Keith Smith - My Blog

mysite hosting error

Sunday, February 19, 2017 - Posted by Keith A. Smith, in SharePoint

Problem
Title
Validate the My Site Host and individual My Sites are on a dedicated Web application and separate URL domain.
Severity
2 - Warning
Category
Configuration
Explanation
It is recommended that the My Site Host and individual My Sites are deployed on a dedicated Web application for performance and manageability reasons. Additionally not having a separate URL domain for the My Site Host and individual My Sites poses a security risk because the owner can introduce same-domain scripting attacks on other sites hosted on the same URL domain.

Solution
Create a new web application, use template my site host under enterprise tab

-End

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Unable to edit the DCOM settings for IIS WAMREG admin service

Saturday, February 18, 2017 - Posted by Keith A. Smith, in SharePoint

Unable to edit the DCOM settings for IIS WAMREG admin service on a Windows Server 2008 R2

1. Run Regedit.exe and browse to "HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AppID\{61738644-F196-11D0-9953-00C04FD919C1}" key.
2. Secondary-mouse click on the {61738644-F196-11D0-9953-00C04FD919C1} key and select Permissions...
3. Click the Advanced button in the Permissions window and select the Owner tab. Under Change owner to select the local Administrators group and click on Apply, then OK.
4. Then under Permissions window, select the local Administrators group and under Permissions for Administrators select Full Control and click on Apply, then OK.

NOTE: DO NOT modify/change any permissions for the TrustedInstaller account.

5. Re-run the Component Services management console (dcomcnfg.exe) and you should now be able to modify the settings for IIS WAMREG admin service package.

a.     Expand Component Services, expand Computers, expand My Computer, and expand DCOM Config.
b.     Right-click IIS WAMREG admin Service, and then click Properties.
c.     Click the Security tab.
d.     Under Launch and Activation Permissions, click Edit.
e.     Under Group or user names section, add the sharepoint farm account, and select the user account
f.     Under Permissions for the Business Connector Proxy User account, select the Local Launch and Local Activation checkboxes
g.     Click OK and OK and close the Component Services management console.

-End

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Evernote snooping

Wednesday, December 14, 2016 - Posted by Keith A. Smith, in Security

Evernote announced an upcoming change to its privacy policy that would allow company employees to “exercise oversight of machine learning technologies applied to account content” to improve the service.

Evernote’s privacy changes will take effect Jan. 22, 2017 and users are threatening to abandon the service. A few years ago Dropbox also made changes to it's privacy policy to allow it's staff to snoop around in your stuff.

The policy changes have to do with machine learning, which Evernote says it is using to “help get you the most out of your Evernote experience.”

According to the company’s policy update notice, "Only employees who are fulfilling one of the customer or business needs... will be able to access your data.” Evernote claims a limited number of employees who have undergone background checks will be able to access user data and that users can encrypt notes to prevent employees from reading them.

I said it once, and I'll say it again if you upload data, virtual machines, etc. to any cloud provider you essentially have transferred ownership of that data the cloud provider simply allows you to access it. It is imperative that everyone implement encryption and Multi-factor authentication (MFA) also known as (also known as 2FA) where ever possible.

I also recommend that everyone use the EULAlyzer to analyze end user license agreements for interesting words and phrases in order to make sense of the nonsensical agreements.

-End

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Windows Update MiniTool is a free alternative to windows update

Tuesday, November 1, 2016 - Posted by Keith A. Smith, in Microsoft

Windows Update MiniTool is a free alternative to the standard Windows Update, it puts you in control of updates by allowing you to search, install and block Windows updates as you please.

Windows Update MiniTool Will provide the follow options:

◦ Check for updates

◦ Download updates

◦ Installing Updates

◦ Deleting installed updates

◦ Hiding unwanted updates

◦ Get direct links to the *.cab / *.Exe / *.Psf update files

◦ View update history

◦ Configure Automatic Updates

This tool is like the external powershell module PSWindowsUpdate, but much more advanced and user-friendly features

The tool relies and use same WU infrastructure, all downloading are through WU -- it's not a downloader!

I have tested this on server 2016 along with windows 10 and it works great.

It can be downloaded from here http://www.keithit.com/downloads/wumt.zip

-End

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Developing Soft Skills

Tuesday, October 25, 2016 - Posted by Keith A. Smith, in Journal of thoughts

Working in information technology is very exciting to me. It is very rare for me to wake up in the morning and not look forward to coming into work. My technical skills that I have acquired through the 14 years I have been in IT has served me well. At the same time though, we all have other skills that are just as important as the technical skills. Lets face facts here, there are always going to be people who know more than me and who have done more than I have. What sets a successful IT person apart from a non-successful one usually comes down to the other skills they bring to the table.

These other skills are called "soft skills". They are key factors in how you react to situations, talk with people, and approach challenges. Believe it or not, these soft skills say a lot about you and have the potential to make or break your career in the end. The real challenge when it comes to developing these soft skills to work in your favor is that they are so tightly entwined with your personality.

There are many soft skills to develop, but there are three that I have really focused on through my career.

Attitude
Attitude is everything in business. If you are an optimist, can see the bright side in a sea of darkness, and can follow projects through with positivity and vigor, you will be valued as an employee. Compare that with the guy who views a project in a negative light and complains about how the project will fail through the process. If you are a business leader, who would you rather work with? Most people would agree they would rather have the guy who is positive and brings them up as opposed to the guy who brings them down.

Communication
Being positive only helps if you are able to communicate your positivity to the people around you. This counts in not only a verbal sense, but through a written sense as well. Developing this skill requires development in areas like verbal communication, non-verbal communication, and listening skills. This is a soft skill that you develop through the course of your life and career.

Teamwork
Organizations are looking to become more lean. This means they want cross functional teams that have people who are willing to work with others. If you don't play nice with others, or if you view yourself as someone who works better alone, its time to start developing this soft skill.

If you are looking to develop your soft skills, there are many ways to accomplish this goal. The first would be to find a mentor. This can be your boss, a friend, or a leader that you know and respect. We are all more likely to change the way we think and the things we do when we learn from someone who we look up to. The second way is to volunteer your skills to areas outside of your workplace. Take up a cause such as volunteering at a food bank or other non-profit. There are not only soft skill learning opportunities at these non-profits.

-End

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