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Michael Reinders

Petri Contributor

Michael has been an 'IT Pro' since 1998. He has worked predominantly in the Windows world including client and server operating systems, on-prem systems engineering (AD, DNS, etc.), and over the last ten years or so has embraced and immersed himself in all things Microsoft 365 - including Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, Teams, OneDrive, and Azure Active Directory (AAD). He has written articles here on Petri based on these technologies and also published a larger series about 'Upgrading to Windows Server 2022' this past summer. Michael strives to help other IT Pros with getting more efficient (especially with PowerShell) in their day-to-day tasks and offering solid assistance on larger projects.

LATEST

Security

ManageEngine ADSelfService Plus: Protect On-Premises and Cloud Services from Password Attacks with Multi-factor Authentication

Last Update: Nov 07, 2023

Advanced password attacks, like brute force and those launched by malicious insiders, are devastating the security of today’s enterprises and cloud services. ADSelfService Plus from ManageEngine can protect web properties from such attacks with multi-factor authentication (MFA). Multi-factor authentication is the best way to protect Active Directory and cloud-based user accounts As the impacts of…

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Windows 11 approved hero 3

5 Ways to Clean the AppData Folder in Windows

The inner workings of the Windows operating system are a labyrinth of files and folders, each with its own specific role and significance. Among these, the AppData folder is a critical yet often overlooked, or possibly misunderstood component. In this article, we will delve into the AppData folder in Windows, exploring its purpose, structure, and…

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Windows 11

What is a Roaming User Profile on Windows?

Last Update: Oct 24, 2023

Roaming profiles are a Windows feature that allows user profiles to be used across multiple workstations within a network. A user profile contains personalized application settings, desktop configurations, application preferences, and other user-specific data. In this article, I will show you how to deploy roaming user profiles in your Windows environment so that users have…

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Datacenter networking servers

Mastering Active Directory OU: A Comprehensive Guide to Organizational Units

Last Update: Oct 24, 2023

If you’ve been an IT Pro for many years (OK, decades), you likely know what an Active Directory OU (Organizational Unit) is. But, what if you’re new to the IT field or new to Microsoft Active Directory? No need to fret or get flustered – read my post to find out about OUs, what they are, and…

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PowerShell

Filtering with PowerShell Where-Object: Easy Examples

Last Update: Oct 16, 2023

In this article, I’ll explain how to use the PowerShell Where-Object cmdlet to filter objects and data. I’ll provide a series of easy examples showing you how to filter files by name or date, how to filter processes by status or CPU usage, and more. When using PowerShell, you will often receive an extremely large…

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PowerShell

Master the Power of File and Directory Management with Get-ChildItem in PowerShell

The Get-ChildItem PowerShell cmdlet is a powerful tool for listing files and folders in a variety of ways. In this blog post, we will explore the different features of the Get-ChildItem cmdlet and show you how to use it to get the most out of your PowerShell experience. What is Get-ChildItem? At a high level,…

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PowerShell

Essential Guide to Mastering Get-ADGroupMember (AD User Management)

Get-ADGroupMember is a useful PowerShell cmdlet for retrieving the members of Active Directory (AD) groups. In this article, we’ll delve into the capabilities of Get-ADGroupMember, explore its common parameters, and provide practical examples to showcase its power and versatility in managing your Active Directory environment. We’ll also touch on a related cmdlet – Get-ADGroup and…

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Cloud Computing and Security

How to Install SQL Server 2022

Last Update: Sep 25, 2023

SQL Server 2022, the latest release of Microsoft’s relational database product is nearing the finish line. In this guide, we’ll show you how to install SQL Server 2022 with the default, typical setup configuration. Planning and prerequisites Before we get started with the installation of SQL Server 2022, the first thing to accomplish is to…

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Hero approved Microsoft 365

Understanding Multi-Tenant Organizations in Microsoft 365

Multi-tenant organizations (MTOs) are a new feature in Microsoft 365 and Entra ID (formerly Azure Active Directory) that has reached the public preview stage in mid-2023. An MTO is a group of up to five Entra ID tenants linked together to offer your users seamless collaboration and the sharing of resources. In this article, I’ll…

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Windows

How to Use Local Administrator Password Solution (LAPS) with Active Directory and Azure AD

Last Update: Sep 19, 2023

Microsoft’s Local Administrator Password Solution (LAPS) is a legacy Windows tool that IT admins can use to manage account passwords of domain-joined computers. The company has finally updated LAPS this year and plans to bring it natively into Windows in 2023. In this article, I’ll explain how this new native version of LAPS works and…

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