Chapter 3: Installing and Repairing Windows NT Server

Abstract

This chapter introduces you to the various methods of installing Windows NT Server. You will learn how to deal with Intel and RISC computers, repair damaged installations, reinstall NT Server, and avoid common installation problems.

---

If you’ve had experience installing and configuring UNIX, NetWare, or other server operating systems, you’ll find that installing Windows NT Server 4.0 is simpler. The product itself makes your life easier by providing lots of prompting and help along the way. Even so, quite a few steps are involved. In this chapter, I walk you through those steps to help you to complete successful installations on the first try.

You’ll be less stressed during the installation process if you make several key decisions up front. If you haven’t gone through Chapters 1 and 2 and recorded your installation decisions, now is a great time to do so. Have Worksheet 1-3 outlining your decisions close at hand before you begin NT installation.

You may have purchased your server hardware with Windows NT Server 4.0 preinstalled on the hard disk. If so, you may find that the term “preinstalled” is somewhat loosely defined. You’ll probably have to complete most of the installation steps yourself. Refer to the documentation that came with your server computer to determine exactly where you need to start in the installation process.

Even if you’re inheriting administration of a Windows NT Server network that has already been installed, there’ll come a day when you’ll need to build another NT server on your network. Or, you may be called upon to repair or reinstall NT on your current server. When those days arrive, turn to these pages for guidance.

Later in this chapter, I also discuss how to handle installation on RISC-based computers. Finally, I deal with the grim tasks of repairing damaged installations or reinstalling the entire NT Server operating system. Along the way, I pass along some helpful hints and important caveats to remember.

PREPARING TO INSTALL WINDOWS NT SERVER

Regardless of how you choose to install Windows NT Server 4.0 on your computer, make sure to complete the following steps before proceeding with NT installation:

 

1. Ensure that your computer’s hardware is compatible with Windows NT Server 4.0.
Check the Windows NT Hardware Compatibility List to determine whether your computer and its peripheral devices are compatible with Windows NT Server.

 

Cross-Reference: Chapters 1 and 2 provide detailed guidelines on selecting and configuring hardware for your server computer.

 

Tip: Read the SETUP.TXT file on the floppy disk labeled “Setup Disk 2” for last-minute installation advice from Microsoft. This file may contain important installation tips for specific computer models or hardware devices.

 

2. If you need to supply drivers for some of your hardware devices, locate or create the driver disks.

 

Cross-Reference: See Chapter 1 for a discussion on how to create driver disks from the Windows Driver Library included on the Windows NT Server 4.0 CD-ROM.

 

3. Complete Worksheet 1-3 in preparation for installation on this computer.
Making all of the installation decisions beforehand will save you time and aggravation during the installation process. Have the worksheet with you during the entire process.
4. Back up your hard disks.
If the hard disks on your server computer contain any data that you want to retain, create a full backup of your hard disks before proceeding with installation. If you’re upgrading from an old version of Windows NT Server to 4.0, make sure that your backup includes the old Windows NT directory tree, since NT 4.0 will overwrite it. If you’re not upgrading, NT is designed to leave everything else on your system alone. However, since NT installation gives you the power to destroy and reformat disk partitions with a few keystrokes, minimize your risk by making a full backup now.

 

Tip: If your computer’s hard disks have never been formatted, or if they were formatted under another operating system such as UNIX or VMS, Setup may tell you that it detected a possible virus and terminate installation. See the Chapter 1 section entitled “Handling Unknown File Systems” for information on how to avoid this problem.

 

5. Back up your Windows NT Server Setup floppy disks.
Make copies of the three Setup floppy disks, store the originals in a safe place, and use the copies during the installation process.
6. If you have hardware devices that aren’t supported by Windows NT, gather your hardware manuals, configuration information, and driver disks.
Check the Windows NT Hardware Compatibility List to determine which hardware devices are supported by NT. Other devices may work with NT, but they often require NT device drivers supplied by the hardware manufacturer.
7. If you have a UPS device attached to the serial port of your computer, disconnect it before proceeding.
NT Setup automatically tries to detect serial devices, and this can cause trouble with your UPS.
8. On the Windows NT Server 4.0 CD-ROM, review the file \I386\SETUP.TXT. This file contains last-minute additions to information on known NT installation problems and workarounds.
SETUP.TXT also contains information on how to diagnose and report NT installation problems to Microsoft.
9. If you’re installing on an Intel x86-based computer, be sure that it’s configured to boot from a 3.5-inch floppy disk.
This may involve enabling floppy disk booting in the computer’s CMOS configuration and perhaps swapping floppy disk cables to make your 3.5-inch drive the A drive. Refer to your hardware documentation, if your computer won’t currently boot from a 3.5-inch floppy disk.

 

Tip: During the installation process, Setup will display the list of disk drives and partitions present on your computer. You can’t count on the drive letters matching what you’re used to seeing in DOS or even in earlier versions of Windows NT. So before starting Setup, make sure that the volume labels on your disk partitions are meaningful to you. That way, you can use the volume labels, and not the drive letters, to identify your partitions. You’ll need to be able to identify them during the installation process.

Once you’ve completed these preliminary steps, you’re ready to select your method of installation, which I describe in the next section.

CHOOSING YOUR INSTALLATION METHOD

Before you can even start to install Windows NT Server 4.0 on your computer, you’ll need to select which method to use. Following are three distinct approaches:

 

• Install from CD-ROM. Use this method if you have a local CD-ROM drive attached to your computer and the drive is included in the NT Hardware Compatibility List.
• Install over the network. Use this method if you don’t have a CD-ROM drive on your computer, but you do already have a working network with a server that can access a CD-ROM drive.
• Install from an unsupported CD-ROM drive. Use this method if you have a CD-ROM drive attached to your x86-based computer, but the drive isn’t included in the NT Hardware Compatibility List.

 

Note: Earlier versions of Windows NT Server provided the option of installing from a stack of more than 20 floppy disks, but Microsoft dropped support for floppy installation in NT version 4.0. Only CD-ROM and network installations are now supported.

Installation from a local Windows NT-compatible CD-ROM drive is the simplest and quickest approach to installing Windows NT Server 4.0. I heartily recommend using this method on your first NT Server installation. Incurring the cost of equipping your computer with an NT-compatible CD-ROM drive is worth the savings in additional complexity, time, and effort associated with the other methods. Use the Windows NT Hardware Compatibility List for recommended CD-ROM drives.

The network installation approach involves significant preparation. Moreover, it requires that you have a working network already up and running. However, if you have several computers on your existing network that need Windows NT Server installed, this approach can be more efficient in the long run. The existing network need not be a Microsoft network. It can be any network that allows you to copy files between computers. Because of its complexity, though, I don’t recommend this approach for your very first NT Server installation.

The unsupported CD-ROM drive approach falls somewhere between the other two approaches, in terms of complexity. If your server computer has a CD-ROM drive that isn’t compatible with NT, opt for this approach to perform the installation.

In the following sections, I outline the installation steps for each approach. Go directly to the section that presents the approach that you’ve selected, and begin there.

STEPS TO INSTALL FROM CD-ROM ON INTEL

In this section, I show you how to install Windows NT Server 4.0 using a local CD-ROM drive on an Intel x86-based server computer. If your computer is based on a RISC processor, go to the section entitled “Steps to Install from CD-ROM on RISC,” and follow the steps outlined there.

In this procedure, the CD-ROM drive must be included in the NT Hardware Compatibility List. This is the most straightforward approach to installation and requires the least amount of up-front preparation.

Gathering Your Materials

You’ll need to assemble the following materials before you begin installation from your local CD-ROM drive:

• The installation worksheet that you completed in Chapter 1 (Worksheet 1-3)
• The Windows NT Server 4.0 CD-ROM
• One 1.44MB blank floppy disk, labeled “Emergency Repair”
• Three 1.44MB floppy disks included with Windows NT Server

Once you have all of this material close at hand, you are ready to install Windows NT Server 4.0.

 

Note: You can boot from the Windows NT Server 4.0 CD-ROM if your Intel computer’s BIOS supports the El Torito Bootable CD-ROM format. (Sounds as if it needs a side order of cheese nachos.) Some Intel computers already provide this capability. Check the documentation that came with your computer to determine if your BIOS has this feature. If it does, you can perform the following steps without using the setup floppy disks.

Getting Setup Running

 

1. Insert the Windows NT Server 4.0 CD-ROM into your CD-ROM drive. Insert the “Setup Boot Disk” in drive A and restart the computer.
If you have more than one CD-ROM drive, insert the NT CD-ROM into the drive with the lowest SCSI ID number. For example, if you have CD-ROM drives at ID 1 and ID 6, use the drive at SCSI ID 1 for Windows NT Server installation. You’ll see several status messages as NT Setup examines your hardware and prepares for installation.
2. Setup asks for “Setup Disk 2.” Remove the Setup Boot Disk from drive A, insert “Setup Disk 2,” and press ENTER.
Setup launches a minimal version of the Windows NT kernel on your computer. You’ve entered the first phase of Setup, called text mode. You’ll see white text on a blue screen. The bottom line of the screen displays status information and lists your keyboard choices whenever you’re asked for input. While in text mode, you can press F1 to display help information. Press F3 if you want to exit Setup. If you do exit, though, keep in mind that you’ll have to start over again at step 1.
3. Setup asks if you want to set up Windows NT. Press ENTER to continue Setup.
You also have the option of repairing a damaged NT installation. In a later step, you’ll create an Emergency Repair disk. You’ll use this disk with the repair option of Setup if your operating system files are ever damaged. If you need to repair an NT installation, refer to the section entitled “Repairing Windows NT Server,” later in this chapter

 

Note: Previous versions of Windows NT Server offered you a choice of Express or Custom Setup. Express Setup asked fewer questions but offered you less control over the operating system’s installation. Windows NT Server 4.0 doesn’t offer you this choice.

Detecting Storage Hardware

 

4. Setup asks if you want it to detect SCSI, CD-ROM, and other mass storage devices automatically or skip the detection process. Press ENTER to begin detection.
Setup warns you that the probing it does during hardware detection may hang your computer. This rarely happens in practice. I recommend having Setup attempt to detect your hardware. It’s easier than hunting through a list of adapters to find just the right one. In the unlikely event that your computer hangs, reboots, or exhibits unusual behavior during the detection process, go back to step 1. When you reach step 4 again, press S to skip the automatic detection process, then go to step 7.
5. Setup asks for Setup Disk 3. Remove “Setup Disk 2” from drive A, insert “Setup Disk 3,” and press ENTER.
Setup scans for several makes and models of SCSI adapters and other hardware. This process may take a few minutes. It tries all available drivers and continues even after it finds an adapter, since you might have more than one of them in your computer. Setup will scan for SCSI adapters, non-SCSI CD-ROM drives (such as IDE CD-ROMs), built-in IDE/PCI adapters, and special mass storage devices (such as disk arrays from Dell and Compaq). It won’t look for non-SCSI hard disks or any device attached to a SCSI adapter. It will detect these devices later.
6. Setup lists the devices that it found and asks if you have additional devices to specify. If you have more SCSI host adapters in the computer that weren’t automatically detected, press S and go to step 7. If the displayed list of devices is complete, press ENTER and go to step 8.
Setup refers to the list of detected devices as “mass storage devices.” However, the list doesn’t include floppy disk drives, non-SCSI hard disk drives (IDE, EIDE, or ESDI), or devices attached to SCSI adapters. (Some integrated IDE/EIDE PCI adapters are included in the list.) Don’t worry about these other devices. They’re automatically detected by Setup later.

 

Adding Drivers Manually

 

7. Setup allows you to select drivers manually. Scroll through the driver list by pressing the UP and DOWN ARROW keys to select the driver that you need.
If you change your mind and want to go back to step 6 at any time, press ESC.

 

7a.	If the required driver is in the list, select it and press ENTER. Then go to step 7d.
7b.	If the required driver isn’t in the list, select the last choice in the list, called Other, and press ENTER. You must have a driver disk supplied by the hardware manufacturer to continue with the next step. Setup refers to this disk as a “Manufacturer-supplied hardware support disk.”
7c.	Setup asks for a hardware support disk. Remove “Setup Disk 3” from drive A, insert the hardware support disk, and press ENTER.
7d.	Setup adds the driver that you selected to its list of devices. If you have additional devices to add, go back to step 6. If not, press ENTER. If you inserted a hardware support disk in step 7c, Setup asks you to reinsert Setup Disk 3. If Setup asks for this disk, remove the hardware support disk, insert “Setup Disk 3,” and press ENTER.

Reviewing the License Agreement

 

8. Setup asks you to review the Microsoft End-User Licensing Agreement. Press PAGE DOWN to advance to the next page and PAGE UP to return to the previous page. You must proceed to the last page of the agreement. Press F8 if you agree to its terms or ESC if you don’t agree.
If you press ESC, indicating that you don’t agree to the terms, Setup will terminate the installation process. If you later decide that you agree to the terms, you’ll need to start again at step 1.

 

Tip: Unfortunately, you can’t print the agreement at this point, since the operating system isn’t installed yet. If you need to print the agreement later, you can find a copy of it in \I386\EULA.TXT on the Windows NT Server 4.0 CD-ROM.

Upgrading an Old Windows NT Server

 

9. If you already have one or more versions of Windows NT on your computer, Setup asks if you want to upgrade. If there’s no version of NT already installed on your computer, go to step 10. If you want to install a fresh copy of NT Server, go to step 9a. If you want to upgrade an existing version of NT, go to step 9b.

 

Cross-Reference: See Chapter 1 for a discussion of what to expect when upgrading from a previous version of Windows NT Server.

 

9a.

If you want to install a fresh copy of 4.0, separate from all other NT versions on your computer, press N. Then go to step 10. This will allow you to dual-boot between the old and new versions of NT. It won’t migrate any settings or applications from your old NT version to this one, however.

9b.

If you want to install 4.0 as an upgrade to a previous NT installation, use the UP and DOWN ARROW keys to highlight the version of NT that you want to upgrade. Select it by pressing ENTER. Then go to step 15. This will migrate settings and applications from your old NT version to the NT 4.0 installation. However, you’ll no longer be able to boot your computer into the old version of NT. You won’t be able to restore your old NT version either, unless you did a full backup before attempting to install NT 4.0.

Verifying Basic Hardware

 

10. Setup displays basic hardware information and asks you to confirm. If the items listed are correct, select the No changes option by pressing ENTER.
Setup displays some rough details about your hardware configuration, including computer type, display, keyboard type, keyboard layout, and pointing device. It usually detects these details correctly. If any are incorrect, use the UP and DOWN ARROW keys to highlight the incorrect item. Press ENTER to select it and view a list of options. If you have a display adapter that offers higher resolution than VGA, don’t bother changing the display driver at this stage. You’ll have an opportunity later to configure the display adapter. Accept the default setting of Auto Detect for the display type. This will allow Setup to determine your display type automatically later on. If you’re outside the United States, you’ll likely want to change your keyboard layout to an appropriate setting that matches your particular keyboard.

 

Upgrading Windows 3.x to Windows NT Server

 

11. If Setup lists your hard disks and partitions, go to step 12. Otherwise, go to step 11a.

 

Windows 95 and NT

If you have Windows 95 on your computer, choose to install a fresh copy of NT 4.0 in a separate directory. That way, you’ll be able to dual-boot between Windows 95 and Windows NT Server 4.0. None of your Windows 95 application information will be brought forward into your Windows NT Server installation. Go to step 11b to install a fresh copy of NT in a separate directory.

 

11a.	If you have Windows 3.x on your computer, Setup asks if you want to upgrade it to Windows NT. If Windows 95 is installed on this computer, go to step 11b. If you don’t want to upgrade a Windows 3.x installation, go to step 11b. If you want to upgrade a Windows 3.x installation, go to step 11c. If you have Windows 95 installed on your computer, Setup will detect it only if you installed it in your Windows 3.x directory.
11b.	If you want to install a fresh copy of NT 4.0, separate from other Windows products on your computer, press N. Then go to step 12. Doing this will allow you to dual-boot between DOS/Windows and Windows NT. It won’t migrate any settings or applications from your Windows 3.x installation to NT, however.
11c.	If you want to install 4.0 as an upgrade to Windows 3.x, press ENTER. Then go to step 15. This will migrate settings and applications from Windows 3.x to the NT 4.0 installation. You’ll still be able to dual-boot between DOS/Windows and Windows NT 4.0.

 

Cross-Reference: See Chapter 1 for a discussion of what to expect when upgrading from Windows 3.x.

Managing Disk Partitions

 

Caution: Use extreme caution when navigating through this next portion of Setup. You can easily create, destroy, and reformat entire disk partitions with a couple of keystrokes. Keep in mind that you’re running a cousin of the powerful and potentially destructive DOS FDISK utility.

 

12. Setup lists hard disks, partitions, and unpartitioned areas on your computer. It then asks you where to install NT 4.0. Use the UP and DOWN ARROW keys to scroll through the list and highlight a partition. Go to step 12a.
You’ll need to find a destination partition with at least 115MB of free space on which to install Windows NT Server. In the list, all non-SCSI drives are displayed as “IDE/ESDI Disk.” A SCSI drive is displayed as “Disk # at id # on bus # on” followed by the name of the SCSI adapter driver. The ID number is the SCSI ID assigned to the drive. Areas of your disks that contain no partition are displayed as “Unpartitioned space.” Partitions that have been created but not yet formatted are displayed as “New (Unformatted)” or as “Unformatted or Damaged.” Don’t worry about the latter. This is just NT’s generic way of saying that it doesn’t recognize a partition as formatted.

 

Caution: If you’re installing Windows NT Server on a computer that contains a previous version of Windows NT and you were using disk stripes, mirrors, or volume sets, these partitions are shown as “Windows NT Fault Tolerance” partitions. Don’t delete any of these partitions. See the section entitled “Migrating Fault Tolerance from Windows NT 3.x” in Chapter 10 for details on using existing fault-tolerance partitions.

If you don’t see all of your partitions listed, you may just need to use the UP and DOWN ARROW keys to scroll and display them. Only hard disks are included in this list.

Don’t panic if the drive letter assignments seem out of whack. They probably don’t match the drive letters that you see under DOS or even under another version of NT. Once you’ve got NT up and running, you’ll be able to change drive letter assignments very easily.

12a.	If you’re ready to select a partition on which NT 4.0 will be installed, highlight that partition, press ENTER, and go to step 13. If you’re not, go to step 12b to delete an existing partition or step 12c to create a new partition. You can select an unformatted partition or an existing formatted FAT or NTFS partition. Unpartitioned space isn’t a valid destination for NT installation. You need to partition it first, in step 12c. If the partition that you select isn’t large enough, Setup will complain and send you back to step 12.
12b.	If you need to delete an existing partition, highlight it and press D. CAREFUL! This will destroy all existing data on the partition. Setup will ask you to confirm your choice. Press L to confirm, and go back to step 12a. If you change your mind before pressing L, press ESC to return to step 12. Be careful, though. When you get back to step 12, you’ll be pointing at the C partition. Setup won’t let you delete the C partition. NT needs to install boot information there, even if you select a different destination partition for NT.
12c.	If you need to create a partition from unpartitioned space, highlight the unpartitioned space and press C. Setup will display a valid range of sizes for the partition. Type the partition size that you want, press ENTER, and go back to step 12a. If you change your mind before pressing ENTER, press ESC to return to step 12. Be careful, though. When you get back to step 12, you’ll be pointing at the C partition.

Formatting the Destination Partition

 

13. Setup asks how you want the destination partition formatted. Use the UP and DOWN ARROW keys to highlight your choice.

 

13a.	If you selected an existing formatted partition and you want to preserve its current contents, highlight the Leave the current file system intact (no changes) option, press ENTER, and go to step 14.
13b.	If you selected an existing FAT partition and you want to convert it to NTFS, highlight the Convert the partition to NTFS option, press ENTER, and go to step 14. When NT Server boots for the first time after you’ve completed installation, NT will convert the FAT partition to NTFS. The contents of the original partition will be preserved.
13c.	If you selected an existing formatted partition and you want to completely reformat it before installing NT, highlight either FAT or NTFS. CAREFUL! This will destroy all existing data on the partition. Press ENTER and go to step 13e.
13d.	If you selected an unformatted partition, highlight either FAT or NTFS, and press ENTER. If you select FAT now, you can always convert it to NTFS later without losing any data.
13e.	Setup formats the destination partition using the file system that you selected. Setup initially formats NTFS partitions as FAT. When NT Server boots for the first time after you’ve completed installation, NT will convert the FAT partition to NTFS.

Specifying the Destination Directory

 

14. Setup asks for the destination directory in which to install Windows NT Server.
Setup will create the destination directory that you specify. The directory will be created on the partition that you selected in step 12a.

 

14a.

The default directory is \WINNT. To accept this default, press ENTER, and go to step 15.

14b.

To change the destination directory name, use BACKSPACE to erase the existing name and type the destination directory name that you want. Then press ENTER. Even if you’re installing to an NTFS partition, the directory name must follow the 8.3 DOS filenaming format. You can’t use a long name or special characters in this directory name. If you do, Setup will complain and ask you to try again. If you elected to install NT 4.0 into a fresh directory, don’t type the directory name of an existing NT or Windows installation here. Setup will warn you that you could overwrite an existing installation that you meant to preserve.

Copying Files from CD-ROM

Note: If you didn’t insert your Windows NT Server 4.0 CD-ROM in step 1 or you inserted it in the wrong CD-ROM drive, Setup asks you for it now. See step 1 for details.

 

15. Setup asks if it should perform an exhaustive scan of your hard disks for errors. To begin the scan, press ENTER. When the scan is complete, Setup proceeds to step 16.
Setup scans your C partition and whatever partition that you selected for NT installation. It doesn’t scan the other partitions on your computer, since they won’t be used by Setup. If you have large disks, this process can take several minutes to complete. If you’re really pressed for time, you can skip the scan by pressing ESC. However, I strongly recommend performing the scan. It will save you from having to reinstall later if critical files aren’t copied correctly because of bad spots on your hard disk. Setup is sometimes unable to scan your hard disks because of low memory or other problems. When this happens, it typically gives you a friendly warning. Unless it specifically says that you have errors on your disk, it’s safe to proceed with installation.

 

Note: If you’re installing NT on an existing NTFS partition, you may notice that the scan takes a very short time relative to scanning FAT partitions. Don’t worry. This is normal behavior.

 

16. Setup copies files from the NT CD-ROM to your hard disk. When it’s done, proceed to step 17.
This process can take several minutes. You can track its progress by watching the gas gauge. If Setup complains about not being able to copy a file, note the filename and the error message. Skip copying individual files at your own risk. If you do, you’ll have a partial operating system that may not behave correctly. Seek your technical support resources to troubleshoot the problem.
17. Setup asks you to press ENTER to restart the computer. Remove the floppy disk from drive A. Remove the Windows NT Server 4.0 CD-ROM from your computer, if it’s currently installed in a CD-ROM drive. Then press ENTER.
Leaving the CD-ROM in the drive can cause booting problems on some computers that attempt to boot from CD-ROM. This concludes the text-mode phase of installation. Setup will now restart the system in NT’s graphical mode. This will automatically launch you into the next phase of the installation process.

 

Note: During the boot process, you’ll see several messages about checking hardware, pressing SPACE for the Hardware Profile or Last Known Good configuration, choosing number of processors, selecting memory size, initializing, copying files, and so on. Don’t worry about these messages. Proceed to step 18 and wait for the Setup Wizard window.

Entering Identification Information

 

18. Setup displays a graphical Setup Wizard window that outlines the remaining installation steps, as shown in Figure 3-1. Click Next to continue.
Now that you’re running Windows NT in graphical mode, you can use both the mouse and the keyboard. In most subsequent screens, you’ll be able to navigate between Setup screens by clicking Back or Next. If you’re installing a fresh copy of NT Server, Setup runs in VGA mode. If you’re upgrading from a previous NT installation that used a higher display resolution, Setup uses that resolution. You’ll have an opportunity later to change the display to another resolution.
19. If you’re installing a fresh copy of NT Server, Setup asks for your name and organization, as shown inFigure 3-2. Type your name, press TAB, and optionally type your organization name. Then click Next.

 

Figure 3-1: The Setup Wizard guides you through the remainder of the NT Server installation process.

Figure 3-2: Setup asks you to enter your name and organization.

Note: Depending on how you obtained your copy of Windows NT Server 4.0, Setup may ask you to enter a product identification number or a 10-digit CD Key. If you have a product identification number, it’s printed inside the back cover of the Windows NT Server 4.0 Start Here manual and on your NT registration card. If you have a CD Key, it’s typically printed on a sticker on your NT CD-ROM cover. Keep this number handy, since Microsoft product support staff might ask for it if you ever have to call them.

If you’re upgrading from a previous version of NT Server, Setup doesn’t ask for your name or organization, but it may ask for your product identification number or CD Key. After specifying it, go to step 24.

 

20. Setup asks you to indicate which licensing mode that you’ve chosen. Click Per Server or Per Seat, depending on the licensing mode that you want. If you selected Per Server, type the maximum number of concurrent network connections to this server. Figure 3-3 illustrates this. Click Next.

 

Figure 3-3: Setup asks you to choose between Per Server and Per Seat licensing modes.

Per Server licensing requires a separate client access license for each concurrent connection to the server. Per Seat licensing requires a separate client license for each client node attached to the network.

 

Cross-Reference: See Chapter 1 for a more detailed description of your NT Server licensing options.

 

21. Setup asks for the unique name that you want to assign to this computer, as shown in Figure 3-4. Type the computer name and click Next.
The computer name must be unique on your network and must be no longer than 15 characters. Never include spaces in the computer name.
22. As shown in Figure 3-5, Setup asks you to select the type of server that you want to install: Primary Domain Controller, Backup Domain Controller, or Stand-Alone Server. Click the appropriate choice for this server. Then click Next.
Each domain on your network can have only one PDC and one or more BDCs. The default selection is PDC. If this is the first Windows NT server in your domain, make it a PDC.
23. Setup asks for the password that you want to assign to the administrator account. Type the password that you want to assign, press TAB, and type the same password to confirm, as illustrated by Figure 3-6. Then click Next.
The administrator password must be 14 characters or less. Always assign an administrator password.

 

Figure 3-4: You must enter the unique name of this computer.

Figure 3-5: You select the role that you want this server to play: PDC, BDC, or stand-alone.

Figure 3-6: You should always specify and confirm the password for the administrator account.

Caution: If you don’t set an administrator password, you’ll leave yourself open to unauthorized tampering. Unless you assign a password, anyone can log on as administration and delete or damage the files on your server. Always set an administrator password. Unlike previous NT versions, NT 4.0 won’t warn you if you leave this password blank.

You must remember this password. If you forget it, you’ll have to reinstall the operating system. Write down the password and lock it away in a safe place.

Note: If your computer contains an early Intel Pentium processor with the floating-point division error, Setup will ask if you want to disable the floating-point unit and use software emulation. See the Pentium section in Chapter 1 for a discussion of this problem and solution.

 

24. Setup asks if you want to create an Emergency Repair disk, as illustrated in Figure 3-7. Click Yes, and then click Next.
Always elect to create an Emergency Repair disk. In a later step, you’ll actually create the disk. You’ll use this disk to restore the system if your operating system files are ever damaged.

 

Figure 3-7: You should always choose to create an Emergency Repair floppy disk.

Caution: An Emergency Repair disk isn’t interchangeable between computers. The repair disk contains very specific information about where you installed the operating system, the contents of your NT registry, details about device and disk partition configuration, the computer name, and so forth. You can’t use a repair disk from one computer to recover another one. So, be sure to create a separate repair disk for each Windows NT installation that you perform.

 

If you’re upgrading a previous version of NT Server, Setup informs you that it’s about to upgrade network services. Click Next. It then informs you that it’s about to upgrade network components. Again click Next. Then go to step 37.
25. Setup asks you to select optional components to install. Review the optional components and select those that you want to install by clicking the appropriate checkboxes, and then click Next.
You’ll see the Select Components dialog box. If you want to pick and choose from the available optional components, click Details to see a breakdown of each one. Click Reset if you want to restore your selections back to the defaults. If you exclude any components now, you can always install them later, if you need them. Some optional items take up disk space that you may not need or want to consume on a server. Accessories, games, animated mouse cursors, multimedia sound schemes, and wallpapers are good candidates for exclusion to save disk clutter. (OK, you can install the games. Just don’t play them.) The Windows Messaging component includes Internet Mail, Microsoft Mail, and Windows Messaging (essentially the Microsoft Exchange client). These mail components together consume about 6MB of disk space. If you’re not going to use your server to send and receive e-mail, consider excluding these components.

 

Configuring the Network

 

26. Setup displays a message indicating that it’s about to install NT networking. Click Next.
At this point, you can still click Back all the way back to step 18, if you want to make changes to any of your prior selections in the graphical phase of Setup.
27. Setup asks if this server is directly connected to your LAN or will dial into your network via RAS. Click to select the Wired to the network checkbox.
Figure 3-8 illustrates the dialog box if you’re installing a primary domain controller (PDC) or backup domain controller (BDC). Having a Windows NT Server PDC or BDC as a remote node connecting to your network via RAS is an unusual situation. Note that your selection here doesn’t affect your server’s ability to act as a RAS server to remote node clients. If you elected to install Windows NT Server as a stand-alone server in step 22, you’re given the option of installing network components during Setup, as shown in Figure 3-9. If you don’t want to install network components, click to select the Do not connect this computer to a network at this time option, click Next, and go to step 37. If you want to install the network, click to select the This computer will participate on a network option and go to step 28. If you don’t install networking components during Setup, you’ll be able to install them later.
28. Click Next. Setup asks if you want to install the Internet Information Server. Click to clear the Install Microsoft Internet Information Server checkbox and click Next.
Although you’re given the opportunity to install the Internet Information Server during NT installation, I recommend that you install it after you’ve got the operating system up and running.

 

Figure 3-8: You can select between having your computer wired to the network or remotely connected when installing a PDC or BDC.

Figure 3-9: You can optionally skip network installation when installing a stand-alone server.

Note: If you elect to install the Internet Information Server during Windows NT Server installation, Setup will require that you also install the TCP/IP protocol in step 30. See Chapter 5 for details on installing and configuring TCP/IP.

 

29. Setup offers to search for your network adapter hardware, as shown in Figure 3-10. Click Start Search to begin the search.
In previous versions of NT, Setup warned you that its network hardware probing at this step might hang your computer. It no longer warns you about this, but depending on your hardware configuration, there’s still a remote possibility of this happening. If your system does hang at this point, restart your computer and begin again from step 18. When you reach step 29 again, opt to enter your adapter information manually by clicking Select from list.

 

Figure 3-10: To begin the search for installed network adapters, click Start Search.

29a.	If Setup finds a network adapter, it displays the first adapter that it detects, as shown in Figure 3-11. If Setup’s list of network adapters is complete, click Next and go to step 30. Otherwise, go to step 29b.
29b.	If you have additional network adapters in the computer, click Find Next to continue the search. Refer to Figure 3-11. If you have multiple network adapters in your computer, Windows NT Server will use any or all of them, depending on how you configure your system. You’ll be able to bind specific protocols to specific network adapters selectively.

Figure 3-11: Setup lists the first network adapter that it finds and gives you the option of continuing the search.

Cross-Reference: Network binding is covered in Chapter 2.

 

29c.

If you have a network adapter in the system that Setup doesn’t detect and you have a driver disk provided by the adapter manufacturer, click Select from list. Then click the Have Disk button, insert the driver disk in drive A, and follow the instructions on the screen. Some network adapters are supported by drivers in the Windows Driver Library.

 

Cross-Reference: See Chapter 2 for details on how to create a driver disk for your adapter.

 

30. Setup asks you to select which protocols you want to install: TCP/IP, IPX/SPX, or NetBEUI. Click to select or clear desired protocol checkboxes and click Next. See Figure 3-12.
By default, both TCP/IP and IPX/SPX are selected. You’ll be able to add or delete protocols easily after you’ve installed the operating system. You can install any combination of these three protocols.

 

Figure 3-12: You can select the network protocols that you want to install.

Cross-Reference: NetBEUI and IPX/SPX require no further configuration during installation. TCP/IP will ask for lots of additional information. If you choose to install TCP/IP at this point, see Chapter 5 for details on the decisions on DHCP and IP addressing that you’ll be asked during TCP/IP installation.

 

Unless TCP/IP is the only protocol on your network, I recommend installing it after installing Windows NT Server. Installing TCP/IP can be a bit complex, and you need to understand several TCP/IP concepts and options in detail. Once you have experience installing TCP, you can include it during future NT operating system installations.

 

Tip: If you’re going to use the Network Client Administrator to install network software on your DOS or Windows 3.x client computers over the network, as described in Chapter 7, install NetBEUI on your server now. The installation disk for DOS client software supports only the NetBEUI protocol. See Chapter 7 for more details on installing network clients.

 

31. Setup asks you to select which network services you want to install. Click Next.
Doing this installs the workstation (that is, the redirector), server, NetBIOS interface, and RPC configuration services. These services, as shown in Figure 3-13, are required on Windows NT Server. If you want to select additional services, click the Select from list option. Unless you’re sure that you want to install specific additional services, I recommend just clicking Next. You can always install additional services later, after the operating system is installed.

 

Figure 3-13: Setup enables you to view and specify additional network services.

Tip: Of all the available additional services, I especially recommend that you don’t install RAS at this time, especially if this is your first Windows NT Server installation. You’re better off installing RAS after installing Windows NT Server, since it can be a bit complex and you need to understand the various RAS concepts and options in detail.

 

Cross-Reference: In Chapter 5, I show you the detailed steps to install RAS. Once you have background and experience installing RAS, you can include it during future NT operating system installations.

 

32. Setup informs you that it’s about to install network components. Click Next.
At this point, you can still click Back to go all the way back to step 27, if you want to make changes to any of the network settings that you’ve specified thus far.
33. If your network adapter requires configuration, Setup asks you for adapter configuration information. When you’ve specified it, click OK. This step will be repeated for each network adapter that you’re installing.
The type of information required varies with each network adapter. Typically, you’ll need to specify at least the adapter’s IRQ and I/O port address. A simple example is shown in Figure 3-14.

 

Figure 3-14: Network adapter configuration typically requires the IRQ and I/O address settings.

Cross-Reference: See Chapter 2 for details on configuring your network adapters and refer to Worksheet 1-3 for the information that you need to type here.

 

Setup may display a warning dialog box indicating that it can’t verify your network adapter settings. This is normal for some adapters. If you see this message, double-check that your entries are correct and click OK. If you want to change your network adapter settings, click Cancel and retype them.
34. Setup allows you to review and change network bindings, as shown in Figure 3-15. Click Next.

 

Figure 3-15: Setup allows you to review and alter network bindings.

Cross-Reference: Unless you’re sure that you want to make specific changes to network bindings, click Next. You’ll be able to make changes to bindings later, after you’ve installed the operating system. Chapter 2 covers when and how to change network bindings.

 

35. Setup informs you that it’s about to start the network. Click Next.
36. Setup asks for the name of the domain or workgroup in which this server will participate. Type the appropriate name and click Next.
If you specified a PDC or BDC in step 22, you’ll be asked for the domain name. In this case, press TAB, type the domain name, and click Next. Figure 3-16 illustrates this.

 

Figure 3-16: Enter the domain name when installing a PDC or BDC.

Caution: The default domain name is “DOMAIN.” Be sure to change it to the name that you’ve chosen for your domain. Setup won’t warn you if you just accept the default domain name. Once other computers have joined the domain, it’s very difficult to change the domain name. Set it correctly now to avoid headaches later.

 

The domain name must be 15 characters or less. Setup displays the computer name that you entered earlier, but you can’t change it on this screen.

 

Figure 3-17 presents the dialog box that is displayed if you’re installing a stand-alone server. You’re asked for either a workgroup or domain name in which this server will participate. In this case, press TAB to reach the appropriate field and type the workgroup or domain name. If you’re specifying a domain, click the Create a Computer Account in the Domain option and click Next. Setup will ask for the user name and password that can create a computer account in the domain, as shown in Figure 3-18. Type them and click OK.

 

Tip: You can use the domain administrator account, if you know the password. However, I recommend creating a special domain account (with a password) for users to type when they’re installing NT and adding computer accounts to the domain.

Figure 3-17: You should specify a workgroup or domain name when installing a stand-alone server.

Figure 3-18: You specify the user name and password of a user account that has rights to create a computer account in the domain.

 

Once you click Next, it may take a minute or so before the next step begins.

 

Note: If you’re installing a BDC or stand-alone server and the PDC of the domain that you’re trying to join is not available, Setup will display an error message. If you’re installing a stand-alone server, you can opt to join a workgroup temporarily and continue with Setup. The server can join the domain later. If you’re installing a BDC, you need to make the PDC available on the network to complete the BDC installation process.

Completing the Installation

 

37. Setup tells you that it’s about to finish the installation process, as shown in Figure 3-19. Click Finish.
If you’re installing a fresh copy of NT Server, Setup lies. There are still several more steps to go. Once you click Next, you’ll see lots of disk activity and status messages for a couple of minutes. At this stage, you’ve reached the point of no return. You can’t click Back to change previous selections. If you’re upgrading a previous version of NT Server, Setup asks if you want to install the Internet Information Server. Click to clear the Install Microsoft Internet Information Server checkbox and click OK. Then go to to step 43. Although you’re given the opportunity to install the Internet Information Server during NT installation, I recommend that you install it after you’ve got the operating system up and running.
38. Setup allows you to set the correct time zone for your area. In the time zone list, select your time zone and click Close, as shown in Figure 3-20.
The actual date and time settings should be set correctly, since Setup reads this information from your computer’s internal clock. If you want to verify it, click the Date & Time tab to see the date and time settings.
39. As shown in Figure 3-21, Setup detects your video hardware and selects a driver for your video display adapter. Click OK.
Setup sometimes selects a generic video driver that handles the video chip set that your adapter uses. For example, Setup will select the S3 driver for almost all of the many video adapters that use the S3 chip set. Your video adapter documentation should indicate the chip set that your adapter uses. The Windows NT Hardware Compatibility List includes a list of NT-compatible video chip sets. Video adapters based on these chip sets are expected to work with Windows NT using the appropriate generic driver.
40. Setup shows your current video display settings, as shown in Figure 3-22. If you want to change them, go to step 40a. Otherwise, proceed to step 42.
You can alter the settings and test your changes before committing to them.

 

Figure 3-19: Setup teases you by claiming that it’s finishing up the installation process.

Figure 3-20: Select the time zone that matches your geographical location.

Figure 3-21: Setup detects your display adapter and selects a device driver—in this case, a Matrox Millennium adapter.

Figure 3-22: Setup gives you the opportunity to change and test your display adapter configuration.

40a.	If you want to change the number of colors displayed, select the desired number of colors in the Color Palette box.
40b.	If you want to change the display resolution, move the Desktop Area slider to the appropriate position. The default position is 640x480, which is VGA resolution. Figure 3-22 shows the slider at 1024x768.
40c.	If you prefer large fonts instead of small fonts, click Large Fonts in the Font Size box.

 

41. Test your new video settings by clicking Test.

 

41a.	In the Testing Mode dialog box, click OK to see a five-second video test pattern. The test pattern is self-explanatory, and varies depending on your video display settings. Make sure that the pattern displays what it says it’s displaying.
41b.	Setup asks if the pattern appeared correctly. If it did, click Yes and go to step 42. If not, click No, click OK, and go back to step 40. If the pattern appeared incorrectly, check your video adapter and monitor documentation, go back to step 40, and try different video settings.

 

42. In the Display Settings dialog box, click OK. Then, in the Display Properties dialog box, click OK.
At this point, Setup displays configuration and file copying status messages. The file copy process may take several minutes.
43. Setup asks you for a blank floppy disk to be used as the Emergency Repair disk. Insert a disk in drive A and click OK.
The floppy disk should be 1.44MB; however, it doesn’t have to be blank because Setup formats it for you. Make sure there’s no important data on the disk, though, since it will all be erased.

 

Note: Setup sometimes has trouble dealing with 2.88MB floppy disks. Even if you have a 2.88MB floppy disk drive, supply a blank Emergency Repair disk that’s been formatted for 1.44MB, and you’ll save potential headaches.

Don’t skip this step. Always create an Emergency Repair disk. You need one for each Windows NT installation that you perform. Remember, the repair disks aren’t interchangeable between different computers or between different installations on the same computer.

Setup formats the floppy disk and copies configuration files to it.

44. Setup tells you it’s complete Figure 3-23. Remove the Emergency Repair disk from drive A, remove the NT Server CD-ROM from the CD-ROM drive, and click Restart Computer.
This time, Setup doesn’t lie. You’re actually finished with the Windows NT Server 4.0 installation—you lucky devil. When you restart the computer, Windows NT Server will boot and run.

 

Figure 3-23: Good job! You’ve successfully installed Windows NT Server.

STEPS TO INSTALL OVER THE NETWORK

In this section, I show you how to install Windows NT Server 4.0 over the network. Using this approach, you don’t need a local CD-ROM drive on the computer that you’re setting up. You’ll pull all of the required NT files over the network from a network server. This approach to installation requires some preparation. You’ll need to have a network up and running before you begin.

The network that you have running need not be a Microsoft network, nor do you need any Windows NT Server computers to use this installation approach. For example, if you have an operational NetWare network, you can perform the network installation of Windows NT Server using the steps outlined in this section. Likewise, if you have a LANtastic or VINES network, you can use this procedure.

Since the computers on your existing network could be running any network operating system, I can’t tell you specifically how to perform each action. For example, the action of a client logging on to a server to gain access to resources differs from one network operating system to the next. I’ll outline the actions that you’ll need to complete, and you’ll then need to fill in the details of what to press, click, or type to accomplish those actions.

If you’re planning to install Windows NT Server 4.0 over the network onto RISC-based computers, those computers must already be running a version of Windows NT. If they’re not, you’ll need to use the procedure outlined in “Steps to Install from CD-ROM on RISC.”

Gathering Your Materials

You’ll need the following materials close at hand before you begin installation over the network:

 

• The installation worksheet (Worksheet 1-3) that you completed in Chapter 1.
• The Windows NT Server 4.0 CD-ROM.
• One 1.44MB blank floppy disk for each computer on which you intend to install Windows NT Server. Label these disks “Emergency Repair.”
• Three blank, formatted 1.44MB floppy disks. Label these disks “Setup Boot Disk,” “Setup Disk 2,” and “Setup Disk 3.” You’ll need one set of disks for each computer on which you intend to install Windows NT Server.

Caution: Be sure that the three blank disks are free of any viruses. This procedure won’t reformat them, and you’ll be booting the computer from one of these disks.

Preparing the Master File Server Select an existing server on your network. You’ll prepare this server to provide network access to the NT master files. I’ll call this server the master file server. Other computers on your network will be able to install NT by accessing the master file server over the network.

I’ll call the computers on which you want to install Windows NT Server 4.0 the target computers. You’ll have other computers on your network as well, running as clients. These aren’t target computers. Only the computers that need Windows NT Server 4.0 on them are target computers, including PDCs, BDCs, and perhaps stand-alone servers.

The master file server must have access to a CD-ROM drive, either locally or via the existing network. You’ll need read and write access to the master file server, in order to write the NT files on its hard disk. Each target computer requires read access to the directories that you create on the master file server, to allow copying the NT files over the network.

On the master file server, you’ll need enough free disk space to hold the master files that you copy from the NT CD-ROM. Here’s a breakdown of the server master file disk space that you’ll need for each NT platform you plan to install:

 

• Intel x86 master files require 45MB of disk space on the master file server.
• MIPS master files require 56MB of disk space.
• Alpha master files require 57MB of disk space.
• PowerPC master files require 52MB of disk space.

You only need the master files required by the target computers on which you plan to install NT. If you have all Intel x86-based target computers, you’ll just need to copy the x86 master files to your master file server. However, if you have a mix of Alpha-based computers and x86 computers, you’ll need both the x86 and Alpha master files on the master file server.

 

Note: Don’t be misled by the relatively small amount of disk space required for each platform. These files are compressed. They’ll expand during actual NT installation on the target computers. Leaving them compressed for now saves disk space on your master file server and will make installation over the network a bit quicker.

If you’re not sure what processors are in your target computers, you’ll need to find out now, so that you can determine which sets of master files to copy to your master file server. Of course, computers running DOS, Windows 3.x, Windows for Workgroups, or Windows 95 are definitely Intel x86-based. If you’re not sure of the processor that a target computer is using, check your hardware documentation.

Tip: If the target computer is already running a version of Windows NT, you can find out what processor it’s using by peeking into its NT registry database. To do this, perform the following steps:

 

1. Run REGEDT32.
You can launch it via the Program Manager File Run option or from the NT command prompt.
2. Click the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE window.
3. In the left side of the window, double-click the HARDWARE icon to expand it.
4. Double-click, in turn, on the DESCRIPTION, System, and CentralProcessor icons.
As you do this, each icon will expand to show the next icon below it.
5. Double-click the 0 icon under the CentralProcessor icon.
6. In the right half of the window, the last line should begin with Identifier:REG_SZ:. To the right of this, you should see the processor type.
For example, on an Intel 486, you’ll see something like 80486-D0.

 

Cross-Reference: I cover the NT registry in detail in Chapter 11.

Use the following procedure to copy the required master files from the NT CD-ROM to the master file server:

 

1. Create a directory called \NTSFILES on the master file server.
You can call this directory anything you wish, as long as it’s a fresh directory on your master file server computer. For the purposes of this procedure, I’ll assume \NTSFILES is the name of the directory.
2. Create a subdirectory for each platform that you plan to install.
To keep life simple, use the same subdirectory names that appear on the NT CD-ROM. If you plan to install all platforms, you’ll end up with I386, MIPS, ALPHA, and PPC subdirectories under \NTSFILES.

 

Note: The name of the I386 directory on the CD-ROM may be confusing, since the 386 is no longer supported by NT 4.0. Microsoft continues to use this directory name to identify Intel x86 files for historical reasons.

 

3. Copy the master files from the NT CD-ROM to the appropriate subdirectories under \NTSFILES on your master file server.
For example, say you’re running Windows for Workgroups on your master file server, and you need to copy only the x86 master files. Use File Manager to copy the \I386 directory on your CD-ROM to the \NTSFILES\I386 directory on your master file server.

 

Caution: Don’t forget to include all subdirectories when you copy the files. Each of the four platform directories contains subdirectories that you’ll need on the master file server. If you don’t include them, you’ll experience problems when you install NT.

 

4. Share the \NTSFILES directory on your network.
For example, if the master file server is running Windows for Workgroups, you’d use File Manager to share the directory on the network.

 

Preparing the Target Computers You’ll install NT Server on each target computer by pulling the required files over the network from the master file server. A target computer can be based on an Intel x86, MIPS, Alpha, or PowerPC processor.

RISC-based target computers must already be running a version of Windows NT for this procedure to work. Otherwise, they must use the local CD-ROM installation procedure outlined in the section called “Steps to Install from CD-ROM on RISC.”

Each target computer must be attached to your network and must be able to connect to and access the master file server \NTSFILES directory that you shared in the previous section. Each target computer needs a total of approximately 115MB of free disk space before installation begins. RISC-based target computers require 147MB of free space.