Here’s a bullet-point summary of each key question considered.
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Initial Planning & Deployment
• Q: In-house vs cloud for Sage 50?A: Proxmox-based in-house server offers more control and lower long-term cost.
• Q: Does Sage run on Linux?A: No, Sage requires Windows; Linux runs Proxmox, which hosts a Windows VM.
• Q: What is Proxmox?A: It’s a free, Linux-based virtualisation platform that runs VMs and containers.
• Q: Recommended hardware?A: Mini PC or micro-tower with Ryzen 7/i7, 32 GB RAM, NVMe SSD, UPS, etc.
• Q: Hands-off management preferred?A: Proxmox with snapshots + RDP access offers near-zero-touch management.
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Virtualisation vs Parallels
• Q: Why use a Linux VM instead of native Windows?A: Stability, snapshots, backups, and no need for a Windows licence on the host.
• Q: Is this like running Parallels on an Intel Mac?A: Similar concept — Windows runs inside a VM hosted on another OS.
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Licensing & Support
• Q: Does “Linux is free” make Windows free?A: No — you still need a licensed Windows OS in the VM.
• Q: What version of Windows should I use?A: Windows 10 Pro for short-term; Server 2019 Standard for long-term support.
• Q: Where to buy legit Server + CALs?A: Currys (Server), Ebuyer (User CALs), Trusted Tech Team (RDS CALs).
• Q: Why are licence prices so variable?A: Retail = full Microsoft support; grey market = cheaper but unsupported.
• Q: Are the cheaper licences compliant?A: Legally yes (under UK/EU law), but not contractually Microsoft-supported.
• Q: I only want Microsoft-supported options.A: Then buy from authorised retailers; options listed and summarised.
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Remote Desktop Licensing
• Q: Do I need RDS CALs?A: Yes, for each remote user (5 users = 5 RDS User CALs + 5 User CALs).
• Q: Are these one-off costs?A: Yes, all licences listed are perpetual, not subscription.
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Hardware Summary
• Q: What’s the final hardware spec?A: Full table provided with primary and optional hardware and prices.
• Q: Console session vs RDS?A: Console (mstsc /admin) doesn’t use an RDS CAL; only 1 allowed.
• Q: If 5 users are logged in, can I also log in?A: Yes — via console session, without using an RDS CAL.
• Q: What if I use Jump Desktop?A: If it’s using RDP, it consumes an RDS CAL — unless connecting to console.
• Q: Do I really need Jump Desktop?A: No — Proxmox + RDP /admin is sufficient.
• Q: What is a console session, and how to use it?A: Session ID 0; use mstsc /admin or Proxmox console.
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Documentation
• Q: Can I have cheat sheets and summaries in Markdown?A: Yes — all tables, cheat sheets, and summaries provided in Markdown format.