April 2009 Issue of TechNet Magazine Now Available Online

The April 2009 issue of TechNet Magazine is now available online.

In this issue, we introduce you to new features and enhancements in the latest version of Internet Explorer, help you manage multiple Active Directory forests, explore Office Communicator Web Access, explain voice conferencing in OCS 2007 R2, and discuss a real world implementation of Windows HPC Server 2008.    

FEATURE ARTICLES
Internet Explorer: What’s New in Internet Explorer 8
Everyone expects something different from their browser. Some users are most concerned with security and privacy while others are more focused on customizability. Some want full standards compatibility, and others just desire ease of use. Explore the numerous new features and enhancements in Internet Explorer 8 that allow it to meet every user’s needs.

Active Directory: Export, Compare, and Synchronize Active Directory Schemas
If your organization has multiple Active Directory forests, you need to manage multiple Active Directory schemas and ensure consistency between schemas. Check out our step-by-step guide to comparing and synchronizing Active Directory schemas in multi-forest environments.

Office Communications Server: Stay Connected with Office Communicator Web Access
Office Communicator Web Access is a messaging client that requires nothing more  than a Web browser. Discover how it can extend the capabilities of Office Communicator—instant messaging, presence, desktop sharing, and so on—to anyone with an Internet connection and a supported browser.

Office Communications Server: How Voice Conferencing Powers OCS 2007 R2
Office Communications Server 2007 provides very powerful and flexible conferencing capabilities. Learn how OCS 2007 R2 allows users to set up real time conferences with other users inside and outside the corporate firewall, supporting both ad-hoc escalation of calls to a conference and pre-scheduled conferences and meetings.

Windows HPC Server 2008: High Performance Computing in the Real World
Windows HPC Server 2008 was designed specifically for use in compute-intensive environments. See how it is used, along with other Microsoft technologies, in a life science laboratory to provide a solution that enables automated processing of data generated from an imaging device.

 

COLUMNS
Toolbox: New Products for IT Pros
Greg Steen discusses NetCmdlets V2 for Windows PowerShell, KeePass Password Safe V2 for managing passwords, and Regular Expression Designer. He also looks at the book "Windows Administration Resource Kit".

SQL Q & A: Database Consistency, Temporary Tables, and More
Why does DBCC CHECKDB find corruption errors that disappear? Does tempdb  really cause performance issues? Are there any drawbacks to using the FILESTREAM datatype? Paul Randal answers these reader questions and more.

Utility Spotlight: RichCopy
RichCopy is a powerful, multi-threaded alternative to the popular RoboCopy file copy utility. Take a look at how this free tool can significantly improve file copy performance.

Inside SharePoint: Security and Compliance with AD RMS
SharePoint integration with AD RMS can be useful for extending security and regulatory compliance solutions beyond the SharePoint environment. But for real security, the SharePoint environment must be secure within itself.

Windows PowerShell: Automating User Provisioning, Part 2
Don Jones continues his look at how you can use Windows PowerShell to automate user provisioning. In this installment, Don details the function that will create a mail-enabled user in Active Directory.

Geek of All Trades: Simple Clustering with Hyper-V
Struggling to keep computers running with a minimum of resources and a shrinking budget is a challenge. One thing you can do is increase the availability of your servers with Hyper-V and failover clustering. Find out how.

Hey, Scripting Guy!: Creating CAB Files with Windows PowerShell
File compression is even more useful when you can automate the process via scripting. Here are some Windows PowerShell scripts you can use to create and expand cab files.

Security Watch: The Challenge of Information Security Management, Part 1
The first in an ongoing series, Jesper Johansson discusses the broad and varied challenges faced in the field of Information Security Management and the keys to planning a sound InfoSec strategy.

Field Notes: Customer Centricity
A look at why IT organizations need to really care about the customers they serve, act on that commitment consistently, and collect feedback on their performance.

Windows Confidential: Forcing Handles Closed
Raymond Chen explores how forcing file handles closed can lead to a series of cascading errors.

 

ON THE WEB VIDEO:
Windows PowerShell: Automating User Provisioning, Part 2
Don Jones continues his look at how you can use Windows PowerShell to automate user provisioning. In this installment, Don details the function that will create a mail-enabled user in Active Directory.