Free Tools for the IT Admin: Windows PC and Server

Below is a list of free tools we plan to grow over time to help our network of busy IT administrators.

Automate your everyday tasks using these free tools:

RAMKick™: Like RAMMap but Automatic, Empty System Working Set Memory (Freeware)

RamKick runs on schedule and when the configured action threshold is reached it frees system working set memory automatically. The metafile can grow quite large on servers with huge file volumes. RamKick keeps track of CPU and RAM usage and clears the RAM when necessary to keep your server running smoothly. Recommended action levels are 90% and above.

Map FTP / FTPS as a Drive Letter using DriveMaker (Freeware)

DriveMaker is a good alternative to the FileZilla FTP client and other complex FTP client software. It supports ultra-long path names, Unicode, secure FTPS, and encrypts/decrypts files on the fly. Rather than download and upload files to your web and ftp server, you can do it all via a virtual drive mounted to your desktop or Windows Server.

DeleteLongPath™ Deletes Long Folders when Windows Can’t Remove Them (freeware)

Have you ever tried deleting a very deep folder structure using Windows Explorer? Even on Windows 10 this bug in Windows has not been resolved. Use DeleteLongPath to delete any folder you need removed, even those way above 240 characters. In fact, NTFS paths can reach over 32,700 characters and many programmers–including those at Microsoft–are not aware of this simple fact…

VssDiag™ Our Volume Shadow Copy Service diagnostic tool (freeware)

VssDiag was developed to automate the tedious task of collecting error info when VSS fails. Our Volume Shadow Copy Service Error Troubleshooting Guide will take you on a step-by-step process using a dozen VSS repair strategies and VssDiag is a great tool to help you pinpoint the exact cause of the VSS problem you are facing. Believe it or not, both the VSS guide as well as VssDiag, are being by Microsoft personnel on average several times a month!

FolderStats™ Disk Usage Analyzer (freeware)

FolderStats is a great tool for analyzing folder usage. If you wonder how many fresh files are placed in your file server folder structure in any given interval, this tool is for you. By using this tool you can plan for future storage growth and also pinpoint some of your heaviest data users on the network.

File Date Repair Tool (freeware)

Some NAS devices, specifically those with a Linux operating system, have issues when under high load. One of those issues is that file dates “disappear” or are not stored at all. Because many Windows applications rely on file creation and modification time stamps, it’s a good idea to repair these files using our File Date Repair Tool and prevent processing errors.

Virtual Clone Drive (freeware)

Virtual Clone Drive is a nice little tool to mount CD/DVD images stored as ISO files into virtual drive letters. Similar to DriveMaker, this tool allows you to access DVD contents as a virtual drive that is accessible from your favorite programs.

The following tools also work on the free Microsoft OS “Hyper-V Server” and core installs of Windows Server

Xplorer2 (Freeware)
Xplorer2 is a great little tool to replace Windows Explorer. Since Windows core installs and Hyper-V Server don’t ship with Windows Explorer, it’s a great tool to use on those systems, too.

Total Commander (Freeware)
TotalCommander is another great file manager replacement for Windows, which also runs on Hyper-V servers and core installs.

MyEventViewer (Freeware)
MyEventViewer is really useful on core installs and Hyper-V Servers to access the Windows Event Viewer via a GUI. If you have ever used Microsoft’s command prompt commands to access the Event Viewer logs, you will definitely love this tool and switch immediately.

Notepad++ (Freeware)
While Notepad++ is free and works with server core and Hyper-V Servers, Ultraedit doesn’t. It’s a nice editor with color coding and lots of features that go beyond Microsoft’s bare-bone tool that hasn’t been updated in decades.

Process Explorer (Freeware)
Process Explorer is a treasure. It gives you lots of info about apps and shows which DLLs, images, executables have files and handles open.

Process Monitor (Freeware)
Process Monitor shows you in-depth process info that you can’t get from the regular Windows Task Manager. Also offers real-time logging.

Hyper-V Server 2012 R2 (Freeware)
Get the latest server operating system Microsoft has to offer for free! What most people don’t know, Hyper-V Servers are fully functional for a wide variety of uses, which is cool for home users and testers who can’t afford buying full-blown Windows Servers. In combination with the other tools we list here, you can turn any Hyper-V Server into a really useful and powerful workhorse.

BackupChain Backup Software
Runs 20 day for free, hence not a freeware tool, but also works on all Windows core installs and Hyper-V Servers with full GUI. Back up Hyper-V, VMware, PCs, and file servers to local disks, network and cloud. Also ships with an FTP server. Did you ever want to host FTP using a free Hyper-V Server? With BC you can!