Note 1 : Notes 8.5.2 is beta and there are no guarantees that the features described here will be in the final product that IBM ships.
Note 2 : The description below is for a development server and may or may not be suitable for production depending on your circumstances.
Having moved to Amazon EC2 I I recently decommissioned an old Dell Poweredge 650 server and decided to put it to good use to test 8.5.2 CD5. This server has no DVD drive, is 32 bit and cannot boot from USB.
My original plan had been to get some more experience of Server 2008 R2 but I ended up going down the Linux route as it was much simpler.
Linux Install
Download CDs for Centos 5.5 ( yes I know it is not officially supported )
Do a minimal install – don’t even choose the server options
Access the server via SSH using Putty
Upload the install files using Win SCP
Install Domino
Install Traveler ( using the silent install feature )
Install Daniel Nashed’s startup scripts
Windows Install
Check Server 2008 R2 requirements – 64 bit – oops
Eventually find Server 2008 Standard 32 Bit
Can only be installed from DVD – oops
Create a boot usb instead using this very useful hint – easiest way to make a boot disk I have seen so far
Server won’t boot from USB – oops
Create a Windows 7 Recovery Disk
Boot from the Recovery Disk
Navigate to the option for command prompt
Plug in the USB drive
Access the Server 2008 setup files on the USB drive
Install Windows Server 2008
Upload Domino Install Files
Install Traveler
The thoughts that came to mind were :
The 64 Bit install
To satisfy my original intention to try out Server 2008 I decided to install it on my 64 bit laptop.
I have previously installed 64 Bit Centos which allowed me to install it to and then boot from a USB drive leaving the original 32 bit Windows 7 install on the laptop intact.
No such luck with Windows. It will not install to a USB drive so you need to create a partition or swap out the disc – I guess I needed a disc upgrade anyway, maybe I should buy a 64 bit dev server after all. You would almost think that it was MS who sold hardware.
p.s. MS do some great software too !