Longhorn Server, yes or no?

Now that Windows Server 2003 is finished what can we expect next? Well as we already know, thats Longhorn.

Everyone knows what it looks like and some may have even tried it for themselves. However, at the moment Microsoft is trying to play down the idea of a Longhorn Server version. After Microsoft's Senior VP Brian Valentine telling the worlds press that there will be a Longhorn server release and then Bob O'Brien back-pedalling and trying to do some damage repair, what is everyone expecting?

eWeek posted an article about this very same subject. According to some Microsoft officials it could be possible Longhorn will be finished and shipped within 18 months. I think that date is rather inaccurate considering the length of time Windows Codenamed Whistler took to develop which eventually finished as Windows XP Client and Windows Server 2003 Server after some three years, I don't expect there will be a server version released alongside a client version if it is completed in 18 months time. Remarketing another server version in such a short space of time would be a nightmare for Microsoft (especially after their slogan "Do more with less").

Does this mean there will be no server version though? This is hard to tell at the moment. With Microsoft officials dodging questions about anything to do with Longhorn there is no official information available. In the builds that have leaked to the internet there is no hint of a server version of Longhorn contained within. Realistically speaking if we're going to see Longhorn Server Edition it will be in 2005/6. The amount of work that was put into Windows Server 2003 to ensure it was reliable and secure was mind-blowing.

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