Windows OS

This seems to be the #1 issue seen in the field so far with XP SP3 and typically, unfortunately, relates to OEM XP installations that includes the Intel CPU driver on machines that are clearly AMD based. Previous to SP3, this would not cause problems. I will leave my rant about most OEM builds for a future date.

If you have an AMD based machine that seems to be rebooting continuously after installing XP SP3, and it is running an OEM XP install, please investigate KB 888372 for the fix.

Personally, although I know it isn't exactly the most elegant or supported method, I've simply deleted the Intelppm.sys from %windir%/system32/drivers on machines I know are AMD based, before installing SP3. You won't want to do this to Intel based machines because it will render them unbootable until you replace the Intelppm.sys file.

I wouldn't be surprised to see an updated hotfix that replaces Intelppm.sys from SP3 with a version that does not crash on AMD based systems. A few CPU calls is all that it takes to 'bail out' on an AMD system instead of toggling bits on the CPU that make it crash.

Update: Looks like I'm behind the times on reporting this one - as shown here by Bill Castner.

I always keep an eye out for VSS related fixes for Windows 2003 because so many backup programs take advantage of the API lately. I am not sure how often this error occurs but it is good to know about ahead of time.

This one seem to replace quite a few VSS related DLLs and seems to improve upon KB 940349, which I tend to put on any Server 2003 system I have control over.

KB 949391 highlights:

Fixes Volume Shadow Copy Service error: Unexpected error IOCTL_STORAGE_QUERY_PROPERTY(, StorageDeviceProperty) - BuildLunInfoForDrive. hr = 0x80070037. This problem may occur because VSS incorrectly hides hardware support snapshots.

I was always curious what issue came up at the last minute that would cause the delay of XP SP3. I had wondered if they were pulling it due to aspects of the XP SP3 release still referring to itself as a beta in spots. I also had wondered if it was somehow related to the NTFS.sys/filter bug that affected Home Server and if it had become a blocking issue in the other operating systems.

Overall, it isn't a terribly interesting bug to me, but I don't deal with CRM a lot. I'm curious if it could affect other SQL/MDAC applications, but it sounds pretty isolated. If anyone bumps into a new issue, please leave a comment. If I am reading the article correctly, it looks like it might be isolated to the msadce.dll file shipped with XP SP3.

I am just happy overall that XP SP3 is finally out and I don't have to carry around a USB stick of hotfixes for people. I'm also curious to hear if you have any issues installing XP SP3 and I'll make sure your comments get to the Windows Client team in Redmond.

I can't say enough good things about this Outlook plugin. I even demoed it to the Windows Search v4 team at the Microsoft MVP Summit a few weeks ago and told them, "Make Windows Search do this!"

Originally introduced to me by my manager and another coworker, Xobni is finally available to everyone to download and install.

If you tried Xobni in the past and had performance problems in Outlook afterwards, that bug was fixed a few builds ago. If you don't know what Xobni is, read the press release here.

It is actually one of the only add-ins I use in Outlook. I normally avoid them. I love the analytics built into the interface and how it can pull phone numbers out of e-mail messages. I also like the fact that it keeps track of file attachments I have sent and received, per person.

Fun fact: Bill Gates uses it.

Note: This isn't a paid endorsement, but if they want to send me some coin, I'll gladly accept it.

Some potential gotchas with clustering with Windows 2008. Don't let this KB article scare you away from using the updated clustering features. They are actually really nice, but it is good to get this information out there.

In Windows Server 2008, a new set of platform APIs has been implemented to provide better functionality, better scalability, and easier manageability for clustering environments. The manageability aspect includes remote management. However, this new set of failover cluster APIs also poses interoperability issues with earlier versions of Windows.

The two items that I find the most interesting from the KB article are:

1. The backup APIs have been removed in Windows Server 2008. You must now use the Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) writer to reach this backup functionality in a clustering environment. Additionally, several new APIs have been added, although the pre-Windows Server 2008 APIs should still function.

and

2. Because of a core protocol change in Windows Server 2008, you cannot call failover cluster APIs from earlier Windows clients to Windows Server 2008 clusters. Therefore, the new failover cluster APIs cannot be called from Windows XP or from Windows Server 2003. Currently, the cluster APIs can be called against a Windows Server 2008 cluster only from Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1) or from Windows Server 2008.

Most new MS products come with Powershell functionality. It is a good scripting language to learn. I find myself replacing 20 lines of VBScript with 2 lines of Powershell code. Anyone that does Exchange or System Center work should look into learning Powershell.

With that said, here is the second CTP for the next version of Powershell, here.

Here is the official description:
Windows PowerShell V2 CTP2 introduces several significant features to Windows PowerShell 1.0 and Windows PowerShell V2 CTP that extends its use, improves its usability, and allows you to control and manage the Windows environment more easily and comprehensively.

There are many, many file compare utilities out there and I'm trying to find one that can fill a specific need.

Scenario: During a file server migration, I would to be able to compare directory and file permissions on both sides to show if there are any differences between the two. I've tried AccessEnum from SysInternals but due to the sheer amount of data involved, it isn't providing what I need.

Anyone know of a utility out there that can handle about 2 terabytes of file security compares? I don't care about the file contents in this case, only the security that is 'stamped' on both sides. I am sure I am overlooking a simple solution somewhere but I am drawing a blank.

Any help is most appreciated! Please leave a comment on this entry or shoot me an e-mail.

My good buddy Matt Wade spotted a new release of the OC 2007 client here.

This update fixes the following issues:
KB 951870 - Event IDs 8239 and 8206 are logged when you schedule and then cancel a meeting in Communicator 2007

KB 949498 - Error message when a Communicator 2007 user sends a message that contains only Japanese characters to Communicator 2005 users: " cannot receive message in the format you used"

KB 951871 - () The presence status changes to Away for all Terminal Server users when an administrator locks the desktop or lets the screen saver run in Communicator 2007

KB 951868 () Registry settings for certain protocols are overwritten, and Communicator 2007 becomes the default application for these protocols when you log on to Communicator 2007

Note: This update now enforces HTTPS in High Security mode. Some services that previously worked by using HTTP will now be required to use HTTPS when they are in High Security mode. These services include the address book service, the custom tabs service, and the custom presence service.

Check it out here.

No "real" content yet, just an announcement so far.

The Pro Photo Tools allow you to add, change, and delete common metadata properties for digital photographs. You can place photos on the Live Earth map and then drag them to the right location. The GPS information will be stored back into the photos. If you have a GPS device, can load track route files from the most popular formats (NMEA, GPX, and KML) and see them on the map. Then you can place your photos on the track route. Again, the GPS info will be stored into your file. When you have the right GPS location for your photos, you can automatically generate location info like country, state, city and even street names. Or if you know the location where a picture was taken, you can type it in and get the GPS location information automatically.

Download it from here.

Something interesting I noticed is that it looks like it only supports 32-bit XP and 32-bit Vista with an English locale. I'm curious to see if it will install and/or work under a 64-bit OS.

I often wondered why this essential Bitlocker tool was locked away previously as a 'request-only' KB article/hotfix, but you can now download it freely at this location here.

It is a very handy tool to have to install Bitlocker on your system after you have already installed an OS to an unencrypted volume.

I’m sure the folks at MMS (Microsoft Management Summit) already know this but check out the new features of the upcoming SCVMM release here.

If you don’t know what SCVMM stands for, it’s “System Center Virtual Machine Manager”.

If you want to join the Connect group for SCVMM v2 so that you can download the binaries, go here.

You will have to sign in with your Connect profile to be able to join that group.
Exciting stuff, especially for Hyper-V and Windows 2008.

To make a rash generalization, there are definitely three groups of people when it comes to Office 2007. You could almost consider these the "#1 - Hate", "#2 - Accepts", and "#3 - Loves" Office 2007 ribbon acceptance spectrum.

#1. Longtime, hardcare Office users that have tricked out their setup so they can do practically everything with use of their keyboard and macros, right Charlie? For these users, most if not all of their macros break and they have to relearn/redo their way of life. I know Office 2007 lost some of these users to OpenOffice and other platforms due to the lack of a 'classic' or 'legacy' mode. These are the kind of users you don't want to lose, however, because they can be very vocal and very loyal if you treat them right.

#2. Middle of the road users that have used Office versions in the past but aren't opposed to change and don't have any specific needs that are broken by the move to Office 2007. There are a lot of people in this category. They may grumble or be annoyed with the changes at first but eventually figure things out and tend not to go back to the older Office suites. I find myself as a member of this group.

#3. Users that have never used earlier Office versions. They tend to pick up on the ribbon and the user interface right away. The uptake or initial learning curve seems to be less than the earlier suites.

Why am I going on and on about this? Well, there is a cool product out there by a fellow MVP that adds the ability, as close as possible, to get a 'legacy' mode in Office 2007. It is a program called Ribbon Customizer. The free version is all you need to do this. If you want to go crazy with ribbon modifications, grab the professional version.

It might not win back all the people in group #1, because it can't fix broken macros, but people who want the look and feel of Office 2003 as much as possible will love this program.

Note: I don't own or use this program but I have installed it a few times for friends and others that wanted the "Office 2003 feel", so this is definitely not a sponsored post or anything like that. I just post about stuff I think is cool or useful. Nothing more, nothing less.

This hotfix includes all earlier fixes that address "Stop 0x000000AB" issues.

KB 951749 replaces 907242, 910362, 918673, 923035, 924806, 925919, 931282, 939442, 944916, and 946068.

The following memory pool leaks were plugged in GDI32.dll, Win32k.sys and Wgdi32.dll:
Gadd, Gcac, Geto, Gffv, Gfnt, Ggb, Gglf, Ggls, Gh*5, Ghtc, Ghx, Ghx4, Ghx7, GhxE, Gl*5, Gla4, Gla5, Glx4, Gpat, Gpfe, Gpff, Gpid, Gqnk, Gsp, Gtmp, Gtmw, Gtvp, Gump, Gxlt, knlf, Uscm, Usd1, UsdE, Usgh, Usjb, Usqm, Usrt and Ussy.

Needless to say, if you want to maximize the up-time and stability of your terminal server, I would investigate/test/install this hotfix! This typically only affects heavily loaded terminal servers or servers that are not rebooted for long periods of time. You could think of these leaks like a slow leak of air in your car tire. Left unchecked, eventually, it will cause problems.

I've been writing up a blog entry for this all week but haven't quite completed it yet. I've wanted to post it earlier but this week has been one big Murphy's Law in one way or another. I do this site in my free time and my free time has been non existent for the most part since flying back to Michigan.