Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009
Our family has a number of laptop computers, with each member having their own. My wife and son both wanted to have Windows 7 on their laptops, but my daughter however wants to stick with Windows Vista. For now I’ll let her so stay on Vista as she’s got the right to make up her own mind what she wants.
My wife’s laptop is a HP 6910p. We had been running Windows Vista x64 Business on it for some time, but have had so many issues with it as there is a definite bug in the video driver for that laptop. The bug manifests itself when the laptop goes into its’ power saving mode and switches off the screen, it then has a Blue Screen Of Death (BSOD). The problem is that you can’t see the BSOD as the video driver has turned off the LCD. We’ve raised it with HP and they’ve given us the right royal run around asking us to reinstall Vista twice, and then downgrade to Vista x86. None of this has worked. So some months back I decided to install Win7 beta on it to see how it went – and it’s not missed a beat since then! Anyway – long story short – now it is time to move to the Windows 7 RTM version. I decided that the best approach was to format and install to an empty hard drive. I gave the DVD to my wife and stood back as she wanted to do the install. Less than an hour later, Windows 7 was up and running on it without any major issues. Performed a Windows Update and it brought down all the latest drivers for the accessories such as the fingerprint scanner. The machine works very fast and she is very happy with it. Likewise I’m happy to say that we’ve not seen ANY BSOD with it either. We joined this one to the domain as my wife does do a fair bit of accounts and administration work and I wanted to be sure to give her full access to everything she needs.
My son’s laptop is a 3 year old Toshiba Satellite Prot A100. He’s not exactly a power user, but does use it for his primary school homework, playing games and surfing the net. He has been using a Toshiba Portege M200 which died a few weeks back, so this is his “new” laptop that has been sitting on the shelf for some time. It had Windows XP Professional on it, but we didn’t care too much about that and decided that a complete wipe and install was the way to go. The laptop has 2GB RAM and a 60GB hard drive. My son wanted to do the install of Windows 7 himself, so I figured let him try it – he can only learn. I expected problems, but he booted from the Windows 7 DVD and just over an hour later had a fully functioning laptop connected via our wireless network to the net. Woohoo. Ok – so I checked Device Manager and found only two “Other devices” that didn’t have drivers. Given everything seemed to be working fine we decided to leave it at that. My son’s laptop was connected just to our Windows Home Server so it’s backed up on a regular basis and he has a place he can store his files, access family photos, movies and so on.
All in all, we were all very impressed with how easily and quickly our installations went through on both new and old hardware. Now let’s see how the next few weeks go as they get stuck into using them for real world use.
Tags: Installation, Windows 7
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Monday, October 30th, 2006
Ok – my preference for installations of SBS2003 is to do a totally fresh installation. However there are times when this is not possible due to budget contraints or time limitations. I’ve had two such customer scenarios this week that needed to have the inplace done, one for budget reasons, and the other for time constraints. So we’ve used the inplace upgrade method. Before using the in place upgrade method I’d considered a few things.
1. Did I install SBS2000 on this system? I look at this as I want to ensure that it’s a system that I’ve controlled for it’s life. If I didn’t install it then there may be a heap of underlying issues just waiting to bite me.
2. Is the hardware capable to run SBS2003 for the next 2-3 years. In the case of the systems I’ve done this week, both were for 5 user sites, one was a 2.4Ghz system with 1GB RAM which was fine, the other was an 800Mhz system with 1GB RAM which was at the very low end of what I wanted. I advised the 800Mhz customer of this and he was fine – wants to replace the server next financial year anyway.
So here’s the process I followed in these upgrades this week. Both of them had RAID 1 using software mirroring, so we disconnected the mirrored drive before we commenced as our utlimate backup plan, and then later once it was done and we knew the upgrade was 100% we reconnected it and reconfigured the mirror.
Preflight Check these can all be done prior to the day of the upgrade to minimise the downtime
Check workstations if any Win95 or Win ME then upgrade can not proceedCheck SBS2000 Service Pack levels must have SBS 2000 SP1 installedMinimum 2GB Free on C: DriveEnsure ISA SP1 is installed (v3.0.1200.50 if no SP, v3.0.1200.166 SP1)Install hotfix for ISA for W2003 Server (ISAHF255.exe KB331062)Download and unpack the latest supportpaq from HP for the serverClean up drives, delete files not needed and empty recycle binDefrag drives (if time permits do this remotely)Verify backups are good
Rollout ProcessEnsure the Internet NIC is disconnectedDisconnect the mirrored hard drive (if it s a dual drive mirrored system)Remove any UPS cables to the serverRemove Exchange IMRemove Admin toolsRemove AV softwareRemove Scanmail for ExchangeRemove Trend Client from the serverRemove OfficeScan Corporate Edition from the serverRebootNote any specific config options that need to be reinstated later
a. Exchange forward all mail to specific hostCHKDSK /f on all hard drivesSave and clear event logsReboot serverCheck event logs note / decide on action about ANY errorsInsert SBS2003 CD1 and commence setupDuring the W2003 installation portion of setup, if it asks you for drivers for the HP/Compaq server, insert the SmartStart CD as it has the drivers the system needs.Phase 2 of the SBS SetupReboot and complete the To Do listDo not do step 6 of the to do list Import Files as we don t use this optionDetune ISA securityRemove the authenticate all users from the outbound web listenerWindows Update & rebootReview loginscripts to ensure that they are correct and do not have any additional characters in themTest one workstation on LAN verify access to email, files etcInstall ISA FP1, ISA FP1 URLSCAN (isafp1ur.exe), ISA SP2Install Trend AV & configureInstall GZIP Hotfix, E2003SP1 and Post SP1 SBS HotfixModify hardware firewall to add additional ports and protocols443,444,4125Shutdown and configure the mirror the original hard drive
Workstation rollouts Assign applications to all workstations from the SBS console wizardsRemove old AV & rollout the new AVAdd users to be able to logon remotely via RWW on the desktop computers
Verify all AV clients are seen in the AV console
Tags: Installation, SBS 2000, SBS 2000 SP1, SBS 2003 Premium, SBS 2003 R2 Premium, SBS 2003 R2 Standard, SBS 2003 SP1 Premium, SBS 2003 SP1 Standard, SBS 2003 Standard
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Thursday, December 5th, 2002
The default installation of SBS2000 uses an internal IP address of 192.168.16.2. If you want to change it later then you need to make a number of alterations within SBS,
1. Change the IP address on the Internal Network card to the new IP address. Whilst here remove any IP addresses for the DNS server and press OK. You will get a warning and it will point it the DNS settings back to itself (127.0.0.1) – note you can not manually enter 127.0.0.1 into this field.
2. Go into the DNS server properties and change the IP address that the DNS server will listen on to the new IP address (should be listed)
3. Go into the DHCP Server console and review the DHCP scope – the DHCP scope will reflect the old IP address. You need to create a new DHCP scope which reflects the new IP address and the desired range. You will also need to add a number of scope options for the DHCP clients to work effectively. Options that need to be added include the following;
003 Router = New IP address of the server
006 DNS Server = New IP address of the server
044 WINS/NBNS Servers = New IP address of the server
046 WINS/NBNS Node Type = New IP address of the server
4. Run the Internet Connection Wizard and ensure that in thelocations where the old IP addres was are set to the new IP address.
5. If you have setup RRAS for VPN or remote access then you may need to alter any custom settings for the IP addresses given out to.
Tags: Installation, SBS 2000, SBS 2000 SP1
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Sunday, June 30th, 2002
The following paths are the commands used to define the source and installation strings for the applications on SBS2000. In the examples below replace SMALLSVR1 with your server name.
Internet Explorer
Windows 9X Path
\\SMALLSVR1\ClientApps5\IE5\ie5setup.exe /C:”ie5wzd /s:”"#e”" /M:1 /Q”
Windows NT Path
\\SMALLSVR1\ClientApps5\IE5\ie5setup.exe /C:”ie5wzd /s:”"#e”" /M:1 /Q”
Windows 2000 Patch
Blank (I assume this is due to Ie5 being part of W2K already)
Modem Sharing Client
Windows 9X Path
\\SMALLSVR1\MpClients\Win9X\setup.exe -s
Windows NT Path
\\SMALLSVR1\MpClients\NT4\MpSetupNT4.cmd\\SMALLSVR1\MpClients\NT4
Windows 2000 Path
\\SMALLSVR1\MpClients\Win2K\netsetupWin2K.exe -c client -a upgrade -i\\SMALLSVR1\MpClients\Win2K\netsrdr.inf -q
Microsoft Shared Fax Client
Windows 9X Path
\\SMALLSVR1\FaxClients\setup.exe /wait /V”PRINTER_NAME=\\SMALLSVR1\SharedFax APPLAUNCHER=TRUE REBOOT=ReallySupress /qb”
Windows NT Path
\\SMALLSVR1\FaxClients\setup.exe /wait /V”PRINTER_NAME=\\SMALLSVR1\SharedFax APPLAUNCHER=TRUE ALLUSERS=1 REBOOT=ReallySupress /qb”
Windows 2000 Path
\\SMALLSVR1\FaxClients\setup.exe /wait /V”PRINTER_NAME=\\SMALLSVR1\SharedFax APPLAUNCHER=TRUE ALLUSERS=1 REBOOT=ReallySupress /qb”
Microsoft Firewall Client
Windows 9X Path
\\SMALLSVR1\mspclnt\setup /wait /v”reboot=reallysuppress /qb”
Use the same installation path for all operating systems
Outlook 2000 SR1
Windows 9X Path
\\SMALLSVR1\ClientApps5\Outlook2000SR1\setup.exe /qb Reboot=ReallySuppress /wait
Use the same installation path for all operating systems
Tags: Installation, SBS 2000, SBS 2000 SP1
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Saturday, February 9th, 2002
If you have Trend OfficeSCan for SBS2000 installed then you may want to try this patch from Trend.
http://solutionbank.antivirus.com/solutions/solutionDetail.asp?solutionID=10523
Tags: Installation, SBS 2000, SBS 2000 SP1
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Saturday, January 26th, 2002
On the server, run REGEDIT
1. Drill down to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Backoffice
2. On the right hand pane you will see the following keys which you can modify to suit.
a. Address1
b. Address2
c. City
d. Fax
e. Fax_Acode
f. Phone
g. State
h. Zip
Tags: Installation, SBS 2000, SBS 2000 SP1
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Sunday, November 4th, 2001
Microsoft have some official information on the upgrade from SBS 4.5 to SBS2000 at the following link.
Tags: Installation, SBS 2000, SBS 2000 SP1
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Tuesday, September 18th, 2001
PSS ID Number: Q239641
Article last modified on 12-24-2000
:4.5
======================================================================
——————————————————————————-
The information in this article applies to:
- Microsoft BackOffice Small Business Server version 4.5
——————————————————————————-
SUMMARY
=======
This article describes how to manually install client programs on a computer running BackOffice Small Business Server (SBS).
MORE INFORMATION
================
It is highly recommended that you install the client programs automatically with Microsoft BackOffice Server, but there may be situations when you want to manually install the client programs.
To manually install the client programs:
1. Create the ClientApps folder on the root of the system drive (usually C:\ClientApps). The following NTFS file system permissions are default settings for the ClientApps folder during normal Setup. Make sure the following permissions are applied:
Administrators: Full Control
Creator Owner: Full Control
Domain Admins: Full Control
Domain Users: Read
Everyone: Full Control
Server Operators: Change
System: Full Control
2. Share the ClientApps folder as ClientApps with share permissions set to Everyone Full Control.
3. Copy the MS folder and all subfolders and files from the SBSClients folder on SBS 4.5 CD-ROM 3 to the ClientApps folder. This process copies the Fax client, the Modem Sharing client, Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack 4, and the SBS Client tools to the server.
4. Create a folder named Office in the ClientApps\MS folder. Create subfolders under office named cd1 and cd2 (cd2 is only needed if you are installed Office 2000).
5. Perform an administrative installation of Microsoft Outlook 2000 or Microsoft Office 2000 (depending on the version of SBS 4.5 that is installed) by typing the following command:
setup /a
(setup /a for Disk 1 and setup /a for Disk 2 if you are running Office2000)
6. When you are prompted for the Office CD Key, type the Product Key located on the back of the CD case.
7. When you are prompted for the installation path, browse to the ClientApps\MS\Office\CD1 or CD2 folder.
8. After Office Setup is finished, verify the following two registry keys and entries (create these entries if needed):
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\BackOffice\SBSClients
There are two values associated with this key:
Value: ClientApplications
Type: REG_SZ
Data: {F7A6A827-AADD-11D1-AE92-0000F875A98A}
Value: ParentDirectory
Type: REG_SZ
Data:
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\SBSClients
There are two values associated with this key:
Value: DisplayName
Type: REG_SZ
Data: Small Business Server Client Applications
Value: UninstallString
Type: REG_SZ
Data:
Additional query words: smallbiz manual client install
======================================================================
Keywords :
Technology : kbAudDeveloper kbSBServSearch kbSBServ450
Version : :4.5
Issue type : kbinfo
=============================================================================
Copyright Microsoft Corporation 2000.
Tags: Installation, SBS 4.5
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Thursday, June 28th, 2001
1. Launch the full product setup (with sbsetup from Disc 1 – or simply let autrun.inf start after inserting Disc 1 and select the SBS setup link)
2. Enter in valid Product Key/Outlook Product Key
3. Windows 2000 component will run — this will “look” like it’s doing a full upgrade, i.e. you’ll see all the OS setup screens again -but- it’s just removing the timebomb and the “evaluation copy” branding
4. You’ll see the component selection screen and SBS, Exchange and ISA will be defaulted to either install or upgrade, again they need to run to remove their timebombs and the “evaluation copy” branding. If you have SQL installed, you will need to manually set it to install to
remove the timebomb (this is release noted)
5. Setup completes, asks for a reboot and your machine is full product.
Tags: Installation, SBS 2000, SBS 2000 SP1
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Monday, April 16th, 2001
You may for integration reasons desire to change the default IP address from it’s Microsoft set standard of 10.0.0.2 to some other address range. Microsoft have given a detailed step-by-step how to do this in a knowledge base article “Change the Default IP Address in Small Business Server [Q194562]”
Essentially the key steps are as follows.
1. Change the IP address in the TCP/IP properties, change also the WINS server IP to point to the new IP.
2. Change the DHCP scope accordingly and create a new scope with the correct options and settings
3. Change the LMHOSTS file as it contains an IP address which points to 10.0.0.2
4. Change the LAT for MS Proxy, and other various proxy config files as detailed in the KB article (although I have only seen server names here and not IP addresses)
Thant should be it!
Tags: Installation, SBS 4.5
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