Neo from the Matrix trilogy might not be impressed, but I certainly am. Microsoft Windows Server 2003 is the most powerful, versatile, and fully featured version of Windows Server ever, and if you've been using Windows server operating systems since Microsoft Windows NT 4, I think you'll be impressed as well. Why? For starters, in Windows Server 2003, Microsoft finally delivers a server operating system that is something more than the sum of its parts. Windows Server 2003 isn't just a server operating system or a network operating system. It is a best-of-class Internet services operating system that builds on the foundation provided by Windows NT and Microsoft Windows 2000, and it includes the foundation technologies necessary to provide networking, application, and online services that can be used over the Internet or in intranet environments.
Although many people have heard that Windows Server 2003 is little more than a service pack for Windows 2000, they've heard wrong. From top to bottom, Windows Server 2003 is dramatically different from Windows NT and from Windows 2000. Windows Server 2003 is in fact a major rewrite of Windows 2000 that includes significant changes to the operating system kernel; significant enhancements to core services such as the Active Directory directory service, the Domain Name System (DNS), and Remote Access; and it also offers new services.
The way you approach Windows Server 2003 will depend on your background and your implementation plans. If you are moving from Windows NT to Windows Server 2003 or switching from UNIX, you'll find that Windows Server 2003 is a significant change that requires a whole new way of thinking about the network, its services, and the interoperations between clients and servers. The learning curve will be steep, but you will find clear upgrade and migration paths to Windows Server 2003. You will also find that Windows Server 2003 has an extensive command-line interface that makes it easier to manage servers, workstations, and, indeed, the entire network using both graphical and command-line administration tools.
If you are moving from Windows 2000 to Windows Server 2003, you'll find the changes are no less significant but easier to understand. You are already familiar with administration tools such as Active Directory Users and Computers and the core technologies and administration techniques. Your learning curve might still be steep, but in only some areas, not all of them.
You can adopt Windows Server 2003 incrementally as well. For example, you might add Windows Server 2003 Routing and Remote Access Services to a Windows NT 4 or Windows 2000 environment, which can allow the organization to take advantage of the latest services and capabilities without having to implement a full upgrade or migration of existing servers. In most, but not all, cases, incremental adoption has little or no impact on the network, while allowing the organization to test new technologies and incrementally roll out features to users as part of a standard continuance or upgrade process.
Regardless of your deployment plans and whether you are reading this book to prepare for implementation of Windows Server 2003 or to manage existing implementations, my mission in this book is to help you take full advantage of all the new features in Windows Server 2003. You will find the detailed inside information you need to get up to speed quickly with Windows Server 2003 changes and technologies, to make the right setup and configuration choices the first time, and to work around the rough edges, annoyances, and faults of this complex operating system. If the default settings are less than optimal, I'll show you how to fix them so things work the way you want them to work. If something doesn't function like it should, I'll let you know and I'll also show you the fastest, surest way to work around the issue. You'll find plenty of hacks and secrets, too.
To pack as much information as possible into the 1,000-plus pages of this book, I am assuming that you have basic networking skills and some experience managing Windows-based networks but that you don't need me to explain the basic structure and architecture of an operating system. So, I'm not going to waste your time answering such questions as, "What's the point of networks?" "Why use Windows Server 2003?" or "What's the difference between the GUI and the command line?" Instead, I'm going to start with a discussion of what is new in Windows Server 2003 so that you can learn about changes that will most affect you, and then I'm going to follow this discussion with a comprehensive, informative look at Windows Server 2003 planning, installation, upgrades, and migrations.
Windows Server 2003 brings together the best of Windows 2000 and Windows XP, building on the network services and directory features of Windows 2000 and expanding the support services and automated help systems of Windows XP. This means Windows Server 2003 is more manageable, reliable, and scalable than previous versions of the Windows operating system. It also means the operating system has improved usability, especially when it comes to remote management and administration from the command line. Add in enhancements to performance, availability, and security; a rewrite of the operating system kernel; and additional features, such as basic e-mail services and the Microsoft Data Engine (MSDE), and you have many reasons to adopt Windows Server 2003—or at the very least deploy it in engineering or development labs so that you can be ready for full implementation when the bosses say, "We gotta have it now."
A primary purpose of Windows Server 2003 is to ensure the operating system can be optimized for use in any networking scenario. An edition of the server operating system is available to meet your organization's needs whether you want to deploy a basic server for hosting applications, a network server for hosting domain services, a robust enterprise server for hosting essential applications, or a highly available datacenter server for hosting critical business solutions.
Microsoft produced multiple editions of the operating system with varying features to match the needs of any organization. In addition to offering 32-bit, 64-bit, and embedded versions of the operating system, Microsoft introduced the Web Edition as a low-cost server operating system for providing basic Web application hosting services, Standard Edition as the domain services operating system, Enterprise Edition as the robust solution for essential applications and large organizations, and Datacenter Edition as the solution for critical business operations. Thus, the four main product editions are these:
Windows Server 2003, Standard Edition Available in 32-bit version only and can be used for upgrades, migrations, and new installations. This is the next evolution of Windows 2000 Server.
Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition Available in 32-bit and 64-bit versions and can be used for upgrades, migrations, and new installations. This is the next evolution of Windows 2000 Advanced Server.
Windows Server 2003, Datacenter Edition Available in 32-bit and 64-bit versions and can be used only as part of a vendor-specific original equipment manufacturer (OEM) solution. This is the next evolution of Windows 2000 Datacenter Server.
Windows Server 2003, Web Edition Available in 32-bit version only and can be used for new installations. This edition has no equivalent in previous Windows editions.
The various features of each edition are discussed in the sections that follow. Afterward, I discuss the new features of Windows Server 2003, including the following:
.NET technologies support
Windows XP integration
Standards support
Interface and tool improvements
Active Directory improvements
Group Policy improvement
Management and administration extras
Security advances
Note
For more information about the minimum and recommended system requirements for each server edition, see Chapter 3.
Windows Server 2003, Standard Edition, is the workhorse version of the operating system. It comes with a bunch of new features that are exclusive to Windows Server 2003, as you'd expect, and it also includes a few unexpected surprises, including the aforementioned e-mail and database services, as well as Network Load Balancing. As you probably know, Network Load Balancing is included in Windows 2000 Server, but only with the Advanced Server edition—now you can get this feature without shelling out any extra cash. In fact, Network Load Balancing is now included with all four editions of the operating system, even the low-cost Web Edition.
Standard Edition is optimized to provide domain services, such as DNS, Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP), Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) networking, print, and fax, in a small to moderately sized network environment. This edition supports two- and four-way symmetric multiprocessing (SMP) and up to 4 gigabytes (GB) of memory on 32-bit systems and 32 GB on 64-bit systems.
Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition, is the robust medium- to large-enterprise solution specifically designed for multidepartmental use. It supports eight-node clusters and very large memory (VLM) configurations of up to 32 GB on 32-bit systems and 64 GB on 64-bit systems. It also allows you to boot servers from a storage area network (SAN), supports hot- add memory (you don't need to take down the system to install memory), and lets you run up to eight processors. In addition, it includes Services for Macintosh and support for Non-Uniform Memory Access (NUMA). (Don't you just hate all the acronyms you have to keep track of now?)
Inside Out: Use hot-add memory for hot swapping memory on compliant systems
With hot-add memory, you just pop the cover, insert the new random access memory (RAM), and wait a few seconds for the system to recognize the change. Then, presto! The additional RAM is made available to the operating system, its services, and applications, and just as important, no reboot is required. Watch out, though; not all server hardware supports this feature. Both the server hardware and the operating system must support this feature to use it. On the hardware, the server must be built for hot swapping of memory— this includes physical enhancements as well as machine-level coding so that hot swapping is possible. When you hot add memory, take the necessary precautions, handle the memory properly, and insert the memory carefully without touching other system components. If not, you could fry the memory or a board on the server.
If Windows Server 2003, Standard Edition, is plain vanilla ice cream served with a spoon, Datacenter Edition is more like an ice cream sundae made with five different flavors, nuts, and whipped cream and served with a cherry on top and spoons for everyone at your table. This edition is designed to host business-critical systems and solutions using a minimum of 8 processors and a maximum of 32 and includes all the features of the Enterprise Edition. Plus, it supports clustering for up to eight nodes and it increases VLM support, allowing for configurations of up to 64 GB on 32-bit systems and 512 GB on Itanium (IA-64) systems.
But the enhancements don't stop there. Datacenter Edition also includes Windows System Resource Manager, which allows you to specify the amount of system resources, including processors and memory, that is available to each application and to prioritize the resources. This permits tuning applications for optimal responsiveness. For example, you can specify that Microsoft Exchange Server can use up to 50 percent of the available central processing units (CPUs) and up to 75 percent of the available memory, while Microsoft SQL Server, also running on the server, can use only up to 33 percent of the available CPUs and up to 50 percent of the available memory. By further specifying that Exchange has priority over SQL Server, you can ensure that Exchange will always be optimally responsive.
Inside Out: Obtain Datacenter Edition from hardware vendors
You cannot purchase Windows Server 2003, Datacenter Edition, off the shelf. This edition of Windows Server 2003 is available only as part of a proprietary hardware system. To use the Datacenter Edition, you must choose a hardware vendor and a system from that vendor that not only meets the minimum requirements of eight CPUs and 512 gigabytes (MB) of RAM, but one that also has been through the rigorous hardware testing and certification process required by Microsoft.
Windows Server 2003, Web Edition, is the fourth and newest option. It supports up to 2 GB of RAM and two CPUs and is designed, as the name implies, to provide Web services, primarily for hosting Web sites and Web-based applications on the Internet and intranets. As with all the other editions of Windows Server 2003, it supports Internet Information Services (IIS) 6, ASP.NET, and the Windows .NET Framework. These technologies work together to make the sharing of application services in Web environments possible.
However, Web Edition, doesn't include many of the other common features of Windows Server 2003. The biggest feature missing is Active Directory, which means that servers running the Web Edition cannot be domain controllers. Other servers in the datacenter can provide this functionality, however; and so servers running the Web Edition can be part of an Active Directory domain. In addition, although Network Load Balancing support is included in Web Edition, the only other features it has in common with the other editions of Windows Server 2003 are the following:
Distributed file system (DFS)
Encrypting File System (EFS)
Remote Desktop for Administration
Because of this, Web Edition cannot provide Internet connection sharing, network bridging, or faxing services, and although it includes the Remote Desktop, it doesn't include Terminal Services. This means you can access a server running Web Edition using Remote Desktop, but cannot run applications on it remotely using Terminal Services.