Courses / Windows Server

Systems · InfrastructureComing soon

Windows Server Administration: From Setup to Daily Operations

Everything an administrator needs to run Windows Server in a school, office or plant: installing and securing servers, Active Directory, DNS and DHCP, Group Policy, file and print services, Hyper-V, backup and recovery, PowerShell automation, and the monitoring and troubleshooting routine that keeps a domain healthy. You build a small domain in a lab and run it the way a real site runs.

  • 34 lecturesabout 6.5 hours of video
  • 34 hands-on demoswith lab files to follow along
  • Beginner to intermediatelevel
  • Windows Server 2025 (most labs also work on 2022)recorded on
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What you will be able to do

  • Install, configure and secure Windows Server with the GUI and with PowerShell
  • Build and run an Active Directory domain with two domain controllers
  • Manage DNS and DHCP, including DHCP failover
  • Design OUs, groups and Group Policy for users and computers
  • Run file servers with correct NTFS and share permissions, quotas and shadow copies
  • Back up and restore servers and Active Directory objects
  • Automate everyday tasks with PowerShell and troubleshoot a domain with built-in tools

Is this course for you?

Who it is for

  • IT support staff who are taking over Windows servers and Active Directory
  • Administrators who learned by clicking and want a solid, structured foundation
  • Learners preparing for Microsoft's Windows Server Hybrid Administrator (AZ-800 and AZ-801) exams

Before you start

  • Comfortable with Windows 10 or 11
  • Basic networking: IP addresses, subnets, gateway, DNS
  • A PC with 16 GB RAM and Hyper-V, VMware or VirtualBox

Your lab

Windows Server 2025 evaluation (free for 180 days): two domain controllers, one member server for files and printing, and a Windows 11 Enterprise evaluation client, all as VMs.

Curriculum

9 sections · 34 lectures · 397 minutes

01Getting started5 lectures · 48 min

Install Windows Server and know the tools.

  1. Welcome and the lab domain
    5 min
  2. Editions, licensing and installation options
    9 min
  3. Installing Windows Server 2025
    13 min
  4. Server Manager, Windows Admin Center and PowerShell
    12 min
  5. Windows Update and servicing
    9 min
02Active Directory Domain Services5 lectures · 63 min

Build a healthy domain.

  1. Active Directory concepts
    11 min
  2. Promoting the first domain controller
    14 min
  3. The second domain controller
    12 min
  4. OUs, users, groups and delegation
    15 min
  5. Joining computers and AD security basics
    11 min
03DNS and DHCP3 lectures · 34 min

Run name resolution and addressing reliably.

  1. DNS for Active Directory
    13 min
  2. DHCP scopes, options and reservations
    12 min
  3. DHCP failover
    9 min
04Group Policy5 lectures · 57 min

Configure hundreds of computers from one place.

  1. How Group Policy applies
    12 min
  2. Password and account lockout policy
    9 min
  3. Common GPOs for a school or office
    15 min
  4. Security baselines
    10 min
  5. Troubleshooting Group Policy
    11 min
05File and print services4 lectures · 45 min

Share files safely and keep them recoverable.

  1. Shares and NTFS permissions
    14 min
  2. Quotas and file screening with FSRM
    10 min
  3. Shadow copies and DFS Namespaces
    12 min
  4. Print server
    9 min
06Hyper-V2 lectures · 24 min

Run servers as virtual machines.

  1. Hyper-V basics
    13 min
  2. Checkpoints, export and replication
    11 min
07Backup and recovery3 lectures · 33 min

Recover from mistakes and disasters.

  1. Windows Server Backup
    11 min
  2. Backing up and restoring Active Directory
    13 min
  3. A disaster recovery plan for a small site
    9 min
08PowerShell automation3 lectures · 35 min

Do in seconds what takes an hour by hand.

  1. PowerShell for administrators
    13 min
  2. Bulk user management
    12 min
  3. Scheduled reports
    10 min
09Monitoring and troubleshooting4 lectures · 58 min

Keep the domain healthy.

  1. Event Viewer and Performance Monitor
    12 min
  2. Domain health checks
    12 min
  3. Common problems and fixes
    14 min
  4. LabFinal project: a school domain
    20 min

Your instructor

Adnan Ali

IT infrastructure specialist with more than 12 years in schools and industrial projects: 13 years running the network, firewalls, servers and learning systems of a 500+ user IB school campus, then site IT for a cement plant project. The labs in this course come from that day-to-day work, not from a slide deck.

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