End-to-end examination of computing environment. Microsoft recommends that every organization looking into the impact of the year 2000 take an end-to-end look at their environments. "End-to-end" means understanding how data enters an environment (user input, electronic transfer, etc.), how it is manipulated, stored, calculated, sorted, sequenced, etc. within the environment, what systems are involved with the handling of that data, and finally, how the data leaves that environment (user interface, printed hard copy, electronic data interface, etc.). "End-to-end" encompasses both hardware and software. Microsoft technologies are just one piece of most environments.
Use a test-bed. We recommend that customers DO NOT test year 2000 issues on production PCs. There are many date-related functions on the average desktop of which people may not be aware. Arbitrarily setting the clock ahead can have some unforeseen results. For example, auto archiving on scheduling programs, automated backup systems, special licensing timeouts on vertical applications, and demonstration applications can all be adversely affected by the Year 2000 problem.
Use a MS-DOS boot disk to check the BIOS and system clock. Microsoft advocates the use of a MS-DOS boot disk to check the system for clock issues. This will separate the day-to-day functionality of the system from the date testing. After the user sets the clock ahead for testing, make sure to reboot the machine to the boot disk and set the clock back to the right time.
Inspect custom code. In any computing environment, custom code represents the largest exposure to year 2000 issues. We advocate that an experienced programmer evaluate any custom code in your information systems. To locate third-party products that can assist in the inspection of custom code, please see the Microsoft Year 2000 Resource Center Tools Guide at http://www.microsoft.com/year2000.
Use management tools where possible for inventory and distribution of fixes. If your PCs are on a network and you have a network management tool such as Microsoft Systems Management Server, you can use the inventory and analysis features of the tool to understand what is in your environment. Once you have this information, you can begin the process of organizing the work needing to be done. Many management tools also offer the capability of distributing software. This mechanism can be employed to distribute patches and fixes, as needed.
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