{"id":36478,"date":"2026-09-21T12:00:35","date_gmt":"2026-09-21T04:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/?p=36478"},"modified":"2023-07-22T01:05:20","modified_gmt":"2023-07-21T17:05:20","slug":"windows-server-2012-r2-vs-windows-server-2016-whats-changed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/vps-hosting\/windows-server-2012-r2-vs-windows-server-2016-whats-changed","title":{"rendered":"Windows Server 2012 R2 vs. Windows Server 2016: What&#8217;s Changed?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-38437 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/windows-server-concept-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"image illustrating the cloud computing network\" width=\"387\" height=\"258\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/windows-server-concept-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/windows-server-concept-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/windows-server-concept-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/windows-server-concept-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/windows-server-concept-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 387px) 100vw, 387px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Windows Server 2012 R2 and Windows Server 2016 are two popular server operating systems used by businesses worldwide. While they share many similarities, there are several significant differences between the two. In this article, we will discuss what has changed between these two versions and how it may impact your business.<\/p>\n<h4>User Interface<\/h4>\n<p>One of the most noticeable differences between Windows Server 2012 R2 and Windows Server 2016 is the user interface. Windows Server 2016 features the new Metro-style interface, similar to that of Windows 10. This modern interface is designed to be more intuitive and user-friendly. However, some users may prefer the traditional desktop-style interface of Windows Server 2012 R2.<\/p>\n<h4>Storage Spaces Direct<\/h4>\n<p>Windows Server 2016 introduces Storage Spaces Direct, a new feature that allows you to use local storage to create highly available and scalable storage systems. This feature can save you money by eliminating the need for expensive storage area networks (SANs) and reducing the amount of storage required to maintain high availability.<\/p>\n<h4>Virtualization Improvements<\/h4>\n<p>Windows Server 2016 introduces several virtualization improvements, including support for nested virtualization, enhanced Hyper-V management, and improved virtual machine (VM) integration services. These improvements can provide better performance and scalability for your virtualized workloads.<\/p>\n<h4>Security Enhancements<\/h4>\n<p>Windows Server 2016 features several security enhancements, such as Credential Guard, which helps protect against pass-the-hash attacks, and Device Guard, which prevents unauthorized applications from running. In addition, Windows Server 2016 includes support for Shielded VMs, which encrypts virtual machines to protect against theft and malicious attacks.<\/p>\n<h4>Licensing Changes<\/h4>\n<p>Windows Server 2016 features a significant licensing change compared to Windows Server 2012 R2. The licensing for Windows Server 2016 is based on physical cores instead of processors, which can make licensing more expensive for some businesses. However, this change can also provide more flexibility for businesses with highly virtualized environments.<\/p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re on the lookout for a secure and reliable hosting solution for Windows Server, consider Casbay for a reliable and secure hosting solution. We offer a range of hosting solutions that include both Windows Server 2012 R2 and Windows Server 2016, available through their Windows VPS plans. With these powerful server operating systems at your fingertips, you can enhance your business operations in a variety of ways. Whether you need better virtualization, improved security features, or a more user-friendly interface, Casbay has got you covered. When it comes to a dependable and secure hosting solution that meets all your Windows Server needs, Casbay is the name to trust.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; Windows Server 2012 R2 and Windows Server 2016 are two popular server operating systems used by businesses worldwide. While [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":"","_wpscppro_custom_social_share_image":0},"categories":[94],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36478"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36478"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36478\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38439,"href":"https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36478\/revisions\/38439"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36478"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36478"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.casbay.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36478"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}