How-To guides that prove the work, not just describe it
Step-by-step technology guides with prerequisites, ordered actions, expected results and verification checks.
This is the practical section of isageek: guides for configuring, testing, validating, troubleshooting and recovering technology. Each guide is built around a clear outcome, with the context and checks needed to understand what you are changing and confirm that it worked.
Last reviewed: 5 September 2026. New practical guides are added as they are published.
Start with the right kind of guide
Microsoft & Azure
Identity, Microsoft 365, Azure, AVD and operational tasks across the Microsoft stack.
Infrastructure
Virtualisation, storage, backup, monitoring and the checks that keep platforms supportable.
Troubleshooting
Focused diagnostic guides for finding the fault without changing ten things at once.
Home lab
Practical experiments and repeatable procedures that are still useful outside enterprise IT.
Latest How-To guides
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- How I would deploy Microsoft Defender without alert fatigue
A Microsoft Defender rollout should create an incident queue that a named team can investigate and close—not a flood of notifications. I would phase in coverage, tune known… - How to Build a Reliable Proxmox Backup Strategy
Build Proxmox backups around acceptable data loss and downtime, then use tiered schedules, independent off-site copies, retention controls and restore tests to show that… - What Proxmox Backup Server Does for Proxmox VE Backups
Proxmox Backup Server provides deduplicated backup storage for Proxmox VE, helping retain more recovery history without repeatedly storing unchanged guest data. Its usefulness… - How to Size HPE Alletra MP for Capacity, Performance and Recovery
Correct HPE Alletra MP sizing separates usable, provisioned and effective capacity, tests peak I/O and connectivity, and reserves space for snapshots, replication, failures and… - Designing an Auditable Sovereignty Landing Zone with Azure Local
A regulated Azure Local deployment needs more than local workloads. This blueprint sets out how to define management, identity, network, key and evidence boundaries, then map…
Microsoft, Azure and identity procedures
Related analysis
- How I would deploy Microsoft Defender without alert fatigue
A Microsoft Defender rollout should create an incident queue that a named team can investigate and close—not a flood of notifications. I would phase in coverage, tune known… - Microsoft Blocks Legacy RGB Driver Behind Windows 11 Game Crashes
Microsoft’s targeted Windows 11 mitigation stops a legacy RGB and hardware-control driver loading on affected PCs, exposing the uneasy overlap between kernel access, game… - Azure SRE Agent Can Speed Up Investigation, Not Replace SRE Teams
Azure SRE Agent can combine telemetry, incident data, source code and operational knowledge to speed up diagnosis. Its value depends on reliable inputs, tightly scoped… - Microsoft 365 Copilot Security: It Exposes Existing Permissions, Labels and Oversharing
Microsoft 365 Copilot does not bypass security. It exposes whatever permissions, sensitivity labels and sharing mistakes already exist in your tenant, including via connectors.… - Windows Server 2016 ESUs via Azure Arc need a firm exit plan
Windows Server 2016 support ends on 12 January 2027. Azure Arc ESUs can supply Critical and Important security updates until 2030, but each covered workload needs an owner, a…
Infrastructure, backup and networking procedures
Related analysis
- Proxmox Disaster Recovery Restore Tests: Define RTO/RPO, Map Dependencies, and Prove Restores End-to-End
Backups are only hope. In Proxmox, disaster recovery is proving you can restore the right workload end-to-end under time pressure: the correct restore point, dependency order,… - What Proxmox VE Really Costs to Run
Proxmox VE is free to use, but dependable virtualisation has wider costs. Hardware, storage, backups, electricity, subscriptions and administrator time determine whether a… - Should VMware Customers Evaluate HPE VM Essentials?
HPE VM Essentials may merit evaluation where VMware costs, hardware plans or a need for platform choice have changed. Assess supported infrastructure, Linux operations, backup,… - How to Build a Reliable Proxmox Backup Strategy
Build Proxmox backups around acceptable data loss and downtime, then use tiered schedules, independent off-site copies, retention controls and restore tests to show that… - What Proxmox Backup Server Does for Proxmox VE Backups
Proxmox Backup Server provides deduplicated backup storage for Proxmox VE, helping retain more recovery history without repeatedly storing unchanged guest data. Its usefulness…
Troubleshooting guides
Related analysis
- How I would deploy Microsoft Defender without alert fatigue
A Microsoft Defender rollout should create an incident queue that a named team can investigate and close—not a flood of notifications. I would phase in coverage, tune known… - How to Build a Reliable Proxmox Backup Strategy
Build Proxmox backups around acceptable data loss and downtime, then use tiered schedules, independent off-site copies, retention controls and restore tests to show that… - What Proxmox Backup Server Does for Proxmox VE Backups
Proxmox Backup Server provides deduplicated backup storage for Proxmox VE, helping retain more recovery history without repeatedly storing unchanged guest data. Its usefulness… - How to Size HPE Alletra MP for Capacity, Performance and Recovery
Correct HPE Alletra MP sizing separates usable, provisioned and effective capacity, tests peak I/O and connectivity, and reserves space for snapshots, replication, failures and… - Designing an Auditable Sovereignty Landing Zone with Azure Local
A regulated Azure Local deployment needs more than local workloads. This blueprint sets out how to define management, identity, network, key and evidence boundaries, then map…
About these guides
These guides are written for practical use rather than blind copy-and-paste. Where a task can affect security, identity, storage, backup or connectivity, look for prerequisites, validation checks and recovery guidance before applying it to a live environment.
Related technology maps
For broader context, use the Technology pillar. Microsoft-specific decisions sit under Microsoft Technology, while platform architecture sits under Enterprise Infrastructure and Cloud & Hybrid Infrastructure.