Configuring the Windows Server 2003 Environment

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Chapter 3

• Configuring the Windows Server 2003 Environment

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Configuring Hardware Devices

• Hardware devices include
• Disk drives and CD-ROM drives
• Disk controllers
• Network adapters
• Keyboards, monitors, and pointing devices
• Install and configure new hardware with the
  following tools
• Plug and Play
• Add Hardware Wizard

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Plug and Play (PnP)

• Automatically detects and configures newly
  installed hardware devices
• Almost universally supported
• For PnP to work, it must be
• Built into the device
• Enabled in the target computers BIOS
• Built into the computer operating system kernel

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Add Hardware Wizard

• Calls on the operating system to use PnP to
  detect new hardware.
• Installs new non-PnP compatible hardware and
  hardware drivers.
• Troubleshoots ? problems you may be having with
  existing hardware.
• Accessed from Control Panel.

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Configuring and Managing Hardware

• Device Manager
• Checks for resource conflicts
• Examines and modifies device properties
• Hardware Profiles
• Set of instructions telling the operating system
  which devices to start and which device settings
  to use
• Driver Signing
• Digital signature that Microsoft incorporates
  into driver and system files to verify
  compatibility

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Resource Conflicts

• A servers resources include
• Interrupt request (IRQ) line
• Channel of communication with the CPU
• Typically 15 IRQ lines in Intel-based computers
• I/O address
• Address through which data is transferred between
  a component and the processor
• Reserved memory range

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Resource Conflicts (cont.)

• The video display, each disk drive, each port,
  and sound card all use an IRQ.
• Each also needs reserved memory and port
  addresses for I/O operations.
• Resource conflicts can arise between devices when
  new hardware is installed.
• Use Device Manager to determine and resolve
  hardware conflicts.

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Note
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Hardware Profiles

• By default, one hardware profile is created
  during Windows Server 2003 installation.
• Every installed device is enabled in the profile.
• Multiple profiles are often created for portable
  computers.
• Use Device Manager to disable/enable specific
  devices for each location.

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Driver Signing

• Three options for unsigned drivers
• Ignore
• Warn (the default setting)
• Block
• Set driver signing at Warn or Block
• Set the system default to apply to all users
• Driver signing applies to all new software
  installations as well
• Can prevent system files from being overwritten

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Driver Signing (cont.)

• System File Checker restores system files that
  have inadvertently been overwritten
• Can be set to run when the system boots (system
  information)
• Can be manually started with the sfc /scannow
  command
• Should only be used when users are logged off
• Sigverif scans files for driver signatures, but
  does not overwrite them
• Can be run when users are logged on
• Results are written to a log file called
  sigverif.txt

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Configuring the Operating System

• Performance options
• Processor scheduling and memory usage
• Virtual memory
• Environment variables
• Startup and recovery options
• Power options
• Protocols

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Processor Scheduling and Memory Usage

• Processor Scheduling
• Controls how processor resources are allocated to
  programs
• The default is Background services
• All programs receive equal processor time
• Memory usage
• Controls how much memory is allocated to run
  programs vs. server functions
• The default is System cache
• Computer is acting as a network server

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Right click my computer -gt properties
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Virtual Memory

• Disk storage used to expand the capacity of RAM
• When RAM is exceeded, virtual memory is treated
  as if it were RAM
• Uses paging technique
• Pages are blocks of information moved to/from RAM
  from/to virtual memory (disk)
• On a Pentium computer, blocks are 4 KB
• A paging file (pagefile.sys) is the area of disk
  allocated for virtual memory

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Virtual Memory (cont.)

• Initial and maximum size of the paging file
• Set initial size to at least 1.5 times RAM
• Set maximum size to twice the initial size
• Do not place the paging file on the boot
  partition
• Place a paging file on each disk (except the boot
  partition)
• Place paging file on main disk for a mirrored set
  or volume
• Do not place a paging file on a stripe set or
  volume, or RAID-5 volume

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Network Performance

• Memory is divided into server functions and
  network connectivity functions
• Server functions use RAM and paging
• Software applications, printing, and currently
  running services
• Network connectivity functions use only RAM
• Number of user connections at a given time

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Environment variables

• System environment variables
• Defined by the operating system
• Apply to all users
• User environment variables
• Defined on a per user basis
• Variables are set in the following order
• System
• Variables in autoexec.bat (except path variables)
• User
• Path variables in the autoexec.bat

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Run cmd and type USERPROFILE
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Startup and Recovery

• Enables the modification of the Boot.ini file
• Boot.ini can also be modified manually
• Provides instructions on how to recover from a
  system failure
• Write an event to the system log
• Send an administrative alert
• Write debug information to a file
• Have the computer reboot automatically after a
  system failure

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C\Windows
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Power Options

• Default power scheme is Always On
• Monitor turns off after 20 minutes of no activity
• Hard disk is always on
• Default setup for power off button is Shut down
• Standby mode shuts down computer components and
  does not write to hard disk
• Hibernate takes longer to resume, but writes to
  hard disk
• Uninterruptible power supply (UPS)
• Provides battery power for a limited time in case
  of power outage

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Additional Windows Server 2003 Components
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Control Panel -gt Add/Remove Programs/Components
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Windows Server 2003 Registry

• Complex database containing all the information
  the operating system needs to know about the
  server
• Examples
• Information about all hardware components
• Information about Windows Server 2003 services
  that are installed, which services they depend
  on, and the order in which they are started
• Data about user profiles and Group Policies
• Data on the last current and last known Setup
  used to boot the computer

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Windows Server 2003 Registry

• Configuration information about all software in
  use
• Software licensing information
• Control Panel parameter configuration
• Registry Editor is launched by running either
  Regedt32 or Regedit
• Use precautions when working with the registry
• Limit access privileges to specific
  administrators
• Only make changes as a last resort
• Back up the registry often
• Never copy the registry from one system to another

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5 Root Keys
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Registry Contents

• Key
• Category or division of information
• Five root keys, or subtrees, make up the primary
  categories in a registry
• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
• HKEY_CURRENT_USER
• HKEY_USERS
• HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT
• HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG
• Subkey
• Lower-level key that can contain entries or
  subkeys
• Sets of subkeys are called hives

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Registry Contents (cont.)

• Entry
• Data parameter associated with a software or
  hardware characteristic under a key/subkey
• Example ErrorControlREG_DWORD0
• Three parts
• Name
• Data type
• Configuration parameter
• Three data formats
• DWORD is hexadecimal
• String is text data
• Binary is two hexadecimal values

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Fixed length string.
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Registry Root Keys

• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
• Information on every hardware component

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Registry Root Keys (cont.)

• HKEY_CURRENT_USER
• Information about the desktop setup for the
  account currently logged onto the server console
• HKEY_USERS
• Profile information for each user account on the
  computer
• HKEYS_CLASSES_ROOT
• Data to associate file extensions with programs
• HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG
• Information about the current hardware profile(s)

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Example of Editing the Registry (see handout for
complete document)
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Review Exercises for Chapter 3