TechNet Magazine April 2008

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Install the Windows Server Backup Feature on Server Core

Before you can back up a Server Core computer, you must install the Windows Server Backup feature. This can be done in two ways, both of which we detail here. ...

If you use your laptop in more than one location, Windows 7 will let you set a different default printer for each network that you access. Find out how to do this. ...

Find out how you can use Windows Boot Performance Diagnostics to identify the source of startup performance problems and automatically fix issues. ...

Windows Vista includes an assortment of utilities for diagnosing, monitoring, and repairing network connections. Here’s an overview of the key tools and what they’re used for. ...

You can use T-SQL commands to manage access and roles in SQL Server. Here's a summary of the commands you'll use. ...

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Popular Articles

Identity Management: An Introduction to Identity Lifecycle Manager 2

The upcoming release of Microsoft Identity Lifecycle Manager “2” offers many new features and enhancements. Explore the new portal experience and find out how you can cut costs with self-service tools, increase security compliance with business process modeling, and reduce development time with simplified development tools.

Aung Oo

TechNet Magazine January 2009

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See how the free Microsoft USB Flash Drive Manager can help you easily copy, delete, and back up files from a flash drive, as well as perform other useful tasks.

Lance Whitney

TechNet Magazine January 2009

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Hey, Scripting Guy!: Learning to Excel

Discover how to use the Excel.Application automation model for a more powerful way to process data from your servers and take advantage of the analysis and charting tools built into Excel.

The Microsoft Scripting Guys

TechNet Magazine January 2009

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Why do attachment sizes increase when sending and receiving e-mail messages? How can you ensure databases on a passive node in a CCR cluster are defragmented during online maintenance? Can you use an external trust between forests? We answer these questions and more.

Henrik Walther

TechNet Magazine January 2009

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Windows Vista SP1 and Windows Server 2008 introduce important changes to BitLocker, including support for data volumes and improved protection against cryptographic attacks. Byron Hynes explores the new features, demonstrates how to use BitLocker on a server, and discusses some of the recent media coverage affecting BitLocker.

Byron Hynes

TechNet Magazine June 2008

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Our Blog

Geek of all Trades: Control Network Access Using DHCP Enforcement

NAP monitors the health of specified computers when they attempt to connect to a network and includes a number of mechanisms to enforce health requirements. In this article, Geek of All Trades Greg Shields gives readers an overview of these enforcement mechanisms and, as an example, takes a closer look at setting ...

Use Windows PowerShell to Manage Virtual Machines Here are a few examples of how you can use Windows PowerShell scripts to manage virtual machines running on a Server Core installation. Note that these scripts are presented as samples and may need to be customized to work in your environment.

Create a New ...

Disabling an Unused Part of Group Policy Objects One way to disable a policy is to disable an unused part of the GPO. By disabling part of a policy that isn’t used, the application of GPOs and security will be faster.

Administer Windows Server 2008 Server Core from the Command Prompt ...

In the August 2008 issue of TechNet Magazine, Paul Randal wrote an article Top Tips for Effective Database Maintenance. It was geared toward "involuntary DBAs" (IT pros who inadvertently wind up responsible for a SQL Server instance). The article had a great response from our readers so Paul has written another ...

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Forefront Security

Microsoft Forefront is designed to deliver an integrated security solution that makes it much easier to deploy and manage security across an organization’s IT infrastructure. In this, our annual security issue, we feature two articles that describe how Forefront Security protects instant messaging and e-mail.

Protect ...

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April 2008

SQL Server 2008: What's New

The new version of SQL Server offers a host of new features and enhancements that promise to improve performance, increase security, and make life better for database administrators. Here’s an overview of the key changes and what you can expect from SQL Server 2008. Randy Dyess

SQL Server 2008: Security

Security continues to be an area of deliberate improvement for SQL Server. Explore some of the most important security-related changes you’ll find in SQL Server 2008, from encryption and authentication enhancements to Policy-Based Management and the new auditing system that will help with regulatory requirements. Rick Byham

SQL Server 2008: New Data Types

SQL Server 2008 offers seven new built-in data types that let you work with more complex data and simplify the management of structured, semi-structured, and even unstructured data. Get an in-depth look at these new data types and find out how you can use them to improve data management in your infrastructure. Kelly Wilson

SQL Server 2008: Data Warehouse Query Performance

SQL Server 2008 offers more powerful relational data warehousing capabilities. Take a close look at key performancerelated data warehousing features and find out how you can use all this new technology to optimize query performance. S. Agarwal, T. Grabs, and J. Hammer

SQL Server: Minimize Blocking in SQL Server

While locking is essential to support concurrent read and write activities on a database, blocking can adversely affect system performance. Learn how to optimize your SQL Server database to minimize blocking, and see how you can monitor the system to better understand how locking impacts performance. Cherié Warren

Microsoft Office: Integrating Access Databases with SharePoint

Many businesses still rely on Microsoft Access. Fortunately, Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 allows you to integrate legacy Access data. Explore how you can use these tools to build new solutions for your organization. Peter Serzo

Columns

From the Editor: To Friends, Both Old and New Joshua Hoffman	Letters: Readers Speak Out	Toolbox: New Products for IT Pros Greg Steen
SQL Q&A: Grow Databases, Use IFilters, and Connect Remotely Find out how to grow databases programmatically, learn how to use IFilters, and explore firewall settings that support remote SQL Server connections. Edited by Matthew Graven	Utility Spotlight: Web Capacity Analysis Tool Web logs and traffic analysis can give you a good idea of the kind of traffic you can expect over time. But how can you determine what your infrastructure can handle? The free Web Capacity Analysis Tool can help you to see how your systems will perform under stress. Greg Steen	The Cable Guy: Troubleshooting NAP Enforcement Troubleshooting enforcement behaviors in the Network Access Protection platform can be challenging. The Cable Guy explains how NAP health policy evaluation works and how you can troubleshoot the most common issues. Joseph Davies
Windows PowerShell: Sign Here, Please An overview of signing your scripts for improved security. Don Jones	Hey, Scripting Guy!: The Return of the Database Script The AllSigned execution policy provides the most secure Windows PowerShell environment. So how do you sign your Windows PowerShell scripts? Don Jones shows you how. The Microsoft Scripting Guys	Security Watch: Where Is My PII? Before you can effectively protect your Personally Identifiable Information, you must know where it’s stored on your PC. Here's a look at how to write scripts that will locate personal data stored on your computer. You just might be surprised at what these scripts uncover. Frank Simorjay
The Desktop Files: Deploying Windows XP with the WAIK The Windows Automated Installation Kit was designed primarily for Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008. But did you know that it can also help you deploy Windows XP and Windows Server 2003? Here's what you need to know to get started. Wes Miller	Field Notes: A MARvellous Initiative See how the new Microsoft Authorized Refurbisher (MAR) program can help companies deal with confusing software licensing issues when refurbishing old PCs. Neil Fawcett	Windows Confidential: Share and Share Alike "Are you sure you want to remove this shared file?" Raymond Chen explains why an uninstaller may ask this question when you remove a program. Raymond Chen