Another quick tip. I’m currently working in Afghanistan doing IT contracting and we use a system of Canopys to avoid running cable all over base. Occasionally the Canopys will detect weather radars or mobile radar systems and shut down for 30 mins. the way we get around that is setting the Region Code to Other. that will force them to ignore radar interference and not shut down for 30 mins.

I have been trying to get fitter, and being the geek i am i have been trying out different android apps. Sofar ive checked out Run Keeper, Cardio Trainer, and Runtastic.

Runkeeper is pretty great app! It does everything i was looking for, and connects to a website where you can look over your workouts. Most of the stats are useful, the mapping is excellent (but it does have some GPS lock on issues that can get pretty tiresome) . Its an overall good solution for workout tracking. doesn’t really stand out, but it does its job. Here is an example of a runkeeper workout.

Cardio trainer is much more social, has ALOT more options, and integrates with Google health. It has alot of little fun apps where you can “train your droid” and have it compete with your friends droid (crappy facebook game), a live wallpaper where snacks disappear as you burn their equivalent in calories. I stopped using it because it required you to install a facebook app to post your activity. its a general pain in the ass to share with others. But the google health integration is pretty great if you are using it, and don’t already have a fitbit.

Runtastic is what im currently using. It has everything runkeeper does and a bit more. Much more workout details available on the site. It seems like someone took runkeeper, fixed the GPS issues, and added alittle more details to the workout stats.  the website looks like it was designed by a recently fired apple employee who had a very limited color pallet at his disposal. And the app has a tendency of crapping out in the middle of a workout (at least on android)  Here’s an example of a Runtastic workout.

Overall I recommend Runkeeper. But I’ve only tried those three apps. if you have any recommendations please let me know!

recently my company has had some issues with some individuals deleting and altering files then claiming they never touched them (or even worse blaming the IT dept for removing their files). If you have users trying to blame their problems on computer errors or magically deleted files you should turn on auditing! File and Folder access auditing is a wonderful component of general auditing that will keep records of file access, deletions, etc etc. Here is how to turn it on.

In these examples i will be using Windows Server 2008 R2 but these same steps work all the way back to 2003 server., we should start by defining a local policy or group policy on the file server. i went with group policy, so that adds a couple extra steps. first open up your group policy management tool and create a new policy (or add the following to an existing one)

Edit the Computer configuration > Policies > Windows Settings > Security Settings > Local Policies > Audit Policy > Audit Object Access

Then check “define these policy settings” and check the Success and Failure boxes:

Hit ok and we should be done with the policy side editing. its pretty much the same to do a local policy instead of a group policy, but instead go to Start > Control Panel > Administrative tools > Local Security policy > Local Policies > Audit Policy > Audit Object Access. then make the same changes. If your using group policy make sure the policy is applied to the file server you want auditing enabled on.

Now that we have enabled auditing we need to specify the folders/files we want to audit. To do this go to your file server and select the folder you want audited, right click and go to properties. Click the “Security” tab then the Advanced button, then the Auditing tab. This part will require administrative privileges, make sure you are loged in as an administrator. Now in this box add whoever’s access attempts you want audited. i chose to add everyone.

Now click Edit (or ok if this is the first entry) to open the “Auditing Entries” box. Here you should select which actions you want audited. i chose everything just to cover all the bases, but over time you may want to edit this down until you get only the information you need.

Use the drop down at the top to make sure auditing is applied properly (for most uses make sure it says “This Folder, Subfolders and files” as in the picture)

Click OK and auditing is enabled for the specified Folder/users!! You can check the results of the auditing in the Security section of the event viewer! An easy way to find these auditing result sin the event viewer is to look for the Task Category of “File System”.

I hope this helps! If you have any questions please post them in the comments and i will do my best to answer them!

Just discovered an awesome project called android-notifier It’ll send android notifications to your Linux, Windows, Or mac computer so you can hear your phone even when you’ve got your headphones on! just scan the QR code below to install the app on your phone, and go HERE to get the computer client. if your behind a firewall you may need to look into port forwarding. but so far its Awesome!

The official term for those annoying pop up dialog boxes is “bubbles tips”. Had i known that i would have found the solution alot faster, so i figured i should make a post and tag it with all the terms i searched for to make life easier for everyone. So here’s how to get rid of those annoying little notifications that pop up near the clock in windows XP.

Click Start, click Run, type regedit, and then press ENTER.

Locate the following subkey:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced

Right-click the right side pane, create a new DWORD value, and then name it EnableBalloonTips.

Double-click EnableBalloonTips, and then give it a value of 0.

Close Registry Editor.

Log off Windows, and then log back on.

Enjoy!

This is one of the most usefull apps! So your browsing a site, looking up directions, or just in the middle of reading something and you hafto leave your computer, you can bookmark it and come back later. Or you can send it to your phone and keep reading on the go! Especially useful when looking up directions, just send them to your phone when you head out!

Its a 2 part system. the first part is installing a plugin on your browser. There are plugins for both Chrome and Firefox. Then next step is installing the “Chrome to phone” app on your phone, Either search the market or just scan the QR Code below and your all set! Enjoy!

I finally got Microsoft’s Data Protection Manager up and running so i can start backing up all the Hyper-V hosts on my cluster and ran into a little error. Hopefully this article will be out of date shortly… that’s assuming Micro$oft patches this issue….

Anyway Heres the problem i ran across. I had already installed agents on all the hosts of my cluster. went into DPM, selected the cluster and all the VMs i needed to back up were listed, but when i tried to select them to backup i got this:

One or more prerequisites for protecting this data source is missing.

Ensure that the following prerequisite software is installed on all the nodes in the cluster:

Windows Server 2008 with

Knowledge Base article 948465 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/948465)

AND

Knowledge Base article 971394 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/971394)

- OR -

Windows Server 2008 R2 with

Knowledge Base article 975921(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/975921)

AND

Knowledge Base article 975354(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/975354)

If you have already installed the required prerequisite, refresh the agent status in the management tab and try again.

ID: 31314

One or more prerequisites for protecting this data source is missing.Ensure that the following prerequisite software is installed on all the nodes in the cluster:
Windows Server 2008 withKnowledge Base article 948465 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/948465)        ANDKnowledge Base article 971394 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/971394)        - OR -Windows Server 2008 R2 with Knowledge Base article 975921(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/975921)         AND Knowledge Base article 975354(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/975354)  If you have already installed the required prerequisite, refresh the agent status in the management tab and try again.

ID: 31314

Since i was using R2 I used the bottom 2 links, Requested the Hotfixes, and installed them. Its a relativity simple process, but some kinks are: you MUST install these hotfixes on ALL cluster hosts or shit gets fucking crazy! you may also get the error that some or all of the hotfixes are already installed, If so that means that they came down in a regular update (Its a good thing) in which case all you need to do is refresh the agents in the Management tab of DPM then recreate your protection group.

May seem like a useless post as the solution if referenced in the error report. But their KB leaves that last part out. Hope this helps someone!

I posted a picture of my geeky aweosme car on picasa a while back and just went back to check it.. almost 100k views and lots of comments. a few asking how to attrib me. so im making this post to show off my geeky Mazda 3. w00t!

I recently noticed that out domain time was drifting about 5 seconds a week, not a big deal for a while but if it gets too out of sync we would start having Kerberos issues, so better fix it now before we start seeing problems. Here’s what i did to get our domain back on the proper time (and keep it that way)

First off go to your DCHP serve, open DHCP, select ipv4, right click “Server Options”,Check 004 Time Servers and type the IP address for the server you want to be the time server (strongly recommend you use your Primary Domain Controller)

Now open up your PDC, and run “CMD” as an administrator and type the following commans:

w32tm /config /manualpeerlist:”0.pool.ntp.org 1.pool.ntp.org 2.pool.ntp.org”,0×4 /syncfromflags:MANUAL

net stop w32time
net start w32time

w32tm /resync /rediscover

That will set round robin time checks with 0.pool.ntp.org,1.pool.ntp.org,and 2.pool.ntp.org. the second set will restart the time service, and the third forces a sync. you should be all set and as your computers renew their dhcp leases they will start getting their time from your time server! if you need to force a computer to update its time you can use the “w32tm /resync /rediscover” command.

If you want to use a different time server just replace the *.pool.ntp.org with one of these servers

Enjoy!!

If your anything like me you’ve cough world cup fever!!! Ive been using my android phone to keep up to date on the games i cant be at the pub to see, track my teams, and overall enrich my world cup experience! i thought I’d share some of the apps I’ve been using:

The best app I’ve found so far for tracking stats, players, finding times, etc etc is “World Droidcup”! its got a pretty interface, ALOT of information, but can sometimes be slow on the updating. I had to run the app a couple times before it started working properly, but its definitely number one on my list for its ease of use and abundance of information (after some initial hiccups)

My second favorite app for getting all the information you can handle on the game is Goal.com Mobile! its sleek, shiny, and gives you alot of information! Its coverage for the world cup isn’t perfect, but if you are a soccer fan then i definitely recommend this for all your games post world cup! you can set favorites in every league, track players, get updates on stats and standings. its absolutely wonderful for soccer in general!

And I’ve saved the best for last! One of the great things about hosting this world cup in South Africa is the energy you get from the fans in the stand! So much national pride, love of the game, and they have brought their own touch to the game…. that’s right, I’m talking about the Vuvuzelas! The wonderful horns that will forever remind me of soccer! And this is the best app to get your Vuvuzela on in your local pub or watch party! “World Cup Virtual Vuvuzela” Ive tested all the ones on the market now, and this one is absolutely the best!

That’s all Ive got for now! not really much else that would improve the world cup for an android user other than mobile video, looks like we will need to wait till next world cup for that one! Hope you enjoy my suggestions!!