Windows System Administrator`s Toolbox
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System administrators always have their preferences when it comes to software and tools. Most utilities help them to accomplish routine tasks, or to identify possible flaws, and thereafter fix them with ease. Throughout this article we will recommend a bit more than a dozen applications that can be found almost certainly (or their variations, nonetheless) in most Windows sysadmins’ toolboxes.
Everyone knows that lots of management tools and command-line based utilities are shipped with Microsoft Windows Server operating systems such as 2003 or 2008. It is totally understandable that sysadmins are going to use those applications and MMC snap-ins, but also cmdlets, so getting into those is beyond our scope.
This article will entirely focus on third-party software that helps to ease administrative tasks. You may find that many of the tools presented have other, similar alternatives. Basically, it's up to you to use and pick whichever one you want. The kind of applications that you can read about on the following pages are used by the author, who is a sysadmin in a predominantly Windows-based environment.
The title of this publication hints at the toolbox. Probably most people reading this are thinking only of software. However, system administrators also must be familiar with (and bring with them as well) numerous physical tools (such as screwdrivers, RJ45 cable crimpers, needle nose pliers, spare cables, RJ45 jacks, etc.). On the last page we will get into these too!
That's enough of an introduction. Let's kick-start the article with the first set of tools. One thing to consider is that the majority of tools (almost all of them) are free (and possibly also open source). Our purpose is to increase the efficiency of administering Windows workstations, servers, and entire networks without increasing either the cost or the complexity; i.e. relying on "all-in-one" admin suites that promise the moon from the sky.
Let's begin.
Next: First Set of Tools >>
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