An ordinary guy trying to make a difference
Although the principles behind protecting a ConfigMgr DP haven't changed since SMS 2003, the way you do it has and to in my opinion for the worse which is what prompted this article:
How do I Protect a DP? [30/05/08]Contributed By: Cliff Hobbs [MVP ConfigMgr/ SMS]Protecting a DP is not the most intuitive of processes in ConfigMgr so this article shows you how to save you wading through the online help/ TechNet...
Just got this through from my good friend and fellow MVP Tony Rogerson:
Regional Meetings of the UK SQL Server User Group coming up in the next couple of weeks: LEEDS AREA SQL SERVER USER GROUP: THURSDAY 29TH MAY 18:30 - 21:00 : LEEDShttp://sqlserverfaq.com/?eid=116Martin Bell - Whats New in SQL Server 2008 T-SQL. Martin Will talk about some of the many new features in T-SQL that will be available in SQL Server 2008
Jim Brayshaw - Deploying database upgrades. Jim will talk about the key aspect to building and releasing enterprise software.
SCOTTISH AREA SQL SERVER USER GROUP: WEDNESDAY 4TH JUNE 18:30 - 21:00 : Edinburghhttp://sqlserverfaq.com/?eid=115
Richard Fennell - Using Visual Studio Team Edition for DB Professionals.Richard will cover the complete development life cycle using this Visual Studio Team Edition for DB Professionals, addressing issues such as schema management, source control, testing, data generation and deployment.
SQL SERVER 2008 UK USERGROUP LONDON LAUNCH EVENT: THURSDAY 19TH JUNEhttp://sqlserverfaq.com?eid=114
As part of the SQL Server Launch wave we are holding a usergroup meeting to celebrate the launch (not RTM).
We're going to run this as an open session so you'll be able to ask us to cover the areas you want us to cover.
We have loads of giveaways, including Vista, training vouchers, Technet subscriptions and SQL Server licenses.
Registration is at 5.30, evening will commence at 6pm and finish 9pm.
6pm - 6.30pmRound Table DiscussionUpdate on what's been going on and is going on in the SQL Server space.Bring your SQL problems and ask the audience, bounce ideas - anything related to SQL Server.
The topics to cover in next parts could be any of the following, Simon and Jasper will hope to answer and demo the features you want to know about.
TSQL improvements, new data types, changes to CLR, spatial data, hierarchies, service broker, changes to tools, SSIS improvements, Integrated Full Text, Sparse Columns, Filtered Indexes, XQuery changes, Compression, Change Data Capture, Change Tracking, Intellisense, Table Valued Parameters, Script Task in SSIS, Performance Data Collector, Reporting services
Many thanks,Tony Rogerson, SQL Server MVP.http://sqlserverfaq.comhttp://sqlblogcasts.com/blogs/tonyrogerson
Internet Explorer 6.0
952690 Internet Explorer automatically changes top-level domains (TLDs) when you add them to the "Trusted sites" security zone or to the "Restricted sites" security zone
951204 FIX: An access violation occurs when you update a table through a view by using a cursor in SQL Server 2005
952723 FIX: Error message when you use the bcp utility to run the sp_send_dbmail stored procedure in SQL Server 2005 Service Pack 2 Cumulative Update 5: "Error = [Microsoft][SQL Native Client]Function sequence error"
952070 FIX: You cannot receive notification messages from all the existing subscriptions after you restart the SQL Server service in SQL Server 2005
952135 FIX: When you connect to an instance of SQL Server 2005 by using the SQL Native Client ODBC driver, the SQL_PARAM_IGNORE setting has no effect
556084 xp_SMS_notification not found when Upgrade from SMS 2003 to SCCM 2007
953144 When you run the Setup program to upgrade a SMS 2003 site database to run System Center Configuration Manager 2007, Setup logging may slow
952702 Description of the Visio 2007 hotfix package: May 13, 2008
953028 On a computer that is running Windows Server 2003 or Windows XP, an application experiences an access violation and then crashes if the computer has more than four cores or more than four logical processors
950834 When you try to restore a large amount of data, a dead lock condition occurs in the NTFS file system, and a Windows Server 2003-based file server may stop responding
942835 When client computers try to access resources on a Windows Server 2003-based file server, the Server service on the file server may stop responding
946504 Several WMIxWDM error events are not logged as expected in an x86-based version of Windows Server 2003 that has Service Pack 1 or Service Pack 2 installed
952832 The print operation is unsuccessful when you use the "Point and Print" feature on a client computer that is running Windows Server 2008, Windows Vista Service Pack 1, or Windows Server 2003
952813 In the Power Options item in Control Panel, the "Estimated UPS capacity" field remains unavailable after you reconnect a Smart-UPS device to a Windows Server 2003-based computer
952155 Description of the Remote Desktop Connection 6.1 client update for Terminal Services in Windows XP Service Pack 2
952830 Description of Windows Script 5.7 for Windows XP
We had a couple new Knowledge Base articles for the week, including one for System Center Configuration Manager 2007 and another for SMS 2003. Links and titles are below:
========
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=948303 Active Directory System Discovery does not resolve the IP address of a computer that is discovered by System Center Configuration Manager 2007 Sys Center Config Mnger 2007 AL EN-US
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=950306 In large SMS 2003 hierarchies that have many sites, site-to-site replication slows down Sys Mgmt Svr Ent Ed 2003 EN EN-US
Enjoy!
J.C. Hornbeck | Manageability Knowledge Engineer
I’ve added the ConfigMgr article to the List of ConfigMgr KB Articles on FAQShop.
ConfigMgr SP1 Information [26/05/08]Contributed By: Cliff Hobbs [MVP ConfigMgr/ SMS]ConfigMgr Service Pack (SP) 1 is now available. Want the low-down on it's contents and where to download it? Then look no further than the SP1 page....
When the documentation for ConfigMgr was first released one of the glaring omissions I noticed was there was no Capacity Planner tool like there was for SMS 2003. After making enquiries to several people in Microsoft I was told no such tool existed and there were no plans to create one which I found a bit strange bearing in mind the positive comments I'd heard about the SMS 2003 version.
So whenever anyone has asked me about the ConfigMgr Capacity Planner I've told them it doesn't exist. So I was somewhat surprised the other day to receive a copy of the tool from a colleague.
As it turns out Jeff Tondt of Microsoft Consulting Services (MCS) has decided to update the tool for ConfigMgr himself (nice one Jeff).
You can find links to the ConfigMgr 2007 Capacity Planning tool and SMSMap (another free cool utility that maps your SMS/ ConfigMgr hierarchy), on the ConfigMgr Tools and Utilities page on FAQShop.
BTW, if there's something missing from there you feel should be on there let me know.
You can now download ConfigMgr SP1 from:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=5aae62e8-4b7f-4af7-be01-aefaa4bf059a&DisplayLang=en
Seems Microsoft has really got their act together on this one as not only was the Service Pack signed off a week earlier than what I was last told, the download itself appeared the same day (normally there's a couple of days lag whilst the download file is passed to the team that owns the Microsoft website, they need to add it yada yada yada). So well done Microsoft.
The following below gives a high level summary of what's new/ change in SP1 although you might want to checkout the "Configuration Manager SP1 and R2 Overview (Level 300)" Webcast for full details (this Webcast also covers the upcoming Release 2 (R2) of ConfigMgr as well):
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/WebCastEventDetails.aspx?EventID=1032369054&EventCategory=5&culture=en-US&CountryCode=US
"Overview
Configuration Manager 2007 SP1 now offers full support for management with Windows Vista SP1 and Windows Server 2008, integrates customer feedback, feature Integration with Intel vPro Technology and enhances Asset Intelligent features.
Just got word that ConfigMgr 2007 SP1 has been officially signed off so is now officially released.
Now of course there will be a short delay in making the download available on the MS site but I just wanted to share the news with you all.
Following on from my last post I just wanted to make everyone aware that I've now created the Tools and Utilities page for ConfigMgr.
So feel free to drop by and if there's something missing from there you feel should be on there let me know.
I'm in the process of putting together a page of useful tools and utilities for ConfigMgr (and updating the SMS 2003 page).
So if you know of any cool tools and utilities you've come across that others may benefit from please email me the details and I'll get them added.
What are the Management Point log files? [22/05/08] Contributed By: Cliff Hobbs [MVP ConfigMgr/ SMS] Like all SMS components Management Points have their own set of log files. This article contains a list of what each of them is...
That wonderfully British institution the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) offers a TV catch up service powered by it's own free downloadable media player called iPlayer.
Once you've downloaded and installed it you simply choose the BBC program you want to watch that you missed or maybe want to see again and hey presto. Well that is of course assuming you're based in the UK.
It seems the BBC is still working on some mumbo jumbo to allow this service to be available for use outside the UK. What grates me is that everyone in the UK HAS to pay a license fee of £139.50 to the BBC every year regardless of whether you watch the BBC or not (just because you have a TV that is capable of receiving BBC channels you HAVE to pay - that's one of the barmy laws we unfortunately have to suffer).
Now I missed last Saturday's Dr. Who as I was out of the country. "No problem" I thought "I'll use iPlayer to watch it" which is when I first discovered this issue. Now the fact of the matter is that I have paid for the right to watch BBC programs courtesy of my license fee but what good is this if you can't do this abroad?
Heard of the BBC World Service? Shame it's only limited to radio in this day and age.
Bottom line is this - if you're a fan of any BBC program (Dr. Who, The Apprentice, Eastenders, etc.) and planning a holiday abroad make sure you set the video or PVR to record your shows as iPlayer is as much use as a chocolate teapot abroad.
Maybe I should sue the BBC for the false slogan on the iPlayer website:
"Making the unmissable, unmissable"
of maybe it's time Sir Alan Sugar said to the chairman of the BBC:
"You're fired".
It seems that users of HP machines with AMD processors are encountering continual rebooting once they apply XP SP3. The problem is allegedly caused by the fact that HP originally loaded the Intel version of XP on these machines at the factory rather than the AMD version.
From what I can ascertain, after applying SP3 to one of the affected machines when you reboot the OS attempts to load a device driver for the Intel processor (which of course fails as the machine has an AMD processor), so it reboots, tries again, fails, reboots, you get the picture.
Both Microsoft and HP are working to resolve this but it seems Jesper Johansson, a former Microsoft security manager has beaten them both to it by releasing a free patch (unapproved of course by HP and Microsoft) at:
http://msinfluentials.com/blogs/jesper/
If you've got this issue and this patch helps let me know ;-)
SQL Server 2005
953170 Support WebCast: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Failover Clustering on Windows Server 2008
952678 The 2007 Office suite Service Pack 1 or post-Service Pack 1 updates are not detected when you run MBSA 1.2.1, the Office Scan Tool in SMS 2.0, or the Office Update Inventory Tool
950306 In large SMS 2003 hierarchies that have many sites, site-to-site replication slows down
952216 The "Send To OneNote 2007" printer is missing in the Print dialog box in a 2007 Office program
953093 How to troubleshoot Internet Explorer 7 installation problems
945701 Error message when you use Internet Explorer 7 to browse certain Web sites after you install the MS07-045 cumulative security update: "ASP 0177:8000ffff"
950054 When you browse a Web page by using Internet Explorer 7 on a terminal server, the colors that are displayed in the MDI child forms of the Web page may be incorrect
951009 An application may be unresponsive, documents may not print, and event IDs 6162 or 61 may be logged on a Windows Server 2003-based computer
952726 Detection and deployment guidance for the May 13, 2008 security release
950574 A Windows Server 2003-based DHCP server does not respond correctly to DHCP INFORM requests if the requests are forwarded from the IP Helper API or from relay agents
931661 Message Queuing may not start after you install Message Queuing with the Active Directory Integrated option enabled on a Windows Server 2003-based computer or on a Windows Server 2008-based computer
950749 MS08-028: Vulnerability in the Microsoft Jet Database Engine could allow remote code execution
952177 When you use the VirtualProtect function together with the PAGE_WRITECOPY flag on a Windows Server 2003-based computer, the Protect property of mapped file pages is unexpectedly changed
951624 A 30-second delay occurs during the initialization of some network-based applications when Windows XP Service Pack 2 starts
Ever wondered about this? Well I had and in this blog post Carlos gives us the answer and a whole lot more:
“The short answer is, we can't. That does not mean that we don't have a way to update that package on the Branch Distribution Point (BDP), it just means that we can't refresh them. In SCCM refreshing vs. updating a package has different meanings. When we run the Manage Distribution Points Wizard and select the option to refresh a package on distribution points, we are asking the Distribution Manager service to use the existing compressed version of the package and extract it to the specified distribution points. This is true unless we used the always obtain files from source option on the package properties. When we select the option to update a package, we are asking Distribution Manager to get the files from the source directory, create a new compressed version of the package, possibly send the compressed version to child sites, and then extract the new version to the distribution points. If you are wondering when should we use a refresh vs. an update think about the following scenarios:”
http://blogs.technet.com/carlossantiago/archive/2008/05/16/how-do-we-refresh-a-package-located-on-a-branch-distribution-point.aspx