All three editions of Windows Server 2022 are here

By Robert Carnevale
published

Windows Server 2022 is here, and in a decade, it will go.

Windows 11 Tease
Windows 11 Tease (Image credit: Microsoft)

What you need to know

  • Windows Server 2022 is here.
  • It comes in three flavors: Standard, Datacenter, and Datacenter: Azure Edition.
  • Its extended end date is October 14, 2031.

Windows Server 2022 is officially here (opens in new tab), as of August 18, 2021. There are three variations of it: Standard, Datacenter, and Datacenter: Azure Edition. Its mainstream end date is October 13, 2026, and its extended end date is October 14, 2031. That's the news.

Those of you interested in said news likely already know full well what Windows Server is. But for those of you who've stumbled upon this article and don't know, here's how Microsoft describes its product (opens in new tab):

Windows Server is the platform for building an infrastructure of connected applications, networks, and web services, from the workgroup to the data center. It bridges on-premises environments with Azure, adding additional layers of security while helping you modernize your applications and infrastructure.

Boiled down even further: It's an operating system for servers, as the name implies. On the off chance that news doesn't exactly get you bouncing out of your seat with intrigue and excitement, consider perusing other news that contains keywords such as "Windows" and "Azure." For example, did you know that Azure is helping the International Space Station since that thing only gets two hours of internet per week? The ISS is bound to the same internet rules as a kid with really strict parents; it's pretty wild stuff.

And if you want exciting Windows news, check out the latest scoops on Windows 11. The new OS has plenty of big things going on, such as a refreshed Clock app that'll completely overhaul how you focus yourself on work. Just kidding, it probably won't drastically alter your life, but its Focus Sessions feature will at least give you a helping hand with staying on task.

Robert Carnevale
Robert Carnevale

Robert Carnevale is the News Editor for Windows Central. He's a big fan of Kinect (it lives on in his heart), Sonic the Hedgehog, and the legendary intersection of those two titans, Sonic Free Riders. He is the author of Cold War 2395. Have a useful tip? Send it to robert.carnevale@futurenet.com.

5 Comments
  • This is an informative post. Got a lot of info and details from here. Thank you for sharing this and looking forward to reading more of your post. <a href="https://www.daisoftware.com/Products/On-Demand-Food-Delivery-App-Develop... title="online food delivery app development">online food delivery app development</a>
  • So it is gonna have Windows 11? Right ?
  • Windows Server 2022 is build 20348, so no.
  • Given how much of windows 11 is just UI window dressing that hardly seems necessary
  • This may be the first generation of Windows Server that I don't bring home. MS has effectively moved me to the cloud. I have run a Windows Server cluster with multiple RAID arrays for all our files and full redundancy on everything for my family since about 2002. I stopped running Exchange and moved to Exchange online in early 2020. I think at this point, there is little reason to run the OS either. Microsoft has been really unfriendly to those of us running local domains that are not joined to AAD - Azure Active Directory. For example, Timeline never worked for on-premise domains using Windows Server, even if the user used a Microsoft account. The main things I'll lose if I drop Windows Server as my file and network management system and just move to a bunch of separate Windows PCs: 1. OneDrive still doesn't support local syncing, so if Internet speeds are slow, all systems pulling from the cloud can take days. Dropbox supports this, so it remains my hope that OneDrive will add it. Until then, I may keep the Windows Server just for the file sharing strengths. 2. Central control over security for all computers. If I moved to AAD, I'd preserve this, but if I drop Windows Server support, I'll probably also drop the full AD too. 3. DHCP and DNS control, WSUS for update approvals. But none of these are critical.