Tuesday, December 22, 2009

How to Turn Off Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration in Windows Server 2008

The Internet Explorer Enhanced Security config is in not in your standard spot as in Server 2003.

1) Go to Server Manager
2) Select the root folder of the navigation pane for Service Manager
3) Click Configure IE ESC
4) When the dialog box shows up, enable / disable for users and admins.
5) The end :)

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Symantec's PIFTS.exe Update

Symantec released an update March 9th, 2009. This update was not given a digital signature to allow it to clear through Symantec's firewall, so there was an alert that Norton was giving. The alert said that it didn't know what PIFTS.exe was and that it could potentially be dangerous. And no, it was not dangerous.

Well this update has since been pulled by Symantec, however there are many search results in Google giving false information about PIFTS.exe. Most of them are malware / spyware programs attempting to get their claws into the unknowing public.

I am not going to talk about the forum problems Symantec was having. It's not my place to write that story here.

I am just writing a quick note that PIFTS.exe is a Symantec update and there shouldn't be anymore worries about it. Just don't download any programs saying it will fix PIFTS.exe. If you did accidentally did download a piece of malware, then I recommend using Malware Bytes Anti-Malware program. It's the one I use to clean up malware and other crud that shouldn't be in systems.

Thursday, January 22, 2009



I had an issue lately where a user was unable to print from an email in her Inbox. She would open up the email she wanted to print, select file, then print. The print option would not open. It was if she did not hit the print button at all. All the other applications would print ok. It was just inside an open email that would not print.

Below are steps I used to attempt to resolve the issue. I will state right now that she had other OS issues going on so her problem was not resolved. However I did find some good articles and steps to take which may prove more fortunate to others.

First and foremost, I found that I was unable to select different printers in the print option of the email. All the printers were greyed out. It was only after I selected ‘Table mode’ that I was able to switch between other printers. I did not want to print the email in table mode though. I needed the memo mode.

Next I attempted simple techniques. I attempted reinstalling the printer, I tried right clicking the email in the list and selecting print. It was if the memo option for printing did not exist. I did find an obscure Microsoft KB [http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;821297] indicating that there was a known bug for the issue.

I was not about to give up there. I found an Experts-Exchange post which included steps in repairing what seemed to be the exact issue I was having.

Try starting Outlook once with the /cleanviews command line switch.

It could be a problem with your outlprnt file, which you can rebuild:
1. Close Outlook.
2. Click Start > Search.
3. Select All files and folders.
4. In the All or part of the file name box type “Outlprnt” (without the quotes) and then click Search.
5. When the search process is complete, right-click Outlprnt, and then click Rename.
6. Type Outlprnt.old, and then press ENTER.
7. Close the Search window.
8. Restart Outlook 2003.
9. On the File menu, point to Page Setup, and then click Print Styles.
10. Click the Memo style, and then click Close.

If those don’t work, I’d have to suggest a repair/reinstall.

The suggestion from Experts Exchange seemed like it was going to work, however when I attempted a search, I found that the search function on this user’s PC was corrupt and missing. That’s when I decided to reinstall the PC all together.

Although I did not resolve my issue, I hope the steps above will help others with the same problem. I think the ‘Outlprnt’ may have been the issue, however I was unable to verify that problem on my end.

Thursday, November 6, 2008

The registry cannot load the hive (file)



Problem: The following blue screen appears

STOP: c0000218 {Registry File Failure}
The registry cannot load the hive (file):
\SystemRoot\System32\Config\SOFTWARE
or its log or alternate.
It is corrupt, absent, or not writeable.

After the message, the computer automatically reboots.

These solutions assume that you have decent knowledge of the windows directory structure and command line. You must boot into the Windows XP CD and select Recovery Console. This is where the nitty gritty starts.

Solution 1:

cd system32\config
ren software software.bak
copy c:\windows\repair\regback\software

If for any reason, there is no regback (which occurs in many cases), then you will have to use Solution 2.

Solution 2:

cd system32\config
ren software software.bak
copy c:\windows\repair\software

[reboot]

Warning: This second solution will allow Windows to bootup. However it will restore the system to it's first successful installation time. Registry entries will not exist for installed products. If you get to this stage, it is good to perform a System Restore on the computer to an earlier time. If you cannot perform a restore, then you might as well start reinstalling software that is essential.

To my knowledge (as of the time of writing this), If you get to this point, you might as well pull the data you have to get off and reinstall the OS. Otherwise, if you can work around it, then things should of course be peachy.

Any comments and suggestions are welcome. I will modify this article accordingly.

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Dell disables the Stereo Mix



I have seen multiple reports of Dell disabling the stereo mix option or the wave option for recording. People who are attempting to record Skype conversations and such are finding that it will not work.

The reason it has been disabled apparently is because the RIAA has requested it to be disabled to prevent piracy and Dell has programmed their drivers to do so. I personally don't agree to these terms and I won't get into how disappointed I am with Dell.

Anyway, the link below will lead you to a resolution to the problem. I personally don't have a Dell system so I can't verify the functionality of the fix.

http://www.ekhoury.com/2006/08/25/sigmatel-stereo-mix-support-for-dells/

Thursday, December 20, 2007

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Format a Word Without Typing A Document

Have you ever wanted to format your Word Document before you start writing up the document itself? There's a quick and easy way to have Microsoft Word type up a 'dummy' document for you so you can get the formatting done correctly.

First, Open up Word.
(This works in any MS Office 97 and above program).

In Word, have it open a blank document if it hasn't done so already.

Type in '=rand(8,10)' (without the quotes), then hit enter.

Word will type up random sentences according to the input.
The first number ('8'), indicates how many paragraphs you want to make.
The second number ('10') indicates how many sentences you want in each paragraph.

So... for example, if you want to make a document with 9 paragraphs and 4 sentences in each paragraph, you would use this command...

=rand(9,4)

Whether you are writing a newspaper style document or just writing a report, it's sometimes easier document formatted before you begin. It may not be Word's most powerful feature. However it can be a useful one if you don't want to spend all that time formatting a document after it's completed trying to make a deadline.


Format MS Word Without Typing A Document