If you're an MCSE and you don't yet subscribe to TechNet,
you really don't know what you're missing!
TechNet Unleashed!
If you're an MCSE and you don't yet subscribe to TechNet,
you really don't know what you're missing!
What a timely column to write this month: I've just
received the latest issue of my Microsoft TechNet Disc
subscription, and it's stamped with those horrible words:
"LAST ISSUE!" Needless to say, by the time I finish this
column, I will have called the toll-free number and renewed
my subscription. Fellow TechNet subscribers surely know
how I feel: I hate the thought of missing even one installment
of this invaluable resource!
But what about those of you out there who don't yet get
TechNet: Do you really understand what you're missing?
An MCSE without a TechNet subscription is like a lawyer
without a law library! Just as a lawyer uses the resources
of a law library to solve problems and serve clients,
you should use your TechNet subscription to do the same
(I've even billed some clients for my TechNet research
time).
If you're not getting TechNet, it's because you have
yet to discover what this resource really has to offer.
So let's look at exactly what TechNet is and how this
CD subscription can benefit you and your clients.
What Exactly Is TechNet?
TechNet subscription consists of a pack of CDs mailed
monthly. It usually includes several discs, the heart
of which is the Technical Information disk (see Figure
1). The Technical Information disk serves as a guide for
everything you receive that month, which can include:
- Microsoft Resource Kits
- Service Packs
- Microsoft Knowledge Base Articles
- Supplemental drivers and patches.
- Deployment Guides & Training Materials
- Evaluation Editions (e.g., the May 2001 edition included
Microsoft's SharePoint Portal Server)
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| Figure 1. Viewing the Technical
Information Disc; the monthly TechNet News Headlines
appear by default. (Click image to view larger version.) |
If you subscribe to TechNet Plus, you'll get additional
disks including beta versions of software and other perks.
| TechNet
Plus |
|
If you take the TechNet package described
in this column and added several more
discs containing Beta software releases,
you'd have the Plus subscription. Note
that the Plus package costs nearly twice
as much as the basic TechNet subscription,
so you'll want to assure yourself that
you truly plan to use the Beta CDs you
will receive. In my case, the answer
is an overwhelming yes—in the May
2001 mailing, it contained Beta 2 for
Whistler Server (a.k.a. Windows 2002
Server).
 |
| The May 2001 TechNet
Plus mailing included all of the
discs seen here. Be careful: Month
after the month the discs can accumulate
and fall into disuse. (Click image
to view larger version.) |
|
|
|
Aside from the monthly mailings, TechNet has some online
components:
- TechNet online search engine allows you to perform
keyword searches against the TechNet library (but be
advised this library doesn't appear to be as robust
as the Disc subscription).
- TechNet online community is the Web portal that provide
articles, columns, guides, problem solvers and whatever
else an MCSE in-house employee or consultant might need
to do their jobs better.
More on these online resources later in this column.
(Note: You do not have to subscribe to the CD service
to use the online resources.)
Whether you subscribe to the TechNet library or the TechNet
Plus library, the first month you subscribe to the program,
you will receive a Starter Kit that brings you current
with all past issues (it's a mega pack containing a baseline
of discs in a pretty disc holder!).
Using TechNet
Once you've installed and launched TechNet, no
Windows 2000 problem will remain unsolved for too long.
There's too much in every monthly edition for you to
browse through, so you're going to be performing a lot
of searches. Here's my step-by-step guide for conducting
an effective TechNet search:
- Start the Technical Information TechNet Disc.
- Select Search from the Tools menu (alternatively,
you can press CTRL-S or click the Search icon on the
Toolbar). The Search dialog box appears.
- Populate the Search for: field with terms (typically
nouns but verbs are okay too!). Keep the Search Scope
set to All Text so the search is as wide as possible.
I'd also recommend you keep the Filter set to Entire
Contents. I've created an example query in Figure 2
(here, I'm trying to figure out why the names in the
To: field of an Outlook e-mail aren't resolved and underlined).
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| Figure 2. A basic search string
to be applied against the TechNet knowledge base.
(Click image to view larger version.) |
- Click Search in the Search dialog box. The results
of the search are shown in Figure 3.
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| Figure 3. The results indicate
over 200 items were found based on the search criteria
in Step 3. All items are listed in the bottom pane
and the selected item is presented in the upper right
pane. Note the pane windows can be resized. (Click
image to view larger version.) |
At first blush, my search resulted in too many hits,
so I need to create a more focused search to better find
the answer to my problem. You can do this in a couple
of ways. First, click the Advanced button on the Search
dialog box, which will offer options for narrowing your
search criteria. In particular, I want focus on the NEAR
means within field. By default, this is set to eight characters.
Go ahead and type up that to 12 characters. Next, modify
the search field to include another term ("2000") so it
returns only Outlook 2000-related hits (fingers crossed!).
Finally, in Figure 4 you will notice that I've created
a more powerful Boolean search (which uses several mathematical
operators and terms, such as NEAR).
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| Figure 4. Advanced search to
solve a problem relating to Outlook 2000 and naming.
(Click image to view larger version.) |
Tip: NEAR is near and dear to my heart.
I basically never create a search in TechNet without using
the NEAR term. It's a hidden secret to efficiently performing
your research and troubleshooting.
The result is fewer hits (148 topics to be exact). Now
click on the Book column in the Results window to sort
the hits (remember, when you search entire contents, everything
will appear, including chapters from Resource Kits). My
hunch tells me to scroll down the Results window and look
at the Kbase articles (the nature of my problems suggests
it may have been addressed in a Kbase article, not a chapter
in a book). Sure enough, I've found the article I'm looking
for, as seen in Figure 5.
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| Figure 5. Success! The article
Q246795 details why the automatic name resolution
feature stopped working on my client's Outlook installations.
Another successful day in MCSE consulting land! (Click
image to view larger version.) |
Upon reading the article in Figure 5, I see exactly what
occurred. This was a client that I had upgraded for Small
Business Server (SBS) 4.5 to SBS 2000. That upgraded Exchange
5.5 to Exchange 2000 and created the condition described
in article Q246795. When I performed this search for real,
my research phase using TechNet took less than 10 minutes,
allowing me to provide great service in the form of problem
solving to my client. And yes, I billed for my research
time in this case.
TechNet Online Search Engine
You can perform the same search for troubleshooting
purposes at www.microsoft.com/technet
(see Figure 6). Yep, remember that there's an online
version and it's free. But I have two pieces of advice
using the online TechNet search engine: First, you must
have a valid Internet connection that allows you to connect
to the TechNet Web site (don't overlook the fact that
the problem you might be troubleshooting at a client site
is the Internet connection itself). Second, only the general
TechNet library (book chapters, white papers, etc.) are
searched in default mode. You'll need to click on the
Advanced Search link at the top of the TechNet Web page
and select the Support and Knowledge Base checkbox to
really get the good stuff (that is, the most meaningful
hits).
Tip: I still prefer the CD to the online search
when using TechNet. It's not only faster and has a more
robust interface, but the discs will return more results
by default.
TechNet Online Community
Last and not least are the TechNet resource shown in Figure
7 (the TechNet homepage). This is your troubleshooting
portal for reading columns, learning about education events
and so on. Use it!
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| Figure 7. The TechNet home page
should be a bookmark in your Web browser (if not the
default Web page to appear at startup). (Click image
to view larger version.) |
Tip: Save those old TechNet discs. Because
space on the discs is finite, you'll want to save the
disc because dated information is deleted periodically.
How else would you troubleshoot Multiplan calculations?
For those of you who've been in the industry awhile, you
may recall that Multiplan was Microsoft's original spreadsheet
program.
Timeless TechNet
Years ago, I wrote an article for MCP Magazine
called "MCSE's Toolkit." In that article, I listed TechNet
as a "must have" tool. It's still true today. TechNet
in its Web- or CD-based form is a required tool for the
successful MCSE. Consider using TechNet on the
Web to get you started, but get a CD subscription so that
you have a lifeline to resources when you don't have a
live Internet connection.
See you next month!