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When I'm not managing the Windows engineering team, I like to play hockey. This helps me understand the mentality of IT managers and systems administrators because, like you, I play defense. As a matter of fact, I'm a goaltender, which means I'm the last one standing when my defensive line fails. If we're down a few goals at the end of a period, you'll find me ranting and raging in the locker room, "Where's my defense?" You know how this feels. It's often you defending your system against hackers, you resetting the client machines after an application or configuration "accident," you dealing with a bogged-down network, you trying to stay one step ahead of threats that change speed and direction and seem to shoot toward you at 100 miles per hour. And if the "opponent" scores, it shows up on your record.
Wouldn't it be great if you weren't the last line of defense? Wouldn't you rather be the offense, focusing on adding value for your users, making them more productive, making the tools they need easier to access, getting crucial data to them faster—basically getting (and keeping) them connected to everything they need to do their jobs well? With Windows Server 2003, we've worked to build something as fast, solid, and smooth as the ice on a hockey rink.
We've made file server and web server performance at least twice as fast as Windows 2000; file system performance is 140 percent better; and Active Directory searches are more than four times faster. A range of new and improved features, including memory mirroring, Hot Add Memory, and health detection in Internet Information Services (IIS) 6.0, enhances reliability. Clustering for up to 8 nodes and network load balancing is built in, and, as with Windows 2000, several major OEMs will guarantee 99.9 to 100 percent availability. Configuration wizards install and set up services automatically based on the server roles you choose; settings are securely locked down by default.
During this product cycle, we stopped the development machine to dedicate every Windows employee to an intense security review of every line of Windows Server 2003 code to identify and eliminate possible fail points and exploitable weaknesses so that your Windows server won't go down unless you turn it off.
Windows Server 2003 will help you get more done faster. The .NET Framework is fully integrated and saves developers from writing "plumbing" code so that they can focus their efforts immediately on writing code. Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) has a new user interface that dramatically simplifies policy administration. The addition of Resultant Set of Policy reporting and scripting means that now you're able to model settings in a test domain before copying the policy objects to production domains in your enterprise. With the new volume shadow copy service, users can retrieve previous versions of files from servers instantly, without requiring you to dig through backup tapes. We've greatly enhanced the command-line functionality in the Windows Server 2003 family and added "headless server" capabilities that allow IT administrators to install and manage a computer without a monitor, VGA display adaptor, keyboard, or mouse. And we ship it with ready-to-use scripts. Software Update Services collects new updates from Microsoft as they are released and automatically deploys the ones you approve to clients and servers. And this is just a sample of what Windows Server 2003 offers to clear the way for you to add more value for users.
Deploying Windows Server 2003 is like drafting the right players, suiting them up with the right equipment, and giving them the home rink advantage. Now all you need to maintain a winning style is a great coach and playbook to guide you through using the tools and resources in the right combination at the right times. In The Ultimate Windows Server 2003 System Administrator's Guide, coaches Williams and Walla describe best practices for designing and deploying the Active Directory, sharing and securing network resources, getting users connected no matter where they are, and managing and maintaining Windows Server 2003 servers in your enterprise. This book will be a supportive resource to help you know how to use the tools and features Microsoft shipped, but even better, it guides you through enough of the product internals to approach administration more strategically. A good coach tells you what to do to win; a great coach helps you develop the skills to win on your own. Enjoy this great book.
Brian Valentine
Senior Vice President
Microsoft Windows Division
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