Networknet.nl

After fixing my Active Directory I start the upgrade of my current Exchange 2007 server. As you will see from the screenshots below the installation is straight forward but the requirements are killing me with this service pack upgrade. First of all make sure  a) your Active Directory replication is working properly, b) Exchange 2007 server has been installed with Windows Server 2003 SP2 and c) Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 Service Pack 1 has been installed. To complete these requirements as posted before I was forced to remove one of my domain controllers running in a virtual machine with dcpromo /forceremoval and metadata cleanup; this box did not replicate for three months.

You can also upgrade from command line. I used gui mode to illustrate the process.

Setup.com /mode:upgrade

 

Check the hyperlink at Technet for all updates within SP1 What’s New in Exchange Server 2007 SP1. I like to integration with Windows Server 2008 and Exchange 2007 Sp1, Exchange Management console updates and the OWA premium changes.

Couple minutes ago I initiated the remove of Active Directory and forced the demotion of a virtual machine domain controller. The domain controller exceed the 60day not being able to replicate and I was not able to get the replication working. It took me more than 90 minutes to troubleshoot and fix the problem. Since Windows 2003 there is option in the dcpromo tool to force the Active Directory removal.

1. By default, Windows Server 2003 domain controllers support forced demotion. Click Start, click Run, and then type the following command: dcpromo /forceremoval 2. Click OK. 3. At the Welcome to the Active Directory Installation Wizard page, click Next. 4. At the Force the Removal of Active Directory page, click Next. 5. In Administrator Password, type the password and confirmed password that you want to assign to the Administrator account of the local SAM database, and then click Next. 6. In Summary, click Next. 7. Perform a metadata cleanup for the demoted domain controller on a surviving domain controller in the forest.

Reboot the server and cleanup the metadata with ntdsutil. I hate to use workaround like this, but there is not quick and dirty fix for me now. I am planning and testing to upgrade my Exchange 2007 server to SP1, but because the replication to the second dc did not take place for more than 60days the replication stopped.

One of the Errors on my primary domain controller. Demote didn’t work with force removal and option 3 also did not fix the problem when using the registry fix.

Event Type:    Error
Event Source:    NTDS Replication
Event Category:    Replication
Event ID:    2042
Date:        4/27/2008
Time:        5:18:39 PM
User:        NT AUTHORITY\ANONYMOUS LOGON
Computer:    NET-DC-01
Description:
It has been too long since this machine last replicated with the named source machine. The time between replications with this source has exceeded the tombstone lifetime. Replication has been stopped with this source.
The reason that replication is not allowed to continue is that the two machine’s views of deleted objects may now be different. The source machine may still have copies of objects that have been deleted (and garbage collected) on this machine. If they were allowed to replicate, the source machine might return objects which have already been deleted.
Time of last successful replication:
2008-01-26 20:26:04
Invocation ID of source:
01dcf6c8-f6b8-01dc-0100-000000000000
Name of source:
e02a9b21-b7e0-4be6-9cc9-971b00325f65._msdcs.Networknet.nl
Tombstone lifetime (days):
60
The replication operation has failed.
User Action:
Determine which of the two machines was disconnected from the forest and is now out of date. You have three options:
1. Demote or reinstall the machine(s) that were disconnected.
2. Use the “repadmin /removelingeringobjects” tool to remove inconsistent deleted objects and then resume replication.
3. Resume replication. Inconsistent deleted objects may be introduced. You can continue replication by using the following registry key. Once the systems replicate once, it is recommended that you remove the key to reinstate the protection.
Registry Key:
HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\NTDS\Parameters\Allow Replication With Divergent and Corrupt Partner

For more information, see Help and Support Center at http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp.

For more information check the knowledge base article.

Vorige week stond in MediaMarkt folder een fantastische aanbieding waar ik al weken op had gewacht. Canon EOS 400D met 18-55MM Canon lens was nu voor een ongelooflijke betaalbare prijs te koop. Ik mocht tijdje geleden aantal foto’s mee maken en was meteen verliefd op dit apparaat. De kwaliteit die deze foto camera maakt is echt waanzinnig en natuurlijk voor een prijs waar ik als amateur voor wil betalen.

Aantal Features van Canon EOD 400D

• 10.1 Megapixel CMOS sensor
• EOS Integrated Cleaning System
• 2.5″ LCD
• 9-point wide-area AF
• Picture Styles
• DIGIC II
• 3fps with up to 27 frame burst
• DPP RAW image processing software
• Compact and lightweight
• EF/EF-S lens and EX Speedlite flash compatible

Zie hieronder aantal van mijn voorbeelden:

Ik ga komende week naar New York  en een prima gelegenheid om Canon EOS 400D te gaan testen. Tot zover ben ik heel erg blij met de aankoop en reacties die op Kieskeurig te lezen zijn waren alle positief.

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I tried to query my Windows 2008 Server roles by using the ServerManagerCmd.exe cmd tool and received nice red error as shown below.

C:\>ServerManagerCmd.exe -query

Error: Configuration was started by another administrator.That administrator must log in to complete that action before other administrators can install or remove additional features.

This tool opens a new horizon for me and other IT administrators but it didn’t work when I tried to use it for the first time. Google and Microsoft forums didn’t help  so tried to troubleshoot myself. I read through the “Server Manager Scenarios Step-by-Step Guide” but this didn’t help me either. I decided to install the PoweShell feature manually and now I got a popup box that another process was in progress but I didn’t see it. I clicked yes and didn’t create a screenshot of this message, but this is how I resolved this issue.

Gisteren samen met mijn collega HeliView Virtualisatie edition 5 event bezocht. Het event vond plaats in het Maasgebouw Kuip in Rotterdam. Het event vanuit mijn kant gezien was zeer interessant en VMWare duidelijk aanwezig; jammer genoeg niets te zien over Hyper-V maar wel interessante discussies met mede IT-Pros gehad. Ik heb meeste van de business track sessies gevolgd. Sommige sprekers hadden Hyper-V en de toekomst over de Hypervisors in hun presentaties meegenomen. Ik ben benieuwd wat we over een jaar zullen zien en hoe de markt Hyper-V in zich zal laten integreren.

Vandaag 25+ ongelezen emails binnen en van deze was Daniel van Soest over de launch van TechNet IT-Professional Community Blog.

TechNet is volop in beweging. Vorige maand hebben wij de Nederlandstalige versie van TechNet Magazine gepubliceerd en een succesvol evenement georganiseerd rondom de launch van een aantal belangrijke 2008-producten.Tijdens en na deze IT-HerOlympics hebben we uitvoerig over dit evenement geblogd. Hierop hebben we zoveel positieve reacties gehad dat we de lijn doorzetten.
Daarom is er vanaf vandaag een blog in de lucht waar de IT-professional, u dus, zijn ei kwijt kan. Heeft u een implementatie uitgevoerd van een Microsoft-product? Heeft u oplossingen die u wilt delen met anderen? Wilt u interessante werkzaamheden delen met andere IT-professionals? Kom bloggen.

Vanmorgen een podcast in de auto geluisterd over de gedachte achter edge.technet.com en het concept. Ik ben blij dat vanuit NL Microsoft IT Pro Evangelists het initiatief is genomen voor onze eigen community blog. Ik hoop dat ik hierbij ook een steentje bij kan dragen.

If you are managing local area networks which extent the UTP capabilities than most likely some kind of fiber optic equipment has been installed. Recently I evaluated couple of different Cisco switch models and ordered one Cisco Switch 2940-8TF to test with current equipment I am managing. Please make sure to read the product details and order the right fiber cable. Most of the equipment I have has a ST connector; Cisco 2940 has a integrated 100BASE-FX port with MT-RJ connector. Check wikipedia for more information on optical fiber connectors.

Cisco product details:

The Cisco Catalyst 2940-8TF is a member of the Catalyst 2940 Series Switches, small, standalone, managed switches with 8 Fast Ethernet ports and a single integrated Fast Ethernet or Gigabit Ethernet uplink. The switches are designed to be used outside the wiring closet in the end-user workspace, such as classrooms or conference rooms, and feature a durable metal shell, no fan for silent operation, easy wall or under-the-desk mounting, a security lock slot to prevent theft, and an available cable guard to lock down cables and help prevent theft.

Complete with a simple web-based Express Setup, a free Java-enabled web-based monitoring and configuration tool, and the rich functionality of Cisco IOS, this switch provides comprehensive functionality and manageability for classrooms, conference rooms, or other small workgroup environments. Easy to install and manage, periodic software updates for life, and built to last, these switches provide outstanding investment protection and the lowest total cost of ownership in its product class.

• 8 Ethernet 10/100 ports + 1 Ethernet 100BASE-FX + 1 1000BASE-X SFP port (one uplink active at a time)
• Wall-mountable, standalone, managed switch
• Catalyst 2940 Standard Image (SI) software
• Available with optional Cable Guard

During the installation I collected some screenshots. Take couple of seconds and check out the web and telnet interface of Cisco 2940 switch here.