When we install the OS. Windows Server 2012 we will have to choose between Core installation or Full installation, if we were interested a posteriori, We can always switch between the different options, for example, if we want to install and configure comfortably with GUI and then we are interested in leaving it in Core to save some disk and gain in security,

Tenemos los distintos modos de instalación:

– Server Core: Básicamente no tendremos ningún componente GUI instalado, administraremos por línea de comandos o de forma remota al servidor. Podrá tener los siguientes roles: Active Directory Certificate Services, Active Directory Domain Services, DHCP Server, DNS Server, Archiving Services (incluido Administrador de recursos del servidor de archivos), Active Directory Lightweight Directory Services (AD LDS), Hyper-V, Servicios de impresión y documentos, Servicios de multimedia de transmisión por secuencias, Web server (incluido un subconjunto de ASP.NET), Servidor Windows Server Update, Servidor Active Directory Rights Management & Enrutamiento y acceso remoto

– Minimal Shell o Interfaz básica: Será como el servidor Core pero con la característica ‘Infraestructura y herramientas de administración de gráficos’ habilitada. Para la administración básica del servidor.

– Instalación Full: It will also have the 'Server Graphical Shell' feature installed’ where we will have the traditional desktop.

– Full Installation with Desktop Experience: We will have Windows Store as well as Windows Runtime (Windows TR), the Windows Media player, themes, photo management… Through the 'Desktop Experience' feature.

This would be a basic interface with the administrative consoles available,

To change from Full server to Basic Interface:

Uninstall-WindowsFeature Server-Gui-Shell –Restart

To change from Full server to Server Core:

Uninstall-WindowsFeature Server-Gui-Shell,,Gui-Mgmt-Infra –Restart

To change from Basic Interface to Server Core:

Uninstall-WindowsFeature Server-Gui-Mgmt-Infra –Restart

To switch from Basic Interface to Full Server:

Install-WindowsFeature Server-Gui-Shell –Restart

To switch from Server Core to Basic Interface:

Install-WindowsFeature Server-Gui-Mgmt-Infra –Restart

To switch from Server Core to Full:

Install-WindowsFeature Server-Gui-Mgmt-Infra, Server-Gui-Shell -Restart

We will add the '-remove' parameter to the Uninstall commands’ to remove the binaries and free up disk space, Switching from Full to Core can save about 4GB.