Hi All! I am trying to learn how to effectively use Server 2008 and I am not going to school (too poor) nor do I work in the industry. I just want to learn a little bit about network administration and have chosen Server 2008 as my study tool.

 

All I have are two "beginners" books, which are actually catered more for the intermediate user.

 

Just in case anybody is reading and is looking to mentor me......here is a tidbit of info:

 

I currently have installed

 

1. Virtualbox

2. Server 2008 twice (I want to see if I can set up two servers)

3. Windows 7

4. Windows XP

 

My computer is running 4GB of Ram while the processing speed is at about 3Ghz. From what I understand so far.....In virtualbox, I can run server 2008 (twice) and either XP or 7 at the same time for a total of 3 virtual machines. I can do this so far with no real problems.

 

I want to make one virtual server (server A)with the following:

DNS, Active Directory, DHCP, IIS and WSUS

 

The other server (server B) I want with the following:

Hyper-V, RRAS, IIS, DNS and WDS

 

I want to share files from Server B.

 

My dilemma is the following:

 

I am so new to the computing world that I don't even know where to start! After 3 weeks of reading and researching I have been able to setup one server and connect a client to it, however, I used Dynamic IP addressing and I was told that it was not a good idea. I now know why, but I don't know how to setup a server statically.

 

If anybody out there has anytime and is willing to serve as a mentor to me.....it would be greatly appreciated! I think I found something that I really want to do. I know that it is hard breaking into the industry, but I am a real hard worker and the IT guy from my job told me that I am picking up really quick for someone who doesn't know much about computers or networking.

 

Would someone be willing to take on this little project with me?

Hi,

 

Honestly, without basics concepts, I can't see how you can accomplish your project. What I mean is that I can tell you how to do things, but if you aren't able to set a static IP on a server, I can't see how you can set up a domain, IIS and wsus. I know schools are expensive, but you need a base to start from. You may think about a certification like Comptia A+, which explains the basics of computers. It's not expensive, you can buy the study guide for 50$ or less.

 

Now, tell me why you have chosen those roles. Do you know what is used for the RRAS role or the WSUS or WDS? Honestly to learn how a server works, you should learn what is a ROLE, a FEATURE and what is a domain. If you set up a file server with shared folder, you must understand the difference between the shared folder permissions and domain users under security tab. These are a bit complex topics, and they can take days to be understood.

 

Maybe you should read a book that is a bit more easy:

http://www.amazon.com/Windows-Server-2008-Dummies-Tittel/dp/0470180439/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1308664419&sr=8-3

 

Anyway, most of these books assume that you know basic concepts like how a network works.

 

 

I can help you, but I can't explain everything from the basic.

Hi ICTCity,

 

Thank you again for your advice. I am thinking about possibly trying that Comptia A+ Certification or Network+. I know it takes a while to study for these exams, but I am more than willing because it looks alot cheaper than going to school. The only problem would be finding the right book to study with.

 

I chose those roles because I was hoping to accomplish the following:

 

On server A, I wanted to have WSUS so that I can see if the Updates work for all Operating systems across the board, or if it would just update my Server 2008. (I have Server 2008, XP and Win7)

 

I wanted to install IIS because I wanted to set up an intranet site and I wanted my client computers to use that site as their home page. I just recently learned basic HTML.

 

On Server B, I wanted to install Hyper-V because from what I have read so far, this network clouding thing is what most companies use now. I wanted to use WDS so that I could learn how to use a server as my source to install Operating systems on new client/workstations that I might create.

 

RRAS - To be honest with you.....I just wanted to throw another thing on there so I just chose anything.

I originally wanted to set up email for my clients, but I don't have Exchange and it is too expensive. I don't think it is feasible, especially since I am just using one computer and I would only have one real email account that I might possibley use.

 

 

So far, the big obstacles for me have been attaching the Client to the Domain. I have only one server right now. I don't know how to install the other server. I am wondering if i make it part of the first server's domain.

 

I aplogize if I may seem a little too eager and if it looks like I am jumping in without a life vest, but I was thinking that if I was able to set up a network with someone's help, that I may learn more quickly. The books that I have, while good in theory, have little to offer in regards to examples, or a step by step process in how to set up a network from beginning to end. They focus more on the Operating system and it's features.

 

Thank you again ICTCity, if you are still willing, it would be greatly appreciated. I see your point though, it will be kind of hard for you to help me if I don't understand half the things you are doing, but if you have the time, I would still like to give it a try.....

You don't need to take the exam :) just buy the study guide and READ it, is ok:

http://www.amazon.com/CompTIA-Network-Study-Guide-N10-004/dp/0470427477/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1308666730&sr=8-2

 

Anyway, I can help you, but you should google a bit more. The problem is when you say: "On server A, I wanted to have WSUS so that I can see if the Updates work for all Operating systems across the board, or if it would just update my Server 2008. (I have Server 2008, XP and Win7)"

 

Actually WSUS does exactly this: it permits a single location to manage updates for many different OS.

 

Now, I could tell you: "To set up WSUS, read this guide:"

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/details.aspx?familyid=df628245-8449-4b93-948c-0926deb1197a&displaylang=en

 

Which is ok, but actually, WHAT you can learn from that? I think almost nothing, because of when you read on the document: "now, on the client side, set up this policy to point to the WSUS server". You should know where is the policy editor and what you have to do to apply those policies.

 

The same for the domain. A domain is created to centralize computers on the same network. On a fresh install, every pc is on "WORKGROUP" which is the opposite of DOMAIN.

 

My suggestion is: first of all, try to find articles which explain how to achieve your objective. You can google for example: wsus step by step

 

Once you've read one time that guide, you can ask what you don't understand. But, if you don't know what is a POLICY, google it, you surely find an answer to your question.

 

I can understand your situation, but trust me, the best thing to do is self-study. You are on a test environment, USE IT! I think you can learn in 10 minutes how to set a up and join in a windows domain, but if you don't know WHY are you doing this, what you can do next?

 

Last thing: RRAS, if you don't know how to set up a static IP address, and actually how a TCP/IP network works, it's almost impossible to set up a RRAS server.

 

 

Don't be despondent, I WANT help you, but try to follow my tips.

 

Remember: first thing -> understand

Hi ICTCity!

 

Thank you so much for your advice and help! I will definitely follow your advice. No worries, I haven't taken any of your advice the wrong way. Actually, I find you to be very helpful! I see where you are coming from. I will try to do a little more research to understand the why's first. Then, once I understand why I need to do things, I will try to figure out how to do the tasks. Once I am ready for that part, I would like to come to you again and see if I may have done something wrong, or if there may be a shortcut of some sort that you may have.

 

ICTCity, thank you again for all of your advice. Please don't feel that you are discouraging me. You actually have kept my hopes up that I can learn this stuff because you are taking the time to atleast respond.

 

Thanks again and hopefully, I can learn some of this stuff.

You will learn more than you can expect right now :)

 

Cheers