How to install Windows Media Services in Windows Server 2008

The following are not included in the Windows Server 2008 operating system:

• The Streaming Media Services role
  
  Note This role includes the latest version of Microsoft Windows Media Services, Windows Media Services 2008.
• Streaming Media Services role administration tools for the Remote Server Administration Tools feature in Server Manager

To obtain the new features that are available in Windows Media Services for Windows Server 2008, you must obtain and then run the Microsoft Update Standalone Package (MSU) file for the appropriate Streaming Media Services role. You must run this file on the updated platform.

Note These new features include the built-in Cache/Proxy plug-in.

This section describes how to install the Streaming Media Services role on the following installation options of the Windows Server 2008 operating system:

• Full
• Server Core

This section also describes how to install a snap-in for Microsoft Management Console (MMC) that can be used to configure Windows Media Services for Windows Server 2008 from a remote computer.

Full installation option

To install the Streaming Media Services role on a full installation of Windows Server 2008, follow these steps.

Note The Streaming Media Services role includes Windows Media Services 2008.

1. If the following conditions are true, follow the lettered steps that follow this list:
   • You are running Microsoft Windows 2000 Server or Microsoft Windows NT Server 4.0.
   • The server is running Windows Media Services 4.1.
   • You are updating the server to Windows Server 2008.
   1. Update the server to Windows Server 2003.
      
      Note Before you update the server to Windows Server 2003, back up all the necessary Windows Media Services files. For more information about how to copy these files, see the table in the "Files that you should copy" subsection of the "More information" section.
   2. Update the server to Windows Server 2008.
2. If you are upgrading from an earlier prerelease version of Windows Server 2008, from Windows Server 2003, or from Windows 2000 Server, you must select the full installation option when you install Windows Server 2008. You must not select the Server Core installation option.
3. Download and then run the MSU file for the Streaming Media Services role. To do this, follow these steps:
   1. Visit the following Microsoft Web site:
      http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=9CCF6312-723B-4577-BE58-7CAAB2E1C5B7&displaylang=en
   2. For 32-bit editions of Windows Server 2008, download the following file:
      Windows6.0-KB934518-x86-Server.msu
      For 64-bit editions of Windows Server 2008, download the following file:
      Windows6.0-KB934518-x64-Server.msu
4. Start Server Manager. To do this, click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Server Manager.
5. On the Action menu in Server Manager, click Refresh, and then wait for the update to finish.
   
   Note You can check the update status on the lower-left side of the status bar.
6. Restart Server Manager.
7. In Server Manager, add the Streaming Media Services role. To do this, click Add Roles under Roles Summary, and then select Streaming Media Services in the Add Roles wizard.
8. If you are updating a server that is running Windows Media Services to Windows Server 2008, you must copy the Windows Media Services files and settings that you backed up in step 1 to the new Windows Server platform. To do this, follow these steps:
   1. Stop the Windows Media Services service. To do this, type the following string at a command prompt:
      net stop wmserver
   2. Copy the backed-up ServerNamespace.xml file over the newly installed version of this file. By default, this file is in the following folder:
      %windir%\System32\Windows Media\Server
   3. Restart the Windows Media Services service. To do this, type the following string at a command prompt:
      net start wmserver

Notes

• To remove the Streaming Media Services role from active use, follow these steps:
  1. Under Roles Summary in Server Manager, click Remove Roles.
  2. In the Remove Roles wizard, select Streaming Media Services.
• To remove the Streaming Media Services role from the Add Roles list in Server Manager and to completely uninstall the Streaming Media Services role, follow these steps:
  1. Remove the Streaming Media Services role from active use. To do this, follow the steps that are mentioned in the previous bullet point.
  2. In Programs and Features in Control Panel, click View installed updates under Tasks.
  3. In Programs and Features in Control Panel, click Streaming Media Services update for Server (KB934518) under Uninstall an update, and then click Uninstall.

Server Core installation option

To install the Streaming Media Services role on a Server Core installation of Windows Server 2008, follow these steps.

Note The Streaming Media Services role includes Windows Media Services 2008.

1. Install the Server Core installation option of Windows Server 2008. For complete instructions, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
   http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=88273
2. Install the Streaming Media Services role. To do this, follow these steps.
   
   Note For more information, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
   http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=88273
   1. Download the MSU file for the Streaming Media Services role. To do this, follow these steps:
      1. Visit the following Microsoft Web site:
         http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=9CCF6312-723B-4577-BE58-7CAAB2E1C5B7&displaylang=en
      2. For Server Core installations (32-bit editions) of Windows Server 2008, download the following file:
         Windows6.0-KB934518-x86-Core.msu
         For Server Core installations (64-bit editions) of Windows Server 2008, download the following file:
         Windows6.0-KB934518-x64-Core.msu
   2. Run the MSU file for the Streaming Media Services role. To do this, take one of the following actions:
      • For Server Core installations (32-bit editions), type the following string at a command prompt:
        start /w wusa /quiet Windows6.0-KB934518-x86-ServerCore.msu
      • For Server Core installations (64-bit editions), type the following string at a command prompt:
        start /w wusa /quiet Windows6.0-KB934518-x64-ServerCore.msu
   3. To install the Streaming Media Services role, type the following string at a command prompt:
      start /w ocsetup MediaServer
   4. To start the Windows Media Services service, type the following string at a command prompt:
      net start wmserver

Note After you complete the installation, you must configure the Streaming Media Services role from a remote computer by using the Windows Media Services snap-in for Microsoft Management Console (MMC). You can install the snap-in on another computer that is running a full installation of Windows Server 2008. Or, you can install Remote Server Administration Tools for the Streaming Media Services role on computers that are running Windows Vista Ultimate, Windows Vista Enterprise, Windows Vista Business, or versions of these Windows Vista operating systems with Service Pack 1 (SP1).

Remote Server Administration Tools installation

The Remote Server Administration Tools feature in Server Manager is new for Windows Server 2008. This feature provides role administration tools that let administrators remotely manage servers that are running Windows Server 2008. The Streaming Media Services role is not supported by this feature. However, you can install Remote Server Administration Tools for the Streaming Media Services role on a computer that is running Windows Vista Ultimate, Windows Vista Enterprise, or Windows Vista Business. Or, you can administer a server remotely from a separate Windows Media server that is running the full installation option of Windows Server 2008.

To install Remote Server Administration Tools for the Streaming Media Services role, follow these steps on a computer that is running a supported Windows Vista operating system:

1. Visit the following Microsoft Web site:
   http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=9CCF6312-723B-4577-BE58-7CAAB2E1C5B7&displaylang=en
2. For 32-bit editions of Windows Vista, download and then run the following file:
   Windows6.0-KB934518-x86-Admin.msu
   For 64-bit editions of Windows Vista, download and then run the following file:
   Windows6.0-KB934518-x64-Admin.msu

The Windows Media Services snap-in for MMC is installed. To start the snap-in, click Start, click Run, and then type wmsadmin.

Note After you complete the installation, access permissions for Remote Server Administration Tools may not be configured correctly on the Windows Media server. In addition, Windows Firewall may not be configured to let Windows Media Instrumentation (WMI) communicate through the firewall. For more information about how to configure these permissions to let the Windows Media Services snap-in connect to the Windows Media server, visit the following Microsoft Web site: Note If you are upgrading a computer to Windows Vista Ultimate with SP1, Windows Vista Enterprise with SP1, or Windows Vista Business with SP1, Remote Server Administration Tools for the Streaming Media Services role are not retained during the upgrade. To reinstall the snap-in for MMC, follow the steps that are described in this section.

This behavior is by design.

Operating system availability

For more information about how to obtain Windows Server 2008, visit the following Microsoft Web site:The Streaming Media Services role can be installed only on full and Server Core installations of Windows Server 2008. Installation is supported on both the 32-bit and the 64-bit editions of the operating system. Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows Media Services can be installed only on a computer that is running Windows Vista Ultimate, Windows Vista Enterprise, Windows Vista Business, or versions of these Windows Vista operating systems that include Service Pack 1 (SP1). Installation on Windows Vista Home Premium, Windows Vista Home Basic, and Windows Vista Starter is currently not supported.

Supported migration scenarios

Windows Media Services for Windows Server 2008 supports automated migration of digital media files and settings if you are running Windows Media Services 9 Series on Windows Server 2003. However, if you are running Windows Media Services 4.1 on Windows 2000 Server or on Microsoft Windows NT Server 4.0, you must first update the Windows Media server to Windows Server 2003 and then update the server to Windows Server 2008. Updating from these earlier platforms directly to Windows Server 2008 is not supported.

Before you update to Windows Server 2003, you must back up necessary Windows Media Services files. For more information about how to copy these files, see the table in the "Files that you should copy" subsection of this section.

Files that you should copy

The following table lists the files that you should copy together with their descriptions and their default locations on the Windows Media server:Notes

• The copying of log files is optional.
• You should also back up third-party plug-ins and applications that Windows Media Services uses.

Windows Media Services 2008 in Windows Server 2008 R2

This article describes how to install Windows Media Services 2008 on the Windows Server 2008 operating system. It cannot be used to install Windows Media Services 2008 on Windows Server 2008 R2. For information about how to install Windows Media Services 2008 on the Windows Server 2008 R2 operating system, see the following Microsoft Knowledge Base article: