The Real (and Virtual) Adventures of Nathan the IT Guy » Windows

Exchange 2003-2010 Tools

Nathan Simon — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 13:08:22 +0000

If you are an Exchange Admin, you need tools, and we have just the list for you… below is a quick list, the full list can be found here, and the list contains 20+ useful tools and explanations of each tool.

Tool	Notes
Bginfo	Generates customized desktop background images.
CalCheck	Checks for known issues in Outlook calendar items.
Error Code Lookup (err.exe)	Lookup numerical error codes from many different products.
Exchange 2010 Server Deployment Assistant	Takes input about your environment and generates customized instructions you can use to upgrade to Exchange 2010.
Exchange 2010 Visio Stencil	Exchange Viso shaps.

Thanks to Mr Proactive of TechNet Blogs for the great list!

New HP Ultrabook “Spectre”

Nathan Simon — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 00:54:54 +0000

So the hunt may be on for the Ultimate Ultrabook. After trying so hard to get my hands on an Asus Transformer Prime tablet, and failing, I almost don’t want one anymore. I have my HP Touchpad which does most things fine. Who needs a tablet anyways, forget about Android OS or Apple iOS and all the stupid apps you have to pay for an download. You can have a sleek and slim Ultrabook with Windows 7 running off ultrafast SSD drives. I want to speculate that this Ultrabook will have a touchscreen and will be ready for Windows 8 Metro UI, but that’s just a rumor I would like to start! There are NO details, just a movie and some pictures. Check it them out here. I will be sure to follow up at a later date when I have more information.

Asus Transformer Prime (Last Update)

Nathan Simon — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 18:40:09 +0000

I say the last update because I am tired of posting falsely, well I can only post what I find on the net so maybe its not false, just the worst launch of a product ever, and the most sought after Android Tablet to date… My update is this. The Transformer Prime has shipped to some customers, I am not one of them, if you pre-ordered around the end of November, do not expect to see it till January, most likely mid-January. For the time being you can browse the download page for the Transformer Prime, Asus finally launched it. There are some firmware updates, USB Drivers for Windows, Utilities to pair and sync contacts, (if you aren’t using Active Sync), also the source code for the Eee Pad Kernel, and finally, Eee Pad PC Suite. Go here for the downloads.

So go ahead, pre-download the software, then wait patiently for Asus to start shipping you your Asus Transformer Prime(if that is what it will be called, Hasbro is demanding that Asus drop the name Transformer Prime, why didn’t they act earlier?)

If you did get your Asus Transformer Prime, congratulations to the rest, its worth the wait!

-NS

Sysinternals Update and News

Nathan Simon — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 01:24:03 +0000

Once again, I present you with a Sysinternals update. Autoruns has been updated to v1.1. Autoruns is my favorite application to help in the battle against malware/spyware. For those who aren’t familiar wth Autoruns, it kind of like the startup tab in msconfig on steroids!

Autoruns v1.1
This update to Autoruns, a GUI and command-line tool that lists executables configured to run when you boot, logon or run common applications, adds a “jump to folder” command and several additional autostart locations. The command-line version, Autorunsc, adds a new switch to show file hashes and an option to display the autostart entries for all user accounts registered on a system.

As well as an Introduction to Windows Azure.

Mark at BUILD: Introduction to Windows Azure, Inside Windows Azure
Mark’s highly-related BUILD sessions are now available for on-demand viewing. In Introduction to Windows Azure: The Cloud OS, Mark defines cloud computing, presents the different types and positions Windows Azure. Then he describes Windows Azure’s implementation of Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS), including how it makes it easy for developers to write highly-available, highly-scalable cloud applications. In Inside Windows Azure: The Cloud OS, Mark goes deeper than ever before to show Microsoft’s datacenter architecture and explain the steps Windows Azure follows to deploy and runs cloud applications. He concludes by revealing how the Windows Azure team develops and operates Windows Azure.

Check them out here. You can also download each and every application of the sysinternals suite from here.

VMware Workstation 8

Nathan Simon — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 16:40:59 +0000

VMware Workstation 8 is out! For those who like to dabble in VMware but cannot afford a separate PC for virtualization sand boxing look no further… there are a bunch of new features.

Run over 600 different operating systems right on your PC. Prove your mastery of the PC and run from DOS to Windows 7

Run the most demanding applications in a virtual machine with 8 virtual processors or 8 virtual cores, 2 TB virtual disks and up to 64 GB of memory per virtual machine

Move to the internal cloud. Build and test your virtual machines locally and then drag and drop to move them directly to VMware vSphere

Remotely connect to virtual machines running on VMware vSphere anywhere on your network to leverage not only your local PC but the internal cloud

Run as a server to share virtual machines with your team, department, or anyone in your organization with enterprise caliber control over user access

Go here for the full list of additions and improvements.

Steve Jobs Resigns as CEO of Apple Inc.

Nathan Simon — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 00:30:26 +0000

Well without reading anything in the press, nor have I even read what is below, I will say this, like Bill Gates, Steve steps down, he may not be actively running the company, but I am sure he will have plenty of input. I do not like Apple, I was forced to use an iPhone 4 for almost a year, thank god I got a BlackBerry Bold 9900( I can breath again!), but Steve, you did an amazing job. Sure you gave up on your own hardware and had to use Intel Processors etc. but your design was what people wanted, no not me, but other people… having said the above… let’s read the insert I pasted from Apples sight!

“Steve’s extraordinary vision and leadership saved Apple and guided it to its position as the world’s most innovative and valuable technology company,” said Art Levinson, Chairman of Genentech, on behalf of Apple’s Board. “Steve has made countless contributions to Apple’s success, and he has attracted and inspired Apple’s immensely creative employees and world class executive team. In his new role as Chairman of the Board, Steve will continue to serve Apple with his unique insights, creativity and inspiration.”

See? What did I say, just because he stepped down as CEO he will still be there to guide the company that he built. I mean when you are Steve Jobs, or Bill Gates, you never leave the company completely… Good Luck in your new position Steve…

-NS

August Sysinternals Update

Nathan Simon — Sun, 21 Aug 2011 20:52:00 +0000

I’ve said it time and time again, Sysinternals is one of the best names in the IT industry, without it, I wouldn’t be the tech I am today. With that said, there are some program and blog updates from the 16th of this month that I wanted to make sure got some extra attention.

Process Explorer is at v15. The unique capabilities of Process Explorer make it useful for tracking down DLL-version problems or handle leaks, and provide insight into the way Windows and applications work.

ProcDump is at v4 now. ProcDump is a command-line utility whose primary purpose is monitoring an application for CPU spikes and generating crash dumps during a spike that an administrator or developer can use to determine the cause of the spike.

Mark, one of the sysinternal developers, added a blog where he was trying to play Portal 2, he used his own utilities to find what was causing the issue.

Check the site out here.

OCZ Vertex 3 Max IOPS SATAIII

Nathan Simon — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 01:07:00 +0000

You want a fast booting system? You have some cash to spend? Look no further the OCZ Vertex 3 Max IOPS is just the solid state drive for you! Check out those stats! I have the OCZ Vertex 2 in my system and it takes longer to get by the BIOS then it does boot my Windows 7 machine!

Available in 120GB and 240GB Capacities
MLC NAND Flash
Interface: SATA 6Gbps / Backwards Compatible 3Gbps
Native TRIM support
Seek Time: .1ms
Slim 2.5″ Design
99.8 x 69.63 x 9.3mm
Lightweight: 77g
Operating Temp: 0°C ~ 70°C
Ambient Temp: 0°C ~ 55°C
Storage Temp: -45°C ~ 85°C
Low Power Consumption: 3W Active, 1.65W Idle
Shock Resistant up to 1500G
RAID Support
Included 3.5″ Desktop adapter bracket
Compatible with Windows 7, Vista, XP 32-bit/64-bit, Mac OSX
MTBF: 2 million hours
3-Year Warranty
120GB Max Performance*
Max Read: up to 550MB/s
Max Write: up to 500MB/s
Random Read 4KB: 35,000 IOPS
Random Write 4KB: 75,000 IOPS
Maximum 4K Random Write: 85,000 IOPS
240GB Max Performance*
Max Read: up to 550MB/s
Max Write: up to 500MB/s
Random Read 4KB: 55,000 IOPS
Random Write 4KB: 65,000 IOPS
Maximum 4K Random Write: 85,000 IOPS

*Max performance achieved using Native SATA 6Gbps chipset. Please refer to product sheet for additional performance metrics

If you want to order the drive or whatever, go to this link.

Google+

Nathan Simon — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 03:15:12 +0000

I just got invited, and I have no clue what I am doing on there... I don't know if they can really pry people away from Facebook... maybe as an addition to Gmail? But really I think Google is a little late on this release, and it sure isn't an Android!

Here is a little video of what it can do for you.

[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/xwnJ5Bl4kLI" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]

So apparently there are 6 things that Google+ can do that Facebook cannot. Most of them I wouldn't find myself doing anyways. Watch the video and check out this webpage for the full out story.

Update : I must admit, i didn't watch the video until this blog had already been posted, it's pretty neat... I definitely will give it a try, but I still don't see it taking too much away from the juggernaut that Facebook is...

-NS

Lost HTTP Access to MSA 2012i

Nathan Simon — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 01:40:37 +0000

Well, the scenario is that I lost the ability to manage the storage controllers via a web browser. I could ping each controller fine, and I could also telnet into them, which is great, because with telnet you can fix this issue.

Go to Command Prompt.

Type telnet 192.168.x.x (whatever the IP is of the controller)

Enter the username and password. MSA default username and password is manage and !manage

Once you have successfully authenticated with the storage controller you can restart that controller, wait about 30 seconds before restarting the second controller, or you will loose ALL communication to the MSA, temporarily of course, although this will be enough time for iSCSI targets to most likely dismount.

Anyways, the process of restarting the controller is documented below.

Login: manage
Password: *******

HP StorageWorks MSA2012i
System Name: Uninitialized Name
System Location: Uninitialized Location
Version: W421R07

# restart mc b
During the restart process you will briefly lose communication with the specifie
d Management Controller(s).
Continue? y
Info: Restarting Local MC B…

Success: Command completed successfully
#

Once both controllers have been restarted I can pretty much guarantee that you will be able to manage the MSA once again via browser.

Your Welcome

-NS