NetPro tools support Active Directory backup and restore, extends audit collection

Last week, I promised to tell you about the new offerings from NetPro, and all of them (there are three) are worth paying attention to. Just released were: Version 2 of NetPro AccessManager, which enables role-based management support and workflow processing of approved changes and roles; Version 3.5 of NetPro RestoreADmin, for online Active Directory backup and restore; and the brand new NetPro ReportADmin for Microsoft’s Audit Collection Services (ACS), which extends ACS with consolidated views, simplified reporting and analytics.

First let’s look at the newest service from NetPro, ReportADmin for ACS. This new module for Report Admin complements Microsoft Audit Collection Services which ships with System Center Operations Manager (SCOM) 2007 by providing additional data analytics and reporting capabilities. It also enables you to set authorization and delivery settings based on individual preferences using Web-based subscription services. Anyone involved with regulatory compliance, for example, needs to take a look at this.

NetPro RestoreADmin eliminates the need for manual scripting by creating automated backups of Active Directory domains or entire forests and optimizing network usage by scheduling backups during off-peak hours and performing delta backups of selected object classes at different intervals. The new version 3.5 adds support for Active Directory Lightweight Directory Services (ADLDS, formerly Active Directory Application Mode or ADAM) and Application Data Partitions (see this Microsoft document).

Finally, NetPro AccessManager version 2 now features role-based management support and workflow processing of approved changes and roles. In Windows networks (and those other networks using Active Directory for identity management) this streamlines and centralizes everything from deployment to remediation, and reporting on access for ensuring consistent and reliable resource-based access control across the enterprise. You can track and report on everything from access rights to provisioning activities. And, with centralized management of enterprise-wide audit settings, you’ll gain prodigious current and historical reporting capabilities across Windows resources-including Active Directory, files, folders, shares, printers, registry, and services. Access Manager also includes an Active Directory Management Plug-in (Proxy Management interface) to support business rules, workflow and proxy management through the Windows “Users and Computers” interface.

All in all it’s a lot of good new stuff for your Active Directory based network. Browse to NetPro for all the details.