# Windows Server > Windows Server 2025 for students and homelabs: editions, licensing, PVE installs, AD DS and rebuildable labs. Build it on PVE, break it safely, rebuild it from a template. Learn the role and the licence, not just the next-next-finish. 51 hosting guides · Windows Server 2025 · E1 docs + E2 lab Start with the boundary The licence decides what you may run Read the edition and licensing boundary before you install a role. A homelab is not a licence exemption. [Licensing boundary Editions & licensing Standard vs Datacenter, OSE counts, core licensing and CALs — the part that decides what you may run. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/start/editions-licensing/) [Lab method Build it on PVE PVE templates, evaluation lifecycle, snapshots and what counts as E2. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/lab/method/) The homelab path Install, snapshot, then add roles Keep the evaluation lifecycle visible. Rebuild from the template; do not rely on a “rearm” trick. 01 Install Evaluation Server 2025 Evaluation, 180 days, on PVE with VirtIO drivers. 02 Snapshot clean Snapshot the clean state; clone per role instead of mutating one VM. 03 Add roles AD DS + DNS, then file services, then Hyper-V — one change at a time. 04 Track expiry Record the evaluation expiry and rebuild from the template. Build the base, then the roles Evaluation, domain, file services Install once, snapshot clean, then clone per role. These are lab guides, not production designs. [Install Server 2025 Evaluation on PVE q35/OVMF, VirtIO, 180-day evaluation, clean snapshot. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/start/eval-install/) [Role First AD DS domain Static IP, DNS, DSRM, forest promotion and verification. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/roles/ad-ds/) [Role SMB share & permissions Share + NTFS permissions, access-based enumeration, restore test. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/roles/smb/) [Install Server Core vs Desktop Management, app compatibility and patch surface before you install. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/start/core-vs-desktop/) [Role DNS & DHCP Forwarders, scopes, options and DHCP authorization without a rogue server. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/roles/dns-dhcp/) [Role Hyper-V role Nested lab, virtual switch and the Standard/Datacenter licensing boundary. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/roles/hyper-v/) [Ops Backup & restore System state, bare metal and a restore you actually tested. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/roles/backup/) [Ops Quotas & shadow copies FSRM limits, screening and previous versions — not a backup. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/roles/file-server-quotas/) [Ops Windows Admin Center Browser management without exposing RDP to the internet. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/roles/admin-center/) Hosting · 51 guides Put a real web app on Windows Five pillars: web server, runtime versions, TLS and traffic, security operations, and reliability. English is the source; every guide has a Chinese mirror. [18 guides Web server: IIS, Nginx, Apache, Caddy, HTTP/3 Sites, app pools, bindings, rewrite, ARR, PHP/FastCGI, logging, request limits, TLS, HTTP/3 limits. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/web/iis-install/) [14 guides Runtime versions: PHP, Java, Node, Python, .NET, Go Side-by-side versions, per-app pinning, Tomcat instances, services, WSGI, reverse proxies and EOL. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/runtimes/php-multi-version/) [6 guides TLS and traffic DNS, win-acme, Schannel, HTTP/2, compression, proxy headers and large-file limits. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/tls/certificates/) [9 guides Security operations Baseline, headers, WAF, auth, least privilege, upload safety, logging, patching and incident response. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/security/baseline/) [4 guides Reliability and delivery PerfMon counters, health checks, proxy HA and artifact/DSC/container delivery. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/ops/perfmon/) [Downloads Server evaluation media 2025, 2022, 2019 and 2016 ISOs, Hyper-V Server, ADK and MDT — vendor links only. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/downloads/server/) Start here · IIS hosting The first three IIS guides Role install, PHP FastCGI and the logs that explain a 500 — the fastest path from a blank VM to a served page. [Setup Install IIS without everything Minimum role services, W3SVC check, default-site cleanup. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/web/iis-install/) [Runtime PHP 8.4 on IIS FastCGI NTS build, VC++ runtime, php.ini and a real phpinfo test. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/web/iis-php/) [Troubleshoot IIS logs & failed tracing Read 500/503 before reinstalling the server. →](https://winbook.fyi/en/server/web/iis-logs/) 01 Licence first No activation tools, no “rearm” shortcuts, no ISO mirrors. 02 Rebuildable PVE template + snapshot + a written role order. Break it safely. 03 E1/E2 separate Licensing is E1; a reproduced lab step is E2. The page says which. --- Source: https://winbook.fyi/en/server/