor platforms can't do without a third party solution like Digi's ) and (2) it provides a convenient way to centralize USB device passthrough without need to resort to plugging devices directly into virtualization hosts ( many of my Enterprise customers actually have policies that prohibit inserting USB devices directly into virtualization hosts that are running in production - regardless of platform - as a physical security best practice ). Hope this helps! Keith

  • Anonymous
    June 13, 2013
    is there plans to allow bitlockered disks for guest operating systems?

  • Anonymous
    August 13, 2013
    The comment has been removed

  • Anonymous
    August 16, 2013
    Can we replicate HA VMs with pass through disks in 2012 R2 Hyper-V replica?

  • Anonymous
    December 23, 2013
    December 23rd, 2013: Updated to include additional resources ... Module 0: Added links for New FREE EBOOKS and Documentation for Windows Server 2012 R2, System Center 2012 R2 VMM and Windows Azure Pack Module 1: Added links to Datacenter TCO

  • Anonymous
    December 23, 2013
    December 23rd, 2013: Updated to include additional resources ... Module 0: Added links for New FREE EBOOKS and Documentation for Windows Server 2012 R2, System Center 2012 R2 VMM and Windows Azure Pack Module 1: Added links to Datacenter TCO

  • Anonymous
    January 07, 2014
    Pingback from Video – Best of teched 2013 for Hyper-v 2012 R2 | MPGNotes

  • Anonymous
    February 27, 2014
    Throughout our Disaster Recovery Planning Series of IT Pros this month, we've been discussing the steps involved in planning an effective Disaster Recovery strategy ... And planning for the additional capacity needed to implement a successful DR plan

  • Anonymous
    April 11, 2014
    April 11, 2014: Updated to include additional resources ...

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