CertiGuide to A+ (Operating Systems)  9  Chapter 0001:  File Structure       9  III  Drive Converter

NTFS4 1 HPFS

Without reasons to spend money on an upgrade OS, few would upgrade the OS just because something was new.

Microsoft gave a great many reasons to upgrade to Windows 2000 and NTFS V5. Beyond the features of NTFS V4, Microsoft created the concept of the dynamic disk.

A dynamic disk is akin to "storage in the sky" at least as far as the user is concerned.

To the A+ technician, a dynamic disk can be a series of physical drives that are located on different PCs and even be in different locations.

That leaves the question, "What to call a drive that is set up in the traditional format?"

The answer is they are referred to as Basic Volumes.

If a laptop or notebook computer is in the mix, and it has the resources to support Windows 2000, your authors strongly advise considering the use of Windows 2000. (PRO)

While support for new features such a USB and other features are very nice, one feature of Windows 2000 for mobile use is sufficient reason for the upgrade.

Windows 2000 supports all the features of NTFS 4, and adds the ability to encrypt data at the volume, directory or file level.

Since data is the real 'crown jewel' of any business, this is sufficient reason to go W2K on a mobile computer.

While NT 4 does not allow access based on permission, installing a new copy of NT would allow anyone to become the administrator and 'take' the file or entire drive volume, rendering security on a mobile computer no security at all.

Encryption (encoding data so that it is unreadable without a password or other proof by a user that they are authorized to see the data) on W2K can be made rather tight, making a 'lost' laptop tough to crack open to discover business secrets.

NTFS4 1 HPFS