StorageCraft ShadowProtect reviewed against other products and wins - PC Mag Editors' Choice Award

We are particularly confident in the StorageCraft ShadowProtect product.

Since we began implementing both the server and desktop editions at client sites, or our Disaster Recovery stress levels have decreased dramatically.

We have already needed to use its abilities to recover client data, client systems, and to utilize the I.T. Edition's Hardware Independent Restore to recover a dead server to new hardware.

On top of that, the folks at StorageCraft are great to get along with and are very helpful on all aspects of purchasing and supporting their products.

StorageCraft's ShadowProtect Desktop Edition is reviewed along side products from competing vendors such as Acronis and Symantec on the PC Mag site: Drive-Imaging: Beyond Backup.

The article specifically reviewing ShadowProtect Desktop 3.1 is here: ShadowProtect Desktop 3.1. Note that PC Mag has given ShadowProtect Desktop 3.1 their Editors' Choice award.

We definitely believe that StorageCraft deserves it! :)

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.

Acer hard drive failure, flaky behaviour, and subsequent BSOD STOP framebuf 0x000000EA

Lately, one of our client's users was complaining about their laptop taking an inordinately long time to boot up.

To us, this usually indicates to us that there is a physical problem on the hard drive in the area where the OS has files written to. The extra time is the OS rereading the same sectors over and over again to get a proper read off of them.

So, we contacted Acer for a new hard drive. They sent one out immediately as this particular client always purchases the Acer Total Damage 3 Year warranty.

In the mean time, we took a ShadowProtect image of the existing OS and restored it to an identical replacement hard drive we keep around the shop for situations like this. Thus, we get the client's user back up and running in short order, and we place the incoming warranty drive on the shelf to be swapped back out when the user has some time to spare.

The hard drive swap did indeed work. The system now booted up in a reasonable amount of time, and seemed to be running all-around in a quicker manner.

So, out the door it went.

We then received a call from the user a few days later indicating that the system had blue screened again, and that their Kinston USB flash drive (DTSP) was no longer working with the laptop USB ports.

They were on-site and required an immediate replacement to get productive again. We brought in one of the older laptop spares they keep around for situations like this.

When we brought the system back to the shop, we figured that the preveious hard drive failure may have caused some spotty corruption in Windows XP, so we took the replacement warranty hard drive sent to us by Acer and ran the restore to factory default recovery DVD.

We had started the process at the end of the day, and this is what greeted us the following morning:

Windows XP Pro: STOP framebuf 0x000000EA

Ouch.

A force power down, and a power up again brought the system up into the Windows XP startup routine and subsequently the Acer setup routine once into the OS.

But, given the number of other flaky things the laptop was doing, along with the BSOD on recovering to factory default, this is a pretty clear indication that something has failed or is failing on the system main board.

A phone call into Acer, and we will be seeing a courier here to pick the unit up shortly.

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.

Intel Server Board S5000PAL Dual Gigabit Ethernet I/O Expansion Module Issues

When configuring an SBS or other server on a 1U or 2U form factor, PCI-X/PCI-E slots are at a premium.

The Intel Server Board S5000PAL Dual Gigabit Ethernet I/O Expansion Module (AXXGBIOMOD) provides an extra pair of Gigabit ports without using an available PCI slot.

We generally configure 3 NIC ports - sometimes 4 - on our SBS boxes:

• 2x Internal paired in Fault Tolerance Mode
• 1x Internet facing for ISA or Dual NIC mode on SBS Standard (1 internal + 1 external)

When we are dealing with the Intel AMT port on a server, we may install a Dual Port Gigabit Adapter for pairing so as to leave the AMT port on its own for remote management.

So far, we have encountered two issues with the module:

• Intel Technical Advisory: TA-0864-1: Intel Server Board S5000PAL Dual Gigabit Ethernet I/O Expansion Module May Not Initialize After System Restart (PDF Document)
• The unit may not power itself up on a DC system reset. PCN#107383 and above are not affected by the problem. Any earlier models are and can be replaced by contacting Intel.
• Intel Technical Advisory: TA-0849-1: AXXGBIOMOD causes false error in PCT (PDF Document)
• The EEPROM image contains an incorrect value that causes a NIC Checksum Error when the Platform Confidence Test (PCT) is run. The module is functional, though coded as being in an error state. PCN#106924 and above are not affected by the problem. Contact Intel for warranty replacement for products affected.

As always, when configuring a new server setup, make sure to do the relevant research on each component before quoting the client!

A client's confidence in us can be deeply impacted by our delivering a new 1U dual Xeon 5440 Quad Core series SBS unit (read: expensive) that behaves strangely within a few short days or weeks of delivery.

Also, keep in mind that our time lines for delivery can also be impacted by a problem component. If we run into one of the above problems on a unit that is to be delivered in a very short time, we may be calling our client to set things back. This too reflects poorly on our professionalism.

In the client's mind, we are the professionals who are supposed to know our products inside and out. The excuse, "we did not know" or something to the like only succeeds in reducing that image in their eyes.

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.

Accountants: Share data & printer while on-site easily

There are times where two or more members of our larger accounting firm clients need to be doing their work at the client site.

It used to be, they transferred data via infrared. Then, they would create an ad-hoc wireless connection between two laptops to transfer data. Recently, they have been using Kingston's Data Traveler Secure - Privacy Edition.

While these methods work, they can be cumbersome and time consuming especially for Caseware files.

When it came to sharing a printer, the USB cable was being passed along between users as each one needed to print. This method makes for a struggle when more than one person needed to print. It also endangers both the printer and the user's laptop to static discharge.

So, to facilitate the on-site accountant's efficiency, we came up with the following solution:

• Linksys NAS200 2 Bay Network Attached Storage (NAS)
• Unit is capable of static or DHCP served IPs
• Both drives configured in RAID 1 format
• 250GB Seagate Barracuda ES Hard Drives (2 for RAID 1)
• HP LaserJet P1505N printer
• D-Link DI-604 Wired Router with 4 port 10/100 switch
• D-Link DGS-10008D 8 port Gigabit switch
• Necessary cabling to connect up to 8 workers plus the NAS and printer.
• A decent carrying case. We like Pelican.

We choose to use the D-Link router because, unlike its competitors, one has the ability to set DHCP reservations in the router's onboard DHCP manager.

The process of getting everything working together is relatively simple:

1. Put the Linksys together with the hard drives.
2. Setup the D-Links with a short 1' Purple or other off colour patch cable
• Keeping the cable short and a different colour makes it easier to figure out where it belongs.
3. Power on the D-Links.
4. Plug in the Linksys' network cable into the Gigabit switch and turn the unit on
• Use an off colour 3' patch cable like Orange.
• Note that the first time it is powered up with hard drives in it, the startup process may take a few minutes.
5. Plug in the HP LaserJet printer's network cable into the router and turn the printer on
• Use an off colour 3' patch cable like Green.
• Connect a laptop to the Gigabit switch and pull an IP address.
6. Log into the D-Link using the default admin account (192.168.0.1 in the browser):
• Username: Admin
• Password: Blank
7. In the DHCP manager, there will be a list of devices that have acquired IP addresses. We need to set a static IP to the following:
• Set the Linksys to a static IP of 192.168.0.110
• Set the HP LaserJet to a static IP of 192.168.0.120
• Any connected laptops will pick up the first 9 IPs
8. Reset both the Linksys and the HP LaserJet (power cycle) to pick up the new addresses
9. Connect to the Linksys via Web browser: http://192.168.0.110/
10. Log onto the Linksys and setup drive mirroring and a folder share
• Take note of the user name and password as this is needed for each user to gain access to the folder.
• Linksys NAS200 User Guide
• Linsys NAS200 Quick Install Guide
11. Run a print test page from the HP LaserJet to verify that it has the correct IP.

You now have a fully functioning network that will enable your users to share data and send print jobs to the printer.

A batch file can be placed on the user's desktop for them to use when they have their laptop connected to it:

• net use r: \\192.168.0.110\foldershare

Note that they will need to authenticate against the unit. A very simple username and password would suffice when setting up the Linksys folder share. Saving the password when prompted for a username and password will eliminate this question after the first one if offered.

A little preparation will be required to get everyone hooked up to the printer.

We will install a dedicated HP LJP1505N driver just for the on-site setup. We name the printer:

• ON-SITE HP P1505
• The connected port will be IP_192.168.0.120

This leaves little room for error or support calls.

To keep things simple, depending on the size of the firm, they will purchase one, two, or even three identical sets of the above products. All sets will be setup exactly the same as far as IP addresses, DHCP reservations, folder share names, and user name/passwords for the shares.

It is important to do the setup of all needed sets at the same time so as to have identical products. Having more than one printer type, router, and NAS will cause pain points for connecting things up, for the users, and for us.

Some further suggestions:

• A little hot glue or Duct Tape in/across the WAN port on the router will eliminate any calls by someone who accidentally plugs something into it.
• 5' and 7' cables of various colours for users to plug their laptops into the Gigabit switch
• Labels on everything to keep them together such as: SET 1 or the like
• A decent carrying case with foam inserts, like a Pelican, that everything can be placed into in a tidy way
• A user manual (we have created one for our clients)

Besides accounting firms, other professional firms, construction management companies, trades, and others that require two or more of their employees to go on-site can take advantage of this solution.

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.

Resume that broken SBS RWW TS management session

Sometimes the connection to the server via RWW will terminate during updates or for no apparent reason.

When trying to reconnect to the existing session, we check the following option:

Log on to or resume the console session of the remote computer - checked

After clicking that option, we are normally returned to the desktop we were working with just before the connection was terminated.

There are times where we are not able to reconnect to that session though. This seems to be especially true when an update procedure knocks us out of our RWW based TS session.

After selecting the resume option to log back into our existing desktop, we are instead greeted with a fresh desktop.

To recover that existing desktop session, we do the following:

1. Open the Terminal Services Manager (under Administrative Tools)
• 
  

  Terminal Services Manager

• Note the "Disconnected" session attributed to the SBS Admin
2. Right click on the disconnected admin session
3. Left click on "Connect"
4. You will now be reconnected to the original desktop.

From there, you can run your RemoteServicesOff.bat (previous method blog post) file to shutdown essential services before rebooting the server to speed things up if requested to do so by the update process.

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.

Sage Accpac ERP - Version Mismatch Error - Refer to Solution ID 22331

A recent SBS Premium setup needed to have Sage Accpac ERP installed and configured with a SQL backend on the server.

This setup came after the fact.

The actual setup of the databases, connectivity, DSNs, and more will be in a separate post when we have a little more time.

For now, we had the following error on every workstation:

Sage Accpac ERP

Version mismatch. Two Microsoft support files (SQLSRV32.DLL and ODBCBCP.DLL) are different versions. Please refer to Solution ID 22331 for more information

A search for said Solution ID turned up nothing.

Since we were working with a SQL 2005 installed database, the thought was that something within Accpac was expecting an older SQL version, or some files were updated while others were not.

So, we searched the server and found the following files:

• SQLSRV32.DLL = Version 2000.86.1830.0
• ODBCBCP.DLL = Version 2000.86.1830.0

Since the versions on the server were seemingly the same, we moved onto the workstation and found the following:

• SQLSRV32.DLL = Version 2000.85.1117.0
• ODBCBCP.DLL = Not Found

We made sure to shut down Accpac, then we placed a copy of the SQLSRV32.DLL from the server on a network share.

Both files were found under %windir%\System32 on the server.

We copied the SQLSRV32.DLL off the share to the same %windir%\system32 location on the workstation after making sure Accpac was shut down properly.

We then tried to run Accpac and received the same Version Mismatch error.

So, we copied the ODBCBCP.DLL file off of the server to the same share location. We then copied the file from the share to the %windir%\System32 on the workstation.

We fired Accpac up again, logged on to the company file and we were connected successfully.

Here is a screen shot of what both the server and the workstation file compare after completing the file copy to the workstation:

Correct file versions on both the Server and Workstation

By the way, while searching for the solution, we came upon one so-called solution site promising a video of it. We were invited to install an ActiveX component before we could view the video though. We were not permitted to close the Tab that the site was in nor were we permitted to click the X to close the browser. That browser and its tabs could only be shutdown via the Task Manager and an End Task. As always, Internet "Street Smarts" are important!

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.

Office for Mac 2008 is available to Volume Licensing Customers

This post comes a little late relative to the actual release date which was January 4, 2008.

Office for Mac 2008 Open License Download

Note that the download is 556MB and may take a while for slower connections.

Also, please note the following product install system requirements:

• Processor: Intel, PowerPC G5, or PowerPC G4 (500 MHz or faster)
• Memory: 512 MB of RAM or more
• Hard Disk Space: 1.5 GB of available hard disk space
• Operating System: Mac OS X version 10.4.9 or later

Note the requirement for a relatively up to date Tiger: 10.4.9

This post is not coming via our in-house Mac due to Safari's seemingly not wanting to open the Blogger editor without dying.

Microsoft's Product Licensing sites:

• Microsoft Volume License Services (MVLS)
• Microsoft eOpen Web site (Note that the https must be there to connect)

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.

Intel - Most Requested Support FAQs with RSS

Need a quick at-a-glance view of what support issues others are trying to find out on Intel products?

The following Product Support page has it:

• Most Requested Support FAQs
• Most Requested Support FAQs RSS Feed (XML)

The FAQs may be somewhat basic for those of us that work with Intel's products in an ongoing basis, however, there may be an entry that may be relevant at a time the information is needed.

On Windows Vista, a quick search via the built in search may turn something up in the RSS feed without having to turn to the Intel's Support site or further searches.

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.

Taking a little break...

We are taking a much needed family break.

Since we have been working like crazy since late last year, we booked this little break around Christmas time as we knew we were not getting a break back then.

So, posting may be light until the middle of next week.

As always, the shop keeps going ... :D

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.

Windows Server 2008 RTM available for download to TechNet Plus Subscribers!

Just like Windows Vista was available to us earlier than anywhere else, Windows Server 2008 Gold (Release To Market) is now available for download to TechNet Plus subscribers!

Go get your bits folks ... this is the real McCoy!

Microsoft TechNet Site.

From the TechNet Download Page:

Description

This file contains the following:

• Windows Server 2008 Datacenter: Windows Server® 2008 Datacenter delivers an enterprise-class platform for deploying business-critical applications. Help improve availability with clustering and dynamic partitioning capabilities. Help improve security with consolidated identity management features. Reduce infrastructure costs by consolidating applications with virtualization licensing rights. Windows Server 2008 Datacenter provides a foundation on which to build enterprise-class virtualization and scale-up solutions.
• Windows Server 2008 Enterprise: Windows Server® 2008 Enterprise delivers an enterprise-class platform for deploying business-critical applications. Improve availability with failover clustering. Improve security with consolidated identity management features. Reduce infrastructure costs by consolidating applications with virtualization licensing rights. Windows Server 2008 Enterprise provides the foundation for a highly dynamic, scalable IT infrastructure.
• Windows Server 2008 Standard: Windows Server® 2008 is the most robust Windows Server operating system to date. With built-in, enhanced Web and virtualization capabilities, it is designed to increase the reliability and flexibility of your server infrastructure while helping save time and reduce costs. Powerful tools give you greater control over your servers and streamline configuration and management tasks. Plus, enhanced security features work to harden the operating system to help protect your data and network and provide a solid, highly-dependable foundation for your business.

How to Install

During setup, select the operating system you want to install, and a Full or Server Core installation. A Server Core installation provides a minimal environment for running specific server roles, which reduces the maintenance and management requirements and the attack surface for those server roles. For additional information on Server Core installation, and the server roles supported by Server Core, see http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2008/editions/core.mspx.

Both x86 and x64 editions are available for download.

If you do not have a TechNet Plus membership, they come in a variety of flavours with the least expensive being the download only version.

We have a DVD subscription because some downloads do not remain around for ever and we like to have archived versions of everything without soaking our bandwidth.

Also, for some geographical areas, search around and see if there are some discount codes available for you.

Time to open the brain sponge ... there is lots to learn in this one. And, keep in mind that any foretaste of Windows Server 2008 that we get now will prepare us for Cougar which is not too far around the corner.

For those of us that deal with Branch Office scenarios, like us Canucks with such a huge geography, Server Core will be the "killer app". Check it out.

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.

SBS - What Server Redundant Power can do for you

While server power supply (PSU) failures are relatively rare, they do happen.

Sometimes, a failing power supply may not cut out immediately. It may, over time, start fluctuating the power it is sending down to the various components within the server.

When a server is behaving badly, erratically, or strangely, the power supply is sometimes the last thing on the technician's mind.

We will look at things like memory, or perhaps a set of bad sectors on one of the RAID array disks, or even the server board itself before considering the PSU.

For those of us who have been around long enough to see a few of the irratic behaviour types caused by a failing PSU on either a server or workstation, the problem gets a little easier to figure out by the server's behaviour patterns.

For servers without redundant power, things are a little more difficult. We will need to find a like PSU that is matched to the server we are working on. In some cases, we may be able to get away with plugging in a Delta or like PSU with all of the right connectors.

In the case of proprietary systems though, we are looking at trying to purchase a PSU from the manufacturer and find out they are in that mysterious class of metal: unobtainium. That is, they are not made anymore, and may not even be found on auction sites and the like.

The critical aspect to no redundant power is the need to down the server while troubleshooting or changing out the PSU. This can be sticky for clients who are into their peak season or just plain busy.

A server that is behaving erratically reflects badly on us and our abilities to provide a trouble free I.T environment for our clients.

Given the cost difference between a chassis with the redundant power option (plus the extra PSU) over a standard chassis with only one PSU, we suggest redundant power as the default choice for server configurations. As with any client related situation, your mileage will vary. ;)

Here is a screen shot of the Intel SC5300LX series chassis with both PSUs installed:

Intel SC5300LX with Redundant Power Supply Installed

And, here is a screen shot of a similar setup in the Intel SC5295/9BRP chassis:

Intel SC5295/9BRP with Redundant Power Supply Installed

The SC5295BRP was the previous generation to the now in production SC5299BRP chassis.

Some of the benefits of redundant power on the server:

• The ability to pull one or the other PSU module while the server is online to eliminate the PSUs as a possible source of trouble
• The ability to move the A/C power cords, one at a time, between power sources such as when replacing or upgrading an existing UPS while the server is online
• The ability to replace a defective PSU while the server is online
• The ability to test the server monitoring software's ability to detect a faulty PSU before the server goes online at the client by pulling each PSU one at a time here in the shop

Keep in mind that just pulling the A/C cord out of the back of the PSU may not illicit the behaviours we are looking to diagnose. We need to pull that PSU out of the supply cage.

When justifying the extra server cost to our clients, we can put the matter forward about keeping the server online while working on the power modules, making changes to the A/C infrastructure, UPS units, and more.

To explain downtime costs to our clients, we use the arbitrary number of $100/hr per user on the network as far as what the theoretical costs to the company are for downtime.

For some clients that are in key industries, those costs can approach $1,000/hr per user.

On top of that, there is the cost associated with having a technician dispatched to diagnose and take care of a power related problem on the server. Again, the PSU may be the last thing on the technician's mind.

Once there are some concrete numbers in front of the client as far as the benefits versus the up front costs, we see most of our clients go with redundant power on servers. Redundant power is a little extra insurance that pays off huge in the event of a problem.

In our experience, there is no better way to outfit a server setup.

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.

Intel Qualified Server Board Program - System Builder Tips

A new category has appeared on the Intel Server and Workstation Boards - All Boards called the Intel Qualified Server Board Program with a couple of dedicated products.

And what do we find in that product category?

• Tyan Workstation Board S5396
• Tyan Motherboard S5393

The above links connect with an Intel.com page dedicated to the individual product listed.

While Intel has maintained compatibility lists for all manner of peripheral system components such as memory, chassis, and storage, this is a first that we have seen where an alternative server motherboard manufacturer has their products featured on Intel's site.

From Intel's "Intel Qualified Server Board Program" site:

The Intel® Qualified Server Board program is a joint pilot program between Intel and certain original design manufacturers (ODM) designed to enhance your opportunity to offer competitive server and workstation solutions through:

• Access to board, chassis and system products with feature-sets optimized for specific segments which have been tested by the ODM to meet certain minimum requirements specified by Intel.
• Confidence that such qualified products will meet industry required system-level thermal requirements.
• Offering solutions that have been tested by the ODM to ensure compliance with market-leading operating systems (including certification of Microsoft* and RedHat* operating systems).
• Reduced development costs by being able to leverage regulatory testing and certifications.
• Reduced costs by being able to select memory, adaptors and peripherals from a list published by the ODM as being compatible components.

All products under the Intel Qualified Server Board program are third party products sold by ODMs. Sales, technical support and warranty will be provided by the ODM. Product and features are subject to change; contact the ODM for more information.

It is neat to see that Tyan is the first manufacturer to make the list. They have been around for a very long time and we have seen some very long life dedicated servers running on Tyan boards. In fact, many of those dedicated Tyan based boxes are still around.

It is good to see a program like this come online. It means that as manufacturers get their products on this list, the more standardized those products are. This in turn means we can be a lot more confident purchasing those products for our client's server needs.

One of the greatest system building griefs was getting server components to play nice with each other. In the past, they were notoriously picky about where they were located. That is why we dove right into the Intel Partner Program and stuck with Intel server products and used products on their compatibility list.

This step alone has saved us huge amounts of grief, time, and money.

Intel has already built the test mules for us. So, why do it all over again at a great cost in time and products to us? A client's SBS or other dedicated server is NOT a test mule for us to put into production. Period.

There is still a caveat to keep in mind, even with this program: When we venture onto Tyan's compatibility lists, or any other manufacturer's compatibility lists, we may find we are again at odds with another component that we may need to use in a given configuration.

As always: Buyer Beware.

We, the I.T. Professionals, are responsible for quoting a system that we know works beforehand.

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.

SBS on dual Xeon E5345 Quad vs. 5130 Dual Core + Symantec EndPoint Memory Costs

Initially, when we were offered a choice between the Dual Core 5100 series Xeons and the 5300 series Quad Core Xeon processors, we generally aimed for the 5100 series due to cost differences.

Not too long ago, Intel lowered the 5300 series Quad Core Xeon price to the point where there was very little difference in cost between Dual and Quad Core Xeon processors.

That is when we started to implement Quad Core 5300 and now 5400 series Xeon processor rigs.

As a side note: We never supply a dual socket server with only one processor installed. There are a number of very important reasons:

1. In this day and age of consumer level power house servers the "upgrade path" no longer exists
2. 18 months from now when the client would otherwise want to "upgrade", one must source a processor with the correct stepping. One cannot just install a Xeon 5150 with stepping B2 with a Xeon 5150 with stepping G0 onto the same server board.
3. In the case of Tier 1/2, the cost of an extra processor at the time of server build is relatively small compared with plugging the "upgrade" CPU in later. Check with Teir 1/2 and their Post Sale CPU prices. We are generally talking two to three times the initial cost.

A screen shot of the Xeon 5130 2.00GHz:

Intel Xeon 5130 2.00GHz Dual Core Series

And, a screen shot of the Xeon E5345 2.33GHz:

Intel Xeon E5345 2.33GHz Quad Core Series

Both parts share the same Front Side Bus speed of 1,333MHz (MT).

In this case, there is a little difference in the Core speed between the two parts.

In our experience, the GHz/MHz rates are a limiter on raw speed for events such as booting the server. Generally, the higher the GHz, the faster (incremental) the server will boot. The number of cores on the CPU does not seem to make too much difference one way or another here.

There is, however, one place we are seeing a marked improvement in performance between the Xeon Dual Core and Xeon Quad Core servers where the Quad Cores triumph: Database driven applications.

For those of us who work with SBS 2K3 R2 on an ongoing basis, a question for you: How long does the R2 integrated WSUS that has been upgraded to V3 take to come up on an older box? The older the machine, the longer it can take. In some cases, we are talking minutes.

The following is a screen shot of the Xeon 5130 Cores:

Intel Xeon 5130 Cores

The above screen shot was taken during a regular work day for about 20 clients.

The following is a screen shot of the Xeon E5345 Cores:

Intel Xeon E5345 Cores

The above screen shot was taken during a regular work day for about 30 clients.

On this particular dual Xeon E5345 Quad Core server, the R2 WSUS V3 will come up quite quickly. When the Update Services link is clicked, we can actually watch SQL work across all 8 cores setting things up for the console. Relative to the Xeon 5130 Dual Core, the Quad Core is not quite twice as fast, but there sure is a marked difference.

Symantec EndPoint Security

Note the huge step in memory usage on the Xeon E5345 Quad Core based system. The Xeon 5130 Dual Core system has Symantec AntiVirus Enterprise 10.2 and all of the management facilities installed. The memory footprint for this product on the server is relatively minimal.

The Xeon E5345 has Symantec's new EndPoint product and management system installed. Note that EndPoint is hogging up almost 1.0GB more RAM than the previous version. The new system is almost entirely database driven.

Here is a screen shot of the Processes:

Symantec EndPoint Security Memory Usage

Take note of the number of EndPoint related services running:

• SMSUtilityService.exe 158MB
• SemSvc 140MB
• dbsrv9 80MB
• SAVFMSETask 58MB
• SAVFMSESp (x 9) 56MB (~500MB total)

There are also a number of lesser services tied to EndPoint that are not itemized above.

For smaller SBS boxes with less than 4GB of RAM, EndPoint will definitely be a struggle to run comfortably along side the standard SBS services.

Keep this in mind for clients that request a Symantec EndPoint solution on the SBS box and desktops.

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.

Ingram Micro Canada - Frustating - Infuriating - Downright Obnoxious

NOTE: Frustration induced post...

Up here in Canada, we have essentially the Big Three suppliers for purchasing IT stuff at jobber/wholesale:

• Synnex
• Tech Data
• Ingram Micro

There are a couple of others that we have dealt with from time to time.

While we are not a large I.T. business by any means, our sales do make a difference.

Here is our breakdown for purchases:

1. Synnex 70%
2. Tech Data 24%
3. Other 5%
4. Ingram Micro 1%

There are reasons we only give Ingram Micro Canada less than 1% of our business:

1. Try getting an RMA within the alloted time frame for that product
2. Try getting product recovery that was damaged in shipping
3. Try getting the RMA credit back.

Today, we came across a situation that absolutley dumbfounds: We were issued an RMA for a DOA laptop in January where the credit is still not reflected on the credit card.

So, we called up the customer service folks at Ingram Micro to find out why there is a credit sitting in their bank that belongs to us almost 3 weeks later. Apparently the credit needed to be processed manually!

Not only that, we were the ones that needed to chase them down in order to get that credit issued. No phone call from their customer service people to say, "Mr. Elder, there was a hang up in our system and your credit will be processed as soon as we clarify things" around the time the original RMA credit transaction happened.

The kicker is this: Checking our Ingram online statement while talking with the customer service representative showed another credit from quite a while ago. Upon requesting clarification on that credit, it too had not been issued!

Folks, want to really insert expletive here off your clients? Hang onto their money for a little while with no explanation or initiative to give it back.

When looking back across the transactions we have done with Ingram Micro over the last number years, less than 10% of them were trouble free. To rephrase: Over 90% of all transactions we have ever done with Ingram Micro Canada had a problem.

Folks, just because a company is the cheapest on the block, doesn't mean that we are going to buy from them. The extra point or two that we pay at the other guys is justified when we need to turn to them for anything and they give us the red carpet treatment.

And believe me, the extra service from phone calls from our sales representatives, to product promotions calls, to "how are things going" calls from the various Synnex and Tech Data people makes a whole world of difference to us.

That same standard we hold to those we deal with in our day to day business life is the one we hold against our own business: Our clients and their business come first.

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.

ShadowProtect USB Hard Drive Swap Scripts

When we first started configuring ShadowProtect on client servers, we were running into a bit of a problem trying to rotate the USB HDDs.

We would get the following error whenever we tried to stop the drive:

The device Device_Name cannot be stopped because a program is still using it. Close any programs that might be using the device, then try again later.

So, we downloaded Process Explorer and launched a find for "e:" which was the USB drive letter.

We always found that it was the ShadowProtect services holding onto the drive, with the occasional QuickBooks 2008 server TSR holding onto it too.

So, here are a couple of quick batch files to shut down the ShadowProtect services without having to jump in and out of the Server Console or the Services Console (Start-->Run-->Services.msc).

To stop the ShadowProtect services copy and paste the following two lines into a batch file called ShutdownShadowProtect.bat:

• net stop ShadowProtectSvc
• net stop VSNAPVSS

To start the ShadowProtect services copy and paste the following two lines into a batch file called StartupShadowProtect.bat:

• net start ShadowProtectSvc
• net start VSNAPVSS

Voila! A quick click and the drive should be released when we click to stop it and a quick click to start things up again once our drives are rotated.

Remember to always power down the soon to be changed USB HDD BEFORE unplugging the USB cable. And also make sure that the power switch on its replacement is off before connecting the server's USB cable.

Always startup the ShadowProtect console and "Connect" the console back to the services as the ShadowProtect Shield will remain red until this happens.

And one more thing: We keep a folder on the server desktop called Batches to keep all of our server and services batch files and scripts in. We learned the hard way when moving a services shutdown batch file remotely across the desktop that we may activate them accidentally. If that happens, click on the Command window that pops up with the scripted commands and CTRL + C to terminate the batch and restart affected services immediately!

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists

*All Mac on SBS posts are posted on our in-house iMac via the Safari Web browser.