Back in October of 2008, I wrote about taking delivery of my Windows Home Server. In April 2010, I wrote about how this small box is the center of my home computing world. It houses my music, photos and videos/movies. It automatically wakes up and backs up without user intervention all of the computers in the house daily. This machine is so much a part of our daily lives, that my MSO and I really don’t give much thought to it. But I 
know that I should.
You see, this past July, Microsoft announced the end of life for Windows Home Server. Now, I’m been around the rodeo long enough to know that the announcement of an OS demise doesn’t mean that your computer will die on that date. Millions of people are still using Windows XP which is three generations old. So, it is reasonable for me to expect a few more years of service from my home server before I have to replace anything and even that will most likely be hardware. However, I am very irritated that companies like Apple, Google and Microsoft are insistent upon pushing home users to the “cloud” for everything.
Having a home server is not just about housing individual files. If that was all it entailed, then moving files to the “cloud” would makes perfect sense if all you want to do is access those files on multiple devices. But how do you restore your home computer to the way it was yesterday if your hard drive died this morning and all your files are in the “cloud?” The answer is you can’t because your computer consists of more than just data files. It’s application settings and internet browser cookies and other data bits that make your computer what it is. Those files don’t end up in the “cloud” and that makes it useless for restoring a downed machine. Those data bits are backed up on my Windows Home Server and allow me to restore my machines to the state it was on practically any day within the past year and a half.
Microsoft made a business decision in killing off Windows Home Server this summer. I get that. I’m going to make one too. I’m not relying on the “cloud” to save my bacon when (not if) one of my computers fail. I intend to ride my current Windows Home Server horse until it drops.