Windows “Downloads Folder” and Roaming Profiles

By default, Windows automatically saves all downloaded files into the “Downloads” Folder within the user profile. Since this folder forms part of a user’s Roaming Profile, it will be copied back and forth between the workstation and the server at every logon / logoff. As the size of the “Downloads” folder increases, so will the …

Re-cycling an SBS 2008 SSL Certificate on a WatchGuard Firewall

I recently rolled out the SSL VPN feature on my WatchGuard M200 Firebox. This will replace the SBS 2008 PPTP VPN for Mobile Users. PPTP is no longer regarded as secure. The SSL VPN itself works fine, but the SSL Certificate is "self generated" by the Firebox, so users receive a security warning when they …

Decommission WSUS 3 on Small Business Server

I am slowly but surely moving all of the services from Windows SBS 2008 onto our brand new Windows 2016 Server. This article covers the steps I took to decommission WSUS 3 after switching to WSUS 4. Firstly, I checked that none of my clients were still connecting to WSUS 3. Once I established this, …

WSUS: Recovering Disk Space

Over time, my WSUS (Windows Server Update Services) Server began to consume alarming amounts of disk space, mainly due to neglect on my part. So, it was time for a bit of a tidy up. Declining Superseded Updates The most important thing to realise is that (even though there were over 30,000 items listed within …

Creating a Shared Resource Calendar in Exchange 2007

It’s often handy to create a shared calendar within your organisation for booking rooms and other shared resources such as cars and laptops. Outlook / Exchange 2007 makes this easy to achieve. Firstly, create a shared Calendar (within Public Folders) using Outlook. For the purposes of this example, let’s call this “Pool Cars”.    The …

Dell PERC RAID Controller Configuration

The Dell PowerEdge Expandable RAID Controller Card Configuration Utility (BIOS) is accessed by hitting CTRL-R (or CTRL-C) at System Startup. From here, you can setup new RAID Arrays and maintain existing ones. There are normally three options within the Configuration Utility: Virtual Disk Management (these are the “Disks” that the Operating System can “see”) Physical …

Dell PERC RAID Controller: Degraded RAID States

The failure of a Hard Disk within an Array will cause the Array to become “Degraded”. The failed disk will be marked as “Offline” within the RAID BIOS. It is always worth trying to force the disk back “Online” before trying anything else. If this doesn't work, replace the faulty Drive ASAP with a brand new drive …

Dell PERC RAID Controller: Foreign RAID States

The Dell PERC RAID Configuration BIOS will mark an Array as “Foreign” under the following circumstances: The entire Array has been moved across from another server (and therefore the RAID Card has no knowledge of the Array) There has been a “glitch” on the RAID Card and the configuration has lost details of the existing …

iTunes and Roaming User Profiles

If your organisation has made the move towards issuing staff with iPhones and iPads, you may well be railroaded into installing iTunes on their respective workstations. This is all well and good, but if you are also using “Folder Redirection” and “Roaming User Profiles”, you may find the hard disk space on your network file …

Small Business Server 2008 Remote Management

Several tools are available for managing Windows Server 2008 remotely (when physical access to the server console is not possible). Normally, this would be when seated at a Windows XP or Windows 7 Workstation that is connected to the domain, either on the local network or via a VPN link. Remote Desktop Session Windows Server …