W2k3 Simple Setup recording

[SimpleSi]

I've persuaded a few of schools to move to a "proper" server instead of my economy Win98 setups.

 

My main reason is to have protected folders for each year group instead of my current setup of security through (slight) obscurity

 

So, I thought it could be a good idea to set one up in VMServer and come up with a simple setup that I could just copy and deploy to all of them (with necessary IP changes of course).

 

And then I thought - could I not record my install steps for future posterity (or damming evidence of my ineptitude )

 

So, I'm thinking of running a w2k3 server within VMServer running on an actual machine running w2k3 server- does that sound OK to everyone?

 

And can anyone recommend a product (free of course) to do the screen recording?

 

regards

 

Simon

[webman]

CamStudio. Free, of course

[Ric_]

VMWare Workstation will record it too

[SimpleSi]

Unfortunately, I'm prob going to have install a server sooner than I though since one of my Win98 "servers" gave up the ghost in the holidays

 

But I still want to set it up inside a VM - just a simple server setup with a few shared folders and providing DHCP services to simply replace my existing (well dead now actually) setup

 

Any caveats before I start?

 

Anyone running one for real inside a VM?

 

regards

 

Simon

[Geoff]

remember you'll need two server licenses for each machine. You could avoid this by making the host run Linux though and use VMWare server for Linux.

[DMcCoy]

2003 Enterprise allows you to run 4 additional servers on the licensed server as part of the license.

 

Windows Server 2003 R2 Enterprise Edition Use Rights

Microsoft has added two important licensing benefits to Windows Server 2003 R2 Enterprise Edition. First, under a single license on a server, you may run up to four instances of the server software in virtual operating system environments on that server (only one instance per virtual operating system environment). Second, if you are licensed for Windows Server 2003 R2 Standard Edition, you may run an instance of Standard Edition in place of Enterprise Edition in any of those virtual operating system environments. Customers will find key benefits in licensing Windows Server 2003 R2 Enterprise Edition as their virtualization platform but may still need to run Windows Server 2003 R2 Standard Edition within the virtual machines. Microsoft has enabled this scenario as a significant benefit to licensing Windows Server 2003 R2 Enterprise Edition.

[Geoff]

I'm fairly sure SimpleSi wont have Enterprise Edition.

[SimpleSi]

Well that was fun

 

I couldn't find any machines with more than 256MB RAM and running a server in a VM and trying to record it at the same time can make time pass very slowly

 

Also, my grasp of how DFS works (I just thought it needed to be running on the VM Server and then I could share files on the real server) failed me (or maybe my grasp was right but I just couldn't get it work)

 

Anyway, successfully got it up and running (although goodness knows how it'll perform until I get some more RAM)

 

Now, how easy and what steps should I do to transfer it to another site - I basically need to rename it and change the IPs/DHCP/DNS settings- is there anything special that I'll need to do to do this?

 

I didn't realise about the licencing issues (I hadn't realised the differences between the versions -I'd just picked up on discussions that said it was OK to run a VM with a real server )so I'll have to buy another licence or run the VM on a Linux machine. Anyone running a W2k3 server inside of a Linux distro and was is easy to do (e.g package for it) or did you have to end up compiling and geeky stuff?

 

regards

 

Simon

 

PS Whilst I was in the middle of my Win98 - W2k3 conversion but before I'd installed AD on server, my workstations couldn't access files on the server, seemingly because the password for the workstation logon (pupil) had no password - if I logged on as my other workstation user (teacher which has a password) then it worked.

 

Both pupil and teacher users were set up on server and local security password policy set to 0 length password =OK.

 

Once I'd installed AD - everything was OK.

 

Obviously not a common scenario but maybe a nice challenge for your MCS.... experts to explain for me

 

So anyway - do I hold the record for least powerful machine/RAM running a VM server

[Geoff]

Ubuntu + VMWare server HOWTO

 

http://www.howtoforge.com/ubuntu_vmware_server

[SimpleSi]

I've transferred my VM to another school but I'm having great difficulty in finding a simple way of renaming the domain - all I can find on Google talks about forests and other stuff that I don't really understand

 

Will I have to comprehend all that bumpf or is there a simple way of changing the domain name - and will I need lots of TLC for the DNS server?

 

regards

 

Simon

[ChrisH]

You would be best having an image that you can promote at each school else your gonna run into trouble somewhere. I know you probably want to use all the same name user accounts etc but Im sure they can be created quickly. As can a script to create folders etc.

[GrumbleDook]

This is why LNM came around ... it boils down to being a serious of scripts that will actually do all the setup for you ... if you actually look at the code of the install you can see what it does ...

[SimpleSi]

mm...

 

If I started again and created my VM server using generic names e.g vserver1.schooldomain.local and then just changed the VMs IP and the DHCP settings would I get away with it.

 

Or would I have to flush the DNS settings afterwards (and can you even do that?)

 

Obviously, Chris's suggestion is going to take less effort in the short term but there might be some overall benefit later on (and I don't like being defeated by a computer )

 

 

regards

 

Simon

[ICTNUT]

I'm with ChrisH on this one.

 

I use VMServer Extensively at my school, having a "standard" base install of Server 2003 is good as it can then be tailored to your requirements when on site.

 

A "dcpromo" would take 10mins (i know depending on speed and resources) and all your DNS, AD, DHCP would be setup for you in that time to the spec of the school you are installing into.

 

Then asChrisH pointed out there are plenty of user contributed script for user and folder creation on the site todo the other stuff you need.

 

The problem is trying to rename domains once the have been put in is not the esaiest or most straight forward of things to do and leaves you open to huge amounts of error.

[tosca925]

What about SIDs for the Servers?

[ICTNUT]

@tosca925: That would be why a vanilla install of w2k3 would be better than setting it all up and then trying to change the domain and stuff later.

 

That is just one of the possible issues that could and would arise.