Tag: Windows 7

2012 Blogging

This blog was viewed about 110,000 times in 2012. If it were a concert at the Barclays Center, it would take about 6 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.
In 2012, there were 88 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 485 posts.
The busiest day of the year was March 13th with 616 views. The most popular post that day was Exchange 2010 Opening multiple shared calendars & additional mailboxes.

These are the posts that got the most views in 2012. You can see all of the year’s most-viewed posts in your Site Stats.

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Microsoft Office 2013 KMS Volume License Pack

Volume license editions of Office 2013 client products require activation. This download enables IT administrators to set up a Key Management Service (KMS) or configure a domain for Active Directory-Based activation. Either of these volume activation methods can locally activate all Office 2013 clients connected to an organization’s network.

Download

Overview

If you want to activate volume license editions of Office 2013, Visio 2013, or Project 2013 with a KMS host or Active Directory-Based activation, you need to first install Office 2013 Volume License Pack. When an Office 2013 volume edition client is installed, it will automatically attempt to activate via either Active Directory by using its existing domain pairing or a DNS-discoverable KMS host on your organization network. To set up Active Directory-Based activation, you must be running Windows Server 2012, Windows 8, or newer.
All volume editions of Office 2013 client products are pre-installed with a Generic Volume License Key (GVLK) key, which supports automatic activation for both KMS and Active Directory-Based Activation, so you will not need to install a product key.
This download contains an executable file that will extract and install KMS host license files. These license files are required for the KMS host service to recognize Office 2013 KMS host keys. On Windows Server 2012 and volume license editions of Windows 8, you can use your same KMS host key to set up Active Directory-Based activation.

System requirements

Supported operating systems: Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2012

    • KMS Host: Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows 7 (volume editions), Windows Server 2012, or Windows 8.
    • Active Directory-Based Activation
      • Set-up and Configuration: Windows Server 2012, Windows 8 or newer.
      • Domain controller: Active Directory Domain Services with the Windows Server 2012 schema installed.

Instructions:Microsoft Office 2013 Volume License Pack

  1. You need to perform this step only if you’re setting up a KMS host on Windows Server 2008 R2 or Windows 7 (volume editions). Download and run the update contained in the KB article below. This update enables your Windows Server 2008 R2 or Windows 7-based KMS host to successfully activate Office 2013 clients that are running on Windows 8 or Windows Server 2012:
    KB 2691586
  2. Download and run the executable file on this page on a supported operating system.
  3. Enter your Office 2013 KMS host key when prompted.
  4. Activate the product key online.
  5. If setting up a KMS host, open port 1688 to allow the KMS host service through the firewall:
    1. Open Control Panel and click on the Windows Firewall icon.
    2. Click the “Allow a program through Windows Firewall” link.
    3. Click the Change Settings button.
    4. Check the box for Key Management Service.
  6. To learn more about configuring your KMS host with slmgr.vbs, see the TechNet documentation found on this page.

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!

clip_image004

Now activate your brandnew KMS key running slmgr.vbs /ato
clip_image005

We run slmgr.vbs /dlv again and as you can see now we can activate all our Windows 2012 servers and Windows 8 computers

clip_image006

578:0x000004DC:0x0000001D Send-As permission with Outlook 2010 Exchange 2007

578:0x000004DC:0x0000001D Send-As permission with Outlook 2010 Exchange 2007
Error:

myaddress@mydomain.com
You are not allowed to send this message because you are trying to send on behalf of another sender without permission to do so. Please verify that you are sending on behalf of the correct sender, or ask your system administrator to help you get the required permission.

Diagnostic information for administrators:

Generating server:

myaddress@mydomain.com

#MSEXCH:MSExchangeIS:/DC=com/DC=mydomain:SERVERNAME[578:0x000004DC:0x0000001D] #SMTP

Solution:
1.Close Outlook

2.Delete the offline address book folders in

Windows 7: C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook\Offline Address Books
Windows XP: C:\Documents and Settings\username\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook\Offline Address Books

3.Open Outlook and let it download a new copy of the offline address book.

3.1 Send/Receive Tab
3.2. Send/Reveive Groups
3.3 Download Address Book
3.4 Choose Full Details and \Global Address List

Copying $OEM$ files and folders with MDT 2012 Update 1

MDT 2012 Update 1 no longer uses SETUP.EXE to install Windows 7 and above. One side effect of this is that $OEM$ folders are no longer going to be copied, since that was something that SETUP.EXE did that the MDT LTIApply.wsf script doesn’t handle.

I’ve never been a big fan of using the $OEM$ folder structure, as it’s just as easy to add explicit XCOPY steps into the task sequence. But for those of you out there that are using them, you can leverage the attached script (CopyOEM.zip) in your task sequence to do that.

To set this up, first copy the script into your deployment share. Then, add a new step to the task sequence right after the “Install Operating System” step to run the script. It should look like this:

CopyOem

Now, it will follow the original MDT logic for locating the appropriate $OEM$ folder to use, checking in this order:

  • %DeployRoot%\Control\%TaskSequenceID%\$OEM$
  • %SourcePath%\$OEM$
  • %DeployRoot%\%Architecture%\$OEM$
  • %DeployRoot%\$OEM$

where %DeployRoot% is the path to the deployment share, %TaskSequenceID% is the ID of the running task sequence (e.g. WIN8), %SourcePath% is the path within the deployment share for the operating system being used, and %Architecture% is either X86 or X64, depending on the boot image being used.

Once it finds a folder, it will look for two folders in that $OEM$ folder and copy them to the appropriate place for the new OS:

  • $1 will be copied to the root of the volume that the new OS image was applied to.
  • $$ will be copied to the Windows folder on the volume that the new OS image was applied to.

The script doesn’t deal with any other folders because it’s too messy to do that from within Windows PE – drive letters aren’t the same as what they would end up being in the full OS

Download: CopyOEM.zip

Source: Copying $OEM$ files and folders with MDT 2012 Update 1

Microsoft Virtual Machine Converter Solution Accelerator

The Microsoft Virtual Machine Converter (MVMC) Solution Accelerator is a Microsoft-supported, stand-alone solution for the IT pro or solution provider who wants to convert VMware-based virtual machines and disks to Hyper-V®-based virtual machines and disks.

MVMC provides the following features:

  • Converts and deploys virtual machines from VMware hosts to Hyper-V hosts including Hyper-V on Windows Server® 2012. As part of the machine conversion MVMC converts the virtual disks attached to the source virtual machine. It also migrates configuration such as memory, virtual processor and so on from the source virtual machine to the converted virtual machine deployed on Hyper-V. It adds virtual network interface cards (NICs) to the converted virtual machine on Hyper-V.
  • Converts VMware virtual disks to Hyper-V based virtual hard disks (VHDs).
  • Supports conversion of virtual machines from VMware vSphere 4.1 and 5.0 hosts to Hyper-V.
    • Note MVMC also supports conversion of virtual machines from VMware vSphere 4.0 if the host is managed by vCenter 4.1 or vCenter 5.0. You have to connect to vCenter 4.1 or 5.0 through MVMC to convert virtual machines on vSphere 4.0.
  • Offers fully scriptable command-line interfaces for performing virtual machine and disk conversions that integrates well with data center automation workflows and Windows PowerShell scripts.
  • Has a wizard-driven GUI, making it simple to perform virtual machine conversion.
  • Uninstalls VMware tools prior to conversion to provide a clean way to migrate VMware-based virtual machines to Hyper-V.
  • Supports Windows Server guest operating system conversion, including Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2003 SP2.
  • Enables conversion of Windows® client versions including Windows 7.
  • Installs integration services on the converted virtual machine if the guest operating system is Windows Server 2003 SP2.

System requirements

Supported operating systems: Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2012

Before you install MVMC, you must install the following software on the computer on which MVMC will run:

  • Operating systems: Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, or Windows Server 2012 (full installation)
  • Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 and Microsoft .NET Framework 4 if installing MVMC on Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2
  • Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5 if installing MVMC on Windows Server 2012

Download

List of Performance hotfixes for Windows 7 SP1

Applies to:
Windows 2008 R2 SP1
Windows 7 Service Pack 1
Windows 7 SP1

Article ID: 2505438 – Slow performances in applications that use the DirectWrite API on a computer that is running Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=2505438

Article ID: 2505454 – The startup process is delayed on a computer that has a large hard disk installed and is running Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=2505454

Article ID: 2510636 – An update that improves the startup performance of Windows 7 and of Windows Server 2008 R2 is available
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=2510636

Article ID: 2523887 – You may encounter file corruption issues when you use the Offline Files feature to synchronize data in Windows 7
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=2523887

Article ID: 2524478 – The network location profile changes from "Domain" to "Public" in Windows 7 or in Windows Server 2008 R2. This problem can affect Group Policy processing at boot time because NLA does not know what network profile to use.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2524478

Article ID: 2525332 – You encounter a long logon time after you enable the "Do not automatically make redirected folders available offline" Group Policy setting in Windows 7 or in Windows Server 2008 R2
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=2525332

Article ID: 2555428 – The Windows 7 startup process is slow when you create many restore points
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=2555428

Article ID: 2561285 – You experience a long domain logon time in Windows 7 or in Windows Server 2008 R2 after you deploy Group Policy preferences to the computer
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=2561285

Article ID: 2561708 – Offline files synchronization may not finish on a computer that is running Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=2561708

Article ID: 2581608 – Logon scripts take a long time to run in Windows Vista, in Windows Server 2008, in Windows 7 or in Windows Server 2008 R2
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2581608

Article ID: 2582112 – Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2 stops responding when an application performs many I/O operations to a network share
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=2582112

Article ID: 2610379 – The Folder Redirection policy does not work if a previous user sets a redirected folder to an offline mode in Windows 7 or in Windows Server 2008 R2
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=2610379

Article ID: 2617858 – Unexpectedly slow startup or logon process in Windows Server 2008 R2 or in Windows 7
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=2617858

Article ID: 2625434 – "ERROR_SHARING_VIOLATION" error message in Windows XP or in Windows Server 2003 when you try to open a file on an SMB share on a server that is running Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=2625434

Article ID: 2640148 – Windows Explorer stops responding if you try to expand a mapped drive in Windows 7 or in Windows Server 2008 R2
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2640148

Article ID: 2645611 – Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2 stops responding if you try to log on a computer that has multiple monitors
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=2645611

Delay occurs when you log on to a domain from a computer that is running Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=2709630

Article ID: 2709630  2690528 Slow performance when you browse the My Documents folder in the document library in Windows 7 or in Windows Server 2008 R2

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2690528/en-us

An update is available for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 KMS hosts to support Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012

This update extends the Key Management Service (KMS) for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 to allow enterprise licensing of Windows 8 and of Windows Server 2012.
KMS provides support for the following KMS client activations:

  • Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows Server 2008 R2 Service Pack 1 (SP1)
  • Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2008 Service Pack 2 (SP2)
  • Windows 8
  • Windows Server 2012
  • Windows 7 and Windows 7 Service Pack 1 (SP1)
  • Windows Vista and Windows Vista Service Pack 2 (SP2)

Key Management Service (KMS) uses a KMS host key to activate KMS on a KMS host, and to establish a local activation service in your environment. This update extends support for KMS to provide activation for Windows 8 and for Windows Server 2012.

Download

Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) 2012 Update 1

Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) 2012 Update 1 is the newest version of MDT, a Solution Accelerator for operating system and application deployment. MDT 2012 Update 1 supports deployment of Windows 8, Windows 7, Office 2010 and 365, Windows Server 2012, and Windows Server 2008 R2 in addition to deployment of Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP.

Some of the key changes in MDT 2012 Update 1 are:

  • Added support for Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012.
  • Support for System Center 2012 Configuration Manager SP1 CTP: Added support in MDT for deploying Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 with Configuration Manager 2012 SP1 CTP, while supporting all new Configuration Manager functionality (offline BitLocker, UEFI, and Assessment and Deployment Kit).
  • Support for DaRT 8 Beta: Updated MDT to support DaRT 8 for Windows 8 deployments, while continuing to support DaRT 7 for Windows 7 deployments. Added DaRT support for Configuration Manager scenarios.
  • New “Build Your Own Pages” User-Driven Installation (UDI) feature: Enhanced the UDI wizard and designer to enable IT pros to design their own wizard pages with little effort.
  • New System Center 2012 – Orchestrator support: Provided the ability to add steps into an OS deployment task sequence to execute Orchestrator runbooks as part of the deployment process.
  • Other improvements: Added support for Windows PowerShell 3.0, reworked Roles and Features installation logic for Windows 8, improved “boot from VHD” deployment scenarios, and added support for Configuration Manager monitoring.

Download

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