The Canadian Virtualization & Security Community : Windows XP

Calling all IT Pros in Vancouver!

BruceCowper — Mon, 18 Oct 2004 04:45:00 GMT

Are you a member of VANTUG? If not - why not? Come along on November 1st and join in!

I am priveledged to be presenting Windows XP SP2 Security Technologies to the VANTUG community on the 1st November where I will be very pleased to take your questions and talk about the new features of Windows XP SP2.

For more details go to the VANGUT web site: http://www.vantug.com

See you all there!

Webchat on XP SP2

BruceCowper — Thu, 14 Oct 2004 17:54:00 GMT

Date: Friday October 15, 2004

Time: 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. EST
Details: You have been invited to a Microsoft Office Live Meeting on Windows XP Sp2. At the time of the meeting, click on the following link to attend:

http://www.placeware.com/rm/microsoft/attend?id=bcowper065676&pw=256431

Meeting Title: Windows XP SP2 Webchat

Audio Information: 1-866-500-6738 PIN: 364198

OK, I know I said I was going to post this up yesterday....

This webchat is a bit of a learning curve for all of us as it represents a new type of event, so your feedback is very much appreciated. I am going to run through a presentation covering the points you asked about, both in your feedback and your question and answer sessions. Online will be Rick in Ottawa and Ryan from CMS who presented the SMS 2003 demos at the XP SP2 deployment presentation. They will be on hand to answer your questions via the question manager.

We look forward to speaking to you all tomorrow.

Inviting you all!

BruceCowper — Sat, 09 Oct 2004 17:47:00 GMT

You have been waiting with baited breath for this event... We (the Canadian IT Pro team) are holding a Windows XP SP2 online webchat on Friday October 15th @ 2pm (Eastern) - Duration 1hour. This will be a refresher of the information most asked about during and after the recent TechNet presentations as well as a forum for you to 'ask the experts'. This will be available online and through a toll free number.

In order to join in, please email me via this blog and I will send you an invite.. or come back here on the day for a link to join in.

I look for to speaking to you all then.

Feedback from Deploying XP SP2 presentation - Keep it coming!

BruceCowper — Tue, 28 Sep 2004 17:47:00 GMT

Hey, I would like to thank you all for your amazing feedback; I really do read it all.. the good and the bad!

A number of themes came out of your many comments, especially about what you would like to see in future presentations and for online events such as chats. I have picked the top of the list:

Active Directory

Management Tools

Group Policies

Is this short list correct? have I missed the point? - let me know!

A number of people have also commented on the fact that we are talking primarily about Windows 2000 server / 2003 server / AD and not about NT4. Whilst I would love for you to all migrate across to Windows 2003 & AD, I would very much like you to continue to ask your questions about NT4 etc.. We haven't forgotten you! The XP Pro resource kit contains information for all networks; NT4 / 2000 / 2003 and a host of useful tips and tricks: http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/Windows/XP/all/reskit/en-us/Default.asp?url=/resources/documentation/Windows/XP/all/reskit/en-us/prork_overview.asp

In answer to a number of questions (thank-you Nassim and Gary); you can find the NT4 .adm template for Windows XP SP2 system policy here: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=d67c7085-4bff-4056-8e7e-3d583214e728&DisplayLang=en

Now you have had the chance to see one of our partners participate in a presentation, would you like to be a part of a future event? If so, let me know. Get your expertise and name known! If nothing else, the more co-presenters you see, the less you have to listen to me talk...

Please send your feedback as a response to this post or directly to me. Let me know if this is what you would like to see, both in the presentations and as part of the Technet Flash. For those who don't know, I also edit the Technet Flash, so if there are any articles and subjects you are interested in, let me know.

Deploying Windows XP SP2

BruceCowper — Sat, 25 Sep 2004 18:15:00 GMT

WOW! is the word that crosses my mind when thinking about the presentation on the 23rd September. This event was made special by Chris and Ryan from CMS Consulting and by the audience. The more I come to know the IT Pro community here, the more I come to believe that I have one of the best jobs around..

Here are some of questions that were posed during the presentation, and if I have missed any of them or you think of more, please post feedback and I will make sure they get answered.

Q: Is it possible to disable the Data Execution Protection features in SP2?

A: Yes, there are 2 type of DEP in XP SP2, the Hardware (NX) and software. The configuration is controlled from load option variable in the boot.ini file. This can be edited manually, by using the bootcfg.exe tool and from control panel. The options for the boot.ini /noexecute=policy_level are:

OptIn (default configuration) On systems with processors capable of hardware-enforced DEP, DEP is enabled by default for limited system binaries and applications that "opt-in." With this option, only Windows system binaries are covered by DEP by default.
OptOut DEP is enabled by default for all processes. Users can manually create a list of specific applications which do not have DEP applied using System in Control Panel. You can use the Application Compatibility Toolkit to opt-out one or more applications from DEP protection. System Compatibility Fixes ("shims") for DEP do take effect.
AlwaysOn This provides full DEP coverage for the entire system. All processes always run with DEP applied. The exceptions list for exempting specific applications from DEP protection is not available. System Compatibility Fixes ("shims") for DEP do not take effect. Applications which have been opted-out using the Application Compatibility Toolkit run with DEP applied.
AlwaysOff This does not provide any DEP coverage for any part of the system, regardless of hardware DEP support. The processor does not run in PAE mode unless the /PAE option is present in the boot entry.

You can also change the options from control panel:

1. Click Start, click Control Panel, and then double-click System.
2. Click the Advanced tab. Then, under Performance, click Settings.
3. Click the Data Execution Prevention tab.
4. Click Turn on DEP for essential Windows programs and services only to select the OptIn policy.
5. Click Turn on DEP for all programs and services except those I select to select the OptOut policy.
6. If you selected the OptOut policy, click Add and add the applications that you do not want to use DEP with.

For unattended installations of Windows XP SP2, you can use the Unattend.txt file to pre-populate a specific DEP configuration. You can use the OSLoadOptionsVar entry in the [Data] section of the Unattend.txt file to specify a system-wide DEP configuration.

The documents detailing this and all XP SP2 features can be found at: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=7bd948d7-b791-40b6-8364-685b84158c78&DisplayLang=en

Q: Where can I find the spreadsheet detailing all of the .adm template settings?

A: The spreadsheet can be found here: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=7821c32f-da15-438d-8e48-45915cd2bc14&displaylang=en

Q: Is there a specific set of documents related to best practices and procedures for Windows XP SP2 deployment?

A: Yes, they can be found on the Technet Canada Website: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/winxppro/deploy/xpsp2dep.mspx

As more questions are posed, I will post them and their answers here on my blog.

Once again I would like to thank you all for coming and look forward to seeing you again at the next presentation on the 14th October on Microsoft Virtual Server 2005

Here are the links from the presentation:

Microsoft Canada Technet: http://www.microsoft.ca/technet/

Find additional Technet events: http://www.microsoft.ca/technet/events/

Software Update Services: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserversys tem/sus/default.mspx

Deploying Windows Firewall settings for Microsoft Windows XP with Service Pack 2: http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?linkid=23277

Windows XP SP2 Security Technologies Presentation

BruceCowper — Thu, 23 Sep 2004 16:07:00 GMT

I would like to thank everyone who came to my first presentation for Microsoft on the 15th Sept 2004. I have been overwhelmed by the feedback and encouragement everyone has given me.

The presentation was held in conjunction with the Toronto Windows Server User Group and was a great success. This was the inaugural meeting for the TWSUG and I am very pleased to say was well received and attended. I wish you all the best of luck and look forward to further involvement with you all.

For those who are interested the presentation can be downloaded from Here.

The feedback that was provided at the event and subsequently has been awesome, so please keep it coming in! As a result of a number of your suggestions and request I have decided to hold a joint web chat after the presentation on Deploying Windows XP SP2 that will be held on the 23rd Sept 2004 in Mississauga. I am extremely pleased to say that we have 2 co-presenters from CMS Consulting who are taking your questions about and demonstrating their real life experiences with deploying Windows XP SP2. I am sure that this will be an excellent event and look forward to seeing you all there.

Here are the links from the presentation and others that may be of use to you:

Microsoft Canada Technet: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/canada/

Find additional Technet events: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/canada/ev ents/

Share information and get community-based support for SP2: http://communities.microsoft.com/newsgroups/default.asp?icp=xpsp2&slcid=us

Get additional information about changes to functionality in SP2: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/winxppro/maintain/winxpsp2.mspx