The Mole #11: Technical Answers from Inside Microsoft - Windows 98, OLE, Web Pages, Boot Disk, KB Search, HCL, Memory Bleed

  • Article

June 21, 1999

Editors Note The questions and answers below are from the Inside Microsoft column that appears regularly on the TechNet Web site (https://www.microsoft.com/technet). To find out how to submit questions of your own, see the end of this article or go to https://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/columns/insider/default.mspx.

The TechNet Mole provides expert answers from deep within Microsoft to questions from IT professionals. This installment focuses on these issues:

  • Distributed File System for NT Server

  • Redistributing Windows 98 Updates via LAN

  • OLE updates IE 5.0 Updates

  • Viewing Web Pages in Progress on your Local Machine

  • Creating a Network Boot Disk

  • Mole Rants: KB Search Hints & Using the Hardware Compatibility List

  • Backtalk: More about Memory Bleed

On This Page

Distributed File System for NT Server
Redistributing Windows 98 Updates via LAN
OLE Updates IE 5.0 Updates
Viewing Web Pages in Progress on your Local Machine
Creating a Network Boot Disk
A Couple of Mole rants
More about Memory Bleed
Credits

Distributed File System for NT Server

Hi Mole,

I have a problem with NT. I am currently using Novell NetWare 3.12 and plan to migrate to NT 4.0. As you know, in Novell to give rights to a directory, you just have to make the user trustee of that directory. Now if the user is trustee of ten directories, e.g. in the same volume, you can map one drive to that volume and s/he is able to see only does directories where he is a trustee. He does not get to see the structure of the volume.

But in NT4.0 you have to share all these directories of single volume and map different drives to these directories. This is very cumbersome, and the user now has to remember many drives for different directories. Is there any way to solve this problem? I'll be very grateful if you can respond as soon as possible.

Anil Khatri, Dy Mgr. Info Systems, Serdia Pharmaceuticals

Greetings, Anil,

Help is here. It goes by the acronym DFS, or more formally, Microsoft Distributed File System for Microsoft Windows NT Server, a handy bit of software that provides a single tree structure for multiple shared volumes located on different servers on a common network. A user accessing a volume on a DFS tree does not need to know the name of the server where the volume is actually shared.

Redistributing Windows 98 Updates via LAN

Gentle Readers,

So many of you have written concerning the logistics of obtaining Windows 98 updates for networked corporate workstations that Mole herewith provides a "global answer" to this common query.

Yes, yes, yes. You can download once and redistribute to all computers on your company LAN. You asked for this option, and Microsoft now provides it on the Microsoft Windows Update site at https://www.microsoft.com/windows98/downloads/corporate.asp. Upon visiting the site, you'll be given two options:

  • Run the actual update, ("Run this program from its current location"), which will install the fix on the machine you're currently using; OR

  • Download the self-extracting EXE, ("Save this program to disk"), which you can then put on an internal network share and direct your users to obtain it there.

Note that this site is for use by IT PROFESSIONALS ONLY—solitary end-user types should continue to get the latest from https://update.microsoft.com/microsoftupdate/. Know too that the Microsoft elves are even now crafting a way for IT managers to search across multiple platforms and painlessly download the updates they need. Mole will alert you the moment it becomes available.

OLE Updates IE 5.0 Updates

Dear Mole,

Thanks for letting me know about the site where I can get Windows 98 updates for distribution within our environment. Unfortunately, I still have a couple of problems related to this issue.

  1. When we tested our Product for use with Windows 98, we tested with a configuration that included four updates that were then available on the Windows 98 Update site: Windows 98 Year 2000 Update, OLE Update, Microsoft Virtual Machine Update, and the Microsoft Libraries Update.

    However, the OLE update is no longer available on either the standard Update site or the Corporate Update site. This is an update we included as a requirement in our certification statement. Why is it no longer available? What was in it? Why was it pulled? Now that this update is no longer available, we are essentially required to repeat our certification process—a rather costly exercise.

  2. I'm having the same problems with IE5: I can't find a copy that I can download once and have locally. I'm sure you can appreciate that my company doesn't want to have 1,000 PC's get on the web and run a setup program. I'm also sure you can understand that, as developers, we need to have control over the timing of updates to the components we are using. In our lab environment, we may need to frequently re-install a product like IE5 and we can't afford to wonder that maybe Microsoft changed something in the product since the last time we installed it.

    Dan Smith

Hi Dan,

Who was it who said, "God is in the details?" While Mole cannot confirm or deny the spiritual value of sweating the small stuff, he knows it's what makes a network hum. Some answers to your questions:

  1. OLE Update no longer available (Win98)? What was in it? Why was it pulled?

    You'll find answers in this KB article:

    • 214845: Availability of the OLE Automation Fix for Windows 95/98

    It says: The OLE Automation fix is recommended if you are using version 2.30.4267 of the Oleaut32.dll file. Version 2.30.4267 of the Oleaut32.dll file is installed by the Microsoft Virtual Machine (VM) version 3155. If you are using version 2.30.4267 of the Oleaut32.dll file, download and install the latest version of the VM from this Web Site: https://www.microsoft.com/mscorp/java/.

    Note: A separate OLE Automation fix for Windows 95/98 is not available for download from the Microsoft Web site, but it is included in version 3165 of the Virtual Machine. The Windows Update Web site does not detect version 2.30.4267 of the Oleaut32.dll file. The OLE Automation fix and the latest VM include version 2.30.4268 of the Oleaut32.dll file.

    Once you go to the Java page https://www.microsoft.com/mscorp/java/ ), you will see the heading "Download the latest Microsoft SDK for Java -- Version 3.2". Under that, there is the link "Developers: get the latest VM and other components for SDK for Java 3.2." Click the hyperlink in that sentence to download the latest VM. You can download the fix locally or choose to run the install, just like the Windows 98 or IE 5.0 updates."

    Also under the heading "Download the latest Microsoft SDK for Java -- Version 3.2," you'll find the answer to "What is in it?" Click the "release notes" link. Then on the subsequent page, click on "Read the documentation online."

  2. Location of IE5 for download locally (without installing)?

    Of course you don't want to send a thousand computers out to the Internet to download the new browser. Internet Explorer 5 Administration Kit for Windows 3.x, 95, 98, NT 4, and Unix lets you install it on your corporate workstations via your LAN. Better yet, it makes it easy to customize installation to the needs of your workers, both in terms of features included and when the download is performed. With the IEAK, you can not only update your company's machines; you can also try out the Custom Installation Wizard that's a cool new component of the Office 2000 suite.

    All this for free! If you're not already registered to receive premium content on TechNet, you'll have to take the time to tell us a tiny bit about yourself before you can do the download. But that's a no-brainer, and will improve the quality of your life besides. To register for the good stuff, go to https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/subscriptions/default.aspx.

Viewing Web Pages in Progress on your Local Machine

Hi,

I use FrontPage to design web sites, and Explorer to view them as I design. I use SSI's, (Server Side Includes), and it's a bit of a hassle to load a page up to the server so that I can see what it looks like with the SSI inserted in the HTML.

Is there a way that I can do this on my local machine (NT Workstation 4.0)? It would save me lots of time if I could test my SSI's without having to upload them all the time!

Steve D.

Hey Steve,

The Windows NT 4.0 Option Pack (NTOP) is what you need. The NTOP includes Personal Web Server (PWS) which can be installed and run on Windows NT 4.0 Workstation. PWS has all the functionality of IIS, but only a limited number of connections. Running PWS on your NT Workstation/development machine should do just what you're looking for.

Creating a Network Boot Disk

Dear Mole,

I'm considering NTWS network installations with "Network installation startup disks." I already found all sorts of resources to do so (NTWS Resource Kit, WNT System Admin (O'Reilly), your article from 3-8-9 "NTW Remote Installation Method," MS online support), but there's one point every resource seems to avoid.

What if the NIC on the station you want NTWS to be installed on is NOT listed in the drop-down box that appears during the "Create netw. inst. startup disk" of the Network Client Administrator Utility?

The only hint I got is in the NTWS resource kit (page 57). It says to verify that the NIC settings are correct and mentions "The settings are in the a:\net\protocol.ini file." Also a how-to document I found from MS support online (How to Prepare DOS formatted disks for creating installation startup disks.) says, "NOTE: if the appropriate network adapter card does not appear in this list, the boot disk will have to be manually configured.". This is exactly what I'm trying to do. I guess from both documents, that it is in the protocol.ini file that this should happen, but how?

Benjamin

Yo, Benjamin,

This question, or versions of it, gets asked so often that Mole suspects that, thanks to the advent of Plug and Play, the creation of a network boot disk has become something of a lost art. And you're absolutely right, there's a lot of buck passing and no step-by-step instructions in the resources you cite. Still, this is know-how every IT Pro worth his or her salt should have in the toolbox. To put it in yours, consult the following Knowledge Base article called **142857:**How to Create a Network Installation Boot Disk.

And now, for mini-lectures on a couple of topics close to Mole's rodent-like heart. To those who genuinely do know it all, Mole apologizes in advance for his redundancy.

A Couple of Mole rants

KB Search Hints

Searching the Knowledge Base:

Mole found the article above using this string as his search criteria:

"network boot disk and protocol.ini"

Obviously, it worked. Now, once you succeed in finding the article you want, look to the bottom. In many KB articles, you'll find several keywords listed. In this case, those are: kbnetwork kbhowto nthowto NTSrvWkst.

You know this string yields results. Save it to use as the model for future searches, and you'll find yourself hitting pay dirt more often, with less effort. Also, simply searching with the product name and the "KBKeyword" will often streamline the process. The better you get at this stuff, the less often you'll be writing Mole.

Using the Hardware Compatibility List

One of Mole's buddies who supports the OEM channel estimates that 60% of the calls he receives end up being driver-related issues.

The Windows Hardware Quality Lab publishes the constantly updated the Hardware Compatibility List located at https://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/server/howtobuy/upgrading/compat/default.asp. This Web site lists roughly 10,000 device/driver pairs rigorously tested to be "good citizens" in the Windows environment. Not only are these listed by operating system; it's also possible to download the most current compatible drivers directly from the HCL.

The HCL is also available on the TechNet CD titled, Technical Information.

When you're purchasing hardware, the HCL makes an invaluable reference. It's equally handy as a troubleshooting tool. Save to "Favorites" now.

More about Memory Bleed

Dear Mole,

Was reading your reader's question regarding NT Memory Bleed and being a fan of Jerry Pournelle's column at Byte Magazine, I remembered seeing a solution to memory bleed that he uses.

He has 192MB of memory on his machine (NT too) that he uses to answer e-mail. Sometime he maxes his memory opening multiple messages, his fix is a small utility called MemTurbo He continues to give his before and after mem amounts and where to get the utility. Read about it at https://www.byte.com/columns/chaosmanor/1999/05/0517jpournelle.html.

Marti LaRossa, MT, MCSE, Lakepointe Medical Center

Credits

Mole thanks Lon Collins.

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