Monthly Archives: May 2011

PowerShell: Removing Software Updates from Windows

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Introduction

Recently, I had the need to remove software updates from Windows servers in order to test out patching functionality in System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM / ConfigMgr). Since we’re currently deploying full patched operating system (OS) images, we didn’t really have any machines to test deploying software updates with. We’re currently working with non-production servers, so removing software updates for a few minutes and reinstalling them isn’t a big deal. I figured the easiest thing to do would be to simply remove any and all updates that could be removed (some can’t be uninstalled), so naturally, I wrote a script to handle this.

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ConfigMgr 2007: Client Installation Problem

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Symptoms

I was getting the following messages in my ccmsetup.log files when trying to do a client push installation to about 50 servers. The servers were a combination of Windows Server 2003, 2008, and 2008 R2.

The HTTP 500 error message seen in the second line indicates an “internal server error” within IIS on the ConfigMgr management point. Based on that, I knew that there must have been some sort of misconfiguration on the IIS server.

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Introduction to Google Music Beta

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The Introductory E-mail

Hello Motorola XOOM user,
We’d like to tell you about some changes to the Music player on your tablet. The latest app update now supports Music Beta, a new service from Google. As a Verizon Motorola XOOM user, you’ve been extended an early invitation to beta test this service.
Music Beta lets you store your personal music collection online and access it instantly without the hassle of wires or syncing.

· Enjoy your music anywhere — listen on any web browser, your Motorola XOOM, or any other device running Android 2.2 or higher.

· Save your favorite albums, artists, and playlists on your smartphone or tablet so you can keep listening even when you’re not connected.

· Create your own custom playlists or build them automatically from a single song.

To get started, click the button below and sign in with your Google ID: yourgoogleaccount@gmail.com

Get Started

Regards,
The Android Team

©2011 Google Inc. 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043

Music Beta is available by invitation only in the U.S. and is free for a limited time. You have received this mandatory email service announcement to update you about important changes to your Android OS.

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ConfigMgr 2012 Beta 2: Configuring the Software Update Point

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The Software Update Point role in SCCM 2012 Beta 2 has a variety of options to be configured:

  • Proxy server settings
    • Hostname
    • Port
    • Credentials
  • SUP ports & SSL certificate security
  • Products to be synchronized
  • Update Classifications
    • Critical Updates
    • Service Packs
    • Security Updates
    • etc.
  • Update languages
  • Synchronization Frequency
  • Synchronization source
    • Microsoft Windows Update
    • An upstream WSUS server
  • Supersedence rules

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ConfigMgr 2012 Beta 2: Removing the Software Update Point Role

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The Software Update Point (SUP) role is used to deploy software updates to SCCM client agents. If you want to move the SUP role from one server to another, or are decommissioning a SCCM site, you may need to remove the SUP role. You can remove the SUP role using the SCCM console, or by running the command below:

e:Program FilesMicrosoft Configuration Managerbinx64rolesetup.exe /deinstall /siteserver:sccm01 smswsus

Upon running this command, you should see the following appear momentarily in your SUPSetup.log file:

<05-10-2011 11:10:26> ====================================================================
<05-10-2011 11:10:26> SMSWSUS Setup Started….
<05-10-2011 11:10:26> Parameters: E:PROGRA~1MICROS~2binx64ROLESE~1.EXE /deinstall /siteserver:SCCM01 SMSWSUS
<05-10-2011 11:10:26> Deinstalling the SMSWSUS
<05-10-2011 11:10:26> Removing WSUS Registry.
<05-10-2011 11:10:26> Deinstallation was successful.

ConfigMgr 2012 Beta 2: Setup Doesn’t Like Spaces in Prerequisite Path

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During the course of playing with ConfigMgr 2012 Beta 2, I noticed a bug in setup. It appears to not like it when you put spaces in the path to the prerequisite files that you’d pre-download using setupdl.exe. If you have spaces in the path, and try to click Next, it won’t proceed to the next screen. Removing the spaces from the folder name immediately seems to work – I noticed this behavior a couple of different times.

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ConfigMgr 2012 Beta 2: Active Directory Schema Changes

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For reference, here is the ExtADSch.log file from my ConfigMgr 2012 Beta 2 lab setup. I don’t see any glaring changes from ConfigMgr 2007, though I don’t have a 2007 log to compare it to.

<05-09-2011 15:00:02> Modifying Active Directory Schema – with SMS extensions.
<05-09-2011 15:00:02> DS Root:CN=Schema,CN=Configuration,DC=mybiz,DC=loc
<05-09-2011 15:00:03> Defined attribute cn=MS-SMS-Site-Code.
<05-09-2011 15:00:03> Defined attribute cn=mS-SMS-Assignment-Site-Code.
<05-09-2011 15:00:03> Defined attribute cn=MS-SMS-Site-Boundaries.
<05-09-2011 15:00:03> Defined attribute cn=MS-SMS-Roaming-Boundaries.
<05-09-2011 15:00:03> Defined attribute cn=MS-SMS-Default-MP.
<05-09-2011 15:00:03> Defined attribute cn=mS-SMS-Device-Management-Point.
<05-09-2011 15:00:03> Defined attribute cn=MS-SMS-MP-Name.
<05-09-2011 15:00:03> Defined attribute cn=MS-SMS-MP-Address.
<05-09-2011 15:00:03> Defined attribute cn=mS-SMS-Health-State.
<05-09-2011 15:00:03> Defined attribute cn=mS-SMS-Source-Forest.
<05-09-2011 15:00:03> Defined attribute cn=MS-SMS-Ranged-IP-Low.
<05-09-2011 15:00:03> Defined attribute cn=MS-SMS-Ranged-IP-High.
<05-09-2011 15:00:03> Defined attribute cn=mS-SMS-Version.
<05-09-2011 15:00:03> Defined attribute cn=mS-SMS-Capabilities.
<05-09-2011 15:00:04> Defined class cn=MS-SMS-Management-Point.
<05-09-2011 15:00:05> Defined class cn=MS-SMS-Server-Locator-Point.
<05-09-2011 15:00:05> Defined class cn=MS-SMS-Site.
<05-09-2011 15:00:05> Defined class cn=MS-SMS-Roaming-Boundary-Range.
<05-09-2011 15:00:05> Successfully extended the Active Directory schema.

<05-09-2011 15:00:05> Please refer to the ConfigMgr documentation for instructions on the manual
<05-09-2011 15:00:05> configuration of access rights in active directory which may still
<05-09-2011 15:00:05> need to be performed.  (Although the AD schema has now be extended,
<05-09-2011 15:00:05> AD must be configured to allow each ConfigMgr Site security rights to
<05-09-2011 15:00:05> publish in each of their domains.)

VMware Workstation Error: Acquiring Memory

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I’ve been getting this error message a lot lately – does anyone have any idea what might cause it? I’ve usually got plenty of free memory when I get the message. I think it usually comes up after coming out of sleep and/or hibernate on my Windows 7 host OS.

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“This virtual machine has encountered a problem acquiring the memory needed for it to run. Would you like to suspend the virtual machine to prevent data loss or allow it to continue running?”

Here is a screenshot of the memory configuration I’m using. I don’t want a lot of swapping going on, even though I’ve got a SSD – I’ve got 8GB of DDR3 in my laptop (Dell Latitude E6410), so I’d prefer to reserve all the RAM necessary for each VM.

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SCCM 2012 Beta 2: UNC Paths when Creating an Application

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In System Center Configuration Manager 2007, and prior versions, you would define an application package’s source files using a local package source path on the site server, or a UNC path to another network location.

Naturally, as you might be accustomed to by now, you probably copy / paste the path to the root folder of the content you’re deploying, when creating a new package. In SCCM 2012 Beta 2, when you go to create a new software package, you’ll probably want to automatically paste this path into the first text box you see. This has changed, however, as SCCM 2012 first presents you with an option to “automatically detect this information using existing content.” In this first dialog box, you will actually need to specify the path to an individual file, such as a MSI file, an App-V manifest (has an OSD extension, I believe), a CAB file, or a JAR file.

If you paste your folder path, rather than a path to an individual file, you’ll be presented with a message saying “Specify a valid UNC path.”

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Here’s the right way to do it:

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Since we’re on this topic, there are four options to automatically detect package deployment information:

  • Windows Installer (Native) – These are also commonly referenced as “MSI packages”
  • Microsoft Application Virtualization – App-V virtual app packages (OSD, XML, and SFT files)
  • Windows Mobile Cabinet – These are CAB files used to deploy applications to Windows Mobile devices
  • Nokia SIS/JAR – I’m not personally familiar with these, but I presume it’s some sort of Java applet in a file with a .JAR extension

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ConfigMgr 2012: Installing the Software Update Point Role

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Introduction

In a new ConfigMgr 2012 site, you probably won’t initially have a Software Update Point (SUP), which allows you to deploy Microsoft software updates. This process actually uses Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) 3.0 under the covers, just like ConfigMgr 2007 did.

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