In this week’s newsletter
Print management recommendations. Use caution buying HDDs for your NAS. Plus one for mailing lists. They don’t call them racks for nothing! Just hang up! Best way to deploy printers using Group Policy. COVID Corner – Robert Mitchum favorites. Plus lots more — read it all, read it here on WServerNews!
Enjoy this week’s newsletter and feel free to send us feedback on any of the topics we’ve covered — we love hearing from our readers!
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Editor’s Corner
This week’s observations and ruminations from Mitch Tulloch our Senior Editor…
Print management recommendations
Mark Twain would likely have said this if he had worked in IT in today’s enterprise environments:
Reports of the death of printing have been greatly exaggerated.
A lot of printing is still done in today’s business environments, and the print management tools included in-box in Windows Server just don’t cut it as far as larger companies are concerned. Knowing this I took some time this week to ask around my network of enterprise IT contacts to find out what print management solutions they are using and can recommend to our newsletter readers. The one most often recommended by my colleagues is called PaperCut which is marketed on their website as “print management software that’s helping hundreds of millions of people around the globe to minimize waste while having a secure and easy printing experience.” Their comments concerning it range from “works great!” to “most secure printing solution I’ve found” and “it helped me reduce almost tenfold the number of printers we use in our environment.”
I haven’t tried PaperCut yet but I understand that it works 1-2-3 something like this:
- You open a document on your PC or other device and select print to print it to the default printer.
- You walk up to any nearby print device and swipe your smart card or wave your HID/prox card i.e. the card you normally use for building access on your work site.
- Your job gets printed out on the device and you walk away happy with reams of nice warm paper in your hand.
Admins love PaperCut because it tracks usage which can help you save on resources i.e. where to station your print devices, how to optimize your paper storage, etc. It also simplifies management of printers (i.e. printer connections) and printer drivers as it allows users to print everything to the default printer and collect their paper from any print device. And if a user who printed something fails to pick up their printout after a specified number of hours the job automatically gets deleted from the print queue. That’s my understanding anyways of their solution, I hope I’ve got it right.
You can learn more about PaperCut on their website:
The second most frequently recommended print management solution I’ve heard my colleagues mention is called PrinterLogic and it can be deployed either locally or in the cloud. Printer Logic describes itself as being able to “deliver a serverless printing infrastructure and keep print jobs local.” I haven’t looked at that one closely yet but two colleagues say they use it, so you may want to check out the PrinterLogic website to find out more about this solution:
If any readers are using either of these print management solutions and would like to comment further concerning them (or recommend some other solution) you can email me at [email protected]
Use caution buying HDDs for your NAS
Ars Technica recently reported that some storage vendors have recently been quietly begun replacing Conventional Magnetic Recording technology with Shingled Magnetic Recording technology in certain lines of consumer hard disk drives — and without mentioning this change in their product datasheets. SMR has become common in enterprise environments and has advantages over CMR in terms of how much data can be crammed onto a platter which can save on manufacturing costs. Unfortunately it turns out that some consumer Network Attached Storage devices don’t seem to work properly when CMR drives in them are replaced with SMR ones. This could cause you problems if you need to replace a failed drive in your NAS or want to upgrade your NAS to larger storage capacity. You can read more about it here:
And here’s a thread on the Synology support website where you can find frustrated users discussing the situation:
https://community.synology.com/enu/forum/1/post/127228
Western Digital responded somewhat apologetically on the matter here:
https://blog.westerndigital.com/wd-red-nas-drives/
and they also set the record straight in this article on Tom’s Hardware:
https://www.tomshardware.com/news/wd-lists-all-drives-slower-smr-techNOLOGY
Just a heads up for any readers who have NAS devices and are thinking of upgrading them.
Plus one for mailing lists
I subscribe and follow a number of mailing lists, particularly ones dealing with network operations and security. While mailing lists may seem like 90s technology to those used to using web forums or (ack) Facebook groups for such discussions, they really have a lot of advantages over newer approaches to holding online discussions. This article I stumbled across recently says it all as far as I’m concern:
http://www.firemountain.net/why-mailing-lists.html
How to our newsletter readers feel about mailing lists? Are there any you subscribe to or follow regularly? Or I should also subscribe to that Luddites Anonymous mailing list? Email your thoughts to me at [email protected]
Or write me a letter if you still know how to lick a stamp.
They don’t call them racks for nothing!
And speaking of network operations, how many of you have to deal regularly with mounting, removing or moving around servers and other networking equipment in racks and enclosures? I’ve done a bit of this, mostly at colocation facilities, but when I read the following story it brought to mind that medieval torture device called the rack:
https://www.redpill-linpro.com/techblog/2019/08/06/rack-switch-removal.html
This guy went through quite an ordeal removing some decommissioned switches from his data center, and his suggestions for how rack manufacturers can improve things sound spot-on to me. What do our readers think? Email me your rack mounting tips and horror stories: [email protected]
Just hang up!
And finally, you just have to read this post by Brian Krebs on his blog where he tells how a security expert recently got taken for ten large ones by a scam phone caller:
When in Doubt: Hang Up, Look Up, & Call Back (KrebsonSecurity)
https://krebsonsecurity.com/2020/04/when-in-doubt-hang-up-look-up-call-back/
And if that makes you mad, well then — why not get even! Anne Mitchell has a terrific article on her website where she explains how you can scam the scammers and make money off their annoying phone calls:
How to Get Back at Robocallers and Make Them Pay You Good Money (The Internet Patrol)
https://www.theinternetpatrol.com/how-to-shake-down-robocallers-and-robotexters-for-fun-and-profit/
Anne is an attorney at law and Dean of Cyberlaw and Cybersecurity at Lincoln Law School so what she says is probably good legal advice — but IANAL.
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Tip of the Week
>> Got any IT pro tips you’d like to share with other readers of our newsletter? Email us at [email protected]
Best way to deploy printers using Group Policy
If you’re using the Print Management console of Windows Server to deploy and manage printers in your environment, you should try if possible to always deploy printer connections using Group Policy to computers, not to users. The reason is that this makes managing GPOs with printer settings in them much easier. Naturally, there are exceptions to this rule — for example when departments in your organization don’t want to share their print devices and printing supplies with other departments, and in that case it may be best to use Group Policy to deploy your printer connections to users.
Admin Toolbox
>> Got any admin tools or software you’d like to recommend to our readers? Email us at [email protected]
FastAdmin lets you remotely monitor and manage Windows computers and servers in your Active Directory domain:
https://www.wizardsoft.nl/admintools/admintools.html#FastAdmin
This page by wiseTools lets you check a published SPF record or DKIM key:
http://tools.wordtothewise.com/authentication
WsDisplaySettings is a command line tool to save and restore Windows display settings to and from file:
https://www.wizardsoft.nl/admintools/admintools.html#WsDisplaySettings
Mailbag
A couple of weeks back in our Factoid section (now temporarily suspended and replaced with COVID Corner below) we talked about the difficulty — and possible danger — of automobiles using touch-screen displays for managing in-car settings. Reader Matt Wright offered his own take on this matter as follows:
Hi Mitch. I agree with you. Like most of us in IT, I love technology, but it has its place.
The problem with a lot of technology is the designers fall for “Do More!” and end up making things more complicated than they need to be.
A car’s entertainment system falls into that category. Simple is more. Especially with simple dials, knobs, and buttons (DKB) versus touch screens.
Many times with DKB you don’t even need a quick glance at the settings because after a while you get to know where everything is and what settings these manual items have so that you can simply reach over and use touch and feel, much like a blind person using braille, without ever taking your eyes off the road.
Which brings up another interesting question: Does Braille have a future given the slew of smartphone apps for converting text to speech? I wonder…
COVID Corner – Robert Mitchum favorites
Another favorite actor of Ingrid and mine is Robert Mitchum. But before I give you our film recommendations for him, here is some reader feedback from last week’s COVID Corner where I mentioned my three favorite Rod Taylor movies:
When “shelter in place” seems a little too confining, I like to think back to my favorite Rod Taylor film, “Welcome to Woop Woop”. It is a *dark* comedy. It also is full of showtunes, but remixed as disco. The intensity of the situation faced by our protagonist makes me feel better about staying where I am. I hope you haven’t discovered it already and I hope you will enjoy it. — David Luke
That’s definitely one we’ll have to check out, thanks!
What about “The Birds”?? — Shawn Morrissey from Colorado
I responded with “Naaahh, thanks anyways but there’s only one Hitchcock movie I like and I’ll talk about it soon in an upcoming episode of COVID Corner” and Shawn shot back with:
Cheers Mitch, and try to lay off of those cakes! Or, maybe you could send one down here….it looked rather good!
Sorry, it’s all gone.
*burp!*
And now on to our favorite Robert Mitchum films:
Farewell My Lovely (1975)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0072973/
A strange but fun movie starring Robert Mitchum as famed private eye Philip Marlowe. Mitchum did a few of these Film Noir types of movies, and you can get this one together with The Big Sleep as a two-movie Blu-ray combo, though I must say I prefer the Bogart version of Big Sleep better.
Foreign Intrigue (1956)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0049224/
This early Mitchum offering is a bit strange and the ending is abrupt and difficult to follow, but the slow pace is almost hypnotic and it’s hard to stop watching it as long as you don’t fall asleep.
One Shoe Makes It Murder (1982)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0084444/
In my opinion Angie Dickinson steals the show here, but the aging Mitchum is still fun to watch as he unravels the details of the crime. Like a fine wine, Mitchum gets better as he ages, he’s more relaxed and more real in his characterization as a down-and-out detective.
The Ambassador (1984)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086884/
This one is definitely one of our favorites. While Ingrid and I enjoy the Film Noir genre to a certain degree, we generally prefer films with a bit more action in them and less puzzling around. We also like films shot in international locations and this one was filmed in Israel. Great plot and terrific acting by Rock Hudson as ambassador Mitchum’s head of security.
The Yakuza (1974)
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0073918/
A profound film directed by one of our favorite directors, Sydney Pollack. The story is really about friendship and it offers the most authentic presentation of Japanese culture of any Western-made film I’m aware of. I’m fascinated by Japanese culture personally, and if you’re interested in learning more about what it’s like being in the Yakuza you should also read the book Confessions of a Yakuza published by Kodansha International:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1568365047
The Amsterdam Kill (1977)
Our final Mitchum movie recommendation is this rare one shot in Amsterdam. If you can get past seeing Leslie Nielsen in a non-comedic role, you’ll enjoy the scenery and action and especially the look inside the Dutch tulip industry (in the 70s at least). Plus what happens with the greenhouses in the finale!
And that’s it for another edition of COVID Corner. What are your own favorite Robert Mitchum movies if you have any you can recommend? Email us at [email protected] and in the meantime stay safe and healthy! P.S. You can’t catch the virus watching movies alone in your den 😉
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Conference calendar
NOTE: Because of the concerns surrounding the COVID-19 situation some of these conferences may be moved online or even cancelled. Please check the conference websites for the latest updates.
>> Got an IT conference or event happening that you’d like to promote in our newsletter? Email us at [email protected]
Microsoft Build
May 19-21, 2020 in Seattle, Washington
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/build
Microsoft Inspire
July 20-24, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada
https://partner.microsoft.com/en-us/inspire
Microsoft Licensing Boot Camps
For dates and locations see https://www.directionsonmicrosoft.com/training
Cyber Security Summits
For dates and locations see https://cybersummitusa.com/summits/
Other conferences
Future Tech Summit – May 15 in Santiago, Chile
https://www.collabsummit.eu/en/
PowerShell Conference Europe – June 2-5 in Hannover, Germany
European Collaboration Summit – June 8-10 in Wiesbaden, Germany
https://www.collabsummit.eu/en/
Evolve – June 8-10 in Las Vegas
https://evolvetechconference.com/
RSA Conference Asia Pacific & Japan – July 14-16 in Singapore
https://www.rsaconference.com/apj
VMworld – Aug 30 – Sept 3 in San Francisco
https://www.vmworld.com/en/us/index.html
Interop – Sept 21-24 in Austin, Texas
European SharePoint, Office 365 & Azure Conference (ESPC20) – Nov 9-12, 2020 in Amsterdam
https://www.sharepointeurope.com/
DevOpsCon – Nov 30 – Dec 3 in Munich, Germany
Podcast Corner
How The Internet Is Handling The Covid-19 Load (Heavy Networking)
https://packetpushers.net/series/weekly-show/
EUC in 2020 (Virtually Speaking)
https://www.vspeakingpodcast.com/
Public Cloud Workload Repatriation (The CTO Advisor)
https://www.thectoadvisor.com/podcast
Azure Web App for Containers (Microsoft Cloud IT Pro Podcast)
https://www.msclouditpropodcast.com/
Latest News This Week From the Microsoft Cloud (Microsoft Cloud Show)
http://www.microsoftcloudshow.com/podcast
New on Techgenix.com
Review: Network security and patch management solution GFI LanGuard
GFI LanGuard performs vulnerability assessments of the devices on your network and then helps you fix any problems. Here’s our review.
https://techgenix.com/gfi-languard/
Working from home remotely? Don’t relax your security
Beware of the pitfalls of working from home remotely. Make sure your sessions are secure or you could infect your company’s network.
https://techgenix.com/working-from-home-remotely/
Office 365 backup and recovery solutions: Top 7 choices
Don’t have an Office 365 backup and recovery solution? You are playing with fire. Here are seven applications that do the job.
https://techgenix.com/office-365-backup-and-recovery/
Rebuilding our remote work strategy: It’s more than the tools
The idea of slowly and methodically crafting a remote work strategy has been torn apart by coronavirus. Here’s how to establish a remote work plan quickly.
https://techgenix.com/remote-work-strategy/
Think your BYOD policy is really secure? You’d better read this now
Companies are adopting BYOD programs in response to a growing mobile workforce. But having a BYOD program is different than having a secure BYOD policy.
https://techgenix.com/byod-policy/
Fun videos from Flixxy
Nicolas Falquet Skiing Off a Peak At Les Marécottes in Switzerland
Nicolas Falquet’s incredible descent from a peak at Les Marécottes in the Valais region of Switzerland.
https://www.flixxy.com/nicolas-falquet-skiing-off-a-peak-at-les-marecottes-in-switzerland.htm
How to Pass the Salt While Maintaining Proper Social Distance
Here is one way how to pass the salt while maintaining proper physical distance.
https://www.flixxy.com/how-to-pass-the-salt-while-maintaining-proper-social-distance.htm
Rolling Stones New Song – ‘Living in a Ghost Town’ – 2020
The Rolling Stones present their 2020 surprise release – their first original song in eight years.
https://www.flixxy.com/rolling-stones-new-song-living-in-a-ghost-town-2020.htm
The First Flight To Ibiza After Quarantine
What it will be like when things are back to normal again…
https://www.flixxy.com/the-first-flight-to-ibiza-after-quarantine.htm
More articles of interest
5 tips for building a crisis communication plan
A crisis communication plan is a set of steps and procedures that outlines how a company should communicate with its employees, stakeholders and the public during an emergency.
HPE bolsters VDI product offerings
With an eye toward maintaining business continuity, HPE is making VDI product moves. Experts said the news comes at a critical time for companies.
4 components of a disaster recovery plan to prepare for a crisis
IT teams must take a proactive approach to crisis management and disaster recovery. Use these four guidelines around communication, monitoring and more to build a plan that works.
5 steps to create a coronavirus crisis management response plan
The COVID-19 pandemic has thrown a wrench into many traditional BCDR plans. Here are five tips to update your crisis response plans and help your business weather the storm.
Send us your feedback!
Got feedback about anything in this issue of WServerNews? Email us at [email protected]