Before you can pass the Managing a Microsoft Windows 2000 Network Environment exam (test 70-218), you must know Redmond's approved procedures for installing hardware. Even though you may have your own hardware configuration process in place, you'll be tested on Microsoft's recommended methods on several exams, including 70-218. First, know the four resource types
The first items to memorise are the four resources associated with hardware devices:

• Interrupt requests (IRQs)
• Direct memory access (DMA) channels
• Input/output (I/O) port addresses
• Memory ranges

Any time a hardware device or peripheral, such as a mouse or keyboard, needs to communicate with the CPU, it uses interrupt request paths. PCs and servers possess 16 IRQs, which are labeled 0 to 15. Typically, many IRQs are dedicated to specific components. For example, a PS/2 mouse usually uses IRQ 12, while the keyboard usually receives IRQ 1. Thus, 16 IRQs aren't automatically available when a new device, such as a network adapter, is added to a system. As a result, conflicts can occur. Devices use DMA channels to send and retrieve information directly from memory without processor assistance. There are only eight DMA channels, and they are numbered 0 through 7. When a device sends an interrupt request to the CPU, the CPU checks the specific portion of memory, known as the I/O port address, dedicated to that device. Information found in memory at that address helps the CPU know how to respond to the device's request. Thousands of I/O port addresses exist, so conflicts are rare, especially with Plug and Play devices. When I/O port address conflicts arise, they are usually due to manually specified overlapping address ranges. I/O port devices are composed of a base address and a parameter specifying length. These addresses are specified using hexadecimal notation, which for a network adapter can read 2000 - 201F. Memory ranges are more complicated. The operating system, video cards, and other devices regularly use the CPU to store and retrieve information from a system's memory. Specific ranges are allotted for each application and device, and these ranges must be unique to each source. Memory ranges are specified as eight-digit hexadecimal addresses. For example, a network adapter might receive a memory address range of 42000000 - 42000FFF. Most modern chips use flat 32-bit address spaces that support up to 4 GB of address ranges, so memory range conflicts are rare with newer systems. When a device fails to work properly, use the Windows 2000 Device Manager to check the device's settings for these four resources. You can view and edit each of these resources for a device by clicking Start | Settings | Control Panel | System. Next, select the Hardware tab, click the Device Manager button, right-click on the device in question (not just its category), and select Properties from the pop-up menu. Select the Resources tab, and you'll see settings similar to those shown in Figure A.

Figure A

Use Device Manager to troubleshoot resource settings.