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Windows Operating Systems: 2003, XP, MCSE 2003 / XP Pro notes, 2000

Upgrade pathes:

Specs Overview:

Windows 2003 Server

Share permissions and file permissions:

• File permissions are generally NTFS permissions
• For local access (at console or when RDP'ed) all that applies are local (file / NTFS) permissions
• When accessing over the network via a share both file and share permissions matter
• With multiple file permissions the most generous or liberal or sweeping wins or is granted. Deny allows supercedes allow
• With multiple share permissions the most generous or liberal or sweeping wins or is granted. Deny allows supercedes allow
• When combing both file and share, the more restrictive or the two wins or is granted

Microsoft Security Bulletin MS05-041: Vulnerability in Remote Desktop Protocol Could Allow Denial of Service (899591)
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/Bulletin/MS05-041.mspx

HAL options after Windows XP or Windows Server 2003 Setup
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;309283

Sysinternals Boot INI Options Reference
http://www.sysinternals.com/information/bootini.html

kerbtray.exe

• resource kit GUI
• displays TGT times and more

klist.exe

• resource kit CLI
• view and delete KRB tickets and more

Windows XP

The Wikipedia on XP
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_XP

Five editions of Windows XP compared
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/evaluation/compare.mspx

MS HCL (sometimes broken links)
www.microsoft.com/hcl
http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/hcl/default.mspx

A sweet if slightly biased Windows XP Security Guide
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/SupportCD/SecureXP.html

Changes to Functionality in Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 2
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=7bd948d7-b791-40b6-8364-685b84158c78&DisplayLang=en

Windows XP Home Edition Utility: Setup Disks for Floppy Boot Install
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=e8fe6868-6e4f-471c-b455-bd5afee126d8

Windows XP Professional Utility: Setup Disks for Floppy Boot Install
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=55820edb-5039-4955-bcb7-4fed408ea73f

Managing Windows XP Service Pack 2 Features Using Group Policy lots of goodies including IE6 config via GPO
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/winxppro/maintain/mangxpsp2/mngieps.mspx

User mode vs kernel mode (internal link)

Some Stuff on Windows Services

NOTE: Windows Service = *NIX Daemon

Windows Server 2003 default network services include:

• Automatic Updates - Monitors the availability of operating system patches. When a patch is available, you are notified and are given the option to download and install it.
• Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) - Ensures that file transfers do not overwhelm the capacity of the server.
• Computer Browser - Maintains the list of computers that appears in My Network Places.
• DHCP Client - Enables Windows Server 2003 to obtain an IP address dynamically from a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server.
• Distributed File System (DFS) - Allows file shares on multiple servers to be viewed as a single logical structure. If Distributed File System (DFS) is disabled, then this server cannot access shares through DFS.
• Distributed Transaction Coordinator (DTC) - Is used by programs to coordinate transactions that occur on multiple servers. It ensures that all parts of a transaction are completed.
• DNS Client - Enables Windows Server 2003 to resolve host names to IP addresses by contacting a Domain Name System (DNS) server. It is also responsible for caching previous DNS resolution requests.
• Error Reporting Services - Collects operating system errors and sends them to Microsoft across the Internet.
• IPSec Services - Controls how Windows Server 2003 uses IP Security (IPSec) to encrypt data transferred across the network. By default, network traffic is not encrypted.
• Network Connections - Allows you to view and manage the network connections in Control Panel.
• Network Location Awareness (NLA) - Makes it easier for developers to track network information when they write applications.
• Remote Procedure Call (RPC) - Is used by application developers to communicate with services on remote computers. If this service is stopped, many applications will not function properly.
• Remote Registry - Allows remote editing of the registry.
• Server - Is used to share file and print services.
• TCP/IP NetBIOS Helper - Is required to support NetBIOS services when using TCP/IP.
• Terminal Services - Is required for Remote Desktop, Remote Assistance, and terminal server.
• Windows Time - Enables time synchronization between computers in an Active Directory forest.
• Wireless Configuration - Manages the configuration of wireless networks based on the 802.11 standard, as defined by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). It provides the ability to roam easily from one wireless network to another. This is not normally required on servers.
• Workstation - Is used to access file and print services on Windows servers across the network. It is also required by some applications that access resources across the network.

Additional network services running on domain controllers include:

• Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) - This service is disabled on domain controller.
• File Replication Service - Synchronizes the contents of the netlogon share between domain controllers.
• Intersite Messaging - Is used to synchronize Active Directory information between sites in an Active Directory forest.
• Kerberos Key Distribution Center - Performs the authentication and distributes Kerberos keys to clients.
• Net Logon - Is responsible for providing authentication services and registering service information in DNS.

Optional Services: (And service-like feature sets)

• Certificate services - Used to issue and manage certificates that are used in the certificate issuing and control structure know as Public Key Infrastructure (PKI).
• Clustering - Allows greater fault tolerance for applications.
• DHCP - An automated mechanism used to assign IP addresses to client computers. Automating this process saves hours of work for a network administrator.
• DNS - Converts host names to IP addresses. Client computers require this to access resources through a host name. Active Directory uses DNS to store service location information.
• Internet Authentication Service (IAS) - Allows a company to use Active Directory for centralized authentication of remote access clients on many different remote access servers.
• Internet Connection Firewall (ICF) - Provides basic firewall protection for small businesses.
• Internet Connection Sharing (ICS) - An automated way to set up DHCP, NAT, and a DNS proxy for small networks.
• Internet Information Services (IIS) 6.0 - Provides support for Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), which is used for web connectivity, and File Transfer Protocol (FTP), which is used for file transfers.
• Load balancing has been added as a standard feature to all versions of Windows Server 2003. Load balancing transparently spreads the traffic between two or more servers. From the client, perspective, it appears as if there is still only one server.
• Network Address Translation (NAT) allows an entire office of computers to share a single IP address when accessing the Internet.
• Network bridging allows Windows Server 2003 to be used as a bridge to allow multiple network segments to communicate without introducing the complexity of routing.
• Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet (PPPoE) is used by many high-speed Internet service providers (ISPs) to control traffic on their networks. ISPs sell access to the Internet. Windows Server 2003 can access these networks without installing third-party client software. This was not available in Windows 2000 Server and is a new feature in Windows Server 2003.
• Routing and Remote Access Service (RRAS) allows Windows Server 2003 to act as a router, VPN server, and dial-in server.
• Services for Macintosh - Allows Macintosh computers to communicate with Windows Server 2003.
• Services for UNIX - Allows UNIX and Linux computers to communicate with Windows Server 2003.
• Web Distributed Authoring and Versioning (WebDAV) allows documents to be shared and managed using HTTP.
• Windows Server 2003 includes native support for XML Web services. Web services are a standardized way to develop application components that can be accessed across the Internet, and use Internet standards such as Extensible Markup Language (XML), Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP), Universal Description, Discovery and Integration (UDDI), and Web Services Description Language (WSDL).
• Windows Internet Naming Service (WINS) acts as a central registry of Net-BIOS name and service information. WINS is required on large networks with pre-Windows 2000 clients.
• Windows Media Services provides streaming audio and video. This is used in combination with Windows Media Player on the client computers.

Deployment

See also upgrade pathes at the top of this page

WINNT

• WINNT is for launching the OS installer from a 16 bit Windows based OS
• WINNT32 is for launching the OS installer from a 32 bit Windows based OS
• Some more info (internal link)
• /unattend:<unattend.txt> switch to specify and call an unattend.txt file for use during the install
• /udf:ID,<udf.txt> switch to specify and call an unattend.txt file for use during the install

Workstation Migration Tools:

• USMT: User State Migration Tool
• FAST: File And Settings Transfer tool

Check out the deployment and planning guide in support tools on the CD!

OS only vs. OS and loaded applications deployment. (more)

• Automated install
  • Answer.txt
  • udf
  • how answer.txt and udf combine:

  • answer.txt contains	udf contains	Result
    Exists	DNE	From answer.txt
    DNE	Exists	From udf.txt
    Exists	Exists	From udf.txt
    DNE	DNE	From install GUI user input

• SYSPREP - System duplication preporation tool
  • What Is Sysprep?
    http://technet2.microsoft.com/WindowsServer/en/library/c03a5469-ef71-4545-b970-ce2add5e715c1033.mspx?mfr=true
  • How to Use Sysprep: An Introduction
    http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/winxppro/deploy/introduction.mspx
  • Sysprep removes unique config settings such as SIDs and installs the mini-setup wizard
  • Build > copy to default profile > sysprep > clone > test (OS, Apps, chkdsk, defrag, EULA, device manager
  • sysprep.exe switches
    • quiet: Runs Sysprep.exe without displaying on-screen messages.
    • reboot: Forces the computer to restart automatically after the image of the hard disk is installed and the Mini-Setup Wizard starts. Restarting the computer is useful when you want to audit the computer's functions and verify that the Mini-Setup Wizard is operating correctly. You must run Sysprep.exe again to reset the Mini-Setup Wizard.
    • nosidgen: Runs Sysprep.exe without generating a SID. You must use this switch if you are not duplicating the hard disk on which you are running Sysprep.exe.
  • How to use the Sysprep tool to automate successful deployment of Windows XP
    http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;302577
  • Copy the unattend.txt file created by the wizard to winnt.sif and add it into a bootable .ISO to do a custom unattended OS install from CD without needing a floppy
  • (more)

 

• RIS (Remote Installation Service)

• PXE (or .\system32\reminst\rbfg.exe)
• DHCP, DNS, AD
• RIS
• .sif file?
• (more)

MCSE 2003 / XP Pro notes

• HAL options after Windows XP or Windows Server 2003 Setup
  http://support.microsoft.com/?id=309283
• IE configuration options
• You can use the Privacy this tab to set a general policy as well as to set policies for specific Web sites.
• You use the Security tab to define security settings for each Web content zone as well as to add sites to each zone.
• You use the Content tab to manage Content Advisor settings and certificates. You can also use the Content tab to activate the Microsoft Profile Assistant and to define settings for the Autocomplete feature.
• You use the Connections tab to manage settings for dial-up networking (DUN) and virtual private network (VPN) connections, proxy server settings, and local area connection (LAN) settings.
• You use the Programs tab to define the programs to use for Internet services such as e-mail, newsgroup access, calendars, and management of your contacts list.
• You use the Advanced tab to define settings related to accessibility, Web browsing, printing, searching from the address bar, and encryption.
• Copy/move permissions
  • When NTFS files are copied to another NTFS location, whether on the same partition or a different one, any established file permissions are replaced by a set inherited by the destination folder's permission settings. To retain a file's assigned permissions after relocation, you must move, rather than copy, the file to another location on the same partition.
  • FAT16 partitions cannot provide any file-level security; all NTFS permissions associated with a given file, therefore, are lost completely when you either copy the file to or move the file to a FAT partition.
• When you upgrade a Windows 98 computer running FAT or FAT32 to Windows XP, Windows XP provides an uninstall tool and will not let you convert the drive to NTFS at install time.
• Printing permissions
  • "Print" permission gives users or groups the ability to not only print their own documents, but also to pause, restart, or cancel the documents before they're printed. This level of permission is appropriate for the stated needs of the Marketing and Accounting departments. You must also assign this permission to the Sales and Executive departments to allow them to print documents.
  • "Manage Documents" permission gives a user or group the ability to re-prioritize print jobs and delete any or all documents due to be printed. As such, then, this level of permission, along with the Print permission, satisfies the needs of the Sales and Executive departments.
  • A third level, "Manage Printer," includes the abilities to enable printer sharing, configure the print device, and more.
  • You should also remove the Everyone group from the printer's access control list (ACL), since the Everyone group is assigned the Print permission by default.
• Mount volume as a folder
  • Can mount a volume in a empty NTFS folder only
  • Upgrading from Windows 98 to Windows XP will not give you the option to install with NTFS file system, so convert c: /fs:ntfs. BTW, fsutil is only available to NTFS formatted partitions.
• To use a dedicated user account for the Task Scheduler process you should use the "AT Service Account" option in the advanced menu. The Task Scheduler uses the System account, by default.
• You'd like to run a process that checks the new computer for such incompatibilities before you attempt an upgrade. Microsoft provides two tools for running compatibility checks on Win9x machines before upgrading them to Windows XP Professional.
  • One of these tools is the Windows Readiness Analyzer, available for downloading from Microsoft's Web site.
  • The other tool is the WINNT32.EXE installer executable itself (available on the CD), which you can run with a "/checkupgradeonly" command-line switch.
• winnt32.exe /syspart copy setup startup files to a hard disk, mark the disk as active, and then install the disk onto another computer; when you start the computer onto which you have installed the disk, it automatically starts with the next phase of setup - you must additionally use the /tempdrive parameter.
• Default initial perfmon counters
  • Processor \ %Processor Time
  • Memory \ Pages/sec
  • PhysicalDisk \ Average Disk Queue Length
• Accessibility stuff:

  • Accessibility Wizard	Accessibility Options
    Magnifier Feature	X
    personalized menus	X
    X	Serial Keys
    X	mouse options
    Bounce Keys	Filter Keys

• ToggleKeys used if you want an audible warning when you please caps lock, num lock, scroll lock
• Windows XP Professional How-to Resources http://www.microsoft.com/technet/itsolutions/howto/winxphow.mspx
• To Disable The Notification Area Balloon Tips: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced\ EnableBalloonTips\0
• Windows 2000's RunAs Service = Windows XP Secondary Logon Service
• The Language bar is a floating toolbar that appears on your desktop automatically when you add handwriting recognition, speech recognition, or an Input Method Editor (IME) as a method of inserting text. You can use the Language bar to switch easily between tasks and perform tasks related to entering text. For example, if you are entering text with a handwriting input device, use the buttons on the Language bar to open the Writing Pad window, from which you can insert handwritten text into your document. The buttons and options that are displayed on the Language bar depend on the text services you have installed, and on the program that is currently active.
• My Documents / Properties / Sharing tab / check "Make this folder private so that only I have access to it"
• GUI: Disk Management / Convert to MBR disk = CLI: diskpart / list disk / select disk n / convert mbr
• Simple file sharing: Windows Explorer: Tools / Folder Options / View tab / Advanced Settings / clear or check the "Use simple file sharing (Recommended)"
• Start / Accessories / System Tools / Files and Settings Transfer Wizard. Wizard helps you transfer files and settings from your old computer to your new one. You can transfer settings for Microsoft Internet Explorer and Microsoft Outlook Express, as well as desktop and display settings, dial-up connections, and other types of settings. As you go through the wizard, you can select the files and settings that you want to transfer.
• Device Driver Roll Back reinstalls the driver you were using previously and restores any driver settings that were changed when you added the new driver. Note that you cannot restore printer drivers with Device Driver Roll Back. To roll back a device driver to a previous version:
• Log on to the computer by using an account with administrative privileges.
• Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
• Under Pick a category, click Performance and Maintenance.
• Under or pick a Control Panel icon, click System.
• On the Hardware tab, click Device Manager.
• In the device list, expand the device type branch that you want to work with. For example, Display adapters.
• Right-click the device that you want to work with, and then click Properties.
• On the Driver tab, click Roll Back Driver. Click Yes when you receive the following message:
  • Are you sure you would like to roll back to the previous driver?
• The previous device driver is restored. Click Close.
• Quit Device Manager, and then click OK.
• The netstat.exe utility has a new switch, the -o switch, that can display the process identifier (ID) that is associated with each connection.
• EFI = Extensible Firmware Interface, a partition on IA64-based computer.
• The Cipher.exe utility that is included with Windows XP provides the ability to overwrite deleted data. cipher /w:driveletter:\foldername. May work on unencrypted deleted files too.

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