The Mole #2: Technical Answers from Inside Microsoft - Routing, Back-up, Windows 98, Notepad, Web Protocols & Acronyms
February 1, 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. The second installment focuses on these issues:
IP Routing
Backing up files to a network drive
Windows 98 Update
Notepads Default Settings
Internet Security Protocols
Important Acronyms for an Internet World
On This Page
IP Router
Backing Up Files to a Network Drive
The Whys of Windows 98 Update
Notepad Work-Around
Internet Security Protocols
Important Acronyms for an Internet World
Got Questions? Mail the Mole
IP Router
Dear Mole,
How do I get NT Server 4.0 to route on a multihomed system with 3 network cards and three IP subnets?
Routeless in Rhode Island
Dear Routeless,
First you need to install RIP (Routing Information Protocol) Service for Internet Protocol. Then, you'll want to enable IP Forwarding (also referred to as IP Routing.)
To perform the installation, click Start, Settings, Control Panel, Network. To add RIP service, click the Services tab. Click the Add button. Scroll down to RIP for Internet Protocol. Highlight this, then click OK. When you're asked where to find the files needed, verify the location. Insert the NT 4.0 CD if necessary, then click Continue.
To enable routing, go to Network Properties.
Click Protocols, highlight TCP/IP, click Properties.
Click the Routing tab.
Check the Enable IP Forwarding box.
Backing Up Files to a Network Drive
Hey, Mole:
I want to back up 95 machines to a server's hard drive, preserving long filenames and compressing the data before sending it. Any bright ideas?
Server Slayer
Dear Slayer,
Your alias is provocative. Your problem, though, is a piece of cake.
Backing up your files to a network drive is the way to go.
Map a drive letter to the desired network destination. Once you do, Backup will display it in the Select a destination for the backup window.
The backup set will contain the long filename information, so it will automatically be saved onto the network drive.
You can find a detailed discussion of backing up files in Knowledge Base article **152563:**How to Back Up and Restore Files with Microsoft Backup.
The Whys of Windows 98 Update
Dear Mole,
Why is it that Windows 98 Update only works by connecting to the Net? How about those workstations that don't have a modem? How do I update them?
Unplugged
Dear Unplugged,
As you know, when you log on to the Windows 98 Update Page, Active X controls compare what's actually installed on your computer to the most current components available. If you're not completely au courant and a la mode, you can download the most up-to-date drivers directly from the Update page. Having just one, real-time source for updates has two big advantages:
Speed. Using the Internet, we can make a component available to Windows 98 users worldwide within 24 hours.
Compatibility. If updates were distributed on CD ROM, not only would it take much longer to distribute them, but several versions of the same component, all claiming to be the most recent, would be floating around out there at the same time. This would create at least as many compatibility headaches as it cured.
As to those machines without modems—they're probably not missing a thing. Most of the components we update are Internet-specific, necessary only for those users who go online. Security updates, for example, are intended to improve protection for workstations accessing the Internet. If you don't go there, your system's security isn't likely to be breached.
Find the most recent versions of Windows 98 components online at https://update.microsoft.com/microsoftupdate/. IT administrators will want to check out https://www.microsoft.com/windows98/downloads/corporate.asp, which lists all the components so they can pick and choose the updates for their users.
Notepad Work-Around
Not all of Mole's friends work at Microsoft. Sometimes he leaves his burrow behind and bends his elbow at a local watering hole. Or two. Sometimes he even goes to meetings and shoots the breeze with other IT guys. One of his buddies, Michael Powers at BankAmerica, sent Mole this tip for foiling Notepad's default settings. Mole herewith passes it along.
Hey, Mole:
The problem I had was that I wanted to print a document from Notepad without the Page Header and Footer, because my document was running over into two pages and I wanted to keep it to one. I will be running this document regularly, so going into Page Setup every time I wanted to print would be time-consuming. When I searched TechNet, article Q64269 told me I couldn't change the Default Page Setup. Here is the workaround I found, copied from our internal Tips and Tricks database:
**Error—**If you choose Page Setup from the File menu in Notepad, the settings are not saved when the file is saved. Example: you want to remove the header and footer from all notepad documents you print. When you go into page setup and remove the default header and footer, then exit notepad and re-start notepad, the header and footer re-appear.
**Reason—**MICROSOFT EXPLANATION: All accessory applications use a flat-file format and the formatting information is not saved with the file; therefore, it is not shown with its last settings when the file is opened.
**Resolution—**Here is a work around:
Shut down all instances of notepad.exe (this will not work if notepad is not shut down).
Run Registry Editor (at your own risk), and find
HKEY_CURRENT_USER \Software \Microsoft \Notepad . Change the key/value "fSavePageSettings" from 0 to 1.
Run Notepad and make your changes in the Page Setup screen. Exit Notepad.
Notice the changes to the registry.
This should now keep any changes you make in the Notepad Page Setup Screen.
Internet Security Protocols
Dear Mole,
Microsoft Exchange SMTP Server supports XEXCH50, AUTH and STARTTLS commands. What are they? Where can I find more information about them?
Got Mail 5,698,775,326
Dear GM etc.,
XEXCH50: Taking it from the top, XEXCH50 lets two Internet Mail Connectors (IMCs) pass off some binary data about the recipients on the message. Thus you can set different properties, like PerRecipient MIME/UUENCODE, and other things are stored in the P1 address list.
If we're talking to another IMC, we will relay information using the XEXCH50. ( If two Microsoft email clients are exchanging information, this formatting data is dropped, but encoded in a TNEF block instead. The message is "reconstituted" before delivery. TNEF (say tee-neff) stands for Transport Neutral Encapsulation Format.) The XEXCH50 command is used between a Microsoft and non-Microsoft or two non-Microsoft email clients.
Exchange's response to the XEXCH50 command is supposed to be "354 send binary data."
STARTTLS: First, a little history. SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) 3.0 is a de facto industry standard protocol which was initially defined by Netscape Corporation. It has been widely implemented on the Internet, but never formalized as an official standard.
TLS, which stands for Transport Layer Security, is a proposed successor to SSL. (We'll talk about how protocols get proposed and accepted in a minute.) Technologically, there are some major differences between the two.
In the case of SSL, the protocol is usually implemented "out of band"--that is, a separate port is used to make the secure connection. Here's an example: Instead of connecting to port 389 for LPAD (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol), an LDAP connection over SSL would be made to port 636. (See "Assigned Numbers" RFC 1700) Using this method, the local host makes a TCP connection to the remote host on the alternate port. As soon as the TCP handshake is completed, encrypted communication begins.
Using TLS, the security mechanism is enabled as part of the normal greeting. An SMTP host makes a secure connection to a remote host by connecting to the remote host at port 25, as usual. Then the calling host issues a STARTTLS command to initialize the security subsystem. Once the security subsystem is initialized, the two SMTP hosts continue to communicate with all the normal RFC 821 commands. In this case, all communication on the wire is encrypted.
AUTH: The AUTH command is an implementation of the Simple Authentication and Security Layer (SASL) protocol, as defined in the Internet Engineering Task Force RFC, posted in October 1997.
When the AUTH command is part of a protocol, it initiates a process whereby a user is identified and authenticated to a server, and makes it possible to negotiate protection of subsequent protocol interactions between client and server if desired. When this negotiation does take place, a security layer is inserted between the protocol and the connection.
You can read everything you wanted to know (and more) about SASL in IETF RFC 2222.
Important Acronyms for an Internet World
If you already belong to the Internet Engineering Task Force, or regularly check out the protocol specifications published on its website, go ahead and skip the next couple of paragraphs. Otherwise, get set to bookmark these URLs for future reference. There's no place better to find out exactly what those Internet transport and security protocols are and how they're implemented, independent of brand name applications, or to get a feeling for technologies now in development and how they're liked to be commercially applied.
The IETF is a worldwide community of "network designers, operators, vendors and researchers who are concerned with the evolution of the Internet architecture and the smooth operation of the Internet." Any interested individual can take part. Its existence, and intellectual vitality, keep the Internet a democratic environment, free from political or economic domination. It allows for open discussion of technological alternatives, and facilitates the exchange of ideas among Internet pros around the world, regardless of corporate or national affiliations.
To learn about its mandate, philosophy and operations, visit the IETF website at https://www.ietf.org/. To find detailed specifications for the more than 2000 Internet protocols proposed or in use, or to become part of the dialogue, visit https://www.ietf.org/rfc/, where the IETF posts Requests for Comments.
Got Questions? Mail the Mole
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Credits
Mole thanks Michael Powers, BankAmerica; Jim Kiniry, Compaq; Mark Wheatley, Aris Corporation; and Asit Kini, Microsoft Exchange Migration Team.