Disk2VHD

Today I have been moving one of my file servers from a physical environment into a virtual machine.  Originally I was going to clone the physical drive and use the image on the virtual drive.  Unfortunatly the Clonezilla software does not run under Microsoft’s Virtual Server 2005 R2 sP1.

However it turns out, thanks to a quick internet search ( http://www.winhelponline.com/blog/disk2vhd-utility-creates-vhd-images-of-physical-disks/), that Microsoft have their own FREE P2V utility.  One of the nice things is this runs live on the server you are virtualising.  It use shadow copy to copy the contents of a running system disk into a new VHD.

However you still need to repair install Windows and install the latest service packs and updates after the P2V is complete.

Compatible Toner Rant

Here’s a complaint to all you printer manufacturers.  Stop trying to worm your way out of your warranties by blaming machanical printer failure on compatible toner.

I have an Oki colour laser that has developed a mechanical problem that is giving the printer problems lifting the colour drums.  Now the problem developed before compatible toners was put in.  Not know what the actual problem was I inserted compatibles in an attempt to fix the printer – it didn’t work.

Now the Oki engineer was quiet good and eventually found the fault and is now working on fixing it.  But as soon as the compatibles were found the relationship turned frosty.  The compatibles must be to blame for the problem!

On the Oki the toner is a chamber that clips on top of the drum and with the flick of a lever a hole opens and its contents are empted into the drum.  How on earth can the contents of the drum – be it original or third party toner – cause a mechanical problem with the actual printer itself?

Answer it can’t!  And compatible toner emptys into the drum just as well as original toner.  About the worst that could possibly happen using compatible toner is I get a lower print quality due to the difference in chemical make between toners.

Purge Print Jobs Older Than 7 Days

A good days work today.  Came up with a deceptively simple script to run as a scheduled task that removes old jobs from the print spooler.

May we live in interesting times…

And it seems in the world of school IT, or atleast this school – they are.

Since before the summer we have been looking into replacing our Management Information System (MIS – database of pupil records).  There have only really been three contenders – Phoenix (the here to LEA approved suppler), SIMS (the biggest player in the market), and Serco (the young pretender making serious in roads).

If you keep asking me the same question…

…eventually I will NOT change my answer!

I have teacher, who as a disk.  The disk contains material to go onto one of wour websites.  The teacher was expecting it to also contain a program to run on our local network. 

Unfortuantely for the teacher I flunked GCSE bending-the-laws-of-Physics and so can not make the missing file appear on the disk.  Because I missed out on the neccerssary skills it’s not going to matter how meny times I am asked…THE FILE IS STILL NOT ON THE DISK!

The Power of GPO’s.

Active Directory Group Policy Objects.  An amazing powerful system to apply end user restrictions to your network.  As a network management tool Microsoft deserve credit for this fantasticly useful system.  But it does need handeling with care.  One wrong setting and your whole network can be brought to its knees.

The Laptop

Toshiba Satellite Pro L300D-22E

The WEEE Directive

In comon with most schools we have a segnificant amount of  IT waste generated each year.  One of my jobs during the summer break is to get rid of the dead printers, monitors, computers and laptops that have built up over the course of the year.

The WEEE directive basically says that I can’t take this to the local city dump.  They need to be environmentally recycled.  CRT monitors are the biggest problem.  Any one disposing of more than 500kg of hazardous waste per year must be registered with the environment agency.  That’s about 20 CRT’s.

Praise Wisesoft

• http://www.wisesoft.co.uk/

I’m going to miss OS X

So, I’ve finally got to order a new bunch of laptops.  Four Toshiba Satellite Pro L300D-22E’s.  One of them is for me!  As noted before my current personal laptop is an Apple MacBook Pro.  It’s now showing it’s age.  It seems to be getting slower and slower and the “ball of death” appears for longer and longer every time I ask it to do anything.  The battery last for less than 30 sec.  It’s on it’s third £85 PSU and the dvd-rw has not worked in over a year.  The only good thing I have left to say about it is the OS is absolutely fantastic.