Saturday, November 2, 2013

Command to clear the local cache of the Windows Store

The command wsreset.exe will clear the local cache of the Windows Store with Windows 8 and 8.1.  The command needs to be executed with administrative authority.

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A message should be displayed when the clearing process has completed.

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How to configure Windows version 8.1 to boot into the desktop

By default, Windows 8 did not allow an individual to boot directly into the desktop.  Windows 8.1 includes this feature.  To enable it, right-click on the Taskbar while on the desktop and access Properties.  Or via the Modern screen, search for “taskbar” and select Taskbar and Navigation.

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Click on the Navigation tab.  The option to boot directly to the desktop should be near the middle of the dialog box with the text of “When I sign in or close all apps on a screen, go to the desktop instead of Start.”

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Another option within this dialog box is the feature “Show the Apps view automatically when I go to Start.”  This will display all of the existing applications in a list instead of the normal Modern start screen.

Screen capture option via the Share Charm within Windows 8.1

Windows 8.1 has a screen capture option available via the Share Charm.  When accessing the Share Charm, a down-arrow option should be present.

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An option to share a screen capture should be listed.

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The list of destination applications will depend on what local programs are installed.

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Wioski

Wioski is a free replacement for the SteadyState product that Microsoft has dropped.

http://www.wioski.com/

vGuestExplorer

vGuestExplorer is a Windows Explorer style tool which can copy files and folders to and from virtual machines without requiring network connectivity.  It does require PowerCLI.

http://www.vmwaredirectory.com/vguestexplorer

Hydration Kit for Microsoft’s Configuration Manager 2012

A Hydration Kit is a free download for creating an entire Configuration Manager 2012 infrastructure in a Virtual Machine. The VM runs on Hyper-V or VMware and allows Configuration Manager to be built into a complete lab environment quickly.

http://www.deploymentresearch.com/Research/tabid/62/EntryId/113/The-Hydration-Kit-for-ConfigMgr-2012-R2-is-available-for-download.aspx

Application View for vCenter Site Recovery Manager

Application View for vCenter Site Recovery Manager shows the application dependencies between virtual machines in a disaster recovery site.  This tool is packaged as a standalone virtual appliance, which can be easily set up in an environment which runs vCenter, vCenter Site Recovery Manager, and vCenter Infrastructure Navigator.  This fling identifies dependencies between virtual machines in a protected site and displays the information in a HTML user interface.

http://labs.vmware.com/flings/application-view-for-vcenter-site-recovery-manager

Friday, November 1, 2013

Using the apt-get command to clear some free disk space with Ubuntu

To free up some disk space with a Ubuntu/Debian-based system, the apt-get clean command can be used.  This command should remove downloaded .deb files or packages from the local repository within the paths /var/cache/apt/archives and /var/cache/apt/archives/partial.  The apt-get autoclean command is similar; the only difference is that it only removes package files that can not longer be downloaded.  An example would be a package that has a newer version within the repository.

sudo apt-get clean

sudo apt-get autoclean

apt_get_clean

How to configure iOS with version 7 to disable the default animations and transitions

Apple’s iOS version 7 included animations and transitions that could not be disabled.  The version 7.0.3 update included a new option to disable these features.  Access Settings –> General –> Accessibility –> Reduce Motion and enable the option.

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Using the Verify button within Process Explorer

The Process Explorer utility from SysInternals has a verify process feature.  This option indicates whether the executable in question has been verified as digitally signed by a certificate that chains to a root authority trusted by the computer in question.

After launching Process Explorer, access the Properties of the entry in question.  Click on the Verify button on the Image tab.

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If the certificate is valid, a “verified” text should appear near the top of the dialog box near the description.

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Below is an example of an older application that did not return a “verified” value.  If a process does not return a “valid” certificate, this could be a clue that the entry in question may be malware.

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Disk Cleanup update for Windows 7

In October of 2013, Microsoft released an update to the Disk Cleanup utility for Windows 7.  The KB article concerning this update can be viewed at:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2852386

Once installed, launch the Disk Cleanup utility as normal.  Select your default partition.

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Click on the “Clean up system files” button if the user account in question does not have local administrative authority as in this example.

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When the application reloads, the list of items should include a new entry named “Windows Update Cleanup.”  In this example, this entry was over 3 GB in size.

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During the next reboot, the boot screen may display a notification stating that some maintenance tasks are being performed.

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