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    Windows Server 2003 or 2008 on my Z

    Discussion in 'VAIO / Sony' started by techadventures, Apr 3, 2009.

  1. techadventures

    techadventures Notebook Consultant

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    Hey Everybody

    Has anybody put Server 2003 or 2008 on there sony z laptop? I am considering dual booting xp and server 2003/2008. Does everything work? I would think it works fine as they are the same code base as XP and Vista.

    Thanks
     
    techadventures, Apr 3, 2009
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  2. arth1

    arth1 a҉r҉t҉h

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    The question is why? Are you going to run a domain controller on your laptop?
     
    arth1, Apr 3, 2009
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  3. techadventures

    techadventures Notebook Consultant

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    The answer is...I am learning Server 2003 for my small business and it would be nice to have dual boot into Server 2003, just for learning purposes.
     
    techadventures, Apr 4, 2009
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  4. google123

    google123 Notebook Enthusiast

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    I think that running it in a virtual machine would be better.
     
    google123, Apr 4, 2009
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  5. andyasselin

    andyasselin Notebook Deity

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    I wound Second Virtual Machine it easy to more complex test setup

    like daul network card you cound setup router and remote acess

    you can also setup anythey vmware with xp pro to jion domain name


    so you can test out many other features
     
    andyasselin, Apr 4, 2009
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  6. ZoinksS2k

    ZoinksS2k Notebook Virtuoso

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    I run a development shop and some of my .NET developers prefer to run the host OS as their desktop. It is still a bit silly, but I tollerate it.

    As for operations, it is true that Vista and 2008 share much of the same code base. Install W2k8 Standard, follow the Vista install doco's in this forum and you should be OK. I don't know how it will like some of the Sony power management utils. Servers don't usually sleep/hibernate.
     
    ZoinksS2k, Apr 4, 2009
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  7. arth1

    arth1 a҉r҉t҉h

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    You can't. Sony has turned off Intel Virtualization support (VT-x) in the BIOS, which means no running 64-bit guest OSes on a Z despite the hardware supporting it.
     
    arth1, Apr 4, 2009
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  8. Vogelbung

    Vogelbung I R Judgemental

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    I didn't know that - I haven't done anything with VM's on the Zs yet, so figures. Well that sucks.
     
    Vogelbung, Apr 4, 2009
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  9. FenderP

    FenderP Notebook Deity

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    This is a well known issue with Vaios. I do use mine for a lot of VM stuff; having a 64-bit OS just means you have more access to memory so you can run more 32-bit guests. Right now it's not a sticking issue but as soon as I need to run Windows Server 2008 R2 as a guest, I'll have to find another laptop since it is a 64-bit only OS.
     
    FenderP, Apr 5, 2009
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  10. arth1

    arth1 a҉r҉t҉h

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    A 64-bit OS will also give a nice speed benefit for apps that have a native 64-bit version. See here for some benchmarks.

    My workstation still runs 32-bit XP, due to a hardware compatibility problem. But whenever I need to encode a video, I fire up vmware and a 64-bit OS to do it in, because even with the overhead of vmware and virtualization, the 64-bit version of the encoder is much faster. As in 45 minutes instead of an hour for a typical captured movie or TV show. That's significant.
    With my Z, this is not an option, due to VT-x being disabled by Sony, so I can't run a 64-bit guest. Even if I install Vista 64-bit, I still won't be able to run 64-bit Fedora (e.g.) as a guest.

    This is, by the way, the #2 reason why I won't recommend a Vaio Z to others. (The #1 reason is the lack of driver updates.)
     
    arth1, Apr 5, 2009
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  11. FenderP

    FenderP Notebook Deity

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    Windows 7 64-bit is VERY zippy on the Z. It's been my main OS since getting my Z back from Japan. It's much better than Vista 64-bit, or even Windows 7 32-bit.

    I'm still hopeful someone will reverse engineer the H2O BIOS to unlock VT-x. I'm well aware of the guest issue, but my need for 64-bit guests is for work stuff, not anything like video encoding.

    I'd miss the Z if I had to get another laptop because to date, it's been the best in terms of power/size/portability I've owned to date. Sadly, I've already started scoping out replacement candidates.
     
    FenderP, Apr 6, 2009
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