chris e. avis - blogstrocity

Tuesday, November 10, 2009 9:00 AM

Slides for the Windows 7 Launch events….

Hiya Folks!

I know, I know……I am a HORRIBLE procrastinator. I have had about beeeeelyun emails asking me for the slides I used for the Windows 7 Launch events. To which my snarky reply is usually, “What slides???!?” since i hardly use any slides and prefer to demo instead of kill you slowly with PowerPoint. However, we did have an official set of slides which I have put online for your perusal. You can grab all the Launch Slides over at my new SlideShare location.

Please feel free to grab them and let me know if you have any questions!

Cheers!

Posted by chrisavis | 0 Comments

Filed under: Windows Server 2008, Demos, 64bit Computing, Technet, twitterfeed, Downloads, Windows 7

Tuesday, November 10, 2009 7:52 AM

Interesting Downloads for Week Ending – 11-06-2009….

Infrastructure Development, Operations & Maintenance

· Technical Overview of DirectAccess in Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2

· DirectAccess Early Adopter's Guide

· 64-bit Client Installation of Microsoft Office 2010

· Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Hotfix KB 968802

· Update for Windows XP (KB969085)

· Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 and Outlook Standards Documentation

· Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 Beta Protocol Documentation

· Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 Beta and Outlook Standards Documentation

· Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 Protocol Documentation

· Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 2 Help

· DirectAccess Design and Deployment Guides

· Hosted BlackBerry Service Onboarding Guide

· Risk and Health Assessment Program for Windows Desktop (WDRAP) – Scoping Tool v1.0

· Active Directory Management Pack for System Center Operations Manager 2007

· Exchange Management Shell Quick Reference for Exchange 2010

· Microsoft Online Dedicated Service Descriptions

· Exchange Server 2010 Help

· Internet Explorer 8 Improving Business Productivity

· System Center Data Protection Manager 2007 Hotfix Package (KB976542) (x86 & x64)

· Microsoft System Center Essentials 2010 Beta

· Windows 7 - Delivering Business Value _Demo Showcase

· Unified Communications Phones and Peripherals Datasheet

· Exchange Server 2010 Delivering Productivity_Demo Showcase

· Risk and Health Assessment Program for Exchange Server – Scoping Tool v1.0

· Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010 for SharePoint Management Pack (Beta) for SC OpsMgr 2007

· MOSDAL (Microsoft Online Services Diagnostics and Logging) Support Toolkit

· WS08 Whitepapers

· System Center Operations Manager 2007 R2 Documentation

· Update Rollup for Operations Manager 2007 Service Pack 1 (KB971541)

Solutions & Solution Development

· Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 Software Development Kit (SDK)

· Building a Zune Website with Expression Blend 3 StarterKit

· SQL Server Driver for PHP 1.1 - October 2009

· Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R3 Update Rollup

· Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 Transport Agents SDK November 2009

· Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 Web Services SDK November 2009

· Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 Backup and Restore SDK November 2009

· Getting Started: Create Silverlight Experiences with Expression Blend 3 Course

· Microsoft ADO.NET Entity Framework Feature Community Technology Preview 2

· Developing SharePoint Applications–August 2009

· Update Rollup 7 for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 (KB 971782)

· Microsoft .NET Services White Paper (November 2009 CTP)

· Microsoft .NET Services SDK (Nov 2009 CTP)

· Windows Identity Foundation Release Candidate

· Microsoft Work Group Server Protocol Program License Agreement (No Patents) for Development and Product Distribution

· Microsoft Work Group Server Protocol Program License Agreement (All IP) for Development and Product Distribution

· Microsoft Work Group Server Protocol Program License Agreement (Patent Only) for Development and Product Distribution

· Microsoft Silverlight 3 Offline Documentation

· Identity Developer Training Kit (November 2009)

· Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 2.0 for IIS 7 - RC (x64)

· Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 2.0 for IIS 7 - RC (x86)

· Microsoft SQL Server Protocol Documentation

· Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 2 for IIS 7 (x64)

· Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 2 for IIS 7 (x86)

Security, Policy & Compliance

· Microsoft Security Intelligence Report volume 7 (January - June 2009)

· Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer 2.1.1 (for IT Professionals)

· Forefront for Office Communications Server License File Update

· Geneva Whitepapers and Datasheet

Other

· Acquiring and Optimizing IT Portfolio Management as a Strategy –Public Sector as an Example

· Getting Started with Digital Marketing using the Microsoft Web Platform

· Fact Sheets

· Xbox.com Support

ADMP provides both proactive and reactive monitoring of your Active Directory deployment. It monitors events that various Active Directory components and subsystems place in the Application, System, and Service event logs. It also monitors the overall health of the Active Directory system and provides alerts for critical performance issues.
The monitoring that this management pack provides includes monitoring of domain controllers and monitoring of health from the perspective of clients that use Active Directory resources. To monitor domain controllers, ADMP provides a predefined, ready-to-run set of processing rules, monitoring scripts, and reports that are designed specifically to monitor the performance and availability of domain controllers.
Because client computers in your Active Directory environment can experience connectivity and service issues even when domain controllers appear to be operating correctly, ADMP includes the Active Directory Client Management Pack, which can help you identify such issues. The Active Directory Client Management Pack monitors the services that domain controllers provide. It provides information—in addition to the information that is collected directly on the domain controllers—about whether domain controllers are available by running transactions, such as Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) binds and pings, against the directory service.
Feature Summary

Replication
Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP)
Domain Controller Locator (DCLocator)
Trusts
Net Logon service
File Replication Service (FRS)
Intersite Messaging service
Windows Time service
Key Distribution Center (KDC)
Service availability monitoring
Key performance data collection
Comprehensive reports, including reports about service availability and service health, plus reports that you can use for capacity planning

Release History

3/23/2007 - Initial Release, version 6.0.5000.0
1/15/2008 - Updated Guide - same version
03/17/2008 - QFE, version 6.0.6278.3
03/26/2008 - QFE, version 6.0.6278.10
11/7/2008 - Initial release for 2000/2003/2008, version 6.0.6452.0
11/3/2009 - Updated release, version 6.0.7065.0, with added Windows Server 2008 R2 support

A thumbnail photo of the device
Hardware type
Name of the partner that produces the device
Product name
A brief description of the device
URL for the partner's Unified Communications landing page

FAST Search Server for SharePoint services and processes
FAST Search event log entries
Performance counters and WMI data

Root Management Server, Management Server, Gateway Server
Operations Console
Operations Management Web Console Server
Agent
Audit Collection Server (ACS Server)
Reporting Server

The following tools and updates are provided within this update which may be specific to a scenario:

Support Tools folder – Contains SRSUpgradeTool.exe and SRSUpgradeHelper.msi (Enables upgrade of a SQL Server 2005 Reporting Server used by Operations Manager Reporting to SQL Server 2008 Reporting Server)
Gateway folder – Contains a MSI transform and script to update MOMGateway.MSI for successful installation on Windows Server 2008 R2
ManagementPacks folder – Contains an updated Microsoft.SystemCenter.DataWarehouse.mp which requires manual import

For a list of fixes and tools addressed by this update rollup, see KB971541.
This update is supported for application on System Center Operations Manager 2007 Service Pack 1 only.
Feature Summary:
The System Center Operations Manager 2007 SP1 Rollup 1 contains:

All binary hotfixes released since Service Pack 1 release
Support for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2
Operational and DataWarehouse database support on Windows Server 2008 R2
Additional stability hotfixes

This CTP is a an early preview of features that build on top of ADO.NET Entity Framework 4.0 Beta 2 (Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0 Beta 2).
The features included in this CTP are :

Templates for Self-Tracking Entities (N-Tier support)
Code-Only Programming Model that allows you to write Entity Data Model based applications without requiring external artifacts

The May 2009 release of the Identity Developer Training Kit contains hands-on labs and resources: subsequent releases may contain presentations, samples and demos as well. The identity and access control products and services covered in this release are:

Windows Identity Foundation Release Candidate
Microsoft Federation Gateway

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=c3e315fa-94e2-4028-99cb-904369f177c0

Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 2.0 for IIS 7 - RC (x64)

Brief Description

URL Rewrite Module 2.0 provides a rule-based rewriting mechanism for changing requested URL’s before they get processed by web server and for modifying response content before it gets served to HTTP clients.

Overview

Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 2.0 for IIS 7 RC is an incremental release that includes all the features from version 1.1, and adds support for rewriting of request and response headers as well as response content. More specifically, it can be used to:

Replace the URLs generated by a web application in the response HTML with a more user friendly and search engine friendly equivalent.
Modify the links in the HTML markup generated by a web application behind a reverse proxy.
Fix up the content of any HTTP response by using regular expression pattern matching.
Modify HTTP request headers and IIS server variables.
Modify HTTP response headers

The installation package includes several additional components and hotfixes required by URL Rewrite Module 2.0 Beta. Refer to the KB articles for the hotfixes to get more details. In order to apply the hotfixes correctly without restarting the server, it is recommended that the WAS service is stopped before installing URL Rewrite Module 2.0 Beta. The following hotfixes will be installed with URL Rewrite Module 2.0 Beta:

Update for IIS 7.0 FastCGI module (KB 954946);
Hotfix for IIS 7.0 SetUri function (KB 949172)
Hotfix for ASP.NET System.Web.dll (KB 957660)

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=1b8c7bd8-8824-4408-b8fc-49dc7f951a00

Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 2.0 for IIS 7 - RC (x86)

Brief Description

URL Rewrite Module 2.0 provides a rule-based rewriting mechanism for changing requested URL’s before they get processed by web server and for modifying response content before it gets served to HTTP clients.

Overview

Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 2.0 for IIS 7 RC is an incremental release that includes all the features from version 1.1, and adds support for rewriting of request and response headers as well as response content. More specifically, it can be used to:

Replace the URLs generated by a web application in the response HTML with a more user friendly and search engine friendly equivalent.
Modify the links in the HTML markup generated by a web application behind a reverse proxy.
Fix up the content of any HTTP response by using regular expression pattern matching.
Modify HTTP request headers and IIS server variables.
Modify HTTP response headers

The installation package includes several additional components and hotfixes required by URL Rewrite Module 2.0 Beta. Refer to the KB articles for the hotfixes to get more details. In order to apply the hotfixes correctly without restarting the server, it is recommended that the WAS service is stopped before installing URL Rewrite Module 2.0 Beta. The following hotfixes will be installed with URL Rewrite Module 2.0 Beta:

Update for IIS 7.0 FastCGI module (KB 954946);
Hotfix for IIS 7.0 SetUri function (KB 949172)
Hotfix for ASP.NET System.Web.dll (KB 957660)

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=c8d3e2a4-5d14-434b-a067-39a6fb8b9311

Microsoft SQL Server Protocol Documentation

Brief Description

The Microsoft SQL Server protocol documentation provides technical specifications for Microsoft proprietary protocols that are implemented and used in Microsoft SQL Server 2008.

Overview

The Microsoft SQL Server protocol documentation provides detailed technical specifications for Microsoft proprietary protocols (including extensions to industry-standard or other published protocols) that are implemented and used in Microsoft SQL Server to interoperate or communicate with Microsoft products.
The documentation includes a set of companion overview and reference documents that supplement the technical specifications with conceptual background, overviews of inter-protocol relationships and interactions, and technical reference information.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=91ef5106-944a-41e1-b3a0-5bd3f2356f32

Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 2 for IIS 7 (x64)

Brief Description

Microsoft Application Request Routing (ARR) for IIS7 is a proxy based routing module that forwards HTTP requests to application servers based on HTTP headers and server variables, and load balance algorithms. ARR Version 2 adds support for disk based cache.

Overview

Microsoft Application Request Routing (ARR) for IIS 7 is a proxy-based routing module that forwards HTTP requests to application servers based on HTTP headers, server variables, and load balance algorithms. ARR Version 2 is an incremental release that includes all of the features from Version 1, and adds support for disk-based cache.
ARR Version 2 can be used to:

Enhance ARR Version 1 scenarios with disk cache.
Use ARR as a cache proxy as a cache node in a CDN/ECN environment.
- Use ARR as an edge/child cache node.
- Use ARR as a parent cache node.

The installation package includes several additional components and hotfixes required by Application Request Routing:

Microsoft URL Rewrite Module Version 2 for IIS 7
Microsoft Web Farm Management Version 1 for IIS 7
Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 2 for IIS 7
Microsoft External Cache Version 1 for IIS 7
Hotfix (KB 954438)

The ARR version 1 and ARR version 2 cannot be installed side-by-side.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=ed922306-0d35-4764-8c2c-a378b54e90e1

Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 2 for IIS 7 (x86)

Brief Description

Microsoft Application Request Routing (ARR) for IIS7 is a proxy based routing module that forwards HTTP requests to application servers based on HTTP headers and server variables, and load balance algorithms. ARR Version 2 adds support for disk based cache.

Overview

Microsoft Application Request Routing (ARR) for IIS 7 is a proxy-based routing module that forwards HTTP requests to application servers based on HTTP headers, server variables, and load balance algorithms. ARR Version 2 is an incremental release that includes all of the features from Version 1, and adds support for disk-based cache.
ARR Version 2 can be used to:

Enhance ARR Version 1 scenarios with disk cache.
Use ARR as a cache proxy as a cache node in a CDN/ECN environment.
- Use ARR as an edge/child cache node.
- Use ARR as a parent cache node.

The installation package includes several additional components and hotfixes required by Application Request Routing:

Microsoft URL Rewrite Module Version 2 for IIS 7
Microsoft Web Farm Management Version 1 for IIS 7
Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 2 for IIS 7
Microsoft External Cache Version 1 for IIS 7
Hotfix (KB 954438)

The ARR version 1 and ARR version 2 cannot be installed side-by-side.

"Geneva" Claims Based Access Platform
"Geneva" helps simplify access to applications and other systems with an open and interoperable claims-based model.
For developers: "Geneva" helps simplify user access for developers by externalizing access logic from applications via claims, and reducing development effort with pre-built security logic and integrated .NET tools.
For IT professionals: "Geneva" helps IT efficiently deploy and manage new applications by reducing custom implementation work, consolidating access management in the hands of IT, helping establish a consistent security model, and facilitating seamless collaboration between organizations with automated federation tools.
For information workers and consumers: Users can benefit from help navigating logins, managing different personas, and controlling how personal information is shared.

"Geneva" includes built-in interoperability via open industry standards and claims, and implements the industry Identity Metasystem vision for open and interoperable identity.
"Geneva" includes three components for enabling claims-based access. Beta 1 of the following components are now available for public evaluation:
"Geneva" Framework for building .NET applications that use claims to make user access decisions
"Geneva" Server security token service (STS) for issuing and transforming claims, enabling federations, and managing user access
Windows CardSpace "Geneva" for helping users navigate access decisions and for developers to build customer authentication experiences for users

Available Here for Download
"Geneva" Datasheet - Updated for Beta 2
Whitepaper: "Geneva" Claims Based Access Platform
Learn about Microsoft's new "Geneva" claims based access platform. Read about the three main components of "Geneva" and how they work together to help solve application access problems with a single simplified access model. Understand how claims can be used across a wide variety of scenarios including enterprise, federation and Web. In this paper new concepts and terminology are introduced to help architects, developers and IT professionals understand the benefits and concepts behind the claims-based model of identity. A background in developing, deploying or managing web applications and services that entail user authentication is expected. By David Chappell
Whitepaper: "Geneva" Framework - Updated for Beta 2
Get started building claims-aware applications using Microsoft code-named "Geneva" Framework. In this paper concepts and terminology are introduced to help developers understand the benefits and concepts behind the claims-based model of identity. Security expertise is not required but familiarity with ASP.NET or WCF programming is. A background in building web applications or services that care about authentication and authorization is expected. As such, the focus of the paper is on building relying parties using the framework. By Keith Brown

Landmark, a brand of Halliburton, launched GeoGraphix Discovery 3-D software. Working in tandem with Microsoft to leverage the 64-bit capabilities and performance of the new Microsoft Windows 7 operating system, developers hope users will have an immersive, game-like experience when developing their seismic and geologic interpretations. It also incorporates visualization tools from Microsoft’s Xbox gaming console.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=fa9e15ea-b89f-49c0-8cef-241134ea6f9f

Posted by chrisavis | 0 Comments

Filed under: Downloads

Thursday, November 05, 2009 11:47 AM

Interesting Downloads for Week Ending – 10-30-2009….

Infrastructure Development, Operations & Maintenance

· Windows Client 2000/XP/Vista/Windows 7 Operating System Management Pack for Operations Manager 2007

· Operations Manager 2007 SP1 Management Pack

· Network Equipment Shapes for Microsoft Visio

· Geographic Map Shapes for Microsoft Visio

· Update for Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition (KB971513)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB971035)

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB971035)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 (KB971513)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB971513)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB971513)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB969084)

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB975889)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 (KB971513)

· Update for Windows XP (KB971513)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB971035)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 (KB971512)

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB971513)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB971512)

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB969084)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 (KB960362)

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB971512)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 (KB960362)

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB971512)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB972145)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB975889)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB971512)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems (KB971035)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB971514)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB960568)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB975889)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB960362)

· Update for Windows XP (KB969084)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 R2 for Itanium-based Systems (KB947821)

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB971514)

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB960362)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 (KB960568)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 (KB975889)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems (KB975889)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 (KB971035)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB960362)

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB960568)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 (KB968930)

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB968930)

· Update for Windows XP (KB968930)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition (KB968930)

· Update for Windows 7 for x64-based Systems (KB947821)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB972145)

· Update for Windows 7 (KB947821)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB968930)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 (KB968930)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 R2 x64 Edition (KB947821)

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB972145)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB968930)

· Deployment Options for Microsoft Office 2010

· Virtualization Overview, Methods, and Models

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB968912)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB968912)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB968912)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems (KB968912)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 (KB968912)

· Windows Management Framework release notes

· Deploy Multilanguage Packs for Microsoft Office 2010

· Office Communicator Phone Edition (2007 R2)

· Microsoft Office Communicator 2007 R2 Hotfix KB 972884

· Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007 SP2 Management Pack for Microsoft System Center Operations Manager 2007 R2

· Risk and Health Assessment Program for Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSSRAP) – Scoping Tool v2.0

· Step By Step Guide: Demonstrate DirectAccess in a Test Lab

· Windows Server 2008 R2 Enterprise Edition x64 (Full Install) VHD

· Windows Server 2008 R2 Enterprise Edition x64 (Core Install) VHD

· Project Server 2010 Upgrade Paths

· Microsoft Host Integration Server 2009 Management Pack for Operations Manager 2007

· Breaking Changes between .NET Framework 4 Beta1 and Beta2 for Windows Communication (WCF) and Windows Workflow Foundation (WF)

· Microsoft Online Services Macintosh Support Service Description

· Outlook 2007 Best Practices

Solutions & Solution Development

· BizTalk Server 2009 Live Demo and Hands-on Labs VPC Image

· Spec Explorer for Model-Based Testing in Visual Studio

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows 7 (KB975364)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows XP (KB975364)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Vista x64 Edition (KB975364)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB975364)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition (KB975364)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Server 2008 (KB975364)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Vista (KB975364)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows 7 for x64-based Systems (KB975364)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows XP x64 Edition (KB975364)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Server 2003 (KB975364)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Server 2008 R2 for Itanium-based Systems (KB975364)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Server 2008 R2 x64 Edition (KB975364)

· Deploy Office Web Apps

· ILMerge

· Microsoft Office Accounting 2009 Service Pack 2 (KB971975)

· Debug Diagnostic Tool v1.1

· How to Use the Debug Diagnostic Tool v1.1 (DebugDiag) to Debug User Mode Processes

· WF 4 Migration Guidance

· Windows Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List

· BizTalk Server 2009 Tutorials

· WinHEC 2007 White Papers

· WHDC White Papers and Documentation

· Getting started with business intelligence in SharePoint Server 2010

· License terms for Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Pre-Release (Beta 2)

· Standards Based Websites with Expression Web 3 Starter Kit

· Project Portfolio Server 2007 to Project Server 2010 Paths and Considerations

· Video Player Behavior Library

· Creating a ColorSwatch with Expression Blend 3 Starter Kit

· Microsoft Commerce Server 2009 code name "R2" - October 2009 Community Technical Preview - DVD ISO Image File

· Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R3

· Visual Basic QuickStarts and How-to Topics for the Composite Application Guidance for WPF and Silverlight - October 2009

· Composite Application Guidance for WPF and Silverlight - October 2009

· Quick Start Guide for Outlook Voice Access 2010

Security, Policy & Compliance

· Enhanced Mitigation Evaluation Toolkit

· Security Compliance Management Toolkit Series

· DNSSEC Deployment Guide

· Project Server Security Overview: Permissions, Groups, Categories, and Resource Breakdown Structure

· Management Pack for Forefront Threat Management Gateway 2010 Release Candidate

· Active Directory Rights Management Services Bulk Protection Tool

· Microsoft Dynamics AX 2009 White Paper: Security Aspects

Other

· ICONICSandAREVAPartnershipPressRelease

· MMMNov2008LoopofFaith

· MedAdNewsJune202007

· Updated: Preserving OEM Activation in Windows Vista and Windows 7

· ProscapeAboutUs101509

· Productivity Hub

· Media Feature Pack for Windows 7 N and Windows 7 KN (KB968211)

· Flight Simulator X: FSX Mission Building: Part 5

· Microsoft Software Assurance Communication Templates

· HalliburtonMSFTPR

· ThePayoffFrom SocialNetworking

· 508

· Government Service Center Technical Whitepaper

· Government Service Center Whitepaper

· Microsoft Dynamics AX 2009 White Paper: Matching Invoices to Portions of a Packing Slip

· Microsoft Pre-Split and Post-Split Closing Stock Prices

Infrastructure Development, Operations & Maintenance

Windows Client 2000/XP/Vista/Windows 7 Operating System Management Pack for Operations Manager 2007

Brief Description

The Microsoft Windows Client 2000/XP/Vista/Windows 7 Operating System Management Pack provides fundamental monitoring basics for computers running Windows Client 2000, XP, Vista, or Windows 7 operating systems.

Overview

The Windows Client Monitoring Management Pack is built to detects, diagnose, and resolve hardware and software problems pertaining to Client 2000, XP, Vista, and Windows 7 operating systems. Information and analysis on the issues that the system detected are collected by the MPs through an agent on the client machine, and sent to OpsMgr where this data is converted into health state, alerts (if need be) and processed for business critical and aggregate reports. The MP gives a clear picture of catastrophic failures in your mission critical machines, trend-based alerts of significant changes to computer groups, in-depth views of health of individual machines, and reports that provide a landscape view of the health of all monitored clients.
Feature Summary

Key Processor Performance Indicators
Logical and Physical disk performance and free space
Memory utilization
Network health
Health monitoring of key Windows Operating System services
Comprehensive performance collections
Availability and event reports

Release History

3/23/2007 - Original release of the English version of Client 2000/XP management packs, version 6.0.5000.0
5/11/2007 - Original release of the English version of Vista management pack, version 1.0
1/15/2008 - Guide update of Client 2000/XP management packs, version 6.0.5000.0
2/22/2008 - Updated release of Client 2000/XP management packs, version 6.0.6278.0
5/27/2008 - Release onto Microsoft Download Center of Client 2000/XP management packs, version 6.0.6278.0
2/16/2009 - Update release that includes business Critical monitoring for Vista and bug fixes for performance and aggregate monitoring, version 6.0.6520.0
10/26/2009 - Updated release, version 6.0.6729.0, with bug fixes for Vista MP and support for monitoring Windows 7

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=f55f1803-eae6-4ed5-b2d2-9e1adf98e325

Operations Manager 2007 SP1 Management Pack

Brief Description

The Operations Manager 2007 SP1 management pack helps you manage your System Center Operations Manager 2007 SP1 infrastructure by monitoring the health of the Operations Manager components and services.

Overview

The Operations Manager 2007 SP1 Management Pack alerts you to problems with components such as agents, management servers, the Operations Manager database, agents, modules used by workflows and services so that you can continue to monitor the servers and clients that your business depends on.
The management pack includes tasks that you can automate to get easy access to common diagnostic tools, such as restarting a health service or reloading an agent configuration.
Feature Summary
The Operations Manager 2007 SP1 Management Packs includes the following features:

Local and Remote Monitoring of an Agent’s Health
- Operations Manager agents monitor themselves for events and performance indicators that signal an issue with the agent’s health.
- Management servers also maintain an external perspective of an agent’s health via the Health Service Watcher.
- The ‘Agent Health State’ view provides a side-by-side dashboard of both perspectives on the agent.
Optional, Automatic Agent Remediation Capabilities
- If the Health Service Watcher determines that an agent is unhealthy, a series of diagnostics and recoveries can be enabled to further diagnose the problem and event take actions to attempt to fix the problem (e.g. Ping the server to see if it is completely offline, start a stopped agent, trigger a reinstall, etc.). Refer to the management pack guide for more details.
- Agents are monitoring their own process to ensure that memory utilization is not sustained at unacceptable levels. If this condition is detected then the agent will automatically restart itself to force the freeing up of memory.
Detection of Problems and Misconfigurations with Run As Accounts and Profiles
- Checks are run on a regular basis to detect if any of the management group’s “Windows” type Run As Accounts have credentials which are about to expire. Alerts will be raised, and where possible this will be done in advance of the credentials expiring to avoid outages.
- Alerts will be raised if any errors are encountered during the distribution of Run As Accounts.
Monitoring of problems with Running Workflows in Management Packs
- Numerous rules are provided to detect if workflows within management packs are failing. Examples of workflows include discoveries, rules, monitors, etc. Failures can range from bad configurations on the workflows themselves, script failures, permissions problems, etc.

Release History

8/6/2007 – Version 6.0.5000.0, Initial release of the English version installed with the product
2/22/2008 – Version 6.0.6278.0, Updated the management pack as a part of the Operations Manager 2007 Service Pack 1 update (http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/opsmgr/cc280350.aspx).
10/26/2009 - Version 6.0.6709.0.0 – Updated the management packs and the guide. Refer to the management pack guide for a detailed change log.

Model 1 (VirtualizationOverview) contains an architectural overview of the virtualization technology and the different models that are possible.
Model 2 (VirtualizationDeliveryMethods) contains the delivery methods that are available by using virtualization.
Model 3 (VirtualizationMobileUser) contains the stand-alone delivery method for mobile users of virtualized applications.

Single sign-in. Users can now connect their Office Communicator Phone Edition phone to their computer with a USB cable and sign in to both their phone and Office Communicator 2007 R2 at the same time.
Integration with Office Communicator 2007 R2 on the PC. Users can now click a contact or phone number in their Office Communicator 2007 R2 contact list on their PC to place a call using their Office Communicator Phone Edition phone. Call controls are synchronized on both the phone and Office Communicator on the PC. If their PC is configured with a webcam, users can escalate the call by adding video.
Support for new Office Communications Server 2007 R2 voice features. New call delegation, team calling and Response Group service functionality in Office Communications Server 2007 R2 are also supported in Office Communicator Phone Edition.
Audio quality enhancements. Latency, audio quality and call setup time have all been improved.
User interface enhancements. The user interface has been improved and streamlined. For example, a Redial button enables users to easily redial the last dialed number, searching through the corporate directory is easier, and users can select from one of four ring tones.
Office Live Meeting support. Users can now use their Office Communicator Phone Edition phone as an audio device in Office Live Meeting.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=565595be-6cf3-4a61-a1e4-12555749ca64

Microsoft Office Communicator 2007 R2 Hotfix KB 972884

Brief Description

This download contains an update for Microsoft Office Communicator 2007 R2.

Overview

This hotfix download for Microsoft Office Communicator 2007 R2 is described in the Knowledge Base article 972884.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=515d6dba-4c6a-48bb-a06a-d99c5742676d

Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007 SP2 Management Pack for Microsoft System Center Operations Manager 2007 R2

Brief Description

The Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007 SP2 (ConfigMgr) Management Pack for System Center Operations Manager 2007 R2 helps administrators manage and administer Configuration Manager 2007 servers.

Overview

The Configuration Manager 2007 SP2 Management Pack adds support for monitoring Configuration Manager 2007 SP2 in a 64-bit environment with Operations Manager 2007 R2 or Operations Manager 2007 SP1 with hotfix (KB971541) installed. This enables the Configuration Manager 2007 SP2 Management Pack to work with either the 32-bit or the 64-bit Operations Manager 2007 agent. Except for the 64-bit support, the other features and guidance for Configuration Manager 2007 Management Packs remain intact.
This management pack includes:

Detection and monitoring of all Configuration Manager servers and dependent services
The alert driven state
The site hierarchy diagram
Performance and backlog monitoring and configuration
Performance and availability reports

Before you install the Configuration Manager 2007 SP2 Management Pack, read the Configuration Manager 2007 SP2 Management Pack User's Guide. The guide includes the instructions you need to correctly deploy, configure and use the management pack.
Feature Summary
The System Center Configuration Manager 2007 SP2 Management Pack for Operations Manager 2007 R2 provides improved capabilities for Configuration Manager 2007 monitoring, including the following:

Monitoring the starting and stopping of all Configuration Manager 2007 services, including critical dependent services like Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI), IIS Admin Service, World Wide Web Publishing Service, Windows Deployment Services Server, Trivial FTP Daemon, Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS) and Microsoft SQL Server.
Alerting the Configuration Manager 2007 administrator to critical Configuration Manager 2007 status messages.
Monitoring backlogs of discovery data records (DDRs), software inventory, hardware inventory, status messages, state messages, and software metering on both primary site servers and management points.
Monitoring outbox backlogs on site systems.
Monitoring a component and site system role health.
Monitoring collection evaluation, state message summarization, and site maintenance tasks, including site backup.
Monitoring SMS Executive crash dumps.
Monitoring general CPU, Memory, and Disk system resource usage.
Monitoring processing rates.
Monitoring the performance trends of many Configuration Manager performance counters by using views and reports.
Product knowledge content for all alerts and processing rules.
Detecting all Configuration Manager 2007 computers, classes, and computer groups.
Configuration Manager 2007 views.
Reports displaying performance, availability, and configuration of Configuration Manager 2007 server groups. These linked reports leverage the enhanced reporting of Systems Center Operations Manager 2007 for performance, configuration, and availability trends.
Tasks for executing Configuration Manager 2007 Administrator console applications.
Computer State view containing the health of all Configuration Manager 2007 server roles and the Configuration Manager 2007 Client.
Site Hierarchy and Site State views for displaying the health of sites in a hierarchy and the hierarchy itself.
Service Discovery of important Configuration Manager 2007 server and Configuration Manager 2007 client information.
Topology diagram of the Configuration Manager 2007 site hierarchy.
Configuration Manager 2007 configurable alerting on distributed program execution failure through Configuration Manager 2007 program properties.

Release History

11/13/2007 - Version 6.0.5000.10 - Original release of the English version.
2/28/2008 - Version 6.0.5000.12 - Added support for site database on a named instance of SQL, and other changes. See the Changes section of CM07_OM07_Relnotes.htm for details.
6/30/2008 - Version 6.0.5000.12 released in German, French, and Japanese.
10/28/2009 – Version 6.0.6000.2 – Added support for monitoring Configuration Manager 2007 SP2 in a 64-bit environment with Operations Manager 2007 R2 or Operations Manager 2007 SP1 hotfix (KB971541).

Native support for Operations Manager 2007 SP1 and R2
Monitoring for Data Integration feature
Monitoring for Transaction Integrator HIP and WIP applications
Monitoring for the MSMQ-MQSeries Bridge
Monitoring for the SNA Gateway

Release History

10/30/2009 - Original release of the English version, version 8.0.0.31

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=c3ff460a-e131-45ca-83fe-8cdf43b1bfb6

Solutions & Solution Development

BizTalk Server 2009 Live Demo and Hands-on Labs VPC Image

Brief Description

This virtual machine image contains a full live demo and six hands-on labs of BizTalk Server 2009, which highlight integration with SharePoint Server 2007 and Windows Workflow (.NET 3.5).

Overview

The BizTalk Server 2009 demo and hands-on labs virtual machine image contains the following:

A live demo of “Northwind purchasing process,” which includes sub-processes for creating and approving a purchase request, creating and processing a purchase order, and processing an invoice
A hands-on lab that takes you hrough the entire solution
Five hands-on labs that let you build the BizTalk components of the whole solution

The BizTalk Server 2009 tutorials contain detailed steps for implementing simple scenarios. These tutorials give new users an experience of using a variety of BizTalk tools while creating compiled, testable solutions. For more advanced users, or users who are designing BizTalk solutions, see “Scenarios for Business Solutions” in BizTalk Server 2009 Help. You can also find the BizTalk Server 2009 tutorials in the "Getting Started" section of BizTalk Server 2009 Help. You use files that are installed with BizTalk Server 2009 to complete the tutorials. Before you begin the BizTalk Server 2009 tutorials, you must complete the steps in the Before You Begin document. Use the following tutorials to learn how to use BizTalk Server 2009:

Tutorial 1: Enterprise Application Integration
Provides step-by-step instructions for implementing a BizTalk solution that receives inventory replacement request messages from a warehouse, and evaluates the request messages. If the solution denies a request, it sends a denied message to the warehouse. If the solution approves a request, it forwards the message to an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system.
Tutorial 2: Purchase Order Process
Provides step-by-step instructions for implementing a BizTalk solution for the ERP system that generates purchase orders from the request messages, and sends them to an external partner.
Tutorial 3: Invoice and Payment Process
Provides step-by-step instructions for extending the solution you create in Tutorial 2 to incorporate a payment process. This process includes verifying that the partner received the purchase order, receiving the invoice from the partner, constructing a payment voucher for the partner by using rules to determine the payment policy, sending the payment and receiving confirmation that the partner received the payment, and forwarding the payment acknowledgment internally.
Tutorial 4: Business Activity Monitoring
Provides step-by-step instructions for defining and viewing data of interest.

Redist Section
Additional Distributable Code for Visual Studio 2010 Pre-Release
This is the "REDIST list" that is referenced in the "Distributable Code" section of the Microsoft Software License Terms for certain SKUs of Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Pre-Release (the "software"). Please check the License Terms to your particular Visual Studio 2010 Pre-Release SKU to determine whether those Terms reference this REDIST list. If you have a valid copy of such software, you may copy and distribute the object code form of the files listed below, subject to the software's License Terms and to the additional terms or conditions (if any) indicated below.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject to the license terms for the software, the following .EXE file may be distributed unmodified:

VisualBasicPowerPacksSetup.exe

BUILDSERVER
If your copy of the software, includes the following files, then you may also install copies of these files onto your build machines solely for the purpose of compiling and building your programs:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Microsoft.VisualStudio.Modeling.Sdk.10.0.dll
Microsoft.VisualStudio.SharePoint.Designers.Models.dll
Microsoft.VisualStudio.SharePoint.Designers.Models.Features.dll
Microsoft.VisualStudio.SharePoint.Designers.Models.Packages.dll
Microsoft.VisualStudio.SharePoint.dll
Microsoft.VisualStudio.SharePoint.targets
Microsoft.VisualStudio.SharePoint.Tasks.dll

Visual Basic Content for Composite Application Guidance for WPF and Silverlight - October 2009.chm: The QuickStarts, Hands-On Labs, and How-to Topics in Visual Basic.
Composite Application Guidance for WPF and Silverlight - October 2009.chm: documentation in C#.
Composite Application Library Reference October 2009.chm: Library reference API.

This release allows you to use Silverlight 3.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=e3a611d7-20bf-43a6-91c5-454227fcc6f9

Composite Application Guidance for WPF and Silverlight - October 2009

Brief Description

The Composite Application Guidance for WPF and Silverlight is designed to help you more easily build enterprise-level WPF and Silverlight client applications. This guidance will help you design and build flexible composite client applications. This release allows you to use Silverlight 3.

Overview

The Composite Application Guidance for WPF and Silverlight is designed to help you more easily build enterprise-level Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) and Silverlight client applications. It will help you design and build enterprise-level composite WPF client applications—composite applications use loosely coupled, independently evolvable pieces that work together in the overall application.
The guidance includes a reference implementation, reusable library code (named the Composite Application Library), documentation, QuickStart tutorials, and hands-on labs.
This version of the Composite Application Guidance is designed to help you build WPF and Silverlight applications that have a single code base.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=387c7a59-b217-4318-ad1b-cbc2ea453f40

Quick Start Guide for Outlook Voice Access 2010

Brief Description

This download contains a quick reference sheet that can be used when navigating the menu system found in Outlook Voice Access.

Overview

Outlook Voice Access lets UM-enabled users to access their Exchange 2010 mailbox using analog, digital, or cellular telephones. By using the menu system found in Outlook Voice Access, UM-enabled users can read e-mail, listen to voice messages, and interact with their Outlook calendar. This quick reference sheet shows the navigational tree and the options that are available to UM-enabled users when they are using Outlook Voice Access.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=77f1f82e-5da1-4ab5-9969-d1eb72b2ee0f

Security, Policy & Compliance

Enhanced Mitigation Evaluation Toolkit

Brief Description

A toolkit to apply security mitigation technologies to arbitrary applications

Overview

Security mitigation technologies are technologies designed to make it more difficult for an attacker to exploit vulnerabilities in a given piece of software. The Enhanced Mitigation Evaluation Toolkit (EMET) is a toolkit that allows certain security mitigation technologies to be applied to user specified applications. It provides four unique capabilities:
1. Until now, many of the available mitigations have required for an application to be manually opted in and recompiled. EMET changes this by allowing a user to opt in applications via a simple command-line utility without recompilation. This is especially handy for deploying mitigations on software that was written before the mitigations were available and when source code is not available.
2. EMET provides a higher degree of granularity by allowing mitigations to be applied on a per process basis. There is no need to enable an entire product or suite of applications. This is helpful in situations where a process is not compatible with a particular mitigation technology. When that happens, a user can simply turn EMET off for that process.
3. Mitigations that have previously been limited to up-level versions of Microsoft Windows now ship with EMET and are available down-level. Users can benefit from these mitigations without the need to upgrade their systems.
4. EMET is a living tool designed to be updated as new mitigation technologies become available. This provides a chance for users to try out and benefit from mitigations before they are included in the next versions of our products. It also gives users the opportunity to provide feedback and help guide the future of mitigation technologies in Microsoft products.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=4a2346ac-b772-4d40-a750-9046542f343d

Security Compliance Management Toolkit Series

Brief Description

This toolkit series provides IT professionals with an end-to-end solution to help them plan, deploy, and monitor security baselines of Windows® operating systems and 2007 Microsoft® Office applications. The series was updated to include new security baselines for Windows® 7, BitLocker™ Drive Encryption, and Windows® Internet Explorer® 8.

Overview

Monitor the Security Compliance of Your IT Environment for Computers Running Windows
The Security Compliance Management Toolkit Series builds on previous Solution Accelerators to provide you with expanded best practices and additional automation tools to help configure and deploy security settings for the following operating systems and applications: Windows® 7, BitLocker™ Drive Encryption, Windows® Internet Explorer® 8, Windows Server® 2008, Windows Server® 2003 Service Pack 2 (SP2), Windows Vista® SP1, Windows XP® Professional SP3, and 2007 Microsoft Office SP1.
After deploying the security settings, you can verify the accuracy of the setting policies and monitor policy changes by using the desired configuration management (DCM) feature of Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007 R2.
This series includes Security Compliance Management Toolkits for the following products:

Windows 7
Internet Explorer 8
Windows Server 2008
Windows Server 2003
Windows Vista
Windows XP
2007 Microsoft Office

Note: The GPOAccelerator tool is included with each toolkit download package.
Toolkit Components
Each of the Security Compliance Management Toolkits includes the following components:

Security guide. Each toolkit includes an updated version of a previously released security guides for Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2003, Internet Explorer 8 or 2007 Microsoft Office. The guidance provides you with best practices and automated tools to help you plan and deploy your security baselines.
Attack Surface Reference workbook. A resource that lists the changes introduced as server roles are installed on computers running Windows Server 2003 and Windows Server 2008, for the toolkits specific to these operating systems.
Security Baseline Settings workbook. A resource that lists all of the prescribed settings for each of the preconfigured security baselines that the security guides recommend.
Security Baseline XML. XML files that allow your organization to consume the data defined in the security baseline settings workbooks.
GPOAccelerator tool. A tool that you can use to create all the Group Policy objects (GPOs) you need to deploy your chosen security configuration. This release also supports Windows Server 2003, and creating security configurations on machines not joined to a domain.
INF Files. INF files for Windows 7, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008.
Baseline Compliance Management Overview. The overview discusses best practices on how to monitor security baselines for Windows operating systems and Office applications.
DCM Configuration Pack User Guide. A step-by-step prescriptive user guide about how to use the Configurations Packs with the DCM feature in Configuration Manager 2007 R2.
DCM Configuration Packs. The toolkit series includes DCM configuration packs to use with the DCM feature in Configuration Manager 2007 R2.

Microsoft Dynamics AX 2009 security includes user authentication, permissions within the application, and may also include security in other applications that interact with Microsoft Dynamics AX. While all of these are important, permissions within the application are the primary focus of this document.

Microsoft has developed the Productivity Hub to help support your ongoing end user training efforts.
The Hub is a SharePoint Server 2007 site collection that serves as a learning community and is fully customizable. It provides a central place for your training efforts, and includes training content from Microsoft’s core products. Microsoft also provides ongoing and updated content packs.
The Hub uses SharePoint Server’s social networking capabilities, such as blogs and discussion groups. In addition, it offers the Coach program, a change management feature to help you train end users to self-help, reducing the burden on your training and IT staff. The Coach program impacts productivity in a collaborative and positive way.
What the Productivity Hub is:

Format: Pre-loaded SharePoint site collection, optimized for Web 2.0 functionality and easily deployed within SharePoint Server 2007 environment.
Content: Convenient end user productivity training in a variety of formats (documents, videos, podcasts, etc.). Receive free quarterly updates of content that you will learn about through the Productivity blog.
Blog: The Productivity blog offers tips and tricks for end user productivity. Use it as is, or your training staff can use the posts as their own to help them get started in running an internal blog.
Train the trainer: Includes IT/Manager section to aid with deployment of the site collection, and guidance to develop the Coach program.
Products: Office 2007 System applications including SharePoint Server 2007. Windows 7 and others will be added in the future.

These communication templates offer a flexible and effective way to communicate about Software Assurance across your organization. There are three versions of the communication template to choose from:

Human Resources: Use this version if you have an Open Value, Open Value Company-wide/Subscription, Select License SAM, Select Plus SAM, or Enterprise Agreement/Subscription licensing program.
IT Teams/Enterprise organizations: Use this version if you have an Open Value Company-wide/Subscription, Select License SAM, Select Plus SAM, or Enterprise Agreement/Subscription licensing program.
IT Teams/Mid-size organizations: Use this version if you have an Open License, Select License, or Select Plus program.

List of weekly closing stock prices, including unadjusted prices and prices adjusted for all stock splits.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=4c0b1e02-adf3-4e79-9534-f8b664d3f84c

Posted by chrisavis | 0 Comments

Filed under: Downloads

Tuesday, November 03, 2009 8:53 AM

Blogging Update/Notice….

Hiya Folks! I am still here! I have been VERY busy with the Windows 7 launch tour of the west. We just wrapped up all of the Windows 7 launch event and I have one remaining big event in Las Vegas next week at the Windows Connections Conference.

You may have noticed that my blog formatting is a little hokey. Something got munged in the Custom CSS of the site which skews my posts. In the process of fixing that I have decided to alter the look of my blog. I am putting the final touches on that today so you may see it late this evening or early tomorrow.

Cheers!

Posted by chrisavis | 0 Comments

Tuesday, October 06, 2009 7:23 AM

On Demand Links for Windows Firestarter Event…..

A couple weeks back, we had a great Windows Firestarter event up on the Redmond Campus. We had some fantastic speakers on hand to talk about new features and technologies in Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7. I know there are lots of people who live out side of the Redmond, WA area that would have loved to have attended in person but weren’t able to so we made sure to record the sessions as they were happening. Below you will find links to those sessions which you can view on demand at your leisure.

Enjoy!

What’s New in Windows 7 - Stephen Rose

https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/mseventsbmo/view?id=1032423124&role=attend&pw=SD56RG

Direct Access and RAS features - Joe Davies

https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/mseventsbmo/view?id=1032423124-1&role=attend&pw=SD56RG

IE8 – Browse the Web in Style - David Tesar

https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/mseventsbmo/view?id=1032423124-2&role=attend&pw=SD56RG

Migrating Windows XP to Windows 7: Get it Done! - Jeremy Chapman

https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/mseventsbmo/view?id=1032423124-3&role=attend&pw=SD56RG

Windows 2008 R2 – Diving in! - Chris Avis

https://www.livemeeting.com/cc/mseventsbmo/view?id=1032423124-4&role=attend&pw=SD56RG

Cheers!!

Posted by chrisavis | 0 Comments

Filed under: Security, Windows, Vista, Windows Server 2008, Networking, IPv6, SBS, Group Policy, On the Edge, Systems Management, 64bit Computing, Deployment, Active Directory, IE, Technet, twitterfeed, Tech News, Windows 7

Tuesday, October 06, 2009 7:23 AM

Interesting Downloads for Week Ending – 09-25-2009….

Infrastructure Development, Operations & Maintenance

· Update for Windows 7 (KB974332)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 R2 for Itanium-based Systems (KB974332)

· Update for Windows 7 for x64-based Systems (KB974332)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 R2 x64 Edition (KB974332)

· System Update Readiness Tool for Itanium-based Systems (KB947821) [September 2009]

· System Update Readiness Tool (KB947821) [September 2009]

· System Update Readiness Tool for x64-based Systems (KB947821) [September 2009]

· Infrastructure Planning and Design

· Customizing Remote Desktop Web Access by Using Windows SharePoint Services Step-by-Step Guide

· Deploying Personal Virtual Desktops by Using Remote Desktop Web Access Step-by-Step Guide

· Active Directory Management Gateway Service (Active Directory Web Service for Windows Server 2003 and Windows Server 2008)

· Migrating from Windows Small Business Server 2003 to Windows Essential Business Server

· Microsoft HPC Pack 2008 Tool Pack

· Resources for Top Areas of Support for Windows Server 2008 R2

· Automated Installation of Windows 7 Overview

· Upgrading to Windows 7 with a Standard Image Overview

· Manual Installation of Windows 7 Overview

· Automated Installation To Upgrade Windows 7 Step-by-Step Guide

· Upgrading to Windows 7 for Small and Midsize Businesses

· Quick Start Guide for Outlook Voice Access 2010

· Office Communicator Mobile 2007 R2 for Java (Nokia S60 320X240 resolution)

· Office Communicator Mobile 2007 R2 for Java (Nokia S60 240X320 resolution)

Solutions & Solution Development

· Windows Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List

· Microsoft XML Paper Specification Essentials Pack

· IIS Database Manager (x86)

· IIS Database Manager (x64)

· IIS Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Toolkit 1.0 Beta 2

· Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 1 for IIS 7 (x86)

· Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 1 for IIS 7 (x64)

· Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 1.1 for IIS 7 (x86)

· Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 2 for IIS 7 RC (x86)

· Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 2 for IIS 7 RC (x64)

· Web Deployment Tool (x64)

· Web Deployment Tool (x86)

· Business Productivity

· Microsoft Forecaster 7.0 Hot Fix 4

· Microsoft Government Identity Management

· Microsoft Expression Encoder 3

· Microsoft Work Group Server Protocol Program License Agreement (No Patents) for Development and Product Distribution

· Microsoft Work Group Server Protocol Program License Agreement (Patent Only) for Development and Product Distribution

· Application Compatibility Factory Partner_TCS

· Microsoft Work Group Server Protocol Program License Agreement (All IP) for Development and Product Distribution

· Web Platform Installer 2.0

· Service Pack 6 for Visual Basic 6.0, Visual C++ 6.0 with Visual Source Safe 6.0d (Multi-Part Download)

· Service Pack 6 for Visual Basic 6.0

· Service Pack 6 for Visual Basic 6.0, Visual C++ 6.0 with Visual Source Safe 6.0d

Security, Policy & Compliance

· 2007 Office system (SP2) Administrative Template files (ADM, ADMX, ADML) and Office Customization Tool

· Update for Root Certificates [September 2009] (KB931125)

· Microsoft Forefront Codename "Stirling" Beta Privacy Statement

· MAR PC Enforcement Messaging QA

· MAR PC Products Settlement

· Antigen 8.1 Privacy Statement

· Forefront Unified Access Gateway (UAG) RC0

Other

· Flight Simulator X: A Century of Flight Sim Coverage

· Flight Simulator X: All About Flights

· Flight Simulator X: Controlling the Engine

· Flight Simulator X: Cockpit Basics

· Flight Simulator X: Expanding Your Hobby

· Flight Simulator X: Flying Jets

· Flight Simulator X: Flight Simulator as a Training Aid

· Flight Simulator X: Flying Floatplanes

· Flight Simulator X: All About Missions

· Flight Simulator X: Getting Help on the Fly

· Flight Simulator X: Pilot Records

· Flight Simulator X: Just Get Me Flying

· Flight Simulator X: Optimizing Visuals and Performance

· Flight Simulator X: Using the In-Game Menus

· Flight Simulator X: Using an Xbox 360 Controller for Windows

· Flight Simulator X: Using Multiple Monitors

· Flight Simulator X: Using a Joystick

· Flight Simulator X: Understand the Big Picture

· Flight Simulator X: Step-By-Step Guide

· Flight Simulator X: Using the Kneeboard

· Flight Simulator X: Using the Keyboard

· Flight Simulator X: Using Views and Windows

· Flight Simulator X: Using the Mouse

· Flight Simulator X: What’s Changed

· Flight Simulator X: FSX: "Blurries" Issue

· Flight Simulator X: FS9VCRain

· Zune Client software, version 4.0

· Microsoft Pre-Split and Post-Split Closing Stock Prices

Infrastructure Planning and Design guides share a common structure, including:

Definition of the technical decision flow through the planning process.
Listing of decisions to be made and the commonly available options and considerations.
Relating the decisions and options to the business in terms of cost, complexity, and other characteristics.
Framing decisions in terms of additional questions to the business to ensure a comprehensive alignment with the appropriate business landscape.

These guides complement product documentation by focusing on infrastructure design options.
Each guide leads the reader through critical infrastructure design decisions, in the appropriate order, evaluating the available options for each decision against its impact on critical characteristics of the infrastructure. The IPD Series highlights when service and infrastructure goals should be validated with the organization and provides additional questions that should be asked of service stakeholders and decision makers.
IPD consists of the following downloadable packages:

Updated! System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 – version 2.0 updated for SCVMM 2008 R2
Updated! Windows Server Virtualization (for Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V and Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1) – version 2.0 updated for Windows Server 2008 R2
Updated! Active Directory Domain Services – version 2.0 updated for Windows Server 2008 R2
Updated! File Services – version 2.0 includes Windows Server 2008 R2
Updated! Internet Information Services – version 2.0 includes IIS 7.5
Updated! Print Services – version 2.0 includes Windows Server 2008 R2
Updated! Windows Optimized Desktop Scenarios version 1.1
Exchange Online—Evaluating Software-plus-Services version 1.2
IPD Series Introduction
Microsoft Application Virtualization 4.5
Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization (MED-V)
Selecting the Right NAP Architecture
Selecting the Right Virtualization Technology
SharePoint Online—Evaluating Software-plus-Services
SQL Server 2008
System Center Configuration Manager 2007 SP1 with R2
System Center Data Protection Manager 2007 with SP1
System Center Operations Manager 2007
Terminal Services
Windows Deployment Services

The Active Directory® Management Gateway Service provides a Web service interface to Active Directory domains and instances of Active Directory Lightweight Directory Services (AD LDS) or Active Directory Application Mode (ADAM) that are running on the same server as the Active Directory Management Gateway Service.
You can download and install the Active Directory Management Gateway Service on servers and domain controllers running the following operating systems:

Windows Server® 2003 R2 with Service Pack 2 (SP2)
Windows Server 2003 SP2
Windows Server 2008
Windows Server 2008 SP2

Microsoft Office Communicator Mobile for Java is an enterprise client software for Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2 optimized for Java enabled cell phones. The client allows you to do the following:

View colleagues availability using real time presence status updates.
Initiate single/multi-party IM sessions with the ability to simply navigate across open IM sessions.
Get updated contact information directly from your company directory.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=dcb3ae06-ed5f-4430-943c-3445709c2801

Office Communicator Mobile 2007 R2 for Java (Nokia S60 240X320 resolution)

Brief Description

Microsoft Office Communicator Mobile for Java is an enterprise client software for Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2 optimized for Java enabled cell phones. The client allows you to view colleagues availability using presence status, initiate single/multi-party IM sessions and get updated contact information from your company directory.

Overview

Microsoft Office Communicator Mobile for Java is an enterprise client software for Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2 optimized for Java enabled cell phones. The client allows you to do the following:

View colleagues availability using real time presence status updates.
Initiate single/multi-party IM sessions with the ability to simply navigate across open IM sessions.
Get updated contact information directly from your company directory.

IIS Database Manager allows you to easily manage your local and remote databases from within IIS Manager. IIS Database Manager automatically discovers databases based on the Web server or application configuration and also provides the ability to connect to any database on the network. Once connected, IIS Database Manager provides a full array of management options including managing tables, views, stored procedures and data, as well as running ad hoc queries.
IIS Database Manager provides native support for SQL Server and is also fully extensible for developers to add support for other database systems. In addition, because IIS Database Manager is an extension of IIS Manager, administrators can securely delegate the management of databases to authorized local or remote users, without having to open additional management ports on the server.
Here are a few articles to get you started on using the IIS Database Manager:

For more information, check out the IIS Database Manager Home Page.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=231989b4-2a52-4c31-b2d6-96e8e97f8295

IIS Database Manager (x64)

Brief Description

IIS Database Manager allows you to easily manage your local and remote databases from within IIS Manager.

Overview

IIS Database Manager allows you to easily manage your local and remote databases from within IIS Manager. IIS Database Manager automatically discovers databases based on the Web server or application configuration and also provides the ability to connect to any database on the network. Once connected, IIS Database Manager provides a full array of management options including managing tables, views, stored procedures and data, as well as running ad hoc queries.
IIS Database Manager provides native support for SQL Server and is also fully extensible for developers to add support for other database systems. In addition, because IIS Database Manager is an extension of IIS Manager, administrators can securely delegate the management of databases to authorized local or remote users, without having to open additional management ports on the server.
Here are a few articles to get you started on using the IIS Database Manager:

For more information, check out the IIS Database Manager Home Page.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=2f238709-5618-4693-b7ba-d8c4035ac050

IIS Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Toolkit 1.0 Beta 2

Brief Description

The IIS Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Toolkit is an IIS7 extension that helps identify search engine and user experience optimizations for Web sites.

Overview

The IIS Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Toolkit is an IIS7 extension that helps identify search engine and user experience optimizations for Web sites. The following features are included:
Site Intelligence

Reporting and error identification for broken/invalid links, duplicate content, tag validation, etc.
Visibility into user routes, referring pages and other patterns
Drilldown into page resource usage and load time

Search Relevance

Best practice rules for optimizing URL structure for search engines
Extensibility model to enable integration for keyword acquisition
Automatic generation of search engine support files like sitemaps and robots.txt

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=d8c32f95-2d50-43a1-99b9-fa8e5bbfc34c

Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 1 for IIS 7 (x86)

Brief Description

Microsoft Application Request Routing for IIS7 is a proxy based routing module that forwards HTTP requests to content servers based on HTTP headers and server variables, and load balance algorithms.

Overview

Application Request Routing can be used to:

Increase application availability and scalability.
Better utilize content server resources.
Facilitate application deployment including pilot management and A/B testing.
Lower management costs and create opportunities for shared hosters.

The installation package includes several additional components and hotfixes required by Application Request Routing:

Microsoft URL Rewrite Module for IIS 7.0
Microsoft Web Farm Management Version 1 for IIS 7.0
Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 1 for IIS 7.0
Microsoft External Cache Version 1 for IIS 7.0
Hotfix (KB 954438)

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=ecd52702-d850-4a18-b18e-d46128967462

Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 1 for IIS 7 (x64)

Brief Description

Microsoft Application Request Routing for IIS7 is a proxy based routing module that forwards HTTP requests to content servers based on HTTP headers and server variables, and load balance algorithms.

Overview

Application Request Routing can be used to:

Increase application availability and scalability.
Better utilize content server resources.
Facilitate application deployment including pilot management and A/B testing.
Lower management costs and create opportunities for shared hosters.

The installation package includes several additional components and hotfixes required by Application Request Routing:

Microsoft URL Rewrite Module for IIS 7.0
Microsoft Web Farm Management Version 1 for IIS 7.0
Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 1 for IIS 7.0
Microsoft External Cache Version 1 for IIS 7.0
Hotfix (KB 954438)

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=497e9910-ca94-4771-af08-751420fab5f0

Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 1.1 for IIS 7 (x86)

Brief Description

URL rewrite module provides a rule-based rewriting mechanism for changing requested URL’s before they get processed by web server.

Overview

The Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 1.1 for IIS 7 provides flexible rules-based rewrite engine that can be used to perform broad spectrum of URL manipulation tasks, including, but not limited to:

Enabling user friendly and search engine friendly URL with dynamic web applications;
Rewriting URL’s based on HTTP headers and server variables;
Web site content handling;
Controlling access to web site content based on URL segments or request metadata.

The installation package includes several additional components and hotfixes required by URL rewriter. Refer to the KB articles for the hotfixes to get more details. In order to apply the hotfixes correctly without restarting the server, it is recommended that the WAS service is stopped before installing URL Rewrite Module. The following hotfixes will be installed with URL Rewrite Module:

Update for IIS 7.0 FastCGI module (KB 954946);
Hotfix for IIS 7.0 SetUri function (KB 949172)
Hotfix for ASP.NET System.Web.dll (KB 957660)
Microsoft Visual C++ 2008 SP1 Redistributable Package

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=dba94a96-e513-4f87-9082-8cb04b743793

Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 2 for IIS 7 RC (x86)

Brief Description

Microsoft Application Request Routing (ARR) for IIS7 is a proxy based routing module that forwards HTTP requests to application servers based on HTTP headers and server variables, and load balance algorithms. ARR Version 2 adds support for disk based cache.

Overview

Microsoft Application Request Routing (ARR) for IIS 7.0 is a proxy-based routing module that forwards HTTP requests to application servers based on HTTP headers, server variables, and load balance algorithms. ARR Version 2 RC is an incremental release that includes all of the features from Version 1, and adds support for disk-based cache. The RC release comes with Go Live rights and it is licensed to be deployed in production. ARR Version 2 RC can be used to:

Enhance ARR Version 1 scenarios with disk cache.
Use ARR as a cache proxy as a cache node in a CDN/ECN environment.
- Use ARR as an edge/child cache node.
- Use ARR as a parent cache node.

The ARR version 1 and ARR version 2 RC cannot be installed side-by-side.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=85fc3a02-5b38-4271-b590-ad91bb9a446b

Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 2 for IIS 7 RC (x64)

Brief Description

Microsoft Application Request Routing (ARR) for IIS7 is a proxy based routing module that forwards HTTP requests to application servers based on HTTP headers and server variables, and load balance algorithms. ARR Version 2 adds support for disk based cache.

Overview

Microsoft Application Request Routing (ARR) for IIS 7.0 is a proxy-based routing module that forwards HTTP requests to application servers based on HTTP headers, server variables, and load balance algorithms. ARR Version 2 RC is an incremental release that includes all of the features from Version 1, and adds support for disk-based cache. The RC release comes with Go Live rights and it is licensed to be deployed in production. ARR Version 2 RC can be used to:

Enhance ARR Version 1 scenarios with disk cache.
Use ARR as a cache proxy as a cache node in a CDN/ECN environment.
- Use ARR as an edge/child cache node.
- Use ARR as a parent cache node.

Service Pack 6 for Visual Basic 6.0, Visual C++ 6.0 with Visual Source Safe 6.0d provides the latest updates to these products. It is recommended for all users of Visual Basic 6.0, Visual C++ 6.0 and Visual Source Safe 6.0.

Forefront UAG provides the following:
• Remote access: Using Forefront UAG you can allow and control access to internal resources and applications from a range of managed and unmanaged client endpoints.
• Application support: Forefront UAG provides broad application support for a wide range of Microsoft and third-party applications. Application optimizers, consisting of predefined settings and values, provide optimum settings for accessing a specific application via Forefront UAG.
• Access control: Forefront UAG provides granular access control, to ensure that only client endpoints complying with corporate health guidelines can access internal applications and resources.
• Authentication: Forefront UAG provides frontend and backend authentication mechanisms. Frontend authentication allows you to pre-authenticate users using a wide range of authentication mechanisms, ensuring that only authenticated traffic reaches published application servers. In addition, Forefront UAG provides a single sign-on experience for authentication to backend applications.
Find more information about Forefront UAG as follows:
• To read the Forefront UAG documentation, visit the Forefront UAG TechCenter library (http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd861463.aspx)
• To read about up-to-date issues, visit the Forefront UAG Product Team blog (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=156512)
• For Beta 2 support issues, visit the Forefront UAG forum (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=156513)
Forefront UAG RC0 provides a number of new features, including support for migration from Forefront UAG Beta 2. If you want to migrate a Forefront UAG Beta 2 configuration to RC0, ensure that you run the UAG_RC0_4_0981_2.msp file after running Forefront UAG Setup.

These quarterly newsletters feature samplings of recent news and updates about collaborations between Microsoft MVPs and the Microsoft Office Content Publishing team, which publishes content on Office Online, MSDN, and TechNet.
To learn more about the overall Microsoft MVP program, visit www.microsoft.com/mvp.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=551bf16c-afcf-4dae-adef-abd1bffc18cc

Posted by chrisavis | 0 Comments

Filed under: Downloads

Tuesday, September 22, 2009 8:05 AM

Interesting Downloads for Week Ending 09-18-2009….

Infrastructure Development, Operations & Maintenance

· System Center Operations Manager 2007 R2 Documentation

· Quick Start Guide for Outlook Voice Access 2010

· Unified Communications White Paper

· Active Directory Management Gateway Service (Active Directory Web Service for Windows Server 2003 and Windows Server 2008)

· System Center Data Protection Manager 2007 Hotfix Package (KB970868) (x86 & x64)

· IIS Database Manager Release Candidate (x86)

· IIS Database Manager Release Candidate (x64)

· Choosing a Deployment Strategy

· Windows Easy Transfer for transferring from Windows XP (32 bit) to Windows 7

· System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 and 2008 R2 MPSRPT Tool

· Windows Easy Transfer for transferring from Windows Vista (32 bit) to Windows 7

· Windows Easy Transfer for transferring from Windows Vista (64 bit) to Windows 7

· Windows Easy Transfer for transferring from Windows XP (64 bit) to Windows 7

· Windows XP to Windows 7 Hard-Link Migration of User Files and Settings

· Microsoft Search Server 2008 Technical Library in Compiled Help format

· Deploying Virtual Desktop Pools by Using Remote Desktop Web Access Step-by-Step Guide

· Deploying Personal Virtual Desktops by Using Remote Desktop Web Access Step-by-Step Guide

· Deploying Personal Virtual Desktops by Using RemoteApp and Desktop Connection Step-by-Step Guide

· Deploying Virtual Desktop Pools by Using RemoteApp and Desktop Connection Step-by-Step Guide

· Microsoft Online Services Release Notes

· System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 and 2008 R2 Configuration Analyzer

· Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor Beta

· HPC Pack 2008 Service Pack 1 (SP1)

· Office Communications Server 2007 R2, PreCallDiagnostic Resource Kit Tool

· Windows Server Operating System Management Pack for Operations Manager 2007

· Step By Step Guide: Demonstrate DirectAccess in a Test Lab

Solutions & Solution Development

· Unified Communications in Retail

· Application Lifecycle Management Datasheet

· STRACE is a socket/SSL tracer designed to generate LOG for Internet Explorer

· Microsoft XNA Game Studio 3.1 Zune Extensions

· PaymentsFMSBWhitePaper

· Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 2 for IIS 7 Beta 2 (x86)

· Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 2 for IIS 7 Beta 2 (x64)

· Business Productivity

· Office Project Server 2007 Technical Library in Compiled Help format

· Office PerformancePoint Server 2007 Technical Library in Compiled Help format

· 2007 Office Resource Kit Technical Library in Compiled Help format

· Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Technical Library in Compiled Help format

· DirectX End-User Runtime Web Installer

· Office SharePoint Server 2007 Technical Library in Compiled Help format

· Microsoft Visual Basic Power Packs 10.0

· Application Compatibility Toolkit (ACT) 5.5: Videos and Tutorials

· FSX Mission Building Tips Part I: Designing Great Missions

· FSX Mission Building Tips Part II: Designing Great Missions

· FSX Mission Building: Part 1

· FSX Mission Building: Part 2

· BizTalk Accelerator for SWIFT 2009 Message Pack

· Microsoft® SQL Server® StreamInsight CTP2

· Building your own flight simulator cockpit

· Importing Aircraft into FSX - Part 1

· Importing Aircraft into FSX - Part 2

· Real-time Computational Fluid Dynamics for Flight Simulation

· Microsoft SQL Server Accelerator for BI

· Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 1 for IIS 7 (x64)

· Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 1 for IIS 7 (x86)

· Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 1.1 for IIS 7 (x86)

· Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 1.1 for IIS 7 (x64)

· FSX Mission Building: Part 3

· FSX Mission Building: Part 4

Security, Policy & Compliance

· Forefront Online Security for Exchange (FOSE) 9.1 Product Documents

· Antigen 8.1 Privacy Statement

· Microsoft Anti-Cross Site Scripting Library V3.1

· Security Features in Microsoft Online Services

· Advanced Group Policy Management 2.5 Documents

· Advanced Group Policy Management 4.0 Documents

· Advanced Group Policy Management 3.0 Documents

· MiniFuzz File Fuzzer

· BinScope Binary Analyzer

· Whitepaper: Manual Integration of the SDL Process Template

· BranchCache Security Guide

· Microsoft Windows Key Management Service Management Pack for Operations Manager 2007

· Using the Autogen Annotator

· Autogen Annotator Pictorial Reference

· Active Directory Certificate Services Upgrade and Migration Guide for Windows Server 2008

Other

· Zune Client software, version 4.0

· Demonstration: Windows Search

· Bonus Multiplayer Racing Missions for Flight Simulator X: Acceleration

· Check-in Process for ACES Characters

· FSX Acceleration Official Trailer 320x180

· FSX Acceleration Official Trailer 640x360

· FSX Acceleration Wallpaper Images 1024x768

· FSX Acceleration Wallpaper Images 1680x1050

· The Effectiveness of a PC-Bases C-130 Crew Resource Management Aircrew Training Device

· VOR to VOR Navigation Training

· Using Flight Sim to Train for Model Aircraft

· Using the G1000

· Designated Water Runways in Flight Simulator X

· Beating FSX Missions

· Airborne Wordsmiths: Sky writing in Flight Simulator!

· Flying the Beechcraft Baron

· Using Tower View in Flight Sim to Practice Flying Model Helicopters

· Volume Licensing Program Guides, Datasheets, and FAQs

· FSInsider Newsletter - 2008 December

· FSInsider Newsletter - 2008 September

· FSInsider Newsletter - 2008 October

· FSInsider Newsletter - 2008 June

· FSInsider Newsletter - 2008 April

· FSInsider Newsletter - 2008 May

· FSInsider Newsletter - 2008 November

· FSInsider Newsletter - 2008 July

· FSInsider Newsletter - 2008 August

The Active Directory® Management Gateway Service provides a Web service interface to Active Directory domains and instances of Active Directory Lightweight Directory Services (AD LDS) or Active Directory Application Mode (ADAM) that are running on the same server as the Active Directory Management Gateway Service.
You can download and install the Active Directory Management Gateway Service on servers and domain controllers running the following operating systems:

Windows Server® 2003 R2 with Service Pack 2 (SP2)
Windows Server 2003 SP2
Windows Server 2008
Windows Server 2008 SP2

You use MPS Reporting Tool to gather detailed system status and configuration information from the Virtual Machine Manager server of Virtual Machine Manager 2008 or 2008 R2 server as well as from all managed virtual machine hosts, library servers, and physical to virtual conversion (P2V) source computers. This version of the MPS Reporting Tool collects gathers data to help Microsoft Support Professionals diagnose error conditions experienced in Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 and Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 R2.
The tool offers the ability to select the particular scenarios for which system configuration data will be gathered. For more information, see the Readme.txt document that is included with the download of the tool.
The Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) version of the MPS Reporting Tool gathers the following diagnostic data for the VMM server, the virtual machine hosts and library servers that the VMM server manages, and physical to virtual conversion (P2V) source computers:

Virtual Machine Manager traces
Virtual Machine Manager database
Windows event logs and virtual server event logs
IP address
Virtual Machine Manager setup logs
SQL Server setup logs
Registry information
Open ports information
System Information (msinfo)

If the topics in this file do not appear as you expect (you see "Page cannot be displayed" or "Action canceled," for example), see the Instructions section on this page.
This guide is a compiled Help file and opens in HTML Help.
This content is also available on the Web.

Important

You must install and run the VMMCA on the computer that either currently is or will become your VMM 2008 server.
You should use this version of the VMMCA with VMM 2008 and VMM 2008 R2 only. To download the VMMCA for VMM 2007, go tohttp://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=132136.

The Windows Server Operating System Management Pack consists of the following five management packs: Microsoft Windows Server Library, Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Discovery, Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Monitoring, Microsoft Windows Server 2003, and Microsoft Windows 2000 Server. The Microsoft Windows Server management packs monitor the performance, health, and availability of Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2003, and Windows 2000 Server.
By detecting, alerting on, and automatically responding to critical events and performance indicators, management packs reduce resolution times for issues and increase the overall availability and performance of your Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2003, and Windows 2000 Server operating systems, thereby helping to reduce the total cost of ownership.
NOTE: You need to install the English MP before you import localized language packs.
Feature Summary

Availability
- Key Operating System Services: Required services are checked for status (for example, running, not running, or paused).
- Storage: Logical hard drives are checked for availability, sufficient free space, and integrity of the NTFS partition.
- Network: Network adapters are checked for connection health, name and IP address conflicts.
Performance
- Processor: System processor(s) performance is checked system-wide. Processors can optionally be monitored on a per processor basis.
- Memory: Memory consisting of physical memory and virtual memory (also known as page files) is monitored using the following performance indicators:
  - Available memory (in MB)
  - Pages per second
  - Page file percent usage
- Disks and Partitions: Logical disks/partitions and physical disks are monitored, and performance data is collected for average disk seconds per read, disk seconds per write, and disk seconds per transfer. Depending on which version of the operating system is being monitored, either logical or physical monitoring is enabled by default. Refer to the MP guide for more detail.
- Network Adapter: Network adapters are monitored for the number of bytes received per second, the number of bytes sent per second, and the total bytes per second. In addition, the health state of the network adapter is evaluated and is set to Healthy if connected and Critical if disconnected.

Management Pack Release History:

3/23/2007 - Initial Release, version 6.0.5000.0
9/28/2007 - Updated release, version 6.0.5000.25
10/23/2007 - Updated MP Guide - Software Version still 6.0.5000.25
11/8/2007 - Updated MP Guide - Software version still 6.0.5000.25
1/15/2008 - Updated MP Guide - same version
2/22/2008 - Updated release, version 6.0.6278.0, and released on SP1 media
5/27/2008 – Same version as released on SP1 media, version 6.0.6278.0, and released on Microsoft Download Center.
7/27/2008 - Updated version, 6.0.6278.22: Introduced support for the Windows Server 2008 Operating System and addressed some issues from the previous release. Refer to the MP guide for further details.
10/20/2008 – Updated release, version 6.0.6321.35. Refer to the MP guide for further details.
9/18/2009 - Updated release, version 6.0.6667.0, introduced support for the Windows Server 2008 R2 Operating System and made a series of updates. Refer to the MP guide for further details.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=3529d233-5e3e-4b51-8f66-5d6f27005ec3

Step By Step Guide: Demonstrate DirectAccess in a Test Lab

Brief Description

This paper contains an introduction to DirectAccess and instructions for setting up a test lab to demonstrate DirectAccess with a simulated Internet, intranet, and home network.

Overview

DirectAccess is a new feature in the Windows® 7 and Windows Server® 2008 R2 operating systems that enables remote users to securely access intranet shared folders, Web sites, and applications without connecting to a virtual private network (VPN). This paper contains an introduction to DirectAccess and instructions for setting up a test lab to demonstrate DirectAccess with a simulated Internet, intranet, and home network using the Release to Manufacturing (RTM) and Release Candidate (RC) versions of Windows 7 and Window Server 2008 R2.

ARR Version 2 Beta 2 is an incremental release that includes all of the features from Version 1, and adds support for disk-based cache. More specifically, ARR Version 2 Beta 2 can be used to:

Enhance ARR Version 1 scenarios with disk cache.
Use ARR as a cache proxy as a cache node in a CDN/ECN environment.
- Use ARR as an edge/child cache node.
- Use ARR as a parent cache node.

The ARR version 1 and ARR version 2 beta 2 cannot be installed side-by-side.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=85fc3a02-5b38-4271-b590-ad91bb9a446b

Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 2 for IIS 7 Beta 2 (x64)

Brief Description

Microsoft Application Request Routing (ARR) for IIS7 is a proxy based routing module that forwards HTTP requests to application servers based on HTTP headers and server variables, and load balance algorithms. ARR Version 2 Beta 2 adds support for disk based cache.

Overview

Microsoft Application Request Routing (ARR) for IIS 7.0 is a proxy-based routing module that forwards HTTP requests to application servers based on HTTP headers, server variables, and load balance algorithms. ARR Version 2 Beta 2 is an incremental release that includes all of the features from Version 1, and adds support for disk-based cache. More specifically, ARR Version 2 Beta 2 can be used to:

Enhance ARR Version 1 scenarios with disk cache.
Use ARR as a cache proxy as a cache node in a CDN/ECN environment.
- Use ARR as an edge/child cache node.
- Use ARR as a parent cache node.

The ARR version 1 and ARR version 2 beta 2 cannot be installed side-by-side.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=ed922306-0d35-4764-8c2c-a378b54e90e1

Business Productivity

Overview

Microsoft DirectX is a group of technologies designed to make Windows-based computers an ideal platform for running and displaying applications rich in multimedia elements such as full-color graphics, video, 3D animation, and rich audio. DirectX includes security and performance updates, along with many new features across all technologies, which can be accessed by applications using the DirectX APIs.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=2da43d38-db71-4c1b-bc6a-9b6652cd92a3

Office SharePoint Server 2007 Technical Library in Compiled Help format

Brief Description

Downloadable CHM version of SharePoint Server content on TechNet.

Overview

Important, before you download:

If the topics in this file do not appear as you expect (you see "Page cannot be displayed" or "Action canceled," for example), see the Instructions section on this page.
This guide is a compiled Help file and opens in HTML Help.
This content is also available on the Web.

BizTalk Accelerator for SWIFT Message Pack 2009 includes the following features:

The repackaging of all SWIFT FIN FF message types and of all business rules
Updates to schemas and to business rules to make the schemas and the business rules fully compliant with the SWIFT 2009 certification requirements
All the hotfixes that are related to schemas and to business rules but that are not superseded by the SWIFT 2009 certification requirements

BizTalk Accelerator for SWIFT Message Pack 2009 does not contain any components other than schemas, business rules, and Microsoft Office InfoPath forms.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=f18dd828-ad19-4aa3-9fa1-c6b1bb3e27ed

Microsoft® SQL Server® StreamInsight CTP2

Brief Description

Microsoft® SQL Server® StreamInsight is Microsoft’s new Complex Event Processing technology to help businesses derive better insights by correlating event streams from multiple sources with near-zero latency.

Overview

Microsoft® SQL Server® StreamInsight is a platform for the continuous and incremental processing of unending sequences of events (event streams) from multiple sources with near-zero latency. These requirements, shared by vertical markets such as manufacturing, oil and gas, utilities, financial services, health care, web analytics, and IT and data center monitoring, make traditional store and query techniques impractical for timely and relevant processing of data.
StreamInsight allows software developers to create innovative solutions in the domain of Complex Event Processing that satisfy these needs. It allows to monitor, mine, and develop insights from continuous unbounded data streams and correlate constantly changing events with rich payloads in near real time. Industry specific solution developers (ISVs) and developers of custom applications have the opportunity to innovate on and utilize proven, flexible, and familiar Microsoft technology and rely on existing development skills when using the StreamInsight platform.
Some of the key feature areas are:

Derive meaningful and relevant information from data/events streams through complex patterns. These patterns can be defined using a declarative query paradigm based on well-defined streaming semantics with LINQ as query language.
For the development of applications, adapters, and analytics, the user can rely on well-established and powerful development frameworks and tools such as .NET, LINQ, and Microsoft Visual Studio.
The platform integrates with various data sources and sinks through input and output adapters. The framework to build domain-specific adapters utilizes a .NET API to make adoption of the platform easy. Independence between adapters and queries facilitates seamless integration of real-time and historical analysis.
The platform architecture supports a variety of deployment options, from scenarios with a low-footprint embedded option to high-end server deployments.
A rich set of manageability features such as a management interface, a diagnostic interface and a debugging tool are provided as part of the platform.

The Microsoft® SQL Server® StreamInsight CTP2 has two different methods to complete the installation process:

Attended Installation – an interactive user interface will guide you through the set-up process and obtain all of the information and consent required to complete the installation. This includes the displaying, acknowledgement, and archiving of the applicable SQL Server license terms.
Un-attend Installation – this is a DOS command line set-up process that does not have an interactive user interface to guide you through the set-up process. In this case, you will be required to enter a parameter during installation that indicates your acceptance of the license terms.
Here is the copy of the Microsoft® SQL Server® StreamInsight license terms for your review.

Increase application availability and scalability.
Better utilize content server resources.
Facilitate application deployment including pilot management and A/B testing.
Lower management costs and create opportunities for shared hosters.

The installation package includes several additional components and hotfixes required by Application Request Routing:

Microsoft URL Rewrite Module for IIS 7.0
Microsoft Web Farm Management Version 1 for IIS 7.0
Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 1 for IIS 7.0
Microsoft External Cache Version 1 for IIS 7.0
Hotfix (KB 954438)

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=497e9910-ca94-4771-af08-751420fab5f0

Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 1 for IIS 7 (x86)

Brief Description

Microsoft Application Request Routing for IIS7 is a proxy based routing module that forwards HTTP requests to content servers based on HTTP headers and server variables, and load balance algorithms.

Overview

Application Request Routing can be used to:

Increase application availability and scalability.
Better utilize content server resources.
Facilitate application deployment including pilot management and A/B testing.
Lower management costs and create opportunities for shared hosters.

The installation package includes several additional components and hotfixes required by Application Request Routing:

Microsoft URL Rewrite Module for IIS 7.0
Microsoft Web Farm Management Version 1 for IIS 7.0
Microsoft Application Request Routing Version 1 for IIS 7.0
Microsoft External Cache Version 1 for IIS 7.0
Hotfix (KB 954438)

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=ecd52702-d850-4a18-b18e-d46128967462

Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 1.1 for IIS 7 (x86)

Brief Description

URL rewrite module provides a rule-based rewriting mechanism for changing requested URL’s before they get processed by web server.

Overview

The Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 1.1 for IIS 7 provides flexible rules-based rewrite engine that can be used to perform broad spectrum of URL manipulation tasks, including, but not limited to:

Enabling user friendly and search engine friendly URL with dynamic web applications;
Rewriting URL’s based on HTTP headers and server variables;
Web site content handling;
Controlling access to web site content based on URL segments or request metadata.

The installation package includes several additional components and hotfixes required by URL rewriter. Refer to the KB articles for the hotfixes to get more details. In order to apply the hotfixes correctly without restarting the server, it is recommended that the WAS service is stopped before installing URL Rewrite Module. The following hotfixes will be installed with URL Rewrite Module:

Update for IIS 7.0 FastCGI module (KB 954946);
Hotfix for IIS 7.0 SetUri function (KB 949172)
Hotfix for ASP.NET System.Web.dll (KB 957660)
Microsoft Visual C++ 2008 SP1 Redistributable Package

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=dba94a96-e513-4f87-9082-8cb04b743793

Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 1.1 for IIS 7 (x64)

Brief Description

URL rewrite module provides a rule-based rewriting mechanism for changing requested URL’s before they get processed by web server.

Overview

The Microsoft URL Rewrite Module 1.1 for IIS 7 provides flexible rules-based rewrite engine that can be used to perform broad spectrum of URL manipulation tasks, including, but not limited to:

Enabling user friendly and search engine friendly URL with dynamic web applications;
Rewriting URL’s based on HTTP headers and server variables;
Web site content handling;
Controlling access to web site content based on URL segments or request metadata.

The installation package includes several additional components and hotfixes required by URL rewriter. Refer to the KB articles for the hotfixes to get more details. In order to apply the hotfixes correctly without restarting the server, it is recommended that the WAS service is stopped before installing URL Rewrite Module. The following hotfixes will be installed with URL Rewrite Module:

Update for IIS 7.0 FastCGI module (KB 954946);
Hotfix for IIS 7.0 SetUri function (KB 949172)
Hotfix for ASP.NET System.Web.dll (KB 957660)
Microsoft Visual C++ 2008 SP1 Redistributable Package

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=d05111c1-b4f7-45f3-8f60-a8f2b9d49ed1

FSX Mission Building: Part 3

Brief Description

In this new series, we will examine just how you go about creating your very own Mission to share with others.

Overview

In this new series, we will examine just how you go about creating your very own Mission to share with others. In doing so, you will learn to appreciate the versatility of this feature and we will hopefully get you through some of the more demanding parts! Be warned, once you start on this path, it is a downward spiral to ‘Mission addiction’ and I must confess that I have descended to the point where I can wake at night calling out: “No, no - you must use a ‘Proximity Trigger’ you fool!”

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=cfb22490-d8d8-473a-9b5d-eb10b2fa9a8f

FSX Mission Building: Part 4

Brief Description

In this new series, we will examine just how you go about creating your very own Mission to share with others.

Overview

In this new series, we will examine just how you go about creating your very own Mission to share with others. In doing so, you will learn to appreciate the versatility of this feature and we will hopefully get you through some of the more demanding parts! Be warned, once you start on this path, it is a downward spiral to ‘Mission addiction’ and I must confess that I have descended to the point where I can wake at night calling out: “No, no - you must use a ‘Proximity Trigger’ you fool!”

The following documents about AGPM 2.5 are available for download. All are available in English only.

Step-by-Step Guide to Microsoft Advanced Group Policy Management 2.5: This guide describes a sample scenario for installing AGPM and performing Group Policy management by using the Group Policy Management Console and AGPM. This guide is designed for people are evaluating AGPM 2.5 and for Group Policy administrators who are installing AGPM 2.5 or are using AGPM 2.5 for the first time. You can also view this document online at Step-by-Step Guide for AGPM 2.5.
Operations Guide for Advanced Group Policy Management 2.5: This guide provides step-by-step instructions for performing tasks by using AGPM 2.5. It includes all of the information in the Help for AGPM. This guide is designed for Group Policy administrators of all levels who are using AGPM 2.5. You can also view this document online at Operations Guide for AGPM 2.5.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=ba69e774-f0d1-4b6d-be81-a8c5f27d1b8a

Advanced Group Policy Management 4.0 Documents

Brief Description

These guides provide an overview of Advanced Group Policy Management (AGPM) 4.0 and step-by-step guidance for installing AGPM 4.0, managing Group Policy objects (GPOs) by using AGPM 4.0, and planning and deploying AGPM 4.0.

Overview

The following documents about AGPM 4.0 are available for download.

Overview of Microsoft Advanced Group Policy Management: This white paper provides an overview of AGPM and describes its benefits, how it works, and the next steps for evaluating it. This document is designed for people evaluating AGPM.
Step-by-Step Guide for Microsoft Advanced Group Policy Management 4.0: This guide describes a sample scenario for installing AGPM and performing Group Policy management by using the Group Policy Management Console and AGPM. This guide is designed for people are evaluating AGPM 4.0 and for Group Policy administrators who are installing AGPM 4.0 or are using AGPM 4.0 for the first time. You can also view this document online at Step-by-Step Guide for AGPM 4.0 (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=153505).
Operations Guide for Advanced Group Policy Management 4.0: This guide provides step-by-step instructions for performing tasks by using AGPM 4.0. It includes all of the information in the Help for AGPM. This guide is designed for Group Policy administrators of all levels who are using AGPM 4.0. You can also view this document online at Operations Guide for AGPM 4.0 (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=159872).
Planning Guide for Advanced Group Policy Management 4.0 (Available in October 2009): This guide provides an in-depth description of the processes, procedures, and decisions for planning the deployment of AGPM in a production environment. This guide is designed for administrators. Available in English only.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=58fd6cda-0210-4da0-91d2-8c3cc2817df8

Advanced Group Policy Management 3.0 Documents

Brief Description

These guides provide step-by-step guidance for installing Advanced Group Policy Management (AGPM) 3.0, managing Group Policy objects (GPOs) by using AGPM 3.0, and planning and deploying AGPM 3.0.

Overview

The following documents about AGPM 3.0 are available for download.

Step-by-Step Guide for Microsoft Advanced Group Policy Management 3.0: This guide describes a sample scenario for installing AGPM and performing Group Policy management by using the Group Policy Management Console and AGPM. This guide is designed for people are evaluating AGPM 3.0 and for Group Policy administrators who are installing AGPM 3.0 or are using AGPM 3.0 for the first time. You can also view this document online at Step-by-Step Guide for AGPM 3.0 (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=132706).
Operations Guide for Advanced Group Policy Management 3.0: This guide provides step-by-step instructions for performing tasks by using AGPM 3.0. It includes all of the information in the Help for AGPM. The English version of this guide has been updated to include a list of best practices for version control and instructions for backing up the archive, restoring the archive from a backup, and moving the AGPM Server and archive to a new server. This guide is designed for Group Policy administrators of all levels who are using AGPM 3.0. You can also view this document online at Operations Guide for AGPM 3.0 (http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=132707).
Planning Guide for Advanced Group Policy Management 3.0: This guide provides an in-depth description of the processes, procedures, and decisions for planning the deployment of AGPM in a production environment. This guide is designed for administrators. Available in English only.

Health of the KMS host
- Service Installed
- Service has no access to DNS server
- Server has a valid license
- Service is running
Key Management Service product
- Activation count insufficient
- Activities are idle
Expanded support
- Enables support for non-Windows KMS applications
- Extends support for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2

Release History

July 25, 2008 - Initial release, version 6.0.6278.9.
Sep. 16, 2009 - Update release, version 6.0.7234.0, extended support for newer OS and decommissioned reports.

List of weekly closing stock prices, including unadjusted prices and prices adjusted for all stock splits.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=4c0b1e02-adf3-4e79-9534-f8b664d3f84c

Posted by chrisavis | 0 Comments

Filed under: Downloads

Thursday, September 17, 2009 5:43 PM

Twitter Feed for Windows Firestarter - #WinFire

Posted by chrisavis | 2 Comments

Thursday, September 17, 2009 5:18 PM

Info on the Active Directory Recycle Bin….

Recently, I delivered a brief session to a user group on some new features in Windows 2008 R2. One of those features was the Active Directory Recycle Bin. This feature allows administrators to recover deleted AD objects without having to shut down a server to go into Directory Service Restore Mode. This helps alleviate server downtime to restore objects that may have been deleted accidentally.

We did introduce something called “tombstone reanimation” in Windows 2003 which allowed an administrator to recover objects up to 180 days (default value) after they were deleted. However certain attributes of deleted objects were permanently “mangled” so, while this bridged a gap, it did not provide a completely reliable online method of restoring deleted AD objects.

In Windows 2008 R2 that is at a Forest Mode of Windows 2008 R2, you can now recover those deleted objects inline and do so reliably. We still have the same 180 day default which you can modify if necessary and it does require the use of scripts and/or tools like LDP to do the object recovery.

Here were some of the questions I received when talking about AD Recycle Bin Features -

What is the default size (how much will it hold)?

There isn’t a “size” per-say. AD Objects get a Deleted Object Lifetime (DOL) value assigned to them when deleted. Normally, this is 180 days by default. (If you upgraded from Windows 2003 then it is NOT 180 days). You can delete as many objects as you want and they will stay in the Recycle Bin for whatever the DOL value is. So effectively the “size” of the Recycle Bin is actually dependent upon the free space available on the drive where NTDS.DIT sits.

Can the size of the AD recycle Bin be changed?

Since there is no size, you would actually be modifying either the DOL value on the object itself or modify the Tombstone Lifetime (TSL) for the system. If there is a LOT of change in your environment then you will effectively chew up more disk space holding those objects. You will need to evaluate for your environment whether to adjust this value up or down if you are concerned with disk space.

If the Recycle Bin gets full, does it do FIFO deletion of objects?

Again, no size. I don’t know if anyone knows what error messages you will get if you somehow manage to run out of disk space and delete objects that would be stored in the AD Recycle Bin. I am still asking around for what this might be.

Is there a TTL stamped on the data in the AD Recycle bin or will it stay there and be retrievable indefinitely?

See above.

There is some great information on the AD Recycle Bin posted here --

Active Directory recycle Bin Step-by-Step Guide

AD Recycle Bin – Understanding, Implementing, best Practices and Troubleshooting

Cheers!

Posted by chrisavis | 0 Comments

Filed under: Windows Server 2008, SBS, User Groups, On the Edge, Systems Management, 64bit Computing, Active Directory, Technet, Tech Support, Learn me somethin..., twitterfeed, Tech News

Thursday, September 17, 2009 7:54 AM

Windows Azure webcast event…..

My peers in the Central region are doing a Windows Azure Roadshow. If you happen to live in the Central US, you may be able to attend in person by check out locations at the Technet Presents registration site. If you live out side the area or otherwise can’t attend in person, they are webcasting the sessions too!

TechNet Events Present: Real World Azure

Come spend a morning with us on September 29th to explore Windows Azure™ – Microsoft’s platform for building and deploying cloud based applications – from a real world point of view! During this event, we’ll review critical lessons Microsoft IT has learned migrating internal line-of-business applications to Windows Azure™. What is Windows Azure™? When should I use it? How does it apply to my job? Whether you’re an IT Professional, Developer or Architect, we’ll address your top of mind questions about cloud computing.

TechNet LIVE Webcast | REGISTER >>

Cheers!

Posted by chrisavis | 0 Comments

Filed under: Windows, Windows Server 2008, Webcasts, Live Events, Competitive, On the Edge, Technet, Developery Stuff, twitterfeed, Tech News, Azure, Windows 7

Wednesday, September 16, 2009 9:17 AM

Interesting Downloads for Week Ending – 09-11-2009….

Infrastructure Development, Operations & Maintenance

· Microsoft Application Virtualization for Terminal Services / Remote Desktop Services

· Update for Windows® Vista SP1 or above to enable RemoteApp™

· Windows Troubleshooting Platform Overview

· Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 2 Shell Help

· Business Desktop Deployment (BDD) and Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) Archive

· Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) 2010

· Microsoft System Center Network Device Monitoring Management Pack for System Center Essentials 2007 SP1 (KB960569)

· Getting to Know Hyper-V: A Walkthrough from Initial Setup to Common Scenarios

· WS08 Whitepapers

· File Server Capacity Tool - (64 bit)

· File Server Capacity Tool - (32 bit)

· Platform Update for Windows Vista - Beta Download Script (KB971644)

· Microsoft Reader 2.4.2

· System Center Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) 2008 R2 Documentation

Solutions & Solution Development

· Microsoft® SQL Server® StreamInsight CTP2

· Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 Service Pack 1 Update (KB974479)

· DirectX End-User Runtimes (August 2009)

· DirectX Software Development Kit

· Microsoft SharePoint Products and Technologies Protocol Documentation

· Microsoft BizTalk Server Adapter for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0

· Bing: New Features Relevant to Webmasters white paper

· Microsoft Work Group Server Protocol Program License Agreement (All IP) for Development and Product Distribution

· Productivity Hub

· FinancialMessagingServicesBusWhitePaper

· Microsoft Work Group Server Protocol Program License Agreement (No Patents) for Development and Product Distribution

· Microsoft Work Group Server Protocol Program License Agreement (Patent Only) for Development and Product Distribution

· DirectX End-User Runtime Web Installer

Security, Policy & Compliance

· Update for Windows Mail Junk E-mail Filter [September 2009] (KB905866)

· Update for Windows Mail Junk E-mail Filter for x64-based Systems [September 2009] (KB905866)

· Microsoft® Windows® Malicious Software Removal Tool (KB890830)

· Microsoft® Windows® Malicious Software Removal Tool (KB890830) x64

· September 2009 Security Release ISO Image

· Microsoft Global Security Showcase: Physical Security at Microsoft

· Extended Security Update Inventory Tool

· Security and Authentication in Microsoft Dynamics CRM: The Microsoft Dynamics CRM Security Model

· Certificate Enrollment Web Services in Windows Server 2008 R2

Other

· ELF '09 Graphic Recording

· Environmental Compliance for AEP

· White Paper: Customer and Partner Experience - Increasing the Satisfaction of Microsoft Customers and Partners

· PaymentsPartnerGuide

· Custom Support Datasheet

· Government Tear Sheet

· Small Business Tear Sheet

· Health Care Tear Sheet

· BizTalk Server 2009 Documentation

Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) 2010 is the latest supported version of MDT, formerly known as Business Desktop Deployment (BDD). MDT 2010 replaces all prior versions of MDT and BDD. It provides support for deployment of Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2. MDT 2010 is the upgrade path for users of older versions.
Click here to download MDT 2010.
Microsoft continues to support the previous version of MDT—Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2008 Update 1. Customers still using MDT 2008 Update 1 can download the files from this page.
These versions of MDT and BDD are no longer available for download and are no longer supported by Microsoft:

Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2008, March 2008 release
Microsoft Deployment, November 2007 release
Business Desktop Deployment 2007 Update 2, March 2008 release
Business Desktop Deployment 2007 Patch 1, May 2007 release
Business Desktop Deployment 2007, January 2007 release
Business Desktop Deployment 2.5, August 2005 release

Note If you are upgrading from a previous version of Microsoft Deployment, follow the instructions available here in order to preserve the deployment point configuration.
For more information on Microsoft Deployment Toolkit, see Microsoft Deployment Toolkit on TechNet.
Send requests, questions, or feedback to us directly at SATfdbk@microsoft.com.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=02a2605d-51e8-469f-be4a-1dd2af580502

Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) 2010

Brief Description

Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2010 is the newest version of Microsoft Deployment Toolkit, a Solution Accelerator for operating system and application deployment. MDT 2010 supports deployment of Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 in addition to deployment of Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP.

Overview

Deploy Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 with the newly released Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2010. MDT is the recommended process and toolset for automating desktop and server deployment. MDT provides you with the following benefits:

Unified tools and processes required for desktop and server deployment in a common deployment console and collection of guidance.
Reduced deployment time and standardized desktop and server images, along with improved security and ongoing configuration management.
Fully automated Zero Touch Installation deployments by leveraging System Center Configuration Manager 2007 Service Pack 2 Release Candidate and Windows deployment tools. For those without a System Center Configuration Manager 2007 infrastructure, MDT leverages Windows deployment tools for Lite Touch Installation deployments.

What’s New in MDT 2010
Improvements to the newest version of MDT allow you to:

Access deployment shares from anywhere on the network and replicate files and settings across organizational boundaries or sites.
Organize and manage drivers, operating systems, applications, packages, and task sequences with an improved UI.
Automate UI functionality using the Windows PowerShell command line interface.

Choosing the Right Version
Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2010 is offered in two versions to support Solution Accelerator component installation on x64 or x86 hosts. Select the version that corresponds with your host hardware type. Both versions of MDT 2010 support deployment of x86 and x64 Windows operating systems.
The What’s New in MDT 2010 guide and Release Notes are available as separate downloads on this page for those who want to quickly evaluate MDT 2010. The full package of guidance is available in .chm format as part of the toolkit. For those who want it in Word format, a separate download is available in the Files in this Download list.
Send questions or feedback about MDT 2010 directly to us at SATfdbk@microsoft.com.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=3bd8561f-77ac-4400-a0c1-fe871c461a89

Microsoft System Center Network Device Monitoring Management Pack for System Center Essentials 2007 SP1 (KB960569)

Brief Description

Provides the ability for System Center Essentials 2007 to monitor network devices.

Overview

The Microsoft System Center Network Device Monitoring Library Management Pack provides System Center Essentials 2007 with the ability to identify and monitor network devices such as routers and switches. This update resolves an issue where Essentials is unable to monitor network devices that report an interface speed greater than 2147483647. Refer to KB960569 for more information. Note: It is necessary to delete the existing Network Device Monitoring Library Management Pack before importing this updated version.
Feature Summary

Monitoring for SNMP v1 and SNMP v2c devices such as routers and switches
Performance monitoring for network devices
Health monitoring and alerting for network devices
Topology for network devices

Release History

2/21/2008 - Original release with System Center Essential 2007 Service Pack 1, version 6.0.1885.0
3/23/2009 - Updated MP, version 6.0.1885.4, to resolve issue preventing Essentials from monitoring network devices that report Network Interface speeds greater than 2GB per second.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=e547b676-112f-419e-8d8f-6920beca0845

Solutions & Solution Development

Microsoft® SQL Server® StreamInsight CTP2

Brief Description

Microsoft® SQL Server® StreamInsight is Microsoft’s new Complex Event Processing technology to help businesses derive better insights by correlating event streams from multiple sources with near-zero latency.

Overview

Microsoft® SQL Server® StreamInsight is a platform for the continuous and incremental processing of unending sequences of events (event streams) from multiple sources with near-zero latency. These requirements, shared by vertical markets such as manufacturing, oil and gas, utilities, financial services, health care, web analytics, and IT and data center monitoring, make traditional store and query techniques impractical for timely and relevant processing of data.
StreamInsight allows software developers to create innovative solutions in the domain of Complex Event Processing that satisfy these needs. It allows to monitor, mine, and develop insights from continuous unbounded data streams and correlate constantly changing events with rich payloads in near real time. Industry specific solution developers (ISVs) and developers of custom applications have the opportunity to innovate on and utilize proven, flexible, and familiar Microsoft technology and rely on existing development skills when using the StreamInsight platform.
Some of the key feature areas are:

Derive meaningful and relevant information from data/events streams through complex patterns. These patterns can be defined using a declarative query paradigm based on well-defined streaming semantics with LINQ as query language.
For the development of applications, adapters, and analytics, the user can rely on well-established and powerful development frameworks and tools such as .NET, LINQ, and Microsoft Visual Studio.
The platform integrates with various data sources and sinks through input and output adapters. The framework to build domain-specific adapters utilizes a .NET API to make adoption of the platform easy. Independence between adapters and queries facilitates seamless integration of real-time and historical analysis.
The platform architecture supports a variety of deployment options, from scenarios with a low-footprint embedded option to high-end server deployments.
A rich set of manageability features such as a management interface, a diagnostic interface and a debugging tool are provided as part of the platform.

The Microsoft® SQL Server® StreamInsight CTP2 has two different methods to complete the installation process:

Attended Installation – an interactive user interface will guide you through the set-up process and obtain all of the information and consent required to complete the installation. This includes the displaying, acknowledgement, and archiving of the applicable SQL Server license terms.
Un-attend Installation – this is a DOS command line set-up process that does not have an interactive user interface to guide you through the set-up process. In this case, you will be required to enter a parameter during installation that indicates your acceptance of the license terms.
Here is the copy of the Microsoft® SQL Server® StreamInsight license terms for your review.

Use Microsoft Dynamics CRM as a send adapter.
Discover and use the schema of any Microsoft Dynamics CRM actions and entities.

Microsoft has developed the Productivity Hub to help support your ongoing end user training efforts.
The Hub is a SharePoint Server 2007 site collection that serves as a learning community and is fully customizable. It provides a central place for your training efforts, and includes training content from Microsoft’s core products. Microsoft also provides ongoing and updated content packs.
The Hub uses SharePoint Server’s social networking capabilities, such as blogs and discussion groups. In addition, it offers the Coach program, a change management feature to help you train end users to self-help, reducing the burden on your training and IT staff. The Coach program impacts productivity in a collaborative and positive way.
What the Productivity Hub is:

Format: Pre-loaded SharePoint site collection, optimized for Web 2.0 functionality and easily deployed within SharePoint Server 2007 environment.
Content: Convenient end user productivity training in a variety of formats (documents, videos, podcasts, etc.). Receive free quarterly updates of content that you will learn about through the Productivity blog.
Blog: The Productivity blog offers tips and tricks for end user productivity. Use it as is, or your training staff can use the posts as their own to help them get started in running an internal blog.
Train the trainer: Includes IT/Manager section to aid with deployment of the site collection, and guidance to develop the Coach program.
Products: Office 2007 System applications including SharePoint Server 2007. Windows 7 and others will be added in the future.

Microsoft DirectX is a group of technologies designed to make Windows-based computers an ideal platform for running and displaying applications rich in multimedia elements such as full-color graphics, video, 3D animation, and rich audio. DirectX includes security and performance updates, along with many new features across all technologies, which can be accessed by applications using the DirectX APIs.

This DVD5 ISO image file contains the security updates for Windows released on Windows Update on September 8th, 2009. The image does not contain security updates for other Microsoft products. This DVD5 ISO image is intended for administrators that need to download multiple individual language versions of each security update and that do not use an automated solution such as Windows Server Update Services (WSUS). You can use this ISO image to download multiple updates in all languages at the same time.
Important: Be sure to check the individual security bulletins at http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security prior to deployment of these updates to ensure that the files have not been updated at a later date.
This DVD5 image contains the following updates:
KB973768 / (MS09-037)

Windows XP - 24 languages
Windows Vista - 36 languages
Windows Vista for x64-based Systems - 36 languages

KB971961 / (MS09-045)

Windows 2000 - 24 languages
Windows Server 2003 - 18 languages
Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition - 11 languages
Windows Server 2003 for Itanium-based Systems - 4 languages
Windows XP - 24 languages
Windows XP x64 Edition - 2 languages
Windows Vista - 36 languages
Windows Vista for x64-based Systems - 36 languages
Windows Server 2008 - 19 languages
Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition - 19 languages
Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems - 4 languages

KB956844 / (MS09-046)

Windows 2000 - 24 languages
Windows Server 2003 - 18 languages
Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition - 11 languages
Windows Server 2003 for Itanium-based Systems - 4 languages
Windows XP - 24 languages
Windows XP x64 Edition - 2 languages

KB968816 / (MS09-047)

Windows 2000 - 24 languages
Windows Server 2003 - 18 languages
Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition - 11 languages
Windows XP - 24 languages
Windows XP x64 Edition - 2 languages
Windows Vista - 36 languages
Windows Vista for x64-based Systems - 36 languages
Windows Server 2008 - 19 languages
Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition - 19 languages

KB972554 / (MS09-047)

Windows Server 2003 - 18 languages
Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition - 11 languages
Windows Server 2008 - 19 languages
Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition - 19 languages

KB967723 / (MS09-048)

Windows Server 2003 - 18 languages
Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition - 11 languages
Windows Server 2003 for Itanium-based Systems - 4 languages
Windows XP x64 Edition - 2 languages
Windows Vista - 36 languages
Windows Vista for x64-based Systems - 36 languages
Windows Server 2008 - 19 languages
Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition - 19 languages
Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems - 4 languages

KB970710 / (MS09-049)

Windows Vista - 36 languages
Windows Vista for x64-based Systems - 36 languages
Windows Server 2008 - 19 languages
Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition - 19 languages

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=fab6b8f8-b766-4146-b86d-0953d19d95ab

Microsoft Global Security Showcase: Physical Security at Microsoft

Brief Description

Microsoft Global Security Showcase: Physical Security at Microsoft. Taking Advantage of Strategic IT Convergence. Technical White Paper

Overview

Implementing and monitoring physical security for an enterprise the size of Microsoft can be cumbersome and expensive. Traditional approaches to physical security are inefficient and difficult to manage effectively on a global scale. By building a strategy for physical security that relies on standard off the-shelf products and the existing IP networking infrastructure, Microsoft has been able to realize substantial cost savings, improved security, and other significant benefits.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=95384b9d-8ec0-4dfb-96a9-7a61c2f81888

Extended Security Update Inventory Tool

Brief Description

The Extended Security Update Inventory Tool is used to detect security bulletins not covered by MBSA including MS04-028, February 2005 bulletins, and future security bulletins that are exceptions to MBSA.

Academic Tear Sheet

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=01fc371c-b65d-459c-9a3f-400f1cefcae3

Posted by chrisavis | 0 Comments

Filed under: Downloads

Tuesday, September 15, 2009 5:46 PM

Don’t forget about Windows Firestarter this Friday!

We have a great lineup of speakers that will be speaking on campus this Friday!

Stephen Rose will be talking about all the great new stuff in Windows 7. Joe Davies will be covering some new networking features with a focus on Direct Access. David Tesar will be showing off some great new Internet Explorer features to help you make better use of the web. If you are interested in migrating from Windows XP to Windows 7, we have an EXPERT on these migrations in the form of Jeremy Chapman. Finally, I will be speaking about some great new things in Windows Server 2008 R2.

You can get more information and register at the Windows Firestarter site!

Cheers!

Posted by chrisavis | 0 Comments

Filed under: Security, Windows, Vista, Windows Server 2008, Networking, Demos, Live Events, Mobility, On the Edge, Systems Management, 64bit Computing, Virtualization, Deployment, Active Directory, Technet, Developery Stuff, twitterfeed, Tech News, Windows 7, Thrive

Thursday, September 10, 2009 12:36 PM

Interesting Downloads for Week Ending 09-04-2009….

Infrastructure Development, Operations & Maintenance

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB973879)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB973879)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems (KB972036)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB972036)

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB972036)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB972036)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 (KB972036)

· Microsoft BizTalk Server Management Pack for Operations Manager 2007

· Exchange Server 2010 Management Pack (x64) Release Candidate

· Exchange Load Generator 2010 Beta (32 bit)

· Exchange Load Generator 2010 Beta (64 bit)

· Microsoft Exchange Server Jetstress 2010 Beta (64 bit)

· Infrastructure Planning and Design

· Windows Client 2000/XP/Vista Operating System Management Pack for Operations Manager 2007

· Microsoft SharePoint Administration Toolkit v4.0 x86

· Microsoft SharePoint Administration Toolkit v4.0 x64

· SYSVOL Replication Migration Guide: FRS to DFS Replication

· Risk and Health Assessment Program for Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSSRAP) – Scoping Tool v2.0

· Windows 7 Upgrade Paths

· Windows Server 2008 R2 Upgrade Paths

· Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 2 Unified Messaging Language Packs

· Windows Server 2008 R2 Multilingual User Interface Language Packs

· Microsoft Online Dedicated Service Descriptions

· Risk and Health Assessment Program for Microsoft SQL Server – Scoping Tool v1.2

Solutions & Solution Development

· Microsoft Office Protocol Documentation

· Microsoft Office File Formats Documentation

· Office SharePoint Server 2007 Technical Library in Compiled Help format

· Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Technical Library in Compiled Help format

· Windows User Experience Interaction Guidelines

· Outlook 2010: MAPI Reference

· ADO.NET Data Services v1.5 CTP2

· Microsoft® Silverlight™ 3 SDK

· Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2009 Developer and IT Pro Help

· Microsoft BizTalk 2009 Accelerator for HL7 Installation Guide and Help

· Developing SharePoint Applications–August 2009

· Microsoft FRx 6.7 Hot Fix 1 (R10670) - Thomson Elite

· WinHEC 2008 White Papers

· MobilePaymentsWhitepaper

· PaymentsFMSBFactsheet

· Microsoft_BizTalk_Accelerator_for_SWIFT

· Windows 7 Client Software Logo Program

· Microsoft Expression Web SuperPreview for Windows Internet Explorer

· Gadget Samples for Windows Sidebar

· Productivity Hub

· Installing Project Server 2007

· BizTalk Accelerator for SWIFT 2009 Message Pack

Security, Policy & Compliance

· Group Policy Settings References for Windows and Windows Server

· Update for Microsoft Office Outlook 2003 Junk Email Filter (KB973515)

· Update for Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 Junk Email Filter (KB973514)

· Feature Pack 1 for Windows Essential Business Server 2008 (KB973236)

· Geneva Interop Whitepapers

· Microsoft Forefront Security for Office Communications Server Best Practices Analyzer

· Microsoft® Forefront™ codename "Stirling" VHDs

· Security Features in Microsoft Online Services

Other

· Streets and Trips 2010 trial edition

· MapPoint North America 2010 trial

· Epicor_Sales_Audit_White_Paper

· Fact Sheets

The BizTalk Server Management Pack for Operations Manager provides comprehensive discovery and monitoring of BizTalk Server components and applications.
Feature Bullet Summary:
This management pack focuses on the following key scenarios which are discussed further in the management pack guide provided within the download:

Suspended Message Alerts
Alert Suppression Policy
BAM Technical Assistance Alerts
BizTalk Message Boxes and Hosts
Orchestration Failures
Service Monitoring
Application Monitoring
Monitoring of various aspects of RFID

Management Pack Release History:

7/30/2007 - Version 6.0.5000.0 - Initial Release for OpsMgr 2007
4/14/2008 - Version 6.0.6278.16 - Release native MP
9/23/2008 - Version 6.0.6411.0 – Updated Release of MP. Delete any previous versions of BizTalk Server Management Packs before importing this BizTalk Server Management Pack for Operations Manager 2007. Refer to the MP guide for details on the changes in this release.
8/31/2009 - Version 6.0.6679.0 - Updated release of MP, for supporting BizTalk Server 2009 and addressing high CPU utilization issue.

Definition of the technical decision flow through the planning process.
Listing of decisions to be made and the commonly available options and considerations.
Relating the decisions and options to the business in terms of cost, complexity, and other characteristics.
Framing decisions in terms of additional questions to the business to ensure a comprehensive alignment with the appropriate business landscape.

These guides complement product documentation by focusing on infrastructure design options.
Each guide leads the reader through critical infrastructure design decisions, in the appropriate order, evaluating the available options for each decision against its impact on critical characteristics of the infrastructure. The IPD Series highlights when service and infrastructure goals should be validated with the organization and provides additional questions that should be asked of service stakeholders and decision makers.
IPD consists of the following downloadable packages:

Updated! Active Directory Domain Services – version 2.0 includes Windows Server 2008 R2
Updated! File Services – version 2.0 includes Windows Server 2008 R2
Updated! Internet Information Services – version 2.0 includes IIS 7.5
Updated! Print Services – version 2.0 includes Windows Server 2008 R2
Updated! Windows Optimized Desktop Scenarios version 1.1
Exchange Online—Evaluating Software-plus-Services version 1.2
IPD Series Introduction
Microsoft Application Virtualization 4.5
Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization (MED-V)
Selecting the Right NAP Architecture
Selecting the Right Virtualization Technology
SharePoint Online—Evaluating Software-plus-Services
SQL Server 2008
System Center Configuration Manager 2007 SP1 with R2
System Center Data Protection Manager 2007 with SP1
System Center Operations Manager 2007
System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008
Terminal Services
Windows Deployment Services
Windows Server Virtualization (for Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V and Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1)

The guides are available as individual downloads or as a single all-in-one package.
Send questions or feedback to us directly at SATfdbk@microsoft.com

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=ad3921fb-8224-4681-9064-075fdf042b0c

Windows Client 2000/XP/Vista Operating System Management Pack for Operations Manager 2007

Brief Description

The Microsoft Windows Client 2000/XP/Vista Operating System Management Pack provides fundamental monitoring basics for computers running Windows Client 2000, XP, or Vista operating systems.

Overview

The Windows Client Monitoring Management Pack is built to detects, diagnose, and resolve hardware and software problems pertaining to Client 2000, XP, and Vista operating systems. Information and analysis on the issues that the system detected are collected by the MPs through an agent on the client machine, and sent to OpsMgr where this data is converted into health state, alerts (if need be) and processed for business critical and aggregate reports. The MP gives a clear picture of catastrophic failures in your mission critical machines, trend-based alerts of significant changes to computer groups, in-depth views of health of individual machines, and reports that provide a landscape view of the health of all monitored clients.
Feature Summary

Key Processor Performance Indicators
Logical and Physical disk performance and free space
Memory utilization
Network health
Health monitoring of key Windows Operating System services
Comprehensive performance collections
Availability and event reports

Release History

3/23/2007 - Original release of the English version of Client 2000/XP management packs, version 6.0.5000.0
5/11/2007 - Original release of the English version of Vista management pack, version 1.0
1/15/2008 - Guide update of Client 2000/XP management packs, version 6.0.5000.0
2/22/2008 - Updated release of Client 2000/XP management packs, version 6.0.6278.0
5/27/2008 - Release onto Microsoft Download Center of Client 2000/XP management packs, version 6.0.6278.0
2/16/2009 - Update release that includes business Critical monitoring for Vista and bug fixes for performance and aggregate monitoring, version 6.0.6520.0

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=f55f1803-eae6-4ed5-b2d2-9e1adf98e325

Microsoft SharePoint Administration Toolkit v4.0 x86

Brief Description

The Microsoft® SharePoint® Administration Toolkit contains functionality to help administrate and manage Microsoft® Office SharePoint® Server 2007 and Windows® SharePoint® Services version 3.0.

Overview

The Microsoft SharePoint Administration Toolkit contains functionality to help manage Office SharePoint Server 2007 and Windows SharePoint Services version 3.0. This toolkit contains the ability to diagnose performance issues and perform bulk operations on site collections.
New Features:

SharePoint Diagnostics tool (updated)
Permissions Reporting tool, which includes the UnlockFGPReport Stsadm operation
UpdateQuota Stsadm operation
SharePoint-related Security Configration Wizard manifests

Existing Features:

User Profile Replication Engine
Batch Site Manager
UpdateAlert Stsadm operation

For more information about the SharePoint Administration Toolkit, see following documentation on TechNet:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=cd2d09a7-1159-4d40-be1c-8efab1345381

Microsoft SharePoint Administration Toolkit v4.0 x64

Brief Description

The Microsoft® SharePoint® Administration Toolkit contains functionality to help administrate and manage Microsoft® Office SharePoint® Server 2007 and Windows® SharePoint® Services version 3.0.

Overview

The Microsoft SharePoint Administration Toolkit contains functionality to help manage Office SharePoint Server 2007 and Windows SharePoint Services version 3.0. This toolkit contains the ability to diagnose performance issues and perform bulk operations on site collections.
New Features:

SharePoint Diagnostics tool (updated)
Permissions Reporting tool, which includes the UnlockFGPReport Stsadm operation
UpdateQuota Stsadm operation
SharePoint-related Security Configration Wizard manifests

Existing Features:

User Profile Replication Engine
Batch Site Manager
UpdateAlert Stsadm operation

This download package is intended for Microsoft Premier Customers Only. This package includes all of the scoping tools necessary to prepare and qualify your environment to receive a Risk and Health Assessment Program for Microsoft SQL Server.

Important, before you download:

If the topics in this file do not appear as you expect (you see "Page cannot be displayed" or "Action canceled," for example), see the Instructions section on this page.
This guide is a compiled Help file and opens in HTML Help.
This content is also available on the Web.

This downloadable CHM is a copy of content in the Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 technical library. The CHM is current as of the date above. For the latest information, see the technical library on the Web.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=ba006584-711d-4ce7-9e1f-181aedf6434a

Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 Technical Library in Compiled Help format

Brief Description

Downloadable CHM version of Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 content on TechNet.

Overview

Important, before you download:

If the topics in this file do not appear as you expect (you see "Page cannot be displayed" or "Action canceled," for example), see the Instructions section on this page.
This guide is a compiled Help file and opens in HTML Help.
This content is also available on the Web.

This downloadable CHM is a copy of content in the Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 technical library. The CHM is current as of the date above. For the latest information, see the technical library on the Web.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=c9d6c8c5-8a62-4961-8c1b-df08b667b1c4

Windows User Experience Interaction Guidelines

Brief Description

Download the Windows User Experience Interaction Guidelines (UX Guide) ) for Windows 7 and Windows Vista.

Overview

Use this page to download the Windows User Experience Interaction Guidelines (or UX Guide) ) for Windows 7 and Windows Vista. These guidelines contain information on design principles, and guidelines for controls, commands, text, interaction, windows, messages, aesthetics, and the Windows environment. They help designers and developers create high-quality Windows applications with a consistent “look and feel.“

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=e49820cb-954d-45ae-9cb3-1b9e8ea7fe8c

Outlook 2010: MAPI Reference

Brief Description

August 2009 Technical Preview
The Microsoft Outlook 2010 Messaging API (MAPI) Reference provides the messaging architecture for Microsoft Outlook 2010.

Overview

MAPI for Outlook 2010 provides a set of interfaces, functions, and other data types to facilitate the development of Outlook 2010 messaging applications. Applications and transports use MAPI to manipulate e-mail data, to create e-mail messages and the folders to store them in, and to support notifications of changes to existing MAPI-related data.
The Outlook 2010 MAPI Reference contains documentation for the following MAPI updates:

Support for 64-bit Outlook.
Fast shutdown support for MAPI clients.
A stream structure for field definitions for an Outlook item.
An additional 38 tagged properties and named properties.
The option to link explicitly to MAPI functions.

Installing language modules and adding translated strings.
Testing applications using the new testing features.
Synchronize logins functions.
C/AL reserved words list.
C/AL programming guidelines for formatting, naming, numbering, and other best practices.
Expanded and improved Web Services documentation, including security, delegation and SP1 enhancements.
Styling field text on a page.
Updated action image library that includes images added for SP1.
Expanded C/AL Reference that documents several new and existing properties and triggers.

Microsoft has developed the Productivity Hub to help support your ongoing end user training efforts.
The Hub is a SharePoint Server 2007 site collection that serves as a learning community and is fully customizable. It provides a central place for your training efforts, and includes training content from Microsoft’s core products. Microsoft also provides ongoing and updated content packs.
The Hub uses SharePoint Server’s social networking capabilities, such as blogs and discussion groups. In addition, it offers the Coach program, a change management feature to help you train end users to self-help, reducing the burden on your training and IT staff. The Coach program impacts productivity in a collaborative and positive way.
What the Productivity Hub is:

Format: Pre-loaded SharePoint site collection, optimized for Web 2.0 functionality and easily deployed within SharePoint Server 2007 environment.
Content: Convenient end user productivity training in a variety of formats (documents, videos, podcasts, etc.). Receive free quarterly updates of content that you will learn about through the Productivity blog.
Blog: The Productivity blog offers tips and tricks for end user productivity. Use it as is, or your training staff can use the posts as their own to help them get started in running an internal blog.
Train the trainer: Includes IT/Manager section to aid with deployment of the site collection, and guidance to develop the Coach program.
Products: Office 2007 System applications including SharePoint Server 2007. Windows 7 and others will be added in the future.

You can also download additional content packages that expand the training materials you can make available through the Hub.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=277fefca-d62f-41bc-943d-79002254cfee

Installing Project Server 2007

Brief Description

Walks through a typical Project Server 2007 installation from beginning to end (video, four parts)

Overview

You can deploy Office Project Server 2007 in a server farm environment if you are hosting a large number of sites, if you want the best possible performance, or if you want the scalability of a multi-tier topology.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=a33a6559-85e1-41e5-b209-4d96a114405f

BizTalk Accelerator for SWIFT 2009 Message Pack

Brief Description

Provides schema updates for BizTalk Accelerator for SWIFT to comply with SWIFT worldwide 2009 Standards Release Guide Specification.

Overview

BizTalk Accelerator for SWIFT Message Pack 2009 includes the following features:

The repackaging of all SWIFT FIN FF message types and of all business rules
Updates to schemas and to business rules to make the schemas and the business rules fully compliant with the SWIFT 2009 certification requirements
All the hotfixes that are related to schemas and to business rules but that are not superseded by the SWIFT 2009 certification requirements

BizTalk Accelerator for SWIFT Message Pack 2009 does not contain any components other than schemas, business rules, and Microsoft Office InfoPath forms.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=f18dd828-ad19-4aa3-9fa1-c6b1bb3e27ed

Security, Policy & Compliance

Group Policy Settings References for Windows and Windows Server

Brief Description

These spreadsheets list the policy settings for computer and user configurations included in the Administrative template files delivered with the Windows operating systems specified. You can configure these policy settings when you edit Group Policy objects (GPOs).

Overview

Using column filters, you can filter the information in these spreadsheets by operating system, component, or computer or user configuration. You can also search for information by using text or keywords.
These spreadsheets include the following categories of security policy settings: Account Policies (Password Policy, Account Lockout Policy, and Kerberos Policy), Local Policies (Audit Policy, User Rights Assignment, and Security Options), Event Log, Restricted Groups, System Services, Registry, and File System policy settings. These spreadsheets do not include security settings that exist outside of the Security Settings extension (scecli.dll), such as Wireless Network extension, Public Key Policies, or Software Restriction Policies.

Group Policy Settings Reference for Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7: This spreadsheet lists the policy settings for computer and user configurations included in the Administrative template files (.admx/.adml) delivered with Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7. The policy settings included in this spreadsheet cover Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008, Windows Vista with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2 and earlier service packs, Windows XP Professional with SP2 and earlier service packs, and Windows 2000 with SP4 and earlier service packs.
Group Policy Settings Reference for Windows Server 2008 and Windows Vista Service Pack 1: This spreadsheet lists the policy settings for computer and user configurations included in the Administrative template files (.admx/.adml) delivered with Windows Server 2008 and Windows Vista with Service Pack 1 (SP1). The policy settings included in this spreadsheet cover Windows Server 2008, Windows Vista with SP1, Windows Server 2003, Windows XP Professional with SP2 or earlier service packs, and Windows 2000 with SP4 or earlier service packs.
Group Policy Settings Reference for Windows Vista: This spreadsheet lists the policy settings for computer and user configurations included in the Administrative template files (.admx/.adml) delivered with Windows Vista with no service packs installed. The policy settings included in this spreadsheet cover Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Windows XP Professional with SP2 or earlier service packs, and Windows 2000 with SP4 or earlier service packs.
Group Policy Settings Reference for Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 2: This spreadsheet lists the policy settings for computer and user configurations included in the Administrative template (.adm) files and Security Settings that shipped with Windows Server 2003 with SP2. The policy settings included in this spreadsheet cover Microsoft Windows Server 2003 with SP2 or earlier service packs, Windows XP Professional with SP3 or earlier service packs, and Microsoft Windows 2000 with SP4 or earlier service packs.
This spreadsheet includes separate worksheets for each of the .adm files and the security policy settings that shipped in Windows XP SP3, a consolidated worksheet for easy searching, and an Update History worksheet that lists policy settings that have been added since the Windows Server 2003 operating systems were released.

 A central management server and dashboard

 The next generation of Forefront Client Security

 The next generation of Forefront Security for Exchange Server

 Forefront Online Security for Exchange

 The next generation of Forefront Security for SharePoint Server

 Forefront Threat Management Gateway (Next generation of ISA)

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=d4c3410f-11f0-42b8-9da7-b826d243536b

Security Features in Microsoft Online Services

Brief Description

The Business Productivity Online Suite is a set of subscription-based enterprise software services hosted by Microsoft and sold with partners. The services operate within a complete ecosystem of features and capabilities designed to meet and in many cases to exceed the security and availability goals that you have for your business applications.

Overview

Service security must be proactively designed in to all aspects of the online experience, from the software itself to the supporting infrastructure, from the day-to-day best practices for your own information workers to the buildings housing the data centers. The security architecture for the Business Productivity Online Suite embodies the key principles of the company’s Trustworthy Computing Initiative: security created by design, by default, and by deployment. Developed for global enterprises, Microsoft’s multi-faceted security program applies a common set of security policies to manage risk and mitigate threats to customer data. Microsoft seeks to improve security by working to standardize the way it tests, implements, and monitor policies for all of its customers. In turn, each Business Productivity Online Suite customer benefits from Microsoft’s experience with the security concerns of customers all over the world — and from the practices Microsoft applies to address them.

Section 508 Government VPAT documents

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=a0236224-f9f1-4b8e-8cd8-89ed967d031e

Posted by chrisavis | 0 Comments

Filed under: Downloads

Tuesday, September 08, 2009 8:34 AM

Interesting Downloads for Week Ending – 08-28-2009…..

Infrastructure Development, Operations & Maintenance

· Exchange Server 2010 Management Pack (x86) Release Candidate

· Customizing Windows Vista Business Edition White Paper

· Customizing Windows 7 Business Edition White Paper

· System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 R2 – Evaluation

· Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 2 (SP2) Release Notes

· Risk and Health Assessment Program for Exchange Server – Scoping Tool v1.0

· System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 R2 Release Notes

· System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 R2 Cmdlet Reference

· VMM2008 R2 - Building PRO-Enabled Management Packs

· Microsoft Office SharePoint Online

· IT Pro at Home Demonstration: Location Aware Printing

· Demonstration: Organizing with Libraries

· IT Pro at Home Demonstration: Wireless Networking

· Windows 7 HomeGroup

· Windows 7 Libraries Walkthrough

· Windows Internet Explorer 8 Walkthrough

· Windows Internet Explorer 8 Frequently Asked Questions

· Exchange Management Shell Quick Reference

· Windows 7 HomeGroup Frequently Asked Questions

· Hyper-V Planning and Deployment Guide

· Windows Search Walkthrough

· Windows 7 Libraries Frequently Asked Questions

· Windows Search

· Active Directory Schema Changes Reference, September 2009

· Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 2

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB968912)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems (KB968912)

· Update for Windows XP (KB958911)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 for Itanium-based Systems (KB971029)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition (KB958911)

· Update for Windows XP x64 Edition (KB958911)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 (KB958911)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB968912)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 (KB958911)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB958911)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems (KB958911)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB968912)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB971029)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 (KB968912)

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB958911)

· Update for Windows Vista (KB971029)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB958911)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 (KB971029)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 for Itanium-based Systems (KB958911)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 (KB971276)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition (KB971276)

· Update for Windows XP (KB971276)

· Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB971029)

· Update for Windows XP x64 Edition (KB971276)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition (KB971029)

· Update for Windows XP (KB971029)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 for Itanium-based Systems (KB971029)

· Update for Windows 7 Release Candidate (KB972407)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 (KB971314)

· Update for Windows 7 Release Candidate for x64-based Systems (KB972407)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 for Itanium-based Systems (KB971314)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition (KB971314)

· Update for Windows XP (KB971314)

· Update for Windows Server 2008 (KB971029)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 (KB955704)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 for Itanium-based Systems (KB955704)

· Update for Windows XP x64 Edition (KB955704)

· Update for Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition (KB955704)

· System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 – Evaluation Software

· Deploying VPN Connections by Using Windows Powershell and Group Policy

· Windows Server Update Services 3.0 SP2

· Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 2 Help

· Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 SP2 Deployment Guide

· Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 SP2 Operations Guide

· Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 SP2 Step By Step Guide

· Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 SP2 Features and Fixes

· Microsoft Online Services Directory Synchronization

· Microsoft Windows Server Update Services 3.0 SP2 Release Notes

· Linux Integration Components for Windows Server 2008 Hyper-V R2

· Unified Communications Phones and Peripherals Datasheet

· Planning Tool for Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2

· Microsoft Online Services Migration Tools (32 bit)

· Microsoft Online Services Migration Tools (64 bit)

· Microsoft® Hyper-V™ Server 2008 R2

· Microsoft Product Support Reports

· Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Documentation

· Location Aware Printing

· Location Aware Printing Frequently Asked Questions

· Location Aware Printing Walkthrough

· Windows 7 HomeGroup Walkthrough

· Windows Internet Explorer 8

· Organizing with Windows 7 Libraries

· Office Communications Server 2007 R2 VHD

· Certificate Enrollment Web Services in Windows Server 2008 R2

Solutions & Solution Development

· Internet Explorer 8 Web Slice Tutorials

· Microsoft Forecaster 7.0 Hot Fix 3

· Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 2 (SP2) SDK August 2009

· Internet Explorer Application Compatibility VPC Image

· Nucleus Research Guidebook for patterns & practices 2009

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows 7 for x64-based Systems (KB973874)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Vista x64 Edition (KB973874)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows 7 Release Candidate for x64-based Systems (KB973874)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows XP (KB973874)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows 7 Release Candidate (KB973874)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition (KB973874)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Server 2008 R2 x64 Edition (KB973874)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows 7 (KB973874)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Server 2003 (KB973874)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Server 2008 R2 Release Candidate for Itanium-based Systems (KB973874)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Server 2008 (KB973874)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Server 2008 R2 for Itanium-based Systems (KB973874)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Vista (KB973874)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Server 2008 R2 Release Candidate x64 Edition (KB973874)

· Update for Internet Explorer 8 Compatibility View List for Windows Server 2003 x64 Edition (KB973874)

· Business Portal for Microsoft Dynamics GP 10.0 Software Development Kit (SDK)

· PHP on Windows Training Kit (August 2009)

· Microsoft Dynamics GP 10.0 Tools Documentation: Extender

· Microsoft Dynamics GP 10.0 Tools Documentation: Developer Toolkit

· Excel 2007 Document: Designing SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services Cubes for Excel 2007 PivotTables

· Update Rollup 6 for Microsoft Dynamics CRM 4.0 (KB 970148)

· Microsoft Commerce Server 2009 code name "R2" - August 2009 Community Technical Preview - DVD ISO Image File

· Open XML SDK 2.0 for Microsoft Office

· Windows Cache Extension 1.0 for PHP 5.2 - Beta

· Windows Cache Extension 1.0 for PHP 5.3 - Beta

· SQL Server 2008 Service Pack 1

· 2007 Office System Sample: Open XML Format SDK 2.0 Code Snippets for Visual Studio 2008

· Windows Embedded CE 6.0 Monthly Update (August 2009)

· Windows 7 Application Compatibility

· Rapid Implementation Tools for Microsoft Dynamics GP 10.0 Service Pack 4

· Virtualizing Windows Essential Business Server

· Microsoft Silverlight 3 Offline Documentation

Security, Policy & Compliance

· KMS Setup in Windows 7

· Troubleshooting activation

· Best Practices in Planning for and Deploying Volume Activation

· Understanding Activation and Validation in Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2

· VAMT 1.2 Reporting

· Top 5 Product Key Activation Challenges IT Pro Encountered and Solved

· VAMT 1.2 MAK Activation

· Top 10 Things You Should Know About Genuine Windows

· VAMT 1.2 Overview

· VAMT 1.2 Firewall Setup

· Volume Activation Operations Guide Windows 7

· Volume Activation in Disconnected Environment Guide Windows 7

· Notifications Experience in Windows 7 for End Users

· Windows 7 Improvements in Volume Activation Datasheet

· Product Activation in Development Environment in Windows 7

· Top 7 Things You Need to Know About Activation BDM

· Activation Technologies in Windows 7 Overview Guide

· Volume Activation Planning Guide Windows 7

· Volume Activation Changes for Service Pack 2 for Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008

· Volume Activation Deployment Guide Windows 7

· Microsoft Hosted Volume Activation Guide in Windows 7

· Fundamentals of Volume Activation in Windows 7

· Activating with MAK in Windows 7

· Activating with KMS in Windows 7

· IT Pro at Home Demonstration: Security On Your Terms

· Microsoft Online Services Sign In

· Cross-forest Certificate Enrollment with Windows Server 2008 R2.doc

· Security on Your Terms Walkthrough

· Security Frequently Asked Questions

· Security on Your Terms

Other

· Austrian Ministry of Education Case Study VA in Decentralized Environment

· ELF '09 Revisioning Graphic Recording

· ELF '09 Strategies and Solutions to Overcome Barriers

· ELF '09 Elements of the Vision Graphic Recording

· ELF "09 Barriers to Strategies Graphic Recording

· ELF '09 Barriers to Strategies 2 Graphic Recording

· ELF "09 Barriers to Strategies Graphic Recording

· ELF '09 Dr. Geoff Scott Graphic Recording

· ELF '09 Opening Keynotes Graphic Recording

· Windows Search Frequently Asked Questions

· The Integrated Utility of the Future

· Microsoft Health Engagement Survey 2009

· Volume Licensing Program Guides, Datasheets, and FAQs

· Business Productivity

Organizations will often customize their installations of the Windows® 7 operating system to maximize productivity and realize the full benefits of their software purchase. While Microsoft® encourages organizations to deploy Windows 7 as efficiently as possible, it’s important that organizations understand the available customization options, how to ensure effective deployments, and how to maintain compliance with Microsoft licensing policies. This white paper addresses the following topics:

Explains the concept and benefits of Windows 7 customization
Discusses the interdependencies between customization and Windows 7 activation
Provides a critical explanation of the policy implications of customization by license type
Summarizes common customization scenarios and the implications of each

This white paper is intended for information technology (IT) decision makers and IT professionals who want to customize installations of Windows 7 Professional Edition and seek clarity on the impact of customization in relation to deployment and Microsoft licensing policies.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=85d44c56-7094-4403-926a-3f3e8c09d53a

System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 R2 – Evaluation

Brief Description

System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 R2 (VMM) is a comprehensive management solution for the virtualized data center. It enables increased physical server utilization, centralized management of virtual machine infrastructure, and rapid provisioning of new virtual machines by the administrator, delegated administrator, and authorized end users.

Overview

System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 R2 (VMM) is a comprehensive management solution for the virtualized data center. It enables increased physical server utilization, centralized management of virtual machine infrastructure, and rapid provisioning of new virtual machines by the administrator, delegated administrator, and authorized end users.
VMM 2008 R2 can manage all the platforms managed by VMM 2008 and adds support for Windows Server 2008 R2 with Hyper-V.
Windows Server 2008 R2 includes significant feature improvements to Hyper-V. VMM 2008 R2 leverages these new platform enhancements and extends the feature set of VMM 2008.
Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V Host Management

VMM 2008 R2 creates and manages virtual machines running on Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V hosts. When you add a host that is running Windows Server 2008 R2 that does not have Hyper-V enabled, VMM 2008 R2 automatically enables the Hyper-V role on the host.
VMM 2008 R2 supports the following new features of Windows Server 2008 R2:
- Live migration between Windows Server 2008 R2 clustered hosts. With live migration, you can migrate a virtual machine from one node of a Windows Server 2008 R2 failover cluster to another node in the same cluster without any downtime. Because the virtual machine does not experience any downtime, the move is completely transparent to the users that are connected to the virtual machine.
- Network optimization detection during virtual machine placement. VMM 2008 R2 supports both Virtual Machine Queue (VMQ) and TCP Chimney, which are Windows Server 2008 R2 features that improve network performance for virtual machines.
- Network adapters that support the VMQ feature are able to create a unique network queue for each virtual network adapter and then connect that queue directly to the virtual machine’s memory. This connection routes packets directly from the hypervisor to the virtual machine, bypassing much of the processing in the virtualization stack.
- Network adapters that support the TCP Chimney feature are able to offload the processing of network traffic from the networking stack. Both of these features increase network performance and reduce CPU utilization.
- Hot addition and removal of virtual hard disks (VHDs). In Windows Server 2008 R2, Hyper-V allows users to add and remove VHDs from a virtual machine while it is running.

Feature Bullet Summary:

Live migration
Clustered Shared Volume (CSV) support that enables multiple Highly Available Virtual Machines (HAVM) per LUN.
Hot add of storage
Support for VMware vSphere 4 (VMware VI3 feature parity only)
SAN Migration into and out of clustered hosts
Processor flexibility
Network optimization
Quick storage migration
Maintenance mode for hosts
Support for third party cluster file system, Sanbolic Melio FS
Support for third party storage class resource, Veritas Storage Foundation for Windows
Expanded support for iSCSI SANs
Support for VMware port groups for virtual switches
Support for Virtual Machine permissions assigned in Hyper-V
Dynamic policy based load balancing

Integration with Windows Server 2008 R2.
Support for the BranchCache feature in Windows Server 2008 R2.
Support for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 clients.
Compliance Report
Windows Update Agent (WUA) offers a collection of performance enhancements, user experience improvements, and bug fixes software updates.

The powerful communication devices that are listed in this datasheet are optimized to work with Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 and Microsoft Office Communicator 2007, delivering communications solutions that are easy to deploy, use and manage.
The datasheet provides the following information about each device:

A thumbnail photo of the device
Hardware type
Name of the partner that produces the device
Product name
A brief description of the device
URL for the partner's Unified Communications landing page

New server and new client features
Planning and architecture
Deploying Certificates (applies to both Office Communications Server 2007 and 2007 R2)
Deploying Enterprise and Standard Edition
Deploying specific types of servers and some related technologies, such as load balancers, including Monitoring Server, Archiving Server, Group Chat Server, and Edge servers
Deploying features, including Enterprise Voice, dial-in conferencing, and Response Group Service
Upgrading from the Evaluation Edition to a full released version
Migration from Live Communications Server 2005 or Office Communications Server 2007
Administering Office Communications Server 2007 R2, Communicator Web Access, and Group Chat
Backup and restoration
Security
Troubleshooting
A reference guide for using the command-line to deploy and manage Office Communications Server 2007 R2
A glossary of unified communications terms used in the documentation
A documentation roadmap

This download page contains different VPC images, depending on what you want to test.

IE6-XPSP3.exe contains a Windows XP SP3 with IE6 VHD file. Expires January 1, 2010
IE7-XPSP3.exe contains a Windows XP SP3 with IE7 VHD file. Expires January 1, 2010
IE8-XPSP3.exe contains a Windows XP SP3 with IE8 VHD file. Expires January 1, 2010
IE7-VIS1.exe+IE7-VIS2.rar+IE7-VIS3.rar contain a Vista Image with IE7 VHD file. Expires 120 days after first run.
IE8-VIS1.exe+IE8-VIS2.rar+IE8-VIS3.rar+IE8-VIS4.rar contain a Vista Image with IE8 VHD file. Expires 120 days after first run.

NOTE: August 2009 release updated to support Win7 RTM
The PHP on Windows Training Kit includes a comprehensive set of technical content including demos and hands-on labs to help you understand how to build PHP applications using Windows, IIS 7 and SQL Server 2008. This release includes the following:
PHP & SQL Server Demos

Integrating SQL Server Geo-Spatial with PHP
SQL Server Reporting Services and PHP

PHP & SQL Server Hands On Labs

Introduction to Using SQL Server with PHP
Using Full Text Search over Office Documents in PHP

PHP on Windows Hands On Labs

IIS Access Control Features for PHP
Using IIS 7.0 Media Features in a PHP Application
Troubleshooting PHP
Migrating PHP Applications to IIS 7.0

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=c8498c9b-a85a-4afa-90c0-593d0e4850cb

Microsoft Dynamics GP 10.0 Tools Documentation: Extender

Brief Description

Extender User's Guide and Help
This documentation describes how to use Extender, which is a customization and integration tool that you can use to modify Microsoft Dynamics GP applications.

Overview

You can use this page to download the following documentation components:

Extender User's Guide (ExtenderUsersGuide.pdf or ExtenderUsersGuide.xps): Explains how to use Extender, which you can use to extend the functionality of Microsoft Dynamics GP.
Extender Help (extstd.exe): Includes the Extender User's Guide in HTML Help format, with additional help for Extender windows. The Help is in .chm file format.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=d2a199fd-8969-4089-b8a0-1876ec1ec072

Microsoft Dynamics GP 10.0 Tools Documentation: Developer Toolkit

Brief Description

eConnect, Visual Studio Tools for Microsoft Dynamics GP, and Web Services for Microsoft Dynamics GP Manuals and Help
This documentation describes how to use the Developer Toolkit for Microsoft Dynamics GP, which you can use to build Microsoft .Net-based solutions, customizations, and extensions.

Overview

You can use this page to download the following documentation components.
Help files (Developer Toolkit Help Files.exe)
This .exe file includes the following Help files:

Microsoft Dynamics GP Web Service Reference (DynamicsGPWebServiceRef.chm): Contains detailed information about the operations, classes, enumerations, and policies that are available in the Dynamics GP Web service.
Microsoft Dynamics Security Service Reference (DynamicsSecurityWebServiceRef.chm): Contains detailed information about the operations and classes that are available in the Dynamics Security Web service.
eConnect Programmer's Guide and Reference Help (eConnectProgrammersGuide.chm): Includes the eConnect Programmer's Guide in HTML Help format.

Manuals in PDF or XPS format (Developer Toolkit Manuals PDF.exe or Developer Toolkit Manuals XPS.exe)
These .exe files include the following manuals:

eConnect Installation and Administration Guide (eConnectInstallAdminGuide.pdf or eConnectInstallAdminGuide.xps): Describes how to install eConnect and configure the eConnect services, and includes maintenance and troubleshooting information.
eConnect Programmer's Guide (eConnectProgrammersGuide.pdf or eConnectProgrammersGuide.xps): Describes the eConnect schema and XML documents, explains how to use the eConnect .NET assemblies, and explains how to supplement or modify the eConnect business rules. Also includes information about the sample applications that are included with an eConnect SDK installation.
Visual Studio Tools for Microsoft Dynamics GP Programmer’s Guide (VSTDGPProgrammersGuide.pdf or VSTDGPProgrammersGuide.xps): Explains how to install Visual Studio Tools for Microsoft Dynamics GP and use the tools to create integrating applications for Microsoft Dynamics GP. Also includes reference information about the resources you can access with the tools, and examples of integrations.
Web Services Installation and Administration Guide (WSInstallAdminGuide.pdf or WSInstallAdminGuide.xps): Explains how to install, administer, and run the Web services so they can be used by applications that integrate with Microsoft Dynamics GP. Also explains how to manage security for the Web services.
Web Services Programmer's Guide (WSProgrammersGuide.pdf or WSProgrammersGuide.xps): Explains how to use the Web services in your application development and includes information about the sample applications and extending the Web services.

Multi-tier development support
Business Administration Ribbon
Integrated template pack
Configuration wizard

Note: Given the pre-release nature of this release, not all functionality is currently available. The release is for evaluation purposes only and is not intended to be used in a production environment. The August CTP will not function after March 31, 2010.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=7de27971-ee8e-4396-99e6-5c456f3ae7af

Open XML SDK 2.0 for Microsoft Office

This package contains the developer documentation for Silverlight 3.

This article describes some of the new or changed security features in Windows 7. These features include the new Action Center and the updated UAC. This article also describes how Windows 7 extends BitLocker Drive Encryption to portable storage devices.

This executive summary and white paper describe the Microsoft CPE strategy, a unified framework designed to engage every Microsoft employee in a company-wide effort to improve the satisfaction and overall experience of Microsoft customers and partners.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=569f3ac4-653a-4af6-af37-f9d5a40f6527

Posted by chrisavis | 0 Comments

Filed under: Downloads

Wednesday, September 02, 2009 4:48 PM

Busy Week!

Last week I was wrapping up some personal time off and then lead into a team meeting in San Diego. This was a gathering of the west coast region Developer and Platform Evangelism (DPE) team. It was the first time since my former team integrated with DPE back in February that we have all been together at one place. It was great to see my IT Evangelist peers, Chris Henley and Harold Wong as well as meet many of the people in the organization that I have only been able to email with up till now.

Normally I look forward to these types of meetings mostly as a networking and peer information sharing opportunity. There was no shortage of that for this meeting. But we also had one of the most fun team building events ever in all the years I have been with the company. I have been to plenty of meetings like this and you can usually hear the groans when “team building” events get announced. I have to admit that I wasn’t particularly looking forward to it either. Especially when I saw that 4 hours of the day were carved out for it. But I was pleasantly surprised.

If you have ever watched the TV show “The Amazing Race”, our team building was patterned after that. In fact we were wearing vests that said “Amazing Race” on them which had many people looking at us and even asking us if we were a part of the TV show race. There were a half dozen or so legs to the race where we had to complete a task or figure out a quiz to be able to accept the clue for the next leg. Some of the more memorable legs were - having to eat a small quantity of dried sardines, drawing a piece of art at a museum, exchanging a small keychain for something of greater value with someone on the street, and my all time favorite, trying to determine the brand of beer in three separate glasses. I really wish I could have spent more time on that leg!

When the race fist started I realized quickly just how badly I need to exercise. Jogging to the first check point had my legs hurting. I seriously thought that I was not going to be able to make the entire race, but I had some great teammates that offered some words of encouragement and slowed down to my pace. I believe our team finished 5th place of 8 or so teams so I was pleased with the effort. All in all a great team meeting and great team event!

This week I started off with final preparation for an event I delivered today in Portland. It was the first delivering of the new Technet Presents content we are delivering on the west coast. I am repeating the sessions in Albuquerque next week. Yesterday I made the 3.5 Hour drive to Portland and then stayed up late tweaking my sessions. We had great attendance at the Portland Microsoft sales office and I saw a couple of familiar faces there. I felt a tad bit rusty having not delivered a “long” presentation in quite some time. It was also the first time to deliver some of the content in a live format where questions change the pace so I ended up a little bit behind. (Speaking of questions, I will get answers to the ones Icould not answer during the session and get them posted here as soon as I have them.) I wanted to spend more time showing the Network Access Protection components than I did so I will record a screencast which I will post here when complete. I also wish I could have stayed longer to speak with everyone after the event but I had to make a quick turn around to drive back to Bellevue, WA for a UG meeting this evening.

So…..tonight I have the WNUG user group meeting where Joe Davies will be presenting on “Understanding IPv6 Transition Technologies. Joe writes the "Cable Guy” articles on the web and for Technet Magazine. I also tapped Joe to deliver the DirectAccess and networking session at the upcoming Windows Firestarter Event on Sept 18th at the Microsoft Campus in Redmond. There is still some room to attend the live event so click the previous link to get signed up if you are interested.

Cheers!

Posted by chrisavis | 2 Comments

Filed under: Windows, Windows Server 2008, User Groups, Technet, twitterfeed, Tech News, Windows 7

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