Lennox IT https://lennox-it.uk Business IT Support in Derby and Nationwide Wed, 08 Nov 2023 15:50:01 +0000 en-GB hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 The International Conference Centre – A Basic Guide to  802.1Q VLANs https://lennox-it.uk/the-international-conference-centre-a-basic-guide-to-802-1q-vlans?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-international-conference-centre-a-basic-guide-to-802-1q-vlans https://lennox-it.uk/the-international-conference-centre-a-basic-guide-to-802-1q-vlans#respond Wed, 08 Nov 2023 15:24:41 +0000 https://lennox-it.uk/?p=1829 Imagine a large conference centre that sits exactly on the border between America and Mexico. The centre welcomes visitors from both countries but due to all the issues surrounding the border, strict security measures have been introduced to limit the access of people moving around the building. Entrances When a visitor approaches any entrance to […]

The post The International Conference Centre – A Basic Guide to  802.1Q VLANs first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post The International Conference Centre – A Basic Guide to  802.1Q VLANs appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Imagine a large conference centre that sits exactly on the border between America and Mexico. The centre welcomes visitors from both countries but due to all the issues surrounding the border, strict security measures have been introduced to limit the access of people moving around the building.

Entrances

When a visitor approaches any entrance to the conference centre they have to queue up for an id badge. Visitors cannot pass through the entrance without receiving an id badge and it is securely fastened to them in such a way they cannot take it off while in the centre. Once they have their badge, visitors are allowed to continue on into the conference centre.

All of the entrances to the International Conference Centre on the American side are colour coded blue and visitors are allocated blue id badges. When an American visitor from inside the conference centre wants to leave, they approach any blue entrance and security removes their blue id badge and directs them back outside. Only visitors with a blue badge may leave through a blue entrance.

On the Mexican side, the entrances are green and work in exactly the same way. Mexican visitors are given green id badges which are returned to security when they leave (through a green entrance). Mexicans may not leave through the blue entrances and Americans may not leave through the green entrances.

Checkpoints

All visitors are allowed to freely move around the conference centre but some doorways are blocked by checkpoints which require visitors to show their badge. A few of the checkpoints are also restricted to only allow passage to either American or Mexican visitors.

Just like entrances, checkpoints are colour coded either blue, green (or both blue and green). When visitors arrive at a checkpoint they show their id badge and so long as it matches one of the signs they are allowed to pass through.

It is important to note that visitors do not receive (or return) an id badge when passing through a checkpoint.

If a visitor doesn’t have an id badge (for whatever reason) then they cannot pass through a checkpoint unless it’s marked specifically to allow visitors with no badge. We could use a white colour to denote this, it’s not important right now but take a mental note because we will come back to it later on.

Some Further Examples

So far we have only concerned ourselves with entrances which are colour coded to a single colour but like checkpoints it is possible for these to use multiple colours. To make things even more confusing, it is also possible to mix and match both checkpoints and entrances on the same door!

Let’s look at some examples to understand how this works:

Example 1: The American Embassy

On the Mexican side there is a special door labelled “American Embassy”. The door has three coloured signs:

  • A green sign marked “E” for entrance
  • A blue sign marked “C” for checkpoint
  • A second green sign marked “A” for allocate

For Mexicans, this door works pretty much the same as any other entrance from Mexico. They turn up, are given a green badge and then move into the conference centre. Mexicans leaving through this door return their green badge to security on the way out.

However Americans can also exit through this door in order to visit the American Embassy building which is located in Mexico. This door is treated as a checkpoint for Americans so they keep their badges and can use it to pass back through checkpoint again when they return to the conference centre.

The green allocate sign with an “A” isn’t so important for this door but it reminds security staff that visitors should always be given a green badge (if they don’t have one). We will see how this becomes more important in the next example.

Example 2: The Migration Exit

There is another special door on the Mexican side labelled “Migrate to Mexico!”. This door was an initiative by the Mexican government to entice Americans to move to Mexico and it has caused a few complications for the conference centre security team. It also has three coloured signs:

  • A green sign marked “E” for entrance
  • A blue sign  marked “E” for entrance
  • A second green sign marked “A” for allocate

Like the “American Embassy” door, both Americans and Mexicans can leave through this door and head off into Mexico. However unlike that door, Americans must also give back their id badge when they leave. Welcome Americans to your new life in Mexico!

When a visitor enters through this door they are given a green badge as determined by the “A” sign. It doesn’t matter what the visitor looks like or if they have an accent, they are treated the same in the eyes of the security team.

This is bad news for Bob Carter from California who exited through this door looking for the American Embassy. Bob was allowed to re-enter the conference centre but he now has a green badge and will be unable to exit back into America through a blue entrance.

Note that if we changed the allocate sign to be blue then the situation would be flipped and after entering the conference centre, Mexicans would be unable to return back to Mexico.

Example 3: Lost and Found

Inside the conference centre there is another special door labelled “Lost and Found”. This door has two coloured signs:

  • A white sign marked “C” for checkpoint
  • A second blue sign marked “A” for allocate

This door has been created to help visitors who have either lost their badge or somehow found themselves in the conference centre without a badge.

Both Mexicans (green badge) and Americans (blue badge) cannot pass through the door but visitors without a badge can and they are allocated a blue id badge and may continue on their way just like any other blue badge wearer.

Example 4: An Entrance is Always an Entrance

There is one quirk with entrances which we’ve not talked about yet but it’s important to know. The security guards are strictly trained not to think and to follow their instructions to the letter no matter what the visitors are doing. These instructions are:

  • if a visitor doesn’t have an id badge then they are given one as dictated by the gate colour / allocate colour
  • if a visitor has a valid badge then they pass through the entrance and that badge is taken from them.
  • If a visitor has a badge but it is not valid for the entrance then they are denied access and have to go back (they keep their badge)

The quirk is that the security guards do not care which direction visitors are moving. If a visitor arrives at the conference centre with a badge then it is taken off them and they are shepherded inside without a badge. Similarly if they try to exit through an entrance without a badge then they are given one as they leave.

This can lead to unexpected behaviour when visitors arrive at an entrance with a badge they are not supposed to have or if visitors have their badge removed unexpectedly. To maintain security, the conference centre has to carefully consider each route a visitor may take through the building so situations like this cannot occur.

Example 5: “White” Doors

In the previous section about Checkpoints we briefly mentioned the idea of a white colour coding for visitors without a badge. This requires special consideration because these white doors won’t behave like the other colours:

White checkpoints (“C”) and entrances (“E”) behave exactly the same way and are interchangeable. Visitors without a badge may pass through freely without interruption and no badge is assigned or can be returned. Meanwhile visitors with a badge are turned around and denied access (unless their colour is also specified on the door).

Doors marked with a white allocate (“A”) do not actually assign any badges to visitors that pass through. If a coloured (non-white) entrance (“E”) is also present on the door then white allocate is no longer valid according to the following rules:

  • Where only one coloured entrance is specified then that colour is implied and takes precedence.
  • For multiple colours, allocate must be specified explicitly (or some other mechanism is required to determine which colour takes priority).

Bringing it back to VLANS

If you have any experience with VLANs then you have probably already joined the dots back to the International Conference Centre. For the uninitiated though let’s break it down:

  • A doorway in the conference centre refers to either a physical port on a network device (like a switch or router) or to a logical port or virtual interface (like traffic entering the network from different Wi-Fi networks on a wireless access point).

  • A visitor refers to a network packet passing through the network. For the purposes of VLAN It’s important to remember that (just like with our security guards) the network equipment only considers each packet based on the “id badge” it’s wearing and It doesn’t care who the packet it is, if its seen the packet before, or where the packet is going.

  • A colour corresponds to a VLAN ID which is a number we use to identify each VLAN in the network. For example our blue American network might have a VLAN ID of 5 and our green Mexican network a VLAN ID of 64. The number itself doesn’t matter in the same way blue or green doesn’t have any significance – it is just an identifier to separate the packets

  • An id badge corresponds to the VLAN Tag which is a space on every packet where a VLAN ID is stored. The space cannot be empty and must contain a number so by default this value is set to zero (0) which is the equivalent to no id badge (or “white” in our conference example).

  • An entrance is what we call an “Access” port or “Untagged” port in VLAN terminology. These ports are responsible for allocating VLAN ID to packets moving in and out of the network. It’s important to remember that packets will enter the network without a VLAN Tag and leave the network without a VLAN Tag (though some exceptions apply). If they leave with a tag then this could cause unexpected consequences in other networks further down the chain and If they arrive with a tag then they might be denied entry or run into problems like we saw in Example 4.

  • A checkpoint is what we call a “Trunked” port or “Tagged” port in VLAN terminology. These ports are responsible for directing the flow of packets through the network according to their VLAN ID. A packet shouldn’t leave the network via a trunked port though it is common for the final physical port to be trunked and for the adding/removing of the VLAN Tags to be performed in the logical network (i.e. in software on a firewall, router, access point, etc.).

  • The allocate sign corresponds to the PVID of a port which is basically the VLAN ID that takes precedence on a particular port where multiple Access/Untagged rules exist. More sophisticated rules can be used for determining which VLAN should take priority for a given packet but its unlikely you will ever encounter this unless dealing with a very complex enterprise network.

  • The example of white VLANs refers to the default VLAN ID of zero (0). As previously mentioned, a packet has a space for a VLAN tag and this must always have a value, which by default is zero. The system has to have a way of handling these packets but because zero is the same as empty it does create some unique scenarios which must be accounted for.

Hopefully this article has helped you to get your head around 802.1Q VLANs. If you have any comments or suggestions for improvement then please leave these below!

Lennox IT are specialists in business IT support and solutions. If you need any help with networking for your business then please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

The post The International Conference Centre – A Basic Guide to  802.1Q VLANs first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post The International Conference Centre – A Basic Guide to  802.1Q VLANs appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/the-international-conference-centre-a-basic-guide-to-802-1q-vlans/feed 0
Shrinking a Volume on an AWS EC2 Windows Server https://lennox-it.uk/shrinking-a-volume-on-an-aws-ec2-windows-server?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=shrinking-a-volume-on-an-aws-ec2-windows-server https://lennox-it.uk/shrinking-a-volume-on-an-aws-ec2-windows-server#comments Wed, 12 Jul 2023 15:12:14 +0000 https://lennox-it.uk/?p=1825 Introduction There are various guides online for shrinking a volume for a Linux based EC2 instance but I recently had to do this for a Windows instance which seems to be a path less travelled. I’ve not covered every single step in detail but hopefully there is enough information to get you through it. The […]

The post Shrinking a Volume on an AWS EC2 Windows Server first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Shrinking a Volume on an AWS EC2 Windows Server appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Introduction

There are various guides online for shrinking a volume for a Linux based EC2 instance but I recently had to do this for a Windows instance which seems to be a path less travelled. I’ve not covered every single step in detail but hopefully there is enough information to get you through it.

The general process is to create a new volume of the desired (smaller) size, migrate the data across using the instance itself, then attach the new volume as the primary/active volume to the instance (replacing the old volume).

Make a backup

Before you go any further it’s important to make sure you have a backup / snapshot of your instance so you can roll back in the event of any problems. You can delete these at the end when everything is working but it’s vital that you backup before proceeding any further.

Amazon Encryption / Bit Locker

These steps all assume that you’re not using encryption on your Amazon instances/volumes. There is a chance that it will all still work but I’ve not tested it so proceed at your own risk. If you have Bit Locker enabled on the instance then I strongly recommend you disable it and fully decrypt the partition/s first. Once you’ve moved across you can re-enable it again.

In-Place vs Offline Migration

We have two options for migrating the volume:

  • Create a new, smaller volume and then copy the data across ‘in-place’

  • Create two new volumes – a smaller one and a clone of the active volume – and then copy the data across ‘offline’

The first option is quicker because its just a single copy operation but VSS will need to be fully working on the Windows environment and you must be confident that all of the apps you’re running are fully VSS compatible. You can find more information on VSS here:

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/storage/file-server/volume-shadow-copy-service

If you’re at all unsure about this, or if you want to be 100% sure on a clean copy then I’d recommend going with the second option which will take longer to copy but if done correctly will have no chance of data corruption.

I’ll cover both approaches below.

Shrinking the active partition/s

We need to be sure that the partitions on the current volume will fit onto the new, smaller volume. You will need to examine all of the partitions to make sure that they are small enough to fit and shrink them down if they are too big.

I’m not going to go into depth here about how to shrink partitions but refer to the following Microsoft guide on how you can do this from Windows:

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/storage/disk-management/shrink-a-basic-volume

Often the built-in Windows tool can only shrink so much but there are third-party tools (like MiniTool partition wizard) which can sometimes do a better job (below).

https://www.partitionwizard.com/resizepartition/free-shrink-windows-partition.html

Be careful when making changes to your main Windows and System partitions though as a cock-up here might corrupt your data and/or cause your AWS instance not to boot.

It might also not be possible to shrink the Windows partition while in use. In which case you will have to take approach 2 and clone the active volume first, then shrink the partitions on the clone.

Approach 1: Migrating a volume “In-Place”

Head to the Volumes tab in EC2 and create yourself a new volume of the desired (smaller) size and configuration in the same region as your instance. Then attach this volume as a data/secondary partition to your instance.

The new drive should show up in windows under Disk Management (in Computer Management). It won’t be initialized yet so it probably won’t have a drive letter or any partitions.

You will need to use a third-party tool to copy the partition/s over from the current active volume to your new, smaller volume. Macrium Reflect worked well for me and they offer a free trial (below) but use whichever partition/disk image software you prefer.

https://www.macrium.com/reflectfree

It may take a few hours to copy so be patient and leave it to do its thing.

Approach 2: Migrating a volume “Offline”

You should already have a backup Snapshot of your instance from the earlier steps but if not, head to your instance in EC2 and take a new Snapshot of it. Once the snapshot has completed, head to the Snapshots tab and copy down the unique name of it

Next, head to the Volumes tab and create a new Volume of the same size/configuration as your current volume. E.g. if you current volume is 500gb, make this one a 500gb volume. In the creation page there is an option to specify a snapshot for the volume. Choose “Custom Snapshot” and paste in the unique id/name of your backup snapshot.

Mount this volume to your AWS instance as a data/secondary partition. The volume should show up in the instance as a new drive and be assigned one (or more) drive letters so If you need to shrink your partitions on the cloned volume then you can do this now.

Follow the steps from Approach 1 to create your smaller volume and attach this to the instance in the same way. Make sure to keep track of all your volumes and drive letters now as you don’t want to overwrite the wrong volume by mistake.

Follow the steps in Approach 1 to copy across your partitions from the cloned drive to your new, smaller volume. You don’t have to worry about VSS or copying from running apps so any old partition manager will do for this like MiniTool Partition Wizard (below)

https://www.partitionwizard.com/free-partition-manager.html

When you create a volume from a snapshot it has to “instantiate” every block which is a very slow process. Because of this, the copy job could potentially take a very (very) long time so you may need to run it overnight or over a weekend.

Once the copying is all done, I’d  recommend detaching the cloned volume so you are left with just the active volume and the smaller volume. This will help you avoid drive letter confusion in the next steps.

Get it to boot

If you try to use your new volume with the instance at this point then you will likely find that it never boots up. Although you have copied all the data across, you will need to sort out the BCD and the boot sector before it will all work.

The default method of booting is MBR / Legacy (or “BIOS”)  but your instance might be set to EFI / GPR. If you only had 1 partition to copy then it’s likely to be MBR whereas if you had to copy a little System or EFI partition too then it will be EFI. You can check this in the instance settings in EC2.

 I’ll cover both below

MBR Booting

Your newly minted volume should have be allocated a new drive letters in Windows so note this down. For this example I will be using the drive letter D:\ as my smaller volume but substitute in your own.

Open an elevated command prompt.

First we will initialize the boot sector on the new volume:

> bootsect /nt60 D: /mbr

This command creates a master code on D: that is compatible with Windows 8 / Server 2012 or newer. For full details refer to the following article:

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/manufacture/desktop/bootsect-command-line-options?view=windows-11

Note that some versions of Windows Server don’t include the bootsect tool. If you are receiving a “command not found” message then you will need to copy the tool over from your own PC (it’s stored under C:\Windows\System32\bootsect.exe

Next we will clear out the existing boot records that have been copied over from the old drive

> bcdedit /store D:\boot\bcd

This command should list all of the current boot records on the D: drive. It’s very important you use the /store switch otherwise you will be editing the BCD on your active partition which will break your instance

> bcdedit /store D:\boot\bcd /delete {default} /f

Use this command to trash out all of the entries in the BCD, replacing “{default}” with the name of each entry. Once you done, the list command should show that the BCD is empty with zero entries

> bcdboot d:\windows /s d: /f BIOS

Finally this command will recreate our boot entries on drive D: specifying d:\windows as the target OS. Obviously if your Windows directory has a different name then substitute this instead. The BIOS switch tells it to create MBR compatible records.

EFI Booting

The process is similar to MBR but instead of just targeting the Windows partition, some of the commands will instead need to target your system/EFI partition that you also copied across. For this section I will refer to D: as my Windows partition and S: as the system partition (on the new, smaller volume). Substitute these letters with your own.

> bootsect /nt60 S:

In this case we’re targeting the system partition S: instead to make it bootable. Note that we’ve dropped the /mbr switch.

> bcdedit /store S:\EFI\Microsoft\Boot\BCD

If you get an error here, use Windows Explorer or the command prompt to double check the location of the BCD file on your EFI/System partition (I’ve not tested this on AWS so they might use a slightly different folder structure)

> bcdedit /store S:\EFI\Microsoft\Boot\BCD /delete {default} /f

As before, trash out all entries in the BCD

> bcdboot d:\windows /s s: /f UEFI

Note that in this case we are specifying the S: drive as the BCD location and we are using “UEFI” mode on the /f switch. As before, replace d:\windows with your own Windows’  folder name.

Check it works

Shutdown the instance and detach all Volumes, then attach your new small volume as the primary/active Volume using the /dev/sda1 parameter.

Fire up the instance and hooray, you should be up and running on a smaller volume.

If the instance hasn’t started after a few minutes then most likely it has been unable to boot. You will need to stop the instance, detach the new volume, reattach the old volume on /dev/sda1 and reattach the new volume again as a data/secondary drive.

If your instance fails to boot on the old volume then uh oh. It is likely that you messed up one of the steps above and screwed up your active volume. You will need to restore this volume from your backup snapshot.

Once you’re back into the instance on the original volume you will need to figure out why your new drive isn’t booting:

  • Make sure your copy was clean and you haven’t corrupted your partitions on the new volume

  • Make sure your shrink worked correctly – if you cloned the drive then check to see if this volume boots correctly (it should just work without changes to BCD if you created it from a snapshot)

  • Double check your bcd commands from the previous steps and make sure your BCD is getting correctly setup on the new volume.

  • You can use a third-party partition editor tool to make sure that the partitions are setup correctly with the right flags

  • If using MBR, make sure your partition is marked “ACTIVE”. This should have been done as part of the above steps but you can use the DISKPART commandto do it manually

I hope this helps, if you need support managing your business assets in AWS cloud then don’t hesitate to drop us a call.

The post Shrinking a Volume on an AWS EC2 Windows Server first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Shrinking a Volume on an AWS EC2 Windows Server appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/shrinking-a-volume-on-an-aws-ec2-windows-server/feed 1
Resetting Custom Windows 10/11 graphics settings to default https://lennox-it.uk/resetting-custom-windows-10-11-graphics-settings-to-default?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=resetting-custom-windows-10-11-graphics-settings-to-default https://lennox-it.uk/resetting-custom-windows-10-11-graphics-settings-to-default#respond Thu, 13 Oct 2022 09:34:41 +0000 https://lennox-it.uk/?p=1635 It is quite common for Windows to develop strange graphical bugs from time to time. The most common occurrence of this is with multiple monitors of different sizes / resolutions. Windows tries to use lots of clever resizing and scaling techniques to keep your applications rendered cleanly across your different screens but as different monitors […]

The post Resetting Custom Windows 10/11 graphics settings to default first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Resetting Custom Windows 10/11 graphics settings to default appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
It is quite common for Windows to develop strange graphical bugs from time to time. The most common occurrence of this is with multiple monitors of different sizes / resolutions. Windows tries to use lots of clever resizing and scaling techniques to keep your applications rendered cleanly across your different screens but as different monitors are connected/disconnect over time, it can get itself in a mess.

A common symptom is where a black or white box will appear near the top of a screen when a Window is maximised full screen. The box will often cover the window controls (like close/maximise/minimise) so users are unable to resize the window and struggle to continue working. Sometimes though the problem will appear as frozen icons / boxes drawn on the screen or corruption of text and/or icons.

When this problem occurs we recommend the following solutions:

  • Reinstall / Upgrade your Graphics card drivers
  • Set your monitor scaling to 100% across all screen
  • Try increasing/decreasing the screen resolution across one or more screen. If possible try to set all screens to the same resolution
  • Ensure that your screen all have matching digital/analogue connectivity. For example if you have the option of VGA or HDMI connections, make sure all screens are using one or the other.
  • Finally if none of the above helps you can try resetting your custom Windows graphics settings back to their defaults

How to reset Windows app graphics settings

The process is quite simple. You just need to delete the following registry keys (if they exist):

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\DirectX
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\GraphicsDrivers\Configuration

Once deleted, reboot the computer and see if the problem is resolved.

The post Resetting Custom Windows 10/11 graphics settings to default first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Resetting Custom Windows 10/11 graphics settings to default appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/resetting-custom-windows-10-11-graphics-settings-to-default/feed 0
Fix OneDrive Sync Stuck on ‘Processing Changes’ (without losing your files) https://lennox-it.uk/fix-onedrive-sync-stuck-on-processing-changes-without-losing-your-files?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=fix-onedrive-sync-stuck-on-processing-changes-without-losing-your-files https://lennox-it.uk/fix-onedrive-sync-stuck-on-processing-changes-without-losing-your-files#respond Wed, 01 Jun 2022 11:15:24 +0000 https://lennox-it.uk/?p=1584 The OneDrive client has come a long way but it is still a common frustration for it to get stuck, especially when working with large file sets. The process below can be used completely reset the OneDrive back to a working state without losing any unsynchronised changes. Things to try first… OneDrive is legitimately stuck […]

The post Fix OneDrive Sync Stuck on ‘Processing Changes’ (without losing your files) first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Fix OneDrive Sync Stuck on ‘Processing Changes’ (without losing your files) appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
The OneDrive client has come a long way but it is still a common frustration for it to get stuck, especially when working with large file sets. The process below can be used completely reset the OneDrive back to a working state without losing any unsynchronised changes.

Things to try first…


OneDrive is legitimately stuck

Often the OneDrive app is stuck for good reason – because a file is locked out that it’s trying to sync or because it’s currently working through a large changeset that is taking time to process.

The OneDrive activity log will lie to you and doesn’t give an accurate picture of what’s going on – especially where OneDrive is talking to SharePoint or auditing the local files on your device. Just because the log hasn’t changed in a while or your CPU activity is low doesn’t necessarily mean it’s not doing anything.

A reboot can often fix the former issue (sometimes it’s a service like the search indexer or a virus scanner locking files out) and the latter can be solved with a bit of patience. Leave it synchronising overnight or over a weekend if you can (just make sure sleep is turned off and chargers etc. are left plugged in).

Pause / Resume Trick

One trick which sometimes helps is to pause the OneDrive sync (from the settings cog) and then immediately resume it again once the pause has gone through (be patient).

It can take many repeated attempts of pause/resume for this to work (I have no idea what is going on behind the scenes) but I have known this technique to clear some stubborn synchronisation issues. You can usually tell if it’s working because each time you do it, the activity log will show a bit of a change e.g. a single file being uploaded or deleted.

Free up Space

Another trick is to use the “Free up space” option on the Windows right-click menu to force any local data up into the cloud. Right click on the top-level folder in your OneDrive (and/or synchronised libraries) and choose “Free up Space”.

This can take a long time to process so be patient and wait for it to finish everything it’s doing. It will either clear the issue or you will eventually go back into a familiar holding pattern where it gets stuck again).

Even if this doesn’t clear the synchronisation issue, sometimes it can help to narrow down which file/s are locking up the job. You can try manually dragging these out of your sync folder to see if it clears the problem.

Disk Corruption

Sync issues are occasionally a result of disk or file system corruption. Running chkdsk /f C:\ (replacing C with the drive letter of your OneDrive) from the command line can sometimes cure the issue. You’ll need to reboot after running the command to trigger the scan.

Reset OneDrive (the Microsoft way)

Finally you can follow the steps here to reset the OneDrive client using the official Microsoft way:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/reset-onedrive-34701e00-bf7b-42db-b960-84905399050c

I’ve personally had mixed success with this method and despite what the page says, I have known this method to lose unsaved changes on occasion – if not at first then later on when you sign back into OneDrive and restart the sync.

Be careful and avoid this method where any loss of data would be a big problem (for example where the folders are weeks or months out of sync).

Reset OneDrive (the safe way)


When all else fails, the following method can be used to safely get OneDrive back to a working state:

Step One – Create backup folders

Create a folder on the PC outside of OneDrive to backup your changed files. Create a sub folder for each OneDrive folder and/or SharePoint location being synchronised. The root of C:\ drive can be a good location for this. Be mindful if you have OneDrive backup enabled as this can move certain folders into the sync that you might not expect like Desktop and My Documents.

For example an average corporate deployment might have the following 3 sub folders:

C:\ODBackups\OneDrive – Personal
C:\ODBackups\OneDrive – My Company
C:\ODBackups\My Company – SharePoint Name

Step Two – Free up space

Use the Free up Space method from the previous section to remove as many local files from the device as you can. Let this fully complete, leaving it to sync overnight or over a weekend if you need to (it can take a very long time for big file sets).

Step Three – Backup files which haven’t synchronised

Restart the PC and ensure OneDrive is stopped (double check in Task Manager to make sure the app is fully shutdown).

From an elevated command prompt, run the following commands substituting <source path> for your OneDrive folder and <backup path> for the backup folder. Repeat all three commands for all of your OneDrive folders and SharePoint sync folders:

> robocopy /xa:O /e /XJ /MT /R:0 /W:0 "<source path>" "<backup path>"
> cd “<backup path>”
> for /f "delims=" %d in ('dir /s /b /ad ^| sort /r') do rd "%d"

The first command copies all files from your sync folder into your backups folder excluding those that have the “Offline” attribute set (i.e. cloud stubs). This method is not perfect because Microsoft now use a bunch of new and improved file attributes to identify cloud stubs but without scripting something in C++ it is impossible to read the new attributes and from my testing this method seemed good enough to get the job done.

The second and third commands (starting “cd” and “for” respectively) are used to remove empty folders from the backup location. These are optional but help to provide a clearer picture of exactly what’s been copied, for example if you needed to verify the backup set with the end user to confirm that certain documents are present.

Step Four – Completely remove OneDrive and reinstall

  • Uninstall the OneDrive app from the control panel.

  • Reboot

  • Rename all sync folders in the user profile directory with an “OLD –“ prefix. These can be deleted at a later date once you’re  100% sure everything is working again.

  • Under AppData/Local, Rename the “OneDrive” and “Microsoft/OneDrive” folders to OneDrive.old

  • Download OneDrive client (https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/microsoft-365/onedrive/download )

  • Run setup and follow onscreen prompts to reinstall and sign back in.

  • Re-sync all SharePoint libraries

Step Five – Restore files from backup

Once the OneDrive has resynchronised all of your libraries, the final step is to copy back the files from your backup location to their respective sync folders. You can drag/drop these using Windows Explorer here and use the “overwrite changes” option.

Once OneDrive finishes synchronising your changes, you are good to go!

The post Fix OneDrive Sync Stuck on ‘Processing Changes’ (without losing your files) first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Fix OneDrive Sync Stuck on ‘Processing Changes’ (without losing your files) appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/fix-onedrive-sync-stuck-on-processing-changes-without-losing-your-files/feed 0
The Sky is not the limit – A SpaceX Starlink Story https://lennox-it.uk/the-sky-is-not-the-limit-a-spacex-starlink-story?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-sky-is-not-the-limit-a-spacex-starlink-story https://lennox-it.uk/the-sky-is-not-the-limit-a-spacex-starlink-story#respond Thu, 14 Apr 2022 13:04:43 +0000 https://lennox-it.uk/?p=1557 “An innovative solution that exceeded all expectations” Esland Care LTD – 2022 How do we deliver? With SpaceX, OneWeb and other competitors with comprehensive low-latency satellite internet solutions all delivering a high-quality product, we as an IT Services and B2B support company look at how we can leverage this perhaps niche networking method as a […]

The post The Sky is not the limit – A SpaceX Starlink Story first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post The Sky is not the limit – A SpaceX Starlink Story appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>

“An innovative solution that exceeded all expectations”

Esland Care LTD – 2022

How do we deliver?

With SpaceX, OneWeb and other competitors with comprehensive low-latency satellite internet solutions all delivering a high-quality product, we as an IT Services and B2B support company look at how we can leverage this perhaps niche networking method as a backbone IT products like O365, Emails and sharepoint.

We’ve been hugely successful with almost a dozen individual SpaceX Starlink Internet installs in places as remote as Quarnford and Swinderby and as ‘built up’ as Burton-On-Trent. Every install has had a significant performance improvement from exasperated clients who’ve been suffering with either Openreach or Virgin media outright refusing to service their street with high performance internet for years. A new competitor who can challenge these providers on a… Astronomical level is certainly a welcome addition to the otherwise crowded ISP market.

Technology aside..

It’s all well and good when we can promise to clients the massive improvements these new solutions provide, but we found ourselves in a conundrum when it came to the physical constructions of these weighty dishes.

The Starlink kit comes with a basic stand that you can pop on the floor and have the dish on a patio or on a flat roof outside and that will absolutely work.. But for us the standard bracket didn’t offer the rigidity or the stability we felt we required.

We went ahead and explored our options. SpaceX do sell various wall-mount & roof-mounting hardware, However we felt that the hardware didn’t meet our requirements. If you are a regular blog reader, you will understand that we did have a unique requirement in Quarnford; One of their buildings is a farm house on a slope that is in a unique position where it is almost constantly battered by high winds and very harsh environmental conditions.

If it’s one thing that SpaceX Starlink and ‘old-fashioned’ Satellite Internet dishes have in common, it’s that an unstable mounting solution & the dish shaking in the wind would have disastrous effects for the connection & network jitter.

The Lennox IT Solution

We pride ourselves on delivering solutions to even the most complex of problems, and especially those where most other IT Companies would simply hold up their hands and walk away from the problem!

Drawing up a solution we created a construction that we were sure was absolutely rigid, made up of about 40kg of pure steel. Overkill? Yes. Did it meet our requirements? Yes.

Later we went onto significantly reduce the footprint of this initial design and build it into something that could be easily maneuvered and easily installed as after installing that V1 dish mount, it was really a 3 man job.

Our Latest Design…

We wanted to produce something that we wanted to bring to market. We feel like we invested a great deal of time and effort in the design and production phase of these mounting brackets, and seeing as there was nothing like this on the market to begin with, we wanted to bring it to the market!

Every single one of these brackets is hand-made & structurally tested to ensure every single bracket meets our strict requirements.

So.. Where can I get one?

We have a listing on E-bay where you can procure them. We do insist that these brackets should be professionally installed, and if you are local to Horsley/Smalley DE21 5BL (within 15-20 miles) we can refer you to whom we rely on to install these brackets for a reasonable fee. Any good local contractor will be able to install this for you and we very much recommend an experienced contractor to tackle this install.

The listing: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/154890477365

The post The Sky is not the limit – A SpaceX Starlink Story first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post The Sky is not the limit – A SpaceX Starlink Story appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/the-sky-is-not-the-limit-a-spacex-starlink-story/feed 0
Wall Mounted SpaceX Starlink – An installation in the Peak District https://lennox-it.uk/wall-mounted-starlink-an-installation-in-the-peak-district?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=wall-mounted-starlink-an-installation-in-the-peak-district https://lennox-it.uk/wall-mounted-starlink-an-installation-in-the-peak-district#respond Wed, 22 Dec 2021 12:05:16 +0000 https://lennox-it.uk/?p=1501 Introduction… By now we’ve all heard of Starlink; A constellation of satellites offering Low-Latency, high-speed Satellite internet. We’ve had the pleasure and experience of installing Starlink for our various clients where traditional Ethernet/Fiber connections were abhorrently slow or simply didn’t exist (traditional ADSL/VDSL Connections). One of our clients was in a particular bad spot. In […]

The post Wall Mounted SpaceX Starlink – An installation in the Peak District first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Wall Mounted SpaceX Starlink – An installation in the Peak District appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Introduction…

By now we’ve all heard of Starlink;

A constellation of satellites offering Low-Latency, high-speed Satellite internet. We’ve had the pleasure and experience of installing Starlink for our various clients where traditional Ethernet/Fiber connections were abhorrently slow or simply didn’t exist (traditional ADSL/VDSL Connections).

One of our clients was in a particular bad spot. In the depths of the peak district: Quarnford.

For years our client had suffered first with the ADSL/VDSL route of 0.5mb up/down all the way to Satellite internet with Big Blue wherein they were getting 31mb down and 1.22mb up, at the cost of 625ms latency making Teams calls and any low-latency dependent applications practically unusable. The site was a constant source of headaches for our client, even going toward the additional expenditure of not one Big Blue antenna but two of them! Hoping that the extra bandwidth would help them along.

Then, when Starlink was announced we all waited with bated breath for the day when coverage would come in Quarnford.. And recently it did!

Our new Bracket design, Also in the peak district!

(Our new Bracket design, Also in the peak district!)

If you’ve ever seen an unboxing of a Starlink or one of the units in operation you’ll know they come with a fabricated metal stand that you can place on the floor and while flat surfaces may be freely available and usable in the vast majority of Starlink installs, in this instance it was not. The particular spot in Quarnford was particularly exposed to the elements. Regular high-winds, gusts, and due to the nature of the site there were no flat surfaces, no flat roof’s, and the slight wobble with the Starlink dish and the stand might have caused link issues (if you’ve ever had the chance to test the basic mount/stand the starlink comes with, you’d know what I mean!)

After having a search online for any wall-mount kits.. Hardly any existed. There were various home-made fabrications and people using T & K brackets and C-clamps but there was not anything we considered to be ‘industrial’ enough. There is of course on the Starlink Website a few wall mounted systems, but we wanted to have a mount that was completely solid, virtually zero movement to ensure a constant connection and finally give some relief to some very exasperated staff who’d been suffering with traditional Satellite broadband for years.

Lennox IT commissioned the help of one of our good friends whom came up with a bracket design which was virtually solid and would survive the specific task we had.

Discarding the existing mount entirely; A design has been implored where we have some adjustment on how far the mount extends from the side of the wall (or whatever surface you decide to mount this on) as well as various bolts and fixtures tightened to ensure absolutely zero movement.

Photo Gallery of our improved V2 mount…

The Result..

The installation all in all took us about 4 hours with a 2-man team, but the results were worth it!!

Where can I get one!?

This is a super-heavy duty fabrication that was intended to survive heavy gusts and the worst the Peak District could throw at it. We had an e-bay listing for this bracket but we found that it was difficult to ship, expensive to post, and difficult to install.

For those who’ve read this blog post before, We were talking about fabricating a smaller model which has the same rigidity and strength of the aforementioned mount, and we’ve finally come up with a design that we’re more than happy with! Offering virtually the same strength as the ‘Version 1’ of the bracket, at a considerably smaller footprint and cheaper postage

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/154890477365

(you can also get in touch if you’re local to the area as we may be able to hook you up with an installer!)

We also plan to begin diversifying our offering, specifically we are going to be offering it in 3 different colours (polished steel, Black (current) and grey.) and we’re going to be making slight adaptations to this bracket as the months and installs pass.

Our client was so impressed with the installation and the results that we have even more of these in the pipeline and we very much look forward to doing it all again!

The post Wall Mounted SpaceX Starlink – An installation in the Peak District first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Wall Mounted SpaceX Starlink – An installation in the Peak District appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/wall-mounted-starlink-an-installation-in-the-peak-district/feed 0
Archiving Large SharePoint Libraries Using Powershell https://lennox-it.uk/archiving-large-sharepoint-libraries-using-powershell?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=archiving-large-sharepoint-libraries-using-powershell https://lennox-it.uk/archiving-large-sharepoint-libraries-using-powershell#respond Wed, 15 Dec 2021 15:25:11 +0000 https://lennox-it.uk/?p=1491 This is a follow-up from our previous post which looked at archiving a SharePoint library using Power Automate. In some cases you may need a solution which is more tailored to your requirements and has a bit more power/flexibility. In these cases, Powershell can work a lot better.   Notes   Doesn’t currently work with […]

The post Archiving Large SharePoint Libraries Using Powershell first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Archiving Large SharePoint Libraries Using Powershell appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
This is a follow-up from our previous post which looked at archiving a SharePoint library using Power Automate. In some cases you may need a solution which is more tailored to your requirements and has a bit more power/flexibility. In these cases, Powershell can work a lot better.

 

Notes

 

  • Doesn’t currently work with 2FA so you’ll want a service account with that disabled
  • The script is very ‘rough and ready’, I would recommend taking the bits you need but ditching the bits that you don’t
  • We present this to you ‘as is’ with full disclaimers, it has worked fine in our testing but test thoroughly yourself and use at your own risk

 


# -----------------------------------------------------------
# SharePoint Archiving
# -----------------------------------------------------------
#
# Arguments:
#
# -Calling with zero arguments will run from root of doc libray
# -Use additional arguments to run from sub directories e.g. ./ArchiveDocumentLibrary.ps1 Directory1 ChildDirectory2 GrandChildDirectory3
# Note. that directories must be specified individually, in order, and with a blank space between each one
#
# Notes:
#
# - Moves files older than $ArchiveDate out of the source location into the Archive location
# - Deletes empty folders in the source location if $CleanupDirectories is set
# - Files are stored under a folder with $ListName in the target list. In this way, you can archive multiple source lists to the same archive location so long as they have different names.
# Note. Be wary of common list names like "Shared Documents". You will want to ensure these are backed up to different target lists or else you could get in a mess.
# - Liable to throttling by Microsoft so be patient, it will get there in the end!
#

#Required Module for script. Uncomment to install this module if you don't have it already
#Install-Module -Name PnP.PowerShell

#-------------Setings----------------------

#Root Site Url
$SiteUrl = "https://mytenantname.sharepoint.com"
$username = "serviceaccount@mytenant.co.uk"
$password = "password123"

#Source Settings
$RelativeUrl = "/sites/SourceSite"
$ListName = "Shared Documents"

#Archive Settings
$ArchiveRelativeUrl = "/sites/ArchiveSite"
$ArchiveListName = "Archive Documents"

#Job Settings
$ArchiveDate = get-date "2015-01-01" #Anything older than this will be archived
$FileLimit = -1 # Limits number of files processed at a time (useful for testing). use -1 to turn this off
$CleanupDirectories = $true #Whether to remove empty directories or not
$Debug = $false #For debugging / dry runs. Enables additional output and doesn't actually change anything in the source library

#-------------------------------------------

function Recurse-Files($Folder, $Stack)
{
#Write-Output $Folder
$items = Get-PnPFolderItem -FolderSiteRelativeUrl $Folder
if ($Debug -eq $true)
{
Write-Output ("Folder: " + $Folder)
Write-Output ("Count: " + $items.count)
}

foreach($item in $items)
{
if ($Debug -eq $true)
{
Write-Output ("Item: " + $item.Name)
}

if ($item.Name -eq "Forms") { continue }
if ($item.Name -eq "_catalogs") { continue }

if ($item.TypedObject.ToString() -ne 'Microsoft.SharePoint.Client.Folder')
{
$file = Get-PnPFile -AsListItem -Url $item.ServerRelativeUrl
if ((get-date $file.FieldValues.Modified) -lt $ArchiveDate)
{
Archive-File $item $file $Folder $Stack
$FileLimit = $FileLimit - 1
if ($FileLimit -eq 0) { Exit }
}
}
else {
$NewPath = ($Folder + "/" + $item.Name)

$TempStack = $Stack.PSObject.Copy()
$TempStack.Push($item.Name)

Recurse-Files $NewPath $TempStack
}
}

if ($CleanupDirectories)
{
$items = Get-PnPFolderItem -FolderSiteRelativeUrl $Folder
if ($items.count -gt 0) {} else {
Cleanup-Empty-Folder $Stack
}
}
}

function Archive-File($Item, $FileItem, $ParentFolder, $Stack)
{
Write-Output ("Archiving: " + $Item.Name + " - " + $FileItem.FieldValues.Modified)

#Build Destination Path
$temps = $Stack.PSObject.Copy()
$TargetUrl = ""
while ($temps.count -gt 0) { $TargetUrl = ("/" + $temps.Pop() + $TargetUrl) }
$TargetUrl = ($ArchiveListName + $TargetUrl)

#Generate Destination Folder if it doesn't exist
if ($Debug -eq $false)
{
Resolve-PnPFolder -SiteRelativePath $TargetUrl -Connection $ArchiveConnection | Out-Null
}

#Move the File to Archive
if ($Debug -eq $false)
{
Move-PnPFile -SourceUrl ($RelativeUrl + "/" + $ParentFolder + "/" + $Item.Name) -TargetUrl ($ArchiveRelativeUrl + "/" + $TargetUrl) -Overwrite -AllowSchemaMismatch -IgnoreVersionHistory -Force
}
}

function Cleanup-Empty-Folder($Stack)
{
$temps = $Stack.PSObject.Copy()

$Name = $temps.Pop()

$TargetUrl = ""
while ($temps.count -gt 1) { $TargetUrl = ("/" + $temps.Pop() + $TargetUrl) }
$TargetUrl = ($ListName + $TargetUrl)

Write-Output ("Clean-up: " + $Name + " in " + $TargetUrl)
if ($Debug -eq $false)
{
Remove-PnPFolder -Name $Name -Folder $TargetUrl -Force
}
}

$encpassword = convertto-securestring -String $password -AsPlainText -Force
$credentials = new-object -typename System.Management.Automation.PSCredential -argumentlist $username, $encpassword

#Get Connection for connecting to the archive (need to do this before the other connection as it also connects interactive)
$ArchiveConnection = Connect-PnPOnline -Url ($SiteUrl + $ArchiveRelativeUrl) -ReturnConnection -Credentials $credentials

#Start (Main Method)
Connect-PnPOnline -Url ($SiteUrl + $RelativeUrl) -Credentials $credentials

#Prep stack
$StartStack = new-object system.collections.stack
$StartStack.Push($ListName)

#Load Path from args
$StartPath = $ListName
for ( $i = 0; $i -lt $args.count; $i++ ) {
$StartPath = ($StartPath + "/" + $args[$i])
$StartStack.Push($args[$i])
}

if ($Debug -eq $true) { Get-PnPList }

#Go!
Recurse-Files $StartPath $StartStack

The post Archiving Large SharePoint Libraries Using Powershell first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Archiving Large SharePoint Libraries Using Powershell appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/archiving-large-sharepoint-libraries-using-powershell/feed 0
Archiving Large SharePoint Libraries by Modified Date using Power Automate https://lennox-it.uk/archiving-large-sharepoint-libraries-using-power-automate?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=archiving-large-sharepoint-libraries-using-power-automate https://lennox-it.uk/archiving-large-sharepoint-libraries-using-power-automate#respond Tue, 23 Nov 2021 15:56:15 +0000 https://lennox-it.uk/?p=1478 EDIT Dec 21 – In the article below we say that the solution works with libraries which have exceed the “maximum list view item threshold” (SharePoint’s internal item cap). In testing, we still encountered a lot of problems trying to use Power Automate so eventually we switched to a PowerShell solution which worked a lot […]

The post Archiving Large SharePoint Libraries by Modified Date using Power Automate first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Archiving Large SharePoint Libraries by Modified Date using Power Automate appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
EDIT Dec 21 – In the article below we say that the solution works with libraries which have exceed the “maximum list view item threshold” (SharePoint’s internal item cap). In testing, we still encountered a lot of problems trying to use Power Automate so eventually we switched to a PowerShell solution which worked a lot better. Please see our updated blog post for the PowerShell solution.

(tldr; the solution is at the bottom of this article if you want to skip the blurb. I’d recommend reading the caveats first though)

The Blurb

Recently we had a requirement to archive old files from a large SharePoint document library in an effort to bring it under control. The library has already sailed through the ‘maximum view threshold’ and was continuing to grow on a weekly basis by 10s of gigabytes.

A brief Google search turned up nothing; no in-built function as part of O365 or third-party tool and the solutions I found for Power Automate all seemed to be geared around smaller deployments or very specific archiving scenarios.

Our requirements were quite simple. We wanted to archive all files over a certain age out of our target library. Any solution had to be able to handle the large size of the library and the fact that is has exceeded the max view threshold. We also wanted to archive the files out to a new library which mirrored the original folder structure. This second requirement seemed like an obvious one to me but nothing that I could fine online seemed to work this way.

 

Caveats

As with all things SharePoint there are some limitations / caveats with this approach:

  • It is very important that you set a “Top Count” under ‘Get Items’. From what I’ve read, the ‘Apply to each’ function will only perform a maximum 5000 iterations and so this is what I’ve used. Even if we weren’t using an Apply to each, because of the SharePoint library exceeding the maximum view threshold we still need a value here or else the function will not return any results. Because of this, the routine will only process [5000] items at a time. If you have a large amount of items to archive then the job will need to be run and re-run multiple times to get them all.
  • Presumably due to the library being too big, the “Limit Entries to Folder” option under ‘Get Items’ doesn’t work and setting any value here will cause the function to return no items. This means that the process can only be run against the whole SharePoint library though it might be possible to tweak the ‘Filter Query’ to add further control over what is archived. Be aware though that in most cases even valid queries will return no results due to max view threshold
  • Get File Content / Create File has a file size limit of about 1gb. In most cases if you’re dealing with general office documents and pictures this shouldn’t be a problem but the process will fail if it encounters any file exceeding this limit.

 

 

Solution Part1: Enable Modified Index on Sharepoint Library

I’m not sure how important this step is but before starting in Power Automate I’d recommend creating a new Index column on the SharePoint library for the Modified Date. You can do this by going to the library settings and clicking “Indexed columns” under the columns settings and select “Create a new index”.

It might take several hours for this to fully initialize so if you’re not having any luck returning values with Get Items, try leaving it and coming back to it the next day.

 

 

Solution Part 2: Power Automate Routine

Below is the Power Automate process in full.

 

 

  • Get past time (which controls the age of documents to be archived)

 

  • Get items
    • Filter Query is (Modified lt ‘@{body(‘Get_past_time’)}’) and (ContentType ne ‘Folder’)
    • Limit Columns by view – not sure if this is 100% required but I created a view with only the basic columns in there to try and speed it up. You can leave this as default/none if you like

 

  • Apply to Each – operate on ‘value’ from Get items step
    • ‘test’ is the name of my archive library. You should use whatever name you’ve given to your archive here
    • Note that the backup is made to a folder under ‘test’ named after your library. So for example in my routine above a folder called ‘GDrives’ is created in the root of ‘test’ and all the files are saved under here. In this way, you could backup multiple source folders to a single archive.
  • [AtE] Create new folder
    • Specify archive destination and use “Folder Path” value from Get items as Folder Path
  • [AtE] Get file content
    • Specify source and use “Identifier” from Get items as File Identifier
  • [AtE] Create file
    • Specify archive destination for site
    • Folder path is ‘test/@{items(‘Apply_to_each’)?[‘{Path}’]}’ where ‘test’ is the name of my Archive library
    • File name is “File name with extension” from Get items
    • File Content is “File Content” from Get file content
  • [Ate] Delete File
    • As we’re moving out of the source location, I use a delete here using the source site and the Identifier again to remove it from source library.
    • If running multiple batches of the process then this step is also important to stop the same files being picked up every single run.

 

And that’s it. Hope this helps and if your business needs help with a SharePoint management then feel free to contact us.

 

The post Archiving Large SharePoint Libraries by Modified Date using Power Automate first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Archiving Large SharePoint Libraries by Modified Date using Power Automate appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/archiving-large-sharepoint-libraries-using-power-automate/feed 0
Problems Synchronising Large Folders with OneDrive https://lennox-it.uk/problems-synchronising-large-folders-with-onedrive?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=problems-synchronising-large-folders-with-onedrive https://lennox-it.uk/problems-synchronising-large-folders-with-onedrive#respond Wed, 20 Oct 2021 15:50:33 +0000 https://lennox-it.uk/?p=1314 The OneDrive client generally does a good job of keeping your files and folders synchronised between your devices and the cloud. However it is not without it’s problems, especially when trying to sync large files and folders containing millions of files and folders or 100s of gigabytes. We often have to work with large datasets […]

The post Problems Synchronising Large Folders with OneDrive first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Problems Synchronising Large Folders with OneDrive appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
The OneDrive client generally does a good job of keeping your files and folders synchronised between your devices and the cloud. However it is not without it’s problems, especially when trying to sync large files and folders containing millions of files and folders or 100s of gigabytes.

We often have to work with large datasets for our clients as part of migrations from on-premise file servers into the cloud. As a result we’ve picked up a few tips and tricks when working with the OneDrive client application which I’ll try and cover in this article. I should caveat that these are simply things which have helped us in the past and seem to work with the current iteration of OneDrive. These tips are not “Microsoft approved” and I’d always recommend performing your own research and testing first before bringing this to a production environment.

Part 1:  Other tools are available

Before even looking at OneDrive it’s worth being aware of some other tools out there which can sometimes be more useful with certain tasks:

SharePoint Migration Tool (SPMT)

If you don’t already know about SPMT, then I’d suggest taking a look before reading any further (https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sharepointmigration/introducing-the-sharepoint-migration-tool). This tool is designed to push up large volumes of data into SharePoint and does the job significantly better than the OneDrive client does. If you’re only task is to push data up then I’d strongly recommend abandoning the the OneDrive client and moving to this tool instead.

It is also worth nothing that OneDrive (personal) still uses SharePoint as the backend so this tool can be used to push data into a User’s OneDrive in addition to SharePoint sites/libraries. I’m not sure if that still applies to home users as we only ever work in a business/O365 context.

 

The SharePoint Web Interface

Another tool to bear in mind is the SharePoint web interface which is accessible by browsing to the document library / OneDrive library through a web browser. This interface is quite limited when it comes to file/folder operations but is significantly quicker when it comes to large move or copy operations from one library to another or when moving folders within the same library.

The main limitation of the web interface is in the total number of files/folders it can process (as opposed to the size of those files/folders). For example if you have a handful of very large files/folders then it can be much faster to go through the web GUI than attempting to sync these through the OneDrive client. Even with very large folders, the web GUI can often still work fine if you split your folder tree up and work in batches. As a rule of thumb I’d say up to ~100gb is possible but if you start seeing errors, try breaking the biggest folders in half and moving them in two stages. The SharePoint storage metrics page (available through the site settings) can be very useful to determine where the majority of the data is stored to help you split the job down.

I wouldn’t recommend using the upload function to push up large volumes of files through the Web GUI. You will frequently hit the timeout limit or encounter random crashes which will put you in limbo where it’s hard to know what has been uploaded and what hasn’t

 

Mover.IO / Third-Party Cloud Tools

Microsoft recently bought out the site Mover.IO (https://mover.io) which is a third-party tool for copying cloud files and uploading to SharePoint. The great news is they’ve made the tool free to Microsoft users meaning that you can use it to transfer any amount of data without spending a penny. If your main task is to sync another cloud service (like DropBox) or merge from another O365 tenancy then this tool is very good and works very well.  There are other tools available (BitTitan, CloudHQ) so go with whatever works for you and your budget.

 

Part 2: Know your enemy

The first and most important thing to know about OneDrive is that it can really screw up your data. In theory this should never happen, the app is well established (and I’m sure that the internal sync logic in there is fine) but it does happen, especially with very large data sets. If this is an important project and you are able to use any of the tools listed above instead then I’d strongly recommend that approach over the OneDrive client.

If you are forced down the OneDrive route then there are a few things worth checking before you start

File/Folder Paths

The internal limit for a file path on a Windows device is 260 characters. Any file that goes above this (for example, when one folder tree is moved below another) becomes inaccessible to the operating system and you will find that common operations like delete, copy, etc. start failing. You should be mindful of this when naming your SharePoint sites/libraries and when choosing the default location to synchronise on your PC. For example if your site is titled “My Company Document Library” and your document library is “All Executive Documents”. then by default your OneDrive path could be something like:

C:\Users\Oliver Lennox\Lennox IT\My Company Document Library\All Executive Documents\

Already that’s added nearly 1/3 of your total limit. You can reduce this by choosing the root of the drive as your default path and keeping your site/library names short. e.g.

C:\Lennox IT\Docs\Exec\

once you’ve done your work with OneDrive you can then rename things in SharePoint again if you want to be more readable.

Note that illegal file paths don’t completely crash OneDrive and it will plough on through but it does seem to slow everything down quite dramatically and obviously if your PC is unable to read the file/directory then it won’t be uploaded to your SharePoint.

 

Illegal Characters

To be honest, the latest version of the client seems to do a pretty good job of handling illegal characters in file / folder names so we’ve not encountered too many problems here. Still, it is worth familiarising yourself with these characters in case your data set is particularly exposed:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/restrictions-and-limitations-in-onedrive-and-sharepoint-64883a5d-228e-48f5-b3d2-eb39e07630fa

 

Computer Resources

Any operation which has to trawl very large data sets is always going to put stress on a PC. The bigger the dataset, the more problems you’re going to have. I’d recommend the following:

  • Disable the Windows Search service and any real-time Virus or Malware protection. You don’t want these services kicking in trying to index/scan every file that’s going through the OneDrive app
  • Minimum of 8gb memory. 4gb will often max out and start paging excessively which will slow everything down. 8gb seems to be OK but with very large sets you might still run out
  • Ideally use a spare PC for this if you can so there is nothing to conflict with OneDrive and you can leave it running overnight
  • An SSD will speed things up quite a bit, especially for the system drive. We’ve actually found that the drive which stores your actual OneDrive files is rarely a bottleneck so having a small SSD for the system paired with a large HDD for the files actually works fine
  • A fast internet connection will obviously help but a stable connection is actually more important. The jobs can take several days and are often throttled at Microsoft’s end so stability is usually more important that raw speed

 

Throttling

Microsoft do (and will) throttle your connection to SharePoint online / 365 so with a large job, expect it to start running extremely slowly after a while. You can usually tell because the client on your PC will keep a high memory footprint but CPU, Disk and Network will drop right off.

According to the Microsoft website (https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sharepointmigration/sharepoint-online-and-onedrive-migration-speed). Throttling should mostly occur during the main business hours for your region so letting OneDrive sync outside of these hours should boost performance for the job.

 

32bit / 64bit OneDrive Client

At the time of writing this article (August 2021), Microsoft is in the process of rolling out the 64bit OneDrive client application which should improve performance on 64bit devices (i.e. pretty much all devices these days). Right now this version is only available as a preview build but you can download it and in our testing, there did seem to be slight performance gains (though only slight).

Regardless, it is strongly recommended that your OneDrive client is patched up as far as it will go before you start. The later versions are a lot more stable and work a lot better.

 

Waiting Time

If you are expecting OneDrive to sync a very large number of files and folders then expect to wait a long time. A very long time. We have had jobs which can take months to complete so be prepared to manage your client expectations about how long their project might take. Where the bottleneck is and why it take so long, I have no idea but patience is very important.
 

 

Part 3:   Tips and Tricks

Once you’ve got your OneDrive environment setup as best as you can then these are some of the other little things you can use to monitor your migration and help it along


Pause / Resume toggle

I’ll start with the most basic.  For reasons known only to Microsoft, pausing the client (through the settings menu), waiting for it to pause, and then resuming again can often jump start it back into life. I’m not sure what goes on in the background here or why this works but often it does so give it a go, you might find that a sync which has been running for 12 hours magically finishes.

Illegal Folder Locations

One of the most common reasons for the OneDrive sync client to completely give up is where you have files/folders saved locally to a location that is either nonsense in the context or SharePoint or where your account doesn’t have permission to access it.

For example if you have saved files directly into your company folder (the blue building icon) then this is illegal because the folders directly under here must correspond to a SharePoint site. I have seen the OneDrive client give up the sync entirely when this happens.

The red cross icon is often an indicator when files are saved to a place you don’t have permission to access (like a read-only folder). If this has happened you should either move the folder/file to a valid location or delete them from the OneDrive. This problem can often happen when an admin moves things on the server or when you make group/permission changes to an account in O365.


Don’t trust the progress window / recent file list

When you click the little OneDrive icon near the clock you will bring up status information like the number of files to process or recent activity. For long jobs, this information is often wrong or ambiguous and I wouldn’t recommend relying on it as a basis for your decision making. A far better indicator is Task Manager and seeing what the OneDrive.exe process is doing:

  • OneDrive.exe – High CPU + Disk Activity – This is good, it means that OneDrive is working away doing it’s thing
  • OneDrive.exe – Low CPU + Disk. Memory > 200mb – This usually means it’s working but is on the go slow. Be prepared to wait.
  • OneDrive.exe – Low CPU + Disk + Memory – This could point to an issue. Try the Pause/Resume toggle trick or look for problems in the OneDrive folder. Try a ChkDsk

 

OneDriveTemp folder

OneDrive uses a hidden folder called OneDriveTemp as a bit of a scratch pad when it syncs. This folder is located in the root of the drive that holds your OneDrive folder (e.g. C:\). Often times files will get stuck in here for no real reason and OneDrive won’t seem to process any further. An indicator of this is when OneDrive reports “50 files updating (63.7 mb)”

The Good Old pause/resume trick will often get things moving out of this folder and it’s worth a go. Be wary of abandoning your job when things are in this folder because there is a risk of losing data if do.

 

PS Explorer

The free PS Explorer tool from Microsoft can be very helpful to find out which files OneDrive is currently operating on (which can give you a clue where problems are). Use the “Find Handle / DLL” function to search the OneDrive folder which will show locked files. https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/process-explorer

 

Extreme Patience

As per the previous section, OneDrive can take a very long time and the interface will give you no clue what it’s doing or why. Be patient and leave the client ticking along, eventually it will get there (or it will give you a hint as to what is going wrong) so don’t be tempted to start moving files about or making rash changes which might corrupt the job.

 


 

I hope this article helps you with your OneDrive syncs. If you need help with a large file migration to Office 365 then don’t hesitate to contact us.

The post Problems Synchronising Large Folders with OneDrive first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Problems Synchronising Large Folders with OneDrive appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/problems-synchronising-large-folders-with-onedrive/feed 0
Windows Server 2012 STD Install onto R730 https://lennox-it.uk/windows-server-2012-std-install-onto-r730?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=windows-server-2012-std-install-onto-r730 https://lennox-it.uk/windows-server-2012-std-install-onto-r730#respond Tue, 21 Sep 2021 14:31:36 +0000 https://lennox-it.uk/?p=1324 When it comes to installing Windows Server OS onto a Dell Server, One would imagine quite it’s quite a simple push through Dell’s Lifecycle Controller to get the OS Installed. But like any IT adventure it always has the potential to fight you upon every step of the way.   Our server was an old […]

The post Windows Server 2012 STD Install onto R730 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Windows Server 2012 STD Install onto R730 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
When it comes to installing Windows Server OS onto a Dell Server, One would imagine quite it’s quite a simple push through Dell’s Lifecycle Controller to get the OS Installed. But like any IT adventure it always has the potential to fight you upon every step of the way.

 

Our server was an old Dell PowerEdge R730 on which the drives had been discarded and wiped as part of GDPR Data destruction. With new disks we aimed to get this server a new lease of life.

Best Practices

A good server engineer would always make sure Firmware is up to date on a server before progressing with any install. This involves going through the Dell Lifecycle Controller and going through the firmware update process.

However, this would soon be the first battle.

“Unable to connect to FTP server. (LNK0004)”

 

Entering either FTP.dell.com or Downloads.dell.com would produce this error and after some searching the known workaround to resolve this was to at step 1 of 3: select

“Network Share(CIFS or NFS or HTTP or HTTPS Server)”

But due to the age of our server’s firmware, the HTTPS Server option was not present.

 

Ok, no biggie, just have to update Idrac with Lifecycle controller to the latest version!

Dell Idrac upgrade from 2.10.10.10 to 2.80.80.80

What we did was browse to the Idrac IP address using a web browser and updated the firmware of the lifecycle controller & Idrac from version 2.10.10.10 to 2.50.50.50 and then 2.80.80.80. (For some reason when we updated the firmware of the lifecycle controller, we couldn’t push it all the way to the latest version and had to do this ‘hop’ to and from 2.50.50.50. It’s important to note you can’t actually update the dell Lifecycle controller’s firmware from the menu on the server and has to all be done through the Idrac.

Once we updated the Idrac to the latest version we were able to use the HTTPS Server link as below:

SLN316878_en_US__5image(15071)

(screenshot taken from https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-uk/000177916/lifecycle-controller-platform-updates-failing-from-dell-s-online-repositories )

Pushing through all these firmware updates we now had a server which was fully up to date on the firmware and now we had to get the OS installed.

 

Installing Windows Server 20xx onto a Dell PowerEdge Server

Before we install our operating system we first of all have to configure our Raid. The process is rather straightforward and usually for redundancy reasons we want to create a Raid1 configuration. This means that if we get a drive failure, we have failure redundancy in the other disk working.

Once the raid is configured and operational we’ll look at following through Dell’s lifecycle Controller to install the OS.. But for us this didn’t work! the image we had for windows server wouldn’t work with the lifecycle controller and we were stumped.

 

Installing Windows Server using Idrac

 

IDRAC is a powerful tool to any windows server engineer and one that is severely underrated in its abilities. However the issue we had here was that we had Idrac 7 Express. We weren’t licenced for the virtual console and thus we couldn’t actually install windows without that IDRAC licence.. Luckily DELL allow you a 30 day trial period of the Enterprise license which we utilised to quickly get the virtual console going, attach virtual media of our Windows 2012 Standard ISO and boot to it..

 

Here’s a link that describes this process (but it explains it for Debian, but the process is still the same.)

https://documentation.online.net/en/dedicated-server/operating-system/custom-install/install-from-idrac7

 

Manually installing drivers for windows installation

We came into a problem just at the end of our journey when we encountered that the PERC S130 drivers weren’t being loaded into the windows installer when we booted into the ISO from the virtual Idrac card. To get around this we had to manually click “Load Driver” after downloading the PERC S130 drivers from Dell otherwise our “Drive 0 Unallocated Space” little selection won’t appear

 

after manually loading these PERC raid controller drivers in and going through this last step we were able to get server 2012 standard fully installed!

The post Windows Server 2012 STD Install onto R730 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Windows Server 2012 STD Install onto R730 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/windows-server-2012-std-install-onto-r730/feed 0
How to Reset the Network Cache on Windows 10 https://lennox-it.uk/how-to-reset-the-network-cache-on-windows-10?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=how-to-reset-the-network-cache-on-windows-10 https://lennox-it.uk/how-to-reset-the-network-cache-on-windows-10#respond Mon, 14 Sep 2020 16:00:11 +0000 https://lennox-it.uk/?p=1294 Like all Operating Systems, Windows 10 contains an internal network stack which dictates how your computer connects to other devices through its attached network adaptors. Occasionally this stack can get in a mess – especially if you’re doing funky things with the network or making low level changes to your configuration. Thankfully it is quite […]

The post How to Reset the Network Cache on Windows 10 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post How to Reset the Network Cache on Windows 10 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Like all Operating Systems, Windows 10 contains an internal network stack which dictates how your computer connects to other devices through its attached network adaptors. Occasionally this stack can get in a mess – especially if you’re doing funky things with the network or making low level changes to your configuration. Thankfully it is quite easy to reset everything back to how it should be.

Open an elevated Command Prompt window (or PowerShell) and enter the following commands:

 

>ipconfig /flushdns
>netsh int ipv4 reset
>netsh int ipv6 reset
>netsh winsock reset
>nbtstat -R
>nbtstat -RR

 

At the end you will need to reboot your computer for the command to take effect. Et Voila! Your PC should be back to normal. This can be especially useful if you’ve tried switching out network/wifi cards and your device still won’t connect to a network.

 

The post How to Reset the Network Cache on Windows 10 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post How to Reset the Network Cache on Windows 10 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/how-to-reset-the-network-cache-on-windows-10/feed 0
Error 0x8007016A: The Cloud File provider is not running https://lennox-it.uk/error-0x8007016a-the-cloud-file-provider-is-not-running?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=error-0x8007016a-the-cloud-file-provider-is-not-running https://lennox-it.uk/error-0x8007016a-the-cloud-file-provider-is-not-running#comments Tue, 07 Jul 2020 11:56:58 +0000 https://lennox-it.uk/?p=1288 Sometimes when you are trying to remove folders from OneDrive you will receive the error Error 0x8007016A: The Cloud File provider is not running Annoyingly the error will appear even after the folder is un-linked from OneDrive and even when you try to delete it from an admin account or the command line. The error […]

The post Error 0x8007016A: The Cloud File provider is not running first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Error 0x8007016A: The Cloud File provider is not running appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Sometimes when you are trying to remove folders from OneDrive you will receive the error

Error 0x8007016A: The Cloud File provider is not running

Annoyingly the error will appear even after the folder is un-linked from OneDrive and even when you try to delete it from an admin account or the command line.

The error is often caused when the folder you are trying to delete still has cloud-linked files inside it (or a sub-directory). You need to remove all files from the folder and sub-folders first, then delete the folders. A quick way to achieve this is with the “del” command from the command-line.

1. First browse to the problematic OneDrive directory. (IMPORTANT! Don’t forget this step or you might delete the wrong stuff):

 

> cd "C:\users\MyUsername\My OneDrive Folder\My Problematic Folder"

2. Then use the del command to clean-out all the files:

 

> del *.* /S /Q

The *.* tells the command to delete all files. The /S switch tells it to look inside all sub-directories under the current directory. Finally the /Q switch suppresses the “Y/N” prompt so you don’t have to confirm every file.

Once the command completes, return to Windows Explorer and you should be able to delete the problematic folders.

Hope this helps

The post Error 0x8007016A: The Cloud File provider is not running first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Error 0x8007016A: The Cloud File provider is not running appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/error-0x8007016a-the-cloud-file-provider-is-not-running/feed 4
Complete Guide to Deploying BitLocker Drive Encryption https://lennox-it.uk/complete-guide-to-bitlocker?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=complete-guide-to-bitlocker https://lennox-it.uk/complete-guide-to-bitlocker#respond Tue, 26 Mar 2019 13:16:34 +0000 https://lennox-it.uk/?p=1278 The 2018 GDPR continues to be at the forefront of many IT Manager’s minds and these days there are few excuses for not encrypting your IT assets. We’ve spent much of the past 18 months rolling out Bit Locker encryption to our clients and in this article, I’m going to cover some of the common […]

The post Complete Guide to Deploying BitLocker Drive Encryption first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Complete Guide to Deploying BitLocker Drive Encryption appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
The 2018 GDPR continues to be at the forefront of many IT Manager’s minds and these days there are few excuses for not encrypting your IT assets. We’ve spent much of the past 18 months rolling out Bit Locker encryption to our clients and in this article, I’m going to cover some of the common issues and foibles we’ve run across. Hopefully it will assist you in your roll out of the technology!

 

1.   Windows 7 vs Windows 10

 

BitLocker was first introduced in Windows 7 but requires the Ultimate edition and is not as feature rich as the Windows 10 version (which only requires a Professional license). Windows 7 is also less willing to accept a PIN/password as the primary method of unlocking and without a compatible TPM chip you are forced to use a USB pen drive to unlock the machine which is not ideal if you have a lot of assets to encrypt.

All things considered we recommend to our clients that their environments should be upgraded to Windows 10 before rolling out BitLocker. Personally, I would recommend that any Windows 7 PC should be upgraded as a matter of course anyway (Microsoft is ending Windows 7 support soon) so this project can be a good excuse to bring your older machines up-to-date.

 

2.   TPM or not to TPM

 

BitLocker is ratiodesigned to work alongside a TPM chip and the performance will be a lot better if the assets you are encrypting have a TPM 2.0 (or later) installed. That said it is possible to still encrypt the drive without a compatible TPM and that is often the case where the business has employed a lot of “home” PCs (e.g. bought from PC World or Amazon) or where older hardware is still in use.

In order to enable BitLocker without a TPM you need edit the Group Policy on the machine/domain to “allow the use of Bit Locker without a compatible TPM”. The settings for this can be found under:

Local Computer Policy > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > BitLocker Drive Encryption > Operating System Drives

If your computer does have a TPM then you will need to both enable it and prepare it before you can enable Bit Locker. There is a “TPM Administration” tool (available through a link on the Bit Locker configuration page) where you can do this. Note that in some cases you will have to enter your PC’s BIOS settings to clear/enable the TPM (though don’t clear it when you already a drive encrypted!)

Also note that in some cases we have had to upgrade the firmware of the TPM chip before Bit Locker could be successfully enabled. If you are having trouble with the TPM then we would recommend that you visit the manufacturer’s support page and search for any available BIOS or TPM firmware updates

 

3.   IMPORTANT! Before you Begin

 

Before commencing with the BitLocker setup, we STRONGLY recommend that you commit any pending Windows updates and fully reboot the machine.

We have had a handful of machines completely bricked where the drive thinks that it is encrypted but the password AND the recovery key will not unlock it. Usually in this scenario the actual data is still accessible on the disk and can be recovered but what is usually a 5-minute job becomes a 5-hour job when you have to manually recover their data from the disk and completely rebuild the machine.

When you have 50 odd machines to encrypt it can be tempting to skip this step but I can’t stress enough how important it is, take the extra time, reboot the machine and save yourself a million headaches.

 

4.   Enabling BitLocker Step One: System Check / Preparation

 

Whilst you can use the ‘manage-bde’ command-line utility to enable Bit Locker, I’d recommend sticking to the GUI / wizard where possible to avoid mistakes. Manage-bde must be run from an elevated command prompt and gives more control over the process but you need an in-depth knowledge of BitLocker to really make the most of it and unless you’re putting some kind of deployment script together it’s not worth the hassle.

Always make sure you run the BitLocker system check. There’s never any reason not to do this and you want to make sure it’s all going to work.

The first stage of the GUI is to scan and prepare your computer for Bit Locker and this is where you’ll encounter most of your problems:

TPM Related Errors

If your computer has a TPM chip and it’s not been properly enabled or cleared then this will often cause a TPM related error. The solution is to go back to step 2: Check your BIOS, try and update the firmware, go through the TPM administration tools, and then try again. If all fails you can use the Group Policy to explicitly disable the use of the TPM.

‘Drive Could not be configured’ / drive or partition errors

The layout and size of the partitions on the drive can cause this step to fail. This seems to be a particular issue where manufacturers have done odd things with recovery partitions or where the partitions absolutely max out the disk and there is no free space. Don’t quote me on this but from what I’ve read Bit Locker requires about 100mb of raw space at the beginning or end of the target partition to store its own inner workings and so you might have to move, delete or shrink some of your partitions to free up space. Partition Magic is a great tool for this but there are loads of free tools available. Note that the wizard will try to automatically adjust your partitions to make things work but where it fails, you’ll have to do it manually. BE VERY CAREFUL here as deleting or damaging your partition might lead to data loss and may leave your PC inoperable.

 

Unknown errors / “could not enable BL” errors

Boot entries and a lack of secure UEFI booting can also cause problems. If you use any boot loaders or have installed any applications that have their own boot entries then you might find that these conflict with BitLocker. Again, don’t quote me but from what I’ve read Bit Locker needs the Windows boot loader to be the default entry and it also seems to be happier if UEFI boot is enabled (there are often issues if you try to enable Bit Locker with Legacy boot mode).  If you have problems here then I’d recommend converting your Windows installation to use UEFI boot and also use the msconfig tool to check your boot entries. BE VERY CAREFUL with this because mistakes here will damage your boot records and you might not be able to get into your PC.

The boot order in the BIOS can also play a factor and sometimes Bit Locker will fail if the primary operating system partition is not the first item in the boot order. This can be a particular issue for servers where you have network booting and RAID controllers thrown into the mix so you will have to have a tinker around in there and try to disable any devices that are attempting to boot ahead of the primary drive.

 

5.   Enabling Bit Locker Step Two: Settings

 

This step actually occurs both before and after the previous step but I thought it simpler to group all these together.

The first thing you select when enabling Bit Locker is how you would like to secure the drive (TPM, USB key, PIN). If you can’t find the option you want here then you will usually need to go back and make changes to the Group Policy or prepare the TPM as per step 2. Occasionally you will be unable to enter a PIN whatever you do but don’t worry , just enable Bit Locker with the TPM and you can use manage-bde to add a PIN later on.

Once you’ve run through the system check (see previous step) you will then need to configure it:

  • Either enter your PIN or load a blank USB key for securing the system. If you are using the TPM only then you won’t need to do either.
  • You will need to save your recovery key to a safe place or print it. If you lose this, you’re completely stuffed so keep your recovery key very very safe however you choose to store it. We preferred to store all of ours in secure cloud storage with offline backups. It goes without saying that you should not save it to a drive you are planning to encrypt (!).
  • We always enable “new encryption mode” as the technology is better and more secure. There are only a handful of very niche situations where you would want to select the older method of encryption so I’d always select new here.
  • Finally, we prefer to encrypt the whole drive including empty space but there are arguments for both methods here so choose whatever you prefer.

 

 

6.   Has it worked?

 

Once you’ve run through the wizard, Bit Locker will prompt you to reboot. I’d recommend you do this immediately as the system is in an unstable state and you don’t want to risk doing anything which could cock up the initialisation and brick your PC.

If you have chosen to enter a PIN to unlock the drive then you should be prompted for this after the reboot. If you’re not prompted then that is the first indication that things have gone wrong.

If you chose to use a USB stick then you must ensure this remains plugged in for the first reboot. If you unplug the USB after completing the setup wizard then Bit Locker assumes that something has gone wrong and aborts. Once the first reboot has happened and Bit Locker starts encrypting the drive you are safe to remove it.

The TPM only option doesn’t give you any warning either way so you’ll just have to see where you are when Windows loads.

If all has gone well then you should get the Bit Locker icon appearing in the taskbar and clicking on it will give you a percentage showing how much of the disk is encrypted. Note that you need Administrator permissions to view this and if you click the icon with a standard user account it will not show you the percentage.

If things have not gone well then you will need to go back to step 2 and start working back through the list of possible problems:

  • TPM issues?
  • Group Policy issues?
  • Pending Windows Updates?
  • Partition / Drive issues?
  • Boot issues?
  • UEFI not enabled?
  • Took out the USB key too soon?

Remember that the data is not actually encrypted until the percentage reaches 100% so be patient and leave the PC on until it’s done.  Sometimes Bit Locker will stall or fail before it reaches 100% and we’ll cover this in the next section.

 

7.   Post-Setup Blues

 

In handful of cases the BitLocker encryption will stall out before it reaches 100%. This can usually be fixed by booting into the Windows RE (using a Windows 10 recovery / boot disk) and then allowing BitLocker to complete from there. The manage-bde utility can be used from the command prompt to check on the progress of Bit Locker while you are in Windows RE. I’d guess this is caused by the OS or a core application (like an Anti-Virus) locking out sectors on the disk while Windows is running.

Sometimes due to oddness with the TPM or Group Policy, Windows will flat out refuse to let you enter a PIN code. Once Bit Locker has finished encrypting the drive you can usually add this manually using the manage-bde utility with the -AddProtectors flag. If there are problems which are preventing you from enabling the PIN you will usually get a more useful error message here which can help you troubleshoot the problem.

Finally, there will be occasions where BitLocker stalls at 99%. We’ve had this occur on a couple of servers and from what I’ve read the issue seems to be related to one of the points already listed previously (likely boot order or issues with the partitions). In this case you just have to work your way through the steps and try to figure out where it’s stalling.

 

I hope this guide helps you get up and running with BitLocker. If you have any other points to add please mention them in the comments below.

 

If your business needs help rolling out BitLocker or if you would like a consultation please don’t hesitate to get in touch

The post Complete Guide to Deploying BitLocker Drive Encryption first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Complete Guide to Deploying BitLocker Drive Encryption appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/complete-guide-to-bitlocker/feed 0
Troubleshooting internet problems https://lennox-it.uk/troubleshooting-internet-problems?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=troubleshooting-internet-problems https://lennox-it.uk/troubleshooting-internet-problems#comments Tue, 11 Oct 2016 15:19:27 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=1217 We use the internet for pretty much every aspect of our lives these days. So when you can’t get access to it, it becomes a big problem. A wide variety of problems can block internet (and local network) connections. Your first job is to find the cause. This post will give some useful tips on what […]

The post Troubleshooting internet problems first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Troubleshooting internet problems appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
We use the internet for pretty much every aspect of our lives these days. So when you can’t get access to it, it becomes a big problem. A wide variety of problems can block internet (and local network) connections. Your first job is to find the cause. This post will give some useful tips on what to look for when trying to fix the connection problem. You could try the standard IT response…restart. Try turning off your device and router for a few seconds and then turn back on and wait for it to reboot. Once you have turned your device back on try to reconnect. If this does not work try the following:

So first of all is it just the website you are trying to access? What may seem to be a network problem connecting to the internet is sometimes simply a web site being temporarily offline. Try searching for a commonly used website, such as google? If it still cannot connect to the internet then you can use our checklist below to see if you can find and resolve the issue:

  • Is there a problem with the actual phone line? Check for any obvious damage, for example, if you have had bad weather, has the wind damaged anything? If there is no obvious damage you can always phone your telephone company to get them to run a line test and check the service status in the area.

If that is all ok then the next thing to check is the broadband. Unplugged or loose network cables are easy to miss yet one of the most common reasons you might suddenly find yourself unable to connect to the Internet. On home networks, it’s also possible someone unplugged the router.

  • Is the router plugged in?
  • Is it plugged in to the phone line?
  • Are the wires plugged in to the back of the router? (a child or cleaner could have knocked it)
  • Are the lights flashing on the router? If green lights are flashing on it, that’s normal and indicates network traffic. If you see a steady, blinking orange light, that generally indicates the problem.
  • Is it just your computer or is it other computers in the house or on site?
  • Has anyone reset the router?
  • Is anything plugged in to another phone socket? check around the house or office

If these have been checked and it all seems ok, give the telephone company another call and see if they can check the status of the broadband connection and dial in to the router (if they can) to check the settings.

If it is just one PC check to see if the Wifi is connected, are there any error messages such as a yellow exclamation mark or red cross? These could mean there is a problem with the network settings.

If you are using a cable rather than Wifi check the cable for any damage, for example, has it been trapped in a door? Check the cable is connected to the computer and the router.

Another thing would be to check if your device is in range? The performance of Wifi network connections depends on distance between the device and the wireless access point. The further away a Wifi device, the slower the local connection generally runs, until it breaks altogether. Wireless signal interference in the area can also limit the effective range of a Wifi connection.

If, after these checks, you still have no luck please don’t hesitate to give us a call on (+44) 01773 570028

The post Troubleshooting internet problems first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Troubleshooting internet problems appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/troubleshooting-internet-problems/feed 1
Setting up Free Remote Access using VNC https://lennox-it.uk/setting-up-free-remote-access-using-vnc?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=setting-up-free-remote-access-using-vnc https://lennox-it.uk/setting-up-free-remote-access-using-vnc#respond Tue, 06 Sep 2016 15:07:05 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=1181 There are many fantastic remote access solutions available these days like TeamViewer or LogMeIn but most of them come with a very high price tag. If you’re looking for remote access on a budget then VNC is an excellent free alternative that is also relatively quick and easy to setup.  In this article I will talk you through configuring […]

The post Setting up Free Remote Access using VNC first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Setting up Free Remote Access using VNC appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
There are many fantastic remote access solutions available these days like TeamViewer or LogMeIn but most of them come with a very high price tag. If you’re looking for remote access on a budget then VNC is an excellent free alternative that is also relatively quick and easy to setup.  In this article I will talk you through configuring VNC as a free remote access tool, lets begin.

1 Download the software

The first step is o download the VNC software from their website (https://www.realvnc.com/download/vnc/). The main download button is for the server component which you will need to install on the computer you would like to control.

In addition to this you will also need to download the VNC Viewer (https://www.realvnc.com/download/viewer/) onto the PC that you will be using for remote access. Remember to select the correct operating system and the correct binary type for your computer (32bit or 64bit).

 

2 Install the Server Component

Follow the wizard to install the VNC software onto the server/PC you wish to remote access. You may untick “VNC Viewer” in the component list as you will not need this on the server. You may also be prompted to “Add an exception to the firewall”, make sure to keep this ticked as you will need to allow VNC traffic through your firewall.

Once you’ve completed the install VNC will prompt your for a license key. We’ll need one of these so select the option “Obtain a license key” and click the link to visit the VNC website. You will want to choose the “Free” option from the available licenses and on the next page ensure that you tick “Free license only, without enterprise features”.  Finally, complete the form with your details and you will be given a license key which you can copy/paste back into the setup wizard.

With licensing done you will now have to complete the last few bits of setup. Tick to acknowledge that unencrypted sessions are fine (the free version doesn’t provide encryption) and enter in the password you want to use for accessing the machine. Remember to write this down as you will need it when connecting to the computer.

You have now successfully installed VNC and you should receive a screen where it gives you some connection information. This isn’t particularly useful to us because this information will be about your internal network and won’t actually help you connect from outside the office so the next step is to configure your router…

 

3 Configuring your Router and PC to accept external connections

Once you have installed VNC you should have the VNC window open on the screen (it will have a green bar at the top saying “Ready for Connection”). If you don’t see this then look in your taskbar for the VNC icon and double click it – the window should appear.

Click the button “more..” and choose “information centre” then click the tab “diagnostics”. Under this tab you will see an option that says “Test Internet Connection”. Click this and VNC will check to see whether the PC is visible to the outside world. Chances are if you’ve just installed VNC then this test will fail and you will be given a message to help you troubleshoot the problem.

In order to allow remote users to connect to the PC you will have to:

  1. Ensure that port 5900 is allowed through the Firewall on your PC. If you use the Windows firewall then the setup should have automatically added an exception rule but if you use another firewall (perhaps included with your virus scanner software) then you will need to manually add a rule here to allow inbound traffic from port 5900 (TCP).
  2. You will have to forward port 5900 (TCP) on your broadband router to the computer where you installed VNC. All broadband routers are different so I’m afraid we can’t provide the precise steps to follow but if you Google the phrase “Forward Port <Your Router Make/Model>” then you should be able to find a guide to help you.
  3. Ensure that any other firewalls on your network between your router and your PC are configured to allow port 5900 (and to forward the port if necessary). For example if you have a broadband router connected to an office router which in turn connects to a firewall server then you will have to configure all three to allow port 5900 and forward it to the correct place.

Once you’re done go back to VNC and run the “Test Internet Connection” utility again. If you’ve configured everything correctly then you should receive a message saying the test completed successfully.

 

4 Install the VNC Viewer on your remote PC

The next stage is to install the VNC viewer onto your remote PC (i.e. the one you will use remotely to access the server PC). The setup process here is relatively simply so just follow the steps in the wizard and when you’re done ensure that port 5900 (TCP) is open on your firewall. As with the server if you have other firewalls in between you and the internet you may need to open up ports on here too.

 

5 Finding your PC from outside the network

VNC is now installed and is accessible from the internet but how do you go about finding your computer when you’re sitting in a hotel room in Doncaster? There are a few options here so I’ll start with the easiest ones first:

Fixed IP
If your business pays for a “fixed IP Address” from your broadband supplier then this can be used to access your computer from anywhere. The fixed IP will look something like this (“70.56.45.34”) and you simply need to enter the number into the VNC viewer to connect. If you’re unsure about whether you have a fixed IP or not then give your broadband provider a call and they will be able to tell you.

Domain Name
If you host your own email or website on the premises then chances are you already have a domain name assigned to your business which we can use for VNC. This will be something like “mail.mycompany.com” or “www.mycompany.com”. Simply enter the address into the VNC viewer to connect.

Dynamic DNS
If you have neither of the above then dynamic DNS can come to the rescue. Simply sign-up to a dynamic DNS service like no-ip (http://www.noip.com/) and install their small utility to your server PC (i.e. the one on the business premises). Once installed you will be able to assign a domain address to the computer which you will be able to use with VNC, for example: “mycomputer.no-ip.org”. So long as the utility is running and the computer is connected to the internet then this address will always allow you to connect to it.

Once your done simply enter the address above into VNC viewer, hit connect and type your password from step 2. Congratulations you can now remote access your PC in the office, for free!

If you need help with remote access or want to talk to us about alternative remote access solutions for your business then don’t hesitate to contact us

The post Setting up Free Remote Access using VNC first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Setting up Free Remote Access using VNC appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/setting-up-free-remote-access-using-vnc/feed 0
Macbook or IMac running slow? It may by time for a Format… https://lennox-it.uk/macbook-or-imac-running-slow-it-may-by-time-for-a-format?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=macbook-or-imac-running-slow-it-may-by-time-for-a-format https://lennox-it.uk/macbook-or-imac-running-slow-it-may-by-time-for-a-format#comments Mon, 22 Aug 2016 09:21:10 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=1207 The latest versions of the Mac OS X operating system are not available as DVDs, but you can still boot your computer to an installation volume and run different Disk Utility operations. For example, if you need to reinstall Mac OS X on a MacBook in your office and want to clear all the data […]

The post Macbook or IMac running slow? It may by time for a Format… first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Macbook or IMac running slow? It may by time for a Format… appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
The latest versions of the Mac OS X operating system are not available as DVDs, but you can still boot your computer to an installation volume and run different Disk Utility operations. For example, if you need to reinstall Mac OS X on a MacBook in your office and want to clear all the data off of the computer, you can use Disk Utility to reformat the laptop’s internal hard drive. Before reformatting the MacBook, make sure to back up all data that you want to retain.

Step 0
Backup all your data to an external HD

Step 1
Restart your MacBook and hold down the Command and R keys when the gray startup screen appears.

Step 2
Click on the “Disk Utility” option and then click “Continue.”

Step 3
Highlight your MacBook’s internal hard drive from the list on the left side of the window.

Step 4
Go to the Erase tab at the top of the window.

Step 5
Set the format type to “Mac OS Extended (Journaled),” and then enter a name for the hard drive that will be reformatted.

Step 6
Click the “Erase” button.

Step 7
Open the Disk Utility menu when the reformatting process is finished, and click “Quit Disk Utility.”

Step 8
Click on “Reinstall Mac OS X” to begin the process of installing a fresh copy of the operating system.

The post Macbook or IMac running slow? It may by time for a Format… first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Macbook or IMac running slow? It may by time for a Format… appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/macbook-or-imac-running-slow-it-may-by-time-for-a-format/feed 6
Windows 10 Upgrade Loses All of your Files And Settings https://lennox-it.uk/windows-10-upgrade-loses-all-of-your-files-and-settings?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=windows-10-upgrade-loses-all-of-your-files-and-settings https://lennox-it.uk/windows-10-upgrade-loses-all-of-your-files-and-settings#comments Thu, 17 Mar 2016 11:30:21 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=1195 We recently worked on site with a client who had upgraded their Windows 7 Home computer to Windows 10. The update appeared to have been successful but after logging into their computer they noticed that their files were missing from the desktop and their applications had lost all of the settings (including email, virus scanners, printers, etc.). […]

The post Windows 10 Upgrade Loses All of your Files And Settings first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Windows 10 Upgrade Loses All of your Files And Settings appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
We recently worked on site with a client who had upgraded their Windows 7 Home computer to Windows 10. The update appeared to have been successful but after logging into their computer they noticed that their files were missing from the desktop and their applications had lost all of the settings (including email, virus scanners, printers, etc.).

If this has happened to you then the fix should be relatively simple…

 

Why has this happened?

If your computer seems fine but your files are missing then typically this means that your user profile has not been loaded correctly. Your user profile contains all of your files and settings and without it your computer will revert back to default settings. You can tell whether your profile has loaded correctly in Windows 10 by following these steps:

  • Right click on the start (Windows) button in the bottom left hand corner of the screen
  • From the menu choose “Command Prompt (Admin)”
  • Click “Yes” to allow this program to make changes to your computer
  • In the black command window that opens type “SET” at the command prompt and then press the Return / Enter key:
         C:\WINDOWS\system32> SET
  • A large amount of text will be dumped to the screen. if you scroll upwards a little way then you should see some lines that look like this:
         USERDOMAIN=OLLYPC
         USERDOMAIN_ROAMINGPROFILE=OLLYPC
         USERNAME=Olly
         USERPROFILE=C:\Users\Olly
  • Here you can see the details of the profile that you’re currently using. In my case you can see that my username is Olly and  I’m loading the profile located at C:\Users\Olly

Chances are if you are experiencing problems then the value of USERPROFILE will be something like C:\Users\TEMP or C:\Users\TemporaryProfile. If you notice that your Username is not the same as your old (Windows 7) username then you might be logging in with the wrong user account or Windows 10 might have created you a new account to use which has not synchronised correctly with your old account.

 

My Username is right but the USERPROFILE is a temporary one

If your Windows 10 PC is running on a temporary profile then chances are that the account was not correctly assigned to the “Users” group during the Windows 10 setup. We can easily solve this using the following steps:

  • Follow the steps above to open up a command prompt window
  • At the prompt enter the following command replacing <USERNAME> with the value returned by the SET command above:
    C:\WINDOWS\system32> net localgroup Users <USERNAME> /add
  • So for example in my case the command would be:
    C:\WINDOWS\system32> net localgroup Users Olly /add
  • Once you press enter the command should return the message “Completed Successfully” or words to that effect.
  • Reboot your computer

Once your computer restarts you will receive a message that says “Configuring Windows” with a swirly loading animation. This might take several minutes to complete so go and make a cup of tea and make sure not to switch off your computer. Eventually the login page will appear and after logging in all of your settings and documents should have been restored.

Note that if your username has a space in it then you might have to use quotation marks for the above command  to work. For example:

     C:\WINDOWS\system32> net localgroup Users "Olly Lennox" /add

My Username is not the same as my old Windows 7 one

If your username does not look right then potentially you are not signed into Windows 10 with the correct. First:

  • Right click on the start (Windows) button in the bottom left hand corner of the screen
  • Choose the option “Control Panel”
  • Click on the option “User Accounts” (it might be a text link or an icon depending on your setup)
    • If the option was a text link then you might have to click “User Accounts” a second time in the next screen
  • Click the option “Manage Another Account” and select your old account in the list.
  • Try using the option to update the password on this account and also try upgrading it to an Administrator account.
  • Restart your computer

Once your computer restarts select your old username and enter your new password, this should load up your old profile with your old documents and settings

 

The Steps Above Did not work / My old username did not exist in User Accounts

If you’re still having problems then try some of the links below to see if they help fix the problem:

In a worse case scenario you can also follow these steps to roll back to Windows 7

 

We hope this helps!

The post Windows 10 Upgrade Loses All of your Files And Settings first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Windows 10 Upgrade Loses All of your Files And Settings appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/windows-10-upgrade-loses-all-of-your-files-and-settings/feed 1
Is your old IT Suffocating your Business? https://lennox-it.uk/is-your-old-it-suffocating-your-business?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=is-your-old-it-suffocating-your-business https://lennox-it.uk/is-your-old-it-suffocating-your-business#respond Fri, 26 Feb 2016 19:07:01 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=1183 At Lennox IT we strive to deliver 21st century IT solutions which are agile, flexible and robust.  A large number of our clients come to us with older systems which hark back to the days when every business aspired towards a large room full of giant computers like something out of the movie Tron. In 2016 though […]

The post Is your old IT Suffocating your Business? first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Is your old IT Suffocating your Business? appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>

At Lennox IT we strive to deliver 21st century IT solutions which are agile, flexible and robust.  A large number of our clients come to us with older systems which hark back to the days when every business aspired towards a large room full of giant computers like something out of the movie Tron. In 2016 though a giant server room brings with it an equally giant electricity bill and an army of IT support workers to keep the whole thing working. Unless your business is in IT Services then it’s unlikely that this is a cost which your business really needs or wants.

We frequently see small businesses of under 10 employees who are struggling with enterprise grade IT solutions (Active Directory,  DNS servers,  Exchange servers, Commercial Firewalls,  Group Policy etc. etc.) when a much simpler solution would suffice. I’m sure these systems sound fantastic when a salesmen is describing how productive your staff will become but really they are overkill for an SME and quickly become an expensive, risky burden.

If you are unfortunate enough to possess one of these systems then I have a question: Do you really understand what that server in the corner is doing and what data it holds? Do you have a plan in place for when it suddenly stops working? What about if the building catches fire, how long would it take to get another server up and running again?

A scary thought? It shouldn’t be!

 

The Cloud is here to stay

 

10 years ago the server in the corner was a necessary evil but times have very much changed. Internet connections are faster –and crucially more reliable – than ever with a large number of businesses having access to high speed fibre lines. On-line services have also become well established and whilst the big names like Google and Microsoft still offer some of the best services, there are an increasing number of smaller companies now offering similar services at affordable prices. The cost of devices have also fallen with laptops coming in under £200 and most people carrying around a smart phone in their pocket.

There was a time not long ago where an IT Director could argue that the cloud is too unreliable as a basis for business IT but this argument rings hollow today. Obviously if you’re based in a rural location where your internet is patchy then moving completely into the cloud without an offline cache could be a risk but for most UK cities and towns the internet is no longer a limiting factor and will let you down considerably less often than your staff’s sick days or the weather!

So what should I do?

 

If you’re planning to move your IT into the 21st century then the first thing you need to do is understand what your existing IT is doing for you.  If you have an old server then usually it will be providing :

  • Exchange email server – provides email management, calendars, contacts, etc.
  • Active Directory – controls security and user profiles across your network
  • File sharing (and potentially printer sharing too)
  • Remote access (VPN)
  • Running your line of business applications – e.g. business management applications, customer databases, financial systems like Sage, etc.

Let’s take a look at how each one in turn can be upgraded:

 

Exchange Email Server

Moving from Exchange is relatively simple in this day and age. There are literally thousands of companies offering email hosting at affordable prices and there are also a wide range of options for shared calendars, contact management, and tasks/project management.

In fact many of the on-line services provide better integration with Android/IOS than Exchange does and make it easy to share information around the company and your devices rather than “squirrelling” it away into individual user accounts or user profiles where it can be difficult to control.

 

Active Directory

To understand AD its easiest to talk about what it really brings to your business. The main benefit of AD is that it allows your staff to hot-desk so that they are not tied to one PC. It also allows you to push out settings and policies across all of your workstations so you don’t have to manually configure each one.

However in practice it rarely works out perfectly:

Shunting large user profiles around the network is inefficient and leads to long loading times for your staff. Whilst hot-desking becomes easier in practice, in reality it can become a massive headache for your users since even a slight configuration difference between workstations can stop your applications working or create confusing quirks or lost settings.  Allocating your staff a laptop or tablet which they can carry with them is a considerably simpler solution which works must better in practice.

The benefits of Group Policy and centralized configuration is also overstated. Again, in theory this should save time but in practice it often takes a long to write specific deployment or configuration scripts . It can often be quicker and cheaper to simply run around your workstations and do it manually. It is also important to consider what policies need enforcing through the software and what can be enforced through company culture and staff policies. If you trust your staff and operate an open office culture then it’s not always necessary to lock all of your workstations down. Similarly users should be discouraged from storing sensitive or private data on their computers and this should instead be stored in managed file stores which are backed up and protected.

In Summary: if your staff MUST desk-swap (and can’t just use a laptop!) then you need AD. Similarly, if you have a large number of workstations (more than 30-40) and need to regularly push out updates, settings, etc. then potentially you also need AD.  Otherwise we recommend that you give it a miss as it will be bringing no value to your business.

File / Printer Sharing

 

There are a huge variety of low cost file sharing solutions around these days to store  and share your company documents. If your documents must stay on site then you could use a low cost NAS storage drive. Most of these now support RAID 1 for extra resiliency and can also be configured to sync to a take-home USB drive or cloud backup system.

For cloud solutions you have a wide choice from DropBox to Google Drive, SkyDrive and many more. Cloud storage gives you the option of easily accessing your documents from phones and tablets which can be great for your Sales team or Road Warriors who sometimes struggle to get back to the office.

All modern printers are capable of managing their own queues and can be shared on the network so “printer sharing” on a server is a throw back to the olden days and not really an issue any more.

Remote Access (VPN)

Many commercial grade internet routers now offer VPN out of the box and even the most basic internet routers provide options for traffic routing and port forwarding along with a basic firewall. If you have specific requirements in this space then there is some argument for running a server or buying a dedicated firewall box but for most SME the internet router that comes free with your broadband is suitable for your requirements.

There are also a wide range of “remote access” tools now available on the web like PCAnywhere, LogMeIn, etc. which can provide no-nonsense remote access to workstations. If you have remote workers that need to access a specific PC on your network then these services can be a good solution.

 

Business Application Server

If you are running specific business applications then this is one area where a server in the corner is completely justified. Many standard business tools like Sage and QuickBooks now offer web alternatives should you wish to move into the cloud there but if you are running specialist management software then this is not always an option.

If you need a business application server then we recommend keeping it clean and only use it to run the software your business needs and nothing else. This keeps thing manageable and means that if the server does develop a fault then it can be isolated and resolved without affecting other aspects of the business.

 

The Next Step

All of our “business in a box” systems are built around cloud services and simple, low cost technology which empower your business instead of enslaving it. head over to the business in a box section to learn more and to see how cost effective these systems are

If you need help transitioning from your old IT system to something new then we are here to help! We can talk you through all the pros and cons and help you choose a modern system that truly works for your business.  Simply drop us a message on our contact page and we can arrange a free, no obligation consultation to discuss your business.

The post Is your old IT Suffocating your Business? first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Is your old IT Suffocating your Business? appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/is-your-old-it-suffocating-your-business/feed 0
Ransomware is on the rise so its never been more important to backup your data https://lennox-it.uk/ransomware-is-on-the-rise-so-its-never-been-more-important-to-backup-your-data?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ransomware-is-on-the-rise-so-its-never-been-more-important-to-backup-your-data https://lennox-it.uk/ransomware-is-on-the-rise-so-its-never-been-more-important-to-backup-your-data#respond Fri, 29 Jan 2016 20:52:12 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=1177 I was recently on site with a client who had suffered an attack from the CryptoLocker virus, a variant of the infamous family of viruses known as “Ransomware”. Ransomware viruses are usually spread by malicious email attachments or are hidden inside seemingly innocuous looking downloads like free games or “fun” utilities. Once you open the email attachment or […]

The post Ransomware is on the rise so its never been more important to backup your data first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Ransomware is on the rise so its never been more important to backup your data appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
I was recently on site with a client who had suffered an attack from the CryptoLocker virus, a variant of the infamous family of viruses known as “Ransomware”. Ransomware viruses are usually spread by malicious email attachments or are hidden inside seemingly innocuous looking downloads like free games or “fun” utilities. Once you open the email attachment or start the hijacked application it will trigger the Ransomware code to execute, commencing the attack on your computer.

What happens next is absolutely horrible. First the Ransomware will delete all of your stored Windows backups / recovery images and will attempt to disable virus scanners and backup utilities. Next it moves through all of the folders on your computer and systematically encrypts your files with a strong encryption algorithm, effectively scrambling the data and making it impossible to read. Finally a ransom note is copied to numerous folders on the computer which states that the virus will only release the encryption key to unlock your files if a ransom of £### pounds is paid via the hacker’s website. To make things even worse the virus will also attack files stored on USB and external drives attached to the computer, so in the case of this client their backup drive (which was connected at the time) was also encrypted along with computer leaving no copies of the data to restore.

Whilst it is possible – easy infact – to remove the Ransomware virus following an infection, in most cases it is impossible to recover the encrypted files without the encryption key. This is because the encryption algorithm used to scramble the files is the same system used to secure your on-line banking and to protect your computer passwords so it is designed to be completely impregnable to attack unless the correct keys are given.

You can take your chances and pay the ransom in the hope that the hackers will provide your encryption key but you’re dealing with a criminal gang so there is absolutely no guarantee that they will return the key when you pay. In some cases it is possible to get the files back using specialist recovery tools but that is not the case for every variant of the virus and certainly in the case of this client that was not a possibility.

So what can be done?

Unfortunately once the attack has happened the answer is: “Not very much”.  However there are lots of things you can do BEFORE you are infected to ensure that a Ransomware attack is just a minor inconvenience rather than a serious problem. These steps include:

  • Put a complete backup system in place, with all computers and servers backed up to a network location and with daily off-site backups of your important company data. With a proper backup system you should only ever risk losing a few hours work no matter how badly you are attacked
  • Educate your staff and make them aware of the dangers of malware. With these kind of viruses you are only ever at threat if someone clicks something that they shouldn’t. Remind your staff never to open an email attachment unless it’s from a trusted sender and the document is either expected or in keeping with the habits of the sender. Also ask them never to install software onto a computer unless it’s been checked by your IT support team first (if you are on a corporate domain then these settings can be restricted with Group Policy).  Finally make sure that they store important data in a location which is protected and backed up like a company file server or in cloud storage like Google Drive or Dropbox – there is never a reason to store important company data on a PC or laptop.
  • Ensure that you have virus scanners installed on all PCs and make sure that they are kept up-to-date. Also ensure that you have the latest Windows Updates installed so you are protected by the latest security fixes.
  • If you are committed to using a USB drive to make backups then buy two drives and alternate them on different days (e.g. use drive one on Monday, drive two on Tuesday, drive one on Wednesday, etc.). In this way even if the drive become infected you can always roll back to the other one.

 

One thing you should note about all of the above points is that they are inexpensive solutions, mainly just requiring time or proper training. Also remember that storage has never been cheaper than it is now and a small investment today could prevent an absolute catastrophe further on down the line. This client did not have proper backups and now this week they are facing the reality that a large amount of their important company files are lost forever.

If you want any help with backups or security then contact us today

 

 

 

The post Ransomware is on the rise so its never been more important to backup your data first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Ransomware is on the rise so its never been more important to backup your data appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/ransomware-is-on-the-rise-so-its-never-been-more-important-to-backup-your-data/feed 0
How to undo an UPDATE or DELETE in SQL Server https://lennox-it.uk/how-to-undo-an-update-or-delete-in-sql-server?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=how-to-undo-an-update-or-delete-in-sql-server https://lennox-it.uk/how-to-undo-an-update-or-delete-in-sql-server#respond Thu, 31 Dec 2015 10:18:49 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=1139 When ‘that’ Update statement wipes your database   No matter how careful or experienced you are at SQL Server development, there will inevitably be times when you run a query that you really wish you had not run. I was working on a project recently for a client and hacking around with my local development environment to […]

The post How to undo an UPDATE or DELETE in SQL Server first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post How to undo an UPDATE or DELETE in SQL Server appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
When ‘that’ Update statement wipes your database

 

No matter how careful or experienced you are at SQL Server development, there will inevitably be times when you run a query that you really wish you had not run. I was working on a project recently for a client and hacking around with my local development environment to try and fast track a piece of functionality. The hack involved updating a series of rows in a 1,500,000 row table and I was executing a series of UPDATEs in SQL Management studio because I didn’t want to waste time writing an admin script to do it. All was going well until I accidentally highlighted half of the UPDATE (without the WHERE clause of course) and  one brief F5 press later I was very surprised  to read that I had “Successfully updated 1.5 million rows”. It was only suppose to be 2.

Uh oh.

It might have been a development environment but I had a couple of months of work invested into this database and copying back from the live environment would not have helped. Like a genius I had also neglected to take any backups of the development environment and the only restore version was from over 2 years ago.

Panic.

 

Always Use Transactions

 

At this point in the story let me give you one piece of advice that you already know but frequently fail to act upon:

 

ALWAYS WRAP YOUR UPDATE AND DELETE STATEMENTS IN A TRANSACTION

 

Transactional syntax is not difficult and it only takes 5 seconds to type “BEGIN TRAN” … “COMMIT” but in doing so you are saving yourself hours of headache when things like this happen. Even if you’re only working in a dev environment like I was, just do it and make it a permanent habit.

Anyway, the reason you’re reading this is because you were not using transactions (if you were then obviously the simple solution is just to execute the ROLLBACK statement to reverse the last transaction). In this case no amount of rollbacks are going to help you and the simplest solution is to restore from a recent backup. If like me you have no recent backup then thankfully, all is not lost.

 

Apex SQL Log

 

If you run a quick search on reversing a sql update or delete then most guides will reference the excellent tool ApexSQL Log. This application can be used to scan your database’s transaction log over a specified period and then “undo” any queries which you find. It’s very powerful and would be a “must have” in any sql developer’s toolbox except…

The price tag. If you are really, really up “shit creek” then it is a thousand bucks well spent but for this project the price tag was just to steep. There is a free/trial version available (and you should download this, we’ll need it in a minute) but it will only show you 1 in 10 of every result found (i.e. if 30 queries were executed then it will show you 3 at random with the other 27 greyed out) which makes it completely useless in practise. So what else can we do?

 

Determining when your DELETE/UPDATE Query was run

 

Whilst Apex SQL Log (free) is useless for undo-ing our query, it is useful for determining exactly when our query was run. You can use the filter options to limit the results to just your query type (Delete/Update) and then also filter for just your user session/client. With that done you should then be able to use a couple of “trial and error” searches to narrow down the date/time range to the nearest second (or even split second) when your fail query was executed which can be very useful if multiple people were working on the database at the same time.

If you already know exactly when your fail query was run (or you don’t mind losing a bit of work) then you can skip this step but for me I had already worked most of the morning on my database and so I wanted to restore back to a specific point in time and pick up my work where I left off. This step is also important to avoid corrupting the state of your database, especially if it is part of a large business system.

 

Restoring from the Transaction Log

 

I should point out at this stage that if you are using the “simple recovery model” for your database then you really are completely out of luck.

I’m really sorry but this model does not use a transaction log and so all updates are written blindly over database with no history of the data or the transactions. I would always recommend that you stick to the full recovery model for any database – mainly because of situations like this or for when you need to recover/view specific historical data. There are performance benefits to using a simple model but unless you are working on some kind of complicated data-warehousing or caching solution (where data is derived and/or temporary) then I cannot think of  many occasions when the pros outweigh the cons.

If you are using a full recovery model then good news, the process is as follows:

1.  Make a Backup

The first step is to make a full backup of your database including the precious logs which we will be using to restore. Open SQL Server Management Studio (or whichever SQL Client you are using) and right click the database and choose “Backup”. Ensure that “FULL” backup is selected and in the advanced options tick to create a “Tail-Log” backup which will ensure that the whole log is included. Note that it is okay to “Truncate the transaction log” and you won’t lose anything important if you select this option.

2.  Create a new recovery Database

The next step is to create a new database that will be used to restore the data. name it something like “MyDatabase_Recovery” or “MyDatabaseNew”. Once you have restored the database and it’s tested working you can replace the old database with this new copy.

3.  Restore from the Transaction Log (before the bad thing happened)

Finally you need to perform a RESTORE LOG operation specifying a time/date prior to the bad query which got you into this mess. There are plenty of decent guides on-line for this so I won’t copy it out again here:

http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/the-enterprise-cloud/restore-your-sql-server-database-using-transaction-logs/ (using sql commands)

or

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms190982(v=sql.105).aspx (using the GUI)

An example recovery query looks something like this:

 

RESTORE LOG MyDatabase_Recovery
FROM DISK = 'D: \BackupFiles\MyDatabase.bak'
WITH STOPAT = N'6/28/2007 4:01:45 PM', RECOVERY

 

where the “STOPAT” argument is used to specify the point in time to restore up to and the “RECOVERY” argument leaves the database in a workable state.

 

And that’s it! Run a query against your new database to check that the data has been restored correctly and then replace the old database with your new one.  Some caveats though:

  • As with any SQL Server restore, you will have to ensure that your “ldf” and “mdf” files are restored to the correct DATA folder with the correct name, overwriting the files in your new recovery database. Check out the “MOVE” arguments for the restore command in the examples here (https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms186858.aspx#restoring_db_n_move_files)
  • When swapping back your databases ensure that the security model and permissions are recreated in the new database so all of your database user accounts can still access the new database.

 

 


I hope this post helps you. If you would like more information or need help recovering your SQL Server database then contact us or leave a comment below

The post How to undo an UPDATE or DELETE in SQL Server first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post How to undo an UPDATE or DELETE in SQL Server appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/how-to-undo-an-update-or-delete-in-sql-server/feed 0
A Complete Guide to WBADMIN (Windows Backups) https://lennox-it.uk/a-complete-guide-to-wbadmin-windows-backups?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=a-complete-guide-to-wbadmin-windows-backups https://lennox-it.uk/a-complete-guide-to-wbadmin-windows-backups#comments Mon, 14 Dec 2015 09:44:23 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=1144 If you have ever tried to use Windows Backups in an enterprise environment then you are probably aware of how obtuse the program can be. There is very little documentation available for wbadmin.exe and what little information is on technet doesn’t really cover the more complicated aspects of the program. In this post we have performed a thorough […]

The post A Complete Guide to WBADMIN (Windows Backups) first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post A Complete Guide to WBADMIN (Windows Backups) appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
If you have ever tried to use Windows Backups in an enterprise environment then you are probably aware of how obtuse the program can be. There is very little documentation available for wbadmin.exe and what little information is on technet doesn’t really cover the more complicated aspects of the program. In this post we have performed a thorough investigation into wbadmin to find out what’s going on under the hood and to help you make the most of the Windows Backup system.

 

  • wbadmin takes “block” level backups of your system using the Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS). Backups are written as complete copies of the volume/s to VHD (virtual hard disks) which are a complete mirror of the volumes / partitions on your system.
  • Windows 7 / 2008 R2 and earlier create “VHD” backup files. Windows 8 and later create “VHDX” backup files. The VHDX format has a number of improvements over VHD including the ability to easily shrink the disk which is more difficult in VHD format
  • In addition to the VHDs, wbadmin also writes a GlobalCatalog and a BackupGlobalCatalog file to the backup location which contain information about your current configuration and required in the event of a recovery. It also writes a series of XML files to the backup location which appear to be used as part of the restore process although I have tried deleting these files and the restore job seems to be unaffected so I would question how important these are.
  • wbadmin can perform both full and incremental (differential really) backups. The differential is made on a block-by-block basis and relies on the Volume Shadow Service (vss). Before overwriting a changed block in the backup location, the older block is pushed out into a VSS shadow copy which is stored on a hidden part of the disk.  Because historical backups are created using VSS they can only be performed when the job is backing up to a full volume and do not work when backing up to a network share. This is because VSS is block level so it cannot work within the constraints of an SMB  file share (it has no concept of what a file or folder even is).
  • You cannot amend the built-in backup schedule – which is to run a full-backup followed by 14 incrementals (then another full, another 14, etc.) – and wbadmin automatically handles the retention policy so as your backup archive runs out of space it will automatically clear it down. Because wbadmin is built upon VSS your latest backup (i.e. the main copy of the volume) will always be retained and wbadmin will delete the oldest VSS shadow copies of the volume until enough space becomes available. I have actually found in testing that wbadmin will keep more than 14 backups although I’m still unsure what triggers the clean-up of the backup store.
  • Note that if you are backing up to a network share then a full backup will be run every time (because VSS is unavailable) overwriting the previous full backup. In this case there is no backup policy at all, you are simply maintaining a remote shadow/copy of the system.
  • It is possible to create your own schedule of sorts by alternating back ups to different drives (or rotating your backup media). So for example you could backup to drive A on Monday, drive B on Tuesday, drive C on Wednesday, etc. Or if you wanted a level-style system you could do A: on Monday-Saturday, B: Sunday , C: 1st of each month and keep rotating like that which would give you partial backups for up to a year, stored over 3 backup sets. Obviously the limiting factor here is space since a level system like this requires a minimum total backup space of 3x the size of your data (for each full backup) plus some extra space for the differentials.
  • From Windows 7 onwards the OS includes built-in functionality to work with VHD files and the quickest & easiest way to restore data is simply to mount the VHD in your backup as a new drive and copy back whatever data you need. You can manage VHDs in Windows via the DISKPART command line tool or using the Disk Management GUI under Administrative Tools.
  • Differentials are stored as VSS shadow copies of the volume instead of as incremental backup files  typically found in other commercial backup systems. The easiest way to restore data from your  historical backups is to use the Windows Server Backup utility bundled with Windows Server 2008 R2 or later however if you want to work with Windows 10 backups then the only version of this tool which worked for us was on the Windows Server 2016 tech preview (although I didn’t try 2012 r2)
  • For those of you who don’t have access to Windows server then you can also mount the shadow copy as a new drive using this guide (http://forensicswiki.org/wiki/Mount_shadow_volumes_on_disk_images) or alternatively you can use the utility “Shadow Explorer” which allows you to access shadow copies for any drive (http://www.shadowexplorer.com/). In both cases you are mounting a historic version of the volume which then allows you to mount the historic VHD files to restore older files (see point above)
  • For a full system recovery you need to use the Windows System Image Recovery tool which is available through the Windows Recovery Environment (RE) – basically boot from any Window installation disk and choose the “REPAIR” option. You will also need to run wbadmin backups with the option “-allCritical” (Windows 7 or newer) to ensure that all critical system files are backed up as part of the backup job.
  • You can tell if your backup configuration is suitable for a full system recovery because the  wbadmin “get versions” command will show the tags “Bare Metal Recovery, System State” next to the backup information in the list.
  • The first major shortcoming with wbadmin is that it will only restore from archives made with the same version of wbadmin (i.e. newer versions of the app are incapable of recovering from older archives). What this means is that you are going to have to match up your version of Windows RE (i.e. your installation media) with the version of the backup you are recovering from. To make matters worse the build (32bit or 64bit) must also match so a Windows 7 64bit installation disk cannot be used to recover a Windows 7 32bit backup. I know, complete madness right? Thankfully once you get through the marketing talk (“starter”, “professional”) there are not that many different versions of Windows (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Microsoft_Windows_versions) so you only need to keep a handful of boot ISO in your toolbox.
  • The next major shortcoming is that the restore process is very temperamental and even slight changes to your configuration (which is not such a crazy scenario following a major outage) can create errors in the restore wizard. The most common one is disk space. Even if your volumes are mathematically small enough to fit on the target drive, the RE will flat out refuse to do it unless the drive is the same size (or bigger) than the one used to create the backup. No amount of shrinking the VHD or editing the XML files in the backup location can get around this limitation (your original configuration is encoded into the GlobalCatalog file and uneditable). In a real disaster scenario you should try to match hardware as best as you can and make absolutely sure that you stick an equivalent -or larger – disk into the recovery system if you want things to run smoothly.
  • If you do want to image a larger drive onto a smaller one (for example when moving to an SSD) then the only solution is to resize your partitions before making the backup using a tool like Partition Wizard (http://www.partitionwizard.com/free-partition-manager.html). Just shrink your partitions so they comfortably fit on the target drive, then run wbadmin (with -allCritical) then run a full system restore process. Don’t worry about over shrinking your partitions here as you can always expand them again once you have completed the restore job to the SSD.
  • One big positive with wbadmin backups is that ultimately your data is just being stored in a VHD shadow so if everything goes to shit with the recovery job you can still use another PC to manually ghost the volume/s in the VHD back to another disk. Partition Wizard is great again for this as it allows you to both shrink and copy a volume as one job which saves a lot of time. For those who like their Linux tools there is also DD for Windows (http://www.chrysocome.net/dd) which  can be used for copying partitions – if you Google there are lots of examples of how to do it.
  • One caveat with manually copying the partitions though is that your system probably won’t boot after you’ve done it so you will have to use the Windows “bootrec” tool to manually rebuild your boot sectors. This post contains a full guide on how to do this (https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/windowsserver/en-US/f15bfe2f-e265-479a-afa3-f055530c97f5/windows-server-backup-0x80042407-seriously) or see this Microsoft Support article (https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/927392) for help recreating your boot records
  • One final nifty trick is that you can use your own VHD file (easily created using the Disk Management tool in Windows) to circumnavigate the VSS limitations and store incremental backups in a file system. Simply create the VHD file, copy it to your desired location (a network share for example) and then mount the VHD as a new drive on the system you are backing up. The DISKPART tool can be used to reconnect the VHD after a reboot or there is a Mount VHD utility available (https://www.jmedved.com/vhdattach/) if you don’t want to write a batch script.
  • When it comes to restoring from the VHD – either copy the backup archive out of it onto a blank removable USB drive (using another computer, prior to launching Windows RE) or use the DISKPART tool in Windows RE command prompt to mount the VHD before launching the System Image Recovery wizard.

I have spent almost two weeks now playing around with wbadmin and it is a very poweful tool although severely lacking in both documentation and customizability. For those looking for a Norton Ghost replacement like we were then it should do everything you need but just be prepared to get your hands dirty with diskpart utility and various partition managers because whilst backing up is a doddle, restoring you data back can become a more complex task.

 

The post A Complete Guide to WBADMIN (Windows Backups) first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post A Complete Guide to WBADMIN (Windows Backups) appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/a-complete-guide-to-wbadmin-windows-backups/feed 13
5 Tips for Hassle-Free Custom Website Development https://lennox-it.uk/5-tips-for-custom-website-development?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=5-tips-for-custom-website-development https://lennox-it.uk/5-tips-for-custom-website-development#respond Mon, 30 Nov 2015 18:43:18 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=1132 If you are about to embark on a new custom website development project then here are some tips from the development gurus at Lennox IT to help your development run smoothly   1  Build from an existing a platform (don’t reinvent the wheel)   No matter what technology you use –PHP, ASP.NET, Ruby, Java, etc. – […]

The post 5 Tips for Hassle-Free Custom Website Development first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post 5 Tips for Hassle-Free Custom Website Development appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
If you are about to embark on a new custom website development project then here are some tips from the development gurus at Lennox IT to help your development run smoothly

 

1  Build from an existing a platform (don’t reinvent the wheel)

 

No matter what technology you use –PHP, ASP.NET, Ruby, Java, etc. – there are very few occasions (read NEVER) where you want to start from a blank canvas and build your web application from the bottom up. Why? Because every web application shares common features; whether they be navigation elements, banners, login/registration forms, or just basic responsive layouts. Recreating all these things from scratch takes time and it is time which could be better invested in developing the killer features which will sell the application

Instead of reinventing the wheel, look for an existing CMS platform (or other frameworks/technologies) which you can leverage and build upon. For PHP there are hundreds of choices from WordPress to Joomla, Concrete5 and beyond. For ASP.NET there is DNN, for Ruby and Java I’m sure there are solutions if you Google for them. Also you needn’t stop at CMS platforms. Perhaps there are similar applications to the one you are developing which can be customized to suit your purpose, think outside the box and see what’s out there before you start coding.

 

2   Create clearly defined checkpoints for the project

 

The biggest threats to any new development project are feature creep and shifting goalposts. Most clients are not purposefully trying to make your life hell; they are simply ignorant of the development process and find it hard to understand why “moving that button from the top of the screen to the bottom” is really that difficult.

In order to minimise these kinds of problems it is important to spell out in black-and-white what you will be delivering at the start of the project and create a series of “checkpoints” where a specific feature or aspect of the project will be demonstrated to the client. It should be made clear to the client that (whilst you will make every effort to see the project through) both of you have the option to walk away after a checkpoint if there are major problems with the project.

Each checkpoint will be costed separately and the client should be invoiced after each one is reached. If the client wishes to make major changes following the demonstration then you can make changes to the remaining checkpoints accordingly or even scrap them all create a new series of checkpoints for completing the project.

By breaking the project up into smaller chunks it become much easier to manage and to cost effectively. Regular meetings/demos with the client will also mean that the project you deliver is in-line with their expectations and they ultimately receive the application they are paying you for.

 

3  Write as little code as you can

 

When you write bespoke software for a client you should think of each code file you create like a small plant that you must take care of. Write a few hundred lines of code and going forward you might have two or three plants. No problem, you can water them all in less than a minute and beyond that they don’t require much maintenance.

Write a few thousand – or even million – lines of code and suddenly you are looking after a small garden centre and you whole life is consumed with watering, weeding, repotting and tending to your crop. Has this metaphor gone too far?

The point is that even the best code requires maintenance and the more code you create the more maintenance there will be going forward. Making changes and adding features will become laborious and costly to your client, the application will start consuming hours and hours of development time to fix bugs and to optimize. The needs of the software will start to dictate the business rather than the needs of the business dictating the software.

Write less code and your system will remain agile, flexible, and manageable which will make both you and your client very happy.

 

4  Only code what you need to solve the requirement

 

Imagine this scenario:

You have a function in your application which needs to be secured so that only certain users can access it. You start building the mechanism for this but you soon realize that perhaps other functions in the future might need to be secured in a similar way and so you step back and start creating a more generic system. As you are building this system you consider the type of functions which might need to be secured and you create a small library which can handle different functions and can be adapted to fit different security scenarios. The end product is elegantly coded and packaged up nicely so you could even reuse it for other projects.

Sound familiar?

Whilst the solution above might seem elegant and “good technique” it is actually very detrimental to code this way. Firstly, we’ve gone against tip number three and wrote more code than we really needed to write. Secondly, whilst we might have produced some elegant code we did not need to produce it in the first place. The requirement was just to secure this single function in the application and that’s all we needed to do. If a requirement appears in the future to secure further functions THEN we can start thinking about our neat solution but for now just solve the simple task in front of you. Potentially this generic library we have written will never be used again and all the additional functionality we added was just wasted effort.

 

5   Create a Test Plan

 

If you are a freelance developer or part of a small development team then chances are that you don’t operate a formal test pattern and most of the testing is performed as part of development process or in a quick testing session before you submit the code to the client. In smaller systems you can sometimes squeak through with minimal testing like this but an application doesn’t have to grow very big before this kind of testing becomes woefully ineffective.

Before agreeing to any development schedule with the client we strongly recommend that you cost in time to create a written Test Plan which covers every web-form and web-function in the application. The Test Plan doesn’t need to be 100% exhaustive like it would be in a large, commercial-grade application but it should cover all the main functions and include some tests to cover malicious data input like SQL/Script injections.

Often you will find that the simple act of creating the test plan is enough to uncover a large number of bugs and then once it is complete you have a formal way for both you and your client to test the application. This not only helps testing different use-cases (like IPad, phones, different connection speeds) but also helps to spread the burden of responsibility between you, the developer and the client so if they are too lazy to complete the Test Plan themselves then you cannot be solely to blame if bugs are found in the live system.

 


We hope you enjoyed this article. If you need help with a custom development or would like more information then contact us

The post 5 Tips for Hassle-Free Custom Website Development first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post 5 Tips for Hassle-Free Custom Website Development appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/5-tips-for-custom-website-development/feed 0
Finding a hardware driver for Unknown Device in Windows https://lennox-it.uk/finding-a-hardware-driver-for-unknown-device-in-windows?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=finding-a-hardware-driver-for-unknown-device-in-windows https://lennox-it.uk/finding-a-hardware-driver-for-unknown-device-in-windows#comments Sun, 08 Nov 2015 12:03:49 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=1113 If you have ever reinstalled Windows onto a PC or Laptop then you have probably experienced the annoyance of the “Unknown Device”. Sometimes you can be safe to ignore these devices and continue using your PC as normal but in most cases it is better to install all drivers to ensure optimal operation. Thankfully fining the right […]

The post Finding a hardware driver for Unknown Device in Windows first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Finding a hardware driver for Unknown Device in Windows appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
If you have ever reinstalled Windows onto a PC or Laptop then you have probably experienced the annoyance of the “Unknown Device”.

Sometimes you can be safe to ignore these devices and continue using your PC as normal but in most cases it is better to install all drivers to ensure optimal operation.

Thankfully fining the right driver is not too difficult and there are a couple of things to try:

Step 1: Visit the Manufacturers Website

The simplest method to find the right drivers for your computer is to visit the support section of your manufacturers website. You will need the service tag or product code for your computer / laptop so you can find it on the site and thesecan usually be found on a sticker somewhere on the case or sometimes under the battery on laptops (just remove the battery and look underneath). Once you have your product code head over to their website, look for the “Support” section and eventually you will find a page like the one below which provides download links to all the available driver files:

dell-product-supports

 

If you are unsure which driver you need for your unknown device then download all of them and install each one in turn until the unknown device disappears.

 

Step 2: Windows Update

Microsoft’s driver library has grown very comprehensive over the last 5 years and an impressive number of devices are supported without the need for additional drivers files. First ensure that you computer has all the latest updates installed by using the Windows Update tool in the Control Panel:

c01923486[1]

Make sure you click the link that says [some number of] Optional updates are available and include some of the updates in this list as this is usually where new driver files will appear for your computer.

You can also try searching for a specific driver by right clicking the device in Task Manager and choosing Update Driver then Search Automatically for Updated Driver Software:

windows-search-for-driver-software-online[1]

 

 

Step 3: Find a Device Driver by Hardware ID

If neither of the previous steps were successful then the final step is to search on-line against the specific hardware identifier of your device.

First, open Device Manager, locate your device and double click to open the Properties Window. Then go to the Details tab and locate the Hardware IDs property:

hardware-ids

 

There will often be multiple entries listed and some will be a single device code (like tap0901 in the example above ) whereas others might look more like this:

hardware-ids2

 

With longer, multi-part codes separated by the & symbol.

In the example above:

  • VEN_8086 corresponds to a hardware vendor with the code 8086 (which happens to be Intel Corporation).
  • DEV_1E3A  is the device code which in this example equals 1E3A (the DEV part just means device)
  • We also have a sub/variant code like CC_078000 which can safely be ignored in most cases but is worth noting down if you have trouble installing the drivers later on.

So what can we do with this information? Well thankfully there are some great websites which allow us to find a specific device by vendor code or device code. Our favourite is the PCI Database (http://pcidatabase.com/).

Click on the link and then use the search form on the home page to perform a vendor search (using your vendor code above):

pcidb1

Click the vendor name to view the devices list and then use your browser search (CTRL + F in most web browser) to search the list of devices for your device code:

pcidb2

As you can see we have successfully identified our Intel Management Engine Interface in the list and there is even a link straight to the download page for our driver (sometimes you will have to go off hunting on the manufacturers website!)

You may need to try searching on different parts of the product code and sub code to find a match and often the match will not perfectly match your own code but it should be close enough to narrow down which driver you need and give you a starting point.

If you only have a device code (like in the first example) then you can just try a direct search on the device using the Device Search on the PCI Database homepage.

 


 

And that’s it! No more annoying “Unknown Devices” !

The post Finding a hardware driver for Unknown Device in Windows first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Finding a hardware driver for Unknown Device in Windows appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/finding-a-hardware-driver-for-unknown-device-in-windows/feed 1
Recovering a Hacked or Virus Infected WordPress Website https://lennox-it.uk/recovering-a-hacked-or-virus-infected-wordpress-website?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=recovering-a-hacked-or-virus-infected-wordpress-website https://lennox-it.uk/recovering-a-hacked-or-virus-infected-wordpress-website#respond Thu, 15 Oct 2015 16:19:05 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=1058   We’ve recently seen a large increase in attacks on WordPress websites with hacked sites being used to send spam email or to host malicious content. If your site has been hacked or infected by a WordPress virus then thankfully there are some simple steps you can take to clean out the malicious files and […]

The post Recovering a Hacked or Virus Infected WordPress Website first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Recovering a Hacked or Virus Infected WordPress Website appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
 

We’ve recently seen a large increase in attacks on WordPress websites with hacked sites being used to send spam email or to host malicious content. If your site has been hacked or infected by a WordPress virus then thankfully there are some simple steps you can take to clean out the malicious files and to prevent your site from being infected again.

Please note that this guide is aimed at web masters and/or technical users so if you are not comfortable using FTP software or editing website files then please seek assistance from someone who can.

 

Step 1: Update your passwords

Before going any further you need to make sure that your main entry points to the website are secure by updating all passwords. This is especially important if your site has been breached and already contains malicious code files.

Update your FTP username / password

You will need to logon to your hosting dashboard to do this. The dashboard is usually accessed via your hosting provider’s website but if you’re having trouble then try contacting their helpdesk and asking for assistance. Keep a note of these details as you will need to access your FTP in a moment.

Update your WordPress username / password

You can update your WordPress details via your WordPress dashboard under the /wp-admin url.  We recommend changing both your password AND username here for added security and try to avoid using “admin” as a username as this is easily guessed by potential attackers.

In both cases make sure you choose a password with a minimum of 8 characters and include both uppercase and lowercase letters and at least one number and one symbol (like £,$,#,!).

 

 

Step 2 (A) : Replace your website with a known, clean copy

The easiest way to clean your website of malicious files is simply to delete all current live files and replace them with clean copies.  If you have a backup of the site then logon to your FTP (using the new details from above), delete the contents of WordPress site directory and replace all files with copies from your backup.

 

 

Step 2 (B): Manually Replacing  your website files with clean copies

 

If you do not have a backup of the site then you are going to have to do things manually. The steps for this are as follows:


Replace your core Website Files

First you should take a backup of your wp-config.php file located in the root of your WordPress installation. Open the file in a text editor and just check that no malicious code has been appended to the top or bottom of the file (you can tell because it will look like a big block of junk code with no discernible English characters). If you encounter malicious code then remove it from your wp-config file.

Next you need to determine which version of WordPress you are using by either looking

  1. in the wp-admin dashboard.
  2. in the readme.html file located in the root of your WP installation
  3. in the version.php located here: /wp-includes/version.php

Once you know which version you have then you need to download the full installation package from the WordPress repository located here (corresponding to your version):

https://wordpress.org/download/release-archive/

Next you need to unpack the installation archive you downloaded and copy the clean WordPress files over your existing installation. This will overwrite any system files which have been compromised.

Finally, copy back your clean wp-config.php file to restore all of your settings


Replace your plugins

Now that you have cleaned out your system files you will need to clean all of your custom extensions and data. Open your /wp-content/plugins directory in your FTP client and note down a list of all the plug-ins you have installed.

Next visit the WordPress plugin repository here: https://wordpress.org/plugins/ and download the installation files for each of your plugins. Note: if you search by the folder name  of the plug-in then it will usually appear as the first result in the search.

Once you have all your plugins downloaded unpack each installation archive and use your FTP client to overwrite the plugins on your site with the clean files.

 

Replace your theme

Just like with the plugins, you will need to re-download a copy of your theme and replace this in the /wp-content/themes  directory. If you are using multiple themes then you should repeat these steps for each theme you have installed (or uninstall/remove the theme if it’s not required).

Be careful with this step because if you have a custom theme or if a web developer has built the theme for you then they might have made customizations to the theme files. If you are unsure then take a backup of the theme first and copy back any customized files if you experience problems.

 

Clean the rest of your “wp-content” folder

By this point you will have cleaned out the majority of your WordPress installation but unfortunately the final step will require a bit of elbow grease!

In addition to the plugins & themes directories, your /wp-content folder also contains all the custom data, settings and uploads you have deployed as part of your website. There is no way to simply “copy this back” from an installation disk so instead you will have to manually trawl through the remaining files/folders to search for malicious code.

The easiest way to do this is to use your FTP client to find files which have an unusual Modified Date. The majority of your files will have been modified when the site was first created and a handful will have been added over time or when a specific update was made (for example, perhaps in August 2013 you modernised your design).

Look for files – specifically .PHP code files – which have an usual modified date or have been modified recently. Download these files to your computer and use a text editor to check for malicious code blocks at the start or end of the files (you can tell because it will look like a big block of junk code with no discernible English characters).

In General, the following file types are likely to be safe and should not need to be checked:

  • CSS Stylesheets
  • PNG or JPG Images
  • Text documents
  • Downloadable documents (PDF,DOC,DOCX)

 

 

Step 3: Update your Platform

 

Once you cleaned out your site you should ensure that you have all the latest patches installed to fix any known vulnerabilities in the platform. Open up your WordPress dashboard and check for updates:

  • Update the WordPress platform to the latest version
  • Update all plug-ins to the latest versions
  • Update your theme/s to the latest versions

 

 

Step 4: Update File and Folder Permissions

 

Most hacks and viruses occur because the FTP file permissions on the WordPress site have not been set correctly. Open your FTP client and update your folder/file permissions as follows:

  • All folders should be assigned “755” permissions
  • All files should be assigned “644” permissions

For more information on this step please see the following guide:

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-change-file-permissions-using-filezilla-on-.html

Once you have done this, check your site for errors as sometimes specific themes or plugins might need additional access to certain files or folders. If you find a problem then follow the on-screen instruction to add additional permissions where required.

 

 

Step 5: Harden your WordPress site Security

 

By this point your WordPress site is already pretty secure but these plugins can also be deployed to help prevent any further exploits.

 

Install the Sucuri Security Plugin

This plugin allows you to strengthen your WordPress deployment by applying additional configuration settings which help limit potential exploits. Once you have downloaded and installed the plugin, head over to the settings page in the dashboard and follow all the steps to harden your security. There is also a scan option which allows you to check for any malicious files which you might have missed

https://wordpress.org/plugins/sucuri-scanner/

 

Install the Brute Force Login Protection Plugin

This plugin protects your site from “brute force” attacks on your WordPress login page (i.e. where a bot attempts to repeatedly guess your password). As the popularity of the WordPress platform grows, hackers are getting more sophisticated at attacking so this plugin is a must for tightening your front-line defences

https://wordpress.org/plugins/brute-force-login-protection/

 


 

We hope you found this post helpful. If you have any questions or need help restoring a hacked or compromised WordPress website then don’t hesitate to get in contact with us.

The post Recovering a Hacked or Virus Infected WordPress Website first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Recovering a Hacked or Virus Infected WordPress Website appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/recovering-a-hacked-or-virus-infected-wordpress-website/feed 0
Outlook can’t send emails after Windows 10 upgrade https://lennox-it.uk/outlook-cant-send-emails-after-windows-10-upgrade?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=outlook-cant-send-emails-after-windows-10-upgrade https://lennox-it.uk/outlook-cant-send-emails-after-windows-10-upgrade#comments Sun, 27 Sep 2015 13:35:03 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=996 Outlook can’t send emails after Windows 10 upgrade A few people have reported that Microsoft Outlook 2007 onwards will not send emails after they have upgraded to Windows 10, the good new is there is a really simple solution to fix it: If you’re not familiar System File Checker is a scan that will scan […]

The post Outlook can’t send emails after Windows 10 upgrade first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Outlook can’t send emails after Windows 10 upgrade appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Outlook can’t send emails after Windows 10 upgrade

A few people have reported that Microsoft Outlook 2007 onwards will not send emails after they have upgraded to Windows 10, the good new is there is a really simple solution to fix it:

If you’re not familiar System File Checker is a scan that will scan your Windows 10 for any corrupted system files, and it will repair those files if possible.

To perform System File Checker scan you need to do the following:

  1. Right click on the Start button and click on Command Prompt (Admin). If for some reason Command Prompt isn’t available you can choose Windows PowerShell(Admin) instead.
  2. When the Command Prompt opens you need to type sfc /scannow. (note the space in the command)
  3. Press Enter and wait for the process to complete. System File Checker can take about 20 minutes on a regular hard drive, so make sure that you don’t interrupt it.
  4. When the scan finishes it will inform you whether it was successful or not.
  5. Restart your computer and check if the problem is solved.

Lennox IT: Business IT Support in Derby Derbyshire

The post Outlook can’t send emails after Windows 10 upgrade first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Outlook can’t send emails after Windows 10 upgrade appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/outlook-cant-send-emails-after-windows-10-upgrade/feed 2
Sky Go Error after Windows 10 Upgrade: “An Error Has Occurred, The Application Must Now Terminate” https://lennox-it.uk/sky-go-error-after-windows-10-upgrade-an-error-has-occurred-the-application-must-now-terminate?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=sky-go-error-after-windows-10-upgrade-an-error-has-occurred-the-application-must-now-terminate https://lennox-it.uk/sky-go-error-after-windows-10-upgrade-an-error-has-occurred-the-application-must-now-terminate#comments Sun, 06 Sep 2015 14:56:25 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=980 Sky Go Error after Windows 10 Upgrade: “An Error Has Occurred, The Application Must Now Terminate” Some users trying to use Sky Go on may see this error pop up while buffering a video. This issue is related to a problem with the default date format that is changed when windows 10 upgrades. In order […]

The post Sky Go Error after Windows 10 Upgrade: “An Error Has Occurred, The Application Must Now Terminate” first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Sky Go Error after Windows 10 Upgrade: “An Error Has Occurred, The Application Must Now Terminate” appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Sky Go Error after Windows 10 Upgrade: “An Error Has Occurred, The Application Must Now Terminate”

Some users trying to use Sky Go on may see this error pop up while buffering a video. This issue is related to a problem with the default date format that is changed when windows 10 upgrades.

In order to resolve this issue, you can try to change the date format following these instructions:

STEP 1:

Right click on the windows logo at the bottom left of the screen and open control panel

STEP 2:

Click on: “Clock, Language and Region”

STEP 3:

Click on: “Date and Time”

STEP 4:

Under the “Region” heading Click on: “Change date, time or number formats”

STEP 5:

Change the Short date to: “dd/MM/yy”

STEP 6:

Change the Long date to: “dddd,MMMM dd,yyyy”

STEP 7:

Click “Apply or OK”

Restart your browser and Sky Go should be back to normal.

Lennox IT, IT Support in Derby and the East Midlands

The post Sky Go Error after Windows 10 Upgrade: “An Error Has Occurred, The Application Must Now Terminate” first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Sky Go Error after Windows 10 Upgrade: “An Error Has Occurred, The Application Must Now Terminate” appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/sky-go-error-after-windows-10-upgrade-an-error-has-occurred-the-application-must-now-terminate/feed 30
How to fix an overheating computer, PC or Laptop https://lennox-it.uk/how-to-fix-an-overheating-computer-pc-or-laptop?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=how-to-fix-an-overheating-computer-pc-or-laptop https://lennox-it.uk/how-to-fix-an-overheating-computer-pc-or-laptop#comments Wed, 02 Sep 2015 15:37:31 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=971 If you laptop or PC is overheating and getting too hot then it’s important that you don’t just ignore it so in this article I’m going to run through the main reason why you should keep your computer cool and what to do if it gets too hot.   Why should I care?   There […]

The post How to fix an overheating computer, PC or Laptop first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post How to fix an overheating computer, PC or Laptop appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
If you laptop or PC is overheating and getting too hot then it’s important that you don’t just ignore it so in this article I’m going to run through the main reason why you should keep your computer cool and what to do if it gets too hot.
 

Why should I care?

 

There are lots of reasons why overheating is important. First and foremost if your computer gets too hot then there is a very likely risk that it will simply stop working (which can be an inconvenience!) but this is usually in extreme cases where the internal fans have failed or where ventilation is extremely bad. More than likely your computer will just “throttle back” which means that it will significantly slow down until it drops back down to a safe temperature  – in the same way you might stop and drink some water during heavy exercise until you cool off. When your computer throttles back it will perform considerably slower than normal and you might see long loading times and choppy performance which can be extremely frustrating and harmful to your productivity.

If your computer runs hot for prolonged periods of time then the heat can also begin to degrade your internal components and shorten the lifespan of your computer. The internal components will become much more likely to fail and your data and files will be at risk.

 

How do I know if I’m at risk?

 

Often your computer will tell you if it’s getting dangerously hot, in Windows a message will pop up in your notification area at the bottom right of the screen to tell you that the system is unstable.

Other indicators are:

  • Unusual “beeps” coming from inside the system or LED lights appearing on the case
     
  • Your system is frequently turning itself off without warning
     
  • The internal fans are extremely loud or working very hard
     
  • If the internal fans are always silent even during intial boot up then this could mean a fan failure (most computers will test the fans as part of the boot up process).
     
  • Extremely sluggish performance, even when no applications are running
     

If you want to be completely sure then you can also download the free application Core Temp which will tell you the current temperature of your internal components. (Download it here)

 

How hot is too hot?

 

When it comes to looking at your computer temperature the first thing you will discover is that there is not one temperature but a wide range of temperatures coming from all the different little thermometers inside your computer. The important one to note is the core temperature which tells you the temperature at the heart of your CPU processing cores. You might also have a system temperature which is the ambient temperature inside your computer case and not quite so important. Gaming computers will also have a gpu core temperature which is the temperature of the graphics processing chip and many even have a memory temperature which is the temperature of your memory modules.

The “correct” running temperature for each of these components varies wildly depending on the manufacturer, age and software configuration but there are a few rules of thumb which we can use to get an idea:

  • Any temperature below 60°c is generally considered safe and well below any risk of problems. If your system temperature is this high though then that could spell trouble because for the ambient temperature to be this high, the internal temperatures of the components must be extremely high.
     
  • If the core temperatures are anywhere between 70°c – 80°c then this is high but not unusually so. During intensive processing it is not unusual for your core temperature to reach the high 80s and laptops especially can get very hot when doing a lot of work. If you processor has been “overclocked” to run faster then it will also be hitting high temperatures.
     
  • Anything 90°c or above is a danger sign which means that either a fan has failed or it is unable to cool the cores adequately. If your core temperature stays above 90°c for a prolonged period of time then you system will likely power itself down as an emergency measure to protect the components from damage.
     

 

My computer is running too hot! What should I do?

 

If your computer is getting too hot and overheating then fear not, there are steps you can take to fix the problem and they don’t cost the earth:

 

PC / Workstations

 

  • The most important step is to ensure that the PC is positioned in a ventilated spot and that none of the rear or side vents are obstructed. It is better positioned on a desk than on the floor and if you’re stuck in a broom closet then consider purchasing a room fan to get some air circulation around the room. If your PC is boxed  inside a desk or cupboard then ensure that there are air gaps around the side and to the rear of the unit so that the fans can still do their job.
     
  • The second most important step is to clean your PC out regularly! Unplug the unit and use a Philips head screw driver to remove the side panels and then use a compressed air canister (available in any hardware store) to clear the dust out of the fans and copper heat spreaders (the strange square things with lots of fins). If you can’t afford a compressed air canister then a quick, hard blow through pursed lips can often shift some of the worse dirt  and a soft brush (such as a make-up brush) can be used to brush away the worst bits. Also try to regularly vacuum your office or work area so that there is less dirt and dust around to be sucked into your fans.
     
  • In some severe cases where cleaning and ventilation doesn’t help you might have to consider replacing the fans or the thermal compound inside your computer to improve cooling. This work should be undertaken by an IT professional so take it into your local repair shop and ask for a quote. The parts themselves are very cheap (case fans are a few pounds each and thermal compound is also a couple of pounds). However if your main CPU cooler needs replacing then this maybe a little bit more expensive as these can cost £10 – £20 or more for a really good one.
     
  • Finally, take a look through your installed programs and check that you don’t have any applications installed which might be over clocking your system and causing it to run hot. These applications might be called things like “super charger” or “over drive” or something like that. You should also look for programs which might be thrashing your computer and not giving it chance to rest. Some virus scanners, search apps, backup or cloud storage application  and update tools can often be bad for this so check through and remove anything problematic. Always check with whoever else uses the computer though before you remove all their programs!
     

Laptops

 

  • As with PCs you need to make sure your laptop is positioned in a well ventilated area and that the vents are unobstructed. If you have vents on the underside of your laptop then consider raising the unit up on a stand (or just stick a couple of lego bricks under it) to raise the vents up off the desk so that air can freely move around it.
     
  • Laptops can be more difficult to clean that PCs but it is still worth buying a can of compressed air and blowing out the vents every once in a while (make sure you switch it off and unplug if first). Be careful because this can end up pushing some dust deeper into the laptop so try to blow from the intake vent (on the underside of the laptop) out through to the outlet vent (usually on the rear or side) and only use a few short, sharp bursts of air rather than prolonged blowing.
     
  • If you can’t use compressed air then it can be worth taking it to an IT Professional who can open up the casing and give it a proper clean through. If your fans have become damaged then they can also replace these for you so ask for a quote. Laptop fans can be a bit more expensive than PC fans because you will often need a specific part from the manufacturer but even in a worse case scenario you should only be looking at £15 – £20.
     
  • If your laptop still overheats then consider buying a laptop cooling stand which is like an external case fan for your laptop. They cost about £10 – £30 and not only provide good ventilation but also help to get more air flowing through your laptop vents.
     
  • Finally, take a look through your installed programs for applications which can be causing your problems (as per point above).
     

 

 


 

Overheating PC or laptops can be extremely frustrating and if the problem is left untreated it may lead to data loss or total system failure. If you would like more information or if you would like us to take a look at any PCs in your business then don’t hesitate to contact us!

 

The post How to fix an overheating computer, PC or Laptop first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post How to fix an overheating computer, PC or Laptop appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/how-to-fix-an-overheating-computer-pc-or-laptop/feed 1
The 5 best new features in Windows 10 https://lennox-it.uk/the-5-best-new-features-in-windows-10?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-5-best-new-features-in-windows-10 https://lennox-it.uk/the-5-best-new-features-in-windows-10#respond Tue, 18 Aug 2015 15:13:58 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=950 So you’ve just upgraded to Windows 10 and you’re wondering what all the fuss is about. Well in this article I’m going to explore the features which we have found most useful throughout our testing and help you to get the most out of your new operating system. Windows 10 is shaping up to be […]

The post The 5 best new features in Windows 10 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post The 5 best new features in Windows 10 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
So you’ve just upgraded to Windows 10 and you’re wondering what all the fuss is about. Well in this article I’m going to explore the features which we have found most useful throughout our testing and help you to get the most out of your new operating system. Windows 10 is shaping up to be the best iteration of Windows to date and if you’re still unsure whether to make the jump then why not check out our previous article on upgrading to Windows 10. Now without further ado, let’s jump right in and start looking at the 5 best features of Windows 10:

 

Best Feature Number 5:  Virtual Desktops

w10-multiple-desktops

Virtual desktops have been around in various forms since Windows 2000 but Microsoft have never officially integrated them into Windows and so most people will have only ever experienced them from using Linux or MacOS.

They allow you to create numerous copies of your desktop including all your application windows and then switch between them at your leisure, helping to organize your work space and letting you easily work with multiple applications. They are particularly useful if you are a graphic designers or software developer or if you just frequently work with a large number of applications and find yourself running out of screen space.

In Windows 10 you can manage your desktops by clicking on the w10-multiple-desktops-icon icon in the bottom left corner near the start button. This brings up the screen above where you can click the plus symbol to add a new virtual desktop or choose from one of your existing desktops.

You can use the keyboard short-cut CTRL + Windows Key to quickly open up the Virtual Desktops view and the short-cut  CTRL + Windows Key + Left/Right can be used to quickly switch between your current desktops. To move an application from one desktop to another simply drag the application window down onto the corresponding desktop portrait on the bar at the bottom.

We’re very happy to see Virtual Desktops finally being integrated in the Windows operating system and it finally means an end to all that awkward window shuffling.

 

Best Feature Number 4:  New Task Manager

Windows 10 Task Manager Utility

For those of you who have upgraded from Windows 8 or Windows 8.1 you may already be familiar with the new task manager utility but those of you who are moving from an older version of Windows will be in for a treat.

The Windows 10 task manager provides a complete snapshot of your current running applications, processes, services, resource usage and usage history. This huge wealth of information easily allows you to diagnose performance problems and to find unwanted applications that are slowing your computer down The new task manager also lets you manage your start-up applications so you can disable unwanted applications and improve the speed that your computer starts.

For power users and administrators you can also manage your system services like you could in previous versions of task manager and the new Users pane allows you to monitor resources in a multi-user setting to see whether certain users are abusing the system. The App History tab can also be useful to diagnose those tricky to solve problems by providing a historical report of application and resource usage.

All in all the new Task Manager is a very powerful tool which allows both users and system administrators to manage their computer and applications effectively.

Best Feature Number 3:  Cortana Search

Wiindows 10 Cortana Search

The words “Microsoft” and “Search” have never really gone very well together but Windows 10 has built upon the much improved Windows 8 search and the new “Cortana” search utility is by far the best Windows search to date.

Simply click on the Magnifying Glass w10-task-search-icon-2 icon or press the Windows Key on your keyboard (and start typing) to start searching. Cortana will automatically search across your installed applications to find a matching program and will also display results from the Windows App store and results from your preferred search engine. Results are nicely broken up into each category with installed applications listed clearly at top. The best result will also be highlighted so if it’s right you can just press the Enter Key on your keyboard to immediately launch the application.

If you need to find a document on your computer then click the My Stuff button to search your computer for matching files. The Web search can also be used to jump into a web browser and perform a regular web search using your preferred search engine.

In our tests we’ve found that the search results are accurate and typically return what we’re looking for.  The application is also very fast and responsive and feels nice to use which is important because this is a feature you will be using a lot.

Overall Cortana is not just the best Windows search ever but one of the best implementations of search in an operating system to date so well done Microsoft!

 

Best Feature Number 2:  New Start Bar

w10-start-menu

It’s hard to talk about Windows these days without the question of the Start Menu being raised. Windows 8 caused major controversy when the Start Menu was scrapped in favour of the Metro Start screen and a large number of customers resolutely stuck to Windows 7 in protest.

Windows 10 has listened to the criticisms and many will be glad to hear that the Start Menu w10-task-search-icon  has been reinstated with a distinctly Windows 8 twist. The Shutdown options and Frequently used applications have made a welcome return from Windows 7 but Microsoft have scrapped the unwieldy “All Programs” list in favour of the All Apps list and Metro Start tiles from Windows 8. The tiles provide a much cleaner way of organising your applications and the tiles section can be completely customized to fit your own way of working. You can organize multiple tiles into groups making it easier to scan and find the application you want and you can personalize the colour and style of the titles to suit your taste.

The active tiles from Windows 8 are also available so if you want a tile to show the latest news headlines or weather updates for your area then head over to the Windows Apps store and take a look at what’s on offer.

In our opinion the Windows 10 start menu strikes a perfect balance between old versus new and should hopefully appeal to Windows purists and Windows 8 fans alike.

 

Best Feature Number 1:  Notification Panel

 

w10-action-centre

Anyone who owns a Smart Phone (Android, IPhone or Windows Phone) will know how useful a centralized Notification Panel can be. The Windows 10 Notification Panel mimics this functionality by removing all the random pop-up boxes and message windows that used to appear in previous versions of Windows and reroutes them all to a list which you can browse at your leisure.

Just click the w10-notification-icon icon in the bottom right corner to open the notification panel and view the list of current alerts. You can click the small cross icon to clear the notification or click the menu item to get more information or jump to the corresponding application/settings page. Sometimes the most simple features can be the best and we think that grouping all notifications into a single panel makes the whole Windows experience feel much more unified and cohesive than in previous versions of the operating system. The Notification Panel also borrows the “Quick Configuration” buttons from mobile phones which allow you to toggle your computer hardware features such Wifi, Bluetooth and Brightness.

We are excited to see how third party applications can leverage the new Notification Panel and don’t be surprised to find this list taking centre stage in the future as it fills up with email messages, Facebook alerts and other rich content.

 


 

We hope you enjoyed this article. If you have any questions or if you want advice on whether Windows 10 is right for your business then don’t hesitate to contact us

 

The post The 5 best new features in Windows 10 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post The 5 best new features in Windows 10 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/the-5-best-new-features-in-windows-10/feed 0
Upgrading to Windows 10 https://lennox-it.uk/upgrading-to-windows-10?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=upgrading-to-windows-10 https://lennox-it.uk/upgrading-to-windows-10#comments Mon, 03 Aug 2015 16:41:36 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=938   Many of you will have noticed a strange new windows icon appearing in your Windows taskbar recently and wondered what is going on. Well Microsoft have started rolling out the new Windows 10 to customers and good news – if you have seen this icon then it means that you will be entitled to […]

The post Upgrading to Windows 10 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Upgrading to Windows 10 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
 

Many of you will have noticed a strange new windows icon appearing in your Windows taskbar recently and wondered what is going on. Well Microsoft have started rolling out the new Windows 10 to customers and good news – if you have seen this icon then it means that you will be entitled to a FREE upgrade of your operating system! Due to the changing landscape of Google Andriod and Apple IOS, Microsoft have realized that customers are no longer willing to spend money on a new operating system and in a bid to keep the faltering PC/Laptop market alive they are hoping that by giving Windows away for free that all PCs won’t be abandoned in favour of the tablets and smart phones.

Whilst this maybe bad news for Microsoft’s profit margin it is good news for us because Windows has come on in leaps and bounds since the dark days of Windows 98 and Microsoft’s operating system continues to grow in terms of stability, functionality, and performance.

 

Am I entitled to a free upgrade?

 

If you have Windows 7, Windows 8, or Windows 8.1 installed on your computer (and it is a genuine retail copy!) then you will be entitled to the free upgrade. If your computer has Windows XP or Windows Vista, or if you previously upgraded from an older version of Windows then you may not be entitled to a free upgrade and will have to purchase Windows 10

 

How do I start?

 

Assuming you are entitled to a free upgrade then the first step is to register you interest with Microsoft that you want to upgrade. To do this simply click on the Windows icon in your taskbar (bottom right corner of the screen) and follow the on-screen instructions. Alternatively if you can’t find the icon then you can follow the same steps on the Microsoft website here: www.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows/windows-10-upgrade

Note that this process will not upgrade your computer straight away, it just lets you register your interest. Once your update is ready Microsoft will send you an email to let you know that you can download the update and from there you can set the process running.

 

I’ve downloaded the update, now what?

 

Once you’ve downloaded the update then it’s time to get going. A few points before you start:

  • The update will take approx. 30 – 90 minutes to complete depending on the speed of your computer so schedule plenty of time to do it.

  • It will require about 7 gb  of free space on your primary hard disk (the one where Windows is currently installed) but we recommend you have at least 10 gb free space just to be sure

  • The update can be run from inside Windows so you don’t need to do any complicated rebooting or make discs or anything like that, just run the update and go make a cup of tea.

  • From our initial testing the update picked up all our old drivers and settings straight away but just to be on the safe side you might want to make sure you have the driver discs handy for your printers and hardware etc. just in case there is a problem. Also make sure to backup all important files and data before you start.

And that’s it, just run the update and away you go

 

What’s the big change from the old Windows?

 

If you were previously using Windows 8/8.1 then most of the changes are cosmetic and you will feel right at home on Windows 10. The biggest change is that Microsoft has scrapped the controversial full-screen “Metro” (“Start”) interface and also made the Metro “Apps” behave a lot more like normal Windows 7 applications so the whole thing doesn’t feel quite so schizophrenic any more. Window 10 has returned to the old start menu although with a distinctly Metro twist which in our opinion is nice compromise.

The stupid “Charms Bar” on the right has been ditched too along with the old Windows 7 Action Center and both have been replaced with a snazzy new notification panel (as per Android/IOS) which looks a lot cleaner and works a lot better.

The last major tweak is the Cortana search bar which replaces the old Windows 7 search bar and the Metro search from 8. You might have seen Cortana being advertised on TV where you can ask her a question and she’ll give you an answer. Whilst the finished product is not quite as slick, the function does work quite well and the ability to switch between Web or Desktop searching is very fluid and has so far produced good results in our brief testing.

 

What’s changed under the hood?

 

Windows 10 is essentially the next major service pack to Windows 8 and so it’s more of an evolution than a revolution. This is not necessarily a bad thing because it means that all the bugs from Windows 8.1 have been ironed out and what you’re getting is a stable platform from the off (think Windows 7 compared to Windows Vista, it’s exactly the same situation).

Windows 10 has also been built for multiple devices and architectures so moving forward it is better equipped to changing conditions in the PC or laptop market.

 

Will I lose all my stuff when I upgrade?

 

No, the upgrade is done in place and all your old files and settings will be transferred over. Although that’s not to say that some bits won’t be different, especially if you’ve upgraded from Windows 7.  The new file explorer is a small departure from the old Windows 7 explorer and the shortcuts/favourites are a little different so if you’re using lots of custom shortcuts then you might want to take a note of these.

Also the start menu has obviously undergone a major revamp so whether you are a Windows 7 or a Windows 8 user you will have to set this up again with all your shortcuts and Apps. Although don’t panic, this isn’t as difficult as it sounds and you will quickly get used to the new (improved) way off accessing your applications.

 

So just to be clear, what are the main benefits of doing all this?

 

If you’re a Windows 8/8.1 user… then Windows 10 is basically the next major update for your operating system and so there are no real drawbacks to making the leap. The new interface is unarguably better than the old Metro interface and even if you are a Windows 8 purist there are settings to make the new start menu feel more like the old Metro start screen. Also with all the new fixes and updates under the covers Windows 10 is better polished and more stable than Windows 8.

 

If you’re a Windows 7 user… then you have a slightly trickier decision. Windows 10 is certainly an upgrade for your current operating system but there is a greater risk in this case that some old or legacy applications might not handle the change quite so well so for business customers especially you should check with all of your software suppliers that their application will still work in a Windows 10 environment. We would certainly recommend upgrading to Windows 10 at some point in the future but it would certainly be sensible to wait for 12 – 18 months until the major vulnerabilities and bugs have been ironed out before you switch over.

 

Still have questions?

 

If you’re still not sure whether Windows 10 is right for your business then doesn’t hesitate to contact us or leave a message in the comments below and one of us will get back to you!

 

 

 

 

 

The post Upgrading to Windows 10 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Upgrading to Windows 10 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/upgrading-to-windows-10/feed 1
IT Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP) https://lennox-it.uk/it-disaster-recovery-plan-drp?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=it-disaster-recovery-plan-drp https://lennox-it.uk/it-disaster-recovery-plan-drp#respond Sat, 13 Jun 2015 10:38:29 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=934 Lennox IT, IT Support in Derby and the East Midlands have been asked by many clients to help with IT Disaster Recovery Plans: What is and IT Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP) Information Technology (IT) has redefined the global business lifecycle. Networking and Communications have accelerated business operations and made them more flexible. The Wide Area […]

The post IT Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP) first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post IT Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP) appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Lennox IT, IT Support in Derby and the East Midlands have been asked by many clients to help with IT Disaster Recovery Plans:

What is and IT Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP)

Information Technology (IT) has redefined the global business lifecycle. Networking and Communications have accelerated business operations and made them more flexible. The Wide Area Network (WAN) and related technologies are the keys for efficient business operations in the competitive market. Organizations are adopting technology and standards to keep their IT infrastructure sound and to ensure business continuity. The continued operations of an Enterprise is determined by its ability to deal with potential natural or man-made disasters through creating an effective IT Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP) that can enable minimizing disruptions to the networks, and quickly restore normalcy of operations.

An IT Disaster Recovery Plan is a comprehensive documentation of well-planned actions that are to be adopted before, during, and after a catastrophic event. In order to ensure business continuity and availability of critical resources during disasters, the plan should be documented and also tested in advance. This will help expedite the process when the actual disaster or emergency strikes. The key to IT or network disaster recovery is preparedness. The DR plan is the master tool of IT-based as well as other organizations to protect their IT infrastructure, ascertain organizational stability, and systematic disaster recovery. The primary objectives of IT/network disaster recovery planning include:

        Minimizing disruption of business operations
        Minimizing risk of delays
        Ensuring a level of security
        Assuring reliable backup systems
        Aiding in restoration of operations with speed

Business vulnerabilities are ever increasing and every organization is compelled to make appropriate disaster recovery plans and use advanced technology to keep its network secure and stable. Network-reliant companies find it an absolute necessity to frame disaster recovery policies and procedures to respond to the varied circumstances and problems. In any organization that prepares itself for Disaster Recovery, the three main points to be considered are Prevention, Anticipation, and Mitigation. Prevention is the act of avoiding those disasters that can be prevented. Anticipation is to plan and develop adequate measures to counter unavoidable disasters. Mitigation is to effectively manage the disasters, and thereby minimize the negative impact.

IT Disaster Recovery planning involves a thorough analysis of existing network structure, applications, databases, equipment, organization setup, and related details. It is important to define in the document about the key components involved in the business, the disaster recovery team personnel with contact details, recovery time objective, and communication methods at the time of the disaster, alternative facility for the organization, and master list of all inventory, storage locations, customer/vendor, forms and policies. The following are the steps that should be taken in IT disaster recovery planning:

1.Constitute a Disaster Recovery Team: The organization should form a DR team that will assist in the entire disaster recovery operations. The team should be composed of core members from all departments with representative from the top management. The team will also be responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of the DR plan.

2. Perform Risk Assessment: A risk analysis and business impact analysis should be conducted, which includes in scope the possible disasters, both natural and man made. By conducting an analysis of the impact and aftermath in disaster scenarios, the security of crucial resources can be determined.

3.Prioritize Processes and Operations: The organization’s critical requirements pertaining to each department must be determined with respect to data, documentation, services, processes, operations, vital resources, and policies/procedures. They should all be categorized and ordered based on priority as Essential, Important, and Non-essential.

4. Data Collection: The complete data about the organization must be gathered and documented. It should include inventory of forms, policies, equipment, communications; important telephone numbers, contact details, and customer details; equipment, systems, applications and resources description; onsite and offsite location; details of backup storage facility and retention schedules; and other material and documentation.

5. Creating the Disaster Recovery Plan: The DR plan should be created in a standard format that would enable detailing of procedures and including essential information. All important procedures should be completely outlined and explained in the plan. The plan should have step-by-step details of what is to be done when the disaster strikes. It should also comprise procedures for maintaining and updating of the plan, with regular review by the Disaster Recovery team and top personnel of the organization.

6. Testing the Plan: The developed Disaster Recovery Plan should be tested for efficiency. Testing provides a platform wherein an analysis can be done as to what changes are required and make appropriate adjustments to the plan. The plan can be tested using different types of tests such as Checklist tests, Simulation tests, Parallel tests, Full interruption tests, etc.

Developing a good IT disaster recovery plan will enable organizations to minimize potential economic loss and disruption to operations in the face of a disaster. It will aid in organized form of recovery, ensuring that the assets of the organization are secure, and pave way for business continuity in the most resourceful manner.

If you need help with your businesses IT Disaster Recovery Plan please feel free to contact us.

The post IT Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP) first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post IT Disaster Recovery Plan (DRP) appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/it-disaster-recovery-plan-drp/feed 0
Microsoft Outlook Not Responding with Unsent Msgs in Outbox https://lennox-it.uk/microsoft-outlook-not-responding-with-unsent-msgs-in-outbox?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=microsoft-outlook-not-responding-with-unsent-msgs-in-outbox https://lennox-it.uk/microsoft-outlook-not-responding-with-unsent-msgs-in-outbox#respond Thu, 11 Jun 2015 12:01:15 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=929 We’ve seen this problem crop up quite a lot over the last 12 months so I though I would post the fix today so read on  if your Outlook email client has suddenly started freezing and/or constantly restarting… What is the problem? Whilst trying to send an email your Microsoft Outlook 2003/2007/2010/2013 email client will […]

The post Microsoft Outlook Not Responding with Unsent Msgs in Outbox first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Microsoft Outlook Not Responding with Unsent Msgs in Outbox appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
We’ve seen this problem crop up quite a lot over the last 12 months so I though I would post the fix today so read on  if your Outlook email client has suddenly started freezing and/or constantly restarting…

What is the problem?

Whilst trying to send an email your Microsoft Outlook 2003/2007/2010/2013 email client will suddenly stop responding and will ask you to restart the client. Once restarted the client freezes again and the cycle continues indefinitely preventing you from accessing your emails. The problem usually occurs with POP or IMAP email accounts only.

What’s the cause?

This problem is typically caused by a corrupt PST file. This file is used as a database where all of your emails are stored and usually resides in your My Documents folder inside a sub directory called My Outlook Files. It’s unclear exactly what causes the corruption but it is usually related to one or more emails getting stuck in your Outbox folder and refusing to send. You may also find that attempting to delete the files causes Outlook to freeze immediately.

What’s the solution?

One solution recommended by Microsoft is to repair your PST file but we’ve found limited success with this method. Sometimes the tool can successfully repair your PST but more often that not the problem will remain or reappear. If you have time then you can try this method first and see if it resolves the problem.

The solutions which DOES work reliably is to create a fresh PST file and transfer you emails across:

  1. Open Outlook and immediately select the Send/Receive  menu/ribbon and click the Work Offline option
    1. It might take a few attempts to do this before outlook freezes, just keep trying until you get it
    2. In some versions of Outlook you can select Work Offline by right clicking the icon in the task bar
    3. You might need to restart outlook after selecting the Work Offline option for the change to take effect
  2. If you are unable to access Outlook at all then try these steps to open Outlook in safe/offline mode: http://www.extendoffice.com/documents/outlook/1847-outlook-open-in-safe-offline-mode.html
  3.  With Work Offline enabled your Outlook client should remain open without freezing or going unresponsive.  Go to the File menu/ribbon and choose the Add Account option at the top
  4.  Follow the wizard to add a new email account using the same settings from your existing/faulty account:
    1. You will need to know your email address and password (and username if different from your email address)
    2. You will need to know the POP/IMAP server details for your email account
    3. If you are unsure of the server details then go to File > Accounts in Outlook and take a look at the settings in your old account
    4. If you still can’t find these details then you shouldn’t proceed any further with this guide until you can find it. Try contacting your email provider for support.
  5.  Once your new account has been added it should show up in the left menu alongside your existing email account. It might have the same name as your old account except with a “(1)” after it so you should rename it now to something more distinctive:
    1. Select the account name in the left hand bar (it appears just above the inbox folder)
    2. Right click and select Data File Properties
    3. Click Advanced
    4. Type a new name into the Name field and click OK
  6.  Now you need to transfer your emails:
    1. Open your original inbox from your faulty account and select any email in the list
    2. Press CTRL+A to select all emails in the list.
    3. Your Outlook might freeze briefly while all emails are selected (it will have to think about it)
    4. Once all emails are selected click and drag the emails from your old inbox to the new inbox you created above (be careful not to drag them into the wrong place)
    5. Repeat the steps above for the Sent and Deleted folders
    6. DON’T move the Outbox folder as you don’t want to risk bring the bad email/s across
  7.  Next we need to set the new account as your default email account:
    1. Open the File menu/ribbon and choose Account Settings.
    2. Under Accounts locate the new email account in the list and select it
    3. Click “Set as Default” from menu bar
    4. Under Data Files locate the new data file in the list and select it
    5. Click “Set as Default” from the menu bar
  8.  Finally we need to close the old account to stop it freezing Outlook:
    1. Right click the old account name (it appears just above the inbox folder)
    2. Select Close Outlook Data File
    3. The account should disappear from the list leaving the new account
  9. With the old account removed you need to just need to disable Work Offline mode again and restart Outlook

 

That’s it! This process gives you a clean, new PST file which should resolve all of the freezing problems. Make sure you are really careful moving your emails so you don’t lose any.

 

The post Microsoft Outlook Not Responding with Unsent Msgs in Outbox first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Microsoft Outlook Not Responding with Unsent Msgs in Outbox appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/microsoft-outlook-not-responding-with-unsent-msgs-in-outbox/feed 0
Changing a BIOS Battery https://lennox-it.uk/changing-a-bios-battery?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=changing-a-bios-battery https://lennox-it.uk/changing-a-bios-battery#respond Sun, 03 May 2015 12:33:27 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=924 Lennox IT: IT Support in Business IT in Derby and Derbyshire: Helpful Advice on how to change a BIOS / CMOS Battery A computer may sometimes not keep the correct time or  show error messages related to time and date options or other errors like ‘no operating system or new CPU is installed’. All these […]

The post Changing a BIOS Battery first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Changing a BIOS Battery appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Lennox IT: IT Support in Business IT in Derby and Derbyshire: Helpful Advice on how to change a BIOS / CMOS Battery

A computer may sometimes not keep the correct time or  show error messages related to time and date options or other errors like ‘no operating system or new CPU is installed’. All these are indications that it is time to change the battery of the motherboard i.e. the CMOS battery of the system. The depletion of this battery happens and hence it must be replaced ideally every five years. The replacement process has to be carefully followed to avoid any inadvertent problems. Saving the BIOS data prior to the battery change and configuration of the same, after the installation of the new CMOS battery, must also be done properly.

Symptoms

If your computer is experiencing problems with the date and time or you see the following error messages:

 

Clock not keeping its time on a restart or power cut
Bios cmos checksum error defaults loaded
Bios cmos battery low cmos wrong memory size
No operating system
CPU overclocking failed
New CPU has been installed

These problems may be due to the fact that your CMOS battery is depleted and it’s time to replace it.

It is recommended that you change the CMOS battery every 5 years.

Saving the BIOS data

Open the BIOS screen and note all the information on a piece of paper. It’s important that you don’t make any modifications. Once completed this document will be useful to check out if all the parameters are correctly inserted after replacing the battery.
Identify the CMOS battery
The CMOS battery is thin round button-like object. It can sometimes be hidden by extension cards or connectors. On older PCs it may have a cylindrical shape. The most widely used battery model is the CR2032:

Where :
CR- lithium battery
20 – 20mm diameter
32- Thickness 32* 0.1 mm
This type of battery is easily found and fairly cheap to purchase

How to locate it:

Turn off your PC
Remove the power cable attached to your system unit and remove the casing.
Discharge your system unit from static electricity by touching it with a metallic object.

Removing the discharged battery

First of all, be sure that your System unit is laid down horizontally. The positive pole of the battery should be visible. Remove the battery, but avoid forcing it and any contact with other parts of your motherboard (refer to the manual provide with your motherboard). Go to your local retailer any buy a battery of the same model or something equivalent.
Installing the new battery
Be sure that the battery is placed correctly (firmly) in the slot allocated

Verify the BIOS data and resetting the clock

Once the operation complete, it is important to configure the BIOS settings:

Start your PC.
Enter the BIOS.
Modify the date.
Check the parameters are the same as the ones noted in step 1
Perform any modifications required if not
Save and quit BIOS.

We hope this post helps you with your BIOS battery removal: Lennox IT

The post Changing a BIOS Battery first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Changing a BIOS Battery appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/changing-a-bios-battery/feed 0
Fixing Problems with the Windows 7 Desktop https://lennox-it.uk/fixing-problems-with-the-windows-7-desktop?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=fixing-problems-with-the-windows-7-desktop https://lennox-it.uk/fixing-problems-with-the-windows-7-desktop#respond Thu, 23 Apr 2015 14:16:52 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=920 Today I had a few weird niggles come up with a new Windows 7 (x64) machine – problems which I had seen countless times before but never really properly known how to fix. In this post I’m going to cover the two main culprits and also explain the fix:   The Windows 7 desktop does […]

The post Fixing Problems with the Windows 7 Desktop first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Fixing Problems with the Windows 7 Desktop appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Today I had a few weird niggles come up with a new Windows 7 (x64) machine – problems which I had seen countless times before but never really properly known how to fix. In this post I’m going to cover the two main culprits and also explain the fix:

 

The Windows 7 desktop does not auto refresh when I rename or delete a file

This problem was really annoying; copying, renaming or deleting files files from the desktop were not automatically updated and you had to manually right-click and choose “refresh” to update the view. What began as an a minor annoyance became a major frustration for one of our users so we eventually got stuck in and found the fix.

The solution:

The problem seems to be caused by a dodgy 3rd party shell extension which is playing havoc with the computer’s Explorer process. The solution is to find the culprit and disable the extension to restore full functionality to the explorer process. You can do this with a great tool called shellexview from Nirsoft :

http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/shexview.html

Simply run the tool and sort your list by “Company” so all of the third party (non-Microsoft) extensions are sent to the top. Next you should disable any of the extensions you do not use or do not recognise until the problem disappears. You can Shift+Click to disable multiple extensions at once.

 

When I drag a file onto the Windows 7 Desktop it does not appear where I dragged it (auto align is disabled)

This problem can also usually be traced back to a bad extension but can sometimes be resolved by clearing the Icon cache at C:\Users\<user>\AppData\IconCache.db. Simply delete the file (it will be automatically regenerated) and then reboot your PC and see if this has fixed it.

Alternatively there is a possible registry fix here:

http://gravitypoint.se/windows-7-desktop-auto-arrange-solution/

but take this solution with a pinch of salt and only make changes to the registry if you are confident in what you are doing.

If all else fails then creating a new User Profile for the user has been reported to work (but obviously comes with it’s own headaches).

 

 

The post Fixing Problems with the Windows 7 Desktop first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Fixing Problems with the Windows 7 Desktop appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/fixing-problems-with-the-windows-7-desktop/feed 0
Troubleshooting a slow network https://lennox-it.uk/troubleshooting-a-slow-network?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=troubleshooting-a-slow-network https://lennox-it.uk/troubleshooting-a-slow-network#respond Mon, 20 Apr 2015 16:54:32 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=917 We meet clients all the time who have spent several thousand pounds upgrading their old 10/100mbps network switches and routers to newer Gigabit devices and are left scratching their heads when their network speeds seem no different to before. The truth is that a fast network requires more than just a shiny new Comms Cabinet […]

The post Troubleshooting a slow network first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Troubleshooting a slow network appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
We meet clients all the time who have spent several thousand pounds upgrading their old 10/100mbps network switches and routers to newer Gigabit devices and are left scratching their heads when their network speeds seem no different to before. The truth is that a fast network requires more than just a shiny new Comms Cabinet and if you want to trully see a difference then you need to examine your network from the ground up.

Cabling

The most import part of your network are the cables which carry your data around the office. If your office is older than 10 years then chances are you are running CAT5 cables which are the older, unshielded type. Whilst CAT5 can potentially acheive speeds up to a gigabit, chances are that you will see performance upto 500mb/s or below. Because these cables are unshielded they are also highly vulnerable to nearby inference from power cables or other electrical devices. The newer CAT6 cables offer improved shielding whilst the current CAT6A and CAT7 cables offer extremely good shielding and speeds up to 10-gigabit.

Remember that your patch cables are no different to the cables running through the building so it’s no good wiring a CAT6 office and then patching it all together with old CAT5 cables.

 

Wiring

Poor wiring in your sockets and patch panels can create a major bottleneck in your network and so you should ensure that all of your sockets have been fully Fluke tested to ensure no loss of signal. Chances are that your network will be wired to the RJ45 standard which supports frequencies up to 600mhz (CAT 5/ CAT 6) but if money is no object then the newer ARJ45 standard supports frequencies up to 5ghz (CAT7) because the pins are spaced further apart.

 

Comms Cabinet

With decent cabling and wiring you shiny new Comms cabinet can now play it’s part. For older CAT5 networks you will be fine with older 10/100 switches and routers however for CAT6 you should ensure that you have gigabit hardware throughout. Again, if money is no object then CAT7 switches can support up to 10gbps per port (and beyond).

 

Workstations & Servers

The final piece of the puzzle is you computing hardware itself. As a bare minimum you should ensure that your systems have gigabit network adapters installed but this is just the tip of the iceberg. The speed of your processor, hard disk, and memory bus can all create a bottleneck. Your operating system can also apply filters to your connection which can slow everything down. Linux generally outperforms Windows and Mac in-terms of raw networking performance but again, software and hardware are both major factors.

 

If you want to test your network speeds then we can recommend the free tool iperf

The post Troubleshooting a slow network first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Troubleshooting a slow network appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/troubleshooting-a-slow-network/feed 0
Avoid scams, spam and phishing emails https://lennox-it.uk/avoid-scams-spam-and-phishing-emails?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=avoid-scams-spam-and-phishing-emails https://lennox-it.uk/avoid-scams-spam-and-phishing-emails#respond Thu, 02 Apr 2015 08:34:54 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=911 Lennox IT: IT Support in Business IT in Derby and Derbyshire: Helpful Advice on how to avoid scams, spam and phishing emails Knowing how to avoid scams, spam and phishing is a critical life skill. Fortunately, eleven simple safety measures will help you dodge the risks – whether the scam comes via the phone, regular […]

The post Avoid scams, spam and phishing emails first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Avoid scams, spam and phishing emails appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Lennox IT: IT Support in Business IT in Derby and Derbyshire: Helpful Advice on how to avoid scams, spam and phishing emails

Knowing how to avoid scams, spam and phishing is a critical life skill. Fortunately, eleven simple safety measures will help you dodge the risks – whether the scam comes via the phone, regular mail, an email, or somewhere online.

Slow down.

Spammers want you to act first and think later. If the message conveys a sense of urgency, or uses high-pressure sales tactics be skeptical; never let their urgency influence your careful review.

Look for errors.

A great deal of spam is of poor quality with lots of spelling, grammar, and layout flaws. If you see obvious errors you know it’s a fake. However, the lack of errors does NOT make the offer legitimate. Smart scammers can spell, and they can make a fake email look as good as a legitimate one.

Research the facts.

Never believe unsolicited messages offering financial solutions, hot stock tips, refinancing etc. If the email looks like it is from a company you use, do your research. Use a search engine or contact the company directly (see #6) to learn more. If the offer is for an investment, have someone at your bank, a financial consultant, or trusted advisor review the deal before handing over a dime.

Delete any request for financial information or passwords.

If you get asked to reply to a message by providing your bank account, bank routing information, credit card numbers or passwords, it’s a scam.

Reject requests for help or offers of help.

Legitimate companies and organizations do not contact you to provide help. If you did not specifically request assistance from the sender, consider any offer to ‘help’ restore credit scores, refinance a home, etc. a scam. Similarly, if you receive a request for help from a charity or organization that you do not have a relationship with, delete it. Charity scams tug on heartstrings especially after a disaster strikes. To give, seek out reputable charitable organizations on your own to avoid falling for a scam, and research how much of the money donated will actually get to people in need.

Don’t let a link in control of where you land.

Stay in control by finding the website yourself using a search engine to be sure you land where you intend to land. Hovering over links in email will show the actual URL at the bottom, but a good fake can still steer you wrong. Curiosity leads to careless clicking – if you don’t know what the email is about, clicking links is a poor choice. Similarly, never use phone numbers from the email; it is easy for a scammer to pretend you’re talking to a bank teller.

Beware of dangerous downloads.

If you don’t know the sender personally AND expect a file from them, downloading is a mistake. Email hijacking, where spammers take over control of someone’s email, has become rampant. Once they control someone’s email account they send messages with malware to all of the person’s contacts hoping to infect their machines.

Foreign offers are fake.

If you receive email from a foreign lottery or sweepstakes, money from an unknown relative, or requests to transfer funds from a foreign country for a share of the money it is guaranteed to be a scam.

Scammers manipulate emotions.

If you’re financially stressed, lonely, angry, sad, overly happy, frustrated, looking for romance, etc. you’re more likely to fall for fraud. Put emotions aside when evaluating phone calls, mail, email, online offers, or notices.

Free has a price tag – and it’s usually more than you bargained for.

Those offers to send you free trial products, or free anything, then say “you just pay shipping and handling” are scams. You’ll pay more in fees than the product is worth. Even when you don’t have to pay anything, the catch is that they are collecting all your information – you need to give your name, address, phone number, email address, and often more when signing up. This information will be sold and resold many times over.

Set your spam filters to high.

Every email program has spam filters. To find yours, look under your settings options, and set these high – just remember to check your spam folder periodically to see if legitimate email has been accidentally trapped there. You can also search for a step-by-step guide to setting your spam filters by searching on the name of your email provider plus the phrase ‘spam filters’.

If you need any help with spam or phishing emails please feel free to contact Lennox IT on 01773 570028

The post Avoid scams, spam and phishing emails first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Avoid scams, spam and phishing emails appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/avoid-scams-spam-and-phishing-emails/feed 0
Panda Security Failure – March 2015 https://lennox-it.uk/panda-security-failure-march-2015?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=panda-security-failure-march-2015 https://lennox-it.uk/panda-security-failure-march-2015#comments Fri, 13 Mar 2015 16:12:24 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=904 Panda Security Failure – 11 March 2015   Q) What happened? On 11th March 2015 at around 12:00pm Panda Security pushed out a bad virus definition file to their virus protection software. The definition file was quickly retracted (about 60 minutes later) but during this time it incorrectly identified important system and program files as […]

The post Panda Security Failure – March 2015 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Panda Security Failure – March 2015 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Panda Security Failure – 11 March 2015

 

Q) What happened?

On 11th March 2015 at around 12:00pm Panda Security pushed out a bad virus definition file to their virus protection software. The definition file was quickly retracted (about 60 minutes later) but during this time it incorrectly identified important system and program files as viruses, causing them to be “quarantined” and leading  to widespread system corruption and program failure

Panda Security have released a statement on the issue which can be found here:
http://www.pandasecurity.com/mediacenter/panda-security/information-regarding-issue-with-the-signature-file-pcop-retail-2015/

 

Q) Why did I have Panda Anti-Virus installed in the first place?

Panda has consistently been voted one of the best Anti-Virus programs on the market and won several industry awards. Because Panda runs “in the cloud” it is a very light weight application that runs on a wide range of PCs without disrupting performance.

Lennox IT have relied on Panda for several years as a first choice anti-virus solution, especially for older machines where performance can be an issue.

 

Q) What Lennox IT did

We became aware of the problem very soon after it arose and quickly worked at our own offices to diagnose the fault and develop a solution. Our fix – simply to load the computer into safe mode and use Panda’s own installer utility to replace damaged files – was tested on our own infected machines and then rolled out to clients over the next 24 hours.

At around 9:00pm on 11th March Panda Security also released their own repair application which we rolled out to some clients on  Thursday 12th March.

 

Q) How come some PCs were completely broken and others had no problems at all?

The issue caused panda to incorrectly flag system files as viruses for approximately one hour however the damage largely depended on which files Panda was scanning at the time. In many cases Panda immediately attacked itself, destroying the software and stopping the problem at source. In other cases Panda attacked low level Windows/Systems files first and caused major system instability before finally turning on itself.

The extent of the damage to each PC depended on the following factors:

  • If the PC was powered down or off-line then no damage will have been suffered
  • If the PC was on but inactive then there was potential for minor damage to background services (software updaters, etc.)
  • If the PC was in general use then there was potential for extensive damage
  • If the PC was in use and the user attempted to fix the problem themselves or reboot then there was potential for extensive damage and operating system corruption

 

Q) Is my computer completely fixed now?

Yes and No. The fix we deployed (and the fix Panda themselves have supplied) restored most files back from quarantine and will repair the majority of problems. However in some cases simply copying the file back is not enough and sometimes system files cannot be copied back or their original location cannot be determined.

Until Panda release an alternate fix, we have done everything we can to restore your systems back to a fully healthy state and in 99% of cases we do not expect further problems as a result of this incident. However in some cases there will be lingering problems and we will work with you over the next few weeks to make sure that these are dealt with promptly.

In rare cases the PC will need to be rebuilt and Sam or I should have explained this to you when we removed your PC. We obviously have a bit of a back-log but we will endeavour to get these machines back to you as soon as we can from Monday 16th March.

 

Q) Have I lost anything I was working on? Is my data at risk?

No, absolutely not. Modern virus scanners tend to focus solely on applications not data so it was only program files that were affected. Any documents or files that you were working on during this time will be completely safe.

 

Q) Should I keep using Panda Anti-Virus?

They say that lightning doesn’t strike twice in the same place but obviously this has greatly undermined our trust in Panda Security and we have already switched some high priority machines over to an alternate virus scanner. Ultimately its your choice whether you want to continue with Panda or not and we can help you to install an alternate virus scanner if you wish. Panda is still the best choice for older machines but we would completely understand if you want to make the switch.

We are aware that many machines are currently running without a virus scanner following this incident and we will be around over the next week to fix this.

 

Q) What can we do to stop this happening again in the future?

Unfortunately there is nothing we can do to protect against something like this happening, hopefully it is such a high profile failure that all security companies will take note and put safe guards into their own procedures to prevent a repeat incident.

It does however demonstrate the importance of backups so if you don’t already have a adequate backup system in place then please speak with Sam or I and we can talk you through the different solutions we recommend. We will also be scheduling in an earlier-than-normal housekeeping check for those of you running our backup system so we can make sure everything is doing what it should.

 

Q) Any Questions?

If there’s anything else you want to ask then don’t hesitate to get in contact.

 

Kind Regards,

Lennox IT

The post Panda Security Failure – March 2015 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Panda Security Failure – March 2015 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/panda-security-failure-march-2015/feed 2
E-Commerce Comparison: Prestashop, Opencart or WooCommerce? https://lennox-it.uk/e-commerce-comparison-prestashop-opencart-woocommerce?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=e-commerce-comparison-prestashop-opencart-woocommerce https://lennox-it.uk/e-commerce-comparison-prestashop-opencart-woocommerce#respond Wed, 25 Feb 2015 14:57:51 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=888 Right now (as of 2015) we recommend choosing between one of three open source platforms for your e-commerce site: Prestashop OpenCart WooCommerce All three are perfectly capable of running an e-commerce store but there are various pros/cons to each so in this article I’ll be comparing them across several key performance areas to help you […]

The post E-Commerce Comparison: Prestashop, Opencart or WooCommerce? first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post E-Commerce Comparison: Prestashop, Opencart or WooCommerce? appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Right now (as of 2015) we recommend choosing between one of three open source platforms for your e-commerce site:

  1. Prestashop
  2. OpenCart
  3. WooCommerce

All three are perfectly capable of running an e-commerce store but there are various pros/cons to each so in this article I’ll be comparing them across several key performance areas to help you understand which one is the right choice for your business.

Price

Since all three platforms are open-source there are no licensing costs to pay for using the software but you do need to pay for your initial style/branding (which you can then customize for your business) and also for any modules or extensions which you may need. All three platforms operate their own marketplaces but the prices are generally the same across the board.

For development work our charges are usually higher for Prestashop and OpenCart because these systems are harder to customize and a little bit cheaper for WooCommerce. Obviously a lot though depends on the changes required so this is just a general rule of thumb.

Performance

From our experience OpenCart tends to return web pages the fastest and puts least stress on the webserver. This means you can get away with a cheaper web hosting package without having to invest in a dedicated VPS or supercharged hosting solution.

Prestashop comes in second place as it usually requires considerably more resources to run at a decent speed and also requires a good caching solution on the web server.

WooCommerce usually performs worst in our tests, mainly because it’s built upon WordPress and so not as optimized as the other two. If you want to run a large scale WooCommerce store then we strongly recommend sticking to a dedicated VPS for hosting.

Front Office Experience

The front-office experience is largely influenced by the theme/branding which you apply to your shop and so it is similar across all three platforms.

In my opinion both Prestashop and OpenCart offer superior “My Account” experiences to WooCommerce although this does come down to the theme used and personal preference. Prestashop also offers a Customer Returns process out of the box which the other two do not.

Prestashop includes superior cross-selling and promotional modules by default while both OpenCart and WooCommerce provide functional but simplistic modules which don’t give you a great deal of scope for customization. All three contain Comment/Review functionality but with WooCommerce being built on WordPress theirs is arguably the most feature rich of the three.

WooCommerce is possibly the best customer checkout experience although again this is heavily theme-dependant and to be honest there is not a lot of difference between them (at the end of the day you always need the same information and the same forms).

Back Office Experience

Prestashop offers by far the best back office experience – especially since the new version 1.6 has modernized and improved the interface in several places. It provides extensive management statistics and the tools for managing your catalogue and shop settings are generally well laid out and intuitive to use.

WooCommerce offers the superior CMS management (blogs, static pages, etc.) due to its WordPress heritage but as a consequence the shop management feels a bit “bolted on” and it can often be difficult to differentiate between the WordPress functions and the shop functions. Some functions are also buried inside WordPress menus and can be difficult to find.

OpenCart trails behind in this category as its admin area feels very Spartan with a lot of large, complex forms and very few productivity tools or GUI controls to help you. Functions frequently buried inside the “modules” section too due to the modular nature of the platform which can make the whole experience confusing and obtrusive.

Back Office Features

Once again Prestashop dominates the back office with a raft of features including advanced stock management, shipping, reporting and globalization options. We generally recommend larger business to use Prestashop simply because the tools on offer here make it much easier to manage your business effectively without the need for additional Business Management software.

WooCommerce and OpenCart comes in joint second with a simplified set of features out-of-the-box but a host of additional functionality available through extensions and modules. Both platforms will scale but this comes at an added cost and their solutions don’t feel as well rounded as Prestashop (which also offers a range of plug-ins beyond the base functionality).

Overall Impressions – Prestashop

Out of three platforms we think Prestashop is the best platform for small to medium businesses looking for a complete management solution. The back office tools are fantastic and the customer experience is very good so long as you invest in a good theme.

Prestashop is a bit of a resource hog though and can be tricky to develop so if you’re a business on a budget then the costs of hosting and maintenance might start to become prohibitive. If you already have existing Business Management software or if you’re happy to manage the business manually outside of the software then you might want to look at a more cost-effective solution.

Recommended For: Established businesses looking for a complete e-commerce solution

Overall Impressions – OpenCart

OpenCart is an extremely light-weight platform which can be hosted cheaply without having to compromise on features or customer experience. It is very well supported and through its wide range of extensions/add-ons you can customize the platform as the demands of your business change.

Unfortunately the back-office experience is clunky and it will take some time for you or your staff to get completely comfortable with it. There are very few productivity tools either so managing your catalogue and orders can become laborious.

Recommended For: smaller businesses looking for good e-commerce on a budget

 

Overall Impressions – WooCommerce

WooCommerce offers a superior front-office experience since it is built upon the WordPress platform and for the same reason it is also ideal if you want to add e-commerce functionality to your existing WordPress website.

However whilst WooCommerce is a fully fledged e-commerce solution it is essentially a plug-in for another platform and it can feel a bit half-baked compared to the other two. Performance is also a limiting factor and for larger shops it can start to chug unless you throw some money at hosting

Recommended For: micro businesses or those looking to leverage their existing WordPress site

 

 


 

We hope you enjoyed this article. If you have any questions or need help developing an e-commerce solution then please leave a comment below or contact us for further information

The post E-Commerce Comparison: Prestashop, Opencart or WooCommerce? first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post E-Commerce Comparison: Prestashop, Opencart or WooCommerce? appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/e-commerce-comparison-prestashop-opencart-woocommerce/feed 0
Remove any Police Ransom Trojan: The Police Ukash or Moneypak virus https://lennox-it.uk/remove-police-ransom-trojan-police-ukash-moneypak-virus?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=remove-police-ransom-trojan-police-ukash-moneypak-virus https://lennox-it.uk/remove-police-ransom-trojan-police-ukash-moneypak-virus#respond Sat, 14 Feb 2015 09:50:53 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=885 Lennox IT: IT Support in Businees IT in Derby and Derbyshire: Helpful Advice on how to Remove any Police Ransom Trojan: The Police Ukash or Moneypak virus If your computer is locked, and you are seeing a “Your computer has been blocked” notification from a law enforcement agency (FBI, Australian Federal Police, Metropolitan Police, U.S. […]

The post Remove any Police Ransom Trojan: The Police Ukash or Moneypak virus first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Remove any Police Ransom Trojan: The Police Ukash or Moneypak virus appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Lennox IT: IT Support in Businees IT in Derby and Derbyshire: Helpful Advice on how to Remove any Police Ransom Trojan: The Police Ukash or Moneypak virus

If your computer is locked, and you are seeing a “Your computer has been blocked” notification from a law enforcement agency (FBI, Australian Federal Police, Metropolitan Police, U.S. Department of Justice) asking you to pay a fine via GreenDot MoneyPak, Ukash or Paysafecard code, then your computer is infected with a piece of malware known as Trojan Reveton.

As the Police Ukash or Moneypak ransomware infection locks you out of your computer, you will need to create a bootable USB drive that contains the HitmanPro Kickstart program.
We will then boot your computer using this bootable USB drive and use it to clean the infection so that you are able to access Windows normally again.

You will also need a USB drive, which will have all of its data erased and will then be formatted. Therefore, only use a USB drive that does not contain any important data.

1.Using a “clean” (non-infected) computer, please download HitmanPro Kickstart from the below link.

http://malwaretips.com/download-hitmanpro

2. Once HitmanPro has been downloaded, please insert the USB flash drive that you would like to erase and use for the installation of HitmanPro Kickstart. Then double-click on the file named HitmanPro.exe (for 32-bit versions of Windows) or HitmanPro_x64.exe (for 64-bit versions of Windows).

To create a bootable HitmanPro USB drive, please follow the instructions from this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBS902Qr0oc

3. Now, remove the HitmanPro Kickstart USB drive and insert it into the Police Ukash or Moneypak infected computer.

4. Once you have inserted the HitmanPro Kickstart USB drive, turn off the infected computer and then turn it on. As soon as you power it on, look for text on the screen that tells you how to access the boot menu.The keys that are commonly associated with enabling the boot menu are F10, F11 or F12.

5. Once you determine the proper key (usually the F11 key) that you need to press to access the Boot Menu, restart your computer again and start immediately tapping that key. Next, please perform a scan with HitmanPro Kickstart as shown in the video below.

6. HitmanPro will now reboot your computer and Windows should start normally. Then please download Malwarebytes Anti-Malware and scan your computer for any left over infections.

The post Remove any Police Ransom Trojan: The Police Ukash or Moneypak virus first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Remove any Police Ransom Trojan: The Police Ukash or Moneypak virus appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/remove-police-ransom-trojan-police-ukash-moneypak-virus/feed 0
Remove Mac Defender malware in Mac OS X v10.6 or earlier https://lennox-it.uk/remove-mac-defender-malware-mac-os-x-v10-6-earlier?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=remove-mac-defender-malware-mac-os-x-v10-6-earlier https://lennox-it.uk/remove-mac-defender-malware-mac-os-x-v10-6-earlier#respond Thu, 29 Jan 2015 18:47:53 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=882 Lennox IT: IT Support in Derby and Derbyshire: Helpful Advice on how to Remove Mac Defender malware in Mac OS X v10.6 or earlier A phishing scam has targeted Mac users by redirecting them from legitimate websites to fake websites which tell them that their computer is infected with a virus. The user is then […]

The post Remove Mac Defender malware in Mac OS X v10.6 or earlier first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Remove Mac Defender malware in Mac OS X v10.6 or earlier appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Lennox IT: IT Support in Derby and Derbyshire: Helpful Advice on how to Remove Mac Defender malware in Mac OS X v10.6 or earlier

A phishing scam has targeted Mac users by redirecting them from legitimate websites to fake websites which tell them that their computer is infected with a virus. The user is then offered Mac Defender “anti-virus” software to solve the issue.

This “anti-virus” software is malware (i.e. malicious software). Its ultimate goal is to get the user’s credit card information which may be used for fraudulent purposes.

The most common names for this malware are MacDefender, MacProtector and MacSecurity.

Apple released a free software update (Security Update 2011-003) that will automatically find and remove Mac Defender malware and its known variants.

The Resolution section below also provides step-by-step instructions on how to avoid or manually remove this malware.

Resolution

How to avoid installing this malware

If any notifications about viruses or security software appear, quit Safari or any other browser that you are using. If a normal attempt at quitting the browser doesn’t work, then Force Quit the browser.

In some cases, your browser may automatically download and launch the installer for this malicious software.  If this happens, cancel the installation process; do not enter your administrator password.  Delete the installer immediately using the steps below.

  1. Go into the Downloads folder, or your preferred download location.
  2. Drag the installer to the Trash.
  3. Empty the Trash.

How to remove this malware

If the malware has been installed, we recommend the following actions:

  • Do not provide your credit card information under any circumstances.
  • Use the Removal Steps below.

Removal steps

  1. Move or close the Scan Window.
  2. Go to the Utilities folder in the Applications folder and launch Activity Monitor.
  3. Choose All Processes from the pop up menu in the upper right corner of the window.
  4. Under the Process Name column, look for the name of the app and click to select it; common app names include: MacDefender, MacSecurity or MacProtector.
  5. Click the Quit Process button in the upper left corner of the window and select Quit.
  6. Quit Activity Monitor application.
  7. Open the Applications folder.
  8. Locate the app ex. MacDefender, MacSecurity, MacProtector or other name.
  9. Drag to Trash, and empty Trash.

Malware also installs a login item in your account in System Preferences. Removal of the login item is not necessary, but you can remove it by following the steps below.

  • Open System Preferences, select Accounts, then Login Items
  • Select the name of the app you removed in the steps above ex. MacDefender, MacSecurity, MacProtector
  • Click the minus button

Use the steps in the “How to avoid installing this malware” section above to remove the installer from the download location.

Note: Apple provides security updates for the Mac exclusively through Software Update and the Apple Support Downloads site. User should exercise caution any time they are asked to enter sensitive personal information online.

The post Remove Mac Defender malware in Mac OS X v10.6 or earlier first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Remove Mac Defender malware in Mac OS X v10.6 or earlier appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/remove-mac-defender-malware-mac-os-x-v10-6-earlier/feed 0
Aswrvrt.sys Stopping Bootup or Booting on Windows Computers https://lennox-it.uk/aswrvrt-sys-stopping-bootup-booting-windows-computers?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=aswrvrt-sys-stopping-bootup-booting-windows-computers https://lennox-it.uk/aswrvrt-sys-stopping-bootup-booting-windows-computers#comments Mon, 12 Jan 2015 17:15:05 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=878 Lennox IT: IT Computer Support in Derbyshire: Helpful Advice & Instructions to Fix Aswrvrt.sys Problems Step 1. enter into BIOS SETUP Utility and reset the BIOS to its factory default setting. 1. Restart your computer if it’s already on and keep tapping on F12 functional key immediately. (tip: the key to access BIOS SETUP Utility […]

The post Aswrvrt.sys Stopping Bootup or Booting on Windows Computers first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Aswrvrt.sys Stopping Bootup or Booting on Windows Computers appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Lennox IT: IT Computer Support in Derbyshire: Helpful Advice & Instructions to Fix Aswrvrt.sys Problems

Step 1. enter into BIOS SETUP Utility and reset the BIOS to its factory default setting.

1. Restart your computer if it’s already on and keep tapping on F12 functional key immediately.
(tip: the key to access BIOS SETUP Utility can vary, if F12 fails, please try with F8, Esc, F11 and DEL one by one)

2. Select LOAD BIOS DEFAULTS and press Y button to restart the computer.
(tip: the BIO menu can be different from one brand to another, take ThinkPad for example, one should access Config to change the value of “sata controller mode option” to “compatibility”)

The PC should now Boot into Windows

Step2. check and repair error for files with command prompt.

1. When the computer has restarted and is back into the desktop, hold down the Win key and R key together to enable the Run box.

2. Put in “chkdsk /f /r” and press on Enter key to check and repair error for files.
(tip: it should take a while. If failure occurs, enter into “Last Known Good Configuration” to remove or disable programs and drivers that are recently installed.)

Step3. run ScanDisk to check for faults.

1. Double-click “My Computer”/”Computer”.

2. Right-click local hard drive to select “Properties” in the drop down list and navigate to its Tools tab.

3. Press on “check now” button to check the drive for errors.

4. Restart is required to run ScanDisk without being interrupted.

All Fixed

The post Aswrvrt.sys Stopping Bootup or Booting on Windows Computers first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Aswrvrt.sys Stopping Bootup or Booting on Windows Computers appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/aswrvrt-sys-stopping-bootup-booting-windows-computers/feed 1
Upgrade a Macbook Hard Drive to an SSD Hard Drive with Existing Files Intact https://lennox-it.uk/upgrade-macbook-hard-drive-ssd-hard-drive-existing-files-intact?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=upgrade-macbook-hard-drive-ssd-hard-drive-existing-files-intact https://lennox-it.uk/upgrade-macbook-hard-drive-ssd-hard-drive-existing-files-intact#respond Thu, 01 Jan 2015 13:37:01 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=875 Upgrade a Macbook Hard Drive to an SSD Hard Drive with existing Files Intact Lennox IT: IT Support Derby: Helpful Advice on how to upgrade a Macbook Hard Drive to an SSD Hard Drive You’ll need: An SSD (I used last year’s version of the Samsung 840 Evo) SATA-to-USB cable or dock Small screwdriver to […]

The post Upgrade a Macbook Hard Drive to an SSD Hard Drive with Existing Files Intact first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Upgrade a Macbook Hard Drive to an SSD Hard Drive with Existing Files Intact appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Upgrade a Macbook Hard Drive to an SSD Hard Drive with existing Files Intact

Lennox IT: IT Support Derby: Helpful Advice on how to upgrade a Macbook Hard Drive to an SSD Hard Drive

You’ll need:

An SSD (I used last year’s version of the Samsung 840 Evo)
SATA-to-USB cable or dock
Small screwdriver to open your laptop
Torx head screwdriver for disassembling the hard drive
SuperDuper Program (download it here: http://www.shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper/SuperDuperDescription.html )

Step 1: Prep the SSD

Start by connecting the SSD to your computer with a dock or cable. Once it’s connected, launch Disk Utility (searchable through Spotlight), and select your drive from the left sidebar. Then, head to the Erase tab, and click Erase. No need to change any settings, unless you’d like to give it a new name. This will format the drive and prep it for the next step.

Launch SuperDuper, and set it to clone your Mac’s hard drive to the SSD. If you gave it a new name in Disk Utility, it’ll show up as such. Then choose Backup All Files, and click Copy Now.

This could take anywhere from 30 minutes to 3 hours depending on how much you have stored on your hard drive. When the process is complete, eject the SSD and shut down your computer.
Step 2: Remove the hard drive

In case you missed it in the previous step, shut down your computer.

Begin by removing your MacBook’s back cover. There are 10 screws in total, including three longer ones. Put them in a small container as you remove them.

When the cover comes off, touch a metal part to release the static electricity. At this point, you might want to clean the inside of your Mac. I found that after years without cleaning, mine was full of dust. Use a soft brush or gentle bursts of compressed air to release the dust and grime.

To remove the hard drive, use the regular screwdriver to unscrew the two black screws belonging to the bracket securing the hard drive. Remove the bracket and set it aside.

Gently lift the hard drive. You’ll see that a ribbon is attached to one end. Carefully wiggle the connector — not the ribbon itself — to disconnect it.

Remove the four torx screws attached to the hard drive and set aside. At this point, you can store your hard drive away or convert it to an external hard drive. You’re done with it.

Step 3: Install the SSD

Grab the SSD and screw in the four torx screws you removed from the hard drive. Then, carefully attach the ribbon to the SSD, and insert the drive in the same configuration as the previous drive.

Re-attach the bracket. And finally, replace the back cover using the 10 screws.

If you made it this far without fumbling, congratulations! That was probably easier than you were expecting.

Now turn on your computer. It may take a couple of extra seconds as it gets acquainted with the new drive, but generally speaking, starting up your computer will be much faster than the past. You’ll also notice that programs launch faster, saving files takes less time, and it feels less sluggish overall.

The post Upgrade a Macbook Hard Drive to an SSD Hard Drive with Existing Files Intact first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Upgrade a Macbook Hard Drive to an SSD Hard Drive with Existing Files Intact appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/upgrade-macbook-hard-drive-ssd-hard-drive-existing-files-intact/feed 0
Choosing an E-Commerce Solution https://lennox-it.uk/choosing-e-commerce-solution?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=choosing-e-commerce-solution https://lennox-it.uk/choosing-e-commerce-solution#respond Wed, 31 Dec 2014 15:36:51 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=868 One question our customers frequently ask is “Which e-commerce solution is right for me?”. There are lots of different products and solutions out there so in this post I will give a quick overview of the different options and what we usually recommend Starting Out   For new businesses finding their feet on-line we suggest […]

The post Choosing an E-Commerce Solution first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Choosing an E-Commerce Solution appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
One question our customers frequently ask is “Which e-commerce solution is right for me?”. There are lots of different products and solutions out there so in this post I will give a quick overview of the different options and what we usually recommend

Starting Out

 

jk-ebay08-DW-WebWelt-Hannover[1]For new businesses finding their feet on-line we suggest starting with an open marketplace platform like Ebay or Amazon Marketplace. They get you used to running an on-line business; fulfilling orders, handling shipping, managing your costs and all the rest. They’re a good place to start because all these platforms drive large amounts of traffic via their search engines (without you having to pay for your own marketing) and the costs of running a shop on them is significantly lower than if you build your own website from scratch. If you are new to the business or if you’re shipping less than 5 orders per day then we strongly recommend you start here.
 

Small Enterprises

 

bigcartel_logo[1]
Our clients find that once they reach 10-20 or more orders per day then the commission taken by open platforms start cutting into their operating profits. This is the point where we recommend moving to one of the open eCommerce platforms like BigCartel.com or BigCommerce.com. These platforms allow you to create “your own website” in a sense but without the need to host your own site or worry about any of the technology behind it. They are more restrictive than a full shop but they provide more autonomy and functionality than the open marketplace platforms and they can be integrated with a stand-alone site to give a bespoke feel to your customers. You will usually pay a small monthly fee for use of these platforms (plus commission) but they are very cost effective if you are shipping less than 100 orders per day.

Medium – Large Enterprises

 

prestashop-review-logo[1]Once reaching more than 75-100 orders per day a lot of people find that the on-line shopping platforms start to become restrictive and lack the functionality to manage the business effectively. Often by this point you need greater flexibility over shipping, handling, stock, and suppliers/manufacturers. This is the point where we move our clients over to a dedicated e-commerce platform like PrestaShop or OpenCart which is hosted on a dedicated server.
 
These shops require extensive development and management so costs are significantly higher than the first two methods although commission paid on each sale is much lower (only the payment gateway is taking commission on these platforms and with a healthy order book the rate of commission can be negotiated) so on a large enough scale the operating costs will be lower than the other platforms. A dedicated e-commerce solution gives you total control over your whole business, provides extensive reporting and sales management and can be customized with additional functionality like warehouse management and customer services management.
 

Need Some Help?

We offer both free impartial advice and full consultancy services so if you need help selecting an e-commerce solution then give us a call today.

The post Choosing an E-Commerce Solution first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Choosing an E-Commerce Solution appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/choosing-e-commerce-solution/feed 0
Adding custom script files to a WordPress theme https://lennox-it.uk/adding-custom-script-files-wordpress-theme?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=adding-custom-script-files-wordpress-theme https://lennox-it.uk/adding-custom-script-files-wordpress-theme#respond Thu, 25 Dec 2014 16:51:56 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=863 Whilst it is easy enough to add standard <script> tags to your themes header, there are times (especially when working with pre-built themes that may receive updates) when you want to register a new script file without modifying the theme templates. This is useful when you have a new UI or JQuery widget that you […]

The post Adding custom script files to a WordPress theme first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Adding custom script files to a WordPress theme appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Whilst it is easy enough to add standard <script> tags to your themes header, there are times (especially when working with pre-built themes that may receive updates) when you want to register a new script file without modifying the theme templates. This is useful when you have a new UI or JQuery widget that you want to add to your site or when you just want to add some custom logic to an existing page or post.

Thankfully it’s very easy to register a new script file in WordPress without having to go anywhere near the templates by using the new “Child Theme” functionality and adding a few lines of code to the Functions.php file.

Just follow these simple steps:

  1. If you have not done so already you need to create a Child Theme which allows you to override functionality in your current theme without modifying the theme files. This allows you to make changes to the theme without risking the changes being lost when/if the theme is updated. To create a child theme just follow this easy guide from the WordPress Codex (http://codex.wordpress.org/Child_Themes).
  2.  Once you have created your child theme the next step is to open up the Functions.php file in your favourite text/code editor.
  3.  Finally you need to use the wp_enqueue_script() function to register your script with the site so it will be added to the html header. The full function reference is here (http://codex.wordpress.org/Function_Reference/wp_register_script) but if you just want to add a simple script the copy/paste and modify the following code:
add_action( 'wp_enqueue_scripts', 'enqueue_and_register_my_scripts' );
function enqueue_and_register_my_scripts(){
    wp_register_script( 'my-script', get_stylesheet_directory_uri() . '/js/my-script.js' );
}

Also if you want to add a script which only occurs on a specific page or relies on other scripts then you can do the following:

function enqueue_and_register_my_scripts(){

    if ( is_page( 'careers' ) ){
        // Enqueue a script that has both jQuery (automatically registered by WordPress)
        // and my-script (registered earlier) as dependencies.
        wp_enqueue_script( 'my-careers-script', get_stylesheet_directory_uri() . '/js/my-careers-script.js', array( 'jquery', 'my-script' ) );
    }
}

And that’s all there is to it, happy scripting!

The post Adding custom script files to a WordPress theme first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Adding custom script files to a WordPress theme appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/adding-custom-script-files-wordpress-theme/feed 0
Uninstall Windows 8 and Install Windows 7 https://lennox-it.uk/uninstall-windows-8-install-windows-7?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=uninstall-windows-8-install-windows-7 https://lennox-it.uk/uninstall-windows-8-install-windows-7#respond Tue, 16 Dec 2014 15:39:24 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=858 Lennox IT: Computer Support Derby: Helpful Advice on how to remove Windows 8 and reinstall windows 7 1. Make sure you can get windows 7 Drivers Start by opening the device manager in your control panel. It will provide you with a list of all the different devices found on the system, from touchpad and […]

The post Uninstall Windows 8 and Install Windows 7 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Uninstall Windows 8 and Install Windows 7 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Lennox IT: Computer Support Derby: Helpful Advice on how to remove Windows 8 and reinstall windows 7

1. Make sure you can get windows 7 Drivers

Start by opening the device manager in your control panel. It will provide you with a list of all the different devices found on the system, from touchpad and keyboard to networking and Wi-Fi adapters. Don’t skip this step, because you can’t use the device without a working driver—meaning that without the proper drivers, you can easily find yourself stuck with a nearly unusable machine.

By digging into the properties of each device individually, you should be able to find the specific part model name, and information about the drivers. Some searching online will help you discover whether or not Windows 7 drivers are available for each part, but you will often need to track do each driver individually. The one exception to this is when the manufacturer offers two versions of the same model PC—both a Windows 8 configuration, and a Windows 7 version.

The first place to check is the PC manufacturer’s product support page. By looking up your specific PC model number, you should be able to locate a list of all the needed drivers for the laptop’s hardware. If you’re lucky, the manufacturer support page includes drivers for both Windows 8 and Windows 7, giving you everything you need for your entire PC. With one of our test PCs, this was all we needed to do, because all the device drivers were available.

If not, you’ll need to take it one device at a time. Find the name of the manufacturer for each device and search for that company’s website, which should have its own driver download page. If even this doesn’t seem to help, you can always fire up your search engine and search for “[Device name] + Windows 7 Driver.” That should bring up plenty of resources.

Be aware, however, that for some newer devices, drivers may not be available for Windows 7 and older operating systems.

2. Back up everything you don’t want deleted

3. You’ll need Windows 7 installation media on either a disc or on a USB Key.

4. Disable UEFI and Enable Legacy Boot

Unlike past PCS, which would let you access the BIOS at startup, you’ll need to first enable Advanced Startup Mode.

  • In Windows 8:
  • Open Settings by going to the Charms Bar and clicking on the Gear icon.
  • Go to “Change PC Settings” at the bottom right corner of the screen, below the icons. On the left, scroll down and select “General Settings.” On the right, scroll down through the settings options to find “Advanced Options.”
  • Select “UEFI Firmware Settings”—you may need to first select “Tools and Settings” and then “Advance Options”—and then follow the prompt to restart and change settings.
  • Select “BIOS setup.” Under the “System Configuration” tab, find “Boot Options.” (In some instances, Boot Options will instead be found under the “Security” tab.)
  • Once into the Boot Options menu, you will first find “Secure Boot” and disable it. Still in the Boot Options menu, find “Legacy Boot” and change it to enabled. You will now be able to boot into your Windows 7 installation media. Depending upon whether you will be installing it from a disc or a USB key, you will want to change the Legacy Boot Order so that either the optical drive or USB device take priority. Finally, exit the BIOS, saving changes.

5. With Legacy Boot enabled and your boot order changed, you should now be able to boot into your installation media to begin installing Windows 7.

Start the installation process, choose your language and region, and press “Install Now” to begin the process. Back to Windows 7 – Custom Installation

You’ll be asked to agree to Microsoft’s software license, and then to choose between an Upgrade or Custom installation. In this instance, you’ll want to choose Custom. Back to Windows 7 – Drive Partitions

The next step is to choose the destination drive for the installed OS. At the very least, you’ll want to install Windows 7 to your C: drive. If you want to wipe Windows 8 completely off of your system, this is the time to do it. Select the various partitions on the hard drive and go through the process of deleting each, and consolidating the free space. This all handled in the installer, which gives you the option to delete or format each partition as it’s selected. But beware—this is the Rubicon of OS installation. Once those drives are gone, they are gone, and rebooting the system without finishing the Windows 7 installation will leave you with a PC that has no operating system. Next, the installer will go through the process of extracting and expanding all of the necessary installation folders. Kick back and relax for a while, because this part is automatic. During this process, the PC will also restart on its own—don’t panic, that’s just part of the installation process.

Finally, your laptop will boot into Windows, and you should see a more familiar version of the Windows logo come up.

Once you boot into Windows, you’ll be asked to provide a 25-digit Product Key. You can proceed without one, but you’ll be forever hounded by warnings about using a pirated version of Windows, even if it’s a brand new store-bought copy.

6. Reinstall any missing Drivers and run a Windows update.

The post Uninstall Windows 8 and Install Windows 7 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Uninstall Windows 8 and Install Windows 7 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/uninstall-windows-8-install-windows-7/feed 0
Segmentation Fault errors in Prestashop 1.5/1.6 https://lennox-it.uk/segmentation-fault-errors-prestashop-1-51-6?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=segmentation-fault-errors-prestashop-1-51-6 https://lennox-it.uk/segmentation-fault-errors-prestashop-1-51-6#respond Wed, 10 Dec 2014 16:58:00 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=851 One of our clients has recently suffered continual problems with their Prestashop deployment and after finally getting to the bottom of the problem I thought I would share the information. The Problem The site was running a commercial grade VPS with a separate database server, load balancer, and 3 front-end web servers (Cent-OS). We noticed […]

The post Segmentation Fault errors in Prestashop 1.5/1.6 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Segmentation Fault errors in Prestashop 1.5/1.6 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
One of our clients has recently suffered continual problems with their Prestashop deployment and after finally getting to the bottom of the problem I thought I would share the information.

The Problem

The site was running a commercial grade VPS with a separate database server, load balancer, and 3 front-end web servers (Cent-OS). We noticed that the web servers were continually failing for no apparent reason and the apache error_log was filling up with Segmentation fault errors:

[notice] child pid ###### exit signal Segmentation fault (11)

The CPU load was also extremely high on the servers, frequently spiking up to 100% and memory usage was also bizarrely high with each httpd instance taking up 120mb – 200mb or more. We raised a support ticket with our server vendors and we were advised to raised the MaxClient value in the php setting or add additional servers to the farm to help manage the load but our traffic was not THAT high and something clearly wasn’t right.

After repeated chasing (4 weeks worth to be exact) we eventually got hold of a decent engineer and he traced the problem back to the APC caching module for PHP and a conflict with Prestashop’s “smartycache”.

The Fix

  1. The first step was to completely disable the APC cache in the Prestashop back-end (under “performance”). The setting can also be changed under config/settings.php if you need to push the change out to multiple servers. This step brought down CPU and memory usage dramatically on the server and restored stability but we were still seeing occasional segmentation fault errors.
  2. The next step was to remove APC completely from the server and replace it with Zend OpCache which is recommended by Prestashop:
    http://www.prestashop.com/blog/en/your-prestashop-store-is-twice-as-fast-with-zend-opcache/
  3. With APC removed the segmentation fault errors have completely disappeared and the server seems to have completely stabilized. Our final step then was to reset the MaxClient in the http config to the correctly level for the server. You can calculate this easy enough by looking at the average memory usage for each httpd instance:
    # ps -H h -ylC httpd | perl -lane '$s+=$F[7];$i++;END{printf"Avg=%.1fMB\n",$s/$i/2048}'

    And then diving this into your main memory on the server (replace 2048  in above command). Don’t forget to leave some memory for your OS though so subtract 500mb-1024mb from your main memory depending on what else is running on there.

  4. With MaxClient set correctly and APC removed our Prestashop is running much better and (touch wood) so far no problems have been reported.

 

I hope this helps someone

The post Segmentation Fault errors in Prestashop 1.5/1.6 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Segmentation Fault errors in Prestashop 1.5/1.6 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/segmentation-fault-errors-prestashop-1-51-6/feed 0
Making a Norton Ghost Bootable USB Drive https://lennox-it.uk/making-norton-ghost-bootable-usb-drive?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=making-norton-ghost-bootable-usb-drive https://lennox-it.uk/making-norton-ghost-bootable-usb-drive#comments Mon, 08 Dec 2014 16:51:12 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=847 Lennox IT: Computer Support Derby: Helpful Advice on how to make a Norton Ghost Bootable USB pen drive to recover your PC, Laptop or Netbook Norton Ghost boot from USB Download the ISO from Here Extract the contents to a new folder on your hard disk (e.g. using SlySoft Virtual CloneDrive from here or any other […]

The post Making a Norton Ghost Bootable USB Drive first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Making a Norton Ghost Bootable USB Drive appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Lennox IT: Computer Support Derby: Helpful Advice on how to make a Norton Ghost Bootable USB pen drive to recover your PC, Laptop or Netbook

Norton Ghost boot from USB

  1. Download the ISO from Here
  2. Extract the contents to a new folder on your hard disk (e.g. using SlySoft Virtual CloneDrive from here or any other ISO extraction/mounting tool)
  3. Run RMPrepUSB (Here) and select:
    1. MAX size
    2. Volume label SRD or anything else you prefer
    3. WinPE v2 (BOOTMGR)
    4. NTFS
    5. Set to  your extracted folder and tick the Copy Files box
    6. Click Prepare Drive
  4. When finished Click on Eject

Your all done, just insert the pen drive into the computer needing to be recovered and tell the machine to boot form the drive you just made.

The post Making a Norton Ghost Bootable USB Drive first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Making a Norton Ghost Bootable USB Drive appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/making-norton-ghost-bootable-usb-drive/feed 1
Sage Error: Username is in use – the program cannot connect you at this time https://lennox-it.uk/sage-error-username-use-program-cannot-connect-time?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=sage-error-username-use-program-cannot-connect-time https://lennox-it.uk/sage-error-username-use-program-cannot-connect-time#comments Wed, 03 Dec 2014 19:27:00 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=801   Lennox IT: Bussiness Support Derby:  Sage Username is in use error When seeing this error your only option is to click OK which isn’t very helpful. Even after a full system reboot the same thing happens. Note that I use Sage 50 Accounts Plus 2011 (v17) but I’ve had the same thing happen before […]

The post Sage Error: Username is in use – the program cannot connect you at this time first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Sage Error: Username is in use – the program cannot connect you at this time appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
 

Lennox IT: Bussiness Support Derby:  Sage Username is in use error

When seeing this error your only option is to click OK which isn’t very helpful. Even after a full system reboot the same thing happens. Note that I use Sage 50 Accounts Plus 2011 (v17) but I’ve had the same thing happen before in Sage 2010, 2007

  1. Click on Start–>My Computer
  1. Double click on the C:\ drive or whichever drive letter has your \Documents and Settings\ folder on and double click to go into the \Documents and Settings\ folder
  2. Double click to go into the \All Users\ folder
  3. Double click to go into the \Application Data\ folder
    [if you can’t see an \Application Data\ folder and the first in the list alphabetically is \Desktop\ then you need to click on Tools in the menu bar, the Folder Options, then click on the View tab and look in the list for “Show hidden files and folders” and select this option, then you should be able to see the \Application Data\ folder although it might look feint or greyed out.
  4. Once in the C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\ folder scroll down and then double click on \Sage\ folder
  5. Double click to go into the \Accounts\ folder
  6. Then depending on when you first setup the account click to go into that year, in my case I have a \2010\ and a \2011\ folder but my data is in the \2010\ folder so double click to go into the year.
  7. You should then see a \Company.000\ folder, I assume that if you have a license for multiple company accounts there may be several of these, one for each company accounts but in my instance I have a single user and single company licence so I just have one \Company.000\ so click to go into that
  8. Once in \Company.000\ click on the \ACCDATA\ folder
  9. Nearly there…. I am now in the following directory:
    C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Sage\Accounts\2010\Company.000\ACCDATA\
  10. There will be lots of files with a .dta file extension in here, simply scroll down to until you see QUEUE.DTA and select it.
  11. At this point you could (but don’t)  just delete QUEUE.DTA as this is the file that is locking you out from Sage and will be recreated when you next login and no company information will be lost at all. But rather than just deleting the file, it is better practice to rename this file to something different so that if it does break something, you can rename it back to the original and no harm is done.
  12. Right click on QUEUE.DTA and choose rename.
  13. Type in a new filename, in this case I’ll rename it to QUEUE.DTA.OLD and hit enter.
  14. Now try logging into Sage Account again and you should be all fixed.

The post Sage Error: Username is in use – the program cannot connect you at this time first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Sage Error: Username is in use – the program cannot connect you at this time appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/sage-error-username-use-program-cannot-connect-time/feed 5
Move Outlook 2003/2007 Email AutoComplete to Outlook 2010 https://lennox-it.uk/move-outlook-20032007-email-autocomplete-to-outlook-2010?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=move-outlook-20032007-email-autocomplete-to-outlook-2010 https://lennox-it.uk/move-outlook-20032007-email-autocomplete-to-outlook-2010#respond Sun, 30 Nov 2014 11:07:18 +0000 //lennox-it.uk/?p=718 Lennox IT: Derbyshire Business IT Support : In outlook 2010, nk2 file is merged into outlook profile. If you want to migrate an autocomplete cache from previous versions of outlook (2003/2007) to outlook 2010, follow these steps: 1.Copy the nk2-file to the following folder; -Windows Vista and Windows 7 C:\Users\%username%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Outlook -Windows XP C:\Documents and Settings\%username%\Application Settings\Microsoft\Outlook […]

The post Move Outlook 2003/2007 Email AutoComplete to Outlook 2010 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Move Outlook 2003/2007 Email AutoComplete to Outlook 2010 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Lennox IT: Derbyshire Business IT Support :

In outlook 2010, nk2 file is merged into outlook profile.
If you want to migrate an autocomplete cache from previous versions of outlook (2003/2007) to outlook 2010, follow these steps:

1.Copy the nk2-file to the following folder;
-Windows Vista and Windows 7
C:\Users\%username%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Outlook

-Windows XP
C:\Documents and Settings\%username%\Application Settings\Microsoft\Outlook

2.Rename the nk2-file to the name of your mail profile.
To find out this name use the Mail applet in Control Panel and click on the Show Profiles… button.
By default, your profile is called “Outlook”. So in that case you would call your file “outlook.nk2”.
If it is a BPOS profile, it is very likely that it is youremailaddress.nk2 (Example: name@yourdomain.com.nk2)
3.Start Outlook with the /importnk2 switch;
-Windows Vista and Windows 7
Start-> type; outlook.exe /importnk2

-Windows XP
Start-> Run; outlook.exe /importnk2

4.Outlook will now process the nk2-file and import it into the Suggested Contacts folder. Outlook will automatically append .old to the nk2-file. So in our example it will now be called; outlook.nk2.old

The post Move Outlook 2003/2007 Email AutoComplete to Outlook 2010 first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Move Outlook 2003/2007 Email AutoComplete to Outlook 2010 appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/move-outlook-20032007-email-autocomplete-to-outlook-2010/feed 0
Watch out for CryptoLocker clones and Ransomware https://lennox-it.uk/cryptolocker-clones?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=cryptolocker-clones https://lennox-it.uk/cryptolocker-clones#respond Fri, 31 Oct 2014 15:33:42 +0000 //lennox-it.uk//?p=1 Lennox IT: Derby Business IT Support recommendation: There are a number of new CryptoLocker clones emerging that can  be prevented by installing CryptoPrevent.  The malicious programs encrypt files on Windows computers and demanded a substantial fee before handing over the key to the scrambled files. CryptoPrevent is a tiny utility to lock down any Windows […]

The post Watch out for CryptoLocker clones and Ransomware first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Watch out for CryptoLocker clones and Ransomware appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
Lennox IT: Derby Business IT Support recommendation:

There are a number of new CryptoLocker clones emerging that can  be prevented by installing CryptoPrevent.  The malicious programs encrypt files on Windows computers and demanded a substantial fee before handing over the key to the scrambled files.

CryptoPrevent is a tiny utility to lock down any Windows OS (XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, and 10) to prevent infection by the Cryptolocker malware or ‘ransomware’, which encrypts personal files and then offers decryption for a paid ransom.

Incidentally, due to the way that CryptoPrevent works, it actually protects against a wide variety of malware, not just Cryptolocker!

DOWNLOAD IT HERE

The post Watch out for CryptoLocker clones and Ransomware first appeared on Lennox IT.

The post Watch out for CryptoLocker clones and Ransomware appeared first on Lennox IT.

]]>
https://lennox-it.uk/cryptolocker-clones/feed 0