Petri Recommended: Update to the Latest Vista Drivers

Vista's performance can be improved dramatically by installing the latest Vista-Certified hardware drivers. PC hardware manufacturers release new, improved Vista drivers continually: New versions are probably available for your PC right now.

Petri IT Knowledgebase Team

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Unlike in previous operating systems, the installation of Hebrew support in Windows 7 is much simpler and usually does not require a reboot. You can choose to install Hebrew language support during the setup phase of Windows 7, or at any time after the installation is complete. There is NO difference between the two.

Note: You might also want to read the following articles:

Install Hebrew on Windows 2000

Install Hebrew on Windows Server 2003

Install Hebrew on Windows XP

Install Hebrew on Windows Vista

Option 1: During the Installation Process

After booting the computer into the setup process of Windows 7 you will need to wait for the initial Install Windows screen.

From the Time and Currency Format drop-down list select "Hebrew (Israel)".

Option 2: On an Installed Copy of Windows 7

If you already have Windows 7 installed you can basically do the same, only this time it's done from within Control Panel.

Note: Unlike previous Microsoft-based operating systems, in Windows 7 you do NOT need to have the installation DVD handy, because all the OS needs to copy is already located on the hard disk.

1. Open Control Panel and go to Clock, Language and Region applet.

If you're running Control Panel in the classic view - go to Regional and Language Options.

2. When it opens click on the Formats tab and then change the Format to "Hebrew (Israel)".

3. Click on the Location tab. In the Current Location, change the setting to "Israel".

4. Click on the "Apply" button.

5. On the Administrative tab click on "Change Keyboards" button.

6. In the Text Services and Input Languages window, in the General tab, note the default input language is English. That should be left as the default input language, unless you want to use Hebrew as the default input language. Note how the Hebrew (Israel) keyboard setting was added to the installed services list. Click on "Ok".

7. Back in the Administrative tab click on "Change system locale" button. You might be prompted to enter your credentials.

In the Region and Language Settings window, in the Current system locale drop-down list select Hebrew (Israel). Click on "Ok".

8. You might be prompted to restart your computer.

As it turns out, their Virtual Profiler (vProfiler) application is part of a larger package of Profiler apps that manage and monitor things like storage, applications, physical servers, and backups. Still, you can use vProfiler on its own. I downloaded the 30 day trial of vProfiler and found it very easy to install. In the video below, I show you what vProfiler manages, monitors, and alerts on and how it can help you to manage your virtual infrastructure.

To try out vProfiler for yourself, visit the Tek-Tools vProfiler 30 day eval webpage.

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True, you *could* right-click the network connection icon in the tray area, select "Open Network and Sharing Center", then click on the "Change Adapter Settings" link. But that's just too many clicks away.

True, you *could* do it through the Control Panel, type "netw" or something similar in the Search box, then click on "View Network Connections" link. Again, just too many clicks away.

True, you *could* do it by running ncpa.cpl from the run command. But again, too much typing.

So, how do I get the "Network Connections" icon on my desktop?

To get the "Network Connections" icon on your desktop follow these steps:

1. Right-click an empty spot on your desktop and select "New" > "Shortcut".

2. When prompted to type in the location, enter the following line:

explorer.exe ::{7007ACC7-3202-11D1-AAD2-00805FC1270E}

Note: Just copy the above string. Note there's a space after the "explorer.exe".

3. In the name type "Network Connections".

4. Click on "Finish".

Now, double-click the new icon and you’ll be sent straight into the Network Connections folder.

Bingo!

BTW, the icon which the shortcut uses is taken from explorer.exe. However, you can easily attach the default icon to it. To do so:

1. Right-click the shortcut and select Properties.

2. Next click on "Change Icon".

3. Navigate to %systemroot%\System32\netshell.dll. This file contains many network-based icons.

4. Pick on and click "Ok" all the way out.

Note: This tip also works for Windows Vista.

With the Nexus 1000V (N1KV), you get the Cisco IOS command line (actually NX-OS) for your virtual infrastructure, policies, QoS, Security, and many other Cisco switch featuers that you (or your network admin) are used to using. VMware's dvSwitch and the Cisco Nexus 1000V make a powerful team but you mut also know how to install it, add ESX hosts to the new switch, and create port profiles.

Once you already have your vSphere infrastructure up and running and have met the prerequisites, you can start the install process for the Nexus 1000V. I'll warn you that there is a lot more to it than, say, just installing a new Windows app. The install is detailed in the 44 page installation guide for the Nexus 1000-V. Luckily, VMware VCP and VCDX Rick Scherer has created a new video series on the Nexus 1000-V.

The video below is part of the Train Signal vSphere Pro Vol 1 video training course. In this video sample from the series, Rick has already created the Cisco VSM (virtual supervisor module) and VEM (virtual ethernet module) and now must add an ESX host to the new Nexus 1000V switch. However, as Rick points out, there is more to adding it than just an ESX host and VM than just "adding you to the switch". After showing the correct way to add a an ESX host to a switch, Rick shows how to create port profiles.

Checkout Rick's video below and learn everything you need to know about the Nexus 1000V in the Cisco Nexus 1000-V training course.

For setting up your ESXi4 server you don't even need to go that far in fact, since you can just point your vSphere Client at the IP assigned to the server by DHCP and do everything afterwards from there. So why should you even bother to attach a monitor and keyboard to your ESXi server?

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To be honest, if everything is working as it should then you can happily leave your server humming away in its place and never need to touch it again, but when in IT has everything worked happily ever after? During my day job supporting a multitude of ESXi servers I have encountered several scenarios where the vSphere Client has failed me and more direct access was required. Power cycling the ESXi Server is usually an effective solution but in a production environment it poses additional risks and should only be treated as a last resort, so here I will look at the other options available.

Once you are at the server itself there are basically two interfaces available to you, the "official" ESXi4 console with its system configuration menu, and then the "unsupported" command line Linux console. Yes, according to the official documentation one of the fundamental differences between ESX and ESXi is the latter's lack of a console, but there is a very reduced version hidden in there. Its "unsupported" because VMware doesn't want you to go there unless directed by their support personnel, so bear that in mind and stay away from it unless you are confident you know what you are doing. Now you have been warned let's have a look at the two interfaces:

The (official) ESXi4 Console

Whether you've got a keyboard and mouse plugged in or are fortunate enough to have some sort of KVM over IP solution then the first thing you should see on your ESXi server is a screen like this:

Its most likely you have got this far because your vSphere Client isn't working, so the first thing to do is press F2 to access the System Customization menu. On here you can check the management network settings to make sure you have the correct IP address for the host, and "Test the Management Network" to see if there is connectivity to the rest of your network. Finally select the "Restart Management Agents" option, these are the services which manage the connection from the vSphere Client and control the VMs, so restarting them may enable you to connect.

Should that not work then its tempting to just go for the F12 option to restart the host, but first consider the Virtual Machines running on it, and what will happen to them. ESXi4 is remarkably resilient and often you can find that while your vSphere Client thinks the host and all its VMs are dead to the world they are in fact running fine.

Now, when everything is working properly, issuing a shutdown or restart from the console will tell ESXi to instruct the VMware Tools service on each VM to perform a safe shutdown before it does so to itself. Since you're at this console though its likely everything isn't fine, or maybe you haven't installed VMtools on every VM, which means you can't be sure of a safe shutdown so don't want to press F12 yet. Provided you know which VMs are running on this host you may be able to logon to them via RDP/SSH/etc and issue a shutdown command that way, then once you are confident they have all indeed shutdown then it will be safe to restart the host.

You may be reluctant to issue the restart command yet though, perhaps you aren't sure that all the VMs have properly shut down, or even exactly what VMs are running on that host (if you are running a fully automated vSphere cluster with several ESXi hosts this can happen quite easily!).  In this case there is another option available to you, the "unsupported" console.

The Unsupported ESXi4 Console

A word of warning again, VMware call this "unsupported" with good reason - if you make a mess of your server while in this mode they won't help you out. All the same if you follow instructions and don't get adventurous then you should be pretty safe, and after all this will usually be your last resort when all else has failed.

How to access the unsupported console has already been well documented so I won't repeat it here, instead you can take a look at either David Davis' article here or my help4IT blog.  Now you have a command prompt on your ESXi server let's have a look at what commands you might find useful:

services.sh restart

Its worth trying this as it will issue a restart command to all the management agents and services on the host, as it processes you should see each one stopping and then being started. However it is effectively the same as selecting the "restart management agents" option from the standard console so if that didn't help you its unlikely to be much different here.

vim-cmd vmsvc

This is the most useful command for emergency maintenance and takes several extensions, first of all you need to run vim-cmd vmsvc/getallvms . This will return a list of the virtual machines registered on the server, and most importantly, their unique ID numbers which you will require for subsequent commands.

As you can see the command returns a list of VMs, with the ID number first, followed by the VM name and other useful information such as the location of the .vmx file and any notes you have appended to the VM properties in the vSphere Client.

Following that you can try vim-cmd vmsvc/power.getstate #### , where #### is the ID number of the VM to query. This will show you the actual power status of the VM in question, in the example below I am querying my "Win2003Test" server, which is suspended:

Forcing a power off of a VM is possible using vim-cmd vmsvc/power.off #### but that rather defeats the object of what we are trying to achieve (avoiding a dirty shutdown of our virtual servers in case you have forgotten!). Instead you could try vim-cmd vmsvc/power.shutdown #### which should issue a shutdown command to the VMware Tools agent on the VM, wait a few minutes and then try another power.getstate to see if it has been successful. Should that not work then you can issue a vim-cmd vmscv/power.suspend #### which will simply suspend your VM to disk so it will not be affected by a restart of the host.

There are several other commands available with vim-cmd vmsvc/ - power.hibernate, power.reset and power.reboot for example. To see a full list of all the commands available just type vim-cmd vmsvc without any extension:

As you can see there are a lot more commands available, which replicate the actions available in the vSphere Client, and as such there is little need for you to use them.

• Check out Train Signal's VMware ESX Server Training with nearly 17 hours of hands-on instruction.

Conclusion

Its obvious from this exercise that despite what the documentation says there is still a lot of functionality left in ESXi's stripped down console, albeit well hidden and not user-friendly. In this article we have covered those commands which could come in useful in some problem situations when you need to get direct control over a host's VMs to avoid a dirty shutdown. Should you have a need (or desire) to do more management and configuration tasks of ESXi via the command line then VMware provide a Remote Command Line Interface (RCLI) appliance for that purpose. For further information please refer to this section of the VMware website.

In my opinion Visio deserves a place in every administrator’s toolbox. Trust me on this - nothing makes you look less professional than sharing a diagram created on the back of a scrap piece of paper - or worse, MS Paint.

However there can be an art to using tools like Visio. Here are a few simple tips to help you create quality, professional-looking network diagrams.

Use Multiple Pages

The number one mistake in many network diagrams is an attempt to convey too much information on one page. Visio allows use of multiple pages just like an Excel workbook with many worksheets, so consider using multiple drawing sheets for different purposes. For instance, you might show your Layer 2 wiring on one page, WAN and core on another page, and your VLAN scheme on a third. You could also add pages for things like your datacenter and internet connections. Keep it simple, but use as much space as is necessary.

Make Use of Border Templates

A border template can make your life a little easier by providing a way to track changes to your diagrams. In your template include sections for author name, version number, date, page number, and any other fields that will be useful. Most of the fields can automatically update themselves - more information on that can be found on the Microsoft website here.

Borders can be locked to the page so that they aren't accidentally moved around later. Just select all the shapes that make up your border by holding down the CTRL key and clicking on each of the lines, boxes, or text that make up your border. Next, right-click on the shapes and select Format, then Protection. This will bring up a box that allows you to select which shape properties you want to select. Select everything that applies, then click OK. Remember to leave text fields unlocked if you want to modify them later.

Shapes can still be selected, so to prevent shape selection and make your border a little more foolproof you need to protect the drawing. Click on View, then Drawing Explorer. Right click on the drawing, which will appear at the top of the Drawing Explorer window, then choose "Protect Document", and check the Shapes box. Your border is now locked to the page and can't be changed or deleted by accident.

Now save your file as a Visio Template (.VST) into your templates folder, and you can use this every time you create a new document for a consistent look.

Cut the Clutter

Visio provides some useful tools to help de-clutter and organize your diagrams. Shapes usually look best when they are aligned with one another. To have Visio do this automatically, select the shapes you want to align, then click the Shapes menu, and choose Align Shapes.

Dynamic connectors are another great way to keep your diagrams clean. Dynamic connectors will automatically snap to your shapes, and stay connected when you move shapes around - saving you work when you need to modify your diagrams later. To use them, pick the dynamic connector tool. Hover your cursor over the shape you want to "lock on." Visio will show a red target box around that shape. Click and drag a line to the next shape you want to link to. The shapes are now linked, and can be moved around without losing the line between them.

Dynamic connectors can be changed to use straight or even curved lines by right clicking on the connector and adjusting its properties.

Customize It With Stencils

Visio includes basic stencils for things like routers, switches and servers - but you're not limited to those shapes. Most hardware vendors also provide their own Visio stencils that can give your diagrams a custom look and variety. My personal preference is the standard Cisco shapes that I've used above. But, everyone from HP to IBM and Brocade provides their own stencils. To use them, just download the shapes and place the .VSS file into your shapes folder. Then, open the shape-sheet from the File menu.

Automate Network Diagramming

Tools like SolarWinds LANSurveyor (Read my LANSurveyor 10 Review) can make your job of creating documentation much easier. Just fire up the software, let it query the network, and the tool does all the hard work of creating your maps. When it's done you can tweak it for visual effects, then export to Visio for distribution with your team.

Share It

Starting with Visio 2007, the ability to save Visio files as PDFs is included. Saving as a PDF is a great way to share diagrams with other groups like your helpdesk or clients, while still keeping version control over the original documents. Have information that you don't want to distribute widely? Custom shape properties can store information with the diagram, but won't appear in the PDF copy. This is perfect for uploading to an internal Sharepoint server if you have a large support team.

With all of these features, Visio really makes it easy to create high-quality network diagrams that you won't be afraid to share.

The above tutorial was created by Aaron Leskiw, CCNA and provided with full permission courtesy of NetworkManagementSoftware.com

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Here's how the default Start menu looks in Windows 7:

Why did Microsoft decide to remove the Classic Start menu option in Windows 7 and in Windows Server 2008 R2? I don't know. Personally, I like the new way the new Windows 7 Start Menu works, and have gotten used to it a long time ago.

However, a lot of people still haven't gotten used to the newer version, so we thought it would be handy to explain a couple of ways to get the Classic Start menu back:

1. Classic Shell

Classic Shell is free and takes up very little memory. It changes the Windows 7 start menu to classic and it looks exactly the same like what you see in Windows XP. The nice thing about it, besides being totally free, is that when you type the first letter of a program or folder it brings you to the correct menu.

Get it from here:

Classic Shell Files on SourceForge.net
http://sourceforge.net/projects/classicshell/files

After installing, this is the way your Start menu will look like:

BTW, if you press SHIFT and click on the Start menu, you'll get to the original Start menu, so you can in fact use both, as the same time.

2. CSMenu

"CSMenu" is a small application for Windows 7 which can bring the Classic start menu back in Windows 7. You just need to install it and run the application. There is also a portable version available so you can run it without installing. Free to use, this is a cool tool. However, please make sure you read the following note.

Please note:

CSMenu will prompt you to install the ASK dot COM toolbar. While not an actual malware, I would never recommend ANYONE to install that toolbar unless you're looking for trouble. Therefore, while installing CSMenu, please make sure you select "Custom Installation" and that you manually remove the 2 check-boxes, unless you really really need the ASK dot COM toolbar.

Anyway, get it here:

CSMenu Official Site:
http://www.csmenu.com

After installing, this is the way your Start menu will look like:

Here too, if you press SHIFT and click on the Start menu, you'll get to the original Start menu, so you can in fact use both, as the same time.

3. Windows 7 Classic Start Menu with Aero

This is another software by the same author, that will get you to the Classic Start menu. It will also give you an "Aero" theme feeling, which is all nice. However, the software is NOT free, therefore, you will have to consider if you're ready to pay to get your Classic Start menu back. Well, at least this one doesn't include the ASK dot COM toolbar...

Get it from here:

Windows 7 Classic Start Menu with Aero
http://www.classicstartmenu.com

Once installed, you'll get a tray icon that will let you customize some settings in the program.

After installing, this is the way your Start menu will look like:

Here too, if you press SHIFT and click on the Start menu, you'll get to the original Start menu, so you can in fact use both, as the same time.

It's worth noting that during my testing I found 2 issues that cooled my enthusiasm: The first is that once enabled, and once you clicked on the Start menu and opened one of the Program folders, if you click away from the Start menu it will not go away, it'll stay opened on your desktop and will only close either after running a program (and program) from the menu, or by clicking on the Start menu icon.

The second issue I found is that one click on the "Programs" folder opens the folder in Windows Explorer instead of expanding the folder's contents.

That said, if you really need to get your Classic Start menu back on Windows 7 AND are willing to pay to get it, Windows 7 Classic Start Menu is a valid option. Personally, I would go for the first freeware option.

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The Server Core installation option of Windows Server 2008 and R2 provides the following benefits:

• Reduced maintenance - Because the Server Core installation option installs only what is required to have a manageable server for the AD DS, AD LDS, AD CS, DHCP Server, DNS Server, File Services, Print Services, Web Server and Hyper-V server roles, less maintenance is required than on a full installation of Windows Server 2008.
• Reduced attack surface - Because Server Core installations are minimal, there are fewer applications running on the server, which decreases the attack surface.
• Reduced management - Because fewer applications and services are installed on a server running the Server Core installation, there is less to manage.
• Less disk space required - A Server Core installation requires only about 1.5 gigabyte (GB) of disk space to install and approximately 2 GB for operations after the installation.
• Lower risk of bugs - Reducing the amount of code can help reduce the amount of bugs.

While Server Core itself is, in my opinion, one of Microsoft's greatest positive investments in the past 3 years, one of the major implementing pains for Core is the lack of GUI-based management tools. For those that have never seen a Server Core, this is the way it looks:

Pretty scary, if you're not used to CLI tools.

BTW, it's not that Server Core cannot run GUI-based tools. In fact, there are a bunch of tools that still run fine on Core, such as Task Manager, Notepad, Regedit, and a couple of Control Panel Applets. In addition, you may be able to run many 3rd-party software such as Mozilla Firefox and others. In addition, the management tasks for Server Core can be performed remotely by using GUI-based MMC Snap-Ins, as long as you initially configure the machine with a proper IP address, add it to a domain (if needed) and open the correct Firewall rules and ports.

Luckily for us, most of this pain has been solved by usage of the either manually created scripts, 3rd-party graphical user interface tools, and lately in R2 - the SCONFIG tool.

SCONFIG was initially developed for Microsoft Hyper-V Server 2008, a free virtualization platform that is based on Windows Server 2008 RTM Core and that has the Hyper-V role pre-installed. There have been clients who have gone ahead and copied the script onto their Core installations on other machines. Since then, SCONFIG was made a  part of the R2 release of Windows Server 2008.

With SCONFIG you can manage many aspects of the Server Core machine. SCONFIG dramatically eases server configuration for Windows Server 2008 R2 core deployments. With SCONFIG, you can easily set your system up, get it on the network so you can easily manage the server remotely.

Note that SCONFIG is also localized in almost 20 languages.

To run SCONFIG simply enter sconfig.cmd in the command prompt window, and press Enter.

Navigation through SCONFIG's options is done by typing a number or letter representing the correct configuration or information option. These tasks include:

1) Join a Domain/Workgroup
2) Change Computer Name
3) Add Local Administrator
4) Configure/disable Remote Management
5) Windows Update Settings
6) Download and Install Updates
7) Enable/disable Remote Desktop
8) View/change Network Settings
9) View/change Date and Time
10) Log Off User
11) Restart Server
12) Shut Down Server
13) Exit to Command Line

For example, to enable remote management of the machine, one would:

Press 2 to configure a computer name. Reboot.

Press 1 to join to a domain. Reboot.

Press 8, 0, 1 to set the computers IP address.

Press 4 and then configure remote management.

SCONFIG can  get up and running within a couple of minutes, and best of all, it's built-in so you do not need to download and install any 3rd-party tool. However, as with most tools, there are some things that you cannot do with SCONFIG, such as install server roles or features, or run DCPROMO and so on. For those, you need to either know the command line tool, or use a script or 3rd-party tool. For example, read my "Installing Active Directory on Windows 2008 Server Core" article.

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One of the challenges of using Server Core is the management aspect. Luckily for us, most of the management pain has been solved by usage of the either manually created scripts, 3rd-party graphical user interface tools, and lately in R2 - the SCONFIG tool.

So after properly configuring Server Core and getting ready to deploy it on your server farm, you now want to download and install the latest Windows Server 2008 R2 updates from the Windows Update site. How do you do that?

Well, there are several methods which you can use to download and install the latest Windows Server 2008 R2 updates from the Windows Update site. Read on.

Method #1 - Manually Install Updates

In order to install updates you need to configure the Server Core machine to automatically download and install updates:

At a command prompt:

• To verify the current setting, type:

cscript scregedit.wsf /AU /v

• To enable automatic updates, type:

cscript scregedit.wsf /AU 4

• To disable automatic updates, type:

cscript scregedit.wsf /AU 1

Problem with this setting is that you have no control over what updates are being downloaded and installed. Therefore, if you do not wish to enable auto updates, you can manually download each update from the Windows Update site, transfer them to the Core machine, and then manually installing them using msiexec.exe or wusa.exe:

Msiexec (command-line options)
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc759262(WS.10).aspx

Description of the Windows Update Stand-alone Installer (Wusa.exe) and of .msu files in Windows Vista and in Windows Server 2008
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/934307/en-us

Method #2 - Install from Script

You can also use the following script sample from MSDN:

Searching, Downloading, and Installing Updates: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa387102(VS.85).aspx

Set updateSession = CreateObject("Microsoft.Update.Session")
Set updateSearcher = updateSession.CreateupdateSearcher()

WScript.Echo "Searching for updates..." & vbCRLF

Set searchResult = _
updateSearcher.Search("IsInstalled=0 and Type='Software'")

WScript.Echo "List of applicable items on the machine:"

For I = 0 To searchResult.Updates.Count-1
Set update = searchResult.Updates.Item(I)
WScript.Echo I + 1 & "> " & update.Title
Next

If searchResult.Updates.Count = 0 Then
WScript.Echo "There are no applicable updates."
WScript.Quit
End If

WScript.Echo vbCRLF & "Creating collection of updates to download:"

Set updatesToDownload = CreateObject("Microsoft.Update.UpdateColl")

For I = 0 to searchResult.Updates.Count-1
Set update = searchResult.Updates.Item(I)
WScript.Echo I + 1 & "> adding: " & update.Title
updatesToDownload.Add(update)
Next

WScript.Echo vbCRLF & "Downloading updates..."

Set downloader = updateSession.CreateUpdateDownloader()
downloader.Updates = updatesToDownload
downloader.Download()

WScript.Echo  vbCRLF & "List of downloaded updates:"

For I = 0 To searchResult.Updates.Count-1
Set update = searchResult.Updates.Item(I)
If update.IsDownloaded Then
WScript.Echo I + 1 & "> " & update.Title
End If
Next

Set updatesToInstall = CreateObject("Microsoft.Update.UpdateColl")

WScript.Echo  vbCRLF & _
"Creating collection of downloaded updates to install:"

For I = 0 To searchResult.Updates.Count-1
set update = searchResult.Updates.Item(I)
If update.IsDownloaded = true Then
WScript.Echo I + 1 & "> adding:  " & update.Title
updatesToInstall.Add(update)
End If
Next

WScript.Echo  vbCRLF & "Would you like to install updates now? (Y/N)"
strInput = WScript.StdIn.Readline
WScript.Echo

If (strInput = "N" or strInput = "n") Then
WScript.Quit
ElseIf (strInput = "Y" or strInput = "y") Then
WScript.Echo "Installing updates..."
Set installer = updateSession.CreateUpdateInstaller()
installer.Updates = updatesToInstall
Set installationResult = installer.Install()

'Output results of install
WScript.Echo "Installation Result: " & _
installationResult.ResultCode
WScript.Echo "Reboot Required: " & _
installationResult.RebootRequired & vbCRLF
WScript.Echo "Listing of updates installed " & _
"and individual installation results:"

For I = 0 to updatesToInstall.Count - 1
WScript.Echo I + 1 & "> " & _
updatesToInstall.Item(i).Title & _
": " & installationResult.GetUpdateResult(i).ResultCode
Next
End If

Copy the text found in the script, save it as WUA_SearchDownloadInstall.vbs in the system32 folder, and run:

cscript WUA_SearchDownloadInstall.vbs

Very cool indeed.

Method #3 - Use SCONFIG

As noted on my "Manage Windows Server 2008 R2 Core with SCONFIG" article, SCONFIG is a very nice tool that is now built into R2, that you can use to manage many aspects of the Server Core machine. One of these features is the ability to control the Windows Updates settings, and then use it to download updates and either selectively install them, or install them all at once.

To run SCONFIG simply enter sconfig.cmd in the command prompt window, and press Enter.

First, enable Automatic Updates by typing "5" and pressing Enter.

Type "a" and press Enter.

Next, type "6" to get SCONFIG to search and download missing updates.

You'll be able to install all missing updates, or just the recommended ones.

Method #4 - Visual Core Configurator 2008

Visual Core Configurator 2008 is a nice GUI-based tool created by Guillermo Musumeci. The tool is free to use, and can be obtained here:

CtxAdmTools - Visual Core Configurator 2008 v1.1

After downloading the tool, either copy the files to the Server Core machine, or if it's a virtual machine, use the ISO file download instead.

Run the tool.

Press on the "Windows Update" icon.

Press on the "Search for updates" button.

Select the updates you want to download and install, and press on the "Download and Install Updates" button.

Method #5 - Install Using Core Configurator 2.0

On of the first 3rd-party GUI tools for Server Core, this tool is free to use, and can be obtained here:

Core Configurator 2.0 (Windows Server 2008 R2)

Run Start_Coreconfig.wsf to start the tool.

The latest version of Core Configurator needs .NET Framework and PowerShell, which it will automatically install once the tool is executed.

You will be prompted to join the customer Experience Improvement Program. Accept or decline.

Press the "Control Panel" button.

Press the "Windows Updates" button.

First, you can configure the Auto Updates settings.

Then, press on the "Check for updates" link and press the "Download updates" button.

You can now select which updates to install.

Also remember that there are other 3rd-party update management tools. Do you have feedback about other updating methods you're using? Please send them over by using the feedback page or by clicking on my profile link.

Sure, snapshots are cool but they can also be dangerous. These snapshots can take up a ton of disk space and, potentially, cause you to run out of space in your ESX Server datastores. By running out of space, you could, potentially, experience downtime and end users could be upset when their virtual desktops or applications no longer work.

Finding which virtual machines have snapshots, how old those snapshots are, and how much space they take up can be very time consuming in the vSphere client graphical interface. You have to click on each virtual machine, look to see if the Revert to Snapshot button is colored and, if it is, go into the snapshot manager and look at each snapshot.

Fortunately, vExpert and Microsoft MVP Hal Rottenberg's PowerCLI videos - the new Train Signal vSphere Pro Vol 1 training course - show you how to find old snapshots in your vSphere infrastructure, report on how old they are, and how much space they take up in your datastores. By finding these snapshots early, before they cause trouble, you can delete unneeded snapshots to save space and prevent downtime.

Hal makes learning PowerCLI and PowerShell fun and easy. Honestly, I before I watched this video, I had only used one PowerShell script. After Hal's excellent teaching on how it works, I am excited about PowerShell and feel like I could write just about any script!

Here's a sample from Hal's PowerCLI training video...

For more information on what else Hal covers and what else the entire vSphere Pro Vol 1 video covers, visit Train Signal vSphere Pro Vol 1 course outline.