A typical household with two adults and three children can easily have three or more computers. Since each of the users wants access to the Internet, their PCs are likely to already be connected to a router -- but sharing media files and other data among the computers often remains an arduous task. What"s more, many users have enough difficulty finding the time to manage their own computer -- updating antivirus software, configuring the firewall and keeping downloaded files in order -- that they pay little or no attention to the other PCs in the house. And that means few of them get backed up regularly, if at all.
Enter Windows Home Server (WHS), announced at this year"s Consumer Electronics Show in January. WHS is a platform for storing, sharing and protecting data from multiple home PCs. Additionally, it can stream media, provide remote access and monitor PCs on a home network. The basic concept is simple and logical, and any household with more than one PC already wants one...though they may not know it yet.