How to Set Up a Virtual Private Network with Windows

Imagine you are on business overseas working to secure a new account with an offshore supplier. This is a big meeting for you and your company. If you clinch the deal, you are in line for a big promotion. The morning of the presentation, you turn on your laptop and discover your hard drive has crashed. Panicking, you call your office to request an electronic copy of your presentation, but because of the time difference, your call goes unanswered.

However, if you knew how to set up a virtual private network (VPN), you could access the file from any computer in the world! A VPN allows you to connect to a computer from anywhere in the world and access the files.

Steps

Setting up a VPN in Windows is a two step process.

1. Set up one computer to share files (server).
2. Set up another computer to access them (client).

Begin by setting up the server:

1. Open Internet Explorer and go to www.whatismyip.com. Write down the IP address. You will need it to configure the client.
2. Click the Start button and click Run.
3. Type control and hit Enter.
4. Click Network and Internet Connections.
5. Click Network Connections.
6. Click Create a New Connection, which is the first option on the left toolbar.
7. The New Connection Wizard will open. Click Next.
8. Choose Set up an advanced connection, the last element on the list. Click Next.
9. Choose Accept incoming connections. Click Next.
10. You will see the Devices for Incoming Connections screen. Do not select anything on this screen. Click Next.
11. Select Allow virtual private connections. Click Next.
12. Select to whom you want to give access. Click Next. If a user is not listed, you will have to add an account. See “Related Wikihows” for more information.
13. Do not change anything on the Networking Software screen. Click Next.
14. That’s it! Your computer is now set up to allow for VPNs. Click Finish to complete the wizard.

Now proceed to connect the client:

1. Click the Start button and click Run.
2. Type control and hit Enter.
3. Click Network and Internet Connections.
4. Click Network Connections.
5. Click Create a New Connection, which is the first option on the left toolbar.
6. The New Connection Wizard will open. Click Next.
7. Select Connect to the network at my workplace and click Next.
8. Select Virtual Private Network connection and click Next.
9. Type the name of your network in the blank box. Click Next.
10. Enter the IP address you wrote down earlier and click Next.
11. Select Add a shortcut to this connection to my desktop and click Finish.

Tips

• Both computers must be connected to the internet.
• The user name and password must be entered exactly as you saved them.
• The IP address must be written exactly as listed on the screen.
• If the VPN doesn’t work, turn off your firewall.

Warnings

• Do not give access to the “guest” account. It does not require a password, allowing anyone to access the VPN.

How Registry Cleaners Work

Registry cleaners are one of the most misunderstood of all Windows utilities. Although they are extremely effective and powerful, they are often used for totally the wrong reasons. Here is a complete tutorial of how these software tools work and how they can help you.

Although there are a lot of them on the market, all registry cleaners have been created to do the same job - to fix a part of your computer called the 'registry'. This is a big database which stores all sorts of information for Windows, including all the settings for your software and information about your hardware, such as how much hard drive space you have remaining. Because of the amount of information stored inside the registry, it's one of the most important and frequently used parts of Windows, with 100's of registry files open at any time you use your PC.

This is okay, but the big problem is that since Windows can only focus on so many things at once, it often gets confused and saves many of these registry files in the wrong way, making them damaged and incredibly difficult to read. Imagine the files as being like books with all their pages in the wrong order - your computer has to take longer to read what's in the file, making it run slower and a lot less stably. This is a big problem and is one of the major causes of a slow system & computer errors... And to fix it, you just need to use a registry cleaner.

Registry cleaners are simple software tools designed to clean out the registry database. They work by scanning every single registry file and then fixing any of the bad files that they find inside there. This allows your computer to read all the files it needs whenever it needs them, making it a lot more reliable and stable. To get a registry cleaner to do this, you just need to be able to download a good cleaner (we always use one called "RegAce"), install it and then click on the big "Scan Now" button in the center of the screen. This will start the cleaner scanning through your registry database and will instruct it to find all the damaged files that are causing your system problems, allowing you to quickly make the most of your PC again.

What's the WinKey used for on the Windows keyboards?

• WinKey = Displays taskbar and Start Menu
• WinKey + E = Opens Explorer
• WinKey + F = Opens Find
• WinKey + R = Opens Run
• WinKey + D = Maximize/Minimize all windows
• WinKey + M = Minimize all windows
• WinKey + Pause = Opens System Resources
• WinKey + Tab = Flip between open application in the taskbar
• WinKey + CTRL + F = Finds a computer
• WinKey + Shift + M = Maximize all "WinKey + E" minimized windows
• WinKey + Break = Displays the System Properties sheet

How to Change your Zip Drive Letter in Windows 95

Iomega Zip Drives are becoming more popular as a storage alternative for files. However, when a Zip Drive is added to a Windows 95 computer system, it often changes the drive letter of the CD ROM. If your Zip drive has a Floppy disk icon in 'My Computer', then try these steps to switch the drive letters between the Zip Drive and CD-ROM drive.

1. Open Device Manager and double click on the Disk Drives line.
2. Highlight the Iomega Zip Drive line and click on Properties.
3. Click on the Settings tab.
4. In the Reserved Drive Letters section, there is a Start Drive Letter and an End Drive Letter setting. Enter the desired drive letter for the Zip Drive in both the Start and End boxes. Be sure to use the same drive letter for both the Start and End sections.
5. Click on OK. Double click on the CD-ROM line.
6. Highlight your CD-ROM drive line and click on Properties.
7. Click on the Settings tab.
8. In the Reserved Drive Letters section, there is a Start Drive Letter and an End Drive Letter setting. Enter the desired drive letter for the CD-ROM in both the Start and End boxes. Be sure to use the same drive letter for both the Start and End sections.
9. Click on Ok, Click on OK to close Device Manager
10. Shutdown and Restart your computer.

    This should change the Zip and CD-ROM drive letters.

Track A Stolen Laptop Using Open Source

You might not realize it, but losing a laptop is a very common problem. In fact, according to a story in July of this year, a study by the Ponemon Institute shows that up to 12,000 laptops are lost at airport security checkpoints EVERY WEEK. How do you say “holy S**tballs” in geek?

But, there are solutions and, among them, is a free, open source option.

The solution is Adeona and I had the opportunity to watch a short presentation by these guys at Gnomedex only a short while ago. The project is coming out of the University of Washington. Here is how it is described:

Adeona is the first Open Source system for tracking the location of your lost or stolen laptop that does not rely on a proprietary, central service. This means that you can install Adeona on your laptop and go — there’s no need to rely on a single third party. What’s more, Adeona addresses a critical privacy goal different from existing commercial offerings. It is privacy-preserving. This means that no one besides the owner (or an agent of the owner’s choosing) can use Adeona to track a laptop. Unlike other systems, users of Adeona can rest assured that no one can abuse the system in order to track where they use their laptop.

How it works is pretty simple. You download the free client software to your laptop and install it. That client software will then begin sending encrypted information to servers on the Internet on the geographic location of your laptop. If the laptop every goes missing, you as the owner can log in with your username and password and view the information on where your laptop is. The software is free and it is using the free storage service OpenDHT to store the data.

As an added benefit, if you’re using a Mac, the software will use isightcapture to take a quick snapshot using the built-in Isight webcam and therefore send a picture of whoever is using your MacBook.

You might be wondering how it knows where the laptop is. The answer is: it doesn’t. Your laptop most likely does not have any built in GPS technology. Instead, the system logs the IP addresses used to connect to the Internet as well as any data on nearby routers. And as most geeks know, it isn’t usually hard to geo-locate an IP address. At the very least, you can report the information to authorities and track down the thief.

This is free and open source and, for that reason, lacks many of the features of the commercial services such as Lojack for Laptops or PC PhoneHome. But, the creators of Adeona were trying to solve the privacy problem. The concern with commercial services is that they could be used to track even the legitimate owner of the laptop. The overriding goal of Adeona was to make sure only the actual owner of the laptop could see the data.

Since Adeona is open source, we’re likely to see new features built on top of it. Anyone can take the source code and improve upon it. Perhaps we might even see Adeona adapted to the Iphone. That would make a very cool app seeing as the Iphone 3G has integrated GPS technology. The downloads page of the Adeona site says they are exploring the possibility of Iphone and Windows Mobile versions.

Adeona is available for Windows, Mac and Linux and is free to try.

Open Source Source Code Editor

You have probably seen several tips in the past relating to the excellent Notepad replacement Notepad++, however today I am going to write about another open source text editor which is geared towards editing source code: Scintilla.

As well as features found in standard text editing components, Scintilla includes features especially useful when editing and debugging source code. These include support for syntax styling, error indicators, code completion and call tips. The selection margin can contain markers like those used in debuggers to indicate breakpoints and the current line. Styling choices are more open than with many editors, allowing the use of proportional fonts, bold and italics, multiple foreground and background colours and multiple fonts.

Scintilla runs on Windows, Linux and Mac so everyone can run it. As with most developer tools, it all comes down to personal preference as the features are usually pretty standard across the board. The more choices you have, the better right?

A “Safer” Way To Shutdown Windows

Have you ever gone to shutdown your Windows machine (via Start > Shutdown) and once the process starts you remember there was one quick thing you needed to do? If so this is a hassle as you now have to turn the computer back on again to take care of it.

Instead of the usual procedure, instead try this batch file instead:

shutdown /s /t 60

When run, this will pop up a message box with a countdown to the system shutting down. This gives you time to make any last second adjustments, or you can cancel the shutdown process with another batch command:

shutdown /a

I keep 2 batch files on my desktop, “Shut down.bat” and “Cancel Shut down.bat” which run these commands and I don’t even bother with the standard Windows interface. Additionally, you can have the computer restart instead of shutdown by replacing “/s” with “/r” and you can adjust the countdown by changing 60 up to 600.

My Mac Will Kill Your PC. Twice.

My friend, Kyle Graham, did a video where he openly declared that his PC will kill my Mac. He compared his experience with his expensive Macbook to his experience with his $400 PC.

Now, I can’t let this ballsy maneuver go without a response, can I? So, I recorded a video response.

Oh, and sorry for the weirdism happening at the beginning of the video. I’m working on it.

Let me dissect Kyle’s points here:

1. Airport card died. Sorry about that, man. All I can say is that I have 3 Macs and have had literally no problems with any of them. I think you might have a defective Mac.
2. Mac is super expensive. Yep, you’re paying for the fruit. However, they are powerful machines that last a long time.
3. Mac users are like a cult. Cute stereotype, but most Mac users aren’t like that.
4. Everything has to come through Apple. Not true. I don’t buy anything except the computer from Apple. Everything else comes from third-party vendors. There is nothing about my Mac that I feel I can’t do because of Apple.
5. Expensive cable for hooking up your monitor. What? I had a cable come with my Mac and I can plug any monitor into my Macs. I didn’t have to spend any money on weird cables. Oh, and yes, the Apple monitors are ridiculously overpriced.
6. Apple won’t allow you to do everything with your computer. Again, what? Find me ONE thing that I cannot pull off with my Macs. This claim might be true with the Iphone, but not the Mac. You can do anything you want with it.

All in all, Kyle has some good points. Yes, Apple is pricey. It gives the PC guys reason to rip on Apple.

Alright, PC Mech’ers. Rip me up. Go!

How to Remove Panda Antivirus

Panda Antivirus and Panda Internet Security are fairly popular products that many people have enjoyed using. A customer brought in a computer the other day and needed help installing the latest version of Panda Internet Security 2009. His computer already had Panda 2008 installed and the installation for the 2009 version was failing everytime he tried to install it.
Each time he tried to install the software, it would bring up the following screen during the installation and the installation would end. The screen told us the installation failed because "traces of previous installations have been detected" on the computer. Leaving no antivirus software installed. No matter how we uninstalled or reinstalled, the same error message appeared time and again.


Any removal through the Add/Remove Programs option in the Control Panel failed, because nothing regarding Panda existed in the Add/Remove listing.

I proceeded to download automatic removal utilities from Panda Software. Listed below are the utilities I tried.

Panda 2006 Removal Utility

Panda 2007 Removal Utility

Panda 2008 Removal Utility

Panda 2009 Removal Utility

Unfortunately, running any of the above automatic removal programs STILL did not solve the problem and I was left with the "traces of a previous installation" error. A windows service called "Panda Process Protection Service" and a driver called "Panda Process Protection Driver" remained in the system and refused to be deleted.

Then I stumbled upon a Panda Security Utility that did the trick. If you are experiencing similar issues, please give this procedure a try.

1) Download the PandaSecurityUtility and save it to your desktop

2) Once the file is downloaded, double-click on it to run. For Windows Vista users, you'll want to right-click on the file and click Run as Administrator so the program has the correct permissions to uninstall the software.

3) When the utility finishes, search the computer for the file C:\Windows\RAVTC.tmp and delete it if it exists.

4) Now reset the Winsock catalog by following these directions:

* Click on Start, Run
* Type CMD and press Enter
* On the black screen, type the following command and press Enter

netsh winsock reset catalog

* Type Exit and press Enter to close the command prompt

5) Restart the computer

6) Install Panda software (this time it should work)
What began as a simple uninstall/reinstall job turned into about 4 hours of trouble, however at last the problem was solved. Hopefully, this information will save you time and headache if you run into the same type of problem.

Stop Error 0x0000007E After SP3 is installed

I've had a few computers that will not boot correctly after I've installed Windows XP Service Pack 3 on them. The computer finishes the install and then prompts for a reboot. The computer will start to reboot then give a BSOD Stop Error for a second and reboot again. This process will continue unless the computer is started in Safe Mode. In Safe mode the computer boots correctly and everything seems fine.

This problem only appears on some systems after upgrading to SP3. This particular problem on systems that have been prepared with SysPrep. The sysprep image was created on an Intel based computer, and then the sysprep image is deployed on a Non-Intel system such as an AMD processor. In these cases, the registry entry for Intelppm is incorrectly set and causes the computer to go into a continuous reboot after the service pack has installed.
How Can I Solve This Problem?

Follow these steps to resolve this issue with the computer not booting correctly after SP3 is installed.

1) Start your computer in Safe Mode.

2) Click on Start, Run, and type REGEDIT and press Enter. This will open the Registry Editor.

3) Click the pluses(+) next to the following registry keys to navigate to the correct spot.

• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
• SYSTEM
• CurrentControlSet
• Services
• Intelppm

4) In the right hand column find the entry titled START and double-click on it

5) Change the number to 4 and click Ok

6) Close the Registry Editor

7) Shut down your computer and restart

This time the computer should restart normally and finish the installation of SP3.



Of course, it should be stated that if you are unsure of any of these procedures, please do not complete them and ask for assistance from a local computer tech, family friend, or other knowledgeable person.

How to Remove AVG Free Antivirus

AVG Antivirus by Grisoft is a great free antivirus program
that I recommend to many people. However, there are times when it must be uninstalled. Corrupted virus signatures have caused it not to update properly, or it wont start properly and it needs to be reinstalled. If a new email client has been installed after AVG, you'll need to uninstall it and reinstall
it so this email program is protected.

Whatever the reason for needing to uninstall AVG, I've listed the best procedure for doing this below:
Normal Uninstall

The first thing you want to try is to locate AVG in the Add/Remove Control Panel and try to remove it from there. Follow these instructions to accomplish this.

1) Click on Start, Control Panel
2) Open Add/Remove Programs
3) Find AVG in the Programs list and highlight it
4) Click Remove and follow the prompts to uninstall AVG Free

Is There an Uninstall Utility?

Unfortunately, at this time Grisoft, the maker of AVG, does not have an uninstall utility for AVG. The recommended procedure is a time consuming one. You must download the latest version of AVG from the website, and then run it.

1) Click on the following link and download AVG to your desktop

http://free.grisoft.com/doc/5390/us/frt/0

2) Double-click on the downloaded file to run it
3) AVG will present you with three options to choose from. Choose the Uninstall option to completely uninstall AVG

Add/Remove Components - choose if you want to add/remove some components or reinstall the entire AVG program
Repair installation - this option repairs or reinstalls missing or damaged components of AVG
Uninstall - this option removes the AVG program from your PC

4) Once the uninstall has completed, restart your computer. You can then proceed to install another antivirus or install AVG again.

How to Remove Avast Antivirus

Even though Avast is one of my favorite antivirus products, there have been times when I've needed to uninstall or remove it. Corrupted virus signatures have caused it not to update properly, or it wont start properly and it needs to be reinstalled. Maybe corrupted files are causing 100% CPU usage. These and other issues can cause you to uninstall and reinstall your antivirus product.

Whatever the reason for needing to uninstall Avast, I've listed the best procedure for doing this below:
Normal Uninstall

The first thing you want to try is to locate Avast in the Add/Remove Control Panel and try to remove it from there. Follow these instructions to accomplish this.

1) Click on Start, Control Panel
2) Open Add/Remove Programs
3) Find Avast in the Programs list and highlight it
4) Click Remove and follow the prompts to uninstall Avast

Using the Avast Uninstall Utility

If for some reason the normal uninstall does not work, you may have to download Avast's own Uninstall Utility.

1) Click on the following link and download the Avast Uninstall Utility to your desktop

http://files.avast.com/files/eng/aswclear.exe

2) Double-click on the file ASWCLEAR and run it
3) You should see the following screen



4) Click on the ellipsis and choose the folder where Avast is installed. This folder is usually in the Program Files directory. Ex. C:\Program Files\Avast

Be very careful which folder you choose since whatever folder is chosen will be completely deleted from your computer.

5) Once the uninstall has completed, reboot your computer. You may then try to reinstall it or another antivirus.

If for some reason the uninstall utility does not remove it, you may have to reinstall a newer version of Avast to then proceed to uninstall or you may have an issue where multiple antivirus programs are showing in the Windows Security Center.

Download the latest version of Avast

How to Remove Norton Antivirus and Security Products

One of the most frequently asked questions I get is how to uninstall Norton or McAfee antivirus and security products. Maybe its because trial versions of these products were preinstalled when the customer purchased the computer, or maybe you want to uninstall Norton Antivirus and install another antivirus software product.

I've even received mail from computer users trying to install an antivirus product and they are told to uninstall Norton before they can proceed even though it appears Symantec products are not running on the system.

I'm also amazed at how many viruses attack Norton and Symantec products especially and disable them so they can wreck havoc on the computer.

My personal experience with Norton Antivirus has been mostly positive. However, each successive version seems to incorporate more functionality but it gets slower and slower. Although I wrote an article on how to speed up the windows boot process, one of the best ways always is to uninstall Norton and install a free antivirus product. I've also experienced situations where internet access is completely shut down and many times uninstalling all of the Norton Antivirus or firewall products on the computer fixes this issue.

Follow the instructions below to safely remove Norton and Symantec security products including their antivirus and firewall from your computer

Removal through the Add/Remove Programs Control Panel

In many cases, you can simply remove Norton products through the Add/Remove Control Panel.

1) Click on Start, Click on Control Panel
2) Double-click on Add or Remove Programs
3) Find the Symantec or Norton product listed and click on it. It should look similar to the following



4) Click on Remove
5) You'll see a screen similar to the one below. Click the Remove All button to start the removal process.



6) Once the removal process completes, you'll be asked to restart the computer. Go ahead and reboot at that time.

7) After rebooting Norton should be removed from your system.

If for some reason, the normal uninstall does not remove it, I recommend following the automatic uninstall instructions below to remove any leftover Symantec or Norton security products.

Removing Norton Automatically

Norton has created an automatic removal program to remove the following software products when the normal removal methods fail. Warning: if you use ACT! or WinFAX, back up those databases and uninstall those products as well. The removal tool will remove the following software products from your computer.

• Norton AntiSpam 2004 - 2005
• Norton Antivirus 2003 - 2007.2
• Norton Ghost 2003, 9.0, and 10.0
• Norton GoBack 3.1 - 4.2
• Norton Internet Security 2003 - 2007.2
• Norton Password Manager
• Norton Personal Firewall 2003 - 2006
• Norton SystemWorks 2003 - 2007
• Norton Confidential Online 2007
• Norton Internet Security 2007 Add-on Pack
• Norton Save and Restore 1.0 - 2.0
• Norton 360

Follow these directions to download the Norton Removal Tool and run it to remove the above programs.

1. Click on the following link to download the Norton removal tool
   
   ftp://ftp.symantec.com/public/english_us_canada/removal_tools/Norton_Removal_Tool.exe
   
   
2. Click Save and save the file to your desktop
3. Close all Norton Application windows you may have open, and double-click on Norton_Removal_Tool.exe to start the removal tool. Windows Vista users will have to right-click on the file and select "Run as Administrator"
4. After the removal tool finishes, you should be prompted to restart your computer.
5. Once the computer restarts, your Norton product should be uninstalled.

Extra Optional Steps

1. Open My Computer, double-click on Drive C
2. Double-click on Program Files
3. Look for any Norton or Symatec product folders that remain. Right-click on them and choose Delete. Also look in the Program Files\Common Files for the Symantec Shared folder and delete it
4. Close My Computer and other folders.

What is DivX?

DivX is the name given to a video codec (a piece of software encoding and decoding video) and is based on the MPEG-4 compression format. MPEG-4 is a new standard of video compression that is both high quality and low bitrate. They are usually only a fraction of the size of a standard DVD, even at 640x480 resolutions, making them the best home video format so far. They only take half the time to encode, and yet at the same time are smaller in size than MPEG-1 - due to their incredible compression technology - some have even called MPEG-4 the "MP3 of the video world". A DivX-compressed movie is about 8 to 12 times smaller than a DVD and ranges from 400 to 750 megabytes, which would enable it to be copied onto a single CD.
What is a "Codec" and why do I need it? The word codec is short for compressor/decompressor. When you install a video codec on your computer, what you really are doing is giving windows media player instructions how to compress/decompress movies in that file format. If the needed codec is missing you will receive an error message that windows media player is unable to download an appropriate decompressor. Without the correct codec installed, you will not be able to play the video.
Is it possible to play DivX movies in a DVD player? Some newer players support divx but most do not. You can get a list of players and where to buy them at divx-xvid-players.co.uk
What Software do I needed to play DivX movies in Windows? In order to play DivX movies you need to install the DivX codec, DirectX and a media player which supports the codec. We recommend using Windows Media Player to play DivX movies.
Where can I download Divx Movies from the Internet? You can spend forever hunting on the internet searching for DivX movies, however, the only things that you tend to come across are warez, popup banners, and sites that take you round and round in circles. The best way is to use some kind of file sharing program eg:- Morpheus to download your movies. Bear in mind the size of them and if you only have a standard 56k Modem connection then it can take a fair while. If you have the luxury of Broadband, then all the better.
Can I create my own DivX/VCD Movies from my own DVD's?
The answer is Yes, you can. You will need a program that will decrypt DVD's (referred to as Rip programs) for eg:- Smartripper, Claddvd. The process is called "ripping" because the process implies that you will "rip" both the video and audio tracks from the DVD. The reason that you have to rip a DVD to a hard drive is because DVDs are encrypted and you need to first decrypt the files before you can manipulate and get further access to them. DVD Ripping basically involves the process of copying the DVD files (i.e. .VOB, .IFO, .BUP files) from the DVD onto your hard-drive without the CSS (Content Scrambling System) scrambling the files during the copying process. This essentially makes a perfect 1:1 copy of the DVD onto your hard drive so that the files will have the original quality and size. You also need to make sure that your PC is at least a minimum specification to do this. Normally recommended at least a PIII 450Mhz or higher, 128Mb Ram, DVD Drive, About 6Gb - 8Gb of free space on you Hard Drive, Soundcard, 8Mb - 16Mb Video Card. You will need a conversion program like eg:- Flaskmpeg to convert the ripped DVD files. For more indepth information/tutorials about ripping/creating your own DivX Movies try some of the links below. They will tell you what software you need for each individual stage etc.
VCDhelp.com
Riphelp.com
Linkworld.com

How do I… Install and configure Windows Server 2008 core?

With the imminent launch of Microsoft Windows Server 2008 coming on February 27, 2008, I want to show you a feature I am fond of in this new operating system. With Windows Server 2008, you have the option of performing a Windows Server Core installation, which provides you with the minimum set of tools to run Windows.

You are provided with a kernel and a command line to manage the server. It is slim and bare bones and allows you to configure Windows concisely. This type of installation is perfect for a datacenter. I am really excited about this feature.

This blog post is also available as a TechRepublic gallery and TechRepublic download.

Installation

When you first run through the installation of Windows Server 2008, you have two options for installation. They are:

• Windows Server 2008 Enterprise (Full Installation)
• Windows Server 2008 Enterprise (Server Core Installation)

The following eight screen shots (Figures A-H) walk you through the installation of Windows Server Core which took approximately ten minutes to install.

Figure A

Figure B

Figure C

Figure D

Figure E

Figure F

Figure G

Figure H

After the installation, the main window for your new installation appears and you are ready to login as shown in Figure I. The initial login is Administrator and blank password (Figure J). You are required to change the password and set an Administrator password on initial login.

Figure I

Figure J

Now that you are logged in (Figure K), you are ready to configure the date, time, and time zone. In the command line type the following: controltimedate.cpl and set the options accordingly (Figure L).

Figure K

Figure L

If you need to configure and change the keyboard layout and settings, type the following in the command window: control intl.cpl (Figure M).

Figure M

Let’s move on and change the server name. The default name is a bunch of random letters and numbers and I would like to change the name to a local standard. You can view the current hostname by typing the following:

c:windowssystem32hostname

Now let’s use the name ssw-svr15. We will perform this option in the command line (Figure O) by typing the following:

c:windowssystem32netdom renamecomputer %computername% /NewName:ssw-svr15

Figure N

After choosing to proceed, the task completes successfully. You now need to reboot the server using the shutdown command. For the proper syntax, type:

shutdown /?

After reviewing the syntax, (Figure N) I will type the following: shutdown /r (switch for shutting down and restarting the computer) /t 10 (wait 10 seconds to shutdown and restart) /c “Changed Server Name” (add comment of max 512 characters). They total syntax will look as follows:

shutdown /r  /T 10 /C "Changed Server Name"

Figure O

Let’s now configure our networking so we can join this server to a domain. In order to see what interface you have to configure, (Figure P) type

netsh interface ipv4 show interface

Figure P

The Local Area Connection that we are going to configure has an index value of two. Let’s proceed and configure TCP/IP for this connection. (Figure Q) Type the following command to set the TCP/IP information:

netsh interface ipv4 set address name="2" source=static address=192.168.1.199 mask=255.255.255.0 gateway=192.168.1.1

Figure Q

Follow the same example to configure DNS (Figure R):

netsh interface ipv4 add dnsserver name="2" address=192.168.1.1 index=1

Figure R

If you type ipconfig /all, you will see the newly added information (Figure S).

Figure S

Let’s join it to a domain! In order to perform this function, we will take advantage of the netdom.exe. (Figure T) The syntax is as follows:

netdom join ssw-svr15 /domain:watchtower /userd:Administrator /passwordD:Password01

Note: Do not forget to reboot the server using the following command:

shutdown /r  /T 10 /C "Added to domain"

Figure T

As a final step, we should not forget to activate the server (Figure U) by typing the following:

slmgr.vbs -ato

Figure U

This doesn’t even scratch the surface of what you can do with a Windows Server Core installation but it begins to show you how powerful command line is with a small Windows kernel. With the popularity of virtualization and server consolidation, having the ability to virtualize a server core installation and attach a single role will become very popular with the datacenter. My next test will be to try to install Virtual Server on my server core installation. Wish me luck!