Windows Server 2008 as a workstation (Part 4)

Following on from my previous posts:

• Windows Server 2008 as a workstation
• Windows Server 2008 as a workstation (Part 2)
• Windows Server 2008 as a workstation (Part 3)

I found two more blogs that also provide some useful tips:

• http://www.win2008workstation.com/wordpress/
• http://www.pronetworks.org/forums/windows-server-2008-rtm-as-a-desktop-os-t101245.html

Determining uptime of a Windows machine

From a command prompt (Start --> Run --> cmd) enter the command "systeminfo" and the uptime for the machine will be displayed in a list including operating system and hardware details, what Hotfixes you have installed and various other information.

Windows Server 2008 Core will support managed code

I posted a while ago the surprisong news that Windows Server 2008 Core would not support managed code: http://callumhibbert.blogspot.com/2008/04/windows-2008-server-core-does-not.html

Seems like Microsoft have changed their mind and the Core install will support ASP.NET and a "subset" of .NET 2.0, 30 and 3.5 when SP2 arrives.

Windows Server 2008 as a workstation (Part 3)

Most people will want to use Windows Live Messenger, unfortunately the installer from the "Get Live" site (http://get.live.com/) does not work with Windows Server 2008.

One way around this is to download Windows Live Messenger Version 8.1 from Microsoft.com. You can find it here: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=d78f2ff1-79ea-4066-8ba0-ddbed94864fc&displaylang=en

This works fine for Windows Server 2008.

Windows Server 2008 as a workstation (Part 2)

Continuing from my last post about using Windows Server 2008 as a workstation there are some changes to make to Internet Explorer to make it more usable.

As per Windows 2003 Server, the operating system employs the "Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration" component to lock down IE. This makes total sense when Windows Server 2008 is being used as a server but when using it for general use its not user friendly.

In Windows 2003 Server you were able to completely un-install the "Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration" component from Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel. That is not possible in Windows Server 2008 as the component is baked into the OS. You can't remove it but you can disable it.

To do this open Server Manager (Start --> Administrative Tools --> Server Manager). On the right hand side under the "Security" section, click on "Configure IE ESC". This opens a new dialog box where you can disable Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration for Admins and/or Users.

Windows Server 2008 as a workstation

I have been using Windows Server 2008 as a my main workstation lately and my experiences have been wholly positive but there are two niggling issues. Fortunately both are easily resolvable.

The first is that by default, the use of MSIs is prohibited (okay, this is more than a niggle). To be able to install additional programs you need to change the Local Group Policy. To do this run "gpedit.msc" and navigate to "Computer Configuration\Administrative Temaplates\Windows Components\Windows Installer". Change the "Disable Windows Installer" state to "Enabled".

The second issue is the annoying "Shut Down Windows" dialog that appears everytime you want to shutdown your box. This dialog box requires that you enter a reason everytime you shutdown or restart your box. I have found multiple articles and blogs that suggest you need to change the Local Group Policy. Done by running "gpedit.msc" again, navigating to "Computer Configuration\Administrative Temaplates\System" and changing the "Display Shutdown Event Tracker" state to "Disabled". But this does not appear to work, at least it didn't for me. What did work was editing a registry value. Open regedit.exe and go to "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\WindowsNT". Create a new Key called "Reliability" and add a DWORD value at that location. The name should be "ShutdownReasonOn" and the value should be "0".

Repairing the .NET Framework 2.0 and 3.0 on Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008

I had a problem recently with some files from the .NET Framework 2.0 being corrupt. I think the root cause of the problem was use of Virtual Machines. Anyway, I needed to repair the .NET Framework 2.0, specifically aspnet_regiis.exe.

The problem is that under Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 these components are part of the operating system so you can't do a repair with the MSI like you normally can with installed programs. After doing some digging I found the answer here:

http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/archive/2007/03/26/how-to-repair-the-net-framework-2-0-and-3-0-on-windows-vista.aspx

The short story is to run "sfc /scannow" with elevated privileges.

Windows 2008 Server Core does not support managed code

Yes, you read the title correctly.

The Windows 2008 Server Core SKU does not support any managed code, that means no .NET applications at all. Period.

More info in the "Server Core Installation Option of Windows Server 2008 Step-By-Step Guide" here: http://technet2.microsoft.com/windowsserver2008/en/library/47a23a74-e13c-46de-8d30-ad0afb1eaffc1033.mspx?mfr=true