Kurt Shintaku's Blog

While researching some content, I found this article on Windows Vista Service Pack 1:
http://technet2.microsoft.com/windowsvista/en/library/5cf710a1-1414-4d11-97de-0748abdcec651033.mspx?mfr=true

At the end of it is a fairly interesting section on "Troubleshooting" failed installations of Windows Vista Service Pack 1.

Troubleshooting

When installing SP1, some computers may run into issues that block the installation or otherwise cause it to fail. These issues may include the following:

• A hard disk that is corrupted
• Memory failures
• Software and file system synchronization issues. For performance reasons, the file system keeps a copy of the contents of some files in the memory, and it can take a while for these contents to be written back to the hard disk. Therefore, sometimes the contents of the files on the hard disk may be slightly out of synchronization with the memory.

To work around installation problems, perform the following steps in the specified order:

1. Ensure that you have enough disk space, as specified in the "Check disk space requirements" table under Perform predeployment tasks earlier in this guide. Then restart the computer and try again to install SP1. This will ensure that all files are synchronized properly.
2. If the installation still fails, open an elevated Command Prompt window, and then run the chkdsk /f command. The Chkdsk tool checks the file system and metadata for errors, and then it fixes the errors, if possible. Then try again to install SP1.
3. If the installation still fails, open an elevated Command Prompt window, and then run the SFC /scannow command. The System File Checker tool scans all protected files to verify their versions, and then it updates these files, if possible. Then try again to install SP1.
4. If the installation still fails, open an elevated Command Prompt window, and then run the MdSched.exe command. The Windows Memory Diagnostic tool tests the random access memory (RAM) on your computer for errors. Then try again to install SP1.
5. If the installation still fails, download and extract the KB947821 update from the Microsoft Download Center. The Windows6.0-KB947821-XXX.msu file will ensure that the computer is ready to be updated. Then try again to install SP1. For information about this update, including information about how to obtain it, see http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=109180 .

Over the weekend, there were some emails going back and forth regarding Windows Vista SP1 and looking for support with it. As such, I thought I would post here about a resource available to you that you can take advantage of, if you need it. Microsoft is providing unlimited, no charge installation and compatibility support for Windows Vista SP1 through a variety of ways:

1. Email support – Response time: Within one business day
2. 1:1 Chat support – Available M-F from 5:00 am – 12:00 am PST and Sat/Sun from 6:00 am – 6:00 pm PST
3. Phone support – Available at no charge for those with: Software Assurance, a Microsoft professional services contract, TechNet subscription, MSDN subscription, or who are part of the Microsoft Partner Program

You can find out more about this offering and how to start using it online on the Windows Vista SP1 Help and Support page.

Taken from:  http://blogs.msdn.com/mssmallbiz/archive/2008/03/24/8333482.aspx

Microsoft Technical Fellow and IT guru Mark Russinovich hosts a panel of top independent industry experts to drive an open discussion around Windows Vista adoption and deployment, and demystify known issues.

The panel will feature leading third-party Windows Vista adoption subject-matter experts including Mark Minasi , author of Administering Windows Vista Security: The Big Surprises; Tony Bradley, foremost security expert and Microsoft Enterprise Security MVP; and Jerry Honeycutt, author, speaker and Deployment Forum MVP, as well as IT Pros from customer organizations that have tackled Windows Vista adoption and deployment-all discussing the challenges, workarounds, and tips and tricks that they have learned along the way and the benefits of adoption. Members of the Windows product team will also be on hand to help answer questions and speak to specific Vista hot topics.

• Visit TechNet Spotlight: Video on Demand, Video Downloads, PowerPoint Presentations, Audio and more
  http://www.microsoft.com/technetspotlight  
• Springboard Series- Still Undecided About Windows Vista?
  Event Page:
  http://www.microsoft.com/emea/spotlight/event.aspx?id=91
  Links to Session Video:
  http://www.microsoft.com/emea/spotlight/sessionh.aspx?videoid=815

Windows Vista SP1 Roundtable discussion:
Join Microsoft Technical Fellow Mark Russinovich and a panel of IT industry experts:

• Jerry Honeycutt, Author, technical writer, and head of independent Deployment Forum
• Tony Bradley, Security Consultant with BT INS in Houston, Director of Security (Evangelyze), Microsoft Security MVP
• Mark Minasi, Technology Writer and Speaker and Microsoft Directory Services MVP
• Sumeeth Evans, IT Director, Collegiate Housing Services
• Lars Norman Søndergaard, Consultant, Globeteam
• Gary R. Wilhelm, Sr., Business and Financial Systems Manager, Englewood Hospital and Medical Center
• Jeremy Chapman, Senior Product Manager, Windows Vista Deployment
• David Zipkin, Senior Product Manager, Windows Vista SP1

I usually don’t plug other people’s blogs but I’ve been watching Tiffany Songvilay’s blog "Office Over Easy" for a while and it’s not only good information, the content is very professionally done, it’s got very consistently sound advice that’s hard for anyone to dispute, and it’s on a single concentrated topic:  "Office System".

(The fact that Tiffany Songvilay’s also the co-author of "So that’s how! 2007 Microsoft Office System:  Timesavers, Breakthroughs, and Everyday Genius" should also demonstrate the professionalism & credibility she has.  Hey – there’s a at least one major publisher that trusts her – and that’d be the 600 lb gorilla of Microsoft literature, Microsoft Press.

One particular post that she made recently had her actual notes from the Microsoft Sharepoint Conference which she attended recently.  This is immensely valuable information for those of you who work with Sharepoint and the kind of thing that I’m surprised more people don’t do.  (Post their notes from conferences to their blogs… heck, I should do more of that myself.  Good idea Tiffany.)

So if you’re interested in all things "Office" or "Sharepoint" for Business or IT users, this is a good place to visit or subscribe:

http://officeovereasy.spaces.live.com/

Join the Microsoft Windows Vista Deployment team of experts as they provide IT Pros and Partners with the necessary tools and understanding to migrate existing Windows Applications to the Windows Vista Operating System. This webcast series will guide participants through a series of presentations and demos designed to empower them with the knowledge and tools necessary to evaluate, test and mitigate applications for compatibility on Windows Vista.

Although most applications developed for Windows XP SP2 will probably work well on Windows Vista, application compatibility breaks are inevitable due to new innovations, security tightening, and increased reliability.  In this training, attendees will learn about the most common compatibility problems and will be given tools to help facilitate application compatibility testing, debugging, and mitigation for the highest quality Windows Vista experience.

The speakers in this are the best-of-the-best and have been on the front lines deploying Vista for the past 18 months. Attendees will experience high level content loaded with in-depth technical information. 

You won’t want to miss this series!  If you can’t make the “live” presentation an on-demand version of the webcast is available on the very next day after the live broadcast.

Audience: IT Pros; Partners
Levels: 300-400

————————————–

Date: Thursday, April 10, 2008
Title: Making Windows Vista Application Compatibility Testing More Predictable with Effective Project Management
Speaker: Chris Jackson, Technical Lead, Windows Application Experience SWAT Team
Level: 300
Length: 75 minutes
Attendee Registration URL
Session Description: When helping our customers accelerate their Windows Vista deployments by assisting with application compatibility, there are a number of technical skills to master. However, technical acumen is never enough – effectively managing the project is critical to making the process predictable and measurable, as well as controlling costs and maximizing effectiveness. In this session, we review best practices we have learned for effectively managing this process from enterprise customers world-wide.

Date: Thursday, April 17, 2008
Session Name:  Application Compatibility Toolkit
Speaker:  Matt Baddeley, Senior Program Manager, Windows Application Experience
Level:  300
Length: 1 Hour
Attendee Registration URL
Session Description: Provides an introduction to the major sources of application compatibility problems in Windows Vista, and shows how the Application Compatibility Toolkit can be used by enterprise customers to migrate their applications to the new OS. This session covers the phases of the application migration process and includes a demonstration of the ACT tools and features. Beyond migrating to a new OS, ACT also helps enterprises assess the impact of Windows Updates.

Date: Thursday, April 24, 2008
Title: Mitigating Application Issues Using Shims
Speaker: Chris Jackson, Technical Lead, Windows Application Experience SWAT Team
Level: 400
Length: 75 Minutes
Attendee Registration URL
Session Description: Explore many of the compatibility issues that the Windows team has experienced at customer sites in the context of what we can fix without updating the application, and how to fix it. The Windows Application Compatibility Infrastructure (Shim Infrastructure) is a powerful tool for resolving compatibility issues and unblocking Windows Vista deployments, but understanding where and how to leverage and configure shims can be daunting until you learn some of the tricks and subtleties, many of which we will be exposing!

Date:  Thursday, May 1, 2008
Title: LUA Buglight
Speaker:  Aaron Margosis, Senior Consultant, Microsoft Consulting Services
Level:  400
Length: 75 Minutes
Attendee Registration URL
Session Description: LUA Buglight™ (version 2.0 currently in the works) is a tool designed to help both developers and IT Pros (sysadmins) identify the specific causes of "LUA bugs" (admin-rights-required to work correctly) in desktop applications running on Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, or Windows Vista. Once the specific causes have been identified, the bugs can more easily be resolved by fixing the app’s source code, or by making configuration changes, allowing the app to work correctly for non-admin users.

Date:  Thursday, May 8, 2008
Title: Application Compatibility in 50 Days
Speaker:  Steve Campbell, Deployment Segment Architect Lead, Microsoft
Level:  300-400
Length:  60 Minutes
Attendee Registration URL
Session Description: Deploying Windows Vista in the Enterprise has moved from “We’ll see…” to “Let’s get it done” and application compatibility is typically identified as the biggest blocker to a successful, low-cost migration. In this session we’ll identify the tools, technologies and best practices that have been used successfully by Microsoft Services and partners to minimize and/or eliminate many of the perceived (and real) challenges customers experience with both ISV and internally developed applications running on Windows Vista.

Task Market is now live and looking for users! 

Microsoft Task Market is a new online marketplace where businesses can connect with and hire skilled freelancers in graphic design, writing and editing,  translation, and more.  Freelancers that sign up with Task Market can expand their client base and put their great skills to use.  It’s as easy for businesses to post jobs as it is for freelancers to apply for them and start working. Task Market is also integrated with PayPal for hassle-free online payments.

Task Market is looking for people to try out the site and send us feedback.  As a tech preview, users have the chance to really have their voices heard.  Do you know of a small business that could use freelance talent or a freelancer looking for work?   If so, please tell them about Task Market. We’d love to hear what they think.

Learn more at www.taskmarket.com.

Got a call center? Are you using Aspect Software?

At VoiceCon 2008 in Orlando, Microsoft issued a press release announcing a multi-year global strategic alliance with Aspect Software, the world’s largest standalone provider of software for contact centers. As part of the alliance, Microsoft is making an equity investment in Aspect to accelerate the delivery and adoption of the Office Communications Server VoIP platform and unified communications products in contact centers and the enterprise and to facilitate Aspect’s build out of a professional services practice for Microsoft Unified Communications.

Through this collaboration, Microsoft and Aspect we expect deliver new benefits for businesses and their customers – streamline customer interactions, help businesses enhance the customer experience and reduce cost; give customers faster access to better information, and through more modalities (email, IM, voice).

LINKS: 
Microsoft and Aspect Form Global Strategic Alliance
http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2008/mar08/03-18StandAloneContactCenterPR.mspx

Microsoft buys its way into call centers
http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/03/19/Microsoft-buys-its-way-into-call-centers_1.html

One of the things SP1 did was remove the Group Policy management tools which originally shipped with Windows Vista RTM.  The new Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT) is a package released today which includes many of the Windows Server 2008 administration tools (including a more powerful Group Policy Management Console) to run on IT Pros’ Windows Vista SP1 PCs. 

Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT) has been released to the web!

Today we released the Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT) to the web.  RSAT is the collection of Windows Server 2008 management tools which enable IT professionals to manage their Windows Server infrastructure from their PCs running Windows Vista with Service Pack 1.  This post outlines the list of components which make up RSAT, a link to the downloads, and frequently asked questions. 

Where to Install:

• Microsoft Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows Vista with SP1 (x86): http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=9FF6E897-23CE-4A36-B7FC-D52065DE9960
• Microsoft Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows Vista with SP1(x64): http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=D647A60B-63FD-4AC5-9243-BD3C497D2BC5

(We will have a main download page at:  http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=108134)

RSAT is available to all customers as part of supplemental Microsoft Software License Terms to Windows Vista licenses.

What Is Included in RSAT?
This is the list of Windows Server 2008 administration tools which are included in RSAT:

Role Administration Tools:

• Active Directory Certificate Services (AD CS) Tools
• Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS) Tools
• Active Directory Lightweight Directory Services (AD LDS) Tools
• DHCP Server Service Tools
• DNS Server Service Tools
• Shared Folders Tools
• Network Policy and Access Services Tools
• Terminal Services Tools
• Uniiversal Description, Discovery, and Integration (UDDI) Services Tools

Feature Administration Tools:

• BitLocker Drive Encryption Tools
• Failover Clustering Tools
• Group Policy Management Tools
• Network Load Balancing Tools
• SMTP Server Tools
• Storage Manager for SANs Tools
• Windows System Resource Manager Tools

The tools in the following list are fully supported managing Windows Server 2003 servers as well:

• Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS) Tools
• Active Directory Lightweight Directory Services (AD LDS) Tools
• Active Directory Certificate Services (AD CS) Tools
• DHCP Server Tools
• DNS Server Tools
• Group Policy Management Tools
• Network Load Balancing Tools
• Terminal Services Tools
• Universal Description, Discovery, and Integration (UDDI) Services Tools

RSAT Questions and Answers:
Q. Why is Microsoft making RSAT available?
A. Many IT professionals manage their servers from their own desktops. RSAT enables IT professionals to use the updated Windows Server 2008 management tools to manage their servers remotely from their own computers.

Q. Which operating systems does RSAT manage?
A. All RSAT tools manage Windows Server 2008 servers. Certain RSAT tools also manage servers running Windows Server 2003.

Q. Is RSAT the next version of ADMINPAK.MSI?
A. Yes. As ADMINPAK.MSI provides IT professionals the ability to remotely manage their Windows Server 2003 servers, RSAT provides updated functionality for Windows Server management from computers running Windows Vista with Service Pack 1. All RSAT tools support the management of servers running Windows Server 2008; some of these tools also support the management of servers running Windows Server 2003, and thus can be considered a replacement for ADMINPAK.MSI.

Q. Will RSAT run on the version of Windows Vista with no service packs installed?
A. No. RSAT requires Windows Vista with Service Pack 1.

Q. Will RSAT include Group Policy Management Console (GPMC) for Windows Vista with SP1?
A. Yes.

Q: Will the GPMC provided by RSAT allow me to manage Group Policy preference items from a computer running Windows Vista with SP1?
A. Yes.

I’m not sure I should be sharing this video but here it goes.

If any of you have ever wondered what it was like working at the world’s largest software company, I think this will be a nice peek behind the curtain for you.

Background:  TechReady 6
Twice a year, we at Microsoft have our own technical training conference called "TechReady".  Engineers & Specialists from the four corners of the globe fly into Seattle and go through a week’s worth of training during HUNDREDS of presentations, hands-on-labs, and chalkboard-ing sessions.  All the stuff is "MS internal only" meaning that ‘the good, the bad, and the ugly’ is laid bare about all our products, new and old.  What’s even better is it’s all LiveMeeting-ed, all the presentations are made available during the event, and you can sit down with the product group folks and really get a lot out of it. 

Basically imagine if going to an "uber-TechEd2008-on-steroids" was part of your job.  Nice ‘eh?

The Smackdown
Anyway, one of the more famous sessions held at every event is something called "Windows Mobility Smackdown".  Put simply, it’s a session where the most interesting demos are shown, the latest hardware using Windows Mobile is revealed, and gadgetry of all types are actually given away.

Run by some friends of mine (Dan, Kevin, Jason), the Smackdown gets a little… wacky.  I mean if you want to talk about some fervor, passion and excitement look no further than the average Windows Mobility Smackdown session attendee.  These people are psycho and the funny part is that the rooms usually hold 300 people or so, and  you’re only seeing a small 5 minutes slice of video… so you can imagine how ridiculous the rest of the 85 minutes during the session gets.

In fact, they show a couple interesting devices that you probably haven’t seen before in the video.  (Simply because they haven’t been released yet) But keep in mind that these are just a couple of the many devices that are shown.  So for the phone/PDA geek, this session is absolute paradise.

Anyway, check it out:  It’s a good glimpse into the world of Microsoft’s technology specialists.

VIDEO:  http://channel8.msdn.com/Posts/3768/

The Code Trip is hitting Southern California tomorrow! 

Our local developer evangelist, Woody Pewitt (along with several other developers will be riding in this bus on a 9,000 mile road trip to customer sites, universities and user group meetings, evangelizing development on .NET.

Tomorrow the bus is arriving in SoCal for the rest of the week — we have several events planned (listed below).  You think you know someone who might enjoy one of our events?? Spread the word, the more the merrier!

• March 25^th – San Diego .NET Users Group meeting in Scripps Ranch Library in San Diego
• March 26^th – Irvine .NET meeting next event (and the bus will be parked at the Hyatt)
• March 27^th  – We have three events we will be at:
• Cal State Fullerton
  USC
  LA Geek Dinner
• March 28^th –  Special party at RedBull, space is quite limited so please register soon
• March 31^st – Cuesta Community College in San Luis Obispo