TTC Shelbyville – Technical Blog

Finally found a small problem with Windows 7.  After upgrading, we have discovered that Windows 7 was responding slow to our SQL Server 2005.  What we discovered is below.

Slow response times in Windows 7 to a SQL Server can be due to the LLMNR protocol.  This may be resolved by turning off the LLMNR protocol.

LLMNR is a protocol that allows both IPv6/4 computers to perform name resolution for the NetBIOS names of other computers without requiring a DNS server.

IPv4 hosts can use NetBIOS over TCP/IP (NetBT) to resolve computer names to IPv4 addresses for neighboring computers by broadcasting a NetBIOS Query.

All IPv4-based LLMNR hosts listen on the IPv4 multicast address 224.0.0.252 instruct their Ethernet network adapters to listen for Ethernet frames with a destination multicast address.

Windows Vista and 7-based LLMNR computers do not send or respond to unicast queries.

To disable LLMNR:

Modify Group Policy – Go to Search – Type GPEdit.msc – Enter – Navigate to the following and make sure Enabled is checked -

Computer Configuration\Administrative Templates\Network\DNS Client
\Turn off Multicast Name Resolution = Enabled

How does Multicasting Work?  Here’s a good explanation

Update -

LLMNR

Dawn M. Babian, GSAE
Instructor

Disabling LLMNR (Below)

Professional or Enterprise (Gpedit.msc)

Home Edition

Create a registry key as follows -

You also should go to your network adapter properties and disable all of the settings under the advanced properties such as TCP/Offload and other advanced settings.  Remember, not all adapters have advanced options – disable any settings that allow you to do so….

Dawn Babian, Instructor gives this shortcut for your performance monitor.  At the search line, type: perfmon /report and hit enter.

Here’s a cool little website to make your photos into sketches.  Link

Another person called and said they lost their drive with critical data on it.  No I can’t trace it.  

Stop and Encrypt Your Flashdrives – take everything off and copy it to your desktop.  Erase the drive.   Install SafeHouse or TrueCrypt.   Now create an encrypted volume on the drive.   A new drive letter will appear.

 Copy your files back on to the drive.  Make sure you create a complex password during the setup.

NTOP builds a database and watches your network traffic.  With detailed information, this installation is fast and easy.

First get the application

http://packages.debian.org/sid/ntop      -   go down to the i386 deb package and install

the next step after the installation is to open the terminal and type the following-

sudo /usr/sbin/ntop -A

type in any password twice

Next start ntop at a terminal

sudo ntop

go to http://localhost:3000

After Brad/Chad and I almost lost our minds installing Etherape on his computer, I know have learned that it can be installed Under the Software apps in Ubuntu.   (Run it as the administrator under the Internet).

As with any operating system, IT professionals should be able to work with multiple operating systems.  Here’s tips on MAC.  LINK  Be sure to look at the free apps section.

or FREE lessons from MAC

BleachBit is a small program designed to:

• Free disk space
• Reduce the size of backups and the time to create them by removing unnecessary files
• Maintain privacy
• Improve system performance (by vacuuming the Firefox database, for example)
• Prepare whole disk images for compression (common for “ghost” backups and virtual machines) by wiping free disk space

If you have an old USB drive, download LAlarm for free and install the software to your laptop or netbook.  Use the drive to secure your laptop to the leg of a chair or table.   Lock your laptop with the Win+L keys and if the drive is removed an alarm sounds.

Here’s a free forensics tool for computers.  Link  Raptor makes an image of your PC or MAC regardless of the OS.

Read the information from CNET on this amazing tool.  CNET article

Blzckbox allow you to benchmark and detect your current hardware.  Link

Microsoft Library on TCP/IP and server roles.  Link

Every time you get a grip on what’s going on in your network, you find out there is sooo much more to learn in information technology.  A great example of that would be:

• DirectAccess: Which gives mobile users seamless access to corporate networks without a need to VPN.
• BranchCache: A product that decreases the time branch office users spend waiting to download files across the network.
• Federated Search: Which helps you to find information in remote repositories, including SharePoint sites.
• AppLocker: Allows you to specify what software is allowed to run on any user’s PCs through centrally managed and flexible Group Policies.

or how about DaRT or AGPM?  A diagnostic and recovery toolset that helps to repair computers and Advanced Group Policy Management.

Did you know Windows 7 was designed specifically for domain usage in Windows Server 2008 R2?  How about Asset Inventory Services?  or even MDOP?

How about Regulatory Compliance?  Have you seen Microsoft’s System Center?   Can you conduct or have you had an IT Audit?

It is not just about repairing a computer anymore…it is vast.  You have to be versatile, flexible, have self initiative and you have to grow and learn.  Everyday.

Should we teach Microsoft Products only in IT?  No.   Although Microsoft runs the IT arena, new IT students should be exposed to MAC and Linux.

Our class grows more complicated every term.  Where we ‘touched’ lightly on Linux, we now install Ubuntu, OpenBSD, Solaris, RedHat and other linux operating systems.  Starting with Ubuntu as an ‘easy’ form of Linux, we now encourage students to install each of these OSs and to become proficient at installing applications, troubleshooting TCP/IP and Linux’s role in a Windows’s environment.

Linux is NOT for everyone yet.   But closing your eyes and hoping it goes away is not a smart way at looking at the future of IT.  Experiment and don’t be scared.

With the same amount of time in class, more topics in our curriculum will have to be covered in a shorter amount of time.

While Ubuntu is the number one growing Linux distro, as we introduce students to this easy to use interface, often they take off and use more complex versions of Linux….

For Ubuntu:

Open a terminal and type sudo echo “gtk-menu-popup-delay = 0″ >> ~/.gtkrc-2.0

For Windows:

Click on Start or the Windows orb, type  regedit, go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\desktop

In the right pane, right click on MenuShowDelay and click on Modify.

Type in a number between 0 to 4000 (400 is default, use 1) for how many milliseconds you want the Menu to wait before it opens. Do NOT use 0.  Close the registry.

Try downloading and installing K-Lite Codecs or

Install VLC Player

Restart Network:
Terminal Window:

sudo /etc/init.d/networking restart

Start Network:
Terminal Window:

sudo /etc/init.d/networking start

Stop Network:
Terminal Window:

sudo /etc/init.d/networking stop

At a terminal windows, type:

sudo apt-get install vlc xine-ui mplayer

installs VLC Player

Computer Online Forensic Evidence Extractor (COFEE)
by Microsoft
Link

Need information about your video card?  Use GPU-Z.

Link