Browse by Tags

• Finding domain controller
• NTLM NTLMv2
• performance optimization x86 x64
• pwdLastSet lastLogon lastLogonTimeStamp stale account computer user
• Windows Deployment Server WDS Remote Installation Server

Return of the Little Shop of Drivers
30 October 09 01:19 PM | kenbrumf | 0 Comments   

It's been a while since I've posted. Just over a year actually... I have this long list of half started posts, but just somehow can never seem to find the time to finish them up. However, with the exciting new release of Win7, I have managed to update Read More...

Getting the most out of the redundancy native to AD when making applications "AD Aware"
09 February 09 11:11 PM | kenbrumf | 0 Comments   

Many customers ask how they can best configure applications so that the applications can take full advantage of the fault tolerance built into Active Directory (AD). While there is no one right answer to this question, there are several common strategies Read More...

Filed under: Finding domain controller

Managing netbootGuid
13 November 08 01:19 PM | kenbrumf | 0 Comments   

The attribute on AD computer objects netbootGuid is very important to allowing some deployment options (RIS and WDS) to locate the computer object the hardware belongs to. Unfortunately certain activities, such as replacing the system board or swapping Read More...

Little Shop of Drivers
18 October 08 07:26 PM | kenbrumf | 0 Comments   

I take all my drivers and put them in %DRIVERS_ROOT_PATH% (see batch code below) and the install images I want to mess with in %FILES_ROOT_PATH%.  One folder per driver, the script iterates through each of the folders, and runs imagex /inf for each Read More...

Idiosyncratic Windows Deployment Server Vista Setup Options
18 October 08 07:58 PM | kenbrumf | 7 Comments   

I found getting both of the below topics to work the way I wanted in Windows Deployment Server (WDS) to be surprisingly tricky and fraught with unexpected results that took me quite a while to figure out. After all, one has to run through some large portion Read More...

Trials and Tribulations of Learning the Vista Automated Installation Functionality
18 October 08 03:17 PM | kenbrumf | 0 Comments   

I've pretty much come to the end of my initial learning curve on how to automate Vista installations using the AIK. There is some great documentation out there on how to execute the specific tasks necessary to add drivers and packages to the image. However, Read More...

Filed under: Windows Deployment Server WDS Remote Installation Server

Identifying Stale User and Computer Accounts
16 September 08 05:20 PM | kenbrumf | 0 Comments   

Using AD to determine whether or not people are still working for the company and are allowed to logon to the systems is not the ideal, and account management should happen based on knowing what accounts should and should not be use, and not by figuring Read More...

Filed under: pwdLastSet lastLogon lastLogonTimeStamp stale account computer user

Performance Optimization Philosophy
14 August 08 01:20 PM | kenbrumf | 0 Comments   

Optimizing performance is not just about making things run faster, it is about making them run appropriately fast based on perception and cost. Several questions may be posed at this junction: Why does philosophy need to be discussed? Isn't performance Read More...

Filed under: performance optimization x86 x64

NTLMv2 or not NTLMv2, that is the question.
08 August 08 09:44 PM | kenbrumf | 0 Comments   

Enabling NTLMv2 is a project always fraught with challenges, mostly due to the lack of visibility into exactly which authentication protocol is being used by a client machine. Management often is not gung-ho about the try it and see what breaks methodology Read More...

Filed under: NTLM NTLMv2