VS.NET on Windows 2003 Server

[Mark]

Are there any known issues with developing ASP.NET web applications directly
on Windows 2003 Server running VS.NET 2003 Pro, SQL Server client tools, and
using VSS for source control? Essentially using W2003 Server as a desktop
with the exception of leveraging IIS 6.0.

Thanks in advance.

Mark

 

[Alex Papadimoulis]

Mark,

It's seen as a general bad practice, is not recommended, and is much more
expensive ($200 vs $1500). A server is a server (and optimized as such). If
you need a server-enviornment, check out Virtual PC and run an instance of a
server in there.

Alex

 

[Mark]

Sorry - I should have mentioned that we're at a university. Due to the
education pricing, the pricing is not prohibitive.

Are there any other obvious reasons for not using Windows 2003 Server?
Thanks again.

Mark

 

[clintonG]

You paint with a broad brush Alex. Can you offer any specific reasons
why developing on a Windows 2003 Server is a 'bad practice?'

--
<%= Clinton Gallagher
A/E/C Consulting, Web Design, e-Commerce Software Development
Wauwatosa, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin USA
NET (e-mail address removed)
URL http://www.metromilwaukee.com/clintongallagher/

 

[Alex Papadimoulis]

Mark,

I've come across a handful of websites about Windows2003 as a Desktop OS.
IIRC, there are driver, software, and other quirks which I could immagine
getting annoying. Especially if affected games :-D.

Do some research on Google for the technical details. I came across one, but
didn't really read more than a few sentances:
http://www.osnews.com/story.php?news_id=3655

-- Alex Papadimoulis

 

[Kevin Spencer]

I use Windows 2003 Server as my development machine. No issues.

--
HTH,
Kevin Spencer
..Net Developer
Microsoft MVP
Big things are made up
of lots of little things.

 

[Scott Allen]

Mark:

I regularly develop on server platforms to deliver code for server
platforms. I like the idea of being comfortable in the environment
where my applications are going to execute, and when I go in to
troubleshoot or tweak a production machine I know where all the
buttons are.

There are some software and driver issues. Some software I've tried to
install annouces it supports XP only. I'm sure there are unsupported
devices out there as well. If you are strictly doing development I
wouldn't see much of an issue. One catch is many utilities (like
anti-virus software) have a much higher price tag to run on a server
machine, which is an annoyance when you don't use the machine as a
real server.

 

[Alex Papadimoulis]

Clinton,

When I think "developing on a Windows 2003 Server," I think "Windows 2003
Server as a desktop." So I should have clarified -- using a server OS as a
desktop OS for your development machine is not a good practice. I could go
into that further, but mainly because you'll still need to replicate a
*real* server enviornment -- a production server is not going to have
Office, VS.NET, AIM, etc. and so on that a desktop OS would have.

-- Alex Papadimoulis

 

[Kevin Spencer]

I might add that I've been using Windows Server 2003 for my development
machine for about a year now, with no issues.

--
HTH,
Kevin Spencer
..Net Developer
Microsoft MVP
Big things are made up
of lots of little things.

 

[clintonG]

Yea me too except I have some issues. My issues though are probably
-- me -- and not the OS. I'd like to figure it out and have been doing
as much study as possible but I haven't found the right documents or
other developers that really have the depth of knowledge of the internal
security model needed to understand why ASP.NET applications run
as NT Authority on my local testing server.

Same circumstances are prevalent at the host provider server...
SEE: http://metromilwaukee.com/tstroles.aspx

--
<%= Clinton Gallagher
A/E/C Consulting, Web Design, e-Commerce Software Development
Wauwatosa, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin USA
NET (e-mail address removed)
URL http://www.metromilwaukee.com/clintongallagher/

 

[clintonG]

I've had to find many work-arounds regarding the high cost
of server-side utilities. I use a Windows 2000 Pro machine
on my LAN for e-mail and virus checking. I download the mail
on the W2K machine and read it on the W2003 machine where
I also do all sending. All machines are behind a hardware firewall.

There are other issues thoug such as deep defrag to maintain
performance and disk reliability and imaging the OS which allows
restoring disk failures expediently. All of the server software for
those tasks is 'enterprise' with enterprise costs which for me are
out reach.

I would have chosen XP Pro where the cost of the many utilities
we need to stay operable are affordable. Death by a thousand cuts
but each cut only costs $69.95! ;-) but I wanted to learn everything I
could about IIS 6 and the W2003 OS as well as SharePoint Portal
Server so I chose W2003 but the risk of disk failure still looms.

--
<%= Clinton Gallagher
A/E/C Consulting, Web Design, e-Commerce Software Development
Wauwatosa, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin USA
NET (e-mail address removed)
URL http://www.metromilwaukee.com/clintongallagher/