UPS support [was Choosing a WinMac server]
G. Jefferson(Gareth[at]smarta.com)
Fri, 28 May 1999 17:09:12 -0500
WinMac Digest #325 - Friday, May 28, 1999
NT and losing files - heaps of questions!
by "Richard Dugan" <r.dugan@vcc.org.nz>
Mac OSX Server review by ZDNET
by "Daniel L. Schwartz" <expresso@snip.net>
Re: NT and losing files - heaps of questions!
by "Daniel L. Schwartz" <expresso@snip.net>
Re: [WinMac] Re: Mac OS 8.6
by <CHoogendyk@aol.com>
Re: [WinMac] Re: Problem Reporting [Was: Mac OS 8.6]
by "Joe Schnide" <jschnide@maroon.tc.umn.edu>
Re: Problem Reporting
by "David Bell" <db28@alphainfo.co.uk>
Re: Mac System 8.6
by "Rick Kent" <maverick@maverickmedia.com>
Re: [WinMac] Re: Mac System 8.6
by "Mark Knoll" <mknoll@umich.edu>
Re: [WinMac] Mac OSX Server review by ZDNET
by "Bruce Johnson" <johnson@Pharmacy.Arizona.EDU>
UPS support [was Choosing a WinMac server]
by "G. Jefferson" <Gareth@smarta.com>
Subject: NT and losing files - heaps of questions!
From: Richard Dugan <r.dugan@vcc.org.nz>
Date: Fri, 28 May 1999 00:26:40 -0500
Mime-Version: 1.0
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This question has nothing to do about Mac's, but as a Mac user trying to
solve Win NT problems I am way stuck!
I recently received 7 new IBM pentiums, preinstalled with NT w/s SP3. I
created profiles so different users could log in etc. However, I have now
discovered after about 3 weeks of use, that 3 of the 7 machines (so far)
are having trouble retaining files in each users profile e.g. a user saves
a Word file into their personal folder and the next time they log in, their
personal folder is empty! I have tried logging in as Administrator and
still can't see the files in the WINNT40\PROFILES directory. Using the
Find command has come up empty. I have noticed that a whole bunch of files
are getting dumped into the WINNT40 folder with .acl and .wab extension and
there appear to be files named as that of the profile name but these cannot
be opened.
Is the registry shot and if so is it best to reinstall NT or can I just
create new user profiles? Should I reformat the drives and start from
scratch or is it ok to reinstall NT on top of the old version? Why should
this happen on so many machines so soon after un-boxing them? Is there any
way I can get these missing files back - as one person had just spent the
last week moving all her Mac files onto this machine, converting file
formats at the same time (no backup of NT stuff once this had been done of
course).
Many thanks
Richard Dugan
Subject: Mac OSX Server review by ZDNET
From: "Daniel L. Schwartz" <expresso@snip.net>
Date: Fri, 28 May 1999 09:02:31 -0500
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Hello!
Click on the link below, and follow along.
<http://www.zdnet.com/pcmag/stories/firstlooks/0,6763,2262644,00.html>.
Towards the bottom of the second page, I quote the authors' summary:
>>>>
>Unlike the mixed Web serving performance results, an area of clear=20
>performance improvement is file serving. Apple claims that OS X=20
>Server can handle 4,000 simultaneous open files and 1,000 users. On=20
>the downside, it can=EDt directly share files with Windows clients;=20
>you=EDll have to stick with AppleShare IP for that.
>
>One final problem is the lack of a distributed user database. Each=20
>OS X Server must have an individual instance of a user in order for=20
>that user to be able to roam across workgroups. On the other hand,=20
>setting up OS X Server is a fair bit easier than Windows NT and=20
>quite a bit easier than Linux. We were able to reinstall OS X server=20
>completely and NetBoot two iMacs within 30 minutes.
>
>On the whole, we found OS X Server a highly capable platform for the=20
>market for which it=EDs targeted: education, publishing, and=20
>homogeneous Macintosh networks. Those dealing with a heterogeneous=20
>network or requiring enterprise-level performance or availability=20
>had best steer clear.
>
>
<<<<
Cheers!
Dan
Subject: Re: NT and losing files - heaps of questions!
From: "Daniel L. Schwartz" <expresso@snip.net>
Date: Fri, 28 May 1999 09:02:46 -0500
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Dear Richard:
1) I'm assuming your partitions are NTFS: If not, then use the CONVERT
command from an MS/DOS prompt. Native Transactional File System (NTFS) is
worth the price of NT all by itself;
2) Does your office have power dips? A blink of the lights
can play havoc
with disk reads & writes; and since 3 of these machines are exhibiting the
same symptoms I would recommend getting Uninterruptible power supplies
(UPS'). Bigger units, about 500VA in size, can easily run 2 CPU's as long
as you don't also try to run the power hungry monitors;
3) Set the paging file to the same minimum & maximum size, then go to
<http://www.sysinternals.com> and get the pagefile defragging utility;
4) If you can, try to reboot the machines about once per
week, so you can
run chkdsk on the NTFS volumes: My Computer -> Right click on volume ->
Properties -> Tools tab -> Error Checking -> Check Now -> yes to
"Automatically Fix File System Errors," no to "Scan for and attempt
recovery of bad sectors" -> Start -> Yes to Dialog Box -> OK (on Properties
sheet). Repeat for each NTFS volume, then reboot.
NOTE: I usually check for bad blocks about every 4-12 weeks
or so - Closer
to 4 weeks with hot &/or older drives, closer to 12 weeks with newer &/or
cooler running drives.
DANGER: Do *NOT* run CHKDSK /F from a command line: If you convert lost
clusters to free files on an NTFS volume with Mac files, you're REALLY
hosed - Reformat & restore from tape.
I'm off to Indy for the 500!
Cheers!
Dan
At 12:26 AM 5/28/99 -0500, Richard Dugan <r.dugan@vcc.org.nz> wrote:
>
>
>This question has nothing to do about Mac's, but as a Mac user trying to
>solve Win NT problems I am way stuck!
>
>I recently received 7 new IBM pentiums, preinstalled with NT w/s SP3. I
>created profiles so different users could log in etc. However, I have now
>discovered after about 3 weeks of use, that 3 of the 7 machines (so far)
>are having trouble retaining files in each users profile e.g. a user saves
>a Word file into their personal folder and the next time they log in, their
>personal folder is empty! I have tried logging in as Administrator and
>still can't see the files in the WINNT40\PROFILES directory. Using the
>Find command has come up empty. I have noticed that a whole bunch of files
>are getting dumped into the WINNT40 folder with .acl and .wab extension and
>there appear to be files named as that of the profile name but these cannot
>be opened.
>
>Is the registry shot and if so is it best to reinstall NT or can I just
>create new user profiles? Should I reformat the drives and start from
>scratch or is it ok to reinstall NT on top of the old version? Why should
>this happen on so many machines so soon after un-boxing them? Is there any
>way I can get these missing files back - as one person had just spent the
>last week moving all her Mac files onto this machine, converting file
>formats at the same time (no backup of NT stuff once this had been done of
>course).
>
>
>Many thanks
>
>
>
>Richard Dugan
Subject: Re: [WinMac] Re: Mac OS 8.6
From: CHoogendyk@aol.com
Date: Fri, 28 May 1999 09:02:50 -0500
Mime-Version: 1.0
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In a message dated 5/26/99 10:56:27 PM, pata@tampabay.rr.com writes:
>> Hmmm, let's see: I didn't have to reinstall any drivers when
installing
>>NT4's Service Pack 2, 3, 4, & 5
>
>Well, SP5 just killed my brand new install of NT workstation 4. Of course
>I was very trusting (stupid) and didn't backup before installing but I
>figured, what the heck I've just reformated the hard drive and am using
>an NTFS partition so I should be ok. Turns out I have to use 98 for a
>while until I find the time to reformat and reinstall everything again.
>And that's not the only machine in our network that SP5 has killed.
>
>I've never had such a severe problem with any Mac I've dealt with when
>updating OSs.
here's another one for you.
We had the LAN Support group from OIT (Office of Instructional Technology
here at UMass) come over today and upgrade our server (a dual everything
Compaq) to SP4 (have to have some of that stuff for Y2K compliance -- um,
let's see, which Mac OS do we have to upgrade to for Y2K?). Anyway, the
reason it took so long was that if you have an NTFS boot volume over 7.8G
(FAT is ok), your boot blocks can get mangled by SP4. So they Ghosted the
server (just in case), ran Partition Magic to cut down the boot partition
(this took forever), and finally did the SP4 upgrade. If they hadn't done
this a mess of times on other servers, they never would have known why SP4
kept trashing big servers.
While they were doing that we swapped out two old DEC Alphas and put in two
new DEC Alphas running Digital Unix for our Library Catalog servers (serving
UMass and Amherst, Smith, Hampshire and Mt. Holyoke Colleges). Copied the
entire database over for each of them and then swapped host names & IPs. I'm
not necessarily going to say our job was simpler or easier than their job.
But, we did it in about the same amount of time that it took them to do the
SP4 update.
Chris Hoogendyk
Network Specialist
UMass Library, Amherst
Subject: Re: [WinMac] Re: Problem Reporting [Was: Mac OS 8.6]
From: Joe Schnide <jschnide@maroon.tc.umn.edu>
Date: Fri, 28 May 1999 09:02:56 -0500
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Daniel L. Schwartz wrote:
>At 10:08 AM 5/27/99 -0500, David Bell wrote in detail:
> Next, surf on over to <http://www.MacInTouch.com> for daily
>bulletins. Any suggestions for an NT equivalent, besides BugTraq?
I'd say also take a look at:
http://www.macfixit.pair.com
http://www.maccentral.com
http://www.macnn.com
And for pc, I haven't really seen something as good as these are for the mac
for news, features and following bug/incompatibility/troubleshooting news. Two
decent sites are:
http://www.ntfaq.com
http://www.sysinternals.com
If someone knows of some pc sites of the quality of the mac ones mentioned
above, please post them as I have seen this request a number of times in a
number of places! Heck, if you know some Windows gurus, show them the mac
sites and ask them what sites are comparable for Windows.
With unix being such a part with MacOS X, would it also be useful to post
some decent unix sites?
> If you have multiple partitions &/or drives (Mac), drag a copy of your
>present System Folder to another volume and throw out most everything
>(fonts, unneeded CDEV's & INIT's, most preferences, etc.) except what is
>needed to boot the machine and hook up to the LAN &/or Internet.
Dragging isn't always great as it doesn't always properly 'bless' the system
folder and the drive isn't seen as bootable with boot blocks. I do a minimal
system install on another drive, partition or removable media for an emergency
boot device. Also, as mentioned before, a full backup before the upgrade is
essential, not an option or luxury.
Joe
----------------------------------------------------------------
Joe Schnide phone: 612.626.6428
University of Minnesota fax: 612.626.6069
Box 43 Mayo email: schnide@mail.med.umn.edu
M39 Masonic
424 Harvard St. S.E.
Minneapolis, MN 55455 USA
Subject: Re: Problem Reporting
From: David Bell <db28@alphainfo.co.uk>
Date: Fri, 28 May 1999 09:03:17 -0500
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Dan Wrote
> Ha Ha Ha! If one could easily *identify* the source of a problem, then
>listserv traffic would be cut in half because if you can identify it you're
>already well on the road to fixing it.
Exactly! And your contribition to this thread demonstrates my point
exactly.
You stated that:
> MacOS 8.6 broke the latest released version of Adobe Type Manager
- without any further qualification or suggestion that there is a fix.
Now as an ATM user about to upgrade to OS 8.6 your comment causes me
significant concern. But I can only form a judgement about whether this
really is a problem based on the information available in the message and
any opionion I might have as to whether Daniel L. Schwartz is a credible
source of information (which of course he is!)
It would be so much easier for everyone in my position if the report had
been accompanied by a reference to some documentation on the problem -
especially of there's already a fix available. For example in this case,
the problem is documented at www.macintouch.com, and there is a fix - the
recommended solution is to upgrade to the latest version, ATM 4.5
Having said that, it's also important that references are checked - for
example, the problem report which prompted my first post was: "Files
disappearing after installing Mac OS 8.6" - with a reference to another
list. Not only did the quoted reference make it clear that there isn't a
problem with files going missing, but it raised a completely different
problem with incorrect drivers being installed for third party graphics
cards. (In case I'm accused of not following my own recommendations, this
is also documented at www.macintouch.com :-) So in this case, the
reported problem turned out in effect to be unsubstantiated rumour.
So to summarise my earlier posting, listserv traffic would indeed be cut,
and we'd all already be well on the road to fixing problems if:
1. Reported problems are adequately described, either in the message or by
referencing another resource.
2. If there's a fix, include it - or a reference to it.
3. If you include a reference, make sure that the reference actually
substantiates what you're saying!
4. Don't pass on hearsay without checking it out first.
David Bell
Alpha information Services Ltd
Glasgow
Subject: Re: Mac System 8.6
From: Rick Kent <maverick@maverickmedia.com>
Date: Fri, 28 May 1999 14:06:32 -0500
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Re: System 8.6 and Error # -42, Too many files open
Has anyone else seen this or a similar problem with System 8.6?:
I was running system 8.5, on a B&W G3 Tower, without ever seeing the above
error.
Since the System update installer available from Apple on the web does not
provide for a clean install option, I did a clean install of System 8.5
from my CD, then updated to system 8.6, and finally used Conflict Catcher
(8.05) to do a clean system merge from my old system folder.
Now I am intermittently, but frequently getting System error -42, Too many
files open, after which I have to reboot to get things back to normal.
Besides the system errors, some programs like Illustrator & Photoshop are
also generating error messages that tell me I have too many files open; so
it is a consistent problem. This was not happening under 8.51, generally
doing the same things with the same number of files that I have open now.
Because it is an intermittent problem, it is difficult to do a conflict
test to see if it might be one of the old extensions.
Any ideas?
=================================================================
MAVERICK COLOR LABELS: Short Run, Custom Printed Labels, Decals
NamePlates, Control Panels, Refrigerator Magnets & More
<http://www.mavericklabels.com>
SALES: 1-800-537-8816 1-877-4-MAVERIck (462-8374)
=================================================================
Subject: Re: [WinMac] Re: Mac System 8.6
From: Mark Knoll <mknoll@umich.edu>
Date: Fri, 28 May 1999 14:22:18 -0500
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At 02:06 PM 5/28/99 -0500, you wrote:
>Re: System 8.6 and Error # -42, Too many files open
>
>Has anyone else seen this or a similar problem with System 8.6?:
I haven't experienced this myself, but I have read where increasing the
memory partition for any offending apps by about 300k might clear up any
memory issues with 8.6.
Hope this helps.
CHeers,
Mark Knoll
Subject: Re: [WinMac] Mac OSX Server review by ZDNET
From: Bruce Johnson <johnson@Pharmacy.Arizona.EDU>
Date: Fri, 28 May 1999 17:09:07 -0500
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Daniel L. Schwartz wrote:
>
> Hello!
>
> Click on the link below, and follow along.
> <http://www.zdnet.com/pcmag/stories/firstlooks/0,6763,2262644,00.html>.
Astonishing...they did a fairer test than MacWorld did. My latest
MacWorld compared OSX to NT IIS, Linux and Sun Web servers...and the
test looked like a Microsoft ad for NT and IIS, as the others were all
pretty close, and IIS was way ahead.
Of course, the fine print said they tested NT using a 500 mhz
multi-processor PIII box, against a bunch of slower, single-processor
systems, so maybe it _was_ exactly like a Microsoft ad...
Might as well give up and call the rag PC Magazine II. (in another
article, comparing the iMac to a comparable Gateway system, they mark
the iMac down because the Gateway is more Windows compatible. :-0)
Also, to dispel a _lot_ of confusion and doubt out there, MacOSX does
indeed do Windows file service; it's just that it's a 3rd party add-on.
Called Samba. It costs nothing.
:-)
Quoted from the samba-list archives: 7-May-1999
"Yes, Samba compiles easily on MacOS X Server. The only real
modification is updating the config.guess and config.sub. I made a
binary installer of 2.0.3 and it is available on
next-ftp.peak.org/pub/apple/ ... somewhere.
I'm currently running pre-2.0.4 because of some NT client issues.
..Bill Chin "
The full url is:
ftp://next-ftp.peak.org/pub/apple/macosx/server/Applications/Network/F
ileSharing/CLI/Samba/
--
Bruce Johnson
University of Arizona
College of Pharmacy
Information Technology Group
Subject: UPS support [was Choosing a WinMac server]
From: "G. Jefferson" <Gareth@smarta.com>
Date: Fri, 28 May 1999 17:09:12 -0500
Mime-Version: 1.0
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ASIP 6 sounds like a good way to go for a small LAN except that no UPS's I
know of come with software for closing down a Mac OS server and network.
They all seem to support NT tho! Gap in the market, anyone?
Gareth.
> For something that small I'ld suggest AppleShare IP. It's easy to set
> up and administer and you can buy a client for the Windows computers. It
> runs everything that you'll need and almost anyone can manage to install
> and administer it.
>
> --On Tuesday, May 25, 1999, 9:35 AM -0500 "G. Jefferson"
> <Gareth@smarta.com> wrote:r
>
>> Given a cozy little LAN of six peer-to-peer machines, three Macs and three
>> Windows 98's what would list readers choose as a dedicated server, a
>> Windows NT box, a Unix box or a MacOS X server?
>>
* Windows-MacOS Cooperation List *
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