Welcome to IT:Huntsville!

On many occasions, I get customers complaining of their mail "bouncing" when sent to hosts on the internet. Usually, these problems are caused by an occasional system getting too many unsolicited emails (yes, technically spam, but not like the junk you find in your inbox). The usual first step to fix the problem is to read the message and find a clue.

While uninstalling the Symantec server from a Windows Server 2003 computer, I ran into a snag. The last thing to be removed (after rebooting from removing all the other components) was the "Live Update" service.

When I went to "Add/Remove Programs" in the Control Panel, I pressed the "Change/Remove" button and was greeted with a status box that never changed or went away.

This was an easy fix, however…

I worked for several hours on this problem and have finally had to stop, since the customer needs to have a running system and can't wait for me to fix Apple's problem...

I installed another server with Windows 2003 Small Business Server. The first time I had this problem, I figured it was a bug. The second time, I thought maybe I was screwing something up on the install. This last time, I saw the same problem.

When the installation is complete, Microsoft's SQL Manager is running in the task bar with a big circle where the green arrow should be! After pulling hair, scratching my scalp and beating my head on the keyboard, I finally figured out why.

While trying to launch backup.1.exe off of the first DVD of a backup set created by the HP/Windows Vista recovery process, the program would start, Vista would ask for authorization and then it would die silently. After hours of trying to figure out what was going on, I figured out the logic of the program and solved the mystery.

Microsoft has topped itself this time. In previous Windows incarnations, there was always a choice to be made in purchasing your new operating system.

Windows NT vs. Windows 95
Windows 2000 vs. Windows ME
Windows XP Pro vs. Windows XP Home vs. Windows XP Media Center Edition

Not only did that confuse people, but it caused great annoyances when consumers would buy one over the other and then not be able to do what they needed to (XP Home, for instance, would not allow you to join a Windows domain).

There were server versions of each of these, too, that came in a nice variety of flavors and colors.

Windows 2000, Windows 2000 Web Edition, Windows 2000 File and Print Server, Windows 2000 Enterprise, Windows 2000 Small Business Server

Windows 2003 Standard, Windows 2003 Advanced, Windows 2003 Storage Server, Windows 2003 Enterprise, Windows 2003 Small Business Server (standard and advanced), Windows 2003 for Small Business (huh?)

Add to this that each of the operating systems was available with an upgrade price, and the number of permutations and combinations gets out of control.

Now, we have Windows Vista.

Or should I title this "iPhone vs. Exchange" to make it more accurate?

Configuring the iPhone to use Exchange takes you through several simple changes to the Exchange server, some of which can be useful for other users' mobile email services, as well.

Being the cheapskate that I am, I couldn't bring myself to layout the cash needed for an iPhone. It's nice, I agree, but is it worth it to me? I already have a Treo and it is sufficient for me, but, I will be the first to admit, it's a little buggy (I can usually keep it down to one crash a week, now) and the AT&T network it uses is incredibly slow (as in; 56k modems make it look fast).

There are three standard methods for data storage. Direct Attached Storage, such as internal and external hard drives is the most common. Running a close second, and becoming more prevalent in small businesses is Network Attached Storage, which is, basically, a headless file server that provides a limited network server environment for storing data. The most powerful of these and certainly the more attractive for long-term planning and growth, is the Storage Area Network.

I've been HAD! I worked on the installation of new firewall for two weeks. It worked on my test network. It worked standalone. It did NOT work when installed.

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