Many of you have asked what the utility is that we use in our virtual machines during our demos at TechNet events.  The utility is Backinfo.exe and is used to display the netbios name of the machine and information about the cpu, memory and OS. ...

Most of the content I use for webcasts and live events have virtual machines that have been created either by someone on my team or by someone at Microsoft corporate. The virtual machines are not created with trial versions of the operating system but...

I did a post last week that talked about using BGInfo on my demo machines so I can have machine information displayed in the Desktop Background.  It was pointed out to me that my screenshot showed my background had a slew of (open) entries in my...

What?  Are you seeing things?  System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) 2007 managing non-Windows machines?  How can that be?  Well folks, the IT world is a complex, heterogeneous place where customers use a variety of platforms...

During one of my demos in the "Understanding Group Policy Part 3" session I showed a text file that contained some examples of WMI Filters. I said if anyone was interested in getting the info to email me. Imagine my surprise that within 10 mins I was...

One of the questions I was asked at an event last week was about doing a side-by-side migration to a new SQL Server 2005 machine from an old SQL Server 2000 machine. Q: Can i rename the new machine to have the same name as the old machine once I...

I was working on my daughter’s Windows 7 computer last weekend and one of the first things I noticed was she hadn’t installed any updates for quite a while. It took a couple of update cycles to get her machine current.  Once it was, I noticed the...

I’ve been asked this question a few times by people who want to update their Central Store with the latest ADMX files for Windows 7. Where Are The ADMX Files If you are running Windows 7 Professional, Enterprise or Ultimate you’ll find the ADMX files...

Some of you may have missed the announcement for Microsoft Security Essentials a few weeks ago, but now you know about it there is no excuse not to have anti-virus software on your home PC.   What is Microsoft Security Essentials? Microsoft Security...

About This Video In today’s episode I preview the latest System Center Configuration Manager 2012 Virtual Lab. Learn how you can become familiar with SCCM 2012 as you navigate around its console and test out its new capabilities for yourself. TechNet...

A few of you that attended the launch event in Washington, DC asked if there was a whitepaper that detailed geo-clustering in Windows Server 2008. Click the link to download the WS2008 Multi Site Clustering

If you’re interested in certification and Windows 7 then you’ll probably be interested in this exam. I was one of the fortunate ones to be able to take the beta exam back in May. If any of you have ever taken a beta exam, you know they’re quite long and...

I had a question at one of my events that asked what DFS Replication did when a file was modified on multiple servers at the same time. I answered that there is conflict resolution built-in to DFS Replication, but I didn't give the complete story, so...

I thought I had posted an article on this issue and have been saying so at my events, but no one has emailed me to tell me I haven't!!!!! Here's what i thought I posted....sorry if anyone got frustrated looking for this (again i got this from the SQL...

If you've been deploying Windows 7 and Office 2010 with Microsoft tools like the Microsoft Deployment Toolkit and the Windows Automated Installation Kit for Windows 7 then you've probably picked up enough experience and knowledge to take this new certification...

Supported Form Factors and Busses ReadyBoost supports USB flash drives, Secure Digital cards, CompactFlash cards, Memory Stick over PCI, and PCIe and SSA busses, which effectively includes most internal card readers in mobile PCs. ReadyBoost does not...

  I was working on a demo environment for session we’ll be doing in the upcoming TechNet roadshow in a few weeks.  I usually use Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V for my demos, but because I needed to have access to USB drives from the virtual machine...

I was emailed this question recently “Is it possible to make changes to settings in the registry of an ImageX .wim file or do I have to deploy the .wim file, make the changes and then recapture the image?” Wow, great question!! I knew it could be done...

Last week I was in San Juan, Puerto Rico for a long weekend visiting my friend Jose.  We had just been to an authentic Puerto Rican restaurant in Old San Juan for lunch and were driving over to the beach, (yeah the beach in late December - its sunny...

In this episode I preview the “Building Your Cloud Infrastructure” Virtual lab. Learn how you can use System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2012 to streamline network and storage resources that are allocated to virtual machines as well as how to create...

I was asked in today's event in Nashville, "What ports are used by System Center Configuration Manager?", as the attendee wanted to manage clients behind a firewall. I didnt know off the top of my head, but did find the information located in the Online...

Question 1: Does the Witness only monitor the SQL servers or does it handle any transactions? Answer 1: From the link below: “The witness server assists the principal or mirror in forming a quorum. If a witness server is present,...

If you're currently an MCSE on Windows Server 2003 and like to keep up-to-date on your certification you should look at the NEW certifications available from Microsoft. If you're already an MCSE 2003 you only need to take this exam: Upgrading Your MCSE...

          Our live event content this quarter includes System Center Configuration Manager 2007 and this has been a common question: “Is SQL 2008 supported as a site database?” The Answer Absolutely!!!!!    SQL...

If you're upgrading from SMS 2003 to System Center Configuration Manager 2007 you have a couple of choices.  What should you do, an in-place upgrade or a side-by-side migration?  The answer is, it depends.  Both options are available to...

I just got word this MS Press book is available as a FREE eBook download.  If you want to see what’s new in Windows Server 2008 R2 then this book is for you!!! Introducing Windows Server 2008 R2 will get you up to speed on the new features and capabilities...

If you’re working with System Center Operations Manager 2007 you will probably want to take advantage of the ability to automate and extend Operations Manager features. The SDK Documentation has everything you need to do this. You’ll find information...

Deploying the infrastructure for a private cloud is just the first step. In today’s episode Sr. IT Pro Evangelist, John Baker previews for us the “Infrastructure and Application Performance Monitoring” Virtual lab. Learn how you can use System Center...

The following description comes from the Windows Vista Activation FAQ located at http://www.microsoft.com/technet/windowsvista/plan/faq.mspx Volume Activation 2.0 Volume Activation 2.0 supports centrally managed Volume License keys. It provides...

Q: In MS SQL 2000, there is a limitation of maximum length of index key to be 900 bytes. Would this limitation be revised to have it larger than 900 bytes in coming MS SQL 2005 release? A: From the SQL 2005 CTP Books Online: "SQL Server 2005 retains...

I did a post recently about Extending Your Activation Grace Period on Windows Server 2008 and 2008 R2 . I had been working on some virtual machines I needed for a presentation I was doing and needed to get the machines up running without burning a product...

Oh how i hate licensing questions! :-) Heres the latest on MOM 2005 which i got from the FAQ on MOM 2005... http://www.microsoft.com/mom/evaluation/faqs/default.mspx#EYE MOM 2005 licensing model has changed from a per–processor to a server plus...

At todays event in Ronkonkoma, NY several of you asked what the licensing costs are for the various System Center products we discussed. Below are some charts with the basic numbers, but to get more detailed information click on the links below: ...

Question1: Where is the Spotlight on AD - Quest situated in comparison with AD management pack for MOM? Answer1: Not sure I really understand the question. If you posed this question during the webcast please email and explain what it is you’re...

Windows Server Update Services Release Candidate Open Evaluation The Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) Open Evaluation Program (OEP) lets you evaluate the Release Candidate of WSUS in a non-production environment. This version is not supported...