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How To Install Windows Small Business Server 2008

Posted on December 2nd, 2008 by Brian Nelson 12 Comments »

Brian NelsonWindows Small Business Severs 2008 (SBS 2008) is the successor to SBS 2003, and it brings the various components SBS is based on up to date.

This includes the server itself being based on Windows Server 2008, the mail server component up to Exchange Server 2007, and in the Premium Edition, SQL Server 2008 Standard Small Business Edition.

Also, new features and options are now available.

You can find out more about SBS 2008 and what it has to offer in my Intro to Microsoft Small Business Server 2008.


Minimum Hardware Requirements

Like all operating systems, SBS 2008 requires a minimum amount of power to run. To run well, the server hardware should easily cover the minimum requirements.

SBS 2008 requires a 64-bit processor (2 GHz min.) and 4 GB of RAM but Microsoft recommends 6GB to 8GB with a 32GB maximum. SBS 2008 also requires at least 60 GB of disk space and an Ethernet connection.


Installing Small Business Sever 2008

The main purpose of SBS 2008 is so that small businesses without technical support staff can take advantage of Microsoft’s powerful, but complex server based technologies. For this reason, most people will purchase a SBS 2008 server from the manufacturer with SBS 2008 already installed.

In that case, setup will only require handling the server configurations steps. However, in the interest of being complete, we’ll cover the full installation from the DVD installation media.

If you’ve setup a couple of workstations before, you may be used to installing the computer and then worrying about getting the network setup later.

With SBS 2008, it needs the network connection from the very beginning, so this is not an option. Make sure that your live network connection is plugged into the SBS 2008 server before starting the installation.

1. Put the SBS 2008 DVD in the DVD drive and power up the computer. Your specific computer will determine what you see as the server boots up.

Look for a message that says something like, "Boot Menu," or "Choose Boot Device," or "Press F10 To Enter Boot Menu".

The server may go right to a screen which allows a choice of boot device based on detecting the bootable SBS 2008 DVD in the drive.



2. Select to boot from the DVD.



3. If you’ve never installed a Server in a country other than America, the next three questions seem a little silly. Choose the Language, the Time and Currency format, and the Keyboard Type.



4. Click Next, and then Install Now.



5. Inputting the product key and agreeing to the license agreement are next. Now, we can get down to some real business.



6. Choose Custom for the installation type. This allows you to choose where to put the operating system.

Ideally, SBS 2008 should have the operating system on its own partition on its own hard disk and the data on a separate partition and separate disk or disks.

To accomplish this, select the disk the operating system is to be installed on and Choose Drive Options and click New.

The default partition size that appears will be the size of the entire disk. Click Apply and setup will create a single partition which fills the entire disk. This will be the SBS 2008 system partition.



7. Setup will begin copying files to do the install. Keep in mind that this is around 60GB worth of files, so even on a fast system, this will take several minutes.

Now, is a good time to get a cup of coffee.


Configuring SBS 2008 For Initial Installation

When setup is done copying files, it will display the Continue Installation screen.



1. Click Next and setup will move on to collecting the information required to turn the server into a functioning business server.



2. Choose your time zone and then click Go online and get the most recent installation updates.

You can, of course, choose to skip this step, but assuming the most recent installation updates are probably something you’ll want installed before you put your server into production anyway, you might as well get them now.



3. Next comes the Company Information. The data input into the Company Information screen doesn’t actually do anything at this point.

Instead, the purpose of the screen is to give the setup program the answers it will need for several different processes, which saves the installer from having to input the same information in multiple places.

What this means, is that the information input here needs to be correct. A typo could end up in twenty different places, so take a second and verify the inputs.



4. The next step is to choose a Server Name (just make sure you don’t have any other servers with the same name) and a Domain Name.

Consider the Domain Name to be the name of your network. It may sound good to use the company name as the Domain Name, but it really isn’t. You aren’t naming your company, you are naming your Microsoft security resource and network model and structure.

Your company name can be part of the domain name, but keep it short. The last thing you want is to be dealing with typing in a big domain name over and over again should the need arise.



5. Next, it is time to setup the administrator account. This is not the same as the built-in administrator account, so you want to choose another name.

Microsoft recommends you write down your network administrator account name and password and keep it in a safe place.

The desk drawer is NOT a safe place and neither is the cork board on the wall next to the server (Don’t laugh, I’ve seen it!) The place where you keep "petty cash" or where you put the company checks overnight when the cleaning crew comes through is a "safe" place.



6. At this point, the summary page shows up and you can double check everything one more time. Unfortunately, the only way to fix anything is with the BACK button, so hopefully there aren’t any changes to be made.

Click Next, and setup will finish installing the SBS server.


What’s Next?

At this point, the SBS 2008 Server is installed, but it really isn’t ready to do anything. That is where the Getting Started Tasks come in. We’ll look at those next time.

The really important thing to notice is that the end of the setup process automatically logs you in with the administrator account you created during setup, so if you aren’t going to do the Getting Started Tasks right away, at least make sure you lock the console!



 

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12 Responses to “How To Install Windows Small Business Server 2008”

  • David Baker Says:

    January 15th, 2009 at 5:19 am

    Great job Brian, well done, just what I was looking for.

    I’m just unpacking my new Dell server with SBS2008 right now (15th Jan 2009).

    I see that a network connection is essential, is this a registration issue or a setup requirement, e.g. can this be any network connection, or does it need to be the final one ? as its final one won’t have direct Internet access and won’t be able to download updates (except via WSUS) – MOD restrictions !

    I was hoping to set it up on my standalone router with a direct internet connection and then move it across later (after registration / updates, etc). I can change the standalone router’s IP to match the final one without too much trouble.

    What is the difference in the 2 admin accounts, I don’t know what each one handles – knowing might help me pick a more suitable name, etc. Our existing server has SBS2000 on it and I only have one admin account to access everything.

    Regards, Dave B.

  • Michalec Says:

    January 15th, 2009 at 9:22 am

    Getting Started Tasks? Where is this? When I installed mine it came up with the Windows SBS Console. Maybe it is because I am using Premium.

    The only reason I am asking is I cannot figure out how to install the SQL component for it. If I use the CD it asks for a Product Key. The MS rep said there is a way to install it from the SBS Installation Menu. What/where is that?

    If anyone know, I sure would appreciate an answer.

  • Shane Taylor Says:

    February 6th, 2009 at 6:54 am

    I have an interesting install issue…

    I decided to download Windows SBS 2008 Standard Trial but could never get the dvd disk I made with the ISO image to boot. I then just extracted the contents of the ISO file using 7-Zip to the secondary hard drive I have installed on my Vista x64 system. I was able to install the server that way with no problems until it actually started for the first time. I am getting a “System drive not supported. Must be installed on the C: partition” It will not let me go any further with the server setup. Does Windows SBS 2008 have to be considered the “default” OS to work on a partition other than C:?

  • Bruce Says:

    March 8th, 2009 at 12:46 pm

    When is the SBS 2008 Training coming out?

  • Dinakar Says:

    May 19th, 2009 at 11:34 pm

    Is there any way to customize the installation? I mean, I do not want the installation process to install all the services. I do not want to use MS Exchange Server which installs automatically.

    How can I do that?

    Thanks in advance.
    Dinakar

  • George Paul Says:

    June 11th, 2009 at 12:05 am

    Dear Sir

    I purchased SBS 2008 PREMIUM and installed on IBM server, But the Microsoft Exchange has not automatically installed. I think i have not properly installed. I would like to know how to install Microsoft Exchange again without disturbing the present server setup

    regards

    George Paul

  • Andy Says:

    July 1st, 2009 at 5:28 am

    Is there a way to deploy the Unified Messaging Server Role?
    At the moment it is deactivated in the Exchange Server 2007 SP1 Setup Server Role Selection. Any hint is gratly appreciated.

    Andy

  • James Marcus Says:

    July 28th, 2009 at 3:10 pm

    Hi,
    I was told when I installed SBS 2008 trial I would be able to simply activate once we purchased our license. I confirmed twice with Microsoft and once with my Dell rep when we purchased the license. Does anyone know the proper way to do this?
    Now I have been told by Microsoft Licensing that I need to reinstall clean. I asked Dell to get their MS person on the phone and he said I just put the CD in and will be prompted to activate. Any ideas?

    Thanks

  • Dick Goemans Says:

    November 25th, 2009 at 4:47 pm

    Hello,

    I’m also planning to start with a downloaded trial because we are waiting for a open licence activation key. Will the activation be possible after installation?
    Or do we need a clean install?

    Please advise,
    Thanks,
    Dick

  • Peter Carboni Says:

    January 11th, 2010 at 8:18 am

    Hi All

    When is SBS2008 training released ??????

    PC

  • Kasia Grabowska Says:

    January 11th, 2010 at 2:54 pm

    Soon, really soon! I promise :)

    I know we have been saying this for like a month now, but we’re really close to getting SBS 2008 training out. Our tentative release date is before the end of January.

  • Johnny Says:

    January 22nd, 2010 at 9:21 am

    Any chance in helping us with this little side issue. We need to install SQL Server 2008 on a SBS 2008 server. But for some reason, SBS 2008 installs SQL Server 2005 Express for the SBS Monitoring instance. Is it better to upgrade the Express instance while installing 2008? Any comments on this or articles you might suggest?

    Thanks

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