SEMblog

I wanted to update my Windows 7 installation DVD so that it not only installed any version of Windows 7, but also both the 64 bit and the 32 bit. It would be used on both a memory stick and DVD. 

While searching around the internet, I found various techniques using various third party tools. However as I didn't have any of the third party tools and wasn't about to buy them for this single task, I found my own way of creating the DVD using tools that Microsoft have already provided. 

Requirements

• Windows 7 ISOs/DVDs of 64 bit and 32 bit. Doesn't matter which version, as long as it isn't Starter Edition. I probably wouldn't use a vendor supplied disk either as you never know what changes they have made to it. MDSN, Technet or Retail will be fine. 
• Windows 7 Automated Installation Kit. This is a free download from Microsoft here: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/details.aspx?FamilyID=696dd665-9f76-4177-a811-39c26d3b3b34&displaylang=en  - this file downloads as an ISO - hence the need for an ISO mount tool. 
• An ISO mount tool.
• Optional: A virtual machine platform to test on. 

Method

1. Create two temporary directories. One called WIM and one called DVD. 
2. Mount each ISO in turn and copy the file "Install.WIM" to the directory "WIM". Rename the file that comes from the 32 bit DVD/ISO x86.WIM and the one from the 63 bit DVD/ISO x64.WIM
3. Copy the entire contents of the 32 bit Windows ISO in to the directory called DVD. 
4. Delete the file "ei.cfg" from the copy of the DVD that you have created. This is the file that locks the installation media to a specific version of Windows 7. If it isn't present, setup prompts you for the version you wish to install. 
5. Install Windows 7 AIK - this is the option "Windows AIK Setup" when you run StartCD from the downloaded ISO.
6. With the Windows 7 AIK installed on your computer run the Deployment Tools Command Prompt.
7. Type the following commands in the Command Prompt window. Change the  paths and drive letters to match where you have stored the files.
   Alternatively, copy all of these commands in to a notepad document, rename the document run.bat (or whatever you like) and run that instead.
   IMAGEX /Export E:\WIM\x86.WIM 5 E:\WIM\INSTALL.WIM "Windows 7 Ultimate x86"
   IMAGEX /Export E:\WIM\x64.WIM 4 E:\WIM\INSTALL.WIM "Windows 7 Ultimate x64"
   IMAGEX /Export E:\WIM\x86.WIM 4 E:\WIM\INSTALL.WIM "Windows 7 Professional x86"
   IMAGEX /Export E:\WIM\x64.WIM 3 E:\WIM\INSTALL.WIM "Windows 7 Professional x64"
   IMAGEX /Export E:\WIM\x86.WIM 3 E:\WIM\INSTALL.WIM "Windows 7 Home Premium x86"
   IMAGEX /Export E:\WIM\x64.WIM 2 E:\WIM\INSTALL.WIM "Windows 7 Home Premium x64"
   IMAGEX /Export E:\WIM\x86.WIM 2 E:\WIM\INSTALL.WIM "Windows 7 Home Basic x86"
   IMAGEX /Export E:\WIM\x64.WIM 1 E:\WIM\INSTALL.WIM "Windows 7 Home Basic x64"
   IMAGEX /Export E:\WIM\x86.WIM 1 E:\WIM\INSTALL.WIM "Windows 7 Starter x86"
8. Copy the new install.wim created above in to the \Sources directory of the DVD directory created in step 3, replacing the existing. 
9. Back in the Deployment Tools Command Prompt, run the following command:
   oscdimg.exe -lWindows7 -m -u2 -b"E:\DVD\Boot\etfsboot.com" E:\DVD E:\Windows7.ISO
   Where 
   
   • Windows7 is the name of the DVD (note the lack of space between the l and the name),
   • E:\DVD is the source directory
   • E:\Windows7.ISO is the destination ISO name. 
10. Test the ISO using VMWARE Player or other VM technology, before burning to DVD. 
11. For memory stick use, simply take an existing USB memory stick used for installing Windows 7 and copy the Install.WIM file created above and replace the existing. It will then support both. 

If you were affected by the Blackberry Internet Service outage today (10th October 2001) and your Blackberry connects to an in-house email server running Exchange server (2003 or higher), then you really should be running a BES (Blackberry Enterprise Server) or BES Express (BESX).

A Blackberry connected to a BES/BESX gives you the full functionality of the Blackberry with true two way synchronisation of Email, Contacts, Calendar and Tasks. It is an extension of your Inbox. No need to maintain two sets of data that kind of synchronises. 

If you use BESX, then the software is free and you do not have to change your device subscription/tariff. For smaller installations the software can be installed on your server in  a few hours and give you complete control over the devices that connect. 

If you are in an industry where the email traffic is sensitive, the data exchange between your Blackberry and the BES/BESX cannot be intercepted as the encryption is managed by your server, not the one at RIM. This provides a more secure mobile email solution. 

Through my company Sembee Ltd, I can install and configure a BES Express for you for just £250 plus VAT if installed on to an existing server (other terms and conditions apply). That includes post installation configuration and guidance on maintenance, handset setup etc. 

For more information, contact me through the company web site at http://www.sembee.co.uk/ 

Just spoken to the Technology Editor at BBC Online to provide them with some background information on the Blackberry infrastructure following today's outage. 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-15243892 

I briefly explained why Enterprise users were largely not affected. 

During a recent migration from Exchange 2007 to 2010 I found I was unable to remove the public folder store from the Exchange 2007 server. 

It was returning the following error when using remove-publicfolderdatabase or using EMC on Exchange 2007. 

Remove-PublicFolderDatabase : Object is read only because it was created by a future version of Exchange: 0.10 (14.0.100.0). Current supported version is 0.1 (8.0.535.0).

Obviously the Exchange 2010 server had touched the database in some way, probably due to the Offline Address Book migration. 

The fix was quite simple - remove it using the Exchange 2010 Exchange Management Shell. Can't use the GUI as the Exchange 2007 public folders do not appear in there.

Get-PublicFolderDatabase -Server EXCH2007 | Remove-PublicFolderDatabase

Where "Exch2007" is the name of the Exchange 2007 server. 

After removing the database I refreshed the GUI and was then able to drop the Storage Group and complete the removal of Exchange 2007. 

Recently deployed an SBS 2011 server for a client down in the New Forest. Shortly after going live with this server, we experienced one of the oddest issues I have experienced. The fix was very simple, but the symptoms left us scratching our head. 

The server was intermittently receiving email. I could send it messages, but other accounts could not. Sometimes email from Google Mail would come through, other times they wouldn't. Same for Hotmail and other services. 

As it was intermittent, I was confidently ruling out the Exchange part as I said I could send it email. It was responding to telnet commands quite happily. 

Therefore we started to consider issues such as the router (it was something odd), the ISP as it was one that I hadn't used before and wasn't quite the same as others in the UK. Things were changed around and still the problem continued. 

The major symptom was the "Service Unavailable" was received by the clients, but it was on a 4.x.x error code, so email wasn't failing immediately. That error message usually means the anti-spam filtering it blocking the email. As the anti-spam agents are installed by default on SBS 2011, they were removed, no change. We had also installed AV on to the server, so that was checked and removed to ensure it wasn't affecting anything. 

This went on for a few days.

Then clutching at straws I started to go through the entire setup comparing it to my reference SBS 2011 server here in my home office. This reference server is basically an SBS 2011 installation that has had the wizards run, is kept patched, but isn't used or touched in any other way. It is an out of the box install. No third party software installed, and it isn't exposed to the internet. I have them for all three versions of SBS (2003, 2007 and 2011) that I work with. 

When I got to the Receive Connectors, I immediately noticed something was wrong, and I had overlooked something. 

This is a screenshot of the Receive Connector as I saw:

What this meant was that any email server with an IP address of below 192.168 was able to send email to the server, but anything above that couldn't. It would appear that some of the major email providers like Google Mail are routing their email out through high number IP addresses!

Furthermore, this wasn't being corrected by the fix my network wizard, which I had run a number of times to ensure that I hadn't missed something. 

As soon as I corrected the setting and restarted the Microsoft Exchange Transport Service for good measure, the email started to flood in.