Mastering IT Systems Administration & Azure Cloud Engineer

Explore the course design and core operating systems for this intensive program, set up virtual machines, compare virtualization software, and select the best tools to follow the tutorial.

Design a two-company information technology environment with domain controllers, dns, dhcp, file servers, and Azure Active Directory synchronized to the cloud, using Intune, Azure Virtual Desktop, and a two-way trust.

Learn to set up virtual machines and simulate a domain controller environment using virtualization platforms, including DNS, DHCP, file servers, and WSUS, in a practical lab.

Identify and meet minimum hardware requirements to install Windows Server on physical devices, virtual machines, or Azure, including 1.4 GHz 64-bit processor, 512 MB–2 GB RAM, 32 GB storage.

Download Windows Server 2022 ISO from Microsoft to install on a virtual machine or Azure, choose English language and 64-bit edition, then start the download.

Create a resource group in Azure, a container for related resources like virtual machines and databases, then select a subscription and region, name the group, and apply tags.

Provision your first Windows Server 2022 domain controller on Azure by creating a new virtual machine, configuring a virtual network, and establishing DC-01 in West Europe.

Create an Azure virtual network in portal.azure.com to provision a private, scalable network that enables secure communication among virtual machines and other resources, including internet and on-premises access.

Apply post-installation updates to Windows Server manually, including Defender antivirus, in environments without WSUS or Intune. Restart the VM as needed and deallocate it to save costs while preserving storage.

Change the Windows server hostname manually using system properties or the command line to ensure the desired IT infrastructure name. Restart is required to apply the change.

Rename a Windows server hostname via the command prompt using WMI to rename the computer, restart to apply, and verify the new host name in Azure and local servers.

Rename a computer or server with PowerShell using the rename computer command. The restart occurs automatically and you verify the new name in local server.

Configure a static IP on your Windows Server domain controller to prevent address changes, reserving the IP in DHCP, and verify the updated network interface in Azure.

Learn how to harden Windows Server 2022, especially as a domain controller in Azure, by applying updates, strong password policies, firewall rules, account lockout, least privilege, and auditing with backups.

Explore how to download Windows 10 and Windows 11, install them in a virtual software, and perform a step-by-step Windows 11 installation in Azure.

Discover how to download Windows 11 or Windows 10 ISO from Microsoft, choose 64-bit editions and languages, create installation media, and prepare VMs with VMware workstation, Hyper-V, or Azure deployments.

Create a new virtual machine in VMware Workstation Pro 17, select the Windows 11 ISO image, configure hardware and storage, and boot to start the installation.

Launch and configure a Windows 11 enterprise VM on Azure, including resource group, region, zone, storage, networking, and RDP access with auto shutdown for cost management.

Install a Windows 10 enterprise OS on Azure by creating a VM, choosing the OS version, configuring storage and licensing, and preparing for host name changes.

Change a Windows 10 hostname through settings by navigating to system, about, rename this pc, and selecting change to set a new name, with domain join.

Learn to schedule a Windows device to restart or shut down at a chosen time using the command prompt, including delays and how to cancel with shutdown /a.

Understand how Active Directory authenticates users and computers, enables single sign-on, manages users and groups, enforces security policies, and supports DNS, trust relationships, group policies, and certificate services.

Explore domain trusts in Active Directory, enabling secure authentication and cross-domain access through one-way, two-way, and transitive or non-transitive relationships, including forest trusts and trust verification.

Explore the Active Directory domain services core component, including the directory database, schema, domains, domain controllers, and global catalog, plus trust, organizational units, group policy, and replication for centralized authentication.

Learn how to promote a second domain controller in an existing domain, configure Active Directory domain services, DNS, and replication, with Azure deployment considerations.

Learn how to enable the Active Directory recycle bin to restore deleted user accounts or devices, using the Active Directory Administrative Center and proper enterprise admin rights.

Explore organizational units and containers in Active Directory to organize users, computers, and groups within domain, enable hierarchical structures, delegate administration, and apply policies to OUs, noting containers' limited compatibility.

Create organizational units in a Windows domain with Active Directory users and computers and PowerShell, manage protected deletion, and build a global ICT organizational unit structure.

Learn to create the first user in an Active Directory domain. Assign a logon name, place in an organizational unit, and enforce password changes at next logon with PowerShell.

Learn to create multiple Active Directory users efficiently with PowerShell scripts and a CSV import, using a for each loop and Active Directory module to target organizational units and groups.

Learn how to create and manage groups in Active Directory, including security and distribution groups, group scope (domain local, global, universal), and adding members; explore using PowerShell for bulk creation.

Create multiple organizational units in Active Directory with a PowerShell script that imports a CSV of OU names and paths to batch-create them.

Learn to block a specific user from a domain by disabling the account in Active Directory and coordinate with Exchange/Office 365 to revoke email access, noting potential sync delays.

Learn how to delegate Active Directory tasks to a help desk group using the Delegation of Control Wizard, including resetting passwords and forcing password changes in an organizational unit.

Restrict a user's logon by time and device in a domain environment, enforcing hours from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., denying saturdays and sundays, and limiting access to specific computers.

Rename the local admin account on Windows 10 and Windows 11 using group policy management. Deploy the change across domain computers via local users and computers settings and gpupdate.

Learn to change a local Windows 11 user password using three methods: cmd with net user, PowerShell with set local user, and Computer Management's set password option.

Learn to grant local admin rights by using a domain group policy: create a local admin group, configure restricted groups, and push updates to Windows 11 devices.

Explain how the domain name system translates human friendly names into IP addresses. Describe the roles of FQDN and zones in hierarchical, distributed DNS management and delegation.

Install and configure a DNS server on Windows Server 2022 using PowerShell or Server Manager, and understand primary and secondary DNS alongside domain controller considerations with static IP guidance.

Learn how forward and reverse lookup zones in a dns server translate domain names to ip addresses and ip addresses to domain names, using A, AAAA, and PTR records.

Explore how a primary DNS zone serves as the authoritative master repository for domain records, enabling read and write access, zone transfers, and ongoing maintenance.

Create a primary DNS zone on Windows Server 2022 by configuring the DNS server to be authoritative for a domain, enabling secure dynamic updates, and managing zone transfers.

Explore the dns resource record, the data structure for domain names, enabling queries to resolve ip addresses and manage records like a, aaaa, cname, mx, ns, and soa with ttl.

Secondary zones provide a read-only copy of the primary zone for redundancy, fault tolerance, and load balancing, updated by zone transfers from the primary server.

Explore how group policy centralizes configuration across users and computers in Active Directory, enforces security and software deployment, and uses GPOs, inheritance, and reporting to ensure consistent, compliant networks.

Create a group policy object in Active Directory to prevent shutdown or restart for department users, linking GPOs to organizational units on Windows 11/10 and Azure remote sessions.

Master starter GPOs in Windows Server with group policy management, creating new GPOs from predefined templates and applying settings like preventing shutdown to users.

Configure security settings with group policy in Windows Server, enforcing password history, age, length, complexity, and account lockout policies across all users in an Active Directory domain.

Configure user policies with group policy management to restrict access to the control panel and settings for users in an OU, demonstrated with James Simon on Windows 11.

Learn to force group policy updates across devices using the group policy management console or gpupdate /force, verify success or failure on remote and local targets.

Learn how to back up and restore group policy objects in Active Directory, store backups on a network location, and manage or delete backups to recover policies as needed.

Import and copy group policy objects across users or domains, using backups and templates in a Windows Server 2022 domain, and restore or deploy 7-zip via GPO.

Troubleshoot group policy software deployment failures by configuring startup policy processing and wait for the network settings on the domain controller, run gpupdate, restart, and verify installation via Windows Installer.

Enable remote desktop across all organization PCs by creating and applying a group policy object from the domain controller, using administrative templates to allow remote connections and force policy updates.

Identify and resolve windows group policy issues using built-in tools: gpresult, group policy modeling wizard, rsop, event viewer, and gpupdate /force, plus remote PowerShell for enforcement.