Windows OS

I was helping my father-in-law get on our home wireless network tonight and needed to find updated Broadcom drivers for his wireless adapter built into his HP/Compaq laptop.

Despite what the site might say for his laptop model, the most recent generic build of the 802.11b/g drivers seem to be located here. As usual, the "branded" OEM drivers are lagging behind, but the funny part is, this is coming from an HP page for wireless printers.

Even though they say they are for Windows 2000, they also include versions for Windows XP and Windows XP 64-bit.

Build date seems to be from late 2007 with a version code of 4.170.25.12.

Once the drivers were updated from a build from 2004 to these, and the WPA2 hotfix for XP was installed, things seemed to work very well.
WPA2 is excellent, especially combined with a RADIUS server.

Thanks to Luc notifying us in the original post - you can read about the fix/workaround here.

An official fix for the Family Safety binaries is due in January 2008, but in the meantime, you can download the registry workaround here.

If you are curious what the .REG file does, it is modifying the behavior of the Browser Helper Object's interaction with Explorer.exe.

Read about it here.

A quick run down:
1. Install the Application Compatibility Toolkit 5.0.
2. In the Start menu, locate the Compatibility Administrator inside the ACT folder. Right-click it and Run as administrator.
3. In the left hand pane, right-click on the database under Custom Databases and select Create New, and select Application Fix.
4. Enter the name of the application you want to alter and browse to it to select it.
5. Click Next until you are in the Compatibility Fixes screen.
6. On the Compatibility Fixes screen, find the item RunAsInvoker, and check it.
7. Click Next and Finish.
8. Select File and Save As. Save the file as appname.sdb in a directory you will easily find it.
9. Copy the appname.sdb file to the Vista computer you want to alter the elevation prompt behavior on.
10. Click Start>All Programs>Accessories. Right click Command Prompt and click Run as administrator.
11. Run the command: sdbinst appname.sdb

It should display: Installation of "appname" complete.

It looks like this only occurs on heavily loaded servers but it is worth noting that there is a patch from McAfee for it already.
You can read the MS KB article on it here and read the McAfee article on it here.

The fix has been rolled into VSE 8.5i Patch 3.

When implemented correctly, the SNP is a win for performance and scalability. The SNP used to be an out-of-band download for Windows 2003 SP1 and then was integrated into Windows 2003 SP2. Unfortunately, most problems, especially related to Exchange servers, with SP2 have been due to buggy networking drivers.

In the past, the NDIS drivers were tied to one CPU. The SNP opens up processing to multiple CPUs. I suspect, but have no proof, that most of the problems we have seen with SNP has been due to older driver code not being very SMP safe. It reminds me of the nightmares I had with the SoundBlaster Live on multi-CPU machines under Windows 2000 and XP.

Anyway, as noted here, the Broadcom cards, which typically were the worst offenders, have updated drivers that finally have decent SNP support. You no longer have to 'cripple' your networking stack to keep your server stable.

A snippet from that updated post:
Previously I did not mention what network cards were affected, but the majority of the cases that we have seen have dealt with Broadcom cards or network cards that have a Broadcom chipset in them.

Broadcom has provided an update to their drivers and can be downloaded from here that helps resolves the issues with these offloading feature problems. To determine if you have the correct update, you need to check the version numbers to ensure they are 3.7.19 or later. Anything lower than that does not have the fixes in them. ExBPA is being updated with a new rule to detect if the Scalable Networking pack features are enabled on the server.

NOTE: Before updating directly from Broadcom's site, I would recommend checking with your Server manufacturer first before applying the update directly from Broadcom as this may affect your ability to apply updates directly from each vendor in the future using their integrated update utilities.

Currently there are only a handful of manufacturers that have updated the drivers on their sites, but over time, you will see the updates available for downloading.

I have personally dealt with cases that having the Scalable Networking features enabled with the latest drivers have not caused any connectivity issues to/from Exchange servers, so you can now take advantage of these features that may help increase overall network performance on your servers.

I've updated the XsX Alpha Blended cursor package with my time off for the holidays.
You can grab the updated package here.

The installation procedure is much easier! Just run .EXE and follow the dialog prompts. It asks if you want to install the cursors and if you want to set them as your current mouse scheme. VERY EASY!

Note: You'll want to run the program with Administrative rights or else the install will fail.

Changes

#1. It is no longer a 7-Zip self-extracting .EXE - this was the most problematic aspect of the original version.

#2. Through the magic of IEXPRESS.EXE bundled with XP and Vista, it is a self contained package that asks if you want to install the cursors, and if you want to set them as your current mouse scheme.

#3. I didn't include the normal cursors this time around. I am mainly testing this new deployment method. I am leaving the old .ZIP file around for those that want it. I do know there is one cursor missing for the normal cursors, but that was missing in the original package from 2001. If someone can create a replacement, I'll include it in the next version and give them credit.

Known issues

#1. Not an .MSI package. I have a 99% working .MSI package but the last 1% is a release blocker.

#2. If you run the .EXE, tell it to install, and the cursors are already installed on your PC, Windows will ask if you want to overwrite the cursors. I'm not too worried about that.

#3. No automated uninstall. The unreleased .MSI package has an uninstall routine. It is pretty easy to add uninstall entries for the current .INF/.EXE installation/uninstallation method.

Future plans

#1. Finish/fix the .MSI package so that it installs and uninstalls correctly.
#2. Create an uninstall routine for the .INF/.EXE version.
#3. Create a stub .EXE that calls SystemParametersInfo SPI_SETCURSORS to remove the AutoHotKey dependency.
#4. Include smaller versions of the icons for low resolution monitors.
#5. Include the shadow-enabled cursors if they let me.

Resources used to create this release

AutoHotKey
Portions of Farhan Ahmad's excellent AHK script
Internet Explorer Administration Kit (IEAK)

For those wondering what I am talking about overall, see my previous entry here.

Many people use their computers for important work, but sometimes it is nice to kick back and get a little goofy. I can see many prank uses and legitimate uses for this software. Fun to play with.

Originally spotted on Matt's site.

This was a strange one that I had forgotten about. Even though Vista ships with DirectX 10, it doesn't contain the DirectX 9 updates that have been released in the past year or so. This makes sense if you think about it, because Vista RTM'd in November 2006. It is almost 2008 now.

I was reminded of this fact when I tried to run a DirectX 9 screensaver that needed d3dx9_30.dll to run properly.

There is a lot of bad advice out there on how to fix this problem, but the best and easiest advice I can give anyone facing this problem is to download the DirectX End-User Runtime Web Installer. This package is typically updated whenever the DirectX 9 and 10 SDKs are updated.

The installer figures out what parts are missing on your system and only downloads the packages needed.

If you need an offline installer with all the packages included, which is very handy for systems without an internet connection, go here.

As seen at Bink.nu and other places, just letting people know that there seems to be a problem with saving files from certain applications to Windows Home Server.

Keep an eye on KB 946676 for a patch and/or workaround and/or updated list of applications affected.

My guess, based on the list of programs, is that the issue revolves around an open files on the workstation in question and the VSS service can't get a proper snapshot of the file contents. This is all speculation on my part, but that is my theory. Time will tell if I am right or wrong.

Update 12-28-07 - Please note: The issue does not relate to files being backed up to the WHS server. The issue occurs when you use one of the listed applications to edit a file via a Shared Folder on the WHS server.

The MSI Utility for Microsoft Application Virtualization is a new tool designed to extend virtual application deployment in certain key scenarios. In cases where a computer running Microsoft System Center Virtual Application Server is not available, the MSI Utility allows delivery of sequenced applications directly to Microsoft SoftGrid Application Virtualization for Desktops and Microsoft SoftGrid Application Virtualization for Terminal Services.

The MSI Utility enables the distribution of virtual applications without streaming. Instead, it uses Windows Installer to load and configure virtual applications. By leveraging this standard format, the MSI Utility achieves Microsoft Systems Management Server 2003 and Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007 platform version-agnostic distribution of virtual applications if supported by organizational Electronic Software Distribution (ESD) systems. As such, the MSI Utility is a stepping stone to the richer deployment options available in Microsoft System Center Virtual Application Server 4.5.

The MSI Utility extends application deployment methods to a broad range of ESD systems, including Systems Management Server 2003 and System Center Configuration Manager, as well as other methods such as network shares, removable disks, and memory keys. By using an ESD system to deploy virtualized application packages to disconnected SoftGrid Application Virtualization Desktop Clients, users can run virtualized applications without connecting to a computer running Microsoft System Center Virtual Application Server.

Download it from here.

Two Server 2008 IT Pro exams are in beta just in time for the holidays.
In an act of overconfidence, I’m taking both Jan 4th if schedules permit.

71-646: PRO: Windows® Server 2008, Server Administrator - MCITP: Server Administrator
71-647: PRO: Windows® Server 2008, Enterprise Administrator - MCITP: Enterprise Administrator

The important information

Registration begins: December 21, 2007
Beta exam period runs: December 21, 2007–January 18, 2008

Take them for free with these codes

For 71-646: Q646
For 71-647: 647Q

To register in North America, call: Prometric: (800) 755-EXAM (800-755-3926), or use their website.

As always, Trika's blog is a great resource to get the scoop on what is on the exams.

Coworker Pat Simpson was having trouble installing the latest RC of the Vista SP1 update. I was a bit stumped on why it was failing on Stage 3, but he ended up finding the solution before I was able to dig into the problem!

Check out the post here by Gary Bouchard for a nice way to reset your registry permissions to their default values.

It solved the problem for him, and I'd only advise trying this if you are experiencing problems. Most installations will install error free without resorting to this.

If you are seeing, "Windows could not start the Windows Event Log service on Local Computer." and/or "Error 4201: The instance name passed was not recognized as valid by a WMI data provider.", give the fix a try.

A short rundown of the procedure (in case that thread goes away):

1. Make a backup of your registry.
2. Download and install subinacl.exe.
3. Copy the text below into a text file called reset.cmd and run reset.cmd with administrative rights (it may take a LONG time):

cd /d "%ProgramFiles%\Windows Resource Kits\Tools"
subinacl /subkeyreg HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE /grant=administrators=f /grant=system=f
subinacl /subkeyreg HKEY_CURRENT_USER /grant=administrators=f /grant=system=f
subinacl /subkeyreg HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT /grant=administrators=f /grant=system=f
subinacl /subdirectories %SystemDrive% /grant=administrators=f /grant=system=f
subinacl /subdirectories %windir%\*.* /grant=administrators=f /grant=system=f
secedit /configure /cfg %windir%\inf\defltbase.inf /db defltbase.sdb /verbose

4. Reboot and check to see if the errors go away. Attempt installing Vista SP1 again.

This might not only fix Vista SP1 problems, but any other problem related to corrupt registry permissions. It isn't necessarily Vista specific either.

If you want to download a premade reset.cmd, right click and 'Save as' the file here.

Don't let the "release candidate" phrase scare you. This is a very solid release. Of course, as always, only use it for testing, but honestly, on my XP VMs, I have been using these SP3 build exclusively for the past few months without any problems.

Very highly recommended. If you are running XP SP2, grab the standalone release here.

To see what has changed since SP2, go here.

What good is a program package delivery system without a way to package applications? Thankfully, there is a special version of AdminStudio made just for SCCM that is free. Of course, it doesn't have all the full blown features of AdminStudio Enterprise Edition but it is a good way to get your feet wet in repackaging applications.

To read more about it and download the program, go here.

When installing System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM aka SMS v4), it is not always possible to give internet access to the server involved. I like to have everything I need beforehand whenever doing an install.

When SCCM setup launches, it tries to download the ConfigMgr.Manifest.cab from here. Overall it is best to allow SCCM to grab all the files it needs automatically because the ConfigMgr.Manifest.xml file inside the ConfigMgr.Manifest.cab file can be updated by Microsoft to point to new locations when these files are updated or moved.

With that said, here are the links contained in ConfigMgr.Manifest.XML as of 12-15-07 for the RTM release of SCCM 2007, broken into groups:

Microsoft Remote Differential Compression Library
(x86, x64, ia64)

Windows Update Agent
(x86, x64, ia64)

WMI
(x86, x64, ia64)

BITS
Windows 2000 - KB 842773
(ARA, CHS, CHT, CSY, DAN, DEU, ELL, ENU, ESN, FIN, FRA, HEB, HUN, ITA, JPN, KOR, NLD, NOR, PLK, PTB, PTG, RUS, SVE, TRK)

Windows 2003 - KB 923845
x86: (CHS, CHT, CSY, DEU, ENU, ESN, FRA, HUN, ITA, JPN, KOR, NLD, PLK, PTB, PTG, RUS, SVE, TRK)
x64: (CHS, CHT, DEU, ENU, ESN, FRA, ITA, JPN, KOR, PTB, RUS)
ia64: (DEU, ENU, FRA, JPN)

Windows XP - KB 923845
x86: (ARA, CHS, CHT, CSY, DAN, DEU, ELL, ENU, ESN, FIN, FRA, HEB, HUN, ITA, JPN, KOR, NLD, NOR, PLK, PTB, PTG, RUS, SVE, TRK)

Save all of those files into a directory, and simply point SCCM to that directory for the updates instead of attempting to download them all.

If you are looking for a text file that just has all of the HTTP links inside for use with a downloader program, you can right click and 'Save as' the text file here.