Great tool. Useful for image conversion, expecially if used with the Adobe Photoshop Lite.

If you insert a link on your site the license is free!
D.

Introduction
Every day when I finish work, I switch off my desktop computer. When I switch it on again the following morning, I can carry on where I left off. I switch on the computer, and all of my application windows are exactly where I left them. The web browser is still showing me the webpage I was half-way through reading. How? I use Virtual Network Computing: VNC.
My desktop session actually runs on another machine in another building. The desktop computer I sit in front of runs a VNC viewer and shows me my desktop—but the applications in that desktop are running inside a VNC server session.
Applications of VNC
There are several different problems that can be solved by using VNC. The reason I use it is so that I can have a persistent desktop as previously described. This is one of the most common reasons for using VNC. One computer runs a VNC server, which is a type of virtual frame buffer: it manages a screen image (a two-dimensional array of pixels), but does not display it directly on a screen. Another computer runs a VNC viewer, which acts as a client and takes the frame buffer image from the VNC server and displays it on a real screen. With VNC providing a persistent desktop, I do not need to log in or log out, but instead I just resume my session from where I left off last time by running a VNC viewer application.
VNC servers and viewers are available for a variety of operating systems. Red Hat® Enterprise Linux® 4 includes the server and two viewers: a Java version as well as the native application. The VNC server can be configured to provide the Java viewer over HTTP, so you can use any Java-enabled web browser on any operating system as a VNC viewer.
The design of VNC places few demands on the VNC viewer. Most of the work is done by the server. As a result of this, it is a well-placed technology for making thin client systems (where a number of diskless machines provide graphical interfaces to a single powerful server). Thin clients need only run the VNC viewer whereas the applications can reside on the server.
One type of thin client is an X terminal: a dedicated machine that runs the X Window System and is connected to a network. In general, these machines are configured to connect to a server which then displays a login window. The X terminal displays the graphics from the server using the X Window System protocol.
A VNC viewer can act like a software X terminal, with a VNC server providing the login window. The advantage of using VNC for this is that the login session will stay there even when the user disconnects the VNC viewer, moves to another room or building, then reconnects. The session only finishes when the user logs out; afterwards, connecting with a VNC viewer will show a login window again.

A more efficient way of achieving the same effect is to use the VNC loadable module for the X Window System. Instructions for setting this up can be found at the RealVNC website. Using this module, even when no one is logged in, the login window on the screen can be viewed and controlled remotely.
With Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4, VNC can make life easier even while you install the operating system! You probably already know that unattended automatic installations are possible using the kickstart feature, with the installation options and package selections being set out in advance in a kickstart file. You may not know that you can have interactive control of the Red Hat Enterprise Linux installation procedure even when the machine being installed is physically remote from you, perhaps even in another country.
The installing Red Hat Enterprise Linux machine can be told to act as a VNC server from the very beginning of the installation. Very briefly, the way to do this is to boot using PXE (or any similar method), passing the command line linux ks vnc to the installer (links to documentation about PXE network installations can be found in the section called “Further reading”). Provide a minimal kickstart file using DHCP, which just sets the location of the installation directory—perhaps an NFS server. When the installer starts you will be able to start a VNC viewer and connect to the IP address of the machine.
Setting up a persistent desktop
Here is a description of the steps to take when setting up a persistent desktop using VNC in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.
The first thing to do is set a password for the VNC server. To do this, log in as normal and run the command vncpasswd from a shell prompt. The VNC service will not start unless you have set a password.
Next, become root using su – and edit the /etc/sysconfig/vncservers file. To set up two persistent desktop sessions, one for fred and one for joe (who prefers a larger display size than fred), it should look like Example 1.
/etc/sysconfig/vncservers example.
# The VNCSERVERS variable is a list of display:user pairs.
#
# Uncomment the line below to start a VNC server on display :1
# as my ‘myusername’ (adjust this to your own). You will also
# need to set a VNC password; run ‘man vncpasswd’ to see how
# to do that.
#
# DO NOT RUN THIS SERVICE if your local area network is
# untrusted! For a secure way of using VNC, see
# .

VNCSERVERS=”1:fred 2:joe”

# fred’s VNC options
VNCSERVERARGS[1]=”-geometry 1024×768″

# joe’s VNC options
VNCSERVERARGS[2]=”-geometry 1280×1024″
Example 1./etc/sysconfig/vncservers example

To start all VNC persistent desktops at boot, enable the VNC service with chkconfig vncserver on (as root). Then, to start the VNC persistent desktops now, type service vncserver start. Both users will be able to connect VNC viewers, fred to display number 1 and joe to display number 2.
The default desktop session in VNC is a very simple one, using the twm window manager. You might prefer the VNC desktop session to look and behave the same as the login session you would normally see. To do that, edit the file /home/username/.vnc/xstartup and remove the # from the beginning of the two lines that follow the line reading Uncomment the following two lines for normal desktop.
Using a VNC viewer
Whether you use the Java VNC viewer or a native VNC viewer on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4, Microsoft® Windows®, or any other platform, the procedure is broadly the same. On Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 the application can be found in the menu as Main Menu -> Accessories -> VNC Viewer.
A dialog box will appear asking for a VNC server to connect to, and an Options… button allows you to configure certain things about how the VNC viewer will operate.
The VNC server is identified by a hostname (or IP address) and a display number. If the /etc/sysconfig/vncservers file in Example 1. /etc/sysconfig/vncservers example was on a machine named hoopoe.elk, the VNC server for joe’s session would be hoopoe.elk:2.
The VNC display number is not an IP port number even though the hostname:number syntax is used for specifying port numbers in a web browser. To make matters slightly more confusing, the Java VNC viewer is accessed in this way when using a web browser by specifying a port number! The port number for the Java VNC viewer is the display number plus 5800. For example, to get to joe’s VNC session using a web browser the URL would be http://hoopoe.elk:5802/.
If a password is set on the VNC server, the VNC viewer prompts you for it. Next, the VNC viewer window appears containing the desktop session. Closing the VNC viewer window does not terminate the desktop session.

To adjust connections settings, press F8 for the menu (refer to Figure 3. VNC Viewer menu. Running a VNC viewer in Full screen mode allows it to catch key combinations that would normally be intercepted by the window manager, for example Alt-Tab to switch between windows. In Full screen mode, this switches between windows in the VNC session, not between the VNC viewer window and other windows on the local session.

Pressing F8 brings up the VNC menu, but if you want an application running in the VNC session to get the keypress instead of the VNC viewer, select Send F8 from the VNC menu.
Quick steps
Here is a quick recap of the steps needed to set up a persistent desktop using VNC on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.
Set a password using vncpasswd
Edit /etc/sysconfig/vncservers
Enable the service with chkconfig vncserver on
Start the service with service vncserver start
Edit /home/username/.vnc/xstartup if you want a more advanced session than just twm and an xterm

In these weeks i’ve encountered a little problem between the very cool button of Office 2007 and the window of UltraVNC  viewer.

If you try this combination of software you find that the button on the top-left of the Office window isn’t clickable. Thi is due to the layered design of the button that probably isn’t reachable by the mouse events manager of UltraVNC.

In thi s case we must instal on the client the Video Hook Driver that you can download here(look at the version of UltraVNC that you have):  http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/ultravnc/UltraVnc-DriverSetupSilent.zip?download

Now i’m looking for massive deploy of the driver via Windows GP. Someone has a trick to create a msi file from an exe?

D.

The best tool in the world for copying files in Windows systems!!

Today i’ve checjed out also another two tools:

RichCopy

RoboCopy GUI

both from Windows Technet’s guys. Simple gui for simple execution of commands.

Reccomended!

cheers,

D.

Hi,

today i discovered a trick for applying some MAC Filters to users that would be connected on my local lan.

The DLL that makes my life better is this:

http://blogs.technet.com/teamdhcp/archive/2007/10/03/dhcp-server-callout-dll-for-mac-address-based-filtering.aspx

created by DHCP team of Microsoft.

I still will understand how the chenges at the MACFilter list file are applied. In this moment i must restart the dhcp service every time i change the file.

If someone have an answer please contact me.

Stay tuned!

D.

In Italy, till the 15th of December every IT Manager or System Administrator must be compliant  to a privacy law that force all companies to check every six months the activities of System and Network admins.

Because of this law, every IT distributor and companies run to make different log products for sysadmins and the prices become very high in a bit.

But in most of cases the needed software can be cretaed by open source products, nad in this article i describe what i used to accomplish my task.

I forget a passage:   the system for the server is Windows based.

What we need:

- A Server with Win2k3

- Snare Agent for Events monitoring on client machines

- LogClarity free log server(with MSSql Express)

- Solarwinds Kiwi Syslog Gen (for testing purposes)

The succession of tasks are the following:

- Install MSSql Server Express on win2k3

- Install LogClarity on the Server, the installation makes automatically the tables on MSSqlServer

Specify the log server port as described on the manual(usual 514);

- Install on a client machine the Kiwi Syslog Gen that sends syslog packets to the port of log server;

- Access to web interface of LogClarity Log Server (username and password are “syslog” and Click on “Submit” button to show the records of pkt s received. If are showed the records of packets sended by the client machine we are ready.

- Install SNARE on all Client or Server that must be monitored(in my case SNARE Objectives were logon/logoff of administrator accounts);

That’s all,

D.

p.s. on Un ix there are a lot of solutions, in my opinion the best tools combination is: rsyslog + mysql + phpLogCon

p.p.s. a commercial tool very strong is Solarwind Kiwi Syslog or SawMill(that have very useful graph utilities)

Yesterday i have been contacted by one of my collegue for a problem on his PC:  when his PC is booting Windows XP shows a message with the Blue screen of death ” Unmountable BOOT Volume “.

Nothing of the usual actions on windows system take effect:  reboot, reboot in self-mode execution or self-,ode execution with command prompt.

I’ve found different solutions here:

http://www.supertechtips.info/unmountable-boot-volume-error-windows-xp-fix.html

Now let’s go!

Hi all,

here we will describe the procedure to plan a massive execution of an on demand scan on all McAfee clients on a LAN. In this case we plan the daily execution of the scan.

Login on the web console of McAfee orchestrator than go to Systems.

Select on the left the Organization which will be linked to the Task and where there are the clients that will be affected to.



Select New Task from the bottom of the window.

Select the product type to use for the Task(warning: the options of the tasks depends on the product selected).

Select VirusScan>version> and insert a description that will be listed on the tasks  summary page. My configuration of scanning objectives is the following:

For the scheduling i suggest to plan a daily scan with a rotation over 3 days, randomization set on 2 hours.

The time according to tasks run must be UTC.

Select NEXT and SAVE.

Tomorrow we can check on the ssytems selected if the task have been executed.

Regards,

D.

A little trick for back up your data (email,addresses) on mozilla thunderbird.

In this web page there is a solution http://kb.mozillazine.org/MozBackup

I’ve changed my office pc and i had to move my emails and data from the old pc to the new one. The target is the profile folder and with this software we accomplished the task.Yes!

@ this site http://www.waynezim.com/2009/05/how-to-deploy-vnc-using-group-policy/ there is a good tutorial for network installation of VNC Server.

Don’t forget to open the dialog box “Properties” on the line of  new package added to the policy and select the options: “Install this application at logon”. Click “Install immediately and “Assign”.

Good chance for network administrators that don’t want to lift up their rear from the chair

UPDATE: With the linked article we can get in error at configuration time of VNC. In fact, there are one or two options with a warning: the DSMPlugin must not be activated(for a loss of rights with a shared key that have to be exchanged from client 2 server) and the loopback connection must be not a activated, in these cases there are many problems to make a connection between server and viewer.