Microsoft’s Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2008 R2 server operating systems provide organizations with a solution that scales from simple file and print services through to a platform for supporting sophisticated .NET applications.

Windows Server also provides the foundation for other Microsoft and third party solutions such as Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft SQL Server or Microsoft SharePoint Server. Additionally, Active Directory is a key component of Windows Server, allowing organizations to have a single directory service for managing their users, user polices and computer accounts.

With the release of Windows Server 2008, Microsoft introduced virtualization to Windows Server through the inclusion of Hyper-V technology. In addition to the traditional skills associated with a server administrator, individuals may also need skills in new and improved capabilities such as Windows SharePoint Services, Failover Clustering, PowerShell, IPv6 and Hyper-V.

 

Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7 offer levels of desktop usability and management which requires a deep understanding of the technology if reductions in the Total Cost of Ownership are to be achieved.

With the launch of Windows 7, new standards in desktop security, reliability, performance, access and management have been defined.

Capabilities such as PowerShell, DirectAccess and BranchCache ensure that those individuals responsible for desktop strategy have tools at their disposal to add real business value, whilst those responsible for deployment, configuration, trouble-shooting and desktop support are also well catered for.

 

Microsoft Exchange Server is the market leader in messaging solutions. Its capabilities extend beyond the storing and forwarding of emails, calendaring and contacts. Microsoft Exchange Server is a platform for unified communications.

Through integration with products such as Office Communications Server and Microsoft Office SharePoint Server, unified and collaborative solutions can be designed and deployed.

With the ability to integrate mobile devices, organizational telephone PABX systems and the Web through Outlook Anywhere.

Those individuals responsible for designing, deploying and maintaining Microsoft Exchange Server have a range of capabilities and tools at their disposal.

 

Forefront is Microsoft’s end-to-end security solution, providing protection against viruses, worms, spyware, spam and inappropriate content for Microsoft Office SharePoint Server, Microsoft SharePoint Services, Microsoft Exchange Server and client operating systems.

 

Microsoft Office Communications Server is a key component within Microsoft’s Unified Communications (UC) solution, with the aim of streamlining communications between people and organizations regardless of platform, device or location.

Implemented alongside Microsoft Exchange Server, it gives organizations the capability to build Unified Communications solutions which build business value from features such as real-time communications from within Microsoft Office, federated access to Instant Messaging and enterprise Voice over IP (VoIP). Individuals looking after Microsoft Office Communications Server will be responsible for designing, implementing, and troubleshooting of a solution that includes existing telephony, integration with Exchange, conferencing, and group chat solutions.

 

Microsoft Office SharePoint Server provides a single integrated location where employees can collaborate with colleagues, find resources and manage content. Microsoft SharePoint provides business value around solutions that include collaboration, Web-based portals, enterprise search, content management, business intelligence, business process and electronic forms.

Microsoft Office SharePoint Server is dependent on Microsoft SharePoint Services, which includes collaborative capabilities and is a free addition to Microsoft Server 2003 and Microsoft Server 2008.

To maximize the value possible with SharePoint solutions, both administrative and developer skills are fundamental requirements.

 

MS Project is part of Microsoft’s Office Suite; it provides a range of project management tools that integrate with other Microsoft Office products. Microsoft Office Project Server adds collaborative enterprise project management capabilities.

 

The Microsoft’s Systems Centre suite of products provides organizations with a comprehensive platform for the management, control and analysis of their investment in hardware and software.

With tools to deploy applications, desktops and patches the Systems Centre family is a key enabler for organizations who wish to move to a more dynamic environment through Microsoft Optimization and the Microsoft Dynamic Systems Initiative. Building on top of the Microsoft Systems Management Server product, Microsoft Systems Centre provides a modular approach to management with solutions for managing infrastructure with Systems Centre Configuration Manager and Systems Centre Operations Manager.

Additionally there are Systems Centre products available for managing mobile devices with Systems Centre Mobile Device Manager, for managing data backup with Systems Centre Data Protection Manager and managing virtual servers with Systems Centre Virtual Machine Manager.

 

Visual Studio is Microsoft’s Integrated Development Environment (IDE), a selection of tools used by developers for writing, customizing and debugging Windows, Web and mobile applications. Visual Studio Team System edition extends the functionality to include collaboration with other functions of the development team.

 

Silverlight is a development environment for the creation of visually appealing websites and applications.

 

Microsoft SQL Server is an enterprise class database solution which provides organizations with the tools to store, manage and extract business intelligence from organizational data.

Querying SQL Server is often achieved using T-SQL. In addition to the administrative duties of a DBA, SQL Server also provides developers with the integrated development environment of the Microsoft Visual Studio development system allowing them the opportunity to access and manipulate data programmatically.

Implementing, maintaining, developing, analysis, integration and reporting from SQL is often handled by database administrators, database developers and business intelligence analysts. Microsoft SQL Server is often deployed as part of a larger solution, for example, it is often deployed as part of a Microsoft SharePoint, Microsoft Dynamics CRM or third-party solution.

 

The Windows Azure Platform is an Internet Cloud services platform hosted in Microsoft data centers, which provides an operating system and a set of developer services that can be used individually or together for developing Cloud-based applications.

Dynamics is Microsoft’s line of business management solutions including enterprise resource planning (ERP) and customer relationship management (CRM) capabilities. It includes business-management solutions to support financial and operational functionality.