Figure 19-29. Indexing Options Applet Enabling You to Configure How Windows Indexes Files on Your Computer
Step 2. As shown, the locations included in the index are displayed. To modify these locations, click Modify.
Step 3. You receive the Indexed Locations dialog box shown in Figure 19- 30. To add or remove selected locations, select or clear the check boxes
provided. To include or exclude folders within a location displayed, click this location to expand it, and then select or deselect the desired folders. To show additional locations (such as program files and system files), click Show All Locations. When finished, click OK.
Figure 19-30. Indexed Locations Dialog Box Enabling You to Modify Drives, Folders, and Files Included in the Index
Step 4. For additional indexing options, click Advanced to display the Advanced Options dialog box shown in Figure 19-31. Select from the following options as desired:
• Index Encrypted Files: Includes files and folders encrypted with the Encrypting File System (EFS) or BitLocker in the index. Microsoft
recommends that you enable BitLocker on the system drive if you select this option.
Figure 19-31. Advanced Options Dialog Box Enabling You to Configure
Additional Indexing Settings
• Treat Similar Words with Diacritics as Different Words: Recognizes words with accents or other diacritical marks as different (for example, resume vs. résumé).
• Rebuild: If the index is unable to find a file that you're sure is in an indexed location, you might need to re-create the index by selecting this button. This action might take several hours, during which searches might be incomplete.
• Index Location: Use this option to change the default location of the index;
for example, if you need to free up space on a given disk or partition. This action restarts the indexing service, and the change will not take place until after the service has restarted.
• File Types Tab: Enables you to add new file types to the index according to file extension (see Figure 19-32). You can also remove existing file types by clearing their check boxes.
Figure 19-32. File Types Tab Enabling You to Specify Which File Extensions Are Indexed
Step 5. When finished, click OK to close the Advanced Options dialog box,
and then click Close to close the Indexing Options applet.
Note
For more information on indexing features in Windows, refer to "Windows Indexing Features” at https://technet.microsoft.com/en-
us/library/dd744700(v=ws.10).aspx. Though written for Windows 7, the procedures described also apply to Windows 10.
Task Scheduler
Task Scheduler is a MMC snap-in that allows you to schedule and automate tasks to perform a specific action at a specific time. You can also use it to trigger an event as a follow up to another event occurring. For example, suppose you need to restart your computer every day at 2 a.m.. One option is to set your alarm clock every morning at 2 a.m. just to restart the server. On the other hand, using a scheduled task to run automatically seems a bit easier.
There are a few components associated with Task Scheduler:
• Triggers: A trigger is a set of criteria that when met executes a specific task. Triggers can be based on a schedule, a log on event, a start up event, during a period of inactivity, upon session connect/disconnect, workstation lock/unlock, and the like.
• Actions: An action refers to an event that occurs after a trigger is set.
Actions include starting a program such as a script, sending an email, displaying an alert, and so on.
• Conditions: Allows you to specify how the actions should be taken.
Conditions include items such as idle times, current power state, and if the task should stop if the computer is on battery power, for instance.
• Settings: Specifies additional settings, such as what to do if the task fails or if the schedules are missed due to the computer being offline.
The layout of Task Scheduler is similar to that of other MMC snap-ins, as shown in Figure 19-33.
Figure 19-33. Task Scheduler
Right away you will notice from Figure 19-33 that some scheduled tasks are already defined. If you have set up OneDrive, there is a task to check for OneDrive updates every day. Internet Explore has created a task called User_Feed_Synchronization to synchronize all your RSS feeds. You can expand the folders to explore other tasks that Windows or other software may have created for you. Figure 19-33 includes an OnlineManagement folder, added by the Microsoft Intune client, which you learned about in Chapter 13.
Under the Windows folder are lots of other folders for applications that need to perform scheduled tasks to keep your applications functioning properly.
The Task Scheduler Library contains the hierarchy where all your scheduled tasks are stored. You can create your own custom folders for storing and organizing your tasks. In the center pane, notice the list of active tasks.
Highlight the task to configure triggers, actions, conditions, and so on. On the far right pane, you see a list of Actions. Table 19-6 outlines the available actions.
Table 19-6. Task Scheduler Actions
Action Description
Create Basic Task
Basic wizard used to create a task with specifying only basic settings, which includes only the trigger and action.
Create Task
Full wizard, which allows you to create a task specifying security settings, triggers, task recovery options, scheduling, conditions, and so on.
Import Task Allows the importing of a task from a saved .XML file.
Display All Running Tasks
Shows all running tasks, when they started, how long they ran for, the current state, and the location of the task.
Disable All Task
History
When clicked, task history is disabled. Click again to reenable.
New Folder Creates a folder to store or group configured tasks.
View Customizes the appearance of the Task Scheduler console.
Refresh Refreshes the console to display changes in events or tasks.
Help Calls the console help tool, which displays links to Task Scheduler information available on TechNet.
Scheduling a Task with Task Scheduler
To schedule a task with Task Scheduler, perform the following steps:
Step 1. Open Task Scheduler from the Computer Management snap-in or via Administrative Tools.
Step 2. On the right pane, click Create Basic Task. The Create Basic Task Wizard appears, as shown in Figure 19-34.
Figure 19-34. Create Basic Task Wizard
Step 3. Type a name for the task and an optional description, and click Next.
Step 4. For this example, we create a task called Run Task Manager, which opens Task Manager at logon. Select the When I Log On option button for the trigger, as shown in Figure 19-35. Click Next to continue.
Figure 19-35. Create Basic Task Wizard: Configure Trigger
Step 5. For the Action, select Start a Program.
Step 6. Browse to the path of the program or script; in this case Taskmgr.exe, and click Next.
Step 7. Confirm your task settings and click Finish. As shown in Figure 19- 36, if you would like to review the properties of the task, select the check box labeled Open the Properties Dialog for This Task When I Click Finish.
Figure 19-36. Create Basic Task Wizard: Finish
Step 8. Refresh the Task Scheduler console to see your newly created task in the Task Scheduler Library.
Windows PowerShell
As you learned previously, PowerShell is a powerful command-line tool available since Windows Server 2008. Microsoft has included Version 5.1 with the release of Windows 10. In an upcoming update for Windows 10, PowerShell will replace the command shell (cmd.exe) as the default shell; it is now that powerful and with that much functionality.
You have learned a number of uses for PowerShell in previous chapters, beginning with some introductory material in the very first chapter,
“Introducing Windows 10,” where you learned how to configured
PowerShell as the default shell right away. For review, some of the uses of PowerShell that have been covered are summarized in Table 19-7.
Table 19-7. PowerShell Functionality Mentioned in Previous Chapters of
This Book
PowerShell Information Chapter
Replace command prompt with PowerShell Chapter 1
Use PowerShell to work with Windows Images Chapter 2
Use PowerShell to customize Start menu and taskbar layouts Chapter 3
Install PowerShell cmdlets for Remote Management Server Tools Chapter 4
You can use PowerShell for provisioning packages to images Chapter 5
Use PowerShell to configure Device Guard policies Chapter 7
Use PowerShell to reset a computer’s Active Directory domain
account Chapter 7
Use PowerShell to configure storage and Storage Spaces Chapter 9
Using PowerShell and PowerShell Remoting for remote management
Chapter 15
Introduction to the PowerShell ISE Chapter
15
Manage Windows Firewall with PowerShell Chapter 16
Use PowerShell to manage App-V clients Chapter
18
These topics cover only some of the tasks you can perform with PowerShell.
Because PowerShell is a scripting language, you can automate these tasks and many more. Microsoft has provided the capability to send and execute PowerShell cmdlets to remote computers using WinRM, as we discussed in Chapter 15.
If you have configured computers for remote management, you can use one of the most powerful cmdlets remote administration tools for PowerShell, which is the PSSession cmdlet. This cmdlet functions similar to a Telnet session in that you connect directly to the remote server. When connected, you virtually have full access to run all commands as if you were sitting in front of the computer console. Some of the more common remote
administration cmdlets are outlined in Table 19-8.
Table 19-8. PowerShell Basic Cmdlets for Remote Administration
Cmdlet Description Examples
Get-Process: To retrieve or get a list of processes running on a computer.
Get-Service: To retrieve or get a list of services running on a computer.
Get Used to retrieve or get information about a specific function
Get-EventLog: Enables you to manage event logs and retrieve events
contained within those event logs.
Get-WmiObject:
Retrieves information from the Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI), such as specific hardware or software information.
Invoke
Allows you to run a single command on one or more computers. As
commands are executed, a remote session is established and
disconnected upon completion. This cmdlet is particularly helpful for automating some manual tasks.
For commands:
Invoke-Command - ComputerName
[Computer1, Computer 2]
-ScriptBlock {command}
For scripts:
Invoke-expression
c:\testscript\testscript.ps1
PSSession
Similar to a Telnet session, PSSession creates a persistent connection to a remote computer.
From here you can execute virtually any command that you could if you were logged on locally. Commands can be executed until you exit the session using the Exit-PSSession
New-PSSession:
New-PSSession -
ComputerName [remote computer]
Get-PSSession: List active sessions
Enter-PSSession: Switch between sessions
command. Exit-PSSession: Exit a session
Note
For a full amount of reference material for PowerShell, start with the
“Windows PowerShell Owner’s Manual” available at:
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee221100.aspx.
Exam Preparation Tasks Review all the Key Topics
Review the most important topics in the chapter, noted with the key topics icon in the outer margin of the page. Table 19-9 lists a reference of these key topics and the page numbers on which each is found.
Table 19-9. Key Topics for Chapter 19
Key Topic Element
Description Page
Number
Figure 19-2
Viewing error, warning, and information messages in Event Viewer
Figure
19-3 Filtering event logs
Figure
19-5 Creating an event log subscription
Figure 19-7
The Task Manager presents a simplified view of apps running on the computer, and enables you to shut down misbehaving apps.
Figure 19-8
The advanced interface of Task Manager presents a color- coded view of apps, background processes, and Windows processes, highlighting those processes that are using the most resources.
Figure 19-10
Using Resource Monitor to monitor your computer's resource utilization
Step list Shows you how to use Performance Monitor
Step list Shows you how to create a Data Collector Set
Table 19-2
Describes the important counters for the Memory performance object
Table 19-3
Describes the important counters for the Processor performance object
Figure
19-19 Monitoring computers using Microsoft Intune alerts
Figure 19-20
Using the Printer Management console to monitor and managing printers
Figure 19-27
Using the System Configuration Utility to troubleshoot Windows startup issues
Table
19-6 Task Scheduler actions
Step List Lists the tasks required to schedule a basic task
Table 19-7
Where to find tasks you can perform with PowerShell throughout this book
Table
19-8 Basic PowerShell cmdlets for remote administration
Complete the Tables and Lists from Memory
Print a copy of Appendix B, “Memory Tables” (found on the book website), or at least the section for this chapter, and complete the tables and lists from memory. Appendix C, “Memory Tables Answer Key,” also on the website, includes completed tables and lists to check your work.
Definitions of Key Terms
Define the following key terms from this chapter, and check your answers in the glossary.
alert, data collector sets, event log subscription, Event Viewer, indexing, Microsoft Management Console (MMC), Msconfig, paging file, performance counter, performance object, Performance Monitor, Print Management,
Reliability Monitor, Resource Monitor, System Configuration Utility, Task Manager, Task Scheduler