Archive for ‘General Technology Discussion’

November 26th, 2011

Virtual PC on Multiple Monitors

Ok, I finally decided to write my own post on the subject of how to configure Windows Virtual PC, and/or Windows XP Mode, to run in multiple monitors.  Why another article.  Simple, I searched high and low and managed to find bits and pieces, but no one seemed to give all the information, and certainly not clearly.  I thought I’d share a simple, visual, step by step illustration of what I did to make it work for me.

As I have found out, it can be done, and it isn’t very hard to accomplish, but it does come at a little cost.  Why Microsoft does not have a span multiple monitors setting directly in the Virtual Machine Settings beats me and based on the number of posts, why they still have not come out with an update or new version, bloes my mind.  Regardless, we have a round about way to make it happen, and here is how to implement it.

The process involves using Remote Desktop to connect to our Virtual PC/Virtual Machine.  Since Virtual PC/Virtual Machine does not allow multiple monitors we will benefit from Remote Desktop’s ability to do so instead.

 

  1. Before being able to use the remote desktop, we first need to configure our Virtual Machine to allow a Remote Desktop Connection.  Go to your Virtual Machines folder, select the Virtual Machine that you wish to configure to work using multiple monitors and click on the Settings button in the nav bar
    Virtual Machines Folder View
  2. Select the Networking heading and then ensure that your network adapter is one of your computer’s physical network adapter and not ‘Shared Networking (NAT)’ (for instance).  By doing so, when your Virtual Machine is launched it will take an IP address, thus allowing us to make a Remote Desktop connection.
    Virtual Machines Networking Settings
  3. Select the Logon Credentials heading and click on the Delete Saved Credentials (first ensure you have this information somewhere username and password otherwise you will not be able to log back into your Virtual Machine).An alternative to this is to leave the logon credential as is, and open your vitrual machine normally and then log out of it immediately.
    Virtual Machines Logon Credentials Settings
  4. Start Windows Run Command
    Windows 7 Run Command
  5. Start Remote Desktop by issuing the mstsc.exe /span command
    Windows 7 Run Command to Launch Remote Destop Spanning Multiple Monitors
  6. On the General Tab -> Logon Settings, enter the computer name of your Virtual Machine in the Computer control and then your Virtual Machines’ logon username in the User name control.  Notice how I also include the computer name in the User name control to enure that the proper domain is used for authentication.
    Remote Deskptop Logon Settings
  7. On the General Tab -> Display Configuration, ensure the Use all my monitors for the remote session checkbox is checked.
    Remote Deskptop Display Configuration Settings

Finally, click Connect.

 

A few things to keep in mind for this to work

  1. Your monitors must be configured to all be using the same resolution! Furthermore, I have read that the combined resolution of all your monitors must not exceed 4096 x 2048 pixels.
  2. You must set your Windows Firewall to allow Remote Desktop Connections as an exception (by default it is not allowed)
  3. You must be actively connected to your network for the Virtual Machine to take an IP address to be able to connect to with Remote Desktop.  There is a mean to not be required to be connected to a network by using the ‘Microsoft Loopback adapter’.  I will investigate this in the near future and post back with the results.

 

Drawbacks to this method

Beside having to take these extra steps to accomplish what I deem should have been a normal feature to include in Microsoft’s Virtual PC, this solution does present 3 distinct drawbacks:

  1. You have to have to be connected to a network.  This isn’t too big a deal since I doubt your travel with a second monitor!  As such, you will typically be using this technique in office, so you should have network access.
  2. Your monitors have to have the exact same resolution
  3. The computer will consider the 2 monitors, 1 giant monitor.  So this means, windows snapping will no longer work and maximizing an application will make it span both monitors.  So you will manually have to resize your applications within your screen.

 

Alternative Solutions

So what other solutions are available, instead of jumping through all these steps… to enable a make shift dual monitor functionality with Virtual Machines.  Well, the solution is to switch Virtualization Software.  For Instamce, VMWare supports multiple monitors at the click of a button ‘Cycle multiple monitors’.  If you need true multi-monitor support, perhaps you need to look beyond what Microsoft is currently offering and hopefully they will update the application to support it natively in the future (One can hope!).

 

I hope this article saves you some of the time and frustrations I had trying to get this to work!

 

Below are a few links that helped me figure everything out, along with a few helpful posts in the Virtual PC forum:
Using Virtual PC with Multiple Monitors, Sort Of
Virtual PC on two monitors without additional software
VPC 2007 Dual Monitor support

 

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November 16th, 2011

Windows 7 Home Edition Connection to UNIX Server

The following article discusses editing your computer’s registry. Such action may lead to serious issue with your computer if not done properly. This website and it’s contributor’s assumes none responsibility for any of the information provided. Follow these steps at your own risk!

I was recently helping a colleague who had hit a wall with regards to configuring a client’s new computer which was running Windows 7 Home Edition with their Unix file server and database server (heart of their business).

Now, if you perform a search online, you will find numerous articles which explain that you can in fact connect Windows 7 to a UNIX server, but you have to ‘dumb it down a little’. To do so, you need to make 2 modifications to your Security Policies.

Go to Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Local Security Policy (Or Run secpol.msc)
Local Policies – Security Options

Locate the Network security: LAN Manager authentication level Policy
Change the Local Security Setting to Send LM & NTLM responses

Locate the Minimum session security for NTLM SSP Policy
Uncheck the Local Security Setting Require 128-bit encryption property

The problem is the fact that this may work if you are running Windows 8 Professional or Ultimate, but on Windows 7 Home Edition, the Local Security Policy Management Console is not available. So what is one to do?

Well, you can get around this problem, but you must edit 2 registry keys!

Navigate to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Lsa Key and then create a new DWord Key

ValueName: LmCompatibilityLevel
ValueData: 1
Base: Hexadecimal

Navigate to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\control\LSA\MSV1_0 registry key and edit the NtlmMinClientSec Key and change it to 0

Finally, reboot your computer. You should now be able to access your UNIX server files without the never ending login prompt…

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March 10th, 2011

Microsoft Answer Forum – Take 2 in Review

Below is a post I made regarding Microsoft’s latest update to the Microsoft Answer Forum. I think it speaks for itself. Ultimately, MS seems to have tried to make something visually appealing rather than functional and useful. Let me know your opinion!

 

Disappointing, Another Step in the Wrong Direction

When I heard that Version 2.0 was going to be implemented, I was looking forward to it. I thought MS finally listened to its users and was going to remedy the various bugs in Version 1.0. Sadly this has not been the case. Rather you have choosen to basically throw us a new forum. So we are back at the beginning, again.

Esthetics, well some people will like the colors, layout, …, some won’t… this is a personal question. The site is less cluttered, I guess that is a positive point.

Functionality, now that is another issue.

  • Why is it, yet again, our profiles (signature in my case) did not follow in this new version? And why is the signature field reduced from the last version?
  • Still experiencing latency, poor performance, no response…
  • What happened to inline reply? Now one has to, one by one, enter each post to read it and then reply. Then return to the main page… This is ridiculous!!! MS has taken 10 steps back on ease of use from this stand point.
  • What happened to being able to read the entire post inline. The pop-up feature is a joke.
  • Why the change in the point system? Why have a point system altogether?
  • What happend to posting questions easily? Now I enter a question, no wait that is supposed to be a title!? Confusing! then when I press ask, it brings me to another window… Then I press ask again! and I finally get to a proper windows to enter my question!? WOW!!! Now that is what I call obvious and user-friendly.
  • What happened to the unanswer button? A post has been marked as answered and yet it isn’t?
  • Similarily, what happened to the Propose as an answer button?
  • We still cannot include <code> tags, so so much for addressing user requests.
  • We still cannot insert images, or attach files unless we post them on 3rd party servers and know enough about HTML to code it ourselves (which most users will not).
  • Why is the NNTP Bridge no longer supported?
  • Why is it when you perform a search there is no date information relative to the thread?
  • Why is the page navigation only for 1 page forward or 1 page backward? What happened to a series of page number 1 through say 20? Why can’t I jump 10 pages? Everything has been done to limit our ability to work!
  • Why is it that the filter controls (Forum, Office Version, Office Topic, …) do not appear/work in alternate browsers such as Firefox? IE is no longer the only browser available to users. UPDATE — Now it appears they are working.

On a side note, I must say I was amused how MS’ announcement go over top of the search bar… So in fact, if you don’t know any better, and this being a new version… user will not realize how to manoeuver the site and probably close it!

As an MVP, I enjoy coming to this site to help others. I enjoy the challenge of solving the various questions put forth by others, sadly, MS has made it more challenging to use their new forum then to actually interact and answer the questions.

The entire process of having 2 new versions in 6 months (or so) and making your user adapt, adapt to new layout, change in functionalities show truly poor planning and a lack of respect for your end-user, or let’s be frank your clients.

With the number of exisiting proven forum applications why did MS feel the need to try an create their own? Why have these attempts been done so half heartedly?

Disappointing.

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June 23rd, 2010

What happened to Microsoft’s Newgroups/Forum

Many, Many, Many people have been asking what happened to Microsoft’s Discussion groups that used to be found at http://www.microsoft.com/office/community/en-us/default.mspx.

Sadly, in their infinite (or is that finite) wisdom, Microsoft terminated those groups which had been around for decades and replace it with their ‘new’ and ‘improved’ forums found at http://social.answers.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/group/Office.

 

Why the Dismay?

There are a number of reasons why I am discontent with this migration move.

  • One of the greatest problems is that they didn’t migrate, but rather shutdown and moved. Which means everything that was previously done, just disappeared over night. You can’t go and look up old posts….
  • If you are an MS Access forum user, then you’ll be disgusted with the simple fact that not only did we loose our categories (forms, queries, reports,…), but Access has been thrown into a common group with Visio and InfoPath… While Excel,… and others retained their own groups, Access has been simply tossed in with numerous other applications? If this is the importance that Microsoft places on its own software, then no wonder users are turning to alternate forums.
  • Another disappointing aspect of the new forum is simply that not all the functionalities actually work (Insert Code for instance). It seems like it was implemented before it was properly tested. Furthermore, months after flagging certain issues, nothing has been fixed!?
  • And then there are all the minor annoyances, such as:
    • If you are on a post and click on the reply button (when you aren’t signed in yet), sign in, you do not get returned to the post you were wanting to reply to… This worked in the old forum. Why in …. name couldn’t they make it work in the new ‘improved’ one!?
    • Sometimes, when you choose to edit a post, the post goes blank!? Your previous post content disappears.

There are many more reasons, but in reality there is no point going on as MS will not change a thing it does. That said, it is because of this that the vast majority of users have simply opted to migrate to alternative groups such as UtterAccess, Yahoo, …

MS’s reasoning, from what I understood, was they wanted to revive their groups, but in fact, from my experience, the numbers have been dropping since their ‘improvement’. The simple fact is that Microsoft chose to ignore the input of countless users, MVPS; the people that use and promote their software. To me it makes no sense! They have no one to blame but themselves for the decline in usage and migration to alternative forums.

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