Koldov

Two alerts I got over the weekend... Do you think the Groupcall coders are secretly just having a laugh...?

It was a very 'sus' party, that's for sure!

At least it appears to be on the wet floor/cleaning in progress type of signage...

Actually, I wonder if there is anywhere that does genuinely serve an 'All Day Breakfast' all day...?

I heard on the news that the Rules banning multibuy deals on foods and drinks high in fat, salt, or sugar – including buy one get one free deals – will be delayed for another two years until October 2025 due to the cost of living crisis... adding more fuel to fire and promoting the idea that eating rubbish, processed foods is cheaper than eating healthily. I'm not sure why those that enjoy eating 'houmous' should be penalised... well... on the other hand...

It isn't actually called that though is it? Got to be a typo from the graphic designer (auto-correct fail for the win) or a photoshop! But that's OK because everyone knows you spell the collective name for the internal human frame of bones as skelington...

Did a repair install on a machine last week and the user has complained this morning that the start menu is broken... I imagine it's been a while since this has been asked for Windows 10, but to save me trawling through hundreds of posts (as I gather it was a bit of a nightmare to figure out at first) or the interwebs... does anyone know what the issue is and how to fix it before lunchtime is over....? There are no folders or programs appearing on the start menu (kind of understandable as nothing was actually installed to put them there, however there are no Windows in-built OS programs either ), but pinning something just results in the broken tile in the screenshot. I still have the windows.old folder in hope it's just a case of copying a file from the old installation...

I was very disappointed.... We got about a centimetre of rain late evening/overnight (if that)! I'd moved the patio chairs into the shed, made sure all buckets were out and gutters clear for the water butts (those I could reach on conservatory and shed) to make the most of the promised deluge.... and... pretty much nothing... Got to feel sorry for those I saw on the news in Hunstanton, Norfolk, but wish (careful what you wish for) we had at least a little of that! The conifers are looking a little sad already and the water butts have been empty for nearly 2 weeks . We collect shower water and washing up water, but we use a lot because the dogs wee on the 'astro-turf' in the back garden during the day (been to hot to walk them, only early/late) and we have to follow them with a watering can or the stench soon gets overpowering in the heat... but I begrudge using clean tap water for it. Then I overhear one of the teachers a couple of weeks ago saying they 'must make sure to refill their 'jacuzzi' soon to get ready for the summer'... I wonder if those sorts of things ever get banned along with hosepipes? Anyway, yes a little cooler here today (Bedfordshire) and the hounds appreciate that!

It's gets better!!! Well, quite chuffed with my newfound electrical engineering skillz... I went to my car after work on Friday feeling quite smug. After wrestling with an annoying Windows Media Player problem for 2 days (and failing) it was nice to have a 'win' (albeit a personal one and not work related) going into the weekend and not feel like a complete failure/imposter... Plugged it into the centre console in the car before I set off home to test it and after a brief flash of life from the display.... NOTHING! Checked the fuse in the in-line 12v connector and it was OK, checked the fuse in the car... blown! Plugged it into the rear 12v... still nothing (no car fuse blown this time though thankfully)... So, I pondered throwing it in the bin over the weekend, but wondering if I didn't secure the wires properly, or might have attached it to the wrong wire, or it may have been more damaged than I thought, etc. But I didn't have the car this weekend (OH doing a trail run in Dorset) or a spare 12v battery to test... So I came in this morning and tested it (on a 12v battery so I don't blow anymore car fuses), first I checked the 12v connector in-line fuse and found it had actually blown (in half). Changed the fuse and got a flicker from the display, then nothing then a flicker (I should add I was plugging and unplugging the adapter). So, after wiggling the wires to see if there might be a break somewhere, this led me to taking the 12v adapter apart... Now, even after my initial triumph (?) of finding a loose wire, I will still have to admit that I'm no electrical engineer, however even I think this might be a problem given that one part (the 'spring' loaded clips) should be negative and the other part (the middle bit where the fuse goes) should be positive and 'never the twain shall meet', because this happens when the spring clips are compressed (as they would be when plugged in). Anyway I adapted the clip so it wouldn't slide down anymore and put electrical tape between the two just to be certain they won't make contact! I've yet to try it in the car (need to buy some more blade fuses first)... but it works 100% every time on the bench with a battery.

Ah, I was hoping that wasn't an actual answer to my problem (as I've just decided on a reimage)... Yeah we have VLC installed on all the machines, I just wanted to 'fix' it. Seems strange that you can actually uninstall it far enough for it to irreversible... Especially as 99.9% of the advice is to just add it back in via settings > apps or Control panel add/remove... thing is, it just wasn't available in any of those lists anymore! Maybe it was some sort of Domain/GPO issue or Sophos, but today was my last chance to mess about with it, so I've gone for the nuclear option... Tried all sorts of things but it seems that was has worked for others isn't playing ball here... Interesting post here from someone who found themselves in the same situation (but their solution didn't work for me): https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/2d6c8ced-ef88-40df-9e19-7481d7fd95e4/windows-media-player-not-enabled-on-win-10-education-1709-and-cant-automate-addition?forum=win10itprosetup

Well, I took it apart because... that's what we do isn't it..? Anyway, basic is right, but to be fair it's only a small consumer grade compressor, so how difficult could it be, right...? Pretty sure this wire is supposed to be attached to something! Luckily I had some 12v batteries, so hooked it up and started poking about on different terminal points, couple of little sparks here and there and the display lit up at one point.... then on another part the compressor spun up and nearly took a bite out of my finger... Then I hit the jackpot so I spliced the wire (as I don't have a soldering iron) and it seems to work OK!

Bit of a head scratcher... Our receptionist listens to voicemail messages on her PC and last week complained that she couldn't due to... 'it's broken'... So, I walk across the school expecting it to be something trivial and find the dreaded error message 'Server Execution Failed' and I didn't have time to investigate any further as it's pretty important she listens to these message ASAP. Anyway, we have VLC installed so I just changed the default for .WAV and she was quite happy with that. However, this week I have decided to look into it further and found I could possibly have done a few other things (stop the WMPlayer task as it may mean it just hasn't exited gracefully, register Jscript and VBscript, disable Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service, disable AV, add the user to Administrators, all the way up to SFC scannow, DISM restorehealth and finally a OS reinstall.... What I did try however was (what I've done on my machine previously) remove it from the Control Panel > Uninstall or change a program > Turn Windows features on or off... unfortunately this gave an error.... 'could not find the required files' or something. A bit of research said this might be a .Net error so I installed 3.5, still no luck, tried with Powershell, no luck, DISM, no luck, then I tried the modern way and found it in the 'Optional Apps' section of the settings. This actually seemed to work, so I rebooted and yes, it had gone.... So I went in to reinstall it the same way 'add optional feature' and it has gone... I mean completely, not in the 'optional feature list, not in the 'turn windows features on or off' I've even done a 'Get-Packages' and loads of other DISM stuff and it doesn't appear in the system at all I've spent far too much time on this already, I've looked in to trying to DISM extract the package from another image, but running into all sorts of issues! Anyone got an easier way to do this than a OS reinstall/refresh?

Precisely... However, CPOMS were not best pleased we wished to move our data extraction to Wonde either.... something about contractually obliged partner, deeper integration, high level support, our Groupcall import code is far superior and is always being improved, close relationship, we are in daily communication with Groupcall's support and leadership teams if issues were to ever arise with the integration.... blah, blah, blah.... Anyway, I installed the software... does anyone know why Groupcall needs a SIMS user (I mean I know why) and Wonde although it has a 'user' there is no password for it so I'm not sure how it does the extraction....? I thought the next issue might have been resolved with an uninstall/reinstall but in June 2021 when Sophos anti-virus decided to delete important Xporter files (which Groupcall acknowledged and liaised with Sophos to rectify), it still worked after a 'repair' but it's so chatty and there is no description in the event log... "The description for Event ID 1 from source Groupcall Xporter (4734141e42cb4632ba8f88188b9ae3ac) cannot be found. Either the component that raises this event is not installed on your local computer or the installation is corrupted. You can install or repair the component on the local computer" "The description for Event ID 2 from source Groupcall Xporter (4734141e42cb4632ba8f88188b9ae3ac) cannot be found. Either the component that raises this event is not installed on your local computer or the installation is corrupted. You can install or repair the component on the local computer" "The description for Event ID 256 from source Groupcall Xporter (4734141e42cb4632ba8f88188b9ae3ac) cannot be found. Either the component that raises this event is not installed on your local computer or the installation is corrupted. You can install or repair the component on the local computer" My server event log was full within a few minutes (I mean thousands of events) and although some do have 'extra' information included, why hook it into the 'event log' (nothing else seems to be so verbose and anyway I'm sure it's got it's own log....?). The worst part is the my server is emailing me saying that is has found files with the extension of .ecc and.kkk - well known cryptolocker virus extensions.... I have also had in the past... Supposedly these are random file extensions but come on guys!!! And yes, I know... as their support said 'whitelist all the Groupcall things'... but I want to reduce the amount of directories that don't get virus checked not increase it! I suppose I'm going to jinx it now, but Wonde has had zero issues....

Ah I see, I'm OK at 18°C that's the minimum in our house (much to the OH's chagrin) and that is only due to damp/condensation issues, before that it was OFF overnight and during most of the daytime (even for most of the Winter). Her argument being that is what you set AC at if you want it cool! I am the hot one and she is always cold, I think she'd be happier in an old person's house with the heating on 24/7/365.... or to live in warmer climes and when we argue about the heating I've often offered to pack her bags... Even the other night whilst sitting watching TV she reached for a blanket (mentioning she felt 'a little chilly'), meanwhile I am sitting on the sofa gently perspiring.

Not sure if it will help or if it's what you're looking for as I haven't ever done 'full restore' of SIMS as such, but I am in the process of migrating our SIMS P2V. I have set up the VM with all the requirements (SQL, SOLUS etc.). To test that the VM was working I have a very old setup that a Capita engineer setup on the original server that creates a zipped backup of the database. I copy that over onto the VM and use DBATTACH to restore it. The VM server has a SIMS client on it and I can log-in and see any changes like new users created or password changes (so at least I know the DB backup was good).

I think they meant 28°C was too many and they'd like 10° less = 18°C...? Not that they want it to be 10°... I would agree, I am happiest to be in the same range as my servers low to mid 20°s. Actually it's getting rather warm in my office, so I think there might be some server related duties on the horizon, (the only place I can legitimately spend time where there is aircon)...

Take it out of the sun! We have an electronic one with a remote sensor, so I can tell when it's time to close all the doors and windows. I have to keep moving it around the garden at the moment until I can find a spot that's in the shade all day, not in the breeze and won't get soaked in the rain (although it's supposed to be waterproof).

Do NOT watch without the musical transcription, other wise you will miss out on the very important performance instructions and technical terminology required to play the piece authentically... Saw this guy many years ago on a viral video playing in a underpass or a subway station in America somewhere, fair play to him! I don't read music but...

Thanks, yeah the move to a separate VM for SIMS in in the pipeline, just seems like a waste of time to have to reinstall it for one export, then have to move it all over later on... Somehow it appears the LEA have never heard of Wonde and Groupcall are their "preferred and contracted way of extracting the data". CPOMS said the same and initially were unimpressed with the idea of us moving to Wonde, seems like Groupcall really cornered the market at one point!

So far we had missed all the showers, even when forecast we rarely see them and it hasn't rained here now for quite a while. Anyway, thinking I would be very clever yesterday and not return at the end of the day to get in to a sweltering car, I left all the windows open. Completely forgot all about it (even though I had to run around the offices to shut the windows when the deluge started).... To say I feel very lucky that all the electrics still work is an understatement!

We have had issues with Groupcall since June 2021 when Sophos anti-virus decided to delete important Xporter files (which Groupcall acknowledged and liaised with Sophos to rectify). Although it still worked to provide the data export after we reinstalled it, our installation never really recovered. The software is extremely ‘chatty’ producing hundreds of logs in event viewer, (many hundreds of entries at a time) mostly with no description. It also uses ‘random’ file extensions for its update process which flags our server protection system (things like .cry and .xxx have been observed and if you are in I.T. I don’t need to tell you how disconcerting this is)… To their credit Groupcall had offered to remote in to our server and investigate, but this is complicated due to how locked down our system is, finding suitable times and allowing them permissions to change files. Therefore Groupcall software was recently removed from our servers due to these ongoing issues. Before this happened I spoke directly with Groupcall support to determine which data feeds this would impact and was told there were only 2 partners we share data with and those data feeds went to CPOMS and 2 Simple (for Purple Mash). We moved those two data feeds over to Wonde as we currently use that to provide all of our other data export requirements and we view this change as a positive step for streamlining our procedures and reducing our GDPR exposure footprint. I believe Groupcall are fully GDPR compliant, but we would still like to simplify our data streams. However, the LEA have just been in contact to ask why they haven't been receiving a data export from us... Now, I do seem to remember setting up a something like a B2B scheduled task and possibly something in Xporter about Meritec Jobs, but it was quite a few years ago. If these were a data export to the LEA then I guess they've been deleted and this is the issue. So it would appear they will be asking us to reinstall Groupcall software and I'd really rather not. Although I have a feeling this is a statutory requirement and they aren't going to be very flexible.... Before I start going head to head with the LEA, does anyone have this kind of job set up and can it be done with Wonde?

Spent all weekend trying to stop the Greyhounds over heating! Lovely cool towels, fan etc.... meanwhile I'm on the sofa melting! They suffer pretty badly from temperature extremes having very little fur and pretty much zero fat in their skin, plus having been run ragged half their life and then thrown away to live in a shed, the old ones (oldest we have is 9) aren't in the best of health to start with when we get them from the rescue. Luckily (?) they are up at 05:30 for their morning walk, evening one has been put back to 20:00.

So... recommended: CCTV > separate VLAN + ACLs > VPN > a single client I.P. address...?

For those advocating zero internet access, how do you deal with Site Agents requiring access to CCTV monitoring 24/7?

More confused than ever and wishing the OH wouldn't have bought a cheap version... https://www.carsun.com/products/carsun-high-quality-mechanical-air-pump-for-12v-car-digital-display-tire-pressure-pump From the website (I've only included the highlights): 5. If you want to set the adjustable button with default value, the default value of this pump inflation is 300PSI (+ key is on,-key is off). 7. Suction the set value upward and stop the pump automatically. 8. When re-inhaling, you need to turn off the switch and then turn it on again to start absorbing water again. Maximum Pressure: 150PSI Auto Air Compressor: Tire Inflator 12V So default is 300PSI... but maximum is 150PSI 12V but with a 250V inline fuse... the inline fuse included is 15A which is still alive (or 10A originally which didn't survive, nor did the replacement 10A ones) but, blows both the car's 20A fuses (front and rear power outlets)! Why is it re-inhaling and absorbing water...? I doubt it's worth opening up and seeing if something has melted inside, unfortunately it's off to landfill and look for a better version time!