Windows Server Administration/Application Servers

This lesson covers application servers, including Microsoft Exchange, SQL Server, SharePoint, and Forefront Threat Management Gateway. Activities include reviewing application server documentation, researching application server licensing costs, and downloading and experimenting with pre-built application server virtual hard drives.

Objectives and Skills
Objectives and skills for the Understanding Server Roles portion of Windows Server Administration Fundamentals certification include:
 * Identify application servers: mail servers; database servers; collaboration servers; monitoring servers; threat management

Readings

 * 1)  Application server
 * 2)  Microsoft Exchange Server
 * 3) What's new in Exchange Server
 * 4)  Microsoft SQL Server
 * 5) Introducing SQL Server 2019
 * 6)  Microsoft SharePoint
 * 7)  System Center Operations Manager

Multimedia

 * 1) YouTube: Exchange 2019 Architecture
 * 2) YouTube: Introducing SQL Server 2019
 * 3) YouTube: What is SharePoint and why Organizations use SharePoint?
 * 4) YouTube: What's new in System Center?

Activities

 * 1) Review Exchange Server Archictecture. Summarize the architecture of Exchange and describe the different roles.
 * 2) Review Microsoft SQL Server.  Using your preferred software vendor, identify costs for Microsoft SQL Server server and client licenses.
 * 3) Review Get started with SharePoint.  Review the things that can be done in SharePoint. Using your preferred software vendor, identify costs for Microsoft SharePoint server and client licenses.
 * 4) Review Operations Manager.  Using your preferred software vendor, identify costs for Microsoft System Center Operation Manager server and client licenses.
 * 5) Review Windows and Containers. What is a container?  What is the difference between a Container and a Virtual Machine?
 * 6) Review How to Install Containers on Windows Server 2019 Install a Container, Docker, and test it.

Lesson Summary

 * An application server can be either a software framework that provides a generalized approach to creating an application-server implementation or the server portion of a specific implementation instance.


 * The Windows Application Server role includes Internet Information Services (IIS) to provide web server support, the .NET Framework to provide application support, ASP.NET to provide server side scripting, COM+ for application component communication, Message Queuing for multithreaded processing, and the Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) for application communication.


 * Microsoft Exchange Server is a mail server, calendaring software and contact manager.


 * Exchange Server supports SMTP for sending mail, POP3 and IMAP4 for accessing mail, and an HTTP/HTTPS interface known as Outlook Web Access for reading mail.


 * Unlike other Office Server 2019 products such as SharePoint and Skype for Business, Exchange Server 2019 can only be deployed on Windows Server 2019.


 * One of the key features of the new release is that Exchange Server 2019 can be deployed onto Windows Server Core for the first time.


 * Exchange Server 2019 includes important changes to improve the security of client and server connections. The default configuration for encryption will enable TLS 1.2 only and disable support for older algorithms (namely, DES, 3DES, RC2, RC4 and MD5).


 * Microsoft SQL Server is a relational database management system used to store and retrieve data as requested by other software applications.


 * SQL Server's primary query languages are T-SQL and ANSI SQL.


 * SQL Server 2017 introduced support for running on Linux Operating Systems.


 * Microsoft SharePoint is a web application platform for web-based content and document collaboration and management.


 * SharePoint uses Microsoft SQL Server for its data storage.


 * Microsoft's hosted SharePoint is typically bundled in Microsoft 365 subscriptions, but can be licensed separately. SharePoint Online has the advantage of not needing to maintain one's own servers, but as a result lacks the customization options of a self-hosted installation of SharePoint.


 * Microsoft System Center Operations Manager (SCOM) is a cross-platform data center management system for operating systems and hypervisors. It uses a single interface that shows state, health and performance information of computer systems and may generate alerts based on availability, performance, configuration or security situations.


 * Containers are a technology for packaging and running Windows and Linux applications across diverse environments on-premises and in the cloud.

Key Terms

 * software framework
 * A universal, reusable software platform to develop applications, products and solutions.

Flashcards

 * Test your understanding of this lesson.
 * Test your understanding of the key terms.