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Russell Smith

Editorial Director

Russell Smith, the Editorial Director at Petri IT Knowledgebase, has over two decades of hands-on experience in IT, in both small business settings and government IT infrastructure projects.

Russell started writing for Windows IT Pro Magazine in the early 2000s. Since then, he has contributed insights to various IT publications, including Petri and CDW. His authoritative voice has resonated across industry blogs, where he dissects complex topics into an ‘easy read’.

Russell has authored over a thousand articles, each a testament to his depth of knowledge. His expertise doesn’t stop there: he wrote a book on Privilege Management and co-authored another for Microsoft’s MOAC series. Moreover, Russell’s commitment to education shines through in the courses he crafted for Pluralsight.

He is also presenter on his own YouTube channel, This Week in IT, and the current presenter of Petri Dish.

LATEST

Add a Network Printer to Windows 8 with PowerShell

Last Update: Sep 04, 2024

Russell Smith shows us three different ways to add a network printer to Windows 8, including one that relies on Windows PowerShell.

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Why You Need to Learn PowerShell

Last Update: Sep 04, 2024

Learn PowerShell to reduce the time it takes to deploy entire Windows Server environments, on site or in the cloud, from hours to mere minutes.

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How to Create a Windows 8 USB Recovery Disk

Last Update: Sep 04, 2024

Russell Smith shows how easy it is to create a USB recovery disk for your Windows 8 system.

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Using the Windows Server 2012 Security Configuration and Analysis Tool

Last Update: Sep 04, 2024

In the first of a three-part series, Russell Smith explains how to use the Windows Server Security Configuration and Analysis Snap-In and the SecEdit command line tool.

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3 Ways to Start Windows 8 in Safe Mode

Last Update: Sep 04, 2024

Russell Smith shows us three different ways to start windows 8 in safe mode, including using the system recovery tool, a boot disk, and keyboard commands.

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Deploy a SharePoint Farm in Microsoft Azure

Last Update: Sep 04, 2024

Need to get a SharePoint farm into the cloud? Learn how to quickly deploy SharePoint in Microsoft Azure using this handy tutorial by Russell Smith.

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Test Labs in Microsoft Azure – Six Disadvantages

Last Update: Sep 04, 2024

Considering moving your Windows Server test labs to Microsoft Azure? Russell Smith outlines some drawbacks to putting your test environment in the cloud.

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Using the PowerShell get-history Cmdlet

Last Update: Sep 04, 2024

Russell Smith shows us how to use the PowerShell get-history cmdlet to make a transcript of a PowerShell session.

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Using PowerShell to Provision Member Servers in Microsoft Azure

Last Update: Sep 04, 2024

Russell Smith shares a Windows PowerShell script that provisions member servers in Microsoft Azure.

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4 Useful Features of Windows 8 File Explorer

Last Update: Sep 04, 2024

Russell Smith tells us about four great features found in the new ribbon UI in Windows 8 File Explorer.

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How to Reserve Public Virtual IP Addresses in Microsoft Azure

Last Update: Sep 04, 2024

Russell Smith shows us how to create a reserved Public Virtual IP address (VIP) in Microsoft Azure with his latest Ask an Admin post.

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Provision Domain Controllers in Azure using PowerShell

Last Update: Jul 29, 2025

Russell Smith shares a helpful PowerShell script to provision domain controllers in Microsoft Azure.

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