Update Rollup 2 for Windows Server 2012 Essentials is available, testing on my busy server underway

Update Rollup 1 came out in February 2013, and I closely documented my experience with it. But there was a gotcha. I had used the method of connector installation where you skip the domain join. So, with the June 13 2013 release of Update Rollup 2 that I…

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Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials Preview The Essentials Experience

Given how much I’ve come to rely upon Windows Server 2012 Essentials for my daily PC backups, it was good to see the product line not only being continued, but growing in breadth and capabilities. And a bit of Hyper-V related news in there too, giving us a glympse of Microsoft’s strategy going forward.

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My home’s First Alert ONELINK system for smoke and carbon monoxide detection includes voiced warnings, with optional smartphone alerts

Back in April of 2010, the time had come for me to assess the value of crawling into my attic and basement to replace my home’s 1994 vintage fire detectors. Yes, that’s 4 years beyond…

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How to encrypt Windows 8 Professional Search index files using built-in Encrypted File System

Why would you want to encrypt the directory where Windows 8 keeps its big honkin’ Windows.edb file and index files? That directory is where the very handy “Windows Search” function keeps it stuff. And searching around for a bit on Google, I noticed…

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2013 Apple Mac Pro as a virtualization platform? Think about it…

Yeah, nothing polarizes opinions more than talking about Apple. Hang on a second though, keep an open mind. I’ve used PCs since the mid 1980s, and I have to admit, from an engineering and design perspective, little out there impresses me like the surprisingly affordable 2011 Mac mini…So here we are 2 years…

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Safer way to charge Apple Lightning devices quickly, even at a longer distance from your wall outlet

I was recently looking for the fastest charger made by Apple, for a family member’s recent Apple products, including an iPhone 5. But I soon realized the wall outlet is inconveniently far from the desired recharging location, the bedside stand. Googling around for a bit…

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Superguide: Windows Server 2012 Essentials

If you’re looking to avoid domain joins, I have a write-up on the connector installation, “Windows Server 2012 Essentials – Connector installation” followed by this fix, “Windows Server 2012 Essentials remote client loses its Internet connection, here’s your DNS-related fix” and “How to install Microsoft Forefront Client Security Antivirus on Windows Server 2012 Essentials”

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TinkerTry’s Second Birthday, June 1, 2013

It’s been two years since launch already, wow, time flies fast, like my fingers at the keyboard. Yeah, said something like that last year too. But I’ve now created 311 articles total, over these last 104 weeks. That’s about 3 articles per week!…It’s looking very likely TinkerTry will hit the 1 million unique visitors milestone this year, so I’m extremely relieved to finally feel…

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SeeEye2Eye first look, a webcam eye contact device for Google+ Hangouts?

I don’t know, you be the judge! What I mean is that I just got the device, and am using it for the first time live, tonight…I’ll post more information right here, once I’ve spent a bit more time with it. Here’s a picture that’ll give you a sense of how it works, with a half-silvered mirror paired with a full-silvered mirror, positioned at…

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Scrogged your Chrome bookmarks? Here’s how to restore them, from your last backup.

Whatever backup software you use, start by checking if you have a valid backup, from back when your Chrome bookmarks, cookies, plugins, and other “personality” settings were working, just the way you liked them. My own recent saga features another valiant rescue by Windows Server 2012 Essentials…

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Featured on “The Home Tech Podcast” Episode #119 “The first one about Virtualization”

Being a guest on a podcast that uses Google Hangouts On Air is a lot of fun. Won’t you join in and participate? Just tune in to the live chat on Thursday, May 30th at 9pm eastern time…Join Christian, Andrew and Jim, with Guest Paul Braren and Kyle Wilcox as we discuss Virtualization for the Average Guy. Each…

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Windows Server 2012 Essentials handles those scheduled nightly backups of sleeping computers quite nicely, here’s how.

Wondering how long an overnight backup took? Or how it works, exactly? A quick peek under the hood, and it’ll all become much clearer. Dive in with me for a bit, and you’ll resurface with a better understanding of exactly how these backup tasks are handled. This sort of deep dive became necessary for me to…

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Presented at Security BSides Boston on May 18 2013, “Build Your Own VMWare ESXi and Microsoft Hyper-V lab at Home, Using Affordable and Efficient Hardware”

Having never been to a security user group event before, I initially felt like a bit of an outsider, but felt very welcome in a short while. What a friendly bunch of folks…I was quickly surprised by how incredibly engaged the audience was, and so full of great…

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Superguide: VMware vSphere

Here’s a collection of articles to help you build your own VMware vSphere lab. The focus is on simplicity, with ways of getting going with a very usable rig, quickly and effectively, using affordable commodity parts (see also Superguide: vZilla). This Superguide will be updated with the latest relevant articles, so be sure to come back and visit. As always, your comments left below the article are greatly appreciated.

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If you used Microsoft IntelliPoint drivers, and you upgraded from Windows 7 to 8 but have Bluetooth mouse issues, here’s a fix

If you used Microsoft IntelliPoint drivers under Windows 7 for your Bluetooth mouse, then upgraded to Windows 8 and have experienced some mouse issues, then this tip may help you. Issues I experienced included the Microsoft Bluetooth tranceiver not coming out of suspend mode properly…I’ve also experienced…

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Presented at Connecticut VMUG User Conference on May 14 2013, “Virtualization at home can be practical, affordable, and available, 24×7.”

This session was geared toward enthusiasts looking to get a taste for what virtualization can do in the home, through actual examples from the past 2 years of building and running my affordable and efficient Intel Core i7 based “vZilla” system. Discussion and live…

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