The Life of Brian : Windows Server 2003

Windows Event log limitations

BrianM — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 17:50:00 GMT

Not sure how many people modify the size of the Windows Event Logs but it is something that I like to do simply because the default sizes of most them is just not enough. For example you may remember the default for your System and Application log...(read more)

Unable to Change Share Permissions on a File Share Cluster Resource

BrianM — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:50:00 GMT

I ran into a weird issue the other day when configuring permissions on a Share that was clustered. I couldn’t find much online about this, and the one similar issue from Russ was not the issue here. Here is a little background info to help set the...(read more)

How to Remove a Failed or Offline DC

BrianM — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 20:13:00 GMT

I’ve seen this issue come up time and time again. Some administrator decided to remove an old DC from the network but forgot to remove it from Active Directory or the DC has entered a failed state and cannot be recovered from. In a perfect...(read more)

How to Search for an Email Address in Active Directory

BrianM — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 21:44:00 GMT

From time to time I’ve had to figure out which user account has a specific email address. Actually its more like finding who has the “reallycoolemailaccount@company.com ” so another “more senior” person can get it. Well if you work in a smaller...(read more)

Must Have Group Policy Setting!

BrianM — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 21:22:00 GMT

I recently blogged about time and how critical it is in a domain environment. Just this morning I read a post from the Directory Services Team that shows how to configure WMI Filtering through Group Policy to ensure that the PDC Emulator always has the...(read more)

KDC 11 Error in the System Event Log

BrianM — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 00:12:00 GMT

I ran into this error awhile back after building a new root level Domain Controller (DC). My initial health checks panned out ok but after about an hour the following should up in my System Event log: Event Type: Error Event Source: ...(read more)

What W32tm is it anyway?

BrianM — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:49:00 GMT

My daughter Alyssa and I play a game…well she might not consider it a game but she is constantly asking me “What time is it without looking”. I’ve actually gotten pretty good at it and can usually get within a few minutes. Not sure why...(read more)

Frustration with Server 2008

BrianM — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 21:12:00 GMT

Please don’t just read this post…participate by answering the questions I ask using the comments. Don’t worry you don’t have to register. :) One of the things that I’ve been waiting awhile for, was a Windows operating system that is smart...(read more)

What Version is Your Schema at?

BrianM — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 00:44:00 GMT

Have you ever had one of those jobs where you just weren’t sure what Schema update had been applied in an environment? The following command will let you know which of the Windows Server Schema updates have been applied. dsquery.exe * "CN=Schema...(read more)

RODC Compatibility Issues with Down-Level Clients

BrianM — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 20:15:01 GMT

I just read over at Jane Lewis's blog that if you plan on deploying Server 2008 Read Only Domain Controllers (RODC) and have down-level clients (XP and 2003 clients) then you will want to check out the RODC Compatibility Pack. I know a lot of people...(read more)

Active Directory Health Checks for Domain Controllers

BrianM — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 03:35:00 GMT

I've just written a small article on the common steps that I perform when doing health checks on domain controllers. AdminPrep is not up right now so I'll post the health check stuff here. I would love for you to come back here and let me know...(read more)

Clustering SQL Server Integration Services

BrianM — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 14:55:22 GMT

Had the pleasure of clustering SSIS the other day and it was not as simple as a thought it should have been. Not that it was difficult it was just being tricky. To cluster a service like this you have to select the Generic Service resource type for the...(read more)

Access Free Virtual Labs from Microsoft

BrianM — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 03:42:00 GMT

I just found another gem that I'm sure everyone will love. While surfing over at IIS.net I saw that they had 5 virtual labs on IIS, three on IIS 7 and two on IIS 6. These are the real deals where you connect to an actual Virtual Machine and have free...(read more)

Update: AdminPak for Windows Vista

BrianM — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 17:46:34 GMT

I wanted to keep everyone up-to-date on the latest developments of the missing AdminPak for Windows Vista. To catch up on the subject you can look here and then here . I have some good news and some OK news. First the good news: I have been informed by...(read more)

AdminPak for Windows Vista

BrianM — Mon, 28 May 2007 16:44:00 GMT

Updated News Here Here is a brief update to a problem a lot of us have encountered, installing the AdminPak on Windows Vista to support your server environment. Take a look here for my previous post on this that has the only supported work around from...(read more)

Backing up and Restoring Group Policies

BrianM — Mon, 28 May 2007 16:01:26 GMT

If you need a little help learning how to backup and restore Group Policy take a look at this video I have showing how to do it. Backing up and Restoring Group Policies...(read more)

Microsoft Cluster Configuration Tool

BrianM — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 14:19:03 GMT

I just noticed that the Microsoft Cluster Configuration Validation Wizard was released yesterday. Don't bother about the long name, everyone just calls it ClusPrep. This is a great little tool that will evaluate potential nodes that are to be clustered...(read more)

Restore files from older backups on Vista and Longhorn

BrianM — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 16:34:00 GMT

If you migrating to Windows Vista or playing with Longhorn you may be interested in this newly released utility. The Windows NT Backup - Restore Utility allows you to restore files that were backed up in Windows XP or Server 2003 to Windows Vista and...(read more)

TechNet's Active Directory Jigsaw

BrianM — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 03:23:00 GMT

At last year’s Tech-Ed TechNet Magazine gave away a really cool Active Directory Jigsaw puzzle. I just saw that it is now available online to download. I think it is a great resource for everyone who interacts with Active Directory to look at. Check out...(read more)

Unbelievable Remote Desktop Software!!!

BrianM — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 15:26:00 GMT

I’ve been looking for a good tool that allows me to manage a large amount of servers via Remote Desktop for…well for as long as I can remember. I’ve become tired of the Remote Desktops MMC because of its lack of features. Yesterday I found a truly unbelievable...(read more)