Weekly quickTIP

Windows Server 2008's "Delta" EXEs

It's another attack of the EXE lists! This time, many of you asked for a list of Windows Server 2008 executables. I serve you with two dozen.

• By Greg Shields
• 07/28/2008

Rather than giving you the entire list all over again, I thought it useful to show just the deltas between what you can expect in Windows Server 2008 and what you may already be seeing on your Vista desktop. With 2008 and Vista sharing the same codebase, the likelihood proves true that the files in their respective C:\Windows\System32 folders are relatively the same.

Out of 376 EXEs in that folder, all but 38 are shared with Windows Vista. Of those remaining, only 24 can be used interactively by an administrator for accomplishing some task either via the command prompt or in launching a GUI wizard or console. Those 24 are listed here:

dcgpofix.exe -- Restores default Group Policy Objects
dcpromo.exe -- Elevates a member server to a domain controller (and the reverse)
diskshadow.exe -- Command-line tool for managing on-system Volume Shadow Copy
klist.exe -- Displays the contents of the Kerberos credentials cache or within a key table
ksetup.exe -- Manages connections to outside Kerberos realms
ktpass.exe -- Configures non-Windows, Kerberos-enabled computers as Windows security principals
netdom.exe -- Manages multiple areas of network configuration
nltest.exe -- Used for validating trusts, replication, and secure connections
Oobe.exe -- Launches the Initial Configuration Tasks console
ProvisionShare.exe -- Launches the Provision a Shared Folder Wizard
ProvisionStorage.exe -- Launches the Provision Storage Wizard
rdpsign.exe -- Used for digitally signing an RDP file
recover.exe -- Recovers bad or unreadable information from a defective disk
SCW.exe -- Launches the Security Configuration Wizard
scwcmd.exe -- Command-line tool for the Security Configuration Wizard
SCWViewer.exe -- Launches the Security Configuration Wizard's XML Viewer application
ServerCeipOptin.exe -- Manages participation in the Windows Server Customer Improvement Program
ServerManagerCmd.exe -- Command-line tool for Server Manager
ServerManagerLauncher.exe -- Launches the Server Manager console
ServerWerOptin.exe -- Manages participation in the Windows Error Reporting Program
setspn.exe -- Modifies account Service Principal Names
SetupNfsIdMap.exe -- Launches the Identity Mapping Setup Wizard for NFS
tsecimp.exe -- Imports TAPI security files
VSSUIRUN.exe -- Launches the Shadow Copies console

Remember that this list is centered around a freshly built Windows Server 2008 computer that has had no Roles, Role Services or Features installed. Installing additional components can change this list.

So, Okay! No more lists for a while -- unless you've got more ideas of what lists you'd like to see, of course....