Outlook - Can't Create Attachment Error

Issue:
You regularly attach a file using the same file name. After doing it lots of times it stops working with the error message "Can't Create file: NameOfSomeFile, Right-Click the folder you want to create the file in, and then click properties on the shortcut menu to check your permissions for the folder"



Quick: Delete files from Outlook temp folder. Exact path varies but should look like c:\Documents and Settings\YourUserName\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\OLK1D8 Delete all the temp files in this folder.


Visual:

You see in the Outlook Temp folder the file you are trying to attach listed 99 times.

Learning:

Every time you attach a file Outlook makes a copy of that file in the Outlook temp folder. Outlook calls out the "Can't Create file:..." error after you get up to 99 copies of the same file in the temp folder. The easy fix is to just delete these temporary files.

If you can not find the Outlook temp folder, do a search for it. Go to the Start menu, On the Run line enter regedit and select OK, edit menu, select find, check only the Values box and search for OutlookSecureTempFolder. This should find the registry entry with the exact path to the Outlook temp folder.

Add Mail Domain 2 - Telnet Testing

Issue:
Verifying that mail is working on your new email domain using telnet to port 25

Quick/Visual/Learning:
You probably do not have mx records pointed at your mail server for the new domain so use the telnet command to test connectivity with the mail server.

At a command prompt type:
telnet
set local_echo
open ServerNameOrIpAddress 25 (response 220 site.company.com....)

This puts you in a telnet session. Turning on local echo allows you to see what you are typing. If you have never had the experience; you can get connected to a telnet session and have all your typed text be invisible (not displayed on the screen). Everything still works but it makes the job more difficult. After the open command you are connected to your mail server and sending mail commands just as if it were coming from an outside mail server. If you make a mistake typing just hit enter and start over on that command, as backspaces are not understood.
FYI- if you need to break out of the telnet session with the mail server use the control right bracket key sequence to get out. "CNTL-]" this will dump you back to the telnet window where you can use the "open or o" command to try again.

Continue on with the following commands (you should see responses from the server):

ehlo test.com (response 250 OK)
mail from:YourValidMailAccount@Company.com (response 250 OK - MAIL FROM ...)
rcpt to:YourAccount@NewMailDomainName.com (response 250 OK - Recipient ...)

Use ehlo or helo to tell the server what server is trying to connect. Use a valid address for the "mail from" part so that if it does not work you should get a bounce message back to your mailbox. The rcpt to: part is where you put the address of your mailbox using the new email domain name you are trying to test.
The next command is the word "data" on a line by itself:

data (response 354 Send data...)

No responses will come for the following commands
From: "Bob Example" <bob@example.org>
To: Alice Example <alice@example.com>
Cc: theboss@example.com
Date: Tue, 15 Jan 2008 16:02:43 -0500
Subject: Test message
Body of test message
. (period and enter key on blank line - response 250 OK)
Quit (response 221 closing connection)


OK, you do not need the lines From:, To:, Cc:, and Date:
For a quick test message I usually just put the line -> Subject:test
Next you have to put a period on a line all by itself (this signals the end of the message)
Type quit on the next line to end the session and the message should get sent.

If this all works you should be OK as long as outside mail server can connect to your smtp mail server. You just need to have you MX records for the mail domain pointed at your server so that mail can come in from outside.

Here is a link to some information about MX records.

Add Mail Domain 1 - Update Mailboxes

Issue:
Company re-branding requires change to MS Exchange email addresses.

Quick:
Add domain name to users with recipient Policy.

Visual/Learning:
In Exchange System Manager, Select Recipient Policies, right click on "Default Policy" and select properties. Click New... button to add a new address. In this case I added an SMTP address "@a-test.com". Check the box next to the new address and click OK to apply the change.



After changing the policy right click it and select "Apply this Policy Now"
You can force the changes by doing an update. Navigate to the "Recipient Update Service", right click on Recipient Update Service for your domain. Select "Update Now"





You may need to wait 20 minutes or so before you will be able to send mail using the new domain name.

Go To - Add Mail Domain 2

Outlook.exe task does not close

Issue:

You close Outlook and all office applications but the outlook.exe process is still running under processes.

Quick:

Disable antivirus add-ins, Tools => Options => Other tab => "Advanced Options..." => "Add-In Manager..." => Un-check any antivirus addins.

Visual:

Learning:
Anitivirus programs that scan Outlook email messages may keep Outlook from closing out completely. This will hold pst files open and keep files locked until the process is ended. You should always be careful not to open suspicious attachments anyway, so you should be able to disable the Outlook hook.

Wiping Blackberry Phone

Issue:
Here is how to wipe the data from a Balckberry Pearl phone. Probably works for other models as well.

Quick/Visual/Learning: Go to Options / Security Settings / General Settings, then click the Menu button and choose "Wipe Handheld". You will be asked to enter the word Blackberry to confirm you want to wipe the device.

Link to Blackberry Pearl Tips Site

Windows Dynamic DNS Not Updating Client IPs

Issue:
Machines do not update their IP addresses on Windows 2003 Dyanamic DNS.

Quick:

Machine SID has changed and can not update the DNS record. Go into dns and delete the entry for the machine. The machine will automatically register with the correct IP address.

Visual /Learning:

I found some information that helped me here:
http://hdsurvivor.blogspot.com/2006/05/event-id-11163-dnsapi-error.html


----- Text from link to hdsurvivor.blogspot.com ------
Troubleshooting a PC today, that had numerous DnsApi errors in the System event log. The WinXP client was unable to update its host record on the DNS server. The whole error message is listed below. The error was caused by a host record security problem. Our DNS is Active Directory integrated. We allow only secure updates. When a client boots up, gets an IP via DHCP, it then sends a request to the DNS server to create a host record. The reason why it fails, is because the host record already exists, but the WinXP client doesn't have permissions to change it. This particular machine had been imaged recently, and after running sysprep, the machines old domain account was deleted, and a new one was created with a different SID. When I open the DNS console, then the machine's host record, on the security tab was one of those ? {1-5-512-5464} type SID entries, that you commonly see on a security tab in Windows, when the account no longer exists. Well, in this case, it was a computer account, not a user account. After I deleted the host record and reverse-lookup records, I rebooted the client and no more errors in the System event log. Of course, you can also use the ipconfig /registerdns command and get the same results. Note that in the error message below, there is a line that says "Sent update to server: 172.1.1.1", which I thought was important, but its not, its just a red herring. I have no idea why it says that, but that is not the root of the error.
*************************************************************WarningSource: Dns
ApiEvent ID: 11163
Event Time: 5/23/2006 9:00:44 AM
User: n/a
Computer: Somecomputer
Description:
The system failed to register host (A) resource records (RRs) for network adapter with settings:
Adapter Name : {28442B0F-5CC5-4833-B293-823C9FF43614}
Host Name : somecomputer
Primary Domain Suffix : Domain.local
DNS server list :172.27.0.100, 172.27.0.101
Sent update to server : 172.1.1.1
IP Address(es) :172.27.1.132

The reason the system could not register these RRs was because theDNS server failed the update request. The most likely cause of this is that the authoritative DNS server required to process this updaterequest has a lock in place on the zone, probably because a zone transfer is in progress.You can manually retry DNS registration of the network adapter and its settings by typing "ipconfig /registerdns" at the command prompt.If problems still persist, contact your DNS server or network systems administrator.*****************************************************
------- End Of TEXT from Link ------------

Vista - Check Disk Problems

Issue:
Problems with Check Disk in Vista running all the time or not at all.

Quick:
Set registry BootExecute value to => autocheck autochk *

Visual/Learning:
Saw this tip on the TechRepublic site byGreg Shultz :
-----Text from site-----
To fix the problem requires that you modify the registry. Since editing the registry can be a dangerous operation, it is important that you back it up before you begin.

To launch the Registry Editor, press [Windows]+R to open the Run dialog box. Then type regedit.exe in the Open text box and click OK. You’ll then encounter a UAC and will need to respond appropriately.

When you see the Registry Editor, navigate to the following folder:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESystemCurrentControlSetControlSession Manager

When you get there, locate the BootExecute value... the default value data of BootExecute value should be

autocheck autochk *

If it reads anything else, simply overwrite the entry with the default value data.

To complete the operation, click OK to close the Edit Multi-String dialog box, close the Registry Editor, and restart your system. Once your system restarts, you can return to the Check Disk GUI, select both the Automatically Fix File System Errors check box and the Scan For And Attempt Recovery Of Bad Sectors check box and click Start. When the system restarts, Check Disk should run normally.

...if resetting the BootExecute value to its default value doesn’t solve the problem and Check Disk runs again at startup, it is possible that the Dirty Bit is stuck. To check the status of the Dirty Bit, you’ll use the Fsutil command.



To begin, right-click on the Command Prompt shortcut and select the Run As Administrator command. When you encounter a UAC, you will need to respond appropriately. Then type:

Fsutil dirty query Y:

Where Y: is the drive letter on your system. The result should tell you that the drive is dirty.

At this point, you’ll use the Chkntfs command to disable the Check Disk operation for the next startup. Type:

Chkntfs /x Y:

Where Y: is the drive letter on your system. The result should tell you that the file system is NTFS.

To continue, close the Command Prompt and restart your system. When your system restarts, it should boot right into Windows — you should not see Check Disk attempt to run. However, if it does, you should open a Command Prompt window and launch Check Disk in full repair mode. Type:

Chkdsk /f /r Y:

Where Y: is the drive letter on your system.

You’ll then be prompted to schedule Check Disk to run at startup. To continue, type Y and press [Enter]. Then, restart Windows and allow Check Disk to run at startup. When it does, it should properly reset the Dirty Bit and Windows should start normally from this point forward.
-----End Text from site-----

Can Not Save To Contact Public Folder

Issue:

You have created a public folder for company contact information but are unable to create a distribution list in the folder. (or perhaps drag contact to the folder).

Error messages:

"The item could not be saved to this folder. The folder has been deleted or moved, or you do not have permission"

or

"Can't move the items. The item could not be moved. It was either already moved or deleted, or access was denied"

Quick: Right click folder => properties => Forms tab => Select "Any Form"

Visual:

Learning:

The error comes about because the folder is set to use "Only Forms listed above". If the folder is set this way you will be unable to create distribution lists in the folder because distribution lists use a form that is different form the custom form specified. Also if you drag a contact from a folder that uses the default contact form to this public folder you will get an error.

Cisco - Add/Remove VLAN Port

Issue:
You need to add or remove a port from a VLAN. In this case the switch is a 2950.

Quick/Visual/Learning:
Telnet to the Switch.
"en" to enter enabled mode
"config t" to enter config mode
"interface fast 0/19" In this example I am configuring port 19
"switchport access vlan 2" In this example I am adding port 19 to VLAN 2

To remove a port from a vlan follow the above steps but on the last step enter:
"no switchport access vlan 2"

Word - Copy Mailing Labels

Issue:
You have custom labels that you would like to copy to a new computer or user.

Quick:
Export label setting from registry HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\9.0\Word\Custom Labels. Click on the .reg file to import it onto the new computer.

Visual:


Learning:
This will probably only work for exporting from and to the same version of Word. In this case the export was done on Word 2000.

From Windows go to Start => Run => enter regedit
Locate the key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\9.0\Word\Custom Labels
Note that this will only be there if you have created a custom label.
Select "Custom Labels" folder => Registry menu => "Export Registry File...",
Give it a name and click the Save button
Now you can click on this saved file.reg to import the setting to the new computer or user.

Good Guide to TCP/IP

Issue:
Have a question about TCP/IP.

Quick/Visual/Learning:
Here is a link to the table of contents of a very Detailed Guide at tcpipguide.com

Exchange Add Hidden Mailbox

Issue:

After hidding an account of a terminated user, I needed to add the account to the managers mailbox for monitoring of business related mail.

Quick:

Use the Legacy Exchange DN from acitive directory.

Visual/Learning:

Normally this would be just a matter of adding rights to the mailbox under AD Users and Computers => Properties => Exchange Advanced Tab => Mailbox Rights... button, and then adding the mailbox to the managers Outlook account under Tools => Email Accounts => "View or change existing email accounts" => Change Button => More Setting button => Advanced Tab => Add button to add the mailbox from the Global Address List (GAL). But when the account is hidden you do not see it in the GAL listing.

You can still add the maibox by using the Legacy Exchange DN from acitive directory. Now how to find out what it is. The sure fire way is to export the information from Active Directory (see below), but you may be able to guess what it is without doing the export.

Guessing method:

First open Exchange Manager and look at the Org name and the Administrative Group name.

Now you should be able to create a text string like you see below. Replace ORG with the name of you Exchange organization. If the administrative group name is different replace that as well. Also put the users alias at the end as shown. You can find the alias in Active Directory Users and Computers on the Exchange General tab.

Now just type of copy that string into the add mailbox window and the account should get added.

If that did not work you can export Active Directory information using the following command on the Exchange Server, where exportfile.ldf is the file you are exporting to and DomainServer is the name of a domain controller on your network.

You may get a lot of stuff in the file depending on the size of your Active Directory, but you should be able to find a legacyExchangeDN for the hidden account that looks like this: