The WSiX Network Connection

New! Windows Server Networking TechCenter

James McIllece — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 20:04:52 GMT

The Windows Server Networking TechCenter is now redesigned to help you accomplish your networking goals with the right documentation for the Windows Server products that you use.

You can find the new TechCenter at http://aka.ms/mj4ecs

If you know what you want to accomplish but aren't sure what technologies to use, take a look at the interactive graphic on the new page, which organizes technologies into three categories - Enterprise Networking Scenarios, Cloud Networking Technologies, and Host Server Configurations.

If you already know the name of the networking technology you're interested in, there are quick links on the right side of the page to help you get where you want to go fast.

The Windows Server Networking documentation team hopes you enjoy using the new TechCenter, and please feel free to provide feedback to us on the following thread in the Network Infrastructure Servers TechNet Forum: http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-us/winserverNIS/thread/bab66890-ee46-42e2-836e-09d552c02f67

New Core Network Companion Guide: Deploying IP Addressing for Branch Offices is Live

James McIllece — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 16:24:00 GMT

The Core Network Companion Guide: Deploying IP Addressing for Branch Offices is live on the Web and available for download in the Microsoft Download Center (MS DLC) at the following locations:

Web: http://technet.microsoft.com/library/dn151292.aspx
MS DLC: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=37034 (Word format)

The Windows Server 2012 Core Network Guide provides instructions for planning and deploying the components required for a fully functioning network and a new Active Directory® domain in a new forest.

This guide explains how to build upon the core network by configuring Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) version 4 (IPv4) addressing in branch offices that are connected to your main office with a virtual private network (VPN) connection. This configuration includes static configuration of TCP/IP for server computers in your branch offices in addition to optionally deploying a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server to automatically allocate IP address leases to client computers in the branch office.

Hyper-V Network Virtualization and Virtual Switch - Great Community Content Available

James McIllece — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 21:24:00 GMT

I've come across some great content about Hyper-V networking, and I'd like to share some links with you. If you're interested in Hyper-V networking features, you might enjoy some of the highlighted community content in this article.

Dutch Hyper-V community member Marc van Eijk has written an excellent article on Hyper-V networking and System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2012 SP1 in his blog post Hyper-V Network Virtualization in Windows Server 2012. Marc discusses network virtualization, NVGRE, logical networks, network adapters on Hyper-V hosts, and many other salient topics.

Microsoft writer Brian Wren has produced the System Center 2012 Integration Guide - Virtual Machine Manager. This TechNet Wiki topic provides information about System Center's role in the cloud, Windows PowerShell cmdlets and console add-ons, integration points, and more.

Tip: Download Microsoft System Center Private Cloud Evaluation Software at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-US/evalcenter/hh505660.aspx

This Windows Server blog post by Jeffrey Snover provides a great introduction to Hyper-V Network Virtualization: Introducing Windows Server “8” Hyper-V Network Virtualization: Enabling Rapid Migration and Workload Isolation in the Cloud.

The following additional TechNet Wiki articles help you configure your Hyper V Virtual Switches.

I hope you find these articles and guides useful!

IPAM Guides Published

Greg Lindsay — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 21:04:31 GMT

Hi there,

The IPAM team and I have just published design, deployment, and operations guidance for IP Address Management (IPAM) in Windows Server 2012.

Check out these guides, and the topics available in each:

IPAM Overview: Is a brief description of IPAM in Server 2012.
What's New in IPAM: Has recent changes in IPAM.
Understanding IPAM: Provides an introduction with design and planning information.

What is IPAM?
IPAM Terminology
Getting Started with IPAM
IPAM Architecture
IPAM Deployment Planning

IPAM Deployment Guide: Provides detailed, click-by-click deployment instructions.
- Planning to Deploy IPAM
- Implementing Your IPAM Design Plan
- Checklist: Deploy IPAM
- Deploying IPAM Server
- Deploying IPAM Client
- Assigning IPAM Server and Administrator Roles
Network Management with IPAM: Provides operational, troubleshooting, and best practices guidance.
- Using the IPAM Client Console
- Managing Server Inventory
- Managing IP Address Space
- Multi-server Management
- IP Address Tracking
- Operational Event Tracking
- Using Windows PowerShell with IPAM
- Best Practices
- Troubleshooting IPAM
- IPAM Backup and Restore
Step-by-step: Configure IPAM to Manage Your IP Address Space: Provides procedures to set up IPAM in a test lab.

Note: If you’re looking for an IPAM quick start, see Getting Started with IPAM in the Understanding IPAM guide.

Greg Lindsay, Sr. Technical Writer, Windows Server (DNS, DHCP, IPAM).

Fresh on the Web and Download Center: Windows Server 2012 Core Network Companion Guide: Group Policy Deployment

James McIllece — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 16:59:00 GMT

The Windows Server 2012 Core Network Companion Guide: Group Policy Deployment is now published:

On the Web at http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj899807.aspx
In Word format in the Microsoft Download Center at http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=36050

This guide, which is authored by veteran Windows Server writer Judith Herman, provides instructions for deploying Group Policy settings to a set of client computers or users by using membership groups rather than account location in the organizational unit (OU) hierarchy of a domain.

The method described in this guide shows you how to create a single membership group into which you can add the user or computer accounts that are to receive a configuration through the use of GPOs. Membership in the group, rather than the account location in the OU hierarchy, determines whether the computer receives one of the GPOs associated with the membership group. In addition, Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) filters are used to ensure that only the GPO with the settings that correspond to the version of Windows running on the computer is applied.

There are two main benefits to using this method to deploy GPOs:

It is totally independent of the OU structure of your domain. To apply a GPO to one computer no longer means moving computers to another OU or restructuring your OU hierarchy.
It is very easy to apply or stop applying the settings in a GPO. You simply remove the user or computer account from the membership group. This removes the user or computer from the scope of the GPO without affecting any other GPOs that apply to the user or computer.

Windows Server 2008 R2 Wireless Guide Now Available in Word Format

James McIllece — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 21:09:51 GMT

No, you haven't entered a time warp - this blog post is about a guide for Windows Server 2008 R2 - and not for Windows Server 2012.

This guide was previously published only in HTML format, but now you can download the Windows Server 2008 R2 Core Network Companion Guide: Deploying 802.1X Authenticated Wireless Access with PEAP-MS-CHAP v2 from the Microsoft Download Center in Word format, at http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=35831

You can build on your core network by using this guide, which provides instructions on how to deploy Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.1X-authenticated IEEE 802.11 wireless access by using Protected Extensible Authentication Protocol- Microsoft Challenge Handshake Authentication Protocol version 2 (PEAP-MS-CHAP v2).

The wireless access infrastructure detailed by this guide includes 802.1X-capable, 802.11 wireless access points (APs), and various Windows Server 2008 R2 features, such as Active Directory Domain Services Users and Computers, Group Policy Management, Network Policy Server (NPS) servers, and server certificates for computers that are running NPS.

In addition, the guide includes instructions for configuring wireless client computers that are running Windows 7, Windows Vista, or Windows XP with Service Pack 2.

New BranchCache Hosted Cache Mode Guide Published in Word Format to Microsoft Download Center

James McIllece — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 18:21:00 GMT

The Windows Server® 2012 Core Network Companion Guide: Deploying BranchCache Hosted Cache Mode, which was published last week in HTML format on the Web, is now published in Word format for download at the Microsoft Download Center, at http://aka.ms/uijete

New BranchCache Hosted Cache Mode Guide Published on the Web

James McIllece — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 17:55:19 GMT

The Windows Server 2012 Core Network Companion Guide: Deploying BranchCache Hosted Cache Mode, is now live on the Web at http://aka.ms/i2wfpz

This deployment guide shows you how to build on your core network by deploying BranchCache in hosted cache mode in your branch offices.

The scenario in this guide has Web and file servers in a cloud data center - but you can use the guide even if your content servers are in your main office or in a private cloud.

When you deploy BranchCache in hosted cache mode, you configure a server in your branch office as a hosted cache server. This computer can perform workloads in addition to being a hosted cache server, so you don't need to install a dedicated server for BranchCache.

In normal operations, BranchCache doesn't actively push content from Web and file servers to branch offices - instead, when users access a file or Web page, the BranchCache-enabled client downloads the content, and then the content is stored in the hosted cache. The next client that wants the same content gets the content from the hosted cache in the branch office rather than downloading the content over the wide area network (WAN) link. These operations allow content to be added to the branch office cache on a file by file basis.

With BranchCache in Windows Server 2012 and Windows 8, you have the option of using a new feature called preloading. This new deployment guide explains how to use preloading - which allows you to easily add all of the content on your Web and file content servers to the cache on the hosted cache server in your branch offices. When you preload content, you run two Windows PowerShell commands on your content servers - one that prehashes the content and the other that creates a data package containing the content - and then you copy the package to one or more hosted cache servers. On the hosted cache servers, you run one Windows PowerShell command to import the contents of the data package into the hosted cache.

Stay tuned for publication of this deployment guide for download in Word format from the Microsoft Download Center.

BranchCache FAQ

James McIllece — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 21:42:26 GMT

The BranchCache Frequently Asked Questions topic is now live in the TechNet Wiki at http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/14309.branchcache-frequently-asked-questions.aspx.

Download the New Wireless Guide from the Microsoft Download Center

James McIllece — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 20:37:25 GMT

The 802.1X Wireless paper that I mentioned in my previous post, the Windows Server 2012 Core Network Companion Guide: Deploying Password-based 802.1X Authenticated Wireless Access, is now available for download in Word format from the Microsoft Download Center, at http://aka.ms/km2utn.