Use Monitoring Tools in Windows Server 2016

Throughout this 45-minute lab, you demonstrate your Windows monitoring and management tools expertise on two virtual Windows Server 2016 machines. You create new log file entries and go to the Event Viewer to see the results. Then, you customize a custom data collector set through Performance Monitor. You disable the Print Spooler service in the display and save running processes and services on the machine. Lastly, you simulate a machine crash and view the critical event in the Reliability Monitor.

Lab exercises suit advanced learners who have previous experience with Windows server tools, Command Prompt, and PowerShell. To finish all the lab modules successfully, participants handle the instructions very efficiently. Each section can be done independently by learners but should be completed during one sitting, as participants cannot return to work in progress.

Users run through four of the lab exercises on one machine setup and create an Event Viewer subscription on the second.

Windows Server(R) System Administrators, Information Systems Security Managers, and Cyber Operators test their knowledge managing and configuring system monitoring through Windows Tools. Learners use both command-line and GUI applications to complete lab tasks.

Understanding the Scenario:

You are a Windows Server® 2016 system administrator. You need to manage Event Viewer log files and Performance Monitor data. First, you create new log file entries, and then you filter the results. Next, you create and copy a custom data collector set by using Performance Monitor, and then you manage processes by using Task Manager, the Services console, and the tasklist command. Finally, you document reliability metrics for the server by using Reliability Monitor.

Manage Event Viewer:

In this portion, you showcase your confidence with event logs. You create a new event log and add an event to it through PowerShell. Then you view and save the event through the viewer. Managing events through cmdlets and Event Viewer functions gives you critical information, useful to any system administrator, about slowness in machine and security performance.

Create an Event Viewer Subscription:

The instructions in this lab module have you set up an Event Viewer subscription on a second machine to view events and logs on the first. You use a combination of Windows Server Manager and a command-line interface to register the second machine. Then you test your work by viewing an event on the second machine created on the first. Event viewer subscriptions make it easier to monitor local systems on a domain.

Manage Performance Monitor:

You customize a data collector set template, and make a copy from it, using Performance Monitor. That way, the data collector set tracks memory, network adapter, physical disk, and processor performance. You create a data collector set template; so that you can import the configuration for another server. Running the data collector set organizes data into a scheme collected in log files. These log files appear in Performance Monitor. So, honing data collector set creation and configuration helps you figure out system issues across multiple machines.

Manage Processes:

This section asks learners to use the tasklist command when a Print Spooler service is disabled, to list running processes and service information, and to save this log output. Participants review where to stop and start processes and how to see activity on the machine. Also, users can display remote computer execution status for system processes and services.

Manage Reliability:

You stimulate a system crash through resetting the virtual machine and then view the Reliability Monitor through the ‘perfmon /rel’ command in Command Prompt. The Reliability Monitor helps you troubleshoot if a system has been crashing, hanging, or frequently stalling by viewing the machine’s history. You save logs for later analysis.

Summary:

With the successful completion of this IT Pro challenge, you can be sure of your expertise in managing Windows systems using command-line, PowerShell, and utilities. You have demonstrated:

• Creating a custom log file source and log file entry by using Event Viewer.
• Filtering and saving events by using Event Viewer.
• Configuring an Event Viewer subscription.
• Adding Performance Monitor counters.
• Creating a custom data collector set by using Performance Monitor.
• Managing processes by using Task Manager and the Services console.
• Managing processes and service by using the tasklist command.
• Evaluating system reliability by displaying and saving Reliability Monitor events.

You can be confident in using and managing Windows logs and performance data.