Small Business Server 2000 Best Practices

I had the opportunity to attend a Microsoft Licenced to Sell Event this week where I won a copy of this book as a door prize. I have spent the last couple of days reading this excellent and entertaining book...yes I said entertaining. The book is written as if you are talking directly to Harry...and not in a classroom style setting. It is very easy to read and covers just about every major topic on SBS 2000. The book also contains places for you to make notes because no well used book should be unmarked. Probably the best feature of this book is the best practices. Many books tell you what to do, with these best practice you'll not only what to do but why you need to do it. Keep this book handy whenever you are onsite!!!

Harry has done a great job of presenting the nooks and crannies of SBS 2000. Before reading "Best Practices" I knew very little about SBS 2000... and now I have completed my first SBS 2000 installation and will be starting my next within a week. Thanks to Harry's insights and years of SBS experience I am growing my SBS consulting business! Harry's writing style appeals to us techies as well as non-technical business owners who want to admin their own installations. I highly recommend this book to all who work with SBS.

Quick, what do you do? You're a small business owner who would rather devote time to growing your business than learning about a software package. But you suspect Microsoft's Small Business Server (SBS) might be just the ticket to help manage, organize and streamline your operation. What do you do? If you're smart, you buy this book. Considered an expert in the field and with 8 previous books to his name, Brelsford uses his Texas humor and extensive knowledge of Microsoft Small Business Server (SBS) to give the reader what they need. Starting with the basics ("Defining SBS") onto installation and then into using consoles and other nifty features. Explanations are down-to-earth in a conversational tone. The book furnishes information without burying the reader in computer jargon.Computer networks, by nature, are complicated things. Microsoft's approach is to break it down into manageable parts or "components." These components make up Small Business Server and include an operating system, e-mail program, powerful database, Internet security and so much more. But with so many features (read "overwhelming") in SBS, where do you start? What should you know before installing? How do you make full use of its features? "Small Business Server 2000 Best Practices provides the answers. Hardware suggestions, network layouts and workstation installation plans are covered as is extensive installation details ("When you see the following screen, insert this disk..."). A nice feature is the detailed Table of Contents. Beyond chapter titles, entries are bolded within each chapter and also listed for easy reference, making quick work of finding what you're after.Whether to be used for implementing SBS for a small business or as the `go to' book for operational answers, odds are it's in there. Want to build a presence on the Internet? In there. Want to use other Microsoft software, such as Exchange Server and Outlook with SBS? In there. Want your customers to never encounter a busy signal when trying to send you a fax? Yes, it's in there. Want to run the business remotely in your P.J.s? Well, almost.Bottom line, you don't have to be an IT professional to install and use SBS, but with "Small Business Server 2000 Best Practices" at your side, you can look like one.

For the first time user, this contains a by the numbers installation that will let you get an actual site up and running, as well as sneaking in the technical reasons for doing things. The language is simple and the real life stories make it easy to remember when you set up your own organization.For the experienced user, this provides plenty of detail of the pesky quirks that normally require hours of researching. Harry does a great job of alerting you to possible unintended consequences of various settings and interactions of the many powerful servers included in SBS.He has done an excellent job of providing the "must know" of SQL Server, Exchange and ISA to operate SBS and leaving the hard details to other references. This keeps this book manageable and on track.Readable, complete and well done, your return on investment is immediate.

This book is absolutely awesome. I've just gotten my copy (after waiting for weeks for the book to get published) and am about half way through. It is one of the most informative books I've read. I've been working with Windows 2000 and the individual server products for quite some time. After reading this book I'm completely sold on the benefits of SBS. Harry really knows his stuff.