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Basic IT Questions

Questions related to DHCP?

Q. What is DHCP?A. DHCP stands for "Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol". DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration

Protocol) is a communications protocol that lets network administrators centrally manage and automate the assignment of Internet Protocol (IP) addresses in an organization's network.

DHCP assigns IP address to computers and other devices that are enabled as DHCP Clients. Deploying DHCP servers on the network automatically provides computers and other TCP/IP based network devices with valid IP addresses and the additional configuration parameters these devices need, called DHCP options, which allow them to connect to other network resources, such as DNS servers, WINS servers and routers.

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) automatically assigns IP addresses and other network configuration information (subnet mask, broadcast address, etc) to computers on a network. A client configured for DHCP will send out a broadcast request to the DHCP server requesting an address. The DHCP server will then issue a "lease" and assign it to that client. The time period of a valid lease can be specified on the server. DHCP reduces the amount of time required to configure clients and allows one to move a computer to various networks and be configured with the appropriate IP address, gateway and subnet mask.

Q. Who Created It? How Was It Created? A. DHCP was created by the Dynamic Host Configuration Working Group of the Internet Engineering

Task Force (IETF; a volunteer organization which defines protocols for use on the Internet). As such, its definition is recorded in an Internet RFC and the Internet Activities Board (IAB) is asserting its status as to Internet Standardization. As of this writing (June 1998), DHCP is an Internet Draft Standard Protocol and is Elective. BOOTP is an Internet Draft Standard Protocol and is recommended.

Q. How DHCP Works?A. DHCP uses a client-server model. The network administrator establishes one or more DHCP servers

that maintain TCP/IP configuration information and provide it to clients. The server database includes the following:

Valid configuration parameters for all clients on the network. Valid IP addresses maintained in a pool for assignment to clients, plus reserved addresses

for manual assignment. Duration of a lease offered by the server. The lease defines the length of time for which the

assigned IP address can be used.

With a DHCP server installed and configured on your network, DHCP-enabled clients can obtain their IP address and related configuration parameters dynamically each time they start and join the network. DHCP servers provide this configuration in the form of an address-lease offer to requesting clients.

A. With a DHCP server installed and configured on your network, DHCP-enabled clients can obtain their IP address and related configuration parameters dynamically each time they start and join the network. DHCP servers provide this configuration in the form of an address-lease offer to requesting clients.

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1. The DHCP client requests an IP address by broadcasting a DHCP Discover message to the local subnet.

2. The client is offered an address when a DHCP server responds with a DHCP Offer message containing IP address and configuration information for lease to the client. If no DHCP server responds to the client request, the client can proceed in two ways:

If it is a Windows 2000–based client, and IP auto-configuration has not been disabled, the client self-configures an IP address for its interface.

If the client is not a Windows 2000–based client, or IP auto-configuration has been disabled, the client network initialization fails. The client continues to resend DHCP Discover messages in the background (four times, every 5 minutes) until it receives a DHCP Offer message from a DHCP server.

3. The client indicates acceptance of the offer by selecting the offered address and replying to the server with a DHCP Request message.

4. The client is assigned the address and the DHCP server sends a DHCH ACK message, approving the lease. Other DHCP option information might be included in the message.

5. Once the client receives acknowledgment, it configures its TCP/IP properties using any DHCP option information in the reply, and joins the network.

In rare cases, a DHCP server might return a negative acknowledgment to the client. This can happen if a client requests an invalid or duplicate address. If a client receives a negative acknowledgment (DHCP Nack), the client must begin the entire lease process again.

Figure 3-5. DHCP client/server protocol

Q. At what layer of OSI it functions?A. DHCP works at Data link Layer. (Layer 2)

Q. What is DORA?A. Finally, the chosen DHCP server sends the lease information (the IP address, potentially a subnet

mask, DNS server, WINS server, WINS node type, domain name, and default gateway) to the workstation in a message called the DHCP ACK (data communications jargon for acknowledge). You can remember the four parts of a DHCP message by the mnemonic DORA - Discover, Offer, Request, and ACK.

Q. What is the default Lease Period in DHCP Client/Server communication?

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A. The default lease is 8 days, after which a computer has to renew their use of the address they've been leased by your DHCP server.

There are certain situations however when you might want to lengthen this lease period to several weeks or months or even longer. These situations include (a) when you have a stable network where computers neither join or are removed or relocated; (b) when you have a large pool of available IP addresses to lease from; or (c) when your network is almost saturated with very little available bandwidth and you want to reduce DHCP traffic to increase available bandwidth (not by much, but sometimes every little bit helps).

Q. How does DHCP lease works?A. The first time a DHCP-enabled client starts and attempts to join the network; it automatically follows

an initialization process to obtain a lease from a DHCP server. Figure 4.2 shows the lease process.

Figure 4.2 DHCP Lease Process

3. The DHCP client requests an IP address by broadcasting a DHCP Discover message to the local subnet.

4. The client is offered an address when a DHCP server responds with a DHCP Offer message containing IP address and configuration information for lease to the client. If no DHCP server responds to the client request, the client can proceed in two ways:

If it is a Windows 2000–based client, and IP auto-configuration has not been disabled, the client self-configures an IP address for its interface.

If the client is not a Windows 2000–based client, or IP auto-configuration has been disabled, the client network initialization fails. The client continues to resend DHCP Discover messages in the background (four times, every 5 minutes) until it receives a DHCP Offer message from a DHCP server.

6. The client indicates acceptance of the offer by selecting the offered address and replying to the server with a DHCP Request message.

7. The client is assigned the address and the DHCP server sends a DHCH ACK message, approving the lease. Other DHCP option information might be included in the message.

8. Once the client receives acknowledgment, it configures its TCP/IP properties using any DHCP option information in the reply, and joins the network.

In rare cases, a DHCP server might return a negative acknowledgment to the client. This can happen if a client requests an invalid or duplicate address. If a client receives a negative acknowledgment (DHCP Nack), the client must begin the entire lease process again.

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Q. How can you backup configuration file of DHCP server?A. DHCP database backs itself up automatically every 60 minutes to the %SystemRoot%\System32\

Dhcp\Backup\Jet directory. This interval can be changed: 1. Start the registry editor 2. Move to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\DHCPServer\

Parameters\BackupInterval 3. Double click on BackupInterval and set to the number of minutes you want the backup to be

performed. Click OK 4. Close the registry editor 5. Stop and restart the DHCP server service (Start - Settings - Control Panel - Services - DHCP

Server - Start and Stop) You could backup the %SystemRoot%\System32\Dhcp\Backup\Jet directory if you wish.

Q. Had you maintained/created any technical reference documentation on DHCP Server/Client?A. Yes. Q. What is TCP/IP port no. used for DHCP service?A. DHCP uses the same two IANA assigned ports as BOOTP: 67/udp for the server side, and

68/udp for the client side.

Q. What is VLAN? A. A virtual LAN, commonly known as a vLAN or as a VLAN, is a method of creating independent

logical networks within a physical network.A VLAN consists of a network of computers that behave as if connected to the same wire - even though they may actually be physically connected to different segments of a LAN. Network administrators configure VLANs through software rather than hardware, which make them extremely flexible.

Q. How is it different than VLANs? A. DHCP and VLANs, which are very different in concept, are sometimes cited as different solutions to

the same problem. While they have a goal in common (easing moves of networked computers), VLANs represent a more revolutionary change to a LAN than DHCP. A DHCP server and forwarding agents can allow you to set things up so that you can unplug a client computer from one network or subnet and plug it into another and have it come alive immediately, it having been reconfigured automatically. In conjunction to Dynamic DNS, it could automatically be given its same name in its new place. VLAN-capable LAN equipment with dynamic VLAN assignment allows you to configure things so a client computer can be plugged into any port and have the same IP number (as well as name) and be on the same subnet. The VLAN-capable network either has its own configuration that lists which MAC addresses are to belong to each VLAN, or it makes the determination from the source IP address of the IP packets that the client computer sends. Some differences in the two approaches:

DHCP handles changes by reconfiguring the client while a VLAN-capable network handles it by reconfiguring the network port the client is moved to.

DHCP dynamic reconfiguration requires a DHCP server, forwarding agent in each router, and DHCP capability in each client's TCP/IP support. The analogous capability in VLANs requires that all hubs throughout the network be VLAN-capable, supporting the same VLAN scheme. To this point VLAN support is proprietary with no vendor interoperability, but standards are being developed.

DHCP can configure a new client computer for you while a VLAN-capable network can't.

DHCP is generally aimed at giving "easy moves" capability to networks that are divided into subnets on a geographical basis, or on separate networks. VLANs are generally aimed at allowing you to set up subnets on some basis other than geographical, e.g. instead of putting

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everyone in one office on the same subnet, putting each person on a subnet that has access to the servers that that person requires.

There is an issue with trying to use DHCP (or BOOTP) and VLANs at the same time, in particular, with the scheme by which the VLAN-capable network determines the client's VLAN based upon the client computer's source IP address. Doing so assumes the client computer is already configured, which precludes the use of network to get the configuration information from a DHCP or BOOTP server.

Q. What is DHCP relay Agent? A. DHCP Relay Agent component is a Bootstrap Protocol (BOOTP) relay agent that relays Dynamic

Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) messages between DHCP clients and DHCP servers on different IP networks.

Q. How does DHCP relay agent work? A. A DHCP relay agent is an agent program or component responsible for relaying DHCP & BOOTP

(Bootstrap Protocol) broadcast messages between a DHCP server and a client across an IP router.

A DHCP relay agent supports DHCP/BOOTP message relay as defined in RFC (Request for Comment) 1541 & 2131. The DHCP relay agent service is managed using Routing & Remote Service.

Q. DHCP User Class and Vendor Class Options?A. DHCP provides support for a host of new features. The user-specified and vendor-specified DHCP

options—features that let administrators assign separate options to clients with similar configuration requirements. For example, if DHCP-aware clients in your human resources (HR) department require a different default gateway or DNS server than the rest of your clients, you can configure DHCP Class IDs to distribute these options to HR clients. The options that Class IDs provide override any scope or global default options that the DHCP server typically assigns.

Q. Option Classes?A. The two option class types: User Class and Vendor Class. User Classes assign DHCP options to a

group of clients that require similar configuration; Vendor Classes typically assign vendor-specific options to clients that share a common vendor type. For example, with Vendor Classes you can assign all Dell computers DHCP options that are common to those machines. The purpose of option classes is to group DHCP options for similar clients within a DHCP scope.

Q. What is Super scope?A. A range of IP addresses that span several subnets. The DHCP server can assign these addresses

to clients that are on several subnets.

A. A super-scope is actually a collection of individual scopes. When you group different scopes together into a single superscope, you can do the following:

Place DHCP clients from multiple network IDs on the same physical segment Allow remote DCHP clients from multiple network IDs to obtain an address from a DHCP Server Place multiple DHCP Servers on the same physical segment, with each DCHP Server being

responsible for a different scope.

The superscope will allow the DHCP Server to answer requests from DHCP clients from different network IDs.

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Q. What is Multicast? A. A range of class D addresses from 224.0.0.0 to 239.255.255.255 that can be assigned to computers

when they ask for them. A multicast group is assigned to one IP address. Multicasting can be used to send messages to a group of computers at the same time with only one copy of the message. The Multicast Address Dynamic Client Allocation Protocol (MADCAP) is used to request a multicast address from a DHCP server.

Q. What is a DHCP lease? A. A DHCP lease is the amount of time that the DHCP server grants to the DHCP client permission to

use a particular IP address. A typical server allows its administrator to set the lease time.

Questions related to WSUS?

Q. What is WSUS?A. It is Microsoft Software Update Server, and it is designed to automate the process of distributing

Windows operating system patches. It works by controlling the Automatic Updates applet already present on all Windows machines.

Instead of many machines at UVA all going to Microsoft's website to download updates, the SUS server downloads all updates to an ITC-owned server and workstations then look there for updates.

Q. What is the Minimum Free Disk Space required? A. Minimum of 6 GB free disk space is recommended to store the WSUS content. Q. How WSUS Works?A. WSUS is an update component of Windows Server and offers an effective and quick way to help

keep systems up-to-date. WSUS provides a management infrastructure consisting of the following:Microsoft Update: The Microsoft Web site to which WSUS components connect for updates of Microsoft products.

Windows Server Update Services server: The server component that is installed on a computer running a Microsoft Windows 2000 Server with Service Pack 4 (SP4) or Windows Server 2003 operating system inside the corporate firewall. WSUS server provides the features that administrators need to manage and distribute updates through a Web-based tool, which can be accessed from Internet Explorer on any Windows computer in the corporate network. In addition, a WSUS server can be the update source for other WSUS servers.

Automatic Updates: The client computer component built into Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows 2000 with SP3 operating systems. Automatic Updates enables both server and client computers to receive updates from Microsoft Update or from a server running WSUS.

Q. What are the basic requirements (Hardware/Software) to implement the Windows SUS server?

A. Server Hardware Requirements: WSUS requires a single server for basic operation, although you can scale your WSUS

implementation to larger numbers of servers if you wish. For a basic implementation of up to 500 users, hardware requirements, per Microsoft, are: 1GHz CPU 1GB RAM

You also need a network card, and around free disk space (described below)

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Server Software Requirements:

You need the following software components: A supported Windows Server operating system - Windows Server 2003 is the preferred OS, but

Windows 2000 is also supported. WSUS is supported on all editions of Windows Server 2003, but there are some restrictions of you use the Web Edition (See [WUS Restrictions With2k3 Web].

IIS - WUS is operated via IIS, so your WUS Server needs to have IIS loaded. You need at least IIS 5.0.

.NET Framework 1.1 SP1 - get this 7.982MB download from the Microsoft download site. The .NET Framework 1.1 SP1 is delivered as a hot fix installation file (see KB article KB867460 for details). This expands to 55.6 MB (58,335,654 bytes) on disk prior to installation. The installation of this hot fix also stops IIS, and requires a reboot.

Background Intelligent Transfer Service 2.0 (BITS 2.0 English.zip) - this is a new version of BITS, at present only available to beta testers, or those on the OEP. This is a 1.34MB download.

WSUS Setup (WSUSSetup.exe) - Like BITS V2, this is available only to beta testers or members of the OEP at present. This is download is over 100mb.

SQL Database server. For Windows Server 2003 MSDE is installed during setup. For Windows 2000 it is not and MSDE or SQL server must be installed prior WUS setup.

Server Disk Space Requirements:

WUS Server disk space requirements fall into three categories: the WUS service, WUS updates and the WUS data base.

Microsoft recommends that you have at least 6GB free disk space to store WUS content. At present, typical usage is around 1-2GB/language, although this does depend on what updates you specify and is likely to grow over time. The WSUS service installs (by default) into C:\Program Files\Update Services\. This folder takes up 365MB (371MB on disk) after the initial installation. The WSUS Database is managed by MDSE, and is installed by default into C:\WSUS\MSSQL$WSUS. This folder takes up 216 MB after the initial install, synchronize and with only 2 clients. The size of the DB grows as you add more computers, and as you manage more updates.

Q. What is TCP/IP port no. used for Windows SUS services? A. WSUS uses 8530 port.

Q. What is essential application used for WSUS database report? A. WSUS database stores update information, event information about update actions on client

computers, and WSUS server settings.

Administrators have the following options for the WSUS database:

1. The Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Desktop Engine (Windows) (WMSDE) database that WSUS can install during setup on Windows Server 2003

2. An existing Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2000 database3. An existing Microsoft Data Engine 2000 (MSDE) with Service Pack 3 (SP3) or Later.

Q. What are essential settings required at the end of WSUS client?A. On the client side we have to enable Automatic update from security setting. Also we can enable

automatic update from registry. Registry Key: KEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\Type: Reg_DWORD 0 - Disabled. 1 - Enable the Automatic Update client to use the SUS Server specified by the "WUServer"

value.

If you have domain login on client, then we also enable auto update on client side through group policy.

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Questions related to DNS?

Q. What is DNS?

A. DNS stands for Domain Naming System which provides name resolution for TCP/IP network. In addition it is a distributed database and hierarchal structure which ensures that each hostname is unique across a local and wide area network.

A. DNS is the name resolution system of the Internet. Using DNS allows clients to resolve names of hosts to IP addresses so that communication can take place. DNS is the foundation upon which Active Directory is built.

Q. How DNS Works?A. DNS uses a client/server model in which the DNS server maintains a static database of domain

names mapped to IP addresses. The DNS client, known as the resolver, performs queries against the DNS servers. The bottom line? DNS resolves domain names to IP address using these steps

Step 1: A client (or “resolver”) passes its request to its local name server. For example, the URL term www.idgbooks.com typed into Internet Explorer is passed to the DNS server identified in the client TCP/IP configuration. This DNS server is known as the local name server.

Step 2: If, as often happens, the local name server is unable to resolve the request, other name servers are queried so that the resolver may be satisfied.

Step 3: If all else fails, the request is passed to more and more, higher-level name servers until the query resolution process starts with far-right term (for instance, com) or at the top of the DNS tree with root name servers

Below is the Steps explained with the help of a chart.

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Figure 8-5: How DNS works

Q. What is the TCP/IP port no. used for DNS services? A. 53/TCP, UDP is used for DNS services.

Q. What are the basic requirements (Hardware/Software) to implement the Windows DNS server?

A. Server Hardware Requirements:Microsoft's suggested minimum hardware requirements (and some Microsoft recommendations) for Windows Server 2003 (Standard) is listed here: CPU speed: 133MHz (550MHz recommended) RAM: 128MB (256MB recommended; 4GB maximum on Standard Server) Disk space for setup: 1.5GB CD-ROM drive: 12X Monitor: Super VGA capable of providing 800 x 600 resolution

Q. Explain DNS Zones?A. A zone is simply a contiguous section of the DNS namespace.  Records for a zone are stored and

managed together.  Often, sub-domains are split into several zones to make manageability easier.  For example, support.microsoft.com and msdn.microsoft.com are separate zones, where support and msdn are sub-domains within the Microsoft.com domain.

Q. Explain zone file?A. The database in a DNS server that contains the translations (mappings) between domain names and

IP addresses. A zone file is made up of "resource records," which are lines of text that define the forward lookup of domains to IP, the reverse lookup of IP to domains as well as the names of DNS and mail servers. Records for aliases and other related information.

Q. What is Primary DNS Zone?A. A primary DNS server holds the "master copy" of the data for a zone, and secondary servers have

copies of this data which they synchronize with the primary through zone transfers at intervals or when prompted by the primary.

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Q. What is Standard Primary DNS Server? A. Standard primary zone holds a master copy of a zone and can replicate it to all configured

secondary zones in standard text format. Any changes that must be made to the zone are made on the copy stored on the primary.

Q. What is Active Directory Integrated DNS server? A. Active Directory–integrated zones are available only on Windows 2000 and 2003 DNS servers in an

Active Directory domain. The zone information is contained within the Active Directory database and is replicated using Active Directory replication. Active Directory–integrated zones provide an increased level of replication flexibility as well as security. Active Directory–integrated zones also operate in a multi-master arrangement because they are hosted within Active Directory itself; this way, any DNS server (domain controller) hosting the Active Directory–integrated zone can update the zone data.

Q. What is Secondary DNS Zone? A. A standard secondary zone holds a read-only copy of the zone information in standard text format.

Secondary zones are created to increase performance and resilience of the DNS configuration. Information is transferred from the primary zone to the secondary zones.

Q. What is STUB Zone? A. Microsoft has introduced support for stub zones for the first time in Windows Server 2003. A stub

zone contains only those resource records that are necessary to identify the authoritative DNS servers for that zone. Those resource records include Name Server (NS), Start of Authority (SOA), and possibly glue host (A) records. (Glue host records provide A record pointers to ensure that the master zone has the correct name server information for the stub zone.)

Q. Why Use Stub Zones?A The idea behind stub zones is to speed up name resolution and reduce network traffic. This is a

benefit for every network where you are able to use them.

Q. What is Forward Lookup? A. Forward Lookup – resolves hostname to IP address.  Forward Lookup zones supply the main DNS

mechanism for finding Hosts (A), Name Servers (NS) or Service (_gc).

Q. What is Reverse Lookup? A. Reverse Lookup – resolves IP address to hostname.  I think of Reverse Lookup as a hacker’s tool,

they can PING a server's IP address and then they use a Reverse Lookup query to discover the hostname.  In truth, Reverse Lookup is required by NSLookup, DNSLint and other utilities.

Q. What's the difference between a zone and a domain?A. Although the two terms can seem as if they are used interchangeably, there is a difference. A DNS

domain is a segment of the DNS namespace. A zone, on the other hand, can contain multiple contiguous domains.

For example, quepublishing.com is a DNS domain. It contains all the information for that specific portion of the DNS namespace. sales.quepublishing.com is another example of a domain, which is contiguous with the quepublishing.com domain; in other words, the two domains "touch." So, if you were to create a DNS forward lookup zone on your DNS server, it could contain records for both domains. Zones allow for the logical grouping and management of domains and resource records on your DNS servers.

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Q. DNS resource records

A. DNS zone database is made up of a collection of resource records. Each resource record specifies information about a particular object. For example, address mapping (A) records map a host name to an IP address, and reverse-lookup pointer (PTR) records map an IP address to a host name. The server uses these records to answer queries for hosts in its zone. For more information, use the table to view DNS resource records.

NS: Name server resource record specifies the authoritative DNS server for the particular zone.

SOA: This resource record specifies the DNS server providing authoritative information about the zone.

A: Standard hostname resource record contains hostname to IP Address mapping.

CNAME: This resource record allows you to use more than one name to point a single host. MX: This resource record is used by e-mail applications to locate a mail server within a zone.

PTR: Used to map IP address to their associated hostnames. These records are only used in reverse lookup zones.

SRV: This resource records is used to specify the location of specific services in a domain.

Q. DNS with Active Directory?A. Active Directory uses the same hierarchal naming convention as DNS. Because of this, the client

computer uses DNS servers to locate Active Directory domain controllers and other Active Directory resources on the network.

Without DNS, Active Directory couldn’t function, because client computers wouldn’t be able to locate these domain controllers and resources.

Bottom line is, Active Directory is dependent on DNS. Active Directory can’t be implemented until the DNS server service is installed.

Questions related to WINS?

Q. What is WINS? A. WINS (Windows Internet Naming Service) resolves’ Windows network computer names (also known

as NetBIOS names) to Internet IP addresses, allowing Windows computers on a network to easily find and communicate with each other.

Q. How WINS Works?A. By default, when a computer running Microsoft® Windows® 2000, Windows XP, or a Windows

Server 2003 operating system is configured with WINS server addresses (either manually or through DHCP) for its name resolution, it uses hybrid node (h-node) as its node type for NetBIOS name registration unless another NetBIOS node type is configured. For NetBIOS name query and resolution, it also uses h-node behavior, but with a few differences.

For NetBIOS name resolution, a WINS client typically performs the following general sequence of steps to resolve a name:

1. Client checks to see if the name queried is its local NetBIOS computer name, which it owns.

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2. Client checks its local NetBIOS name cache of remote names. Any name resolved for a remote client is placed in this cache where it remains for 10 minutes.3. Client forwards the NetBIOS query to its configured primary WINS server. If the primary WINS server fails to answer the query--either because it is not available or because it does not have an entry for the name--the client will try to contact other configured WINS servers in the order they are listed and configured for its use.4. Client broadcasts the NetBIOS query to the local subnet.5. Client checks the Lmhosts file for a match to the query, if it is configured to use the Lmhosts file.6. Client tries the Hosts file and then a DNS server, if it is configured for one

Q. What is the TCP/IP port no. used for WINS services? A. 137

Q. What are the basic requirements (Hardware/Software) to implement the Windows WINS server?

A. Hardware Requirement: ← Pentium 4 - 2.8 GHz with 2 GB RAM

← 80 GB Hard drive/7200RPMRecommended hard drive division: 20 GB System Partition and 60 GB Data partition

← 100 Mbps Network adaptor or better ← Screen Resolution: - 1024 X 768 pixels, 256 colours (65,536 colours recommended)

Software Requirement:

← Windows® Server 2003 Standard Edition SP1 or higher installed.← Application Server Role installed:← Internet Information Server 6.0← ASP.NET

Q. What is Primary & Secondary WINS Server? A. WINS servers can act as either a primary WINS server or a secondary WINS server to a client. The

difference between primary and secondary WINS servers is simply the priority in which clients contact them. A primary WINS server is the first server a client contacts to perform its NetBIOS name service operations. A client contacts a secondary WINS server only when a primary WINS server is unable to fulfill the request, for example if it is unavailable when the client makes the request or unable to resolve a name for the client.

If a primary WINS server fails to fulfill a request, the client makes the same request of its secondary WINS server. If more than two WINS servers are configured for the client, the client tries the additional secondary WINS servers until the list is exhausted or one of the WINS servers successfully responds to the request. After a client uses a secondary WINS server, it periodically tries to switch back to its primary WINS server for future name service requests.

Q. How does DNS relates with ADS? A. Active Directory, which is an essential component of the Windows 2003 architecture, presents

organizations with a directory service designed for distributed computing environments. Active Directory allows organizations to centrally manage and share information on network resources and users while acting as the central authority for network security. In addition to providing comprehensive directory services to a Windows environment, Active Directory is designed to be a consolidation point for isolating, migrating, centrally managing, and reducing the number of directories that companies require.

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You must have DNS to run Active Directory but don't need Active Directory to run DNS in a Windows 2000/20003 environment. AD relies heavily on DNS.

Q. What is Host File? A. The "Hosts" file in Windows and other operating systems is used to associate host names with IP

addresses. Host names are the www.yahoo.com addresses that you see every day. IP addresses are numbers that mean the same thing as the www words - the computers use the numbers to actually find the sites, but we have words like www.yahoo.com so humans do not need to remember the long strings of numbers when they want to visit a site.

We can put names and addresses into the Hosts file so your computer does not have to ask a DNS server to translate the domain name into an IP number. This speeds up access to the host site you want to see because your computer no longer has to query other systems on the Internet for the address translation

Q. What is LM Host File?A. A text file in a windows network that provides name resolution of NetBIOS host names to IP

addresses. The LMHOSTS files were the Windows counterpart to the HOSTS files in UNIX, but have long since given way to the WINS naming system. LM stands for "LAN Manager," the name of Microsoft's earlier network operating system (NOS).

Q. What is Firewall? What are the essential settings are used in Firewall? A. A system designed to prevent unauthorized access to or from a private network. Firewalls can be

implemented in both hardware and software, or a combination of both. Firewalls are frequently used to prevent unauthorized internet users from accessing private networks connected to the internet, especially intranets. All messages entering or leaving the intranet pass through the firewall, which examines each message and blocks those that do not meet the specified security criteria.

There are several types of firewall techniques; the 3 basic are as given below:

Packets filter: Looks at each packet entering or leaving the network and accepts or rejects it based on user-defined rules. Packet filtering is fairly effective and transparent to users, but it is difficult to configure. In addition, it is susceptible to IP spoofing.

Application gateway: Applies security mechanisms to specific applications, such as FTP and Telnet servers. This is very effective, but can impose performance degradation.

Circuit-level gateway: Applies security mechanisms when a TCP or UDP connection is established. Once the connection has been made, packets can flow between the hosts without further checking.

Proxy server: Intercepts all messages entering and leaving the network. The proxy server effectively hides the true network addresses.

Q. What is Proxy server?A. In an enterprise that uses the Internet, a proxy server is a server that acts as an intermediary

between a workstation user and the Internet so that the enterprise can ensure security, administrative control, and caching service. A proxy server is associated with or part of a gateway server that separates the enterprise network from the outside network and a firewall server that protects the enterprise network from outside intrusion.

Q. What is VPN? A. VPN gives extremely secure connections between private networks linked through the Internet. It

allows remote computers to act as though they were on the same secure, local network.

Q. What are the types of protocols used in VPN? A. There are two types of protocols used in VPN those are PPTP & L2TP.

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PPTP: Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP) is a network protocol that enables the secure transfer of data from a remote client to a private enterprise server by creating a virtual private network (VPN) across TCP/IP-based data networks. PPTP supports on-demand, multi-protocol, virtual private networking over public networks, such as the Internet.

L2TP: Layer 2 Tunneling Protocol is an emerging Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) standard that combines the features of two existing tunneling protocols: Cisco's Layer 2 Forwarding and Microsoft's Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol. L2TP is an extension to the Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP).

Q. What is Terminal Services?A. Terminal Services is a component of Microsoft Windows operating systems (both client and server

versions) that allows a user to access applications or data stored on a remote computer over a network connection. Terminal Services is Microsoft's take on server centric computing, which allows individual users to access network resources easily.

Questions related to Active Directory?

Q. What is Directory Service?A. Directory service is a software application that stores and organizes information of networked

computers, users, and network resources, and that allows network administrators to manage users’ access the resources.

Q. What is Active Directory? A. Active Directory is an implementation of LDAP directory services. Active Directory allows

administrators to assign enterprise-wide policies, deploy programs to many computers, and apply critical updates to an entire organization. Active Directory stores information and settings related to an organization in a central, organized, accessible database. Active Directory networks can vary from a small installation with a few hundred objects, to a large installation with millions of objects.

Q. What is Active Directory Services? A. Active Directory is a directory service used to store information about the network resources across

a domain.

Q. What are components of Active Directory (Hierarchy)?A. Components of Active Directory are Domain, Forest, Tree, Organizational Unit, Schema, Group

Policy Objects and Global Catalog.

Q. What is Tree (Logical Component)?A. Domain trees is a hierarchical grouping of one or more domains that share a single DNS namespace

& have one or more child domain and are connected by transitive trust relationship. Example: ttsl.com is root and mah.ttsl.com is child.

Q. What is Forest (Logical Component)?A. A forest is a group of one or more domain trees which share a common schema and global catalog.

There is always at least one forest on a network, and it is created when the first Active Directory (domain controller) installed on a network.

This first domain in a forest, called the forest root domain, is special because it holds the schema and controls domain naming for the entire forest. It cannot be removed from the forest without removing the entire forest itself. Also, no other domain can ever be created above the forest root domain in the forest domain hierarchy.

Q. What is Domain (Logical Component)?

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A. A Domain is a logical grouping of networked computers in which more than one computer has shared resources. (Domains are the fundamental units that make up Active Directory).

Q. What is OU (Logical Component)? A. OU is administrative-level container object in ADS that organize users, computers, groups and other

organizational units together so that any changes, security privileges or any other administrative tasks could be accomplished more efficiently.

Q. What is Domain Controller (Physical Component)?A. Domain Controllers are the physical storage location for the Active Directory Services Database. Q. What is Sites (Physical Component)? A. A Site is a physical component of Active Directory that is used to define and represent the physical

topology of a network.

Q. What is Object? A. Active Directory objects are the entities that make up a network. An object is a distinct, named set of

attributes that represents something concrete, such as a user, a printer, or an application. For example, when we create a user object, Active Directory assigns the globally unique identifier (GUID), and we provide values for such attributes as the user's given name, surname, the logon identifier, and so on.

Q. What is Schema? A. The schema defines the type of objects and the attributes that each object has. The schema is what

defines a user account for example. A user account must have a name, a password, and a unique SID. A user account can also have many additional attributes, such as location, address, phone number, e-mail addresses, terminal services profiles, and so on.

Q. What is Schema Class & Attributes? A. Every directory object you create is an instance of an object class contained in the schema. Each

object class contains a list of associated attributes that determine the information the object can contain. Classes and attributes are defined independently, so that a single attribute can be associated with multiple classes. All schema classes and attributes are defined by the classSchema and attributeSchema objects, respectively.

Q. What is Global Catalog?A Global catalog is a domain controller that stores a copy of all Active Directory objects in a forest. The

global catalog stores a full copy of all objects in the directory for its host domain and a partial copy of all objects for all other domains in the forest.

Q. What is Universal Group Membership Cache? A. In a forest that has more than one domain, in sites that have domain users

but no global catalog server, Universal Group Membership Caching can be used to enable caching of logon credentials so that the global catalog does not have to be contacted for subsequent user logons.

Q. What is LDAP? A. LDAP stands for Lightweight Directory Access Protocol is a networking protocol for querying and

modifying directory services running over TCP/IP. And the TCP port for LDAP is 389. LDAP Version 5.

Q. What are IIS services? A. IIS services are used to publish web based applications.

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What is TCP/IP port no for Global Catalog? 3268What is TCP/IP port no for LDAP? 389 What is TCP/IP port no for RDP? 3389What is the TCP/IP port no for SNMP? 161,162What is the TCP/IP port no for SMTP? 25What is the TCP/IP port no for POP3? 110What is the TCP/IP port no for IMAP? 143What is the TCP/IP port no for HTTP? 80What is the TCP/IP port no for HTTPS? 443What is TCP/IP port no for TELNET? 23   Q. What are important operations roles in Active Directory?A. In a forest, there are at least five FSMO roles that are assigned to one or more domain controllers.

The five FSMO roles are: • Schema Master: The schema master domain controller controls all updates and modifications to the

schema. To update the schema of a forest, you must have access to the schema master. There can be only one schema master in the whole forest.

• Domain Naming Master: The domain naming master domain controller controls the addition or removal of domains in the forest. There can be only one domain naming master in the whole forest.

• Infrastructure Master: Responsible for maintaining all inter-domain object references. In other words, the infrastructure master informs certain objects (such as groups) that other objects (such as users in another domain) have been moved, changed, or otherwise modified. This update is needed only in a multiple-domain environment.

• Relative ID (RID) Master: The RID master is responsible for processing RID pool requests from all domain controllers in a particular domain. At any one time, there can be only one domain controller acting as the RID master in the domain.

• PDC Emulator: Used whenever a domain contains non–Active Directory computers. It acts as a Windows NT primary domain controller (PDC) for legacy client operating systems, as well as for Windows NT backup domain controllers (BDCs). The PDC emulator also processes password changes and receives preferential treatment within the domain for password updates. If another domain controller is unable to authenticate a user because of a bad password, the request is forwarded to the PDC emulator. The PDC emulator performs this additional (and important) operations master role whether or not there are any BDCs in the domain.You can transfer FSMO roles by using the Ntdsutil.exe command-line utility or by using an MMC snap-in tool. Depending on the FSMO role that you want to transfer, you can use one of the following three MMC snap-in tools:

Q. How can we view All FSMO roles using command prompt? A. Ntdsutil.exe

Q. How can we transfer Schema Master Role? A. Transfer the Schema Master Role

Use the Active Directory Schema Master snap-in to transfer the schema master role. Before you can use this snap-in, you must register the Schmmgmt.dll file. Register Schmmgmt.dll

1. Click Start, and then click Run.2. Type regsvr32 schmmgmt.dll in the Open box, and then click OK. 3. Click OK when you receive the message that the operation succeeded.

Transfer the Schema Master Role1. Click Start, click Run, type mmc in the Open box, and then click OK.2. On the File, menu click Add/Remove Snap-in.3. Click Add.

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4. Click Active Directory Schema, click Add, click Close, and then click OK.5. In the console tree, right-click Active Directory Schema, and then click Change Domain

Controller. 6. Click Specify Name, type the name of the domain controller that will be the new role holder, and

then click OK.7. In the console tree, right-click Active Directory Schema, and then click Operations Master.8. Click Change.9. Click OK to confirm that you want to transfer the role, and then click Close.

Q. How can we transfer Domain naming Master? A. Transfer the Domain Naming Master Role

1. Click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Active Directory Domains and Trusts.2. Right-click Active Directory Domains and Trusts, and then click Connect to Domain Controller.

NOTE: You must perform this step if you are not on the domain controller to which you want to transfer the role. You do not have to perform this step if you are already connected to the domain controller whose role you want to transfer.

3. Do one of the following: • In the Enter the name of another domain controller box, type the name of the domain

controller that will be the new role holder, and then click OK.

-or- • In the Or, select an available domain controller list, click the domain controller that will be the

new role holder, and then click OK.4. In the console tree, right-click Active Directory Domains and Trusts, and then click Operations

Master.5. Click Change.6. Click OK to confirm that you want to transfer the role, and then click Close.

Q. How can we transfer PDC Emulator, RID Master, Infrastructure Master? A. Transfer the RID Master, PDC Emulator, and Infrastructure Master Roles1. Click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Active Directory Users and Computers.2. Right-click Active Directory Users and Computers, and then click Connect to Domain Controller.

NOTE: You must perform this step if you are not on the domain controller to which you want to transfer the role. You do not have to perform this step if you are already connected to the domain controller whose role you want to transfer.

3. Do one of the following: • In the Enter the name of another domain controller box, type the name of the domain controller

that will be the new role holder, and then click OK. -or-

• In the Or, select an available domain controller list, click the domain controller that will be the new role holder, and then click OK.

4. In the console tree, right-click Active Directory Users and Computers, point to All Tasks, and then click Operations Master.

5. Click the appropriate tab for the role that you want to transfer (RID, PDC, or Infrastructure), and then click Change.

6. Click OK to confirm that you want to transfer the role, and then click Close.

Q. What will happen if Schema Master fails?A. No updates to the Active Directory schema will be possible. Since schema updates are rare (usually

done by certain applications and possibly an Administrator adding an attribute to an object), then the malfunction of the server holding the Schema Master role will not pose a critical problem.

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Q. What will happen if Domain Naming Master fails? A. Domain Naming Master must be available when adding or removing a domain from the forest (i.e.

running DCPROMO). If it is not, then the domain cannot be added or removed. It is also needed when promoting or demoting a server to/from a Domain Controller. Like the Schema Master, this functionality is only used on occasion and is not critical unless you are modifying your domain or forest structure.

Q. What will happen if RID Master fails? A. RID Master provides RIDs for security principles (users, groups, computer accounts). The failure of

this FSMO server would have little impact unless you are adding a very large number of users or groups.Each DC in the domain has a pool of RIDs already, and a problem would occur only if the DC you adding the users/groups on ran out of RIDs.

Q. What will happen if PDC Emulator fails? A. The server holding the PDC emulator role will cause the most problems if it is unavailable. This

would be most noticeable in a mixed mode domain where you are still running NT 4 BDCs and if you are using down-level clients (NT and Win9x). Since the PDC emulator acts as a NT 4 PDC, then any actions that depend on the PDC would be affected (User Manager for Domains, Server Manager, changing passwords, browsing and BDC replication).In a native mode domain the failure of the PDC emulator isn't as critical because other domain controllers can assume most of the responsibilities of the PDC emulator.

Q. What will happen if Infrastructure Master fails? A. This FSMO server is only relevant in a multi-domain environment. If you only have one domain, then

the Infrastructure Master is irrelevant. Failure of this server in a multi-domain environment would be a problem if you are trying to add objects from one domain to another.

Q. What are the basic requirements (Hardware/Software) to implement the Windows ADS server?

A. Minimum requirements:Processor: Single 550 MHz PIII or comparableMemory: 512 MB of RAMHard Disks: Two 9 GB - MirroredNetwork: 100 Megabit EthernetSystems: 2 Windows 2000 SP4 Servers- RedundancyRecommended requirement Processor: Dual Intel Xeon or comparableMemory: 1 GB of RAMHard Disks: Three 9 GB - RAID5Network: 100 Megabit EthernetSystems: 2 Windows 2000 SP4 Servers- RedundancyDesktop/Member Server Requirements:Windows desktop OS should be at least Windows 2000 and have hardware to support such to receive benefit from the GTAD service. Windows member servers should be at the Windows 2000 level and have hardware to support such.

Q. What is the difference between Intersite & Intrasite Replication?A. There are two types of replication traffic in Active Directory, intrasite and intersite. Intrasite replication

traffic is between domain controllers within the same site. Intersite replication traffic is between

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domain controllers in different sites. The KCC tunes intrasite replication to minimize replication latency, whereas it tunes intersite replication to minimize bandwidth usage.

Intrasite IntersiteTraffic is uncompressed. Traffic is compressed (to save bandwidth).

Replication partners notify each other when changes must be replicated (to reduce latency).

Replication partners do not notify each other (to save bandwidth).

Replication partners poll one another periodically.

Replication partners poll one another during scheduled intervals only.

RCP over IP transport only. RCP over IP or SMTP over IP transports.

Replication connections can be created between any two domain controllers in the same site.

Replication connections can only be created between bridgehead servers. A bridgehead server is designated by the KCC. A bridgehead server is a domain controller that has been designated to perform all intersite replication for a particular site.

Q. What is GROUPS?A. Groups are Active Directory (or local computer) objects that can contain users, contacts, computers,

and other groups. In Windows 2003, groups are created in domains, using the Active Directory Users and Computers tool. You can create groups in the root domain, in any other domain in the forest, in any organizational unit, or in any container class object (such as the default Users container). Like user and computer accounts, groups are Windows 2000 security principals; they are directory objects to which SID’s are assigned at creation.

Q. What is Distribution Group? (Group Type)A. These are used for non-security purposes by applications other than Windows. One of the primary

uses is within an e-mail.As with user accounts, there are both local and domain-level groups. Local groups are stored in a local computer’s security database and are intended to control resource access on that computer. Domain groups are stored in Active Directory and let you gather users and control resource access in a domain and on domain controllers.

Q. What is Security Groups? (Group Type)A. Security groups are used to group domain users into a single administrative unit. Security groups

can be assigned permissions and can also be used as e-mail distribution lists. Users placed into a group inherit the permissions assigned to the group for as long as they remain members of that group. Windows itself uses only security groups.

Q. What is Global Group? (Group Scope)A. This group’s permissions and rights exist in the group’s domain and domains that have a trust

relationship with the group’s domain. Global groups may be given rights and permissions of local groups.

Q. What is Domain Local Group? (Group Scope)A. Created on Active Directory controllers and are used manage access to resources in the domain.

Q. What is Universal Group? (Group Scope)A. Users from multiple domains that perform similar tasks or share resources across the domains. Any

group & user in any domain can be a member of the universal group.

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Q. What is GROUP Policy? A. Group Policies are configuration settings applied to computers or users as they are initialized. All

Group Policy settings are contained in Group Policy Objects (GPO’s) applied to Active Directory sites, domains, or organizational units.

A. Group policy is an administrative tool for managing users’ settings and computer setting across domain network.

Q. What is Group Policy Object? A. Group Policy Object (GPO) is a collection of settings that define what a system will look like and how

it will behave for a defined group of users.

Q. What are three types of Group Policy Objects?

Q. How Group Policy Inheritance Work?

Q. What is LSDO?A. LSDO - Local policies first, then Site based policies, then Domain level policies, then OU polices,

then nested OU polices (OUs within OUs). Group polices cannot be linked to a specific user or group, only container objects.

Q. What is the difference between FAT, FAT32 & NTFS & what is it? A. Following are Microsoft's Windows Glossary definitions for each of the 3 file systems:

1. File Allocation Table (FAT): A file system used by MS-DOS and other Windows-based operating systems to organize and manage files. The file allocation table (FAT) is a data structure that Windows creates when you format a volume by using the FAT or FAT32 file systems. Windows stores information about each file in the FAT so that it can retrieve the file later.

2. FAT32: A derivative of the File Allocation Table (FAT) files system. FAT32 supports smaller cluster sizes and larger volumes than FAT, which results in more efficient space allocation on FAT32 volumes.

3. NTFS: An advanced file system that provides performance, security, reliability, and advanced features that are not found in any version of FAT. For example, NTFS guarantees volume consistency by using standard transaction logging and recovery techniques. If a system fails, NTFS uses its log file and checkpoint information to restore the consistency of the file system. In Windows 2000 and Windows XP, NTFS also provides advanced features such as file and folder permissions, encryption, disk quotas, and compression.

NTFS File System:1. NTFS is the best file system for large drives. Unlike FAT and FAT32, performance with NTFS

isn't corrupted as drive size increases.

2. One of the major security features in NTFS is encryption or, in other words, the process of disguising a message or data in such a way as to hide its substance.

3. Another feature in NTFS is disk quotas. It gives you the ability to monitor and control the amount of disk space used by each user.

4. Using NTFS, you can keep access control on files and folders and support limited accounts. In FAT and FAT32, all files and folders are accessible by all users no matter what their account type is.

5. Domains can be used to tweak security options while keeping administration simple.

6. Compression available in NTFS enables you to compress files, folders, or whole drives when you're running out of disk space.

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7. Removable media (such as tapes) are made more accessible through the Remote Storage feature.

8. Recovery logging helps you restore information quickly if power failures or other system problems occur.

9. In NTFS we can convert the file system through:

1. Back up all your data before formatting:

So you want to start with a 'clean' drive but can't afford losing your precious files? Very simple. All you need to do is back up your files to an external hard-drive or a partition other than the one you want to convert, or burn the data onto CDs. After you're done you can format a drive with NTFS.

2. Use the convert command from command prompt:

This way, you don't need to back up. All files are preserved as they are. However, I recommend a backup. You don't know what might go wrong and besides what would you lose if you do back-up? When I converted to NTFS using convert.exe, everything went smooth. Chances are your conversion will be equally smooth.

IMPORTANT NOTE: This is a one-way conversion. Once you've converted to NTFS, you can't go back to FAT or FAT32 unless you format the drive. 1. Open Command Prompt

Start | All Programs | Accessories | Command PromptORStart | Run | type "cmd" without quotes | OK

2. Type "convert drive letter: /fs:ntfs" and press Enter. For example, type "convert C: /fs:ntfs" (without quotes) if you want to convert drive C.

3. If you're asked whether you want to dismount the drive, agree.

Q. What are Permissions?A. Permissions are a key component of the Windows Server 2003 security architecture that you can

use to manage the process of authorizing users, groups, and computers to access objects on a network.

Q. What are types of Permissions? Q. What is File Permission?

Q. What is Folder Permission?

Q. What is Share Permission?

Q. What is Moving/Copying Permissions?

Q. What is Special File Permission?

Q. What is Special Folder Permissions?

Q. What is Special Share Permissions?

Q. What is Backup?A. To copy files to a second medium (a disk or tape) as a precaution in case the first medium fails. Q. What are the types of Backup?

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A. There are 5 types of backup in windows 2003 and are as follows: Copy, Normal, Incremental, Daily and Differential.

Q. Difference between Incremental & Differential Backup? A. Differential backup backs up only the files that changed since the last full back. For example,

suppose you do a full backup on Sunday. On Monday you back up only the files that changed since Sunday, on Tuesday you back up only the files that changed since Sunday, and so on until the next full backup. Differential backups are quicker than full backups because so much less data is being backed up. But the amount of data being backed up grows with each differential backup until the next full back up. Differential backups are more flexible than full backups, but still unwieldy to do more than about once a day, especially as the next full backup approaches.

Incremental backups also back up only the changed data, but they only back up the data that has changed since the last backup — be it a full or incremental backup. They are sometimes called "differential incremental backups," while differential backups are sometimes called "cumulative incremental backups." Confused yet? Don't be.

Q. How can we take the backup for ADS?A We can take the ADS backup through ntbackup and select the system state backup.

Q. How to restore an ADS Backup? A. Restoring Windows Server 2003 system state and system services

Tivoli Storage Manager supports the Microsoft Volume Shadow copy Service (VSS) on Windows Server 2003. Tivoli Storage Manager uses VSS to restore all system state components as a single object, to provide a consistent point-in-time snapshot of the system state. You can restore all system service components (the default) or individual components.

System state components include the following:

Active Directory (domain controller only) Windows Server 2003 system volume Certificate Server Database COM+ database Windows Registry System and boot files

Attention: Restoring system state in a situation other than system recovery is not recommended.

You must have administrative authority to restore System State information. To restore the Windows Server 2003 system state using the GUI:

1. Click Restore from the GUI main window. The Restore window appears. 2. Expand the directory tree by clicking the plus sign +. To display files in a folder, click the folder

icon. 3. Locate the System State node in the directory tree. You can expand the System State node to

display the components. 4. Click the selection box next to the System State node to restore the entire system state. You

can restore the System State node only as a single entity because of dependencies among the system state components. By default, all components are selected; you cannot back up individual system state components.

5. Click Restore. The Task List window displays the restore processing status.

On the command line, use the restore system state command to restore a backup of a system state. See Restore System state for more information.

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Considerations:

You can restore System State data to an alternate machine. If you are upgrading from a Windows 2000 machine to a Windows Server 2003 machine, you

cannot restore the Windows 2000 system objects that were backed up to the server. Your Windows Server 2003 client must be connected to a Tivoli Storage Manager Version 5.2.0

or higher server. If Active Directory is installed, you must be in Active Directory restore mode. See Performing a Windows XP or Windows Server 2003 system recovery for procedures on

how to perform the following tasks: o Your operating system is still functioning, but a complete system restore is required. o A complete recovery is required, including an operating system re-installation.

System services components include the following:

Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) Event logs Removable Storage Management Database (RSM) Cluster Database (cluster node only) Remote Storage Service Terminal Server Licensing Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) Internet Information Services (IIS) metabase DHCP database Wins database

To restore the system services using the GUI:

1. Click Restore from the GUI main window. The Restore window appears. 2. Expand the directory tree by clicking the plus sign +. To display files in a folder, click the folder

icon. 3. Locate the System Services node in the directory tree. You can expand the System Services

node to display the components. 4. Click the selection box next to the system services component(s) that you want to restore. 5. Click Restore. The Task List window displays the backup processing status.

On the command line, use the restore system services command to restore a backup of the system services. See Restore System services for more information.

Q. What is a Cluster?A. A cluster is a group of independent computers that work together to run a common set of

applications and provide the image of a single system to the client and application. The computers are physically connected by cables and programmatically connected by cluster software. These connections allow computers to use problem-solving features such as failover in Server clusters and load balancing in Network Load Balancing (NLB) clusters.

Q. What is the definition for Additional Domain Controller?A As name suggest its additional domain controller ...can play any of the FSMO roles at any given

instance and provide SRV services to clients

Q. What is Domain Controller?A. A domain controller is a server in which Active Directory Service is installed. Domain controllers are

used to administer domain objects, such as user accounts and groups.

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Q. What is Proxy Server?A. In an enterprise that uses the Internet, a proxy server is a server that acts as an intermediary

between a workstation user and the Internet so that the enterprise can ensure security, administrative control, and caching service. A proxy server is associated with or part of a gateway server that separates the enterprise network from the outside network and a firewall server that protects the enterprise network from outside intrusion.

Q. What is Basic Disk?A. A standard disk with standard partitions (primary and extended).

Q. What is Dynamic Disk? A. Disks that have dynamic mounting capability to add additional local or remote partitions or directories

to a disk drive. These are called dynamic volumes. This is new with the Windows 2000 operating system and is not supported by any other operating systems. Any volume that is on more than one hard drive must be created with dynamic disks. A disk can only be converted from dynamic to basic by first deleting all the volumes in the dynamic disk.

Q. What is RAID? A. RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks). A collection of disk drives that offers increased

performance and fault tolerance. There are a number of different RAID levels. The three most commonly used are 0, 1, and 5: Level 0: striping without parity (spreading out blocks of each file across multiple disks). Level 1: disk mirroring or duplexing. Level 2: bit-level striping with parity Level 3: byte-level striping with dedicated parity.

Q. What is Simple Volume?A. Simple volumes are the most common volumes and the type of volume that you will create most

often. If you are using a single disk configuration, a simple volume is the only volume type that you can create.

Q. What is Spanned Volume? A. Spanned volumes are created by combining disk space from two or more hard disks. Spanned

volumes can be created by using different amounts of space from different hard disks. For example, a 10GB spanned volume can be created from 6GB of unallocated space on hard drive 0, 3GB of unallocated space on hard drive 1, and 1GB of space on hard drive 2. A spanned volume cannot be extended, and there is no fault tolerance in using a spanned volume. If any of the drives fail, the data on the volume is lost and must be restored from backup (tape). Spanned volumes can be created from two physical disks and can contain up to 32 physical disks.

Q. What is Mirrored Volume?A. Mirrored volumes are created using two physical disks. A mirrored volume requires same amount of

unallocated space on each of the physical disk used. When data is written to a mirrored volume, the data is written to disk and then synchronized on the second disk. An exact copy of the data is available on both physical disks.

Q. What is Stripped Volume? A. A striped volume is created using a minimum of two and a maximum of 32 physical drives to create

a single volume. A striped volume is created by using an equal amount of unallocated space on all the physical disks. The data is written across all physical disks in the volume in equal parts, thereby creating a stripe pattern. When data is written to the volume, it is divided into 64KB parts and each part is written to a separate disk. Chopping the data into pieces allows each physical disk to be performing a write operation at almost exactly the same time, thereby increasing speed dramatically. When data is read, it is read in the same way, in 64KB blocks at a time. Striped volumes provide the best read and

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write performance of all the different types of volumes. A striped volume gets its name from how the data is read and accessed on the drive.

Q. What is Raid-0? A. RAID Level 0 is not redundant, hence does not truly fit the "RAID" acronym. In level 0, data is split

across drives, resulting in higher data throughput. Since no redundant information is stored, performance is very good, but the failure of any disk in the array results in data loss. This level is commonly referred to as striping.

Q. What is RAID-1?A. RAID Level 1 provides redundancy by writing all data to two or more drives. The performance of a

level 1 array tends to be faster on reads and slower on writes compared to a single drive, but if either drive fails, no data is lost. This is a good entry-level redundant system, since only two drives are required; however, since one drive is used to store a duplicate of the data, the cost per megabyte is high. This level is commonly referred to as mirroring.

Q. What is RAID-5? A. RAID Level 5 is similar to level 4, but distributes parity among the drives. This can speed small

writes in multiprocessing systems, since the parity disk does not become a bottleneck. Because parity data must be skipped on each drive during reads, however, the performance for reads tends to be considerably lower than a level 4 array. The cost per megabyte is the same as for level 4.

Question Related to TCP/IP?

Q. What is IP? A. The Internet Protocol (IP) is a data-oriented protocol used for communicating data across a packet-

switched internet-work.IP is a network layer protocol in the internet protocol suite and is encapsulated in a data link layer protocol (e.g., Ethernet).

Q. What is TCP?A. Transmission Control Protocol, and pronounced as separate letters. TCP is one of the main

protocols in TCP/IP networks. Whereas the IP protocol deals only with packets, TCP enables two hosts to establish a connection and exchange streams of data. TCP guarantees delivery of data and also guarantees that packets will be delivered in the same order in which they were sent.

Q. What is UDP?A. UDP, a connectionless protocol that, like TCP, runs on top of IP networks. Unlike TCP/IP, UDP/IP

provides very few error recovery services, offering instead a direct way to send and receive datagram’s over an IP network. It's used primarily for broadcasting messages over a network.

Q. What is range of TCP/IP in Class A?A. 1 to 127

Q. What is range of TCP/IP in Class B?A. 128 to 191

Q. What is range of TCP/IP in Class C? A. 192 to 223

Q. What are reserved IP ranges in Class A? A. 10.0.0.0 to 10.255.255.255

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Q. What are reserved IP ranges in Class B? A. 172.16.0.0 to 172.16.255.255

Q. What are reserved IP ranges in Class C? A. 192.168.0.0 to 192.168.255.255

Q. What is default IP range is broadcast by DHCP server if no scope is defined? A. 255.255.255.255

Q. What is Loop back IP address? A. 127.0.0.1

Q. How can we assign Static IP & dynamic IP using command prompt utility? A. Yes. Through netsh command.

Q. What is Subnet Mask?A. In computer networks, a subnetwork or subnet is a range of logical addresses within the address

space that is assigned to an organization. Subnetting is a hierarchical partitioning of the network address space of an organization (and of the network nodes of an autonomous system) into several subnets

Q. What is Gateway? A. A gateway is either hardware or software that acts as a bridge between two networks so that data

can be transferred between a numbers of computers.

Q. What is Routed Protocol?A. Routed protocols are routed by routers which use routing protocols to communicate to other routers

using routing protocols that have routed protocols.

Q. What is Routing Protocol?A. Routing protocols distribute routing information throughout all routers on a network. By knowing

about all other routers connected to the network, each router can determine the best path to use to deliver your traffic.

Q. What is OSI Layer? Describe Each.A. OSI (Open Systems Interconnection) is a standard description or "reference model" for how

messages should be transmitted between any two points in a telecommunication network. Its purpose is to guide product implementers so that their products will consistently work with other products. The reference model defines seven layers of functions that take place at each end of a communication. Although OSI is not always strictly adhered to in terms of keeping related functions together in a well-defined layer, many if not most products involved in telecommunication make an attempt to describe themselves in relation to the OSI model.

Layer 7: The application layer...This is the layer at which communication partners are identified, quality of service is identified, user authentication and privacy are considered, and any constraints on data syntax are identified. (This layer is not the application itself, although some applications may perform application layer functions.)

Layer 6: The presentation layer...This is a layer, usually part of an operating system, that converts incoming and outgoing data from one presentation format to another (for example, from a text stream into a popup window with the newly arrived text). Sometimes called the syntax layer.

Layer 5: The session layer...This layer sets up, coordinates, and terminates conversations, exchanges, and dialogs between the applications at each end. It deals with session and connection coordination.

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Layer 4: The transport layer...This layer manages the end-to-end control (for example, determining whether all packets have arrived) and error-checking. It ensures complete data transfer.

Layer 3: The network layer...This layer handles the routing of the data (sending it in the right direction to the right destination on outgoing transmissions and receiving incoming transmissions at the packet level). The network layer does routing and forwarding.

Layer 2: The data-link layer...This layer provides synchronization for the physical level and does bit-stuffing for strings of 1's in excess of 5. It furnishes transmission protocol knowledge and management.

Layer 1: The physical layer...This layer conveys the bit stream through the network at the electrical and mechanical level. It provides the hardware means of sending and receiving data on a carrier.

Q. What is the difference between CIDR & VLSM?A. BOTH are almost same with VLSM we can utilize the IP address space with CIDR we can improve

both address space utilization and routing scalability in the internet. CIDR will be used in internet routers.

A. VLSM - Variable Length Subnet Masking. Several new methods of addressing were created so that usage of IP space was more efficient. The first of these methods is called Variable-Length Subnet Masking (VLSM). Sub-netting had long been a way to better utilize address space. Subnets divide a single network into smaller pieces. This is done by taking bits from the host portion of the address to use in the creation of a “sub” network. For example, take the class B network 147.208.0.0. The default network mask is 255.255.0.0, and the last two octets contain the host portion of the address. To use this address space more efficiently, we could take all eight bits of the third octet for the subnet.

One drawback of sub-netting is that once the subnet mask has been chosen, the number of hosts on each subnet is fixed. This makes it hard for network administrators to assign IP space based on the actual number of hosts needed. For example, assume that a company has been assigned 147.208.0.0 and has decided to subnet this by using eight bits from the host portion of the address. Assume that the address allocation policy is to assign one subnet per department in an organization. This means that 254 addresses are assigned to each department. Now, if one department only has 20 servers, then 234 addresses are wasted.

Using variable-length subnet masks (VLSM) improves on subnet masking. VLSM is similar to traditional fixed-length subnet masking in that it also allows a network to be subdivided into smaller pieces. The major difference between the two is that VLSM allows different subnets to have subnet masks of different lengths. For the example above, a department with 20 servers can be allocated a subnet mask of 27 bits. This allows the subnet to have up to 30 usable hosts on it.

CIDR: - Classless Inter-Domain Routing. CIDR is also called super-netting. It's an IP addressing scheme that replaces the older system based on classes A, B, and C. With CIDR, a single IP address can be used to designate many unique IP addresses. A CIDR IP address looks like a normal IP address except that it ends with a slash followed by a number, called the IP prefix. For example: 172.200.0.0/16.

The IP prefix specifies how many addresses are covered by the CIDR address, with lower numbers covering more addresses. An IP prefix of /12, for example, can be used to address 1,048,576 former Class C addresses.

CIDR addresses reduce the size of routing tables and make more IP addresses available within organizations.

Comparing CIDR to VLSM

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CIDR and VLSM both allow a portion of the IP address space to be recursively divided into subsequently smaller pieces. The difference is that with VLSM, the recursion is performed on the address space previously assigned to an organization and is invisible to the global Internet. CIDR, on the other hand, permits the recursive allocation of an address block by an Internet Registry to a high-level ISP, a mid-level ISP, a low-level ISP, and a private organization’s network.

Q. What is Difference between Windows NT, Windows 2000 & Windows 2003? A. The major difference between in NT, 2000 & 2003 are as follows:1) In winnt server concept pdc and bdc but there is no concept in 2000.2) In winnt server sam database r/w format in pdc and read only format in bdc, but in 2000 domain and

every domain controller sam database read/writer format. 3) 2000 server can any time any moment become server or member of server simple add/remove

dcpromo. But in winnt you have to reinstall operating system.A) In 2000 we cannot rename domain whereas in 2003 we can rename Domain B) In 2000 it supports of 8 processors and 64 GB RAM (In 2000 Advance Server) whereas in 2003

supports up to 64 processors and max of 512GB RAM C) 2000 Supports IIS 5.0 and 2003 Supports IIS6.0 D) 2000 doesn't support Dot net whereas 2003 Supports Microsoft .NET 2.0 E) 2000 has Server and Advance Server editions whereas 2003 has Standard, Enterprise, Datacentre

and Web server Editions. F) 2000 doesn't have any 64 bit server operating system whereas 2003 has 64 bit server operating

systems (Windows Server 2003 X64 STD and Enterprise Edition) G) 2000 has basic concept of DFS (Distributed File systems) with defined roots whereas 2003 has

Enhanced DFS support with multiple roots. H) In 2000 there is complexality in administering Complex networks whereas 2003 is easy

administration in all & Complex networks I) in 2000 we can create 1 million users and in 2003 we can create 1 billion users. J) In 2003 we have concept of Volume shadow copy service which is used to create hard disk snap

shot which is used in Disaster recovery and 2000 doesn't have this service. K) In 2000 we don't have end user policy management, whereas in 2003 we have a End user policy

management which is done in GPMC (Group policy management console). L) In 2000 we have cross domain trust relation ship and 2003 we have Cross forest trust relationship. M) 2000 Supports 4-node clustering and 2003 supports 8-node clustering. N) 2003 has High HCL Support (Hardware Compatibility List) issued by Microsoft O) Code name of 2000 is Win NT 5.0 and Code name of 2003 is Win NT 5.1 P) 2003 has service called ADFS (Active Directory Federation Services) which is used to communicate

between branches with safe authentication. Q) In 2003 their is improved storage management using service File Server Resource Manager

(FSRM) R) 2003 has service called Windows Share point Services (It is an integrated portfolio of collaboration

and communication services designed to connect people, information, processes, and systems both within and beyond the organizational firewall.)

S) 2003 has Improved Print management compared to 2000 server T) 2003 has telnet sessions available. U) 2000 supports IPV4 whereas 2003 supports IPV4 and IPV6In windows 2003 support SHADOW COPIES. A NEW TOOLTO RECOVER FILES Window 2003 server includes IIS server in it. That is the biggest advantage on top of better file system management In 2003 server u can change the domain name at any time without rebuilding the domain where as in 2000 u have to rebuild the entire domain to change the domain name. In windows 2000 support maximum 10 users’ access shared folder at a time through network. But in win2003 no limitation

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Q. How can we restore Windows XP/Windows 2000? A. If Windows XP starts

1. Log on to Windows as Administrator.

2. Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and then click System Restore. System Restore starts.

3. On the Welcome to System Restore page, click Restore my computer to an earlier time (if it is not already selected), and then click Next.

4. On the Select a Restore Point page, click the most recent system checkpoint in the on this list, click a restore point list, and then click Next. A System Restore message may appear that lists configuration changes that System Restore will make. Click OK.

5. On the Confirm Restore Point Selection page, click next. System Restore restores the previous Windows XP configuration, and then restarts the computer.

6. Log on to the computer as Administrator. The System Restore Restoration Complete page appears.

7. Click OK.

Q. What is the difference between Windows XP Home Edition & Professional Edition?A. Windows XP Home Edition:

Contains basic support for security among multiple users. Built-in support for peer-to-peer networking, but only for up to five computers. The backup utility is not installed by default, but is included on the CD.

Windows XP Professional Edition:

Includes extended support for security between multiple users on the same machine. Better support for peer-to-peer networking, plus support for joining a "Windows NT domain." The backup utility is installed by default. The Professional edition includes the following components not found in the Home edition:

o Administrative Tools (in the Start Menu and Control Panel) o Automated System Recovery (ASR) o Boot Configuration Manager o DriverQuery o Group Policy Refresh Utility o Multi-lingual User Interface (MUI) add-on o NTFS Encryption Utilitiy o Offline Files and Folders o OpenFiles o Performance Log Manager o Remote Desktop o Scheduled Tasks Console o Security Template Utility o Taskkill o Tasklist o Telnet Administrator

Provides support for multi-processor systems (2 or 4 CPUs), Dynamic Disks, Fax.

Q. What are transaction logs in Exchange?

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A. Transaction logging is a robust disaster recovery mechanism that is designed to reliably restore an Exchange database to a consistent state after any sudden stop of the database.