Useful Tools

Account Lockout and Management Tools

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=18465


ALTools.exe contains tools that assist you in managing accounts and in troubleshooting account lockouts. Use these tools in conjunction with the Account Passwords and Policies white paper.

ALTools.exe includes:

• AcctInfo.dll. Helps isolate and troubleshoot account lockouts and to change a user's password on a domain controller in that user's site. It works by adding new property pages to user objects in the Active Directory Users and Computers Microsoft Management Console (MMC).


• ALockout.dll. On the client computer, helps determine a process or application that is sending wrong credentials.

Caution: Do not use this tool on servers that host network applications or services. Also, you should not use ALockout.dll on Exchange servers, because it may prevent the Exchange store from starting.

• ALoInfo.exe. Displays all user account names and the age of their passwords.


• EnableKerbLog.vbs. Used as a startup script, allows Kerberos to log on to all your clients that run Windows 2000 and later.


• EventCombMT.exe. Gathers specific events from event logs of several different machines to one central location.


• LockoutStatus.exe. Determines all the domain controllers that are involved in a lockout of a user in order to assist in gathering the logs. LockoutStatus.exe uses the NLParse.exe tool to parse Netlogon logs for specific Netlogon return status codes. It directs the output to a comma-separated value (.csv) file that you can sort further, if needed.


• NLParse.exe. Used to extract and display desired entries from the Netlogon log files.

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 RDCMan manages multiple remote desktop connections 

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=44989
 RDCMan manages multiple remote desktop connections. It is useful for managing server labs or large server farms where you need regular access to each machine such as automated checkin systems and data centers. It is similar to the built-in MMC Remote Desktops snap-in, but more flexible. The RDCMan 2.7 version is a major feature release. New features include: - Virtual machine connect-to-console support - Smart groups - Support for credential encryption with certificates - Windows 8 remote action support - Support for Windows 8, Windows 8.1 / Windows Server 2012, Windows Server 2012 R2
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Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows 7 with Service Pack 1 (SP1)

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=7887 

Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows 7 with SP1 enables IT administrators to manage roles and features that are installed on remote computers that are running Windows Server 2008 R2 with SP1 or Windows Server 2008 R2 (and, for some roles and features, Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2003) from a remote computer that is running Windows 7 or Windows 7 with SP1. It includes support for remote management of computers that are running either the Server Core or full installation options of Windows Server 2008 R2 with SP1, Windows Server 2008 R2, and for some roles and features, Windows Server 2008. Some roles and features on Windows Server 2003 can be managed remotely by using Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows 7 with SP1, although the Server Core installation option is not available with the Windows Server 2003 operating system.

This feature is comparable in functionality to the Windows Server 2003 Administrative Tools Pack and Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows Vista with Service Pack 1 (SP1). 

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VMware OS Optimization Tool

https://labs.vmware.com/flings/vmware-os-optimization-tool#summary 

VMware OS Optimization Tool is designed to optimize Windows 10/8/7/2012/2008 systems for use with VMware Horizon View. Now, what is Horizon View? It is a commercial desktop virtualization service provided by VMware.

What the tool basically does is, it analyses the environment and brings out the best set of settings suitable for a virtual environment. It can enable/disable few services and make changes to the registry or disable other few bunch of features to ensure maximum optimization.
Some of the optimizations that can be performed with VMware OS Optimization Tool include:

• Modify HKCU settings
• Modify HKLM settings
• Disable additional features
• Change visual effects to improve upon graphics performance
• Disable Scheduled Tasks
• Disable Services
• Disable Start Up Run
• Disable UAC
• Improving Login Time
• Remove Apps
• Sound Scheme

The tool is based upon the concepts of Templates. A template is basically a predefined set of settings designed for a particular environment. VMware optimization tool comes preloaded with useful ‘Templates’ that can be applied as per your system configuration or you can create your own templates as per your specifications. Moreover, you can download the templates created by other users or you can share the templates created by you.


If you are using default templates, then it is advised to go through the list of optimizations once as there might be some optimizations that may disable features that you require in your virtual environment, if there is such a situation you can customize the existing templates as per your specifications by simply selecting the ‘Copy and Edit’ option from the ‘My Templates’ tab. Under the ‘Public Templates’ tab you can download the verified templates provided by other users and also update the existing templates
You can roll back the changes made to your system by the software by accessing the ‘My History’ tab, this feature comes handy if something does not go right after applying optimization changes.
The tool also allows remote analysis of another computer connected to the same network, to connect to another computer you need to configure the connection by entering the IP address of that computer and some other necessary details.
Overall, the tool is an essential if you want to create an optimized virtual Windows environment. VMware OS Optimization Tool is free to download and install. You can also download Templates and even create your own.
Click here to download VMware OS Optimization Tool.
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