z a c k e r . c o m MS Windows NT Server Resource Kit Version 4.0, Supplement Two
The kit is now a formidable resource
BY CRAIG ZACKER

The latest supplement to Microsoft Windows NT Server Resource Kit is now in bookstores everywhere, although the package contains no books. Microsoft Windows NT Server Resource Kit Version 4.0, Supplement Two (hereafter Supplement Two), a two-CD-ROM set, expands on the information in the original resource kit and its first supplement.

The resource kit is an invaluable tool for power users and network administrators. Occupying a niche between product documentation and software development kits (SDKs), the resource kit contains extensive documentation about the NT operating system and useful utilities that fill some of the NT tools' operational and administrative gaps.

Microsoft Press markets and sells the resource kit and the resource kit's supplements, and these products have a distinct advantage over their competitors because the information comes directly from Microsoft. Many other books on the market derive their information about NT from the resource kit.

The Real NT Documentation

Supplement Two's CD-ROMs contain all the information from the original resource kit, Microsoft Windows NT Server Resource Kit Version 4.0, Supplement One, and Microsoft Windows NT Workstation Resource Kit. Therefore, if you are comfortable using online documents instead of printed manuals, you can use Supplement Two as your comprehensive NT resource guide. Supplement Two's documentation is in Windows Help format, which makes it convenient for searching and browsing.

The following table summarizes Supplement Two's updated operating system reference guides. These reference guides reflect the changes that Service Pack 3 (SP3) and updated device drivers have made to NT.

TABLE 1:
Supplement Two Reference Guides
Reference Guide Contents
Ntcard40.hlp Detailed information about the network, SCSI, and sound cards that Windows NT 4.0 supports, including hardware resource specifications (such as IRQ and I/O port settings) and jumper and DIP switch diagrams
Ntmsgs.hlp An extensive list of NT and Internet Information Server (IIS) messages, including explanations and suggested courses of action
Regentry.hlp Explanations, descriptions, and possible values for an extensive list of NT Registry keys
Counters.hlp Detailed descriptions of the counters for the Performance Monitor application that NT, IIS, and the NT Server and NT Workstation resource kits include
Hclnt4.hlp The NT 4.0 Hardware Compatibility List (HCL)
Auditcat.hlp Detailed descriptions and examples of the audit events the Event Viewer application has recorded, sorted by category

Supplement Two includes new documents that focus on the use of Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP) with NT's Remote Access Service (RAS) to create Virtual Private Networks. VPNs use public TCP/IP networks, such as the Internet, to connect remote users to an NT network server. This connectivity lets branch offices and traveling clients bypass expensive leased-line or long-distance telephone connections to gain secure access to the corporate network. If the firm's server is on the Internet, a client can create a VPN by connecting to a local Internet Service Provider (ISP) and having the ISP transmit the user data to the server using PPTP's encryption capabilities.

Microsoft Windows NT Server Resource Kit Version 4.0, Supplement Two
Author: Microsoft
Publisher: Microsoft Press, Redmond, 1997
ISBN: 1-57231-626-8
Price: $49.99

Supplement Two also contains information about using the X.25 protocol with RAS. NT 4.0 includes both X.25 and PPTP capabilities. Until Supplement Two's release, no documentation existed for these functions.

Resource Kit Tools

Many users and network administrators purchase the resource kit for its extensive documentation and neglect its software. However, the resource kit and its supplements come with a large collection of useful applications, utilities, and other programs.

Supplement Two contains all the software from the previous resource kit releases (including updates of many of the programs) and an assortment of new utilities, which are listed in the following table. Microsoft makes some of the included software (such as Internet Explorer 3.02 and SP3) readily available online, but many of the other tools are exclusive to the resource kit.

TABLE 2:
Supplement Two's New Utilities
Utility Function
Auditpol.exe Auditpol is a command-line utility that enables network administrators to modify the audit policy of the local system or any other Windows NT system on the network.
ClipStor.exe ClipStor is a GUI utility that provides a series of buffers in which you can temporarily store Clipboard contents. With this tool, you can save the current contents of the Clipboard to a buffer while you perform other cut-and-paste tasks. You can then recall the contents of a selected buffer to the Clipboard.
Defptr.exe Default Printer is a simple program that lets users quickly change their system's default printer using a tray icon on the NT taskbar.
Depends.exe Dependency Walker is a tool that scans a selected Win32 module and creates a tree-like display of all the other modules the file needs to run. The program is excellent for troubleshooting version incompatibilities in driver and library modules from different application vendors.
DNScmd.exe DNScmd is a utility that lets you manage the NT Domain Name System (DNS) server from the command line.
Filewise.exe Filewise is a graphical utility that examines files for modifications due to disk corruption using 32-bit cyclical redundancy check (CRC) computations and International Standards Organization (ISO) 9660 file-naming checks. Software developers can use this utility to validate files destined for product builds or CD-ROM production.
Instaler.exe Installation Monitor is a command-line tool that runs a specified application program and logs all the changes the program makes to the system, including file copies and modifications to the Registry and .ini files.
KiXgrp.exe KiXgrp is a command-line utility that scans the local system and the network's domain controllers for group membership information and adds this information to the NT Registry. The KiXtart 95 utility (also in the resource kit) uses this group membership information to conditionally execute logon script commands based on the user's group memberships.
Logoff.exe Logoff is a command-line utility you can use in scripted installation or upgrade procedures to end the current user session without user intervention.
Netdom.exe Netdom is a powerful utility that enables network administrators to manage NT domains from the command line. You can use Netdom to join a domain, create and delete user accounts, manage accounts on Backup Domain Controller (BDC) systems, and establish trust relationships.
NTrights.exe NTrights is a utility that lets network administrators grant and revoke users' and groups' NT rights from the command line.
Reg.exe Reg is a new, multifunction, command-line Registry-editing utility that replaces the individual tools included in previous resource kit releases. Instead of using separate programs (such as Regchg.exe and Regdel.exe) for various Registry-editing functions, Reg.exe uses the keywords Query, Add, Update, Delete, Copy, Save, Backup, Restore, Load, and Unload to perform all these functions with one executable.
SIPanel.exe Soft Input Panel is a handwriting-recognition program that lets you run NT on a computer that uses a pen as its only input device.
Srvmon.exe Service Monitor is a program that monitors the operational status of selected NT services and generates an email or a call to a pager when that status changes­for example, when a service starts or stops.
Translate.exe Translate is a command-line utility that converts command-line programs' cryptic Win32 numerical error codes into text error messages.
Waitfor.exe Waitfor is a program that halts the processing of a batch file until it receives a specialized signal from a copy of Waitfor running on another system. With this tool, the completion of scripted activities on one computer (such as a software compilation) can trigger actions on other computers (such as the execution of the compiled program).

The resource kit's utilities range from the trivial to the powerful. Supplement Two's CD-ROMs include a selection of entertaining desktops, which combine wallpapers with sound effects, and an editor with which you can create your own animated cursors. However, the majority of resource kit tools address the needs of network administrators and power users seeking to streamline or automate maintenance and configuration tasks.

One of the goals of Supplement Two's software is to provide users with command-line alternatives to NT's GUI utilities. For example, the Netdom.exe, DNScmd.exe, and Reg.exe tools let administrators manage NT domain accounts, Domain Name System (DNS) records, and Registry settings, without using graphical applications such as User Manager for Domains, DNS Manager, or a Registry editor.

These alternatives to NT's GUI utilities benefit veteran network administrators who prefer command-line operations. Another advantage of character-based utilities is that you can use them in batch files or scripts that can run unattended. The resource kit provides support for the Perl 5 and Regina REXX scripting languages and a collection of POSIX utilities. With these tools, you can create scripts that automate complex systems and network administration tasks using Registry modifications, event log data, and Object Linking and Embedding (OLE) automation.

Other resource kit utilities provide a window to the inner workings of the operating system. Supplement Two's Dependency Walker program scans a selected Win32 file and displays a listing of all the ancillary modules the file needs to run, as shown in the screen below. The program also displays the functions each module exports and lists other modules that are using those functions. (For a comprehensive list of the applications and utilities in the Supplement Two CD-ROMs, see "NT Resource Kit Applications and Utilities" online at http://www.winntmag.com.)

Microsoft TechNet

Supplement Two also contains a sample edition of TechNet, which Microsoft usually sells through subscriptions. TechNet is an extensive technical information resource for Microsoft products that includes Service Packs and other software upgrades.

The TechNet sample includes hundreds of Microsoft Knowledge Base entries, user manuals, resource kits, and technical articles. These documents cover NT and a wide range of other applications and operating systems, including all versions of Windows, Microsoft Office, and BackOffice. You can access the compressed TechNet documents using TechNet's viewer. The viewer's expandable tree display, shown below, sorts the documents according to the products and subjects they address.

By adding TechNet to Supplement Two, Microsoft Press has made the resource kit into a formidable and affordable NT support package. The two CD-ROMs contain nearly 1GB of software and documentation for one-third the price of the original resource kit.