Archive for the 'Tech Review' Category

USB over Ethernet – KernelPro

Published on December 1, 2011 in Software and Tech Review. 0 Comments

Okay, if like one of my clients your working in an environment where the IT department has decided to use Microsoft’s HyperV instead of shelling out the cash for VMware ESX, then you might be stuck in a position where you are stuck between a rock and equally tough place in terms of USB License Dongles. To date, Microsoft has yet to incorporate USB support into their flagship hypervisor platform, and this presents a problem.

Well, one which is now easily solved. A simple little app created by KernelPro, makes it possible to mount USB devices over a network from a designated host. Simply nominate a physical box in your environment to be a license server, insert all of your USB dongles into this system and use the management console to share out each one as a unique instance. A client agent which sits within the VM can then be configured to mount the shared USB device to its own operating system.

Iv had a quick play with this and am very impressed by the simplicity and reliability of this software. I was up and running with a shared USB memory key in less than 10 minutes, and a license dongle in about the same.

With a fully packed feature list, this software is well worth an investment from any organisation in need of a suitable USB Solution;

Features

  • Supports high-speed video,audio devices and web cameras
  • Compatible with 64-bit oprating systems, including Vista 64-Bit and Server 2008
  • Command line support
  • Forced device connection from server side
  • USB v1.1 and USB v2.0 compatible
  • Device sharing, unsharing, connection and disconnection on-the-fly.
  • VMware, Virtual PC compatible
  • USB server and client are installed on one computer!
  • Support of high-speed isochronous USB devices
  • Remote USB devices auto-connection as soon as they become available for connection
  • Broken network connection auto-reconnection
  • USB device sharing without driver software installation
  • Deny sharing or connection of specific USB devices
  • Tray icon and menu for quick device sharing/unsharing and connection/disconnection
  • FREE USB Over Ethernet Client for connecting shared USB devices

One of the better features is the “Deny sharing or connection of specific USB devices” allowing filtering of IP addresses which can connect to each device, serving as a brilliant additional method to control licensing of software. For example, say you have a HyperV High Avaliability scenario whereby one host must stay alive, with a piece of software connected to a shared USB dongle. Simply add the IP address of this host to the kernelpro configuration, it wont matter where in the organisation the VM is moved to, it will always be capable of reconnecting.

Check out more at http://www.kernelpro.com/usb-over-ethernet.html

Small Business Server 2008

Published on May 10, 2010 in Microsoft and Tech Review. 0 Comments

Right… Im gonna summarise this for you into a brief but accurate sentance “NOT WORTH THE EFFORT !!!”

Thats it, job done…. You can hang around for the small print, but i wouldnt bother….

Long story short, iv been running SBS 2003 for the last 4 years as the main infrastructure behind my home network, its served me well and for all its little annoyances, it keeps ticking on with the absolute minimum of tweaking by its administrator (AKA : Me)… But, i (Me) have fallen (as many of you have) in love with the iPhone, that little gadget that keeps on giving (and taking battery life)…

iPhone supports exchange server… Exchange server 2003 is compatable with this (but a nightmare to get working reliably)… Exchange 2007 has funky features designed to allow mobile devices (iPhone <- for those not paying attention) to connect with the least ammount of effort (yay)….

Alas, all the effort microsoft took out of setting up the mobile device support, they imported into the setup and usage of Server 2008. Everything has moved, nothing is centralised, there are more wizards/consoles and widgets than you can shake a 3.5″ floppy at, and to top it all of, it sucks more RAM than a disturbed zoo keeper !

Suffice to say, the benefits of SBS2008 come no where near the costs you will have to endure (least of which is the fact its entire look and feel comes from windows 7, yes thats the one that your nephew helped Microsoft design with that pack of crayons you stopped him eating last year).

Okay, details.

  • Installation process provides NO interactivity, all options are preset and cannot be altered during install (without configuring some answers file which is ‘beyond’ stupid for an installation…)
  • Installation process disabled administrator account immediatly after installation… its nice to have it around for a while (i mean common, if were installing a server operating system, its nice to be given the benefit of the doubt and trusted with our own admin accounts)
  • Look and feel is windows 7 (whaaa!)
  • Active directory Users and Computers has no exchange features built into it (meaning all exchange functionality has to be done from exchange console, no more right clicking on a user and doing exchange tasks)
  • Exchange console is painfully wizard based… Every-dam-thing does not have to a wizard microsoft…
  • SBS Console is about the only way to create users with full attributes (aka, if you want them to have a PC assigned, Mailbox creating, etc) creating a user in ADUC does not create a mailbox, and does NOT give you the option to add one !
  • Operating system grabs way too much RAM (granted i was running this in VM, so some of that could of been dedicated allocation… but i feel its maybe not)
  • POP3 Connector finally allows sheduling to happen more often than 15 mins (despite microsofts desperate warning that this would cause the end of the world), BUT does not allow advanced schedules to be created (aka, acc1, 2, 3 check every 5 mins, acc4, 5, 6  every 10 mins… So still kinda limited (but now supports SSL)… Do yourself a favour, go grab a copy of POPCON (brilliant little app)
  • Exporting of 2003 pst files do NOT  import correctly into 2008, my test import of my mailbox ended up with dozens of strange calendar entries which were not reccuring, but now are… my contacts have no pictures, my tasks list is all ‘not done’ (pretty sure i did some of those things), etc, etc, etc….
  • Outlook web access still only runs in light access mode for Firefox, and IE really doesnt have any additional features that 2003 didnt have… (looks a little better, but nothing to get excited about :(

Im sure there are more annoying things going on, and some good features too… But im still playing around with it, and no where near ready to format my 2003 box to update just yet…

ASUS: Eee Keyboard to launch in October

Published on September 14, 2009 in Media Center, Tech Review and Tech World. 1 Comment

small_eee_keyboard-cebit1417

Looks like those DigiTimes sources were right: the ASUS Eee Keyboard will officially launch in North America and Europe in October. And while CEO Jerry Shen is keeping quiet on pricing, the original $400 to $500 estimates should hold-up. The Commodore 64-esque keyboard PC originally announced at CES in January features an integrated 5-inch display, 1.6GHz Atom processor, 1GB of memory, either 16GB or 32GB of SSD storage, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, Blutooth, HDMI and wireless UWB HDMI. And given the October launch, we’re expecting this thing to run Windows 7 unlike the XP prototypes we’ve seen so far. Maybe Moblin too, if you want to save a nickle.

Media Center Backup Utility

Published on July 9, 2009 in Gadgets, Media Center, Microsoft, Tech Lessons, Tech Review and Utilities. 0 Comments

Right O… Iv been looking for this god like application for some time now. As an avid lover my my Microsoft (Sigh) Windows (Sigh) Vista (Sigh) Media Center machine, im often in a position where i need a quick reinstall, or im creating a new build for another house machine, family machine, test machine etc etc..

If you’ve ever been in this position too, then its obvious that microsoft has missed out on a great opportunity to throw out one of their leogondary (usually buggy) powertools to create backups of all your scheduled recordings, channel listings, etc !

well, the days of dreaming are finally over, and here we go…

Ian Dixon over at The Digital Lifestyle has created and released (some time ago, 2007, sigh) a beta of a program which does all the following ;

Features:

  • Backs up TV channel assignment
  • Backs up Scheduled recordings and series recordings
  • Backs up recorded TV to local drives, or networked drives (via UNC paths)
  • Backup up an additional folder
  • Has its own schedule engine for automating backups
  • Displays the status of critical Media Center services
  • Command line and GUI version available, 10 foot version coming soon
  • Works with Vista and XP
  • Can be used to transfer settings from one Media Center PC to another

Get over there and download it now !

DirSync Pro Keeps Your Files Synchronized

Published on May 19, 2009 in Networking, Tech Review and Utilities. 0 Comments

2009-05-18_090912Windows/Mac/Linux: Java-based DirSync Pro provides cross-platform file synchronization with an easy to use interface, incremental backup, and a profile system.

DirSync Pro is a robust and open-source file synchronizing tool. Thanks to its Java-based construction it has cross-platform support and a self-contained directory for easy portability.

You can use DirSync to perform bidirectional and unidirectional syncs, making it easy to only update files on one side of the transfer or sync both locations to each other. There are numerous variables you can tweak to control the transfers including only syncing new, larger, or modified files. You can set filters to include or exclude sub-directories, create backups of the synced and changed files, and create configuration files for your most frequently used locations and settings.

The configuration files are handy feature, especially if you’re running the application in multiple environments off your USB drive. You can create unique setups and execute them independently making it super easy to create a specific routine for backing up files at work, syncing files at home, or whatever situation you find yourself in. DirSync Pro is open source and works wherever Java does.

DirSync Pro [via MakeUseOf]

Affiliations

i love Quidco Blue

About Us

Welcome to Fluxbox, im afraid we have no affiliation with the Linux window manager, so if your looking for that, turn around now.

Fluxbox is now the combined effort of a group of former University of Plymouth students, who use this site to document their IT endeavours and general random rants, we invite you to join or world, where everything is in a state of flux !