The administrative tools in Windows Server 2003 are MMC consoles with col¬lections of snap-ins suited to a specific purpose. The Active Directory Users and Com¬puters administrative tool, for example, is specifically designed to administer the security principals (Users, Groups, and Computers) in a domain. The snap-ins within the MMC—not the MMC itself—are the administrative tools that you use.
The MMC
The MMC looks very much like a version of Windows Explorer, only with fewer but-tons. The functional components of an MMC are contained within what are called snap-ins: Menus and a toolbar provide commands for manipulating the parent and child windows, and the console itself (which contains the snap-ins) allows targeted functionality. In addition, an MMC can be saved with and the various options and modes appropriate to the situation.
Navigating the MMC
An empty MMC is shown in Figure 2-1. Note that the console has a name, and that there is a Console Root. It is this Console Root that will contain any snap-ins that you choose to include.
Figure 2-1
Each console includes a console tree, console menu and toolbars, and the detail pane. The contents of these will vary, depending upon the design and features of the snap-in use. Figure 2-2 shows a populated MMC with two snap-ins loaded, and a child window of the Device Manager snap-in.
Figure 2-2
Using the MMC Menus and Toolbar
Although each snap-in will add its unique menu and toolbar items, there are several key menus and commands that you will use in many situations that are common to most snap-ins, as shown in Table 2-1.
Menu Commands
File: Create a new console, open an existing console, add or remove snap-ins from a console, set options for saving a console, the recent console file list, and an exit command
Action: Varies by snap-in, but generally includes export, output, configuration, and help features specific to the snap-in
View: Varies by snap-in, but includes a customize option to change general console characteristics
Favorites: Allows for adding and organizing saved consoles
Window: Open a new window, cascade, tile, and switch between open child windows in this console
Help: General help menu for the MMC as well as loaded snap-in help modules
Building a Customized MMC
Each MMC contains a collection of one or more tools called snap-ins. A snap-in extends the MMC by adding specific management capability and functionality. There are two types of snap-ins: stand-alone and extension.
You can combine one or more snap-ins or parts of snap-ins to create customized MMCs, which can then be used to centralize and combine administrative tasks. Although you can use many of the preconfigured consoles for administrative tasks, customized consoles allow for individualization to your needs and standardization within your environment.
Stand-Alone Snap-Ins
Stand-alone snap-ins are provided by the developer of an application. All Administra¬tive Tools for Windows Server 2003, for example, are either single snap-in consoles or preconfigured combinations of snap-ins useful to a particular category of tasks. The Computer Management snap-in, for example, is a collection of individual snap-ins use¬ful to a unit.
Extension Snap-Ins
Extension snap-ins, or extensions, are designed to work with one or more stand-alone snap-ins, based on the functionality of the stand-alone. When you add an extension, Windows Server 2003 places the extension into the appropriate location within the
stand-alone snap-in.
Many snap-ins offer stand-alone functionality and extend the functionality of other snap-ins. For example, the Event Viewer snap-in reads the event logs of computers. If the Computer Management object exists in the console, Event Viewer automatically extends each instance of a Computer Management object and provides the event logs for the computer. Alternatively, the Event Viewer can also operate in stand-alone mode, in which case it does not appear as a node below the Computer Management node.
Console Options
Console options determine how an MMC operates in terms of what nodes in the con-sole tree may be opened, what snap-ins may be added, and what windows may be created.
Author Mode
When you save a console in Author mode, which is the default, you enable full access
to all of the MMC functionality, including:
*Adding or removing snap-ins
*Creating windows
*Creating taskpad views and tasks
*Viewing portions of the console tree
*Changing the options on the console
*Saving the console
User Modes
If you plan to distribute an MMC with specific functions, you can set the desired user mode, then save the console. By default, consoles will be saved in the Administrative Tools folder in the users’ profile. Table 2-2 describes the user modes that are available for saving the MMC.
Type of User Mode Description
Full AccessAllows users to navigate between snap-ins, open windows, and access all portions of the console tree.
Limited Access, Prevents users from opening new windows or accessing a portion of Multiple Windows the console tree, but allows them to view multiple windows in the console.
Limited Access, Single Window
Prevents users from opening new windows or accessing a portion of the console tree, and allows them to view only one window in the console.
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