1. Planning File and Print Services Lesson 5

2. File Services Role The File Services role and the other storage- related features included with Windows Server 2008 provide tools that enable system administrators to address problems like these on a scale appropriate to a large enterprise network.

3. Arranging Shares File-sharing strategy: – how many shares to create – where to create shares. – one single file server vs. many servers scattered around the network. A well-designed sharing strategy provides each user with three resources: – A private storage space to which the user has exclusive access. – A public storage space, where each user can store files that they want colleagues to be able to access. – Access to a shared work space for communal and collaborative documents.

4. Controlling Access On most enterprise networks, the principle of “least privileges” should apply. This principle states that users should have only the privileges they need to perform their required tasks, and no more.

5. Controlling Access A user’s private storage space should be exactly that, private and inaccessible, if not invisible, to other users. This is a place in which each user can store his or her private files, without exposing them to other users. Each user should, therefore, have full privileges to his or her private storage, with the ability to create, delete, read, write, and modify files. Other users should have no privileges to that space at all.

6. Controlling Access to Private Folders The easiest way to create private folders with the appropriate permissions for each user is to create a home folder through each Active Directory user object.

7. Controlling Access to Public Folders Each user should also have full privileges to his or her public folder. This is a space where users can share files informally. Users should be able to list the contents of all public folders and read the files stored there, but not be able to modify or delete files in any folder but their own. Users should also be able to navigate throughout the Public folder tree so that they can read any user’s files and copy them to their own folders.

8. Assigning Permissions To simplify the administration process, you should always assign permissions to security groups and not to individuals. On a large Active Directory network, you might also consider the standard practice of assigning the NTFS permissions to a domain local group, placing the user objects to receive the permissions in a global (or universal) group, and making the global group a member of a domain local group.

9. Mapping Drives After you have created the folders for each user and assigned permissions to the folders, the next step is to make sure that users can access their folders. – Folder Redirection settings in Group Policy to map each user’s Documents folder to his or her home folder on the network share. – Another way to provide users with easy and consistent access to their files is to map drive letters to each user’s directories using the Drive Maps feature in Group Policy so that they can always find their files in the same place using Windows Explorer.

10. Creating Folder Shares After you have devised a file sharing strategy for your network, you can begin to create the shares that enable users to access your server drives. Your file sharing strategy should include the following information: – What folders you will share. – What names you will assign to the shares. – What permissions you will grant users to the shares. – What Offline Files settings you will use for the shares.

11. Distributed File System (DFS) The Distributed File System (DFS) implemented in the Windows Server 2008 File Services role includes two technologies: – DFS Namespaces – DFS Replication DFS address these problems and enable administrators to do the following: – Simplify the process of locating files. – Control the amount of traffic passing over WAN links. – Provide users at remote sites with local file server access. – Configure the network to survive a WAN link failure – Facilitate consistent backups.

12. DFS Namespace DFS is a virtual namespace technology that enables administrators to create a single directory tree that contains references to shared folders on various file servers, all over the network. This directory tree is virtual; it does not exist as a true copy of the folders on different servers. Instead, it is a collection of references to the original folders, which users can browse as though it were an actual server share. The actual shared folders are referred to as the targets of the virtual folders in the namespace.

13. DFS Namespace

14. Replicating Shares The DFS Replication role service performs these tasks. DFS Replication is a multimaster replication engine that can create and maintain copies of shared folders on different servers throughout an enterprise network.

15. DFS Replication DFS Replication service copies files from one location to another. However, DFS Replication also works in tandem with DFS Namespace to provide unified services: – Data distribution. – Load balancing. – Data collection.

16. Configuring DFS Implementing DFS on a Windows Server 2008 computer is more complicated than simply installing the File Services role and the Distributed File System role services. After the role and role services are in place, you have to perform at least some of the following configuration tasks: – Create a namespace. – Add folders to the namespace. – Create a replication group.

17. DFS Replication Groups To enable replication for a DFS folder with multiple targets, you must create a replication group, which is a collection of servers, known as members, each of which contains a target for a particular DFS folder. In its simplest form, a folder with two targets requires a replication group with two members: the servers hosting the targets. At regular intervals, the DFS Replication engine on the namespace server triggers replication events between the two members, using the RDC protocol so that their target folders remain synchronized.

18. DFS Replication Groups DFS Replication is also highly scalable and configurable. A replication group can have up to 256 members, with 256 replicated folders, and each server can be a member of up to 256 replication groups, with as many as 256 connections (128 incoming and 128 outgoing). A member server can support up to one terabyte of replicated files, with up to eight million replicated files per volume.

19. Replication Groups

20. No matter which topology you use, DFS replication between two members is always bidirectional by default. This means that the Replicate Folder Wizard always establishes two connections, one in each direction, between every pair of computers involved in a replication relationship. To create unidirectional replication relationships, you can either disable selected connections between the members of a replication group in the DFS Management console or use share permissions to prevent the replication process from updating files on certain member servers.

21. File Server Resource Manager Provides tools that enable file server administrators to monitor and regulate their server storage, by performing the following tasks: – Establish quotas that limit the amount of storage space allotted to each user. – Create screens that prevent users from storing specific types of files on server drives. – Create templates that simplify the process of applying quotas and screens. – Automatically send email messages to users and/or administrators when quotas are exceeded or nearly exceeded. – Generate reports providing details of users’ storage activities.

22. Quotas In Windows Server 2008, a quota is simply a limit on the disk space a user is permitted to consume in a particular volume or folder. Quotas are based on file ownership. Windows automatically makes a user the owner of all files that he or she creates on a server volume. The quota system tracks all of the files owned by each user and totals their sizes. When the total size of a given user’s files reaches the quota specified by the server administrator, the system takes action, also specified by the administrator.

23. Quotas The actions the system takes when a user approaches or reaches a quota are highly configurable: – A hard quota prohibits users from consuming any disk space beyond the allotted amount. – A soft quota allows the user storage space beyond the allotted amount and just sends an email notification to the user and/or administrator. – Administrators can also specify the thresholds at which the system should send notifications and configure the quota server to generate event log entries and reports in response to quota thresholds.

24. File Screen FSRM, in addition to creating storage quotas, enables administrators to create file screens, which prevent users from storing specific types of files on a server drive.

25. Storage Reports FSRM can create the following reports: – Duplicated Files – File Screening Audit – Files by File Group – Files by Owner – Large Files – Least Recently Accessed Files – Most Recently Accessed Files – Quota Usage

26. Windows Print Architecture Printing in Microsoft Windows typically involves the following four components: – Print device – Printer – Print Server – Print Driver

27. Windows Print Architecture

28. Direct Printing The simplest print architecture consists of one print device connected to one computer, also known as a locally attached print device. When you connect a print device directly to a Windows Server 2008 computer and print from an application running on that system, the computer supplies the printer, printer driver, and print server functions.

29. Direct Printing

30. Locally Attached Printer Sharing In addition to printing from an application running on that computer, you can also share the printer (and the print device) with other users on the same network. In this arrangement, the computer with the locally attached print device functions as a print server.

31. Locally Attached Printer Sharing

32. Networked-Attached Printing You can connect a print device directly to the network. Many print device models are equipped with network interface adapters while others have have expansion slots into which you can install a network printing adapter, purchased separately. Finally, for print devices with no networking capabilities, standalone network print servers are available, which enable you to attach one or more print devices and connect to the network. Print devices so equipped have their own IP addresses and typically an embedded Web-based configuration interface.

33. Network-Attached Print Device

35. Print Services Role When you install the Print Services role using Server Manager’s Add Roles Wizard, you can select from the following role services: – Print Server – LPD Service – Internet Printing

36. Fax Server By installing the Fax Server role, you enable a Windows Server 2008 computer to send and receive faxes for clients. The clients send their faxes using a standard printer interface, which connects to a fax server on the network as easily as connecting to a local fax modem.

37. Fax Server The basic steps involved in setting up a fax server are as follows: – Add the Fax Server role. – Add the Desktop Experience feature. – Share the fax printer. – Configure the fax device. – Configure incoming fax routing. – Designate fax users.

38. Fax Services Role Installing the Fax Server role adds the Fax Service Manager snap-in to the Server Manager console. Using the Fax Service Manager, administrators can perform the following tasks: – View and configure fax devices, such as modems. – Specify routing policies for inbound faxes. – Specify rules for outbound faxes. – Manage fax users. – Configure fax logging and archiving.

39. Desktop Experience Feature The Fax Service Manager can configure various fax server functions, but it cannot actually send outgoing faxes or view incoming ones. To send and view faxes, you must use the Windows Fax and Scan program.

40. Summary The Distributed File System (DFS) includes two technologies, DFS Namespaces and DFS Replication, that can simplify the process of locating files, control the amount of traffic passing over WAN links, provide users at remote sites with local file server access, configure the network to survive a WAN link failure, and facilitate consistent backups.

41. Summary DFS is a virtual namespace technology that enables you to create a single directory tree that contains references to shared folders located on various file servers all over the network. DFS Replication works in tandem with DFS Namespaces to provide unified services such as data distribution, load balancing, and data collection.

42. Summary The File Server Resource Manager console provides tools that enable file server administrators to monitor and regulate their server storage by establishing quotas that limit the amount of storage space allotted to each user, creating screens that prevent users from storing specific types of files on server drives, and generating reports providing details of users’ storage activities.

43. Summary Printing in Microsoft Windows typically involves the following four components: print device, printer, print server, and print driver. The simplest form of print architecture consists of one print device connected to one computer, known as a locally attached print device. You can share this printer (and the print device) with other users on the same network.

44. Summary With network-attached print devices, the administrator’s primary deployment decision is which computer will function as the print server. The Print Management snap-in for MMC is an administrative tool that consolidates the controls for the printing components throughout the enterprise into a single console.

45. Summary Windows Server 2008 includes a Fax Server role that enables users to send faxes from and receive them to their desktops.