Windows 2000 is much more than a "dot upgrade" to Windows NT 4.0. Much of the kernel and the NTFS file system were retained, but the new operating system includes significant enhancements. The new object-oriented Active Directory Services feature allows for a more complex and flexible network setup, including "organizational units" within domains. Multiple domains may be linked dynamically through a Kerberos network authentication protocol that replaces the NT 4.0 "trust" relationships and allows for better communication between domains without compromising security.

Windows 2000 can accommodate a very wide array of possible "real-world" business organizational layouts. The groups include familiar concepts such as "domains" and "tree structures," but add groups called "organizational units" (OUs) within a domain, and a group of tree structures called a "forest." A "global catalog" object is available to contain information about objects outside the current domain, for simplified access. The separation of "primary domain controller" and "backup domain controllers" has been removed, allowing managing and updating the enterprise domain database from any domain controller.

The new Active Directory conforms to the LDAP X.500 (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) standard, as seen in the popular Novell Directory Services (NDS) product. To access the Active Directory programmatically, Microsoft provides an object-oriented COM-based API Active Directory Service Interfaces (ADSI) and an enhanced LDAP API for C/C++ programmers.

Developers can now write applications that query any workstation on the network—for example, to install software updates during idle times or offload processing to machines left on but unused overnight. Some in the group were less than pleased at the prospect of management being able to monitor their activities and log the amount of time they spend playing solitaire.

Another notable improvement is a more robust installer, which is designed to prevent "DLL-hell" —the overwriting of crucial DLLs by application software. When the new DLL turns out not to be backward compatible, previously installed programs that depended on it could fail. Windows 2000 will place application programs' DLLs in a protected area and use them only when the application is running, returning control to the system DLL at other times. If a user somehow manages to overwrite a system DLL, Windows 2000 will replace it on the next reboot. The apparent resolution to the "DLL-hell" problem brought cheers and grins from the audience, most of whom have experienced the problem firsthand.

Other well-received enhancements include better support for multiple monitors, a huge driver library installed as .CAB files so reconfiguration doesn't require the original CD, and enhanced support for DVD video and force-feedback joysticks (Bob admitted to being a gamer himself).

Microsoft has scheduled a "launch party" for Windows 2000 on the day of its general release, February 17, 2000. All attendees will receive 120-day evaluation copies of Windows 2000 (the Release to Manufacturing version). Unlike previous betas, an installation of this preview version can be upgraded to the final released product.

For more information or to register, go to www.microsoft.com/norcal, then to the Windows 2000 page, then to the WIN 2K launch page, then to the Sacramento launch page.