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Articles
Q. Why won't the network driver I
inserted into my Windows Image work?
by John
Savill
2.25.08
A. You can use the Pkgmgr and Peimg commands
to inject drivers into Windows OS or Windows Preinstallation Environment
(WinPE) images, respectively. However, some devices require multiple
drivers to properly function. For example, some NICs require both the
NIC driver and a virtual bus driver (VBD). If you extract the
device-driver installation package contents (using msiexec /a &60;msi
driver file&62;) you should find the driver's .inf and associated files.
Copy them to a central import folder. Then use the wildcard .inf import
to inject the files into the OS or WinPE images. Below is an example of
the code used to inject the files into the images:
peimg /inf=C:\Temp\Driver\*.inf /image=C:\Temp\Mount
Q. Which DVD players will run on
Windows Vista 64-bit?
by John
Savill
2.26.08
A. A DVD decoder is included in Windows Vista
Ultimate and Home Premium, so you can watch any DVDs without needing any
add-on products. The remaining Vista versions don't have DVD decoders;
however, some decoders that run on Vista are available for download,
such as the Roxio CinePlayer DVD Decoder and Cyberlink PowerDVD SE for
Windows Vista. Once you purchase and install a decoder, Windows Media
Player (WMP) will play a DVD.
Any Vista-compatible DVD decoder should also work on 64-bit WMP. By
default, the 64-bit Vista WMP links point to the 32-bit version .The
path is \Program Files (x86)\Windows Media Player\wmplayer.exe. Notice
the (x86) portion. This path also applies to Windows Server 2008, if you
have a suitable graphics driver. I'm using a Vista DVD player to watch a
movie on my server right now!
Q. How do I install the Windows Server
2008 release to manufacturing (RTM) Hyper-V integration components on
Windows Vista SP1?
by John
Savill
2.27.08
A.You can't install the Windows Server 2008
RTM Hyper-V integration components on a machine running Vista SP1.
However, Vista SP1 and Server 2008 have the same kernel and basic OS.
There is no technical reason why they won't work together. So, you can
force individual elements to function under Vista SP1.
A word of warning: I had very mixed success with this procedure, so it
isn't guaranteed to work. You might want to wait for a Vista-supported
set of integration services.
Assuming you configured the virtual machine with the network adapter and
not the legacy network adapter, start Device Manager. You will get an
Unknown Device message. Right-click the Unknown Device and select Update
Driver Software. Make sure you choose to install Integration Services,
which will mount Integration Services into the VM DVD drive and allow
access to the content. Next, manually browse for driver software and
navigate to the Integration Services DVD architecture folder. Scan the
folder and install the VMBus driver. Doing so will add support for both
the network and updated interface elements.
Q. Is System Center Configuration
Manager 2007 (SCCM) 64-bit compatible?
by John
Savill
2.28.08
A. Yes, System Center Configuration Manager
2007 is 32-bit code, but it runs on a 64-bit platform. A native 64-bit
version isn't expected until the next major release (not a service pack
or R2 release).
Q. How do I use a Multiple Activation
Key (MAK) to activate Windows Server 2008?
by John
Savill
2.29.08
A. By default, Key Management Service (KMS)
activates Windows Server 2008, so use the following procedure to use a
MAK to activate Server 2008. Open the System Control Panel applet. Click
Change Product Key at the bottom of the dialog box. The system will
prompt you for the new key. Type in the MAK, and press Enter. The system
will display an activation confirmation and the system state should
change to Activated.
Events & Resources
Unauthorized Applications: Taking Back
Control
Sophos White
Paper
Take back control of unauthorized applications in your
organization. Learn why it's important to control unauthorized
applications and read about the various approaches you can use. Read
this white paper to learn how to integrate blocking of unauthorized
applications into your existing anti-malware detection and management
infrastructure.
http://www.windowsitpro.com/go/wp/sophos/control/?code=030508er
Benchmark Study White
Paper
Embarcadero Technologies
Embarcadero Change Manager Prevails in Head-to-Head
Performance Evaluation
National Technical Systems (NTS), an independent testing facility,
performed a head-to-head performance evaluation on two change management
systems. Change management applications help IT groups streamline data
migration from QA to test to production environments. Download the
complete test results.
http://www.windowsitpro.com/go/wp/embarcadero/benchmark/?code=030508ded
Win a Free iPod
Shuffle!
Register for a Web Seminar--Win a FREE iPod
Shuffle
Increase your knowledge and win! View one of several Web seminars to be
entered to win one of three iPod Shuffles (an $80 value). To be
eligible, register before April 11, 2008.
http://www.windowsitpro.com/Events/
Featured White Paper
Oracle Database 11g Architecture on
Windows
Oracle
Corp. White Paper
Oracle Database 11g has the same features and
functionality on Windows as on Linux and UNIX. However, significant work
has been done to take advantage of Windows-specific operating system
features to improve scalability.This paper will also discuss the support
of a cluster file system, 64-bit file I/O, and raw files increasing
performance and manageability.
http://www.windowsitpro.com/go/wp/oracle/architecture/?code=030508e&r
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