Category: Microsoft

This category is for anything Microsoft related-so you’ll probably find that msot posts end up in here!

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Direct Access in Windows 7


Direct Access is a new feature in Windows 7, a new feature that allows users to securely access corporate servers from outside the network…without a VPN. This was perhaps the most eye-catching feature for me and could well change the way that people work all over the world but it is something of a big claim. Pretty much any system admin that I’ve mentioned this to has said “Oh yeah-I’d like to see that? How does it work?” with a heavy dose of cynicism but now I can tell them…well show them a white paper at least!

VPN’s or Virtual Private Networks are used by almost everyone who need to access corporate servers, info etc from outside the network so at home, on the road, from the hotel, wherever…and they’re not the easiest things in the world-for both users and admins. The backend needed to set them up and maintain them can be costly and tricky to manage and I’m sure that VPN problems must be in the Top 5 HelpDesk calls at most companies. We’re constantly visited by account managers and reps from a huge array of manufacturers and nearly every single has to call HQ to get access to emails etc via their VPN…but with the advent of Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2-that could all be over. 

“DirectAccess establishes bi-directional connectivity with the user’s enterprise network every time the user’s DirectAccess-enabled portable computer is connected to the Internet, even before the user logs on”

 

“Clients establish an IPsec tunnel for the IPv6 traffic to the DirectAccess server, which acts as a gateway to the intranet. Clients can connect even if they are behind a firewall.”

System Requirements:

DirectAccess requires the following:

·         One or more DirectAccess servers running Windows Server 2008 R2 with two network adapters: one that is connected directly to the Internet, and a second that is connected to the intranet.

·         On the DirectAccess server, at least two consecutive, public IPv4 addresses assigned to the network adapter that is connected to the Internet.

·         DirectAccess clients running Windows 7.

·         At least one domain controller and Domain Name System (DNS) server running Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2008 R2. When smart card-based authentication is required for end-to-end protection, you must use Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS) in Windows Server 2008 R2.

·         A public key infrastructure (PKI) to issue computer certificates, smart card certificates, and, for NAP, health certificates. For more information, see http://www.microsoft.com/pki.

·         IPsec policies to specify protection for traffic. For more information, see http://www.microsoft.com/ipsec.

·         IPv6 transition technologies available for use on the DirectAccess server: ISATAP, Teredo, and 6to4.

Optionally, a third-party NAT-PT device to provide access to IPv4-only resources for DirectAccess clients.

It’s proving quite difficult to truly get the message across in this post without it becoming boringly long (!) so instead go and download the Technical WhitePaper from Microsoft here.

 

 

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No Office 14 until 2010


Steve Ballmer has said that the next release of the Office family “Wave 14, won’t hit us until 2010-not the late 2009 that I and many others were expecting.

Office 14 will bring the new versions of Word, Excel, Powerpoint, OneNote etc as well as Office for Sales, Sharepoint and OCS as well as other products too-so it’s a big ol’ release and one that I’m definitely looking forward to…

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OCS Licensing changes coming with next version


It appears that there will be an extra CAL (Client Access Licence) for users to choose from when Microsoft OCS Server 14  is released in 2010.

On top of the current Standard and Enterprise CALs, there will also be a Voice CAL which will offer telephony & VOIP services. These features will be removed from the Enterprise CAL and thus the Enterprise CAL will drop in price by around 23%. Also, MS are allowing current OCS customers with SA (Software Assurance) to “grandfather” in the new Voice CAL-if they agree to buy it before July 2009.

Hat Tip to Mary Jo Foley

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Compare SQL Editions


SQL has perhaps more separate flavours than any other Microsoft product (save Office) and this certainly has the potential to confuse people, both end users and sales people. To help with this, I thought I’d do a quick post highlighting the different editions and the differences between them. To be honest, this isn’t much more than reposting what’s on the Microsoft site but often it’s finding the info on their site that’s the hard part 🙂

The main differences between the different version are the number of CPU’s they can work with and how much RAM they can address, this ranges from 1 to 256 and 1GB to 2TB. There are of course other differences and more in-depth info can be found via the links below.

sql-comparison 

The different editions are:

SQL Standard: SQL Server 2008 Standard is a data management and business intelligence platform that provides best-in-class ease of use and manageability for running departmental applications. More info.

SQL Enterprise: SQL Server 2008 Enterprise is a comprehensive data platform that meets the high demands of enterprise online transaction processing and data warehousing applications. More info.

SQL Workgroup: Run branch locations on this reliable data management and reporting platform that provides secure remote synchronization and management capabilities. More info.

SQL Web: Offer low-cost, large scale highly available web applications or data hosting solutions with a highly available Internet facing web serving environments. More Info.

SQL Developer: A low cost edition of SQL Server 2008 Enterprise licensed per developer for development, testing, and demonstration purposes only. Not for production use. More info.

Most people in corporate situations find themselves having to choose between SQL Std and SQL Enterprise so here is a detailed comparison pdf.SQL2008_Std_vs_Ent

Trials and more for the above editions can be found here.

There are also two free versions of SQL available:

SQL Express: Available as a free download, SQL Server 2008 Express is ideal for learning and building desktop and small server applications and for re-distribution by ISVs. Download here. More info.

SQL Compact Edition 3.5: Available as a free download, SQL Server Compact enables developers to embed SQL Server directly into their applications, enabling occasionally connected and stand-alone applications for mobile devices, desktops, and Web clients across all Microsoft Windows platforms. Download here. More info.

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Microsoft Surface: Really Cool Demo


I think we can all agree that the Microsoft Surface is really freaking cool so I don’t need to say too much really.

The video below is an excellent example of how realistic the physics are on the device and shows just how cool, and useful, it is/can be:

Hat tip to Steve Clayton & Marc Holmes for this.

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Windows Mobile & Zune News


With only days to go until the start of the Mobile World Conference, there are more rumours and hints around Microsoft’s mobile based plans.

CNET report that on 22/01/09, MS split the Zune team into 2 divisions-“Software + Services” and “Hardware”. The interesting thing is that the head of the Hardware team, Tom Gibbons, also heads up hardware design for the Windows Mobile division-this definitely points to some synergy between the two in my book!

Enrique Rodriguez, head of Zune S+S, says that “Zune the service needs to transcend Zune the device” & “The goal is to make non-gaming entertainment a first-class citizen within Microsoft’s business“.

Gizmodo are reporting that while no specifics were mentioned, it was said that we can expect products other than the Zune to be using Zune Marketplace by the end of this year (2009).

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Windows 7 Enterprise SKU


As we all know, there are going to be a number of different version of Windows 7 and, as with Vista, I’m particularly interested to see what extra features/benefits customers will receive if they get the Enterprise SKU. Luckily, Gavriella Schuster over at Windows Team Blog has a post about just that 🙂

As with Vista, the Enterprise SKU is only available to customers who have current Software Assurance (SA) on their desktop OS licences and/or buy new licence with SA. The list of Enterprise Specific features includes:

DirectAccess:This is one feature that I’m really excited by. Being able to get rid of or at least reduce the dependency on, VPN’s would be a huge boost for the vast majority of corporate customers I speak to; and I think this could well be the big driving force that pushed people towards this top end licence.

BranchCache: Helps reduce branch office connectivity problems and network speeds by caching information on local servers.

Enterprise Search Scopes: allows IT administrators to populate links to the commonly used internal sites — for example, SharePoint sites – to the Windows Explorer UI or to the Start menu or in Windows 7, using Group Policy.

BitLocker & BitLocker to Go: protect data on PCs and removable drives, with manageability to enforce encryption and backup of recovery keys. BitLocker to Go extends this to removal USB drives.

AppLocker: is a flexible, easy-to-use mechanism that enables IT professionals to specify exactly what is allowed to run on user desktops. It restricts unauthorized software while allowing applications, installation programs, and scripts that users need. This is also an excellent new feature, controlling what users do on their desktops can be the hardest part of Corporate IT and this goes a long way to making Admin’s lives much easier 🙂

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) Optimizations: Windows 7 provides for better user experience in VDI scenarios, with better graphics, audio and local device support.

Multi Lingual User Support: the Language Packs in Windows 7 Enterprise enable you to support up to 36 different languages using a single Windows master image, rather than creating a separate image for each language used in the organization. This will makes things much easier for customers that have centralised IT across Europe and/or companies that have various nationalities in one office (like our HQ).

Also, the allowance to run 4 virtual instances of the desktop OS is still included along with the Sub-System for Unix Apps and it includes the rights to network boot Windows.

I don’t think the uptake of Vista Enterprise has taken the world by storm and I imagine it is lower that MS hoped but I think that will all change with Windows 7. The main reason our clients consider Vista Enterprise is for the virtual licences and that’s it but Windows 7 Enterprise offers a number of good reasons to pay the extra cost.

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Microsoft to open retail stores


In what is surely a long overdue move, Microsoft are set to open their own retail stores to “create a better PC and Microsoft retail purchase experience for consumers worldwide”.

The guy brought in the head it all up is David Porter, former heard of Worldwide Product Distribution at Dreamworks SKG. I’ve often thought it’d be cool to pop into the Microsoft shop to check out the latest releases of products etc & soon we’ll be able to. With the huge buzz around Windows 7 and the upcoming releases around Windows Mobile, this is a perfect time to open the stores as they’ve got consumers back on their side 🙂 People will love going in to see products such as Windows 7 & WinMo 6.5 being used to their full abilities which will help people make more informed purchases in my opinion.

Will these stores offer tech/setup support as well in a geek squad style? That would really help regular home users make the most of their purchases. Porter being in the Entertainment division suggests that Xbox’s and Zunes will feature heavily in the stores-perhaps leading to Zunes being available in Europe?

It’s interesting to note that Porter served 25 years at Walmart, rising to “vice president and general merchandise manager of Entertainment” and he’ll be reporting directly to Kevin Turner; himself a former Walmart star.

Also, it should be decreed that every store MUST have a Surface-that would be wicked 🙂

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Microsoft Patent Milestone


Microsoft recently passed the 10,000 patents milestone and are now on 10,541 according to Gizmodo.

“Is that a lot or is that rubbish?” you ask, as did I. Well Apple have a mere 2541 patents in their name so 4 times that amount is pretty good going 🙂

However, IBM lead the field with a whopping 53,413 patents with 4000 of them in 2008 alone!

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