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Cengage | CEN-PRACTICE LABS TOUR:
Practice Labs Tour: Orientation Basics
Orientation Basics
Exercises
Introduction
Lab Topology
Exercise 1 - Getting Started
Review
Introduction
Tags: Tutorial
Help guide
Navigation
Welcome to the Practice Labs Tour: Orientation Basics. In this lab, you will be
provided with the instructions and devices needed to develop your hands-on
skills.
This lab aims to introduce you to the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform.
The layout of this tutorial is similar to what you will see in Live Virtual Machine
Labs. Each lab consists of an introduction, lab topology, exercises, tasks, steps,
and a review section.
Note: The content structure of some labs may vary slightly. For the best
experience in our labs, make sure you follow the steps provided to you from
start to finish, one by one.
Learning Outcomes
In this lab, you will complete the following exercise:
Exercise 1 - Getting Started
After completing this lab, you will be able to:
Customize your Lab Toolbar, Content, and Device Panes
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Reset, Reconfigure, or Power on Devices Separately or All at Once
Reconnect to the Server should you see an Error Message
Find Help and Support on a Particular Question
Locate the Logout Button and Explain what happens to your Lab Devices
once you have Logged Out
Lab Duration
It will take approximately 30 minutes to complete this lab.
Help and Support
Information on using Live Virtual Machine Labs can be accessed via the Help &
Support section from the Live Virtual Machine Labs toolbar. You will find more
detail on help and support in Exercise 1.
Useful Resources
Live Virtual Machine Labs Help Center
Includes articles covering all different sections of the Live Virtual Machine Labs
interface, including the different tools available to you in each different section.
Live Virtual Machine Labs - Overview , Help , and Troubleshooting
Alert: Alert boxes appear throughout our labs. These alerts give you
important instructions to follow. Click the Next button to view the Lab
topology used in this lab.
The Next button is located at the bottom of the content pane.
Figure 1.1: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The Next button is highlighted.
Copyright © Practice Labs 2007 - 2022. All rights reserved.
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Lab Topology
Each Live Virtual Machine Lab provides details about the lab devices being used
throughout the exercises. This information is available from the Lab Topology
page.
The lab topology page includes the following:
The name of the devices
The operating system they use
A diagram
Devices are named according to their role. In this lab, you have access to two
devices.
Remember to replace this with code when uploaded to the platform!
Depending on the exercises, you may or may not use all of the devices, but they
are shown here in the layout to get an overall understanding of the topology of
the lab.
PLABSA01 - Windows Server 2016 (Standalone Server) - 192.168.0.1/24
PLABSA02 - Windows Server 2016 (Standalone Server) - 192.168.0.2/24
Click Next to proceed to the first exercise.
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Exercise 1 - Getting Started
Depending on the Live Virtual Machine Lab, you may have multiple exercises,
tasks, and steps to complete.
This lab contains one exercise that has been broken down into a number of tasks.
Follow the steps to complete the tasks. Throughout this exercise, you will find
Checkpoints; these are used to check your knowledge. Be sure to select the
Submit button to save your work.
Note: To make the most of your lab experience, please make sure you
complete all the tasks in this exercise.
Learning Outcomes
After completing this exercise, you will be able to:
Customize your Lab Toolbar, Content, and Device Panes
Reset, Reconfigure, or Power on Devices Separately or All at Once
Reconnect to the Server should you see an Error Message
Find Help and Support on a Particular Question
Locate the Logout Button and Explain what happens to your Lab Devices
once you have Logged Out
Your Devices
You will be using the following devices in this lab.
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PLABSA01 - Windows Server 2016 (Standalone Server) - 192.168.0.1/24
PLABSA02 - Windows Server 2016 (Standalone Server) - 192.168.0.2/24
PLABSA01 will power on automatically. This functionality may be applied to a
lab device where there is only one device required or if it's required continuously
through a Live Virtual Machine Lab such as a Domain Controller lab device.
PLABSA02 will be powered off. You will practice how to power on a device in
Task 1.
Task 1 - User Interface
In this task, you will be shown the content and device panes. You will also be
able to practice accessing the devices.
Step 1
Watch the Getting Started Video. Click the play button to find out about the
three main sections of the Live Virtual Machine Labs interface.
To start the video, click the play button.
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Getting Started
06:06
Note: Our video will talk you through Live Virtual Machine Labs toolbars.
The design of the toolbars may vary. The functionality will be available in
the same location in the lab in most cases.
Step 2
Now that you've watched the video let's spend some time getting to know the
toolbars and settings. You will see the following key sections:
Header Navigation
Lab Toolbar
Device Panel
Device Toolbar
Lab Device
Content Panel
Content Navigation
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Figure 1.2: Displaying a diagram of the Live Virtual Machine Labs portal, showing the Header Navigation,
Lab Toolbar, Device Panel, Device Toolbar, Lab Device, Content Panel and Content Navigation sections.
Step 3
Firstly, from the top of the Content Panel, click the Elipses.
This will open the Content width pop-up menu allowing you to resize the
Content Panel width to Small, Medium or Large.
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Figure 1.3: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The Elipses has been clicked in the Content
panel, and the Content width section is highlighted.
Step 4
You can also click Print view to open the Content Panel on another web browser
tab.
Practice opening the Print view tab and closing it. Then, practice changing the
Content Panel width to Large and back to Small.
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Figure 1.4: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The Elipses has been clicked in the Content
panel, and the Print view option is highlighted.
Step 5
The first button on the Lab Toolbar is Hide Content. By clicking this button, the
Content panel will become minimized to give you the maximum screen space to
display the Device Pane.
To unhide the content, click the button again.
Practice hiding and unhiding the Content Panel by clicking the button within the
Lab Toolbar.
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Figure 1.5: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The Hide Content button is shown in the
Lab Toolbar.
Step 6
PLABSA01 is set to power on automatically. View the circle button color next to
the device name to know the status of a device:
Green - indicates that a device is ready.
Flashing Green - indicates that the device is powering on.
Grey - indicates that a device is powered off.
Yellow - indicates that a device is on standby.
Blue - indicates that a device is busy.
Once PLABSA01 has powered on, take a look at the Lab Toolbar.
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Figure 1.6: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. A device is showing as powered on, with a
green circle button appearing.
Step 7
At the top of the window, pay attention to the Header Navigation pane.
Click the Help & Support question mark button.
Figure 1.7: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The Help & Support button is highlighted.
Step 8
This will take you to the Cengage support site which includes useful articles
about the Live Virtual Machine Labs assignments, and allows you to create a
support case if you need additional assistance.
On the Cengage support site search for Live Virtual Machine Labs in the search
bar at the top of the page.
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Figure 1.8: Displaying the Cengage Support site. The Help & Support button has been clicked, and the
Cengage Support site window is open, showing an option to search for help topics.
Click on the Live Virtual Machine Labs - Overview, Help, and Troubleshooting
article.
Figure 1.9: Displaying the results of searching for Live Virtual Machine Labs on the Cengage Support site
which can be selected to review the content of the help article.
If you need additional assistance after reviewing the article you can click on the
Submit a Case button on the article.
Figure 1.10: Displaying the Submit a case button located on the Live Virtual Machine Labs help article
page.
Note: A Live Virtual Machine Labs screen reader help page is also available.
Step 9
Next, from the Header Navigation pane, click the My Account button.
This will open a pop-up menu that allows you to navigate to:
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My dashboard - Shows all the products you have access to.
Settings - Shows the Personal details stored and the Platform settings.
Guides- Gives you access to view video demos and user guides.
Click Settings.
Figure 1.11: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The My Account button has been clicked,
showing a pop-out menu for the My dashboard, Settings and Guides options.
Step 10
This will bring you to your personal settings page,where you can adjust settings
like your time zone, region, and keyboard layout.
You can navigate back to your lab by clicking the Resume Lab button at the top
of the window.
Alert: Please do not change any of these details while completing this
orientation lab.
Note: The Resume Lab button will appear on all pages accessed via the
Header Navigation pane.
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Figure 1.12 Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The Settings page is shown showing the
users current personal settings.
Note: For more information on Settings and customization, please visit our
https :// help . acilearning . com / en / articles / 6539901 - personal settings
Task 1 Checkpoint
Test your knowledge by completing the review questions below.
Question
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Have you watched the Getting Started video?
Yes
No
Question
2 of 8
Were you able to resize your screen?
Yes
No
Question
3 of 8
Do you know where to navigate to change your personal settings?
Yes
No
Task 2 - Managing Devices
In this task, you will familiarize yourself with powering devices on and off, how
to switch between devices and the settings that help you use your devices.
Step 1
Let's spend some time looking at the devices you'll be using.
Power on PLABSA02. Click the down arrow next to the device in the Lab Toolbar
and click Power On.
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Figure 1.13: Displaying the device options menu. The Power On button is highlighted.
Note: The device will power on. Please be aware these are real devices and
may take a few minutes to connect. The device button will reflect its
progress as it loads.
Power off PLABSA01 and PLABSA02.
Click the down arrow next to each device in the Lab Toolbar and click Power Off
for both devices.
Figure 1.14: Displaying the device options menu. The Power Off button is highlighted.
Step 2
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Alternatively, you may power on or off all devices via the Lab Device operations
button on the Lab Toolbar.
Here, you can power on/off all devices at once, as well as Refresh, Reboot and
Reset them.
Refreshing your connection to devices will enable you to reconnect to them
if you have lost connection.
Rebooting all devices will restart all devices while still keeping the session
active, meaning that any changes you have made to them will persist.
Resetting all devices will fully reset your devices back to their original state
when you opened the lab.
Once they have powered off, try powering on both PLABSA01 and PLABSA02 by
selecting Power on all devices from the Lab Device operation menu.
Figure 1.15: Displaying the Lab Device Operations menu. The Power on all devices option is highlighted.
Step 3
Wait for the devices to finish powering on and click on PLABSA01.
The loading bar will change from Busy (signified by the circle turning blue) to
On (signified by the circle turning green).
Scroll to the right-hand side of the Device Toolbar, and click on the Device
Information button.
A pop-up window will appear containing useful information about the device's
operating system. You can also find the username and password used to log into
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this particular device.
Close the pop-up screen by clicking the Device Information button again.
Figure 1.16: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The Device Information button on the
Device Pane has been clicked, showing information about the device, such as the Username and
Password for the administrator account.
Step 4
Ensure both PLABSA02 and PLABSA01 are still powered on.
Switch between PLABSA02 and PLABSA01 by clicking between both devices.
The selected device will appear in the Device Panel.
Click the Lab Settings button on the Lab Toolbar. The Device settings section
has the following:
A useful feature is the Automatically login setting. This is enabled by
default and automatically logs you into Microsoft Lab devices with default
Administrator account credentials. Some lab exercises may require you to
toggle this setting when you need to log into a device using different user
credentials.
The 'Connect' remote gateway option is enabled by default. When you
uncheck the checkbox, the device will connect using Console mode instead
of through a remote gateway connection.
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Figure 1.17: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The Lab Settings button has been clicked.
Step 5
In the Device view section, the default setting shows one device in the lab pane
at a time. However, you do have the choice to have all powered on devices
appear in the lab pane as well as appear as new pop-ups by clicking the Multiple
pop-up view via the Lab Settings button in the Lab Toolbar.
To change the Device view, click between Single, Multiple and Pop-up.
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Figure 1.18: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The Lab Settings button has been clicked,
and the Device view section is highlighted.
Step 6
In the Device resolution section, you can also customize the device resolution
between the following settings allowing you to fit the device to your screen:
1024 x 768
1280 x 800
1600 x 900
Power off PLABSA02 in preparation for the final checkpoint.
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Figure 1.19: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The Lab Settings button has been clicked,
and the Device resolution section is highlighted.
Step 7
Click on the PLABSA01 device.
Within the PLABSA01 window, click the blue Menu sign shown at the top of the
device. You will see a new toolbar appear.
Keyboard: by clicking this button, a keyboard will appear on the screen for
you to use. Click the "X" icon at the top right of the keyboard screen to close
it.
Clipboard: you can use this to copy, e.g., commands or code from the
content guide into the lab device and paste it into the appropriate app.
Information: This setting will allow you to perform certain actions on the
device, such as toggling Unicode characters for keyboard inputs as well as
disconnect from the device.
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Ctrl+Alt+Delete: allows you to lock the device within the device. Using the
typical keyboard shortcut for this action will instead perform this on your
actual device.
Right click: allows you to send a right-click command to the device. When
using some devices, right-clicking may instead perform this action on your
browser rather than the lab device itself, so this allows you to perform this if
necessary.
Figure 1.20: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The Menu button has been clicked on the
Device pane providing the Keyboard, information, Ctrl-Alt-Del and Right Click options.
Step 8
Click the Lab tools (…) icon on the top right corner of the Lab Toolbar. It has the
following:
The topmost section is the name of the data center for the lab. In this case,
CDC01.
Show device log is unchecked by default. When enabled, a log of the
actions performed on the devices will be displayed on the lower part of the
Device panel. Click the x icon to close it.
The Network performance tool allows you to analyze the network
performance. It is recommended not to run this tool on a metered
connection that incurs costs. Select Network Performance.
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Figure 1.21: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The Lab tools icon has been clicked on the
Lab Toolbar, providing the data center name, Show device log and Network Performance.
Step 9
The Analyze network performance window is displayed. Close the window by
clicking the X icon.
Figure 1.22: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The Analyze network performance window
is shown.
Task 2 Checkpoint
Test your knowledge by completing the review questions below.
Question
4 of 8
Were you able to connect to the device(s)?
Yes
No
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Question
5 of 8
Could you switch between the devices?
Yes
No
Task 3 - Logging Out
After this task, you will be able to locate the logout button and explain what
happens to your lab devices once you have logged out.
Alert: Do not click the logout button until you have completed the Review
section at the end of the exercise. You can revisit this task when you are
ready to logout after completing this lab.
Step 1
When using a lab, there is a 90 minute inactivity timer that will automatically
log you out if no changes have been detected.
Once 90 minutes has passed without any interaction with the platform, you will
receive a pop-up message asking if you wish to Continue.
This will appear for 5 minutes before logging you out.
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Figure 1.23: Displaying the Are you still there? Inactivity pop-up message.
Step 2
Find the Logout button located to the far right of the Header Navigation
toolbar.
When you are ready to log out after this lab has been completed, click the
Logout button.
Figure 1.24: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. The Logout button has been highlighted
on the Navigation pane.
Alert: Remember, when you click Logout, all connections to devices will be
closed, and the lab devices will be reset to their default state, losing any
progress made within the labs.
Task 3 Checkpoint
Test your knowledge by completing the review questions below.
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Question
6 of 8
Do you know where the logout button is?
Yes
No
Question
7 of 8
Do you know what happens to your devices once you log out?
Yes
No
Final Checkpoint
You have completed a series of assessments through this exercise. Some labs
contain screenshot assessments. Follow the steps below to take a screenshot.
Make sure the device specified in the screenshot task is fully powered on.
Otherwise, you may receive an error message "Failed to capture
screenshot."
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Figure 1.25: Displaying the Live Virtual Machine Labs platform. A screenshot has been taken of the
PLABSA02 device.
Step 1
Connect to PLABSA02.
Step 2
From the Taskbar, click on the Search Windows magnifying button.
Note: Depending on the size of your device screen, you may have to use the
scrollbar within the device to see the Taskbar.
In the Search Windows textbox, type:
Notepad
Press Enter.
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Under the Best match results, select the Notepad app.
Step 3
In Notepad, type in your full name.
Screenshot
8 of 8
Complete the steps above, then click the button to take a screenshot of
PLABSA02.
A summary of the assessment items you have completed in this lab can be found
on the Review page, which is the last page in the exercise menu.
Once you have submitted your assessment, a lab report is generated. To receive
a grade for this lab assignment, click on the Submit report button once you have
completed all items in the assessment section.
To access reports, go to the Header Navigation toolbar, and click the Reports
graph button.
This will open a pop-up menu that allows you to navigate to:
Lab Reports
Note: Remember to click the Resume lab button to return to this lab to
continue the exercise.
Figure 1.26: Displaying the Lab Reports menu. The Lab Reports option is highlighted.
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Click the Next button to continue to the Review page.
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Review
Well done, you have completed the Practice Labs Tour: Orientation Basics.
Summary
Please ensure you have completed all items before submitting your report,
submitting will log you out.
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Screenshot
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Summary
You completed the following exercises:
Exercise 1 - Getting Started
You should now be able to:
Customize your Lab Toolbar, Content, and Device Panes
Reset, Reconfigure, or Power on Devices Separately or All at Once
Reconnect to the Server should you see an Error Message
Find Help and Support on a Particular Question
Locate the Logout Button and Explain what happens to your Lab Devices
once you have Logged Out
Feedback
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Marking this lab as complete
When you have completed all the exercises in a lab, you can mark that lab as
completed using the Complete button at the bottom of the Content navigation
section.
A grey box indicates the lab is still being worked on. A green checkmark
indicates the lab has been finished. Once all the modules in a course have been
marked as done, the whole course will show as completed.
If the done button is clicked, you can click it again to toggle between the
completion statuses. Read our page for more information. https :// help .
acilearning . com / en / articles / 6539843 - marking - content - as - complete
Figure 1.27 Displaying the Complete button showing a lab as being complete.
Shutdown all virtual machines used in this lab. Alternatively, you can log out
of the lab platform. Please refer to Task 3 if you would like to know more
about logging out.
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