The day has finally arrived. This morning (September 4th) all us geeks will be eagerly waiting for Windows Server 2012 to be available for download. It really is quite exciting!
I have been running the Release Candidate (RC) bits on my HP ProLiant ML350s for several months, but this week-end I was going to spend a couple of hours getting the ProLiant DL380 Gen8s up and running on the RTM bits. It is really very exciting!
I ran into a stumbling block early on… fortunately there is documentation for getting around them… as long as you know where to look. In short:
Before you get started with Windows Server 2012, make sure you download the latest BIOS and iLO firmware. These are hugely important – Windows Server 2012 will not install without it. You can download it from HP by clicking here, then selecting the appropriate Firmware – Lights-Out Management Flash Component (I used the Online ROM Flash Component for Windows – HP Integrated Lights-Out 4). I then navigated to the iLO console and under Administration I selected iLO Firmware.
When upgrading your firmware (as well as when installing a new OS) it is always a good idea to make sure your BIOS is at the latest release. HP is making this easier than ever – you simply download the tool that creates the bootable USB key for you, then boot the server with it.
Download the WIndows Server 2012 Supplement for Service Pack for ProLiant here. As of this week-end it was all for the RC release, but I expect that today or tomorrow there will be new drivers for Windows Server 2012.
Once you have done all of this you are ready to rock… Windows Server 2012 is rocking on the ProLiant DL380 Gen8s… as it was meant to 
Go forth, patch, and be a true IT hero by virtualizing on Windows Server 2012!
The World According to Mitch 
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