Events

KeepVault version 3.15 Now Available

Windows Home Server

Andrew Edney

-

Aug 22, 2009

As you may know, we are fans of KeepVault from Proxure, which is a great add-in that allows you to backup offsite over the Internet.

We did a review of KeepVault 3.0 a few months ago which you can see here.

Proxure have released a new version of KeepVault, version 3.15, today August, 21. Here are the updates:

· Up to 50% increase in upload speed

· Includes new KeepVault Connector WHS add-in allowing you to sync files from any PC (either local or internet) to your WHS for protection. Another step forward making the WHS the center of your data protection strategy.

Download link:

http://www.keepvault.com/builds/current/KeepVaultWHS.exe

And for more information on KeepVault, and Proxure, click here.

The Home Server Show Podcast 53

Windows Home Server

Andrew Edney

-

Aug 20, 2009

0

Dave over at the Home Server Show podcast has just released show number 53.

This week’s show includes:

Diehard’s Wish

Home Server Builder Specials

My hard drive failure

Backing up SBS clients to WHS

Dish Network for Media Center cancelled?

New Lenovo D400 WHS

Warranty service for your MediaSmart Server

How to replace your MediaSmart Server Power Supply

You can listen to the MP3 here for click here for other formats.

Enjoy 🙂

MSWHS is Currently Off the Air

Andrew Edney

-

Aug 18, 2009

0

Phil over at MSWHS.com has asked me to put out a quick post for him to apologise that MSWHS.com is currently off the air.

If you try to go to Phil’s site you will see a message from WordPress saying that the blog has been suspended for a violation of their Terms of Service.

Phil has asked me to point out that he doesn’t believe he has done anything wrong and that the site will be up and running, and better than ever, within the next 7 days.
UPDATE : It’s all back online now!

Installing the AutoExit Add-In to Windows Home Server on a Friday night

Timothy Daleo

-

Aug 17, 2009

7

Recently I wrote about my five Core Add-Ins for my standard Windows Home Server installations and I am about to add a sixth Add-In to the list. The AutoExit Add-In is one of those rare gems that does not get a lot of attention. This Add-In can save you a lot of time and frustration on your home network.

Background

I am one of the luckiest men on Earth. My wife lets me purchase all of the computer equipment I want. We have two work laptops (VPN networked but not a part of WHS for security reasons), two personal laptops, a photo editing workstation, a laptop in the garage and a HTPC (Home Theater PC) all networked via gigabit to my homebuilt WHS. There are only two of us which means at any given time five of the seven Dell PCs are not being used. Each one has a purpose and I would not change anything, however, keeping them all backed up is a pain in the ass. Is my WHS not doing its job? Let me explain…

We try to save electricity so whenever the PCs are not in use we have them turned off. While the electrical savings add up, so do the WHS warnings about these systems not being backup. The warnings are more of a nuisance since they do get backed up on the weekends when I turn them all on. Some days I am on every computer but some days I am only on one or two. With WHS I can access my movies and media from any PC in the house and even if I do start a PC I will not leave it on all night just to backup. Here is my weekly backup protocol…

I wake up on Saturday morning and head right to the office. I press the power button on my main workstation. I then spin my chair around and press the button on my personal laptop. I then walk out to the kitchen, prep my wife’s coffeemaker and walk out to the garage to press the power button on the garage laptop. I grab a Diet Coke from the garage fridge and walk back inside to the living room where I press the power button on the Hybrid. I walk back the office, set down the Diet Coke and by this time the main workstation is ready for my fingerprint. I repeat the entire walk logging in to each system. Now my house is not big so I am not really complaining about the walk but I would love a better process.

Upon my return to the office I log into the WHS console and back each system up remotely. Once all of the backups are complete I run the WHS BDBB, walk out to the living room and watch Enterprise on my Moxi DVR (not networked) until my phone beeps me when backup warning clears or my wife wakes up, which ever comes first. Unless I am out of town I do this EVERY Saturday. Should I use mControl for the coffeemaker? I could start the brewing from Windows Media Center. Maybe in another article…

Mental Note: You do not have to log in to Windows to start the backup. You can start the backup as soon as the PC becomes available. I log in to each PC to make sure I have latest automatic updates.

Earlier this week Andrew Edney posted a quick update about an Add-In that allows WHS to control your Windows PCs. I decided to put all other topics on hold until I could get this Add-In reviewed. I cannot wait to see what this Add-In can do for my system and for yours!

Equipment Needed:

AutoExit Add-In from http://www.asoft-ware.com/

Two Beers (optional as always)

Add-In Description

Information about the Add-In comes directly from the ASoft website at http://www.asoft.be/

The website says the following about AutoExit:

Shut down your machines over the Windows Home Server network.
It can be used to shut down, reboot machines in your home network from within the console.
Wake On Lan is also supported, this enables you to easily boot up machines remotely.
You can put the machine into hibernation, sleep, log off the user or lock the machine.
The server can also be shut down from the toolbar now.
You can execute these actions per machine or for all machines.
Changes in AutoExit 2009 (minor update):
– Wake On Lan all clients.
– Send a message to all connected clients.
– Warn users when the server is going down.
– Support for Windows 7.
– Possibility to the Wake On Lan port to send to.
– Possibility to enable easy logging on the client side.”

As I mentioned earlier, I first became aware of this Add-In when the AutoExit update was posted by Andrew at:

https://moviesgamesandtech.com/2009/08/12/new-version-of-autoexit-add-in-for-windows-home-server/

Ok, AutoExit looks like a great Add-In, but is it worthy of changing my “Favorite Five” to a “Standard Six”?

Lets set this pig on fire!

Download and Installation

Downloading is easy. This Add-In works like a regular Add-In so save the file to your Software/Add-Ins folder. Just click on the following link:

http://www.asoft.be/

Once you have completed the download open the WHS console and Install the Add-In.

Once the WHS console has restarted you can log in to WHS and verify that the installation is complete.

Configuration and Setup

Most of the configuration of this Add-In is done on each machine you want to control from the WHS console. When you first access the Add-In from the WHS console you get the following message:

Unless you need a reminder, click on the “Don’t show this dialog again” check box and click on OK.

I am going to go to each PC and run the “autoexitclient.exe” file on each system. Below I am doing screen shots of the XP machine in the garage.

During the download and installation a new folder was created called “AutoExit” with the client installer file. Open the Shared Folders on Server and navigate to the \\XXXXX\Software\AutoExit folder. Double click on the file and follow the installation instructions.

Once you have completed the installation click on Finish.

My garage system is running XP Home so I will not be able to use the remote desktop function of the Add-In on this system. The system will still respond to the other functionality of AutoExit. Right mouse click on the tray icon and choose Diagnose to see information about your system.

Once I have installed the software on the garage PC I go back to office and the WHS console and see the status of this machine on the network. I have omitted the IP address and the MAC address from the pictures.

I right mouse on the PC and get a list of actions for this system.

The status of the PC only shows if the PC is online and does not tell whether the PC has had the AutoExit client software installed. You can right click on each machine but it will not control the system until the client package is installed. Interestingly enough the Remote Desktop option does work with systems that support Remote Desktop Connections (RDC).

Mental Note: The Remote Desktop function from within the Add-In does not require the the Add-In software to be installed first so if your system supports Remote Desktop then you can actually remote in to install the software and save yourself a trip to the PC!

I log in to my HTPC from within the AutoExit Add-In.

Through this RDC, I navigate the PC to the server folder and run the AutoExit software.

Once the installation is complete you can control your systems as needed and as defined by the operating systems. As you can see below, my wife never leaves her laptop on overnight so this Add-In will be of great benefit to our network and WHS.

Everything seems to be working well with the connections however I did experience some issues with the XP machines when they would Hibernate instead of sleeping. Asoft states in their documentation that this is a Windows issue and not from the Add-In. I just unchecked the Hibernation button on the XP machines and they now do not Hibernate when directed to go to sleep.

The Wake On Lan function (WOL) is also available but will not be discussed in this article. I am not going to touch your BIOS and you probably should not either. To enable my WOL I am using DCCU 3.0 from Dell since my five laptops are all Latitude series machines.

For more information on the Wake On Lan functionality please see the Guidelines document in the AutoExit folder and then your manufacturers documentation.

There is also as cool message feature but I doubt I would use it.

Conclusion

For anyone with multiple systems in their home network this Add-In is a must. AutoExit is not just about the “Exit” but also about the ease of access to all of your systems. I am going to add AutoExit to my core list of starting Add-Ins for my future installations. Thank you to Asoft for such a rockin’ Add-In.

I would have named this Add-In AutoConnectRemoteOffShutSleepDesktopExitLogLockandSend, (ACROSS DELLS) but that is just me because I am a Dell guy. I guess AutoExit works too.

See you next Friday night,

Timothy Daleo

How To Set Up a Domain Name for Windows Home Server Remote Access

Andrew Edney

-

Aug 16, 2009

59

Another step along the way to having remote access for your Windows Home Server is that you need to select a personalized domain name for your Windows Home Server which makes it easier for you to remember the URL to connect to your Windows Home Server when you are away from home. For example, if it was available, I could use edneyfamily.homeserver.com. The only part of the domain name I need to choose is the edneyfamily part.

Because the personalized domain name is used to access your Windows Home Server over the Internet, it has to be unique, so try and think of something that is easy for you to remember and means something to you. Make sure you think of a couple of different possibilities just in case the domain name you want has already been taken by someone else.

All of the following steps are performed from the Windows Home Server Console, Settings, Remote Access tab. And for additional information, this walk-through assumes you are running Windows Home Server Power Pack 2 – if you are running an earlier Power Pack then these steps may appear a little different to what you see. Go download and install PP2 now.

Firstly, ensure that Remote Access is turned on. If it isn’t just click on the Turn on button (in which case you can skip the next step).

From the Domain Name section, click the Setup button.

This will launch the Set Up a Domain Name wizard.

Note: You will need a Windows Live ID to set up a domain name.

Click Next to continue.

You must now sign in to Windows Live to continue.

If you don’t already have a Windows Live ID it is easy to create one. See the Creating a Windows Live ID section later in this article.

Enter your Windows Live ID e-mail address and password to sign in to Windows Live.

Click Next to continue.

The next screen of the wizard is the Privacy Statement and Agreement.

Note: As you are being asked to accept the agreement, it is a good idea to read it and make sure you are happy to agree. If you are not happy to agree then you cannot use the remote access facilities of Windows Home Server.

Read the Windows Home Server Privacy Statement and the Windows Live Custom Domains Addendum.

Click the I accept button (assuming you accept).

Click Next to continue.

On the next screen you must type in the domain name you would like to use.

Type in the domain name you would like to use in the Domain Name box.

The domain name can contain the following:

63 characters maximum
Letters, numbers, or hyphens. The name must begin and end with a letter or a number.

You can only register one domain name per Windows Live ID you have.

Click the Confirm button to check that it is available to use. If it is not available you will see the message telling you so.

Don’t worry if the domain is not available, just choose another one and try again.

If the domain name is available it will be displayed on the screen – just click Finish.

You will see confirmation that the domain name has been set up.

Tip: Make a note of the URL so that you can access your Windows Home Server. It will be http://domainname.homeserver.com followed be either /home for the homepage over port 80 or /remote for the remote access login page over port 443 (which will also start with https:// instead of http://).

Click Done to complete the process.

There is also a button called Configure, which enables you to either release the current domain name or choose a different domain name.

Creating a Windows Live ID

Having a Windows Live ID is a pre-requisite for creating a domain name for use with Windows Home Server, but don’t worry, its simple and only takes a couple of minutes.

To create a Windows Live ID, just follow these steps:

Using Internet Explorer or any other Internet browser, visit https://accountservices.passport.net/ppnetworkhome.srf?lc=2057 which is the Windows Live ID website.

Select the type of Windows Live ID you want to create. For the sake of this example, I will select Sign up for a limited account.

The next steps involve you having to create an e-mail address and password to use a Windows Live ID credentials.

Enter an E-mail address in the box provided – you only need to enter the text before the @.

Note: The e-mail address can contain letters, numbers, periods, hyphens and underscores.

Enter a password in the box provided.

Note: The password must be a minimum of six characters in length – as you type the password you can see from the password strength visual how strong your password actually is.

Type in the characters that are displayed in the picture – this is used as a security mechanism to stop automated programs from creating accounts.

Click the Continue button.

The next screen contains the terms of use and online privacy statement.

Type in your e-mail address that you just created in the box and click the I Accept button to continue.

The last screen confirms that you have created your Windows Live ID.

Click the Continue button to complete the process.

You can now use this newly created Windows Live ID for creating the Windows Home Server domain.

You can also use this Windows Live ID for any other purpose that requires a Windows Live ID.

How to Manually Configure Your Router for Windows Home Server Remote Access

Andrew Edney

-

Aug 15, 2009

32

So you have checked to see if your broadband router can be automatically configured for you by following this article.

If your broadband router doesn’t support UPnP or cannot be configured automatically, don’t worry, you can manually configure the port forwarding on your router, it’s just quicker and easy if it’s all done for you.

Caution: Configuring port forwarding on your router may be different to the steps that are about to be described, so check your router documentation before continuing to ensure that you don’t make any mistakes.

Connect to your router (you may need to check your documentation to find out how to do this).

Note: The following example is using the BT Home Hub router so it is likely to be different for your router.

Click on the Firewall icon to access the Firewall settings on the router.
Click on Firewall Settings so that you can make changes to the firewall.

As it is very unlikely that there will already be a application defined that allows the three specific network ports through the firewall then you will need to add a new user-defined application.

Click on Add a new user-defined application to display the Edit Application dialog box,.

Enter a name in the Application Name box. For example, Windows Home Server.
In the Port (or Range) section, enter 80 in the From: box, and 80 in the To: box (ensuring that TCP is the selected Protocol).
Click on the Add Definition button to add that port range.
In the Port (or Range) section, enter 443 in the From: box, and 443 in the To: box (ensuring that TCP is the selected Protocol).
Click on the Add Definition button to add that port range.
In the Port (or Range) section, enter 4125 in the From: box, and 4125 in the To: box (ensuring that TCP is the selected Protocol).
Click on the Add Definition button to add that port range.

You should now have those three ports (80, 443 and 4125) displayed in the Definition List.

Note: ignore the 4126 in the image below, it was a typo – it should be 4125! 🙂

Click Back to return to the Firewall Settings screen.

You should now be able to see the new application listed.

Select the computer you want to host applications through the firewall from the drop-down list. In my case, the Windows Home Server is listed as SKYVAULT.
Click on the new application (Windows Home Server Remote) and then click Add.

This should now show that Windows Home Server is a hosted application for SKYVAULT.

Click Done to complete the manual process.
Close down the connection to your router.

Now hopefully that means your router is now configured to allow the use of the Remote Access features of Windows Home Server.

The next thing to do is to configure your Windows Home Server.

How To Check Your Broadband Router Compatibility for Windows Home Server Remote Access

Andrew Edney

-

Aug 15, 2009

4

Before you start configuring your Windows Home Server for remote access, you might consider taking a few minutes to check that your broadband router is compatible for automatic configuration by Windows Home Server. Don’t worry if it turns out that it isn’t, you can just configure it manually, it’s just quicker and easier to have it done for you.

Fortunately, Microsoft provide a very useful tool for checking the broadband router called the Internet Connectivity Evaluation Tool. It’s quick and easy to use, doesn’t require you to download and install anything, and best of all its free!

The Internet Connectivity Evaluation Tool is not a tool that is specifically for use with Windows Home Server. You can use the tool to check any Internet router to check what it can do and check that it supports certain technologies.

To use the Internet Connectivity Evaluation Tool, follow these steps:

Note: In order to perform the tests, you must be using a computer that can connect to the Internet and that the computer is either running Windows 7, Windows Vista or Windows XP.

From your Internet browser, go to the following URL: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/using/tools/igd.

This will display the Internet Connectivity Evaluation Tool start screen.

Read through all the instructions that are displayed on the screen to ensure you know about the tests.
Check the I have read and ACCEPT the terms of the license agreement box.
Click the Continue button.
Click the Start Test button to begin the various tests.

The testing will then begin. You can monitor the progress of the testing of each element.

The following tests will be performed on your broadband router:

Basic Internet Connectivity test
Network Address Translator Type
Traffic Congestion test
TCP High Performance test
UPnP Support test
Multiple Simultaneous Connection States test

Detailed information on each test and what constitutes a success can be found in the tool itself – you can review each one while each test is being performed.

When all the testing has completed, you can scroll down to the bottom of the page and click View Detailed Report to view a more detailed report.

You can click on each Test line to expand or hide the details and results of each test.

You should now know whether your broadband router could be configured automatically for you.

In my case, as my broadband router does not support UPnP then I will have to configure it manually, but more on how to do that in another article.

Using Windows Home Server to Back Up Windows Small Business Client Computers

Windows Home Server

Andrew Edney

-

Aug 15, 2009

1

Microsoft have just published an article on their TechNet site on how to use Windows Home Server to backup your clients on a Small Business Server (SBS) 2008 network.

You can read it here.

New Version of AutoExit Add-In for Windows Home Server

Windows Home Server

Andrew Edney

-

Aug 12, 2009

2

Nick Asseloos has been in touch to let us know that he has released a new version of AutoExit, that great add-in for Windows Home Server.

This version includes:

Shut down your machines over the Windows Home Server network.
It can be used to shut down, reboot machines in your home network from within the console. Wake On Lan is also supported, this enables you to easily boot up machines remotely.
You can put the machine into hibernation, sleep, log off the user or lock the machine.
The server can also be shut down from the toolbar now.
You can execute these actions per machine or for all machines.
Changes in AutoExit 2009 (minor update):
– Wake On Lan all clients.
– Send a message to all connected clients.
– Warn users when the server is going down.
– Support for Windows 7.
– Possibility to the Wake On Lan port to send to.
– Possibility to enable easy logging on the client side.
– Mac-address of the server is retrieved when opening the diagnostic dialog and the Mac field being empty.
– When downloading an update, it is automatically saved to the ‘Server\Software’ or ‘Server\Logiciel’ folder, if none of these exist the browse directory dialog is shown.
– Fix: On some machines the actions did not work and an error 998 was displayed, this has been fixed.
– Fix: Fixed issue that settings in Vista/Windows 7 weren’t read correctly and made the AutoWOL Server function not work.
– Fix: Now when a client comes out of sleep, a WOL packet is sent to the server if enabled.
– Fix: Small improvement to the update dialog to show the product name.
– Fix: When using hibernate/sleep, the machine sometimes couldn’t be enabled again.
– Fix: Detects if Remote Desktop is enabled on a Home Edition.
– And some other minor adjustments.

For more information, including how to download AutoExit, click here.

Review of VMCMOTE

Geo Webb

-

Aug 10, 2009

0

This is my first review for UsingWindowsHomeServer.com and I thought I would start by reviewing a Remote Control Media Center App called VMCMOTE. Yes, I did say App so that means that this review is more for the owners of the Iphone or Itouch who own Vista Media Center running 32 bit, it will not work with the 64 bit version. VMCMOTE has two functions, the first is being able to access your media center music library and play any album, song or playlist instead of using a Media Center remote, let’s be clear, this does not stream music to your Iphone/Itouch but remotely controls your media center. After synching VMCMOTE to your music library you can easily scroll through your library searching by Album, Artist, Genre or custom search. Once you choose your music to play the album art and info and timeline will be displayed as well as some basic functions like play and pause. You also have the capability to add more songs to a queue or create and play a playlist and view your queue. Keep in mind that this is all done over your wireless network so line of site is not an issue. The second function in VMCMOTE is a remote touchpad that replaces the clunky media center remote and has all the normal functions as well as a keyboard. A couple things I would like to see is have the Iphone/Itouch be able to act like a gyration remote using the built in accelerometer, a volume control on the now playing screen, also the remote function does not work with the Netflix app.

VMCMOTE comes in two flavors, the lite version (demo version) is free and is limited to synching only 100 tracks from your library and the remote does not include some functions. The full version is $7.99/5,99€, while this might seem a little pricey for a web app just think of what it would cost you for a touch screen remote that has this type of functionality? I went ahead and bought the full version, one so that I could do a full review and two because I like the idea of not having to buy a special remote to get this functionality, plus who needs another remote to add to their collection? Installation is very easy, besides downloading the app from Itunes you also have to download a media center addin from the authors website and follow the basic instructions and make sure you have .net framework 3.5 installed.

If you are interested in VMCMOTE I suggest you try the lite version first, for more info and a ton of more screenshots plus the media center addin and instructions please visit Thomas Mangel’s site at http://vmcmote.blogspot.com/.

Update: I upgraded my test Vista Media Center box to Windows 7 Media Center (RTM, 32 bit) today and VMCMOTE works perfect with it.

Geo Webb

ITunes Links:

App Store link: vmcMote Lite
App Store link: vmcMote