Using a server installation as a daily driver

[j7n]

BlueTooth drivers have usually been exceptionally large. I'm glad that stuff isn't included because it isn't needed on a desktop PC. I installed Server 2022 on my test PC, and everything worked out of the box in it (except mobile devices, which I didn't test).

[ibay770]

Sure but it should be able to work for those who do want it. 

[superleiw]

Not sure about Server 2008 (R2) but on Server 2012 and 2012 R2 some DirectX functionality got intentionally removed by Microsoft.

Both of those OS are lacking the following files : XAudio2_8.dll , XInput1_4.dll , XInput9_1_0.dll

This may affect games/emulators and also some applications.

Thankfully it's possible to just copy these files from their Client counterpart into the system32 and syswow64 folder on Server !

 

[ibay770]

50 minutes ago, superleiw said:

Not sure about Server 2008 (R2) but on Server 2012 and 2012 R2 some DirectX functionality got intentionally removed by Microsoft.

Both of those OS are lacking the following files : XAudio2_8.dll , XInput1_4.dll , XInput9_1_0.dll

This may affect games/emulators and also some applications.

Thankfully it's possible to just copy these files from their Client counterpart into the system32 and syswow64 folder on Server !

 

Very interesting! Thanks for posting! Any other stuff they try to remove?

[superleiw]

Some older games might also require Windows Media Player (+Media Foundation) which can be re-enabled by installing the Desktop Experience Feature.

On Server 2016 and higher, this is not required because installing the OS with Desktop Experience automatically installs the Media Foundation Feature as well.

[j7n]

The DirectX DLLs are an issue on every Windows. You're supposed to install a DX redistributable or get them bundled with a game. At one point I heard there was a license pushback from Microsoft when software included those DLLs, but now it just happens. Unlike other DLLs, XAudio2_6.dll and its siblings need to be registered and therefore also put into the system folder so that all applications have access to them. Not having XAudio results in a hard to troubleshoot situation of no sound in games from Bethesda. They don't say that the DLL wasn't found.

I strongly dislike Microsoft's media stuff. It's big, slow and unncessary given free alternatives. Games that include everything they need work more reliably on all versions of Windows. A game is a gig or bigger and can afford to bundle a video codec.

The new XnView MP (not lean, built on a framework) refuses to start because it is linked  to mfplat.dll. I got a couple audio editors, I think one of them was from Acoustica, also refusing to start. The fault as I see it is with them because we have other graphics and audio editors that work great. They usually work way faster being older.

In Server 2022 the desktop pack is mandatory. Not having it results in all GUI being inaccessible.

[ibay770]

If you don't need Microsoft explorer gui trash, there are other stuff that will work just fine, I have gotten everything but bluetooth and audio to work without the desktop experience.

https://gist.github.com/bp2008/922b326bf30222b51da08146746c7c27

[ibay770]

On 6/27/2025 at 9:01 AM, the solutor said:

Until Server 2008R2 servers lacked some bits about multimedia, bluetooth and alike.

 

Starting from WHS2011/Server2008R2 Essentials the situation changed a lot.

 

2012 Essentials, 2012R2 essentials + WSEMP are also completely usable as client machine

 

Since 2016 Almost everything works out of the box (for some reasons a audio codec package is missing, but easy to install), the only disadvantage are limited to Bluetooth which is half backed on server (use the toshiba stack instead), few hid drivers are also missing, which makes Servers not working out of the box on some notebooks, and little more.

link to codec and how to install?

Link to toshiba bluetooth stack?

Also some (especially Intel) VGA  or Lan Card drivers are artificially blocked from installing on servers, that's easy to workaround.

How?

Everything else is there: BDA codecs/drivers, Video codecs and so on.

 

The remaining disadvantages are related to licensing terms of installable SW not to problems of Server OS itself.

 

Say most antivirus, or partitioning SW (that have a commercial Server version) aren't going to install on servers (again easy workarounds in most cases)