Category Archives: Hardware

Windows 2008 Server: Joining my existing domain

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Or not. I attempted to join my existing domain with this server being a member server, and received a message:

An attempt to resolve the DNS name of a DC in the domain being joined has failed. Please verify that this client is configured to reach a DNS server that can resolve DNS names in the target domain.

OK…I actually know how to fix this, I think… when configuring IP addresses, I didn’t put the local address of my domain controller in as one of the DNS possibilities. Once this change was made…it worked.

So far so good. Now I’m trying to promote the Win 2008 server to a domain controller; it will be interesting to see if this works with Small Business Server as the master domain controller; I recall that one of the restrictions of SBS was that it could be the only DC.

So I can run this remote desktop. I change the permissions to allow logging in under Remote Desktop. Now I can watch this run from my main workstation, with full video support, and avoid the maddening mess on the native monitor screen.

Before actually running the upgrade wizard, there is a utility called adprep which is provided win Win2008. This version is run on the master DC (ie the SBS 2003) to upgrade the AD database to match the level of the Win2008 database. A message suggests that this upgrade takes the existing AD level 30 to AD level 40.
So, I copy the entire adprep folder from the Win2008 machine to the SBS2003 machine, then on SBS2003, I run the following commands:

adprep /forestprep

adprep /domainprep

Then in response to a message from the result of the domain prep, I run the following to update permissions on the group objects:
adprep /domainprep /gpprep

There is a nice help screen which explains this process.

Now, in on the new machine, running the AD Domain Services Installation Wizard, I will “Add a domain controller to an existing domain.”

Now I get an error: “You will not be able to install a read-only DC in this domain because adprep /rodcprep was not yet run. Do you want to continue?” Since I don’t want a RO DC here, that is fine, and I just continue.

It asks to select a site:
Defualt-First-Site-Name

It now asks if I want to install additional services; a DNS server, and a Global catalog. This dialog includes some additional stuff about a Read-Only domain controller, that is irrelevant because I don’t want to install a Read Only domain controller.

So, while I would prefer not to install the DNS server and Global catalog, since eventually I want to promote the Win2008 machine to the master domain controller, I’ll allow these two items to be installed. I hit the “next” button.

Now an error message comes up:

A delegation for this DNS Server will not be created because the authoritative parent zone cannot be found or it does not support dynamic updates. To ensure this DNS Server can be resolved as authoritative for the domain mxdesign.local, you can create a delegation to this DNS Server manually in the parent zone. Do you want to continue?

Well, OK…let’s continue.

Now it asks for locations for the database, log files and SYSVOL, suggesting that these should be on separate volumes. Ain’t gonna happen. Next.

The Directory Services Restore Mode Administrator account is different from the domain Administrator account. Assign a password for the Administrator account that will be used when this domain controller is started in Directory Services Restore Mode.

I give it my normal admin password. There is this talk about the password being the correct complexity and length, and conforming to the correct history.

So far so good, the DNS install goes ahead and completes in about two minutes. This requires a reboot, so I’m psyched to see how this will work when it comes back up.

Windows Server 2008

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I’ve installed a beta of Windows Server 2008 on a new partition that I carved out on my secondary workstation. Installation went fairly smoothly, but both my sound card and the onboard Intel graphics chipset are not supported, so I’m stuck with the generic VGA driver which, frankly, looks like hell. Still, since most server management will take place remotely, this shouldn’t be a show stopper.

The install creates a dual-boot menu at startup, which allows me to choose betweein Win 2008 or a “legacy windows system”…that is, my existing Windows XP workstation.

The beta is good until April 2008. After about 20 minutes, everything is copied to the hard drive, and you can start playing.

A major advantage of 2008 is that the wizards previously available on small business server have been added to 2008 to provide “accidental network managers” some additional support.

I quickly changed the default IP address obtained from the DHCP server on my router to a fixed IP4 address. I also nailed down the admin password.

Right out of the box the server doesn’t do a thing; you have to assign “roles” from the extensive list provided:

  • Active Directory (several items)
  • Application Server
  • DHCP server
  • DNS server (and is this required for AD as in previous versions?)
  • Fax server (the application that apparently will never die)
  • File Services (our first role)
  • Network Policy and Access services (functionality provided by the previous add-on application, including VPN services and fewalling)
  • Print Services (shared printers)
  • Terminal Services
  • IIS
  • SharePoint
  • Windows Deployement Services

Picking one of the roles above then allows you to pick additional functionality related to the main role.

Roles that require other roles as a prerequisite will automatically let you know.For example you can’t install Sharepoint without installing IIS and the Net Framework 3.0. Makes sense, of course.

For starters, I’ve installed print services and file services. Once the installation is complete, I received a message saying I had to restart the server.

Trixbox Appliance: New Baby

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Just unwrapped the new baby here… a Trixbox appliance (the so-called “base” model for about $999) that comes without landline interface cards. In its base configuration it is suitable for those who want to implement a fully IP-based VoIP system. I’ll be adding hardware to this; an existing Sangoma A200 card which provides two landline connections. I’ll only be using one of the two connections to start. I couldn’t resist starting it up, and sorry, but contrary to all the assurances; the thing is noisy. Too noisy to have setting next to my desk. Damn.

The dual power-supply version that was demonstrated back in June sounded like a jet engine. Definitely that one is a unit for the server room, not deskside.

We had our first real snow that stuck today, about three inches. The Trixbox will be a great project on those cold winter days.

Low Cost Laptop: ASUS Eee PC

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While the One Laptop Per Child gets most of the ink, there is an alternative out there. The ASUS Eee PC is available for about $400. Here is a mention on Gizmodo, and a listing at Directron, (currently out of stock with delivery projected for November 30th.) A longer review with photos is here. And there is already an Eee blog.

I can imagine some terrific learning projects with, say, a group of five of these for $2000, or even $1500 ($299 apiece) if you can manage without a built-in web cam and slightly less memory.

Here is a google groups thread with additional information regarding the concept of individual machines for each student. An excerpt:

Having run a 1:1 laptop program, I also know that the arrangement is also not without its downsides. The distraction factor alone of having such a rich, engaging device at hand can be overwhelming for a child. (Of course, it can for an adult as well, a lesson learned from many laptop-enabled meetings. Those are topics for another day, however.) In my opinion, the more significant downside to 1:1 programs is the unsuitability of current devices to the task. That’s the second lesson I’ve drawn from my experience running laptop programs. Currently available laptops, designed for the corporate or consumer markets, are ill-suited for use by children. They are too fragile, too bulky, and too expensive, with too little battery life. There are exceptions, of course, but most attempts to address these problems have succeeded only in fixing one at the expense of exacerbating the others. A subnotebook computer might be light, but it becomes more expensive & more fragile. It may be ruggedized, but then it becomes bulkier & more expensive. Or it may be cheap, but then it’s bulky and still breakable. Anyone who has supported school laptop programs knows how often one is replacing keys on keyboards that have “mysteriously” popped off or sending in for repair laptops that have suffered breakage due careless drops or compression in overstuffed backpacks, or replacing batteries that have been discharged one too many times, or just fixing the myriad of niggling errors that modern complex operating systems (read: Windows) pop up daily. The churn of equipment and drain on staff time is wasteful, expensive, and distracts from the learning process. And given these realities, I do understand why most teachers have not yet embraced the promise of “anytime, anywhere” laptop learning.

Borders installs Video Screens (!)

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Many years back our local Grand Union supermarket installed TV screens at the checkouts. They lasted about nine months, and finally were removed because of customer complaints, vandalism, and customers who would surreptiously turn them off when standing in front of them being subjected to a barrage of advertising.
Now, according to this story in the New York Times, Borders is installing these things in their stores. Maybe this is the onset of senility, but I think this is a terrible idea. It is getting harder and harder to move around in a public space without having a video screen in your face. It makes interacting with real people in a public space much more difficult, if not impossible. It distracts from the ability to quietly read a book.
What were they thinking?

Stuff That Works November 2007

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Looking at the Enthusiasm Score from a year ago, I’m amazed how unchanged most ideas are. So in this year’s edition, I’ll take a different approach rather than trying to score things incrementally

  • Stuff That Really Works
  • Stuff That Works with Minor Problems
  • Stuff That Works with Major Reservations
  • Stuff That Doesn’t Work

Stuff that Really Works

The following technology items that I take for granted on a daily basis, that never seem to require troubleshooting. It is a short list.

  • My landline. Verizon, with MCI long distance
  • Verizon pre-paid cell phone plan.
  • My ISP and web host:intermedia.net
  • The FireFox web browser
  • Microsoft Office 2003 – the file formats and interface changes of Office 2007 haven’t been internalized by either me or colleagues with which I exchange Word or Excel documents.
  • Microsoft OneNote 2007 – Solid as a rock.
  • SightSpeed desktop videoconferencing

Stuff That Works With Minor Problems

  • HP Procurve 2xxx Network Switch. Ended up replacing a couple of these because of a fan failure. The process was relatively painless, with excellent support from HP, and free warranty replacement.
  • Microsoft Windows 2003 Small Business Server. I installed on a repurposed Dell Optiplex workstation, and the combination has worked almost flawlessly for over two years. And yet, the SBS is more than most small shops need…eventually I can see a replacement with a straight Windows Server with added SharePoint, leaving aside things like Fax, and Exchange.
  • On workstations, Microsoft Windows XP Professional with Service Pack 2. This is starting to get more difficult to find. Upgrade any workstations now, or you’ll have to cope with Windows Vista.
  • WiFi. As long as you keep expectations reasonable, and remain aware of the security implications, WiFi is great.
  • BaseCamp web-based project manager.

Stuff That Works with Major Reservations

These are things that we’re using, but we are still looking, or items that are not yet ready for prime time.

  • VoIP – I had hoped to be a lot farther along with VoIP, both on a casual occasional basis using applications like Skype and Gizmo, and with a PBX solution such as Trixbox or Asterisk. To date there has been unreliable connection quality when using Internet VoIP connections. Like some other aspects of life, when it is good is very good, but when it is bad it is unworkable. Are expectations unreasonable here?
  • Windows Vista
  • The Mac OS X and Linux. The reason these are on the list is that indeed they work, but they don’t necessarily play easily with Windows, particularly when it comes to printing and sharing files. The problems here aren’t insurmountable, but they require more than a casual engagement and technical expertise. I think this is a reasonable major reservation…and it remains the reason to insist on a single operating platfom for your IT infrastructure. It should be easier than this.

Stuff That Doesn’t Work

In general, I can just point to John Dvorak and the Cranky Geeks for endless tales of chaos and disfunction.

Switching from PC to MAC

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I’ve been fiddling with my MacBook for the better part of a week and, for the most part, I really like what I see. I’m still wondering about discarding certain applications; notably OutLook (with the X1 search capability) and OneNote. Eventually, I may install Windows on the machine, but to keep things interesting, I’m determined to to push the Mac as far as I can before caving. Below are some web sites that I’ve found that help with the transition. Maybe we need an organization for Windows Users Anonymous for those of us attempting to kick the habit.

General Hints and Overview

The Tao of Mac has a good page with of hints for switchers.

Another similar essay is located at Apple Matters.

Listings of keyboard equivalents

The Mac keyboard has additional modifier keys, including the “Apple” key, and the “Option” key. David Pogue posed the question of how to get a right-click from the Mac one-button mouse or trackpad when you are running Windows on a Mac via Boot Camp. The short answer seems to be..”spend $20.00 and get a two-button mouse” but there are also odd combinations of keystrokes that appear to work. This has been an issue so far when attempting to switch from Windows to the Mac OS… I feel like I’ve lost a hand, not being able to right-click. And it isn’t as if there aren’t things that pop up on the Mac side when you right click… Both the Finder and Safari, for example have right-click menus just like a Windows application.

Loose Ends and Unsolved Mysteries:

  • I can’t print to networked printers, or at least to any printer that isn’t connected directly via a USB port.
  • While I know there is a “dashboard”… a combination of applets like clocks and so on, I don’t know how to switch between the dashboard and regular applications.

Tech Friday: New MacBook with Leopard OSX 10.5

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In the Pournelle tradition, “we do these things so you don’t have to”… and contrary to advice to clients, I’ve remixed my operating systems, and gotten an Apple Macintosh, a MacBook. This is the little laptop with a 13.3 inch screen.

It was fun to place the order last Friday and then watch the machine wing its way over from China to Anchorage Alaska, and then down to the lower 48 over the course of the next couple of days on the FedEx tracking site. I was told that the unit would come with the latest version of the Mac operating system installed. It wasn’t, but there was a CD enclosed, and the first thing I did was to do an OS update, which went without a hitch. Now I’ve been reading on-line discussions about the update, but since I had zero experience with Mac operating systems since the first Mac was introduced about twenty years ago, I was blissfully ignorant about all the changes. My baseline is simply the latest and greatest…and my early experience has been favorable.

There are still a few hold-overs from the earliest Macs. The startup sound is the same. The finder “logo” with the two faces is still the same. I wonder if someone, somewhere, has a digital recording of the first Mac floppy drives as they sort of clicked away. I can still remember that sound.

The OS comes with an embarrassment of riches. Like Ubuntu or other Linux distributions, there are enough applications in there to keep you busy (and unproductive) for days. So far the only things I’ve added are the iWork suite (word-processing, presentations and spreadsheets), and an upgrade from the standard GarageBand recording software called Logic Express. I also installed the Cisco VPN client for our university’s wireless network. A second power brick for the office is $70.00.

Frankly my first impetus for the change was to solve a hardware problem. My Dell Inspiron is falling apart, and the keyboard never worked the way it should.

The MacBook hardware is quite complete. It includes an integrated microphone and camera. There is integrated Airport wireless networking which works flawlessly. Integrated BlueTooth, (haven’t tried it yet…need to get one of those nerdy headsets). A FireWire port. Two USB ports. External microphone input, and headset output. All this is wrapped up in a sleek black package which weighs a little over five pounds.

Of course the underlying OS is Unix, so all the Unix command-line goodies are available. And Boot Camp, which allows you to set up a dual-boot Mac/Windows is now out of beta and integrated directly into the Mac OS. So, even if I relegate the Mac to “personal” use, I’ll still be able to use it with Windows XP or Vista.

HP Printer Drivers – Foiled Again!

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Honestly, I just don’t get it. I’m trying to install my printers to a new MacBook. I can open the printer dialog box and see the printer, the K5400 ink-jet, but when the installer searches for a driver, it doesn’t find one. So I trot out the CD that came with the printer, and attempt an installation. All I want is THE DRIVER. I don’t want PhotoSmart, I don’t want to participate in the HP customer participation program. I don’t want to install a bunch of third-party crapware. I just want to PRINT.

But there is no single driver file available either on the CD, or the CD image that you can download from the HP site. You have to run the HP installer. Fine.

So I run the installer and just after I say I don’t want to participate in the HP Customer Satisfaction Program, and receive valuable offers and updates, the thing hangs. And it stays hung.

So, HP, I won’t be printing to my HP K5400 today, and using up all those expensive inks.

Could it be a Leopard thing?

Update: Still not entirely satisfactory; I installed the printer directly by connecting the USB port. On a whim, (just lucky) I chose the OfficeJet Pro K550 driver which was in the list. This seems to work, when the printer is connected directly. It doesn’t yet work, over an IP network, even though the printer shows up with a “Bonjour” connection.