Today’s launch of Windows Server 2012 delivers the cornerstone of the Cloud OS, as explained in a blog post today by Satya Nadella, President, Server & Tools Business at Microsoft. “With Windows Server 2012 and Windows Azure at its core,” writes Nadella, “we are delivering the Cloud OS. Based on our unique innovations in the most widely used operating systems, applications and cloud services, only Microsoft is able to offer the consistent platform that the cloud demands. It is that consistency that will enable customers to use common virtualization, application development, systems management, data and identity frameworks across all of their clouds.”

First unveiled at TechEd in June, the Cloud OS delivers a reimagined operating system that enables smart, modern apps across a company’s datacenter, a service provider datacenter, or the Windows Azure public cloud.

According to Nadella, Windows Server 2012 redefines the server operating system and introduces advanced storage, networking, virtualization, automation and end user access capabilities. It also delivers a transformational leap in the speed, scale and power that datacenters and applications can build on.

For more information, read the full blog post, and the press release.