Hyper-V: Converting a VHD to a VHDX

On Windows Server 2012 there’s a new virtual hard disk format with the extension “VHDX”.

As the Virtual PC Guy states in his blog:

There are a number of advantages to this format:

• Support for greater than 2TB disks
• Better performance for dynamic and differencing disks
• Better handling of different disk sector sizes
• And more…

How to convert?

• Either manually (using Hyper-V Manager)
• or via PowerShell, using the Convert-VHD command

Will the size of my files change?

Yes, the new .VHDX files will probably be slightly larger.

Here’s an example of a sample conversion:

Description	VHD size (KB)	VHDX size (KB)	Change
System drive	22,316,615	22,581,248	(+ 1%)
Data drive	3,138,364	3,248,128	(+ 3%)

System Error 67 when trying to map a WebDAV folder using NET USE on Windows Server

The Problem

On Windows Server, you get the following error message when trying to map a WebDAV folder (in this case: HiDrive's online storage) using NET USE <driveletter>: <URL>:

System error 67 has occurred.

The network name cannot be found.

The Solution

1. Add the Desktop Experience feature.
   This will install the required Web Client service.
   Note: Be aware this requires a restart.

FinalBuilder: Connecting to HiDrive via FTPS

The Problem

When trying to connect to STATOs HiDrive online storage via FTPs you might receive the following error message:

A fatal Server side SSL error occured: Bad Record MAC
Unable to connect to FTPS Server.
Error occured while enabling SSL/TLS on command channel

When trying to get the directory listing you get

RECEIVE: 501 PORT command denied (address mismatch).
Directory Listing failed. 501 PORT command denied (address mismatch).

The Solution

1. Make sure you are running the latest version of FinalBuilder.
2. In the FTPS Connect action, make sure to
   • uncheck TLS 1.1 and TLS 1.2
   • check Passive Mode.

How to fix error ‘This configuration section cannot be used at this path’ when running ASP.NET apps

Problem description:

You receive the error message:

HTTP Error 500.19 - Internal Server Error

This configuration section cannot be used at this path. This happens when the section is locked at a parent level. Locking is either by default (overrideModeDefault="Deny"), or set explicitly by a location tag with overrideMode="Deny" or the legacy allowOverride="false

How to resolve:

1. Make sure ASP.NET is installed, as described here.
2. Unlock the configuration section using the command:

%windir%\system32\inetsrv\appcmd unlock config -section:system.webServer/modules

More Information:

• The new Configuration System in IIS 7

FTP Service for IIS: client connection times out on LIST command

The Problem

You installed the FTP Service for IIS, but after connecting clients time out on list command:

“Error: Connection timed out”

“Error: Failed to retrieve directory listing”

The Solution

Step 1: Verify Firewall exceptions are defined correctly:

Step 2: Disable stateful FTP filtering (see here):

netsh advfirewall set global StatefulFTP disable

Step 3: Restart FTP Service

net stop ftpsvc

net start ftpsvc

Good luck!

How to add the Desktop Experience feature in Windows Server 2012

It is hidden under “User Interfaces and Infrastructure”…

SOLVED: Cannot download from MSDN subscriber downloads. An add-on … failed to run

When trying to download from MSDN Subscriber Downloads you receive the following error message in IE:

“An add-on for this website failed to run.”

Workaround:

Manually install File Transfer Manager from here.

PS: For other issues, you might want to look here.

3D Pinball Space Cadet works on Windows 8

In case you wondered, 3D Pinball for Windows, aka Space Cadet, (which was introduced in Microsoft Plus 95 and part of Windows NT 4 by default) works great on Windows 8.

Link: More info & how to get it

Syncing any folder with SkyDrive

The issue:

The SkyDrive desktop app for Windows only allows synchronizing a single directory (by default C:\Users\<Username>\SkyDrive) between your hard drive and the cloud.

The workaround:

Using NTFS junction points you can “create a symbolic link to a directory which then functions as an alias of that directory”.

The command to execute in the SkyDrive folder is:

mklink /J <name-of-alias> <path-to-existing-folder>

(e.g. mklink /J Photos D:\Skype\Photos)

More information can be found in these articles:

• Sync any folder to SkyDrive
• Sync any folder to Dropbox, Skydrive or Google Drive using Junction

Warning: Unfortunately, if you create junction points in the SkyDrive folder itself, SkyDrive will not correctly monitor for changes (see here). As a workaround you could move the original folders into the SkyDrive folder, and create junctions at the old locations to point at the same data. This way SkyDrive monitors the folders as expected.

Updates to this blog post:

• Updated (March 4th, 2013): Added warning regarding SkyDrives monitoring (see here).
• Updated (March 15th, 2013): Added workaround to to get the monitoring to work with junctions (an idea found here).

Windows Live Mesh is now deprecated

… and “will be officially retired on February 13, 2013”.

Source: http://blogs.windows.com/skydrive/b/skydrive/archive/2012/12/13/update-on-windows-live-mesh.aspx

How to fix: Your current security settings do not allow this file to be downloaded (IE)

When trying to download a file in IE you receive the following error message:

“Security Alert: Your current security settings do not allow this file to be downloaded.”

Steps to fix the problem (found here):

1. Start Internet Explorer.
2. Click Tools » Options.
3. Click on the Security tab.
4. Select the Internet Zone.
5. Click on the Custom Level button and then scroll down to Downloads.
6. Make sure to set File download to Enable.
7. Click OK.

How to download a file from the web using the command line

You can use wget.exe:

wget http://blog.nenoloje.com/

Windows reports its missing a required driver or certificate in order to use a smart card

When trying to use a smart card, you receive the error message:

A smart card was detected but is not the one required for the current operation. The smart card you are using may be missing required driver software or a required certificate.

Steps to resolve:

1. Go to the Microsoft Catalog and download the driver required for your smart card (I searched for "Gemalto" and found the Gemalto Minidriver for .NET, which worked for me).
2. Unzip the downloaded file.
3. Right-click the .INF file and click “Install”.
4. Done. You can use your smart card now. :-)

More information (thanks to Ben and Daniel for those articles):

• Smartcard Needing Drivers In Order To Be Smart
• Connecting a Smart Card to a Windows 7 virtual machine

Recycle IIS app pool using the command line

To recycle an application pool on demand, run:

appcmd recycle apppool /apppool.name:string

… where string is the name of the application pool that you want to recycle (Source).

Windows 8 setup: black screen during install after restart

If you are stuck at a black screen (blinking cursor) after the first restart, this can have several reasons.

How to solve it

In case you are installing from a USB stick, use the DVD instead.
Source: answer on this forum post

Other possible reasons:

• Verify UEFI settings in system BIOS