IT Expert Voice

No longer an optional extra, but a built-in part of Windows 7, PowerShell 2 enables administrators to manage the computers in the enterprise from both the command line and from scripts.

No matter how we try to get away from the command line, for many administrative and maintenance jobs for both individual PCs and for an office full of Windows 7 computers, when push comes to shove you can’t beat individual shell commands or reusable batch or script files. That’s why I was very happy to see Microsoft’s new PowerShell 2 baked into Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2.

The single most important change in PowerShell 2 is that it is not just for individual computers, retro-fitted for administering multiple PCs. No, this version of PowerShell was designed from the beginning to manage networked PCs. In short, PowerShell is just as much for network administrators as it is for system administrators or PC technicians. READ MORE

PowerShell ISE is a visual command-line editor that used to be called Graphical PowerShell. In this video, we show you how to become familiar with its extensive command set which can be used to automate common tasks. READ MORE

Microsoft introduced the Reliability Monitor in Windows Vista, and improved it in Windows 7. This tool tracks errors and installations, and compiles data regularly to calculate a value called a Stability Index (SI) that ranges from 1.0 to 10.0 and represents system stability. This article explains how to keep the SIs on your PCs at or near 10.0. READ MORE

Windows 7 has many good features, but for some reason its management tools haven’t gotten the attention they deserve. That’s a shame, because Windows 7 offers a superior collection of built-in administration tools. READ MORE

Microsoft has extended group policies, enhanced the management console, and connected both to Windows PowerShell. Learn how these changes can make life easier for network administrators. READ MORE