Installation

The content below is intended for IT administrators and will guide you through the process of installing Specops Password Notification.

Components


Specops Password Notification Server: Detects users with passwords approaching expiration, and sends them notification emails.
The Specops Password Notification Server does not send password expiration notification emails to users with the following accounts settings:

  • Account is disabled
  • User must change password at next logon
  • Password never expires
  • Smart card is required for interactive logon

Specops Password Notification Administration Tools: The Administration Tools display the interface for configuring password expiration notifications, and enable the creation of Specops Password Notification settings in Group Policy Objects.

Requirements


The server running Specops Password Notification must meet the following system requirements:

Requirements
Component Requirement
Specops Password Notification
  • Specops Password Notification Admin tools require Group Policy Management Console to be installed
  • Windows Server 2008 R2 or later
  • Local administrator permissions on the computer running the Setup Assistant

Installing Specops Password Notification


During installation, Specops Password Notification will launch the Setup Assistant. The Setup Assistant will help you install the following components for Specops Password Notification:

  • Server
  • Administration Tools
  1. Download the Specops Password Notification package (please refer to the Download section).
  2. Save and Run the Setup Assistant on your server. The Setup Assistant will launch as soon as the file is extracted.
    NOTE
    By default, the file is extracted to C:\temp\SpecopsPasswordNotification_Setup_[VersionNumber].
  3. If your license is not already listed correctly in the right-side License section, click the Update license link and browse to the location of the TXT file containing the license key.
  4. Select the file and click Open.
  5. To begin, click Start Installation in the Specops Setup Assistant dialog box, and Accept the End User License Agreement.

Installing the Server

The Specops Password Notification Server is implemented as a Windows Service application. It is a .NET application built on Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5. During installation, the service is installed and configured to run as the selected service account.

  1. From the Setup Assistant, select Server.
  2. Verify that you have fulfilled the pre-requisites:
    • Verify that the account being used to run the Setup Assistant has local administrative permissions.
    • Verify that you are running a valid server operating system.
  3. Click Select user.
  4. Enter the Username and Password of the user account the service will run as, and click OK.
  5. Click Select… to select the Active Directory scope.
  6. Optionally, click Select DC to select the preferred domain controller for the policy lookup. If not selected, the Domain Controller closest to the Server will be used.
  7. Click Install.
  8. Once the installation has finished, from the Setup Assistant’s main window, click the Update license link.
  9. Browse to the location of the TXT file containing the license key. Select the file and click Open.

Installing the Administration Tools

The Specops Password Notification Administration Tools will install the Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) snap-in. You can use the GPMC snap-in to configure Password Notification setting in a Group Policy Object (GPO). The GPO can then be applied to your entire domain or a part of your domain.

The Administration Tools should be installed on the computer that you want to administer the product from.

  1. From the Setup Assistant, select Administration Tools.
  2. Click Install.

Licenses management


Specops Password Notification is fully functional with a trial license. Once this trial license has expired, it is important to follow the steps below to update the license.

  1. On the server running Specops Password Notification, open the Setup Assistant (you can also download it here).
  2. Click the Update license link and browse to the location of the TXT file containing the license key.
  3. Select the file and click Open.