Windows Server 2003 SP1 Released!

Learn about and Install Windows Server 2003 SP1 at Microsoft TechNet Center.

 

Office 2003 Add-in: Microsoft Outlook SMS Add-in (MOSA)

Overview
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 speller and proofing tools
• Cut and paste text from other applications

Important notes:

• This program is a free product and is not supported by Microsoft.

And download link… 😉

WIN2K3 SP1 New Feature – RDP over SSL

Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) in Windows Server 2003 provides data encryption but it does not provide authentication to verify the identity of terminal server. There is a nice new feature that comes in Service Pack 1 for Windows Server 2003. Transport Layer Security (TLS) 1.0 for server authentication and to encrypt terminal server communication. TLS is the latest and securest version of Secure Socket Layer (SSL) protocol. Difference is that TLS 1.0 applies a Key-Hashing for Message Authentication Code (HMAC) algorithm. SSL 3.0 applies Message Authentication Code (MAC) algorithm. Difference between HMAC and MAC is that HMAC produces an integrity check value with a hash function construction that makes hash much harder to break.

How to enable RDP over SSL?

On server:

• Terminal Server must run Windows Server 2003 SP1
• You must obtain certificate for the terminal server (Server Authentication)
• Enable RDP over SSL (see picture below). You can force usage of SSL with selecting SSL from drop down menu or to only offer SSL functionality with selecting Negotiate.

On client:

• Clients must run Windows 2000 or XP
• Clients must be upgraded to use RDP 5.2 (Windows Server 2003 SP1) client
• Clients must trust the root of the server`s certificate
• Configure RDP client for SSL usage (see picture below)

 

That`s all 😉

 

How to configure RPC over HTTP on a single server in Exchange Server 2003

http://support.microsoft.com/?id=833401

http://www.msexchange.org/tutorials/Outlook_2003_Connect_Exchange_2003.html

 

RPC/HTTP Problems anyone?

Everyone that has tried to implement RPC/HTTP knows that it isn’t particularly easy and can be rather time-consuming. Kudos goes to Microsoft for making it much easier with Exchange 2003 SP1. Even though the requirements are many, the documentation is actually pretty good about detailing what the requirements are.

If you happen to be one of those people that just can’t make it work, here is an additional tip that I found in the newsgroups this past week. Basically, rpcproxy.dll gets registered as a web service extension in IIS (the actual web extension is RPC Proxy Server Extension). rpcproxy.dll is located in the c:windowssystemrpcproxy directory. If the RPC Proxy Server Extension required files is pointing at the wrong file name/path (in this case, it was pointing to c:windowssystemrpcproxy.dll instead of c:windowssystemrpcproxyrpcproxy.dll), then configuring everything else will still result in RPC/HTTP not working. Fortunately, the fix here is as simple as adding the correct file/path to the required files, then removing the incorrect one.

Read on…

Old trick, but hard to find

From: A Collection of Random Thoughts Tuesday, 30 November 2004 19:16:43 Subject: Old trick, but hard to find

Have you ever wanted to modify the Save As default list that is displayed on the left when downloading a file in Internet Explorer? Sure you can always use the Drop-down menu and select a different location, but I always tend to save things into different folders (such as C:Downloads, etc.) instead of using the built-in folders that are available. I also find it tedious to have to select C: from the drop-down list, then browse that folder each time I want to save something.

Anyways, I seemed to recall being able to change that list, or perhaps I had actually done it a white ago, but how to do it now had escaped me. So I Googled a bit and found the following information.

Did you ever want to change the Default locations to where you can save things too and open things from?
The default list (in Windows XP PRo) is:

My Recent Documents
Desktop
My Documents
My Computer
My Network Places

These places can be altered from the following location in the Registry.

HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionPolicies

First add a new key titled “ComDlg32”. Next, under the ComDlg32 folder, add a new key titled “PlacesBar”

With PlacesBar highlighted, you then add 5 items to the right pane called:

Place0
Place1
Place2
Place3
Place4

The types of entries you can make can be either String values (to denote a custom path name, such as C:Downloads), or you can create a new DWORD value and use the Built-in values that Windows uses (Hexadecimal values). Some examples are:

DWORD value of 0 = Desktop
DWORD value of 2 = Programs
DWORD value of 5 = My Documents
DWORD value of 6 = Favorites
DWORD value of 11 = My Computer
DWORD value of 12 = My Network Places
DWORD value of 27 = My Pictures

There are lots more values, so you can play around and try different values to see what you come up with – I wasn’t able to find a list in my feeble search attempts, but then again, I didn’t feel like wasting a lot of time looking for it.

It’s also worth noting that this change doesn’t affect the Save As menu that Office displays, but there are other methods for changing that menu.

Anyways, it’s the little things that make the computing experience easier. 🙂

Read on…

Exchange migration tips – changing the outbound delivery mechanism

Remember that with Exchange 5.5, in order to send or receive Internet e-mail, you had to install the Internet Mail Connector (IMC) a.k.a Internet Mail Service. Exchange 2000/2003 no longer require (or use) an IMC to send/receive internet mail, as they use SMTP natively and have the ability to send/receive e-mail from the internet by default. That being said, you might expect that once you introduce an Exchange 200x server into your org, that it would send outbound mail itself. Not so, my friend. Instead, your Exchange 200x server will, you guessed it, still use the 5.5 IMC for outbound e-mail. If you want to change how outbound e-mail routes, then you must make some configuration changes.

There are basically 3 different methods that should allow you to change how outbound e-mail is routed.
1. Rename the address space on the IMC to something invalid (i.e. bogus.local). Install an SMTP Connector on an Exchange 200x server with the address space of “*”. There are a few more steps that need to be done – for that, make sure to reference the KB article I have linked to at the bottom.
2. Remove the address space on the IMC. Obviously, removing something is inherently a “bit” riskier, but in this case, should pose no problems. Once the address space is removed and replicated, you would do the same as above with installing and SMTP connector.
3. Add an SMTP connector with a lower cost that contains the same address space (i.e. “*”). While theoretically the connector with the lowest cost ought to win, I’ve heard reports that it doesn’t necessarily always work that way, and that the IMC “may” still win. The best thing to say about this is YMMV (Your mileage may vary). If it doesn’t work, then revert back to either of the previous methods.

Once you have chosen a method, and verified that outbound e-mail is now routing through the Exchange 200x server’s SMTP connector instead of the IMC, you can safely remove the addres space (if you didn’t already) and then once replicated, you can uninstall the IMC. As I mentioned earlier, there is a terrific MSKB article that references how to do this. That article can be found here.
How to switch outgoing mail connectors when migrating to Exchange 2000 or 2003

Problems with Google? ;-)

I got this error million times today… 😉

Microsoft playing unfair game?

I just read this article at reuters.com. What the hell are they thinking? Like they don’t have enough compromised machines around the world already? Not to mention stupid “LAND attack” which is still unpatched. Or is this just another thoughtless statement from Microsoft?

I understand that Microsoft is U.S. company. But they have no right to shorten regular customers around the world! I don`t care for U.S. government personally. For me they are just a government like any others. Including Afganistan`s.

Quote:
Under a plan to take effect later this year, Microsoft will give the U.S. Air Force versions of software “patches” to fix serious security vulnerabilities up to a month before they are available to others, the paper said.

Edited 14.3.2005 Quote 2:
The U.S. government will not get a head start on other Windows users when it comes to Microsoft security updates, the company said Friday in response to news report that suggested otherwise.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. Air Force will receive early versions of software patches through Microsoft’s Update Validation Program (SUVP) and those fixes will be forwarded to other agencies through the Department of Homeland Security.

Edited 14.3.2005 Related posts:

• Use Microsoft, get 0wned by USGov
• Govt. Gets Windows Updates First
• Air Force gets Microsoft patches first
• The Wall Street Journal got it wrong

 

 

Microsoft playing unfair game?

I just read this article at reuters.com. What the hell are they thinking? Like they don’t have enough compromised machines around the world already? Not to mention stupid “LAND attack” which is still unpatched. Or is this just another thoughtless statement from Microsoft?

I understand that Microsoft is U.S. company. But they have no right to shorten regular customers around the world! I don`t care for U.S. government personally. For me they are just a government like any others. Including Afganistan`s.

Quote:
Under a plan to take effect later this year, Microsoft will give the U.S. Air Force versions of software “patches” to fix serious security vulnerabilities up to a month before they are available to others, the paper said.

Edited 14.3.2005 Quote 2:
The U.S. government will not get a head start on other Windows users when it comes to Microsoft security updates, the company said Friday in response to news report that suggested otherwise.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. Air Force will receive early versions of software patches through Microsoft’s Update Validation Program (SUVP) and those fixes will be forwarded to other agencies through the Department of Homeland Security.

Edited 14.3.2005 Related posts:

• Use Microsoft, get 0wned by USGov
• Govt. Gets Windows Updates First
• Air Force gets Microsoft patches first
• The Wall Street Journal got it wrong