New Outlook Features

I've been catching up with some of the sessions from MS Ignite via the on demand function and one of the interesting events I tuned into was the "Discover what's new and what's coming from Microsoft Outlook" with Julia Foran, Allen Filush and JJ Cadiz.

Within the session they talked about how they have used customer feedback to help develop a better more intuitive and productive tool.

The new features that should be starting to roll out to Office 365 subscription users in the new few months are as follows;

Focused
They received a lot feedback about the Clutter facility and how emails were getting lost in there when users forgot to check there so they have introduced the Focused view that will help to show a user on opening Outlook the important emails while the not so important emails will go into the Other view.  This feature can be seen in this video:

@mentions

Within emails you will now be able to use the @ symbol and then type someone's name to help bring to their attention something in particular within that email.  This will be especially useful within emails that have many recipients.  It's very like the mentions facility that Twitter and Facebook currently utilise so the hope is that users will be able to adapt to this new feature easily.  

Shared Calendars

One of the major issues we're all aware of if we've used calendars within an organisation is that shared calendars can be a pain to set up, access and view.  This is set to change.  Microsoft have put a lot of effort into developing a better and easier to manage system.   The ability for an end user to share their calendar with a colleague has now been simplified and easy to understand. Accepting that invite to be able to view a shared calendar is much more initiative and grants instant access. 

It used to be the case that you could only view a shared calendar from your Outlook client and that wasn't reliable all the time, but now you will be able to see your colleague's calendar from your Outlook client, your OWA session, or your mobile device (iOS, Android and Windows).  Which is a great move and will be extremely handy for the one the go worker. 

The free/busy time availability has also had some development.  Microsoft have made it that Outlook will learn the top 50 users that you schedule meetings with and help to populate their free/busy information instantaneously.  No more waiting on Outlook to find and display that info which was unreliable, it will now be available immediately, blink and you'll miss it loading! And the even better news is that you will be able to see the free/busy information on the go, so if you are trying to schedule a meeting from your mobile device you will get feedback on your meeting attendees availability there and then.

Others

There are also some other features coming along, which include the ability to see a small preview of any image files you are attaching to emails, so you can see if you're sending the right one. 

Outlook will be easier to set up on first run if you have signed into the device with your Office 365 account, which will be music to IT Administrator ears. 

If you receive an email regarding flight information or an online order Outlook will render all the useful information; flight number, check in details, tracking number, etc at the top of the email so that it easy to find and see. 

The future definitely looks bright for the features and functions of Outlook and I look forward to seeing them rolled out.  If you would like to hear more and see these features in action please take a look at the MSIgnite session at https://myignite.microsoft.com/videos/4076

Also if you would like to participate within the development of Outlook please visit Outlook Uservoice and give Microsoft your feedback. 

Exchange 2013 Active Directory property ‎homeMDB‎ is not writeable on recipient

When trying to migrate users from Exchange 2007 to Exchange 2013 you may see the following error below:

 Error:MigrationPermanentException: Active Directory property ‎'homeMDB‎' is not writeable on recipient ‎'domain.local/users/employee.smith‎'. --> Active Directory property ‎'homeMDB‎' is not writeable on recipient ‎'domain.local/users/employee.smith‎'.

With many Exchange issues the solution is to set the correct permissions to allow Exchange to migrate the mailbox.

To resolve this issue follow these steps:

1. Launch Active Directory
2. Click on View and select Advanced Features
   
   
   
   
   
3. Now location the users mailbox you are having the issue with and select properties
4. Now click on the security tab
5. Next select Advanced
   
   
        
6. Now place a tick in the "Include inheritable permissions from this objects parents" box and click OK
7. It may take a few minutes for this change to take effect but once it has you should be able to migrate the users mailbox without any problems. 

Unable to sync phone to Exchange

If you've been following my blog for the last few weeks you'll have heard me talk about the Exchange 2013 migration project I've been working on.  Well we hit another snag in the migration the other day around the users mobile phones not syncing to the new mailbox server after moving to Exchange 2013.

At first we thought it was just one or two users but it transpired that over 80 users were affected!! After investigating whether or not ActiveSync was working as expected (it was) we turned our attention to looking at an issue within the users accounts.

It turned out that the 80 users were all a member of a protected group within Active Directory and weren't getting the correct permissions to sync their phones as per Microsoft's best practices.

In order to get to that stage I used some PowerShell queries which I thought were quite interesting so I'm sharing.

I used the following command to query Active Directory for all users that had the "AdminCount" attribute set to something greater than 0.  If set to 1 it indicates the user is either a member of a protected group or has been:

Import-Module ac* 

Get-ADuser -filter {admincount -gt 0} -Properties admincount -ResultSetSize $null | export-csv c:\\onyx\document.csv

To find out which groups within the Active Directory environment I was working in were considered a Protected Group I ran the following query:

Import-Module ac*

Get-ADgroup -LDAPFilter "(admincount=1)" | select name 

From there I was able to check the groups individually to see which ones contained, if any, the users that were having issues with their phones.  All the affected users were a member of the "Print Operators" group. Mystery solved!

Get Mailbox Move Progress

I've recently been involved in an email migration from Exchange 2007 to Exchange 2013 and in order to monitor the progress of the mailbox moves I've been using Powershell commands, the two I've used are:

Get-MoveRequestStatistics -MoveRequestQueue "Mailbox Database 1"| Sort PercentComplete

This results in giving the Display Name, StatusDetail, TotalMailboxSize, TotalArchiveSize and PercentComplete of each mailbox move to that Exchange 2013 database.

The other one that I've found useful is:

Get-MoveRequestStatistics -MoveRequestQueue "Mailbox Database 1"| Where-Object {$_.StatusDetail -eq "Copying Messages"} | Sort PercentComplete

This is just a variation on the first query but it only shows the mailboxes that are currently copying messages to the Exchange 2013 environment.

Just remember a watched kettle never boils though! lol 

Powershell Query to Analyze your Mailbox Movement

I've recently been doing an Exchange 2007 to Exchange 2013 migration and wanted to find out the kind of speed the mailbox moves were taking.  I used the below Powershell script to pull out the MB transfer speed per minute:

Get-MoveRequest | Where { $_.Status -eq “Completed” } | Get-MoveRequestStatistics | Select DisplayName,TotalMailboxSize,TotalMailboxItemCount,@{n=”Speed MB/min”; e={ [int]($_.BytesTransferred.ToMB() / $_.TotalInProgressDuration.TotalMinutes) }}

Uninstall Project 2013 with Configuration Manager

As I'm sure all of you have found there are lots of helpful articles out there about how to do a silent install of Microsoft Office/Project/Visio/etc through SCCM, but there is very little information out there on how to do an un-install silently. After much head scratching I finally found the method of doing so...

1. Navigate to the directory where your install files are located
2. Edit the config.xml file located within prjstd.ww (note this changes depending on the version of Project)
3. Remove the values from the Display level line and change it to look like below

4. Within your SCCM deployment modify the Uninstall file to read:
setup.exe /uninstall prjstd /config prjstd.ww/config.xml (again note the visio version name will differ depending on the edition)

5. Click OK and test the uninstallation via SCCM software centre

Uninstall Visio 2013 with SCCM

As I'm sure all of you have found there are lots of helpful articles out there about how to do a silent install of Microsoft Office/Project/Visio/etc through SCCM, but there is very little information out there on how to do an un-install silently. After much head scratching I finally found the method of doing so...

1. Navigate to the directory where your install files are located
2. Edit the config.xml file located within vispro.ww (note this changes depending on the version of Visio)
3. Remove the values from the Display level line and change it to look like below

4. Within your SCCM deployment modify the Uninstall file to read:
setup.exe /uninstall vispro /config vispro.ww/config.xml (again note the visio version name will differ depending on the edition)

5. Click OK and test the uninstallation via SCCM software centre

Changing Startup to Automatic on the SCCM Remote Control Service

One of the biggest bugbears within the support staff is that the Configuration Manager 2012 Remote Tools client service is set to Automatic (Delayed Start) when installed as default.

If you are working on a users machine and you have to restart it, it can often feel like an age before you can remote control the machine again.

Using Group Policy and a Group Policy Preference Settings you can change this. Under Services add the SCCM Remote Control Service and change the startup type to “Automatic”.

Shrink the SQL Server Reporting Services log database used by ConfigMgr 2012

So today I came across an issue with my SCCM database server running low on disk space. On investigation I found the ReportServer_log.ldf file had grown to over 320GB in size!

It would appear this is a known issue and some simple configuration changes to your database setup can resolve this.

Change the recovery model
1. Log onto SQL Management Studio and connect to the SCCM instance
2. Expand Databases and right click on ReportServer (your name may vary depending on your installation)
3. Go to Options
4. Change the recovery model from Full to Simple
5. Click OK to save the changes

Shrink the file
1. Log onto SQL Management Studio and connect to the SCCM instance
2. Expand Databases and right click on ReportServer (your name may vary depending on your installation)
3. Select Tasks > Shrink > Files
4. Under File type select Log and click OK
5. This should reduce the size of the LDF file to a more modest size, you may have to repeat the shrink step two or three times for it to complete successfully

Change the Maximum File Size
1. Log onto SQL Management Studio and connect to the SCCM instance
2. Expand Databases and right click on ReportServer (your name may vary depending on your installation)
3. Select Properties
4. Select Files
5. In the Database files field, scroll until you see the Autogrowth column.
6. Click on the ellipsis button (…) for ReportServer_log (again this name may vary slightly depending on your installation)
7. Change the value of the Restrict File Growth (MB) field to a suitable amount for your environment.
8. Click OK to save the changes

This should now resolve your issue and not see it reoccur.

Investing in your own career

As we all know IT is a rapidly progressing market and for us IT professionals that means we're constantly trying to learn and update our core skills to keep up with the changes. And as we're all aware it's not always possible for our employers to provide the necessary time or money to help keep up these skills leaving us in the dilemma to having to invest our own time and money into staying current.

I've spent my own money on a home lab and given up nights and weekends studying and learning new products. And for me self study and self investment is worth it. The achievement you feel when you pass an exam and gain that qualification is a buzz. There is even more of a buzz when you the skills you have self taught become useful in your day to day job.

There are lot of resources out there to help you along the way when trying to learn at home. I invested in an HP Microserver a few years ago and it didn't break the bank, and it provides a very nice wee home lab that I've built, broke, re-designed and re-build many a time. The capacity of it provides enough grunt that I can emulate a small Microsoft lab similar to what you would use while on a Microsoft training course in a classroom.

Home Labs or Virtual Labs
HP regularly run cashback offers on their Microservers, the current cashback deal runs until the 30th June 2015. I've found the cheapeast deals to be had over at ServersPlus.com - http://www.serversplus.com/microserver_cashback

You can find free evaluation copies of Microsoft's software here https://technet.microsoft.com/en-gb/evalcenter The trial licenses last 180 days which should be adequate enough to have a good understanding of the software.

Microsoft also offer a large selection of free Virtual Labs. Many are targetted towards learning a certain skill within their products so you don't have the free rein you do with your own home lab however they can be useful and I have used in them while at work when I need to understand something or have been travelling and don't have access to my home lab. You can find them over at https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/virtuallabs/bb467605.aspx


Training resources
Microsoft have a free Virtual Academy open to all that. It can help you plan what certification track you wish to persue, and offers you training materials that can help you achieve those certifications. I've not seen anyone use this resources solely as a method of passing a Microsoft exam however it is a useful resource.

http://www.microsoftvirtualacademy.com/

Videos from previous MS Ignite and TechEd Europe events are available online at Channel9 which can be helpful in getting an overview on certain products or learning some hints and tips from the field. There are also a lot of videos from behind the scenes. The videos can also be downloaded as MP4s so you an store them on your device of choice and watch while
commutting etc.

https://channel9.msdn.com/

There are a lot of other useful resources out there than can help you invest in your career when your employer can't help. Learning in your own time can can hinder your family/social life however if you show willing to invest in yourself and your career it could lead to great things!

Patch ConfigMgr 2012 x64 clients during a task sequence using the PATCH property

We recently updated our SCCM version to the latest cumulative update and I wanted to update our task sequence so that new clients were deployed with the latest SCCM agent version.

In order to do this I completed these steps (please note we only deploy 64 bit clients so this tutorial only deals with these):

1. Open your task sequence

2. Within your Partition Disk 0 - BIOS/Partition Disk 0 - UEFI steps ensure the main partition has the following variable set OSDTargeSystemDrive

3. Create a command line step directly before the "Setup Windows and ConfigMgr" step

4. Within the command line enter the following text: cmd /c xcopy *.* %OSDTargetSystemDrive%\windows\CCMHotfixes /E /H /C /I /Q /Y and select the package that your patch resides in

This step copies the file from your SCCM server to the machine being imaged

5. Within your "Setup Windows and ConfigMgr" step enter the following within Installation properties: PATCH="C:\windows\CCMHotfixes\configmgr2012ac-r2-kb3054451-x64.msp"
You will need to change the filename as appropriate based on the update you are applying.

Exchange 2010 EMC "Kerberos" authentication failed

Came across an issue today where when I launch the Exchange 2010 EMC I was presented with the error message:

"The attempt to connect to http://server.domain.com/PowerShell using "Kerberos" authentication failed: connecting to remote server failed with the following error message : The WinRM client cannot complete the operation within the time specified. Check if the machine name is valid and is reachable over the network and firewall exception for Windows Remote Management service is enabled. For more information, see the about_Remote_Troubleshooting Help topic."

Not an error I had seen before so after searching around the Internet for awhile I came across the correct fix for this issue.

1. First Close EMC

2. Navigate to C:\users\specific user\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\MMC and delete the Exchange Management Console config file

3. Then within the registry HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Exchangeserver\v14\AdminTools\NodeStructureSettings delete the value NodeStructureSettings

4. Log off and back on

5. The EMC should now launch fine

Installing the VMware vSphere client on Windows Server 2012 R2

I had occasion to install VMware vSphere client my home lab server which is a domain controller and running Windows Server 2012 R2 but ran into two problems... thought they were worth documenting.

The first issue was that I was told the installer wasn't compatible on the Operating System I was running.  In order to get round this, I navigated to the location of the installer. Highlighted it, right clicked and select properties.  I clicked on the Compatibility tab and set it so the installer would run as if it was on a Windows 7 machine.

I tried to install the client again but ran into ANOTHER problem! The GUI installer was complaining about being installed on a domain controller.  To get around this issue I broke out an elevated command prompted and issued the command: 

VMware-viclient-all-5.5.0-1618071.exe /VSKIP_OS_CHECKS="1"

After all that the client successfully installed!

Installing VMware Workstation alongside Hyper-V

For the past three years I've been working for a Microsoft Partner company in Scotland and as you can imagine their primary focus was on Microsoft products and the virtualisation technology the recommended to clients as Hyper-V so the majority of my focus has been on using that.  As such I set up a lab at home running Windows Server 2012 R2 and Hyper-V to help teach myself bits and bobs.

I recently changed job and although the company I now work for is a Microsoft Partner also they focus more on using VMware as the virtualisation technology so today I decided to set up a wee mini lab to help get me back up to speed with it and test a few things.

I wanted to keep my Hyper-V in tact and run the new VMware lab in parallel, so to do that I downloaded a free trial of VMware Workstation onto my home lab server (HP Microserver N40L) but ran into an issue when trying to get it to install.  I was told I had to uninstall Hyper-V first.

After a little digging I found a useful work around:

1. Open Hyper-V Manager and click on "stop service" in the right panel
2. Open an elevated command prompt and type:
   bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype off
3. Restart your computer

Hyper-V is now disabled and you can run VMware workstation and your lab.  When you wish to switch back to using your Hyper-V lab carry out the following: 

1. Open an elevated command prompt and type:
   bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype auto
2. Restart your computer

A nice little workaround if you are switching between the two types of lab. 

Lync changing to Skype

As I'm sure some of you are aware Lync is being re-branded "Skype for Business".  Those using Lync Online with Office 365 ProPlus, Office 365 Business Premium or Office 2013 will see the new Skype for Business client replace the Lync client, this is due to roll out within the April patching updates.  *Note today is Patch Tuesday*

This update will change the UI experience for the end user, if you are concerned about the change to your users I would suggest watching and reading this following Microsoft blog post - http://blogs.office.com/2015/04/01/whats-new-in-skype-for-business-and-how-you-can-take-control-of-updates/

They give some helpful hints in out to manage the roll out and help you understand what to expect.

Microsoft say that the backend of the service, which is currently called Lync Online Service will be rebranded as Skype for Business Online by the end of May.

I believe the new Skype for Business server product will be available for download from Microsoft's Volume Licensing Service Center (VLSC) on the 1st May 2015.

As well as giving a new UI experience, Skype for Business promises to keep all the good features about Skype and Lync and combine them both.

Despite the name change the product will still continue to run on the Lync backbone so us fellow techies shouldn't have to suffer to much pain.

Where has the System Centre Management service gone?

Have been doing some work with System Center Operations Manager (SCOM) 2012 R2 this week and after some changes I had to restart the SCOM agent service to make them take effect.  Only I couldn't find the "System Center Management" service to do this however, it appears Microsoft has rebranded the service and it's now called the "Microsoft Monitoring Agent" service.

Along with the rebranding of the service, Microsoft have added functionality to the agent.  It now has standalone features.

To get more information about MMA and it’s new functionalities here are some useful links:

• How to enable MMA for standalone functionality
• Download location of MMA as a separate product
• Monitoring with MMA explained (TechNet)

Move a Distribution Point Content Library Between Drives

If you have installed a Distribution Point onto a server and you wish to change the drive that the content is now stored on you can do this by using the "ContentLibraryTransfer.exe" tool that was released within the SyStem Centre 2012 R2 Configuration Manager Toolkit.

Download it here - http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/confirmation.aspx?id=36213 and install the components

ContentLibraryTransfer.exe is a tool that will move a distribution point’s content store from one drive to another. It's a very simple process.

To use the tool, open an administrative command prompt and navigate to the location of the ContentLibraryTransfer.exe tool.

Once there the syntax of the tool is as follows:

ContentLibraryTransfer.exe -SourceDrive D -TargetDrive F

So the above command would move the content from the D drive to the F drive.

If you want to see a log file of what has happened etc you can pipe the results to a text file as follows:

ContentLibraryTransfer.exe -SourceDrive D -TargetDrive F > C:\Results.txt

Windows 8.1 Troubleshooting

When I was at TechEd Europe last year in Barcelona, I attended one of Sami Laiho's session - Windows 8.1 Black Belt Troubleshooting.  It was ultimately voted the 4th favourite session of the whole event by attendees.

I re-watched it on Channel 9 recently as I had recommended it to a colleague.

https://channel9.msdn.com/Events/TechEd/Europe/2014/WIN-B329

Take the time to watch, you'll defo learn something. And if you ever get the chance to attend a session with Sami Laiho in person, don't miss it!

How Microsoft are using SCCM

This interesting 2 part podcast gives you an insight into how Microsoft are utilising SCCM 2012 within their own environment.

http://blogs.technet.com/b/in_the_cloud/archive/2015/03/12/itc-podcast-how-we-use-sccm-at-microsoft-part-1.aspx

http://channel9.msdn.com/Blogs/In-The-Cloud/ITC-Podcast-ep-24-How-we-use-SCCM-at-Microsoft-Part-2

Well worth having a listen.

Second Shot at MCP Exams

Microsoft and Pearson VUE are offering free second shot exam vouchers to all that take an exam between now and May 2015.

https://borntolearn.mslearn.net/b/weblog/archive/2015/01/05/get-a-free-second-shot-on-mcp-exams-through-may-31