Windows Server 2025 goes live with new capabilities – here’s what has changed

Windows Server 2025 has gone live, with many new capabilities added that were missing in previous versions.

According to a tweet on 4 November, the new version comes with stronger security, increased hybrid, multicloud and edge capabilities, as well as new levels of performance. 

Also easier to upgrade than previous versions, the new Windows Server is generally available to users from today.

Higher security and performance

The 2025 Windows Server promises several improvements, but at the center of it is improved performance and security. 

Corporate Vice President, Azure Edge + Platform, Ian LeGrow said this is in line with Microsoft’s mission to deliver a platform that is tailored to the diverse needs of customers.

With this release, users can deploy  apps in any environment, whether on-premises, hybrid environments, or in the cloud.

It also comes with a suite of security features for safeguarding users’ data and infrastructure. These include active directory, file services/server message block (SMB) hardening, and delegate Managed Service Accounts (dMSA).

In terms of cloud infrastructure, there are several advanced hybrid cloud capabilities. The most notable among them are hotpatching enabled by Azure Arc, easy Azure Arc onboarding, software-defined network (SDN) multisite features, and unified network policy management.

This version also incorporates AI, as it is designed to handle the most demanding workloads, including AI and machine learning. 

Some of its key capabilities are hyper-V, AI, and machine learning, NVMe storage performance, storage Spaces Direct and storage flexibility, and hyper-V performance and scale.

Other Microsoft updates

Apart from Microsoft Server, Microsoft has released other updates this year, top among which is the WIndows 11 2024 update. 

In the gaming arena, the company announced the release of several  major games during the Tokyo Game show. 

While some have been released, more are to come this year and even next year, giving gamers much to look forward to.