[IPSEC Certificate]

In a test environment i have 3 PCs and 1 domain controller running WS2008 (1 PC with XP 2 with Vista).

After reading about IPSEC i understand that you can use a certificate internally (PC to PC and Domain to PC - i think) to authenticate domains and PCs. So wondering has anyone done this and how does this interact with users browsing the web and RDP in and out of the system (internally and externally)?

Finally is there a test certificate i could create? Im a little rusty in this area so feel free to correct me if im wrong or misunderstood something.

Cheers

[Unable to ping server and client]

When i have a problem like this its usually the firewall....have tried disabling it and see what happens?

[SBS 2003 Ports Problem]

First i would check to see whats running at startup - see anything that you dont recognise and delete it.

Next see if there is a virus....run the latest AV and see the outcome BUT before doing this backup your data. A few years ago a mate of mine ran a virus check and the software he used found a virus. The virus attached itself to all .exe files so he lost all his backup programs.

If there is a virus personally i would reformat and start over as you never know what the virus could have left behind.

If you have no virus then get the firewall to log all ports that it closes and check the event viewer for any hints to why this may be happening.

This will get you started.

[Firewall on Domain]

Ok finally how does SCW fit into all this? Im under the impression that its just an XML file that allows you to define a firewall policy - is this correct?

[Firewall on Domain]

I think NAP has got me started on this as i like the idea of how it works. I think i have a good month's worth of reading on IPSEC as that seems the way to go forward at the moment.

If you guys do have any video links on IPSEC please let me know?

[Firewall on Domain]

Just been reading a few articles on WS2008 and firewalls, NAP etc. Im just wondering if anyone has enabled the default WS2008 firewall on a domain and successfully allowed clients to authenticate etc without huge problems? OR would you say its still not recomended enabling a FW on a domain controller?

If you have what ports are you opening? Im curious to know as WS2008 seems to have a lot of useful and neat features available.

Thanks

[Email services in WS2008]

It was removed in Server 2008 completely, you didn't miss it. I'm not sure why this was done, but I'm guessing it cannibalized sales of Exchange. I can't think of any other reason.

Ohhhh this feature was very useful. Any other freebies of such sort around? and how does IIS SMTP work in terms of sending emails (internally only)

Thanks

[Email services in WS2008]

In WS2003 there was a pop3 email service that you could use (not part of IIS). I cant find this service in WS2008 - has it been removed or have i missed it somewhere?

[RAID/ SATA Configuration]

If you create a RAID1 array that contains the Windows partition and the directory services data, then the RAID controller would have created a mirror on the second drive, and yes, it would take over if the first drive failed. However, if you're talking about moving the current data from a single drive to a new RAID that will be the boot volume, that's different.

I guess I'm still not clear on your actual question.

Ok i have a server which has 1 SATA HD and WS2003 installed on it. I have another SATA HD that i would like to make use of, so i connected this HD to a RAID port. I would like this 2nd drive to mirror the 1st HD........Is this possible?

Let me know if this is still unclear?

Much better . If you are talking about Windows RAID, then no - Windows 2003 cannot create a RAID volume on a boot / Windows volume that isn't RAID (this is software RAID, mind you). As to the hardware RAID, this would be a function of the hardware RAID controller's BIOS - if you can go into that BIOS and create a RAID1 volume of 2 disks without deleting the contents of one of those disks (i.e. it can create a RAID1 volume from an existing disk and an identical new disk), then that would be the way to do it. However, if this causes Windows to boot from a new disk controller, this could cause you to bugcheck as the disk controller would be different.

When i boot up i get a few options to configure this RAID disk. Just before i go further one thing i wanted to remind you.....

(Western Digital - 20GB more space than my original HD- if this makes any difference to my question shortly)

so the new disk has 20GB more.

Now out of these options (Manage array, create array, manage drive etc) im guessing this is hardware RAID so if play around with these options i can mirror the drive and not delete the original installation? when you say "

However, if this causes Windows to boot from a new disk controller, this could cause you to bugcheck as the disk controller would be different

" what do you mean by bugcheck? could i not just tell the BIOS to boot from the original drive?

sorry for the noob question - im new to RAID

[RAID/ SATA Configuration]

If you create a RAID1 array that contains the Windows partition and the directory services data, then the RAID controller would have created a mirror on the second drive, and yes, it would take over if the first drive failed. However, if you're talking about moving the current data from a single drive to a new RAID that will be the boot volume, that's different.

I guess I'm still not clear on your actual question.

Ok i have a server which has 1 SATA HD and WS2003 installed on it. I have another SATA HD that i would like to make use of, so i connected this HD to a RAID port. I would like this 2nd drive to mirror the 1st HD........Is this possible?

Let me know if this is still unclear?

[RAID/ SATA Configuration]

I can't speak to the hardware questions as I'm not familiar with that board or it's history in your box, but I can speak to domain backup. Assuming this is a domain controller in your domain, and this DC also holds the global catalog, then you can use ntbackup to backup the domain structures.

Thanks......i may have asked this question with the wrong terminology.

What im trying to attempt is to "mirror" my domain hard drive with the second SATA hard drive incase the original goes down - if it does the the second drive comes into play. (ive already created a backup but i think what im asking here would be different to a backup)

So far ive connected the 2nd HD to a RAID, but since ive never created a RAID before i dont know if im along the right lines in what im trying to do (create a mirror drive) or if this is something thats not possible at all with this config??

[Few WS2008 questions]

Just need some clarity here:

1. I have one user (in theory ) who uses XP and Vista. I create a profile for him on WS2008 and target it for Vista - What would happen mainly with redirected folders (desktop, Home drive etc or with something like Favourites folder if it is being redirected?) IF the user decides to log onto an XP machine?

2. Am i correct in saying i can install WS2008 standard 64 bit......a few months later if needed i can simply change the product key once purchased to upgrade it to a 64 bit Enterprise edition without a reinstall? (Theres a difference in cost so need to know what our chances are getting away with a standard if not, an enterprise but dont want to spend a gazillion pounds just to upgrade)

3. Dont think this is possible but can you upgrade a 32 bit system (WS2003) to a 64 bit WS2008? "If" yes what would happen to the 32 bit apps on there?

Thanks

[Exchange Error]

Sorry if this is the wrong forum but couldnt find anywhere else to ask this question.

All users sending to one recipient occassionally receives the following error:

Your message did not reach some or all of the intended recipients.

	  Subject:	This is the subject
	  Sent:	27/02/2008 09:09

The following recipient(s) could not be reached:

	  'Robert Deniro' on 27/02/2008 09:14
			You do not have permission to send to this recipient.  For assistance, contact your system administrator.
			<server.Domain.local #5.7.1 smtp;554 5.7.1 <robert@someDomain.co.uk>: Relay access denied>

Ive searched around but cant get to the problem source. Im unsure if its on our side or theirs, although ocassionally emails get through to them especially if were replying to an email they sent.

Can anyone shed any light on this?

Thanks

[Fonts not clear on new monitor]

What resolution are you using now?

HDMI (Type A) is the same DVI over a different cable. I'd say its rather the television incompatible with DVI.

Using 1680 x 1050 - native res for the tv/monitor.

Not sure what could be the problem but for all i know it could have been the cable or even the compatibility between the GC and TV/monitor (just a wild guess) or even the GC may not support HDMI as PuntoMX stated.

A few minutes back i searched around to see if anyone else had a similar issue, some did but no one had any real answers to it.

Why would you use anything other then a DVI to DVI cable?

good question.....i didnt have a DVI to DVI cable at hand so used DVI to HDMI before changing this over to a DVI to VGA

[Fonts not clear on new monitor]

SORTED!!!! - I thought a DVI - HDMI would be the best connection - wrong - i changed it from DVI to the usual VGA and all looked a 100 times better. Maybe PCs aren't ready for HDMI.

[Fonts not clear on new monitor]

Don't take my words for it, as I do not own a flat television. But there was a discussion on Doom9 where a person was searching for best way to encode exactly 1080 pixels vertically (not divisable by 16). In the end the search turned out pointless as the display was always resampling.

Wide > 16:9 > Zoom1 > Zoom2

Let's hope that Wide equals 16:10.

The fonts were looking excellent and all looked perfect BUT i couldnt get the resolution to be correct

What was the resolution at that moment? You should be able to see when resolution is matched exactly. The goal is not better quality, but perfect match.

i believe when i had my old graphics card (standard card with a Dell optiplex GX270 Small Form) connected it was showing 1680 x 1050 but the top and bottom was missing and looked clear. When adjusting it, it made no difference. Even now if i have the GeForce 6200 GC connected and display it at 1680 x 1050 (native res for TV) the bottom top are missing but manually adjusting it 1723 x 1040 shows everything, even at 1680 x 1050 i dont think its as clear compared to using the original graphics card.

[Fonts not clear on new monitor]

@Bad boy Warrior: 1680x1050 is a 16:10 resolution, not 16:9.

hmmmm...... true but i can switch modes on the TV which goes from Wide > 16:9 > Zoom1 > Zoom2. Currently set to wide

I would not be surprised if you can't drive this monitor at its actual resolution. No surprise if it is intended as "TV".

ok but this was also intended as a monitor. The TV was a bonus and since the difference between the price of a monitor and a monitor which included a TV was £30 i thought why not . So are you saying that even if i build a new PC (of course with new graphics cards) i will always have this problem? or is there a specific graphics card that will overcome this problem? If i will always have this problem i'd rather return it back and get a monitor instead, if another card can resolve i dont mind keeping it for a while.

[Fonts not clear on new monitor]

I read those manuals and tried a few things. First i went into Nvidia control panel and under desktop resolution i picked 1680x1050 - ok this changed but i was missing the top, bottom menu bar and sides. Back into nvidia CP i clicked HDTV size then resize - and it seemed somewhat clearer. Now the problem i have now is there's a black border all around the display (a bit like movie cinema borders at the bottom) i then tried to change the TV/Monitor mode from Wide to 16:9 etc but no real difference- Back into the nvidia CP i resize it manually looking at the resolution its 1728 x 1040.

Uninstalled all the drivers etc etc rebooted and installed again (by the way drivers are form nvidias web) - exact same issue. Although at the moment its somewhat acceptable but looking at my server via RDP looks very degrading.

I dont think the monitor is faulty as DVDs and TV seem to appear nice and clear. Its something to do with the monitor resolution and graphics card as this graphics card was nice with a Dell monitor E172FPT 17".

I'm hoping to build a 64 bit system in a few months time so can anyone recommend a graphics card that would suit this TV/Monitor?

Thanks again everyone

EDIT ** Update - ok ive been on this for a couple of days so thought what would happen if i connect my old graphics (the standard built in) card to this TV? - The fonts were looking excellent and all looked perfect BUT i couldnt get the resolution to be correct when i had it to 1680 x 1050 the bottom/top were missing, i installed the correct drivers from nvidia but still made no difference (along with the tv driver). So it leaves me to think that the graphics card and TV are not compatible to an extent or this dell system is too old for this TV or something else

[Fonts not clear on new monitor]

I ran the CD that came with the monitor and installed the driver. Although the monitor in device management now shows the TV/Monitor model, i then re-tuned Cleartype it didnt make a huge difference but some larger fonts seem to look neater than smaller, so at present the fonts look slightly faded, but think this is gonna be the best i can get since its a TV too. DVDs etc come out pretty clear.

I cant get the monitor to run to its default res as its not listed but its close to it. Overall i guess its acceptable and since this is a Dell machine i can only look forward to a new PC with better hardware and hopefully it'll be a lot more crispier. if thats the case......

[Fonts not clear on new monitor]

I suggest you to download latest drivers from NVIDIA page, not from Windows Update. Also try to put refresh rate at least 75 Hertz.

Cheers

Ok will try that and see how it goes. I thought about the refresh rate too. It only has 60 Hz listed and less listed which i thought was strange. There is no "75" but this might be explained towards the end of this thread.

Can you drive this monitor at its real and only resolution? You did not say what it was. On the fly resampling is a no-no.

I did try that and it seemed fine but since i know it can accept 1680 x 1050 i changed it to something close to this resolution. The specs for this monitor are at http://www.ebuyer.com/product/132112 (Samsung SM2032MW 20")

Right click on a blank area of the Desktop and choose [Properties]

Click on the Appearance Tab; Click Effects

Check the box: Use the following method to smooth edges of screen fonts

In the drop down box select: Clear Type

Try that

Think ive already done that but ill double check it as ive picked the Aero theme which i think adds clear type on automatically.

Did anyone care to check what resolution he's running at? If the drivers for your graphics card can't match the resolution of the TV (which my guess is at 1366x768), then the fonts are going to look ugly.

The card used is found here http://www.e-tropolis.co.uk/ProductDetails...;Show=TechSpecs (256MB XFX 6200A AGP 4x/8x 4 Pipes, D-Sub/DVI/S-Video Passive Cooling) but i cant find the resolution it can support - im looking into this but if anyone knows please advise.

And try the "auto" settings button too on the screen...

Unfortunately this TV doesnt have it. I think you switch from HDMI to another input and back to HDMI or just turn it off and back on

With LCD screens, if you don't run the monitors natural resolution, it will look blurry. You mentioned this is a monitor/tv, so realize a 720p is intended for 720 pixels high, but the natural resolution is often 768 pixels high.

Im sure according to that link it should support more - 1680x1050......or is there a catch that im unfamiliar with?

One other thing i forgot to mention (as i only noticed this morning) that the monitor came with a disk which i think is for a PC. If i understood this correctly it may have some calibration tools - not sure but will update as soon as i try this out.

Thanks everyone for your input.

[Fonts not clear on new monitor]

I purchased a new Samsung TV/Monitor (20"), on my PC i have a NVIDIA GeForce 6200 graphics card. I uninstalled this card and reinstalled it with the latest drivers from windows update - so far all seems to go well however when i look at the fonts they seem to be jagged around the edges and not as crispy as they were on other monitors.

The monitor is being connected from a DVI (PC) to a HDMI (TV/Monitor) connection which i thought would give the most clear and accurate display but cant work out why the fonts are jagged?

Any thoughts on this?

Cheers

[RAID/ SATA Configuration]

From my last post i thought i was having a Hard drive problems. As a backup the server somehow started to run and i left it to that. At the same time i ordered another hard drive (Western Digital - 20GB more space than my original HD- if this makes any difference to my question shortly), along with a few cables. Turned out there was a faulty cable as the server seems run fine meaning i have a spare hard drive.

I connected it and thought to use it as another hard drive, strangely when booting up the server woudnt boot. I have an ASUS A8V deluxe MB which has 2 slots for a SATA and i tried both by swapping around wires but couldnt get it to boot, however if i removed the new drive the server booted. I then saw a RAID slot so connected it to a RAID 2 slot and it booted up.

From my question on another board i remember someone mentioning that i can use this RAID drive to backup my domain (or sync the contents)........problem is not sure how to do it and not sure how to configure the RAID and what it exactly does - im sure if i follow the steps from the MB manual itll help but any guidance on if ive done something wrong here?? i.e. should the second SATA connection work? any reason why it may not have booted the server? any disadvantages using this drive as a RAID or should i use it as a SATA (in case ive not configured something correctly)? or is it not possible to backup a domain?

Thanks in advance.

[Copy DC onto Second hard drive]

Im not too sure if this relates to topics asked before but i have an extra hard disk available.

As a backup i would like to have this hard drive to be the backup if the domain was to go down incase i need to replace the hard drive where the domain was originally installed - is this possible?

Thanks

[HDD dying...]

Ok one of our SATA HD is coming close to becoming faulty (or is faulty). The error i had: STOP error 0x00000077 Kernal_Stack_inapge_Error

Tried to do a chkdsk /f /r rebooted and got to stage 4 of 5 when it took about 30 minutes and i couldnt hear any disk activity so decided to power it off :whistle: done this twice

Now i recieve 2 errors which im looking into:

1. Hardware iniated failed, please check device!!!! The BIOS does not be installed, press <g> to continue. (ASUS A8V Deluxe motherboard if you need to know)

2. NTLDR Not found press CTRL, ALT + DELETE to restart.

so im in a loop. I know how to fix the 2nd error by copying the file from the disk but the first error suggests faulty cable/ HDD, which im looking into.....

Although i backup everyday and have most of the data backed up im still losing 1.5 days worth of data as the backup crashed the night before (Server switched itself off). Im wondering of anyone know of any other techniques to recovering this data? ill still be trying everything i can to recover as much as possible but since the drive is partitoned im hoping someone may know how to get some data from it if not all?

Thanks

[What's a good monitor nowadays?]

I'm after a monitor but not sure whats good nowadays. Mainly for development with Aero and not really into any games, but prefer something decent. Ive seen one with these specs:

Number of Screens 1

Actual Screen Size 20"

Viewable Screen Size 20"

Projection Technology Active Matrix TFT

Pixel Pitch 0.258mm

Input Signal Analog

Response Time 5 ms

Display & Graphics

Maximum Resolution 1680 x 1050 @ 60Hz

Resolution 1680 x 1050 @ 60Hz Maximum Resolution

Contrast Ratio 1000:1

Brightness 300 cd/m²

Interfaces/Ports

Ports 1 x 15-pin D-Sub (HD-15) VGA

Power Description

Input Voltage 110 V AC or 220 V AC

Physical Characteristics

Dimensions 16.06" Height x 18.58" Width x 8.86" Depth

Weight 4.9 kg

Any good? if not what am i looking out for?

Thanks