Category: Windows Servers

Windows 2012 DirectAccess Quick & Dirty

Install Server 2012. Join Server to your Domain.

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Select Behind an Edge Device
Public name voor mij is dat is: thuis.wardvissers.nl

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Remote Access Review & Next
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View Remote Access Review

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Finish

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Overview

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Policy’s

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Windows 8 Client

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I have a Firewall/NAT router. So you need open some ports
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DirectAccess works great. Every where I work I have access to my docs & email.

Windows Server 2012: Convert server Core to server with a Gui

  1. Create a folder to mount a Windows Imaging File (WIM) in with the command mkdir c:\mountdir

  2. Determine the index number for a Server with a GUI image (for example, SERVERDATACENTER, not SERVERDATACENTERCORE) using this command at an elevated command prompt: Dism /get-wiminfo /wimfile:<drive>:sources\install.wim

  3. Mount the WIM file using this command at an elevated command prompt: Dism /mount-wim /WimFile:<drive>:\sources\install.wim /Index:<#_from_step_2> /MountDir:c:\mountdir /readonly

  4. Start Windows PowerShell and run this cmdlet:

    Install-WindowsFeature Server-Gui-Mgmt-Infra,Server-Gui-Shell –Restart –Source c:\mountdir\windows\winsxs

  5. Alternatively, if you want to use Windows Update as the source instead of a WIM file, use this Windows PowerShell cmdlet:

    Install-WindowsFeature Server-Gui-Mgmt-Infra,Server-Gui-Shell –Restart

Windows Server 2012: Convert a server with a Gui to Core with Windows PowerShell

To convert to a Server Core installation with Windows PowerShell: run the following cmdlet:
Uninstall-WindowsFeature Server-Gui-Mgmt-Infra -restart

Remove the Windows 8 Animation during MDT Deployment

In Windows 8 there is a movie that is played for the first time logon and there is a Group Policy setting you can use to disable it. Mikael Nystrom writed a nice MDT Application you can download and install and put it into your task sequence for Windows 8 and you will never ever see it once more. Happy deployment!

Download the zip file, extract it and create a new Application in MDT 2012 Update 1.

Select Application with Source Files

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Edit Task Sequence

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Windows 8 – Customizing the Default Lock Screen

The update “Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 cumulative update: November 2012” adds functionality to the Control Panel group polices that allow an administrator to designate a lock screen image on their Windows 8 and Windows 2012 computers. This setting lets you specify the default lock screen image shown when no user is signed in, and also sets the specified images as the default for all users (it replaces the inbox default image) Some restriction apply. See the Restrictions section below.
The new group policy is named “Force a specific default lock screen image” and can be found in this path in the group policy editor: “Computer Configuration\Policies\Administrative Templates\Control Panel\Personalization”

Requirements:
To deploy the new “Force a specific default lock screen image”  GP the following requirements must be met:

  1. The update “Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 cumulative update: November 2012” must be applied to all Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 computers that you want to deploy customer lock screen images to. This is required as the Control Panel group policy client side extension must be updated to enforce the group policy
  2. The group policy used to deploy the custom lock screen image must be edited on a machine that has been patched with “Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 cumulative update: November 2012”

Restrictons

  • Windows 8 Enterprise or Windows Server 2012 can use the new GP “Force a specific default lock screen image” via Domain GP or via local GP
  • Windows 8 Pro can also be a target of the GP if the machine is joined to a domain

Implementation Steps for Domain Based Group Policy

  1. Patch all system with update “Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 cumulative update: November 2012” KB 2770917
  2. Create a GPO and link it to the OU where the computer accounts are located that you want to deploy the custom lock screen image to. Alternatively you can use an existing GPO.
    a. Open the Group Policy Management Console (GPMC)
    b. Create and link a GPO to an OU or Locate an existing GPO that you want to use
  3. Create and link a GPO to an OU or Locate an existing GPO that you want to use
    a. In GPMC right click the GPO from step 2b and select edit
    b. Go this path “Computer Configuration\Policies\Administrative Templates\Control Panel\Personalization”
    c. Enable the GP “Force a specific default lock screen image”
    d. Specify the path to the image file. It is recommended to use a DFS network path to provide redundancy.
  4. After Sysvol replication has occurred and clients have refreshed their group policy settings the new lock screen will be used.

Implementation Steps for Local Group Policy

1.      Patch the system with update “Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 cumulative update: November 2012” KB 2770917
2.      Edit Local Policy
a.       Run GPEDIT.MSC
b.      Go this path “Computer Configuration\Policies\Administrative Templates\Control Panel\Personalization”
c.       Enable the GP “Force a specific default lock screen image”
d.      Specify the path to the image file.
e.       Click OK
3.      Policy will be enforced as the next GP background refresh.

Microsoft Assessment and Planning (MAP) Toolkit 7.0 Now Available

Get ready for Windows Server 2012 with the Microsoft Assessment and Planning (MAP) Toolkit 7.0. The latest version of the MAP Toolkit adds several new planning scenarios that help you build for the future with agility and focus while lowering the cost of delivering IT. Download MAP 7.0 and begin planning your server deployments today!

New capabilities allow you to:

· Understand your readiness to deploy Windows Server 2012 in your environment

· Determine Windows 8 readiness. For more info, see this blog post.

· Investigate how Windows Server and System Center can manage your heterogeneous environment through VMware migration and Linux server virtualization assessments

· Size your desktop virtualization needs for both Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) and session-based virtualization using Remote Desktop Services. For more information, see these blog posts.

· Ready your information platform for the cloud with the SQL Server 2012 discovery and migration assessment. For more info, see this blog post.

· Evaluate your licensing needs with usage tracking for Lync 2010, active users and devices, SQL Server 2012, and Windows Server 2012. For more information, see this blog post.

Download MAP 7.0 now from http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?&id=7826

Free E-book: Introducing Windows 8 for IT Professionals

Augusto Alvarez Wrote a nice e-book “Introducing Windows 8, an overview for IT Professionals” (preview version).

This book has some quite important topics that every IT guy which is considering implement Windows 8 in their company should read it carefully. Here’s a short summary for the topics included (I’m just naming a few; the entire list is available in the download):

  1. 1. Overview
  2. 2. Experiencing Windows 8
  3. 3. Windows 8 for IT Pros
    • Customizing and configuring Windows 8
    • Client Hyper-V
    • Redesign NTFS
    • PowerShell 3.0
  4. 4. Preparing for Deployment
    • Windows 8 SKUs
    • Application compatibility
    • User state migration
    • Windows To Go
  5. 5. Deploying Windows 8
    • Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit
    • Deployment and Imaging
    • User state migration tool
    • MDT 2012 Update 1
    • e. SCCM 2012 with SP1
    • f. Desktop Virtualization
  6. 6. Delivering Windows Apps
  7. 7. Windows 8 Recovery
    • DaRT
  8. 8. Windows 8 Management
    • Group Policy Improvements
    • Windows Intune
    • Mobile device support
  9. 9. Windows 8 Security
  10. 10. Internet Explorer 10
  11. 11. Windows 8 virtualization
    • Virtual Desktop Infrastructure
    • Application Virtualization
    • User State virtualization

I did not read it completely, but for what I’ve seen so far the content is not fully detailed with step-by-steps but contains valuable information and guidance that must be read it if you are implementing / managing Windows 8.

Exchange 2010 SP2 Management Tools on Windows 8 RTM

Some day’s ago I installed Windows 8 Enterprise x64 RTM on my Work pc.
So I wanted Exchange 2010 Management Tools on my PC.

I found the following topic: Exchange 2010 Management tools

This worked for me Smile

  1. Install the .NET Framework 3.5 Windows Feature
  2. Install the IIS 6 Management Console Feature
  3. Install the IIS Metabase and IIS 6 Configuration Compatibility Feature
  4. Modify the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion registry key from “6.2” to “6.1” as stated above
  5. DO NOT Close REGEDIT
  6. Create a MMC with the Exchange Tools on it and I saved it under c:\Windows 8 RTM Exchange 2010 SP2\ExchangeAdmin.msc 
  7. Create a Bat File

    8. set __COMPAT_LAYER=RUNASINVOKER
    set COMPLUS_Version=v2.0.50727
    c:\Windows 8 RTM Exchange 2010 SP2\ExchangeAdmin.msc

    Now you can Manage Exchange 2010 from a Windows 8 pc. I found no issues till now. Beware this is not supported by Microsoft!!!!!

     

Upgrading the ADMX files to Windows 8 & 2012

When you want to use a new OS in your domain you need to upgrade de ADMX files. The easy way to get all the possible ADMX/ADML files for a particular OS without having to install all the roles/features is to simply copy them out of the winsxs directory (replace en-US in the commands below if your OS is installed in a language other than English). Here is a sample set of commands which can do this for you. You’d need to run this on both a Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 computers to capture all possible admx/adml files.

cd /d %windir%\winsxs
dir *.admx /s /b > %USERPROFILE%\Desktop\admx.txt
dir *.adml /s /b | find /i “en-us” > %USERPROFILE%\Desktop\adml_en-us.txt

mkdir %USERPROFILE%\Desktop\PolicyDefinitions
mkdir %USERPROFILE%\Desktop\PolicyDefinitions\en-US
FOR /F %i IN (%USERPROFILE%\Desktop\admx.txt) DO copy %i %USERPROFILE%\Desktop\PolicyDefinitions\
FOR /F %i IN (%USERPROFILE%\Desktop\adml_en-us.txt) DO copy %i %USERPROFILE%\Desktop\PolicyDefinitions\en-US\

Source: Upgrading the ADMX Central Store files from Windows 7/2008R2 to Windows 8/2012

Windows 8 en Server 2012 KMS Service Activation

For Licensing Server 2012 and Windows 8 on a Windows 2008 R2 server you need to update the KMS Service.

Install the following update: An update is available for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 KMS hosts to support Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 as described in KB2691586.
If you don’t install this hotfix registering a Windows Server 2012 KMS will throw an Error: 0xC004F050 The Software Licensing Service reported that the product key is invalid

So request the hotfix and install it. Just follow the instructions and you’ll be fine clip_image001

We can start putting our brand new KMS key into action.

Uninstall the current KMS key using slmgr.vbs /upk clip_image002

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Now you can install the new KMS key. The key listed here is obviously a demo one clip_image002[1]If you run in to any issues here, restarting the KMS Service can help. Try that first.

slmgr.vbs /ipk NOPEI-AMNOT-GIVIN-GITTO-YOU!

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Now activate your brandnew KMS key running slmgr.vbs /ato
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We run slmgr.vbs /dlv again and as you can see now we can activate all our Windows 2012 servers and Windows 8 computers

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