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Archive for SBS – Page 13

Windows Update Error 800B0001

by KW · Comments (0)
Jul 01 2012

At an SBS 2011 site, workstations were recently updated with the latest Windows Update Agent (version 7.6.7600.256). When I attempted to run Windows Update from the workstations, it generated the following error message: Code 800B0001 windows Update encountered an unknown error

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This error occurred on Windows 7 SP1 workstations both 32-bit and 64-bit versions. I tried following the posted suggestion to run the System Update Readiness tool as well as suggested “Fixit” solution, but that did not resolve the situation.

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Note that the error with windows Update would only occur when trying to connect to the SBS/WSUS server. WU would work if I selected the “check online for updates from Microsoft”.

It turns out that the SBS/WSUS server needs to be updated as well. The solution is to download and install KB 2720211 on the SBS server.

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No reboot is required, and no services need to be restarted. After installing the patch, workstations successfully connected to the SBS/WSUS server.

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Categories : SBS, WSUS

Managing for Success 2012

by KW · Comments (0)
Jun 29 2012

I worked with Karl Palachuk two weeks ago at Microsoft’s TechEd technology conference in Orlando. He and I were both facilitators at TechEd’s Birds of a Feather sessions during the week.

This past week (Jun 26-28) Karl did something very interesting – he put together a three day, 18 hour online conference titled “Managing for Success 2012”. I was very impressed with the speakers chosen, the range and depth of information presented, the professionalism with each presentation, and most importantly – the fact that they stayed on time!

Kudos to Karl for a job well done!

SMB Online Conference

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Categories : Conferences, SBS, SMB
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Reindex WSUS DB?

by KW · Comments (0)
Jun 26 2012

If you read the Summary Notes associated with the WSUS Update KB 2720211, you will see that it recommends using the WSUS Cleanup Wizard and to re-index the WSUS DB.

Running the WSUS Cleanup wizard is something that I do with all my SBS servers — either manually, or via a scheduled task (see Eriq Neale’s blog post on this subject).

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However, I was unaware of any need to re-index the WSUS database.

I asked some of my fellow SBS MVPs to see if this is something they do, and several responded that they, too, were not aware of any need to re-index the WSUS database, and had never run it.

The steps to re-index the WSUS DB can be found in this Technet article.

YMMV!

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Categories : SBS, WSUS

Be Careful with WSUS Updates!

by KW · Comments (0)
Jun 25 2012

Updating SBS servers used to be a fairly simple and straightforward thing, especially as it comes with WSUS (Windows Serve Update Services).

My practice when installing SBS is to disable WSUS from automatically installing any updates. That allows me to decide which updates should be installed, and when. More importantly, it allows me to skip certain updates.

I have also made it a habit to install any .Net updates separately from all other updates. And if there are more than one .Net update to be installed, I install them one at a time. I have since extended that to other server apps managed by WSUS, such as Exchange, SQL, and SharePoint.

But what do you do if there is an update to WSUS itself, and that update breaks WSUS?

That’s exactly what happened when KB 2720211 was released earlier this month (June 8th, 2012). Soon afterwards, we started getting reports of this  patch failing to install, leaving WSUS in a broken state.

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Microsoft released a blog post on June 20th addressing common issues with installing KB 2720211 and how to fix them. Please read the post closely, and especially heed the advice to perform basic health checks of your WSUS server, such as running the WSUS Cleanup Wizard!

This reinforces the need to remind yourself of your process as to how you install patches. Mine include:

  • Make sure you have a good backup of your server before proceeding
  • If possible, reboot the server before installing major updates, such as service packs or rollups
  • There’s no reason to be the first kid on the block to install certain updates. I regularly will wait a week or two after major updates or patches have been released, and monitor the SBS Official Blog site and the Microsoft SBS Forum to see if any issues have been tracked.
  • Install security patches first.
  • Install server apps, such as .Net, Exchange, Sharepoint, SQL, WSUS separately from all other updates, and install such updates one at a time.
  • When all updates have been applied, I reboot the server and then check the event logs for any issues.
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Categories : News, SBS

Erroneous BPA EWS Warning for SBS 2011

by KW · Comments (0)
Jun 22 2012

If you are running a SBS 2011 server, after upgrading Best Practices Analyzer (BPA) with UR3,  you may see the following warning message:

The /EWS virtual directories maxRequestLength doesn’t match the get-transportconfig MaxSendSize

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This warning is NOT applicable to SBS 2011, and should be ignored!

To ignore this warning and prevent it from showing up again in the future, simply click on the “Exclude this Result” button that is displayed in the BPA for this warning.

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However, if you have already performed the resolution steps as recommended in the BPA, just repeat the steps and reset the maxRequestLength to 2097151 (which is 2GB).

For more information, please read the associated blog post on this subject at Microsoft’s Windows Server Essentials and Small Business Server Blog.

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Categories : SBS
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Customize SBS Alerts

by KW · Comments (0)
Jun 22 2012

The engineers from the SBS support team developed a nifty little tool called SBSAlertsCleanup that allows you to manage and filter unwanted event alerts for the SBS 2008/SBS 2011 monitoring reports. More information and a link to download the utility is available on the SBS Official Blog site.

Just a few additional comments and an example on using the utility.

After downloading and unzipping the utility, the instructions tell you to unblock the file. If you’re like me, I wasn’t sure what they were talking about. It’s as simple as right-clicking on the file ‘SBSAlertsCleanup.ps1’, then click Properties, and then click Unblock down in the lower right corner of the Properties box.

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To startup Powershell, you will need to open up the Command prompt window using ‘Run as’ an administrator. After the command prompt window opens, simply type Powershell and press enter.

You will then install the utility from the Powershell prompt. Use the CD command to change to the directory where you unzipped the utility, and then run the following command: .\sbsalertscleanup.ps1 –action install

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To see what events are already excluded, type: .\sbscleanupwizard.ps1 –action listexclusions

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To add an event to be excluded, you will first obtain a list of current reported events, identify the associated ID for the event you wish to excluded, and then exclude it.

To see a current list of all events, type: .\sbscleanupwizard.ps1 –action listevents

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To exclude a specific event, type: .\sbscleanupwizard.ps1 –action addexclusion –id XXXXX
(where XXXXX is the numeric ID associated with the event you wish to exclude)

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Categories : SBS

Eriq Neale–Friends O’ Mine

by KW · Comments (0)
Jun 15 2012

My good friend and Microsoft MVP buddy, Eriq Neale, passed away last night after a courageous battle with cancer. Four years ago, at a Microsoft SBS training session, Eriq pulled out his guitar and sang this song: Friends O’ Mine.

The original lyrics are posted below. I took a video of him singing it, changing some of the words to the song.

“Friends O’ Mine”
Well it was ugly but we made it this far
Some have gone but I forget who they are
Now the hangovers are worse but we get through them fine
Sleeping late but were not lazy
Getting older but were still crazy
I’m so glad that I have these friends o mine

It started out at a coffee shop in a most unlikely town
And there were casualties but we made it out anyhow
We stuck together through the good and bad times
Pulp Fiction, Blazing Saddles, and Fast Times
I’m so glad that I have these friends o mine

And jobs girls and obstacles did all but break us down
Night clubs and broken vans in every major town
And I’ve got your back, you’ve got mine
Like Johnny Cash said “I walk the line”
And you can always count on me for one last beer

We saw the world and the world seemed smaller
Were getting wider but not getting no taller
I know we’ve grown up just a little lot of time
Were sleeping late but were not lazy
Were getting older but were still crazy
I’m so glad that I have these friends o mine

So glad that I have these friends o mine
So glad that I have these friends o mine

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Categories : News, SBS, Songs

TechEd 2012 Multipoint Presentation

by KW · Comments (0)
Jun 13 2012

What a busy week it has been at TechEd here in Orlando. A lot of walking!!!

Today I facilitated a second Birds of a Feather session on “Windows MultiPoint Server Deployment” – MultiPoint Server brings back the concept of thin computing. Have you seen issues with IP addresses, USB devices, or accessing accounts and files? Bring your issues and compliments. How well does MultiPoint fit into the workplace?

The audience was sparse for this topic, but we still had a great opportunity to talk and dialog.

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Click on the image above to view the entire video of this session.

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Categories : Conferences, Multipoint, SBS, Windows
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Dell OpenManage Server Administrator (OMSA)

by KW · Comments (0)
May 25 2012

In the SBS world, I primarily install and recommend Dell servers. Dell’s OpenManage Server Administrator (OMSA) is a required install on every Dell server I manage.

You can locate and download the latest version of OMSA here. The download executable file is just under 200MB in size. Once it is downloaded, go ahead and install it. It will create a C:\OpenManage directory.

To start things up, click on the setup.exe program under C:\OpenManage\Windows folder. The first thing it will do is run a pre-requisite check. You will want to review the pre-req screen and address any specific issues.

I did this on an existing Dell T310 recently, and it reported that the firmware level for my Perc 6/I adapter did not meet minimum version requirements.

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The pre-req report provides a link provided, which will reported both my current driver and firmware levels installed, and what levels (at a minimum) were required.

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In this case, upgrading the Perc 6/I firmware requires a reboot of the server. After rebooting, restart the OMSA setup.exe, and after the pre-req scan completes, click on the Server Administrator button on the lower right to begin installation of OMSA. Installation proceeds and completes in just a few minutes.

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Once the installation is completed, you will want to add OMSA to your quick launch taskbar – icon image

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When you start up OMSA you will get a warning about the website’s security certificate. Click to continue for now, and start exploring your server.

P.S. be sure to clean up things by deleting the OMSA download file and the C:\OpenManage install directory

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Categories : SBS, Tools, Windows
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BPA How to UNDO a “Do Not Show Me” Choice

by KW · Comments (0)
May 10 2012

Installing and running the Best Practices Analyzer for your SBS server is strongly recommended. In addition to identifying errors that you need to address, the BPA may also generate a list of warnings that you should review.

You may determine that a particular BPA event is not applicable to your server, and you do not want to keep seeing it. That’s easily handled by clicking on the “Do not show me this item again for all instances” option – which will hide that event when viewing or generating a BPA report.

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But, what if you accidentally selected the wrong item to hide? How do you get it back?

Well, the answer is simple, but perhaps not intuitive.

With your BPA report on display, change the “Select Report Type” from “List Reports” to “Other Reports” and, voila, you will see a list of BPA events that you previously selected to not show. Locate the event you wish to unhide and click on the “Show me this item again for all instances” option.

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P.S. Please note that there are different versions of the Best Practices Analyzer for SBS 2003, SBS 2008, and SBS 2011.

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Categories : SBS, Servers
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