How to: Find MAC addresses using PowerShell

Today I had to install a new System Center Configuration Manager 2012 R2 environment. One of the features this customer is going to use is OS Deployment. In this environment we are using the Build & Capture task sequence voor deploying a Master Image of Windows 8.1. The Master Images will be deployed in Hyper-V. One of the important steps is to import the “Master VM” into the ConfigMgr database. Two things you’ve to know are….PC name and the MAC address. With this PowerShell command you can find all the MAC addresses very easy!

1.) Open Microsoft PowerShell on your Hyper-V server
2.) First list all the VM’s
Get-VM
3.) List the name of the VM, MAC address, Virtual Switch name and IP address

get-vm -Name SC2012R2-PC0002 | select -ExpandProperty networkadapters | select vmname, macaddress, switchname, ipaddresses

4.) Import the VM into ConfigMgr

 

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How to: Save your DPI settings in Windows 2008 R2 with mandatory profiles using RES Workspace Manager 2012

In Windows 2008 R2, users have the ability to change their DPI settings. When users change their DPI settings, they have to logoff and login again before the new settings are live. But….what if you’re using mandatory profiles. When the users logs off, the profile is unloaded and the settings are also gone!! The users are logging in again, and the new and “clean” mandatory profile is loaded, whitout the DPI settings!

When you’re using RES Workspace Manager, you can save the DPI settings when the users logoff and load the settings when the users login, also when you’re using mandatory profile! By default there are three options to choose:

1.) Smaller – 100% = 96 DPI (Pixels/Dots Per Inch)
2.) Medium – 125% = 120 DPI (Pixels/Dots Per Inch)
3.) Larger – 150% = 144 DPI (Pixels/Dots Per Inch)

Use the following steps to save the DPI settings for your users.

1.) Create a new global Zero Profling setting within RES Workspace Manager
2.) Save a registry value HKEY_Current_User\Control Panel\Desktop\LogPixels
3.) Login with a mandatory profile and change your DPI settings
4.) Logoff your session (now your DPI settings are saved using RES Zero Proling)
5.) Login again with a mandatory profile and look for your DPI settings

DPI-01    DPI-02    DPI-03
DPI-04

 

How to: Create shutdown, logoff and restart Windows tiles in Windows 8.1 using RES Automation Manager 2012

By default, there’s no shutdown, logoff or restart button anymore in Windows 8 and 8.1. Microsoft has released a script to create these Windows tiles. You can download this script in the Windows Gallery. In this example I’ve created the Windows tiles in Windows 8.1 using RES Automation Manager 2012.

1.) First create a Windows share where you put the PowerShell module for the Windows tiles
2.) Next I’ve created a new module with some Powershell commands
Set-Executionpolicy unrestricted -force
Import-Module \\RESMNG01\Source\CreateWindowsTile\CreateWindowsTile.pm1
New-OSCWindowsTile
3.) when you run this module on your RES AM agent(s), the new Windows Tiles will be created

Very usefull in a large environment with Windows 8 or 8.1 🙂

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How to: Disable the EU Browser Choice screen in Windows 8 and 8.1

The first time when you boot your new installed Windwos 8 or 8.1 machine, you get the Browser choice screen. In my situation I want to use Internet Explorer and don’t want to let the users choice what browser they are going to use. You can disable the browser choice screen with a simple registry key. You can use the following command to disable the browser choice screen within MDT or SCCM infastructures.

REG ADD HKLM\Software\BrowserChoice /v Enable /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f

Set the key to 1 if you want to enable the browser choice screen. Set the key to 0 if you want to disable it.

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Hyper-V: Generation 2 Virtual Machine compatibility error

Today I want to deploy a new virtual machine within Hyper-V (Windows 8.1 Client Hyper-V). The virtual machine was an Windows Server 2008 R2 machine. After hitting the “Start” button, I received an error message:

“Boot Failed. EFI SCSI Device. Failed Secure Boot Verification”.

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The reason for this error was the new Generation 2 VM. I’ve created a new Generaion 2 (Gen2) VM for Windows Server 2008 R2, but it supports only Windows Server 2012 and Windows 8 or higher!! So just remember, when you want to create an virtual machine whit an “older” operating system, just create an Generation 1 VM (Gen1).

Windows 8.1 Preview in Windows 8 Client Hyper-V

Yesterday at the Microsoft TechEd Europe in Madrid, Microsoft announced the official release of Windows 8.1 preview. The download is also available on the Microsoft website and for the people in Madrid on the TechEd are getting an USB stick with the ISO files!! Back in the hotel, the first thing I’ve done is installing a new VM with…YES, Windows 8.1 preview!! What a great, great, great product it is! 🙂 The looks, the new features, the possibilities, everything is there what you expect from an enterprise product!!

Now it is only running as a VM within Hyper-V on my laptop, but the Surface RT and the Surface Pro are on there way to the Netherlands!! So that is even a better experience. Next week I will post the results on my new Surface devices.

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The Ictivity duck is also love the new Microsoft Surface Pro! 🙂

ConfigMgr 2012 client installation on Windows 8 returns an error 0x800b101

Last week I have been working on a Windows 8 deployment with ConfigMgr 2012. After configuring a new task sequence, I was able to deploy the first Windows 8 image to one of many virtual desktops. The deployment went fine, until the ConfigMgr client installation. Okay, so what about now. Let’s have a look in the CCMSETUP.LOG on the client. I received the following error:
“Couldn’t verify C:\WINDOWS\ccmsetup\MicrosoftPolicyPlatformSetup.msi authenticode signature. Return code 0x800b101”.

After some search on Microsoft TechNet, I found the solution for this problemn. Microsoft has released a hotfix for this error (KB2801987) . You have to request this hotfix by e-mail.

After requesting and downloading the hotfix, you have to install this hotfix on your primary site server. It wil create a new update package named “KB 2801987 – server update – P01”. If you browse to your client installation files on your primary site server, you’ll also see that the timestamp has changed. So the ConfigMgr client installation files are also updated! Make sure you update the distribution point(s) with the new version of the ConfigMgr 2012 client installation package.

Now you’re able to succesfully deploy Windows 8 with the ConfigMgr 2012 client.

WIN8_01    WIN8_02    WIN8_03

WIN8_04    WIN8_05    WIN8_06

WIN8_07    WIN8_08    WIN8_09

WIN8_10    WIN8_11    WIN8_12

WIN8_13    WIN8_14    WIN8_15

WIN8_16    WIN8_17    WIN8_18