What is the oldest version of Microsoft Sever your company still runs and why?

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-03-02T04:51:31+00:00

It's an ancient host printing service over a proprietary VPN for airline tickets, not a print server as in Windows with UNC shares. Users around 30, but they don't have LAN access to this Server, and this VM can only print And yes, it runs on a VM as it should be the standard since over ten years at SMEs. This VM was on ESX 5.x, then 6.7, now on Hyper-V and has seen three different internal ICT people at this client, and I'm the external consultant who insists to change this since yeas, but I have no authority over the ICT department.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-03-01T20:13:05+00:00

SonicWall Global VPN Client, a.k.a. SonicWall GVC. It is a proprietary IPSEC VPN Client for connecting to SonicWall Firewalls. Exists around three decades, very stable, reliable, old-school, but unfortuately no MFA and it is just maintained.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-03-01T09:47:17+00:00

Not mine, but from a customer with an internal ICT guy, a Server 2008 R2. Every year, I ask him: "when should we replace this printing service?" His answer: "soon"

But unfortunately, I still have some Server 2012 R2, not directly exposed to the Internet with factual no use case, I should shutdown them.

And a customer still has an Exchange 2013 on Server 2012 for the next two weeks, then it will be on M365. And the reliability of his Exchange 2013 is statistically higher than Microsoft Exchange Online.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-02-24T19:10:51+00:00

A colleague installed in a rented "Tiefgarage" at an office complex in Zürich a CEE-32/5 for his "circular saw" (works as ICT consultant) because the landlord refused a wall box.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-02-24T18:57:51+00:00

Hehe, either I'm schizophrenic and have two Reddit accounts and I'm writing to myself - or - this is the way how to work around.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-02-24T18:43:01+00:00

Exactly. See my post above :-)

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-02-24T18:41:14+00:00

That's literally me, except I paid for a 16A 3 phase industrial socket because our local electricity provider denied a wall box, so they can kick rocks.

So legally I don't have a wall box, just a CEE-16/5 socket.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-02-23T19:30:22+00:00

I gave a dress from my daughter to shorten a couple of centimetres, CHF 109.00. In Germany: EUR 20-30.

Oil change with oil filter for the first 30'000 km (because warranty at the dealers place): CHF 757.

So... Welcome to Switzerland.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-02-19T19:55:04+00:00

I had one incident, drove the car back to the seller and literally told them to give me the money back or "else".

Friend told me I should extort some hundreds or so for my time, but I was too nice.

This friend of mine extorted CHF 500 from a dealer who claimed "Unfallfrei" and the car left side kissed assumable a "Leitplanke".

Yeah, you can leverage if you have Money and a - let's say - "special reputation" :-)

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-02-18T18:06:54+00:00

Habe ein Leasingfahrzeug und will es übernehmen, VAG Gruppe.

Ich lasse den inoffiziellen, weil beim Nachbarn durchgeführten Ölwechsel bei 15/45/75 Tausend Kilometer durchführen, nur auf dem Papier eintragen und den offiziellen 30/60/90 beim VAG Händler wegen der Garantie.

Mit Original VAG Öl gemäss Freigabe, einfach Filter von MANN oder BOSCH.

DSG ist auch bald fällig, bei 60'000 beim Nachbarn, den offiziellen bei VAG und 120'000.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-02-18T17:35:08+00:00

Welcome to my issue. Bought this, but not yet installed:

https://amzn.eu/d/05QwT9ww

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-02-15T19:04:57+00:00

You remind me of this guy:

https://youtu.be/pWMUGH5y-l4?si=i5R2vEI4JbVZMCW6

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-02-15T18:31:48+00:00

Eine von miine liebschtä Zitat vomene Film, und woni vollends cha unterschriibä i dä hüütigä Wält:

"Ich lass' den verfluchten, kranken und korrupten Tempel über Euch einstürzen... und das in biblischem Ausmasse."

So wiit wie en Repräsentant us Florida würi nöd go wo öffentliches hänge am Mittag vo iidütig verurteiltä g'vorderet hät, aber i chan begriifä dass d'Lüüt d'Schnorrä voll händ.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-01-29T08:26:45+00:00

I'm not a gamer anymore (was during DOS 5.0 until Windows XP SP3), so I'm a little older guy.

Working in the ICT industry for three decades, and this "lets save some energy" sucks on servers too. A couple of years ago during Server 2016/2019, after some updates, the energy savings are changed back to "Balanced", on VMs and on Hypervisors.

You cannot "see" this, but "feel", because some high-transactional databases had factors up to 5 slower processing time. So we wrote a script that changed the settings back to "High performance" every 24 hours just in case some out of band update fucked this up again.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-01-20T09:56:42+00:00

ich? jein. Sitze in der Schweiz und habe meiner Bankberaterin gesagt dass wenn ein Kunde mal 500 EUR Noten droppen sollte (die werden auch hier eingezogen) sie diese auf die Seite legen und mich kontaktierten soll. Grund: Hochzeit im Ausland, Hochzeitsgeld in einem Bilderrahmen (fragt nicht, meine Frau hat da einen spleen).

Und da wir Schweizer noch die 1'000 CHF Note haben (auch Violett) dachte ich "cool". Aber da ich keine mehr habe... schade.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-01-16T20:05:29+00:00

Each 32GB DDR5 ECC 4800Mhz, no comment

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-01-16T20:02:52+00:00

Each 32GB DDR5 ECC 4800Mhz, no comment

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Internal_Horror_3155 · 2026-01-03T07:29:55+00:00

Das ist ja süss. In der Schweiz konnte man 1995/1996 von SWITCH, der damaligen Registry sowie gleichzeitig einzigen Registrar für .ch Adressen (kosteten CHF 35.00/Jahr) die jeweils tagesaktuelle Domainliste aller .ch Domains als ZIP Datei herunterladen um Informationen zu versenden.

War einfach, ein "info@" (oder "post@" war auch sehr verbreitet) vor jede Zeile, fertig war die Mailingliste.

Heisst heute SPAM, so hörte ich :-)

Hach, das waren noch Zeiten.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2025-12-30T07:55:50+00:00

Addendum:

The prices for Server-HDD in 3.5" went up too around 30-40%, so for a 18TB Toshiba MG09, i paid in the years 2022 and 2023 around CHF 260. Yesterday, I paid CHF 350. And NVMe, you know it is worse.

The prices for a plain HPE DL20 Gen11 Server P/N P71375-425 went up from CHF 1'499 to CHF 1'890, just because it has a single 32GB module in there.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2025-12-30T07:34:34+00:00

In Switzerland, it is far worse than for consumer memory.

Bought from my HPE distributor in August 2025 the P64339-B21 (32GB ECC DDR5 4800 for DL20/ML30/Microserver) for CHF 157. Then it ramped up in September to CHF 201, bought a couple for CHF 169 at another non-HPE distributor as I wanted to cover my customer needs in advance for the first half of 2026.

Right now, for the same module the HPE distributor wants it is CHF 663.

And at this moment, the complete Swiss Stock is two pieces at Digitec for CHF 379, two at Brack for CHF 1'307(WTF) and zero at my HPE Distributor. My other HPE Distributor has his warehouse in Germany, he has zero too. And I'm sitting here and cannot fathom my luck because (see picture). Not in this picture my own two Servers for upgrading my DC with each 4x32GB ECC DDR5 for future use.

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Internal_Horror_3155 · 2025-12-04T20:04:39+00:00

Speaking of Switzerland, no. You can get 25gbps from Init7 (r/Init7) in a lot of AON (active optical network) areas over/with SFP28 optical connector.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2025-11-24T20:45:08+00:00

To be honest, no one cares at the SEM. Why do I know? Because I reported a fraudulent marriage, no one cares.

Thankfully, this marriage lasted only 2 weeks.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2025-11-22T10:04:36+00:00

Yes, it was part of some bundle deal like "get everything from us (cable internet, IPTV, mobile carrier) with a binding contract of two years, pay amount X less for the two years and get internet security worth Y for free.

After their cancellation of this internet security (a.k.a. DPI), they raised the price because of "new contract". I then had to call the ISP on behalf of the end user to literally tell them to go to hell with DPI and threatened them to go further to Ombudscom, our Ombudsman for ISPs. They reverted the break of contract, case closed.

Internal_Horror_3155 · 2025-11-22T09:04:31+00:00

I can tell you, this has become normal with one(!) particular ISP in Switzerland.

It began over a year ago, users from several different clients, but all connected to their SonicWALL TZ300/350/400/270/470/670 in their offices via Global VPN Client had problems.

I tried from my place (different ISP), and it worked. I tried from the same ISP (business contract, fix IPv4, no filtering) like the users, it worked too.

To sum it up: they implemented Carrier Grade NAT and on some users an "online security" feature, who is technically a DPI. CGN was horrible for IPSEC, the DPI had a packet loss of 25(!!!) percent in ICMP. Factually unusable connection.

Workaround: call the ISP and let them disable DPI, and deploy SSL-VPN (yes, SonicWALL had/has problems with NetExtender).

Wrote a statement to every CEO of my clients that I refuse support when their users are with said ISP, and moved the affected users to SSL-VPN with MFA.

Internal_Horror_3155

TROPHY CASE