Move WSUS Database and Content Directory to another Drive

WSUS is great, but when it starts filling up your server's already full hard drive it turns into a problem.

Here are the steps to move your WSUS Database and Content Directory from C:\WSUS to D:\WSUS on the same server (D: being the new hard drive you just installed)

Moving the Content Directory

From a Command Prompt, locate WSUSUTIL.exe (C:\Program Files\Update Services\Tools) and run the following:

wsusutil.exe movecontent D:\WSUS\ D:\WSUS\move.log

(where D:\WSUS is the destination)

Moving the WSUS Database

1. Stop Update Services and IIS Admin Service

2. Open MS SQL Server Management Studio Express

3. Connect to Database Engine - \\.\pipe\MSSQL$MICROSOFT##SSEE\sql\query

4. Detach SUSDB (Tasks->Detach); Tick the Drop Connections box

5. Move the SUSDB Folder from C:\WSUS to the new location

6. Attach SUSDB (Right Click Databases -> Attach)

This can also be done via CMD Prompt without SQL Studio – Something I have not tested yet:

To detach:
SQLCMD.EXE -E -S np:\\.\pipe\MSSQL$MICROSOFT##SSEE\sql\query -Q "sp_detach_db 'SUSDB'"

To attach:
SQLCMD.EXE -E -S np:\\.\pipe\MSSQL$MICROSOFT##SSEE\sql\query -Q "sp_attach_db @dbname=N'SUSDB',@filename1=N'D:\WSUSDB\SUSDB.mdf', @filename2=N'D:\WSUSDB\SUSDB_log.ldf'"

And that's it. Now you have more space on C: for that cat-lady to store more photo's of Mittens :-/

Mailbox Move Fails in Exchange 2010

During a recent migration project from Exchange 2003 to Exchange 2010, I received an error while moving a mailbox over to the new server…

Active Directory operation failed on ADSERVER. This error is not retriable. Additional information: Insufficient access rights to perform the operation.
Active directory response: 00002098: SecErr: DSID-03150BB9, problem 4003
(INSUFF_ACCESS_RIGHTS), data 0
The user has insufficient access rights.

After comparing the AD user’s ACL against another user that was already migrated, I noticed some major differences. The problem was that sometime in the past someone had fiddled where they shouldn’t have been fiddling…

Solution:

In Active Directory, go to View and tick Advanced Features
Go to the user’s properties, select the Security Tab
Click Advanced
Tick “Include inheritable permissions from this object’s parent”

BackupExec 2010 not completing job: “Remove Media from the Drive”

When I ran the first backup job on the newly installed HP LTO-5 Ultrium 3280 Tape drive, it gave an interesting alert.

The alert was: “Please remove the media from the drive”

Odd…

Apparently since LTO4, the drive has a sensor to check whether there is a tape in the slot or not. If you have set the job to automatically eject the media, then BackupExec will not complete the job until you manually remove the tape from the drive, even though it is ejected, OR respond to the alert.

The solution is to create an automatic response to this specific alert, telling BackupExec to clear the alert when it comes up. This will enable the job to complete successfully.

To set the Automatic Response:

Alerts -> Configure Alert Categories -> Media Remove -> Automatically clear alert after: 1min

The log as per Windows Event Viewer Application Log:

Log Name: Application
Source: Backup Exec
Date: 6/22/2011 11:22:25 PM
Event ID: 58063
Task Category: None
Level: Information
Keywords: Classic
User: N/A
Computer: BackupSVR
Description:
Backup Exec Alert: Media Remove
(Server: " BackupSVR ") (Job: "Full Daily Backup") Please remove the media from the drive, and Respond OK.

How to NOT use remote gateway with Windows VPN

Have you ever been connected to a VPN, then realise you need to download something, so you have to disconnect the VPN to get your local network’s fast download speed? Well you don’t actually have to...

I use the Windows VPN client a lot to connect to a lot of my remote clients, and as long as the portion of their network that I need to connect to doesn’t run over multiple subnets, I don’t need to use the default gateway of the remote network. This means you can be connected to the VPN and still use the internet using your local connection. It’s a lot faster than over the VPN I promise :-)

The option you need to change is nicely hidden away, so I understand why this is not a well-known feature:

• Right Click on the VPN connection
• Click Properties
• Select the Networking Tab
• Click TCP/IP v4
• Click Properties
• Click Advanced
• Untick Use default gateway on remote network

Recover POP Mail Password

If you work with clients with POP mail accounts at all, then this tool is going to save you A LOT of time and effort when they lose their password (NOTE: not IF, WHEN)

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

It’s called Mail PassView (created by the legends at NirSoft) and it supports pretty much any mail client there is. It also makes a great tool for when you need to backup a PC. Just export all the mail accounts and details to a text file and copy that over with the rest of the data.

Do you have any really useful freeware apps to share? Send a link to ninjatek777@gmail.com

Give Users Full Control & Ownership Permissions to their Subfolders on a Share

Here’s a great script to give user’s full control and ownership of their subfolders in a share (with their username as the subfolder name).

Problem:

You have a share on SERVER called USERS that has your user’s folders (their username = subfolder name). The problem is that none of the users have permissions to their folders…

\\SERVER\USERS\JBond

\\SERVER\USERS\BGates
\\SERVER\USERS\SBallmer

The Users folder is located at C:\USERS\

Solution:

• Create a batch file called UserFolderOwner.bat containing the following code:

@echo off

if {%1}=={} @echo Syntax: UserFolderOwner FolderPath&goto :EOF

if not exist %1 @echo UserFolderOwner - %1 not found&goto :EOF

pushd %1

for /f "Tokens=*" %%a in ('dir %1 /b /AD') do (

 @echo y| cacls "%%a" /t /e /c /g "%UserDomain%\%%a":F

 subinacl /subdirectories "%%a" /setowner="%UserDomain%\%%a"

 subinacl /subdirectories "%%a/*.*" /setowner="%UserDomain%\%%a"

)

popd

• Download and install SubInAcl

The Batch file UserFolderOwner.bat uses SubInAcl to give the user Ownership of the subfolder and CACLS to set Full Control permissions

To run the batch file from CMD type: 

UserFolderOwner.bat ParentFolder

Where ParentFolder is the path to the Folder (C:\USERS)

Let that run and you will have saved yourself hours of manual labour…

Many Thanks to Jerold Schulman at WindowsITPro.com for creating this great script! (JSI Tip 8648).

Trusteer Rapport BSoD

Trusteer Rapport is an application that over 70 banks around the world have asked their customers to use to prevent Phishing and Malware attacks. I came across an issue this week where this application would cause the computer to Blue Screen of Death every time the user attempted to go to his Online Banking.

This is obviously not what it is intended to do.

Chatting to their tech support (very efficient), it came out that it is a known problem caused by a conflict between Rapport's protection mechanism against "Kernel Keylogging" and the computer's mouse driver configuration.
They say it should be fixed in an upcoming version, but if you have this issue, here is a work-around:

1) Open Rapport's Console (Start > Programs > Trusteer Rapport > Rapport Console)

2) Click on the arrow icon to move to page 2

3) Click on "Edit Policy" in the "Security Policy" widget

4) Type the required characters

5) Locate "Block Kernel Keylogging (PS/2)" and choose "Never" in the drop-down list next to it

6) Locate "Block Kernel Keylogging (USB)" and choose "Never" in the drop-down list next to it

7) Click on "Save"

8) Restart your PC and see if the problem still occurs