Dennis Chung - Windows MVP: Blog

Exchange 2007 is now officially support on Hyper-V

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 09:41:12 GMT

We've been waiting for a while...
Its now officially SUPPORTED !!!

Exchange 2007 on Hyper-V !! Yippee...

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc794548.aspx

/Dennis

PowerShell Hyper-V Management Library

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 02:08:00 GMT

http://www.codeplex.com/PSHyperv

We all know PowerShell is the next big thing for scripting and managing major parts of Windows.
Little did you know that PowerShell can be used extensively to manage Hyper-V. Alright, you may know, but did you know someone is writing a management library for it?? Check out http://www.codeplex.com/PSHyperv for more details and to download it.

Its been updated to have VHD management capabilities.

PowerShell management Library for Hyper-V

A project to provide a PowerShell management library for Hyper-V
It does pretty much what it says. Note that a lot of the information available from Hyper-V is only available if Powershell is running with Elevated privilege
At present there are 66 functions in the library, some of these are worker functions which are not expected to be called directly, the others are listed below

Finding a VM

Get-VM, Choose-VM , Get-VMHost

Connecting to a VM

New-VMConnectSession

Discovering and manipulating Machine states

Get-VMState , Set-VMState , Convert-VmState,
Ping-VM , Shutdown-VM , Start-VM, Stop-VM, Suspend-VM
Get-VMKVP, Get-VMJPEG

Backing up, exporting and snapshotting VMs

Export-VM , Get-VMSnapshot, Choose-VMSnapshot , Apply-VMSnapshot , New-VMSnapshot ,Remove-VMSnapshot, Get-VMSnapshotTree, Get-VmBackupScript

Adding and removing VMs, configuring motherboard settings.

New-VM , Remove-VM , Set-VM , Get-VMCPUCount, Set-VMCPUCount, Get-VMMemory, Set-VMMemory

Manipulating Disk controllers, drives and disk images

Get-VMDiskController
Add-VMSCSIController , Remove-VMSCSIcontroller
Get-VMDriveByController , Add-VMDRIVE , Remove-VMdrive
Get-VMDiskByDrive, Add-VMDISK , Set-VMDisk, Get-VMDisk
Get-VMFloppyDisk , Add-VMFloppyDisk
Add-VMNewHardDisk

Manipluating Network Interface Cards

Get-VMNic , List-VMNic , Choose-VMNIC, Add-VMNIC, Remove-VMNIC , Set-VMNICAddress , Set-VMNICConnection , Get-VMNicport ,
Get-VMnicSwitch, Choose-VMSwitch, New-VMSwitchPort, Get-VMByMACaddress, Choose-VMExternalEthernet,
New-VMExternalSwitch, New-VMInternalSwitch,New-VmPrivateSwitch

Working with VHD files

Get-VHDDefaultPath, Get-VHDInfo, New-VHD, Compact-VHD, Test-VHD,Convert-VHD,Merge-VHD,Mount-VHD, Unmount-VHD

/Dennis

List of Support OS for Hyper-V

Mon, 18 Aug 2008 16:12:38 GMT

Here's a list of Guest Operating Systems officially supported by Microsoft.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/954958/en-us

Here's a common question i would like to answer;

Q: I don't see my OS on that list, but it is still working. Didn't you say its not supported??
A: The list of OS support as guest, are extensively tested by Microsoft's CSS. As such, Microsoft has the ability to provide support for those tested list of OSes. There are many OSes that was known to work, just aren't officially support.

/Dennis

Loading Hyper-V Integration Components in WinPE

Mon, 18 Aug 2008 15:10:32 GMT

Taken from http://blogs.msdn.com/mikester/archive/2008/05/30/using-the-hyper-v-integration-components-in-winpe.aspx

Using the Hyper-V Integration Components in WinPE

The new architecture of synthetic devices with Hyper-V poses some unique challenges for system administrators. Specifically, how can a system administrator perform maintenance on a Hyper-V host from WinPE? Without the integration components, users are required to move their VHD's around to the IDE controller, which limits the amount of VHD's that can be used at any given point in time. Additionally, legacy network adapters might need to be added to the VM to provide network access.
However, by adding the integration components to a WinPE image, those are no longer concerns.
For those of you not familiar with WinPE, here's a brief overview:
Windows Preinstallation Environment (Windows PE) is a minimal operating system designed to prepare a computer for Windows installation. It can be used to start a computer with no operating system (a bare-metal system), to partition and to format hard drives, and to copy disk images or to initiate Windows Setup from a network share. Windows PE is available as a stand-alone product to customers with the proper licensing agreement. It is an integrated component of many Windows Setup and recovery technologies, including Setup for Windows Vista and Windows Deployment Services (WDS).
Windows PE 2.1 is the latest release based on the Microsoft® Windows Vista® operating system.

Now, on to the steps:

1.     Download and install the Windows Automated Installation Kit (AIK). This allows you to create a custom WinPE image. The AIK can be downloaded here: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=94bb6e34-d890-4932-81a5-5b50c657de08&DisplayLang=en
2.     We need to extract two files from the c:\windows\system32\vmguest.iso file, which is part of Hyper-V RC1 (available at http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=7EDAA89F-9F64-488D-93C0-858D2D8799DF). There are a couple of tools that allow the mounting of an ISO image:
a. WinImage (http://www.winimage.com/)
b. WinISO (http://www.winiso.com/)
c. UltraISO (http://www.ezbsystems.com/ultraiso/)
You can also mount the ISO image in a VM and extract the files as well.
We’re looking for two files. Copy the file that is appropriate for your architecture:
·         32 Bit: \support\x86\Windows6.0-KB951633-x86.msu
·         64 Bit: \support\amd64\Windows6.0-KB951633-x64.msu
3.     Create a directory on the same system you installed the AIK, and store the file(s) above there.
4.     Open up the Windows PE User’s Guide. This was installed as part of the Windows AIK, and can be found (by default) by browsing to Start -> All Programs -> Windows OPK -> Documentation -> Windows PE User’s Guide.
5.     Follow steps 1-4 under Customizing WinPE -> Windows PE Walkthroughs -> Walkthrough: Create a Custom WinPE Image.
6.     After step 4 (Optional: Add Additional Customizations), run the following script from your Windows PE Tools Command Prompt. Create a new batch file with the script below. Make sure that the MSUSOURCE is set to the directory where the files you copied in step 2 and 3 are, and that PESOURCE is set to the directory you created in Step 5.

%echo off
set MSUSOURCE=D:\synth\rc1\amd64
set PESOURCE=D:\winpe_x64_synthetic
mkdir %temp%\IC
c:\windows\system32\expand.exe -F:* %MSUSOURCE%\Windows6.0-KB951633-x64.msu %temp%\ic
mkdir %temp%\IC\binaries
c:\windows\system32\expand.exe -F:* %temp%\ic\Windows6.0-KB951633-x64.CAB %temp%\ic\binaries
"C:\Program Files\Windows OPK\Tools\PETools\peimg.exe" /inf=%temp%\IC\binaries\amd64_wnetvsc.inf_31bf3856ad364e35_6.0.6001.18010_none_b331f76187e159c6\wnetvsc.inf %PESOURCE%\mount\Windows
"C:\Program Files\Windows OPK\Tools\PETools\peimg.exe" /inf=%temp%\IC\binaries\amd64_ws3cap.inf_31bf3856ad364e35_6.0.6001.18010_none_f2dbb8abfcb9f757\ws3cap.inf %PESOURCE%\mount\Windows
"C:\Program Files\Windows OPK\Tools\PETools\peimg.exe" /inf=%temp%\IC\binaries\amd64_wstorflt.inf_31bf3856ad364e35_6.0.6001.18010_none_1ca7ba32d0b2bd99\wstorflt.inf %PESOURCE%\mount\Windows
"C:\Program Files\Windows OPK\Tools\PETools\peimg.exe" /inf=%temp%\IC\binaries\amd64_wstorvsc.inf_31bf3856ad364e35_6.0.6001.18010_none_835d97e82051b059\wstorvsc.inf %PESOURCE%\mount\Windows
"C:\Program Files\Windows OPK\Tools\PETools\peimg.exe" /inf=%temp%\IC\binaries\amd64_wvmbus.inf_31bf3856ad364e35_6.0.6001.18010_none_95947137626ceb80\wvmbus.inf %PESOURCE%\mount\Windows
"C:\Program Files\Windows OPK\Tools\PETools\peimg.exe" /inf=%temp%\IC\binaries\amd64_wvmbushid.inf_31bf3856ad364e35_6.0.6001.18010_none_4cc9f65464cd2f85\wvmbushid.inf %PESOURCE%\mount\Windows
"C:\Program Files\Windows OPK\Tools\PETools\peimg.exe" /inf=%temp%\IC\binaries\amd64_wvmbusvideo.inf_31bf3856ad364e35_6.0.6001.18010_none_af4c3664979a87cd\wvmbusvideo.inf %PESOURCE%\mount\Windows
"C:\Program Files\Windows OPK\Tools\PETools\peimg.exe" /inf=%temp%\IC\binaries\amd64_wvmic.inf_31bf3856ad364e35_6.0.6001.18010_none_5df58a6c04d20690\wvmic.inf %PESOURCE%\mount\Windows
Once the batch file completes, refer back to the Windows PE Users Guide, and finish following the steps from Step 5 onward.
After you create the ISO, attach it to a VM and power it on. You should have full access to all synthetic devices.

Thanks to Mike Sterling for doing this article.

/Dennis

Taking the Lead in Security...

Sun, 17 Aug 2008 15:11:25 GMT

/Dennis

Singtel Grid Girls on Silverlight

Sun, 17 Aug 2008 14:02:52 GMT

Don't we all love those F1 girls posing beside the racers?
Well, we never have a chance to understand them.

Now is your chance. Singtel's been working on a Singtel Grid Girls Heart Race!!
See if your personality is closely matched to the girl you fancy.

If you have a high match to the girl you like, you're in for a pleasant surprise!! ;-)

http://www.singtelrace.com/SingTel-Grid-Girls_Heart-Race.aspx
You could win a pair of tickets to F1 race and an Xbox360.

The site is powered by Silverlight technologies.

/Dennis

Vista SP1 ScreenCast Demo

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 22:04:02 GMT

/Dennis

A Lap Around PowerShell by Edwin Sarmiento

Fri, 01 Aug 2008 07:23:42 GMT

In July 2008, SWUG invited Edwin Sarmiento, MVP, to teach us on Windows PowerShell.

Here's his presentation for your download.

/Dennis

PowerShell management Library for Hyper-V

Tue, 29 Jul 2008 05:18:37 GMT

http://www.codeplex.com/PSHyperv

PowerShell management Library for Hyper-V

A project to provide a PowerShell management library for Hyper-V
It does pretty much what it says. Note that a lot of the information available from Hyper-V is only available if Powershell is running with Elevated privilege
At present there are 66 functions in the library, some of these are worker functions which are not expected to be called directly, the others are listed below

Finding a VM

Get-VM, Choose-VM

Connecting to a VM

New-VMConnectSession

Discovering and manipulating Machine states

List-VMState , Set-VMState , Convert-VmState,
Ping-VM , Shutdown-VM , Start-VM, Stop-VM, Suspend-VM
Get-VMKVP

Backing up, exporting and snapshotting VMs

Backup-vm , Export-VM , Get-VMSnapshot, Choose-VMSnapshot , Apply-VMSnapshot , New-VMSnapshot ,Remove-VMSnapshot, Get-VMSnapshotTree

Adding and removing VMs, configuring motherboard settings.

New-VM , Remove-VM , Set-VM , Get-VMCPUCount, Set-VMCPUCount, Get-VMMemory, Set-VMMemory

Manipulating Disk controllers, drives and disk images

Get-VMDiskController
Add-VMSCSIController , Remove-VMSCSIcontroller
Get-VMDrive , Add-VMDRIVE , Remove-VMdrive
Get-VMDisk, Add-VMDISK , Set-VMDisk, List-VMDisk
Get-VMFloppyDisk , Add-VMFloppyDisk
Add-VMNewHardDisk

Manipluating Network Interface Cards

Get-VMNic , List-VMNic , Choose-VMNIC, Add-VMNIC, Remove-VMNIC , Set-VMNICAddress , Set-VMNICConnection , Get-VMNicport ,
Get-VMnicSwitch, Choose-VMSwitch, New-VMSwitchPort, Get-VMByMACaddress

Working with VHD files

Get-VHDDefaultPath, Get-VHDInfo, New-VHD, Compact-VHD, Mount-VHD, Unmount-VHD

/Dennis

Your Digital Lifestyle

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 03:11:26 GMT

Your Digital Lifestyle - Featuring Virtual Earth, Zune and some other technologies

/Dennis

Windows PowerShell – excellent screencast now available

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 01:49:04 GMT

Original Post Here:
http://blogs.technet.com/keithcombs/archive/2008/07/22/windows-powershell-excellent-screencast-now-available.aspx

Jeff Alexander is perfecting the art of screencasting and his latest adventure with Windows PowerShell is certainly well worth watching. He stole my intro but it’s all good matey. I think in return he needs to tell us where he snagged that cool spinning globe on his desktop.

So what is PowerShell you ask?

I would imagine a lot of you have at least heard of PowerShell. If you aren’t a developer you’ve probably steered clear of it simply because it looks like complex code. Fear not, it isn’t that complex. Here’s the description from microsoft.com:

Microsoft Windows PowerShell command line shell and scripting language helps IT professionals achieve greater control and productivity. Using a new admin-focused scripting language, more than 130 standard command line tools, and consistent syntax and utilities, Windows PowerShell allows IT professionals to more easily control system administration and accelerate automation. Windows PowerShell is easy to adopt, learn, and use, because it works with your existing IT infrastructure and existing script investments, and because it runs on Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows Server 2003. Windows PowerShell is now included as part of Windows Server 2008. Exchange Server 2007, System Center Operations Manager 2007, System Center Data Protection Manager V2, and System Center Virtual Machine Manager also leverage Windows PowerShell to improve administrator control, efficiency, and productivity.

Here’s the 20 minute screencast video Jeff created. Jeff demonstrates some really cool tools so stick with him through the entire video. Double click the small window below while playing and it will go full screen. If you want to download the video and watch it offline, right mouse click this link and SAVE AS to your local disk.

For more information on PowerShell, see the website at http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2003/technologies/management/powershell/default.mspx.

See the TechNet Script Center at http://www.microsoft.com/technet/scriptcenter/hubs/msh.mspx.

Get PowerShell version 2 (CTP) @ http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=7C8051C2-9BFC-4C81-859D-0864979FA403&displaylang=en.

/Dennis

Do you have what it takes to go on Stage?

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 01:55:15 GMT

Ask yourself these questions:-

Have you always wanted to have a chance up there on the stage?
Be a renown speaker in your field of expertise in IT?
Just want to give it a shot at speaking on stage?
A chance to win prizes by speaking?

If you answer is YES to any of those, here's your chance.

You now have a chance to stand in front of hundreds of your peers, on stage, sharing your passion for Technology. Announcing Tech.Ed Speaker Idol !!!

Afterhours, 5 of you will compete against each other for a chance in the FINALS. The winner will win a Home Theatre System worth RM1,500 AND will get an opportunity to present in an upcoming local Microsoft event!

The theme for the demo is: Showcase your digital lifestyle through Windows Vista® and Windows Live

You find more information about rules and the theme at the website

/Dennis

Costs of running a VM (Hyper-V vs VMWare)

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 04:46:16 GMT

I was recently in a debate with an IT Pro about Hyper-V and VMWare. I can't name him as i have not asked for his permission to be named here. He's been using VMWare for quite a while and he was seriously pissed when Microsoft released Hyper-V. I take it in a good way.

We were trying to argue who will be cheaper and he brought up a formula on how he calculates if Hyper-V or VMWare is cheaper. In a similar fashion, i stumbled on a blog entry by a MSFTie which discusses this with all the algebras.

He is James O'Niel. Here's his blog. http://blogs.technet.com/jamesone/archive/2008/03/15/vmware-running-hot-enough-to-cook-the-figures.aspx

Please read his blog and you'll find it very interesting to know that Hyper-V is indeed cheaper, even though Hyper-V doesn't allow us to overcommit the memory for a VM.

/Dennis

Hyper-V RTM is now on Windows Update

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 01:33:59 GMT

If you are running Hyper-V RC and you don't know where to get the RTM, fred not.

The bits is being distributed over Windows Update as of this morning.
On your Hyper-V Server, just turn on Windows Update and the update will change your RC bits to RTM bits.

You'll just need to do a reboot after which. ;-)

http://blogs.msdn.com/taylorb/archive/2008/07/08/hyper-v-rtm-on-windows-update.aspx

/Dennis

Microsoft.Com goes virtual... the Hyper-V way

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 13:02:01 GMT

Source: http://www.microsoft-watch.com/content/server/microsoftcom_goes_virtual.html

I love this set of figures.. Don't you just love numbers?
Microsoft.com "handles 15,000 requests per second, 1.2 billion page views per month, and 280M worldwide unique users per month as well as supporting ~5000 content contributors from within the company," Rob blogged. "This site has close to 300GB of content consisting of some seven million individual files on each server.

Today, Rob Emanuel, a Microsoft technology architect, blogged about Microsoft using Hyper-V technology for Microsoft.com. He earlier blogged—and much more briefly—about using Hyper-V Release Candidate 0 for the MSDN and TechNet sites.

Presumably, Rob's post supports today's Hyper-V release to manufacturing. I didn't see the blog post until this morning (it wasn't there at midnight Pacific time), even though it has a time stamp of 4:38 p.m. PDT yesterday. I assume that Rob simply forgot to update. Too many pesky blogging systems label time when a post is created, forcing the blogger to manually update time and date later on.

I love it when Microsoft employee bloggers describe how the company's dog food is caviar—and that's meant as a compliment, by the way. Microsoft is quick to use its own technology, but it's not as fast telling other people about it. That's changing, and Rob's post is indicative of the trend. The best Microsoft case study is Microsoft.

Rob has put together a nice, concise primer, including Microsoft.com site stats and deployed hardware. Companies like Microsoft don't easily disclose this kind of information. There are competitive and even security considerations, which make the post's existence that much more impressive.

As of today, Microsoft has "25 percent of production traffic" running on Hyper-V, Rob blogged. "Based on these results we are ready to fully host www.microsoft.com web servers on Hyper-V and we're targeting end of June for 50 percent of the load. As soon as we complete deployment of our new hardware infrastructure in diverse data centers, we'll complete the full virtualization."

I don't want to excerpt too much from the post, but these statistics are worth calling out: Microsoft.com "handles 15,000 requests per second, 1.2 billion page views per month, and 280M worldwide unique users per month as well as supporting ~5000 content contributors from within the company," Rob blogged. "This site has close to 300GB of content consisting of some seven million individual files on each server."

Microsoft transparency is best when the company opens up the soul of its own IT operations. No case study is better than Microsoft.

Posted by Joe Wilcox on June 26, 2008 1:36 PM

/Dennis

OpenXML for IT Pros..

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 08:56:46 GMT

I was told of these 2 videos by Eric White.

It features 2 screencasts showing how IT Pros can use OpenXML.
First video shows how to use Open XML to compare 2 documents.

Video: How to compare two Open XML documents

This video talks about Open XML with PowerShell.

Video: PowerTools for Open XML Introduction

/Dennis

Excellent Appraisal... Think again..

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 02:25:23 GMT

I received this from a fellow teammate. I thought this was hilarious and so cleverly crafted. Enjoy and have fun.
I do not know who really wrote this, but kudos to you for being able to craft such special messages... Awesome and fun.

Teaches me to read between the lines.. ;-)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The HR manager received the following appraisal report one day:

   1 Bob Smith, my assistant programmer, can always be found
   2 hard at work at his desk. He works independently, without
   3 wasting company time talking to colleagues. Bob never
   4 thinks twice about assisting fellow employees, and always
   5 finishes given assignments on time. Often he takes extended
   6 measures to complete his work, sometimes skipping coffee
   7 breaks. Bob is a dedicated individual who has absolutely no
   8 vanity in spite of his high accomplishments and profound
   9 knowledge in his field. I firmly believe that Bob can be
   10 classed as an asset employee, the type which cannot be
   11 dispensed with. Consequently, I duly recommend that Bob be
   12 promoted to executive management, and a proposal will be
   13 executed as soon as possible.
Later that day, the same HR manager received the following addendum:

Addendum:

That idiot was standing over my shoulder while I wrote the report sent to you earlier today. Kindly re-read only the odd numbered lines.
Thank you and Have a Nice Day

/Dennis

Learn and Shoot a video about Software + Services

Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:31:26 GMT

Software + Services competition. This is a great change for you to learn about Software+Services by taking part in competition in creating a video. You get a chance to go to Macau!!

What we want you to do is to spread the word about Software-plus-Services. All you need is a video camera, this script, and lots of creativity! First prize is a trip to Macau, where you will stay at the Venetian Hotel!!!

For rules and conditions, check the website....

/Dennis

ANWYCDFYSBWYSCDFY - Episode 1

Tue, 17 Jun 2008 07:49:58 GMT

Together with Matty, we are doing a series of informative, simple and fun videos on Windows Server 2008.
This is a mirror post.

Welcome to the first edition of ANWYCDFYSBWYSCDFY (Ask not what you can do for your server but what your server can do for you).

Yes Ill admit its a terrible title, but the intent behind these videos is to quickly show you what can be achieved with Windows Server 2008 and its various features. They videos themselves aim to be informative and fun, so we hope you feel the same way when you watch it too!

Please leave comments and let me know if these are beneficial/fun for your to see. ;-)

/Dennis

Going Green with IT

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 03:06:17 GMT

Is Mother Earth falling sick?

If you live on this planet, and have access to newspapers, you will probably have noticed about every week there is an article that is related to the planet. Was it a week, or was it daily.. hmm... Being a living thing on this planet really makes me feel that this planet is our home. Well, it is. It is about time that humans start thinking about taking care of Earth, just like we take care of our homes.
In recent disasters, for example, the Quake in Szechuan, China, the floods in many places and the typhoon that hit Myanmar, makes me think Earth is getting a little crazy now. Wonder if it is because we have upset Earth and it is making corrections. Just like if you're sick, you see a doctor and recover.
In Singapore, we have the Saving Gaia campaign, driven by MediaCorp. I urge you to visit the site and rethink what you're doing for Earth. In Singapore, plastic bags are a no-no on Wednesdays at all major supermarkets. This is a move to help us reduce the use of plastics bags.
Anyway, i think each and everyone of us can play a part. Lets do something for Earth.

Why do we need Green Computing?

You see, computers uses electricity to run. Electricity are generated using various methods. Most commonly, by burning fuels that turns turbines which generates electricity. Hmm, or at least i think it does. ;-)
Because we burn fuels, carbon dioxide or what i heard commonly as green house gases are introduced into the atmosphere. This traps heat and in turns brings up the temperature of the globe, also known as Global Warming.
By reducing the amount of energy used to power your computers and equipment, in fact anything, not just computers, will help reduce the amount of electricity you use. This translates to you reducing your carbon footprint.

What can i do?

Everyone uses a computer, who ever uses a computer has the ability to reduce their carbon footprint. Remember, the whole objective is to reduce power consumption.

Power off / hibernate your computer when not in use
Configure Power Options. You can tell the computer (XP/Vista) to turn off things like monitor, hard disk, etc.. Read this -> Power Management in XP, Power Management in Vista
When you are going for lunch, power off your monitor

These are some simple practices to help save some power.

Is that all you can do? NO. IT Pros !! You can do a lot more!!

In any computing environment (except the end user computers), the data center / server room is usually the most energy consuming one, but a lot more can be done to reduce power consumption. Watch this space. I am currently doing a consolidation project and i will share with you the experiences. Going Green in the Server Room can take many forms. In a separate blog entry, i will share you with more on what you can do in that Server Room.
All in the name of GOING GREEN and Saving energy !! ;-)

/Dennis

Special Windows 2008 Resource Kit Offer - $288 per kit

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 02:33:16 GMT

Please order by 30th June 2008.

Payment is needed only when collected. This is an exclusive offer for members of Singapore Windows IT Pro User Group.
To Order, please add your name here. http://sgwindowsgroup.org/forums/thread/5818.aspx

Normal Price: SGD $438.00

You only need to pay when collecting. This offer will never be repeated anywhere else.

Visit http://www.microsoft.com/mspress/books/10345.aspx for more information about the Kit.

What the kit covers;

- IIS 7.0 Resource Kit
- Windows Administration Resource Kit
- Windows Power Shell Scripting Guide
- Windows Server 2008 Active Directory Resource Kit
- Windows Server 2008 Security Resource Kit
- Windows Server 2008 Networking and Network Access Protection Resource Kit
- Scripts, e-Books and Digital Resources (Cannot be bought on its own)
If you buy individually, each books costs you between $65 to $85.

/Dennis

Introducing UGTV...

Thu, 29 May 2008 03:00:14 GMT

UGTV !! A monthly webcast dedicated to bringing informative programming to Users Groups worldwide.

If you are a IT Pro User Group Leader, this is the video for you.
BTW, i'm a roving UGTV Roving Reporter.. ;-)

UGTV (User group Television) for ITPro Debuts!
/Dennis

Windows 7 - Multi Touch Computing Interface

Thu, 29 May 2008 02:14:04 GMT

This is a super early demo at the Multi-Touch Capabilities in Windows 7.

Windows 7 is the next generation of Windows Operating System.
Check it out, its really Cool.

Video: Multi-Touch in Windows 7

/Dennis

Skydrive is now in SouthEast Asia !!!

Fri, 23 May 2008 01:49:38 GMT

Skydrive is now in SouthEast Asia. Countries covered are Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.

What is Windows Live SkyDrive?

Ever want to show pictures to friends or family when you’re not at home? Or edit a document you’re working on when you’re out of town?

With Windows Live™ SkyDrive, you can store up to 5GB of files that you can access from virtually anywhere! All you need is a computer and an Internet connection. And your information is protected too – it can only be accessed using your Live ID username and password. It’s up to you who sees what, and SkyDrive is integrated with other Windows Live services. No more worrying about losing your documents or misplacing a flash drive.

Click here to watch a demo of Windows Live SkyDrive
What’s new in this release of SkyDrive?

· Comments. You can leave comments on any file in SkyDrive and see all of the recent comments people have left for you.

· Captions. A picture's worth a thousand words, but sometimes you need a few more. Now you can add captions and descriptions to your files and photos

· Browsing widget. When you click on any file, you can speed through all the files in the folder:

· Larger photo previews - we've made the photo previews even bigger.

How many files does 5 GB really let people store?

5GB of free storage equates to approximately 30,000 Office documents of average size, or 30,000 digital photos at a resolution of 1200x1200.

Is there a limit to the size of individual files uploaded?

Yes, there is a 50MB limit on each file uploaded.

/Dennis

Need HA for your Hyper-V Virtual Machines??

Tue, 20 May 2008 22:27:13 GMT

Going Green in IT

We can all do our part for Earth by going Green. But what exactly does going green in IT means? Watch this space as i start working on efforts on going Green in IT. But this section this morning, I came across a very important step-by-step guide which i wanted to share with you.
Now, we can all go green by reducing the amount of power needed for a server room / data center. Using energy efficient servers and server consolidation are some of the steps that can help save us power and go Green. With the release of Windows Server 2008, and the upcoming Hyper-v release, we can go Green in a big way.
By consolidating machines that are not highly utilizing its processing power with virtualization. Hyper-V allows us to consolidate numerous machines into one physical server. In Singapore' s Microsoft Innovation Centre, i was able to consolidate about 6 servers into 1 physical machine using Hyper-V. Having done this, i have on power required to power these reduced number of servers.

The problem on consolidation

Now comes the real problem. Since all my virtual machines are on 1 server now. If this server encounters hardware problem, all my virtual machines will go down. This step-by-step guide will show how you could quickly setup a cluster node and have High Availability for your virtual machines.
Yes. Its HA for virtual machines. No, your virtual machines are not clusters, its the Hyper-V host.
Have fun, try it out... Here's the guide.

/Dennis

Virtual PC 2007 SP1 is released

Fri, 16 May 2008 01:29:04 GMT

Hi Virtual PC 2007 users,

Virtual PC 2007 SP1 is now available for download from the following location:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=28c97d22-6eb8-4a09-a7f7-f6c7a1f000b5&displaylang=en

After installing VPC 2007 SP1,

the Product Version: 6.0.192.0
Additions version for this build: 13.820

What is available in this release?

This release provides support for the following additional Host and Guest OS’es

Virtual PC 2007 SP1

Host

Guest (only 32 bit)

Windows Vista SP1 (32 and 64 bit)

(Business, Ultimate, Enterprise)

Windows 2008 (Standard), Windows Vista SP1

(Business, Ultimate, Enterprise)

XP SP3

For more information, see the Release Notes at:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=9f3d3eb5-5e03-4712-999c-e96f91bdf128&displaylang=en

The Virtual PC website will be updated shortly with this release information at:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/virtualpc/default.mspx

/Dennis

Update to Virtual Server 2005R2 SP1: KB948515

Fri, 16 May 2008 01:24:09 GMT

If you are a Virtual Server 2005 user, KB948515.msp update to Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1 is now available at:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=a79bcf9b-59f7-480b-a4b8-fb56f42e3348&displaylang=en

This update provides support for the following additional Host and Guest OS’es

Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1 with KB948515.msp

Host Guest
Windows 2008 (Core, Standard, Datacenter, Enterprise, SBS) Windows 2008 (Core, Standard, Datacenter, Enterprise, SBS)
XP Professional SP3 (non-production only) XP SP3

Windows Vista SP1 (non-production only)
(Business, Ultimate, Enterprise)

Windows Vista SP1
(Business, Ultimate, Enterprise)

After installing the update:

Product Version: 1.1.629.0
Additions Version: 13.820

For more information about the software update and the fixes made in this release, see the KB article at:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/948515

The Virtual Server site includes this update:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserversystem/virtualserver/

/Dennis

Community Clips (Internal tool now released to public)

Mon, 05 May 2008 02:29:20 GMT

Are you into screen casts?? Or perhaps i should say, making a video out of your screen activities? I used to be using Camtasia, and i still am. However if you want a free alternative, check out Community Clips. A tool released by the Office Lab team.

It used to be a Microsoft Internal Tool. After so much feedback and improvements to the product, we felt this good thing should be shared with everyone... And yes, it was released.

Grab it here.

You can use to create videos effortlessly. Try it.

Here's a sample of the output.

/Dennis

Microsoft Realizing Potential: Charity Futsal Carnival 2008

Fri, 02 May 2008 18:23:19 GMT

Believe in giving back to the society? Well, Microsoft does. I made an earlier posting about Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. They are in line with giving back to the society.

Having been in Microsoft Singapore in the past 10 months, I realize that the organization isn't just about making money, its about realizing potential. I do recall a video during the Windows 2003 Server Launch event, where it focuses on realizing potential.

Many of us do not realize that, no matter how "not so well off" we are, there are often, in fact, always people who are not as privileged as us. Its been spurring me to do my every bit for charity. Have you?

I know of this MVP, Chong Ai Chung. For Charity, he has shaven his head bald once at Suntec City in a bid to raise funds for a Charity. Can't remember which charity though, but he was on national TV.

Come 10th May2008, Microsoft Singapore is doing its big for Charity. Supporting the President's Challenge, Microsoft in the past years, has donated over $6 million in cash and kind to more than 200 Singapore charitable organizations. This year is no different. In a mini event, Microsoft Singapore has raised $400,000. We want to bring the bar higher.

You can do your bit for charity, download the full brochure here. I have donated, have you?

If you like to find out more and put forward your support, visit http://www.microsoft.com/singapore/citizenship/charity.mspx

/Dennis

Windows Server 2008 Resource Kit - SGD$288

Fri, 02 May 2008 17:24:06 GMT

Phew, this set was tough to negotiate. Anyone whom has been serious about administering Windows Server in the enterprise will know that Resource Kits are like a must-have.

http://www.microsoft.com/mspress/books/10345.aspx

However, many people find that the resource kit is super-expensive. I used to share that sentiments. Now, this is what i manage to negotiate. For my communities, i have arranged for a mass order. ;-) If i collect minimum 10 orders, the set will be available to me for SGD$288 Nett each.

Normal retail price: SGD$428. Trust me, you will never get this price anywhere else.

If we amass the order quick enough, we can pick up the book on the coming community event http://heroes.sgwindowsgroup.org

To place your order, http://sgwindowsgroup.org/forums/thread/5818.aspx
This offer is only valid through ordering via the above URL. You need to be a member of Singapore Windows IT Pro User Group. Membership in the group is free.

/Dennis

Moved my cubicle... but look at this mess!!

Fri, 25 Apr 2008 03:05:33 GMT

At the beginning of this week, part of my team was affected by and internal office move.
Only through this move, did i realize i have so many things.. it took me an entire day. Wasted my entire day settling my stuff.

One of my team mates, Yizhe, is on holidays and the office managers says we must move.

Russell helped and guess what... Look at this mess at Yizhe's new table... He's going to have a hard time cleaning up when he's back from vacation.. :-)

/Dennis

Become a fan of Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 13:19:46 GMT

Bill Gates and wife, Melinda, in Year 2000, started the foundation to give back to the society. You may have heard of the various hype about the foundation. But now, if you are on Facebook, you can be a fan of the foundation and put your voice to it.

Others have joined the fan group and suggested ways of improving the world. Personally, i support the foundation in its directions to reduce extreme poverty. Show your support.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bill-Melinda-Gates-Foundation/11309713071?ref=nf

/Dennis

17th May 2008 - Heroes Community Launch

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 09:10:51 GMT

Call all Singapore Community Members

The local Microsoft Technical Communities are banding together to bring you a full day of community contents.
Please lock your Calendars for the following dates;
Date: 17th May 2008 (Saturday)
Time: 8.30am to 5.00pm
Venue: Microsoft Singapore, Level 21
If you are a member of the following communities; we want you to come.
- Singapore Windows IT Pro User Group
- Singapore SG DotNET
- Singapore SQL Server User Group
- Singapore SBS User Group
Hit this URL to find out more: http://heroes.sgwindowsgroup.org
However be warned. I am leaking this information to you now, so the site is actually quite raw.. ;-) Pardon me, but we're working on it.
Spread the word.
Oh, expect to get freebies like before.
If you are an {Insiders} Member, come with your {Insiders} Polo on, and receive this.

Alright, watch my space for more updates and how to register soon.

/Dennis

My New Blog is up !!

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 08:56:23 GMT

Hi Guys,

I have a new Blogging Site now.
If you somehow cannot see this site, please visit http://pingdennis.com

/Dennis

Microsoft Surface has appeared in 5 stores..

Sat, 19 Apr 2008 14:26:20 GMT

You have heard much about the hype on Microsoft Surface.

It has hit 5 stores in the US with 7 more coming.

Check out the story.. I can't wait to land my hands on it once it comes to Singapore.

http://gizmodo.com/380860/multi+grope-interacting-with-microsoft-surface-at-the-att-store

/Dennis

I'm down and out for 5 days...because of HFMD

Fri, 18 Apr 2008 01:03:41 GMT

Today is the 5th day i am out of action.

If you have emailed me, you would have received my OOO (Out of Office) reply. A couple of work colleagues and friends asked me what happened that i warrant a 5 day MC?

Majority of them quizzed for Wisdom tooth extraction? No, it is not. Mine's been removed, all 4 of them. Plus i won't want to do it this week either. I could have met Simon Brown yesterday and Steve Cellini today. Who are they? They are very senior executives in the Microsoft ranking. I shan't going into that. I was supposed to have a chance at making some scorings that could potentially be very positive for my career in Microsoft.

Never mind that. What took me down was HFMD (Hand, Foot, Mouth Disease). I just want to share that this is NOT JUST A KIDDY Disease. It strikes adults. My elder girl got it. Ironically, not from child care.

Let my story be a warning to you;

(Sunday) Day 1: My girl was having fever. It wasn't HFMD then. It was a bacteria infection and doc gave the usual dose of paracetamol and anti-biotics. Doctor certified that it is not HFMD. Since Friday, my girl has not gotten to the childcare. In case you wondering why. In Singapore, on the news, HFMD is spreading like wild fire. Check the home page of Ministry of Health.

(Tuesday) Day 3: Everything seems to have settled down over the past 2 or 3 days. However, on Tuesday night, my girl started having fever again. Her hands and feet had minor red/pinky spots. Plus my girl kept saying "Mouth Pain". Worrying its HFMD, we rushed her down to the same PD Clinic the very next morning.

(Wednesday) Day 4: The very morning, i skipped work and rush down to the PD Clinic. I told the PD Clinic that it is a HFMD suspect case. I was given priority and saw the doctor right away. Doctor certified, "Yes, its HFMD. We'll have to keep her away from ChildCare". But the ironic thing is, she hasn't been to childcare for the past 5 days. Doctor said it takes 3 days to incubate and develop the symptoms. We have not brought her anywhere since Sat (Day 0) except for the clinic. SHE CAUGHT HFMD FROM THE CLINIC. Damn it, that would be the last place anyone would expect to catch HFMD. MOH has been telling all child care and pre-schools to be very careful about HFMD.

Day 4 to Day 7: Over the past few days was horror. My girl cannot sleep properly, refuse to eat and drink. We had to force her on occasions. Through occasions, she begs for water, but drinks minimally. Its simply heartbreaking. Oh, she always ask for mouth cream. And yes, she lost quite a lot of weight. She had ulcers in her mouth and throat.

(Sunday) Day 8: In the evening, My wife and i started showing symptoms of HFMD infection. No fever, but we started having little ulcers and a few spots on the hands and feet. We reckon that we have caught it from my elder girl. On the same night, my younger girl started showing symptoms too.

(Monday) Day 9: We rushed down to the clinic (Me, wife and 2nd girl). It was confirmed HFMD. We had to stay away from everyone for 5 days at least.

(Friday) Day 13: Here i am sitting at the coffee table writing this blog. The past 2 weeks has been killing for me. Sleepless nights, can't eat properly, can't drink. We now understand how my elder girl and my younger girl have felt. BTW, my elder is turning 3 years old and my younger girl is 8 months. Things are getting better, but i really want to share my experiences with everyone. Its a very painful experience.

Here are some symptoms (after getting infection of HFMD);

Fever within 3 days of infection
Mouth starts getting small blisters and develops into ulcers within 4 days of infection
Hands, Feet, Elbows, Knees and Thighs will develop red spots within 4 days of infection and develops into small blisters. DO NOT BURST THE BLISTERS.
From day 1, you are infectious for about 8 days

These are ways to contain its spread;

Wash your hands well before any food
In fact wash your hands regularly
Do not share food
Do not share fork and spoon.
When coughing or sneezing, turn away from anyone and cover your nose and mouth.
No kissing ;-)
Stay away from pregnant ladies. If they catch it, there will be complications

How it transmit;

Through contact. Transmission mechanism is very similar to flu transmission.
Cough and sneezing, the droplets that flew around in the air. (Please remember to cover)
Apparently, a space that has been infected, remains infected for 24 hours unless disinfected by a disinfectant. Use Dethol handwash... ;-)

Now my serious take;

HFMD is not a KIDDY ONLY DISEASE. Adults can get it too, and trust me, its worse then than kid gets it. I see more ulcers and more blisters and spots. But because we know we must eat and drink still, it is less dangerous for us. But kids don't understand, they simply stop eating and drinking. Now that is DEADLY.
Why is MOH emphasizing so much on the Child Care Center. Please take a look at the clinics which a lot of children visit. My girl got it from a PD Clinic. Its a specialist clinic in a private hospital. That would be the least expected place of infection. Can MOH do something about it? Giving advisories to clinics isn't enough.
Parents: If you bring your child to the clinic, make sure you carry them and don't let them run around and play the toys there. The PD Clinic that i went to, my girl was playing with the toys there. The clinics do not disinfect their toys, doesn't make sense anyway. You can't have a person disinfect every time a kid plays the toy.
I think for the time being, all clinics should hide all their toys. Its more serious on adults, but spreads more easily amongst kids. Hey, wake up. Adult don't play toys and share toys. Adults don't jump onto the toys the moment you see them. Kids do, and they don't care and don't understand the consequences.
MOH, please do something to the clinics. My suggestions;

Get all clinics to keep all toys, else disinfect them regularly (hourly basis? Hmm, maybe not enough)
Have clinic set up priority for HFMD suspects carrying the symptoms. This will lessen the exposure timings that kids can spread.
Perhaps Parents can call in first to highlight that it is bringing in a HFMD suspect to prepare the clinic.
When entering a clinic, kids disinfect their hands like child care does. Take temperature if needed.

Those are my suggestions, take it as it deems fit.
Just yesterday, in the news. I heard over 1000 cases in the past week. I guess my whole family of 4 makes up part of that 1000. Just taking my times into considerations;

1 week of no work for me and my wife; we estimate to lose $3000 worth of income, less the amount of money making opportunities. Assuming everyone in that 1000 cases, has 1 parent who take cares of the children, and each one loses $1000 a week. Damn, we're talking about losing 1000 x $1000 = $1,000,000 !!!

Now can someone takes things serious and look into where the spreads can take place. If you're from MOH and you want to know which clinic, email me - i-dchung@microsoft.com

/Dennis

Need a Buddy to spice up your MSN Conversations??

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 06:17:43 GMT

I chanced upon this in my opposite cubicle. Cute.

Introducing i-Buddy. It will spice up your conversations in a visible way. Hasn't got much chance to dig deep into it, but was able to play with it on the surface. The only sad thing i encountered is that it doesn't work with 64bit Vista. :-(

It detects the mode of the conversation in MSN and shows it up.

Check out these images;

Check out the official website for more info. http://www.i-buddy.com/

Wish i could have one. Its time to return it to the person opposite me.

/Dennis

AdminPak.msi is no longer in Windows 2008

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 03:43:04 GMT

If you have been administering your Windows 2003 environment from XP or Vista, you have probably installed Adminpak.msi. Well, with the launch of Windows 2008, adminpak has disappeared.

That is now known as RSAT. (Remote Server Administration Tools).

There is a 64bit version and a 32bit version of this tool.
This is just another discussion taken from SWUG.

/Dennis

How to obtain evaluation of Windows Storage Server 2003 R2

Tue, 08 Apr 2008 02:58:55 GMT

This post is for an old friend, Steven Hill, from eGroup.com.sg

Steven, to obtain the Windows Storage Server 2003 R2, visit this link.

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserversystem/solutions/specializedservers/OEM/Evaluation.mspx

Here are some other links which i thought you might be interested;

Product Home Page: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserversystem/wss2003/default.mspx
White Paper- Microsoft Windows Storage Server 2003 R2 for IT Pros
Windows Storage Server 2003 R2 - Planning and Deployment

Hope this helps pal..

/Dennis

Host	Guest
Windows 2008 (Core, Standard, Datacenter, Enterprise, SBS)	Windows 2008 (Core, Standard, Datacenter, Enterprise, SBS)
XP Professional SP3 (non-production only)	XP SP3
Windows Vista SP1 (non-production only) (Business, Ultimate, Enterprise)	Windows Vista SP1 (Business, Ultimate, Enterprise)