Windows Server 2025 changes

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Microsoft's edit · 1 Mar 2025 01:52 UTC

Minor edit to (preview) features

Microsoft's commit message in MicrosoftDocs/windowsserverdocs · commit 80cec63 · +13 ~~−14~~ lines · also on GitHub

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44 ms.topic: article

55 author: xelu86

66 ms.author: alalve

7 −ms.date: 11/18/2024

7 +ms.date: 02/28/2025

88 ---

1010 # What's new in Windows Server 2025

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140140 Utilities like Active Directory Administrative Center (ADAC), Active Directory Users and Computers (ADUC), `net computer`, and `dsmod` also honor this new behavior. Both ADAC and ADUC no longer allow creation of a pre-Windows 2000 account.

141141

142142 - **Kerberos PKINIT support for cryptographic agility**: The Kerberos Public Key Cryptography for Initial Authentication in Kerberos (PKINIT) protocol implementation is updated to allow for cryptographic agility by supporting more algorithms and removing hardcoded algorithms.

143 −- **Kerberos changes for Algorithms used for Ticket Granting Tickets**: The Kerberos Distribution Center will no longer issue Ticket Granting Tickets using RC4 encryption, such as RC4-HMAC(NT).

144143 - **LAN Manager GPO setting**: The GPO setting **Network security: Don't store LAN Manager hash value on next password change** is no longer present and doesn't apply to new versions of Windows.

145144 - **LDAP encryption by default**: All LDAP client communication after a Simple Authentication and Security Layer (SASL) bind uses LDAP sealing by default. To learn more about SASL, see [SASL Authentication](/openspecs/windows_protocols/ms-adts/989e0748-0953-455d-9d37-d08dfbf3998b).

146145 - **LDAP support for Transport Layer Security (TLS) 1.3**: LDAP uses the latest SCHANNEL implementation and supports TLS 1.3 for LDAP over TLS connections. Using TLS 1.3 eliminates obsolete cryptographic algorithms and enhances security over older versions. TLS 1.3 aims to encrypt as much of the handshake as possible. To learn more, see [Protocols in TLS/SSL (Schannel SSP)](/windows/win32/secauthn/protocols-in-tls-ssl--schannel-ssp-) and [TLS Cipher Suites in Windows Server 2022](/windows/win32/secauthn/tls-cipher-suites-in-windows-server-2022).

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344343

345344 The following sections discuss Hyper-V, AI, and performance.

346345

347 −### Accelerated Networking

346 +### Accelerated Networking (preview)

348347

349 −Accelerated Networking (AccelNet) simplifies the management of single root I/O virtualization (SR-IOV) for virtual machines (VMs) hosted on Windows Server 2025 clusters. This feature uses the high-performance SR-IOV data path to reduce latency, jitter, and CPU utilization. AccelNet also includes a management layer that handles prerequisite checking, host configuration, and VM performance settings. To learn more, see [Accelerated Networking at the Edge (preview)](/windows-server/networking/technologies/accelerated-networking/accelerated-networking).

348 +Accelerated Networking (AccelNet) simplifies the management of single root I/O virtualization (SR-IOV) for virtual machines (VMs) hosted on Windows Server 2025 clusters. This feature uses the high-performance SR-IOV data path to reduce latency, jitter, and CPU utilization. AccelNet also includes a management layer that handles prerequisite checking, host configuration, and VM performance settings. To learn more, see [Accelerated Networking (preview)](/windows-server/networking/technologies/accelerated-networking/accelerated-networking).

350349

350 +### Dynamic processor compatibility

351 +

352 +The dynamic processor compatibility mode is updated to take advantage of new processor capabilities in a clustered environment. Dynamic processor compatibility uses the maximum number of processor features available across all servers in a cluster. The mode improves performance compared to the previous version of processor compatibility.

353 +

354 +You can also use dynamic processor compatibility to save its state between virtualization hosts that use different generations of processors. The processor compatibility mode now provides enhanced, dynamic capabilities on processors capable of second-level address translation. To learn more about the updated compatibility mode, see [Dynamic processor compatibility mode](../virtualization/hyper-v/manage/dynamic-processor-compatibility-mode.md).

355 +

351356 ### Hyper-V Manager

352357

353358 When you create a new VM through Hyper-V Manager, **Generation 2** is now set as the default option in the **New Virtual Machine Wizard**.

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362367

363368 GPU-P Live Migration provides a solution to move a VM (for planned downtime or load balancing) with GPU-P to another node whether it's standalone or clustered. To learn more about GPU partitioning, see [GPU partitioning](../virtualization/hyper-v/gpu-partitioning.md).

364369

365 −### Dynamic processor compatibility

366 −

367 −The dynamic processor compatibility mode is updated to take advantage of new processor capabilities in a clustered environment. Dynamic processor compatibility uses the maximum number of processor features available across all servers in a cluster. The mode improves performance compared to the previous version of processor compatibility.

368 −

369 −You can also use dynamic processor compatibility to save its state between virtualization hosts that use different generations of processors. The processor compatibility mode now provides enhanced, dynamic capabilities on processors capable of second-level address translation. To learn more about the updated compatibility mode, see [Dynamic processor compatibility mode](../virtualization/hyper-v/manage/dynamic-processor-compatibility-mode.md).

370 −

371 −### Workgroup clusters

372 −

373 −Hyper-V workgroup clusters are a special type of Windows Server Failover Cluster where the Hyper-V cluster nodes aren't members of an Active Directory domain with the ability to live migrate VMs in a workgroup cluster.

374 −

375370 ### Network ATC

376371

377372 Network ATC streamlines the deployment and management of network configurations for Windows Server 2025 clusters. Network ATC uses an intent-based approach, where users specify their desired intents, such as management, compute, or storage for a network adapter. The deployment is automated based on the intended configuration.

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383378 With Windows Server 2025, Hyper-V now supports up to 4 petabytes of memory and 2,048 logical processors per host. This increase allows for greater scalability and performance for virtualized workloads.

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385380 Windows Server 2025 also supports up to 240 TB of memory and 2,048 virtual processors for generation 2 VMs, providing increased flexibility for running large workloads. To learn more, see [Plan for Hyper-V scalability in Windows Server](../virtualization/hyper-v/plan/plan-hyper-v-scalability-in-windows-server.md).

381 +

382 +### Workgroup clusters

383 +

384 +Hyper-V workgroup clusters are a special type of Windows Server Failover Cluster where the Hyper-V cluster nodes aren't members of an Active Directory domain with the ability to live migrate VMs in a workgroup cluster.

386385

387386 ## Storage

388387

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