[SIMS] Logging Users Off and Time Outs SIMS

[NetworkGeezer]

Doe activity really matter. The point is he has a patch/upgrade to put on and no one else should logged on.

[_Bob_]

So pull the network cable? Assuming you don't have to download updates as part of the process.

Alternatively WinExit.scr can be installed as a screensaver that kicks in after a GPO specified length of inactivity and logs the user off.
Its in the resource kit:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/d...displaylang=en

[nsherin]

What I normally do during a SIMS upgrade, as there is normally some twerp who hasn't read my note and logged off from SIMS is to simply drop the Subnet mask down to 255.255.255.0 before I start, - i.e. only in the subnet of our IP range where the servers are, as the SIMS box needs to be online to pull down updates via SOLUS. When the upgrade is done, I then reset the mask back.

This works a treat, rather than chasing around the school like a blue-arsed fly to see which idiot left themselves logged into SIMS. And more than often you can't get into all the Year Head Offices etc, as they are locked! Quick, simple and effective - as they can't access the server whilst the upgrade is underway.

[NetworkGeezer]

Surely that breaks one of the rules of Sys Admin: termination to controlled state.

If you just block connections during the upgrade (mask change or plug yank) you don't know what the clients were running at the time. Was someone completeing a register. Were they entering assessment grades or comments in end of term profile reports. Will these changes still be able to be saved after the update.

The October release adds changes to the Assessment Manager suite this may include database changes.

I suppose you can say you did warn them but just be careful that you don't introduce anomolies in to the databse by being too high handed.

[nsherin]

NetworkGeezer - I do hear what you're saying and you do have a point. The main people who use SIMS - our SIMS office always log out before I carry out the upgrade, so we don't run that risk. Same as our General/Finance office - they also log out a few minutes before the upgrade. The problem is year heads and others who leave their PCs left logged in - often not even locked, which is a security risk in itself - depsite my attempts to advise them!

[Gatt]

I get the same problem everytime a SIMS upgrade is applied
The LEA's SIMS team calls me up to say they need to apply the patch/update and they need everyone off SIMS

I send the appropriate email ("Log out of SIMS by hh:mm or DIE!") and yet they STILL just ignore it - tempted to kill the share to the "S-Drive" whilst it takes place..

[alonebfg]

could you not put a timed share on it ie set it so the share stops at midnight and then as soon as you do the update the following morning put it on or if you are going to pull the plug send a network msg giving the 5 mins so if they are doing something it gives them time and if someone logs in tells them not to try nothing

[skunk]

So no-one else just restarts the SQL database then?

Works a treat.

Skunk

[Toby.Belfield]

All,

In order to force all connections to be broken, you can run either the SOLUS wizard, or the DBUpgrade utility with the parameter /forceall. However - if there are people logged on, to log them off you will need the sa username and password (which can be passed as parameters /sauser= and /sapassword=)

Next year we are looking at modifying our upgrade processes so that it will not be necessary (in all cases) to force connections to be broken.

For the full list of parameters, run SOLUS from the command line - followed by /?

Regards,

Toby Belfield
Product Manager
Capita

[hasco3000]

As @skunk said, just restart the SQL Server service for the SIMS instance, this will boot everyone off of SIMS and you can run your patching/upgrades as you like.

Matt

[matt40k]

As @skunk said, just restart the SQL Server service for the SIMS instance, this will boot everyone off of SIMS and you can run your patching/upgrades as you like.

Would love to see your SLA - 5+ years response time

[skunk]

I have been working in education too long it would appear...........................

[vikpaw]

@skunk - it is a cushy little number though isn't it? .

With regards the solution, i'm sure it's widely known, but since the thread has been awakened:

I'm pretty sure that unless you kill the clients, rebooting the server wont break the connection. The client will just stall, and keep trying to connect, once SIMS is open, the homepages keep trying to make a link to the server, and sims doesn't even need the connect.ini any more, that's just first time use. So when the server is live again, they will connect and maintain a connection.

I once tried a reboot and went into single user mode, but the first client that connects, takes over the connection. It was a pain to even go back out of single user mode! Stipulating only local logons is the better way to do it.

I use an SQL script, and there are many around, which will show you who is logged in and where. My users are aware that they cannot access SIMS after midnight on any night and forewarned of update times when i'm actually going to do an upgrade. After that, i can run the script and just remote reboot the workstation to kill the connection. There are a number of similar scripts around, and also somewhere, someone shared an app, that you can program to kill certain processes after an idle time. Can't think what it was called, looked quite good.

The script:

use master;

select distinct sysprocesses.loginame,
/* sysprocesses.spid, */
sysprocesses.hostname,
sysdatabases.name,
/* sysprocesses.nt_username, */
/* sysprocesses.login_time, */
sysprocesses.status,
sysprocesses.memusage,
sysprocesses.dbid
from sysprocesses


join sysdatabases on sysprocesses.dbid = sysdatabases.dbid


where sysdatabases.name = 'sims' OR sysdatabases.name = 'fms'


order by sysdatabases.name, sysprocesses.loginame

Just need to replace the DB names on penultimate line to match user systems.