Help desk and Active Directory lab

Learn the help desk by working one.

Vanaheim gives you a Windows 11 PC in your browser, a queue of tickets and forty fictional employees who keep forgetting their passwords. You fix what is broken and write up what you did.

Invite-only for now. Follow along on TikTok for new tickets.

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Sample ticket
VH-0147OPEN · PRIORITY HIGH

Locked out before payroll

“I changed my password this morning and now it says my account is locked. I run payroll at 3 and I can’t get into anything.”

FromMarta Lindqvist, Finance Domainvanaheim.internal Waiting41 minutes

YOUR MOVE. Find her account in Active Directory, work out why it locked, get her back in and record what you did.

Wax seal showing the Vanaheim wolf crest

The workFour levels of tickets

Pick a level and a ticket arrives. Each one is a realistic fault built into a simulated company, so you can practice without touching anything that matters.

  1. I

    Helpdesk 01: Passwords and accounts

    Lockouts, forgotten passwords, and disabled or expired accounts.

    Starter
  2. II

    Helpdesk 02: Files and access

    Shared folders, mapped drives and group membership.

    Core
  3. III

    Helpdesk 03: Servers and DNS

    Name resolution and services. The harder tier.

    Hard
  4. IV

    Helpdesk 04: Security

    Odd sign-ins, privileged group audits and phishing reports.

    Hard
  5. The automatic checker

    Tells you whether you actually fixed it.

    Auto

The pathFrom the gate to your first fix

You need a browser and an email address your instructor has approved.

  1. 1

    Open the gate

    Go to the lab address. Cloudflare emails you a six-digit code. Enter it.

  2. 2

    Sign in

    Use the username and password your instructor gave you, then scan the QR code with an authenticator app. You scan it once.

  3. 3

    Take your seat

    Pick your PC from the list. It opens in a browser tab as a full Windows 11 desktop, joined to the company domain.

  4. 4

    Work the queue

    Open GLPI, pick a ticket and fix it. Everything you do is recorded, so your instructor can review it with you.

The hallWhat you are working in

A small company, built to behave like a real one. It runs on a single server rack in the instructor’s home lab.

Company
Vanaheim Systems, 40 fictional employees
Domain
vanaheim.internal, with departments, groups, policies and file shares
Your PC
Windows 11, joined to the domain, reset to a clean state by the instructor
Tickets
GLPI, signed in with your domain account
Your login
Email code, password and an authenticator code
Vanaheim crest: a silver wolf's head on a green and black shield

Invite-only for now.

New tickets go up on TikTok first. Follow along and see what lands in the queue.

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