With all the excitement of Longhorn Server at the moment, it's easy to overlook some of the other great Longhorn technologies in this space.

One of the products that I think is pretty cool is 'Windows Centro'.  Centro is built on the Longhorn technology and is the code name for a new infrastructure solution for midsize businesses ~ 250 PCs.  Centro is explicitly designed to make it easier and more productive for IT Professionals in midsize companies.  With lots of enhancements to make it easy to easier to install and manage - and might I add they have done a kick ass job!    Ummm, can I say that on Tech Talk Blogs?!

Anyway, so what do you need to do to check out Centro?  Well for starters you will need three x64 servers, so you can install a Management Server, Edge Server and Messaging Server, which roughly translates to File/Print/DC, ISA and Exchange 2007.  There is a single DVD for each role, all you need to do is put the appropriate DVD in the appropriate server, boot from it and follow the prompts.  ...all the benefits of Longhorn, configured, ready to go, and with a minimum of fuss. 

I'll come back and spend a little more on Centro, but there is a very quick introduction. 

If you are interested in joining the Windows Server "Centro" Beta please go to http://connect.microsoft.com click on Invitations sign in with your Windows Live ID (Passport ID) and enter the following invite ID; Extr-GHBC-JCJM.