Don't Let Old Files Lie
Internet Information Server (IIS) generates log files in the form INyymmdd.log. Because I use a monthly log schedule on my intranet server, IIS creates a new log file every month.
Although I use the current month's file for debugging and troubleshooting, the rest of the log files just take up space in the log directory. So I wrote a script that cleans out the log directory by deleting log files that are a certain number of months old. I use the AT command to schedule the script's execution.
To use this script, extract the batches in Listings 2, 3, and 4 into the same directory. After you change the hard-coded directories to match the values in your system, schedule the script to run with the AT command. For example, to run the script the first of every month, I use the command
AT 04:00 /Every:1 "cmd /c e:admin\iislogmanager_start.bat
>e:\admin\iislogmanager.log"
This script works with not only monthly, but also daily, logs. In addition, you can easily customize the script so that it manipulates logs in other ways. For example, you can adapt the script so that it archives old logs instead of deleting them. Because this script uses an Italian locale, you might need to adapt the script where it extracts the current date. REMs precede the affected line.
—Alessandro Iacopetti
a.iacopetti@cedacriovest.it
SP3 Needed for Full Color
I recently discovered information about Intel's Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) and Windows NT. To get more than basic VGA (16 colors) out of your ATI@work AGP video adapter, you must install Service Pack 3 (SP3). Only then will the Rage Pro drivers work to give you the color depth you expect from a 4MB or 8MB adapter.
I've also discovered that if you install the ATI drivers without SP3 during setup, NT will offer a minimum of 256 colors at any resolution. In addition, clicking Test blacks the screen and locks up the machine. Until you install SP3, you must use basic VGA.
—J. D. Ray
jdray@sns-access.com
Modify the Boot File
Mirroring (or duplexing) your system and boot partitions is a great way to provide fault tolerance for your operating system (OS), but mirroring often causes inexperienced administrators to get confused when the primary drive fails. The system fails to reboot properly because the Advanced RISC Computing (ARC) path in the boot.ini file points to the failed partition.
The usual workaround for this problem is to use an alternative boot floppy that has the boot.ini pointing to the mirrored drive partition. But inexperienced administrators often don't prepare these floppies in advance. Plus, these floppies can get lost, erased, or mislabeled.
I have devised another workaround for this problem: I include the path to the mirrored partition in the boot.ini file. As Listing 5 shows, you can use Notepad or another text editor to add the ARC path of the mirrored drive and partition to the OS section of the standard boot.ini file. This alternative drive must have a master boot record from a previous Windows NT installation to work.
Now if the primary drive fails, you'll have 30 seconds to choose the Mirrored Boot after restarting the server. You'll still have to replace the failed drive and reestablish the mirror as soon as possible, but at least you can quickly and easily get your system running.
—William Allen Scheer
dansgold@earthlink.net
Same Theory, Different Procedure for Automation
After reading Dmitrii Lezine's "Automate for Easy Installation" in December 1997 Reader to Reader, I found myself wondering if the same procedure would work for an out-of-the-box Digital Equipment PC preloaded with Windows NT Workstation 4.0. I found that the theory is sound, but the procedure is different.
Digital uses the file c:\winnt\system32\$winnt$.inf for its installation settings. With the help of NT's Setup Manager (in the Microsoft Windows NT Workstation 4.0 Resource Kit) and Guide to Automating Setup (at http://www.microsoft.com/ntworkstation/info/deployguide.htm), I modified the file to fit my needs (as Listing 6 shows).
A coworker and I then created a batch file that replaced the original $winnt$.inf with the modified $winnt$.inf file and appended the computer-name parameter to the end of the file. Listing 7 contains this batch file, which I put on a bootable disk.
I booted off the disk, typed
SETUP WKSTN_1
ejected the disk, and restarted the machine. When the machine booted into setup mode, I agreed to the Licensing Agreement and walked away. When I returned, the machine was completely setup with the correct protocols. It had even created a computer account for itself in the domain. All I had to do was log on.
—Ryan Tupper
ryantupper@martin-associates.co
Remove Your NT Server from the Browser Election
If you use a Windows NT server for research and development and you're rebuilding it often, consider installing that server as a standalone. Here's why: When your NT server is a Primary Domain Controller (PDC) or Backup Domain Controller (BDC), it participates in a browser election each time you bring the server back online. If you continually take your server offline and then bring it back online, the server and clients can get an empty browser list. If you install the NT server as a standalone, however, that server will not be a part of the browser election. Your network will then run smoothly.
—Tommy Gustafssonv
t.gustafsson@norrkoping.mail.telia.comv
End of Article
Prev. page
1
[2]
next page -->
