Pop-out Replies and Forwards by Default in Outlook 2013

To set email replies and forwards to pop-out, or open in a new window, instead of using the in-line editor, select the following option:

File-> Options-> Mail-> Replies and Forwards-> Open replies and forwards in a new window

Enable Remote Management in Windows 7

As I've completely ripped off this most excellent post...just in case it is ever taken down, I'll put the reference at the top:
http://skatterbrainz.blogspot.co.nz/2009/08/enabling-windows-7-remote-management.html

I hope to customise this to my personal style at a later date:

I’ve been searching for a comprehensive article/blog-post/kb, etc on this for a while but have only been able to find pieces of the overall solution I was looking for.  The challenge?

Enable remote management capabilities on Windows 7 clients within an Active Directory domain environment using Group Policy.

Which capabilities?

1. Be able to PING clients
2. Be able to connect to clients via Remote Desktop
3. Be able to connect to clients via Computer Management
4. Be able to connect to clients through Event Viewer, RegEdit, etc.

You may notice that my “solution” doesnt’ involve a great deal of security options.  That’s because I’m pretty comfortable with the boundary security on my network environment, which will not be described herein.  Suffice it to say that I am only interested in being able to enable and use these capabilities.  If you need increased security, you can configure additional options via Group Policy settings to suit your needs.

Computer Configuration \ Policies \ Administrative Templates…

Network \ Network Connections \ Windows Firewall \ Domain Profile

• Allow ICMP Exceptions:
• ENABLED - Allow inbound echo request
• Allow Inbound remote administration:
• ENABLED: Enter asterisk (*) in IPv4 address box
• Allow inbound Remote Desktop:
• ENABLED: Enter asterisk (*) in IPv4 address box

Windows Components \ Remote Desktop Services \ Remote Desktop Session Host \ Connections:

• Allow users to connect remotely using Remote Desktop services
• ENABLED

Windows Components \ Windows Remote Management (WinRM) \ WinRM Service:

• Allow automatic configuration of listeners
• ENABLED: Enter asterisk (*) in IPv4 address box

If you need a nudge in the right direction for how to add these settings:

1. Open Group Policy Management (aka “GPMC”)
2. Expand Forest: <name> / Domains / <your-domain> / Group Policy Objects
3. Right-click and select “New”
4. Enter a name for the GPO (e.g. “Remote Management”) and click OK
5. Right-click on the new GPO and select “Edit”
6. Follow the guideline above to locate and enable the settings
7. Right-click on the very top of the tree-view panel on the name of the GPO and select “Properties”
8. Check the box “Disable User Configuration settings”
9. Click “Yes” to accept the warning.
10. Close the Group Policy Management Editor
11. Right-click on the desired computer OU in the GPMC and select “Link an existing GPO” and select your new GPO.
12. That’s it.

You can then either wait for the regular GPO refresh cycle to run (about 90 minutes on average, sometimes less) or go to a client and open a CMD console (remember to right-click and choose “Run as Administrator”) and at the command prompt, enter “GPUPDATE /FORCE” and press Enter.  You should be able to connect to that client from another client on your domain immediately after that.  If you still cannot, double-check your GPO settings and double-check where you linked the GPO (which OU) related to the computer account within AD.  You can (and should) use GPRESULT on the remote client to diagnose GPO issues.

Thank you Skatterbrainz.

References:
http://skatterbrainz.blogspot.co.nz/2009/08/enabling-windows-7-remote-management.html

Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager Logs Are Huge

Recently a server's OS drive filled up very quickly before I realised that I had not turned on log truncation in Symantec Endpoint Protection Manager (SEPM). As soon as I performed a truncation and set SEPM to do it every four hours, all was well with the server.

To do this complete the following:

1. Log in to the SEP Manager.
2. Click Admin and select Servers.
3. Select the localhost under Servers.
4. Under Tasks, Select Edit Database Properties.
5. In the General tab under Database Maintenance Tasks.
6. Select the checkboxes next to Truncate the database transaction logs and Rebuild Indexes.
7. Click OK to apply the changes.

References:
http://www.symantec.com/connect/forums/symantec-endpoint-protection-db-log-problem

Google App Sync for Outlook and Click-to-Run

If you have a non click-to-run version of Outlook 2013, but Google Apps Sync for Outlook won't work properly because it thinks you do have a click-to-run version, try the following:

a. Click 'Start' > 'Run'.

b. Type 'regedit' and click 'OK'.

c. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Office\15.0\ClickToRunStore AND HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Office\15.0\ClickToRunStore

d. Right click it and choose 'Rename'.

e. Change the name from 'ClickToRunStore' to 'ClickToRunStore1'.

f. Install Google Apps Sync for Microsoft Outlook.

g. Back in the Registry Editor, right click 'ClickToRunStore1'.

h. Choose 'Rename' and change the name back to 'ClickToRunStore'.

If you DO have a click-to-run version of Outlook, I would not recommend trying to use it with GASFO, as Outlook is only a streaming version of the software and will effectively be uninstalled when you log out of the click-to-run system.

References:

Google Support :-) Thanks guys!

Re-appearing File Won't Delete

If you're trying to delete a file and upon pressing F5 (i.e. refresh view), it keeps re-appearing, restart your PC (and yes sometimes an entire file server needs to be restarted if that is where the file is stored), and see if the file is then gone, or can successfully be deleted.

This is a bit extreme in some cases, but in others, it is the only thing that works.

Other options you can try range from using Process Explorer to find which process is locking the file, and stopping that process, to throwing your entire computer away in frustration.

The last option is effective, but has a number of side-effects.

Fix RDP clipboard if copy/paste is failing

Sometimes copy/paste to/from an RDP session fails even if all server and client settings have been configured correctly. Often the fix is as easy as this:

• Open Task Manager
• End the rdpclip.exe process
• Run a new process
• Type rdpclip and press Enter

References:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc776591(v=ws.10).aspx
or for a more stressed out post (if the comments have not been removed)
http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/windows/en-US/4cc7ff11-01ca-42e1-8b1a-c1fe612049ea/windows-8-remote-desktop-metro-app-clipboard-sharing-doesnt-work

Remotely Enable RDP

This method assumes remote registry is enabled on the remote PC that you wish to access. If that is also disabled, a physical trip to the PC may be in order.

1. Open Regedit and "Connect Network Registry..."
2. Connect to the remote computer by name or IP address
3. Find HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ Control \ Terminal Server
4. Locate the fDenyTSConnections entry
5. Change the value from 1 to 0
6. You should now be able to connect via RDP

References:
http://community.spiceworks.com/how_to/show/33687-remotely-enabling-rdp?utm_source=swemail&utm_medium=newsletterresource&utm_campaign=0806