Networking has made it possible for organizations to locate offices and employees anywhere. But IT managers need to ensure that data and files will move securely from point to point. Microsoft Distributed File System (DFS) enables IT managers and end-users in medium and large enterprises access and manage files that are distributed across the network.

However, Microsoft DFS does present some limitations, most notably the inability to lock files. Without file locking, users that access a file simultaneously might inadvertently overwrite one another's changes or modify contents that are still being formulated.

This e-guide discusses this challenge. Topics covered include:

• Why use Microsoft DFS
• Problems with FRS - The advantage of DFS R2
• DFS R2 improvements - Namespaces and replication
• The DFS R2 limitations: No file locking
• Tools that add file locking to Microsoft DFS