Windows IT Pro UPDATE--Customers Demanding More from Software--May 31, 2005

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1. Commentary
- Customers Demanding More from Software

2. Hot Off the Press
- Clock Ticks on Microsoft's EU Compliance

3. Peer to Peer
- Featured Thread: Windows Server 2003
- Tip: Are Group Policy Objects (GPOs) inherited by child domains?

4. New and Improved
- Simplify File Backup and Restore

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==== 1. Commentary: Customers Demanding More from Software ====
by Paul Thurrott, News Editor, [email protected]

Customers Demanding More from Software
I cover Microsoft for a living, so security has been a big concern for the past, oh, several years. But security isn't the only problem that Microsoft faces. Historically, customers have asked Microsoft to build more features into its products while making them perform faster. And as Microsoft has moved more and more into corporate computing, where reliability and uptime are more important, the company has had to bake all these customer needs--security, features, performance, and reliability--into its products. It's an unenviable task.

What you might not realize, however, is that these needs are only the tip of the iceberg. As we move into the 64-bit era of personal computing, Microsoft and other software makers are facing new challenges and customer expectations. In my talks with Microsoft, other companies, and their customers, I'm seeing some interesting trends developing--some obvious, some not. But the next-generation platforms that Microsoft and its competitors are now building need to address these problems. I have no idea how they plan to make it all work.

Here's a partial list of the customer demands I'm seeing:

Compliance
Compliance is probably the most common new feature request of the new millennium. Compliance takes two forms, which I'll call corporate and legal. Corporate compliance means implementing corporate rules through software. A simple example is using Active Directory (AD) to segregate user accounts according to privileges. Or maybe you want to implement a rights-management infrastructure to ensure that sensitive documents are, in fact, seen by only the intended recipients. Or, perhaps you want to prevent mobile users' machines from accessing the corporate network until they are brought into compliance with the latest versions of antivirus and antispyware definitions. In all of these cases, you're using software to comply with real-world security rules.

Legal compliance used to be purely the domain of specialized industries such as health care (e.g., Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act--HIPAA) and banking. But with corporate scandals such as those at Enron and WorldCom making headlines, more companies are seeing a need to quickly prove that they're complying with the laws that govern their own industries. And they want to be able to fix noncompliance issues as they happen in real time.

Predictability
Like compliance, predictability takes two forms, but in this case, one is related to software and the other is related to the companies that make software. Specifically, companies now expect software to behave predictably, which isn't quite the same as reliability, which suggests a level of resiliency. Instead, predictability requires that software behaves the same way each time a particular set of circumstances occurs. In other words, a complete failure is acceptable, as long as that failure happens the same way every time.

Customers also expect software makers to be predictable. That expectation has more to do with schedules than anything else. Like other companies, Microsoft used to be very secretive about its upcoming plans. But that behavior is unacceptable today, when software is instrumental to the success of virtually every industry and world government. Today, Microsoft and other enterprise software companies need to supply predictable and consistent release schedules that actually meet the needs of their customers.

Reliability
There's reliability--and then there's reliability. Today's software is arguably more reliable than software from 20 years ago, although one might make a case that the complexity of today's software, coupled with constant electronic attacks, make that particular argument moot. But the reliability of even the best software would be completely unacceptable in other industries. A classic example is the automobile industry. We've all seen the jokes: "What would a car act like if it were designed by Microsoft?" But the jokes are not so much humorous as they are true. If cars were made as poorly as most software, we'd never stop suing automobile companies. Why we accept such low quality in software is a great question of our time.

But that situation is starting to change. More and more, people are requiring rock-solid, consumer-electronics-style reliability. Ask most people when their DVD player last crashed and you'll get a blank stare. Ask them the same question about their PCs, and an animated discussion will ensue. You get the idea, and so, thankfully, does Intel, Microsoft, and other companies. They're working on it.

Backward Compatibility and Interoperability
Customers want to have their cake and eat it too. They expect the latest and greatest systems to offer brand new features without dropping any previous features and while maintaining the highest possible level of backward compatibility. They also demand that products interoperate seamlessly with otherwise incompatible solutions. That's because enterprises tend to keep using products they've spent good money on. But the PC industry was built on the notion that old software is discarded after an upgrade. That attitude won't fly with big business. And neither will pretending that competitors' products don't exist. For Microsoft's corporate products, this means interoperating with Sun Microsystems, IBM, and Linux products in the enterprise. For its home products, it means the software giant needs to pick its ego off the floor and support Apple Computer's iPod. The company is getting there.

Personalization
People and companies want personalized experiences--and I'm not just talking about UI silliness such as desktop color schemes and themes. Companies want the systems they use to look and act a certain way, and that way has a lot more to do with their own corporate standards than on whatever UI Microsoft or other companies happen to like this year. Increasingly, software's ability to be malleable and customizable is every bit as important as the actual function they perform. Companies aren't interested in training and retraining employees. If they can't tailor a solution for their own needs, they'll look elsewhere.

Imagine that you're working at Microsoft and your goal is to deliver all of this--and more--in a product such as Longhorn, the next major Windows version. And all these needs must be addressed as well as the platform features you want to deliver because they'll pay off for the company in the years ahead. See what a challenge that could be?

Have I missed anything? What are the trends you see developing in your own environments, and how have your computing needs changed over the past decade?

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==== 2. Hot Off the Press ====
by Paul Thurrott, [email protected]

Clock Ticks on Microsoft's EU Compliance
With Microsoft's June 1 European Union (EU) antitrust-compliance deadline looming, the software giant and European trustbusters have some decisions to make. Microsoft faces daily fines of as much as $5 million a day for refusing to comply with the EU's antitrust ruling in a timely manner. The EU says that it will make a decision by the end of July about whether to fine Microsoft. Read the rest of the article at the following URL:
http://www.windowsitpro.com/articles/index.cfm?articleid=46549

==== Events and Resources ====
(from Windows IT Pro and its partners)

SBS: Shiny and New with SP1
Windows IT Pro author Michael Otey has run SBS SP1 through its paces and will answer your questions about SBS SP1 deployment, features, and fixes. Come find out why you should consider installing SBS SP1 and what you need to do to help your business or your customers plan deployment. Register for this free chat now!
http://www.microsoft.com/communities/chats/default.mspx#05_0615_tn_sbs

Show Us How You've Used Windows Technology in Innovative Ways
If you've used Windows technology in creative ways to devise specific, beneficial solutions to problems your business has faced, we want you! Now's your change to get the recognition you deserve. Enter the 2005 Windows IT Pro Innovators Contest now! You could win a complimentary conference pass to Exchange Connections and Windows Connections in San Diego in late October 2005.
http://www.windowsitpro.com/AWARDS/innovators_2005.cfm

PCII 2005 - Monday 6th June 2005, QEII Conference Centre, London
Keynote: The Rt. Hon the Lord Heseltine CH. Information Security Issues for Management (not just IT). With the ever-increasing risk of Electronic attack it pays to be up to date on the latest threats and solutions. Attend PCII and ensure your business is protected for the future! Relevant to Public and Private Sectors--Register now.
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True High Availability – Going Beyond Backup and Data Replication
In this free Web seminar discover the various categories of high availability and disaster recovery solutions available and the pros and cons of each. You'll learn what solutions help you take preemptive, corrective action without resorting to a full system failover, or in extreme cases, that perform a non-disruptive, automatic switchover to a secondary server. Register Now!
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Get Ready for SQL Server 2005 Roadshow in Europe
Get the facts about migrating to SQL Server 2005. SQL Server experts will present real-world information about administration, development, and business intelligence to help you implement a best-practices migration to SQL Server 2005 and improve your database computing environment. Receive a 1-year membership to PASS and 1-year subscription to SQL Server Magazine. Register now!
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==== Featured Paper ====

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==== Instant Poll ====

Results of Previous Poll: The voting has closed in Windows IT Pro's nonscientific Instant Poll for the question, "Does your organization run Microsoft Small Business Server (SBS)?" Here are the results from the 126 votes:
- 27% Yes
- 73% No

New Instant Poll: The next Instant Poll question is, "Do you think the European Union (EU) should assess daily fines if Microsoft doesn't fully comply with the provisions of the antitrust ruling?" Go to the Windows IT Pro home page and submit your vote for a) Yes, b) No, or c) I don't know.
http://www.windowsitpro.com/magazine

==== 4. Peer to Peer ====

Featured Thread: Windows Server 2003
Forum reader Tach18k has a Windows 2003 domain controller (DC) server running 35 clients all with static IP addresses. He wants to know how to get a list of currently logged-on IP addresses.
http://forums.windowsitpro.com/web/forum/messageview.aspx?catid=50&threadid=41625&enterthread=y

Tip: Are Group Policy Objects (GPOs) inherited by child domains?
by John Savill, http://www.windows2000faq.com

Find the answer at the following URL:
http://www.windowsitpro.com/articles/index.cfm?articleid=46398

==== Announcements ====
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==== 4. New and Improved ====
by Angie Brew, [email protected]

Simplify File Backup and Restore
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