Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials & Configuration (2014)

Chapter 3. Managing Windows servers

§ Managing roles, role services, and features

§ Managing system properties

Although you can manage servers running Windows Server 2012 R2 by logging on locally, you’ll more typically perform management tasks from a management computer with management options installed, including the Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT). After you’ve enabled remote management, you can run the Remote Server Administration Tools on your management computer to perform most routine configuration tasks. At times, you might also need to use Remote Desktop Connection (mstsc.exe) to establish remote sessions with servers. Remote Desktop Connection allows you to manage remote systems in much the same way as you would if you were logged on locally However, remote management options are not enabled by default. You must enable these options manually as part of your initial server configuration. You also must ensure that Windows Firewall or any other firewall that might be between your management computer and the remote server has exceptions that allow you to work remotely.

Managing roles, role services, and features

When you want to manage server configurations, you’ll primarily use Server Manager to manage roles, role services, and features. Not only can you use Server Manager to add or remove roles, role services, and features, but you can also use Server Manager to view the configuration details and status for these software components.

Performing initial configuration tasks

Server Manager is your central management console for the initial setup and configuration of roles and features. Not only can Server Manager help you quickly set up a new server, the console also can help you quickly set up your management environment.

Normally, Windows Server 2012 R2 automatically starts Server Manager whenever you log on, and you can access Server Manager on the desktop. If you don’t want the console to start each time you log on, tap or click Manage, and then tap or click Server Manager Properties. In the Server Manager Properties dialog box, select Do Not Start Server Manager Automatically At Logon, and then tap or click OK.

NOTE

Group Policy also can be used to control automatic start of Server Manager. Enable or disable the Do Not Display Server Manager Automatically At Logon policy setting within Computer Configuration\Administrative Templates\System\Server Manager.

As Figure 3-1 shows, Server Manager’s default view is the dashboard. The dashboard has quick links for adding roles and features to local and remote servers, adding servers to manage, and creating server groups. You’ll find similar options are on the Manage menu:

§ Add Roles And Features. Starts the Add Roles And Features Wizard, which you can use to install roles, role services, and features on the server.

§ Add Servers. Opens the Add Servers dialog box, which you can use to add servers you want to manage. Added servers are listed when you select the All Servers node. Press and hold or right-click a server in the Servers pane of the All Servers node to display a list of management options, including Restart Server, Manage As, and Remove Server.

§ Create Server Group. Opens the Create Server Group dialog box, which you can use to add servers to server groups for easier management. Server Manager creates role-based groups automatically. For example, domain controllers are listed under AD DS, and you can quickly find information about any domain controllers by selecting the related node.

TIP

When you need to connect to a server by using alternate credentials, press and hold or right-click a server in the All Servers node and then click Manage As. In the Windows Security dialog box, enter your alternate credentials, and then tap or click OK. Credentials you provide are cleared when you exit Server Manager. To save the credentials and use them each time you log on, select Remember My Credentials in the Windows Security dialog box. You need to repeat this procedure any time you change the password associated with the alternate credentials.

REAL WORLD

When you are working with Server Core installations, you can use Sconfig to configure domain and workgroup membership, the computer’s name, remote management, Windows Update, Remote Desktop, network settings, and the date and time. You also can use Sconfig to log off, restart, and shut down the server. To start Sconfig, simply enter sconfig at the command prompt. You can then choose menu options and follow the prompts to configure the server.

Figure 3-1. Use the dashboard for general administration.

In Server Manager’s left pane (also referred to as the console tree), you’ll find options for accessing the dashboard, the local server, all servers added for management, and server groups. When you select Local Server in the console tree, as shown in Figure 3-2, you can manage the basic configuration of the server you are logged on to locally.

Figure 3-2. Manage the properties of the local server.

Information about the local server is organized into several main headings, each with an associated management panel:

§ Best Practices Analyzer. Allows you to run the Best Practices Analyzer on the server and review the results. To start a scan, tap or click Tasks and then tap or click Start BPA Scan.

§ Events. Provides summary information about warning and error events from the server’s event logs. Tap or click an event to display more information about the event.

§ Performance. Allows you to configure and view the status of performance alerts for CPU and memory usage. To configure performance alerts, tap or click Tasks and then tap or click Configure Performance Alerts.

§ Properties. Shows the computer name, domain, network IP configuration, time zone, and more. Each property can be clicked to quickly display a related management interface.

§ Roles And Features. Lists the roles and features installed on the server, in the approximate order of installation. To remove a role or feature, press and hold or right-click it and then select Remove Role Or Feature.

§ Services. Lists the services running on the server by name, status, and start type. Press and hold or right-click a service to manage its run status.

The Properties panel is where you perform much of your initial server configuration. Properties available for quick management include the following:

§ Computer Name/Domain. Shows the computer name and domain. Tap or click either of the related links to display the System Properties dialog box with the Computer Name tab selected. You can then change a computer’s name and domain information by tapping or clicking Change, providing the computer name and domain information, and then tapping or clicking OK. By default, servers are assigned a randomly generated name and are configured as part of a workgroup called WORKGROUP. In the Small Icons or Large Icons view of Control Panel, you also can display the System Properties dialog box with the Computer Name tab selected by tapping or clicking System, and then tapping or clicking Change Settings under Computer Name, Domain, And Workgroup Settings.

§ Customer Experience Improvement Program. Shows whether the server is participating in the Customer Experience Improvement Program (CEIP). Tap or click the related link to change the participation settings. Participation in CEIP allows Microsoft to collect information about the way you use the server. Microsoft collects this data to help improve future releases of Windows. No data collected as part of CEIP personally identifies you or your company. If you elect to participate, you can also provide information about the number of servers and desktop computers in your organization and in your organization’s general industry. If you opt out of CEIP by turning this feature off, you miss the opportunity to help improve Windows.

§ Ethernet. Shows the TCP/IP configuration of wired Ethernet connections. Tap or click the related link to display the Network Connections console. You can then configure network connections by double-tapping or double-clicking the connection you want to work with and then tapping or clicking Properties to open the Properties dialog box. By default, servers are configured to use dynamic addressing for both IPv4 and IPv6. You can also display the Network Connections console by tapping or clicking Change Adapter Settings under Tasks in Network And Sharing Center.

§ IE Enhanced Security Configuration. Shows the status of Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration (IE ESC). Tap or click the related link to enable or disable IE ESC. If you tap or click the link for this option, you can turn this feature on or off for administrators, users, or both. IE ESC is a security feature that reduces the exposure of a server to potential attacks by raising the default security levels in Internet Explorer security zones and changing default Internet Explorer settings. By default, IE ESC is enabled for both administrators and users.

REAL WORLD

In most cases, you should enable IE ESC on a server for both users and administrators. However, enabling IE ESC reduces the functionality of Internet Explorer. When IE ESC is enabled, security zones are configured as follows: the Internet zone is set to Medium-High, the Trusted Sites zone is set to Medium, the Local Intranet zone is set to Medium-Low, and the Restricted zone is set to High. When IE ESC is enabled, the following Internet settings are changed: the Enhanced Security Configuration dialog box is on, third-party browser extensions are off, sounds in web pages are off, animations in web pages are off, signature checking for downloaded programs is on, server certificate revocation is on, encrypted pages are not saved, temporary Internet files are deleted when the browser is closed, warnings for secure and nonsecure mode changes are on, and memory protection is on.

§ NIC Teaming. Shows the status and configuration of network interface card (NIC) teaming. Tap or click the related link to add or remove teamed interfaces and to manage related options.

§ Product ID. Shows the product identifier for Windows Server. Tap or click the related link to enter a product key and activate the operating system over the Internet.

§ Remote Desktop. Tap or click the related link to display the System Properties dialog box with the Remote tab selected. You can then configure Remote Desktop by selecting the configuration option you want to use and tapping or clicking OK. By default, no remote connections to a server are allowed. In the Small Icons or Large Icons view of Control Panel, you can display the System Properties dialog box with the Remote tab selected by double-tapping or double-clicking System and then tapping or clicking Remote Settings in the left pane.

§ Remote Management. Shows whether remote management of this server from other servers is enabled. Tap or click the related link to enable or disable remote management.

§ Time Zone. Shows the current time zone for the server. Tap or click the related link to display the Date And Time dialog box. You can then configure the server’s time zone by tapping or clicking Change Time Zone, selecting the appropriate time zone, and then tapping or clicking OK twice. You can also display the Date And Time dialog box by pressing and holding or rightclicking the clock on the taskbar and then selecting Adjust Date/Time. Although all servers are configured to synchronize time automatically with an Internet time server, the time synchronization process does not change a computer’s time zone.

§ Windows Error Reporting. Shows the status of Windows Error Reporting (WER). Tap or click the related link to change the participation settings for WER. In most cases, you’ll want to enable WER for at least the first 60 days following installation of the operating system. With WER enabled, your server sends descriptions of problems to Microsoft, and Windows notifies you of possible solutions to those problems. You can view problem reports and possible solutions by using Action Center. To open Action Center, tap or click the Action Center icon in the notification area of the taskbar, and then click Open Action Center.

§ Windows Firewall. Shows the status of Windows Firewall. If Windows Firewall is active, this property displays the name of the firewall profile that currently applies and the firewall status. Tap or click the related link to display the Windows Firewall utility. By default, Windows Firewall is enabled. In the Small Icons or Large Icons view of Control Panel, you can display Windows Firewall by tapping or clicking the Windows Firewall option.

§ Windows Update. Shows the current configuration of Windows Update. Tap or click the related link to display the Windows Update utility in Control Panel, which you can then use to enable automatic updating (if Windows Update is disabled) or to check for updates (if Windows Update is enabled). In the Small Icons or Large Icons view of Control Panel, you can display Windows Update by selecting the Windows Update option.

NOTE

I’ve provided this summary of options as an introduction and quick reference. I’ll discuss the related configuration tasks and technologies in more detail throughout this and other chapters in the book.

Navigating Server Manager essentials and binaries

The Server Manager console is designed to handle core system administration tasks. You’ll spend a lot of time working with this tool, and you should get to know every detail. By default, Server Manager is started automatically. If you closed the console or disabled automatic startup, you can open the console by tapping or clicking the related option on the taskbar. Alternatively, another way to do this is by pressing the Windows key, typing ServerManager.exe into the Everywhere Search box, and then pressing Enter.

Server Manager’s command-line counterpart is the ServerManager module for Windows PowerShell. At a Windows PowerShell prompt, you can obtain a detailed list of a server’s current state with regard to roles, role services, and features by entering get-windowsfeature. Each installed role, role service, and feature is highlighted and marked as such, and a management naming component in brackets follows the display name of each role, role service, and feature. By using Install–WindowsFeature or Uninstall–WindowsFeature followed by the management name, you can install or uninstall a role, role service, or feature. For example, you can install Network Load Balancing by entering install-windowsfeature nlb. You can add -includeallsubfeature when installing components to add all subordinate role services or features. Management tools are not included by default. To add the management tools, add -includemanagementtools when installing components.

REAL WORLD

When you are working with Windows PowerShell 3.0 or later, modules are imported implicitly. Otherwise, you need to import the module before you can use the cmdlets it provides. You import the ServerManager module by entering Import-Module ServerManager at the Windows PowerShell prompt. After the module is imported, you can use it with the currently running instance of Windows PowerShell. The next time you start Windows PowerShell, you need to import the module again if you want to use its features.

Binaries needed to install roles and features are referred to as payloads. With Windows Server 2012 R2, payloads are stored in subfolders of the %SystemDrive%\Windows\WinSXS folder. Not only can you uninstall a role or feature, but you also can uninstall and remove the payload for a feature or role by using the –Remove parameter of the Uninstall–WindowsFeature cmdlet. Subcomponents of the role or feature are also removed. To also remove management tools, add the -include-allmanagementtools parameter.

When you want to install a role or feature, you can install the related components and restore any removed payloads for these components by using the Install–WindowsFeature cmdlet. By default, when you use Install–WindowsFeature, payloads are restored via Windows Update.

In the following example, you restore the Active Directory Services (AD DS) binaries and all related subfeatures via Windows Update:

install-windowsfeature -name ad-domain-services -includeallsubfeature

You can use the –Source parameter to restore a payload from a Windows Imaging (WIM) format mount point. For example, if your enterprise has a mounted Windows Image for the edition of Windows Server 2012 R2 you are working with available at the network path \\ImServer18\WinS12EE, you could specify the source as follows:

install-windowsfeature -name ad-domain-services -includeallsubfeature

-source \\imserver18\wins12ee

Keep in mind that the path you specify is used only if required binaries are not found in the Windows Side-By-Side folder on the destination server. Although many large enterprises might have standard images that can be mounted by using network paths, you also can mount the Windows Server 2012 R2 distribution media and use the Windows\WinSXS folder from the installation image as your source. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Insert the installation disc into the server’s CD/DVD drive, and then create a folder to mount the Installation image by entering the following command: mkdir c:\mountdir.

2. Locate the index number of the image you want to use by entering the following command at an elevated command prompt, where e: is the drive designator of the server’s disc drive: dism /get-wiminfo /wimfile:e:\sources\install.wim.

3. Mount the installation image by entering the following command at an elevated command prompt, where e: is the drive designator of the server’s disc drive, 2 is the index of the image to use, and c:\mountdir is the mount directory: dism /mount–wim /wimfile:e:\sources\install.wim /index:2 /mountdir:c:\mountdir /readonly. Mounting the image might take several minutes.

4. Use Install–WindowsFeature at a Windows PowerShell command prompt with the source specified as c:\mountdir\windows\winsxs, as shown in this example:

5. install-windowsfeature -name ad-domain-services -includeallsubfeature

-source c:\mountdir\windows\winsxs

Group Policy can be used to control whether Windows Update is used to restore payloads and to provide alternate source paths for restoring payloads. The policy you want to work with is Specify Settings For Optional Component Installation And Component Repair, which is under Computer Configuration\Administrative Templates\System. This policy also is used for obtaining payloads needed to repair components.

If you enable this policy (as shown in Figure 3-3), you can do the following:

§ Specify the alternate source file path for payloads as a network location. For network shares, enter the UNC path to the share, such as \\CorpServer82\WinServer2012\. For mounted Windows images, enter the WIM path prefixed with WIM: and including the index of the image to use, such as WIM:\\CorpServer82\WinServer2012\install.wim:4.

§ Specify that Windows Update should never be used to download payloads. If you enable the policy and use this option, you do not have to specify an alternate path. In this case, payloads cannot be obtained automatically and administrators will need to explicitly specify the alternate source path.

§ Specify that Windows Update should be used for repairing components rather than Windows Server Update Services.

Figure 3-3. Control component installation through Group Policy.

Managing your servers remotely

You can use Server Manager and other Microsoft Management Consoles (MMCs) to perform many management tasks on remote computers, as long as the computers are in the same domain or you are working in a workgroup and have added the remote computers in a domain as trusted hosts. You can connect to servers running full-server, minimal-interface, and Server Core installations. On the computer you want to use for managing remote computers, you should be running a current Windows desktop or server operating system, and you need to install the Remote Server Administration Tools.

With Windows Server 2012 R2, the Remote Server Administration Tools are installed as a feature by using the Add Roles And Features Wizard. If the binaries for the tools have been removed, you need to install the tools by specifying a source, as discussed in the “Navigating Server Manager essentials and binaries” section earlier in the chapter.

You can get the Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows 8.1 as a download from the Microsoft Download Center (http://download.microsoft.com). Different versions are available for x64 and x86 systems.

By default, remote management is enabled for servers running Windows Server 2012 R2 for two types of applications and commands:

§ Applications and commands that use Windows Remote Management (WinRM) and Windows PowerShell remote access for management

§ Applications and commands that use Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) and Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM) remote access for management

These types of applications and commands are permitted for remote management because of exceptions configured in Windows Firewall, which is enabled by default for Windows Server 2012 R2. In Windows Firewall, exceptions for allowed apps that support remote management include the following:

§ Windows Management Instrumentation

§ Windows Remote Management

§ Windows Remote Management (Compatibility)

In Windows Firewall With Advanced Security, there are inbound rules that correspond to the standard firewall allowed apps:

§ For WMI, the inbound rules are Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI-In), Windows Management Instrumentation (DCOM-In), and Windows Management Instrumentation (ASync-In).

§ For WinRM, the matching inbound rule is Windows Remote Management (HTTP-In).

§ For WinRM compatibility, the matching inbound rule is Windows Remote Management - Compatibility Mode (HTTP-In).

You manage these exceptions or rules in either the standard Windows Firewall or the Windows Firewall With Advanced Security, not in both. If you want to allow remote management by using Server Manager, MMCs, and Windows PowerShell, you typically want to permit WMI, WinRM, and WinRM compatibility exceptions in Windows Firewall.

When you are working with Server Manager, you can select Local Server in the console tree to view the status of the remote management property. If you don’t want to allow remote management of the local server, click the related link. In the Configure Remote Management dialog box, clear Enable Remote Management Of This Server From Other Computers, and then tap or click OK.

When you clear Enable Remote Management Of This Server From Other Computers and then tap or click OK, Server Manager performs several background tasks that disable Windows Remote Management and Windows PowerShell remote access for management on the local server. One of these tasks is to turn off the related exception that allows apps to communicate through Windows Firewall by using Windows Remote Management. The exceptions for Windows Management Instrumentation and Windows Remote Management (Compatibility) aren’t affected.

You must be a member of the Administrators group on computers you want to manage by using Server Manager. For remote connections in a workgroup-to-workgroup or workgroup-to-domain configuration, you should be logged on using the built-in Administrator account, or configure theLocalAccountTokenFilterPolicy registry key to allow remote access from your computer. To set this key, enter the following command at an elevated, administrator command prompt:

reg add HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System /v

LocalAccountTokenFilterPolicy /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f

NOTE

You also can enable remote management by entering configure–SMRemoting.exe –enable at an elevated, administrator command prompt.

If you want to make it possible to remotely manage a computer running Windows 8.1 by using the WS-Management protocol, enter winrm quickconfig at an elevated command prompt. Then each time you are prompted to make configuration changes, enter Y. This will start the Windows Remote Management service, configure WinRM to accept WS-Management requests on any IP address, create a Windows Firewall exception for Windows Remote Management, and configure LocalAccountTokenFilterPolicy to grant appropriate administrative rights for remote management.

Many other types of remote management tasks depend on other exceptions for Windows Firewall. Keep the following in mind:

§ Remote Desktop is enabled or disabled separately from remote management. To allow someone to connect to the local server by using Remote Desktop, you must allow related connections to the computer and configure access as discussed in Chapter 4

§ Remote Service Management must be configured as an allowed app in Windows Firewall to remotely manage a computer’s services. In the advanced firewall, several related rules allow management via named pipes (NP) and remote procedure calls (RPC).

§ Remote Event Log Management must be configured as an allowed app in Windows Firewall to remotely manage a computer’s event logs. In the advanced firewall, there are several related rules that allow management via NP and RPC.

§ Remote Volume Management must be configured as an allowed app in Windows Firewall to remotely manage a computer’s volumes. In the advanced firewall, there are several related rules that allow management of the Virtual Disk Service and Virtual Disk Service Loader.

§ Remote Scheduled Task Management must be configured as an allowed app in Windows Firewall to remotely manage a computer’s scheduled tasks. In the advanced firewall, there are several related rules that allow management of scheduled tasks via RPC.

§ Only Remote Service Management is enabled by default.

You can configure remote management on a Server Core installation of Windows Server 2012 R2 by using Sconfig. Start the Server Configuration utility by entering sconfig.

Connecting to and working with remote servers

Using Server Manager, you can connect to and manage remote servers, provided that you’ve added the server for management. To add servers one at a time to Server Manager, complete these steps:

1. Open Server Manager. In the left pane, select All Servers to view the servers that have been added for management already. If the server you want to work with isn’t listed, select Add Servers on the Manage menu to display the Add Servers dialog box.

2. The Add Servers dialog box has several panels for adding servers:

o The Active Directory panel, selected by default, allows you to enter the computer name or fully qualified domain name of the remote server that is running Windows Server. After you enter a name, tap or click Find Now.

o The DNS panel allows you to add servers by computer name or IP address. After you enter the name or IP address, tap or click the Search button.

3. In the Name list, double-tap or double-click the server to add it to the Selected list.

4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 to add others servers, and then tap or click OK.

To add many servers to Server Manager, you can use the Import process and these steps:

1. Create a text file that has one host name, fully qualified domain name, or IP address per line.

2. In Server Manager, select Add Servers on the Manage menu. In the Add Servers dialog box, select the Import panel.

3. Tap or click the options button to the right of the File box, and then use the Open dialog box to locate and open the server list.

4. In the Computer list, double-tap or double-click each server you want to add to the Selected list. Tap or click OK.

After you add a remote computer, the Server Manager console shows the name of the remote computer in the All Servers view. Server Manager always resolves IP addresses to host names. As shown in Figure 3-4, the All Servers view also lists the Manageability status of the server. If a server is listed as Not Accessible, you typically need to log on locally to resolve the problem.

In the All Servers view, the servers you add are listed in the Servers pane so that you can manage them each time you work with Server Manager. Server Manager tracks the services, events, and more for each added server, and each server is added to the appropriate server groups automatically based on the roles and features installed.

Automatically created server groups make it easier to manage the various roles and features that are installed on your servers. If you select the AD DS group, as an example, you get a list of the domain controllers you added for management in addition to any critical or warning events for these servers and the status of services the role depends on.

If you want to group servers by department, geographic location, or otherwise, you can create your own server groups. When you create groups, the servers you want to work with don’t have to be added to Server Manager already. You can add servers by searching Active Directory or Domain Name System (DNS), or by importing a list of host names, fully qualified domain names, or IP addresses. Any server you add to a custom group is added automatically for management, too.

Figure 3-4. Note the Manageability status of each server, and take corrective actions as necessary.

To create a server group, complete these steps:

1. Open Server Manager. Select Create Server Group on the Manage menu to display the Create Server Group dialog box.

2. Enter a descriptive name for the group. Use the panels and options provided to add servers to the group. Keep the following in mind:

o The Server Pool panel, selected by default, lists servers that have been added for management already. If a server you want to add to your group is listed here, add it to the group by double-tapping or double-clicking it.

o The Active Directory panel allows you to enter the computer name or fully qualified domain name of the remote server that is running Windows Server. After you enter a name, tap or click Find Now. In the Name list, double-tap or double-click a server to add it to the Selected list.

o The DNS panel allows you to add servers by computer name or IP address. After you enter the name or IP address, tap or click the Search button. In the Name list, double-tap or double-click a server to add it to the Selected list.

o The Import panel allows you to import a list of servers. Tap or click the options button to the right of the File box, and then use the Open dialog box to locate and open the server list. In the Computer list, double-tap or double-click a server to add it to the Selected list.

3. Tap or click OK to create the server group.

When you press and hold or right-click a server name in the Servers pane of a server group or in the All Servers view, you display an extended list of management options. These options perform the corresponding task or open the corresponding management tool with the selected server in focus. For example, if you were to right-click CorpServer172 and then select Computer Management, Computer Management connects to CorpServer172 and then opens.

You can work with a remote computer using an interactive remote Windows PowerShell session. To do this, open an elevated, administrator Windows PowerShell prompt. Type enter-pssession ComputerName -credential UserName, where ComputerName is the name of the remote computer and UserName is the name of a user who is a member of the Administrators group on the remote computer or in the domain of which the remote computer is a member. When prompted to enter the authorized user’s password, type the password and then press Enter.

The following example enters an interactive remote session with Server85 using the credentials of Williams:

enter-pssession server85 –credential williams

The command prompt changes to show that you are connected to the remote computer, as shown in the following example:

[Server85]: PS C:\Users\wrstanek.cpandl\Documents>

You can now enter commands in the session as you would if you were using Windows PowerShell locally. When you connect to a server in this way, you use the standard PowerShell remoting configuration. You can end the interactive session by using the command Exit–PSSession or entering exit.

Adding and removing roles, role services, and features

Server Manager automatically creates server groups based on the roles of the servers added for management. As an example, the first time you add a domain controller, Server Manager might create AD DS, DNS, and File And Storage Services groups to help you more easily track the roles of the domain controllers.

When you select a role-based group in the left pane, the Servers pane shows the servers you added for management that have this role. The details for the selected server group provide the following information:

§ Summary information about events. Server Manager lists recent warning and error events. If you tap or click an event, you can get more information about the event.

§ Summary information about the status of related system services. You can press and hold or right-click a service to manage its run status.

TIP

By default, Server Manager refreshes details every 10 minutes. You can refresh the details manually by tapping or clicking the Refresh button on the Tasks toolbar. If you want to set a different default refresh interval, tap or click Manage and then tap or click Server Manager Properties. Next, set the new refresh interval in minutes and then tap or click OK.

You can manage a service by pressing and holding or right-clicking the service and then tapping or clicking Stop Service, Start Service, Pause Service, Resume Service, or Restart Service as appropriate. In many cases, if a service isn’t running as you think it should, you can use the Restart option to resolve the issue by stopping and then starting the service. See Chapter 4 for detailed information about working with events and system services.

The Manage menu has two key options for working with roles and features:

§ Add Roles And Features. Starts the Add Roles And Features Wizard, which you can use to install roles and features on a server added for management

§ Remove Roles And Features. Starts the Remove Roles And Features Wizard, which you can use to uninstall roles and features on a server added for management

With Windows Server 2012 R2, you can install roles and features on running servers (whether physical machines or virtual) in addition to virtual hard disks. Servers must be added for management in Server Manager, and they must be online. Virtual hard disks that you want to work with don’t have to be online, but they must be selectable when you are browsing for them. Because of this, you might need to map a network drive to access a network share. With this in mind, you can add a server role or feature by following these steps:

1. In Server Manager, click Add Roles And Features on the Manage menu. This starts the Add Roles And Features Wizard. If the wizard displays the Before You Begin page, read the introductory text, and then tap or click Next. You can avoid displaying the Before You Begin page the next time you start this wizard by selecting the Skip This Page By Default check box before tapping or clicking Next.

2. On the Select Installation Type page, Role-Based Or Feature-Based Installation is selected by default. Tap or click Next.

3. On the Select Destination Server page, you can choose to install roles and features on running servers or virtual hard disks. Either select a server from the server pool or select a server from the server pool on which to mount a virtual hard disk (VHD). If you are adding roles and features to a VHD, tap or click Browse, and then use the Browse For Virtual Hard Disks dialog box to locate the VHD. When you are ready to continue, tap or click Next.

NOTE

Only servers running Windows Server 2012 R2 and that have been added for management in Server Manager are listed.

4. On the Select Server Roles page, select the role or roles to install. If additional features are required to install a role, an additional dialog box will be displayed. Tap or click Add Features to close the dialog box and add the required features to the server installation. Tap or click Next to continue.

NOTE

Some roles cannot be added at the same time as other roles. You have to install each role separately. Other roles cannot be combined with existing roles, and you’ll get warning prompts about this. A server running a Server Core installation can act as a domain controller and can also hold any of the flexible single-master operations (FSMO) roles for Active Directory.

5. On the Select Features page, select the feature or features to install. If additional features are required to install a feature you selected, an additional dialog box will be displayed. Tap or click Add Features to close the dialog box and add the required features to the server installation. When you are ready to continue, tap or click Next.

6. With some roles, an extra wizard page will be displayed, and this provides additional information about using and configuring the role. You might also have the opportunity to install additional role services as part of a role. For example, with Print And Document Services, Web Server Role (IIS), and WSUS, an additional information page and a page for selecting role services to install along with the role will be displayed.

7. On the Confirmation Installations Selections page, tap or click the Export Configuration Settings link to generate an installation report that can be displayed in Internet Explorer.

8. If the server on which you want to install roles or features doesn’t have all the required binary source files, the server gets the files via Windows Update by default or from a location specified in Group Policy. You also can specify an alternate path for the source files. To do this, click the Specify An Alternate Source Path link, enter that alternate path in the box provided, and then tap or click OK. For example, if you mounted a Windows image and made it available on the local server as discussed in the section “Navigating Server Manager essentials and binaries” earlier in this chapter, you could enter the alternate path as c:\mountdir\windows\winsxs. For network shares, enter the UNC path to the share, such as \\CorpServer82\WinServer2012\. For mounted Windows images, enter the WIM path prefixed with WIM: and including the index of the image to use, such as WIM:\\CorpServer82\WinServer2012\install.wim:4.

9. After you review the installation options and save them as necessary, tap or click Install to begin the installation process. The Installation Progress page tracks the progress of the installation. If you close the wizard, tap or click the Notifications icon in Server Manager, and then tap or click the link provided to reopen the wizard.

10.When the wizard finishes installing the server with the roles and features you selected, the Installation Progress page will be updated to reflect this. Review the installation details to ensure that all phases of the installation were completed successfully.

Note any additional actions that might be required to complete the installation, such as restarting the server or performing additional installation tasks.

If any portion of the installation failed, note the reason for the failure. Review the Server Manager entries for installation problems and take corrective actions as appropriate.

You can remove roles and features from a server by following these steps:

1. In Server Manager, click Remove Roles And Features on the Manage menu. This starts the Remove Roles And Features Wizard. If the wizard displays the Before You Begin page, read the introductory text and then tap or click Next. You can avoid displaying the Before You Begin page the next time you start this wizard by selecting the Skip This Page By Default check box before tapping or clicking Next.

2. On the Select Destination Server page, you can choose to remove roles and features from running servers or virtual hard disks (VHDs). Either select a server from the server pool or select a server from the server pool on which to mount a VHD. If you are removing roles and features from a VHD, tap or click Browse, and then use the Browse For Virtual Hard Disks dialog box to locate the VHD. When you are ready to continue, tap or click Next.

3. On the Remove Server Roles page, clear the check box for the role you want to remove. If you try to remove a role that another role or feature depends on, a warning prompt appears stating that you cannot remove the role unless you also remove the other role. If you tap or click the Remove Features button, the wizard also removes the dependent roles and features. Note that if you want to keep related management tools, you should clear the Remove Management Tools check box prior to tapping or clicking the Remove Features button and then click Continue. Tap or click Next.

4. On the Remove Features page, the currently installed features are selected. To remove a feature, clear the related check box. If you try to remove a feature that another feature or role depends on, a warning prompt appears stating that you cannot remove the feature unless you also remove the other feature or role. If you tap or click the Remove Features button, the wizard also removes the dependent roles and features. Note that if you want to keep related management tools, you should clear the Remove Management Tools check box and then click Continue prior to tapping or clicking the Remove Features button. Tap or click Next.

5. On the Confirm Removal Selections page, review the related components that the wizard will remove based on your previous selections, and then tap or click Remove. The Removal Progress page tracks the progress of the removal. If you close the wizard, tap or click the Notifications icon in Server Manager, and then tap or click the link provided to reopen the wizard.

6. When the wizard finishes modifying the server configuration, the Removal Progress page is displayed. Review the modification details to ensure that all phases of the removal process were completed successfully.

Note any additional actions that might be required to complete the removal, such as restarting the server or performing additional removal tasks.

If any portion of the removal failed, note the reason for the failure. Review the Server Manager entries for removal problems and take corrective actions as appropriate.

Managing system properties

You use the System console to view system information and perform basic configuration tasks. To access the System console, double-tap or double-click System in Control Panel. As Figure 3-5 shows, the System console is divided into four basic areas that provide links for performing common tasks and a system overview:

§ Windows Edition. Shows the operating system edition and version, and lists any service packs you applied.

§ System. Lists the processor, memory, and type of operating system installed on the computer. The type of operating system is listed as 32-bit or 64-bit.

§ Computer Name, Domain, And Workgroup Settings. Provides the computer name, description, domain, and workgroup details. If you want to change any of this information, tap or click Change Settings, and then tap or click Change in the System Properties dialog box.

§ Windows Activation. Shows whether you have activated the operating system and the product key. If Windows Server 2012 R2 isn’t activated yet, tap or click the link provided to start the activation process and then follow the prompts.

Figure 3-5. Use the System console to view and manage system properties.

When you’re working in the System console, links in the left pane provide quick access to key support tools, including the following:

§ Device Manager

§ Remote Settings

§ Advanced System Settings

Although volume-licensed versions of Windows Server 2012 R2 might not require activation or product keys, retail versions of Windows Server 2012 R2 require both activation and product keys. If Windows Server 2012 R2 has not been activated, you can activate the operating system by selecting Activate Windows Now under Windows Activation. You can also activate Windows by entering slmgr -ato at a command prompt.

You can change the product key provided during installation of Windows Server 2012 R2 to stay in compliance with your licensing plan. At a command prompt, type slmgr -ipk followed by the product key you want to use, and then press Enter. When Windows finishes validating the product key, you need to reactivate the operating system.

NOTE

The Windows Software Management Licensing tool has many other options, including options for offline activation by using a confirmation identifier. To view this and other options, enter slmgr at a command prompt.

Within the System console, you can access the System Properties dialog box and use this dialog box to manage system properties. Tap or click Change Settings under Computer Name, Domain, And Workgroup Settings. The following sections examine key areas of the operating system you can configure by using the System Properties dialog box.

Configuring server name and domain membership

You can display and modify the computer’s network identification on the Computer Name tab of the System Properties dialog box. The Computer Name tab displays the full computer name of the system and the domain membership. The full computer name is essentially the DNS name of the computer, which also identifies the computer’s place within the Active Directory hierarchy. If a computer is a domain controller or a certificate authority, you can change the computer name only after removing the related role from the computer.

You can join a computer to a domain or workgroup by following these steps:

1. On the Computer Name tab of the System Properties dialog box, tap or click Change. This displays the Computer Name/Domain Changes dialog box.

2. To put the computer in a workgroup, select the Workgroup option and then enter the name of the workgroup to join.

3. To join the computer to a domain, select the Domain option, enter the name of the domain to join, and then tap or click OK.

4. If you changed the computer’s domain membership, a Windows Security prompt appears. Enter the name and password of an account with permission to add the computer to the specified domain or to remove the computer from a previously specified domain, and then tap or click OK.

5. When prompted that your computer has joined the workgroup or domain you specified, tap or click OK.

6. A prompt appears stating that you need to restart the computer. Tap or click OK.

7. Tap or click Close, and then tap or click Restart Now to restart the computer.

To change the name of a computer, follow these steps:

1. On the Computer Name tab of the System Properties dialog box, tap or click Change. This displays the Computer Name/Domain Changes dialog box.

2. In the Computer Name box, enter the new name for the computer.

3. A prompt appears stating that you need to restart the computer. Tap or click OK.

4. Tap or click Close, and then tap or click Restart Now to restart the computer.

Configuring driver installation options

The System Properties dialog box’s Hardware tab provides access to Device Manager and Driver Installation Settings. To access the Hardware tab, open the System Properties dialog box, and then tap or click the Hardware tab.

For installed devices, you can configure Windows Server to download driver software and realistic icons for devices. By default, Windows Server does not do this. If you want a computer to check for drivers automatically, tap or click the Device Installation Settings button and then select either Yes, Do This Automatically or No, Let Me Choose What To Do. If you want to choose what to do, you can specify the following:

§ Always install the best driver software from Windows Update.

§ Never install driver software from Windows Update.

§ Automatically get the device app and info provided by your device manufacturer.

The first two options do exactly what they say. The final option tells Windows Update that you want to get metadata and companion applications for devices. Tap or click Save Changes, and then tap or click OK to apply your changes.

Configuring memory and performance options

The System Properties dialog box’s Advanced tab controls many of the key features of the Windows operating system, including application performance, virtual memory usage, the user profile, environment variables, and startup and recovery. To access the Advanced tab, open the System Properties dialog box, and then tap or click the Advanced tab.

Setting Windows performance

Windows Server has many graphics enhancements that make the UI more visually appealing but use system resources unnecessarily. These enhancements include many visual effects for menus, toolbars, windows, and the taskbar. As part of optimizing server performance, you might want to reduce resource usage to support these graphics enhancements. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Tap or click the Advanced tab in the System Properties dialog box, and then tap or click Settings in the Performance panel to display the Performance Options dialog box.

2. The Visual Effects tab is selected by default. You have the following options for controlling visual effects:

o Let Windows Choose What’s Best For My Computer. Use this to enables the operating system to choose the performance options based on the hardware configuration. For a newer computer, this option will probably have the same effect as choosing the Adjust For Best Appearance option. The key distinction, however, is that this option is chosen by Windows based on the available hardware and its performance capabilities.

o Adjust For Best Appearance. When you optimize Windows for best appearance, you enable all visual effects for all graphical interfaces. Menus and the taskbar use transitions and shadows. Screen fonts have smooth edges. List boxes have smooth scrolling. Folders use web views and more.

o Adjust For Best Performance. When you optimize Windows for best performance, you turn off the resource-intensive visual effects, such as slide transitions and smooth edges for fonts, while maintaining a basic set of visual effects.

o Custom. You can customize the visual effects by selecting or clearing the visual effects options in the Performance Options dialog box. If you clear all options, Windows does not use visual effects.

3. Tap or click Apply when you have finished changing visual effects. Tap or click OK twice to close the open dialog boxes.

Setting application performance

Application performance is related to processor-scheduling caching options you set for the Windows Server 2012 R2 system. Processor scheduling determines the responsiveness of applications you are running interactively (as opposed to background applications that might be running on the system as services). You control application performance by following these steps:

1. Access the Advanced tab in the System Properties dialog box, and then display the Performance Options dialog box by tapping or clicking Settings in the Performance panel.

2. In the Performance Options dialog box, tap or click the Advanced tab.

3. In the Processor Scheduling panel, you have the following options:

o Programs. Use this option to give the active application the best response time and the greatest share of available resources. Generally, you’ll want to use this option only on development servers or when you are using Windows Server 2012 R2 as your desktop operating system.

o Background Services. Use this option to give background applications a better response time than the active application. Generally, you’ll want to use this option for production servers.

4. Tap or click OK.

Configuring virtual memory

With virtual memory, you can use disk space to extend the amount of memory available on a system by using part of the hard disk as part of system memory. This feature writes RAM to disks by using a process called paging. With paging, a set amount of RAM, such as 8192 megabytes (MB), is written to the disk as a paging file. The paging file can be accessed from the disk when needed in place of physical RAM.

An initial paging file is created automatically for the drive containing the operating system. By default, other drives don’t have paging files, so you must create these paging files if you want them. When you create a paging file, you set an initial size and a maximum size. Paging files are written to the volume as a file named Pagefile.sys.

REAL WORLD

Current releases of Windows Server automatically manage virtual memory much better than their predecessors. Typically, Windows Server allocates virtual memory in an amount at least as large as the total physical memory installed on the computer. This helps to ensure that paging files don’t become fragmented, which can result in poor system performance. If you want to manage virtual memory manually, you can use a fixed virtual memory size in most cases. To do this, set the initial size and the maximum size to the same value. This ensures that the paging file is consistent and can be written to a single contiguous file (if possible, given the amount of space on the volume). In most cases, for computers with 8 gigabytes (GB) of RAM or less, I recommend setting the total paging file size so that it’s twice the amount of physical RAM on the system. For instance, on a computer with 8 GB of RAM, you would ensure that the Total Paging File Size For All Drives setting is at least 16,384 MB. On systems with more than 8 GB of RAM, you should follow the hardware manufacturer’s guidelines for configuring the paging file. Typically, this means setting the paging file to be the same size as physical memory.

You can configure virtual memory by following these steps:

1. Access the Advanced tab in the System Properties dialog box, and then display the Performance Options dialog box by tapping or clicking Settings in the Performance panel.

2. In the Performance Options dialog box, tap or click the Advanced tab, and then tap or click Change to display the Virtual Memory dialog box, shown in Figure 3-6.

Figure 3-6. Virtual memory extends the amount of RAM on a system.

The following information is provided:

o Paging File Size For Each Drive. Provides information about the currently selected drive, and allows you to set its paging file size. Space Available indicates how much space is available on the drive.

o Drive [Volume Label] and Paging File Size. Shows how virtual memory is currently configured on the system. Each volume is listed with its associated paging file (if any). The paging file range shows the initial and maximum size values set for the paging file.

o Total Paging File Size For All Drives. Provides a recommended size for virtual RAM on the system, and tells you the amount currently allocated. If this is the first time you’re configuring virtual RAM, notice that the recommended amount has already been given to the system drive (in most instances).

3. By default, Windows Server manages the paging file size for all drives. If you want to configure virtual memory manually, clear the Automatically Manage Paging File Size For All Drives check box.

4. In the Drive list, select the volume you want to work with.

5. Select Custom Size, and then enter values in the Initial Size and Maximum Size boxes.

6. Tap or click Set to save the changes.

7. Repeat steps 4–6 for each volume you want to configure.

NOTE

The paging file is also used for debugging purposes when a Stop error occurs on the system. If the paging file on the system drive is smaller than the minimum amount required to write the debugging information to the paging file, this feature is disabled. If you want to use debugging, you should set the minimum size to equal the amount of RAM on the system. For example, a system with 4 GB of RAM would need a paging file of 4 GB on the system drive.

8. Tap or click OK. If prompted to overwrite an existing Pagefile.sys file, tap or click Yes.

9. If you updated the settings for a paging file that is currently in use, a prompt appears indicating that you need to restart the system for the changes to take effect. Tap or click OK.

10.Tap or click OK twice to close the open dialog boxes. When you close the System utility, you’ll get a prompt asking if you want to restart the system. Tap or click Restart.

You can have Windows Server 2012 R2 automatically manage virtual memory by following these steps:

1. Access the Advanced tab in the System Properties dialog box, and then display the Performance Options dialog box by tapping or clicking Settings in the Performance panel.

2. Tap or click the Advanced tab, and then tap or click Change to display the Virtual Memory dialog box.

3. Select the Automatically Manage Paging File Size For All Drives check box.

4. Tap or click OK three times to close the open dialog boxes.

NOTE

If you updated the settings for the paging file currently in use, a prompt appears indicating that you need to restart the server for the changes to take effect. Tap or click OK. When you close the System Properties dialog box, you’ll get a prompt telling you that you need to restart the system for the changes to take effect. On a production server, you should schedule this restart outside normal business hours.

Configuring Data Execution Prevention

Windows Server 2012 R2 requires a processor that includes hardware-based Data Execution Prevention (DEP) support. DEP is a memory-protection technology. DEP tells the computer’s processor to mark all memory locations in an application as nonexecutable unless the location explicitly contains executable code. If code is executed from a memory page marked as nonexecutable, the processor can raise an exception and prevent the code from executing. This process prevents malicious code such as a virus from inserting itself into most areas of memory, because only specific areas of memory are marked as having executable code.

In Windows Server 2012, memory randomization and other enhancements also prevent malware from inserting itself into startup and running processes. Windows Server 2012 uses address space layout randomization (ASLR) to randomly determine how and where important data is stored in memory, which makes it much more difficult for malware to find the specific locations in memory to attack.

NOTE

The 32-bit versions of Windows support DEP as implemented by Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD) processors that provide the no-execute page-protection (NX) processor feature. Such processors support the related instructions and must be running in physical address extension (PAE) mode. The 64-bit versions of Windows also support the NX processor feature.

Using and Configuring Dep

You can determine whether a computer supports DEP by using the System utility. If a computer supports DEP, you can also configure it by following these steps:

1. Access the Advanced tab in the System Properties dialog box, and then display the Performance Options dialog box by tapping or clicking Settings in the Performance panel.

2. In the Performance Options dialog box, tap or click the Data Execution Prevention tab. The text at the bottom of this tab indicates whether the computer supports execution protection.

3. If a computer supports execution protection and is configured appropriately, you can configure DEP by using the following options:

o Turn On DEP For Essential Windows Programs And Services Only. Enables DEP only for operating system services, programs, and components. This is the default and recommended option for computers that support execution protection and are configured appropriately.

o Turn On DEP For All Programs Except Those I Select. Configures DEP, and allows for exceptions. Select this option, and then tap or click Add to specify programs that should run without execution protection. With this option, execution protection will work for all programs except those you select.

4. Tap or click OK.

Adding and Removing Programs as Exceptions

If you turned on DEP and allowed exceptions, you can add or remove a program as an exception by following these steps:

1. Access the Advanced tab in the System Properties dialog box, and then display the Performance Options dialog box by tapping or clicking Settings in the Performance panel.

2. In the Performance Options dialog box, tap or click the Data Execution Prevention tab.

3. To add a program as an exception, tap or click Add. Use the Open dialog box to find the executable file for the program you are configuring as an exception, and then tap or click Open.

4. To temporarily disable a program as an exception (this might be necessary for troubleshooting), clear the check box next to the program name.

5. To remove a program as an exception, tap or click the program name, and then tap or click Remove.

6. Tap or click OK to save your settings.

Understanding DEP compatibility

To be compatible with DEP, applications must be able to mark memory explicitly with Execute permission. Applications that cannot do this will not be compatible with the NX processor feature. If you experience memory-related problems running applications, you should determine which applications are having problems and configure them as exceptions rather than disable execution protection completely. This way, you still get the benefits of memory protection and can selectively disable memory protection for programs that aren’t running properly with the NX processor feature.

Execution protection is applied to both user-mode and kernel-mode programs. A user-mode execution protection exception results in a STATUS_ACCESS_VIOLATION exception. In most processes, this exception will be an unhandled exception, resulting in termination of the process. This is the behavior you want, because most programs violating these rules, such as a virus or worm, will be malicious in nature.

You cannot selectively enable or disable execution protection for kernel-mode device drivers the way you can with applications. Furthermore, on compliant 32-bit systems, execution protection is applied by default to the memory stack. On compliant 64-bit systems, execution protection is applied by default to the memory stack, the paged pool, and the session pool. A kernel-mode execution protection access violation for a device driver results in an ATTEMPTED_EXECUTE_OF_NOEXECUTE_MEMORY exception.

Configuring system and user environment variables

Windows uses environment variables to track important strings, such as a path where files are located or the logon domain controller host name. Environment variables defined for use by Windows—called system environment variables—are the same no matter who is logged on to a particular computer. Environment variables defined for use by users or programs—called user environment variables —are different for each user of a particular computer.

You configure system and user environment variables by means of the Environment Variables dialog box, shown in Figure 3-7. To access this dialog box, open the System Properties dialog box, tap or click the Advanced tab, and then tap or click Environment Variables.

Figure 3-7. Configure system and user environment variables in the Environment Variables dialog box.

Creating an Environment Variable

You can create an environment variable by following these steps:

1. Tap or click New under User Variables or under System Variables, whichever is appropriate. This opens the New User Variable dialog box or the New System Variable dialog box, respectively.

2. In the Variable Name box, enter the variable name. In the Variable Value box, enter the variable value.

3. Tap or click OK.

Editing an Environment Variable

You can edit an environment variable by following these steps:

1. Select the variable in the User Variables or System Variables list.

2. Tap or click Edit under User Variables or under System Variables, whichever is appropriate. The Edit User Variable dialog box or the Edit System Variable dialog box opens.

3. Enter a new value in the Variable Value box, and then tap or click OK.

Deleting an Environment Variable

To delete an environment variable, select it and tap or click Delete.

NOTE

When you create or modify environment variables, most of the variables are valid immediately after they are created or modified. With system variables, some changes take effect after you restart the computer. With user variables, some changes take effect the next time the user logs on to the system.

Configuring system startup and recovery

You configure system startup and recovery properties in the Startup And Recovery dialog box, shown in Figure 3-8. To access this dialog box, open the System Properties dialog box, tap or click the Advanced tab, and then tap or click Settings in the Startup And Recovery panel.

Figure 3-8. Configure system startup and recovery properties in the Startup And Recovery dialog box.

Setting Startup Options

The System Startup area of the Startup And Recovery dialog box controls system startup. To specify the default operating system for a computer with multiple bootable operating systems, select one of the operating systems listed in the Default Operating System list. These options change the configuration settings used by the Windows Boot Manager.

Upon startup of a computer with multiple bootable operating systems, Windows Server displays the startup configuration menu for 30 seconds by default. You can change this by performing either of the following actions:

§ Boot immediately to the default operating system by clearing the Time To Display List Of Operating Systems check box.

§ Display the available options for a specific amount of time by selecting the Time To Display List Of Operating Systems check box and then setting a time delay in seconds.

On most systems, you’ll generally want to use a value of 3 to 5 seconds. This is long enough for you to make a selection, yet short enough to expedite the system startup process.

When the system is in a recovery mode and booting, a list of recovery options might be displayed. As you can with the standard startup options, you can configure recovery startup options in one of two ways. You can set the computer to boot immediately by using the default recovery option by clearing the Time To Display Recovery Options When Needed check box, or you can display the available options for a specific amount of time by selecting Time To Display Recovery Options When Needed and then setting a time delay in seconds.

Setting Recovery Options

You control system recovery with the System Failure and Write Debugging Information areas of the Startup And Recovery dialog box. Administrators use recovery options to control precisely what happens when the system encounters a nonrecoverable system error (also known as a Stop error). The available options for the System Failure area are as follows:

§ Write An Event To The System Log. This option logs the error in the system log, allowing administrators to review the error later using Event Viewer.

§ Automatically Restart. Select this option to have the system attempt to reboot when a nonrecoverable system error occurs.

NOTE

Configuring automatic reboots isn’t always a good thing. Sometimes you might want the system to halt rather than reboot to ensure that the system gets proper attention. Otherwise, you would know that the system rebooted only when you viewed the system logs or if you happened to be in front of the system’s monitor when it rebooted.

You use the Write Debugging Information list to choose the type of debugging information you want to write to a dump file. You can use the dump file to diagnose system failures. The options are as follows:

§ None. Use this option if you don’t want to write debugging information.

§ Small Memory Dump. Use this option to dump the physical memory segment in which the error occurred. This dump is 256 kilobytes (KB) in size.

§ Kernel Memory Dump. Use this option to dump the physical memory area being used by the Windows kernel. The dump file size depends on the size of the Windows kernel.

§ Complete Memory Dump. Use this option to dump all physical memory. The dump file size depends on the amount of physical memory being used, up to a maximum file size equal to the total physical RAM on the server.

§ Automatic Memory Dump. Use this option to let Windows determine which type of memory dump is best, and then create the dump file accordingly.

If you elect to write to a dump file, you must also set a location for it. The default dump locations are %SystemRoot%\Minidump for small memory dumps and –%SystemRoot%\Memory.dmp for all other memory dumps. You’ll also usually want to select Overwrite Any Existing File. Selecting this option ensures that any existing dump files are overwritten if a new Stop error occurs.

BEST PRACTICES

You can create the dump file only if the system is properly configured. The system drive must have a sufficiently large memory-paging file (as set for virtual memory on the Advanced tab), and the drive the dump file is written to must have sufficient free space. For example, my server has 8 GB of RAM and requires a paging file on the system drive of the same size—8 GB. In establishing a baseline for kernel memory usage, I found that the server uses between 892 and 1076 MB of kernel memory. Because the same drive is used for the dump file, the drive must have at least 9 GB of free space to create a dump of debugging information. (That’s 8 GB for the paging file and about 1 GB for the dump file.)