Windows 2000 System Administrator's Black Book: The Systems Administrator's Essential Guide to Installing, Configuring, Operating, and Troubleshooting a Windows 2000 Network

On the negative side of the scale, this book has real language problems, which fact reduces its usefulness. Fortunately, documenting sequences of steps makes up the majority of the text, so it's understandable enough. Also, it's easy to locate procedures that interest you, by using either the index or the black page-edge thumb tabs and the separate tables of contents for each chapter.

This is still a substantial book based on real experience. It pays ample attention to the contents of the Windows 2000 Resource Kit and deals adequately with special situations, such as preparation for disk imaging. That's a lot to offer the Windows 2000 system administrator, particularly if he or she wants the new operating system explained from a Windows NT 4.0 perspective. --David Wall

Topics covered: Microsoft Windows 2000, explained mostly in a series of procedures, for installing, configuring, and managing the operating system for a medium-to-large organization; how to perform key work in disk management, Active Directory setup, Registry management, and print services provision; migration from Windows NT 4.0 to Windows 2000, IntelliMirror, and the Microsoft Management Console (MMC).

Product Description
Windows 2000 Systems Administrator's Black Book is a must-have reference for system administrators and IS professionals who install, configure, and support workstations and servers on Windows 2000 networks, and who require a detailed guide to Windows 2000 security, start-up and shut-down, disk and file systems management, networking, Internet Information Server, and the Active Directory. Windows 2000 Systems Administrator's Black Book provides details of the upgrade process from Windows NT 4 and discusses integrating Netware servers and Apple Macintoshes with a Windows 2000 network. The accomapanying CD-ROM includes all example projects from the book, code for managing the Windows 2000 Directory, and command line scripts that can be adapted by readers for their own use.

This book gives an explanation of what its covering in the chapter - good stuff - a lot like a manual, then it gives step-by-step instructions on how to do things that you wouldn't even need to think about how to do in NT4. Its worth it - you might not need it as much 8 months from now - but it should be on the self for those 1st 8 months. I would recomend this book to newbies and pros alike.

The only thing that could be better was if Stu could have hooked us up with licensed versions of the software included with the CD ;)


Much Better Win2K Admin Books Available   August 27, 2000
 12 out of 12 found this review helpful

It really looks like the authors took the help screens available in Windows 2000 and simply reorganized the material. Very little analysis or depth is provided. While not bad, it is very weak in comparision with other available books. If you are going to spend the money on a valuable resource, then look at some other alternatives. For a basic admin overview, get "Windows 2000 Administration for Dummies." My clear recommendation for the best immediate to advanced reference is "The Ultimate Windows 2000 System Administrator's Guide." The Microsoft Windows 2000 Resource Kit is also a good but expensive alternative. DO NOT WASTE YOU MONEY ON THIS BOOK ... look at the superior alternatives.


Better then trying to wade through the NT 2000 ResKit   August 24, 2000
 3 out of 4 found this review helpful

Love the layout. Made it easy to find what I was looking for.

I also have the Microsoft Press 2000 ResKit... found the black book a lot easier to use...


A mixed bag   August 21, 2000
I purchased this book based on the author's reputation. I have mixed feelings about the book.

Yes, there are some technical inaccuracies. However, none (so far) are fatal and most seem to been due to oversights in the editing process.

Each of the chapters starts with an "In-depth" section that reviews the chapter's contents. While I hesitate to describe much of the material as "in depth"; this section of each chapter does a reasonably good job of overviewing the material. More than wading, but not deep either. More like waist deep.

The rest of each chapter provides step by step instructions to tasks related to the chapters material. Most of these "solutions" provide a step by step instuction to complete some task.

This book is not meant to be a MCSE test prep tool. For a beginning to intermediate level network administrator or for a recent NT 4 to Windows 2000 convertee, there is a lot of useful "get the job done" information.