4: Configure Windows Server 2012 R2 This chapter shows you how to manage file systems, print servers, and file and share access.
Chapter 5: Administer Active Directory This chapter takes you through the different ways to create and manage your users and groups on the Windows Server 2012 R2 operating system.
Chapter 6: Manage GPOs You will see how to configure different types of Group Policy objects (GPOs) in Active Directory.
Chapter 7: Manage Security This chapter shows you how to secure Windows Server 2012 R2.
Chapter 8: Configure TCP/IP This chapter shows you how to configure IPv4 and IPv6. You’ll look at IPv4 subnetting and how to manage a TCP/IP network.
Chapter 9: Use Virtualization in Windows Server 2012 This chapter shows you how to implement and configure Windows Server Hyper-V and virtual machines. You will learn about virtual networking, virtual hard disks, migration types, and Integration Services.
Chapter 10: Manage and Maintain Servers This chapter explains the requirements and steps to deploy, manage, and maintain the Windows Server 2012 R2 system.
Chapter 11: Manage File Services This chapter shows you how to configure file and print services. You will learn how to set up a file server for faster response times and about the different ways to set up and configure print services.
Chapter 12: Configure DNS This chapter shows you the advantages and benefits of Windows Server 2012 R2 Network Services.
Chapter 13: Configure Routing and Remote Access This chapter shows you how to configure the different types of remote access and Windows routing protocols.
Chapter 14: Configure a Network Policy Server Infrastructure This chapter takes you through the different ways to create and manage your Windows Server 2012 R2 NPS server.
Chapter 15: Configure and Manage Active Directory You will see how to configure and manage different types of objects in Active Directory.
Chapter 16: Configure and Manage Group Policy This chapter shows you how to manage different parts of Windows policies by using the Group Policy Management Console. This chapter also explains how to install and configure software using GPOs.
Chapter 17: Configure and Manage High Availability This chapter shows how to set up Windows Server 2012 R2 high availability. This includes clustering and failover systems.
Chapter 18: Configure File and Storage Solutions This chapter shows you how to configure file and storage solutions. You will learn how to help your system run faster and give you better response times.
Chapter 19: Implement Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery This chapter shows you how to protect yourself in the event of a system crash or a catastrophic failure.
Chapter 20: Configure Advanced Network Services This chapter shows you how to configure the different types of network services and how to configure them properly.
Chapter 21: Configure the Active Directory Infrastructure This chapter takes you through the different ways to create and manage your Windows Server 2012 R2 Active Directory infrastructure.
Chapter 22: Configure Access and Information Protection Solutions You will see how to set up your Windows Server 2012 R2 system so that your information stays secure.
What’s Included with the Book
This book includes many helpful items intended to prepare you for the MCSA: Windows Server 2012 R2 certification. These items include:
Assessment Test There is an Assessment Test at the conclusion of the introduction that can be used to evaluate quickly where you are with Windows Server 2012 R2. This test should be taken prior to beginning your work in this book, and it should help you identify areas in which you are either strong or weak. Note that these questions are purposely simpler than the types of questions you may see on the exams.
Objective Map and Opening List of Objectives Later in this introduction, you will find a detailed exam objective map showing you where each of the exam objectives is covered. Each chapter also includes a list of the exam objectives covered.
Helpful Exercises Throughout the book are step-by-step exercises of some of the more important tasks that you should be able to perform. Some of these exercises have corresponding videos that can be downloaded from the book’s website. Also, the following section has a recommended home lab setup that will be helpful in completing these tasks.
Exam Essentials The end of each chapter also includes a listing of exam essentials. These are essentially repeats of the objectives, but remember that any objective on the exam blueprint could show up on the exam.
Chapter Review Questions Each chapter includes review questions. These are used to assess your understanding of the chapter and are taken directly from the chapter. These questions are based on the exam objectives, and they are similar in difficulty to items you might actually receive on the MCSA: Windows Server 2012 R2 exams.
Interactive Online Learning Environment You can access the Interactive Online Learning Environment, which includes the assessment test and chapter review questions. In addition, there are a total of three practice exams included with the Interactive Online Learning Environment: one each for exams 70-410, 70-411, and 70-412.
Flashcards Flashcards are included for quick reference. They are a great tool for learning important facts quickly. You may even consider these as additional simple practice questions, which is essentially what they are.
Videos Some of the exercises include corresponding videos. These videos show you how we do the exercises. There is also a video that shows you how to set up virtualization so that you can complete the exercises within a virtualized environment. This same video also shows you how to install Windows Server 2012 Datacenter on that virtualized machine.
PDF of Glossary of Terms There is a glossary included that covers the key terms used in this book.
Recommended Home Lab Setup
To get the most out of this book, you will want to make sure you complete the exercises throughout the chapters. To complete the exercises, you will need one of two setups. First, you can set up a machine with Windows Server 2012 R2 and complete the labs using a regular Windows Server 2012 R2 machine.
The second way to set up Windows Server 2012 R2 (the way we set up Server 2012 R2) is by using virtualization. We set up Windows Server 2012 R2 as a virtual hard disk (VHD), and we did all the labs this way. The advantages of using virtualization are that you can always just wipe out the system and start over without losing a real server. Plus, you can set up multiple virtual servers and create a full lab environment on one machine.
We created a video for this book showing you how to set up a virtual machine and how to install Windows Server 2012 R2 onto that virtual machine.
How
