A new version of Snoop-de-dupe hit the web over the weekend. The file management add-in for Windows Home Server v1 and 2011 scans and de-duplicates files stored on your server.

New in this version:

• Enhanced database design for better handling of larger file sets (100,000+ files)
• Allow automatic exclude of files based on file size (minimum and maximum)
• Allow automatic exclude of files based on file attributes (hidden, system, read-only)
• Added a progress dialog to the Batch Resolve dialog to better communicate operation status during lengthy deletion and hard-link operations
• Added a new “reclaimed data” field to easily view the amount (file count and file size) of estimated reclaimed data (from delete and hard-link operations) directly within the Add-in

Enhancements:

• Limit the number of duplicate files in the main duplicate list to 20. Larger duplicate lists could make the Dashboard appear frozen for some time
• View remaining trial days directly within the Add-in
• Minor bug and usability issues

A free 15 day trial is available, after which you can opt to buy a $14.99/£10.00 license for the software.

Download: Snoop-de-dupe (WHS v1) | (WHS 2011)

New from the developers of Integrity Checker is Snoop-de-dupe, a file de-duplication add-in for Windows Home Server v1.

The idea is a simple one – Snoop-de-dupe monitors folders you select on your home server and will detect and display a list duplicate files in the Windows Home Server Console. From there, you can delete the duplicates, ignore/keep the duplicate files, or in the case of the forthcoming version of the add-in for Windows Home Server 2011 & Windows Small Business Server 2011 Essentials, replace the duplicate files with a hard-link.

• Automatic, real-time continuous file de-duplication scanning
• 160-bit SHA-1 de-duplication hash for optimum results
• Windows Home Server Console integration
• Pause and Resume operation at any time for maximum efficiency of your server
• Select any folders of your choosing on your server for de-duplication scanning
• Simple, easy-to-view heads-up status display to monitor progress
• Easy to navigate list of duplications for: deleting, linking, or ignoring duplicate files
• Quick-launch feature allows for viewing contents of duplicate files

A 15 day free trial is available, whilst the fully licensed version of the add-in costs $11.99/£7.63.

Download: Snoop-de-dupe

Developer: Snoop-de-dupe

Download: Snoop-de-dupe

Release History

v1.6 (28th January 2011)

• Added search criteria to the Batch Resolve dialog for easier management of large duplicate file sets (i.e. view all duplicate files, view duplicate files located within a select folder, view duplicate files by file name)
• Added a “Reset all duplicate history” feature (More Settings | Reset all duplicate history) to allow for better management of duplicate history
• Added a vertical split-container within the Batch Resolve dialog to allow easier viewing of larger duplicate file sets
• Added an easy to view “Duplicate file” count to the lower-left area of the main page of the add-in. This allows you to quickly see the total number of duplicate files which currently exist on your server

v1.5 (15th October 2011)

• Enhanced database design for better handling of larger file sets (100,000+ files)
• Allow automatic exclude of files based on file size (minimum and maximum)
• Allow automatic exclude of files based on file attributes (hidden, system, read-only)
• Added a progress dialog to the Batch Resolve dialog to better communicate operation status during lengthy deletion and hard-link operations
• Added a new “reclaimed data” field to easily view the amount (file count and file size) of estimated reclaimed data (from delete and hard-link operations) directly within the Add-in
• Limit the number of duplicate files in the main duplicate list to 20. Larger duplicate lists could make the Dashboard appear frozen for some time
• View remaining trial days directly within the Add-in
• Minor bug and usability issues

v1.3 (8th August 2011)

• New Batch-mode handling to easily handle large quantities of duplicate files
• Allow swapping of “original file” and “duplicate file” for improved file management
• One-click “copy to clipboard” to simplify management and tracking of duplicate files
• Localized in German language

v1.20 (17th May 2011)

• Added support for Windows Home Server 2011 and Windows Small Business Server 2011
• Added CPU usage throttling
• Added hard disk write access limiting
• Added worker thread prioritizing
• Added support for hard-links (WHS/SBS 2011 only)
• Installer now signed with class-3 Authenticode certificate
• Minor bug fixes

v1.0 (1st May 2011)

• Initial release

Last month we were first to let you know about the forthcoming version of WHS Phone for Android. It offers all of the same features as the currently available release for Windows Phone 7:

• Stream music from your home server to your Android phone
• View photos on your phone
• View your server’s resources, manage users, computer status and more

The app is now available in the Android Marketplace for $4.99, and you’ll need the free add-in for Windows Home Server v1 to get things going.

Download: WHS Phone | Rate this add-in

StableBit Scanner is an advanced hard drive scanning and monitoring tool for Windows Home Server v1. It monitors all hard drives in your home server looking for damage then analyses and retrieves files from the damaged sectors of the disk.

StableBit Scanner reads and monitors the on-disk Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology data in order to predict disk failure. StableBit Scanner tries very hard to get at the S.M.A.R.T. data, it asks the Operating System, it asks the disk directly by issuing commands to it, and it talks to USB bridge chips in order to get direct access to drives behind USB enclosures. If S.M.A.R.T. detects disk failure, you are notified immediately.

StableBit Scanner is designed not to interfere with any other disk access. If another application starts accessing the disk, or if you start copying a file over the network that is coming from the disk being scanned, StableBit Scanner will suspend the current scan operation and wait for the disk to become free.

Features:

• Hard Drive Monitoring
• File Aware Scanner
• Scan throttling
• Disk overheat protection
• Reading and analysis of SMART data
• Perpetual, scheduled and manual scanning available

The current beta (v1.0.0.2405) is available as a free download from the developer’s website as a 30 day trial.

Download: Stablebit Scanner

Experience Level: Standard

Feedsource is a $10 add-in which publishes an RSS feed on your remote access website with details of new and changed files in your home server’s shared folders. The feed can be viewed by any RSS reader that supports authenticated feeds.

Features

• Authenticated RSS feeds for Shared Folders that show create, delete, rename, and change events for files and directories
• Granular control to enable or disable RSS feeds for each Shared Folder
• Automatic integration with the Remote Access web site to view feeds from outside your network with no extra port-forwarding or configuration
• Simple setup through the Windows Home Server Console
• Secure authentication and authorization using SSL and existing Windows Home Server access controls
• RSS 2.0 and Atom support

Developer: Tentacle Software

Download: Feedsource for Windows Home Server

Release History

v1.0.0.19 (29th January 2011)

• Initial public release
• Turned off debug logging by default
• Added help file (accessible by clicking “Help” while on the Feedsource tab)

Windows Home Server’s backup features are very much the cornerstone of the product. Whilst other network attached storage devices offer data backup (usually through third-party software), Windows Home Server trumps them with single-instance (i.e. de-duplicated) image-based backup of multiple computers. In v1, backup works well, although file and folder restore was dogged by an annoying restore issue (anyone remember the 81% bug?) in early releases of the product.

Vail builds on the v1 feature set with a number of low level changes, a new UI and most importantly, the addition of server backup to the feature set. Microsoft’s Bodhi Deb set out the details of the changes in a post on Microsoft’s forums:

Backing up your server

Ability to backup the server and restore both data and the full system from a disaster was one of the #1 asks from our customers. In Vail we have provided ability to do automated backups of the full server to externally attached storage. Features include:

· Full VSS based backup of the server to externally attached disks using Windows Server 2008 R2 backup technology

· Ability to back up to multiple targets for offsite storage. You keep one external disk onsite for your most recent backups, and the other disks offsite in case of disasters

· You can back up the Operating System, Data, Shared Folders, and even the Client Backup Database for future recovery

· Select what you want to protect using the server backup configuration wizard on the Computers and Backup tab

· Schedule automatic backups multiple times a day upto half hour intervals

· Backups to external disks are incremental for storage optimization but each back up version is fully restorable

· Restore scenarios include restoring individual Files or Folders, Full system restore through Bare Metal Restore, and Factory Reset

Note: Not all features stated above have been fully developed in the product yet. For details about what is and is not available please refer to the Getting Started guide.

Backing up the client computers

Centralized backup of client computers to the Windows Home Server storage was a feature introduced in Windows Home Server V1. The basic technology and the features have been carried forward with some key feature updates.

Features from Windows Home Server V1

· Automatic daily backups of network joined client computers to centralized storage on Windows Home Server

· Backups are single instanced and incremental over the network. This provides storage and backup time optimizations. Only unique data and incremental changes across your home network are sent over the wire and stored only once.

· Ability to exclude files or folders from your backup

· Restore scenarios include individual Files or Folders and Full System Restore to similar hardware using Bare Metal Restore

New Features in “Vail”

· Support for VSS writers on client computers to improve consistency of backups

· New backup configuration wizard allows you to select volumes or folders you want to backup. Items that are not selected are excluded from the backup

· New Files or Folders restore Wizard provides a guided wizard for the user to restore individual files or folders from a backup

· New mini filter driver for the Files or Folders Restore wizard solves many of the problems in V1 resulting from multiple mount of backup volumes

· Intelligent automatic scheduling allows more computers to be backed up

Higher priority is given to computers with the oldest backups during the time window

Prioritization is calculated dynamically

Computers which are chronically out of compliance (such as laptops) are automatically backed outside of the backup time window whenever they are connected to the server

· Backups are now resumable. In WHS V1 if backups are not successful, it started from the beginning the next time backups ran. This resulted in computers with high storage in repeated failed backups. In Vail we take checkpoints along the way (this is not visible to the end user). If for any reason backup fails in the middle such as due network connection drop, backups will resume from the last checkpoint next time it runs

· Full system restore functionality now allows automatic partition and formatting of drives during restore. In WHS V1 if volumes did not exist, users had to manually create partitions and format them before continuing with the system restore process. In Vail we do this automatically based on the configuration that existed in the source during a backup

· System restore disk now includes both the x86 (32 bit) and x64 bit version of the restore media. This allows you to restore both x86 and x64 bit client computers without the need to download and install specific 32 bit drivers for the restore CD

· Improved resiliency and robustness of the backup database including an improved database repair functionality

· Backup applet on the Client Launchpad allows users to start/stop manual backups as well as set the power management settings

Let’s see how those changes manifest themselves in the product.

Network Computer Backup

Client backup will be familiar to v1 owners. No change has been made in Vail to the number of PCs that can be backed up by the home server (10), and whilst the UI has been refreshed, the process is pretty similar to the one you know.

Backups can be viewed, restores and managed from Vail’s Computers and Backup tab. You’ll see a list of your computers available to view, with specific commands listed in the right hand pane.

Experience Level: Advanced

This add-in allows you to embed the eMule Web Server interface inside the Windows Home Server Console, so that you can manage your downloads from Windows Home Server.

Developer: Marco Minerva

More Info: Download | Support Forum

Release History

v1.0

• Initial release

Update: File Manager is now at 1.0.1.0 with the following updates:

- Support for removable storage (CD, DVD or USB disks that are not part of the storage pool)
- Support for opening files directly via the Home Server Console (files are opened on your local computer and not the server)
- Lots of bug fixes

Another update for WHS File Manager, which has been updated to version 1.0.0.5 with the following tweaks:

• No longer shows printers as shares
• Made current location of each pane to stand out more (easier to see)
• Made each folder in pane path (above panes) clickable for easy access to any parent folder
• Fixed problem with caching of exe file icons (all exe files got same icon)
• Added support for sorting by clicking list headers
• Canceling a rename operation (clicking escape) no longer gives an error
• Changed default drag operation from move in 1.0.0.3 to copy.
• Removed a lot of the error messages and instead disable the command buttons when you have not selected and files.

Download: WHS File Manager 1.0.1.0

Fresh from last week’s news around the release of Tranquil PC’s new CD & DVD ripping application, they’ve already released an update to the product!

Fresh to AVA Media comes the ability to edit your audio file metatags within the Windows Home Server console.

Whilst AVA Media does a great job in automatically tagging ripped music files, sometimes the tags aren’t exactly as you want them, so this is a great new feature for those (like me) who take a slightly obsessive interest in ensuring music on the home server is tagged correctly.

More Info: AVA Media

Tranquil PC have launched their first add-in/hardware combo for Windows Home Server, which comes in the form of a CD & DVD Ripping application for the platform.

AVA Media is available as an audio-only application or with full CD & DVD ripping depending on your needs and is available to buy with a bundled external CD/DVD drive.

Once the software is installed to your Home Server, and registered, you simply plug in your external drive and slide in a CD (audio version) or a DVD (full version) and the AVA Media system does the rest.

• Collects and compares the meta data (track titles etc) from multiple data providers, including GD3 a premium data provider
• Rips your CDs to high quality (lossless) formats or MP3 – then stores the files for sharing to your media players
• Can be set to convert to a second format for mobile use (MP3 players)
• Then simply ejects the disk when done (normally 4-5 minutes, depending on the number of tracks and disk surface condition)
• The music files are then available to all your network and portable music players (subject to the server type), i.e. SONOS etc
• Your music library is also available for viewing on your Home Server console

At this point, I’m not sure whether this is a re-branded version of an existing add-in (i.e. My Movies for WHS) or a new application – either way, it looks like a neat package for those looking to rip large media collections to their home servers.

The AVA Media software is available from £39 (ex VAT) for the audio version, £49 for the DVD version, with hardware/software bundles slated at £79 (CD) and £89 respectively.

More Info: Tranquil PC

Following today’s announcement of the Acer Aspire easyStore Home Server, Acer now have more details of the product available on their UK website.

The Aspire easyStore Home Server: a wonderfully compact home appliance that allows you to store, protect, share and grow your digital library with family and friends.

• Store your photos, music and video in one place.
• Protect your files with automatic backups, quick recovery and antivirus software.
• Share your files with family and friends anytime, anywhere.
• Grow your storage capacity by adding hard drives as you wish.

Bringing the digital home together
With the Acer easyStore Home Server, families can store photos, music and videos all in one place, protect that precious digital content with automatic backups, quick recovery and antivirus software, and share files with family and friends anytime, anywhere. As the home library of digital content increases, hard drives can be added to increase storage capacity.

“Windows Home Server helps families ensure that their precious digital content is safe, secure and easily accessible at home or on the road. The new Aspire easyStore Home Server from Acer is a great example of this new generation of products,” said Charlie Kindel, general manager of Windows Server Solutions at Microsoft. “We are excited to have Acer join the growing Windows Home Server product category and bring this new offering to consumers.”

Aspiring the digital experience with ease and fun
Design for families who need more just video or picture storage at home. Through Aspire easyStore Home Server, close family members and friends can securely access with easy through Internet regardless where they are. With one-touch USB Copy, Power Saver Scheduler, and DLNA certified, Aspire easyStore Home Server brings in convenience for the family and friends.
“Aspire easyStore Home Server truly brings in gap between the technology and people.

With more people are travelling and live in different places, it brings the family together sharing memory and fun without boundary. In addition, we are excited to team up with Microsoft and Intel to share the same concept by delivering this fun and easy to use product out for consumers,” expressed Allen Jong, Director of Stationary Computing Business Unit, ITGO, Acer Inc.

Powered by Windows Home Server
Running on the Windows Home Server operating system, the Aspire EasyStore Home Server is equipped with an Intel® Atom™ Processor 230, a maximum storage capacity of 4TB and up to four 3.5″ hot-swappable SATA hard disk drives. The Acer EasyStore Home Server also comes with a 6-month free trial of McAfee® Total Protection™ Service.

Technical Specification

Media sharing

Enable the Media Library Sharing option to share chosen folders

PC backup

Once Aspire easyStore Home Server client software is installed, WHS automatically backs up the home PC every night.
After the initial full hard drive backup, changes are backed up incrementally.
The backup frequency and time is customizable.

PC Restore

If a home PC’s hard drive crashes, use the PC Recovery Disc to boot the PC and restore from a hard drive image stored on the Aspire easyStore Home Server.

Server management

Windows Home Server (WHS) Connector allows all home PCs with administrative access privileges to manage the Aspire easyStore Home Server through the WHS Console. Management options include customizing backups, assigning user access privileges, setting up shared folders and configuring server storage or security options.

Storage expansion

WHS Drive Extender allows the addition of an internal or external drive to increase the Aspire easyStore Home Server’s total storage capacity.
No need to power-off the unit.
No more drive letters for multiple hard drives.

Folder protection

Allows shared folders with the duplication option enabled to be duplicated on a separate hard drive on the Aspire easyStore Home Server.

Remote access

Set up a free and secure personal web address for remote access to the Aspire easyStore Home Server through the WHS Console and Windows Live™.
Enabling the remote access option and configuring user accounts via the WHS Console permits Internet access to the Aspire easyStore Home Server from a remote PC.

Network access

Connect to the Aspire easyStore Home Server directly from a home PC by installing the client software.

One-touch USB copy

A button that uploads all data on a device connected to the front-loading USB port; the data is automatically sorted and stored by file type into designated folders.

DLNA Certified™

Enjoy music, photos and videos on TV with family and friends via DLNA 1.5 certified Home Server (DMS) and digital media player (DMP)

Lights out

Save energy by scheduling standby and resume times for the Aspire easyStore Home Server.

Configurations

Acer Aspire easyStore Home Server
TS.R360W.011

Aspire easyStore Home Server, English preload. Windows Home Server, Atom 230, 1x1GB DDR2 800, 1x640GB HDD. UK, EUR, CH power cable.

More Info: Acer