Customer Reviews

MCSA/MCSE Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-299): Implementing and Administering Security in a Microsoft® Windows Server(TM) 2003 Network (Pro-Certification)

5 star:		(10)
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3 star:		(1)
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This book is an excellent resource and preparation for the 70-299 exam. I've read through a lot of exam books over the years and this is the one that prepared me the best. Upon finishing this book, you feel as though you really understand the material, rather than feeling that you still have holes in your understanding, as you often do with other books. This book is comprehensive, well-laid out, and has a lot of good practice questions in the book and on CD. Microsoft Training Kit CDs are often quite meaty, and this is no exception. I highly recommend this book.

I've been teaching Microsoft operating systems for 14 years and I've used all of the MSPress books, or almost. This is an exceptional book for the ease of the explanations and the step-by-step details provided. Northrup and Thomas explain exactly why you want to do something, then they tell you how to do it. They have step-by-step procedures for configuring a computer individually, using Active Directory, or editing the registy. The thing that I love the best is that they don't assume any prior knowledge of the product like many technical books do. They define each and every term that they use. I hope that this book, and others like it, set a new standard on technical writing.

I just passed the exam, and this book was an important method of study for me. There are quite a few pragmatic examples regarding security and various standards and questions that will help on the exam, and just increase a general understanding of Windows Server 2003 security,

This book covers the topics examined by the 70-299 test with enough detail that if you have a moderate amount of experience with Windows Server 2003 you will pass the exam. I would recommend that you use VirtualPC to simulate this stuff in your own lab if it isn't feasible to do so on your production network (setting the company DC to Secure Server Only IPSec can be a bad idea without having workstations properly configured). The practice questions, both in the book and on the accompanying CD-ROM are good preparation. Coming into this exam I already had passed the Windows 2000 version. I recommend that you buy the book and do the exercises. Also, get your core exams out of the way (networking, AD, Server) as you'll need some of this knowledge as well.

I have taken, and passed, this 70-299 exam just reading _deeply_ this text and the recommended free on-line resources associated with it. It means it is very well written, since l haven't taken other ms win 2003 exams. I would say a must for people interested in securing ms enviroments and for professionals that want to understand what are they doing. I have also read other mcse books, like 70-270 and win2k one's, no one can be compared with this one, no one was useful for the certification like this one has been.

This book offers good coverage in some areas and fairly weak coverage in others. I agree with some of the other reviewers that this book should have been marketed as a study guide and not a training kit. It does contain some good to know nuggets of info, however it is far from being a complete guide on security, or preperation for the exam. I bought the book based on the reviews I read on this site and will be returning it. I can only guess that the previous reviewers work for MS Press.

On the 13th page of this book the author mentions how important the steps of kerberos authentication are, after giving an incorrect explanation of them and telling you to memorize them for the exam. (steps 1-3 are incorrect. check pg.245 of the Active Directory Technical Reference for an accurate description) Like most of the self-paced training kits from MS Press there is a certain lack of depth to the information in this book. There is alot of pertinent security information missing from this book both for the exam, and more importantly for securing a network in real life. The book seemed more like a conglomeration of useful facts for the exam than a "training guide".

A much better book in this arena is "Microsoft Windows Server 2003 PKI and Certificate Security" by Brian Komar with the Microsoft PKI Team -MS Press

I would also recommend the Windows Server 2003 Active Directory technical Reference. -MS Press

The two of these books combined will give you a complete and accurate base of information to pass this exam, and several others.

RT
MCT, MCSE, MCDBA, MCSA, Master Instructor MS Office

Wow is all I can say!

What a book. If you are wanting to prepare for either 70-298 and 70-299 this is the resource for you.

The book is loaded with invaluable information, but it is written in a way that you don't simply get lost amoungst the pages.

If only Tony Northrup would author all MS Press books.
I heard rave reviews about it, but reading it myself was very enjoyable (considering how enjoyable IT textbooks are to read)

The wealth of knowledge covers all components of Windows Security.

Would Highly Recommend.

People interested in buying this book must know it is out of date. It was released in the age of Windows Server 2003, without service pack one. So it does not cover WSUS, but SUS. It also does not contain information about SP1 improvements and now SP2, however, it is a book about planning and implementing security strategies, which makes it a book above the time.
If you have money and are interest in security, or if you are intended to pass the exam, buy this book.
The text is clear and comprehensive. The content is pretty amazing which demonstrates de knowledgement of the author about what he writes. Such knowledgement is provenient from his experience working with Windows in exposed environments.
This is not only a theoretical guide of security, but also a practical one. The excercises hep you to understand and record it in your mind.
Finally, buy this book.

This book is a great guide to Windows Server 2003 security for anyone responsible for managing Windows 2003 networks. The explanations are clear, concise, and thorough. Every key topic includes one or more real-world examples and recommended best practices, balanced with solid, common-sense advice that acknowledges the different needs for different types of implementations or environments.

I can't speak to its usefulness as a study guide, since that's not what I bought it for, but highly recommended for anyone who needs to learn how to implement security properly in a real-world Windows Server 2003 setting.

Any book from Tony is probably going to be good. This book is no exception. It is very well written and organized. It covers all aspects of Windows Server 2003 security. It is not quite comprehensive as you'll need the earlier 2003 Server books (or know those topics well enough) to fully cover the test. It includes good chapter summaries and practice labs. This book will also be useful to you as a reference after you have passed the exam.