Fix for Citrix XenApp Published Apps Disabling Windows Visual Effects

A lot of time One of the minor issues I have encountered is that the Connection Center component of the Citrix Plugin client disables some of the visual effects at log on in Windows including the “Animate Window Minimizing and Maximizing” setting.  I have also noticed that the “Show Windows Contents While Dragging” setting also sometimes gets deactivated.  Having these disabled if you are using the Aero interface is particularly unattractive. To...

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Enable or Disable Hibernate

Enable or Disable Hibernate Through Command PromptUsing the Command Prompt might be the easiest way to enable or disable Hibernation. Click on Start and type CMD into the search box and it will be listed under programs. Right-click on the icon and select Run as administrator. The Command Prompt opens and you will use the following to enable Hibernation.powercfg /hibernate on Type in the following to disable hibernation.powercfg /hibernate off Disable...

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Applying a default host profiles in vSphere 5.1 cluster fails

I was playing around with host profiles in my vSphere 5.1 home lab today. It was easy enough to create a baseline by selecting a given host in a cluster. But, without having changed anything, when I tried to check for compliance I received the following error:"A general system error occurred: Failed to run Execute operation on esxi-hostname.domain.net: IP address '192.168.1.x' is used for multiple virtual NICs"I was pretty sure that I had only...

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Improved vMotion in vSphere 5.1 - data moving vMotion

I heard about the new and improved data moving vMotion in the VMworld keynote and wanted to try it out in the home lab. The improvement consists of vSphere being able to perform a simultaneous vMotion+svMotion so you can change both datastore and host at the same time.I was expecting this feature to be available from the vSphere client by right clicking the VM and choosing 'migrate'. However, this is not the case. The option is there but it...

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Enabling 64-bit VMs on nested ESXi 5.1

In my home lab, I have a 2-node cluster with two virtual ESXi 5.1. When I tried to boot a 64-bit on these hosts I received the following error:"Longmode is unsupported. It is required for 64-bit guest OS support. On Intel systems, longmode requires VT-x to be enabled in the BIOS. On nested virtual ESX hosts, longmode requires the "Virtualized Hardware Virtualization" flag to be enabled on the outer VM."I seem to remember that in version 5.0 you...

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vSphere web client - failed to connect to VMware lookup service

Yesterday, I installed the vCenter 5.1 vCenter Virtual Appliance in my home lab. It went fairly smooth, however, I couldn't connect to the vSphere web client. I received the following error:Failed to connect to VMware Lookup Service - https://localhost:7444/lookupservice/sdkI found a VMware KB indicating that there could be something wrong with the SSL certificate - because I had changed the FQDN of the appliance after initial setup.That seemed a little overkill as the appliance should work or at least you should be able to reconfigure it.The...

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Activating and using VMware PSO credits

For the second time, in my company, we've negotiated a rather large ELA agreement with VMware (ultimately via a reseller) which includes buying a bunch of new licenses and then renewing SnS for the existing ones. With this ELA, there are quite a lot of PSO (Professional Services Organisation) credits that come with the agreement. First time it took us a while to figure out what to use them for, and now the second time it still creates confusion...

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How to block flash videos using Squid proxy Server

One popular example is to block flash video, used by sites such as Youtube.The MIME type for such content is "video/x-flv". Creating an ACL to block this is easy.First, create an ACL which matches the MIME type in question:acl deny_rep_mime_flashvideo rep_mime_type video/x-flvThen create a HTTP Reply ACL which denies any replies with that MIME type:http_reply_access deny deny_rep_mime_flashvideoThis has been verified to block Youtube flash video...

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HowTo Allow windows updates through squid

Add the following to your squid.conf, It 'MUST' be added near the top before any ACL that require authentication.acl windowsupdate dstdomain windowsupdate.microsoft.comacl windowsupdate dstdomain .update.microsoft.comacl windowsupdate dstdomain download.windowsupdate.comacl windowsupdate dstdomain redir.metaservices.microsoft.comacl windowsupdate dstdomain images.metaservices.microsoft.comacl windowsupdate dstdomain c.microsoft.comacl windowsupdate dstdomain www.download.windowsupdate.comacl windowsupdate dstdomain wustat.windows.comacl windowsupdate...

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Block mp3, mpg, mpeg, exe files using Squid proxy server

First open squid.conf file /etc/squid/squid.conf: # vi /etc/squid/squid.confNow add following lines to your squid ACL section: acl blockfiles urlpath_regex “/etc/squid/multimedia.files.acl”Now create the the file # vi /etc/squid/multimedia.files.acl\.[Ee][Xx][Ee]$\.[Aa][Vv][Ii]$\.[Mm][Pp][Gg]$\.[Mm][Pp][Ee][Gg]$\.[Mm][Pp]3$Save and close the file and Restart Squid: # /etc/init.d/squid rest...

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HowTo Clean and Re-build Squid cache

First, Check you squid.conf fileand locate the location of you cache directory, you should have line starting with "cache_dir"1) Shutdown your squid serversquid -k shutdown2) Remove the cache directoryrm -r /squid/cache/*3) Re-Create the squid cache directorysquid -z4) Start the squid...

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squid configuration : ACL's based on MAC address

There are many times that client are having dynamic ip address (assigned by DHCP server) and in this cases it's hard to set any rules on bases of ip address as, you would not know what ip address the client machine be getting, in such case we could use mac based ACL's to set up any rules on that particular machine. # vi /etc/squid/squid.conf Look for acl section and append ACL as follows:acl mac1 arp 00:11:22:70:44:90 acl mac2 arp 00:11:22:33:44:55 http_access allow mac1 http_access allow mac2 http_access deny...

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Squid Password Authentication Using NCSA

You can configure Squid to prompt users for a username and password. Squid comes with a program called ncsa_auth that reads any NCSA-compliant encrypted password file.1) Create the password file. The name of the password file should be /etc/squid/squid_passwd, and you need to make sure that it’s universally readable.# touch /etc/squid/squid_passwd# chmod o+r /etc/squid/squid_passwd2) Use the htpasswd program to add users to the password file. You can add users at anytime without having to restart Squid. In this case, you add a username called...

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cachemgr (Cache Manager) configuration for Squid

The cache manager (cachemgr.cgi) is a CGI utility comes with squid for displaying statistics about the squid process as it runs. The cache manager is a convenient way to manage the cache and view statistics without logging into the serverTo make this configuration you need a webserver (Apache) running and configured.1) Try to locate your cachemgr.cgi file which comes with the squid package, this can be done using rpm -ql command (different distro...

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Squid Password Authentication Using PAM

We’ll be using the pam_auth module. This will allow anyone who has a shell account to also be able to use the Squid server. Search for the auth_param section in the config and add these lines:auth_param basic program /usr/lib/squid/pam_authauth_param basic children 5auth_param basic realm Squid proxy-caching web serverauth_param basic credentialsttl 2 hoursNext search for this line and uncomment it:acl password proxy_auth REQUIREDNow create a pam module called /etc/pam.d/squid that contains:auth required /lib/security/pam_unix.soaccount...

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Configure Squid to use other Proxy (cache)

If you want Squid to be part of a hierarchy of proxies or want Squid to fetch content from another proxycache_peer proxy.isp.com parent 8080 0 no-query no-digest ever_direct allow allFor Multiple parentcache_peer proxy.isp1.com parent 8080 0 no-query no-digest defaultcache_peer proxy.isp2.com parent 8080 0 no-query no-digestMultiple parents with weight:cache_peer proxy.isp1.com parent 8080 0 no-query no-digest weight=1 cache_peer proxy.isp2.com parent 8080 0 no-query no-digest weight=2Multiple parents with round-robin:cache_peer proxy.isp1.com...

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HowTo do Transparent proxy with Squid

Modify or add following to squid configuration file (/etc/squid/squid.conf):httpd_accel_host virtualhttpd_accel_port 80httpd_accel_with_proxy onhttpd_accel_uses_host_header onacl lan src 192.168.1.1 192.168.2.0/24http_access allow localhosthttp_access allow lanAdded following rules to forward all http requests (coming to port 80) to the Squid server port 3128 :[eth0 connected to internet and eth1 connected to local lan]iptables -t nat -A PREROUTING -i eth1 -p tcp –-dport 80 -j DNAT –to 192.168.1.1:3128iptables -t nat -A PREROUTING -i eth0 -p tcp...

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Forward Squid traffic to secure tunnel (SSH)

When Squid is installed and running, it uses port 3128 by default. You should test it manually by setting your HTTP proxy to the server that runs Squid. For instance, in Firefox to go Tools -> Options -> Advanced -> Network -> Settings and enter the IP address or host of the Squid proxy (e.g. 192.168.0.100) and 3128 for the port. Try to load any web page. If you see an access denied error, check out the http_access...

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Setting up squid proxy server on Ubuntu

Install SquidOpen up the terminal and type the following command to install squid:sudo apt-get install squidSquid ConfigurationOpen the squid.conf file for editing using command:gksudo gedit /etc/squid/squid.confFind the http_port tag, By default it reads# http_port 3128This is the default port that Squid will listen on for requests. If you want to change it, uncomment the line and set the correct port. If you want Squid to listen only on one specific...

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How to mount samba share on Linux client

Samba can be used to allow connectivity between Linux and Windows. Samba can be used to share printers, share directories, connect to an windows domain, and many other useful features.In order to mount your samba share to your Linux client open up the /etc/fstab file and insert the following line into this file//172.19.12.137/Music /mnt/samba cifs credentials=/etc/accessfile 0 0Now create a new file: /etc/accessfile with following contentsusername=Suhailpassword=some_passwordSave the above file and restart your Linux client (or type command mount...

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How to Convert smbpasswd to tdbsam on Samba

The latest release of Samba offers many new features including new password database backends not previously available. Samba version 3.0.0 fully supports all databases used in previous versions of Samba. However, although supported, many backends may not be suitable for production use.The tdbsam backend provides an ideal database back-end for local servers, servers that do not need built-in database replication, and servers that do not require the scalability or complexity of LDAP. The tdbsam back-end includes all of the smbpasswd database...

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Creating Recycle Bin for Samba storage

Samba is mainly used to share the files between Linux and windows and many times it happens that user deletes the file from the samba server and later wants to get back deleted files which is not possible with the default configuration of samba server.The best option is to have a "Recycle bin" for every users on the samba server.Here is an example of modifying the home directories of your users in samba configuration file[homes]comment = Home Directoryvalid users = %Sbrowsable = noguest ok = noread only = novfs object = recyclerecycle:repository...

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Transfer Linux user to Samba users

To configure Samba on your Red Hat Linux system to use encrypted passwords, follow these steps:1. Create a separate password file for Samba. To create one based on your existing /etc/passwd file, at a shell prompt, type the following command:# cat /etc/passwd | mksmbpasswd.sh > /etc/samba/smbpasswdIf the system uses NIS, type the following command:# ypcat passwd | mksmbpasswd.sh > /etc/samba/smbpasswdThe mksmbpasswd.sh script is installed in your /usr/bin directory with the samba package.2. Change the permissions of the Samba password file...

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Sync users' Samba passwords with their system passwords

The pam_smbpass PAM module can be used to sync users' Samba passwords with their system passwords when the passwd command is used. If a user invokes the passwd command, the password the uses to log in to the system as well as the password he must provide to connect to a Samba share are changed.To enable this feature, add the following line to /etc/pam.d/system-auth below the pam_cracklib.so invocation:password required /lib/security/pam_smbpass.so nullok use_authtok try_first_p...

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Sync Samba and Unix password

The pam_smbpass PAM module can be used to sync users’ Samba passwords with their system passwords. If a user invokes the passwd command, the password he uses to log in to the system as well as the password he must provide to connect to a Samba share are changed. To enable this feature, add the following line to /etc/pam.d/system-auth below the pam_cracklib.so invocation:password required /lib/security/pam_smbpass.so nullok use_authtok try_first_p...

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Samba Server As Primary Domain Controller

Servera.Operating System :- Fedora-15b.Samba Server :- Samba version 3.0.23c-2 (included in Fedora Dvd) Computer Name:-server Comment :- Domain ControllerDomain Name :- rizvi.comDomain admin Name :- rootIp Address :- 192.168.0.10 Clienta.Operating System :- Windows Xp Sp2Computer Name :- wxpDomain Name :-     rizvi.comIp Address :- 192.168.0.20 ConfigurationServer1.  vi /etc/hosts# Do not remove the following line, or various programs# that require network functionality will fail.127.0.0.1      ...

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Mount Samba share using fstab

To mount a Samba share when Linux system comes up after rebootedit the /etc/fstab file and put entry as follows for your Windows/Samba share://ntserver/share /mnt/samba smbfs username=username,password=password 0 0 For example,if you want to mount a share called //ntserver/docs then you need to write following entry in /etc/fstab file://192.168.0.1/share /mnt/samba smbfs username=sohail,password=passwd123 0 ...

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Using Samba As File Server in Linux with guest(Anonymous) login and read-write access

1. Create a folder for share purpose    mkdir sharedrive2.Give full access to that folder   chmod 777 sharedrive 3.Edit smb conf file vi /etc/samba/smb.conf[global]# workgroup = NT-Domain-Name or Workgroup-Name   workgroup = WORKGROUP                                                                               ...

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Setting Hostname(Computer Name) in Linux (RedHat)

Edit the following files with vi 1.           /etc/hosts # Do not remove the following line, or various programs# that require network functionality will fail.127.0.0.1    localhost.localdomain localhost 192.168.0.20    sohail.bom.labs.net 2.          /etc/sysconfig/networkNETWORKING=yesHOSTNAME=sohail.bom.labs....

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Configure ipaddress in linux

1.edit the file with vi vi/etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth0DEVICE=eth0ONBOOT=yesBOOTPROTO=staticIPADDR=192.168.0.20NETMASK=255.255.255.0GATEWAY=192.168.0.1 2.To put Dns Server ip addressvi /etc/resolv.confnameserver=192.168.0.103.restart the network serviceservice network rest...

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How to install Linux / UNIX *.tar.gz tarball files

Tarballs are a group of files in one file. Tarball files have the extension .tar.gz, .tgz or .tar.bz2. Most open source software use tarballs to distribute programs/source codes.# 1: Uncompress tarballTo uncompress them, execute the following command(s) depending on the extension: $ tar zxf file.tar.gz $ tar zxf file.tgz $ tar jxf file.tar.bz2 $ tar jxf file.tbz2 Now change directory $ ls $ cd path-to-software/# 2: Build and install softwareGenerally you need to type 3 commands as follows for building and compiling software: # ./configure #...

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How to replay YouTube video automatically

In the address bar, add the word "infinite" before the word "youtube".This is the easiest way to put Youtube videos on loop.When you are finished your address bar should be changed from:Code: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrMNHwmd9HcToCode: http://www.infiniteyoutube.com/watch?v=MrMNHwmd9Hc...

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How to make an OS X Lion USB thumb drive

Here are three different ways to put Lion on a USB thumb drive. If you buy and install Lion from the App Store  it downloads all 3Gigabytes from the App Store, installs Lion, then deletes the installer!  So when you go to install it on another machine it needs another 3Gigabyte download! Here’s how to make a re-usable installer.Option 1: Put a full bootable Lion installation on the USB Drive with a recovery partition.What you need:...

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How to Air Print to ANY printer from your iPod, iPad or iPhone

Apple has introduced a ‘print’ button onto iPads, iPhones and iPods to allow you to print directly to a printer from your iOS device. Unfortunately  you need a special AirPrint enabled printer. Thankfully there is a free application called ‘AirPrint Activator’ that allows you to print to any printer, here’s where to get it and how to use it.AIRPRINTOn your iPhone at the bottom of some apps is a ‘share’ button. If you click this button you...

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Turbocache in XP

First, install your video drivers. You've probably already done this, but if you want to make sure that you have something recent, do the following:-Right-click your desktop and click Properties-Go to the Settings tab-Click the advanced button-Go to the Adapter tab (note the Memory Size under Adapter Information)-Click on Properties button-Go to the Driver tab-Check the Driver Date and Driver Version to see if it's at least November 2006 and/or 93.71-Close the dialogs.-If your version isn't up-to-date, then download and install the latest nVidia...

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iPhone Error 21 and Solution

iPhones can give you many errors. And, if you are downgrading your iPhone then you might have encountered Error 21. So, do you get this Error 21 frequently?If yes, then the problem is, instead of landing in Device Firmware Upgrade (DFU) mode you are ending up in Recovery mode.Now, if you can get back to DFU mode that will solve your problem. Once the iPhone is in (DFU) mode, you can follow the following process to downgrade your iPhone. ProcedureWhen...

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How To Reinstall Internet Explorer

1. Insert the Win XP CD2. Open Start / Run and type: rundll32.exe setupapi,InstallHinfSection DefaultInstall 132 c:\windows\inf\ie.infPress EN...

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Speed up IE7 ( Internet Exlporer 7 )

Now there comes a time in a man life when you have to choose which browser you’re going to use. But for me I picked both, sometimes I want to see whats on the other side. Now Looking for tweaks For IE7 can be a little difficult because almost all articles about tweaking IE7 are all automated and you have to install a third party tweaking software which I don’t like. so what else could do, but to fire up my Registry Editor.Now We can speed up IE7 page loading especially on multiple tabs and look for this key[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet...

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Windows uses 20% of your bandwidth Here's how to Get it back

A nice little tweak for XP. Microsoft reserve 20% of your available bandwidth for their own purposes (suspect for updates and interrogating your machine etc..)Here's how to get it back:Click Start-->Run-->type "gpedit.msc" without the "This opens the  group policy  editor. Then go to:Local Computer Policy-->Computer Configuration-->Administrative Templates-->Network-->QOS Packet Scheduler-->Limit Reservable BandwidthDouble click on Limit Reservable bandwidth. It will say it is not configured, but the truth is under...

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How to create a disk image of a DVD or CD using the terminal

This is a little bit advanced, but useful.1. Insert the DVD/CD into your drive.2. Run the TERMINAL application (In your Appplications Utilities Folder)You will get a little window with a prompt something this: Macintosh:~ wayne$3.Type the following and then hit return:drutil statusIt will give you some info like this:Vendor Product RevSONY DVD RW DW-U21A AADBType: DVD-R Name: /dev/disk2Cur Write: 4x DVD Sessions: 1Max Write: 4x DVD Tracks: 1This is information about your DVD/CD drive and the important thing to notice is the name, it will be /dev/disk1...

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How to turn on automatic logon in Windows XP

Method 1:You can use Registry Editor to add your log on information. To do this, follow these steps:Click Start, click Run, type regedit, and then click OK.Locate the following registry key:HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\WinlogonUsing your account name and password, double-click the DefaultUserName entry, type your user name, and then click OK.Double-click the DefaultPassword entry, type your password under the value data box, and then click OK. If there is no DefaultPassword value, create the...

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