MCSE Accelerated Windows 2000 Study Guide +CD (MCSE study guide) - Hardcover

Chacon, M

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0782127606 ISBN 13: 9780782127607

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons, 2000

Synopsis

Covering the Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer certification in Windows 2000, this text maps to the official exam objectives of the four core Windows 2000 exams. Accompanying CDs contain exam prep material including: pre-assessment exams; bonus review questions; and electronic flashcards.

About this title

Review

If you've been working out in the field since you got your MCSE, gaining hands-on experience by the fistful, Sybex's Accelerated Windows 2000 Study Guide can give you the overview you will need to get close to finishing the exam. But if you've been working in a smaller office and you are not savvy about all facets of Windows NT--including some lesser parts like certificate servers and DNS zoning issues--you might have some problems with this facts-based and experience-light text.

First, the good news. In areas with not a whole lot of NT crossover, the book goes into some extremely good explanations--the chapters on Active Directory and NAT are perhaps some of the finest introductory explanations available for those not familiar with the topics. The top-notch walkthroughs on the various Windows 2000 components are taken from other Sybex books, guiding you exactly through what you need to do. The writing is unfailingly clear and helpful, and it is difficult to find an area that fails to get its point across.

The bad news is, because Windows 2000 may in fact be too large to be effectively compressed into one book, some cursory explanations may be too shallow. The entire discussion of what Microsoft Certificate Server is, how certificates work, and why a sysadmin would use certificates consists of two paragraphs; in fact, everything this book has to offer on certificates takes up three-and-a-half pages, one of which is in a separate section. Likewise, a highly touted feature of Windows 2000, the ability to use more than one monitor, consists of three paragraphs and a PDF walkthrough. Admittedly, some tough cuts had to be made to squeeze Win2K into a single weighty tome, but seven pages are devoted to the booting process and the BOOT.INI file, a process very similar to that in Windows NT.

Another issue to consider when buying this book is the lack of, for a better word, expertise. Much of the content in this book is written as if you have everything installed and working right, which of course is wonderful but an unlikely situation to come up on the exam. Some sections, like WINS, Software Deployment and Terminal Services, have a page or so of troubleshooting guidelines at the end, which is extremely helpful; but these aren't listed in all sections, and some of the more complex interactions, like DNS and Active Directory, tell you absolutely nothing about what bad things could happen. If you've been working with large-scale enterprises you will already have the experience to know what tends to go wrong and this book will be useful. But if you have either been resting on your laurels or lack that critical experience, this book may not be enough for you to pass.

In short, this is a fine overview for the experienced MCSE candidate, one who has the year of hands-on work that Microsoft is looking for and wants a well-done explanation of Windows 2000's new features. The topics that this book covers, it covers with astonishing clarity. But someone who needs a tad more hand holding or a greater understanding of where Win2K fails may need to look elsewhere. --William Steinmetz

Edition details

• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0782127606
• ISBN 13: 9780782127607
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 850