Project Server 2010/2013 Administration

Introduction
Hello and welcome to this course called Project Server 2010 and 2013 Administration. This is the first module in this course, and so obviously it serves as the introduction module. It is my pleasure to write and present this course, and in case you were unsure, my name is Ben Howard and that's me in the photo. In this course we will discuss the role of the IT administrator in maintaining a Project Server farm. And for the most part, Project Server 2010 and 2013 are very similar in their IT administration requirements. So you can be sure that the skills you learn here will be equally applicable to both solutions. However, where there are significant differences I will be sure to point them out to you. So with that in mind, let's get started.

Documentation!
Hello and welcome to a second module in the course, project server 2013 administration. The title of this module is Documentation and my name is Ben Howard. I'll make no apologies about having a module on something that is often seen as mundane and unimportant, but in the same way that ace coders will always document their code, ace IT administrators will always document their IT systems. I guess the real question is, do you want to be ace or not?

OLAP Installation
Hello, and welcome to the third module in this course, which is titled OLAP installation. My name, in case you'd already forgotten it, is Ben Howard. OLAP is actually an acronym for on line analytical processing, and it's been a component of SQL Server for many years. We use OLAP to aggregate our project server data into multi-dimensional cubes which we're then able to query using a tool such as Excel. Now OLAP is an optional component of Project server, so you may need to install it within your environment. OLAP is only available to us in an on premise installation of Project server. So if you're using Project Online, then you can safely skip this component.

Backup and Restore Options
Hello, and welcome to the fourth module in this course, which is titled "Backup and Restore Options. " And my name is Ben Howard. I have a personal saying that goes along the lines of, "Any old fool could back something up, but it takes a genius to restore it. " So, in this module, we'll talk about the tools that are available to you to backup SharePoint and, hence, Project Server, both 2010 and 2013 - it's the same across the board, but I won't discuss such technical items as storage area networks, NAS drives, et cetera. That's really out of the scope of this course. Okay, so please pay attention to this module and, importantly, test that you can restore what you have backed up before you need to do it in real life.

Understanding the Underlying Services
Hello and welcome to the fifth module in this course which is titled Understanding the Underlying Services. And my name is Ben Howard. These underlying services typically sit within the SharePoint farm or on the SQL instance and together they are needed in order to maintain a healthy and integrated production Project Server environment. Because Project Server uses several of these external services, it's important to understand the function that they provide in case you as an IT administrator find yourself needing to troubleshoot them. Let's go and have a look at the agenda.

Installing Service Packs
Hello, and welcome to the sixth module in this course, which is simply titled, Installing Service Packs. My name, of course, is Ben Howard. For any IT administrator, service packs are going to be a fact of life. During the lifetime of a project service solution, you may well expect two to three service pack releases for each product in that solution. So here we're talking about Windows, SQL, SharePoint Server, Project Server, and of course, Project Professional. Both Project Server 2003 and 2007 had three service pack releases each, so it would be safe to anticipate a similar number for today's current versions. So sit back, relax, and enjoy learning about the service packs that you'll need to get to grips with.

Installing Cumulative Updates
Hello, and welcome to the seventh module in this course, which is simply titled, "Installing Cumulative Updates, " and my name is Ben Howard. In the previous modules, we've discussed the often complex procedures required for installing service packs and in some ways, cumulative updates or CUs were no different. However, Microsoft have recently changed the way CUs are delivered. Gone are the days that you had to request a cumulative update or a hot fix from Microsoft. Nowadays, they're delivered as part of the Office Update Service and are known as public updates or PUs. So, in a slight parody of all good films about English kings, the cumulative update is dead. Long live the public update. Let's move on, shall we?

SQL Maintenance Plans
Hello, and welcome to the eighth module in this course, which is simply titled, "SQL Maintenance Plans. " My name is Ben Howard. Now, SQL Server maintenance plans need to be created in order to ensure that the databases that server Project Server and SharePoint Server remain in a healthy state. And these maintenance plans should be set up and run automatically. Now, if you're lucky enough to have a database administrator on the site, now is the time to ask them to come and watch this module with you and point them to the TechNet references that are contained within the slides. However, if you are the database administrator, now is the time to start taking some notes. Let's go and review the agenda. So, the first thing we'll do and discuss is, what exactly are SQL Maintenance Plans and which bits of SQL Server are we looking to maintain or, rather, which bits of our SQL databases are we looking to maintain? We'll then setup a SQL Maintenance Plan. We'll show you how that's done. And, we'll discuss what's new and changed in Project Server 2013. And then, of course, we'll wrap everything up with a summary. So without further adieu, let's dig into what exactly are SQL Maintenance Plans.

The Unified Logging Service
Hello and welcome to the 10th module in this course, which has the title of The Unified Logging Service. My name is Ben Howard. The Unified Logging Service, or ULS is the service that is responsible for keeping an eye on SharePoint, it's services and hence, project server, and reporting what it finds. It can write reports, events into three different locations and they are, the SharePoint Trace Logs, the Windows Event Log and the SharePoint Logging Database. We're only going to be concerned at the moment with the trace logs. Project Server will report information including any issues that it finds into these logs and so it's important that we are familiar with the ULS logs and their use. Let's go ahead and review the setup, configuration and the use of the ULS.

Connecting Project Professional
Hello, and welcome to the eleventh module in this course, which has the title of "Connecting Project Professional, " and my name is Ben Howard. We need to configure Microsoft Project Professional with the URL of our Project Server instance or instances that we wish to connect to. The process for doing this is the same for Project Server 2013, Project Online or Project Server 2010. And a single Project client can be configured to connect to multiple instances, such as training, test, and live. So, without any further adieu, let's get started.

Summary
Hello, and welcome to the twelfth and last module in this course, which provides a summary for the whole course and my name, of course, is Ben Howard. Obviously, this is going to be a short module, but it's an important one because what you should be looking at now is what are your next steps and actions going to be in order to maintain the integrity of your Project Server system? So, let's get started, shall we?