Starting and stopping Virtual Server
Virtual Server
Archive for January, 2009
Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1 includes a tool called VHDmount that allows you to mount a virtual hard disk (which in fact is a .VHD file) directly on your host operating system.
You can get Virtual Server R2 SP1 for free right here: “Virtual Server 2005 R2 SP1 now available“.
After installing Virtual Server R2 SP1 on your server, you can access VHDMount from the %Program Files%\Microsoft Virtual Server\Vhdmount folder.
VHDMount is provided as a command line tool. You can perform various tasks by either running it directly from the Command Line, or by using simple batch files that do what you need to do. Some of the capabilities of VHDMount are:
/p – Plugs in the specified VHD as a virtual disk device without mounting the volume.
/m – Plugs in the specified VHD as a virtual disk device and mounts the volume.
/f – Performs the specified operation without creating an Undo Disk. This parameter is applicable for /p and /m. All changes to the mounted disk are directly written to the specified VHD.
/u – Unplugs the virtual disk device for the specified VHDFileName.
/c – Updates the original VHD with all changes that were stored in the Undo Disk anddeletes the Undo Disk after unplugging the disk. This parameter is only applicable if the VHD was mounted without using /f.
/d – Discards all changes to the mounted disk and deletes the Undo Disk after unplugging the disk. This parameter is only applicable if the VHD was mounted without using /f.
/q – Displays the disk name of the mounted virtual disk device for the specified VHDFileName.
VHDFileName – VHD name including full path.
DriveLetter – Optional parameter for /m option. If drive letter is specified the volumes are mounted starting at the specified drive letter. If drive letter is not specifiedit is automatically assigned.
All – Applies the operation on all mounted virtual disk devices. This parameter is applicable for /u and /q.
By default, VHDMount creates an Undo Disk in current user’s temporary folder. All changes to the mounted disk are written to this Undo Disk. Use /c to commit or /d to discard these changes at the time of unplugging the disk device. Use /f option to mount a VHD without an Undo Disk.
Examples:
VHDMOUNT /p [/f] VHDFileName
VHDMOUNT /m [/f] VHDFileName [DriveLetter]
VHDMOUNT /u [/c | /d] VHDFileName | All
VHDMOUNT /q VHDFileName | All
If you’re a fan of the Outlook 2007 To-Do Bar, but wish your upcoming appointments and tasks could be shown even when Outlook was minimized, I’ve got great news for you, you can do this today with the Outlook Sidebar Gadgets.
One of the new features introduced in Windows Vista is the Windows Sidebar, an application that allows gadgets—small applications that provide quick access to useful information or commands—to be displayed on your desktop or in the Sidebar.
The Sidebar presented a great opportunity for Outlook to surface the same information that we show in the To-Do Bar. To this end, we developed two Outlook gadgets: Outlook Appointments and Outlook Tasks. These gadgets can be used independently or together to provide at-a-glance information without the need to bring up Outlook.
The calendar gadget shows 3 or 5 of your upcoming appointments just as they would appear in the To-Do Bar. Appointments are colored based on assigned categories and show the title, time, and location. You can even double click an appointment to open the appointment in Outlook and see more details about the appointment, or to respond or otherwise interact with the appointment.
The task gadget shows all the tasks from your task list and lets you scroll up and down through the list. You can customize the view of your task list as well. By default the gadget shows your tasks grouped by due date, however, through the gadget options you can group by category, due date, start date, or importance. You can also select which groups to show, so if you only want to see high priority tasks or those with a particular category you can filter the view accordingly. To edit the gadget options, move your mouse cursor over the gadget, and click on the small wrench icon that appears by the top right corner of the gadget.
The task gadget also lets you interact with your task list. You can quickly add a new task (when Outlook is running). Just click in the gadget, type a task name, and press enter and a new task is created. You can also mark a task complete by checking the box next to the task.
Because the gadgets are always running in the Sidebar, you can quickly see when your next appointment is and what your next tasks are. If you have a higher resolution monitor you can use the Sidebar options to make the Sidebar always on top so your gadgets and Outlook appointments and tasks are always visible. If you have a smaller screen, you can leave the Sidebar with the default setting and when you want to see have you have to do next, use a hotkey (Windows key + Spacebar) to bring the gadgets to the top of all applications
Both gadgets are available on the Windows Live Gadget Gallery, or by clicking the links below:
Enjoy!
Ryan Gregg
Program Manager, Outlook
I was trying to install SQL Server 2005 Management Studio Express on my home Vista 64 system at the weekend, and came across the following Error.
This is due to the new Vista feature called User Account Control or UAC. there are 2 different ways of fixing it.
Fix 1.
1. Under ‘Accessories’ from ‘All Programs’, right-click the Command Prompt shortcut and select ‘Run as Administrator’. Accept the UAC warning when prompted.
2. From the command prompt change to the directory that holds the SSMSEE installation .MSI file.
3. Enter the command .\SQLServer2005_SSMSEE_x64.msi if you’re running Vista x64 (64-bit) or .\SQLServer2005_SSMSEE.msi if you’re running Vista x86 (32-bit)
4. Press enter and complete the installation as normal.
Fix 2.
The second method is to disable UAC completely but I wouldn’t do that if I was you.
Disabling Time Synchronization under Virtual PC 2007
When you have Virtual Machine Additions installed on Virtual PC we will automatically synchronize the virtual machines time with that of the host operating system.