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Overview
This document is an introduction to enterprise computing capabilities offered by Microsoft as compared to UNIX technology. Its goal is to disclose how the Microsoft Windows platform can be an effective alternative to UNIX. For each of the criteria that are traditionally associated with successful UNIX installations—high reliability, robust security, and high performance—, the text:

Describes how each of these features is traditionally delivered in the UNIX environment
Explains how the features are provided in the Windows Server System at either the same or a higher level of service
Mentions the tools available to achieve the desired service level

Readers will get an overview of the Microsoft enterprise platform that focuses on the Windows Server System and the Windows development environment. Final sections of the document point to available prescriptive guidance and available support for platform migration and subsequent operation.

The primary intended audiences for this guide are IT business and technical decision makers who are considering a migration, and technical and solution architects, UNIX developers, and UNIX system administrators who may be involved in its design and implementation.

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Overview
This update resolves problems that were found in Exchange 2003 since Exchange 2003 SP1 was released. Click the More Information About This Download link in the Related Resources section for a list of the fixes that are included in this update.

Microsoft KB 883543 - The S/MIME control does not load in OWA when you are running the Exchange Server 2003 OWA client on a Windows XP Service Pack 2-based computer

Download update here...

The Microsoft Exchange Information Store service quits after a version conflict is detected in a public folder post in Exchange Server 2003

On your Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 computer, the Microsoft Exchange Information Store service may quit unexpectedly. You may experience this problem soon after a version conflict is detected in a public folder post.

This problem occurs because of heap corruption in Exchange. This problem may occur if the following conditions are true:

• The Exchange diagnostics logging level is set to 5 on the MSExchangeIS\Public Folders\Replication Conflicts object.
• Exchange detects a version conflict in a public folder post. However, only one change number is associated with this version conflict.

This problem occurs in the Exchange event logging code. In this scenario, the event logging code incorrectly expects two change numbers to be involved in every version conflict. If only one change number is involved in a version conflict, the heap becomes corrupted. Soon after the heap becomes corrupted, the Microsoft Exchange Information Store service may quit.

Typically, a version conflict does involve two change numbers. Each of these two change numbers corresponds to an uncommitted change to the information store. However, in the following sample scenario, only one change number is involved in a version conflict:

• Two Microsoft Outlook users modify the same message. However, one Outlook user modifies this message while the user is connected to the Exchange computer. The second Outlook user modifies this message while the user is not connected to the Exchange computer.
• The offline Outlook user synchronizes Outlook with the Exchange computer.

In this scenario, the online Outlook user's change to the message is committed to the information store. Therefore, there is no change number for the version conflict for this message. The second Outlook user's change is not committed to the information store until that second user synchronizes Outlook with Exchange. Therefore, there is only one change number that is involved in the version conflict for this message.

Microsoft  KB 884547

Ever wanted to change start point of Windows Explorer (for example C:\tools instead of "My Documents")?

Simply create a new shortcut with: %SystemRoot%\explorer.exe /e,C:\tools

If there are spaces between folder names put the folder name between quotes. For example: %SystemRoot%\explorer.exe /e,"C:\My Tools"

Simple as that ;-)

Gentoo is proud to present the world with Gentoo Linux 2004.3!

This is the final release of 2004 and is the culmination of the work of each of our developers. The main focus for this release was fixing bugs in previous releases and making the release tools more robust and easier to use. Releasing for 2004.3 are amd64, hppa, ppc, sparc, x86 and also our initial ppc64 release. There is also an experimental alpha release, along with stages for ia64 and s390. The embedded team has also released stages for arm, mips, ppc, and x86, all which can be found under /experimental. You can find out more about 2004.3 by checking out the release page or reading the ChangeLog.

Some points of interest include:

• amd64 and ppc switching to gcc 3.4 as their compiler of choice
• sparc releasing only sparc64 media
• amd64 and x86 switching to a single kernel for the LiveCD

You can grab the new release from one of our mirrors or via BitTorrent at our primary or secondary secondary torrent trackers. The secondary server is provided by Friends of Gentoo e.V.

Overview
Microsoft Virtual PC 2004 Service Pack 1 (SP1) contains the latest software updates for Microsoft Virtual PC 2004 that improve the reliability, performance and manageability of Virtual PC. Updates have been made to improve the performance of Windows XP Service Pack 2 as a guest in Virtual PC, to improve the manageability of virtual machines when used with SMS 2003 Service Pack 1, and to provide support for running Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition as the host operating system.

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So promising... :(

Exchange Server All-In-One Tools Download

Date Published: 9/21/2004
Version: 06.05.7408 

Overview
This package contains all the Exchange tools packaged together in a single download.
Tools that have been updated since the release of this package are noted with an asterisk and can be downloaded separately from Microsoft Exchange home page.

Download tools here...

Exchange Server 2003 Security Hardening Guide

Date Published: 9/21/2004
Version: 2.0
 

Overview
This guide is designed to provide you with essential information about how to harden your Microsoft® Exchange Server 2003 environment. In addition to practical, hands-on configuration recommendations, this guide includes strategies for combating spam, viruses, and other external threats to your Exchange 2003 messaging system. While most server administrators can benefit from reading this guide, it is designed to produce maximum benefits for administrators responsible for Exchange messaging, both at the mailbox and architect levels.
This guide is a companion to the Windows Server 2003 Security Guide. Specifically, many of the procedures in this guide are related directly to security recommendations introduced in the Windows Server 2003 Security Guide. Therefore, before you perform the procedures presented in this guide, it is recommended that you first read the Windows Server 2003 Security Guide.

Download guide here...

This tool is really cool... sometimes... ;-)

Overview
The Exchange Server Best Practices Analyzer programmatically collects settings and values from data repositories such as Active Directory, registry, metabase and performance monitor. Once collected, a set of comprehensive ‘best practice’ rules are applied to the topology.
Administrators running this tool will get a detailed report listing the recommendations that can be made to the environment to achieve greater performance, scalability and uptime.

Download it here...

German teen who made Sasser worm hired by computer security firm

Eighteen-year-old Sven Jaschan has been taken on by the Securepoint computer firm based in Lueneburg, northern Germany and is being trained to make firewalls, which stop suspect files from entering computer systems.

Read the rest @Yahoo! News

Man Held in England in Cisco Code Theft

A 20-year-old man has been arrested in England in the theft of the proprietary software blueprints used by Cisco Systems Inc.'s networking equipment, police and the company confirmed.
About 800 megabytes of the software blueprint, or source code, for Cisco's Internetwork Operating System appeared on a Russian Web site in May. It was quickly removed at Cisco's request. The company said the theft was not the result of a software or service vulnerability.

Read the rest @Yahoo! News