Until today, I had no idea that there were command-line switches (options) that you can use when starting Word.
I have both Office 2003 and Office 2007 installed on my PC. All of the doc files were opening automatically in Word 2003, but I wanted them to open in Word 2007 by default. I tried changing the file association, but it wouldn't take.
My final solution was to run winword.exe /r from the Office12 folder. This re-registered the registry keys for Word 2007.
If you are curious about other Word switches check them out here: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/210565
Friday, September 24, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
Blackberry Activation Error with Transport Rules
[40239] (05/12 01:29:44.514):{0x117C} {Userx@Companyx.com} Still handled by desktopAs you can see, it is complaining about being still handled by Blackberry Desktop. On further investigation, this really just means that the message coming back from the Blackberry for the activation has been modified. So, the BES server refuses to touch it.
[30160] (05/12 01:29:44.514):{0x117C} {Userx@Companyx.com} GetDeviceId() did not return a PIN, PIN currently is not set for this user.
[40371] (05/12 01:29:44.514):{0x117C} {Userx@Companyx.com} UserControl::HandleDatabaseChange - CalSyncState is empty
[40442] (05/12 01:29:44.514):{0x117C} User settings: email=Userx@Companyx.com, routing=Userx@Companyx.com, service=, device=, calendar=0, MDS=1, userOTAFM=0, incradle=0, SMIME=0, sentItems=1, dir=Userx, server=Exchange1
It turned out that there was an Exchange transport rule that was being used for add a CC for all messages delivered to this user. It was configured as an alternative to forwarding in the user mailbox, but had the same effect. After disabling the transport rule activation completed properly.
Disaster Recovery Is Not Just a Technology Issue
A basic disaster recovery plan for small business (and some larger ones) consists basically of redundancy in the server (RAID, redundant power) and a nightly backup. The theory is that server redundancy protects you most of the time and if that happens to fail, then you get your data from backup. We recently had a server failure just like that but with a twist.
A RAID 5 array failed in a server and took out information that was business critical. The failure occured on an Thursday evening. Reviewing the backup log, the backup Thursday night appeared to complete successfully, but in fact it hadn't. The RAID 5 array failed partway through the backup. This leaves us restoring to Wednesday nights backup. All of Thursday's data changes were lost.
Here is where the twist comes in. This organization scans in historical documents and then shreds them afterwards. After the document has been shredded there is no backup copy except on the computer system. This is one of the databases that was lost.
Because the document is shredded before a backup is taken, there is small window where loss of data is an issue due to only a single failure. To protect that data, shredding needs to be delayed at least one day to ensure there is a good backup. And depending on how paranoid you are, maybe two.
In this case, no documents were processed in the lost window, but it could easily have happened.
A RAID 5 array failed in a server and took out information that was business critical. The failure occured on an Thursday evening. Reviewing the backup log, the backup Thursday night appeared to complete successfully, but in fact it hadn't. The RAID 5 array failed partway through the backup. This leaves us restoring to Wednesday nights backup. All of Thursday's data changes were lost.
Here is where the twist comes in. This organization scans in historical documents and then shreds them afterwards. After the document has been shredded there is no backup copy except on the computer system. This is one of the databases that was lost.
Because the document is shredded before a backup is taken, there is small window where loss of data is an issue due to only a single failure. To protect that data, shredding needs to be delayed at least one day to ensure there is a good backup. And depending on how paranoid you are, maybe two.
In this case, no documents were processed in the lost window, but it could easily have happened.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Virus and Malware Removal
There are many web sites out there devoted to removing viruses and malware from your computer. All of them describe long and difficult processes required to identify and remove unwanted software. What makes the removal difficult is that many viruses and malware hide in memory. As you remove infected files from disk, the program in memory adds itself back to another location.
By far the fastest and easiest way to remove viruses and malware is to remove the hard drive and scan it in a different computer. By doing this, you ensure that the virus or malware is not running in memory when the scan is performed. As a best practice you should scan with multiple tools to be sure you catch everything.
I do this by using external USB enclosures for hard drives. I have three separate enclosures for SATA 3.5 inch, PATA 3.5 inch, and PATA 2.5 inch drives. This allows me to externally mount both desktop and laptop drives.
As an alternative, you can boot up by using something like the Ultimate Boot CD for Windows and scan from there. It gets you to the same place, but you are limited to the tools included on that CD instead of your preferred antivirus tools.
By far the fastest and easiest way to remove viruses and malware is to remove the hard drive and scan it in a different computer. By doing this, you ensure that the virus or malware is not running in memory when the scan is performed. As a best practice you should scan with multiple tools to be sure you catch everything.
I do this by using external USB enclosures for hard drives. I have three separate enclosures for SATA 3.5 inch, PATA 3.5 inch, and PATA 2.5 inch drives. This allows me to externally mount both desktop and laptop drives.
As an alternative, you can boot up by using something like the Ultimate Boot CD for Windows and scan from there. It gets you to the same place, but you are limited to the tools included on that CD instead of your preferred antivirus tools.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Microsoft Exam Vouchers cheap
If you are at all thinking about doing Microsoft Certification exams, now would be a good time. You can buy packs of discounted exam vouchers that includes a second try on any exam you fail.
The free retry (second shot they call it) means you can study less and just go for it. If you fail the first one, at least you know the gist of the exam content, and you know what to study more.
For more info: http://www.microsoft.com/learning/Career/en/us/career-offer.aspx#certification
The free retry (second shot they call it) means you can study less and just go for it. If you fail the first one, at least you know the gist of the exam content, and you know what to study more.
For more info: http://www.microsoft.com/learning/Career/en/us/career-offer.aspx#certification
iPad for Business?
I recently had the pleasure of configuring (playing with) an iPad for a client. The iPad itself is a beautiful device and I'm sure there are many useful things you can do with it. For one, the ActiveSync for email works great with Exchange server. Configuring the 3G service was a bit of a pain, but that was due to poor instructions from Rogers.
The real problem with the iPad is that it can't run many business applications, even Web-based ones. The iPad does not support Flash or Silverlight content. These are used for many Web-based applications. You don't realize how many applications until you don't have them.
This client is using the iPad as a remote access device for Terminal Services. They have a Windows application installed on the terminal server that can now be used by sales people on the road. So, the irony is, that iPad is a great remote access device for Windows, but not all that useful by itself.
I installed the iTap Terminal Services/RDP client for the iPad and it works very well. I strongly recommend it for $12.
The real problem with the iPad is that it can't run many business applications, even Web-based ones. The iPad does not support Flash or Silverlight content. These are used for many Web-based applications. You don't realize how many applications until you don't have them.
This client is using the iPad as a remote access device for Terminal Services. They have a Windows application installed on the terminal server that can now be used by sales people on the road. So, the irony is, that iPad is a great remote access device for Windows, but not all that useful by itself.
I installed the iTap Terminal Services/RDP client for the iPad and it works very well. I strongly recommend it for $12.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Edge Transport Servers and Certificates
First let me say, that I'm not convinced that most organizations require an Edge Transport server for Exchange Server 2007 or Exchange Server 2010. An Edge Transport server is an SMTP relay that sits between your Exchange Server organization and the Internet. The purpose of an Edge server is to isolate Exchange from the Internet and perform anti-spam and anti-virus filtering. Most organizations have another device or service that is already performing this task.
However, if you choose to implement and Edge server, you need to understand that it uses certificates to secure communication between the Edge server and Hub transport server on the internal network. Normally you want certificates to come from a external certification authority so that they are trusted by all computers in the communication process. However, for SMTP between Exchange servers, you can and should use internally generated certificates. This is the default configuration. However, the default certificates expire after 1 year.
When the certificates are close to their expiry events will be generated in the Application event log warning you. This is the error description: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb217963(EXCHG.80).aspx
The fix for this is easy. On the server that is experiencing the error, in the Exchange Management Shell, run the New-ExchangeCertificate cmdlet and say Yes to overwriting the SMTP certificate. Then restart the ExchangeTransport services for it to take effect immediately.
If you create a new certificate on an Edge server, then you also need to recreate the Edge Subscription. Run the New-EdgeSubscription cmdlet on the Edge server to create an XML configuration file. Then use that XML file to create a new Edge Subscription on the Hub Transport server by using the Exchange Management Console. You can also delete the old Edge Subscription as it is no longer required. To force the new Edge Subscription to start, use the Start-EdgeSynchronization cmdlet. If this fails, try restarting the ExchangeTransport service or reboot the box.
If you know it's coming, it's easy to fix up. If you don't know it's coming, this can result in hours of downtime due to communication failing between Edge Transport server and the internal Exchange organization.
However, if you choose to implement and Edge server, you need to understand that it uses certificates to secure communication between the Edge server and Hub transport server on the internal network. Normally you want certificates to come from a external certification authority so that they are trusted by all computers in the communication process. However, for SMTP between Exchange servers, you can and should use internally generated certificates. This is the default configuration. However, the default certificates expire after 1 year.
The certificate assigned to SMTP for message transport can be (and typically is) different than the certificate you use for SSL on Web services such as OWA. Also, the same certificate cannot be used for SMTP message transport on multiple servers. If the same certificate is used for SMTP message transport on multiple servers, communication will fail with an error indicating LDAP lookup failures (ID 10104 and 1024).
When the certificates are close to their expiry events will be generated in the Application event log warning you. This is the error description: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb217963(EXCHG.80).aspx
The fix for this is easy. On the server that is experiencing the error, in the Exchange Management Shell, run the New-ExchangeCertificate cmdlet and say Yes to overwriting the SMTP certificate. Then restart the ExchangeTransport services for it to take effect immediately.
If you create a new certificate on an Edge server, then you also need to recreate the Edge Subscription. Run the New-EdgeSubscription cmdlet on the Edge server to create an XML configuration file. Then use that XML file to create a new Edge Subscription on the Hub Transport server by using the Exchange Management Console. You can also delete the old Edge Subscription as it is no longer required. To force the new Edge Subscription to start, use the Start-EdgeSynchronization cmdlet. If this fails, try restarting the ExchangeTransport service or reboot the box.
If you know it's coming, it's easy to fix up. If you don't know it's coming, this can result in hours of downtime due to communication failing between Edge Transport server and the internal Exchange organization.
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