Sunday, June 10, 2012

Updating your Holiday Schedule through 2022

Do you update your holiday schedule every year? I just used http://www.calendar-365.com/holidays/2012.html to create my holiday schedule through 2022.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Setting Up Office 365’s Lync for Federation and IM Connectivity


Setting up Office 365’s Lync for Federation and IM Connectivity is a multi-step process.

Step 1: Configuring Office 365’s Lync
From the Admin page click Lync's Manage:


This takes you to the Lync Online Control Panel Overview tab where you can see the Current Settings. Click External Communications to change the settings and check the status.


On the External communications tab you need to Turn on Domain Federation mode (this enables Lync to Lync communication across domains). As you can see I chose ‘Turn on for all domains except blocked domains’. Also, here is where you enable Public IM service providers.


Step 2: To configure external domain name settings This is an expanded list when compared to the list you receive under Admin Overview | Managememnt | Domains | View DNS Settings

  1. If you are using your own domain name with Office 365, add the following CNAME and SRV entries to your DNS server:
Type
Host name
Destination
TTL
CNAME
sip.yourDomainName.com
sipdir.online.lync.com
1 hour
CNAME
lyncdiscover.yourDomainName.com
webdir.online.lync.com
1 hour

Type
Service
Protocol
Port
Weight
Priority
TTL
Name
Target
SRV
_sip
_tls
443
1
100
1 hour
yourDomainName.com
sipdir.online.lync.com
  1. If your organization supports domain federation or public IM connectivity, add the following SRV record as well:
 Type
Service
Protocol
Port
Weight
Priority
TTL
Name
Target
SRV
_sipfederationtls
_tcp
5061
1
100
1 hour
yourDomainName.com
sipfed.online.lync.com

Step 3: To configure internal domain name settings


 Type
Host name
Destination
TTL
CNAME
sip.yourDomainName.com
sipdir.online.lync.com
1 hour
CNAME
lyncdiscoverinternal.yourDomainName.com
webdir.online.lync.com
1 hour

Type
Service
Protocol
Port
Weight
Priority
TTL
Name
Target
SRV
_sip
_tls
443
1
100
1 hour
yourDomainName.com
sipdir.online.lync.com

Step 4: Configure your firewall or proxy server for Lync Online

  1. Open the following ports in your organization’s external firewalls and reverse proxy servers.
 Port
Protocol
Direction
Usage
443
STUN/TCP
Outbound
Audio, video, and application sharing sessions
443
PSOM/TLS
Outbound
Data sharing sessions
3478
STUN/UDP
Outbound
Audio and video sessions
5223
TCP
Outbound
Lync Mobile push notifications
50000-59999
RTP/UDP
Outbound
Audio and video sessions

Note: Individual computers are automatically configured for Lync Online network traffic when Lync is installed.
  1. Create the following rules to apply to all users on your organization’s network.
·         Allow outgoing connections to *.microsoftonline.com
·         Allow outgoing connections to *.outlook.com
·         Allow outgoing connections to *.lync.com
·         Add a firewall entry for the Microsoft Online Services Sign-in Assistant, msoidsvc.exe.
·         Set the HTTP/SSL time out value to 8 (eight) hours.


Step 5:
 Test

  • See http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2566790
  • Open a Command Prompt (Admin mode)
    • nslookup
    • set type=all
    • _sip._tls.yourDomainName.com .
    • _sipfederationtls._tcp.yourDomainName.com
    • sip.yourDomainName.com .
    • lyncdiscover.yourDomainName.com .
  • Each of the queries should result with an internet address. If not, please see the KB article.

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Windows Server 2012 (aka 8) Hands On Labs

From the Blog of the "Regular IT Guy" Rick Claus, a Technology Evangelist from Microsoft. It is time to learn about the next generation servers that are nearly upon us. Windows Server 8 Hands On Labs

Saturday, March 10, 2012

Windows 8 Start Button


So, in Window 8 Consumer Preview the Start Button/Pearl is hidden and here you thought it was removed! Just move the mouse to the lower left corner of the display to reveal the Start Button. It looks like:



 If you right-click on the Start Button you will get this handy shortcut menu:



 Allegedly you can change the shortcut menu by adjusting the contents of C:\Users\Name\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\WinX. I have added several different types of shortcuts but have not seen any additional shortcuts in the menu (even after a restart). Please let me know if you have any success adding shortcuts to the menu.

 

How to create a Windows 8 “Windows to Go” Bootable USB 3 Drive

Here is what you need to create the mobile “Windows to Go” USB Drive that boots Windows 8 Consumer Preview:

 - A PC running Windows 8 Consumer Preview (32 or 64 bit)
 -
Windows 8 Consumer Preview ISO image 32-bit
 -
Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit (ADK) for Windows® 8 Consumer Preview
 - A USB 3.0 disk at least 32GB or larger - Don’t worry you don’t need a USB 3.0 port on the computer where you will use “Windows to Go”.

Install the Deployment Tools feature when running the Windows ADK installation onto PC running Windows 8 Consumer Preview.



Prepare the USB 3.0 disk using DiskPart:
 - Open a Command Prompt (Admin)
 - Run DiskPart from the Command Prompt
 - Run List Disk
 - Select the USB disk, run Select Disk X (where X is the USB Drive #)
 - Wipe the USB disk clean, run Clean
 - Create a partition on the USB disk, run Create Partition Primary
 - Format the partition, run Format FS=NTFS Quick
 - Make the partition active, run Active
 - Exit DiskPart, run Exit



Right-click the ISO and select Mount to mount the Windows 8 ISO.



I’m running 64-bit so I run CD C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Kits\8.0\Assessment and Deployment Kit\Deployment Tools\amd64\DISM to change the command prompt to the directory that contains the AIK Tools.

To install the files from the wim, run imagex.exe /apply X:\sources\install.wim 1 Y:\ (Where X is the mounted ISO image and Y is the USB disk drive letters.

To make the USB disk bootable, run bcdboot.exe X:\windows /s X: /f ALL where the two Xs are the drive letter for the USB disk.



You are finished; you can now use this USB disk to boot into Windows 8 from any capable computer. This is a fairly locked down version of Windows 8, so some features won’t be available.


Windows 8 Shortcut Keys


Here are some really helpful key combinations if you are using Windows 8 Consumer Preview.

Key Combinations
Description
Where
Windows
Toggles between the Desktop & Start or between Start & the foremost Metro app.
Both
Windows . or Shift .
Move the split to the right or left.
Desktop
Windows + or -
Magnifier
Both
Windows Arrows
Aero Snap
Desktop
Windows Enter
Narrator
Both
Windows Pause
System Information
Desktop
Windows PgDn or PgUp
Move tiles (Metro) or taskbar (Desktop) to the right or the left.
Both
Windows PrintScreen
Takes Screenshot and saves as PNG in Pictures Library
Desktop
Windows Spacebar
Switch the input language and keyboard layout
Both
Windows Tab
Toggles between other open apps and Start
Both
Windows #
Launches the nth shortcut on the Desktop taskbar. Windows + 1 will launch the first application in the list (from left to right). From Start the screen first switches to the Desktop.
Desktop
Windows B
Select the tray notification area. From Start the screen first switches to the Desktop.
Desktop
Windows C
Charms and Time, Date & Notifications.
Both
Windows D
Toggles Show Desktop. From Start the screen first switches to the Desktop.
Desktop
Windows E
Windows Explorer with Computer view displayed. From Start the screen first switches to the Desktop.
Desktop
Windows F
Search Files.
Both
Windows G
Cycles between Gadgets on the Desktop
Desktop
Windows H
Share.
Both
Windows I
Settings for the Start or Desktop screens and provides access to Networks, Volume, Screen Brightness, Notifications, Power and Language.
Both
Windows K
Displays Connect for Devices.
Both
Windows L
Lock PC.
Both
Windows M
Minimizes all open windows and takes you to the Desktop.
Desktop
Windows O
Toggles the orientation on slate and tablet PCs.
Both
Windows P
Project or Second screen controls.
Both
Windows Q
Search within Apps.
Both
Windows R
Run. From Start the screen first switches to the Desktop.
Desktop
Windows T
Shows thumbnail preview of the applications on the Taskbar. From Start the screen first switches to the Desktop.
Desktop
Windows U
Ease of Access Center. From Start the screen first switches to the Desktop.
Desktop
Windows W
Search within Settings.
Both
Windows X
Windows Mobility Center. From Start the screen first switches to the Desktop.
Desktop
Windows Z
App Bar in Start or a Metro-style app.
Start
Ctrl Shift Esc
Task Manager
Desktop
Ctrl Windows F
Find Computers
Desktop
Shift Right-Click on a file
Adds Copy As Path to Right-Click Menu
Desktop
Shift Right-Click on a folder
Adds Command Prompt to Right-Click Menu
Desktop
Shift Right-Click on a grouped Taskbar App
Opens Right-Click Menu for Group
Desktop
Shift Right-Click on a Taskbar App
Opens Advanced Right-Click Menu for App
Desktop