Online Server Support Services, Small Business Computer Server Support, Small Business Server Support

Showing posts with label small business server. Show all posts

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Steps to install Small Business Server 2003 in an existing Active Directory domain

To install a SBS 2003 computer in an existing Active Directory domain, follow these steps:

On a Windows 2000 domain, you must prepare Active Directory before you install the SBS 2003 computer in the domain. For more information about how to install a Windows Server 2003 domain controller into an existing Windows 2000 forest, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/278875/ ) Dcpromo.exe and Winnt32.exe log errors when you create a Windows Server 2003 domain controller in a Windows 2000 domain or forest or when you upgrade a Windows 2000 domain controller that resides in a Windows 2000 forest to Windows Server 2003
Start the installation of SBS 2003 by inserting CD 1 into the CD or DVD drive.
When the operating system is installed and the computer restarts and continues with the integrated Setup program, click Cancel to stop the integrated Setup program.
On the SBS 2003 computer, configure a static IP address on the network card and make sure to configure DNS to include the existing server that hosts the Active Directory zone.
Note Do not create a new forest and do not create a child domain.
1. Click Start, click Run, type dcpromo, and then click OK.
2. Click Next two times.
3. Click Additional Domain Controller for an existing domain, and then click Next.
4. Enter the credentials for the domain administrator account, and then click Next.
5. In the Domain name area, type the FQDN for the Active Directory domain namespace that you want to join, and then click Next. For example, type contoso.local. If you are not sure of the FQDN, you can click Browse to select the correct domain.
6. Click Next to accept the default locations for the Database and Log folders.
7. Click Next to accept the default locations for the shared system volume.
8. Type the Directory Services Restore Mode administrator password, and then click Next.
9. On the Summary screen, click Next to start the Dcpromo.exe program. This process may take several minutes.
10. Click Finish to complete the Dcpromo.exe program, and then click Restart Now.
11. Log on to the computer after it restarts and confirm that the computer has been successfully promoted to a domain controller. To do this, click Start, click Run, type cmd, and then click OK.
12. At the command prompt, type gettype, and then press ENTER. The output should read as follows:
```
Host Name: ServerNameName: Windows Server 2003 for Small Business Server
Version: 5.2 Build 3790
Role: Domain Controller
Components: Not Installed
```
Install the DNS server service. To do this, follow these steps:
1. Click Start, point to Control Panel, and then click Add/Remove Programs.
2. Click Add/Remove Windows Components.
3. In the Windows Components list, double-click Networking Services.
4. Click to select the Domain Name System (DNS) check box, and then click OK.
5. Click Next, and then click Finish.
Promote the SBS 2003 computer to a global catalog server. To do this, follow these steps:
1. Click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Active Directory Sites and Services.
2. Expand Sites, expand Default-First-Site-Name, expand Servers, expand your SBS 2003 computer, right-click NTDS Settings, and then click Properties.
3. Click the General tab, click to select the Global catalog check box to assign the role of global catalog to this computer, and then click OK.
4. Open Event Viewer to the Directory Services event log and wait for event 1119 or 1869 with a description that states that this domain controller is now a global catalog.
5. Restart the computer.
  
  Note Do not restart the computer or remove any other global catalog servers until you receive event 1119 or 1869. If you do this, it will cause adverse effects as there will be no global catalog servers available to process requests.
After the new computer is successfully promoted to a global catalog server, remove any other global catalog servers in the domain. To do this, follow these steps:
1. Click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Active Directory Sites and Services.
2. In the console pane, expand Sites, and then expand Default-First-Site-Name.
3. Expand Servers, expand any computers other than your SBS 2003 computer, right-click NTDS Settings, and then click Properties.
  
  Note You may have to repeat this step more than one time if more than one computer is listed, other than the SBS 2003 computer.
4. On the General tab, click to clear the Global catalog check box to assign the role of global catalog to this computer, and then click OK.
  
  Note If the Global catalog check box is not selected, go to step 8.
5. Restart any computers where you removed the global catalog server role.
  
  Note Wait for the account and the schema information to replicate to the new global catalog server.
Transfer the FSMO roles to the SBS 2003 computer. To do this, follow these steps for each FSMO role:
1. Transfer the Relative ID (RID) Master role. To do this:
  1. Click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Active Directory Users and Computers.
  2. Right-click your organization name, click All Tasks, and then click Operations Masters.
  3. In the Operations Masters dialog box, click the RID tab.
  4. In the Operations Masters dialog box, click Change.
  5. Click Yes to confirm that you want to transfer the role, and then click OK.
2. Transfer the PDC Emulator role. To do this:
  1. Click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Active Directory Users and Computers.
  2. Right-click your organization name, click All Tasks, and then click Operations Masters.
  3. In the Operations Masters dialog box, click the PDC tab.
  4. In the Operations Masters dialog box, click Change.
  5. Click Yes to confirm that you want to transfer the role, and then click OK.
3. Transfer the Infrastructure Master role. To do this:
  1. Click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Active Directory Users and Computers.
  2. Right-click your organization name, click All Tasks, and then click Operations Masters.
  3. In the Operations Masters dialog box, click the Infrastructure tab.
  4. In the Operations Masters dialog box, click Change.
  5. Click Yes to confirm that you want to transfer the role, and then click OK.
4. Transfer the Domain Naming Master role. To do this:
  1. Click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Active Directory Domains and Trusts.
  2. Right-click Active Directory Domains and Trusts, and then click Operations Master.
  3. In the Change Operations Master dialog box, click Change .
  4. Click Yes to confirm that you want to transfer the role, and then click OK.
  5. Click Close to close the dialog box.
5. Transfer the Schema Master role. To do this:
  1. You can use the Schema Master tool to transfer the role. However, the Schmmgmt.dll file must be registered to use the Schema Master tool as an MMC snap-in. To register Schmmgmt.dll, click Start, click Run, type regsvr32 schmmgmt.dll, and then click OK.
    
    Note You receive a message that confirms that the registration was successful.
  2. Click Start, click Run, type mmc, and then click OK.
  3. Click File, and then click Add/Remove Snap-in.
  4. In the Description area, click Add.
  5. Click Active Directory Schema, click Add, and then click Close.
  6. Click OK.
  7. Right-click Active Directory Schema, and then click Change Domain Controller.
  8. In the Select DC area, click Specify Name, type the name of the SBS 2003 computer, and then click OK.
  9. Right-click Active Directory Schema, and then click Operations Master.
  10. In the Change Schema Master dialog box, click Change.
  11. Click Yes, click OK, and then click Close.
  For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
  (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/324801/ ) How to view and transfer FSMO roles in Windows Server 2003
Move the site licensing server to the SBS 2003 computer. To do this:
1. On the SBS 2003 computer, click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Active Directory Sites and Services.
2. Expand Sites, and then click Default-First-Site-Name.
3. Right-click Licensing Site Settings, and then click Properties.
4. Click Change, type the name of the new SBS 2003 computer in the Enter the object name to select area, and then click OK.
5. Click OK to close the Licensing Site Settings Properties dialog box.
  
  For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/273475/ ) Licensing in Windows 2000 and differences with Windows NT 4.0
Wait for the new Active Directory objects to replicate to the SBS 2003 computer. The time this takes depends on the Active Directory size and on network performance. You can view the Directory Service event log to verify that replication has completed successfully. The SBS 2003 integrated Setup program may not continue if replication has not completed or if replication has failed.

To test replication, you can create a new test user on a domain controller and after several minutes confirm the object has been replicated to the SBS 2003 computer. You can also force replication from a domain controller. To do this:
1. On the SBS 2003 computer, click Start, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Active Directory Sites and Services.
2. In the left pane, expand Default-First-Site-Name, expand Servers, and then expand the domain controller that you want to replicate from.
3. Click NTDS Settings. One or more objects are listed in the right pane. One of those objects is a link to the domain controller you want to replicate from. To see the "friendly" name of the object, right-click the object and view the name. Right-click the domain controller object, and then click Replicate Now. The replication is performed immediately.
Change the DNS settings on all domain controllers to point to the new SBS 2003 computer as the primary DNS server. To do this, follow these steps.

Note Follow these steps on all domain controllers in the Active Directory, including the SBS 2003 computer.
1. Click Start, point to Control Panel, point to Network Connections, right-click the internal network connection, and then click Properties.
2. Click to select Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), and then click Properties.
3. Change the preferred DNS server. Type the IP address of the SBS 2003 computer as the preferred DNS server. Also, make this change on the SBS 2003 computer.
  
  Note The alternative DNS server can point to the previous preferred DNS server as long as it is a server that hosts the Active Directory zone.
On the SBS 2003 computer, insert the SBS 2003 CD 1 into the CD or DVD drive and continue with the integrated Setup of SBS 2003 and its components.
If you already have Microsoft Exchange Server installed in the organization, the integrated Setup installs Exchange Server into the existing organization. If you already have an Exchange 2003 Server or an Exchange 2000 Server in your organization, and you plan to retire that Exchange Server, you can move the mailboxes and public folders to the new Exchange 2003 Server before you retire the old Exchange Server. For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
822931 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/822931/ ) How to remove the first Exchange 2003 Server computer from the administrative group

To move the mailboxes and public folders, follow these steps:
1. On the existing Exchange Server in the organization, open Exchange System Manager. To do this, click Start, point to All Programs, point to Microsoft Exchange, and then click System Manager.
2. At the top of the tree in the left pane, right-click the Organization Name (Exchange) icon, and then click Properties.
3. Click to select the Display administrative groups check box, click to select the Display routing groups check box, and then click OK.
4. Expand the Recipients container, and then click Recipient Update Services.
5. Double-click each entry, and then enter the name of the new Exchange Server that is running on the SBS 2003 computer in the Exchange server area.
6. Expand Administrative Groups, expand Administrative Group Name, expand Routing Groups, and then expand First Routing Group.
7. Click Connectors, right-click your SMTP connector if it is present, change the server that is listed in the Local bridgeheads area to the new SBS 2003 computer, and then click OK.
8. In the left pane, under First Routing Group, click Members.
9. In the right pane, right-click the new SBS 2003 computer, and then click Set as Master.
10. In the left pane, expand Administrative Groups, expand Administrative Group Name, expand Servers, and then expand the Exchange Server that existed before you added the new Exchange Server on the SBS 2003 computer.
11. Expand First Storage Group, expand Mailbox Store, and then click Mailboxes.
12. Select all the mailboxes, right-click the mailboxes, and then click Exchange Tasks.
13. In the Exchange Task Wizard, click Move Mailbox, and then click Next.
14. Click to select the new SBS 2003 computer in the Server list, and then click Next.
15. Specify how you want the Move Mailbox procedure to handle corrupted messages, and then click Next two times to re-home all the mailboxes to the new SBS 2003 computer.
  
  Note This procedure also re-homes the public folders to the new SBS 2003 computer.
16. Click Finish.
17. As soon as replication is successful, remove Exchange Server from the computer that is to be retired. If the computer that is to be retired is also a domain controller, run the Dcpromo.exe program to remove this computer from the domain before you physically retire it.
  
  Note You must instruct all Exchange Server users to point to the new Exchange Server.
Run the Dcpromo.exe program on the SBS 2003 computer to join the existing domain.

For More Info: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/884453/en-us

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Microsoft Rolls Out New Small Business Server Options

Microsoft has announced new server software that it said provides small and medium businesses with enterprise-quality capabilities while helping them to save money, increase productivity and grow their businesses.

While designed specifically for small and midsized companies, Windows Small Business Server 2008 (SBS 2008) and Windows Essential Business Server 2008 (EBS 2008) include Microsoft's high-end server technologies delivered in a way that smaller companies can make the most of them.

“Around the world, small and midsize businesses are the engine that drives economic growth and opportunity,” Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft, said in a company statement. “To help these businesses succeed, Microsoft has focused on creating integrated, affordable server solutions that are optimized to meet the needs of companies with limited IT resources. Small Business Server and Essential Business Server deliver a comprehensive set of capabilities that will help small and midsize business thrive and grow.”

Designed for small companies with up to 75 people/computers, SBS 2008 server software integrates a variety of Windows functions to help small businesses better secure data and increase employee productivity regardless of location.

Based on Windows Server 2008 Standard technology, SBS 2008 incorporates:-

Exchange Server 2007 Standard Edition for messaging and collaboration
SharePoint Services 3.0 for online collaboration workspace and productivity tools
Forefront Security for Exchange Server to handle e-mail security
Windows Server Update Services 3.0 for network updates and protection
Windows Live OneCare for Server to manage viruses, hackers and other digital threats
Microsoft Office Live Small Business to help take your business online
Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Standard for Small Business, a database available in the Premium edition

The server software offers a range of features including anytime/anywhere access to your PC and its data, including e-mail, files, business applications, and more. It's also designed to let your employees share Internet access, printers, fax machines and other network resources. Click here for SBS 2008 pricing information.

Microsoft designed EBS 2008 for midsized companies with up to 300 people or computers. It's meant to simplify and automate common IT tasks, and a unified administration console gives IT managers more control over an integrated network infrastructure.

Windows Essential Business Server 2008 also incorporates the applications found in SBS 2008, and Microsoft said it provides the following features:

Significant costs savings compared to buying stand-alone products.
Remote access, anti-spam, antivirus protection and improved messaging technologies improve productivity both in and away from the office
An integrated setup saves time and reduces installation steps from days to hours Simplified licensing with a single server license and Client Access for all included products.

Steven VanRoekel, senior director of the Windows Server product group, noted that both server products help small and mid-sized companies compete in tough economic times.

"Small companies have the same needs and face the same challenges as big business, but they lack the staff, resources and time to manage IT environments," VanRoekel said. "The new EBS 2008 and SBS 2008 products are an integrated, affordable, enterprise-quality solution that can help small and midsized companies become more productive, cut costs and be more competitive." Click here for EBS 2008 pricing information

Via: itmanagement.earthweb.com/entdev/article.php/3785346/Microsoft+Rolls+Out+New+Small+Business+Server+Options.htm

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Small Business VOIP - Ensure Business Safety while using Wireless VoIP Signals

For every businessman, there is a necessity of storing data in the office. This data includes information on business policies and confidential information. As the data is very critical to the business organization, it is essential to keep the data safe and protect it from falling into the wrong hands. If the data is leaked, it could cause enormous amount of problems to the company sometimes to the tune of having to lose the business altogether.

For this reason, small businesses need to protect the data they have very safely. Almost everyone uses computers to store data these days. So, there should be a software installed that will protect all information about the business safely. The software that will help you do this includes anti-hacking, anti-spyware, antivirus, etc.

Another commonly used technological tool is the telephone through which you might be sharing information. So, even this mode has to be made secure to avoid anyone from listening in to what you are saying.

VoIP has gained a lot of importance these days due to the newer trends in technology. VoIP is an important tool that helps a business become better, fruitful and competent. VoIP is like any other telephone but has better features. VoIP gives the benefit of making long distance calls at much lower rates in comparison to your regular telephone. It also provides other features that are generally not available on regular telephones and if present, will be quite expensive. You get enjoy additional features such as audio and video conferencing, call waiting, text messaging, three-way calling and much more all free of cost.

For these additional benefits provided, many businesses are now switching over to VoIP from their regular telephones. A question that comes to one’s mind is how it is possible with VoIP. VoIP is through the internet where data exchanging happens free of cost. VoIP makes use of the same principle to allow the movement of audio signals.

As the audio signals are moving through the internet, it is converted into digital format which makes the sound quality in VoIP phones very crisp and crystal clear, a feature you might not enjoy while making long distance calls from your regular telephone.

With improvements in other technology, VoIP has gained importance. Having a Wi-Fi connection has enabled a user to call anybody using a Wireless VoIP phone. For this reason, Wi-Fi phones have now sprung up and are becoming popular by the day. Moreover, it is much easier to handle calls through a phone rather than having to hook up your computer to an internet connection in order to make and receive calls through VoIP.

But, again the doubts about security arises as you are handling calls through wireless technology. You would not desire any unscrupulous elements from listening into your conversations through the phone. For this reason, it is essential to have a program that secures your conversation. With the help of this program, a user who wants to access your signals should be able to get in only if they are providing an approved username and password. Also, there are new Wi-Fi phones now in the market that has integrated privacy software that prevents anyone from eavesdropping into your conversations.

There are encryption devices also available for securing your conversations. You can even find devices compatible for Wi-Fi technology. When you use these devices along with your Wi-Fi connection, it prevents any unauthorized access into your systems. You can even choose to put up a firewall to further strengthen your Wi-Fi network. All these options are easily obtainable and are very proficient in preventing anyone from getting into your network and listening in.

Look for a VoIP Wi-Fi phone that comes with lot of inbuilt features like privacy software and encryption to improve the security of your network. These may come at a higher price in comparison to your regular VoIP phones but it is money well spent.

Source:gather.com

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Microsoft Philippines Announces Availability of SQL Server 2008

Microsoft Philippines recently announced the release of Microsoft SQL Server 2008, the new version of the company’s acclaimed data management and business intelligence platform. This version of SQL Server provides powerful new capabilities such as support for policy-based management, auditing, large-scale data warehousing, geospatial data, and advanced reporting and analysis services. SQL Server 2008 provides the trusted, productive and intelligent platform necessary for business-critical applications.

“Microsoft developed this release of SQL Server with the customer in mind,” said Liezl Milan, product manager for SQL Server, Microsoft Philippines. “SQL Server 2008 is the only major database and complete solution that allows companies to gain greater insight from their business information and achieve faster results for a competitive advantage.”

With its enhanced functionalities, Microsoft is optimistic that the new database management platform will enable them to expand its roster of enterprise customers.

Recently, Amkor Technology Philippines, one of the top providers of semiconductor assembly and test services, upgraded its system to SQL Server 2008. “We constantly look for ways to augment our company’s operations to improve our services to our customers. The main challenge we had was the storage of large amounts of information that we regularly receive from our factory machines. We needed a solution that could better handle data management and is capable of storing a huge volume of data. One of our biggest reasons for upgrading to SQL Server 2008 is for us to effectively process and store enormous amount of data without compromising performance,” said Hans Cruz, Information & Communications Services Manager, Amkor Technology.

“We selected SQL Server 2008 because we can entrust it with our critical business applications. Compared to our previous system, SQL Server 2008 brought about a very significant effect to our company in terms speed and ease of use. We are now able to process information faster and more accurately,” Cruz added.

TRUSTED, PRODUCTIVE, INTELLIGENT PLATFORM

With customers in mind, SQL Server 2008 was developed to provide businesses and organizations with a trusted, productive and intelligent data platform that enables them to run their most demanding mission critical applications. One of the improved features in the latest version includes Resource Governor, which allows businesses to define limits and priorities for easier management of concurrent workloads.

Source:hardwarezone.com

Monday, July 14, 2008

Windows Small Business Server Support Services

Although the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference held here July 7-10 was the company’s opportunity to introduce the technologies to its partners, Microsoft will officially launch SBS 2008 and EBS 2008 Nov. 12, said Steven VanRoekel, senior director of Windows Server Solutions at Microsoft.

“We’re showcasing the Windows Server Solutions family” here, VanRoekel told eWEEK in a July 9 meeting at the conference. “SBS 2008 and Essential Business Server are tailored for midsized companies and we anticipate we’ll see a lot of companies deploying it, and it will be growing into more opportunity for us to sell into more situations where in the past we only had SBS."

SBS 2008, previously known by the code name Cougar, is ideal for organizations with up to 50 PCs, helping them protect business data, expand business productivity and present a professional image to customers, he said.

EBS 2008 is designed for midsize organizations with up to 250 desktops, Microsoft officials said.

Windows business server combines the technologies of Windows Server 2008, Exchange Server 2007, Forefront Security for Exchange Server, System Center Essentials 2007, the next version of Internet Security and Acceleration Server and, in the Premium Edition, SQL Server 2008 technology, Microsoft officials said.

Windows Essential Business Server enables organizations to scale up, VanRoekel said.

“The theme is about making complex consumer technology more consumable,” he said. “We go from Windows Home Server, which is five questions during install, to SBS, which is a little more sophisticated, to Essential Business Server, which is 600 pages of documentation."

“We’ve been using Small Business Server 2008 in production since December,” said John Endter, president of Microsoft partner E Squared C. “I recently did three Windows Small Business Server 2003 installs and [am] working with ’08 now; it’s no fun to go back and install 2003. Luckily, the owner of these systems plans to upgrade to ’08 when it ships.”

Endter said the “Essential Business Server takes the Small Business Server concept up one level. Some of our customers have asked for the functionality of Small Business Server, and EBS offers that to the midmarket.”

He also said the licensing terms of Small Business Server 2008 make it flexible for small businesses to use and grow their solutions.

“We have some customers who six months into the deal want to expand, and we offer the ability to grow and scale,” Endter said.

“We made it easy to move and made the price more attractive," VanRoekel said.

Meanwhile, Endter said among the things in Essential Business Server 2008 that his customers had been asking for is the remote Web workplaces capability. “Before this they had to build that on their own,” he said.

Another highly desired feature that is now part of EBS 2008 is “centralized management,” he said. In addition, “Small Business Server has been good for us, and seeing that the midmarket is a great opportunity for us, we expect to do well with the Essential Business Server."

Meanwhile, Microsoft will be releasing SDKs (software development kits) for both SBS 2008 and EBS 2008 within the next few weeks, the company said. Both products have been under evaluation as pre-release versions.
Source: www.eweek.com

Small Business Server Support, Server Support Services, Online Server Support