Kurt Shintaku's Blog

Hmm.  Missed this one.

In case it hasn’t been apparent, in the same way that Windows Server is Microsoft’s operating system platform to applications that need basic platform services such as file I/O, network services, performance throttling, event logging, remote management, scriptability, security principles, etc…

Internet Information Server 7.0 (an installable service for Windows Server 2008) is Microsoft’s Internet services platform for web-based applications that need basic web services such as FTP, Media streaming, Application isolation, HTTP-based application communication, resource management, etc.

FTP SERVICE 7.5 RELEASES
FTP Services 7.5, unlike past versions of FTP in Windows Server 2003 and previous revisions is an optional plug-in service that leverages the IIS 7.0 web platform for managability, administration, configuration, security, etc.

Imagine if someone wrote an FTP services completely independently for security and performance, over a hardened web platform.  That appears to be what we did with the 7.5. 

CHANGES

• XML CONFIG FILES – The biggest change is departure of the old IIS 6.0 configuration metabase database – replaced by an XML file-based system making configuration backup and management simpler and segregate-able.
• FTP OVER SSL – FTP has historically always happened in the clear meaning data transferred was never encrypted.  Additionally, password transmission by default has been in the clear.  The introduction of FTP over SSL provide secure FTP transmission while taking advantage of the performance benefits of FTP over HTTP.
• UTF8 & IPv6 SUPPORT – Although IPv6 has not taken off yet, FTP 7.5 is ready for it if and when your company adapts it for a larger address space.
• ADAPTIVE BANDWIDTH – Bandwidth throttling on a dynamic or static basis is possible for the FTP service without impacting other web services.

DOWNLOAD:
x64: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=ffb7c167-279e-48d3-8169-dea85784c4d1.
x86: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=b7f5b652-8c5c-447a-88b8-8cfc5c13f571.

VDI Expert Series Webcast:
Microsoft and Citrix – Exploring VDI’s Myths, Limitations and Benefits

If you’re considering Desktop Virtualization or Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI), join Microsoft® and Citrix® to discover how to minimize the cost of a VDI implementation with the most comprehensive solution.  

Hear about:

• Top 5 VDI Myths
• XenDesktop Technical Differentiators & Testing Metrics
• Minimizing the cost associated with a VDI implementation
• Enhanced security
• Increased business agility

Date/Time:

• Thursday, April 9, 2009
  10:00AM-11:00AM PST

REGISTER: 

• https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/988938641

Supporting Better Business Decisions
with Business Intelligence and SQL Server Analysis Services

Join us for a free 2-day, invitation only training seminar to help you use technologies you probably already own to do more with business intelligence.

In this uncertain financial climate BI is no longer a luxury afforded by larger organizations – it is now considered an essential part of the IT portfolio. While driving better decision-making throughout your organization may be key to success, simply providing volumes of data or reports is usually not enough.  There is a solution and you may likely already own the technology. SQL Server Analysis Services is designed to translate data into business models that facilitate insightful decision making. 

Date/Time:
Mon, May 11 – Tues, May 12
8:30 – 5:00 pm

Location:
Microsoft Office – Irvine
3 Park Plaza
Suite 1600
Irvine, California 92614

This seminar is densely packed with real world examples and numerous practical demonstrations.  By the end of the two days, attendees can reasonably expect to be both inspired and empowered to implement robust analytic solutions.

Who should attend

• Any IT professional with an interest in learning more about BI, data analysis and data mining
• Business professionals interested to understand and evaluate Microsoft’s BI strategy and platforms.
• Apart from a general understanding of relational database technologies, there is no requirement to have any background or experience with OLAP or data mining technologies.

Day One         
09:00    09:30    30    Defining Business Intelligence
09:30    10:00    30    Introducing Dimensional Modelling Techniques
10:00    10:15    15    Introduction to OLAP
10:15    10:30    15    ** MORNING BREAK **
10:30    12:00    90    Designing and Developing Dimensions and Cubes
12:00    13:00    60    ** LUNCH BREAK
13:00    14:00    60    Enriching the UDM Design with Calculations, KPIs, Actions, Perspectives and Translations
14:00    14:45    45    Optimizing, Managing, Securing and Scaling the UDM
14:45    15:00    15    ** AFTERNOON BREAK **
15:00    16:00    60    Querying and Consuming the UDM
16:00    16:30    30    Next Generation OLAP from Microsoft
16:30    17:00    30    Q and A

Day Two         
09:00    09:30    30    Introduction to Data Mining
09:30    10:15    45    Introducing the SQL Server Data Mining Algorithms
10:15    10:30    15    ** MORNING BREAK **
10:30    12:00    90    Introducing the SQL Server Data Mining Algorithms (Continued)
12:00    13:00    60    ** LUNCH BREAK
13:00    14:00    60    Querying and Visualizing Data Mining Results
14:00    14:45    45    Integrating Data Mining with SQL Server
14:45    15:00    15    ** AFTERNOON BREAK **
15:00    16:15    75    Embedding Data Mining Results into Applications
16:15    16:30    15    Next Generation Data Mining from Microsoft
16:30    17:00    30    Q and A

Registration:
If you’re a customer of mine, please contact me for details on how to register.  This will be an extremely packed class so only invited Enterprise guests will be allowed to participate.

For those looking for a nice free plug in for Sharepoint Server 2007 or Windows Sharepoint Services that will allow people to interactively view and browse media like videos and audio clips, Point8020’s MediaPoint is available using Silverlight that allows you to instantly expand your Sharepoint site’s capabilities.

For more information, visit Point8020’s web site:

LINK:  http://www.point8020.com/services.aspx#MediaPoint

ServerQuest is back!

ServerQuest II:  A Day In a Geek’s Life
http://www.microsoft.com/click/serverquest

If you played the original ServerQuest and liked it, you’re sure to enjoy ServerQuest II, now in Silverlight!

If you remember the ol’ Sierra Online games of old, I’m sure you’ll recognize the style of ServerQuest.  And for those of you that have older backgrounds in computers and games will remember games like Snake, the Mattel Intellivision, and binary jokes.

Also if you work as an IT Professional on a daily basis and know the more “typical” problems that IT staff folks have to deal with, you’ll have a deep appreciation for some of the scenarios in which you’re posed challenges… through email in Outlook, of all places!

BUT I DON’T LIKE PIXELATED GRAPHICS!
For those who are too young to remember, ServerQuest was specifically designed to bring back memories of classic adventure games of the past.  But if you don’t like ServerQuest II’s ‘look & feel’ – fear not:  Let’s see if you can do better!  Microsoft Silverlight is running a contest called ServerQuest Contest:

ServerQuest Contest
http://www.serverquestcontest.com/

Contestants can submit their own Silverlight game and through online voting you can win $5000 and have your game featured within ServerQuest II itself!  For example:  Take a look at this one:

Are Your Certifiable?
http://www.microsoft.com/click/areyoucertifiable/

We are excited to announce our new version of Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP), available for purchase to Software Assurance customers. 

MDOP 2009 includes:

• the first release of Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization (MED-V 1.0)
• a Cumulative Update to Microsoft Application Virtualization (App-V 4.5 CU1)
• an update to the Asset Inventory Service (AIS).

Alongside these updated releases, MDOP 2009 also includes the other standard MDOP tools:

• Microsoft Diagnostics and Recovery Toolset
• Microsoft Advanced Group Policy Management
• Microsoft System Center Desktop Error Monitoring.

The updates are available to 14.4 million MDOP customers.

MED-V provides deployment and management of virtual Windows desktops to enable key enterprise scenarios.    MED-V 1.0 helps enterprises upgrade to the latest version of Windows even when some applications are not yet compatible.   MED-V builds on top of Microsoft Virtual PC to run two operating systems on one device, adding virtual image delivery, policy-based provisioning and centralized management.

A recent brief by Enterprise Management Associates (EMA) emphasized some of the customer benefits of using MED-V:  "We found that MED-V really solved our application compatibility problems. It allowed us to deploy the applications that we were having difficulty with, where third party vendors were not providing a supported version. Where we used to have hundreds of images, we were able to move to one [Windows] Vista image, and use MED-V to deploy [legacy] applications on top of that," said IT Deployment Manger at Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, an organization of 22,000 staff members.

"We are really happy with MED-V. We can virtualize the applications that are made only for XP, and they work fine, with all the functionality intact," said a large European telecommunications company with almost 80,000 employees.

App-V 4.5 CU1 is now available as part of MDOP 2009.  App-V 4.5 CU1 adds support for Windows 7 beta, so customers can move ahead with application testing in preparation for enterprise deployments. It also contains a few improvements such as instant access or removal of applications assigned to end users.  When Windows 7 releases, we are committed to supporting the final product within 90 days of general availability. 

AIS 1.5 update, now available to all MDOP end users through Windows Update, enhances the license reconciliation feature and the task scheduler. It now provides a detailed report for each application (e.g. whether license type is retail or volume license) to simplify license inventory tasks and to improve licensing compliance. The inventory scan scheduling has been improved to ensure data is collected even from devices that are turned off regularly.

MDOP 2009 is available for MDOP subscribers at Microsoft Volume Licensing Site (MVLS).

DOWNLOAD:
https://www.microsoft.com/licensing/servicecenter/Catalog/Product.aspx?d=/wEPBQIxNwUDNzA1

[taken from the MDOP blog]

Today, Microsoft announced the release of Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization 1.0 (MED-V) and the companion guide for MED-V – Infrastructure Planning and Design Guide for MED-V.

What is MED-V?

MED-V released today is part of the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP) offering that is available to Microsoft’s Software Assurance customers. It provides deployment and management of virtual Windows desktops to enable key enterprise scenarios. In addition, MED-V helps enterprises upgrade to the latest version of Windows even when some applications are not yet compatible. This virtualization technology builds on top of the Microsoft Virtual PC to run two operating systems on one device, adding virtual image delivery, policy-based provisioning and centralized management.

To get started with planning for an infrastructure that takes advantage of the MED-V desktop virtualization technology, we have also released the free Infrastructure Planning and Design (IPD) Guide for Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization (MED-V) – a new addition to the family of free tools and guides called Virtualization Solution Accelerators from Microsoft.

What is IPD Guide for MED-V?

The IPD Guide for MED-V outlines the critical infrastructure design elements that are crucial to a successful implementation of MED-V. The reader is guided through the four-step process of designing components, layout, and connectivity in a logical, sequential order. Identification of the MED-V server instances needed is presented in simple, easy-to-follow steps, helping the reader to deliver managed virtual machines to end users. Following the steps in this guide will result in a design that is sized, configured, and appropriately placed to deliver the stated business benefits, while also considering the performance, capacity, and fault tolerance of the system.

The Infrastructure Planning and Design Guide streamlines the planning process by:

• Defining the technical decision flow through the planning process.
• Listing the decisions to be made and the commonly available options and considerations.
• Relating the decisions and options to the business in terms of cost, complexity, and other characteristics.
• Framing decisions in terms of additional questions to the business to ensure a comprehensive alignment with the appropriate business landscape.

Key Features of the IPD Guide for MED-V:

• Enables the reader to quickly select the end users, locations, and virtual machines (VMs) that will be included in the project scope to meet the business requirements.
• Assists the reader in determining how many MED-V server instances will be required in order to deliver managed virtual machines to end users.
• Steps through MED-V infrastructure design in a logical, sequential order.

Act now!

• Start accelerating your MED-V project planning today and get a FREE download the IPD Guide for MED-V today!
• Read more about the IPD Guide for MED-V and 19 other planning guides.
• Check out other Virtualization Solution Accelerators including Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit and IPD for App-V Guide!

[taken from MAP blog]

This free Solution Accelerator collects and monitors operational measurements for your line of business (LOB) applications. Its graphical dashboard makes it easy to keep tabs on service availability and performance, letting you:

• Spot trends in service availability and performance
• Head off problems before they occur
• Reduce costs by streamlining IT operations

This new version of the Service Level Dashboard uses System Center Operations Manager as the engine, and Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 as its presentation platform to track and report service levels on a near real-time basis. The Dashboard now tracks additional metrics for service level compliance, including mean time to repair (MTTR), mean time between failures (MTBF), and application service level trends.  Its SharePoint-based authentication lets you create individual Dashboards by department, so you can easily track service levels for different groups in the organization.

Try it Now!

• Join the Service Level Dashboard 2.0 Beta on Microsoft Connect as part of the System Center Operations Manager Beta Program (you’ll need your Microsoft Live ID). 
• Already using SCOM 2007 R2 Release Candidate 1? Click here to start. 
• NOTE: You can access the beta on Microsoft Connect, where you will first need to fill out a nomination survey. Once you’ve completed the survey, you will see the Operations Manager beta connections page, which provides links and instructions for downloading.

[taken from the MAP blog]

LIMITED TIME OFFER: 
We’ve swung a deal with Astraware to make their Sudoku product available for free for all Windows Mobile users using Smartphone or Pocket PC form factors.

—————

Astraware Sudoku lets you enjoy Sudoku on your Windows Mobile phone. Pick your puzzles from six levels of difficulty or download “Puzzles of the Day” over the air and then compare times with other players from around the world.

Astraware Sudoku offers a wide range of help for beginning players, from smart hints to manual or automatic pencil marks to a hold-and-highlight feature. You can create your own puzzles—which means an unlimited number of puzzles! You can even enter puzzles you’ve seen in books or newspapers, and then use the built-in puzzle-solver to help solve them.

DOWNLOAD:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/en-us/downloads/sudoku.mspx

This week at the CTIA show in Las Vegas, Celio Corp expanded the REDFLY product line adding a software option for smartphone users – the REDFLY Mobile Viewer software for Windows XP and Vista. The REDFLY Mobile Viewer combined with two existing REDFLY Mobile Companion hardware models give smartphone users a variety of ways to get real work done on a smartphone.

The REDFLY Mobile Viewer lets you conveniently use your favorite Windows Mobile applications at full size on your PC and experience many of the award-winning REDFLY Mobile Companion benefits when your smartphone is connected to your PC.

What can you do with the REDFLY Mobile Viewer? Text message friends and family throughout the day. Keep your work and personal lives separate while multitasking on one device. Go from 8 viewable cells to 50 while using Excel Mobile right on your phone. See more of any smartphone application at resolutions up to 1024×768 pixels – all using the full-size keyboard and mouse you already enjoy on your PC to control your phone.

Visit www.celiocorp.com to find out more about the REDFLY Mobile Viewer and download a FREE beta version of the software.

Which REDFLY product is right for you? See a comparison of products and features.

DOWNLOAD:  http://www.celiocorp.com/install/#viewer