How to get the Windows Sidebar in Windows Server 2008
Windows Server 2008 does not come out of the box with Windows Sidebar from Vista. It is possible to use the Windows Sidebar provided in Vista on Windows Server 2008 with a few tweaks outlinedhere.
1. Copy the Windows Sidebar folder from a Windows Vista SP1 installations Program Files folder that is the same architecture as the Windows Server 2008 box you intend to enable Windows Sidebar on. If you are running Windows Server 2008 64-bit, copy from a 64-bit Windows Vista SP1 installation.
2. Copy the Windows Sidebar copy into the Program Files folder of the Windows Server 2008 installation. (If 64 Windows Server 2008, copy to the Program Files folder and not the Program Files [x86] folder.)
3. Run the following commands from a prompt with administrative credentials:
regsvr32 atl.dll
regsvr32 "C:\Program Files\Windows Sidebar\sbdrop.dll"
regsvr32 "C:\Program Files\Windows Sidebar\wlsrvc.dll"
"C:\Program Files\Windows Sidebar\sidebar.exe" /RegServer
4. Copy the content of the Sidebar Registry area from your Vista box to the 2008 box (HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Sidebar). The Registry content is the same for 32 bit and 64 bit, so you can just type the following into sidebar.reg and execute (by double-clicking) to save any copying between machines:
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Sidebar]
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Sidebar\Compatibility]
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Sidebar\Settings]
"SidebarDockedPartsOrder"="0x1,0x2,0x3,0x4"
5. You can now launch Sidebar with the C:\Program Files\Windows Sidebar\sidebar.exe command.
6. Now access the Properties of Sidebar (right-click on a blank area of that Sidebar and select Properties) and check the State Sidebar when Windows starts option.
If you are managing a server from a Vista client, you can take advantage of many gadgets that make server administration easier, such as Remote Desktop gadgets, server status gadgets, and gadgets that report status from monitoring solutions such as System Center Operations Manager.
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