Microsoft Windows Server 2019 Standard

Windows Server 2019 Standard: server operating system for physical and lightly virtualised environments

Windows Server 2019 Standard is the Standard edition of the Windows Server 2019 generation, which Microsoft released in the Long-Term Servicing Channel. It provides the basic server roles, including Active Directory, DNS, DHCP, Hyper-V and Failover Clustering, and permits two virtual machines on a fully licensed server. The edition is therefore suitable for businesses that operate a physical server or set up a small number of virtual servers on a Hyper-V host.

Licensing by processor cores

Microsoft licenses Windows Server 2019 Standard by physical processor cores. All physical cores of the server are licensed, but at least 8 cores per processor and 16 cores per server. Even a server with one processor and 8 cores therefore requires licences for 16 cores. If all cores are licensed, two operating system environments may run, i.e. two virtual machines; the physical host may additionally run Windows Server if it is used only to host and manage these virtual machines. For every two additional virtual machines, all cores of the server are licensed again.

Access licences are required in addition to the server licence. Every user or device that accesses the server directly or indirectly requires a Windows Server CAL, unless the Microsoft Product Terms provide for an exception. For Remote Desktop sessions, an RDS CAL per user or device is also required. Neither access licence is part of this offer.

Features of Windows Server 2019

Windows Admin Center is a locally installed, browser-based management interface for servers, clusters and Windows 10 PCs, which Microsoft provides at no additional cost. System Insights analyses performance counters and events directly on the server and makes predictions from them based on machine learning models. Storage Migration Service supports the migration of file servers: it inventories data and configuration on the older server, transfers them to the new one and can take over its identity, so that users do not have to set up their connections again.

With Storage Replica, volumes can be replicated to a second server or cluster for disaster recovery. In the Standard edition, the feature is available from Windows Server 2019 onwards, limited to one volume of up to 2 TB. For containerised applications, the edition supports any number of Windows containers and up to two Hyper-V containers. Windows Server 2019 is installed either as Server Core without a graphical interface or as Server with Desktop Experience.

Difference from Windows Server 2019 Datacenter

With fully licensed cores, the Datacenter edition permits any number of virtual machines on the server. It also contains Storage Spaces Direct, support for shielded virtual machines, Network Controller for software-defined networking and Storage Replica without the limitation to one volume. If more than two virtual servers are to run on one host, choose Windows Server 2019 Datacenter.

Buy Windows Server 2019 Standard: licence and scope of delivery

You select the number of cores via the product variant. Keys are offered for 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30 and 32 cores. What matters is that all physical cores of the server are licensed, with a minimum of 16 cores per server. Windows Server 2019 is installed exclusively as a 64-bit version. The scope of delivery includes:

• the product key for Windows Server 2019 Standard with the selected number of cores
• the download link for the installation file (all downloads are also available under Software Download)
• instructions for installation and activation (see also Guides and FAQ)
• the invoice with VAT shown separately

Once your payment has been received, your product key is displayed directly on the order confirmation page and also sent to you by email. After that, you can retrieve it again at any time: with a customer account under My Product Codes, without a customer account via the Guest Portal.

If you have any questions about installation or activation, our Support team is available around the clock by email. For several servers and larger environments, there are offers for businesses, schools and public authorities in the B2B Area. You will find further editions and access licences in the category Windows Server and under Operating Systems.

System requirements

Minimum requirements according to Microsoft for both installation options. Server roles, updates and servers with more than 16 GB of RAM require additional storage space.