What is Windows Home Server?

Using a Windows 7 Desktop To Restore a Windows 7 Desktop With Client Restore Wizard… Again

fasthair

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Feb 3, 2010

To some this type of Restore isn’t anything new while others have never heard of it. I was in the last camp until one day last year I was just reading the Microsoft Windows Home Server forums. I know it sounds kind of geeky to be just reading some forum for the hell of it but I’ve learned a lot about WHS doing so and have seen many problems that I’ve never had pop up with either of my two WHS, they both just work. Never the less I gleam some useful tips now and then from it.

Such was the case when I ran across a post about a person having trouble trying to restore one of his machines. The tip was to use Client Restore Wizard located on the Client in C:\Program Files\Windows Home Server. Again this isn’t anything really that new and in fact Drashna over at We Got Served did a post on how to do this. His post however used the Home Server as the Client and to be honest, and in Drashna’s own words admitting the fact, was a bit cryptic to discourage this type of restore because it can screw up your WHS if you don’t pay attention to what you are doing. Picking the wrong drive can break your WHS in a BIG WAY. In this post I’m not trying to one up Drashna but instead I want to point out that Windows 7 has extra steps or the system will not boot.

First I guess this begs the question of why would a person even want or need to do this type of restore? I can think of a couple of reasons. First one being no matter how hard you try to get the Restore software to find the Home Server it fails most likely because the correct NIC drivers didn’t install. This can happen for far too many reason to list here but a couple of the reasons are the Restore CD media is pretty old by hardware standards and the drivers are simply just not on the CD. This is happening more and more, because a lot of people are choosing to go with 64bit systems. The second reason is, in my opinion, faster and there is no driver issues to deal with.

I suppose a downside to this type of restore is a bit more work because you have to move drives around from the dead box to a working machine which involves opening up cases and hooking stuff up. But if every other type of “normal” restore has failed, you don’t have much choice other then a reformat and reinstall the OS. Consider this a last ditch effort if all else fails. And for God sakes if you are not comfortable digging around inside your PC DO NOT attempt this!

The alterative is just slip the drive you want to restore in a external USB drive enclosure which will work but be slower because of the slow USB buss. You might even remember Timothy’s post about using the external USB drive approach that ultimately failed because… wait for it… NIC drivers. Timothy tried to use the normal restore using the restore CD. His restore was booby trapped because he was trying to restore a 64bit system. Like most users of WHS (remember WHS is designed for the “average” user of a PC) Timothy simply didn’t know about the 32/64bit driver issues. Of all the things great about WHS this driver issue, in particular the NIC drivers, is probably the biggest snafu in an otherwise great product. I’ll get a post up about this driver issue shortly and what to do about it.

The Issue With Windows 7 Restores and Fixing it

The special requirement for restoring Windows 7 is most (for some reason some OEM installs don’t have this, my netbook doesn’t ) have a hidden 100MB partition that is used for booting and I believe something to do with the BitLocker software that is part of the Ultimate edition, though I’m not positive on that last part. Without this hidden partition the system will not boot. There are a couple of ways to work around this. Microsoft is aware of this problem and has issued a KB white paper on this that Andrew posted a few days back. That article still has one fatal flaw and maybe two, both have to do with the 64bit driver issue. Again I’m not going into that in this post because it is something we don’t have to worry about with this kind of restore. Remember I said one of the advantages of this type of restore is no driver issues.

The first way is simply just restore the drive without the hidden partition but, like I said, the system will not boot if you do it this way. To fix this simply boot off the Windows 7 Install DVD and run the “repair” wizard. While this does work it’s not very “clean” and makes a persons blood pressure go up when the system doesn’t boot after a restore if they don’t know this. Plus if you are restoring a OEM system you probably didn’t get a OS install disk. If that is the case now would be a good time to make a “System Repair Disc” using the Wizard in Windows 7 for when “that day comes.”

The second way to fix this is to create the hidden 100MB partition like the Microsoft KB paper states either during or before the restore. I prefer to prepare the disk before starting the restore. This way I know EXCATLY which disk I’m going to be working with during the restore because I’m also going to give the drive a unique name that will be easy to identify during the restore.

Chances are if you are reusing the disk out of the broke machine it will already have the hidden partition on it, which is fine an dandy, but we don’t really know if it is not corrupt in some way. If you are using a new disk because of disk failure or you just want to install a larger drive we need to (re)create the hidden partition. For this article we are going to be using a new drive.

Disk Setup

Once the disk being restored is connected to the client begin by clicking Start/All Programs/Administrative Tools/Computer Management then Storage/Disk Management. Now you see all of your drives listed and here is where things can go horrible wrong. YOU MUST MAKE ABOUSLUTELY POSITIVE WITHOUT A DOUBT SURE that you are working with the disk you want to restore to. If you screw this up, you not only have one, but two borked machines or at the very least lost data on your client. So put the beer down (Timothy!) and pay attention here. Since you are here at Using Windows Home Server you are already above the “average” users so this going to be simple.

As you can see in above screenshot the new drive doesn’t have a drive letter. Mine is listed as Disk 2 and is highlighted in Green. Also notice my C: drive has that 100MB hidden partition highlighted in blue/gray. This is the partition you DO NOT want to touch and why when I create the new 100MB partition I will give it a name I can identify during the restore. Also note that in the upper panel it only shows three drives but if you count in the lower panel it shows four partitions. This is all because of this 100MB partition and why it is so important to understand what you are looking at here and how easy it is to screw up the client you are working on. Now that we know what to look out for lets setup the new drive.

Following the white paper instructions we use Disk Management to create a “Simple Volume” that has a size of 100MB on the hard drive. Do this by right clicking in the “Unallocated” space of the new drive. (my Green one)

Select the “Do not assign a drive letter or drive path” option in the New Simple Volume Wizard.

Format the volume by using the NTFS file system.

Back in Disk Management right-click this new 100MB volume, and then click “Mark as Active.”

We also need to create new partition(s) on the remainder of the drive, we’ll do this just like before. Right click on the other Unallocated space and choose New Simple Volume. Follow the Wizard and adjust the Volume size to your needs, ie if you have a D: ect. partition(s). Only thing different is this time we choose “Assign a Drive Letter” and pick the drive letter of you want.

That is it for setting up the new disk for the restore. However I still want to give these new partitions names so they are easy to identify during the restore. I’m not so much worried about the Primary drive since it has a drive letter, R: in my case, but I’m going to name it anyway. This is as simple as right click/properties on each new partition then in the General Tab of the dialog box just type in the new name for each the new partitions then click Apply/OK.

Here is what my final Disk Management looks like. The Green drive is once again my new drive for the restore and the Red drive is my client system. Now you see why it is so important to understand what drive is which and this 100MB partition deal. This all seems like a lot of work but really it only takes a minute or two to get the drive set up. But because of the way Windows 7 sets the disk up with that 100MB partition you need to understand this Disk Management deal when restoring a drive outside of its normal machine.

From here is it just like any other restore. Launch Client Restore Wizard.EXE from C:\Program Files\Windows Home Server fellow the prompts and just choose the new drive you just set up for the 100MB and System partitions. After the restore is done put it back in the original machine and boot it up.

To be honest after the first time reading the tip on the MS WHS forums and trying a do a dry run I got stuck at the drive selection. I couldn’t figure out which 100MB partition was which and which one to put where. I even posted a question to the forum asking how to do it. That answer was also pretty cryptic too. That MS white paper hadn’t been released either so I had to kind of stumble through it until I got the routine figured out. So I hope this helps someone out sometime.

fasthair

Syncing Windows Home Server, Zune and Windows Media Center – by Joel Burt

Andrew Edney

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Feb 2, 2010

0

Over at the official Windows Home Server blog, my good friend Joel Burt has just published an article entitled Syncing Windows Home Server, Zune and Windows Media Center!

I was putting the initial workings together for a similar article after seeing what Tim had at CES but now that Joel has done such a good job I figured the best thing to do was to just repost Joel’s article.

Nice work buddy!

Joel writes…..

Windows Home Server was a large part of CES this year. I was pleasantly embraced by all you fellow Windows Home Server users and I joyfully shared the new features sets that Power Pack 3 empowered your home server with. The beautiful thing about our booth is the ability to walk everyone step by step, on how to take advantage of these new features. For those of you who were not at CES, I’d like to take the time to share with you those steps that I shared with CES attendees. One of the key scenarios that got a lot of interest at the show was how a Zune music player can benefit from having a Windows Home Server around as well. This post goes into more detail about why and how it all works together.

As most of you probably know, Power Pack 3 is a free update for Windows Home Server that comes down from Windows Update. You can find install procedures within our blog, so please, if you have not updated your Windows Home Server yet, do so! For the rest of this post, I will assume you already have your Windows Media Center, Windows Home Server + Power Pack 3 and your Zune setup.

Before we get going in the details, let’s start by talking about why I’m so jazzed about our Zune + Home Server scenario. The key benefit in my mind is in how the Zune player can be a great way of transporting all of your recorded TV from a Media Center PC on the go. But I’m getting ahead of myself…Let’s paint a picture for you:

Before I left for CES earlier this month, I set several recordings of my favorite TV show to be recorded and then compressed to Zune format. I am not sure if you have ever used a Zune HD but I was extremely surprised with how long the battery lasts playing video. WOW! I consistently played 6 hours of content on the trip -no charging. My laptop wouldn’t have made it through my first connection flight let alone the whole trip. Yes, I had a connection because I bought my plane ticket a little late and had to arrive very early in the morning for setup. At least I was well prepared with my media!

So here’s the details of how I managed to stay completely entertained during my flight(s):

1. Open Windows Media Center and verify that you have your TV shows set to be recorded. Next, , go back to the main Windows Media Center menu and scroll up to your Home Server tiles. Select TV Archiving to begin.

2. TV Archiving will display <Series>, <Programs> and <Settings>. “Series” will display the series you have selected to be recorded. Series are multiple shows or multiple episodes. Programs display individual recordings and will only apply to that one episode/recording. It is up to you to decide which one you would like to use or use both. I’ll be selecting Series recordings because I’m excited to watch a few seasons of my shows on my next trip. In order to continue, you will need to select at least program or series.

3. Now that I have one selected, I can scroll over to settings to decide what I would like to do with these recordings. I personally like to Archive all recordings automatically, but this is another optional feature for you. I also have 6TBs of space on my home server… not that I’m bragging. 🙂 *cough*

4. “Create a compressed copy” is the feature we’re going to enable here. In order to take advantage of this feature, you have to move or archive your content to your Windows Home Server or you cannot select this. Since we’re working with a sweet Zune HD, set the format to Zune. Finally, scroll down a little further and set the saved folder to “Home Server Videos folder” (or one of your choice). To make things easier for this step by step, please select “Home Server Video folder” and click Save.

Now what we’ve done here is set Windows Media Center to record our shows and then make two copies of the show on our Windows Home Server; one in its original full quality format and the other in a smaller Zune format to preserve our space on our Zune. After all, we have lots of play time to take advantage of, let’s make the most of it.

I do want to call out a little secret that you can take advantage of. Some TV shows – especially those that are transmitted in HD – use AC3 audio and because of that, your shows might not compress. In order to fix that, you’ll need to download and install an AC3 codec. I know it sounds complicated, but it’s not and most importantly – it’s free. I personally downloaded mine from http://download.cnet.com/AC3Filter/3000-2170_4-190264.html?tag=mncol#userreview but you can get yours from wherever you like. [Note that the below process is not supported by Microsoft, and users should proceed with caution. This is presented merely as an option for users.]

Let’s take a quick sidebar to walk you through a quick step-by-step for installing the one codec that I’ve used on my own, AC3Filter:

1. After running the file you just downloaded click Next

2. Leave all options default and click Next

3. Then click Install

4. With the codec installed, now we can move on to setting up the Zune! Your Windows Media Center is well on its way to creating your giant TV show collection in Zune compatible form. Let’s tell the Zune to look at that folder and to sync with it.

Since you’ve already installed Power Pack 3, your Windows Home Server’s Video shared folder has already been added to your libraries. Zune software is setup! That was easy. You didn’t have to do anything!

Here I have “X-Men” ready and converted. It does take a while (maybe overnight) to convert. I already had this one completed, so you might want to be a little patient.

5. Finally, I can sync this video to my Zune by right clicking and selecting, “Sync with Zune HD”. Repeat this for all of the videos you would like to have on your Zune HD and enjoy your next flight to where ever you go!

As an added bonus, you can even watch this newly created WMV file through your Zune software. How cool is that?!

JB

Tech Tip on a Tuesday – Windows Home Server Remote Connection Dialog

Timothy Daleo

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Feb 2, 2010

2

Do you get this dialog box when you connect to your Windows Home Server via Internet Explorer? Want it to go away?

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Open Internet Explorer and go to:

Tools>Internet Options>Security>Trusted Sites>Custom level

Mental Note: Your server should already be added to your trusted sites.

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Scroll down to Initialize and script ActiveX controls not marked as safe for scripting

and then click on Enable

Click on Yes.

Mental Note: Only do this for your Trusted Sites list and NOT for your Internet or Local internet!

–

Restart Internet Explorer and Connect to your Home Server

Enter your password:

The Dialog box is no longer shown!

See you next Tuesday.

Windows 7 RC Expiration

Andrew Edney

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Feb 2, 2010

2

Are you currently running the Windows 7 Release Candidate (RC)?

If you are, then from the 15th February (less than two weeks time) you will be advised that from March 1st your machine will begin experiencing bi-hourly shutdowns. These shutdowns will continue through June 1st, 2010.

On June 1st, 2010, a non-genuine experience is triggered where your wallpaper is removed and “This copy of Windows is not genuine” will be displayed in the lower right corner above the taskbar. This means your PC will no longer be able to obtain optional updates or downloads that require genuine Windows validation.

If you want to read more about this, you can check out the Microsoft KB article by clicking here.

So, if you are still using the RC of Windows 7, and you want to continue to use it, you have to go and buy a copy – what are you waiting for?

Monday Morning Media – Five Views from Windows Media Center 02-01-10

Windows Home Server

Timothy Daleo

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Feb 2, 2010

0

This post is nothing more than five screen shots of Windows Media Center with a CableCARD tuner to get you excited about Windows Media Center and Windows Home Server.

$Cool fracken house$

If you are not using Windows Media Center and Windows Home Server you should be.

Seriously.

New Powermats for 2010

Tech

Andrew Edney

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Feb 1, 2010

1

Back in October of last year I talked about the Powermat Wireless Charging System.

Here is what I said to describe the Powermats:

Using wireless energy transfer, Powermat pairs an ultra-thin mat with a receiver that connects to your device. All you then have to do is place your device on the Powermat and it will begin charging. You can charge up to three devices at the same time on the Powermat and the same amount of power is used for three devices as is for one device. And even better is that the devices are charged at the same speed they would have been with their own charges, and in fact sometimes even faster! So for those of us with multiple devices that always seem to be needing a charge both quickly and at the same time this is a great feature.

New for 2010

There are a number of new products coming out this year.

Powermat Receivers

The Powermat Powerpak receiver provides seamless integration into virtually any phone, by allowing consumers to upgrade to wireless charging with no change to their existing phone ergonomics and design. More than 10 models from HTC, Blackberry, Nokia, LG, Samsung, Motorola and Sony Ericsson will debut at CES, but the technology can be applied to virtually any phone – ensuring access to the freedom and convenience of Powermat wireless charging to consumers worldwide.

Powermat also expands its support of the iPhone 3G/3GS by introducing 2 new models; a silicone case receiver, one of the most often requested models by consumers,

and an extended battery case receiver which combines the dual benefits of extended battery life and wireless charging.

A Quick Look at the Boxee Software

Software

Andrew Edney

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Jan 31, 2010

8

Back in December, we reported on the announcement from both Boxee and D-Link of the Boxee Box by D-Link, a media device powered by the Boxee software.

At CES, we saw the Boxee Box in action.

At the heart of the Boxee Box will be the Boxee software, and you won’t have to wait until the Boxee Box is released later this year to have a look at the software.

It is currently in Beta and you can sign up and download it today, so I did just that – and I also got Tim to do the same, but more on that later.

WHAT IS THE BOXEE SOFTWARE?

Here is what Boxee says:

Boxee is a social media center. With Boxee you can play videos, music and pictures from your computer, local network, and the Internet. You can also share with your friends what albums you’re listening to, what movies and TV shows you’re watching, send recommendations and more.

INSTALLING THE SOFTWARE

Installing the software was painless and fairly quick.

LAUNCHING THE SOFTWARE

The first time you launch the software you have to sign in with the account you created when you signed up with Boxee.

I actually found the signing in part to be quite painful. Even if you have a keyboard attached to whatever device you are using to run the software, it all has to be done with either the mouse or a remote. You would think that would be ok but to be honest I found it quite unresponsive and often ended up entering the wrong letter, even though I thought I pressed the correct one, and as the password only appears as ****** when you enter it you don’t know if you got it wrong until you try to sign in.

Fortunately you can have Boxee remember your details so you don’t have to go through this pain each and every time.

It is a beta so I am hoping this will get better!

Windows Home Server – VAIL

Andrew Edney

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Jan 30, 2010

2

Over the last week a number of websites and blogs have been talking about the leaked build of the next version of Windows Home Server, codenamed Vail.

Basically, an internal build of Vail has managed to leak onto the Internet.

We here at Using Windows Home Server, along with a number of the other WHS sites, such as We Got Served, have had lots of emails from people wanting to know more about Vail, or wanting us to post links, pictures, etc.

I’ve been going back and forth over the last few days trying to decided what, if anything to say about all this.

As a Windows Home Server MVP, I am under an NDA which means I am unable to talk about products that are not out yet (depending on what Microsoft have already released information wise to the public) and I am also asked not to talk about certain things when information leaks – and this is one of those times.

Terry over at We Got Served did a post last night that sums up our position perfectly – nice one Terry!

So, to sum up, until such time as Microsoft release public information about Vail, I cannot, and will not, be able to talk about it. That isn’t to say I don’t know anything about Vail, but I am under NDA and so cannot talk about it.

And a warning to all those who are downloading this leaked build – be careful what you are downloading, torrents are often filled with spyware, trojans and viruses.

So why not wait until Microsoft release an official test build at some point in the future?

When information is released about Vail you can rest assured we WILL be talking about it!

If you want to talk about this you can do so in our forums, but please do not post screenshots or links to download sites or we will have to remove them 🙁

Creating a Windows 7 Installation USB Drive on a Friday night

Timothy Daleo

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Jan 30, 2010

8

Tonight I will show you how to load a Window 7 Installation Disk onto a USB Drive. A short video shows you the process and walks you through the preparation steps.

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Background

I am about ready to start a Windows 7 installation on another PC I am building and a netbook I just got for my wife next week. Since her netbook does not have a drive, and I am not buying a DVD drive just for the new OS install, I needed an alternative installation method.

In addition, sometimes we just need to install a fresh OS. Windows 7 installation DVDs are great but they are susceptible to damage and are slow. In addition, sometimes your PC may not have a DVD drive. Most netbooks do not even have DVD drives anyway!

With about $10 for a 4GB USB stick and your Windows 7 DVD you can make your own Windows 7 installation USB drive.

Equipment Needed

4GB USB Drive (larger size USB drive is ok)
Windows 7 Installation DVD
One Beer (optional as always)

Preparing the USB Drive – Video

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Steps for preparing the USB drive

Insert your USB drive and wait for any USB drivers to load
Start diskpart from Start Menu
list disk command to find USB drive number
select disk 5 command (5 being whatever number YOUR USB drive number is)
clean command
create partition primary command
format fs=fat32 quick command
assign command

The newly conditioned and formatted drive should pop up on the screen. Open it with explorer if it does not open automatically.

Insert your Windows 7 DVD, cancel any auto-run windows that may pop up, and use Windows explorer to view the DVD contents.

Now, just drag and drop the entire contents of the Windows 7 DVD to the USB drive. The disk will be about 80% hence the 4GB size. You can always use a larger USB drive if you had one laying around.

See you next Friday night,

Timothy Daleo

Home Server Show Podcast 74 Out Now

Windows Home Server

Andrew Edney

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Jan 28, 2010

2

Dave and the guys over at the Home Server Show have released podcast 74.

Here is what Dave has to say about this weeks show:

The Home Server Show 74 – Add-Ins are everywhere!

On episode 74 Dave is joined by the trio of John, Jim, and Chris and we discuss the latest Add-Ins that have been released.

Links and News Items mentioned on the show

Tranquil PC SSM

Tranquil PC SSM Install Notes

Syslog

WGS Reader Survey

You can listen to this weeks show by clicking here.

The epiphan VGA2USB – A Six Minute and Six Second review

Timothy Daleo

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Jan 28, 2010

4

Using Windows Home Server readers deserve the best. It is in the spirit of this mission that I just purchased the epiphan VGA2USB video capture device. This device will allow me to bring you high quality video of start up POST sequences, Restores, and Xbox Extender video as never before seen on our website.

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Background

You may be aware of the Inspiron 64-bit driver issue I had last week by now. You are also aware that I had to use my phone to get the screen shots for the article. Ugh.

Typically I need to get video of different computers in various states for my articles. When I have an issue, it is not always on my publishing and recording desktop so getting the video is usually from my phone or video camera. The shots are usually not good, shaky or even (depending on how many beers I have had) sometimes blurry!

For normal operations I have been using screen recording software but have still had to use my camera or phone for the video during start ups, POST, Restores and demos.The quality is not good and after that last video I was embarrassed and needed something better for the readers.

Now, I was off-site and not really prepared to video this error, but even had I planned it I still would have had to set up some video camera thing. Even getting the POST screens was not possible due to low light.Do not watch the whole video but look at quality of the first few frames.

What’s a boy to do?

–

epiphan VGA2USB

I did some research and found the epiphan VGA2USB was my best option for WHS and WMC videos. This product should give me years of good quality video for all of my articles. This capture device goes between the PC and the monitor and allows me to intercept that VGA signal and record it. I just run the software and let my laptop record everything that shows on the monitor. Sweet.

More information on the VGA2USB can be found at:

http://www.epiphan.com/products/frame-grabbers/vga2usb

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Package Contents

The epiphan VGA2USB package arrived with the following components:

VGA2USB unit
VGA cable
USB Cable
VGA splitter
VGA adapter
Instruction manual

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Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10 – A Quick Look

Andrew Edney

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Jan 27, 2010

9

Have you ever sat down to write something on your computer and just wished you could speak it and have the words magically appear for you?

Do you remember Battlestar Galactica (the original 1970s version) when Adama would sit with a microphone and record his logs and the words would appear one at a time on the screen?

Well, now you can!

The Dragon software has been around for a number of years and each each it gets more functionality. The latest iteration is Dragon NatuallySpeaking 10 from Nuance Software.

Here is what Nuance say about Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10:

Most people speak over 120 words per minute but type less than 40 words per minute. What if you could create email, documents and spreadsheets simply by speaking? What if you could control your PC just by talking to it, starting programs, using menus, surfing the web?

This isn’t Star Trek or HAL from the Space Odyssey saga; it’s Dragon NaturallySpeaking, the world’s best-selling speech recognition software. This revolutionary and easy-to-use product gives you everything you need to be more efficient with your PC. Turn your voice into text three times faster than most people type with up to 99% accuracy. It’s so easy, you can use it right out of the box. It learns to recognize your voice instantly and continually improves the more you use it.

Dragon NaturallySpeaking works with the most commonly used desktop applications, including Microsoft Word, Internet Explorer, AOL and more! Just about anything you do now by typing can be done faster using your voice. Create and edit documents or emails. Open and close applications. Control your mouse and entire desktop.

The biggest reason more people worldwide rely on Dragon NaturallySpeaking: it works. With more than 175 awards for accuracy and ease of use, it’s the undisputed leader in speech recognition software. If you want to get more done, more quickly, just say the word and Dragon NaturallySpeaking will transform your productivity.

WHATS IN THE BOX?

The contents of the box are minimal, and could also depend on what version you buy.

In my case, I have the Professional version that comes with a wired headset, manuals and software DVD.

There are a number of different versions available, depending on your needs and what they come with – obviously the price reflects this.

New Version of Digital Archound and a New Name – DA Document Manager

Andrew Edney

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Jan 26, 2010

5

Last year we reviewed the Digital Archound Add-In for Windows Home Server, and we loved it.

The new version has just been released, and it has a new name – DA Document Manager.

What exactly will DA Document Manager do for me?

DA Document Manager is the Premier Digital Document Management System and it is the simplest paperless office solution available today.

PERSONAL, HOME and SOHO Records Management with Digital ArcHound allows you to easily digitize and save all of your important records.

PROTECT yourself from disaster by having digital copies of your identification cards, credit cards, insurance and health records and more.

DA Document Manager works with your existing scanner. If your scanner does not support PDF files use ArcHound’s “free” PDF Printer to quickly organize and store your digital documents.

DA Document Manager boasts a Google style search engine since powerful archiving is measured by its ability to recall records we have included the most robust search engine available.

DA Document Manager saves you valuable time. Instead of thumbing through your important paperwork, hoping to find that old document, you can retrieve it in seconds. Your time is valuable.

DA Document Manager helps you format every document so that the rotation, page order and password protection are exactly what you want. Plus easily add, remove or rearrange pages in existing documents.

New 2010 features

- New user interface based on the Microsoft Office Ribbon style page group
  Use of Ribbon Page Groups and the Ribbon Quick Access Tool Bar really help to accomplish the same work with fewer clicks and are organized in such a way, that it just makes sense User Request
- Built-in PDF Viewer
  Adobe Reader is no longer required – The new DA Fastview is a very quick document viewer that is built in
  Third party PDF viewers can be integrated if they are registered with the IE browser User Request
- Windows 7, Vista and Windows XP Compatible User Request
- Drag-and-drop a new document to combine within a previously archived document
  Saves lots of time when archiving User Request
- Automatically fill workspace form
  Use the attributes of a new PDF to automatically fill in the workspace form User Request
  Save a new document using a previous document’s details User Request
  Reduce or eliminate typing and ensure documents are added to the appropriate categories to minimize mistakes
- TWAIN and WIA Scanner Support
  Supports most scanners that include TWAIN or WIA drivers User Request
  Provides better control of your scanner within the DA Document Manager
  DA Document Manager will now control; Deskew, Crop and Remove Dots (If your scanner supports these features)
- Enhanced search options
  Now includes search by many more options User Request
- Subcategories dependent on categories
  keep your sub-category list clutter free by using the dependent subcategory feature User Request
- Two new user definable, color coded tags User Request
  Can be used for outstanding or “to do” items that may require your attention at a later time
  Tag outstanding items such as medical or financial issues
- Password protection for confidential documents
  Once you type in a password for a document, it is remembered while the client software is running User Request
- Powerful Importing Tools
  Rebuild your databse using the Archive Recovery
  Import to Archives for fast importing of numerous documents directly into the Archives User Request
- Copy or Move Archived Documents from Search Results into the Workspace
  Fast an easy merging with other documents, reordering pages, splitting, rotating, or other document management features User Request
- New Licensing Options User Request
  Family license: includes licensing for server and up to 3 client workstations
  Standard license: includes licensing for server and up to 5 client workstations
  Small Business: includes licensing for server and up to 10 client workstations
- Powerful diagnostics and recovery tools including database redundancy
  Periodically your ArcHound Database will be backed up just in case your nightly backup does not save all the work you’ve be doing today
- And many other user requested features User Request

The cost of the software is as follows:

Family License (3 users) = $59.99

Standard License (5 users) = $99.99

Small Business License (10 users) = $189.99

There is also the option for existing customers to upgrade for $39.99, $59.99 and $129.99 respectively.

We shall hopefully be doing a full review shortly.

For more information, click here.

P80 Add-In for Windows Home Server Bug Fix Released for French and German Users

Andrew Edney

-

Jan 26, 2010

4

Following on from Fasthair’s post a few days ago about the new version of the great add-in P80 for Windows Home Server, he has sent me an email to say that Kris has released a bug fix for P80 for French/German users.

The new file is here… http://cid-3eccee382d93ca82.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/.Public/P80.2.6.7.zip

Enjoy!

UPDATE: Please note that this is NOT an official release and it is only for testing purposes. Sorry for any confusion to our French and German users!