You are installing XenApp 6 onto a Windows Server, XenApp and the License Server pass, but the Web Interface install fails. You check the installation logs and you see an error similar to this.

XenApp Server Role Manager\Startup\StartupIndicator.exe’ exited with error code

This is a confusing error that can and will baffle you till your hair falls out…

Solution.

I bet you are logged in as a user other than a true local administrator aren’t you? Log off, and log in as a local administrator, finish the install. That easy.

-NS

You can check by going to the Control Panel > Display > Screen Resolution > Advanced Settings > Adapter Type. If it just says SVGA,  VMware SVGA or something to that affect  you need to update the drivers. You can manually install the video driver to correct this, the drivers are located here – C:\Program Files\Common Files\VMware\Drivers\wddm_video. When you update the drivers, just search for them in “C:\Program Files\Common Files\VMware\” and include subfolders, Windows will pickup the correct driver. Once the drivers are up to date you will notice that, after the reboot, your mouse is nice and smooth like it should be. The display Adapter Properties should now read, “VMware SVGA 3D (Microsoft Corporation – WDDM)”

This fix should be relevant to all Windows Server 2008 VMs. Any questions, let me know!

-NS

Click Start, click Run, type cmd in the Open box, and then click OK.

Type netsh dhcp server export C:\dhcpdatabase.dat all, and then press ENTER.

Note: While the export command runs, DHCP server is stopped and does not respond to clients seeking new leases or lease renewals.

At the end of this step, you will have the DHCP configuration as well as address lease information exported into the dhcpdatabase.dat file. You can now stop the DHCP service on the source server.

Install the DHCP server service on the server that is running Windows Server 2008

To install the DHCP Server service on an existing Windows Server 2008 computer:

1. Start Server Manager.

2. Click on Add Roles.

3. Select the DHCP server role and press Next.

4. Click through the next sequence for screens of the installation wizard to complete the DHCP server installation. You should not authorize the DHCP server at this point.

Import the DHCP database

1. Log on as a user who is a member of the local Administrators group or DHCP administrators group.

2. Copy the exported DHCP database file to the local hard disk of the Windows Server 2008 computer.

3. Verify that the DHCP service is started on the Windows Server 2008 computer.

4. Click Start, click Run, type cmd in the Open box, and then click OK.

5. At the command prompt, type netsh dhcp server import c:\dhcpdatabase.dat all

And there you have it, no manual entries needed!

Good Luck!

The Microsoft iSCSI Software Target has been available for production use as part of Windows Storage Server since early 2007. It has also been available for development and test use by MSDN and TechNet subscribers starting in May 2009. However, until now, there was no way to use the Microsoft iSCSI Software Target in production on a regular server running Windows Server 2008 R2. This new download offers exactly that.

Now available as a public download, the software is essentially the same software that ships with Windows Storage Server 2008 R2. Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 and the public download package will be refreshed (kept in sync) with any software fixes and updates. Those updates are described here.

Check it out and let me know what you think.

I installed the iLO 3 configuration utility with a driver pack from HP onto my Windows 2008 R2 64-bit server.

After doing so, I can’t run the utility; after startup, it gives an “Unhandled exception” error saying “Acces to the path ‘C:\program files\HP\hpconfg\xmlOutput7_6_2010_8_31_45_AM599.txt’ is denied”.

One would think its a major error, and re-installation of the package does not work.

Turns out it is a permissions issue and can be resolved by right clicking on the shortcut of the HP Lights-Out Configuration Utility, properties, then the Compatibility tab, then clicking the  “Change setting for all users” button, finally clicking ”Run this program as an Administrator”.  The Lights-Out Online Configuration Utility should now work!

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HP has advanced its server management capability through HP Insight Control with Integrated Lights-Out 3 (iLO 3). The technology significantly improves system operations, remote management performance and efficiencies for customers throughout the server life cycle. HP also announced two new HP ProLiant G7 servers that considerably increase operational efficiency and reduce operating costs to deliver a full return on investment in two months.

So if you havent been in the know, its time to start reading up on HP Proliant Servers… check them out here.

Along with the new release comes the ability to create virtual machines with up to 8 vcpus and 32GB of memory, driverless printing with no configuration for both Windows and Linux guest operating systems.

3D support just got better VMware Workstation 7 is now the first to support Windows Aero in Windows Vista and Windows 7 virtual machines. Run even more 3D applications with support for DirectX 9.0c Shader Model 3 and OpenGL 2.13D graphics in Windows virtual machines.

Here is a quick insert from VMware themselves.

What’s New in VMware Workstation 7.1

•Support for 8 virtual processors (or 8 virtual cores) and 2 TB virtual disks.
•Support for OpenGL 2.1 for Windows Vista and Windows 7 guests.
•Greatly improved DirectX 9.0 graphics performance for Windows Vista and Windows 7 guests. Up to 2x faster than Workstation 7.
•Launch virtualized applications directly from the Windows 7 taskbar to create a seamless experience between applications in your virtual machines and the desktop.
•Optimized performance for Intel’s Core i3, i5, i7 processor family for faster virtual machine encryption and decryption.
•Support for more Host and Guest Operating Systems, including: Hosts: Windows 2008 R2, Ubuntu 10.04, RHEL 5.4, and more Guests: Fedora 12, Ubuntu 10.04, RHEL 5.4, SEL 11 SP1, and more.
•Now includes built in Automatic Updates feature to check, download, and install VMware Workstation updates.
•Ability to import and export Open Virtualization Format (OVF 1.0) packaged virtual machines and upload directly to VMware vSphere, the industry’s best platform for building cloud infrastructures.

Well what are you waiting for? Go here to download and install/upgrade now!

-NS

A Texas jury ruled March 16 that Microsoft willfully infringed on two VirnetX patents pertaining to the use of secure  communication links between computing  devices. The jury recommended to the U.S. District Court that VirnetX be awarded $105.75 million in damages.

Days later VirnetX filed another lawsuit saying that Windows 7 and Server 2008 R2 also infringed on the same patents… this led to the 200 million dollar settlement to basically buy the patents. Oh Microsoft when will you learn to say please?

-NS