Citrix releases a sample VHD of Presentation Server 4.5

The Citrix Evaluation Virtual Appliance (EVA) is a new pre-configured, ready-to-go, virtual machine system for evaluating Citrix Presentation Server Platinum Edition™. Based on a Microsoft .VHD Test Drive base image of Windows 2003 Server R2, the Citrix EVA will enable evaluators to interact with the Citrix management interface, and evaluate our application delivery infrastructure from both the administrative and end-user perspectives within as little as 10 minutes after completing the download.

Check it out at: http://www.citrix.com/English/ps2/products/feature.asp?contentID=658703

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Link Pick: Managing Roaming User Data Deployment Guide

Windows Vista handles User data and Profiles much differently than Windows XP. For that reason you will need to think carefully when migrating to Vista. I found a good document that explains some of the key differences in profiles between Windows Vista and XP that is definitely worth checking out. It is called the Managing Roaming User Data Deployment Guide and is available at:

http://technet2.microsoft.com/WindowsVista/en/library/fb3681b2-da39-4944-93ad-dd3b6e8ca4dc1033.mspx?mfr=true

One interesting tidbit from this document is that the problem of profiles getting "stuck" and not unloading at logoff is supposedly totally fixed by Vista and it should never happen. Here is the text from the document...

Profile unload failures at logoff

"Sometimes, earlier versions of Windows falied to unload the registry portion of the user profile. Many times this failure prevented the user from subsequent logons to the same computer. Windows Vista always unloads the registry portion of the user profile, even if it must forcefully do so, prior to synchronizing the profile to the profile server. Windows, when forcefully unloading profiles, writes an event message to the event log. The description of the event contains the name of the process that prevented the registry from unloading and the closed registry path."

Woo Hoo!

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Connecting Wirelessy with Vista

If you just got a new Vista laptop and are confused about setting up your Wireless connection here are a few links for you:

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/columns/cableguy/cg0406.mspx

and

http://www.techwarelabs.com/guides/misc_mod/vistaconnection/

There are a few differences between Windows XP and Vista when it comes to wireless.

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FAQ: Windows Vista Volume Activation: Can a Windows 2003 Server SP1 machine run Key Management Services for Windows Vista?

Well as you start to get Windows Vista systems in, the question of licensing is going to come up. I've had to do some research on this topic to answer my own questions and now am sharing my results.

In the enterprise you mainly have a choice of either Vista Business or Vista Enterprise. The big difference in Vista Enterprise over Business is that Enterprise will allow you to make up to 3 VM's with the same license on one Vista Machine. Useful for developers!

At any rate you have a choice of licensing Vista with either what is called a Mutilple Access Key(MAK) or setting up your own Key Managment server (KMS) on site. Microsoft tries to explain its Vista licensing for volume activation users a bit at:

http://www.microsoft.com/licensing/resources/vol/default.mspx

Vista can be activated in a few ways. It does this either by contacting Microsoft Servers using the MAK or by contacting a KMS server you have set up in your environment. There is a stipulation about having the ability to have a KMS and it is there must be at least 25 Vista nodes to run it. Obviously if you do not allow internet access to your users your choice is limited to KMS. If you have less than 25 machines in your Office and don't allow internet access you probably will be SOL after a few months until you connect to the MAK and activate your licences. : (

KMS Vista activated machines must call home to the KMS server at least every 6 months. If you are using MAK you only need to connect 1 time to the Microsoft servers for activation, the machines will not have to be reactivated. There is a good guide to licensing Vista at:

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsvista/bb335288.aspx

Anyways the whole point of my article here is the rumour going around I have been getting told is that a Vista KMS can only be run on either a Vista Machine or on Server 2008 (formerly code named Longhorn and still not available yet!). This is not the case though!

Microsoft in March of this year released Key Management Server software that WILL run on Windows Server 2003 SP1 or later Servers. You can go out and get it now from:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=81d1cb89-13bd-4250-b624-2f8c57a1ae7b&DisplayLang=en


You will also want to have a look at the Windows Vista Volume Activation Technical guide which also has included a web page you can set up to recover licenses that have gone into Reduced Functionality Mode (RFM) (go read up on that one!) Check it out at:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=9893F83E-C8A5-4475-B025-66C6B38B46E3&displaylang=en

Hope this gets a few of your questions answered about Windows Vista Volume licensing and gets you pointed in the right direction to get started as Windows Vista Systems will be coming your way sooner than later!

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Download Pick of the Week: DTaskManager Task Manager Replacement

Hi all,

Been a while since I posted a download pick but here is one I just had to share. It is called DTaskManager. This utility is written by a guy named Dimitrios Coutsoumbas and really revs up TaskMan in Windows XP and Vista. Some cool features are that you can click on an application and choose the "Go to process" button and it will take you directly to the process that is associated with the app.

It also gives you the ability to see all active ports and find out what file is using that port. You can also temporarily suspend processes, or really kill a process. Lots of goodies with this one!

The program is available on Dimitrios site along with several other useful freeware utilities (check out Dshutdown to shutdown a workstation with a plethora of options) at http://dimio.altervista.org/eng/ or from Snapfiles.com at http://www.snapfiles.com/get/dtaskmanager.html

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Dear Apple... stay off of my desktop, out of my quick launch, and out of my System tray and Registry Run Key!

Ok I don't usually rant too often but I've just about had my fill with Apple Software. They have recently released a beta version of their Safari Web Browser that runs on Windows. Good for them.

/Rant On
On the few Mac's I have used, I'll admit, I really like the Safari browser it is quick and intuitive. That being said, Apple decided to bundle Safari Beta 3 with its hailed Quicktime media player. The incessant beast that no matter what you do plants itself in to your registry Run key and insists on reappearing even if you delete it.

Apple feels that it is in their right without even asking you during installation, to place icons on your desktop, in your quicklaunch, in your system tray and on your start menu not to mention in the root of your start menu, not even in its own folder! This combined with the fact their Quicktime qttask app getting put on the run key of the registry and can not be removed no matter how hard you try, makes this Apple software a piece of crap that should not ever be put on a Windows PC.

Yeah, I know it is a beta but here is more crappola, because it included Quicktime, the Safari beta uninstalled my version of quicktime that I had all set up nicely and had already added my plugins to, and wiped it all out leaving me to have to reconfigure quicktime again and go out and find the plugins. 1st thing of course I have to do again, is to get that incessant icon out of my system tray and quick launch bar. WTF?

Apple, you are supposed to be a major player in the computer industry, why can't you learn how the install process works in Windows and not be so virulent? Ask users if they want you in all up in their face.. don't just assume they do!

Get a clue!

/Rant off

I feel better now.

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Site Pick: Free Windows Vista drivers

Here is a good site I came across to help yout find those needed drivers for Windows Vista:

 

http://www.radarsync.com/vista/

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