Anything about IT

If you have installed Windows Vista SP1 on top of your first Vista installation and have no plans to uninstall it, you might want to give the following command a try “VSP1CLN.exe”.

The Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1) Files Removal Tool (VSP1CLN.exe) can be used to remove the files that are archived after Windows Vista SP1 is applied. Running this tool is optional.

Installing Windows Vista SP1 increases the amount of disk space that is used by the operating system. This space is used to archive files so that SP1 can be uninstalled. Typically, you should run VSP1CLN.exe if you want to reclaim this disk space after applying SP1 and if you will not need to uninstall SP1.

More details on Microsoft TechNet: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc709655.aspx

I just read a blogpost from Michael Niehaus i think those deploying Windows Vista are interested to know about. The article describes how to shorten the OOBE process. http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/958011

For all those that are missing the days when computer screens appeared in terminal mode, Google’s GMail can now be configured like that. Just select Settings, Themes and select the “Terminal” theme.

When you install SQL Server 2000 / 2005 / 2008 you can configure under what user account the services are running. In the past i’ve often seen people selecting “local system”, I also selected that….not thinking too much about security then and it was the easiest to do with no need to create an additional user account and as long as you don’t need to access any other domain resources that worked fine.

Today from a security perspective though running the SQL services under the local sysem account is probably not a good idea, as the local system account is equivalent to a local administrator, so bad code that might get into your SQL server might hit the underlying system as well. From reading various sql forum postings and articles and Microsoft Technet articles it appears to be the best to simply create standard users accounts, during installation these accounts are being given the necessary permissions on the system they need.

If you don’t need access to other domain resources, the creation of local user accounts on the system that hosts the SQL server is enough, if not create them in AD.

The article “Picking Service Accounts” describes it all in more detail. (note that you must register yourself to read articles on SQLServerCentral.com

I have come across an article that describes the power consumption of equipment in standby mode, found it quite interesting.

Throughout my IT career i have seen many application development projects but most applications would not have survived more than 5 years until they got replaced by a new one. So I was quite pleased to find this success story about a software that is still being used by a company i once worked for and I was even one of the initial application architects of that application. Looks like this application made its Return On Investment.

This project was launched in 1994 as a solution for handling the transport activities. The full story can be found here.

The Windows 2003 Resource Kit contains a nice extension for the Active Directory Users and Computers console showing additional User Account information.

The additional user account information can be enabled by registering the acctinfo.dll as described below.

Follow the steps below to enable the additional user account information.

• Download the Windows 2003 Resource kit tools.
• Unpack / Install the Windows 2003 Resource Kit
• Copy the acctinfo.dll to c:\windows\system32
• Register the DLL by running the following command:

regsvr32 C:\windows\system32\acctinfo.dll

• Launch the Active Directory Users and Computers management console, then select a user object and select the Additional Account Info tab.

A song full of IT, enjoy

Usually when you need a report for a given Group Policy object, you would launch the Group Policy Management Console, select the GPO and then select the settings tab that produces the report.

But what if you need a report for multiple or even all your GPOs you have within your Active Directory ? Going through each GPO and produce the report manually is going to take ages and is boring.

My colleague Rudi recently found a script that automatically creates GPO reports it finds within your AD. You can select them individually or simply report on all.

The script is stored on the Win32 Scripting site which is a usefull resource for admin scripts since many years. The GPO reporting script can be found here

As part of my job i am joining conference calls quite frequently, although whenever i can I stay away from them as mostly they aren’t productive, especially when there is more than 5 people in a call, as mostly you have 3 people having a dialogue and the rest stays quiet anyway even after the call ends

But what I find most annoying and impolite is when people join that don’t understand some basic rules for participating conference calls. Noise, speaking in the background, hungry dogs are things that should be avoided when people join a conference call.

So here we go:

Reduce Environmental Noise

1. Pick a quiet place to take your conference call.
2. Be mindful of nearby babies, animals, lawnmowers, and swimming pools (Yes, it really happened).
3. Close the office door or window before taking the call.
4. Don’t join conference calls from public places. (This is a noise and privacy thing)
5. If you have to join a call from a car, use the mute feature.
   

   Reduce Personal Noise.

6. Don’t play with the microphone or shuffle papers near it.
7. Position the microphone correctly, close enough to pick up your voice but not your breathing. (Yes it’s nice to know you are still alive, but how do we know you are not asleep.)
8. Don’t eat while on the phone! (it sounds gross, and look at your phone… Ewww!)
9. Don’t hold other conversations. (Multitasking doesn’t really work.)
   

   Equipment Matters

10. You must have a mute button and know how to use it quickly
11. Avoid wireless phones and cell phones. (You are not that important)
12. If you are alone, do not use a speakerphone.
13. Invest in a good wired headset with adjustable boom microphone.
14. Never put a conference call on hold. (No matter how nice the hold Muzak™ is.)
    

    Mind Your Manners

15. Start on time – This is a good rule for all meetings.
16. Introduce all call participants at the beginning of the call
17. State your name before talking. Don’t assume people will recognize your voice. (This works in reverse too, don’t assume people won’t recognize your voice, so think before speaking.)
18. Avoid interrupting other speakers
19. Be concise
20. End the call properly – Wrap up the meeting, sign off and hang up. (I was once in a meeting where everyone in the room simply got up and left without saying goodbye or hanging up the phone.)

Source: http://homeofficeblues.com/14/20-rules-for-better-conference-calls/

and here some fun on Conference Calls: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUASw4Kg6PI

Happy conferencing