There aremultiple ways you can build up your social network. Installing social network software on your server helps you gain more control over the site. Elgg is a leading social networking software that supports a catalog of online activities like blogging, community networking, messaging etc.
Elgg, voted as the best social networking software for the year 2008, was developed by Ben Werdmuller and David Tosh in the year 2004. This powerful software enables you to create and post your articles & blogs, build community network, aggregate news via feeds etc. It supports multiple file sharing features also. This software empowers individuals and social groups to establish their full-fledged social network supported with popular tools, which can customize the website as per the needs of their businesses. Its new release, Version 1.5, gives you the control of monitoring your own actions along with keeping a track of your friends' activities also. You can also control your actions with the help of Elgg's great filtering system. Elgg is administrator friendly software that entails a fine set of default outline fields and community management tools, which can easily be widened by the site administrator and customized as per the requirements of the website and its users. The users of the site can make use of the great widget structure of this software to create/build their detailed profiles on the website. For example, the user status widget fetches real-time updates of member's activities. This open source software can be used by businesses around the globe to promote their own community websites. It encompasses a list of access controls that enable you to create tiered profiles of users. And its tagging features further help you to categorize and archive users' profiles. Elgg has a unique spotlight feature that facilitates only a specific content to be flashed on the screen when the users are online. Further, your & your contacts' updates are displayed by the Activity stream. It has also got a number of notification options derived from messaging and emails to SMSs. This impactful collaboration platform facilitates discussions between members of the community. Users can create groups and initiate discussions and the moderation features enable the administrator to moderate the comments from different users. A microblogging application paves way for varied levels of conversation. Community standards can also be easily set with its powerful content reporting system. Its log generation features monitor performance of the website and analyze the same besides maintaining security. There are a number of Web Hosting Providersin the market today that support Elgg such as LimeDomains, FatCow, BlueHost etc. Build your community today!
About The Author:
Ryan Hudsonis an online marketing consultant and has worked with renowned organizations and published authors for more than 5 years now. With stupendous professional business writing related to the topic Web Hosting providers, Domain name, Domain name registrar, Web applications etc... And a penchant for traveling around the world, Ryan has got a lot to say.
Tuesday, 01 September 2009
Every Linux VPS Server has its own limit when it comes to the system resources. It is somewhat limited to about 1GB of RAM. Clients always want their VPS (Virtual Private Servers) to be fast and much responsive as possible. Below are some quick tips to make the Linux VPS Servers work effectively.
Configuring MySQL cache sizes properly is one the common ways to expand the available RAM. If you noticed that your MySQL server instance is using too much memory, you can decrease the MYSQLcache sizes. And if its getting slower due to larger requests you can you can increase the chache size as per your needs.
One more way to increase the performance of the Linux VPS is to disable the control panels. Everyone likes to use the most popular control panels such as Cpanel & Plesk. But if you want to free your resources you should only use the control panels when necessary. You can install them again by running a small PHP script or using shell prompt. This will free up about 120MB of RAM.
Disable the unwanted features, modules and plug-ins such as Apache that are enabled in software packages. By disabling unnecessary modules or plugins will decrease the system memory that server softwares such as Apache requires, which will provide you more resources for the software that are more in need.
One of the top way to make your Linux VPS responsive is to disable the system services that are unnecessarly in use. The services which are not used not only consumes RAM and CPU space but they also make your server unsecured.
Apache server is a well-known for its role in the development of the World Wide Web and never been confusing to the clients. To free up the memory as per the needs check the memory apache is using and adjust the Startservers.
About The Author:
Robin Dale is the publisher of Teeky.org , we offer useful & quality articles and news about Search Engine Optimization, Internet Marketing, Dedicated Server Hosting, Windows VPS Hosting, Linux VPS Hosting UK, e-commerce hosting, cPanel Hosting, hosting tips & UK Web Hosting. For More Articles, Visit Us at Linux VPS Hosting.
In Microsoft Windows, you can use Directory Replication Service to replicate the files and data stored on Windows hard drive. This replication is generally done to make backup of your mission critical data and to safeguard against data loss situations. But in some situations, when you attempt to export data from the Windows hard drive using Directory Replicator service, Windows can not read files from hard drive and give you some errors while replicating the directory.
In such cases, your critical files on hard drive become inaccessible and you come across data loss situations. In order to retrieve your valuable files in these cases, you are required to opt for hard drive recovery solutions using advanced tools. In a practical scenario, if you set up your Windows NT based operating system to export files using Directory Replicator service on the NTFS (New Technology File System) file system partition, you come across any of the underwritten error message: Event 3208 "The replication service could not update directory tmptree.rp$ from source on %3 due to error 183" Or Event 3216 "The system error 5 occurred" However, you might not receive above error message and this behavior of Windows operating system if you try to replicate the FAT partition.
Root of the issue
You might encounter this problem if the permissions or NTFS file system has got damaged. Most of the computer file system have several methods for administering the access rights or permissions to specified users and group of users. File system permissions are used to ensure proper accessing of stored files and preventing unauthorized access.
Resolution
In order to sort out this behavior, go through underwritten steps:
Stop replication process and copy export files from NTFS to FAT file system partition.
Deleted export files from NTFS partition.
Replace export files with the files that are copied on FAT partition.
This method works in a number of such situations, but it removes NTFS-specific attributes from NTFS partition. In case it fails to resolve the issue of hard drive, Hard Drive Recovery solutions come for your rescue. Recovery in such cases, is best possible with the help of powerful and advanced third party Hard Drive Recovery Software. These applications carry out in-depth scanning of affected hard drive to retrieve all sorts of lost files from it. The Hard Drive Recovery Software have self-descriptive and interactive user interface and thus allow you to have quick and easy recovery.
Stellar Phoenix Windows Data Recovery is the most excellent solution to effective handle all sorts of file loss situations. This software supports recovery from FAT32, VFAT, NTFS and NTFS5 file system partitions. It is designed for Microsoft Windows 7 RC1, Vista, 2003, XP and 2000.Article Source: http://www.ArticleBlast.com
About The Author: Author is researching on the hard drive related problems and explains the situations that can cause data loss .Author has given solution to recover hard drive data and suggested to use hard drive recovery software.
AutoScan-Network is a network scanner (discovering and managing application). No configuration is required to scan your network. The main goal is to print the list of connected equipments in your network. The program analyzes the network and its subnetworks, detecting all devices connected to any PC on the net.AutoScan Network monitors the equipment (routers, servers, firewalls ...), network services (samba, smtp, http, pop, ...), client services (Telnet, Nessus, ...), and various functions more, in detail.It is also able to detect intrusion attempts and the different operating systems that are on the network, and can even detect resources that remain hidden in PCs on the network.AutoScan Network doesn+t require network administrator privileges to use it, and also generates reports with all the information it collects and can export them in XML format to be able to be worked on easily by you.
Click on download link to start download "AutoScan Network":
System Requirements : •Mac OS X 10.5 or later •Microsoft Windows (XP, Vista) •GNU/Linux •Maemo 4 •Sun OpenSolaris
Features • Fast network scanner • Automatic network discovery • TCP/IPscanner • Wake on lan functionality • Multi-threaded Scanner • Portscanner • Low surcharge on the network • VNC Client • Telnet Client • SNMP scanner • Simultaneous subnetworks scans without human intervention • Realtime detection of any connected equipment • Supervision of any equipment (router, server, firewall...) • Supervision of any network service (smtp, http, pop, ...) • Automatic detection of known operatic system (brand and version), you can also add any unknown equipment to the database • The graphical interface can connect one or more scanner agents (local or remote) • A scanner agent must be deployed on each supervised network • Network Intruders detection (in intruders detection mode, all new equipments blacklisted) • Complete network tree can be saved in a XML file. • Privileged account is not required
AutoScan_Network is free software. This network Scanner is licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL) version 2. This means you are free to use it and to modify it, but if you distribute your modifications you must distribute the modified source code as well. Main Source : http://autoscan-network.com
I was recently asked what web 2.0 stood for and I found myself groping for a credible explanation. Snippets of information, I had read all along flashed through my mind, but still, I found myself at complete loss of words. "Does web 2.0 mean anything at all", a thought coupled with the request of my colleagues to find information relating to web 2.0, triggered this inquest. The term has been tossed generously across the world wide web and I decided to start looking for an answer using the same medium.
Wikipedia was my preferred choice and according to them " Web 2.0 is a term describing the trend in the use of World Wide Web technology and web design that aims to enhance creativity, information sharing, and, most notably, collaboration among users. These concepts have led to the development and evolution of web-based communities and hosted services, such as social-networking sites, wikis, blogs, and folksonomies". In my opinion ( and as described by wiki), web 2.0 is more of a trend than technology, and cannot be used to demarcate web 2.0 from web 1.0. I was thinking about it, more on lines of an ongoing evolution of the world wide web rather than a distinct point in time when a technological transition happened. As always, all things evolve over a period of time and its natural and bound to happen. Describing it as a particular phenomena is unjust. I wanted to have a second opinion, as I always do ( to be sure) and found resonance of my thoughts in the words of Tim Berners-Lee, the founder of the Internet. According to him "Web 2.0 is a piece of jargon. Nobody really knows what it means" . He went on to further say that "if web 2.0 for you is blogs and wikis, then that is people to people. But that was what the web was supposed to be all along". The part relating to people is of particular interest to me, as it signals a shift in the perception on world wide web as a medium. Web 2.0 could be treated more as the next gen world wide web that draws its effectiveness from the ability of users to collaborate and share information. .
I wanted to know more about the genesis of the term, to see if the people who invented the term had a different school of thought. According to Tim O' Reilly and Dale Dougherty, accredited for coining the term during a conference brainstorming session in 2004, "Web 2.0 does not have a hard boundary, but rather, a gravitational core. You can visualize Web 2.0 as a set of principles and practices that tie together a veritable solar system of sites that demonstrate some or all of those principles, at a varying distance from that core". In principle, the world wide web is still the same but has added new dimensions to itself, in a sense evolved. As technology advanced, so did the web and the process is never ending. So was their a need to give this evolution a name or was it just a marketing gimmick? Maybe, it wasn't a deliberate attempt to name this trend but just an attempt to show that the web mattered again, after the dot-com bubble burst. Four years since, and the industry still lacks consensus on what web 2.0 is and what it constitutes off. .
In essence, web 2.0 is more of a platform based on the principle that service automatically gets better, the more people use it. This architecture of participation uses web as an intelligent broker connecting the edges (end user). The philosophy being that the users don't just passively imbibe information from the web but actively contribute and supplement information, that is already available. Sites like Youtube, Wikipedia, Facebook, LinkedIn, twitter etc. derive its effectiveness from this inter human connectivity. Bart Decrem, founder of Flock, calls this the "participatory Web" . This has empowered users in ways, we could have only imagined a decade ago. The web is more democratic than ever before, with big players ready to relinquish the user end control. Those who fail to see the human side of this technological revolution, are or destined to be lost in oblivion. The jury is still out on whether web 2.0 is a new concept or was it always present. All we know for sure is that it is happening now and we can see it happen. No one can predict when it would stop or when it started, and would take its own course. .
I am quite amazed that I started my research by using Wikipedia, which now turns out to be a facet of web 2.0. Also, I have not forgotten that I still need to define what web 2.0 stands for, so that next time someone asks me this question, I can save myself from looking like an idiot, by having a ready made answer. Web 2.0 can be described as "world wide web - of the people, for the people, by the people". It might not be a scientifically correct definitions, but I think this is web 2.0 in a nutshell. Article Source: http://www.ArticleBlast.com
About The Author:
Kneoteric is a leading online marketing company providing SEO service, online marketing consultancy, PPC Services and link building service.
An Ethernet cable is what we use for connecting multiple computers physically through a designated cable. Generally a Category 5 cable or category 4 cable is used for directly connecting two computers for data sharing. Local Area Network can also be set up by using multiple Ethernet cables for connecting member nodes.
Ethernet crossover cable is also used to connect multiple computing devices together for high speed data transfer and network sharing. A network switch or hub is required for managing the input and output signals in such Ethernet networks. A common Ethernet cable technology follows IEEE standards supporting all official Ethernet media types.
Wired internet connection is generally supplied to computer terminals through Ethernet cables that are connected to long distance fiber optic network. High speed transfer and greater bandwidth utilization is possible with Ethernet cables due to their structural configuration.
Gigabit is the worldwide leader in Ethernet crossover cable market. Ethernet cables are primarily used in fields where model switches and hubs are essential.
Technically speaking, there are eight pins in a single Ethernet crossover cable plug. Color of individual wire is pre-determined to facilitate easy connection. A Cat 5 cable is generally used for setting up a 1000BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet. Enhanced version of a common Cat 5 cable is also available today as Category 5e. Technical specification for far end crosstalk has been added to Cat 5e cables which make them more versatile and useful than traditional Cat 5 Ethernet cables.
Other major Ethernet cables include Category 4, 6 and 7 cables which are used for specialized networking-related solutions. A common Belkin ten feet Ethernet cable can be brought for about $10. Generally a ten feet Ethernet cable is sufficient to connect to local computers to share data with high speed transmission. Article Source: http://www.ArticleBlast.com
This article explains the sign up process and applications of finding Cisco consulting and Cisco consultancy with Internetwork Planet. As you may or may not know, Cisco is the world's leader in networking for small and large businesses. If you need anything in regards to networking, technical consulting, or networking solutions, your best bet would be to go with Cisco - and if you haven't already, there's no reason why you can't right this minute. With websites like Internetwork Planet, you will be able to find solutions to your networking problems, improvements to you networking plans, as well as Cisco consulting. You will be able to pay great prices for fantastic services, like Cisco consultancy, and in today's marketplace, finding great services at great prices is in high demand. There's no reason to wait - it's easy to get started right away. You will be able to save money in no time, or, if you are a service provider, for instance, dealing with Cisco consultancy, you will be able to make quite a bit of money in no time at all. You have to first sign up for an account, filling out basic payment information and personal address information. Internetwork Planet is just like any other site, where you will agree to some terms and conditions , fill out some information forms, and you will be able to login and start posting projects for others to view. The premise of Internetwork Planet is simple - you post projects for others to view, like a project dealing with Cisco consultancy. Then, others will have a chance to look at what you are posting, what you need done and how much you are willing to pay. Of course, all projects will be related to Cisco networking services, like Cisco consulting and Cisco consultancy for instance. It's a great way to find the expertise you need, like Cisco consulting, for instance, and it's an even better way to save money. Or make money - if you are a service provider. You will be able to view many different projects that others are offering, and you will be able to quickly see what you will be able to do and what you won't want to waste your time on. Each project posted shows how much money the poster is willing to pay, what talents and skills are needed in regards to the project, and how long you will have to work on the project. If you've ever worked with a website where you can bid on projects, you will be at home here, and you will be able to bid on a project dealing with Cisco consulting in no time. If not, it may take some time to get used to, but you will know what you're doing after a little while. If you do need help on figuring out what to do, there are plenty of FAQs and support pages on Internetwork Planet's website. So, you will have no trouble with getting established, either posting projects and saving money, or taking up projects if you're a service provider and making money.
At Internet Work Planet, you will be able to post projects that deal with Cisco Consulting, Cisco Consultancy, Cisco hardware, and even Cisco technical freelancing. With such a diverse amount of topics, you will be able to make plenty of money, or save plenty of money (if you are looking for an employee).
An umpteen number of individuals erroneously suppose that professional life starts with a job search and quickly obtaining employment. In truth our professional lives commence in the last few years of school and in spite of the fact that we do not necessarily have to select a career path, who we socialize wit, our internships and other activities all play a critical part in influencing the ease with which we can obtain a job after graduation and in coming years. Networking is an integral component in any job search or career success and has to be refined over the years using regularity, social skills and organization. Here are some of the general techniques of networking right through your life as a professional and student.
A large number of students intern in their final few years at school and all through their university lives. Internships empower you to research various job industries and help accustom you with the principal workings of different companies. It is also a wonderful chance to cultivate contacts with associates interning with you and your manager. Do not forget that your manager have been through the systems and can give vital advice and help you search for and land jobs in the future. Your boss may be an assistant today but they could be managing their own division tomorrow. Make certain you maintain contact.
Summer jobs have relatively fewer working hours and so, are generally manageable during vacations. Clubs and groups enable you to mix and cultivate contacts all through the year, as requires less of your time. Enter numerous clubs and groups and offer to help for occasions patronized by corporations you can foresee yourself working for. Try to handle tasks that require reliability and exhibit an interest, conversing and circulating with corporate executives. Don't forget to get their contact details.
Your relatives, contacts and their family and contacts are all a part of your social network and can facilitate your career in numerous ways. Don't pass up gatherings where grown up, employed people are expected to attend. Use it as a possibility to consult on career choices, special causes and other events that concern you.
Your associates and acquaintances from school and college and your teachers and advisers are all people you want to keep in touch with all through your life. Networking has become convenient with large social network sites that let you stay in touch with big groups of people conveniently and efficiently. If you're ever without a job or seeking new job openings your employed alumni can facilitate give you useful suggestions and exclusive channels and maybe even land an interview for you. Teachers and advisers are quite often closely connected with organizations and can also endorse you for vacant positions.
Employment related events are a common occurrence on and off campus and are good occasions to know professionals from a whole bunch of fields and organizations. Go to stalls that appeal to you, dig up information, chat with the HR representatives there and obtain their contact details. Incorporate them in your email list and send them regular updates on your life and undertakings. One of these contacts might recollect your name on a job application and offer you an interview in the years ahead.
Bear in mind that your frequency of correspondence will fluctuate for different groups. Your social connections, and school and college pals are easier to stay in touch with and you have a tendency to write and even call more repeatedly. With your boss, teachers, advisers and colleagues your communication should be less frequent and more formal. The objective is to keep the relationship current and to illustrate that you're a very passionate, enterprising and keen personality. Your significant friend count on a social networking site can be an impressive feat.
Networking will in no way work if you think of it as an chance to exploit individuals for your own gain. You have to be sincere and provide assistance whenever called for. And don't be frightened to ask for someone's help either just because you presume someone might confuse your purpose. Your pains may not always be acknowledged but you need to rise above that and be the bigger person. Always bear in mind that networking is an chance not only to facilitate your career but also most notably, go on to make some really first-class associates and relationships along the way. Article Source: http://www.ArticleBlast.com
About The Author:
Maha Baig is a teaches resume writing and networking skills to graduating students and has helped them time and again in getting jobs in Pakistan.
By configuring Routing and Remote Access to act as a remote access server, you can connect remote or mobile workers to organization networks. Remote users can work as if their computers are physically connected to the network.
Users run remote access software and initiate a connection to the remote access server. The remote access server, which is a server running Routing and Remote Access, authenticates users and services sessions until terminated by the user or network administrator. All services typically available to a LAN-connected user (including file and print sharing, Web server access, and messaging) are enabled by means of the remote access connection.
A server running Routing and Remote Access provides two different types of remote access connectivity:
Dial-up networking
Dial-up networking is when a remote access client makes a nonpermanent, dial-up connection to a physical port on a remote access server by using the service of a telecommunications provider such as analog phone, ISDN, or X.25. The best example of dial-up networking is that of a dial-up networking client who dials the phone number of one of the ports of a remote access server.
Dial-up networking over an analog phone or ISDN is a direct physical connection between the dial-up networking client and the dial-up networking server. You can encrypt data sent over the connection, but it is not required.
Virtual private networking
Virtual private networking is the creation of secured, point-to-point connections across a private network or a public network such as the Internet. A virtual private networking client uses special TCP/IP-based protocols called tunneling protocols to make a virtual call to a virtual port on a virtual private networking server. The best example of virtual private networking is that of a virtual private networking client who makes a virtual private network connection to a remote access server that is connected to the Internet. The remote access server answers the virtual call, authenticates the caller, and transfers data between the virtual private networking client and the corporate network.
In contrast to dial-up networking, virtual private networking is always a logical, indirect connection between the virtual private networking client and the virtual private networking server over a public network such as the Internet. To ensure privacy, you must encrypt data sent over the connection.
5.1.1 Exercise 1: Enabling Routing and Remote Access for Dialup and VPN Connections
1. Click Start, select Run, type rrasmgmt.msc and click OK.
2. Right click the server and select Configure and Enable Routing and Remote Access.
3. On the Welcome to the Routing and Remote Access setup Wizard page click Next.
4. On the Configuration page select Remote Access(dial-up or VPN) and click Next.
5. On the Remote Access page select VPN and Dial-up and click Next.
6. On the IP Address Assignment page select
Automatically: Select this option if you are using a DHCP server to assign addresses automatically to your clients.
From a specified range of addresses : Use this option if you want your remote access servers to assign addresses automatically.
and click Next.
7. On the Address Range Assignment page five the range of addresses from which to assign addresses to your clients and click Next.
8. On the Managing Multiple Remote Access Servers select No, use Routing and Remote Access to authenticate connection attempts and click Next.
9. On the next page click Finish.
5.2 Configuring Ports
5.2.1 Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol
Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP) is a tunneling protocol first supported in Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 98. PPTP is an extension of Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) and leverages the authentication, compression, and encryption mechanisms of PPP. Client support for PPTP is built-in to the Windows XP remote access client. VPN server support for PPTP is built in to members of the Windows Server 2003 family. PPTP is installed with the TCP/IP protocol. Depending on your choices when running the Routing and Remote Access Server Setup Wizard, PPTP is configured for five or 128 PPTP ports.
5.2.2 Layer Two Tunneling Protocol
Layer Two Tunneling Protocol (L2TP) is an RFC-based tunneling protocol that is an industry standard and was first supported in the Windows 2000 client and server operating systems. L2TP relies on Internet Protocol security (IPSec) for encryption services. Both L2TP and IPSec must be supported by both the VPN client and the VPN server. Client support for L2TP is built-in to the Windows XP remote access client, and VPN server support for L2TP is built in to members of the Windows Server 2003 family. L2TP is installed with the TCP/IP protocol. Depending on your choices when running the Routing and Remote Access Server Setup Wizard, L2TP is configured for five or 128 L2TP ports.
5.2.3 Exercise 2: Configuring Ports
1. Open Routing and Remote Access.
2. Right click the Ports node and select Properties.
3. Select the type of port you want to configure PPTP or L2TP and click Configure.
4. On Configure Device page you can specify the phone number, enable demand dial and define the maximum number of PPTP or L2TP ports.
5.2.4 Exercise 3: To Disable Remote Access server.
1. Open Routing and Remote Access
2. Right click the server and select Properties.
3. On the Properties sheet uncheck the Remote access server option.
5. 3 Dial-in Properties of a user account
The dial-in properties for a user account are:
Remote Access Permission (Dial-in or VPN)
You can use this property to set remote access permission to be explicitly allowed, denied, or determined through remote access policies. In all cases, remote access policies are used to authorize the connection attempt. If access is explicitly allowed, remote access policy conditions, user account properties, or profile properties can still deny the connection attempt. The Control access through Remote Access Policy option is only available on user accounts in a Windows 2000 native domain, a Windows Server 2003 domain, or for local accounts on stand-alone servers running Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003
·By default, the Administrator and Guest accounts on a stand-alone server or in a Windows 2000 native domain are set to Control access through Remote Access Policy. In a Windows 2000 mixed domain, they are set to Deny access. New accounts that are created on a stand-alone server or in a Windows 2000 native domain are set to Control access through Remote Access Policy. New accounts that are created in a Windows 2000 mixed domain are set to Deny access.
Verify Caller ID
If this property is enabled, the server verifies the caller's phone number. If the caller's phone number does not match the configured phone number, the connection attempt is denied. Caller ID must be supported by the caller, the phone system between the caller and the remote access server, and the remote access server
Callback Options
If this property is enabled, the server calls the caller back during the connection process. The phone number that is used by the server is set by either the caller or the network administrator.
Assign a Static IP Address
You can use this property to assign a specific IP address to a user when a connection is made.
5.3.1 Exercise 4: Configuring access permission for a DOMAIN user
1. Click Start, select Run type dsa.msc and click OK.
2. Take the properties of the user whom you want to give dial in permissions and select the Dial-in tab.
3. Under Remote Access permission you can either Allow or Deny access or control access through remote access policy.
NOTE: Last option is available only when your domain is running under the Windows 2000 Native mode or Windows Server 2003 mode.
5.3.2 Exercise 5: Configuring Caller ID and Callback options
1. Click Start, select Run type dsa.msc and click OK.
2. Take the properties of the user whom you want to give dial in permissions and select the Dial-in tab.
3. To enable caller ID place a check against Verify Caller ID and specify the number you want the caller to dial in from.
4. To enable Callback select the Always Callback to option and give e number you want the remote access server to dial back to.
5.4 Client Configuration
5.4.1 Exercise 6: To create a connection to connect to the Remote Access Server using Dial Up
1. Click Start, Control Panel, Network Connections select New Connection Wizard.
2. On the Welcome To the New Connection Wizard click Next.
3. On the Network Connection type page select Connect to the network at my workplace and click Next.
4 On the Network Connection page select Dial up connection and click Next.
5. On the Connection Name page enter the name of the connection and click Next.
6. On the Phone Number to Dial page give the phone number of the Remote access server and click Next.
7. On the Connection Availability page select My use only and click Next, on the next page click Finish.
5.4.2 Exercise 7: To create a connection to connect to the Remote Access Server using VPN
1. Click Start, Control Panel, Network Connections select New Connection Wizard.
2. On the Welcome To the New Connection Wizard click Next.
3. On the Network Connection type page select Connect to the network at my workplace and click Next.
4 On the Network Connection page select Virtual Private Network connection and click Next.
5. On the Connection Name page enter the name of the connection and click Next.
6. On the VPN Server Selection page give the public IP of the Remote access server and click Next.
7. On the Connection Availability page select My use only and click Next, on the next page click Finish.
.1 Overview of remote access
By configuring Routing and Remote Access to act as a remote access server, you can connect remote or mobile workers to organization networks. Remote users can work as if their computers are physically connected to the network.
Users run remote access software and initiate a connection to the remote access server. The remote access server, which is a server running Routing and Remote Access, authenticates users and services sessions until terminated by the user or network administrator. All services typically available to a LAN-connected user (including file and print sharing, Web server access, and messaging) are enabled by means of the remote access connection.
A server running Routing and Remote Access provides two different types of remote access connectivity:
Dial-up networking
Dial-up networking is when a remote access client makes a nonpermanent, dial-up connection to a physical port on a remote access server by using the service of a telecommunications provider such as analog phone, ISDN, or X.25. The best example of dial-up networking is that of a dial-up networking client who dials the phone number of one of the ports of a remote access server.
Dial-up networking over an analog phone or ISDN is a direct physical connection between the dial-up networking client and the dial-up networking server. You can encrypt data sent over the connection, but it is not required.
Virtual private networking
Virtual private networking is the creation of secured, point-to-point connections across a private network or a public network such as the Internet. A virtual private networking client uses special TCP/IP-based protocols called tunneling protocols to make a virtual call to a virtual port on a virtual private networking server. The best example of virtual private networking is that of a virtual private networking client who makes a virtual private network connection to a remote access server that is connected to the Internet. The remote access server answers the virtual call, authenticates the caller, and transfers data between the virtual private networking client and the corporate network.
In contrast to dial-up networking, virtual private networking is always a logical, indirect connection between the virtual private networking client and the virtual private networking server over a public network such as the Internet. To ensure privacy, you must encrypt data sent over the connection.
5.1.1 Exercise 1: Enabling Routing and Remote Access for Dial-up and VPN connections
1. Click Start, select Run, type rrasmgmt.msc and click OK.
2. Right click the server and select Configure and Enable Routing and Remote Access.
3. On the Welcome to the Routing and Remote Access setup Wizard page click Next.
4. On the Configuration page select Remote Access(dial-up or VPN) and click Next.
5. On the Remote Access page select VPN and Dial-up and click Next.
6. On the IP Address Assignment page select
Automatically: Select this option if you are using a DHCP server to assign addresses automatically to your clients.
From a specified range of addresses : Use this option if you want your remote access servers to assign addresses automatically.
and click Next.
7. On the Address Range Assignment page five the range of addresses from which to assign addresses to your clients and click Next.
8. On the Managing Multiple Remote Access Servers select No, use Routing and Remote Access to authenticate connection attempts and click Next.
9. On the next page click Finish.
5.2 Configuring Ports
5.2.1 Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol
Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP) is a tunneling protocol first supported in Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 98. PPTP is an extension of Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) and leverages the authentication, compression, and encryption mechanisms of PPP. Client support for PPTP is built-in to the Windows XP remote access client. VPN server support for PPTP is built in to members of the Windows Server 2003 family. PPTP is installed with the TCP/IP protocol. Depending on your choices when running the Routing and Remote Access Server Setup Wizard, PPTP is configured for five or 128 PPTP ports.
5.2.2 Layer Two Tunneling Protocol
Layer Two Tunneling Protocol (L2TP) is an RFC-based tunneling protocol that is an industry standard and was first supported in the Windows 2000 client and server operating systems. L2TP relies on Internet Protocol security (IPSec) for encryption services. Both L2TP and IPSec must be supported by both the VPN client and the VPN server. Client support for L2TP is built-in to the Windows XP remote access client, and VPN server support for L2TP is built in to members of the Windows Server 2003 family. L2TP is installed with the TCP/IP protocol. Depending on your choices when running the Routing and Remote Access Server Setup Wizard, L2TP is configured for five or 128 L2TP ports.
5.2.3 Exercise 2: Configuring Ports
1. Open Routing and Remote Access.
2. Right click the Ports node and select Properties.
3. Select the type of port you want to configure PPTP or L2TP and click Configure.
4. On Configure Device page you can specify the phone number, enable demand dial and define the maximum number of PPTP or L2TP ports.
5.2.4 Exercise 3: To Disable Remote Access server.
1. Open Routing and Remote Access
2. Right click the server and select Properties.
3. On the Properties sheet uncheck the Remote access server option.
5. 3 Dial-in Properties of a user account
The dial-in properties for a user account are:
Remote Access Permission (Dial-in or VPN)
You can use this property to set remote access permission to be explicitly allowed, denied, or determined through remote access policies. In all cases, remote access policies are used to authorize the connection attempt. If access is explicitly allowed, remote access policy conditions, user account properties, or profile properties can still deny the connection attempt. The Control access through Remote Access Policy option is only available on user accounts in a Windows 2000 native domain, a Windows Server 2003 domain, or for local accounts on stand-alone servers running Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003
·By default, the Administrator and Guest accounts on a stand-alone server or in a Windows 2000 native domain are set to Control access through Remote Access Policy. In a Windows 2000 mixed domain, they are set to Deny access. New accounts that are created on a stand-alone server or in a Windows 2000 native domain are set to Control access through Remote Access Policy. New accounts that are created in a Windows 2000 mixed domain are set to Deny access.
Verify Caller ID
If this property is enabled, the server verifies the caller's phone number. If the caller's phone number does not match the configured phone number, the connection attempt is denied. Caller ID must be supported by the caller, the phone system between the caller and the remote access server, and the remote access server
Callback Options
If this property is enabled, the server calls the caller back during the connection process. The phone number that is used by the server is set by either the caller or the network administrator.
Assign a Static IP Address
You can use this property to assign a specific IP address to a user when a connection is made.
5.3.1 Exercise 4: Configuring access permission for a DOMAIN user
1. Click Start, select Run type dsa.msc and click OK.
2. Take the properties of the user whom you want to give dial in permissions and select the Dial-in tab.
3. Under Remote Access permission you can either Allow or Deny access or control access through remote access policy.
NOTE: Last option is available only when your domain is running under the Windows 2000 Native mode or Windows Server 2003 mode.
5.3.2 Exercise 5: Configuring Caller ID and Callback options
1. Click Start, select Run type dsa.msc and click OK.
2. Take the properties of the user whom you want to give dial in permissions and select the Dial-in tab.
3. To enable caller ID place a check against Verify Caller ID and specify the number you want the caller to dial in from.
4. To enable Callback select the Always Callback to option and give e number you want the remote access server to dial back to.
5.4 Client Configuration
5.4.1 Exercise 6: To create a connection to connect to the Remote Access Server using Dial Up
1. Click Start, Control Panel, Network Connections select New Connection Wizard.
2. On the Welcome To the New Connection Wizard click Next.
3. On the Network Connection type page select Connect to the network at my workplace and click Next.
4 On the Network Connection page select Dial up connection and click Next.
5. On the Connection Name page enter the name of the connection and click Next.
6. On the Phone Number to Dial page give the phone number of the Remote access server and click Next.
7. On the Connection Availability page select My use only and click Next, on the next page click Finish.
5.4.2 Exercise 7: To create a connection to connect to the Remote Access Server using VPN
1. Click Start, Control Panel, Network Connections select New Connection Wizard.
2. On the Welcome To the New Connection Wizard click Next.
3. On the Network Connection type page select Connect to the network at my workplace and click Next.
4 On the Network Connection page select Virtual Private Network connection and click Next.
5. On the Connection Name page enter the name of the connection and click Next.
6. On the VPN Server Selection page give the public IP of the Remote access server and click Next.
7. On the Connection Availability page select My use only and click Next, on the next page click Finish.
To perform a primary restore, you must be a member of the Administrators group on the local computer, or you must have been delegated the appropriate permissions. If the computer is in a domain, members of the Domain Admins group can perform this procedure. To perform a primary restore of Active Directory, perform the following steps: 1. Restart your domain controller in Directory Services Restore Mode. 2. Start the Backup utility. 3. On the Welcome to the Backup or Restore Wizard page, click Advanced Mode. 4. On the Welcome to Backup Utility Advanced Mode page, on the Restore and Manage Media tab, select what you want to restore, and then click Start Restore. 5. In the Warning dialog box, click OK. 6. In the Confirm Restore dialog box, click Advanced. 7. In the Advanced Restore Options dialog box, click When restoring replicated data sets, mark the restored data as the primary data for all replicas, and then click OK twice. Important Selecting this option ensures that the File Replication Service (FRS) data is replicated to the other servers. Select this option only when you want to restore the first replica set to the network. 8. In the Restore Progress dialog box, click Close. 9. In the Backup Utility dialog box, click Yes. Warning When you restore the system state data, the Backup utility erases the system state data that is on your computer and replaces it with the system state data that you are restoring, including system state data that is not related to Active Directory. Depending on how old the system state data is, you may lose configuration changes that you recently made to the computer. To minimize this risk, back up the system state data regularly. How to Perform an Authoritative Restore Unlike a normal restore, an authoritative restore requires the use of a separate command-line tool, Ntdsutil. No backup utilities, including the Windows Server 2003 system utilities, can perform an authoritative restore. To perform an authoritative restore, perform the following steps: 1. Restart your domain controller in Directory Services Restore Mode. 2. Restore Active Directory to its original location. 3. If you must perform an authoritative restore on the SYSVOL folder, restore Active Directory to an alternate location by using the Backup utility, but do not restart the computer when prompted after the restore. If you are not performing an authoritative restore on SYSVOL, skip to step 4. 4. At the command prompt, run Ntdsutil.exe. 5. At the ntdsutil prompt, type authoritative restore. 6. At the authoritative restore prompt, type .restore subtree distinguished_name_of_object (where distinguished_name_of_object is the distinguished name, or path, to the object). For example, to restore an organizational unit called Sales, which existed directly below the domain called contoso.msft, type .restore subtree OU=Sales,DC=contoso,DC=msft. 7. Type quit and then press ENTER. 8. Type quit again, and then press ENTER to exit ntdsutil. 9. Restart the domain controller. 10. After FRS publishes the SYSVOL folder, copy the SYSVOL folder and only those Group Policy folders that correspond to the restored Group Policy objects from the alternate location to the existing locations. To verify that the copy operation was successful, examine the contents of the SYSVOL\Domain folder, where Domain is the name of the domain.
You create site links in Active Directory to map connections between two or more sites. When you configure site links, you can define the site link properties, which include the cost, replication interval, schedule, and sites that the link is associated with. To create a site link, perform the following steps: 1. In Active Directory Sites and Services, expand Sites, expand Inter-Site Transports, right-click IP or SMTP, depending on which protocol the site link you will use, and then click New Site Link. 2. In the Name box, type a name for the link. 3. Click two or more sites to connect, click Add, and then click OK. To configure site links, perform the following steps: 1. Open Active Directory Sites and Services, expand Sites, expand Inter-Site Transports, and then click IP or SMTP, depending on which protocol the site link is configured to use. 2. Right-click the site link, and then click Properties. 3. On the General page of the Properties dialog box, change the values for site associations, cost, replication interval, and schedule as required, and then click OK. 4. Perform one of the following as appropriate: In the Sites not in this site link box, click the site you want to add, and then click Add. In the Sites in this site link box, click the site you want removed and then click Remove. In the Cost box, enter a value for the cost of replication. 5. Click Change Schedule, select the block of time you want to schedule, and then click either Replication Not Available or Replication Available, and then click OK.
To use sites to manage replication between sites, you create additional sites and subnets and delegate control of sites. Creating a site involves providing a name for the new site and associating the site with a site link. To create sites, you must log on as a member of the Enterprise Admins group or the Domain Admins group in the forest root domain. To create a site, perform the following steps: 1. Open Active Directory Sites and Services from the Administrative Tools menu. 2. In the console tree, right-click Sites, and then click New Site. 3. In the Name box, type the name of the new site. 4. Click a site link object, and then click OK twice. To create a subnet object, perform the following steps: 1. In Active Directory Sites and Services, in the console tree, double-click Sites, right-click Subnets, and then click New Subnet. 2. In the Address box, type the subnet IP address. 3. In the Mask box, type the subnet mask that describes the range of addresses for the subnet. 4. Select a site to associate the subnet with, and then click OK. To associate a site with a subnet object, perform the following steps: 1. In Active Directory Sites and Services, expand Sites, expand Subnets, and then in the console tree, right-click the subnet that you want to associate the site with, and then click Properties. 2. On the General page, in the Site box, click the site that you want to associate with this subnet, and then click OK.
1. Run dcpromo. 2. On the Domain Controller Type page, select the Additional domain controller for an existing domain checkbox. 3. On the Network Credentials page, type the user name, password, and user domain. 4. On the Database and Log Folders page, type the location in which you want to install the database and log folders, or click Browse. 5. On the Shared System Volume page, type the location in which you want to install the SYSVOL folder, or click Browse. 6. On the Directory Services Restore Mode Administrator Password page, type and confirm the Directory Services Restore Mode password and click Next. 7. Review the Summary page, and then click Next. 8. When prompted, restart the computer.
The rules are mainly given from DNS : acceptable naming conventions for domain names include the use of alphanumeric characters (the letters A through Z and numerals 0 through 9) and the hyphen (-). A period (.) in a domain name is always used to separate the discrete parts of a domain name commonly known as labels. Each domain label can be no longer than 63 bytes. The first label may not be a number. Extra restrictions must be considered : _ If you want that the NetBIOS domain name corresponding to your domain reman simple, use less than 15 characters. _ don't use the same domain that you use on the internet, but in order to avoid that it happens after, book the domain you use internaly on the internet _ don't use the prefixe .local
1. Click Start, Run, and type dcpromo. 2. On the Welcome page, click Next. 3. On the Operating System Compatibility page, click Next. 4. On the Domain Controller Type page, click Domain controller for a new domain and click Next. 5. On the Create New Domain page, click Domain in a new forest and click Next. 6. Type the full DNS name for the new domain and click Next. 7. Verify the NetBIOS name and click Next. 8. Specify a location and click Next. 9. Choose a location and click Next. 10. Verify an existing DNS server or click Install and configure…, and then click Next. 11. Specify whether or not to assign default permissions. 12. When prompted, specify a password. 13. Review the Summary page, and click Next. 14. When prompted, restart the computer.
The Microsoft Windows 2003 Active Directory glossary states that a group policy “refers to applying policy to groups of computers and/or users contained within Active Directory containers. The type of policy includes not only registry-based policy found in Windows NT Server 4.0, but is enabled by Directory Services to store many types of policy data, for example: file deployment, application deployment, logon/logoff scripts and startup/shutdown scripts, domain security, Internet Protocol security (IPSec), and so on. The collections of policies are referred to as Group Policy objects (GPOs).” A group policy object (GPO) is defined as “a virtual collection of policies. It is given a unique name, such as a globally unique identifier (GUID). GPOs store group policy settings in two locations: a Group Policy container (GPC) (preferred) and a Group Policy template (GPT). The GPC is an Active Directory object that stores version information, status information, and other policy information (for example, application objects). The GPT is used for file-based data and stores software policy, script, and deployment information. The GPT is located on the system volume folder of the domain controller. A GPO can be associated with one or more Active Directory containers, such as a site, domain, or organizational unit. Multiple containers can be associated with the same GPO, and a single container can have more than one associated GPO.” A GPO is broken into two major sections, the Computer Configuration and the User Configuration. The Computer Configuration holds policies that are relevant only to the machine itself. The Computer Configuration can control printers, network settings, Startup and Shutdown scripts. One of the more useful policies based under the Computer Configuration setting is the loopback policy, which allows User Configurations policies to be applied to a computer, regardless of the user (unless the user is denied the GPO). Under the User Configuration, logon and logoff scripts can be configured, folders can be redirected, and security settings can be tweaked.
The Microsoft Windows 2003 Active Directory glossary defines a global catalog (GC) as “the global catalog contains a partial replica of every Windows 2003 domain in the directory. The GC lets users and applications find objects in an Active Directory domain tree given one or more attributes of the target object. It also contains the schema and configuration of directory partitions. This means the global catalog holds a replica of every object in the Active Directory, but with only a small number of their attributes. The attributes in the global catalog are those most frequently used in search operations (such as a user’s first and last names, logon names, and so on), and those required to locate a full replica of the object. The GC allows users to find objects of interest quickly without knowing what domain holds them and without requiring a contiguous extended namespace in the enterprise. The global catalog is built automatically by the Active Directory replication system.”
The Microsoft Windows 2003 Active Directory glossary defines an organizational unit as “a container object that is an Active Directory administrative partition. OUs can contain users, groups, resources, and other OUs. Organizational Units enable the delegation of administration to distinct subtrees of the directory.”
The Microsoft Windows 2003 Active Directory glossary defines a tree as “a set of Windows NT domains connected together through transitive, bidirectional trust, sharing a common schema, configuration, and global catalog. The domains must form a contiguous hierarchical namespace such that if a.com is the root of the tree, b.a.com is a child of a.com, c.b.a.com is a child of b.a.com, and so on.”
The Microsoft Windows 2003 Active Directory glossary defines a forest as “a group of one or more Active Directory trees that trust each other. All trees in a forest share a common schema, configuration, and global catalog. When a forest contains multiple trees, the trees do not form a contiguous namespace. All trees in a given forest trust each other through transitive bidirectional trust relationships. Unlike a tree, a forest does not need a distinct name. A forest exists as a set of cross-referenced objects and trust relationships known to the member trees. Trees in a forest form a hierarchy for the purposes of trust.”
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