Archives

Site Status

This site is no longer actively maintained. Blog posts (2008-2017) are for historical search purposes. Thanks!

Archive for Windows – Page 3

Windows 10 – I Like It!

by KW · Comments (0)
Aug 01 2015

There is a term often used in companies that develop products called “eating your own dogfood”. The basic concept is that if you expect your customer to use a product, then you should be using it.

So last night I took the jump from Windows 8.1 to Windows 10. It took less time to install Windows 10 than it did for me to make a full backup of my workstation, which has lots of videos, music, and pictures, as well as lot’s of large ISO files.

I had previously download the Windows 10 Pro to a USB stick, and was planning to do an in-place upgrade. Here is my timeline:

  • 10:08pm last night (22:08 for some of you), start the Windows 10 setup program
  • 10:10pm Getting Important Updates …
  • 10:14pm Ready to Install
  • 10:33pm Update completed and ready to log in
  • 10:34pm Setting up Apps
  • 10:35pm Desktop set up and ready to go. Received message that newer video/graphics drivers were required. DisplayLink required
  • 10:44pm Installed newer B/IOS, rebooted, and DisplayLink adapter started working, and I had all three monitors working.

I did a preliminary check of various applications with no identifiable issues, including Audacity 2.1, Adobe Acrobat 11, UltraEdit 22, CuteFTP 9, Calendar Creator 12, Office 2013, MaxFoxcus RMM Dashboard, MaxFocus Mail, Advanced IP, “God Mode”, Firefox, Chrome, Edge, MAlwareBytes, SAS, CClenaer, Splashtop, Quicken 2015, Windows Live Writer, Dropbox, scanning from my Visioneer 9250, and printing to my Dell 1710 Laser Printer and my HP Officejet Pro 8600.

So far, my take on Windows 10? Well, quoting the Rocketeer … “I Like It!”


The Rocketeer – Disney Video

Comments (0)
Categories : News, Windows, Windows 10
Tags :

Client Connector Status of Windows 10 and Server Essentials 2012 R2

by KW · Comments (0)
Jul 28 2015

IMPORTANT NOTE:  The client connector to connect Windows 10 to Windows Server Essentials 2012 R2 is currently being tested and is not yet available.

Once this updated connector is released, a link to download it manually will be posted. Doing a manual download is a known issue that is expected to be resolved in the October 2015 timeframe.

Over the years Microsoft has released a family of server platforms for the home and small business environments – including Small Business Server (SBS), Windows Home Server (WHS), and Server Essentials.

One of the key parts to these products is the “client connector” which is run from a client workstation to properly connect it to the server, include it in the dashboard, setup appropriate security, and, where appropriate, configure the workstation for daily backup.

In advance of the release of Windows 10, the Microsoft support team has released a blog post with a matrix identifying the availability and any restrictions for the client connector for each server platform, against each supported client operating system (Windows 7, 8, 8.1, and 10).

Client Connector availability with Windows Home Server, Small Business Server and Windows Server Essentials for Supported Client OS

Comments (0)
Categories : Essentials, News, SBS, Servers, WHS, Windows
Tags : , ,

Windows 10 One Day More!

by KW · Comments (0)
Jul 28 2015

image

Tomorrow (29-Jul-2015) is the official release date of Windows 10. 

In honor of this event, here’s my song parody to the tune of “Do You Hear The People Sing” from Les Misérables:

Do you hear the people cheer?
Knowing the day is drawing near?
It is the time for all the people
Who will want to get it first!
When the beating of your heart
Echoes the news that we all want
There is a life about to start
When tomorrow comes.

Will you join in this event?
Who will be strong and wait with me?
Beyond the last release
Is there a world you long to see?
Then join in this time
That will give you the right to be free!

Do you hear the people scream?
Windows 10 will soon be here
It is the download that the people
Who have waited long so long to cheer!
When the download finally starts
Pray that the Internet won’t crash
There is a life about to start
And it’s coming fast!

Will you load it right away?
So that the news may travel fast?
Some will wait, but some will say
Will you stand up and take your chance?
The cheers of the people
Will make the whole world dance!

Do you hear the people sing?
Windows 10 is not a dream
It is the update that the people
Who have waited so long to see!
When today with the setting sun
And all the backups have been done
There is a life about to start
And it’s Windows 10!

Comments (0)
Categories : Microsoft, News, Windows
Tags :

Will there be a Windows Server Essentials 2016?

by KW · Comments (0)
Jul 24 2015

imageWindows 10 for desktops and mobile devices is just around the corner.

That would be July 29th if you’ve been on vacation! –>

And … the next version of Windows Server will be Windows Server 2016.

The current version is Windows Server 2012, which includes a specific (post-SBS) version called Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials.

So, it is only fair to have people ask: “Will there be also be a Windows Server 2016 Essentials (W2016E for short) released?”image

The following public Technet article mentions W2016E by name. So it would be a reasonable conclusion to think that they are planning on a W2016E version.

But — given that Server 2016 will not be rolled out until next year, things can always change.

http://blogs.technet.com/b/sbs/archive/2015/07/23/client-connector-availability-with-windows-home-server-small-business-server-and-windows-server-essentials-for-supported-client-os.aspx

image

Comments (0)
Categories : Essentials, Microsoft, News, SBS, Servers, Windows
Tags : ,

Windows Store App Won’t Open in Windows 8.1

by KW · Comments (0)
Jul 20 2015

imageRecently I installed some new Windows 8.1 computers, and joined them to the local domain. One of the users informed me that the Windows Store app wouldn’t work. It would just flash for a moment, sitting on the Windows Store “green screen”.

There are a ton of posts from people with this problem, and just as many “solutions”.

Most of the solutions involved making sure that the “ALL APPLICATION PACKAGES” group name had read access permission to some or all of the Windows Registry hives (example), and/or read access permission to the Users, Windows, and Program Files folders (example).

I wasn’t ready to make those types of changes.

After more research, I found several suggestions that utilized a single Powershell command to fix the issue. Now, that’s a solution I like!

David Dixon’s blog post on the solution was the first of these that I found, and also the clearest in explanation.

Here are the steps:

  • Open an elevated command prompt
  • Type or paste:
    powershell -ExecutionPolicy Unrestricted Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register $Env:SystemRoot\WinStore\AppxManifest.xml and press <Enter>.
  • Type or paste:
    start “” “ms-windows-store:” and press <Enter>. Be sure to include the quotes!

image

In the feedback section of David’s blog page, there are several comments that offers a similar version of these steps for the Windows 10 Technical Preview. Once Windows 10 is released to the public, I will post those steps, if applciable.

Comments (0)
Categories : PowerShell, Tools, Windows
Tags : ,

New 2012 Windows Server 2012 R2 VM Couldn’t Complete the Updates Undoing Changes

by KW · Comments (0)
Jul 18 2015

Aarrgghh – why don’t I remember these things anymore????

I was in the process of firing up a new 2012 R2 VM,  and in my rush, I  clicked to download and install all updates before heading out to do some errands. When I got back home, I was greeted with the following error message:

We couldn’t complete the updates. Undoing changes. Don’t turn off the computer.

image

The thing is — this was a known issue over a year ago! One that my good MVP friend Boon Tee encountered it, and wrote up a blog post at that time for the workaround.

The problem occurs if you are creating a Gen 2 virtual machine (.vhdx) and KB 2920189 is included in the list of updates you are trying to install.

The solution?

Shutdown VM –> disable Secure Boot from the VM –> Start VM  and install updates –> Shutdown VM –> re-enable Secure Boot –> Start VM

You can find the option to enable/disable Secure Boot under the Firmware section of the VM settings.

image

Warning — the “Undoing changes” can take quite a long time to complete. I decided to delete the VM, and start over from scratch!

Comments (0)
Categories : Essentials, Hyper-V, SBS, SMB, Windows
Tags : ,

Srv.sys warning on Windows 2012 R2 Best Practices Analyzer

by KW · Comments (0)
Jul 17 2015

Sometimes we freak out over every warning message that is displayed when we run Microsoft’s Best Practices Analyzer (BPA). In setting up a new Windows 2012 R2 server recently , BPA displayed a single warning:

Srv.sys should be set to start on demand

The BPA simply says that “Client computers will not be able to access file shares …”

image

The BPA simply says that “Client computers will not be able to access file shares …”

Wow, that sounds more like a major error waiting to happen! Why, then, is it just a warning? 

The answer is that SMB 1.0 protocol is not on by default for Windows Server 2012 R2. SMB 1.0 is required for Windows XP workstations to access file shares.

So you can safely ignore this error.

But, in the chance that you need the SMB 1.0 protocol running, you can do so very easily by opening an elevated command prompt on the server and typing in this command:

sc config srv start=demand

More information is included in this Microsoft Technet article: http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/21104.srv-sys-should-be-set-to-start-on-demand.aspx

Comments (0)
Categories : Servers, Windows
Tags : ,

Support for Windows Server 2003 ends today

by KW · Comments (0)
Jul 14 2015

The end of an era occurs today when Microsoft officially drops extended support for Windows Server 2003.

This means that Microsoft will no longer issue security updates for any version of Windows Server 2003, which includes Small Business Server 2003, and Windows Home Server.

image

Comments (0)
Categories : News, SBS, Servers, Windows
Tags : , ,

Disable Get Windows 10 popup

by KW · Comments (0)
Jun 02 2015

Microsoft is preparing for the release of Windows 10 on July 29th, and is pushing out an update (KB3035583) which will allow you to register for the free download. It seems to me, not only is this an easy way for Microsoft to broadcast that Windows 10 is coming, but it can provide them with some statistical data on how many people may want to get Windows 10 when it is released, and what kind of systems they are using.

However, if you are just totally annoyed with the prompt, or you do not want to register for Windows 10, or you’re just not interested … you can uninstall KB3035583. Here’s how:

  • Open up Windows Update (Control Panel > System and Security . windows Update)
  • Click on View Update History
  • Click on Installed Updates
  • In the Search box on the top right, type: kb3035583
  • Click on the KB3035583 entry to select it and uninstall it.
  • You will need to reboot your computer when finished

After your system has rebooted, you will need to block/hide KB3035583 from re-installing.

  • Go back to Windows Update
  • Review the list of pending updates
  • right click on KB3035583 and select to Hide this update
Comments (0)
Categories : News, Windows
Tags : ,

Disable Service Manager from Running at Startup on Windows 2012 R2

by KW · Comments (0)
May 05 2015

Not a big annoyance, but many times I’m asked to disable the Service Manager screen from starting up when you log into the Windows 2012 R2 Server.

The process is almost as easy as doing a three finger (Ctrl-Alt-Del) salute. After you log into the server, and the Server Manager starts up, do the following two steps:

  • Click on Manage –> Server Manager Properties
  • On the next window, click (to check) the “Do not start Server Manager automatically at logon” option

Next time you reboot and logon, voila, no server manager!

image  image

Comments (0)
Categories : Servers, Windows
Tags :
« Previous Page
Next Page »

Categories