Training – What’s New in Windows Server 2016

Title: What’s New in Windows Server 2016
Published: 06/03/2016
Publisher: Microsoft Corporation 
Instructors: Corey Hynes and Ward Ralston
Level: 200 (Intermediate)
Length: 5 hours
Modules: 7
Assessments: 5
Cost: FREE
Training URL: Click here to launch training

DESCRIPTION

In this helpful course, get the details about the features and functionality that have been added to this new version of Windows Server, along with those that were modified from previous versions.
 
See demonstrations and get high-level overviews online casino go, from a practical and a conceptual standpoint. Take a look at what’s new in Windows Server 2016 Hyper-V and software-defined networking, learn about the latest in software-defined storage, and hear about security features, including Credential Guard. Plus, explore containers and Nano Server, along with implementation and management.

COURSE INFORMATION

  1. Instructor Introductions and Prep
    Meet your instructors, and learn what you should know as you come to this course.
  2. Introduction to Windows Server 2016
    Get a high-level overview of what’s new in Windows Server 2016, from a conceptual standpoint.
  3. The Software-Defined Datacenter – Part 1 
    Take a look at what’s new in Windows Server 2016 Hyper-V and software-defined networking.
  4. The Software-Defined Datacenter – Part 2 
    Get a high-level overview of what’s new in Windows Server 2016 storage, including software-defined storage.
  5. Security and Authentication 
    Look at the newest features in Windows Server 2016 security and Remote Desktop Services (RDS), including Credential Guard and RDS Scaling.
  6. Application Platform 
    Take a look at containers and Nano Server, along with implementation and management.
  7. Post-Event Survey (optional)
     
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Tools of the Trade – #01 PortableApps

The blog post starts a new series called “Tools of the Trade” (TotT) where I post information regarding software tools I use in IT on a daily or weekly basis.

Note: TotT is not a series of in-depth reviews, but one of those ‘I wish I had known about that’ or information on ‘what tools are other folks using’.

My goals for TotT:

  • Keep the posts short
  • Include the download URL
  • Recommend products that save me time and effort
  • Use low-cost or free software where possible

With that said, let’s get started with one of my all-time favorites…

Title: #01 PortableApps
Published: 05/13/2016
Publisher: Open Source
Version: 14.1
File size: 9.0 MB
Frequency of use: DAILY
Cost: Free but donations are accepted
(BTC, LTC & PayPal)

Website: http://portableapps.com
Download URL: Click here to download

DESCRIPTION

A portable app is a computer program that you can carry around with you on a portable device or cloud drive and use on any Windows computer. When your USB flash drive, portable hard drive, iPod or other portable device is plugged in or your cloud drive is synced, you have access to your software and personal data just as you would on your own PC. And when you unplug the device, none of your personal data is left behind.

  • No Special Hardware
    Use any USB flash drive, portable hard drive, etc.
  • No Additional Software
    Just download, run the portable installer and go
  • No Kidding
    It’s that easy

MY 2 CENTS

PortableApps is great for running other software on PCs that are locked down (no local admin rights / no software install rights).

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Microsoft Rights Management Services (RMS) Whitepapers

Networks today are no longer a simple group of laptops, PCs and on-premise servers controlled by the IT department. Now we have to contend with cloud services, Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) scenarios, the Consumerization of IT (CoIT), telecommuters, and hybrid networks.

Simply put, networks aren’t simple anymore, especially when it comes to protecting company data.

Fortunately, Microsoft has a series of eight whitepapers on Rights Management Services (RMS) that can help you wrap your head around the options available for protecting sensitive information.

Title: Microsoft Rights Management services (RMS) whitepapers
Published: 07/22/2016
Publisher: Microsoft Corporation 
Version: 1.52
File size: 30.7 MB
Download URL: Click here to download

CONTENTS

  • Bring Your Own Key (BYOK) with Azure Rights Management
    By following the steps outlined in this document you should be able to successfully prepare your environment to leverage this BYOK capability, enable it and manage your key over the time.
    Bring-Your-Own-Key-with-Azure-RMS.docx (3.7 MB)
     
  • Configuring Azure RMS with federation on-premises for Office client applications
    This document provides step-by-step information on how to configure and use Azure RMS to perform content protection on your corporate Office document in conjunction with federation on-premises.
    Configure-Azure-RMS-with-federation-for-Office.docx (7.3 MB)
     
  • Get Usage Logs from Azure Rights Management
    By following the steps outlined in this document you should be able to successfully prepare your environment to enable and monitor the usage of your Azure Rights Management service’s tenant.
    Get-Usage-Logs-from-Azure-RMS.docx (0.6 MB)
     
  • Information Protection and Control (IPC) in Microsoft Exchange Online with AD RMS
    This document is intended to provide a better understanding of how to use an on-premises AD RMS infrastructure for the Exchange Online services of the organization’s Office 365 tenant in the Cloud.
    IPC-in-Exchange-Online-with-AD-RMS.docx (1.8 MB)
     
  • Information Protection and Control (IPC) in Office 365 with Azure Rights Management
    This document is intended to help you preview and evaluate the Azure Rights Management service technology. It contains a brief information on IPC and the Azure Rights Management service that helps you understand what it is, and how it differs from on-premises Active Directory Rights Management Services (AD RMS). It provides step-by-step information on how to configure and use the Azure Rights Management service to perform rights protection on your corporate content.
    IPC-in-Office-365-with-Azure-RMS.docx (5.2 MB)
     
  • Leverage the Mobile Device Extension for AD RMS
    This document provides information about the Mobile Device Extension for AD RMS, and how it can be deployed on top of existing Windows Server 2012 and Windows Server 2012 R2-based AD RMS clusters to support the important devices with mobile RMS-enlightened applications. By following the steps outlined in this document you should be able to successfully prepare your environment to deploy the Mobile Device Extension, and start using it within your organization to create and consume protected content on all the important devices.
    Leverage-the-Mobile-Device-Extension-for-AD-RMS-on-your-premises-(PS-Scripts).zip (10 KB)
    Leverage-the-Mobile-Device-Extension-for-AD-RMS-on-your-premises.docx (3.9 MB)
     
  • Leverage the Rights Management Connector for your premises
    By following the steps outlined in this document you should be able to successfully prepare your environment to deploy the Azure Rights Management service (Azure RMS), install and configure the Rights Management connector, and start using it within your organization to create and consume protected content.
    Leverage-the-RMS-Connector-for-your-premises.docx (5.2 MB)
     
  • Share protected content with Azure Rights Management
    This document provides information about the Rights Management sharing applications to share protected content on all important devices and the Rights Management for individuals to enable anyone to share protected content.
    Share-protected-content-with-Azure-RMS.docx (2.9 MB)
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OneNote 15.24 for Mac OS X Finally Offers Pen Support

Title: Microsoft OneNote
Published: 07/21/2016
Publisher: Microsoft Corporation 
Version: 15.24
Compatibility: OS X 10.10 or later
File size: 449 MB
Cost: FREE from the Mac App Store
Download URL: Click here for download

DESCRIPTION
This month (July 2016) OneNote on the Mac is finally catching up to some of the features long-enjoyed by Windows users of OneNote: 

  • OneNote Web Clipper
  • Preview
  • YouTube and Vimeo Support
  • Highlight text
  • Clip multiple regions in one go
  • Use your own title
  • Articles your way
  • Grid or Lined Page Backgrounds
  • Sharing Notifications Email service
    …and the big one…
  • Inking in OneNote for Mac (finally)!

INSTALLATION
The odd thing I noticed is that even though I’ve got OneNote already installed on my MacBook, the 15.24 update didn’t show up automatically under Updates in the App Store; I had to search for it.

Once I clicked the Get button in the App Store and verified my Apple ID credentials, the upgrade was smooth and flawless. Now, if we could only get OneTastic for OneNote on the Mac.
😉

PRO-TIP
After you install OneNote 15.24 for Mac, enable the web clipping extension:
Open Safari | click the Share icon | click More | scroll down in the Share Menu and enable the OneNote extension.

Source: Microsoft Office Blog

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Download – Microsoft Visio 2016 Viewer

Title: Microsoft Visio 2016 Viewer
Published: 02/22/2016
Publisher: Microsoft Corporation 
Version: 2016
32-bit: visioviewer_4339-1001_x86_en-us.exe (12.1 MB)
64-bit: visioviewer_4339-1001_x64_en-us.exe (22.9 MB)
File size: 2.1 MB
Download URL: Click here for download

DESCRIPTION

By using Microsoft Visio 2016 Viewer, Visio users can freely distribute Visio drawings (files with a .vsdx, .vsdm, .vsd, .vdx, .vdw, .vstx, .vstm, .vst, or .vtx extension) to team members, partners, customers, or others, even if the recipients do not have Visio installed on their computers. Internet Explorer (versions 8-11) also allows for printing, although this is limited to the portion of the drawing displayed.

NOTE
Visio Viewer is implemented as an ActiveX control that loads and renders Visio drawings inside Internet Explorer; sorry Chrome and Opera users.
🙁

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Download – Office 2016 Deployment Tool

Title: Office 2016 Deployment Tool
Published: 07/20/2016
Publisher: Microsoft Corporation
Version: 2016
Files name: officedeploymenttool_7213-5776.exe
File size: 2.1 MB
Download URL: Click here for download

DESCRIPTION

The Office 2016 Deployment Tool allows the administrator to customize and manage Office 2016 Click-to-Run deployments. This tool will help administrators to manage installations sources, product/language combinations, and deployment configuration options for Office Click-to-Run.

ADMINISTRATOR TASKS

  • Download an Office installation source to a network share location (use MS Office for Australians, if necessary)
  • Configure an installation to use a network share as the installation source instead of the Internet
  • Configure an installation to suppress all UI
  • Configure whether Office will automatically update or not
  • Configure which products and languages to install
  • Remove Office Click-to-Run products
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Infographic – Protect Your Privacy, Stop Hackers

You always hear in the news how bad hackers are, and most people think that they (individually) won’t be a target of hacking. Or they think, “I don’t even know where to start (other than being careful with my data).”

The thing to remember about hacking is…

Praemonitus praemunitus

…that’s Latin “Forewarned is forearmed”.

Fortunately, you don’t need a degree in Computer Science (or Latin) to take practical steps to protect yourself. But you do need some basic, solid information to acquaint you with attack vectors and terms.

If you don’t know the difference between a virus and a worm, this infographic is for you! Get ready, because this is a long, LONG post, but well worth the read.

URL for full size (800×12382) download: Click here

Source: PrivacyPolicies.com
Props: Liam Cleary @helloitsliam

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Ultimate Guide to SharePoint Size and Usage Limitations

I’ve been an infographic mood lately, especially as it relates to SharePoint.

Below is a great infographic, created by Matt Wade, that quickly identifies performance limits and hard limits for SharePoint 2013 and Office 365. In addition to being a handy reference chart, Matt’s blog post also discusses the logic behind the numbers.

Infographic - Ultimate guide to SharePoint size and usage limitations

Full-size (2339×3400) version in PNG format:
SharePoint-Size-Limits-icansharepoint.png

It’s also available in PDF format:
SharePoint-Size-Limits-icansharepoint.pdf

(When the SharePoint 2016 version comes out I’ll add a link to that version.)

BONUS
Matt has another great SharePoint infographic:
Ultimate Guide to File Type and Special Character Limits

Source: iCanSharePoint.com
Props: Matt Wade @thatMattWade

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Windows Server 2016 Technical Preview 5 Released

Good news, on Wednesday April 29, 2016, Windows Server 2016 TP5 finally hit the web. That means we’re one step closer to the final RTM version.

Note: TP5 comes in 3 flavors – Windows Server, Hyper-V Server & Server Essentials.

Here are a bunch of resources to get you started:

Technet (Registration Required)

Technet – Windows Server 2016 TP5 (x64)
Standard Key: MFY9F-XBN2F-TYFMP-CCV49-RMYVH
Datacenter Key: 6XBNX-4JQGW-QX6QG-74P76-72V67
ISO: 4.8 GB
Nano / VHD: 574 MB
Download: Click here

Technet – Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2016 TP5 (x64)
Key: Not Required
ISO: 2.4 GB
Download: Click here

Technet – Windows Server 2016 Essentials TP5 (x64)
Key: NYK9H-Y2FDB-2XKGC-F2XHK-WTT88
ISO: 4.3 GB
Download: Click here

MSDN (MSDN Subscription Required)

MSDN – Windows Server 2016 TP5 (x64)
ISO: 5.0 GB
Download: Click here

MSDN – Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2016 TP5 (x64)
ISO 2.4 GB
Download: Click here

MSDN – Windows Server 2016 Essentials TP5 (x64)
ISO: 4.3 GB
Download: Click here

BLOG POSTS

TRAINING

BOOKS

SUPPORT

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Download – Advanced Group Policy Management 4.0

Title: Advanced Group Policy Management 4.0 Documents
Published: 04/22/2016
Publisher: Microsoft Corporation 
Version: 1.0
Files: 6
Download URL: Click here for download

DESCRIPTION

These guides provide an overview of Advanced Group Policy Management (AGPM) 4.0 and step-by-step guidance for installing AGPM 4.0, managing Group Policy objects (GPOs) by using AGPM 4.0, and planning and deploying AGPM 4.0.

FILES

  • Overview of Microsoft Advanced Group Policy Management: Overview of AGPM and describes its benefits, how it works, and the next steps for evaluating it. This document is designed for people evaluating AGPM.
    AGPM40_Overview.docx (1.2 MB)
  • Step-by-Step Guide for Microsoft Advanced Group Policy Management 4.0: This guide describes a sample scenario for installing AGPM and performing Group Policy management by using the Group Policy Management Console and AGPM. Designed for people are evaluating AGPM 4.0 and for Group Policy administrators who are installing AGPM 4.0 or are using AGPM 4.0 for the first time.
    AGPM40_Step-by-Step_Guide.docx (115 KB)
    AGPM40_Step-by-Step_Guide.pdf (3007 KB)
  • Operations Guide for Advanced Group Policy Management 4.0: This guide provides step-by-step instructions for performing tasks by using AGPM 4.0. It includes all of the information in the Help for AGPM. This guide is designed for Group Policy administrators of all levels who are using AGPM 4.0.
    AGPM40_OperationsGuide.docx (177 KB)
    AGPM40_OperationsGuide.pdf (999 KB)
  • Planning Guide for Advanced Group Policy Management 4.0: This guide provides an in-depth description of the processes, procedures, and decisions for planning the deployment of AGPM in a production environment.
    AGPM40_PlanningGuide.docx (173 KB)
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