Adding snap-ins to MMC

Many a times we need to work on different remote servers. There can be many servers for different components that we work on. Remembering each server or refering everytime to the list of servers for each component is a time consuming process and it decreases efficiency.

Microsoft has one efficient tool with which we can group servers together in a single console and tag them. Using a single console that has all the repository of remote desktops makes life easy. This is referred to as a snap-in.

Lets see how can we create a snap-in that contains list of servers in a single console:

Steps
a. Go to Start->Run. Type mmc, hit OK.

this opens up a blank Microsoft management console as in the below diagram.

b. Now let’s add a snap-in to the blank console. Go to File menu->Add/Remove Snap-in... to open up Add/Remove Snap-in dialog.



c. Click on Add in Add/Remove Snap-in dialog box to open the list of snap-ins available that can be added to the console. For our purpose, we will add 'Remote Desktops'. Scroll down to select 'Remote Desktops' and hit Add. And then close the dialog box (Add Standalone Snap-in). Also hit OK at Add/Remove snap-in dialog box.

d. The Remote Desktops Snap-in now gets added to the console which currently does not have any connections. You can add your list of servers to access to this Remote Desktops Snap-in. To do this, Right-click on 'Remote Desktops' and select 'Add a new connection' to open 'Add a new connection' dialog box.

e. Enter your server details along with the required credentials by which you can login in to the server and hit OK.

f. A new server (Remote Desktop) entry gets created under your 'Remote Desktop' snap-in.

Likewise you can add your list of servers and group them as per your needs. Also look at other standalone snap-in available options to make your life easy. Happy Snap-in!!!