Lesson 1: Overview of the Windows 2000 Platform

The Microsoft Windows 2000 family of operating systems builds upon Microsoft Windows NT technology by adding many features and enhancements. This lesson introduces you to the family of Windows 2000 products. It explains some of the key differences between these products and the environment for which each product is designed.

Windows 2000 is more reliable, more scalable, and easier to deploy, manage, and use than previous versions of Windows. The Windows 2000 platform significantly reduces costs, enables a new generation of applications, and provides an organization with a solid infrastructure upon which to build their digital nervous system.

The Windows 2000 platform consists of four operating systems. Once you understand the capabilities of each of the Windows 2000 operating systems, you will be able to select the best product to meet the current and future needs of your organization. Table 1.1 describes the operating systems that are included in the Windows 2000 platform.

Table 1.1 The Windows 2000 Platform

Operating system	Description
Windows 2000 Professional	Replaces Microsoft Windows 95, Microsoft Windows 98, and Microsoft Windows NT Workstation 4.0 in a business environment. It is the desktop operating system for businesses of all sizes.
Windows 2000 Server	Contains all of the features in Windows 2000 Professional, and provides services that simplify network management. This version of Windows 2000 is ideal for file and print servers, Web servers, and workgroups, and provides improved network access for branch offices.
Windows 2000 Advanced Server	Contains all of the features in Windows 2000 Server, and provides increased scalability and system availability. This version of Windows 2000 is designed for servers used in a large enterprise network and for database intensive work.
Windows 2000 Datacenter Server	Contains all of the features in Windows 2000 Advanced Server, and supports more memory and more CPUs per computer. This version of Windows 2000 is the most powerful and functional server operating system. It's designed for large data warehouses, online transaction processing (OLTP) and large-scale simulations, and server consolidation projects.

Windows 2000 consists of a family of four separate products: Windows 2000 Professional, Windows 2000 Server, Windows 2000 Advanced Server, and Windows 2000 Datacenter Server. You learned the purpose of each of these products and how and when to use each of them.