Windows Server 2016 was a big step up from 2012 and a much bigger jump from 2008 (which a lot of shops were still on). If you’re thinking about moving to 2016 or you’re already on Windows VPS hosting and weighing an upgrade, here’s a quick rundown of what changed. A lot of it revolves around virtualization and Hyper-V.
Nano Server
Nano Server is a stripped-down edition of Windows – no full GUI, minimal footprint. You can run Hyper-V on it or use it for other roles that don’t need the full desktop experience. If you’re migrating a server that mainly runs Hyper-V, Nano can reduce overhead and patching surface. It’s not for every workload, but for headless and VM host scenarios it’s worth a look.
Docker containers on Windows
Docker started on Linux; with 2016, Windows got native container support. You can run Windows containers on a Windows Server 2016 box – and the Windows container code is open source. So if you’re used to Docker on Linux and need Windows in the mix, you get a similar model. Containers work with Hyper-V or on a dedicated Windows Server machine.
Add/remove virtual adapters without rebooting
In older Hyper-V versions, adding or removing virtual network adapters on a VM often meant a reboot. In 2016 you can do it live. Fewer reboots means less planned downtime, which matters when that VM is running something critical.
Nested virtualization
Before 2016, virtualization was something you did on physical hardware. With 2016 you can run Hyper-V inside a VM – so you can spin up a VM that itself runs VMs. It’s not for every production scenario, but it’s useful for labs, testing, and training without needing extra physical servers.
Better PowerShell support for VMs
PowerShell is the standard way to automate and manage Windows servers. In 2016, PowerShell has better support for managing virtual machines – more cmdlets and more consistent behavior. If you script your infrastructure, the VM story gets easier. You can also run Python and other scripting on 2016; the focus here is on the VM-related improvements.
Linux Secure Boot in VMs
If you run Linux as a guest in Hyper-V on Windows Server 2016, you get Secure Boot support for those Linux VMs. That helps protect the boot process from tampering and rootkits, which is especially relevant when Windows hosts are targets and you’re mixing Windows and Linux in the same environment.
If you’re interested in Windows Server 2016 or other Microsoft stack options on a VPS, we’ve been running Windows servers and supporting Microsoft products for years. You can see our Windows VPS hosting plans or contact us to talk about what you need.