Microsoft has released a couple of handy items for Windows administrators. Neither are really big deals, but conveniences.

We all use Microsoft's Sysinternals tools, written by Mark Russinovich and Bryce Cogswell, but it's been a minor pain keeping up with and installing all the updates they put out. Now, if you don't want to, you don't have to bother: You can get the tools live off the Web and run them directly rather than going through the obfuscatory Microsoft Download Center and then having to unzip a file or run an installer..

Go to the Sysinternals Live Web page. You'll see a directory listing of the current files in the Sysinternals set. For instance, the current version of Process Explorer is http://live.sysinternals.com/procexp.exe. In IE you can choose to run directly from the browser, but you can also create shortcuts on the desktop or in the Start Menu system to these files, and every time you run that shortcut you'll be running the current version. You do need to go through some confirmations, agreeing to the license, etc.

The second trick is the Elevation PowerToys for Windows Vista. These expand the Windows RunAs functionality to some popular third-party admin tools, like KiXtart and ActivePerl. Some examples combine it with the Elevate power tool to allow you to do RunAs for programs, like the MMC, which are often resistant to RunAs. There is also a PowerToy for running a CMD shell or PowerShell as the SYSTEM account.