System Admin Technical Blog

Trouble with static content in you Web Apps on Windows Server 2008 R2

2010-01-21T14:28:00.000-08:00

Are you having trouble with static content in you web pages after uprgrading to Windows Server 2008 R2 ?

Try adding the "Static Content" Role Service to the Web Server role.

Static content can be HTML pages, Image files ( jpg, png, gif ) etc...

A little info from MS regarding the Web Server (IIS) Role Services in IIS 7.5

Static Content

Static Content lets the Web server publish static Web file formats, such as HTML pages and image files. Use Static Content to publish files on your Web server that users can then view using a Web browser.

You may also want to reference the following TechNet article:

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc753473.aspx

A Few Good OSI Model Reference Sites

2009-11-17T11:15:00.000-08:00

Here's a list of a few good OSI model reference sites that I have found useful and informative.

Good overall site that has nice diagrams.
http://wiki.hill.com/wiki/index.php?title=Open_Systems_Interconnection_Reference_Model

This one incorporates some 802.11 wireless technologies at the physical layer...
http://www.cable360.net/ct/strategy/emergingtech/25375.html

Error ID:1023 Source: MSI installer Error 29528

2009-04-14T14:28:00.000-07:00

Error ID:1023
Source: MSI installer

Product: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 - Update 'Service Pack 3 for SQL Server Database Services 2005 ENU (KB955706)' could not be installed. Error code 1603. Additional information is available in the log file C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQLServer\90\Setup Bootstrap\LOG\Hotfix\SQL9_Hotfix_KB955706_sqlrun_sql.msp.log.

Solution:

According to our research, this was not only and issue with SQL SP3, but also with SP1 and SP2

We found this article helped some folks but not us.
http://social.msdn.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/sqlsetupandupgrade/thread/3a9324d4-e28a-40a0-b2db-f0d5855ec7b2/

Our solution was to follow the directions in MS KB925976
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/925976

Apparently the SQL instance was installed prior to the DCPROMO and the local groups listed under the Setup key were invalid. We deleted the SIDs for the following keys and then service pack ran without error.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL.X\Setup\SQLGroup
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL.X\Setup\AGTGroup
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL.X\Setup\FTSGroup
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL.X\Setup\ASGroup

Other related symptoms we observed while troubleshooting this issue...

Error message when you try to install a SQL Server 2005 service pack or a SQL Server 2005 hotfix package: "Error 29528. The setup has encountered an unexpected error while Setting Internal Properties"

Errors from throughout the 9.5MB SQL9_Hotfix_KB955706_sqlrun_sql.msp.log file: Transforming table Error

Creating Symbolic Links, Hard Links and Junction Points (soft links)

2008-12-17T05:28:00.000-08:00

Have you ever wanted to move files from one hard disk drive or partition to another, but we're afraid that Windows or some applications would take issue to the move. You could try hacking the registry, but unfortunately not all applications use it to track where their program files are stored.

NTFS can make use of symbolic links that are not normally exposed to the user by default. These links basically make the OS think that the files are located in one location when in face they could be on another drive or partition. I have listed a few programs below that should cover all Windows versions from Windows 2000 to Windows Server 2008.

Windows has a utility called LINKD but you will need to have or purchase the Windows Resource Kit to get it and it is limited in functionality. Junction by Sysinternals works better than LINKD and is free to download from the microsoft site.

Vista and Server 2008 have a command line utility called MKLINK. It can create symlinks to files and folders local machine and remote host. This is unlike Junction which is limited to local machine and folder only symlinks.

If you would like a GUI to view symlinks and create junction points "Junction Link Magic" is freeware.

Additional Info:

Wikipedia - NTFS Symbolic Link
Microsoft (MSDN) - Creating Symbolic Links or Hard Links and Junctions

CHM HTML help file issues...

2008-12-16T05:01:00.000-08:00

We noticed that our help files was not working properly when accessed over the network. There was no issue working with the CHM files locally. I found a great utility for troubleshooting Help file issues called "MJ's Help Diagnostics" you can download the program for free from the authors website here. They also have many other helpful apps on their download page.

As for my specific issue. " Navigation Canceled " in the IE content pane of the HTML help file.

CAUSE:

MS05-026: A vulnerability in HTML Help could allow remote code execution

See MS KB896358

Workaround:

You can add the URL to the Allow List in the registry using a reg file.

Text to copy:

REGEDIT4
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\HTMLHelp]
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\HTMLHelp\1.x\ItssRestrictions]
"UrlAllowList"=" \\SERVERURL\;file://\\SERVERURL "

For more info about this registry tweak see MS KB896358

Additional Resources:

For additional help with the CHM / HTML help file issues you should check out Rob's blog...

Help MVP Rob Chandler’s blog explains this in more detail.

He also lists fixes for other HTML Help issues that result from MS Updates. See the list here...

Error - Event ID: 36882 - Source: Schannel

2008-09-25T13:53:00.000-07:00

I stumbled upon Event ID: 36882 Source: Schannel on a Windows 2003 Server when running SQL Server 2005 in this case Express edition.

Cause

The error occurs when the SQL service is restarted and an attempt is made to open a table using the SQL Server Management Studio Express.

Event Type: Error
Event Source: Schannel
Event Category: None
Event ID: 36882
Date: 9/23/2008
Time: 3:39:52 PM
User: N/A
Computer: %COMPUTERNAME%
Description:
The certificate received from the remote server was issued by an untrusted certificate authority. Because of this, none of the data contained in the certificate can be validated. The SSL connection request has failed. The attached data contains the server certificate.

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

A Comment by Event Log Doctor on myeventlog.com tells us that we can find the untrusted CA by examining the binary data. Please visit myeventlog.com for details.

"Open File - Security Warning" when using a mapped drive

2008-09-19T05:38:00.002-07:00

The "CAUSE" is described in Microsoft's KB Article ID : 303650

CAUSE
"This behavior may occur if an FQDN or IP address contains periods. If an FQDN or IP address contains a period, Internet Explorer identifies the Web site or share as in the Internet zone."

These maps correctly to the Intranet Zone.

http://servername.ourdomain.com/
http://servername/ maps
\\servername\sharename

But this maps to the Internet Zone.

\\servername.ourdomain.com\sharename

I found some good information about this here.

Synergy

2008-09-19T05:38:00.001-07:00

I just found an awesome open source application called Synergy. You can find it on SourceForge.net.

This is basiclly a Virtual KVM using a Client Server model over TCP. You can seemlessly move your mouse from one screen to the other and the keyboard control is passed over to the other PC as well. You also have access to a shared clipboard.

Here is the Introduction section from their website at SourceForge as of today.

Quote Begin: From synergy2.sourceforge.net

Introduction
synergy: [noun] a mutually advantageous conjunction of distinct elements

Synergy lets you easily share a single mouse and keyboard between multiple computers with different operating systems, each with its own display, without special hardware. It's intended for users with multiple computers on their desk since each system uses its own monitor(s).

Redirecting the mouse and keyboard is as simple as moving the mouse off the edge of your screen. Synergy also merges the clipboards of all the systems into one, allowing cut-and-paste between systems. Furthermore, it synchronizes screen savers so they all start and stop together and, if screen locking is enabled, only one screen requires a password to unlock them all. Learn more about how it works.

Synergy is open source and released under the GNU Public License (GPL).

System Requirements

Microsoft Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows Me (the Windows 95 family)
Microsoft Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows XP (the Windows NT family)
Mac OS X 10.2 or higher
Unix
X Windows version 11 revision 4 or up
XTEST extension
(use "xdpyinfo grep XTEST" to check for XTEST)
All systems must support TCP/IP networking.

"Unix" includes Linux, Solaris, Irix and other variants. Synergy has only been extensively tested on Linux and may not work completely or at all on other versions of Unix. Patches are welcome (including patches that package binaries) at the patches page.

The Mac OS X port is incomplete. It does not synchronize the screen saver, only text clipboard data works (i.e. HTML and bitmap data do not work), the cursor won't hide when not on the screen, and there may be problems with mouse wheel acceleration. Other problems should be filed as bugs.

Quote End:

I decided to start a blog...

2008-09-19T05:38:00.000-07:00

I decided to start a blog to capture some of the things I learn on a daily basis.

I wanted a way to give back to the online community that has helped me so much over the years in my career.

As a Systems Administrator I do most of my research online and greatly appreciate those folks that have posted their valuable lessons and experiences online.