Monthly Windows Server maintenance and patching, best practices?

WSUS, or System Center Essentials or like that from microsoft itself, its quite good and you can delay the deployment or manage it as your needs.

Greetings All,
I would like to reduce our reliance on a MSP for performing server maintenance and patching and would like to know some best practices for doing updates on production servers.
Are there programs or services out there that track Microsoft updates for Windows Server 2008+, and lists possible issues that they may cause? How do you go about monthly updates for your critical servers?
Thanks
This topic first appeared in the Spiceworks Community

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BI BPC server strategy and the best practice

Hi Everyone
I would like to know couple of questions:
1) Is any white paper or documentation on pros and cons of having BPC NW installed as a add-on to BW system wherein Planning and Reporting are taking place on the same BW system versus BPC as a separate system wherein is used primarily for Planning and Consolidation system only
2) is there a Best Practice document and performance considerations for BPC development from SAP.
appreciated for any answers.
Regards
AK

Hi AK,
both scenarios works well but for first scenario having BPC on top of exisiting BW reporting, you need to take special attention on sizing. As BPC requires additional capacity, you need to take care of it.
Also if you have SEM component on your BW system, you need to check this Sap note: 1326576 u2013 SAP NW system with SAP ERP software components.
And before you install BPC, it is recommended to have a quick test process once you upgraded to NW EhP1 (it is a prerequisites for BPC), to check the existing BW reporting process.
regards,
Sreedhar

What is the most powerful books for Windows server 2008 and R2?

Hi,
There are many books out there that cover Windows server 2k8 and its R2 successor but i wonder which ones to focus on. In the same time, all books are for one purpose, "Windows Server 2008". Each author has his/her own view on the platform. I don't
want to read them all just to avoid confusions and complications.
These are the list of books that i have along with books that i finished reading them:
Exam 70-640 Configuring Windows Server® 2008 Active Directory® (Finished this)
Exam 70-642 Configuring Windows Server 2008 Network Infrastructure (Finished this)
Exam 70-643 Configuring Windows Server 2008 Application Infrastructure
(Finished this)
Exam 70-646 Windows_Server__2008_Server_Administrator_Second_Edition (Finished this)
Mastering_Windows_Server_2008_R2 (Finished this)
McGraw.Hill.Microsoft.Windows.Server.2008.Administration.Feb.2008
McGraw.Hill.Microsoft.Windows.Server.2008.The.Complete.Reference.Feb.2008
OReilly.Windows.Server.2008.The.Definitive.Guide.Mar.2008
Sams.Teach.Yourself.Windows.Server.2008.in.24.Hours.May.2008
Sybex.MCTS.Windows.Server.2008.Active.Directory.Configuration.Study.Guide
Windows Server 2008 Active Directory Resource Kit (Finished this)
Windows Server 2008 Networking and Network Access Protection (Finished this)
Windows Server 2008 Unleashed
Windows Server 2008 R2 Unleashed
Do you think the unfinished books worth reading?
Appreciate your help.

Thank you for the reply. My goal is to read everything (ins and outs) about Win 2008 and R2 platforms before i jump into Win 2012. I have pretty good experience in certain roles in Win 2008 such ADDS and ADCS. As clarified, i've finished a good number of
books but i want to make sure that i didn't miss a single piece of information that maybe covered in another book.
Honestly, i find the Technet docs are informative but daunting. On the other hand, books written by authors are more friendly because authors can throw jokes while explaining a certain technology, which makes the reader more attracted to the topic. In addition,
examples, practices, labbing, and quizzes in the books are more fun.

I have problem with data transfer between Windows Server 2012RT and Windows7 (no more than 14kbps) while between Windows Sever 2012RT and Windows8.1 speed is ok.

I have problem with data transfer between Windows Server 2012RT and Windows7 (no more than 14kbps) while between Windows Sever 2012RT and Windows8.1 speed is ok.

Hi,
Regarding the issue here, please take a look at the below links to see if they could help:
Slow data transfer speed in Windows 7 or in Windows Server 2008 R2
And a blog here:
Windows Server 2012 slow network/SMB/CIFS problem
Hope this may help
Best regards
Michael
If you have any feedback on our support, please click
here.
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Is there a 32 Bit edition available for windows server 2012 and windows server 2008

Dear All,
Is there a 32 Bit edition available for windows server 2012 and windows server 2008?
Regards,
Ahmed

Hi,
Quote：
All editions of Windows Server 2008 R2 are 64-bit only.
Reference link below(session Supported upgrade paths):
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd379511(v=ws.10).aspx
And based on MS official description about system requirement for Windows Server 2012/2012 R2, we may find out that they only has 64 bit OS.
Best Regards,
Eve Wang
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How share ADSL Internet connection to all machines without RRAS but using Windows Server DHCP and DNS

Hello!
I have this scenario on my small network with 10 PCs (connecting from outside to inside my network):
1) Modem with ADSL connection
2) Wireless Router with public IP on WAN interface
3) Switch
4) Server 2012 with DC/DHCP/DNS (with 2 NICs) and others servers/desktops machines
I want to share internet to servers and desktops.
I was able to share internet by 2 methods searching on google, but I am not satisfied with them:
First method - Using the Wireless Router and its DHCP Server
I turned on the DHCP inside the Wireless Router. All machines will get an IP and be able to go to Internet, but I don’t have the ability to control the DHCP and DNS in the router
how I would like to have, because the server DHCP and DNS must be turned off on Windows Server.
Second method - Using the Windows Server RRAS NAT, DHCP and DNS server
I have 2 NICs on the server:
NIC1 - CONNECTED TO SWITCH
IP: 192.168.1.1
MSK: 255.255.255.0
GTW:192.168.1.1
DNS:192.168.1.1
NIC2 - CONNECTED TO WIRELESS ROUTER
(the LAN IP of the wireless router is 172.16.0.1)
IP: 172.16.0.2
MSK: 255.255.0.0
GTW: 172.16.0.1
DNS: 172.16.0.1
After installing and setting the RRAS with NAT at the Server, the internet began to work on all machines but at some times the internet stop to load some
random webpages, and if you hit a couple of times the F5 button, the webpage open sometimes, but very, very slow.
I saw other people in foruns saying that RRAS is not very good, and could cause weird things at internet connection, so, now I think the internet is horrible
because of RRAS. After notice that internet is bad I tested it connecting a cable direct to the lan ports of the Wireless Router, and the internet works fast and perfect.
What is the best thing to do in my case to maintain Windows Server DHCP and DNS turned on and Internet be shared without loss of quality?
Thank you!

Hi,
please deploy according to this network topology. please turn off DHCP from router and use internal NAT function to share internet. Detailed configurations:
Router part:
LAN address: 192.168.1.1/24
DHCP part:
scope name : site name
address pool: 192.168.1.3-192.168.1.254
scope options:
router:192.168.1.1
DNS server:192.168.1.2
DNS part:
configure a forwarder to point to the public DNS address such as 8.8.8.8
with these settings, you can maintain Windows Server DHCP and DNS turned on and Internet be shared via hardware router.
Regards,
Mike
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Hyper link of public image(hyperlink or image) can not be saved on windows server 2012 and sharepoint 2010 problem

hyper link of public image(hyperlink or image) can not be saved on windows server 2012 and sharepoint 2010 problem, is this a bug?
thanks for any reply.
Rosone

It is not a bug, you might be using IE in Windows server 2012 and and browser might be restricting your site actions to respond properly.
Check this in a different browser or access site in a differ OS.
Adnan Amin MCT, SharePoint Architect | If you find this post useful kindly please mark it as an answer.

Crystal 8 Web Component Server ond Windows Server 2003 and IIS 6

I am trying to get Crystal 8 Web Component and Page Server to run on Windows 2003 Server with IIS 6. I have done the following:
Added the .cri and .rpt ISAPI extension mappings
Have Cache ISAPI extentions selected
Deselected "verify that file exists"
Aded the .cri and .rpt MIME types
Added wcsinsapi.dll as a IIS 6.0 extension
The above resolved all HTTP 40x.x errors but when trying to access a report from IE I receive the following error:
Error: Could not connect to the Web Component Server.
The page server and web component server services are running and I do see the listen ports (6401, 6403) active.
I know this is old software but it works quite well under a Windows 2000 Server and other web postings indicate that it is possible to run Crystal 8 under WS2003 and IIS 6.
Does any one know of a white paper/support document that details how to run Crystal 8 under Windows Server 2003 and IIS 6?
Has any one done this successfully?
Any tips as to cause of the "Could Not Connect" problem would be greatly appreciated.

Well as it turns out it looks like it was just this server.
We tried everything, and I added those user accounts to full
permission for the Coldfusion folders and we just could not get it
to work. We tried it on another couple servers running 2003, and it
installed perfectly right out of the box with no other permissions
needed. And those servers were all running default configs with no
other permissions done.
We still have no idea what was the problem, but at least for
now it seems to be this server. But I will tell you what, that II6
stuff seems to be a bit of a pain, we had major problems installing
new version of PHP with it too. Oh well, good luck to you
too!

Out of memory using Windows Server 2003 and Oracle 9.2.0.3

Hi,
I just installed both Windows Server 2003 and Oracle 9.2.0.3. The server I am using has 4 gigabytes of memory installed, and windows shows that to be the actual physical memory on the server. The paging file is 8 gigabytes for a total of 12 gigabytes of virtual memory.
Using the Oracle Database Configuration Assistant, I create a new database using default values. After verifying the installation worked OK (database started, queries ran), I attempted to change some of the memory parameters and was able to start the database using about 1.4 gigabytes of total SGA, with the O/S using about .3 gigabytes for a total of 1.7 gigabytes. I then attempted to change the buffer cache + 1 gigabyte for a total of 2 gigabytes. Now the database will not start and I get an out of memory error ora-27102 with an additional O/S memory error of "O/S Error: (OS 8) Not enough storage is available to process this command".
So, I have two problems:
1) With 4 gigabytes installed, and the O/S using only about 300 megabytes, why isn't Oracle able to take advantage of the memory on this machine past the 1.7 gigabytes (as reported by Windows task manager).
2) How do I change the spfile memory parameters so the database will start using spfile? I can start the database pointing to a pfile with lesser memory parameters, but I don't know how to effect change on the spfile, since I cannot start with the spfile.
Both these technologies (9.2.0.3 and Server 2003) are new to me, so any insight would be appreciated!
HERE ARE THE SPFILE PARAMETERS THAT WORKED:
SGA (M)
Shared Pool=104
Buffer Cache=960 ***
Large Pool=0
Java Pool=64
Total SGA=1128
SGA Max Size=1321
Aggregate PGA Target=1500
Current PGA Allocated=22868KB
WINDOWS MEMORY INFO FROM TASK MANAGER SHOW:
PF Usage=1.66GB
Physical Memory (K)
Total=4062704
Available=3203460
System Cache=2499096
Commit Charge (K)
Total=1748184
Limit=12288628
Peak=1925276
*** When I change this to 2048 the database did not start.
Thank you.

CREATE SPFILE
Purpose
Use the CREATE SPFILE statement to create a server parameter file from a client-side initialization parameter file. Server parameter files are binary files that exist only on the server and are called from client locations to start up the database.
Server parameter files let you make persistent changes to individual parameters. When you use a server parameter file, you can specify in an ALTER SYSTEM SET parameter statement that the new parameter value should be persistent. This means that the new value applies not only in the current instance, but also to any instances that are started up subsequently. Traditional client-side parameter files do not let you make persistent changes to parameter values. Because they are located on the server, these files allow for automatic database tuning by Oracle and for backup by Recovery Manager (RMAN).
To use a server parameter file when starting up the database, you must create it from a traditional text initialization parameter file using the CREATE SPFILE statement.
All instances in an Real Application Clusters environment must use the same server parameter file. However, when otherwise permitted, individual instances can have different settings of the same parameter within this one file. Instance-specific parameter definitions are specified as SID.parameter = value, where SID is the instance identifier.
The method of starting up the database with a server parameter file depends on whether you create a default or nondefault server parameter file. Please refer to "Creating a Server Parameter File: Examples" for examples of how to use server parameter files.
See Also:
CREATE PFILE for information on creating a regular text parameter file from a binary server parameter file
Oracle9i Database Administrator's Guide for information on pre-Oracle9i initialization parameter files and Oracle9i server parameter files
Oracle9i Real Application Clusters Administration for information on using server parameter files in a Real Application Clusters environment
Prerequisites
You must have the SYSDBA or the SYSOPER system privilege to execute this statement. You can execute this statement before or after instance startup. However, if you have already started an instance using spfile_name, you cannot specify the same spfile_name in this statement.
Syntax
create_spfile::=
Text description of create_spfile
Semantics
spfile_name
This clause lets you specify a name for the server parameter file you are creating.
If you do not specify spfile_name, Oracle uses the platform-specific default server parameter filename. If spfile_name already exists on the server, this statement will overwrite it. When using a default server parameter file, you start up the database without referring to the file by name.
If you do specify spfile_name, you are creating a nondefault server parameter file. In this case, to start up the database, you must first create a single-line traditional parameter file that points to the server parameter file, and then name the single-line file in your STARTUP command.
See Also:
"Creating a Server Parameter File: Examples" for information on starting up the database with default and nondefault server parameter files
Oracle9i Database Administrator's Guide for Windows (or other appropriate operating system specific documentation) for default parameter file names
pfile_name
Specify the traditional initialization parameter file from which you want to create a server parameter file.
If you specify pfile_name, the parameter file must reside on the server. If it does not reside in the default directory for parameter files on your operating system, you must specify the full path.
If you do not specify pfile_name, Oracle looks in the default directory for parameter files on your operating system for the default parameter filename, and uses that file. If that file does not exist in the expected directory, Oracle returns an error.
Note:
In a Real Application Clusters environment, you must first combine all instance parameter files into one file before specifying it in this statement to create a server parameter file. For information on accomplishing this step, see Oracle9i Real Application Clusters Setup and Configuration.
Examples
Creating a Server Parameter File: Examples
The following example creates a default server parameter file from a client initialization parameter file named t_init1.ora:
CREATE SPFILE
FROM PFILE = '$ORACLE_HOME/work/t_init1.ora';
Note:
Typically you will need to specify the full path and filename for parameter files on your operating system. Please refer to your Oracle operating system documentation for path information.
When you create a default server parameter file, you subsequently start up the database using that server parameter file by using the SQL*Plus command STARTUP without the PFILE parameter, as follows:
STARTUP
The following example creates a nondefault server parameter file s_params.ora from a client initialization file named t_init1.ora:
CREATE SPFILE = 's_params.ora'
FROM PFILE = '$ORACLE_HOME/work/t_init1.ora';
When you create a nondefault server parameter file, you subsequently start up the database by first creating a traditional parameter file containing the following single line:
spfile = 's_params.ora'
The name of this parameter file must comply with the naming conventions of your operating system. You then use the single-line parameter file in the STARTUP command. The following example shows how to start up the database, assuming that the single-line parameter file is named new_param.ora:
STARTUP PFILE=new_param.ora
http://download-west.oracle.com/docs/cd/B10501_01/server.920/a96540/statements_616a.htm#SQLRF01315
Joel P�rez

HTML and CSS Best Practices for Eloqua?

Hello Topliners Community,
My name is Ben and I am a Web Designer. I am currently looking for any guidance on HTML and CSS best practices when working with Eloqua. I am interested in the best practices for e-mail and landing pages.
Thank you,
Ben

Personally I like to upload my custom created html/css into Eloqua instead of using the WYSIWYG.
But if you must then right clicking on text boxes and click edit source is the way to go.
There was a good discussion on editing your forms with CSS:
Energize Your Eloqua10 Forms with CSS
created by Ryan Wheler on Nov 2, 2012 8:44 AM, last modified by Greg Stotler on Sep 19, 2013 2:00 PM
Version 2
CSS can be used to heavily customize the layout of forms in Eloqua10. In this article we will provide sample cover some common formatting use cases on Eloqua10 Landing Pages. Further details about uses of CSS in Eloqua10 form templates can be found here: EE12 - Do It - Eloqua - Energize E10 Forms
Eloqua10 Forms HTML Structure
Below is an outline of the structure of the HTML generated by Eloqua when a form is added to a landing page. By targeting the HTML classes highlighted below, we can control the layout of any form on your landing page.
For the rest of page: http://topliners.eloqua.com/docs/DOC-3015

How are Windows Server Backup and Command Line Tools used in vCSHB installation?

How are Windows Server Backup and Command Line Tools used during the installation of vCSHB? Is it required in all types of deployments (PtoV, VtoV, PtoP)? Is it used to create the files that are put in the file share for the second node to use during vCSHB installation or is it only used during a vCSHB clone operation of a Physical to Physical deployment? Are these tools not used in some deployments?

You need Windows Server Backup installed on source and destination, and during the installation of vCSHB the installer will invoke the wbadmin (Windows Server Backup Utility) and will backup configuration and application data (application data is optimal but can decrease the sync time after installation of secondary node). On the secondary node you will need only run the vCSHB installer and everything will be restored.
Check this blog entry for some more info about some problems in P2P deployment: http://www.vcoportal.de/2013/12/vmware-vcenter-server-heartbeat-restore-on-a-second-node-a-journey/

It is compatible Obi 11g with Windows Server 2012 and Sql Server 2012?

Hi every
Please help with two questions.
1. - Obi 11g is supported on Windows Server 2012 and SQL Server 2012?
There a compatibility matrix which mention compatibility with versions 2012?
2. - is feasible to install Obi 11g in separate server and install weblogic on another server?
I appreciate the prompt response
Regards
Pedro

Hi Pedro,
As of November 2012 Compatibility Matrix released by Oracle for OBI 11.1.1.x Windows 2012 and SQL Server 2012 were not supported. It was supported on 2008 Windows and SQL Server.
We can have weblogic and OBI server's on 2 different machines. The approach is to opt software only install. the link below will give more details:
http://obieeelegant.blogspot.com/2012/07/obiee111160-software-only-installation.html
Let me know if this helped.
Regards,
Jay

Indexing .cfm files using Indexing Service on windows server 2008 and IIS 7.0

Hi All,
Anyone knows why .cfm files would not get indexed by Indexing Service on windows server 2008 and IIS 7.0. This is a coldfusion website using Indexing Service for site search. There are a lot of cfm pages indexed as unknown files. Any clues on how this can be fixed?
Thanks!

You might try editing your registry so that *.cfm, *.cfc, and other ColdFusion related files are treated as text files by the Windows search feature. See link below.
http://www.dougknox.com/xp/tips/xp_bad_search.htm
Disclaimer: I am not a Windows system admin. You might try posting this question to a Windows specific forum.

How do you repair ntoskrnl.exe error or system error in windows server 2008 and 2012

hi,
can you repair system file errors like ntoskrnl.exe in windows server 2008 and 2012 like like before in windows server 2003 ?
the steps were repairing ntoskrnl.exe error in windows server 2003
1- have a 2003 cd and from that cd start recovery console and copy from i386 directory ntldr and ntdetect.com to windows /system32 directory on the server and then repairing
2- MBR with fixmbr command and then rebuild BOT.INI file with bootcfg/rebuild .
now my question is how you repair or solve such problem with ntoskrnl.exe error in windows server 2008 and windows server 2012
thanks
johan
h.david

first this wil take a lot of time for windows 2008 and 2012 ,
and what about windows 2003 I thing this has no startup repair
thanks
johan
h.david
What will take a lot of time? Repair or clean install? These days one can standup a new VM and have an operating system on it in around 20 minutes or so.
Correct server 2003 is file based deployment and completely different OS from repair perspective as well.
Regards, Dave Patrick ....
Microsoft Certified Professional
Microsoft MVP [Windows]
Disclaimer: This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties or guarantees , and confers no rights.

Windows Server 2008 and SQL Server 2008 R2 - ?? for replication with Oracle

Hello:
I am running Windows Server 2008 and SQL Server 2008 R2 - 64 bit
I need to replicate data between the SQL 2008 and Oracle 11.2 ?? with Oracle being the publisher
I also would lile SqlPlus installed on the server.
I need a definite answer as to what I should download from the Oracle download area. There are just so many packages and so many version I dont know what to download.
Thanks

Hi,
Currently Microsoft Windows Server 2008 and SQL Server 2008 are not supported for SAP Business One.
For detailed information about all supported platforms, we have the following link for your reference:
www.service.sap.com/smb/sbo >product availability > supported platforms.
Regarding the information on the service marketplace this is updated on a regular basis and provides the most up to date information regarding the supported platforms for Business One.
Platforms not mentioned in this documentation are not supported.
hope it helps,
Regards,
Ladislav
SAP Business One Forum Team

Monthly Windows Server maintenance and patching, best practices?

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