IT Operations

Write cloud-config automation scripts into the configuration file

Bypass the need for excess infrastructure, and put off the automation languages seminar -- you need to configure the cloud now. Fortunately, you can still do that. Continue Reading

By

• Stuart Burns

SCVMM vs. Hyper-V Manager: Which tasks are best suited to each?

Although SCVMM offers capabilities far exceeding those of Hyper-V Manager, Hyper-V Manager has the advantage of being simpler to use and not requiring an additional license. Continue Reading

By

• Brien Posey

Can container communication cross over to noncontainerized apps?

Can an application have Python as a container, run SQL queries on an external Microsoft SQL database and publish the results on an Apache web server container? Continue Reading

By

• Chris Moyer, ACI Information Group

Words to go: Incident management KPI categories

Because incident management is a vital task for IT operations departments, admins need a way to measure its success. This list of KPIs offers a good place to start. Continue Reading

By

• Emily Mell, Former Site Editor

Top continuous delivery benefits and how to get them

Continuous delivery doesn't come without challenges -- like getting every disparate IT team on board -- but its list of perks makes the entire process worthwhile. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

Exchange 2013 hybrid to Exchange 2016 hybrid considerations

Part of the work required for a successful shift from one hybrid Exchange environment to another is to have a full understanding of all the areas that will be affected by the move. Continue Reading

By

• Theresa Miller

Three log analytics use cases set better ops in motion

The path to more resilient, bug-free and available IT deployments is hiding in plain sight, in log data. Parse short- and long-term data these three ways to improve operations. Continue Reading

By

• Brian Kirsch, Milwaukee Area Technical College

Plan your Exchange migration to Office 365 with confidence

Make your move to Office 365 with help from our experts who explain how to prepare before the transition and provide checklists to make sure the migration goes as planned. Continue Reading

Climb the five steps of a continuous delivery maturity model

The continuous delivery maturity model lays out the five increasingly intense -- and capable -- levels of the process. Know where to start and when to progress. Continue Reading

By

• Kurt Marko, MarkoInsights

Troubleshooting application performance: Issues and answers

Workflow congestion, sluggish switches, pointless parameter settings -- application flaws don't come from a single source, but they're easier to solve when you know where to look first. Continue Reading

By

• Tom Nolle, Andover Intel

Create a shielded VM template in SCVMM in four easy steps

SCVMM templates simplify the process of deploying shielded VMs. Prepare the disk to use shielded VM technology before creating the template. Continue Reading

By

• Nirmal Sharma

Why is Docker's container approach so important?

The name has become synonymous with containers, but there are other container management tools available. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

How a bastion forest limits exposure of admin privileges

A Windows Server 2016 feature called a bastion forest is the centerpiece of Microsoft's privileged access management model that limits the exposure of admin rights. Continue Reading

By

• Brien Posey

Manage all your Hyper-V snapshots with PowerShell

Using PowerShell commands to take and remove Hyper-V snapshots, and to restore VMs to a previous state is easy and efficient, especially when working with bulk VMs. Continue Reading

By

• Nirmal Sharma

Log analytics tools gain application performance support skills

Log analytics tools are boosting real-time capabilities to monitor application performance, and users are in the market for tools that best slice, dice and store log data. Continue Reading

By

• Alan R. Earls

Perform this Octopus Deploy tutorial in under 60 minutes

Octopus Deploy extends a variety of agents called Tentacles that manage a wide swath of tasks. In just one hour, create an Octopus Deploy instance in a simple home lab. Continue Reading

By

• Adam Bertram

What are the Microsoft IRM requirements for Exchange 2016?

Before a company can take advantage of information rights management on the Exchange 2016 platform, administrators must ensure the server setup meets the technical requirements. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

How do you use Outlook IRM to protect email content?

The information rights management feature in Exchange prevents unauthorized parties from viewing sensitive content. Admins can tailor the settings to fit the company's needs. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

What are the Windows Defender management tools?

If you're using Windows Defender AV to protect your company, it's imperative to configure the malware protection properly. This tip lays out the management options for admins. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

Taking stock of Windows Server management tools

Microsoft provides a mix of server management tools that administrators can choose from to control the machines that run the business. This comparison can help steer your decision. Continue Reading

By

• Kristen Gloss

Simplify the production deployment process with these tips

DevOps shops emphasize production-ready code, which doesn't cause a stir when it moves from dev to test to prod. Experts share how to deploy top-notch code swiftly and accurately. Continue Reading

How is the future of PowerShell shaping up?

Microsoft no longer develops PowerShell behind closed doors. While there are perks to the tool's move to open source, users must cope with the consequences of the shift. Continue Reading

By

• Richard Siddaway, Independent consultant

How to tackle an email archive migration for Exchange Online

A move from on-premises Exchange to Office 365 also entails determining the best way to transfer legacy archives. This tutorial can help ease migration complications. Continue Reading

By

• Steve Goodman, Content and Code

Consider Hyper-V live migration requirements before configuration

An effective live migration setup is key to a complete Hyper-V configuration. Consider these expert recommendations, such as limiting concurrent live migrations, to ensure success. Continue Reading

By

• Brien Posey

Prepare a Hyper-V configuration report with PowerShell

Generate a report with valuable Hyper-V configuration information, such as the virtual disk path, using a PowerShell script to ensure your server settings match the design documentation. Continue Reading

By

• Nirmal Sharma

Three tools enable DevOps for Windows shops

DevOps isn't just the domain of open source Linux experts. These three tool options tailor DevOps to how Windows applications and systems operate. Continue Reading

By

• Adam Bertram

How many Hyper-V virtual processors should I configure per VM?

There isn't a set number of virtual processors you should configure for a Hyper-V VM, but there are steps you can take to ensure your workloads receive enough processor resources. Continue Reading

By

• Nirmal Sharma

How do I get access to Office 365 preview versions?

Your power users will want to be the first in line to try out upcoming features through the Office 365 targeted release program. Set up early access with this step-by-step guide. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

Kubernetes books put container deployments on the right track

Whether you're tasked to set up and manage or deploy applications with Kubernetes, these books offer guidance and support. Co-author Brendan Burns shares insights from the texts. Continue Reading

By

• Meredith Courtemanche, Director of Editorial Training

Docker pledges Kubernetes for Windows support in Docker EE

Docker Enterprise Edition will add Kubernetes for Windows features in the coming months, but Microsoft shops haven't decided on a container orchestration strategy. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

Adobe zero-day fix precedes June Patch Tuesday

Adobe closed a zero-day vulnerability last week, which Microsoft added to its June Patch Tuesday updates. Administrators have a lighter workload, with about 50 exploits to address. Continue Reading

By

• Kristen Gloss

Use Sysprep to generalize Hyper-V VMs for rapid deployment

Microsoft's Sysprep tool enables rapid Hyper-V VM configuration and deployment through image generalization. Use commands to speed up configuration and disaster recovery. Continue Reading

By

• Nirmal Sharma

What are containers and how do they work?

Containerization is a new approach to application provisioning for many enterprises and requires a fundamental understanding of how containers operate, where they differ and the pros and cons. Continue Reading

By

• Clive Longbottom

DevOps shops weigh risks of Microsoft-GitHub acquisition

An online outcry about Microsoft's GitHub acquisition seems overblown to enterprise DevOps pros, but that doesn't mean there's no cause for concerns. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau and Darryl K. Taft

Microsoft-GitHub acquisition shakes up DevOps market

Microsoft's $7.5 billion blockbuster deal for GitHub is a sea change for the IT market, as an enterprise software bellwether with legacy baggage snaps up an open source DevOps darling. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau and Ed Scannell

Mastering PowerShell commands for Exchange by the book

This book works through common scenarios administrators face when managing Exchange Server 2016 and explains how to tackle them with PowerShell scripts. Continue Reading

By

• Kristen Gloss

Forget the DevOps mindset, and change habits and behaviors instead

DevOps is not a state of mind, but rather a series of behaviors and practices. Expert Rob Lambert explains how a focus on habits can be a DevOps game-changer. Continue Reading

By

• Rob J. Lambert, Cultivated Management

Breaking down the Exchange Online vs. on-premises choice

The continuous feature release model of Exchange Online might be a boon for some, but others might consider the need for constant training to be a detriment. Continue Reading

By

• Nathan O'Bryan, Planet Technologies

How do you use forklift migration to move VMs to the cloud?

To migrate a VM and its dependencies from a local data center to a public cloud, use the forklift method to prepare the VM for migration, deploy the right tools and import. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

Will Exchange Server 2019 address admin issues?

As Exchange Server 2019 draws closer, one administrator hopes Microsoft will incorporate some of the feature requests from the Exchange technicians in the field. Continue Reading

By

• Edward van Biljon, Global Micro Solutions

How do I avoid Windows Defender compatibility issues?

Microsoft offers a free antimalware tool for client and server systems, but administrators need to tune the layers of protection to avoid problems. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

Top-tier ITSM skills go beyond a good tool set

An organization can supply all the tools IT wants and still struggle to succeed. Build up key soft skills in IT and you'll boost productivity and business relationships. Continue Reading

By

• Alan R. Earls

Azure IaaS vs. PaaS: Find the right service to reduce costs

Ready to migrate on-premises workloads to the cloud? Administrators should question their assumptions before diving in with Azure IaaS and consider the benefits of PaaS. Continue Reading

By

• Tim Warner

Red Hat Virtualization 4.2 updates include UI and DR enhancements

The latest updates to Red Hat's virtualization platform enhance enterprise-grade features. But despite improvements, it's still not a VMware killer. Continue Reading

By

• Nick Martin, Senior Director of Content Strategy and Member Engagement

Exchange Online security setup requires joint effort

A company that moves to Exchange Online must coordinate the efforts of its email administrators and its security team to maximize protections and meet compliance requirements. Continue Reading

By

• Reda Chouffani, Biz Technology Solutions

Manage KVM at scale with these best practices

KVM management is easy when VM density is low, but managing hundreds or thousands of VMs can present a challenge. Plan ahead, configure the right drivers and optimize for scale. Continue Reading

By

• Stuart Burns

Blue/green deployment on the cloud makes updates easier

App deployment in the cloud operates differently than it does on physical infrastructure. The blue/green deployment model has a couple variations, each of which can save on time and errors. Continue Reading

By

• Kurt Marko, MarkoInsights

Windows Server pricing muddies purchasing decision process

As the cost of Windows Server continues to rise with each new version, enterprises must evaluate whether the price of admission for the latest enhancements is too much to bear. Continue Reading

By

• Jonathan Hassell

How do admins check the Exchange IRM setup?

Testing Exchange information rights management functionality can be tedious, but Microsoft offers a dedicated cmdlet for Exchange 2016 administrators that streamlines the process. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

Get started with AIOps tools

Instead of admins doing all the tedious work to resolve issues reactively, AIOps tools promise predictive analytics, health assessments and preventative action suggestions. Continue Reading

By

• Muddu Sudhakar, Startup companies

Microsoft Outlook on the web (formerly Outlook Web App, OWA)

Outlook on the web is the browser-based email client for users to access email, calendars, tasks and contacts from Microsoft's on-premises Exchange Server and cloud-based Exchange Online. Continue Reading

By

• Alexander S. Gillis, Technical Writer and Editor

A proper DevOps feedback loop includes business leaders

What the modern IT organization needs isn't DevOps -- it's BizDevOps. IT exists to serve the business, but that relationship must be fully reciprocal. Continue Reading

By

• Clive Longbottom

Distributed tracing gives microservices monitoring more clarity

When you have users interacting with multiple services with each action, finding the cause of a problem becomes a difficult hunt. Distributed tracing helps highlight the issues. Continue Reading

By

• Alan R. Earls

Don't panic! The definitive guide to IT troubleshooting

IT problems can cause distress, chaos and, well, panic -- but they don't have to. These tips and tools guide admins through IT troubleshooting for the best chance of success. Continue Reading

Master application scalability in cloud computing alongside devs

Just because cloud scales endlessly doesn't mean every component in an application should, too. Teams throw money away and degrade app performance when ops isn't involved in design and test. Continue Reading

By

• Tom Nolle, Andover Intel

How does the Office Insider program work?

The Office Insider program can benefit organizations that want as much lead time as possible to see what new features Microsoft plans to release for its Office 365 platform. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

How does Windows Defender Antivirus protect against malware?

Microsoft offers Windows Defender Antivirus as its native tool to prevent malware attacks. Discover how it works and what advanced protections it provides. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

Get started with this Nutanix Community Edition installation guide

Install Nutanix Community Edition to test its features in your infrastructure for free. Learn about the download, installation, configuration and VM creation processes. Continue Reading

By

• Stuart Burns

Monitoring thresholds determine IT performance alerts

An IT monitoring strategy depends on the applications and systems it governs. Static and dynamic thresholds each have benefits and drawbacks, but it's possible to find a balance. Continue Reading

By

• Alastair Cooke

Azure PowerShell cmdlets monitor, manage VMs

PowerShell gives administrators a way to customize reports that hone in on the details that matter to the business, such as the configuration of production VMs. Continue Reading

By

• Nirmal Sharma

Exchange IRM helps enterprises lock down information

Exchange Server's information rights management features put boundaries on messages and documents to avoid the mishandling of restricted content. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

Select the best container monitoring tools for your environment

Organizations that run containers should monitor them, too. Choose container monitoring that integrates into other systems monitoring tools, or take a different route. Continue Reading

By

• Sander van Vugt

Cloud-based email security tools barricade entry to Exchange

The pressure is on Exchange administrators to avoid a ransomware outbreak that cripples the on-premises email system. Cloud-based security tools can help blunt trending attacks. Continue Reading

By

• Reda Chouffani, Biz Technology Solutions

512e disks attempt to bridge the gap between 512n and 4Kn

It's important to ensure that your OS and hypervisor support 512e and 4Kn disks, but there are always alternatives to work around any incompatibilities. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

IT's application support model depends on everyone outside IT

IT wants to reduce application outages, boost performance and make users more productive. The best way to achieve these goals is to welcome outsiders onto the app support team. Continue Reading

By

• Adam Fowler

Migrating public folders requires extensive planning

Do your homework to find the right option for public folders when making a move to Exchange Online. Here are guidelines to help you navigate the requirements and limitations. Continue Reading

By

• Neil Hobson

What are the best log consolidation and storage methods?

Storing log data is an important part of the log management process. Maintain performance, security and backup policies with careful log consolidation. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

How do you analyze log data for relevant information?

Log files can contain enormous amounts of potentially useful information, but without log data analysis and log filtering, it can be difficult to sort, prioritize and read. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

How does an effective logging strategy improve data analysis?

Logs and log analytics can produce vast amounts of information. Save time and use resources efficiently with an effective logging strategy that prioritizes relevant data. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

Build the Kubernetes home lab that's right for your job

Kubernetes and the growing number of commercial container management tools based on it require specialized skills and experience from the application to the infrastructure. Continue Reading

Follow this Minikube tutorial to brew up a Kubernetes home lab

Set up a Minikube home lab, and begin exploring Kubernetes container orchestration before the coffee in your mug turns cold. Continue Reading

By

• Alastair Cooke

Learn Kubernetes infrastructure in a personal lab

Live servers are not the place to build up Kubernetes skills. Instead, set up a Kubernetes cluster, and start experimenting with it on a laptop in a lab. Continue Reading

By

• Alastair Cooke

Windows Server 2019 preview draws Azure closer

Windows Server 2019 will come with a number of enhancements to cater to administrators who want a tighter connection to the Azure cloud platform, Microsoft said. Continue Reading

By

• Tom Walat, Editor

'Accelerate' with the DevOps Research and Assessment team

DevOps success will require a focus on learning and an expectation of high-performance. The DORA team explains in its new book, 'Accelerate: The Science of DevOps.' Continue Reading

By

• Ryan Dowd, Associate Site Editor

CloudBees Jenkins Enterprise snags raise roadmap questions

CloudBees' Jenkins software is slated for major updates after strong revenue growth in 2017, but customers and partners report struggles with upgrades, pricing and support. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer

Automated continuous deployment tools produce successful code

Continuous deployment skips the operations oversight step in software production. So, automated tools must ensure code success in administrators' stead -- before mistakes go live. Continue Reading

By

• Adam Bertram

Predictive IT analytics improves distributed application monitoring

Data analysis on app performance isn't an instantaneous process, but it's worth the wait given the time it will save IT admins in problem-solving in the future. Continue Reading

By

• Brian Kirsch, Milwaukee Area Technical College

DevOps Research and Assessment team dispels maturity model myths

'Accelerate: The Science of DevOps' examines the hard data to see how current development methodology is really performing. In this excerpt, the focus is on capabilities, not maturity. Continue Reading

By

• Ryan Dowd, Associate Site Editor

Plan ahead: Build a container network for scalability

Container connectivity is no small problem for enterprises with large Docker and Kubernetes deployments. Bring in tools designed to support the workload. Continue Reading

By

• Tom Nolle, Andover Intel

Ten lessons for enterprises deploying containers

The majority of medium to large enterprises surveyed by EMA foresee containers replacing VMs in two to five years. Unsurprisingly, container management and shadow containers are pressing concerns. Continue Reading

By

• Torsten Volk, Principal Analyst

Six simple cloud security policies you need to know

Data protection takes center stage in modern IT. Step through this cloud security checklist to ensure your organization is covering all its bases. Continue Reading

By

• Stuart Burns

How do you fix Outlook display issues?

Outlook crashes and rendering issues might require an upgrade -- or a downgrade -- for administrators who want to avoid a Band-Aid approach and want a permanent solution. Continue Reading

By

• Adam Fowler

CLI vs. GUI: Find the right admin tool for various scenarios

Standard Windows and Linux command-line utilities oftentimes have niche, yet important functionality not available in GUI tools that require IT workers to make custom workflows. Continue Reading

By

• Richard Siddaway, Independent consultant

Why operations metrics and telemetry matter in DevOps too

The earlier developers think about what operations pros need, the tighter the feedback loop will become. Expert Theresa Neate explains how metrics are key to shifting ops left. Continue Reading

By

• Theresa Neate

Azure Container Instances provide an opt-out option for cluster ops

Containers-as-a-service platform Azure Container Instances doesn't support clustering on its own, but features an open source connector tool for increased scalability. Continue Reading

By

• Kurt Marko, MarkoInsights

Keep DevOps operations relevant in the age of code

The operations role isn't going away in DevOps, but it is going to change -- in some cases, dramatically. Expert Matthew Heusser explains what you need to do to be prepared. Continue Reading

By

• Matt Heusser, Excelon Development

Use an IT incident management system to enable automation

IT admins and gurus can't tackle every issue every hour of the day -- let alone predict them first. A dynamic combination of monitoring and incident management makes for better admins. Continue Reading

By

• Adam Fowler

Integrate DevOps and containers with simple tool adjustments

Organizations with an established DevOps pipeline can migrate from VMs to containers without tossing out the entire toolstack. Focus on these steps to enable containers in production. Continue Reading

By

• Kurt Marko, MarkoInsights

IBM roadmap of cloud, AI-enabled IT drives Think conference

IT operations must absorb automation, AI, machine learning and cloud trends, which result in a more data-driven, predictive and responsive department -- if everything goes right. Continue Reading

Office 365 email encryption options grow for enterprise needs

Each enterprise has different needs when it comes to preventing data leakage. Admins should be aware of the Office 365 mailbox and encryption features that help the organization meet its requirements. Continue Reading

By

• Steve Goodman, Content and Code

Can container tools box out configuration management?

What will happen to your infrastructure programming skills when containers take over? Continue Reading

By

• Tom Nolle, Andover Intel

Help ops to begin a DevOps implementation the right way

DevOps can be difficult to get right, even with lots of experience. For those forging ahead for the first time, however, the hurdles can seem enormous. Stephen Bigelow explains. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

Impact Awards honor the best cloud and data center tools

Each year, the Modern Infrastructure Impact Awards program salutes the data center tools and cloud management technologies that stand out from the crowd. The winners are the products that prove particularly useful and draw raves from users. These technologies act as catalysts for innovation in the cloud environments and data centers that modern businesses rely on to keep moving forward.

More than ever, the right technologies can make the difference between a business strategy that succeeds and one that disappoints. It's one thing for cloud services or data center tools to make it easier for IT professionals to carry out their day-to-day duties, but it takes something special for a product or service to help drive real organizational success. We're pleased to honor that excellence with this special edition of Modern Infrastructure.

Also, be sure to check this issue for articles and columns that delve into the complications that accompany the benefits of using multiple cloud providers, the applicability of serverless computing and the scenarios that might give pause to even the biggest IoT proponents.

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What's our future if we don't secure IoT devices?

When everything from the coffee maker to the manufacturing plant's robots to the electric grid is connected, shouldn't security be IT's primary concern? Continue Reading

By

• Mike Matchett, Small World Big Data

Rely on the DevOps methodology to avoid disaster

DevOps concepts rely on both developers and operations to uphold the stability of applications in production. One side can't do it alone. Continue Reading

By

• Brian Kirsch, Milwaukee Area Technical College

Data center and cloud computing products that make an impact

The Modern Infrastructure Impact Awards recognize the best IT infrastructure and cloud computing products in seven categories, from cloud to DevOps to converged infrastructure. Continue Reading

By

• Modern Infrastructure staff

What's our future if we don't secure IoT devices?

 Continue Reading

Rely on the DevOps methodology to avoid disaster

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Five system administrator skills Windows admins should hone

IT workers need to learn how to ride the wave of innovation and master these five technologies related to Windows Server that can ease their workload and help the business. Continue Reading

By

• Brian Kirsch, Milwaukee Area Technical College

Enterprises identify 10 essential DevOps tools

Products branded with DevOps are everywhere, and the list of options grows every day, but the best DevOps tools are already well-known among enterprise IT pros. Continue Reading

By

• Beth Pariseau, Senior News Writer