Introduction to Windows Server 2016 Nano Server

With Windows Server 2016, Microsoft has introduced a new installation option for Windows Server, called Nano Server, the concept of which is a zero footprint model that delivers faster speed and lower resource consumption.

This paper provides details on how to create a Nano Server image, then use the image to deploy either as a Hyper-V virtual machine or bare metal to physical host. The intended audience of this paper is IT professionals, technical partners, and Microsoft Azure users.

This paper is part of a series of technical papers on the new features of Windows Server 2016.

Introduction
Creating a Nano Server image
Injecting new drivers
Launching Nano Server a VM guest
Connecting to the Nano Server using PowerShell
Joining Nano Server to a Domain
Installing Nano Server to a bare metal host
Running Nano Server in Azure
Conclusion

Related product families

Product families related to this document are the following:

• Microsoft Alliance
• Microsoft Hyper-V
• Microsoft Windows