CompTIA A_ Certification All-In-One Exam Guide, Seventh Edition - Michael Meyers [39]
A great place to start is with the arrival of Windows 2000 in 2001. Throughout most of the 1990s, before Windows 2000 came along (followed very quickly by Windows XP), Windows was in a bit of a mess. Microsoft had two totally different operating systems—each called Windows—that it sold for two different markets. Microsoft sold the Windows 9x series for the home user and small office, and the much more powerful Windows NT series for corporate environments.
Essentials
Windows 2000
Windows 2000 was the first step toward changing this mess. It was based on the old Windows NT (including support for NTFS), but for the first time it included a great interface, provided support for dang near any program, and was substantially easier to use than the old Windows NT. Microsoft originally presented Windows 2000 as a replacement for Windows NT, but its stability and ease of use motivated many knowledgeable Windows 9x users to upgrade to Windows 2000. Windows 2000 started to appear as “the single Windows to replace all the other versions.”
Windows 2000 came in two versions: Professional and Server. The CompTIA A+ exams do not cover Windows Server versions, but a good tech should at least know that these server versions exist. If you were to look at the Windows 2000 Server desktop, you’d be hard pressed to see any obvious differences from the Windows 2000 Professional version. Don’t let Windows 2000 Server fool you (Figure 4-5). Windows Server is a heavy-duty version, loaded with extra software and features that make it superb for running an office server. Windows Server versions are also extremely expensive, costing on average of around $200 per computer that accesses the server.
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EXAM TIP Windows 2000 was the last version of Windows to come in both Server and Professional versions. After the release of Windows XP, Microsoft introduced the next version of Windows Server as Server 2003. Windows Server 2008 is the latest version of Windows Server.
Windows XP
Windows XP came hot on the heels of Windows 2000. Under the hood, XP was basically the same as Windows 2000, but added a dramatically improved interface and a number of new features, such as a built-in CD writer. Microsoft also broke with the beauty of 2000’s “one OS for everyone” idea. Microsoft visualized three types of users—professionals, home users, and media junkies—so Windows XP came in several versions, such as Windows XP Professional, Windows XP Home, and Windows XP Media Center.
Figure 4-5 Windows 2000 Server
Windows XP Professional
Microsoft Windows XP Professional is, in many people’s opinions, the most versatile and, therefore, the most mainstream version of Windows XP. Microsoft tuned Windows XP Professional for office environments with many users sharing lots of data and multiple users sharing single computers. Windows XP Professional provides full-blown data security, and it is the only version of Windows XP with the capability of logging into a special Windows Server-controlled network called a domain.
A Windows domain is a group of networked computers all under the control of a single computer running some version of Windows Server. Users on a domain can make a single login to their computer that defines everything they can do on every other computer on the domain. (See Chapter 23, “Local Area Networking,” for all the details of the amazing Windows domain.) Figure 4-6 shows a typical Windows XP Professional desktop.
Figure 4-6 Windows XP Professional
Windows XP Home
As its name implies, Windows XP Home is designed for the home and small-office user. Windows XP Home is a stripped-down version of XP Professional.