July 2009 - Posts
Following on the heels of success of the Exchange Remote Connectivity Analyzer (created by Shawn McGrath and Brad Hughes), Premal Gandhi, Matthew Fresoli and Jason Stine have been busy designing and writing a complimentary tool: The Office Communications Server Remote Connectivity Analyzer.
The tool is available at https://www.TestOcsConnectivity.com
Overview:
The Office Communications Server Remote Connectivity Analyzer is a web site for IT Administrators to validate and diagnose end-to-end Office Communications Server scenarios. The site simulates multiple Office Communications Server client access scenarios from outside the customer’s infrastructure and reports whether the test was successful. If the test fails, we inform the IT Admin exactly where in the process it failed as well as provide troubleshooting tips on resolving the issue.
In this beta version, the tool provides the following end-to-end tests:
· Office Communications Server Remote Connectivity
· Office Communications Server Remote Connectivity w/AutoDiscover
Coming Soon:
Office Communications Server scenarios will be expanded in the next few months to include the following:
· Deeper level of diagnostic information - MSDiagnostics header
· More detailed troubleshooting information based on MSDiagnostic header
· Additional tests
With thanks to Jason Stine sharing his knowledge
As Oliver Rist announced yesterday: Windows Server 2008 R2 reached RTM:
The acronym stands for Release to Manufacturing, and it means this latest release of Windows Server 2008 R2 is now blessed by engineering as ready for the manufacturing process. We're talking final code. Sun shining, birds singing, children dancing in the streets.
With evaluation software available for download in the first half of August and the full product available to customers with Software Assurance in the second half of August, RTM is more than just an engineering milestone. Occurring in lock-step with the release of the Windows 7 RTM, these two platforms are now ready for our partners to start testing and installing on their hardware. And that lock-step isn't a coincidence, it's a design goal.
Customers using Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7 in their enterprises has been Microsoft's intent from the first day programmers touched fingers to keyboards. Let's look at the highlights:
HAPPY ADMINISTRATORS
It's Christmas for server and desktop administrators with Windows Server 2008 R2's updated management tools, including:
- Hyper-V and Live Migration - still the big stars. R2's Hyper-V enables a complete server virtualization solution available out-of-the-box. Live Migration allows server administrators to migrate VMs between physical machines with no perceived downtime for current server connections and work streams. That means a more dynamic datacenter and more agility in meeting new business needs For more information on Hyper-V in R2, check out today's in-depth post on the Virtualization Team blog.
- File Classification Infrastructure - FCI lets you manage your data based on its characteristics, including things like file type, user credentials and even content. Based on this kind of criteria, FCI can assign data different access restrictions, store it in different locations or simply push it into an entirely customized lifecycle scheme - all done automatically via policy. For me, this is one of the most exciting new features in R2.
- Active Directory and Pervasive PowerShell - 240 new PowerShell cmdlets and several management consoles (including a new Active Directory interface) have been built on top of PowerShell. Active Directory has also been enhanced with the Active Directory Recycle Bin as well as AD Group Policy objects that give desktop administrators deeper capabilities when it comes to managing Windows 7 clients.
- IIS 7.5 - The latest edition of Internet Information Server also sports updated management tools as well as application serving capabilities that now including support for PHP and .NET on Server Core installations.
- Server Scalability - Not only is R2 Microsoft's first 64-bit-only operating system, it also supports up to 256 logical processors in a single server as well as all the latest CPU technologies. And, R2 has support for advanced storage technologies, including SAN management and solid state hardware.
HAPPY USERS
I'll leave it to the Windows 7 team to evangelize the many advantages that Windows 7 has as a standalone operating system (click here for the Windows 7 RTM announcement). But we server guys love it because combined with Windows Server 2008 R2 we can provide features I've never seen before in another client-server platform.
- DirectAccess, for example, provides secure, always-on access to corporate networks no matter from what network a client might be connecting. Better yet, it provides a two-way relationship allowing desktop admins to manage clients the same way whether they're local or remote.
- BranchCache allows users in remote offices to cache corpnet data locally, providing a better work experience for remote workers while simultaneously lowering expensive WAN bandwidth costs.
- Remote Desktop and Applications - Windows Server 2008's Terminal Services has now evolved into R2's Remote Desktop Services, and it integrates so tightly with Windows 7 that administrators will be able to roll out virtualized applications and even entire desktop environments without users being able to tell that these tools aren't running locally. It's fast and can even be managed via policy. Very cool stuff.
LOWER BUDGETS
Power efficiency and power management were priorities for R2. The power efficiency improvements help you save power automatically - without additional steps or configuration. An improved processor power management engine, storage power management improvements, tick skipping, core parking, and timer coalescing all contribute to improved power efficiency.
While licensing topics are a bit arcane, those of you already running Windows Server 2008 should know that you don't need new Client Access Licenses (CALs) when updating to Windows Server 2008 R2, which helps make for a cost-effective upgrade.
I'm out of space and have only scratched the surface of what you'll find in R2. You can follow the buzz about R2 and Windows 7 on Twitter via the #Windows hashtag.
For those evaluating the software for near-term deployment, make sure to visit the Windows Server 2008 R2 Resource Center, our TechNet Resource Center as well and also our Application Compatibility page. And as always, send us your feedback when you're testing the software. Happy testing,
In addition, Technet Edge sat down with Julius Sinkevicius, Director of Product Management, to discuss this milestone and what you as IT Professionals need to know about this new version of Windows Server 2008 R2. See the interview here
Rollup 9 for Exchange Server 2007 SP1 is released.
Read about all the included fixes and download from here KB 970162
Some noticeable fixes are: Note that this in not the complete list but just some of the fixes. For a full list see the link above.
947662 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/947662/ ) The transport rule "when the Subject field or the body of the message contains text patterns" does not work accurately on an Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1-based computer
957137 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/957137/ ) The reseed process is unsuccessful on the CCR passive node after you restore one full backup and two or more differential backups to the CCR active node in Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1
959559 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/959559/ ) Transaction log files grow unexpectedly in an Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1 mailbox server on a computer that is running Windows Server 2008
961124 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/961124/ ) Some messages are stuck in the Outbox folder or the Drafts folder on a computer that is running Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1
968205 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/968205/ ) The Microsoft Exchange Information Store service crashes every time that a specific database is mounted on a computer that is running Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1
968621 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/968621/ ) The Microsoft Exchange Information Store service crashes when you use a Data Protection Manager (DPM) 2007 server to perform a snapshot backup for an Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1 server
970086 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/970086/ ) Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1 crashes when the Extensible Storage Engine (ESE) version store is out of memory on a computer that is running Windows Server 2008
The new CoMo (Communicator Mobile) update released yesterday and includes the following fixes:
Issues that this hotfix package fixes:
- Homescreen support for new homescreens in Windows Mobile 6.5+ phones.
- Integration within the phone dialer for Windows Mobile 6.5+ phones.
- Communicator Mobile 2007 R2 now recognizes when the phone is roaming, and by default does not sign in to roaming networks.
- Additional support for joining conference calls from a Windows Mobile appointment. To do this, press Menu, and then press Join Conference.
- Enables users to log on with a username of the format user@example.com, in addition to domain\user.
- When placing Call via Work calls, callbacks are now automatically accepted.
- Microsoft Installer (MSI) installation on Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) fails. In this situation, users should install Communicator Mobile 2007 R2 by using a .Cab installation.
- AT&T FUZE devices set for High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) connection cannot handle voice and data at the same time. This causes Call via Work calls to fail unless the device is reverted to 3rd Generation (3G) by disabling HSDPA.
Download the update and find details here
Big licensing news effective today, if you have OCS 2007 and want to federate with MSN/Hotmail/Live no additional PIC license is required anymore. Yahoo and AOL federation still require a PIC license per OCS user who require it however.
Here is the official product team announcement:
Effective July 1, 2009:
· The Live Communications Sever Public IM Connectivity (LCS PIC) license will be renamed Office Communications Server Public IM Connectivity (OCS PIC) license.
· Customers with Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Standard CAL or Office Communications Server 2007/Live Communications Server 2005 SP1 Standard CAL with Software Assurance will no longer require an additional license to federate with Windows Live. (A license will still be required for federation with AOL & Yahoo!.)
· With Windows Live federation, customers will be able to add Windows Live contacts to their Office Communicator contact list, view presence and send and receive instant messages.
In addition, MSFT also released the Office Communications Server Public IM Connectivity Provisioning Guide