Introducing Microsoft Windows 2000 Server (Introducing (Microsoft)) (Paperback)

~ (Author) "Microsoft Windows 2000 is composed of many different layers that all interact to present the user with a complete operating system..." (more)
Key Phrases: dynamic update protocol, spin count, security templates, Active Directory, Microsoft Windows, Windows Media Services (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Introducing Microsoft Windows 2000 Server catalogs the new features of Microsoft's newest server software and provides general information about how they work. If you're wondering whether (or when) your organization should deploy the successor to Windows NT 4, this book will provide you with the kind of broad insight you need to make upgrade decisions.

Northrup explains the purpose and operation of each major new feature in Windows 2000 Server. The new management features, including Zero-Administration Windows (ZAW), Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI), and the Windows Scripting Host (WSH), receive baseline descriptions. So do the new security features and the enhanced virtual private networking (VPN) features.

The new version of Internet Information Services (IIS 5.0) gets covered briefly, and the distributed file system (DFS) gets some attention, while the much-anticipated Active Directory receives the most in-depth coverage of all. The information on each feature seems cursory--you may even be familiar with Windows 2000 Server at this level from articles that have appeared in technical periodicals.

You won't find the information in Introducing Microsoft Windows 2000 Server helpful in a practical sense--this is a conceptual overview of the new features rather than a guide to implementing useful systems with them. It's also generally pro-Microsoft and not indicative of whatever shortcomings the software may have. --David Wall

Product Description

INTRODUCING MICROSOFT WINDOWS 2000 SERVER is the book that IT professionals, managers, developers, system integrators, and consultants will want to read before and after the release of Windows 2000-to evaluate the product's principal enhancements at the server level. Microsoft Windows 2000 is a breakthrough product and INTRODUCING MICROSOFT WINDOWS 2000 SERVER is sure to be the most authoritative pre-publication book on the topic. Tony Northrup is known and respected both within Microsoft and throughout the industry.

Product Details

• Paperback: 210 pages
• Publisher: Microsoft Press (June 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1572318759
• ISBN-13: 978-1572318755
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 7.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,252,770 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Notes from a Powerpoint presentation, June 2, 1999

By	David V. Watts ([e-mail]) (Houston, TX) - See all my reviews

Bought this book last night - read the whole thing. It's only 175 pages in length - and the type is big.

Anyway - it reads like the speaker notes from a Powerpoint presentation. It does a good job of telling you what's new, but there's no meat. Techies are going to get frustrated, when I read about a cool feature I was always left with - "Well how does that work?"

Some of the figures are very sad - they obviously struggled to come up with graphics. For instance - they show the lineage of NT by drawing four boxes with an arrow going through them all - NT 3.1 to NT 3.5 to NT 4 etc. On the other hand - in the brief discussion on WMI they have a killer graphic (page 52) with no real explanation of flow.

In short - this is a detailed readme file. Short on specifics - but a very high level view of new functionality. Once the "real" books kick in this will have zero worth - which is a negative. Sales people will love it - they'll get up to speed on the "lingo" in the couple of hours it takes to read this book.

Mind you - I enjoyed it's overview - and therefore, 3 stars. If you really want to know how this stuff works you'll need the "Windows 2000 Beta training kit" - if you only buy one, make it the latter.

For the record here is what I mean by high level:

Active Directory gets 21 pages, IIS 5 gets 8 pages, Network infrastructure gets 21 pages, ZAW gets 16 pages, File system and storage management gets 11 pages,

Security gets 13 pages, Distributed Services (DHCP/WINS/DNS) gets 15 pages.

Hope that helps!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good introduction to Windows 2000 but no meat, July 24, 1999

By A Customer

A good, well written introduction to Windows 2000 but no meat. Windows 2000 beta from Microsoft press in combination with Mastering Active Directory (Mastering)," Robert R. King is a better choice for LAN Admins and tech people.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Avoid in most cases, May 7, 2000

By	[e-mail] (Minneapolis, Minnesota) - See all my reviews

Based on the contents of this book, Microsoft should be giving it away rather than selling it. We don't mean that comment to be an extreme criticism but it just doesn't make sense to charge so much for something that is essentially a glorified sales manual.

It's definitely easy to read but also probably too easy. You'll finish reading this book and find yourself asking, "Is that all?" Don't even attempt to bring this book along as a resource when you go to deploy Windows 2000.

If does serve a purpose of preparing people in sales roles for product. If used for that, it does the job quite well. However for most other uses, you'll definitely find better books.