The text below should be in Lesson 2 on page 22 of the Windows Server 2008 Active Directory Configuration, Exam 70-640 textbook. Updates to the text appear in a blue font.
Introducing the Server Manager
The Bottom Line
Before you begin working in Windows Server 2008, you need to be familiar with the central administrative interface. When you boot up a Windows Server 2008 server, you will see a window similar to that shown in Figure 2-1.

Figure 2-1
Server Manager
Windows Server 2008 provides a new unified tool for administering all aspects of a particular server. When a Windows Server 2008 server boots for the first time, you will see the Initial Configuration Tasks window that allows you to perform initial configuration tasks, such as setting the computer name and configuring the Windows Firewall. You can add roles to a 2008 server from the Initial Configuration Tasks (ICT) interface or from the Server Manager console in the Administrative Tools folder. From here, you can add and remove different server roles (such as the DNS server role or the Active Directory Domain Services role), as well as perform system diagnostics; configure system services, such as the Windows Firewall; and drill down into specific administrative tools, such as the DNS Management Console or Active Directory Users and Computers.
In computers, best practices are guidelines that are considered the ideal way to configure a server. Best practice violations can result in poor performance, poor reliability, unexpected conflicts, increased security risk or other potential problems. To make it easier to find and apply best practices, Server Manager includes a Best Practices Analyzer (BPA) starting with Windows Server 2008 R2. To access the BPA in Server Manager, perform the following: 1. Open Server Manager. To open Server Manager, click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then