What Have You Done Today - (Computer Version)

  • Thread starter tlowr4
  • 4,223 comments
  • 334,769 views
Today and for the whole of last week I've struggled and so far failed to set up a server at my dad's office. I just don't get it and I don't think I ever will, it took me about two days to work out how to set up a DHCP scope and that's as far as I've gotten... I need to work out the DNS settings to be able to connect clients to the server, luckily it's only a small office. The server is a HP ProLiant ML330 G6 running MS Small Business Server Standard 2012 and it's doing my head all the way in. I have absolutely no official IT training whatsoever and still struggle with my own PC!
 
^ Made sure the proxies are all tied into the network? DNS adresses should be fairly universal, just make sure the slave address is tied to at least one of the two addresses that are on the network.

But make sure your proxies for browser access, and across the network, are the same for all the computers. Make sure to have a proxy set up as well, or some bugger is going to come and, if you've got WiFi connectivity, pinch all your files and internet.
 
Is it a brand new server? Is the DHCP scope not already set up? For DNS you should set the DNS server to it's own IP and then make sure you are using root hints. You don't need to add a secondary DNS server. If you connect a workstation to the network, can it get on the internet? If it can, DHCP is working correctly.

Also make sure DHCP is turned off on your router. If it is on it will fight with the server.
 
Last edited:
tlowr4
^ Made sure the proxies are all tied into the network? DNS adresses should be fairly universal, just make sure the slave address is tied to at least one of the two addresses that are on the network.

But make sure your proxies for browser access, and across the network, are the same for all the computers. Make sure to have a proxy set up as well, or some bugger is going to come and, if you've got WiFi connectivity, pinch all your files and internet.
Click to expand...

Proxies? No idea what they are. You may as well be speaking Russian!

DQuaN
Is it a brand new server? Is the DHCP scope not already set up? For DNS you should set the DNS server to it's own IP and then make sure you are using root hints. You don't need to add a secondary DNS server. If you connect a workstation to the network, can it get on the internet? If it can, DHCP is working correctly.

Also make sure DHCP is turned off on your router. If it is on it will fight with the server.
Click to expand...

It is a brand new server, yes. I had set the DHCP scope myself (because the wizard demanded that I turn off the router DHCP, which I couldn't do at the time because everyone was working and I didn't want to break anything) but apparently did it wrong, so this morning we arrived early and I 'quickly' deleted my scope and set up a new one with the wizard.

The router's DHCP is off now, too, and it turns out that they're using what looks like a normal PC as a server and no one told me, so that was broadcasting a DHCP as well... Then someone hit the 'router on' switch of a wireless router that can be switched (and was switched) to be just an Ethernet hub so that was broadcasting DHCP as well! Anyway, I've gotten all the computers working in one way or another; one refuses to connect to the server's network in favour of it's own, the old, camouflaged server only accepts connections from one other computer and I can't get ANY of the clients to 'connect' (as in run the SBS Connect wizard) to the new server... Basically this network is a mess and if I had it my way all 3 of these PCs would all be on Windows 7, not Server 2003, Vista and just one W7.

I'm chatting to a very helpful chap who is trying to help me get this one client to 'connect', but so far I've got him completely stumped because everything should be working according to what ipconfig/all is telling us... This wouldn't be so bad if my Dad hadn't walked in earlier and said 'so we need this running by the end of the day', meaning he wants VPN, Remote Desktop, etc. working in... Oh, about 50 minutes from now.
 
I could remote on and take a look if you like. :)

Don't bother with the SBS connect wizard. Just right click on computer, then click change under the Computer nae, domain and workgroup settings. Set the Domain and you're good to go.

Remote desktop is fairly easy. Just forward port 3389 to the server on your router. Or are you talking about connecting to any PC on the network using the Remote Web Workplace?
 
DQuaN
Remote desktop is fairly easy. Just forward port 3389 to the server on your router. Or are you talking about connecting to any PC on the network using the Remote Web Workplace?
Click to expand...

Again, not a clue. I'm guessing it'll be used to access any PC on the network from anywhere in the world, which sounds like it'll be complicated, can't wait... I just beat you to the Connect thing, I put it in the domain first but I kind of want to 'RTFW' anyway to be sure I'm starting from, how can I put it? Starting from a recognised setup so if I need to ask for help again, which is likely, I won't have any unusual settings. I've read more than a few threads on the Technet forum which have strongly advised using the wizard, but you and someone else who helped me get this far have both said otherwise... Ah, so confused, so out of my depth.

Thanks, by the way, I appreciate your help.
 
That would be RWW then (remote web workplace). Not hard to set up. Just associate the users with a computer in the SBS console. Make sure http and https (port 80 and 443) are forwarded to the server and you should be good to go. I can't remember if the RWW needs setting up, I think it should have been part of the SBS setup wizard.
 
I think I've got a bit more to do before that, but thanks, that's given me some sort of clue of what to look for.

How about this little problem? So I managed to get one of the clients to connect, right? I've moved on to the next, and it's being stubborn. It's plugged in to the same router as the other client (everything is), but if I turn DHCP on it self-assigns an IP and is useless, yet if I set it manually it (the internet, at least) works. However, I can't make it connect to the server and it just won't see the DHCP.

Pinging:
The server's IP works
The server's 'name' works
connect.domainname.local works
Just 'connect' does not work, so it's pretty much the same deal as the client I just sorted out.

But, attempting to fix it in the same way (by opening system properties and fiddling with it) just results in it telling me the domain doesn't exist... So I'm kind of stuck again! I don't understand why the DHCP doesn't work, would a mistyped MAC address cause a problem? I would have thought it would just assign a dynamic IP rather than the one I have reserved. Beyond that I'm completely stumped, again. It's like I'm just trundling blindly along from one impasse to the next, but a job's a job (and if I was working for anyone but my own father I'd've been fired by now).
 
Yes if you misstyped the MAC in the reservation, it will just assign one from the range.

What happens if you open a command prompt and do 'ipconfig /release' then 'ipconfig /renew' ?
 
I left the office shortly after my last post so I didn't get a chance to try, but I think I managed to convince the powers that be to just upgrade that workstation to Windows 7, I guess I'll find out tomorrow though. It's Vista at the moment, and I have no idea what hardware it's running on but it seems... Antiquated.

But yeah, thanks, I'll give that a shot first thing tomorrow.
 
So I ran ipconfig/release:

"An error occurred while releasing interface Local Area Connection: An address has not yet been associated with the network endpoint.

An error occurred while releasing interface Loopback Pseudo-Interface 1: The system cannot find the file specified."

Then ipconfig/renew:

"AB error occurred while renewing interface Local Area Connection: 0x80ef0005.
An error occurred while releasing interface Loopback Pseudo-Interface 1: The system cannot find the file specified."

This was with DHCP enabled so the network adaptor is self-assigning an IP, I figured 'renew' was something to do with trying to obtain a new DHCP lease or something. I'll try it again with manually assigned settings but I can't see how it'll go 'oh THERE'S the DHCP!' and start working if I do that.


Edit: with manual settings I get the Loopback Pseudo-Interface thing and one about the network adaptor not being in a permissible state for the operation while running both commands.
 
Does this happen on all machines or just one? It sounds like a dodgy network card/driver.

Or from an elevated comand prompt do 'netsh winsock reset' and then reboot.
 
DQuaN
Does this happen on all machines or just one? It sounds like a dodgy network card/driver.
Click to expand...

Out of the two clients (don't know if I mentioned this but the third client actually turned out to be a server as well, acting as a domain controller for a domain to which no one is connected... No one tells me anything) I've tried, this is the only one. The other client is connected to the same hub as this and yet has no trouble with DHCP at all, except for yesterday when it was bizarrely setting the subnet mask incorrectly despite the server sending out the correct one.

I'm starting to think it's the card and/or driver myself. I've just run that command and I'm rebooting now, this machine is slllloooowwww. Thing is, it was working up until yesterday morning or so.

Ah, still no luck with the DHCP.
 
I have also tried the registry fix that adds an entry to enable a DHCP broadcast flag... Thing, tried removing Norton 360 and Acer LANscope, currently removing some sort of McAfee thing and I will be trying:

netsh winsock reset catalog
netsh int ipv4 reset reset.log
netsh int ipv6 reset reset.log

As these are all things I've found from Googling that may help, so it's worth a try I guess.

For what it's worth, the network card is an Nvidia nForce network controller and the drivers appear to be the latest version, some people have said one of the later versions ruined EVERYTHING and they rolled back to an earlier version, I think I'll try that next (if I can find the earlier version).


Edit: ok, none of that worked! Now when I do ipconfig/release I get:

"An error has occurred while releasing interface Local Area Connection: An address has not yet been associated with the network endpoint."

And /renew:

"An error occurred while renewing interface Local Area Connection: 0x80ef0005."

So, in other words, pretty much the same as before but without the bit about the loopback pseudo-interface thing, which is, er, possibly interesting?
 
Last edited:
nick09
I'm pretty sure the first message is telling you that you have no ip address set to the LAN connection.
Click to expand...

That it is. The trouble I'm having is that Vista isn't 'seeing' the DHCP but works (in a manner of speaking) when set manually, but in any case it doesn't know there's a domain to connect to and it's generally just being useless. Nothing seems to want to work but the bloody thing is packed with crap I'm surprised they even got Outlook working on it... They want to upgrade it to Windows 7 so I guess we'll see what happens after that.
 
neema_t
That it is. The trouble I'm having is that Vista isn't 'seeing' the DHCP but works (in a manner of speaking) when set manually, but in any case it doesn't know there's a domain to connect to and it's generally just being useless. Nothing seems to want to work but the bloody thing is packed with crap I'm surprised they even got Outlook working on it... They want to upgrade it to Windows 7 so I guess we'll see what happens after that.
Click to expand...

Does the network have a DHCP server(such as a router or swtich)?
 
Question for you guys with good pc knowledge.
I use windows security essentials and once a week also run malaware bytes to look for any nasties. Last night I ran MB and when I came back to check a couple of minutes later my pc had restarted and a message of your computer has recovered from an error. :odd:

I tried to run MB again and the same result was forthcoming. I uninstalled MB and tried again, same thing. On the next boot I tried the security essentials scan for the same result.

Apart from this my pc is running fine with no signs of any issues. I ran a MB scan in safe mode and it completed and said all was clean.

At this point I had other things to do so that's where I'm at.
Any ideas of the possible problem?
I know more info would help you guys and I'll endevour to post the fault log (<<correct term?) and codes tonight after work.

Any adivce would be best given if you where explaining it to a five year old :dopey:.

Edit: Nevermind, I got it sorted out.

Cheers Shaun.
 
Last edited:
I was looking at my desktop, and I realized I should get a different motherboard with some extra ram. And extra PCI slots, instead of the one I have now, which is occupied by an LAN card. But the choices. Oh the choices.

Hmm. New mobo, 8gb ram and a soundcard for less than &#8364;100,-.
 
Last edited:
Updated the firmware on the AMD HD7970, reconnected Steam to the internet for the first time in a few months, updated Skyrim, installed updated versions of graphics mods for the game, put all AMD options to their maximum... saw a stable 60FPS locked.

Happy now.
 
Installed my PC into a new case and temps seem to have dropped by up to 10C, just show how much of a difference 4 fans and a bigger case can make, and all for £30!
I also installed a 120Gb Solid 3 SSD and a fresh Windows and everything is running smoothly :) , what used to be the lowest subscore on Windows experience index is now the highest at 7.4.
Finally I clocked my RAM from the Mobo default 1066mhz to the RAM's specified speed of 1600mhz and lowered timings from 11-11-11 to 10-10-10 and without any voltage increase everything runs well:dopey:.
 
Last edited:
Today, I blue screened my laptop. This was the first time I got one on this computer, which I've had since 2010. I had a few foreground processes running, and tried to open an app off of a USB drive I had plugged in, and BOOM! BSOD. But it fixed itself. I had to reboot eventually anyway too. Maybe if you refuse to reboot, they blue screen you? Whatever the blue screen said (I forget the error), it did a memory dump for something, and auto rebooted. I get the "Start Windows normally" prompt, start normally, and it fixed itself.
 
Cleaned out heatsink as I do every fortnight, and planning a mod job for the base of the computer to get more airflow though it (laptop, MacBook, the aluminium one with bugger-all cooling).

Won't make a thread yet, and it's a minor job so I may just post it here if I ever get around to it (like all my modjobs, they get half done and never finished. Project PlayStation anyone?).
 
Naveek Darkroom
Today, I blue screened my laptop. This was the first time I got one on this computer, which I've had since 2010. I had a few foreground processes running, and tried to open an app off of a USB drive I had plugged in, and BOOM! BSOD. But it fixed itself. I had to reboot eventually anyway too. Maybe if you refuse to reboot, they blue screen you? Whatever the blue screen said (I forget the error), it did a memory dump for something, and auto rebooted. I get the "Start Windows normally" prompt, start normally, and it fixed itself.
Click to expand...
Do a memory test if you can, there might be some problem with your RAM.
 

Latest Posts

Back