In this chapter, you will learn about the available editions of Server 2012 and which version is right for your organization. In addition, you will discover the hardware requirements for installing Server 2012 as well as what’s required for deploying Hyper-V.

This chapter also outlines which upgrade paths from legacy Microsoft server products are supported and details step-by-step procedures for each installation option: Server Core and Server with a GUI. Also, I’ll give instructions on how to convert from one Server 2012 interface to another—and explain why an administrator would want to do so—as well as explain how to deploy the Minimal Server Interface and customize the server features using Features on Demand.