Evan Mouzakitis discusses the various native tools available in Windows Server 2012 for monitoring system health and performance, as part of a three-part series on the topic. This article concentrates on different methods for accessing Windows metrics and performance data, highlighting both non-GUI and GUI tools such as Performance Monitor, Reliability Monitor, Resource Monitor, Service snap-in, Server Manager, and Task Manager. Powershell is emphasized as a powerful tool for gathering real-time or historical performance data using cmdlets, while Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) provides a standardized interface for querying system information. The article also briefly touches on the use of Windows Server Manager for aggregating data and the importance of visualizing performance data for identifying trends and issues. Finally, it introduces the comprehensive monitoring capabilities of Datadog, which integrates with numerous technologies to enhance observability across systems.