Michael

I presume AD linked groups are fine and SMTP entries are staying, so it's just isolated to smtp aliases? I can only speculate a Powershell script is doing this. If you have service accounts, where possible, temporarily disable the account and/or reset the service account password. Leave it overnight and see what happens.

I've never quite understood why modern MIS providers don't provide a native sign in option for parents/carers/visitors. Schools would then have the option of using iPads and/or AIO systems, with everything working within a browser.

Try putting in an smtp alias, then signing into Xporter and manually refresh data.

I'd say comparatively the Arbor migration was seamless with SSO with 365 from the start, however post migration there's still a lot of housekeeping for administrative personnel.

I've been involved with two migrations from Progresso > Arbor. Advanced require your nominated supplier to connect to Progresso via the API and download all the data this way. Arbor did an excellent job, especially with the high volume of schools they're now migrating.

I have to agree - if the security issue is still there on a 2023 firmware patched camera, then fine you have a point. Otherwise lets load Windows 7 RTM and connect it to the internet and see what happens. I really see no difference.

Anyone else?

Hi all, As per the subject line, do you configure your WiFi network for WPA2 only or WPA2/WPA3?

Mine are currently reading - Network: 7.4.156 Controller: 3.1.9 Switches: 6.5.32 APs: 6.5.28 Version 6.5.54 is a release candidate, excluding the following models. It'll become official for all models in the near future. I'd recommend configuring automatic updates to the official channel only and de-selecting Early Access Release Channels if selected.

Agreed - wait until Ofsted's out the way, speak to your provider, then I would recommend upgrading which of course also requires a reboot. Firmware 19.0.2 was released in January 2023 (a quick Google) according to Sophos. Firmware 19.5.2 is weeks old comparatively.

I work with a number of XGS2100's and a XG210, running firmware 19.5.2. No issues to report. CPU sits at approx. 5-10% and memory sits at approx. 54%. I presume the high CPU is throttling network/internet connectivity performance? If it's not limited to 14:00 everyday, presumably it also happens out of hours? If you unplug your LAN and plug a single device with a static IP, is the CPU utilisation still high?

I generally recommend every school to already have an account with Groupcall and Wonde, irrelevant what MIS you're using and you're pretty much covered. From what you describe, I'd be inclined to have SIMS, Groupcall and Wonde on a new VM.

This is a typical Government response. We're banning XYZ brands, but we're not going to actively recommend/promote any safe manufacturers either. Correct me if I'm wrong, but not a single person or group have reversed engineered said brands to demonstrate this is an active problem? It's all speculation. Why limit this to just CCTV? A lot of Solar PV systems are also Chinese made with questionable software. This also is used in public buildings and people's homes.

I've seen similar behaviour with a locally mapped home drive, as well as Google My Drive as the home drive. The quickest/easiest fix is to navigate to the My SIMS Documents folder within your home drive, then delete your profile folder. Upon launching/signing into SIMS a new one is generated.

With physical servers, your only option really is to remove the LAN cable from the back.

Also (just my view), for the sake of 5m I wouldn't extend. I would definitely want a single cable where you know where the ends terminate. Finding a joint 5 years down the line (say it's in conduit) could prove to be counter productive!

I've bought/used this in the past from a Virgin fibre tray to the media converter. Please double check, but it's most likely FC > LC that you'll need. FC looks very similar to ST at first glance, but the physical connectors are different. Best thing is take one of the pair out, out of hours to double check and take a picture.

This appears to be working great, however I added two exclusion rules as follows - - One for the school web form, which arrives from an external email address - One to exclude emails arriving from emails sent internally

Thanks - I found this and will have a look on Monday.

Hi all, Is it possible to configure an Auto Reply using OWA which'll work for every message/sender and not just every sender once? Alternatively can this be configured using an Exchange Transport Rule? TIA!

Several considerations really - - The initial Windows 10 1507 release > 1511 build upgrade (as an example) was absolutely horrendous - Windows 1607 and 1809 are supported until the year 2026 and 2029 - Teachers typically use browser apps/services and/or legacy software to support Lesson Objectives - Consistency in software definitely helps both the end user and the IT Professional to quickly resolve problems - As I've written before, I'm yet to meet a single person who gets excited about Feature upgrades, but more crucially, how does it impact your target audience and their learning? Moving forward, at times I'm not convinced Microsoft OSes are the way forward. More and more services are becoming cloud or service orientated, so the OS is less relevant. A good example of this are modern MIS cloud solutions and not legacy Windows only MIS solutions. Call me old fashioned, but I've never been a fan of running cutting edge software in most instances, unless it's for security reasons or some other reason.

I should add - I do support schools with 10Gb back bones and also servers with 10Gb NICs. There is a difference, but very marginal, simply because I can max out a 1Gb link. It's still the server itself which is the bottleneck, whether you're imaging or just moving a lot of data in general.

This still isn't fixed in KB5026363 (May 2023). The only fix that works is to disable Smart Screen - HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\System REG_DWORD: EnableSmartScreen Value: 0

It's a really good question and I'm yet to visit a school that has more than a 1Gb link to the world. Historically it's always been recommended to have a faster LAN than WAN, but if your services are primarily WAN based, then it probably makes little to no difference. I would still recommend OM4 in all new installations, even if you only had 100Mb running over it.

In my experience SLT/Governing bodies are most interested in exercising cloud storage for data as their primary reason for reducing the requirement for an on-site server. Reducing and removing of course are two different processes. Target Tracker as a good example is a legacy application, but saves Assessment data in the cloud - very much hybrid, but still requires a server to deploy the regular updates it requires. Longer term of course changing to a completely cloud based Assessment tool or one built into a modern MIS is of course desirable, but I consider this more a curriculum/joint focused decision and not solely ICT manager. Once these processes/facts are highlighted, then an action plan/strategy can be formed keeping everyone on board.