Windows Server Help

Server Core Prerequisites Before installing Server Core you will need the following: The original Windows Server 2008 or 2008 R2  installation media. If you are using Windows Server 2008 you will need a  valid product key (installation can be completed on Windows Server 2008 R2 without a product key). A machine for the  clean Server Core installation (note that there [...]

IIS Application Pools allow for grouping of similar or related applications to facilitate easy management and configuration. Each application assigned to an application pools (or app pool) is isolated from other apps so that issues in one pool do not impact apps in other pools. Applications which have similar performance profiles or which belong to the [...]

To install an SSL in IIS , you first  need to issue a certificate for your web server. For this purpose you have to select the webserver root node in the navigation tree of the management console, and select the Server Certificates feature, as shown below: After selecting Sever Certificates, the IIS management console lists [...]

Files on Windows Server are only as secure as their permissions. Thus, it is essential to know that Windows Server 2008 R2 does not give the Everyone group full control over NTFS-level and share-level. Additionally, important   system files and directories are secured to prevent  unauthorized access. This is a definite improvement over previous versions of Windows [...]

Windows Intune is a new product from Microsoft which is designed for system admins to manage and secure PC’s across an enterprise. Windows Server administrators have numerous tools to manage a network of Servers (for example security patches etc  can be managed in-house using WSUS), however for the managing individual PC’s spread across multiple locations in the [...]

Once WSUS has been installed, the organization must decide on how to use WSUS to configure the the updates for the client servers under its control. Organizations which don’t use  Active Directory or group policies will have to manually configure every client server’s settings with the location of the  WSUS server. This can be done either through [...]

A major issue with security on Windows Server installations is the difficulty in keeping all servers up to date with the latest security patches and fixes. The Windows Update service which allowed for automatically download and installation of security fixes is really only suitable for smaller enterprises, large enterprises with numerous Windows Server installations do [...]

A major drawback of PowerShell 1.0 was the lack of a method to execute commands on a remote machine. PowerShell 2.0 addresses this with a new feature named remoting, which is designed to enable command (or script) execution on remote machines. Using PowerShell remoting, commands can be issued either synchronously or asynchronously and even scheduled [...]

The integrated firewall that is included with Windows Server 2008 R2 vastly improved over previous versions integrated firewall which is turned on by default. The firewall, which is administered from an MMC snap-in as shown below (that can be accessed at Start>All Programs>Administrative Tools>Windows Firewall with Advanced Security) and provides unprecedented security and control on [...]

Note : The official name for the product is IIS Developer Express although it is often shortened to IIS Express (which is Microsoft’s internal code-name). IIS Express is a new, lightweight version of IIS which is integrated into  WebMatrix (which is Mircosoft’s newly introduced web development environment, see WebMatrix Tutorial for an overview).  This tutorial introduces the [...]

Hyper-V complicates the backup process on a Windows Server 2008 R2 server. The major issue is whether to backup the host server which runs Hyper-V or backup the VMs (virtual machines) individually. Both options have their own advantages and disadvantages. Hyper-V Host Server Backup If you elect to backup the Hyper-V host server, it is [...]

BitLocker ToGo encryption is a new feature that ships with Windows Server 2008 R2 which provides encryption for removable drives. This is a very important feature for backups as it ensures that backups are protected. Before using BitLocker ToGo, you will need to add the BitLocker feature to Windows Server 2008 R2. From Server Manager, [...]

The IIS IP and Domain Restrictions role service enables admins to block IP addresses from accessing web apps. To do this, open the IIS Manager, navigate to the required level (such as the site) and then click on IPv4 Address and Domain Restrictions : Next, select Deny Entry from the Actions menu at the top [...]

As with most areas of Windows Server 2008 and 2008 R2 , Microsoft is emphasizing PowerShell as an important tool for managing IIS 7 and IIS 7.5. The IIS PowerShell snap-in provides many new cmdlets and enables admins to manage IIS properties in numerous different ways. Select Windows PowerShell Modules from the Administrative Tools group [...]

Windows Server Active Directory Domain Services uses a multimaster replication model, under which any single server can take over directory functionality, and every full domain controller has a read/write copy of directory objects (except for Read-Only Domain Controllers, which hold a read-only copy). However, there a few big exceptions to this, in which certain forestwide and domainwide [...]

If you plan to migrate specific domain controller functionality to the new Windows Server 2008 R2 Active Directory environment but will be using new hardware, you will need to bring new domain controllers into the environment prior to  retiring the old servers. Windows Server 2008 R2 utilizes a roles-based model. To make a Windows Server [...]

With Azure slowly moving out of it early stage ‘beta’ phase, migrating Windows Server apps to Windows Azure is becoming an issue for some corporations looking to move over to Microsoft’s cloud offering. There are several issues to consider in migrating to Azure. Firstly is the actual app itself – Migrate an ASP.NET app to [...]

continuing from Windows Server 2008 Migration Guide – Preparation Upgrading an existing Active Directory  domain controllers to Windows Server 2008 R2 is straightforward if the decision has been made to upgrade all or some existing hardware to Windows Server 2008 R2. However, as with standalone servers, you need to ensure that the hardware plus additional software components are compatible with [...]

Ensure that   an audit has been performed  on all services so that servers that required IIS have the service reenabled after migration. Since prototype phases of a project are essential for testing   design assumptions for a Windows Server migration or implementation, create a production domain controller and subsequently isolate it in the lab for testing. [...]

For less complex Windows Server installations a single stage step Big Bang Migration may be suitable, however   most administrators favor a more structured phased migration in which the migration is performed in steps. In this article we will look as the necessary preparations to be done prior to commencing the migration. Active Directory In most instances, [...]

Some of the main areas of improvement in Windows Server 2008 R2 are in Active Directory. Specifically : Active Directory Module for PowerShell—  Active Directory Module for  PowerShell is a consolidated group of  PowerShell cmdlets which can be used to  manage Active Directory. Active Directory Administrative Center—The Active Directory Administrative Center is an AD management [...]

Considering the Windows Azure platform? Check out this indepth review.

The Big Bang to migration from Windows Server 2003/2008 to Windows Server 2008 R2 is the most straightforward of the migration approaches. The upgrade simply takes all the settings on the domain controllers and upgrades them all to Windows Server 2008 R2. If a Windows Server 2008 installation server handles WINS (Windows Internet Naming) service , [...]

Bitlocker Encryption In Windows 2008 server, Bitlocker drive encryption can be used to encrypt and therefore protect the operating system and data files stored on the hard disk. Bitlocker encryption will prevent unauthorized users from accessing your sensitive data on a drive which has been misappropriated. This is also important from compliance  perspective where data [...]

Windows Server 2008 provides a wealth of methods for hardening the operating system against a malicious attack. Server Core installation Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2008 R2 operating systems offer a secured installation option called “Server Core installation” .Selecting this option installs only the minimal components which are required for running a specific server role. This is [...]

The Windows Server 2008 Task Manager provides an instant view of the system’s resources, such as memory usage, process activity, processor activity, network activity, user info, and resource consumption. However, there are some significant changes in Task Manager for 2008 R2, such as the addition of a Services tab and the capability to launch Resource [...]

Windows Server 2008 includes a new print management architecture which provides a better print-server platform with improved performance. The new print management architecture is compatible with existing print drivers and applications and also enables them to use features which are found only in the newer XPSDrv printer drivers, which have a more efficient print queue [...]

By default SQL Server 2008  installs  PowerShell and two SQL Server PowerShell snap-ins which expose SQL Server functionality from PowerShell. PowerShell Snap-ins are simply .NET assemblies which contain Windows PowerShell providers and/or  PowerShell cmdlets that extend the functionality of the shell. When a snap-in is loaded into  PowerShell , its cmdlets and providers  are registered with the shell. Starting [...]

Using PowerShell to administer SharePoint [SharePointMonitor.com]

Loops are an essential construct in any programming language as they enable a block of code to be repeatedly executed. This can be useful for iterating through items in an object or repeatedly performing an operation. This tutorial covers the five types of loops that are provided in PowerShell – namely For, ForEach, While, Do-While, [...]

By default, PowerShell is not installed on versions of  Windows Server prior to Windows Server 2008 R2. For Windows Server 2008 and 2008 R2   the installation binaries are included with OS to simplify installation (for other versions of Windows you will need to download the binaries here). It should be noted that PowerShell is not [...]

Microsoft Hyper-V (formerly codenamed Viridian) is hypervisor-based visualization for Windows Server based  x86-64 systems. The beta  of Hyper-V  shipped some x64 editions of Windows Server 2008 , and the finalized version  was released via Windows Update in June 2008 and has since been released as a free stand-alone  version (Hyper-V Server 2008 R2). Hyper-V currently exists in two  distinct versions:  a stand-alone product called [...]

The IIS Web Deployment Tool (formerly know as MS Deploy) is an IIS extension which allows admins to package an entire application plus platform (ie the website ,  web server, database, certificates and all separate apps) for deployment on another server. This tool is extremely useful for migration and backup. The Web Deployment Tool can [...]

Every admin should make backups. That’s just a fact. But what backup software should we use? Many administrators look for a third-party backup solution, however Windows Server ships with a solid and built-in solution – Windows Server Backup (the entirely new face of NTBackup). To install backup functionality in Windows Server 2008 R2, go to [...]

In this series of two articles, we will review some key hardening mechanisms for a corporate intranet hosted IIS 7.5 or IIS 7.0 web server running on Windows server 2008. These best practices would mitigate the risk of unauthorized access to the IIS 7.5 or IIS 7.0 installation. Microsoft IIS 7 has an inherently stronger [...]

PowerShell profiles end in a .ps1 file extension. Normally, profiles are always  loaded when working with PowerShell, However, there are several exceptions. When testing a script, you may want to invoke PowerShell  but not load a profile and then run the script, this will help ensure that  the script is properly coded and doesn’t use profile-specific [...]

A  profile can be created in PowerShell  using a basic text editor. To create a profile enter the commands which define the aliases, variables, functions, or other elements you want to use, and save the file with a .ps1 extention in the appropriate location on your computer. The following is a detailed walkthrough: In your text editor, enter [...]