Aaron Tiensivu's Blog

Snippet from the announcement:
Today we are happy to announce that Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) has released to manufacturing (RTM). Windows XP SP3 bits are now working their way through our manufacturing channels to be available to OEM and Enterprise customers.

We are also in the final stages of preparing for release to the web (i.e. you!) on April 29th, via Windows Update and the Microsoft Download Center. Online documentation for Windows XP SP3, such as Microsoft Knowledge Base articles and the Microsoft TechNet Windows XP TechCenter, will be updated then. For customers who use Windows XP at home, Windows XP SP3 Automatic Update distribution for users at home will begin in early summer.

Read more about it here.

Also noteworthy is that the UAA (HD Audio) hotfix - KB 888111 - is included in the RTM build.

If anyone discovers the build number, please comment here on it!

Update #1: Readers have posted that the build string seems to be 2600.xpsp.080413-2111, which would mean it was built on April 13th and then passed all the QC tests.

Update #2: Build number is 5512.

This software update includes the following components or features that improve wireless support in Windows Vista: Bluetooth version 2.1 support, Unified Pairing user interface, and Windows Connect Now updates.

Some of these features may work with existing hardware. However, you must have new hardware to take advantage of the new functionality.

This update is compatible with all versions of Windows Vista and can be installed only on a computer that is running Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1).

Read more about it here.

If you are not offered Vista SP1 from Windows Update, and you are using an Intel WiFi card (typically with model numbers of 4965AGN/4965AG or 3945ABG/3945BG/3965ABG/3965BG), please grab this full generic "reference" driver package from Intel to fix your wireless issues, here. 99.99% of the time, these drivers will work on any laptop or desktop with these chipsets.

Originally spotted here.

In general, if you are running a version of the wireless drivers with a revision date older than 2008, you should install this driver package ASAP. Although it doesn't specifically mention it in the release notes, many little quirks and problems have been resolved, including the Vista SP1 "blocking" issue.

Just to make sure Vista SP1 doesn't get a bad reputation due to this, the "block" was put in place on purpose due to a bug in the wireless driver package, not the OS.

Vista x86/32-bit can be downloaded from here.

Vista x64/64-bit can be downloaded from here.

XP x86/32-bit can be downloaded from here.

XP x64/64-bit can be downloaded from here.

Itanium Catalyst 8.4 drivers cannot be downloaded from anywhere, because they don't exist.

You can read the release notes here.

I'm excited (to say the least) about what I have seen of Silverlight 2.0, but Silverlight 1.0 is still a good release and this update makes it a little better. It is mainly bug fixes and performance improvements, but I always like to stay up to date on any browser-related plug-in, especially Flash and other known infection vectors.

The Windows Search 4 team here at the MVP Summit talked about a cool little gadget that allows you to control the built-in index search engine from the sidebar in Vista. If you are running Windows Search 4, you can also kick off a reindex operation on the fly.

Other options available include 'pause', 'resume' and a running tally of the objects that have been indexed.

If you want to try it out, go over to Brandon Paddock's website here and download it here.

This has been a longstanding question I've always wondered about but never could find a good answer for. It is one of those things that isn't terribly important until you are trying to figure out why a service pack or update fails to install.

CBS stands for "Component-Based Servicing" and it basically (as far as I've read) is the way components get installed and uninstalled during updates. It is the reason you see "Stage 1", "Stage 2", and "Stage 3" during the Service Pack 1 install. "Stage 2" and "Stage 3" exists for the registry keys and files that are normally locked during regular operation.

If you want to investigate the CBS, check out %windir%\Logs\CBS\ and the log files inside of it. You might have a file in there called "FilterList.log" that lists the various filter drivers that the setup program "saw" during install.

A handy link to have when you are troubleshooting activation issues with Vista, which, knock on plastic, I haven't encountered yet at home or in the enterprise space.

Bookmark the KB article listed here - KB 951287.

Official description:
When you try to activate Windows Vista by using the Windows Vista activation process, you may receive an error code or an error message. This article contains a list of Microsoft Knowledge Base articles that can help you troubleshoot these error codes and error messages.

I fly out Sunday afternoon, as long as the FAA doesn't decide to do more airplane inspections. I'll be in Seattle/Redmond until Thursday night. I'm hoping to see some familiar faces and meet many new ones.

In other, rather strange news, I have obstructive sleep apnea and it is pretty bad. I had a sleep study a few weeks ago and I stopped breathing at least 65 times overnight, which worked out to be about every 4 minutes.

I'll most likely end up getting a CPAP machine, so I will end up sounding like Darth Vader at night, but most likely sleep much better.

VMRCplus is a tool for both configuration management of Virtual Server and remote control of virtual machines. It allows for local and remote management of Virtual Server and supports simultaneous management of up to 32 Virtual Server hosts.

Remote control sessions of virtual machines are grouped in a single window using Tab pages. The interface enables sorting virtual machines based on various properties like name, status and description. Multi-select of virtual machines enable you to perform actions to change their status or open remote control sessions all at once.

VMRCplus is a Windows application and does not require IIS to manage Virtual Server.

Download the 32-bit and 64-bit updated version (v1.7) here.

I really didn't expect this to be a public beta so soon!

An integrated security system that is easier to manage and control
Microsoft® Forefront™ codename "Stirling" is an integrated security system that delivers comprehensive, coordinated protection across endpoints, messaging and collaboration servers and the network edge that is easier to manage and control.

Download the beta here.

Personally, I am really excited over the direction that FCS v.Next and 'Stirling' is going.

I am asked about OCS/UM certificates quite a bit lately and I am always forgetting off the top of my head who is providing the certificates. Choosing a provider is key for PIC (interaction with public IM networks) and ease of federation with other companies. One pain point you can avoid by going with a "big name" is that they are most likely already a trusted authority in your smartphones and computer systems.

If you want a list of providers that have been 'blessed' by Microsoft for UM certificates, read KB article 929395.

Update #1: Tom Pacyk left a great comment about this entry:

"What you don't see though is that there's only ONE of those that shows up by default in XP, Vista, Mobile 5, and Mobile 6 and that's Entrust. We've been recommending them to our clients for certs and it's worked out great.

As far as defaults...
GoDaddy and Comodo aren't in Vista.
Comodo and Digicert aren't in WM5.
Digicert is not in WM6.

Update #2: One of the things I love about this site is that I get almost immediate feedback when something I post is either popular, or incorrect. In this case, Digicert contacted me to let me know that due to an agreement between EnTrust and them, the information about DigiCert in Update #1 is not accurate. I don't want to spread false information out there so that is why Update #2 exists.

I spent part of last night and part of tonight watching a guy wearing a horse mask play guitar and drums, while rocking out to various songs. He did this for four hours straight last night. I still don't understand why it was so entertaining, but I'm not going to question it.

If you want to see Mr. Hands Returns doing Michael Jackson's "Can't stop until you get enough", check out this YouTube video here.

And of course, he also performed Rick Ashley, saved on video here.

If you want to see what all the fuss is about, check out Y! Live.

It might be one of those "You had to be there" situations to understand why it was so funny at the time. Definitely an unintentional use of technology if I have ever seen one.

System Center Mobile Device Manager (MDM) 2008 is a system that enables Windows powered mobile devices to become managed and authenticated members of the IT infrastructure of an organization.

Download it here.

Think of it much like SMS 2003/SCCM 2007 for mobile phones, combined with much better "corporate" management functions for Smartphones.

Despite what has been reported, it did not RTM on March 31st. Consider it an early April Fool's joke.