Recovering backups made with NTBACKUP to Window Server 2008 May 11, 2009
Posted by vistacert in Security, Windows Server 2008.add a comment
QUESTION:
I have a backup that I created in Windows Server 2003 using Ntbackup.exe. How can I restore that backup to a Windows Server 2008 computer when Ntbackup.exe is no longer supported in Windows Server 2008?
ANSWER:
The Ntbackup.exe tool in previous versions of Windows has been replaced with the new Windows Server Backup tool in Windows Server 2008. If you’ve been using Ntbackup.exe and now plan to use the new Windows Server Backup that comes with Server 2008, there are several things that you need to keep in mind.
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IT Certification Looks Toward Freeware Or Freedom April 18, 2009
Posted by vistacert in Certification.add a comment
Earlier this week Forrester released a report titled: "Open Source Software Goes Mainstream". While the title may not be breaking news to readers of Open Sources, the data backing up the report is well worth the read. The report is based on responses from over 1100 software development decision makers in North American and European enterprises and SMBs. According to the survey, the top three planning goals for 2009 are:
Credit: Forrester
It’s no surprise that lower costs, improved integration and increased innovation are at the top of IT decision maker’s minds in 2009. It would be interesting to see how these three goals were rated by respondents who were increasing their usage of open source versus respondents who didn’t use open source or who were decreasing open source usage. Since reducing IT costs is the #1 goal for 2009, I found this quote particularly interesting:
For most developers, the end matters more than the means. Forrester has seen this trend in multiple surveys over the past two years. For the vast majority of application development professionals, OSS is simply a means to an end. Most developers don’t really care that OSS is libre (free as in freedom); they care that it’s gratis (free as in beer). If there’s a direct relationship between an OSS component and the top three planning goals from our recent survey, developers will tactically adopt it. If not, most won’t adopt OSS for its own sake.
I don’t have the depth of data that Forrester does, but this finding supports several customer discussions I’ve had recently. If free is beginning to matter more than freedom, I’m beginning to wonder if established software vendors can attract developer adoption of new products without offering an open source version of the product?
I’m torn because of the new survey and anecdotal data on this topic. Maybe it’s because open source adoption has crossed the chasm between the religious adopters and regular developers. If a free closed source product is more aligned with project needs, then it seems "regular developers" are at least willing to seriously consider it over a less well suited open source product. Historically, an established closed source product has been overkill for the usage scenarios where open source products were being considered. But this seems likely to change as established vendors build lighter weight next generation versions of their products to better compete with open source products.
COMPTIA ADDS TO YOUR E-READING LIST April 15, 2009
Posted by vistacert in CompTIA.add a comment
CompTIA, the organization behind the "plus" certifications (A+, Network+, etc.), has recently started an electronic newsletter dubbed SmartBrief. According to the preliminary information:
"CompTIA SmartBrief is a summary of the day’s top news for IT professionals. It is one more benefit to help CompTIA members and friends stay abreast of the people, policies and news affecting our industry, and continue to advance IT industry growth."
The best part is that subscriptions are free (just like this here newsletter). You can sign up for it here.
While only a few issues have come out, it looks to be a good source of industry information — and you can’t complain about the cost.
Running XP? You can’t upgrade to Windows 7 April 8, 2009
Posted by vistacert in Windows 7.add a comment
Microsoft has confirmed it isn’t providing an upgrade path for Windows XP to Windows 7.
"We realized at the start of this project that the ‘upgrade’ from XP would not be an experience we think would yield the best results. There are simply too many changes in how PCs have been configured (applets, hardware support, driver model, etc) that having all of that support carry forth to Windows 7 would not be nearly as high quality as a clean install. This is something many of you know and already practice."
Windows Server 2008 R2: Not your father’s R2 upgrade March 31, 2009
Posted by vistacert in Windows 7, Windows Server 2008, Windows Vista.add a comment
If you’ve been around the IT block for more than a few years, then you probably remember Microsoft’s last R2 upgrade. Windows Server 2003 R2 started out with a lot of promise but ended up adding relatively little in the way of compelling new features to the standard Windows Server 2003 platform. Long-desired updates, like Project Bear Paw for Terminal Services, didn’t make the final cut into Windows Server 2003 R2, and a lot of the "new features" were of little interest to most IT shops. As a result, many organizations ultimately passed on the last R2 upgrade, choosing to wait for Microsoft’s next whole-number release.
WINDOWS 7 x 6 February 9, 2009
Posted by vistacert in Windows 7, Windows Vista.add a comment
Readers of Redmond Magazine continue the debate over whether six versions of Windows 7 is too many:
No, I don’t believe it’s too many. There are only three real options for the general public: Home Premium, Professional and Ultimate.
Basic is only for emerging markets. Enterprise, like in Vista, is only for software assurance (VL) customers. And Starter…well, it’s only able to run three apps at once and no Aero, so it’s really not an option for most people." -Anonymous
Well, of course seven versions are too many. I think that was a bit of the show-stopper for Vista, as well. Why would I want to pay MS $400 for an operating system when I can get it for free from *Nix?
It seems reminiscent of the ’90s when Novell was championed as never losing market share. It was charging outlandish prices and MS was offering desktops for $100. That’s the way Microsoft worked into the server market, as well. Offer the same services or capitalize on a problem with your competitor, then bury them in wholesale pricing. It’s the MS way…or at least it used to be.
-Paul
You do realize, don’t you, that it is really only FIVE versions since Ultimate and Enterprise are identical, except that individuals cannot buy Enterprise?
Since consumers cannot buy the shrink-wrapped Starter Edition and won’t be able to buy Home Basic (shrink-wrapped or on OEM hardware) any longer either, it really reduces to THREE that people in the developed world can buy shrink-wrapped and on OEM hardware: Home Premium, Professional and Ultimate. This sounds a lot more reasonable.
-Marc
"If Windows 7 is based on the Vista codebase and if it retains Vista’s intrusive functionality, then even one version is too many.
I suspect that XP will continue to run for many years to come, as long as MS is not successful in strong-arming hardware vendors into not providing new equipment with XP drivers. MS will continue to support XP (as if I care) as long as there is considerable revenue in doing so. As long as the market does not buy into Vista and 7, third-party vendors will continue to develop and support software for XP; they will not stop doing so while XP has 90 percent of the market.
It is only an operating system, people. All it has to do is interface with your applications. What makes you think that you need to replace it as often as last year’s hemline? In a tight economy, this continuing two-year-plus rant about the need to upgrade Windows is beyond frivolous. Until MS develops a truly new product based on user needs and demands, I would recommend the Nancy Reagan approach and just say no." -Anonymous
My guess is that Microsoft makes more money out of products with multiple nonsense versions — like Home, which is a crippled version of Standard. Who would buy a crippled version of Windows 7? I wouldn’t spend a dime for it. I blame uneducated consumers. I urge everybody to stop that craziness. For the majority of consumers, one version would be adequate.
-Brian
Marc doesn’t think Vista’s 10 percent adoption rate in the enterprise market is reason for worry:
Not surprising! Big business doesn’t upgrade its operating system until all of its hardware is capable of running the new OS. In the best of times, after two years only the most aggressive enterprise customers will have upgraded more than 50 percent of their hardware.
Most will have replaced 40 percent or less. Since we are in the midst of a recession, your 10 percent figure is not surprising. For that matter, adoption rates for Windows 2000 weren’t much better. It took XP to turn that around — just as it will take Windows 7 to turn it around now.
-Marc
And Earl tackles the argument against hiring H-1B visa workers in a bad economy:
Are businesses just looking to save money by hiring foreigners with H-1B visas, or are they really the best and the brightest? Look at any college graduate program in engineering or science and you will find a disproportionate amount of foreign students. This is because they are better qualified to do the work. I do not think this is the case for advanced business degrees.
We should not let prejudice stop us from importing brilliant people to help our economy. After all, they end up paying U.S. taxes also.
-Earl
Top 10 changes to security in Windows 7 January 31, 2009
Posted by vistacert in Security, Windows 7.add a comment
Interesting article about Windows 7. Everyone is talking about the GUI features, but what about the new security features?
Microsoft has released a public beta of its next client operating system, Windows 7. Everybody’s talking about the interface changes: the new taskbar, omission of the sidebar, a new look for Windows Explorer. Under the hood, there are more changes, including new and improved security features. Let’s look at 10 security features that have been changed or added in Windows 7.
Read it here: Top 10 changes to security in Windows 7
Resize a Vista partition without damaging data January 30, 2009
Posted by vistacert in Uncategorized.Tags: Windows Vista
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Was looking for some articles on how to resize/shrink Vista partitions and found the article below. Works like a charm 
There are many reasons why you might want or need to resize a partition, but generally speaking partitions can not be resized without damaging data. That is, until Microsoft Windows Vista. With Vista, resizing a partition that already contains data is not only possible, it’s fairly simple. The only gotcha involved is that Microsoft has, with good reason, obfuscated the process from the untrained eye. Naturally I will give this warning. Although this method is tested and proven, that is not an absolute guarantee. Data can get lost when strange things occur. So with that in mind, your data is in your hands and you might want to do a data back up first. With that being said, let’s get going.
