I have a clean install of Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials and am unable to connect my first (of seven) client which is a clean install of Win 7 Pro. I AM able to connect to the domain from the client through the control panel/system/system properties and in this case it appears on the Server under AD Users and Computers. However, with this approach it appears I have diminished functionality from the server side which I discovered when I tried to configure backups managed by the server.
When I enter http;//<server>/connect I am asked for user/password after which I get a 404 webpage cannot be found error. I believe my user authentication is working properly because if I typo the password it kicks back and asks for it again.
My server IP address is static and the client's DNS address points to it only. My server's DNS primary IP address is himself and the alternate is from my ISP. The computers see each other on the network and I can share folders between them.
I tried downloading the connection software to the client and running it but it would not complete.
Am I missing something about where this connect wizard resides? My understanding is this wizard should install the connect software on the client and then run it. Could I have missed installing this wizard during my WS 2012e install? Can I connect my clients through the control panel and then turn on the other essentials functionality "manually"? Any help will be greatly appreciated.
John