Time servers can be a pain. In this case, once completing a vCenter upgrade from 6.5 to 6.7, I noticed the time wasn't syncing. It took a bit to find where to update the NTP servers and enable the NTP service for vCenter. Here's how to do that: Log into vCenter and head to Menu > Administration > Deployment > System Configuration. Click on the LOGIN button for the vCenter you'd like to administer. This will take you to the Appliance settings. Log into the Appliance Head to … [Read more...] about Updating NTP Servers in vCenter 6.7
Error during dcpromo: “The source server is currently rejecting replication requests”
Problem You cannot demote a domain controller using dcpromo. You receive the following error: Resolution There's a good chance your Domain Controller has an important service not running or, most likely, replication has been disabled for some reason. Here are some quick things you can do to test: In your source domain controller, head to Active Directory Sites and Services Expand the sites until you find the server you are trying to demote. Right click the NTDS settings under … [Read more...] about Error during dcpromo: “The source server is currently rejecting replication requests”
Powershell script won’t run portion requiring Excel in Scheduled Task
Some of the scripting I've recently done requires Excel to be launched (non interactively) on a domain controller to gather usernames and whatnot. For some reason, the entire script would work perfectly besides the portion that requires Excel. I could run the script as an admin in ISE and it would work, but not via the Task Scheduler. Here's the fix: Create these two folders on your server: C:\Windows\System32\config\systemprofile\Desktop … [Read more...] about Powershell script won’t run portion requiring Excel in Scheduled Task
Exchange: Export a list of all public facing distribution groups
Public facing isn't the right term here. It simply means that the authentication requirement to send mail to the distro has been disabled to give anyone anywhere the ability to send an email to it. That makes it publicly accessible. If you want a list of all of the distribution groups that have the authentication requirement disabled you can use this little one-liner. Open Exchange Management Shell as an Administrator and type the following: [crayon-5f7252f08cf84968927826/] You can change … [Read more...] about Exchange: Export a list of all public facing distribution groups
How to tell if a machine is physical or virtual
Run the following command in a windows prompt: SYSTEMINFO If the machine is virtual, you'll see references to either Microsoft Hyper-V or VMware, Inc. If it is physical you'll see references to popular manufacturers. See in the screenshot below how the System Model specifically says "Virtual Machine" in the details: … [Read more...] about How to tell if a machine is physical or virtual
Windows Server 2012 Login Issue “The User Profile Service service failed the sign-in. User profile cannot be loaded.”
Problem: When you log in you get an error that says the user profile service failed the sign on because the user profile cannot be loaded. Resolution: This typically happens because of a permissions issues on the Default folder. Browse to the folder by heading to \\SERVERNAME\C$\Users\DefaultRight click the folder and go to Security > Advanced From there, check the box at the bottom that says "Replace all child permission entries with inheritable permission entries from this … [Read more...] about Windows Server 2012 Login Issue “The User Profile Service service failed the sign-in. User profile cannot be loaded.”
Citrix NetScaler LDAP Reachability Test Fails: “Either ‘server’ is not an LDAP server or port ‘389’ is not an LDAP Port
Symptoms: Your Citrix NetScaler (Or perhaps other devices testing LDAP or trying to communicate via TLS\SSL) can complete a TLS connection test to Domain Controllers or other LDAP servers just fine, but there is a server that is failing the test and throwing the error below: Here are some knowns: The test is right: port 389 is open, is responding, and other tests to that server are just fine.The server itself is reachable.You know that LDAP is responding and there truly doesn't seem … [Read more...] about Citrix NetScaler LDAP Reachability Test Fails: “Either ‘server’ is not an LDAP server or port ‘389’ is not an LDAP Port
Uninstall an AD LDS Instance
Here's a quick way to uninstall any Active Directory Lightweight Directory Service Instance that you may have previously installed. All installations can be found in Programs & Features. They can be uninstalled by heading there, just as you would uninstall an app there.Head to Control Panel and click on Programs and FeaturesFind the instance name you'd like to uninstall and choose to uninstall, let the script run and you're done. Nice and easy, no big scripts or no special commands. … [Read more...] about Uninstall an AD LDS Instance
How to remove old drivers from Windows 10
There are a few ways you can remove drives that are no longer in use, but the easiest way to is to head into the Device Manager and remove the ones that aren't currently doing anything. The trouble is, you can't see them. Here's how to see them and then uninstall them: Open a command prompt and type the following: [crayon-5f7252f08daa7412137494/] From there, you can then open Device Manager by right clicking on the windows icon at the bottom right and choosing Device Manager. You can … [Read more...] about How to remove old drivers from Windows 10
Adding Copy and Paste Functions to vSphere VMs or in vCenter
By default, being able to copy and paste items from your machine through the console of a VM is disabled. This makes sense, there are security implications here. However, if you're in an environment where you trust your users and you're constantly moving files or managing VMs, having the ability to copy and paste is huge. So here's how to enable it: To enable Copy & Paste on one machine Log in to a vCenter Server system using the vSphere Client and power off the virtual machine. … [Read more...] about Adding Copy and Paste Functions to vSphere VMs or in vCenter
Recent Activity