Troubleshoot Windows Server 2008
Applies To: Windows Server 2008
The Windows Server 2008 Technical Library provides several types of troubleshooting information:
Server fundamentals documentation provides information about day-to-day server operations, including how to monitor and manage the server and how to improve system performance.
Many server fundamentals and server roles have their own troubleshooting sections about setting up and maintaining that fundamental or role.
Events and Errors documentation provides detailed information about events found in the event log.
Command Reference documentation contains information about command-line tools that can be used to diagnose problems and adjust system settings.
Server Manager Fundamentals
The server fundamentals documentation describes how to manage Windows Server 2008, including setting up roles and role services, monitoring and maintaining system health, and improving performance.
Device Management and Installation [Collection]
Availability and Scalability [Collection]
Specific Troubleshooting for Fundamentals and Roles
The documentation for the following server fundamentals and server roles contains specific troubleshooting information.
Active Directory Certificate Services (AD CS) |
Online Responder Installation, Configuration, and Troubleshooting Guide |
Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS) |
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Application Server |
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Device Management and Installation |
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Network and Sharing Center |
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Telnet |
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Windows Firewall |
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Terminal Services Licensing |
Monitoring Events and Errors
The Monitoring Events documentation describes how to use Event Viewer. Event Viewer is a Microsoft Management Console (MMC) snap-in that enables you to browse and manage event logs. It is an indispensable tool for monitoring the health of systems and troubleshooting issues when they arise.
The Events and Errors documentation provides detailed procedural troubleshooting information for individual Windows Server 2008 events, as well as for some Windows Vista events. It describes how to diagnose and resolve problems and also how to verify that the system has been returned to a normal operating state.
You can access this content directly from a link in Event Viewer as well as here in the Windows Server 2008 Technical Library.
Command-Line Diagnostic and Troubleshooting Tools
The Command Reference documentation describes the command-line tools that are available with Windows Server 2008. Many of these commands can be used to diagnose issues and verify that they have been resolved. The following command-line tools are particularly useful for troubleshooting purposes:
Auditpol: Displays information and performs functions to manipulate audit policies.
Chkdsk: Checks the file system and file system metadata of a volume for logical and physical errors.
Dcdiag: Analyzes the state of domain controllers in a forest or enterprise and reports any problems to help in troubleshooting.
Gpresult: Displays the Resultant Set of Policy (RSoP) information for a remote user and computer, which can help identify Group Policy issues.
Logman: Creates and manages Event Trace Session and Performance logs and supports many functions of Performance Monitor from the command line.
Nltest: Provides features that you can use to troubleshoot operating system configurations.
Nslookup: Displays information that you can use to diagnose your Domain Name System (DNS) infrastructure.
Recover: Recovers readable information from a defective disk.
Repadmin: Helps administrators diagnose Active Directory replication problems between domain controllers running Windows operating systems.
Sc: Tests and debugs service programs.
Wevtutil: Enables you to retrieve information about event logs and publishers, to install event manifests, to run queries, and to export, archive, and clear logs.