In-Depth Features


You're Fired

Ditch your server dead weight: Consolidate to streamline management.

New Password Mantra: Go Long

New hacking methods make short passwords unsafe, but Microsoft makes it tough to go long. Her's how to forge an effective policy.

Windows Server 2003 Maintenance Made Easy

Following a management and maintenance regimen reduces administration, maintenance, and business expenses while increasing reliability, stability, and security.

Storage Gets Slim

Forget about low-carb diets. Storage consolidation is the new craze hitting the fat-conscious world.

5 Essential Scripts

Time is money and money is tight, but these five scripts can help any admin get more done every day.

Plan Your Defense Strategy

Concentrate on awareness, process, readiness, and privacy as you put your security plan into action.

Grunt Work

Keeping systems patched is time-consuming and laborious, but it's crucial. Here are seven tools that can help you automate the process.

7 Steps to a Better Bargain

Patrick Collins saved more than $1 million in his Microsoft negotiations. Learn how he did it and how to hammer out your own sweet Microsoft deal.

ISA 2004 Passes the Test

Early adopters laud GUI, VPN and administration features.

Sweet Enticement

Honey drops can help you detect attacks in progress--without sticking you with false positives.

RAP Traps

Remote access policies are at the heart of remote access--and at the root of most problems. Learn how they work and avoid the mistakes that can lock out your remote users.

Use Server Roles to Heighten Security

Securing your network goes beyond your hardware or software firewalls. You must define the role of each server and then implement delta security policies to protect your services.

Manage Patches and Updates

Round out your new or updated security strategy by establishing a process to evaluate, manage, and deploy patches in your network. Here are some guidelines and tool recommendations.

SharePoint Gets (Mostly) Top Marks

Once clear of the administrative learning curve, users give SPS 2003 high marks for ease of use and integration features.

Time to Dump IE?

Internet Explorer is a hacker's dream. Can you (and should you) drop it right now?

Following Microsoft's Money

Changes to campaign finance laws mean a larger percentage of Microsoft political contributions now go to Democrats, but the company remains a force in both parties.

Bill 2.0: 5-Year Performance Review

Microsoft watchers give Bill Gates mixed reviews for his performance since relinquishing the CEO title to become Chief Software Architect.

An Ounce of Prevention

Disaster recovery planning can be worth a lot more than a pound of cure when your network goes down.

Virtual Servers in the Real World

Server consolidation may be a necessary evil, but either Virtual Server 2005 or GSX Server can ease the pain.

Books: Delve Into OOP in VB.NET

An Introduction to Object-Oriented Programming with Visual Basic .NET shows you how to develop object-oriented solutions in VB.NET by showing you everything from capturing requirements to how to implement your object-oriented designs.

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