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Config snippets : ADLDS : Reset password without SSL

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By default ADLDS does not allow to reset password on users created in ADLDS repository over connection without SSL. As sometimes there is a need to build test environment with ADLDS quick, SSL is the last thing which anyone would care about, especially if main thing to test is script automating password resets.

So, for convenience of the developers ADLDS allows to disable requirements for SSL connection to reset passwords. How to disable that reuqirement? See below how it was done on server where ADLDS was installed on port 50389:

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Config snippets : ADLDS : Disable password policy

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By default password policy from Active Directory domain will impact ADLDS and users created in ADLDS instance. To prevent domain policies from enforcing password restrictions and rules on ADLDS users one simple setting has to be adjusted:

  • ADAMDisablePasswordPolicies

Here is how it looks on computer which has ADLDS instance installed on port 50389:

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25

How-to : Use SQL Server to query Active Directory

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I think it’s common problem as Active Directory gets bigger in organizations, control over content of that mission-critical component seems to be lost. Same happened in my place. In addition to that we had to provide information from AD on a regular basis in a form of report. We had no tools to pull all data from AD, process it and present in some readable format. However, I was working with skilled SQL guy who was also very good in Reporting Services. So, I proposed that we can link Active Directory with SQL Server and use Transact-SQL to pull information from AD, process it on SQL and then make it readable and presentable through Reporting Services. That would allow SQL guy to process all information and do all kind of reporting required.

Here are components of our LAB environment before solution went to production:

And below steps how we made SQL Server 2008 R2 to work with Active Directory to use Transact-SQL queries to pull information from directory database.

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Code snippets : Exchange Server : Count messages submitted by user

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In some companies performance is measured based on number of emails someone sent. regardless the reason for those emails and content, what matters the most is if someone is sending something to others. So, I was asked to produce quick count how many emails one individual sent.

Here is quick PowerShell command which I ran on Exchange 2007 Mailbox server to find requested number:

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Windows Registry : How to change background on Windows logon screen

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Background image on logon screen os common issue with pre-installed servers, for example from Dell. That makes accessing those systems via Remote Desktop painful and slow (it happenes that serer is shipped to location, racked and stacked, and then whole configuration take place remotely). By default background bitmap from logon screen is sitting in C:\Windows\System32\oobe\info\backgrounds, so you can put your own logon screen background or if you don’t want to have any (just system default) you can follow instructions below and remove background from logon screen.

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Code snippets : MySQL : Change root password after installation

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By default when I installed mysql on openSUSE, root password for mysql access was blank. First thing then is to change password as this might pose security issue. First of all login to openSUSE using root account and then:

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