All posts by Jim Guckin
Changing IP Address of VMware ESX Host
I’ve come into many occasions where I needed to change the IP address of an ESX server. In one ocassion there was tiering a network so the servers were on a different network from the workstations, and in another it was moving the ESX server to a test network where it could not touch the…
Q&A Monday: Server Disk Defrag
Question: I was recently promoted to a Junior System Admin role at my company, and server maintenance has recently come under my job responsibility. I was wondering if it is a good idea to defragment the disk on the servers? We occasionally do defrags on the local PCs, but does defraging a server really help?…
Remove the .NET Framework Assistant for Firefox
Like me you may have abandoned the Internet Explorer browser for the more secure Firefox. Well if you recently updated your computer, Microsoft may have snuck a vulnerability into Firefox without even telling you. If you take a look at the installed add-ons in Firefox you might notice an add-on called Microsoft .net Framework Assistant….
Q&A Monday: Change Remote Desktop Port
Question: Do you know if there is any way to change the port number of remote desktop? I am looking to make RDP more secure by changing the default port on our servers. Answer: There is a way to change the default port for all supported versions of Windows and it isn’t really that complicated. …
It’s the most wonderful time of the year…for Viruses
I know that this time of the year, the average home users computer is pretty vulnerable to virus, spyware and malware attacks. The reason I think this is, is because with most newer computers you get a year of Anti Virus protection, and well that year is coming to an end. Most people in this…
Q&A Monday: Blue Screen of Doom
Question: I turned off my computer normally yesterday and used it for no more than half an hour. I tried turning it on this morning and the blue screen of death showed up. It reset and this time showed me the black screen which tells me that Windows was not successfully shut down along with…
Check Browser Compatibility Fast and Easy
Now like a lot of businesses now a day rely heavily on websites, and with the explosion of different browsers how can you make sure your site looks as good as it can on as many of them as possible? Before I would have as many different browsers located on my computer and load up…
Slow time of the Year?
In most of the jobs that I have had, this time of the year (November to January) can be the slow months of the year. With most parts of the year sometime we can end up shelving projects or running checks, but this time of year we can easily get complacent with just relaxing and…
Q&A Monday: .html AutoRun CD
Question: I have created a small (lets call it a web site) and I want to put it on a CD and have it ‘autorun’? Answer: Autorun is a feature of the Windows operating systems. Autorun is feature that detects when a CD is inserted and runs an application based on the Autorun.inf file located…
Office 2010 Beta Review
So the otherday I got an e-mail about downloading the new Beta of Office 2010. Now prior to this year, I would have just delted the e-mail and never looked back on it. Yet, as of this year I decided to look forward and be more proactive, than reactive and take pride in my work. …