Xeon Scalable Processor Motherboard CPU-Soft Lockup Fix

The new Intel Purley based Intel Server Boards S2600WF, S2600BP, and S2600ST Product Family use a new BMC (Baseboard Management Controller) video subsystem.

As a result, some operating systems, mostly *NIX based, will choke on install as they may not have the driver built-in.

Intel Technical Advisory: Intel® Server Board S2600WF, S2600BP and S2600ST Product Family fail to initialize the operating system video driver for the ASPEED* Base Management Controller (BMC).

That document point's to ASPEED's site for downloading an up to date driver that fixes the problem.

Root Cause
Full root cause of this issue has been determined. Intel has confirmed that the failure has no bearing on system performance, it only impacts local video graphics. In detail, when the operating system loads, the OS-embedded ASPEED* video driver is not able to access a portion of the BMC memory space, therefore the process stalls.

On Windows Server based configurations we need to update the driver once the OS is installed. The default VGA driver that comes built-in to the OS works just fine.

Philip Elder
Microsoft High Availability MVP
MPECS Inc.
Co-Author: SBS 2008 Blueprint Book
Our Cloud Service
Twitter: @MPECSInc

Fujitsu ScanSnap N1800: E-mail Button Greyed Out Fix

We have moved a ScanSnap N1800 onto a new greenfield setup in a side-by-side migration we've been running.

In this case, the Exchange server is on-premises with the appropriage Anonymous MFP Relay setup configured.

Searching about turned up what turned out to be a simple fix though not one we would prefer: Enable a mailbox in Exchange for the scanner's account.

Once we did that the e-mail button did indeed appear and work with subsequent scan and send tests being successful.

Note that the account being used has a rediculously long password that never changes and is restricted on the domain. So, the attack surface is relatively small.

Philip Elder
Microsoft High Availability MVP
MPECS Inc.
Co-Author: SBS 2008 Blueprint Book
Our Cloud Service
Twitter: @MPECSInc

Some thoughts on Windows Server 1709 and Where to Find It

We were looking for the new Software Assurance benefit based download of Windows Server 1709 in Microsoft's Volume Licensing Service Center.

It took a bit to realize that the download was not tied into "Windows Server 2016" and it's available downloads.

The following two items show up in search for "Windows Server":

When we click through and try to download either one they both point to the same download:

Keep in mind that 1709 is a Server Core only option and receives updates every six months. Plus, the service life of each release is 18 months.

That means that adopting the Semi-Annual Channel (SAC) release of Windows Server would require a significant investment in both testing prior to deployment and in deploying the OS on a regular basis.

Keep in mind that Software Assurance is required for access to SAC.

Is it of value? For those businesses that are looking to adopt newer/better features via quicker cadence then yes, there is value in it.

For those that are looking for long-term stability in their deployments then the Long Term Service Branch/Channel (LTSB/C) is the way to go.

For us, we are in a "Wait and see" mode as our focus is currently Storage Spaces and Hyper-V along with Storage Spaces Direct clusters.

As far as SAC being a Server Core option only we don't have a problem with that now do we? ;)

Realistically though, there may be a lot of really neat features and abilities that may only appear in the SAC branch of Windows Server as we go along. That has yet to be seen, but given Microsoft's push to add value to Software Assurance over the last number of years one can comfortably wager that there will be extra value in that branch of the OS.

Philip Elder
Microsoft High Availability MVP
MPECS Inc.
Co-Author: SBS 2008 Blueprint Book
Our Cloud Service
Twitter: @MPECSInc

Microsoft Groove to Spotify Move

When Microsoft announced the discontinuation of the Groove Music Pass there was a lot of dissappointment around here.

Groove offered the ability to check out all sorts of music over the years without having to fork out a buck or two on a song that ended up not being listened to.

With the ability to download music to four different devices for offline listening it was a really good value for the money.

So, off we go into the migration from Groove to Spotify.

First off, this was one of the smoothest transitions ever experienced. Everything moved over without a hitch. It took a bit but nothing was lost in the process!

Score one for Microsoft and Spotify!

Score two for Spotify: The $15/Month Premium Family Plan for up to five folks under one roof was the clincher.

We were looking to obtain two more Groove Music Pass accounts. One for my wife and the other for our daughter. That would have been expensive!

A couple of settings in the Spotify app to take note of after upgrading to Premium:

• Settings - Music Quality: Enable High quality streaming (Premium only)
• Settings - Social: Disable Automatically make new playlists public
• Settings - Social: Enable Private session

The last two are personal preference but as a rule we will make sure our kid's apps are set up this way.

Philip Elder
Microsoft High Availability MVP
MPECS Inc.
Co-Author: SBS 2008 Blueprint Book
Our Cloud Service
Twitter: @MPECSInc