Common Log File System features - Windows Server 2003 R2 Reviewer's Guide Microsoft Windows Server 2003 R2

Common Log File System features:
Ability to create log files with a single stream of data or with multiple streams of data for shared use by one or more clients
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Circular and linear logging
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Guaranteed ability to flush buffered data by pre-reserving space in the log
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Policy-based log size and space management
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Sharing of a single log by both kernel and user clients
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Notification mechanism to allow different users within the same log to coordinate their log use
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Flexible buffering of log data
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Archiving APIs do not interfere with normal operations
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Atomic multi-sector writes
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Torn-write detection
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Administrators can use CLFS for Windows to build reliable user-mode or kernel-mode components that run on a single system or in a server cluster environment. CLFS simultaneously supports one or more independent log files on a single system. Administrators can configure log files for dedicated use by a single client or for shared use by multiple clients. Log file accesses can either be directed to local disk or to disks on remote systems by using internal client/server support. Within a cluster, log files can fail over to another system using standard mechanisms.
CLFS is optimized for performance. All writes to the log file are buffered until an explicit flush, an opportunity to share a write with another client, or the buffer is filled. Log data is written directly to the hard disk from the log buffers without copying. Multiple streams of data can be written during the same I/O operation, resulting in only one disk seek for what normally takes multiple seeks and writes. Reads are cached to save disk accesses during normal operation or bursts of read activity.
MMC 3.0
Administrators can use Microsoft Management Console (MMC) to create, save, and open administrative tools (called snap-ins) that manage the hardware, software, and network components of their Windows operating system. MMC 3.0 can be run on Windows Server 2003 R2.
MMC does not perform administrative functions, but hosts tools that do. Snap-ins are the most common of these tools. Other items that administrators can add include Microsoft® ActiveX® controls, links to Web pages, folders, and tasks.
Windows Server 2003 R2 includes several preconfigured snap-in consoles, such as Event Viewer (Eventvwr.msc) and Performance Monitor (Perfmon.msc). Administrators can create additional snap-in consoles to meet their needs. Depending on how a snap-in console is configured, it can be a customizable multi-function tool for an IT generalist, a limited-function tool for delegating work to an IT specialist, or anything in between.
There are two ways that administrators can use MMC: in user mode, working with existing snap-in consoles to administer a system, or in author mode, creating new snap-in consoles or modifying existing snap-in consoles.
Microsoft Management Console (MMC) 3.0 supports richer functionality in snap-ins that are written to take advantage of the MMC 3.0 infrastructure. In addition, there are several improvements that apply to any MMC 3.0 console:
Action pane
The Action pane appears at the right-hand side of the MMC snap-in console. It lists the actions that are currently available to administrators, based on the currently selected items in the tree or the results pane.
To show or hide the action pane, click the Show/Hide Action Pane button in the toolbar, which is similar to the Show/Hide Tree button.
The new Add/Remove Snap-in dialog box makes it easy to add, organize, and remove snap-ins. Administrators can control which extensions are available, and whether to automatically enable snap-ins that may be installed later. They can nest snap-ins and rearrange the snap-ins in the tree.
To use this dialog box in the RC version, administrators must manually set a registry key.
MMC 3.0 notifies administrators of errors in snap-ins that could cause MMC to fail, and provides several options for responding to those errors.