Installing Windows 7 From a USB Stick

Note : This article was written when Windows 7 was still in BETA 1, changes might occur later to the product once it is RTM.

Update on 24/Oct/2009 : Check my new article Using The Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool. Now you can use a tool to create a bootable USB Device.

First we will need to mount the content of the Windows 7 DVD ( or the ISO file ) to the external Flash Memory.  Open Command Prompt ( cmd ) and write the following commands:

Joining Windows 7 to a Domain

Note : This article was written when Windows 7 was still in BETA 1, changes might occur later to the product once it is RTM.
You will have first to configure your networking settings, so that your machine would be able to properly communicate with your Domain Controller.
I have a Domain Controller that is configure to be a DNS Server as well, and has its IP address configured as : 192.168.1.1

Enhanced User Account Control (UAC) in Windows 7

Here is a reminder of UAC dialog box :



With Windows Vista, a user only had two options to follow with User Account Control, either keep it On or completely Off.   Whereas with Windows 7, users have more control on UAC, now we can set UAC to our preferred level or even disable it completely, plus the UAC user interface provides more information about each level.


To configure UAC, follow the below steps :

1. Click on Start   > then click on Control Panel
   
   
   
   
2. From the Control Panel page, click on System and Security
   
   
   
   
3. Under the Action Center, click on Change User Account Control settings
   
   
   
   alternatively, to open UAC, click on Start , then type uac inside the Search programs and files textbox
   
   
   
   
4. The User Account Control Settings window will open, as you can see, by default it is set to notify you whenever a program tries to make changes to your computer.
   
   
   
   
5. You can alter the default level using the slider, going up with the slider will give more level of protection but more pop up dialog boxes will be displayed for you asking for your permission to continue.
   
   
   
   
   going down with the slider, one level below the Default level, in this level, the UAC will notify you with changes but will not dim your desktop.
   
   
   
   To turn UAC Off, go with the slider till the bottom where it says Never notify then click on OK, confirm the changes by clicking on OK with the UAC dialog box. A message will be display that you will have to restart your machine so that changes ( Turning UAC Off ) take effect.
   
   
   
   
   
   

The following table which can be found in Windows Help and Support, provides you with a description of the UAC settings and the potential impact of each setting on the security of your computer.

Setting	Description	Security impact
Always notify	You'll be notified before programs make changes to your computer or to Windows settings that require administrator permissions. When you're notified, your desktop will be dimmed, and you must either approve or deny the request in the UAC dialog box before you can do anything else on your computer. The dimming of your desktop is referred to as the secure desktop because other programs can't run while it's dimmed.	This is the most secure setting. When you're notified, you should carefully read the contents of each dialog box before allowing changes to be made to your computer.
Notify me only when programs try to make changes to my computer	You'll be notified before programs make changes to your computer that require administrator permissions. You won't be notified if you try to make changes to Windows settings that require administrator permissions. You'll be notified if a program outside of Windows tries to make changes to a Windows setting.	It's usually safe to allow changes to be made to Windows settings without you being notified. However, certain programs that come with Windows can have commands or data passed to them, and malicious software can take advantage of this by using these programs to install files or change settings on your computer. You should always be careful about which programs you allow to run on your computer.
Notify me only when programs try to make changes to my computer (do not dim my desktop)	You'll be notified before programs make changes to your computer that require administrator permissions. You won't be notified if you try to make changes to Windows settings that require administrator permissions. You'll be notified if a program outside of Windows tries to make changes to a Windows setting.	This setting is the same as "Notify me only when programs try to make changes to my computer," but you're not notified on the secure desktop. Because the UAC dialog box isn't on the secure desktop with this setting, other programs might be able to interfere with the visual appearance of the dialog box. This is a small security risk if you already have a malicious program running on your computer.
Never notify	You won't be notified before any changes are made to your computer. If you're logged on as an administrator, programs can make changes to your computer without you knowing about it. If you're logged on as a standard user, any changes that require the permissions of an administrator will automatically be denied. If you select this setting, you'll need to restart the computer to complete the process of turning off UAC. Once UAC is off, people that log on as administrator will always have the permissions of an administrator.	This is the least secure setting. When you set UAC to never notify, you open up your computer to potential security risks. If you set UAC to never notify, you should be careful about which programs you run, because they'll have the same access to the computer as you do. This includes reading and making changes to protected system areas, your personal data, saved files, and anything else stored on the computer. Programs will also be able to communicate and transfer information to and from anything your computer connects with, including the Internet.

Summary
Overall, the UAC experience is more improved in Windows 7 than it was in Windows Vista, and most users will keep it Turned ON this time with Windows 7 and keep the default level, which provides a mix of protection and ease-of-use.

Enabling Remote Desktop Connection in Windows 7

By default, remote desktop is not enabled in Windows 7, to enable it, follow these steps :

1. Click on Start   then right click on Computer and then click on Properties
   
   
   
   
2. From the System properties page, on the left pane, click on Remote Settings
   
   
   
   
3. As you can see, Remote Desktop feature is by default not enabled, and the option Don't allow connections to this computer is selected by default.
   
   
   
   
   To enable remote desktop, you have two options:
   • Select Allow connections from computers running any version of Remote Desktop (less secure) to allow people using any version of Remote Desktop to connect to your computer.
   • Select Allow connections only from computers running Remote Desktop with Network Level Authentication (more secure) to allow people with computers running versions of Remote Desktop with Network Level Authentication to connect to your computer. Network Level Authentication is an authentication method that completes user authentication before you establish a full remote desktop connection and the logon screen appears. To connect to a machine that has the Remote Desktop with Network Level Authentication option enabled, the client computer must be running at least Remote Desktop Connection 6.0 and the client computer supports the Credential Security Support Provider (CredSSP) protocol.
   Select the option that you want, depending from which machines you are going to connect to your Windows 7 and then click on OK .
   
   If you want, you can also click on the Select Users ... button and specify which user(s) can connect remotely, others not listed will not be able to remotely connect. However, be informed that users who are members of the Administrators group can connect even if they are not listed.
   
   
   

Note: Remote desktop is only included in the Professional, Business and Ultimate versions of Windows. Home editions do not have remote desktop.

Establishing a Remote Desktop Connection
I will establish a remote desktop connection from my Windows XP machine to my Windows 7 laptop. Be informed that Level Network Authentication in Windows XP is disabled by default, follow this article to enable it : Description of the Credential Security Support Provider (CredSSP) in Windows XP Service Pack 3

1. Click on Start  > All Programs  > Accessories > then click on Remote Desktop Connection
   
2. The Remote Desktop Connection will be opened
   
   
   
   Type the computer name or IP Address of the machine you want to remotely administer, and then click on Connect
   
   
   
   
   Remote Desktop Connection will ask you if you trust the machine you are trying to establish a remote connection to it, if you do, then enable the checkbox beside Don't ask me again for remote connection to this computer and then click Connect
   
   
   
   
3. If you have enabled Network Level Authenticated on the remote machine, then you will be asked to enter the user credentials before being able to establish a complete remote desktop connection
   
   
   
   Once you enter the user credentials ( these are the username and password of a user on the remote machine ), the remote desktop connection will be established