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  • SQL Security and SQL on Vista / Windows Server 2008

    Security Tip of the Month: User Account Control and SQL Server http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=7243604 By Devendra Tiwari, Microsoft SQL Server Product Team User Account Control (UAC), a new feature in Windows Vista that helps administrators manage their use of elevated privileges, affects Microsoft SQL Server in terms of connectivity (SQL Server login) and in limiting access to resources on the administrators' access control list (ACL). This article discusses the impact of UAC on SQL Server and presents tips on how to run SQL Server applications securely in Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008. SQL Server 2005 Security Overview for Database Administrators http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=7243606 This paper covers some of the most important new security features in SQL Server 2005. It tells you how, as an administrator, you can install SQL Server securely and keep it that way even as applications and users make use of the data stored within. Security Considerations for SQL Server http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Mon, Sep 24 2007

  • UK Managing Director Leaves the UK bound for Microsoft Corp - welcome to Gordon Frazer from South Africa

    Today we had a bit of a kick of for FY07 (Financial Year 07 in Microsoft) and a review of FY 06. We had a healthy year with excellent growth (this is no way a prediction of the MS Company results) and we also did a bit of sweeping a few things out. It has been speculated for a little while that Alistair Baker would be moving on and today we had it confirmed. As of 31st July, the new MD of MS UK will be Gordon Frazer from the South African Sub. He did seem like a very positive and fired up person, so I think this will be nothing but goodness, as will having another Brit in the power halls at MS in the States. For the press release, have a look at http://www.microsoft.com/uk/press/content/presscentre/releases/2006/07/PR03662.mspx ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, Jul 7 2006

  • Citrix, HP and Brian Madden seem to think "Citrix Access Essentials is actually cool now!"

    I've been doing some work with Citrix and I've started to see a bit on an alignment come together for the small business arena. There are still areas where just a few users on terminal services is just fine - ala the white paper ( SBS 2003, Virtual Server and / or Terminal Services and why use virtualisation and the risks to consider ), but for those who need better management, have more users, heavier applications or poor comms then the Citrix solution is good. Even Brian Madden was impressed and if you read all of his blog article then you will see it took a long time to impress him The next day I sat down with her at iForum. She sat across the table, smiled, leaned in, and asked point-blank why I have been ignoring CAE. Apparently she’d changed positions within Citrix, and whatever it is she’s doing now, she’s very passionate about CAE. I leaned back in my chair, took a sip of Coke, closed my eyes and exhaled, saying, “Vicky, there is nothing at all about CAE that is even remotely interesting.” “That...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Sat, Jan 26 2008

  • Microsoft Small Business Specialists Community Managed Newsgroups

    This is so important I just had to blog on it. As a SBSC member you now have access to a superb support organisation to answer your questions. No longer do you have to rely on me being there for you (as I have not been for the last couple of weeks). To get there, go to Microsoft Small Business Specialists Community Managed Newsgroups and go through the sign-in process. You can ask questions on any Microsoft Technology and someone from the community or Microsoft will be able to help, and often in a very speedy way. Give it a try - you will be amazed and it might just save your bacon one night in front of a server. ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Tue, Sep 5 2006

  • SQL Server documentation (Reporting Services, XML in 2008, Spatial Data, Security for DBAs, Consolidation, Synchronisation, Compact Edition books, Scale out Analysis Services)

    From the TRM Blog at November 2007 - Technical Rollup Mail - SQL Reporting Services in SQL Server 2008 Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Reporting Services provides a complete server-based platform that is designed to support a wide variety of reporting needs including managed enterprise reporting, ad-hoc reporting, embedded reporting, and web based reporting to enable organizations to deliver relevant information where needed across the entire enterprise. Reporting Services 2008 provides the tools and features necessary to author a variety of richly formatted reports from a wide range of data sources and provides a comprehensive set of familiar tools used to manage and secure an enterprise reporting solution. Reports are processed and delivered quickly and effectively, enabling users to either receive reports automatically through subscriptions, to access reports from a central report repository on an ad-hoc basis, or to consume reports in context of their business processes through reports directly embedded into their...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Mon, Dec 3 2007

  • Find out a bit about small businesses in the UK from the UK Small Business Regional Hotspots web page

    I found this and thought people might find it useful to see what our research showed us about the regions around the UK. The background is given as: Microsoft UK recently carried out online research, in conjunction with You.Gov to find out where in Britain most small businesses were being formed and to see if there was any correlation between geographies and the types of vertical sectors that dominated the small business landscape . It also sought to identify how successful small businesses were developing their business and their employees, and where they were investing money to help it succeed further. This site highlights the key findings for each of the UK regions excluding Northern Ireland (regions defined by Government Office). If you go to http://regionalhotspots.co.uk/default.htm and hover over the icons on the map you can learn more. ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, May 4 2007
    Filed under: ,

  • SBS 2008 and EBS 2008 and the Action Pack

    I’ve been asked many, many times “Will Small Business Server 2008 or Essential Business Server 2008” be in the Action Pack. The simple answer is “ YES” . As to when, well that depends on the RTM of the actual products, however, we’re trying to get them in as early as possible. Thanks David Technorati Tags: Action Pack , SBSC , Microsoft , SBS 2008 , EBS 2008 , Partners , Support and Tools
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Wed, Jul 16 2008

  • I know I shouldn’t, but the EU is beginning to make me wonder what they are playing at .. is it personal and how is it better for the people in the EU?

    It is strange that I have come to accept that we live and work in a global economy quicker, it appears to me, than the EU. I accept that we can’t be the best at everything in the EU and we have to work out what our value is to others – true for every business. However, the EU seems to have an anti-non-EU feel to it. It also seems to want to create competition, even when no-one wants to compete – just to stimulate the industries, rather than because “punters are asking for alternatives”. This week I’ve seen two things that I wanted to share that raise concerns in my mind. Oh, in case you weren’t sure – this is a personal rant – nothing to do with anyone else but my own opinion! First was the Intel vs AMD piece which talks about requiring Intel to raise prices to avoid being nabbed for anti-competitive practices - disco-tech | Discovery Institute's Technology Blog: EU vs. Intel : Since Intel can't possibly know what AMD's cost of production is, we either have to accept collusion or accept that Intel...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, Apr 11 2008

  • Something for Vijay - Microsoft Introduces New Interoperability Principles

    I've not had time to digest all of this, but it looks important enough to get a quick note out. I know Vijay is keen on interop. Virtual Pressroom: Microsoft Makes Strategic Changes in Technology and Business Practices to Expand Interoperability February 21, 2008 Microsoft today announced a set of broad-reaching changes to its technology and business practices to increase the openness of its products and drive greater interoperability, opportunity and choice. These changes are codified into four new interoperability principles and corresponding actions: ensuring open connections; promoting data portability; enhancing support for industry standards; and fostering more open engagement with customers and the industry, including open source communities. Highlights: Press Conference Call with Steve Ballmer, Ray Ozzie, Bob Muglia and Brad Smith: 8:30 am PST, Feb. 21 Video Clip: Tom Robertson, General Manager, Interoperability and Standards (.wmv file, 44 sec) News & Announcements Press Release: Microsoft Makes...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Thu, Feb 21 2008

  • Understand Microsoft adCenter from the new Blogs & Forums that include the UK!!!

    I spoke to Mel a few months back about how he can engage with the communities out there and he explained about the great facilities that he was helping with to enable people to understand more about advertising and the Microsoft solutions. He also pointed out to me the importance of getting the right ad in the right place and said that we are twice as good at that versus the competition (but then he is biased). Today the details of new blogs and information was released and finally you can ask all those "nasty" and "searching" questions that you always wanted to know the answers too. New Microsoft adCenter Blogs & Forums Are Live! Very excited to say our new site for the adCenter Blogs & Forums is now live at www.adCenterCommunity.com There you’ll find all the latest news, views, tips, tricks and best practices and forms including: adCenter Advertiser Blog adCenter Analytics Blog adCenter Api Blog Let me know how you get on ... I hope to switch to this as soon as it becomes available...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Tue, Mar 18 2008
    Filed under: ,

  • Microsoft's Anti-virus and Anti-spam technologies for an Exchange Server - ForeFront

    This is not something for every Exchange / SBS user, but it might be interesting to some. We have released our "ForeFront" security technologies that includes mail clensing as an option. CNet gave it a small amoutn of coverage, but you can get more information from the Microsoft web site . It is worth noting that to buy ForeFront you need a volume license agreement, hence why I said it *might* not be ideal for smaller businesses. For most SBS customers, the Hosted Exchange Services may well be the right answer at the right price. ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Sun, Jul 30 2006

  • SQL Server Downloads (CTPs - Synchronization Services for ADO.NET, VS 2005 Support for SQL Server 2008, Configuration Manager config packs, Assessment packs for HIPPA, European Union Data Protection Directive (EUDPD), SOX, GLBA, FSMA, ReportViewer samples,

    From the TRM Blog at November 2007 - Technical Rollup Mail - SQL Microsoft Synchronization Services for ADO.NET v2.0 CTP1 Microsoft Synchronization Services for ADO.NET provides the ability to synchronize data from disparate sources over two-tier, N-tier, and service-based architectures. Rather than simply replicating a database and its schema, the Synchronization Services application programming interface (API) provides a set of components to synchronize data between data services and a local store. Applications are increasingly used on mobile clients, such as laptops and devices, that do not have a consistent or reliable network connection to a central server. It is crucial for these applications to work against a local copy of data on the client. Equally important is the need to synchronize the local copy of the data with a central server when a network connection is available. The Synchronization Services API, which is modeled after the ADO.NET data access APIs, gives you an intuitive way to synchronize data...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Wed, Dec 5 2007

  • Jason Langridge's WebLog - MR Mobile - tells us that the Windows Vista Windows Mobile Device Center v6.1 has been released

    I've worked with Jason for years, although our paths have diverged recently as he has become more "Enterprise" and I have become more "Small" business. However he is still known inside and outside Microsoft as Mr Mobile (ask Vlad as he talks about " Jason Langridge , the #1 Microsoft Mobile blogger"). Anyway, pop along to Jason's blog to learn much more, including where to get the download if Windows Update is not good enough for you. Windows Mobile Device Center v6.1 Last week the Vista Blog team hinted at an upcoming update to the Windows Mobile Device Center but it finally got released last night. The update is available for download from microsoft.com as well as via Windows Update. As well as focussing on continually improving reliability and performance the update also provides enhanced functionality which includes: • Windows Mobile 6 feature support - Information Rights Management activation - Automatically configure the Windows Mobile 6 device to open IRM-protected...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Wed, Jun 13 2007

  • Microsoft acquired Win Internals (SysInternals.com)

    http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2006/jul06/07-18WinternalsPR.mspx This is a bit of old news, but I have not reported it. There has always been a set of amazing tools that were usable to diagnose inside Windows, they were sold from a company called WinInternals, who then produced a set of free tools on the web site http://www.sysinternals.com . These tools I normally use are below. I use them for those questions like "what file is failing to load", or "where is it looking in the registry" or "what process is using all the CPU". Filemon This monitoring tool lets you see all file system activity in real-time. MoveFile Schedule file rename and delete commands for the next reboot. This can be useful for cleaning stubborn or in-use malware files. PageDefrag Defragment your paging files and Registry hives! PendMove See what files are scheduled for delete or rename the next time the system boots. Autoruns See what programs are configured to startup automatically when your system...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, Sep 15 2006

  • Microsoft Watch - Vista - I Shacked Up with Windows Vista - what happens when a journalist tries Vista and likes it - he makes his Mac Tiger move out for a while :-)

    I saw this and the whole article is well worth a read - a good Friday/Saturday/Sunday/Monday read to smile. I Shacked Up with Windows Vista Joe Wilcox Last week, Vista and I started living together again , and Tiger moved into an apartment across the hall. I like Vista, but she's sometimes a tough companion. Tiger and Vista are both attractive, but my new roomie is just so much more pleasing to look at—and she likes to do fun stuff that's quite different from the cat woman. Over the weekend we did the Vongo together and hung out at the Yahoo Music club. Tiger wouldn't do either. Vista also is much more social. She loves to nudge her friends and hang out at social clubs MySpace and Live Spaces . She's quite particular about her social calendar , too. Source: Microsoft Watch - Vista - I Shacked Up with Windows Vista ttfn David Technorati tags: Vista business value , MAC
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Fri, May 11 2007

  • Infopath training

    There are then a number of labs online - http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb251751.aspx covering Lab 1: Publishing an InfoPath 2007 Form Template to a Server Running InfoPath Forms Services Lab 2: Deploying and Managing InfoPath 2007 Forms Lab 3: Integrating InfoPath 2007 with the Data Connection Library Lab 4: Enabling Digital Signatures in InfoPath 2007 Form Templates Lab 5: Importing Word Forms into InfoPath 2007 Lab 6: Using InfoPath 2007 E-mail Forms Lab 7: Restricting Permissions to InfoPath 2007 Forms and Form Templates Lab 8: Using the InfoPath 2007 Object Model and Visual Studio Tools for Applications Lab 9: Designing InfoPath 2007 Forms for Mobile Web Browsers Lab 10: Creating and Inserting InfoPath 2007 Template Parts Lab 11: Integrating InfoPath 2007 Forms in Web Sites Using Visual Studio Lab 12: Using SharePoint Server Workflows with InfoPath 2007 To use these labs you need a number of downloads found at InfoPath 2007 Sample: Training Labs . ttfn David Technorati tags: Infopath , Training...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Sun, Mar 4 2007

  • Off to Partner Conference in Boston - see you blogging from there

    Hello, just a quick note to say that I am due to fly today @ 11am to Boston for the Partner Conference - if you are going then I will see you there, if not, you can read about it here. ttfn David
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Sun, Jul 9 2006

  • Vista documentation for QoS, Internet Explorer 7 deployment guide, Business desktop deployment, Bitlocker and Active Directory and Power Management in Vista

    Windows Vista Policy-based Quality of Service (QoS) This white paper describes how to prioritize network traffic by configuring Policy-based QoS on Windows Vista. Provides a business-based scenario. Also provides reference for QoS error and event messages. http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=59030735-8fde-47c7-aa96-d4108f779f20&DisplayLang=en Work smarter using the 2007 Microsoft Office system and Windows Vista These simple, easy-to-use customizable job aids created by Microsoft IT help employees get started with something new, learn more about using a technology or product effectively, select the right product or service, or review best practices. http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=5637db0a-3436-4607-bf01-3a812dd8fdc0&DisplayLang=en Internet Explorer 7 Deployment Guide This guide helps you to plan and carry out a deployment of Windows Internet Explorer 7 on Windows XP and Windows Server 2003. The guide describes the system requirements and deployment methods...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Tue, May 1 2007

  • Susanne Dansey (UK SMB Girl) off to make Westcoast even better as she broadens her horizons

    Congratulations to Susanne on her impending job move. She is the best UK SMB Girl out there :-) She often keeps Microsoft straight with her views and I will always be grateful for her honest conversation and being a good friend. Anyway, as always you can go to her blog, but here is an extract. Note, she is still the UK SMB Girl and not just a Westcoast employee, so remember to treat her as a person and not just a support line for Westcoast. But you can’t take SMB out of the girl! July is going to be a busy time for me, I’m off to the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference to speak at the Small Business Symposium (hope to see you there!) and I’m also off to pastures new in terms of my career. After being with Readycrest for seven years (well really since I was 13 when the sales office was my bedroom!) I’m taking a change in career and will be working with Westcoast Distribution as their Microsoft Channel Development Manager with a specific focus on the SBSC community. I’m not going to talk much more about Westcoast...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Tue, Jun 12 2007

  • Worldwide Partner Conference - WPC in Denver - what I know so far - Dynamics CRM Live

    Microsoft Announces Product Offerings and Customer Early Access Program for Microsoft Dynamics Live CRM - This could be huge - $44 per calendar month per user for Professional CRM and $59 for Enterprise edition (Professional Edition plus offline support)!!! Then, when you thought it was not so good for partners, look at the models: With the new Live service, partners in the Microsoft Dynamics CRM ecosystem will have new opportunities to deliver value to their customers and to drive revenue for their businesses by developing and deploying solutions across the three deployment options — Live, on-premise and partner-hosted models . For revenue in the new Live model, partners will be compensated on a recurring basis, not a one-time basis; each year they will receive 10 percent of the yearly Software as a Service (SaaS) subscription revenue for each customer for whom they are the partner of record. During 2008, a special incentive will allow partners to receive 15 percent of the SaaS subscription revenue for that year...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Tue, Jul 10 2007

  • Where to go to study for SBSC exam 70-282

    I have been asked a couple of times if there has been any updated info on the 70-282 exam and information on it. While looking through old blog entries I found this: A free webcast series hosted throughout the month of May by David Fabritius is being offered at MSReadiness.com. More information is available here - http://msreadiness.com/study70-282r2 . The Official SBS Blog : Studying for 70-282? This takes you to the MS Web site, where I found out that all the webcasts happened in the past, but the recording and blog are still there for you: To access the Study Group blog, visit us at http://blogs.technet.com/BackRoom . Using Self Test Software's great data bank of approved practice exam questions, we will review the material for the week on Fridays and help you check your preparedness for the actual exam. We will not only be looking at why an answer is correct, but also exploring why answers are wrong. Syllabus for 70-282 Study Group All of the sessions outlined below will be presented at 10 AM PDT on their...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Wed, Oct 10 2007

  • Restoring SBS 2003 to different hardware

    I saw this internal comment from Mark Stanfill and thought it was too good not to share. When moving to new hardware, this article is a good reference point: 249694 How to move a Windows installation to different hardware http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;249694 This article pre-supposes that they know a lot of details about their server (ACPI settings, filter drivers, HAL, etc) that they may not have access to. You should set the expectation that they will likely have to change some BIOS settings and that failures are likely and will have to be troubleshot on a case-by-case basis. If they have any concerns, this is a case where a call to CSS is highly advisable. Mark Stanfill, MCSE+I, MCSE 2000/2003, MCDBA Technical Lead, SBS http://blogs.technet.com/sbs One really important item in the mail - " If you have any concerns - call the support desk " - in the UK this might cost a couple of hundred pounds, but when doing a recovery and you are having problems, it might save you days of sweat,...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Wed, Nov 8 2006

  • Vista updates (performance fixes) now out

    OK, so there I was posting that they were coming and now 2 days later they are here. If you want to improve Vista, go get them: Title Release Date Popularity Update for Windows Vista (KB938194) This is a reliability update. Install this update to improve the reliability of Windows Vista in certain scenarios. 8/7/2007 #15750 Update for Windows Vista (KB938979) This is a performance update. Install this update to improve the performance of Windows Vista in certain scenarios. 8/7/2007 #12367 Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB938979) This is a performance update. Install this update to improve the performance of Windows Vista in certain scenarios. 8/7/2007 #16432 Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB938194) This is a reliability update. Install this update to improve the reliability of Windows Vista in certain scenarios. 8/7/2007 #16951 ttfn David Technorati Tags: Windows Vista , Performance , Application Compatibility
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Wed, Aug 8 2007

  • Study: .Net overtakes Java

    I saw this and thought I would share it. It gives some positioning of .Net vs Java. There is more to the article that that listed below, but the interesting statements for me was .Net >50% and Java 20%. Oh, and additional to that pure .Net @ 12% while pure Java was at 3%. Ouch!! Study: .Net overtakes Java Microsoft's .Net software development platform is more popular than Java in the enterprise, according to one industry analyst firm's report detailed on Wednesday Info-Tech Research Group said its research found .Net the choice over Java among enterprises of all sizes and industries. Entitled, "It's Official: .Net Roasts Java's Beans," the study explored the relative prevalence of Java and .Net across different types of enterprises and found .Net has gained considerable market share and become the favourite of many enterprises. In conducting its study, Info-Tech said it recently surveyed more than 1,850 organizations of different sizes. Info-Tech's research is not sponsored, a...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Sat, Feb 23 2008
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  • Sales tools, campaigns, downloads and brochures for Selling the Small Business PC (running Vista and Office 2007)

    Kerry in the Small Business team sent me this mail, so I thought I would forward it on. It is worth knowing that items from the stock shop are often free, including P&P. I’m getting lots of questions about what is available to partners to use to support the small business PC campaign. Details have been included in the campaign updates – but I understand the volume of email we all receive, so hopefully this will be more specific to your needs. We have the following produced and available: Item Details Where to get it! Campaign Builder This campaign promotes our latest product releases specifically for small businesses, Windows Vista™ Business and Microsoft® Office Small Business 2007 promoting how it’s going to transform the way they do business. Aimed at the small business owner/manager, it highlights how Windows Vista™ Business and Microsoft® Office Small Business 2007 introduces powerful new technologies that empower them and their employees to do so much more with their PC. Ultimately, helping them collaborate...
    Posted to David Overton's Blog by David Overton on Mon, Mar 5 2007
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