Whatever the platform, it’s the solution that counts (problems with AOL on a Mac via ADSL)

Posted on By Mark Wilson
This content is 20 years old. I don't routinely update old blog posts as they are only intended to represent a view at a particular point in time. Please be warned that the information here may be out of date.

At the danger of being flamed by Apple Macintosh fans everywhere (please don’t) – I thought Macs were supposed to be simple.

To be honest, that’s one of the reasons I didn’t get on with my iMac in the late 90s – it was too big a shift for me as a long-time Windows user (even though I had used Macs at uni’ many years before), but that was with OS 8 or 9 (I can’t remember) and I guess, being UNIX based, that OS X will also give me a command prompt?

Anyway, a couple of nights back, my neighbour, who is very proud of his new purchase – an iMac G5 – dropped by to ask if I could help him get his Mac connected to the Internet. His Windows PC connects fine, using a BT Voyager 100 ADSL modem and AOL but when he called AOL, they said they don’t provide Macintosh support. We spent a few hours looking at this and the best advice I could find was to obtain the Mac drivers for the modem and some configuration information (as well as a phone number for AOL Mac support!) from the Mac User’s forum. Unfortunately the last post at the time of writing is just a few days old and is from someone who had a working connection that has just stopped and we couldn’t get it working either.

Fast forward a couple of days and my neighbour dropped by to say that he phoned AOL and they only support dial-up connections for Macintosh users. He also found the same anecdotal evidence I had found of people who have their Macs working with AOL broadband (but not consistently). Once glimmer of hope is that net4nowt and MacUser talk about AOL Services for Macintosh, which it seems was released on 6 May 2005 as AOL Service Assistant, allowing Macintosh users to access AOL services, although the net4nowt advice seems to be to use this on a routed connection (not direct via ADSL modem).

My neighbour is now off to buy a broadband router (probably the best solution for him anyway given that he has multiple computers now) – fingers crossed that gets him on line with the Mac.

The irony of all this is that he upgraded from Windows ME to XP and couldn’t get his broadband connection working – until I downloaded the BT voyager 100 drivers for Windows XP for him a couple of weeks back! Now his Windows PC works, but the Mac he bought in frustration doesn’t… just goes to show that it doesn’t matter what platform you use, there will usually be some complications in getting the various elements of a solution to pull together (and it seems that for broadband AOL on a Mac it just won’t work at all).

Troubleshooting Windows authentication with the Microsoft account lockout and management tools

Posted on By Mark Wilson
This content is 20 years old. I don't routinely update old blog posts as they are only intended to represent a view at a particular point in time. Please be warned that the information here may be out of date.

A few weeks back I was at a Microsoft TechNet UK event where John Howard demonstrated the free tools provided by Microsoft to troubleshoot and diagnose account lockout and management issues for Windows NT, 2000 and 2003:

  • acctinfo.dll (also included with the Windows Server 2003 resource kit tools) is installed using the regsvr32 acctinfo.dll command and extends the functionality of the Active Directory users and computers MMC snap-in, with an Additional Account Info page on the user object properties to assist in isolating and troubleshooting account lockouts and to change a user’s password on a domain controller in that user’s site. This extra page contains a variety of information, including:
    • The last time the password was set.
    • Domain password policies.
    • Password expiration date.
    • Lockout status.
    • Last good and bad logons.
  • alockout.dll can be used to create a log file to assist in diagnosing the cause of account lockout problems. It should be copied to the %systemroot%\system32 folder on the computer experiencing the lockout problems (usually a user’s workstation) and the appinit.reg script run to add alockout.dll to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows\AppInit_DLLs key. Once the computer is restarted and an account locked out, a log file called alockout.log will be created in the %systemroot%\debug folder. This tool should not be used on servers that host network applications or services (in particular it should not be used on Exchange servers, because it may prevent the Exchange store from starting).
  • aloinfo.exe displays the password age for user accounts to allow determination of accounts which are about to expire in order to anticipate problems before they occur. It is a command prompt tool, with two options:
    • aloinfo /expires /server:servername returns a list of user names followed by the age of their password.
    • aloinfo /stored returns a list of services and the accounts used as well as mapped drives for the currently logged on user.
  • enablekerblog.vbs can be used as a startup script to enable Kerberos logging (as described in Microsoft knowledge base article 262177) on all clients running Windows 2000 or later (it actually sets HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\LSA\Kerberos\Parameters\LogLevel to 1, which once removed will disable Kerberos logging). When looking at Kerberos authentication issues, it is worth checking to see that the Kerberos key distribution center service is started on all domain controllers, that time synchronisation is working correctly from the PDC emulator at the root of the forest down to all client machines (Kerberos authentication will fail if the time is skewed by more than 5 minutes by default), and that both Kerberos and LDAP have service location records defined in DNS (check with nslookup _kerberos._udp.domainname and nslookup _ldap._tcp.domainname).
  • eventcombmt.exe (also included with the Windows Server 2003 resource kit tools) searches event logs on multiple computers and collects event records matching specified criteria (useful for gathering specific events from event logs on several different computers to one central location).
  • lockoutstatus.exe (also included with the Windows Server 2003 resource kit tools) determines all the domain controllers that are involved in a lockout of a user in order to assist in gathering the logs. It can be useful in identifying if lockout problems are arising from Active Directory replication issues, as typically this means there will be two or more entries for different domain controllers.
  • nlparse.exe can be used to extract and display desired entries from the netlogon log files generated by lockoutstatus.exe or alockout.dll, parsing the logs for specific return status codes and directing the output to a comma-separated value (.CSV) file. It is also possible to enable netlogon debug logging with the nltest.exe Windows support tool, or via the registry, as described in Microsoft knowledge base article 109626.

Links

Implementing and troubleshooting account lockout (WindowSecurity.com).
Microsoft account lockout and management tools.

Disabling the Shutdown Event Tracker in Windows Server 2003 (and XP)

Posted on By Mark Wilson
This content is 20 years old. I don't routinely update old blog posts as they are only intended to represent a view at a particular point in time. Please be warned that the information here may be out of date.

I run Windows Server 2003 on my work laptop (largely because I’m getting up to speed with Windows SharePoint Services right now). I find that pretty much anything designed for Windows XP runs under Windows Server 2003, but there are some configuration differences out of the box. One of these is the shutdown event tracker – a useful feature on enterprise servers, but not so useful for me on my everyday laptop – so I was pleased to stumble across Microsoft’s advice on configuring the shutdown event tracker, including how to disable it. Interestingly, Microsoft knowledge base article 293814 reports that the functionality is also available in Windows XP but is disabled by default.

Direct access to ISO images

Posted on By Mark Wilson
This content is 20 years old. I don't routinely update old blog posts as they are only intended to represent a view at a particular point in time. Please be warned that the information here may be out of date.

A couple of months back, I blogged about a driver to provide direct access to virtual floppy disks. Today, I’ve come across a number of sources (most notably Thomas Lee and Steven Bink), that pointed me in the direction of a similar tool for directly mounting ISO CD images in Windows XP – the Microsoft Virtual CD Control Panel. Although unsupported, and not even searchable on the Microsoft download center, this tool is referenced in the MSDN Subscriptions FAQ. There are other tools for manipulating ISO images, but what I like about this is that it simply allows me to mount an ISO as another drive in my system, in the same way that Virtual PC can capture an ISO image and use it as the CD drive.

Send to… Notepad

Posted on By Mark Wilson
This content is 20 years old. I don't routinely update old blog posts as they are only intended to represent a view at a particular point in time. Please be warned that the information here may be out of date.

The UK IT industry is a small world and I frequently attend events where I bump into people that I haven’t seen for a while. A couple of months back I turned up at a course and found myself next to a former colleague from 10 years back. This week I’m attending an SMS training course at QA where the instructor is Bernie Kilshaw, who delivered much of my Microsoft Official Curriculum (MOC) training in my days at ICL, including all of my training for Microsoft Windows NT 5.0 (later renamed Windows 2000).

Yesterday, Bernie reminded me of a Windows tip which I had forgotten about, but which is very useful – the ability to right-click on a file and view it in Notepad (or any other chosen application) using the Send To menu.

To set this up requires the ability to view hidden folders within Windows Explorer. Once that has been turned on (in the folder options), simply create a shortcut to Notepad (or any other chosen application) in the %homedrive%%homepath%\SendTo folder.

Improving the tablet PC experience

Posted on By Mark Wilson
This content is 20 years old. I don't routinely update old blog posts as they are only intended to represent a view at a particular point in time. Please be warned that the information here may be out of date.

Last year I blogged about how Windows XP SP2 improves the tablet PC experience for users. I did manage to get hold of a tablet PC, but unfortunately it came in several USB-connected parts (not like the modern tablets which are effectively dual-purpose notebook/tablet PCs) and so I haven’t really used it. The company that I work for is evaluating the new generation of tablets (e.g. the excellent Toshiba Portégé M200), but I’ll just have to wait my turn!

For those who do have a tablet PC that’s running Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005 (i.e. the SP2 version), Microsoft has now released the (dubiously named) Experience Pack for Tablet PC including six new programs that they claim “will help you be more productive and creative” (some of these were previously available as unsupported downloads):

  • Ink Desktop – allows the notes to be taken directly on the desktop for quick and easy access later.
  • Snipping Tool – lets the tablet pen be used to select a portion of a website, document, or other content on the screen. Handwritten comments can then be added and the composite image pasted into another program (such as an e-mail message).
  • Ink Art – allows painting with a tablet pen.
  • Media Transfer (requires Windows Media Player 10) – allows the copying or streaming of media files from another computer (e.g at home) to a tablet PC, to enjoy access to music, home videos or digital photo albums whenever and wherever.
  • Ink Crossword – lets users solve crosswords on their tablet PC using a tablet pen. Twelve puzzles are included and a daily puzzle can be downloaded free of charge with further puzzle packs available for purchase online.
  • Energy Blue Theme Pack – previously released as a separate download, which now appears to be unavailable.

Paul Thurrott’s SuperSite for Windows features a review of the experience pack but it looks to include some useful enhancements for tablet PC users.

Shortcut to lock a Windows XP PC

Posted on By Mark Wilson
This content is 20 years old. I don't routinely update old blog posts as they are only intended to represent a view at a particular point in time. Please be warned that the information here may be out of date.

Yesterday, I blogged about a shortcut to hibernate a Windows XP PC (for people who are too lazy to use between 3 and 5 clicks when a double-click will do).

Keni Barwick replied with an alternative to lock the workstation (%windir%\system32\rundll32.exe user32.dll, LockWorkStation) and when I said “What about Win+L – oh yes, forgot, two fingers required ;-)” he fiendishly replied “But it’s great if you want to use no fingers… i.e. the bluetooth auto lock I’m developing :-)” – sounds a bit like a TV B-Gone for PCs to me…

Shortcut to hibernation in Windows XP

Posted on By Mark Wilson
This content is 20 years old. I don't routinely update old blog posts as they are only intended to represent a view at a particular point in time. Please be warned that the information here may be out of date.

I can’t find the reference which started me off with this, but a few weeks ago I came across a tip for creating a shortcut to hibernate a Windows XP PC (for people who find that 5 clicks is just too much). How people find these obscure features I’ll never know (I guess its straightforward for a developer to find all the calls to a DLL?), but here it is anyway – just create a shortcut with a target of %windir%\system32\rundll32.exe PowrProf.dll, SetSuspendState.

Windows XP N

Posted on By Mark Wilson
This content is 20 years old. I don't routinely update old blog posts as they are only intended to represent a view at a particular point in time. Please be warned that the information here may be out of date.

Microsoft and the European Commission have finally agreed on the name for the version of Windows XP with Media Player removed – Windows XP N. How dull? I preferred Windows XP Reduced Media Edition (after all, one of the benefits of “regular” XP is its improved multimedia capabilities) but the EU were never going to accept that! I’m not convinced that there is a market for Windows XP N (but Microsoft has been forced to produce it)… so I guess it doesn’t matter what they call it.

Microsoft Application Compatibility Toolkit v4.0 is finally released

Posted on By Mark Wilson
This content is 20 years old. I don't routinely update old blog posts as they are only intended to represent a view at a particular point in time. Please be warned that the information here may be out of date.

Over the last few months I’ve been critical of the time its taken for Microsoft to ship an SP2-aware update to their application compatibility toolkit. Last week, one of the consultants from Microsoft UK e-mailed me to let me know that the Microsoft application compatibility toolkit v4.0 is now available for Windows XP (including SP2) and Windows Server 2003.

The application compatibility toolkit contains tools and documentation to evaluate and mitigate application compatibility issues including the latest versions of the Microsoft Application Analyzer that simplifies application inventory and compatibility reporting, the Internet Explorer Compatibility Evaluator that assists testers in locating compatibility issues with Internet Explorer on Windows XP SP2, and the Compatibility Administrator that provides access to the necessary compatibility fixes to support legacy applications in Windows.