Synkrox

Is it me or is it a massive oversight that we cannot force safety mode on through our filtering boxes? I know the standard reply is "education mode" but at secondary level its really not practical to have to whitelist all the videos anyone might ever want to watch on the site which has all the videos in the world on. I know safety mode is not infallible but surely its a great deal better than the "unfiltered" version. I have posted a question on the Youtube forum. I'm not holding my breath for a reply from anyone at google, but perhaps if you agree that this cookie setting is terribly impractical then you could look at commenting/starring my post to try and get some attention from it: https://productforums.google.com/forum/#!category-topic/youtube/BdCO_0waxgU I'm using a Fortigate box to filter internet here. If anyone has a suggestion on how I can sort this out another way I'd be pleased to hear it! Chris

Forticlient is good and works without a Fortigate box. Personally, I use Windows Family Safety on all laptops the kids use, I find its pretty good. Bugbear for me is the flakiness of youtube safety mode and my kids obsession with minecraft videos means I cant really take it away from them, I just keep checking it's enabled.

I use PHPScheduleIT for booking rooms, works pretty well.

Congratulations on making the leap! Have you considered just using remote desktop to a dedicated server? All users can then access most of your usual network software as well as shared areas/printers the lot. You can use a 2 factor plugin if need be. RDP is generally lighter and more responsive than copying whole files up and down a VPN link. It also doesnt matter if they are using a virus riddled device. Im pretty sure you will require separate VPN licenses from fortinet above the one or two built in. As a web based/webdav file manager I use http commander and cook it into OWA so essentially SSO. Hope this helps :-)

No probs, you will still need folder redirection working, it just saves you the hassle of users accidentally saving in other places. Your setup may differ but I use a single N:\ drive for students work and a mandatory profile. I have a copy of start menu and desktop copied sync'd to the machine on startup as I found redirecting to a network location got a bit laggy. I use the Office ADM files to customise the default save location to N:\ too otherwise you get an error when it tries to save (it then loads a browse window fine). Hope this helps! Chris

I found the easiest and most reliable way is to disable libraries altogether, as I kept having issues with it offering both local and redirected docs folders. The attached file will do the job (rename from .doc to .reg) The only issue I have had is Windows Media Player wont rip CDs without libraries enabled. DisableLib.doc

I'm a fan of theregister.co.uk , with their tongue-in-cheek reporting style, and the Verge.com , but its a little US biased at times.

In North Worcs we have had a few get NM get togethers at each others schools. I now work in Brum but am still in touch with the Worcs lot. I appreciate Link2ICT making the effort, but if we can come up with a mutually agreeable venue perhaps we should just organise our own?

Well I would def know if either of those had been set up, and they haven't. Just checked with admissions dept and they used FCS last week with no probs. No VPN, no meddling. Just normal internet access. :-)

Well.... At least I think it does, I don't have anything to do with it but no one has complained about it not working yet!

FCS Seems to work fine from outside the grid

I went with BT, I know there is a bit of stigma attached to the old utility companies but they were actually really good. They migrated all my domains from L2ICT and set up all the filtering gear too. FCS has not been an issue for us - BGfL are apparently looking at a solution for CRISP but in the meantime I think our SEN team phone changes through.

Fortinet Fortigate UTM

Of course they are reluctant! Feel free to use me as reference if they give you any grief about 6 months as they did it for me just last year. Just make sure your replacement connection is in and running before then, don't believe the lead times, BGFL use Virgin connections, if you are moving to another provider then they will probably need to blow a fibre to your premises.... if a duct has collapsed or new pole needs putting up anywhere you could be waiting 6 months just for the line to go in (thanks OpenReach!) Chris

Yeah you can get 6 months - I did it just last year as a transition period to our new supplier

DO IT! :-) You wont regret it. Remote support is easy - as you're in control of your firewall Logmein/Teamviewer/VPN/RDP whatever We use SMIS (Sandwell) for SIMS support and they are great, we also use FMS for finance. Chris

Time only moves forwards and this software isn't going to get any younger. Get this chap to fix it or go elsewhere to have it fixed/upgraded, there are loads of freelance VB programmers out there. What platform you run your network on is your business but Linux+Virtual PC sounds like a recipe for disaster IMHO. Your almost asking for advice on an entire new network which is a bit broad for a forum as no one but you have the real insight into what you need and will use it for. Love it or hate it, Windows is the best and easiest OS for networking (again just IMHO) and it has the #1 thing that cuts costs, downtime and tech support : Familiarity. Good luck! Chris

I've seen this before - As the folks above said - Mute the mic/line in. Chris

I used proxyswitcher lite, then its just a right click in the system tray - but a WPAD kinda setup is better. Or transparent gateway even better! Chris

Flaring up again over the last few days - anyone else?

Sorry to say it, and I do mean this in the kindest way possible, but maybe you should save your breath and spend the time getting yourself migrated. They are so badly organised and fundamentally lacking in responsibility it will never change. You just know when pushed they will say "I don't know the technical stuff but sorry about it anyway, the new firewall is great and it wont happen again". With their recent issues I can't believe they are suggesting people upgrade their pipes to 100mb when they can't cope as it is. Vote with your feet! I'm happy to help any would-be switchers. :-)

Multiping is a handy tool with easy to read graphs, although it is ping only. MultiPing What switches/router do you have? Can you get utilization on the internet port from there?

Yes. A while back I did suggest backing up your config and doing a hard reset on the switch, as you are on a flat network nothing to lose.

TrackMania Forever is a great racing game and free :-) Edit: My bad, thought local multiplayer and thought LAN. Will engage brain first next time! GT5,LBP Karting and Street fighter IV is always a winner on my PS3 along with Zen Pinball split screen and (believe it or not) Hamsterball!

Check out HTTPCommander too, Links with OWA, WebDAV, iOS and Android :-)