Customer Reviews

Windows 2000 Deployment and Desktop Management

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book has helped me in planning Windows 2000 deployments. Mr. Ferris has shown to be an expert in the subject matter through his knowledge of enterprise implementation. The book includes many examples and helps to show the pros and cons of each methodology. Highly recommended!

Windows 2000 represents a significant departure from previous Microsoft operating systems. The move from Windows NT 3.51 to Windows NT 4.0 was incremental. The leap from Windows NT 4.0 to Windows 2000 will require a whole new set of skills. This is due in part to the number of new technologies being bundled with Windows 2000. Without books like the one written by Mr. Ferris, many technology professionals will be caught unprepared.Mr. Ferris uses his rapier like wit to cut through the Microsoft marketing machine exposing all of the triumphs and short comings of Windows 2000. Don't be surprised to find yourself "getting it" a page or two later. There's your world, there's the world according to Microsoft, then there is Mr. Ferris's world. Watch out when all three come together...

Mr. Ferris's book is well suited for Systems Integrators, Systems Engineers, technical Project Managers, and other technically oriented managers. If this is the first technology book you've ever read, or if you're just looking for a quick rundown of the Windows 2000 buzzwords, put this book down and move on down the shelf (look for the thin books with lots of color screen shots). On the other hand, if you're looking for an excellent Windows 2000 reference with lots of discussion and "how-to" mixed in, grab this book and run, don't walk to checkout stand! The technologists in the audience will not be disappointed. Mr. Ferris relates Windows 2000 technologies to existing Windows NT 4.0 technologies where appropriate, and uses a number of creative techniques to explain new technologies that have no good direct relationships to earlier technologies. This being said, the book does not suffer from techno-babble.

Even a "green" Systems Engineer should be able to implement a given technology using the straightforward step-by-step approaches provided in the book. Mr. Ferris does not miss an opportunity to point out where Microsoft and the real world differ on technology implementations. This book is full of real world solution to real world problems. Don't be surprised to find yourself using portions of this book as a blue print for a solution to a problem you are facing right now.

The Book's number one strength is a firm grounding in reality as opposed to relying on theory. The techniques presented in this book have been tested, and in many cases, implemented in a production environment. Another strength of the book is its flexibility. The book serves equally well as a technology reference and as a technology primer. You can quickly get a definition or an in depth discussion for any number of technologies. Finally, Mr. Ferris's writing style is both to the point and entertaining. It would be a stretch to say this book is a joy to read, but compared to many technology books that would have you trying to slit your wrists with the dust cover after the second chapter, this book reads like a Tom Clancy novel. O.K. ,in Mr. Ferris's case, maybe more like a Stephen King novel.

This book is an invaluable resource if you are involved in the deployment of Windows 2000. It is well written with excellent examples provided. It is obvious that the author has a lot of hands on experience with the subject matter and is able to share them with his readers. A must read.

In preparation for deploying Windows 2000 for my company, I bought the Windows 2000 RSK, and I read the 1100+ pages of the RSK's Deployment Planning Guide. I spent many a frustrated day in the lab pawing through all of the dry reading Microsoft provides in the RSK, the on-line help and the KB - and then I discovered this book.

The book assumes you're an administrator and have experience in integration - and that Windows 2000 isn't a stranger to you. Almost every question you run into while you plan and test your deployment is answered in the 375 pages - in plain, simple English. When you move past the section devoted to deployment planning, strategies and options, the book delivers a great section on post-deployment policies and administration. To add the final touch, the reference section provides an invaluable resource for such things as the syntax to the automated install answer file and even common file extensions.

My only regret is that I didn't read this book first. I could have saved myself so much time. The knowledge this book delivers to you is essential and will assist you in a successful deployment. If you're planning a Windows 2000 rollout - you need this book.

Researching information and procedures for our W2K deployment, where I quickly grew tired of installing the OS & applications on each PC by hand. Half way through this book I was overjoyed, seeing a light at the end of the tunnel - and the tunnel is not on fire. The text is clearly written, helping me pull together all the other information I had read. Having a set of concise directions on using SysPrep was an excellent addition to the book. The information on Group Policy & the Group Policy Editor could be a godsend to locking down the customer computers and enhancing the user environment for my coworkers.
Most of the technology books I have read have been forced - forcing myself to read and understand the text, either for a work or personal project. This text was surprisingly an enjoyable read. It appears that this is the author's first book - I hope he keeps writing, and his results are as good as this title.

CONCISE, PRACTICAL, EXPERIENCED WISDOM. There were a few things that I picked up from this book that has really helped me. For example the xcellent utility called ScriptIt (I have since used the natural follow on to this called AutoIt) and did you know that sysdiff is not so great in installing complex apps like MS Office? Dont waste your time on methods that are likely to cost more time rather than saving it.

Very Useful file extension summary and the unattened.doc documentation rolled into Appendices.

One note of caution though the book mainly covers deployment methodology for windows 2000 only hence it is only useful for that purpose, would have been nice if Office 2000 config & rollout could have been covered also.

Adious

AK47