You cannot restore files from Windows Server Essentials

June 10, 2015 by 4 Comments

LogoYou may be aware that a recent update broke the restore wizard that is a key component of client PC backup in Windows Server Essentials.

A hotfix was released that fixed the issue for Windows 7, but Windows 8 was not included.

Yesterday Microsoft updated the Hotfix to now include a Windows 8 version. Great news if you are waiting on file recovery. Slightly disappointing it has taken quite so long, but who knows maybe it was harder to fix on Windows 8!

Filed under Backup, Essentials, WIN 8, WSE Tagged with , ,

SBS 2011 Essentials & UEFI Client Backups

June 8, 2015 by 3 Comments

sbse-conI have been reinstalling my lab over the last week or so, moving away from a GUI based Server 2012 running Hyper-V, to the Hyper-V Server 2012 R2 OS. I am also now no longer having to swivel in my chair 90 degrees to manage the VMs, as i have installed the Hyper-V tools on my Desktop PC.

Anyway, as part of the rebuild i trashed all of my existing VMs and have built new ones. Starting with SBS 2011 Essentials. I installed, along side it, 2 clients. Windows 7 and Windows 8. I took advantage of the new Gen2 VM for Windows 8.1 and of course ran into an issue with the client backup.

There has been a hotfix available for this issue since at least 2013, so it was no surprise that i needed to download it. Read more of this post

Filed under Backup, Essentials, SBS E, WIN 8 Tagged with , ,

Windows Server 2012 R2–November Update Rollup

November 13, 2013 by Leave a comment

Logo1Another quick announcement – November UR for 2012 R2, Windows RT 8.1 & Windows 8.1 includes no fewer than 15 fixes for issues that will also affect Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2887595

The most interesting fix to those deploying Essentials R2 may be:

KB 2898803 All client backup settings are removed after you start the Windows Server Essentials Management Service in Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials

Filed under Essentials, General, WIN 8, WSE Tagged with , , ,

Quick Fix : Update SBS2011 Essentials Windows 7 Pro Pack for Windows 8

November 8, 2012 by Leave a comment

sbse-conNice title for a post, hopefully the SEO on that one will kick in.

Had a question come into one of my mailboxes about the Windows 7 Pro Pack and making the GPOs apply to Windows 8.

If you recall, SBS 2011 Essentials launched an Addin to push out some preconfigured GPOs to clients for security settings and folder redirection. I covered the WMI filters in a post about how to extend that functionality to Windows XP and Windows Vista.

Running a GPResult /R on a Win8 client, we can see that our custom GPOs that use WMI filters, are not being applied.

Read more of this post

Filed under General, SBS E, WIN 8 Tagged with , , ,

Enable DirectAccess on Windows Server 2012 Essentials

October 15, 2012 by 125 Comments

Logo

This post is now quite out of date and the instructions within are no longer reliable. Please refer to Microsoft’s own document online for the relevant steps.

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj204618.aspx

One of the coolest improvements in Server 2012, is the simplification of DirectAccess. Not just the steps to enable it, but the requirements for your infrastructure to support it. In the past it was beyond most SMBs due to the need to have 2 consecutive public IPs a dedicated DA server, IP 6to4 translation capable equipment, and not to mention Windows 7 Enterprise, which few SMBs deploy. Moving into the 2012 line of products DA has become much more available to SMBs with the reduction in infrastructure requirements. Taking Essentials as an example, we can now run DA using just a standard Internet connected router, and with just our Essentials box as the DA endpoint.

Read more of this post

Filed under Essentials, General, PowerShell, Tips & Tricks, WIN 8, WSE Tagged with , ,

Installing the Windows 8 Consumer Preview

April 23, 2012 by Leave a comment

windows-8-logoI wanted to dip my toe into the murky water that is Windows 8, but i kind of like my laptop the way it is.

Read more of this post

Filed under General, Tips & Tricks, WIN 8 Tagged with , , ,

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