With Windows Server 2008 in the hands of IT shops for a year, you would be pleasantly surprised at some of the cool things folks have done with it. Through interviews with a range of tech experts and developers, we've dug up a handful of worthwhile tips and tricks that can either save time or help you function a bit better. There're an enormous number of tips we could report, but we decided to give you just the top five for now.

It might be hard to imagine why anyone would want to do this. But when Windows Server 2008 was first available in beta and as a release candidate, the consensus was that it actually performed better than Windows Vista. Folks were jokingly calling it Workstation 2008. So, I decided to give it a shot and installed Server 2008 on my laptop. Immediately I realized why its performance was so good: It was missing all the extras.

What happened to my audio, Media Player, Sidebar and Aero? Not there. Typically these are items you don't need or want on your Windows servers, so Microsoft forces you to enable them.

In order to get your Vista features back, you need to open Server Manager (either from the Quick Launch toolbar icon or from Administrative Tools). Next, select the Features node and click the Add Features link. The feature you want to add is called Desktop

Experience. If you select the option, you see a description that explains that Desktop Experience includes features of Windows Vista, including Windows Media Player, desktop themes and photo management.

Even after you have the features installed, you still have to enable the Themes service before you can work with Aero. To do this, open the Services console (either by typing services.msc from the Instant Search box or by going to Administrative Tools and selecting Services), locate the Themes service, right-click it and enter the Properties, and change the startup type to Automatic.

Note: While you're in the Services console, you might as well look for the Windows Audio service, too, and change the startup to automatic if you want the server to have audio.

2. Extend the Evaluation Period

Here's a really good trick that made its debut with Vista. Did you know that you can extend your evaluation period on your system without activating? Typically users start looking around for the Microsoft police at this point, and they think this is some really hush-hush accident on Microsoft's part. But as you can see by reading Knowledge Base article 948472, Microsoft already knows about it. Essentially, you have a 60-day period from when you install Server 2008 to the point where you must activate it. However, if you use the slmgr.vbs script, you can reset the evaluation period. This will not work forever (only three times), but you can extend the evaluation period for up to 240 days.

Here's how it works: Open a command prompt and type slmgr.vbs -dli. This gives you the current status of your evaluation period (as shown in Figure 1), which is important because you don't want to re-arm the process until you reach the end of the 60-day period. Once you're ready to reset the process, type: slmgr.vbs -rearm.

Note: You can automate the process by configuring the Task Scheduler to run the slmgr.vbs script at the conclusion of the evaluation period through the use of an .XML file and some coding that Microsoft gives you in Knowledge Base article 948472.

3. Get Rid of the Annoying Shutdown Event Manager Screen

In the real world, you rarely want to reboot a server if you don't have to. But when you're constantly testing new things and installing applications and features, you tend to reboot often. And so it's a bit of a pet peeve of mine that I'm constantly questioned by my own server as to why I have the nerve to reboot the machine. I get that queasy feeling in my stomach, as though Ward Cleaver (the dad from "Leave it to Beaver") just showed up and said, "Now where do you think you're going, mister?" and I have to give an explanation.

To get rid of this little annoyance, go to the Start menu and in the Instant Search box, type gpedit.msc for the local policy editor. Expand out Computer Configuration, Administrative Templates, then System. Double-click the Display Shutdown Event Tracker and click Disabled. No more Ward. I'm once again an adult network admin. Keep in mind, however, that you will not be second-guessed anymore when shutting down the server, so make sure this is what you really want to do before you initiate the shutdown.

4. Get Server Core up and Running

Perhaps you have installed the Server Core version of Server 2008 and were greeted by that standard command prompt. Did you think: OK, now what? I know I was a bit lost without the GUI after so many years of living in a GUI-only world. I think what saved me this past year was working extensively with PowerShell in Exchange 2007. So, when I was face-to-face with that black box staring at me, I didn't freak out. I was, however, slightly put off by the fact that it was the traditional cmd.exe and not the sleek new PowerShell, which is due to the additional security afforded you by Server Core in that .NET Framework is missing (an essential element to PowerShell). Perhaps the Framework team will create a modularized version of the Framework for the future of Server Core, but for now we can work with what we have.

Note: Not all applets will work through the .cpl method, but these two were kept to make life easier for admins. There are a few other tools that are available to you as well. For example, you can type notepad at the prompt, and it brings up Notepad, or Taskmgr for your Task Manager, or even Regedit to bring up the Registry Editor.
Once you have the server configured, the next step is to install the roles and features you want. Under Server Core, the commands you need to learn are:

• oclist.exe: shows you a list of which roles and features are already installed, and also shows you the proper spelling and case of those roles and features.


• ocsetup.exe: allows you to install or uninstall the roles and features you need.

Then you'll worry about configuring the features that are available.

Here's a list of commands that you may want to keep handy when configuring your Server Core Server:

• Netsh: To establish IP configuration settings (or firewall configuration with netsh advfirewall). KB article 242468


• Net User: To change the administrative password. KB article 251394


• Netdom: To provide a server name and/or join a domain. Microsoft TechNet Library Netdom Examples


• Shutdown: To restart your system. KB article 317371


• Slmgr: The Software License Management Tool, which we discussed earlier, is used to install and activate the license for the system. KB article 555965


• SCRegEdit.wsf: To enable Remote Desktop. KB article 555964

Note: If you decide you just don't want to be forced back into command-line life all over again, you might consider the Windows 2008 Core Configurator from CodePlex.

One of the cool things you might consider is putting together a list of configuration commands for Server Core Server into a batch file. That will certainly make life a bit easier. For other configuration changes, you may consider using some of the GUI tools that are still "live" in Server Core. For example, you can type intl.cpl (to access the Regional and Language Options applet) or timedate.cpl (to adjust your Time and Date settings through the applet).

5. Install Roles and Features Using ServerManagerCmd

To all those Windows admins who don't want to let go of the GUI, my apologies. But the question remains: If you can perform a task faster and better through the command line, why fight it? On the other hand, others are grateful for the command-line craze. I found this next tip when I was working on free Exchange clips that I was putting together to help the community at large learn Exchange 2007. One thing I've found over the past year as I've set up about 100 Exchange Servers is that the actual prep work is maddening. There are many little details to remember, such as installing .NET Framework and PowerShell, and making sure IIS is installed and configured (depending on the Exchange Server role). There had to be a better way to install roles and features than going through the Server Manager GUI.

And there is. It's called ServerManagerCmd.

Here's a simple example: If you want to install PowerShell, you don't have to open the Server Manager and locate the feature and make about a dozen mouse clicks. Just type at command prompt:

ServerManagerCmd -i PowerShell

Note: To remove a role, you can type -remove, and if you have to restart the system after any given installation you can add -restart to the end of the command. Learn more about Server Manager Commands in the Microsoft TechNet Library article, "Overview of Server Manager Commands."

This tool is an excellent shortcut to locating all sorts of information and making some easy configurations on the server, especially if you put it together as a batch file. By doing so, it ensures you will have consistent results on each server you set up for your organization.

One thing you might try is typing servermanagercmd -query to get a list of the current roles installed on the server. You will be shown which roles are installed-displayed in green-along with the others that aren't, as well as the features beneath those roles. Again, you can use this for roles and features as previously noted with PowerShell.

If you want to install your IIS Server, you can use the following command:

Servermanagercmd -install Web-Server

Just the 'Tip' of the Iceberg
As always, there are plenty of exciting tips and tricks about a new OS, and hopefully we've whetted your appetite a bit to go out and find some more. Anything that can help us to work smarter and enjoy what we do as server admins, well ... that's worth searching for.

Microsoft hasn't placed the act of resizing a partition under a glaring spotlight for a reason. If the average user were to get their fingers on these tools they could do some real, and irreversible, damage. Fortunately, you are not the average user. Go to the start menu and right click on the Computer entry. When you do that you will see a menu you might not have even known was there.

Once you right click the Manage entry, the new window, Computer Management might take a while to appear.

If the Storage entry isn't expanded, expand it to reveal the Disk Management tool. Now click on the Disk Management entry which will show your hard disk layout.

What you now need to do is to choose the partition you want to resize and right click the partition. Once you right click the partition you will see a new menu appear. Depending upon the set up of the drive you are changing you may have more options available.

Let's say you want to shrink a partition; select Shrink to open the resizing window. What you will see is the amount of space available for resizing as calculated by Vista.

If you are to expand a partition there is a Wizard to walk through. Click on the Expand entry in the right click menu and the Wizard will start. The Wizard will open to a window that allows you to delete a partition in order to make room for the expansion. Decide how much of that available space you want to use to expand the partition. Once you have set that size click Next and then finalize the changes.

It has been a long time coming to have on the fly partition resizing. This is one of the best features of Windows Vista. But as a final warning, do back up your data just in case.

However, this great feature is essentially hidden, as it is tucked away in a command-line switch rather than being another check box in the Remote Desktop GUI. In this edition of the Windows Vista report, I'll show you how to use this command-line switch. I'll then show you how to create a specially configured shortcut that will relieve you from having to rely on the command line.

Caveats

While Vista's Remote Desktop support for multiple monitors is an awesome feature, it does come with two caveats:

1. Your multiple monitors must have the same screen resolution.


2. The screen resolution on your multiple monitors as well as the monitor of the computer to which you're connecting must be under 4096 x 2048.

The command line

To launch Remote Desktop Connection with multiple monitor support, you must open a Command Prompt window and type the command:

Mstsc /span

You'll then see the standard Remote Desktop Connection dialog box, shown in Figure A, and will need to fill in the connection settings.

Figure A

When you use the standard command-line method, you'll have to manually fill in the connection settings.
As soon as you make a connection, you'll immediately see the desktop of the remote system spread across your multiple monitors. When you need to have access to both the local and remote desktops, you can reduce the size of the remote system's desktop to only one monitor by clicking the Restore Down button on the Remote Desktop window. As a shortcut, you can also use the keystroke [Ctrl][Alt][Break].

Once the window is on one monitor, you can use click-and-drag to resize the window to completely cover a single monitor. Keep in mind that when you reduce the size of a spanned remote widow, it will display both horizontal and vertical scroll bars, as shown in Figure B, that you'll have to use to see the entire screen. However, you can instantly span the window by clicking the Maximize button.

Figure B

When you resize the remote desktop's spanned window, you'll have to use scroll bars to view the entire screen.
Creating a shortcutOf course, using the command line to launch your Remote Desktop connection isn't the most convenient way to use this feature. Chances are that you already have a saved Remote Desktop Connection RDP file saved on your desktop. Fortunately, you can create a standard Windows shortcut that will incorporate both the special command line and your RDP file.

Right-click anywhere on the desktop and select New | Shortcut from the context menu. When you see the Create Shortcut wizard, just type mstsc /span and the path to the RDP file in the text box, as shown in Figure C. Be sure that you enclose the path to the RDP file in double quotes if it has spaces in it. To continue, click Next and give the shortcut a appropriate name such as Saturn - MultiMon Remote and then click Finish.

Figure C

You can create a standard Windows shortcut that will incorporate both the special command line and your RDP file.
You can now use this shortcut to launch your remote desktop connection and use all the available space on your multiple monitors. Of course, the spanned desktop won't exactly behave like a multiple monitor setup when you open multiple windows. You'll have to use a little creative click-and-drag resizing to reposition the windows on the spanned desktop.

What's your take?Do you have a multiple monitor setup? Do you regularly use Remote Desktop? Will you take advantage of Vista's Remote Desktop support for multiple monitors? Please drop by the Discussion Area and let us hear from you.

Getting and installing

As with any Windows application installation, all you need to do is download the Desktops download file, unzip it, and place the executable in a convenient location. However, Desktops isn't an application that will run at boot without a little help. When you first run Desktops you will be greeted with the main configuration window.

This is where you do all of your Desktops configuration.

In order to have Desktops run at logon simply click the check box at the bottom left of the configuration window. Of course, startup is not the only configuration you can take care of. You can also set the hot key combination of your preference.

Setting up hot key combinations

With Desktops you have your choice of Hot Key combinations. There are two columns in the configuration windows: One column for the primary key (Alt, Control, Shift, Windows) and one for the secondary key (1, 2, 3, 4 or F1, F2, F3, F4). This is very much a case of user preference. The only issue with this configuration is if your particular hardware already uses a particular key combination. Also note that when you have the configuration window open you can not switch desktops.
The key combinations option is not the only way to switch desktops. With Desktops running there will be a small icon in the system tray. If you right-click the Desktops icon in the system tray you will see a Select Desktop option.

Selecting this option is the same as left-clicking the Desktops system tray icon.

Once you select that option a popup will open showing thumbnails of all of your configured desktops.

Unlike in Linux, you can not configure different backgrounds for different desktops.

There is one small annoyance with Desktops. When you switch to a new desktop (one that you haven't been on yet) it's almost as if the desktop has to fully load. This is actually just the panel starting up. After you have moved to a desktop once, the next time you switch to it will be instantaneous.
Unfortunately, as you can with Linux, you can not move a window from one desktop to another. So once you have an application running on one desktop, you have to close that application and re-open it on the desktop you want to work with it on. It would be nice if Sysinternals would create an option that would allow users to drag windows from one desktop to another.

Final thoughts

I have long thought Windows needed virtual desktops. The virtual desktop is one of the features that make working on the Linux desktop so much easier. Virtual desktops have far too many pros and zero cons. I was thrilled to finally come across an application that allows adding virtual desktops to Windows. With the help of Desktops, Windows becomes a fraction more useful and a lot less cluttered

By: Jack Wallen - TechRepublic]]> tag:www.setup32.com,2008:/tech-tips//8.649 2008-10-16T11:43:12Z 2008-10-16T12:11:42Z

Is the Sleep button on your Windows XP machine in an inconvenient location for regular use? If so, follow these simple steps to create your own.

Many computers or keyboards have a Sleep button, which when pressed puts the computer into either Stand By or Hibernate mode depending on how Windows XP's Power Options are configured. However, the Sleep button might not be in convenient location for regular use. For example, it might be on the front of a mid-tower case that's under your desk.

1. Right-click on the desktop.
2.  Select New | Shortcut.
3.  Type rundll32.exe powrprof.dll,SetSuspendState in the text box.
4.  Click Next.
5.  Type Sleep in the text box and click Finish.

Now when you click the Sleep icon, Windows XP will put the computer into either Stand By or Hibernate mode depending on how the When I Press The Sleep Button On My Computer setting is configured on the Advanced tab of the Power Options Properties dialog box.

Liven up your desktop with Windows XP's animated pointer schemes

Windows XP has a variety of built-in animated pointer schemes. Here's how you can start using some of these little-known tricks. Note: This tip applies to both Windows XP Professional and Home.

Let's face it. There are times in every IT person's week when the urgent need for high-powered technical intelligence wanes a bit -- especially on a slow Friday afternoon. Those are the times when technical prowess turns to such tasks as fine-tuning the advanced settings of the ultimate OpenGL 3D screen saver or other system tweaks. The next time you find yourself in this situation, why not investigate some of Windows XP's built-in animated pointer schemes?

Here's how.

1. Go to Start | Control Panel and double-click the Mouse tool to access the Mouse Properties dialog box.
2.  Select the Pointers tab.
3.  In the Scheme drop-down list, select a scheme from the list. (Keep in mind that not all of the pointer schemes in the list are animated, and some of the pointer schemes are designed for Windows Accessibility features.)
4.  Once you select a pointer scheme, you can view the various animated pointers in that scheme by scrolling through the Customize list and selecting the pointer. When you do, you'll see the animation in a frame adjacent to the Scheme drop-down list.
5.  Click OK.

If you wish, you can create your own animated scheme by double-clicking a pointer in the Customize list, selecting from one of the available pointers, and then clicking the Save As button in the Scheme panel and providing a unique name.

Simplify copy and paste operations in Windows XP

Copying and pasting in Windows XP is simple enough -- but how would you like to make it even easier? Teach some old keys new tricks and simplify the copy and paste process in both Professional and Home versions.

Do you spend a lot of time on your Windows XP machine researching IT-related topics on the Internet? If so, chances are that you probably spend time copying text from interesting Web sites and then pasting that text into word processing documents for later reference. That's four separate keyboard strokes -- [Ctrl]C to copy and [Ctrl]V to paste -- each time you want to save snippets of text. Wouldn't it be nice if you could reduce each operation to a single keystroke? Well, you can!

If you have a Microsoft keyboard that provides a special set of buttons across the top, you can use the IntelliType software to reassign any of the special buttons to perform the copy and paste operations.

Here's how.

1. Download and install the most current version of the IntelliType software for your keyboard from the Microsoft Hardware site. (This step is optional because the IntelliType software you have installed will allow you to reassign the special buttons.)
2.  Access the Control Panel and double-click the Keyboard icon to display the Keyboard Properties dialog box.
3.  Select the Key Settings tab, choose a key in the list, and click the Edit button to launch the Reassign A Key wizard.
4.  Select the Choose From A List Of Commands option button in the Custom section and click Next.
5.  In the Select A Command From The List scrolling list box, select the Copy command and click Finish.
6.  Repeat steps 3 through 5 and assign another key to the Paste command.
7.  When you return to the Keyboard Properties dialog box, click OK.

Now, anytime you want to perform a copy or paste operation, all you have to do is press the buttons that you reassigned. Likewise for a paste-only operation.

Make the Windows XP Favorites menu more useful in Windows Explorer

Your favorite menu just got better at dealing with your Favorites. This shortcut will let you cut through the maze of folders on your Windows XP machine running Windows Explorer. Note: This tip applies to both Windows XP Professional and Home.
Similar to Internet Explorer, the Favorites menu in Windows XP appears in Windows Explorer. This makes it easy for you to access the Internet from within Windows Explorer. However, it really serves no other purpose in Windows Explorer -- even though it has the potential to do so much more.

You can make hard disk and network navigation much easier and more efficient if you use the Favorites menu as a place to keep shortcuts to deeply nested folders on your hard disk, as well as to network drives you access frequently. Doing so just takes a bit of rethinking about how you use and organize the Favorites menu.

Here's how.

1. Press [Windows]R to access the Run dialog box, type Favorites in the Open text box, and click OK to open the Favorites folder in Windows Explorer.
2.  Use the Make A New Folder command in the File And Folder Tasks pane to create three new folders, naming them Internet, Local Folders, and Network Folders.
3.  Move all of your Internet links, except the folder titled Links, into the newly created Internet folder.
4.  Navigate to some of the deeply nested folders on your hard disk that you access frequently and use the Add To Favorites command on the Favorites menu to create links in the Local Folders folder.
5.  Navigate to some of the network shares that you access frequently and use the Add To Favorites command to create links in the Network Folders folder.

Now, when you're in Windows Explorer you can use the Local Folders and Network Folders shortcuts on the Favorites menu to make quick work of your regular hard disk and network navigation.

Add a Safe Mode option to the Boot menu in Windows XP

Follow these steps to add a Safe Mode option to the Boot menu.

When you're experiencing a problem with Windows XP, you may need to boot the system into Safe Mode more than once. However, doing so can be a tiresome process. When the Boot menu appears, you must press [F8], and then you must select Safe Mode from yet another menu.

Wouldn't it be nice if Safe Mode were available from the Boot menu? In fact, it's relatively easy to add a Safe Mode option to the Boot menu.

Here's how.

1. Press [Windows][Break] to open the System Properties dialog box.
2.  On the Advanced tab, click the Settings button in the Startup And Recovery section.
3.  In the System Startup section, click the Edit button.
4.  When the Boot.ini file opens in Notepad, locate the line that ends with the /fastdetect switch.
5.  Highlight and copy that line and paste it in the line below.
6.  Change the section on the line that reads WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" to WINDOWS="Safe Mode."
7.  Add the following to the end of the line:
   /safeboot:minimal /sos /bootlog

Modify the Open With list in Windows XP

Follow these steps to modify the Open With list.

If you open certain types of files in more than one application, you probably use the Open With command. To do so, right-click a file, and select Open With from the resulting shortcut menu. This displays a secondary menu listing the programs that can open this type of file.
In most cases, the Open With list presents only those programs that you'll want to use. But if the list contains programs that you never want to use, you can remove them with a simple registry edit. Note: Editing the registry is risky, so be sure you have a verified backup before making any changes.

Here's how.

1. Launch the Registry Editor (Regedit.exe).
2.  Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ CurrentVersion\Explorer\FileExts.
3.  Double-click the key associated with the file extension of the file type whose Open With list you want to modify.
4.  When that key opens, double-click the OpenWithList key.
5.  Delete the value associated with the program that you want to remove from the list.

Switch to Windows' basic search tool in XP

Learn how to switch from the Windows XP Search Companion to the basic search tool.

As you probably know, the Windows XP Search Companion provides users with a lot of bells and whistles designed to make searching for files on hard drives much easier. But sometimes all of these extra features just get in the way.

If you're longing for Windows 2000's basic search tool, it doesn't have to be in vain. The basic search tool is still available in Windows XP, and you can activate it with a quick registry edit. Note: Editing the registry is risky, so be sure you have a verified backup before making any changes.

Here's how.

1. Open the Registry Editor (Regedit.exe).
2.  Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ CurrentVersion\Explorer\CabinetState.
3.  Go to Edit | New | String Value.
4.  Name the new value Use Search Asst.
5.  Double-click the new value, type no in the Value Data text box, and click OK.
6.  Close the Registry Editor, and restart the system.

To switch back to the Search Companion, just go back to the Registry Editor, and change the Value Data to yes.

Add UNC information to the command prompt in XP

Here's a trick for configuring the command prompt to display the full UNC of a mapped drive letter.

If you're like most system administrators, you more than likely prefer to perform common tasks using Windows XP's vast array of command-line tools. If so, here's another trick to add to your toolbox.

Did you know that you can configure the command prompt to display the full UNC of a mapped drive letter? The ability to tell at a glance which server a particular driver letter maps to can save you both time and frustration when working at the command line. All you have to do is add a special character to the Prompt command.

Here's how.

1. Press [Windows][Break] to open the System Properties dialog box.
2. On the Advanced tab, click the Environment Variables button.
3. In the System Variables section, click the New button.
4. Enter PROMPT in the Variable Name text box.
5. Enter $m$p$g in the Variable Value text box.
6. Click OK three times to close all open dialog boxes.

Now, when you open a command prompt and access a mapped drive letter, you'll see the UNC path in the prompt.

Create a drive menu for My Computer

Set My Computer to work like a menu for easier access to the drives you need.

By default, the My Computer item on the Start menu is configured to work like a standard folder window. If you need to access a specific drive, select My Computer from the Start menu, wait a moment for the window to appear, and then double-click the icon for the drive you need to access.

When you're in a hurry, this two-step procedure can be time-consuming and frustrating -- especially if My Computer contains a large number of drive icons. However, Windows XP makes it easy for you to configure My Computer so it works like a menu, with each drive listed as a menu item.

Here's how.

1. Right-click the Start button, and select Properties.
2. Click Customize, which is adjacent to the Start Menu radio button, and select Advanced.
3. Scroll through the Start Menu Items list box until you see My Computer.
4. Select Display As A Menu, and click OK twice.

Now, when you select My Computer from the Start menu, you'll see a menu of individual drives. To access the contents of that drive, just select the drive letter from the menu.

Use registry shortcuts to disable and enable screensavers in Win XP

The steps in this tip will show you how to edit the registry for a time-saving shortcut for enabling and disabling your screensaver.

When you perform maintenance operations such as defragmenting or backing up the hard disk, you probably disable your screensaver before you begin to prevent it from interfering with the maintenance operation. However, disabling your screensaver manually is a multistep operation that involves accessing the Display Properties dialog box, navigating to the Screen Saver tab, and setting the screen saver to None. Then, you need to re-enable the screen saver after you complete the maintenance operation.

Fortunately, you can automate the disabling and enabling screen saver procedures with a couple of registry shortcuts. Note: Editing the registry is risky, so make sure you have a verified backup before making any changes.

Here's how.

1. Launch Notepad and type the following four lines. (Note: The second line must be blank.)
   Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
   [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop]
   "ScreenSaveActive"="0"
2.  Save the file to your desktop with the name Disable Screen Saver.reg.
3.  Change the 0 to a 1 in the fourth line.
4.  Save the file to your desktop with the name Enable Screen Saver.reg.

Now, when you need to disable the screen saver, just double-click the Disable Screen Saver.reg shortcut. To enable the screen saver, double-click the Enable Screen Saver.reg shortcut.

When you run either of these files, the Registry Editor will display two confirmation prompts -- one before making the change and one after making the change.