Microsoft Details Four Windows Server 2012 Editions, Pricing

Microsoft will offer the upcoming Windows Server 2012 in four editions that will provide dramatically simplified licensing. The software major also disclosed that it is retiring the Small Business Server Edition, a product that had been popular among small and midsize businesses and the solution providers that sell to them. The release candidate version of Windows Server 2012 has been available since May 31, but Microsoft has not revealed a target date for the Release to Manufacturing (RTM) version that immediately precedes general availability. Like Windows 8, the next release of the desktop and tablet operating system, Windows Server 2012 is widely expected sometime this fall. Windows Server 2012 will be offered in Datacenter, Standard, Essentials and Foundation editions. Which editions customers choose will hinge on the size of their organizations and their requirements for virtualization and cloud computing, according to Microsoft. The Datacenter Edition is targeted at highly virtualized, private and hybrid cloud environments with unlimited virtual instances. It carries a $4,809 price tag under Microsoft's Open No Level licensing, excluding Windows Client Access Licenses (CALs). The Standard Edition is designed for lightly virtualized or non virtualized environments, offering the same Windows Server functionality as the Datacenter Edition but permitting only two virtual instances. That edition costs $882, not including CALs. Of most interest to the partners will be Windows Server 2012 Essentials Edition, which has a 25-user limit and no virtualization rights. Microsoft describes Essentials as an ideal cloud-connected first server with its simple interface and preconfigured connectivity to cloud-based services such as Office 365. The Essentials Edition, which has no virtualization rights, has a $425 price tag. Microsoft, in a FAQ accompanying the Windows Server 2012 editions and pricing lineup, said it is discontinuing Windows Small Business Server because more small businesses are turning to cloud computing for email, backup and other services, rather than running those applications on premise. The new lineup also eliminates the Enterprise, Home Windows Server, HPC and Web Server editions that round out the current Windows Server 2008 R2 product lineup. The new Foundation Edition, with a 15-user limit, is only available to OEMs.

Microsoft to fix Internet Explorer 9 in July 2012 Patch Tuesday

Microsoft will issue nine bulletins, three rated “critical,” addressing 16 flaws across its product line as part of its July 2012 Patch Tuesday.  As part of the update, Microsoft could roll out a patch addressing the XML Core Services zero-day flaw, which surfaced last month.  

In its advance notification issued today, the software giant said the “critical” bulletins affect Windows and Internet Explorer 9. In addition, it plans updates to repair coding errors in Office, SharePoint server and Visual Basic for Applications.

Active attacks targeting XML Core Services
The advance notification does not indicate whether XML Core Services would be affected by the July updates. Microsoft issued an advisory last month warning users of attacks targeting an XML Core Services zero-day flaw. 

Microsoft XML Core Services processes and converts XML to HTML for display.  Attacks can target the coding error through drive-by attacks or trick users through a phishing campaign. Once an attacker is successful they are granted the same user rights as the victim and can access systems while fully authenticated, Microsoft said.

The vulnerability affects all supported releases of Microsoft Windows, and all supported editions of Microsoft Office 2003 and Microsoft Office 2007. The advisory includes aworkaround that can be used until the investigation is complete and a permanent patch is released.

Since the advisory, security experts say attacks targeting the flaw have increased. Graham Cluley outlined an attack using the flaw targeting the website of a European aeronautical parts supplier.

The bulletins are scheduled to be released July 10.