Finally made it over the line.
This was only my third box and I had filtered the options down to easy, so after rooting two linux boxes previously, I was sure that this windows box would be quick and simple given that I’ve been administering windows for over ten years.
How wrong was I? Very… let’s leave it at that… lol
This box has taught me things about windows that I never knew before. I’ve also learned the finer details of a number of protocols and services not to mention the sheer amount of tool experience gained navigating this machine. Plenty of advice has been offered already and the hints required are all here in this thread already, so if I can offer any advice of value it would be around tool usage and results.
Tools get old. Make sure you are using the latest/best tools for the job. Older tool sets may error out on you. For instance, there is a certain version of an ingestor that does not collect all the data you need in order to see a certain path (hint).
If you are not getting the results you expected. Double check your settings. Multiple times after updating something, I found my changes had not set. If multiple users are administering the same domain objects at the same time, configs can be overwritten. This is a major gotcha. Timing is important.
Lastly, journal your journey. I often find that writing down what I have done so far can trigger thoughts around what to do/try next. It also helps a great deal when you stayed up way past your sleep time, hacking away, too tired to think properly. At least you have your notes to turn to, instead of hazy memories from the night before.
About two to three days after gaining the user on this box, I hit a brick wall. Nothing I did was working and so I sought help from the guys here. They were excellent. No one ruined the game by giving direct instructions and many times it was at least comforting to know these guys had seen similar problems to me. Also it was nice to know I was on the right path and not as lost as I had thought I was. I’d like to thank the following users:
@mswdr2
@DJBrains
@MADE
@Inertia
@RodriguePascal
@R0xas
@Rene866
Thanks also to the box creators. Not sure this should have been in the easy section though!