The book is divided into four distinct sections that each show how Cisco can play a big part in your network. After a brief look at Cisco's partnership with Microsoft, "Windows Meets the Network" moves on swiftly to the major features in Windows 2000, Directory Enabled Networks (DEN) and finishes with a primer on the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model.

Part II introduces Cisco's networking portfolio and complements this with mini product reviews. This is also supported by plenty of clear diagrams showing how each hardware component fits into the big picture and is followed by excellent tutorials on hardware configuration using ConfigMaker, NetSys Baseliner and Cisco's Visual Switch Manager. Network management and testing using Traffic Monitor come next with the final section advancing onto Web Services, QoS, and security using RADIUS, TACACS+ and Cisco Secure authentication.

There is a general assumption that readers will inevitably make the jump from Windows NT 4 to 2000 so you'll find extensive chapters on managing directory services and designing Windows 2000 domains--though the section on migration tactics is all too brief. Even so, this huge tome provides an in-depth guide to managing Cisco-centric Windows networks and its easy-going style will suit a wide range of skill levels.--Dave Mitchell