Eileen Brown's WebLog

Windows Sharepoint Services SP2

Did you notice that WSS SP2 has been released to web?  Here's the link to the download...

and here's the link to the Administrators guide...

there are some new features that you may want to take a look at - particularly the enhancements for extranet and intranets. you'd be surprised what you can do with this, and its free, out of the box with Windows Server 2003.

How to open the Outlook calendar from the command line

I noticed that Allister has come up witrh some tips on Opening Outlook by using the command line, and by using switches.  I blogged about a handy list of switches that Outlook tips published, but the ability to open Outlook in a specific folder each time is really useful.  Just create a shortcut with Outlook.exe /select outlook:calendar.

Easy really.  Allisters blog is full of hints and tips for outlook users (not Outlook techies) like me.  Hard to believe he's in marketing... :-)

Secure and Well Managed Enterprise

We're running a series of webcasts aimed at managing your enterprise.   Here's the info...

 You can learn how to become a dynamic IT organization and achieve operational effectiveness through delivering higher quality of service, email availability, and a more secure Windows environment. Our technical experts will help guide you through step by step instructions on how to install, configure, automate and mange a more secure and well managed infrastructure. Topics covered will include Active Directory installation and monitoring, Step-by-step patch management implementation, server, application, and desktop monitoring, PKI Infrastructures, Security concepts and principals, and the utilization and configuration of Group Policy, SMS, MOM, ISA and Exchange. Don’t miss out on this series as we provide a clear road map on the journey to a more secure and well managed enterprise environment.
Bonus: Attend four of the five October webcasts in this series (live or on demand) by October 31, 2005 and you will receive a Microsoft “geek” t-shirt.  Attend seven of the eight November webcasts in this series (live or on demand) and you will receive a multi-tool kit.  And, by attending a live webcast in this series and submitting an evaluation, you will also qualify to win a Portable Media Center pre-loaded with some of our best webcasts.  Offers open to residents of the U.S. and Canada only.  See webcast landing page for details.

Bummer.  Why can't we win a geek t-shirt over in Europe then?  don't we qualify as geeks then?  Humph!  Shall I try and get some for over here then?  Let me know...

By the way - you really should also have a look at Johns series of blogcasts on the Secure and Well Manged Infrastructure (SWMI) where he's building up the Infrastricture step by step...

Exchange 12 - Roadmap for Developers

If you're an Exhange fan, likes new features, and a it of a developer (sounds like you John then!), have a look at this article that Terry blogged about the other week which covers a few of the architectural changes that will be happening in Exchange 12.  Interesting to note that bot CDOExM and WMI will be replaced (what the heck do cmdlets do then?).  so how the heck will the mailbox reconnect and mailbox moves work?

Interesting stuff though...

Find out how to migrate from Notes to Exchange

Dave Thompson, who is the VP for Exchange in corp. is coming over to speak at an event in London, Docklands next month.  The event is: Understanding the Microsoft Platrform for Notes Organisations.  I quite often talk to customers about their challenges when they migrate from Notes to Exchange, and some customers are concerned that they don't have sufficient knowledge to hand before they start.  So this event brings together Microsoft Expertise, with customers and partners who have already migrated so you can ask questions about the tools used, and about any burning issues you may have.  Here's the link to register. 

Here's what the day will look like.  I pinched the copyof the invite below...

How Notes companies can get more value from Microsoft solutions
We are pleased to invite you to a very special event that looks in depth at the steps required to evaluate moving from Notes/Domino to the Microsoft platform.  Brought to you by Microsoft's expert speakers, this session will give you an understanding of the collaboration market and Microsoft's vision and strategy. Our experts will show how Microsoft Collaboration solutions work together with a "Day in the Life" demo using Microsoft collaboration technologies.

With in-depth drill-downs into the solutions that make up an effective collaboration infrastructure and a detailed overview of the transition project and Messaging/Directory Fundamentals, this full-day session will provide answers to many of the burning questions you face like:

• What does a typical migration process look like? 
• What are the best practices and learnings from previous experiences? 
• How can I complete an application assessment? 
• What's best for my applications: migration or coexistence?
You will also get the opportunity to hear from UK partners that have delivered Collaboration solutions and customers that have made the switch.

Day's Agenda:
8.30–9.00  Registration 
9.00–9.15 Welcome and Introduction
9.15–9.30 Directions on Collaboration
9.30–10.30 Microsoft’s Collaboration Story and Demo of “A Day in the Life” of using Microsoft Collaboration Technology
10.30–11.00 Break
11.00–12.00 Technical Solution Drilldown
12.00–12.30 Customer Case Study
12.30–1.15 Lunch
1.15–2.00 Overview of the Transition Project + Messaging/Directory Fundamentals
2.00–2.45 Application assessment, migration and coexistence
2.45–3.00 Break
3.00–3.30 Hear from UK Partners about their experiences
3.30–3.45 Summary and Close 

I'll be there - so it would be good to see you and have a chat during the day...

Exchange Free / Busy message size

I saw this on an internal mail the othe day, and thought that this information was too good not to share around.  I only wish I'd had this level of detail available to me when I was an Exchange administrator.  So I'm sharing it.  Just in case you also want to know more ... There's a good document on TechNet that talks about how to Manage Free/Busy Folders  expecially on how Outlook handles Free/Busy but this is a nice edition to the document. 

If you want to change the amount of time published by Free/Busy - how much extra traffic would be generated?  Say for example you wanted to double the free busy schedule - how many bytes on the wire?  How large are the messages, and what would be the load on the free/busy server after the change had been made?

Jeffrey and Dave responded that you can get a good estimate by looking at the current PR_MESSAGE_SIZE and PR_CONTENT_COUNT values of the Schedule+ Free Busy folder for the site or Administrative Group.  You'll then have to divide the size by the count to get a per user average.  Assuming that user's currently have the default setting of 6 months, you can extrapolate the impact of changing the number of months published.
For example, in the sample  F/B folder:
PR_MESSAGE_SIZE = 18,499,128
PR_CONTENT_COUNT = 16,530
Based on this calculation, the average free/busy message size is approximately1119 bytes.

Free Busy data is pretty small.  The data is stored as an array of pairs 16-bit words – each being the number of minutes into the month for the beginning and end time of each busy range. The maximum number of busy ranges can be forced by making every other minute in the month busy. 1440 minutes in a day, 720 marks every other one. 31 days in a month… leads to just shy of 90k per month in the worst possible case. Actual values will be substantially smaller than that. As more calendars get more and more booked, the amount of data stored actually goes down as the busy ranges get merged together.
The Free Busy server will experience pretty much the same load overall (“Open message, stream in data, close message”). The extra data is likely going to cause maybe one extra RPC operation. Also if you’re replicating the Free/Busy data to another Public Folder server, it’ll double the amount of replication traffic.

Talking about blogging

I was at an industry event for executives last week who seemed to be completely unaware of the reach and extent of the online blogging community and how much information is fed around the blogosphere.  It's often fascinating, when some big news item hits the blogs, and watch it ripple around different blogs as news cascades around the world.  Blogging has certainly become a really effective mechanism to gauge opinions, find out news, and interact with other bloggers for insider knowledge and assistance.  Comments about products, on on my blog can often be escalated internally and we can change things wherever we can, or try to help when you have issues with the software. 

So I'm going to be delivering an event in he UK about blogs and blogging.  To try to communicate why blogs and blogging is such an effective mechanism for word of mouth information delivery. So if you're available on 13th October, and would like to encourage some of your sceptical colleagues to come along, it'd be really good to see you on campus.  Here's the link to register.

Hmmm. I've just though of something.  All the people who would really benefit from learning about blogs and blogging, probably won't be reading this blog!  So could you forward the link to the cynics you work with, and encourage them to come along, and see how companies can gain benefits from encouraging their employees to show their human side through their blogs...

I look forward to seeing you there..

SPV c550

I've been dithering for some time about the type of phone to get to replace my c500, and I'm currently oscillating between candy bar type phones, Razr's and the clamshell type device, wanting all of them in equal measures.  the Orange M5000 caught my eye the other week, I was having a coffee with Ewan and he was demoing all of the new features.  But now, I've just read a review from the Register about the c550 and I'm back on to the candy bar style again...

I quite like the idea of the ability to download music to the phone - saves me carrying my creative Zen around as well, and the size of the phone fits better in my jeans or handbag than the M5000.  Not a problem for a bloke I know, but one of my key design decisions. 

And with the raft of stuff about to come out intime to hit the Christmas market - I'm spoilt for choice ... again!

LCS ports used for communication

Gary wondered if there was a kb article that detailed the ports that LCS used to communicate between client and server.  Well Gary, all I could find is a list of the basic ports used when LCS 2005 talks to Windows messenger.  here you go Gary:

Client:The client listens on a dynamic port for SIP traffic. The client sends data to the default port of the server. The default port of the server is 5060.
Server:The server listens on the default port 5060 (TCP). The server sends notifications to a dynamic port of the client. The dynamic port range can be controlled by using Group Policy. However, we recommend that you use TLS instead of TCP.
TLS mode: The client listens over the same connection that is open to the server.  By default, the server listens on port 5061 (TCP). The server will send to the client only over the client's TLS session.
Whiteboard and Application Sharing:  The Whiteboard and Application Sharing components of Windows Messenger use the T.120 protocol. The port that is used is fixed and cannot be changed.
Protocol: T.120   Port: 1503 (TCP) 
File transfer:  The messenger file transfer protocol uses the Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP) that is running over TCP. The port range is fixed and cannot be changed.
Protocol Ports: TFTP 6891 – 6900 (TCP)
Audio and video: Audio uses a pair of User Datagram Protocol (UDP) ports for a Real-time Protocol (RTP) stream to transmit data. Video uses Real-time Transport Protocol (RTCP) to control the session stream.  By default, the ports that are used are dynamic. However, the ports can be controlled through Group Policy registry settings.
You can use the following policies to control the port usage:
MinSipDynamicPort: Specifies the lowest port that is used for SIP Default:7100 Min1024 Max:65535
MaxSipDynamicPort: Specifies the highest port that is used for SIP Default:7103 Min1024 Max:65535
MinMediaPort: Specifies the lowest port that is used for Audio and Video signaling Default:5350 Min:1024 Max:65535
MaxMediaPort: Specifies the highest port that is used for Audio and Video signaling Default:5353 Min:1024 Max:65535

Office Webcasts for October

Microsoft Office System Webcast: My How You've Changed: Side-by-Side Tips for Outlook 2000 and Outlook 2003 (Level 100)
Tuesday, October 04, 2005 – 9:00 AM-10:00 AM Pacific Time
Andy Reed, Senior Training Specialist, Pacific Technical Consulting (PTC)
If you are like many Microsoft Office users, the year 2000 is alive and well in your favorite productivity applications. Let go of the past and step into a new era of workplace computing by learning tips and tricks for the Microsoft Office System. Join us to learn about innovations in Microsoft Office Outlook 2003 that give you capabilities beyond those of Microsoft Office Outlook 2000. Now you can manage your communications, organize your work and work better with others, all from one place.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281132&Culture=en-US

Microsoft Office System Webcast: My How You've Changed: Side-by-Side Tips and Tricks for Word 2000 and Word 2003 (Level 100)
Thursday, October 06, 2005 – 9:00 AM-10:00 AM Pacific Time
Andy Reed, Senior Training Specialist, Pacific Technical Consulting (PTC)
If you are like many Microsoft Office product users, the year 2000 is alive and well in your favorite productivity applications. Let go of the past and step into a new era of workplace computing by learning tips and tricks for the Microsoft Office System. Benefit from the customer experience and feedback used to advance the capabilities of Microsoft Office Word 2000. In this webcast, see how Microsoft Office Word 2003 increases your potential to create impressive documents and work better with others.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281137&Culture=en-US

Microsoft Office System Webcast: My How You've Changed: Side-by-Side Tips for Excel 2000 and Excel 2003 (Level 100)
Tuesday, October 11, 2005 – 9:00 AM-10:00 AM Pacific Time
Andy Reed, Senior Training Specialist, Pacific Technical Consulting (PTC)
If you are like many Microsoft Office product users, the year 2000 is alive and well in your favorite productivity applications. Let go of the past and step into a new era of workplace computing by learning tips and tricks for the Microsoft Office System. Find out how the capabilities of Microsoft Office Excel 2003 have evolved beyond those of Microsoft Office Excel 2000 in this informative webcast. Learn how to turn data into practical information with powerful tools that enable you to analyze, communicate, and share results.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281142&Culture=en-US

Microsoft Office System Webcast: My How You've Changed: Side-by-Side Tips for PowerPoint 2000 and PowerPoint 2003 (Level 100)
Thursday, October 13, 2005 – 9:00 AM-10:00 AM Pacific Time
Andy Reed, Senior Training Specialist, Pacific Technical Consulting (PTC)
If you are like many Microsoft Office product users, the year 2000 is alive and well in your favorite productivity applications. Let go of the past and step into a new era of workplace computing by learning tips and tricks for the Microsoft Office System. Things have changed. Discover how to create presentations with greater impact than you could with Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2000. Use Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2003 and your ability to create, present, and collaborate on presentations greatly exceeds what was previously possible.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281163&Culture=en-US

Microsoft Office System Webcast: Top 10 Tips to Save Time in Office Outlook 2003 (Level 200)
Thursday, October 20, 2005 – 9:00 AM-10:00 AM Pacific Time
Evan Archilla, Senior Training Specialist, Projectline Services
Microsoft Office Outlook 2003 provides an integrated solution for managing and organizing e-mail messages, schedules, tasks, and contacts. Now see what else Outlook 2003 and Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 can do to help you work more efficiently. Send faxes from your desktop, protect information, and access your e-mail from remote locations using a familiar, easy-to-use interface. Join us for this informative webcast to learn our favorite tips and tricks for getting the most out of Outlook 2003.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281203&Culture=en-US

Small Business Webcast: Organize and Manage Customer Information in Outlook with Business Contact Manager (Level 100)
Wednesday, October 12, 2005 - 11:00 AM - 11:45 AM Pacific Time
Elisa Johnson, Business Development Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Find out how Microsoft Office Outlook 2003 with Business Contact Manager can help to consolidate customer information and get your employees up to speed quickly. This webcast shows how Outlook 2003 with Business Contact Manager can help you better manage your customer information and sales leads by keeping important information all in one place, allowing better connect with customers.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282349&Culture=en-US

Small Business Webcast: Integrating Small Business Accounting 2006 with Familiar Microsoft Office Programs (Level 200)
Wednesday, October 19, 2005 - 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM Pacific Time
Bob Lewis, Senior Marketing Manager, Accountant Relations for Microsoft’s U.S. Small Business group, Microsoft Corporation
Do you need to significantly increase productivity, produce more accurate and insightful financial data, and extend the value of accounting features and services? This webcast demonstrates how Microsoft Office Small Business Accounting 2006 and Microsoft Office programs such as Word, Excel and Outlook 2003 with Business Contact Manager Update integrate to provide an efficient and effective solution. Participants learn how to share financial history, manage and track billable time, forecast and analyze financial scenarios, and create professional-looking, customized documents. This in-depth presentation is geared toward accounting firm professionals.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281999&Culture=en-US

Small Business Webcast: Develop Your Direct Marketing Campaign with Office Small Business Edition (Level 100)
Wednesday, October 19, 2005 - 1:00 PM - 1:30 PM Pacific Time
Carl Preston, Business Development Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Learn how Microsoft Office Small Business Edition 2003 gives you an easy way to market your business. This informative webcast shows you how to use tools like Microsoft Office Publisher 2003 templates and Microsoft Office Word 2003 mail merge to create your own direct marketing materials.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282353&Culture=en-US

Real Time Collaboration Webcasts for October

TechNet Webcast: How Microsoft IT Deployed Office Communicator 2005 (Level 300)
Tuesday, October 4, 2005 - 8:00 AM - 9:00 AM Pacific Time
Kelley LeBeau, Service Manager Microsoft IT Real Time Communication, Microsoft Corporation
Learn how the Microsoft information technology group deployed the Microsoft Office Communicator 2005 client. Office Communicator raised the bar for internal collaboration at Microsoft by building upon previous Microsoft Windows Messenger features to enable telephony integration and richer presence. This webcast highlights Office Communicator enhancements such as better integration with the Microsoft Exchange Server messaging system, improved public space instant messaging connectivity and multi-party application sharing. We look at Office Communicator's robust find features, enhanced video and convenient methods for integration to other collaboration services such as third-party audio conferencing and Microsoft Office Live Meeting.
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=51123

TechNet Webcast: Optimizing Live Meeting Audio and Recording (Level 200)
Monday, October 10, 2005 - 9:30 AM - 10:30 AM Pacific Time
Mark Nickerson, Technology Specialist, Microsoft Corporation
Are you using Microsoft Office Live Meeting, but would like to make better use of its audio capabilities? If you are ready to take Live Meeting to the next level, join this webcast for discussions and demonstrations of scenarios and solutions for optimizing the audio experience within Live Meeting. Topics include Integration with Traditional Audio Conferencing Providers for conference call control within Live Meeting, Internet Audio Broadcasting to support large meetings with one-way audio, Tips for Interacting with Attendees, Broadcasting Audio without an Audio Conferencing Provider, How Recording Works, Media Characteristics, Editing Recordings, Managing Recordings, and Hosting Options.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032279314&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: DNS Setup for Live Communications Server 2005 (Level 300)
Wednesday, October 12, 2005 - 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM Pacific Time
Joe Schurman, Co-Founder, Connected Innovation
Steve Milroy, Co-Founder, Connected Innovation
Randy Thomas, Consultant, Connected Innovation
Have you been thinking about installing or deploying Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2005? Would you benefit from the guidance of people who have already implemented Live Communications Server 2005? If so, then this webcast is for you. Experts from the Microsoft Office Live Communications Server team will host this technical webcast. We discuss setting up your Domain Name System when using Live Communication Server 2005, problems you may encounter, and we share some strategies and tools for debugging.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032279245&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: Telephony-Enabled Microsoft Office Live Communications Server and Office Communicator (Level 200)
Monday, October 17, 2005 - 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM Pacific Time
Kenneth Chang, Director of Business Development, Genesys
Microsoft Office Communicator and Microsoft Office Live Communications Server can provide your organization with a standards-based enterprise real-time communications platform. The Genesys Enterprise Telephony System product enables telephony on the Microsoft platform. The combined solution enables information workers to collaborate with customers and colleagues, access presence information and seamlessly manage telephone calls by leveraging the computer integration with desktop phones.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282063&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: Installation and Implementation Considerations: Adding Multipoint Audio and Video in Office Communicator (Level 200)
Monday, October 24, 2005 - 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM Pacific Time
David Bundy, Chief Technical Officer, Radvision
Microsoft Office Communicator 2005 supports point-to-point audio and videoconferencing between two Communicator clients. Radvision's Click to Meet for Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2005 (CTM for LCS) extends this support to multipoint audio and video for all participants so they can all see and hear each other directly within Communicator. Join this webcast to learn about this offering, and see how you can integrate and deploy CTM for LCS with Live Communications Server and Communicator. Learn how to deploy multiple servers in a distributed architecture and how to connect to room systems. We discuss firewall and proxy considerations, and how to manage bandwidth within your network.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282068&Culture=en-US

Microsoft Office System Webcast: Unleash Real-Time Communication with Live Communications Server 2005 and Public IM Connectivity (Level 100)
Wednesday, October 19, 2005 – 11:00 AM-12:00 PM Pacific Time
David Alexander, Product Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Real-time collaboration and presence technologies have arrived. Now you can use corporate instant messaging (IM) to deliver more with less. Boost business productivity, improve organizational agility, and reduce the costs of managing a complex messaging infrastructure with secure and reliable enterprise IM. See how Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2005 enables you to make better decisions faster with enterprise-ready IM, presence awareness, and an extensible platform that connects people, information, and business processes. Learn how Live Communications Server integrates with the Microsoft Office System to facilitate smooth, simple communication without the constraints of geography, office location or time.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282053&Culture=en-US

Microsoft Office System Webcast: Boost Training Effectiveness and Reduce Costs with Live Meeting (Level 100)
Thursday, October 20, 2005 – 11:30 AM-12:30 PM Pacific Time
Joe Schurman, Microsoft MVP, Connected Innovation
Steve Milroy, Microsoft MVP, Connected Innovation
Randy Thomas, Microsoft MVP, Connected Innovation
Are you ready to take your online training to the next level? The latest release of Microsoft Office Live Meeting 2005 supports eLearning capabilities that allow an instructor to simulate in-person training sessions. Live Meeting can help your organization save time and costs associated with holding in-person training events. Find out how to make your Live Meeting training more effective by incorporating breakout rooms, file transfer, multimedia content, Voice over Internet Protocol, and testing.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282021&Culture=en-US

Microsoft Office System Webcast: Master Your Meetings with the Live Meeting Registration System (Level 100)
Tuesday, October 25, 2005 – 11:30 AM-12:00 PM Pacific Time
Joe Schurman, Microsoft MVP, Connected Innovations
Designed with event organizers in mind, the registration system built into Microsoft Office Live Meeting 2005 allows you to design and customize the registration process for your events. Find out how to include custom entry questions and gather demographic information as part of your event registration, and learn how to create surveys, design event-level branding, and manage registration using the specialized tools built into Live Meeting 2005. Best of all, the Live Meeting 2005 registration system helps you further fine tune your events to match your audience by giving you the ability to run reports on the user feedback and event details you collect.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282024&Culture=en-US

Microsoft Office System Webcast: Supercharge Your Live Meetings with Insider Tips and Tricks (Level 100)
Thursday, October 27, 2005 – 9:00 AM-10:00 AM Pacific Time
Evan Archilla, Consultant, Projectline Services
You and your employees can participate in interactive meetings from locations around the world with remote teams, prospects, customers, partners, colleagues, and global audiences—in real time and at a moments notice—thanks to the Microsoft Office Live Meeting Web conferencing service. With everyone participating from their desktops, teams can swap ideas, share information, mark up files, collaborate with whiteboards, or negotiate deals, all at a fraction of the cost of travel. Join us for this informative webcast and learn how you can help shorten sales cycles, increase productivity and improve the bottom line with Live Meeting.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032278884&Culture=en-US

Mobility Webcasts for October

Microsoft Webcast: Windows Mobile Security for Non-Technical Executives
Tuesday, October 25, 2005 - 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM Pacific Time
Steve Conn, Enterprise Marketing Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Learn why Microsoft Windows Mobile security features are important for your business. This session examines how your business can benefit by securing sensitive corporate information and preventing data loss. Learn about best practices for mobile security with Windows Mobile-based devices that you can apply within your organization.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281799&Culture=en-US

Microsoft Webcast: How to Create Value for Your Business with Windows Mobile
Wednesday, October 26, 2005 - 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM Pacific Time
Steve Conn, Enterprise Marketing Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Microsoft Windows Mobile-based solutions enable businesses to empower their mobile workforce quickly, making it cost-effective and easier for employees to be more productive. Mobile-based solutions provide access to up-to-date information through familiar applications and solutions on mobile devices, allowing a workforce the same productivity when mobile as is available at the desk. Learn about the value that Windows Mobile devices can provide to your organization while leveraging your existing infrastructure. This webcast shows you examples of how other companies have benefited from mobile access to Microsoft Office Outlook e-mail, contacts, tasks and calendar, and from access to business information and customer data.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281788&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: Lifecycle Management of Windows Mobile-based Devices (Level 200)
Thursday, October 6, 2005 - 9:30 AM - 10:30 AM Pacific Time
Samir Kumar, Mobile Devices Product Manager, Microsoft Corporation
How does your organization procure mobile devices? How do you support them? Do you know how to update them? What do you do when they start getting "old"? Do you have an effective plan to repurpose or retire them? Join this webcast to learn the best practices for managing Windows Mobile devices in the corporate environment, from initial deployment through end of life. We examine secure manageability options for Windows Mobile from a device perspective and a server perspective. We discuss native functionality and partner solutions for life cycle management.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281861&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: Accessing Exchange Server from Your Mobile Device Using SP2 (Level 300)
Wednesday, October 19, 2005 - 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM Pacific Time
Max Ciccotosto, Lead Program Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Does your organization have all the mobile access it could use in the areas of security, flexibility, and affordability? This webcast discusses and demonstrates how Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 provides secure and affordable remote and mobile access to e-mail and Personal Information Manager information across a range of mobile devices. Explore the new mobility enhancements in Exchange Server 2003 Service Pack 2, including the new always-up-to-date functionality, configuring personal identification number lock settings, remotely wiping a device, configuring soft certificates to access Exchange, and other new mobility enhancements.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281773&Culture=en-US

MSDN Webcast: New Native Windows Mobile Development Features in Visual Studio 2005 (Level 200)
Wednesday, October 05, 2005 - 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM Pacific Time
John Kennedy, Content Specialist, Microsoft Corporation
Take a guided tour of the Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 native device development experience, and get ready to start using Visual Studio as your new environment for native Windows Mobile application development! This webcast demonstrates how to build a Microsoft Windows Mobile C++ application from scratch using application and class wizards, design its user interface, digitally sign the application and debug it, all from within Visual Studio.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282418&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: An Overview of the Messaging and Security Management Feature Pack for Enterprise Windows Mobile Device Management (Level 300)
Thursday, October 20, 2005 - 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM Pacific Time
Khalid Siddiqui, Senior Consultant, Microsoft Corporation
As mobile devices become a bigger part of the information technology infrastructure, device management becomes a bigger challenge. Join this webcast to learn how device management works on the Microsoft Windows Mobile platform. In this webcast, we demonstrate features, functionality and use of all components in the Windows Mobile Platform that provide device management capability. We discuss the messaging and security management feature pack to illustrate utilization of these features in an enterprise environment.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282093&Culture=en-US

Messaging & collaboration Webcasts for October

Microsoft Webcast: Unlock Lotus Notes Using Microsoft Collaboration Technologies
Wednesday, October 19, 2005 - 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM Pacific Time
Cliff Reeves, General Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Gary Devendorf, Technical Evangelist, Microsoft Corporation
Jim Bernardo, Enterprise Technical Strategist, Microsoft Corporation
With advancements in technology, and major new software releases on the horizon from Microsoft and IBM, IBM Lotus Notes/Domino customers are re-examining their readiness for collaboration.  In this webcast we discuss how customers can extend their Notes and Domino investments with Microsoft technologies, and why now is the right time to evaluate solutions for integrating your Notes applications within the Microsoft collaboration platform.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282319&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: Overview of Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 Service Pack 2 Administration Features (Level 300)
Tuesday, October 18, 2005 - 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM Pacific Time
Malvin M. Seale, Technical Lead, Microsoft Corporation
Get an overview of the new administration features for Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 Service Pack 2 (SP2). This webcast covers changes to the 16GB limit and database size management, Public Folder management enhancements, and improvements to the Offline Address Book in Exchange Server 2003 SP2.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281974&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: Accessing Exchange Server from Your Mobile Device Using SP2 (Level 300)
Wednesday, October 19, 2005 - 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM Pacific Time
Max Ciccotosto, Lead Program Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Does your organization have all the mobile access it could use in the areas of security, flexibility, and affordability? This webcast discusses and demonstrates how Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 provides secure and affordable remote and mobile access to e-mail and Personal Information Manager information across a range of mobile devices. Explore the new mobility enhancements in Exchange Server 2003 Service Pack 2, including the new always-up-to-date functionality, configuring personal identification number lock settings, remotely wiping a device, configuring soft certificates to access Exchange, and other new mobility enhancements.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281773&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: Exchange Server 2003 In Depth (Part 1 of 14): Deployment Planning (Level 200)
Wednesday, October 26, 2005 - 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM Pacific Time
Harold Wong, Technology Specialist, Microsoft Corporation
How do you effectively plan and deploy Microsoft Exchange Server 2003? Start with this first webcast of the Exchange Server 2003 Series, where we examine the planning phase of any Exchange deployment. Learn the basic consideration for deployment, including hardware and software required to support one or more Exchange servers. From there we examine the infrastructure requirements, covering basic services such as Domain Name System, Microsoft Internet Information Services and Simple Mail Transfer Protocol. Finally, we explain the biggest infrastructure requirement, Active Directory directory service. Covering integration and deployment paths, the presentation shows how Exchange and Active Directory are linked and how to deploy this critical service.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281666&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: Exchange Server 2003 In Depth (Part 2 of 14): Coexistence and Migration (Level 200)
Friday, October 28, 2005 - 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM Pacific Time
Harold Wong, Technology Specialist, Microsoft Corporation
Does migration have to be a headache? Not if you create a clear path and follow it. This webcast examines coexistence and migration scenarios when moving from Microsoft Exchange Server 5.5 or Microsoft Exchange Server 2000 to Microsoft Exchange Server 2003. Connecting a Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 environment to Active Directory as a starting point, the webcast shows how to connect the two directory services and troubleshoot them if they stop performing. With the Active Directory service established, learn how to integrate Exchange Server 2003 into this environment. The webcast concludes with a look at the upgrade path for Exchange Server 2000 deployments to Exchange Server 2003.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281671&Culture=en-US

Momentum Webcast: Securing E-mail and Collaboration Servers (Level 100)
Thursday, October 06, 2005 - 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM Pacific Time
Chris Ertz, Technology Specialist, Microsoft Corporation
Security is a critical element in keeping e-mail and collaboration systems available and performing optimally. Downtime and network bottlenecks caused by viruses, worms and spam threaten the very productivity these applications are designed to enable. Sybari antivirus and anti-spam solutions provide a layered defense strategy that can help significantly reduce the impact of these threats to Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft Office SharePoint Portal Server and Microsoft Office Live Communications Server. Attendees of this webcast receive a technical overview of the Sybari solutions that includes a live demonstration of Sybari Antigen along with a discussion of multiple-scan engine management, balancing performance with detection rates, and using frequent updates to minimize windows of vulnerability.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282266&Culture=en-US

Momentum Webcast: Exchange Server Sizing (Level 100)
Thursday, October 27, 2005 - 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM Pacific Time
Steve Tramack, Senior Engineering Manager, HP Solution Alliances, HP
Successful Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 deployments depend upon properly sizing and configuring your server environment and storage subsystem. A solid understanding of the business needs and technical constraints of these systems is critical to providing a configuration that offers performance at the service levels demanded by your organization. This webcast outlines a six-step methodology for performance planning that provides best practices related to the key sizing resources for sizing Exchange 2003 back-end servers. We identify available tools and resources from Hewlett-Packard and Microsoft for planning a successful messaging environment.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282366&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: A Comprehensive Look at Anti-Spam Technologies in Exchange 2003 SP2 (Level 300)
Monday, October 17, 2005 - 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM Pacific Time
Mihai Costea, Program Manager, Exchange Server, Microsoft Corporation
Alexander Nikolayev, Program Manager, Microsoft Corporation
To keep your information technology infrastructure safe, you must be up-to-date on the latest threats and the countermeasures to block or mitigate them. This webcast presents the complete view of the anti-spam techniques in Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 Service Pack 2. It includes descriptions and technical drill-downs for features that originally shipped in Microsoft Exchange Server 2003, plus the additions in Service Pack 2. The webcast concludes with tips and tricks for fighting spam.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282011&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: E-mail Authentication: Importance in Your E-mail Hygiene Strategy (Level 300)
Friday, October 21, 2005 - 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM Pacific Time
Craig Spiezle, Director, Microsoft Corporation
Harry Katz, Program Manager, Microsoft Corporation
E-mail authentication is as essential to e-mail hygiene strategy as it is to building online trust. This webcast outlines the myths and realities of Sender ID, an industry-wide approach to dealing with the problem of e-mail spoofing and phishing. In this webcast we show how the results of Sender ID must be included in the overall e-mail trustworthiness score. Learn the importance of adding reputation to identity, and see how this improves deliverability of legitimate mail, detection of phishing exploits and reduces the occurrence of false positives. This presentation includes a review of industry momentum and progress around anti-spam and anti-phishing efforts. The webcast also shows examples of creating records, and discusses various complementary e-mail authentication approaches.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282082&Culture=en-US

MOM & SMS Webcasts for October

TechNet Webcast: MOM and AVIcode: Incorporating the Operations Perspective in Dynamic Systems Initiative (Level 200)
Wednesday, October 5, 2005 - 9:30 AM - 11:00 AM Pacific Time
Stephen Pelletier, VP Business Development, AVIcode, Inc.
Dhananjay Mahajan, Program Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Application development and application maintenance are no longer separate. Closing the loop between operations and development is critical for keeping the total cost of operations down. In this webast, learn how Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Team System and AVIcode Intercept Studio 2.3 extend the capabilities of Microsoft Operations Manager (MOM) 2005. AVIcode Intercept Studio and MOM 2005 provide the foundation for "friction-free" application health modeling and operational monitoring of distributed Microsoft .NET applications. Find out about the powerful capabilities this solution provides for software architects, systems operators and administrators.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282311&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: Introducing Systems Center Reporting Manager 2005: Understanding, Architecting and Deploying (Level 200)
Thursday, October 13, 2005 - 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM Pacific Time
Wally Mead, Program Manager, SMS, Microsoft Corporation
Reduce troubleshooting time and improve your planning capabilities with Microsoft Windows Server System Center Reporting Manager 2005. In this webcast, learn the basics on System Center Reporting Manager 2005 architecture and the best practices for deployment.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032278633&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: How Microsoft IT Does Security Updates (Level 300)
Tuesday, October 25, 2005 - 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM Pacific Time
Paul Thomsen, Patch Management Service Lead, Microsoft IT, Microsoft Corporation
Successful security update management is crucial to maintaining computer security at any organization. Learn from the Microsoft Information Technology (IT) department's experience with over 200,000 clients in a challenging environment. Microsoft IT continues to improve its processes by merging datacenter and desktop security update operations using the new Inventory Tool for Microsoft Updates. This new tool formalizes the security update management service, improves reporting solutions, and makes other improvements which Microsoft shares with other Microsoft Systems Management Server customers.
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=52131

Portals Webcasts for October

TechNet Webcast: Getting Started with Microsoft Collaboration: 30 New Applications for SharePoint Services (Level 100)
Tuesday, October 4, 2005 - 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM Pacific Time
Jason Bunge, SR. Product Manager - WSS, Microsoft Corporation
Collaborative workspaces are one of the most important and easiest ways to jump-start your collaboration efforts. Microsoft has released 30 new applications, all available as free downloads, that can be installed on top of Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services. These applications are tailored to address the needs and requirements of specific business processes. Join this webcast for an overview of these 30 new applications and how you can make them available to your users and learn how to customize them to fit your needs. Scenarios include roles such as sales, marketing, human resources, finance, and operations, as well as vertical scenarios for financial services, professional services, and government.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032280956&Culture=en-US

TechNet Webcast: Free Windows SharePoint Services Applications to Help Your IT Department (Level 100)
Thursday, October 13, 2005 - 9:30 AM - 10:30 AM Pacific Time
Jason Bunge, Senior Product Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Learn about the free Collaborative Workspace applications Microsoft just released. These Collaborative Workspace applications address the requirements for specific business processes or task groups for organizations of any size. Each application is comprised completely of out-of-the box Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services capabilities. See how you can use applications such as Microsoft Windows SharePoint Desk Dashboard, Microsoft Windows SharePoint Project Team Site and the Microsoft Windows SharePoint IT Developer Team Site in your daily information technology department activities. Join us for a demonstration of these applications, and learn how to download and start using them today.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281802&Culture=en-US

Microsoft Office System Webcast: Reducing Complexity in Human Resources Processes with Collaborative Workspaces (Level 100)
Monday, October 10, 2005 – 9:30 AM-10:30 AM Pacific Time
Jason Bunge, Senior Product Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Learn about the Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services Collaborative Workspace applications for marketing activities you can download free from Microsoft. Each application is designed to facilitate specific business processes or tasks for organizations of any size. This webcast provides a demonstration of the Performance Review Management, Human Resources Programs and Services Forms, Employee Timesheet and Scheduling Management, Employee Activities Site, Employee Training, and Absence Request, and Vacation Schedule Management applications. We show how useful these applications can be in your daily human resources activities. Because they are based on standard Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services capabilities, you can use these applications immediately and easily, customizing them as needed.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032280893&Culture=en-US

Microsoft Office System Webcast: Streamlining Professional Services Tasks with Collaborative Workspace Applications (Level 100)
Friday, October 14, 2005 – 9:30 AM-10:30 AM Pacific Time
Jason Bunge, Senior Product Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Find out about the free Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services Collaborative Workspace applications for professional services organizations available for download from the Microsoft Web site. Each application is tailored to address the needs and requirements for specific business processes or set of tasks for businesses of any size. This webcast looks at the Legal Document Review Workflow Management, Team Resourcing, and Contractual Setup Management applications. We show how useful these applications can be in your daily professional services business activities. Based on standard Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services capabilities, you can use these applications immediately and easily, customizing them as needed.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032280912&Culture=en-US

Microsoft Office System Webcast: Planning and Communicating Marketing Activities with Collaborative Workspaces (Level 100)
Monday, October 17, 2005 – 9:30 AM-10:30 AM Pacific Time
Jason Bunge, Senior Product Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Learn about the free Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services Collaborative Workspace applications for marketing activities available for download from the Microsoft Web site. Each application is designed to address the needs and requirements for specific business processes or sets of tasks for organizations of any size. This webcast demonstrates the Competitive Intelligence Resource Dashboard, Event Coordination, and Marketing Communication Campaign Site applications. We show how useful these applications can be in your daily marketing activities. Based on standard Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services capabilities, you can use these applications immediately and easily, and customize them as needed.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032280917&Culture=en-US

Microsoft Office System Webcast: Top 10 Tips to Save Time in Windows SharePoint Services (Level 100)
Tuesday, October 18, 2005 – 9:00 AM-10:00 AM Pacific Time
Andy Reed, Senior Training Specialist, Pacific Technical Consulting (PTC)
Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services, a key feature of Microsoft Windows Server 2003, takes file storage to a new level. SharePoint Services provides community Web sites for team collaboration. Team sites make it easier than ever for users to work together on documents, tasks, contacts, events, and other information. All of a site's collaborative content can be read and edited within Microsoft Office Word 2003, Microsoft Office Excel 2003 and Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2003. Join us for this informative webcast to learn how you and your team can get more out of Windows SharePoint Services and make collaboration the engine of team productivity.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032281192&Culture=en-US

Microsoft Office System Webcast: Simplifying Everyday Business Tasks with Collaborative Workspaces (Level 100)
Wednesday, October 19, 2005 – 9:30 AM-10:30 AM Pacific Time
Jason Bunge, Senior Product Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Find out about the Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services Collaborative Workspace applications for everyday business tasks that you can download free from Microsoft. Each application is designed to facilitate a specific business process or task for organizations of any size. This webcast takes you on a tour of the Meeting Management Site, Classroom Management, Expense Reimbursement Request, and Travel Request applications and demonstrates how useful they can be in your daily business activities. These applications all use standard Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services capabilities as their foundation, which means you can use them immediately and easily, customizing them as needed.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032280921&Culture=en-US

Small Business Webcast: Take the Work out of Teamwork with Word and Windows SharePoint Services (Level 100)
Wednesday, October 26, 2005 - 1:00 PM - 1:30 PM Pacific Time
Lara Pryor, Business Development Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Microsoft Office Word 2003 and Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services allow a small business the capabilities of creating sales and marketing documents, storing them in an intranet site where you can communicate with team members, and track their changes to your document with SharePoint intranet sites. Check out this free webcast on Word and SharePoint and learn tips on how to collaborate more effectively within your teams.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032282356&Culture=en-US

Momentum Webcast: Introduction to SharePoint for the Domino Administrator (Level 100)
Thursday, October 06, 2005 - 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM Pacific Time
Amy Blumenfield, Technical Writer, Microsoft Corporation
Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services (WSS) and Microsoft SharePoint Portal Server (SPS) are, in many ways, similar to Lotus Domino. In this webcast, get to know WSS and SPS from a Domino point of view. Explore the integration points between these two technologies, and discover how they are similar, how they are different, and how this might matter. If you are currently working with SharePoint and Lotus Notes/Domino together or if you want to know more about SharePoint, this session is for you.
http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032280280&Culture=en-US

defining SMS local and remote site boundaries

Mark had a problem with his local and remote site boundaries

His Active Directory site was defined within “Site Boundaries”. He has Included site boundaries within the local roaming boundaries of this site  in the “Roaming Boundaries” check box and wanted to define one TCP/IP subnet to be a remote roaming boundary. he wanted to know which TCP/IP subnet would take precedence over the AD site

Well I scanned through the Configuration guide for Advanced client roaming and found this:

 If you have an Active Directory site that includes a mixture of fast and slow subnets, specify the Active Directory site as a local roaming boundary, but also add the individual slow subnets and mark them as remote roaming boundaries. Remote settings take precedence over local settings.

So now I know.  Sorry for taking so long to get back to you Mark...well it was a long document to read :-)

Office 12 - sneak peek

Have a look at the new look and feel of the next version of Office - Office 12.  Looks quite a bit different doesn't it? I hope that Ill be on one of the early betas as I'm reall keen to have a play with this.  If you want to get involved with having a look at the pre-release beta products, you can register your interest here...

To keep fully up to date though - you really need to subscibe to the RSS feed   and have a look at why the new XML format is such an innovative idea (download the XML formats guide and subscribe to Brians blog too).

Here's the default link to the Office 12 Page... 

Send SMS messages from your mobile phone using Outlook 2003

John has found this fantastic little download from Microsoft that lets you send SMS messages from your cell phone by using Outlook.  A boon to those of you who have big thumbs and those of us who blame your poor spelling on the predictive text feature in the phone. (The number of times I've typed that I'm sitting at home with wind instead of wine.....). There are other howlers too in predictive text that escape me at the moment...

Download it and give it a try... here's the info

This download will enable you to send SMS text messages through most GSM mobile phones connected to your PC using Outlook 2003.
You can enter your SMS text within a Outlook-type entry form and have it sent to your mobile phone for delivery through your mobile phone network service. There is no requirement to install third-party software or to subscribe to additional mobile network services if your mobile phone can be connected to your PC. This is typically via an infrared connection, Bluetooth technology, or a USB/serial cable.
The SMS messages can be saved as a draft, grouped, and forwarded like standard Outlook 2003 e-mail.

Additional Features:

• Manage SMS messages just like emails – Save drafts, Sent items, Print
• Forward as email and SMS
• Lookup and resolve phone numbers to your existing Outlook contacts
• Use spelling and proofing tools
• Cut and paste text from other applications

Exchange 2003 SP2 - whats in it?

I noticed that Gerod has posted a link to the release notes for Exchange SP2 (they weren't with the original bits).  They're now on the web. (I mentioned that you could download them in a previous blog entry).   I'd missed the bit about pausing replication of Public Folders which Gerod picked up.  A very useful feature when your bandwidth starts to creak at the seams...

Documentation for MOM 2005 SP1

MOM 2005 SP1 documentation is now available at the Microsoft Download Center.  These documents will provide guidance and explain features & functionality that will help you plan for, deploy, and administer MOM 2005 SP1.   Visit http://www.microsoft.com/mom/techinfo/productdoc/default.mspx for more information or to download today

Chris, he of the (soon to be shaved head) has also blogged about other Systems Management downloads coming this week - worth a look

Monad shell available to download

I just noticed this on one of our internal newsletters and thought it was worth forwarding on...

“Monad” Shell – Publicly available on Microsoft Download Center
Windows "Monad" Shell is a new interactive command-line and task-based scripting technology for Windows that enables administrators to more efficiently and securely automate and control system management tasks on both desktops and servers. "Monad" Shell provides powerful task-based control (via built-in command line tools and utilities) and a powerful scripting language that enables comprehensive scripted control of the Windows operating system and applications. Download “Monad” for X86 or X64 from the Download Center.  Watch “Monad” Architect Jeffrey Snover demonstrate “Monad” on a Channel 9 MSDN Video Interview and via two webcasts.

Also - contact John via his blog for some extra documentation not included with beta 2, and follow Lee's blog for code samples and for the link to the *new* public newsgroup... 

Copying your SMTP relay list to another computer

Godfrey mailed me with an Exchange problem tht was causing him quite a bit of work

We have a large number of IP addresses in our SMTP "relay list"
It's a real pain to have to enter them into each new exchange server.
There must be some way of copying them across - do you know a way ?

Nope - I didn't - I had to ask arround.  Fortunately Simon came up with this neat little tool which allows you to programmatically set the relay IPs (and allow/deny IPs) for an SMTP VSI in an Exchange org.  It is a COM object with sample VBscript so you can tailor it to suit your requirements. 

You can use the SMTP Internet Protocol Restriction and Accept/Deny List Configuration to programmatically set or view Internet Protocol (IP) restrictions on an SMTP virtual server and to add or remove IP addresses from your global accept or deny lists.  Exchange 2003 provides connection and relay control for its Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) virtual servers. Additionally, Exchange 2003 provides connection filtering that allows you to configure IP addresses from which you want to accept connections or from which you want to always deny connections. These settings are configured in global accept and deny lists in Connection Filtering. An administrator can use these controls to limit the computers that can connect to a virtual server or that can relay e-mail to outside the Exchange organization.  

I forgot to add that there’s a common misconception about the use of that feature – you don’t need to put the IP’s of all your other Exchange Servers in the relay list to secure things,  Exchange Servers don’t ‘relay’ to each other. Some people think that this is the way to be ‘secure’ by doing something like this. So you don't have to that at all and you're just using that field to allow non exchange servers to relay, as that’s what it’s there for.

It's also a great idea to have a look at Part one of the Exchange Transport and Routing guide that has quite a few extra bits on SMTP and relays if you want some background information - especially on correctly configuring your SMTP Server for relays which is *really important* so I've reproduced some of it here...

Setting Relay Restrictions
Relaying is the ability to forward mail to domains other than your own.  More specifically, relaying occurs when an inbound connection to your SMTP server is used to send e-mail messages to external domains. By default, your Exchange server accepts mail submitted by internal or authenticated users and sends it to an external domain. If your server is open for relaying, or if relaying is unsecured on your server, unauthorized users can use your server to send unsolicited commercial e-mail (spam). Therefore, to secure your SMTP virtual server, it is crucial that you set relay restrictions.
It is important to understand the difference between authenticated relaying and anonymous or open relaying:
Authenticated relaying:  Authenticated relaying allows your internal users to send mail to domains outside of your Exchange organization, but requires authentication before the mail is sent. By default, Exchange allows only authenticated relaying.
Anonymous relaying:   Anonymous relaying allows any user to connect to your Exchange server and use it to send mail outside your Exchange organization.

The following examples demonstrate how Exchange Server 2003 accepts and relays mail by using authenticated relaying: 
An anonymous user connects to the SMTP virtual server and attempts to deliver mail to an internal user in the Exchange organization. 
   In this situation, the SMTP virtual server accepts the message because it is destined for an internal domain and because the user exists in Active Directory.
An anonymous user connects to the SMTP virtual server and attempts to deliver mail to an external user in an external domain. 
   In this situation, the SMTP virtual server rejects the mail because it is destined for an external domain for which the Exchange server is not responsible. Because the user is not authenticated, the SMTP virtual server does not relay this mail outside of the Exchange organization.
A user connects to the SMTP virtual server using a Post Office Protocol (POP) or Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP) client (for example, Outlook Express), authenticates, and then attempts to send a message to a user in an external domain. 
   In this situation, the e-mail client connects directly to the SMTP virtual server and authenticates the user. Although the message is destined for a remote domain, the SMTP virtual server accepts and relays this mail because the user is authenticated.

By using the relay control features of Exchange Server 2003, you can prevent third parties from relaying mail through your server. Relay control allows you to specify a list of incoming remote IP address and subnet mask pairs that have permission to relay mail through your server. Exchange checks an incoming SMTP client's IP address against the list of IP networks that are allowed to relay mail. If the client is not allowed to relay mail, only mail that is addressed to local recipients is allowed. You can also implement relay control by domain. However, this approach requires the implementation of reverse DNS resolution, which is controlled at the SMTP virtual server level.

Powerful Powerpoint points

Jesper, who seems to live on planes at the moment, has blogged about how to make your Powerpoint presentations much more effective.  As someone who presents and listens to preentations regularly, I know only too well on the torture of a bad set of slides (especially if you're the one who has to deliver them as is....)

Well worth a look at... and don't forget to pick up some extra tips on the Office web site too.

I don't envy your travel schedule though Jesper - it'll give you lots of time to perfect your slides though :-)

The Microsoft.com team tell you all

I've just noticed this great blog from the Microsoft.com team.  Their first blog entry describes th infrastructre of Microsoft.com, how many servers, how big the pipes are (Biig) 150 million downloads per day.  Phew.

Certanly a blog worth watching... and why don't you ak them a question?  You've probably got some servers that you run too - just like the team!

Here's their RSS feed.

The TechNet Index

I've been sent a mail about how TechNet has been organised to make it much more easy to navigate the site.  I've had a browse during today and I'm impressed.  here are some of the features:

TechNet Indexes have been placed onto http://microsoft.com/technet/index.  There is even a fly out under TechNet programs -> Subscriptions on http://www.microsoft.com/technet/abouttn/subscriptions/default.mspx for easy navigation.  The September shipment has an offline version of the indexes and a flyer pointing to the new Indexes.  

Now you can:

• More easily search for product sthat are in the subscription and locate which disc they are on. 
• Full Text Search
• Search products by disc #
• Search across SKU part numbers
• Query for a list of discs that they receive each month.
• Choose your subscription level, media type, Language pack and Shipment Date
• Create a list by entering SKU part number.

It's certainly worth looking at - especially if you're looking for that particular document and have no idea where the heck it is.....

Bill Gates chats to Channel 9 - without socks

Robert Scoble gets to chat to Bill Gates for 15 minutes on Channel 9.  Its an interesting interview and has a few insights about Bill's 10 and 15 year vision for software, and where he thinks we're headed. He talks about XML and development initiatives and where he sees things going in developer land and also his excitement about Office 12.  He's also not wearing socks :-).  And no ones given him an Xbox 360 yet either...!

Bill also mkes a few good comments on blogging and how people who read bloggers at Microsoft get to know us as a person and not just part of a machine.  (I'm not sure you'd want to know too much about my home life though - its rather bit less geeky than my Microsoft life!).  It's worth listening to a couple of times as he pushes out a heck of a lot of information in a really short space of time. And he's funny. And warm. And witty too. 

This did get me thinking though about the type of software I was using 10 years ago.  We also had hundreds of green screens hooked up to the System 36, System 38 and AS/400's in the Data Processing room (Gosh that dates me!).  I was in the middle of a migration.  Migrating Netware 3.12, Windows 3.11, Wordstar 6 and Lotus 123 version 2 to NT 3.51 with Windows 95 on the desktop, and Back Office 4.2(?) strutting its stuff out the back.  Oh happy days... Everything (our needs were simple then) on the desktop was controlled by ntconfig.pol (very scary in those days), and we were just moving over from our AS/400 based system to MsMail 3.2.  But my pride and joy was the machine over in the corner attached to one of those soft cup modems (1200 baud I seem to remember) .  You know the sort of modem that you had to shove the telephone handset into the modem when you heard the warbles down the line?  I had a Compuserve account and was connected to a couple of news forums for troubleshooting help and information.  This was "The Internet" and I was incredibly protective of it too!  How far have we come?...

So what sort of technology were you using 10 yesrs ago? and what do you expect to be using in 10 years time?

New trojan - won't let you see "adult" sites

I don't normally blog about virus alerts, worms and trojans (Steve normally blogs about these) but this one this morning has caught my eye.  There's a new Trojan out there which won't let you visit sites with sex or exhibition in the title bar of the browser. It actually blocks access to the site itself and displays a warning message that if you ignore it, forces you to log out....  This could make it a bit difficult to book tickets for a concert  then if you had this trojan.

Very bizarre. 

Small Business Server - have you outgrown it?

There's been quite a bit of a buzz about the announcement made yesterday about our new mid market solution codenamed Centro with several articles in the press , blog, and news sites.  Centro is aimed at businesses sized from 50 - 250 pcs, and aims to simplify the management of your environment.  Centro will be made up from components such as Windows, Exchange, ISA, MOM, SMS (sorry, System Centre) - the next versions where appropriate each I suppose -  all linked together to make management much more simple.  So there's one place to go to create a  new user for example, and wizards to automate day to day tasks.  As its aimed at the mid sized business, there'll be a focus on simplifying these sort of tasks too.  So if your organisation has more than 50 PC's and is currently runing Small business Server, then Centro could be the answer as your business develops and grows.

It will be available to buy just after Longhorn Server is available, but watch out for updates and more news as the product develops...

Software Assurance Webcasts. don't miss out

There are quite a few changes coming with the new Software assurance program, so I'd really recommend that you watch one of these 4 global webcasts coming up next week.  The current Software Assurance benefits provide IT Pros with Training Vouchers, eLearning, unlimited phone/web Problem Resolution Support for qualifying servers, deployment tools, monitoring tools, complimentary TechNet subscriptions and other benefits. There will be an announcement additional value and enhancements for IT Pros.

Here's the info to register...

Microsoft Announces Major Software Assurance Program Enhancements
Microsoft invites all customers and partners to attend one of four global webcasts live on September 15, 2005. 
Senior Microsoft executives will introduce several new technology, support, planning, and training benefits that will boost the value of your Microsoft software investment and improve the way IT professionals deploy and manage technology. Register now for your webcast. 
For more information about Software Assurance and the webcasts, visit http://www.microsoft.com/licensing.

Starting from somewhere

Ewan reminded me about start.com today (we were talking about kittens over IM and got a bit sidetracked over the picture of a kitten drinking from a straw).  I had a play with start.com/1 and start.com/2 in the early days of it's incubation period, so I'm really impressed with the improvements made to the landing page. I'm glad that Start.com/3 has been dropped to something more intuitive too.  If you havent seen it yet, all you have to do is log in using your passport credentials, and then start to customise your dashboard portal.  Things like the weather (and they've got my local town listed in the UK too - amazing).  Its really easy to add RSS feeds to the site too, and search for links that you'd like to see.  But the best bit is:

Drag and drop of the modules on the dashboard. Fantastic! Now, there's none of this hanging about whilst the page refreshes itself either.  In fact there are lots of new features in this new version - and you can see how the project has progressed by reading the MSN team blog for startcom. 

if you have any feedback for future improvements mail the team with your suggestions.  So how about putting a dashboard component where I can store my favourite links? I may not want to see the sites displayed all the time - but a list of hyperlinks would be nice...

Or have I missed this feature, and it can be done already??

Move your Autocomplete entries to another machine

Koen had a bit of a challenge moving his autocomplete entries

"After searching on the Microsoft site, I found an aricle in your blog about the autocompletion of email addresses.
Personally I really love to use it. However, I'm encountering a problem with it now, I'll need to change from profile soon at work, witch the change of this profile all my stored email addresses will be lost (I tried it already and it's really true).
Do you know if there's any possibility to store these email addresses?
I think this can be useful as backup as well."

Well I looked around for ages till I found the answer to this question.  I do know that it's really easy to save your autocomplete entries, I'd seen a blog entry or too on how to do it.  I've been meaning to do this for some time and install the latest beta build of Vista on my production machines main partition, and not just in a different partition to swap into when I had a bit of time to experiment.

So I've finally found the KB article documenting how to find the file.  It's at   "drive:\Documents and Settings\user name\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook.nk2" So all you need to do is copy it somewhere safe..

Mine is well below 1Mb in size, but I regularly remove entries I no longer use any more to keep the file size small.  So the file is now saved somewhere else as a backup (Good idea Koen!)

Microsoft and Frontbridge

As I've  mentioned before, Microsoft have now completed the acquisition of Frontbridge technologies.  here's the info from the presspass site, and news comments are starting to appear...

The acquisition of FrontBridge allows Microsoft to deliver services for enforcing compliance through archiving, ensuring e-mail availability in the case of a disaster, and improving protection of employee inboxes from viruses and spam.  FrontBridge, now a wholly owned subsidiary of Microsoft, will continue to offer managed messaging services for multiple e-mail platforms such as Microsoft Exchange, IBM Lotus Domino and other SMTP-compliant servers currently supported by FrontBridge.

I think that this is a really Interesting compliance offering for Exchange...should be good to see what happens moving forward.

You've probably seen this already on the Exchange blog already.  Nino is much more efficient than me :-)

HTC Universal - now on sale

But you've got to go to Germany to buy one at the moment... I noticed that the Register said that the HTC universal was on sale (in Germany) today (or yesterday). It's described as a clamshell - but its not the sort of clamshell that immediately comes to mind (the Star Trek communicator thingy).  It's bigger, heavier - sort of more solid.  It reminds me of a make up compact - with a screen for a mirror (Very girly thought I know).  But having had a bit of a play with Jason's (phone) the other day I now really want one for myself.

Jason has a good photo of it on his blog...just in case you were a bit concerned about the make up comment...

Nice size - not too heavy and an amazingly clear screen.  Time to dump my M1000 I think...or should I wait for something better (again)?

Troubleshooting RPC/HTTP

RPC/HTTP is a fantastic solution to accessing your mail without using a VPN, and since we enabled it here at Microsoft, I hardly ever log on using the VPN and smartcard when I just need to send emails. (General emal triage is done as and where on my smartphone to avoid the Aaargh! feeling when I get back to my mails after a few days out and about.

The problem is when something along the way goes wrong with your RPC/HTTP connection.  Where to start... Well you need to be aware of how RPC over HTTP works... and how RPC/HTTP configured

1. The RPC proxy server establishes and maintains a connection to the Exchange 2003 computer.
2. The RPC proxy server sends RPC requests to the Exchange 2003 computer.
3. The RPC proxy server sends the replies over the Internet to the client program.
4. The Exchange 2003 computer responds to the RPC requests from the RPC proxy server.

To successfully connect to an Exchange 2003 computer by using RPC over HTTP, an Outlook 2003 connection process must follow this procedure:

1. The client computer must resolve the RPC proxy server name by using DNS.
2. The client computer must use Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) to connect to the RPC proxy server.
3. The Microsoft Internet Explorer program on the client computer must process the security certificate that is issued by the RPC proxy server.
4. The client computer must authenticate a connection to the RPC proxy server.
5. The RPC proxy server must contain the computer name of the destination computer. For example, the RPC proxy server must contain the name of the Exchange 2003 computer.
6. The RPC proxy server must resolve the computer names of the destination computers by using DNS.
7. The RPC proxy server must establish a Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) connection to the destination computer.
8. The user's account credentials must be authorized by the domain.
9. The RPC proxy server must send the user's account credentials to the Exchange information store and then log on to Exchange 2003 computer.

Quite a lot to troubleshoot eh?  So here are the high level troubleshooting steps

Step 1: Verify that RPC over HTTP support is installed
Step 2: Verify that the World Wide Web Publishing Service is started
Step 3: Verify that an SSL certificate is installed on the RPC proxy server
Step 4: Connect to the RPC proxy server by using an SSL connection
Step 5: Verify that the RPC proxy server has basic authentication configured
Step 6: Verify the client computer configuration
Step 7: Verify the Outlook profile configuration
Step 8: Verify the Exchange 2003 port configuration

The detailed steps if you want to drill in to troubleshooting the above is here...

posted by Eileen_Brown with 2 Comments