Windows Server 2012 build 8250

Windows Server 2012 build 8250 is the official Beta build of Windows Server 2012, which was released on 29 February 2012 along with the client counterpart.

This is the last available build of Windows Server 2012 that has support for processors without PAE, SSE2 and NX.

Changes

 * This is the earliest known build to drop the Windows Server 2003 to Windows Server 2008 R2 flag and replace it with the new, Metro-style one (except in Enterprise).
 * The copyright date of  has been updated from 2011 to 2012. This persists up to build 9200.
 * Changed the boot screen to include the betta fish from its client counterpart.
 * The background to Windows Setup has been updated.
 * The default user icon has been updated to the one used in the RTM.
 * The default accent color has been changed.
 * More items are pinned to the Start screen by default.
 * A new desktop background is used, which replaces the Windows 7 logon background used in previous builds.
 * The Aero Lite theme was updated to resemble the RTM build, except that the taskbar text is white instead of black.
 * System crashes no longer display an sad emoticon.
 * The Start button has been removed.

Timebomb

 * Installing this build after the timebomb date will result in it not installing its licensing policies properly, therefore resulting in no timebomb been displayed and not been able to change wallpaper

Compatibility

 * To install or run this build in VMware Workstation, you must set the hardware compatibility to versions 8.x or 9.x; otherwise, a black screen with an error code will appear such as the code  or   with text that says.