For those with prior Windows Internals experience, provides updated information relevant to Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, and Windows 7.

Level

Intermediate

Audience

Applications developers; systems software developers; device driver developers; system administrators; system integrators; hardware OEMs; I.T. support personnel

Description

It is a common misconception that "there isn't really much new; it's all in the user interface." In fact Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, and Windows 7 each  incorporate a substantial set of changes in the underlying operating system. These changes have significant impacts for anyone with reason to be concerned about "how Windows works inside." While many of the core operating system features and functions visible to users are indeed superficially similar, these later  versions of Windows have made substantial improvements in the implementation of many major areas of the operating system. This seminar builds on your prior knowledge of Windows internals (through Windows Server 2003) and provides the information and skills you need to stay current. 

Security is a prime focus of Windows Vista through Windows 7, and we will examine all of the major changes in how Windows security operates, including BitLocker, Data Execution Prevention, Encrypting File System, Integrity Levels, PatchGuard, Privilege Isolation, Network Access Protection, and more.

In addition to these versions being more secure, they are also more robust than previous Windows versions, so we will examine the features and mechanisms that make Vista much more reliable than past operating systems.

You will also learn how the operation and performance of each system mechanism we describe is reflected in the various system monitoring tools. And while this is not specifically a debugging or troubleshooting seminar, the information here is essential for any type of problem analysis.

Topics

• Installation and bootstrapping differences

• User interface changes

• Thread scheduling

• Memory management and file cache enhancements

• Other performance optimizations

• Security improvements and features

• New device driver models

• Networking changes

• Backwards compatibility

• Reliability

• System administration; monitoring performance and resource usage

Prerequisites

Attendees must have attended one of our Windows Internals seminars (INT201 or equivalent) or have equivalent experience. 

Windows versions

Windows 7, Server 2008, Vista

Duration and formats

2 days with labs
1 day lecture only

Labs

As with the Windows Internals seminar, the labs in this seminar illustrate the concepts presented via a series of guided hands-on exercises. In the lecture-only version these are replaced with demonstrations by the instructor.