My information Resource (blog.mir.net)

This posted has been rmove on the request of NeverFail

 

Remote Server Administration Tools for Windows® 7 enables IT administrators to manage roles and features that are installed on computers that are running Windows Server® 2008 R2, Windows Server® 2008, or Windows Server® 2003, from a remote computer that is running Windows 7.

Are you look to easy manage a Windows 2008 Core Server with the use of the Remote Server Administration Tools can be use to control and manage a core server with a GUI.

The best part of Server core is you do not load parts of the operating system that you do not need.

Server core roles include;

Active Directory Domain Services

DC, and a Read Only DC (great for security)

Active Directory Lightweight Directory Services

DHCP Server

DNS Server

File and Print Server

Hyper-v Server

IIS server (no support for ASP.net yet- Coming in Server 2008 R2)

Download the Remote Server Administration Tools

 

Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer to rally the public around the idea that the technology industry will be a driver of an eventual economic recovery. He also has urged Congress to support new technical skills training for the unemployed.

Microsoft wanted to do its part to help workers acquire the technology skills they need now and over the next decade.

So, Microsoft will create a new Web portal where visitors can learn what skills they lack and easily find resources to learn them.

On the site, they also will be able to access various Microsoft online training programs in order to learn some basic skills, such as how to use the Internet, send e-mail and create a resume, according to a Microsoft statement.

In conjunction with state and local governments, Microsoft also will provide a broad range of training programs and certification exams for free or at low cost.

Specifically, the company will give away 1 million vouchers so people can access Microsoft’s eLearning software courses and some Microsoft business certification exams.

Access the site  here

Microsoft and Citrix Systems have tightened their virtualization partnership to help both companies compete more effectively with market leader VMware, they announced Monday.

Citrix said it plans to release a new suite of virtualization management tools in April, called Citrix Essentials, that will be offered in two versions: one for Microsoft’s Hyper-V software and another for Citrix XenServer.

Citrix has more advanced management tools than Microsoft for virtual environments, and Microsoft hopes the partnership will help spread the use of Hyper-V in datacenters. In return, Microsoft has pledged to manage XenServer environments with the next version of its Systems Center management software, which currently works only with Hyper-V and VMware’s ESX. It will also market and sell Citrix Essentials for Microsoft Hyper-V to its customers worldwide, the companies said.

One of the complaints is that the hard to find information on Microsoft Products in ONE place. There is a resource you need to know about Discover > Explore > Pilot > Deploy > and Manage

Products covered on the site include

XP, Vista, Windows7, and Server 2008.

Include on the site are Downloads, Troubleshoot, Answer to common questions.

Check the site out

Executive Summary Protecting and ensuring the resiliency of the critical infrastructure and key resources (CIKR) of the United States is essential to the Nation’s security, public health and safety, economic vitality, and way of life. Attacks on CIKR could significantly disrupt the functioning of government and business alike and produce cascading effects far beyond the targeted sector and physical location of the incident. Direct terrorist attacks and natural, manmade, or technological hazards could produce catastrophic losses in terms of human casualties, property destruction, and economic effects, as well as profound damage to public morale and confidence. Attacks using components of the Nation’s CIKR as weapons of mass destruction could have even more devastating physical and psychological consequences.

Introduction The overarching goal of the National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP) is to

Build a safer, more secure, and more resilient America by preventing, deterring, neutralizing, or mitigating the effects of deliberate efforts by terrorists to destroy, incapacitate, or exploit elements of our Nation’s CIKR and to strengthen national preparedness, timely response, and rapid recovery of CIKR in the event of an attack, natural disaster, or other emergency.The NIPP provides the unifying structure for the integration of existing and future CIKR protection efforts and resiliency strategies into a single national program to achieve this goal. The NIPP framework supports the prioritization of protection and resiliency initiatives and investments across sectors to ensure that government and private sector resources are applied where they offer the most benefit for mitigating risk by lessening vulnerabilities, deterring threats, and minimizing the consequences of terrorist attacks and other manmade and natural disasters. The NIPP risk management framework recognizes and builds on existing public and private sector protective programs and resiliency strategies in order to be cost-effective and to minimize the burden on CIKR owners and operators.

Protection includes actions to mitigate the overall risk to CIKR assets, systems, networks, functions, or their inter-connecting links. In the context of the NIPP, this includes actions to deter the threat, mitigate vulnerabilities, or minimize the consequences associated with a terrorist attack or other incident (see figure S-1). Protection can include a wide range of activities, such as improving security protocols, hardening facilities, building resiliency and redundancy, incorporating hazard resistance into facility design, initiating active or passive countermeasures, installing security systems, leveraging “self-healing” technologies, promoting workforce surety programs, implementing cybersecurity measures, training and exercises, business continuity planning, and restoration and recovery actions,among various others.

The 2009 National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP) is available at www.dhs.gov/NIPP. 

 

As part of the agreements, Microsoft will run Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.2 and 5.3 as a guest in Hyper-V environments, and will lend its hand to technical support and documentation. Red Hat will also run Windows Server 2003 SP2, Windows 2000 Server SP4, and Windows Server 2008 as guests on Red Hat virtualization technologies, with similar tech support offered. Future products will be supported, and customers can expect the first pieces of support for these options sometime this year.

Microsoft has also announced plans to monitor and manage Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 and 5 in System Center Operations Manager 2007 R2, due sometime before midyear. Among other things, SCOM 2007 R2’s Red Hat support means customers will be able to manage applications that are distributed among Windows Server and Red Hat environments.

Smart Computing Magazine has some great support information for end users. I have written articles for the publication and the style of are aimed at the non technical users, you can find more  information at;

http://www.smartcomputing.com 

The tech support section of their site has some great information for fixing common problems you computer may have.

Some are that have great information for end user include the;

How To Get Rid Of …
We’ll tell you what to do to eliminate malware programs from your computer.

Basic Security & Privacy Troubleshooting Articles:

Browser Hijackers
Fake Web Sites
Malicious Ads
Phishing Email Messages
Rootkits
Spam
Spyware
Trojan Horses
Viruses
Worms

 

Microsoft has free support for Home Users

Monthly Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool to help remove specific prevalent malicious software from computers that are running Windows Vista, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, Windows XP, or Windows 2000.

After you download the Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool, it runs one time to check your computer for inflection by specific prevalent malicious software and helps remove any infection it finds. Microsoft releases a new version of the tool every month. IF you find a issue that the Software Removal Tool does not fix you can call Microsoft for Free. This service is 24 hours a day 7 days a week.

If you been silly enough to work on your computer as Administrator and messed up your browser by clicking on Malware they will still support you. You should not use the administrator account when surfing the web

The Number is  1-866-PCSAFETY in the United States and in Canada

 

If a USB storage device is not already installed on the computer

If a USB storage device is not already installed on the computer, assign the user or the group Deny permissions to the following files:

• %SystemRoot%InfUsbstor.pnf
• %SystemRoot%InfUsbstor.inf

When you do this, users cannot install a USB storage device on the computer. To assign a user or group Deny permissions to the Usbstor.pnf and Usbstor.inf files, follow these steps:

1. Start Windows Explorer, and then locate the %SystemRoot%Inf folder.
2. Right-click the Usbstor.pnf file, and then click Properties.
3. Click the Security tab.
4. In the Group or user names list, click the user or group that you want to set Deny permissions for.
5. In the Permissions for UserName or GroupName list, click to select the Deny check box next to Full Control, and then click OK.
   Note Also add the System account to the Deny list.
6. Right-click the Usbstor.inf file, and then click Properties.
7. Click the Security tab.
8. In the Group or user names list, click the user or group that you want to set Deny permissions for.
9. In the Permissions for UserName or GroupName list, click to select the Deny check box next to Full Control, and then click OK.

If a USB storage device is already installed on the computer, set the Start value in the following registry key to 4:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetServicesUsbStor

When you do this, the USB storage device does not work when the user connects the device to the computer. To set the Start value, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. In the Open box, type regedit, and then click OK.
3. Locate and then click the following registry key:

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetServicesUsbStor

4. In the details pane, double-click Start.
5. In the Value data box, type 4, click Hexadecimal (if it is not already selected), and then click OK.
6. Exit Registry Editor.