Setting up a Belkin Router with WPA Security

Use these instructions to help you manually setup a Belkin wireless router.

1. On the computer that is connected to the Internet, open a browser and go to http://192.168.2.1.
3. This will take you to the Belkin router’s configuration page. Click on the Submit button without entering a password to login.
4. On the left hand side of the resulting screen, click on Channel and SSID under the Wireless heading.
5. The screen will change. In the SSID blank, please type HOME and then click the Apply Changes button. This will change the name of your wireless network from Belkin to HOME.
6. Now click on the Security link under the Wireless heading.
7. Use the Security Mode drop down menu to choose WPA/WPA-2 Personal Security (PSK).
8. Use the Authentication drop down menu to choose WPA-PSK+WPA2-PSK.
9. Enter a password into the PSK (Pre-Shared Key) blank. This password must be at least 8 characters and is case sensitive. The password you choose will be the new password to connect to your wireless network.
10. Click Apply Settings and then close the browser window.

 

How to Recover Your Wireless Password from a Belkin Router - Generic

Use these instructions to guide you when trying to recover your wireless encryption password from a Belkin router.

1. Open your Internet browser on your computer and go to http://192.168.2.1/.
2. Click the Login link and enter your password if you created one (just click on Submit if you don't have one).
3. Click on the Security link on the left under the Wireless heading.
4. You security mode and network key will be listed on this page.

 

How to Reset and Reconfigure a Belkin Router - Generic

Use these instructions to guide you when resetting and reconfiguring a Belkin wireless router.

1. Take an Ethernet cable (one is included with the router) and connect your computer to any of the LAN / Computer ports on the Belkin router. You cannot be wireless for this process.
2. Press and hold the RESET button on the back of the Belkin for 30 seconds.
3. Reboot your computer.
4. On your computer, open Internet Explorer (or whichever web browser you use) and go to http://192.168.2.1
5. At the password prompt click on Submit to enter the router’s configuration.
6. On the left, click on Channel and SSID under the Wireless heading.
7. In the SSID blank, type a name for your Wireless network.
8. Change the channel from Auto to 1, 6, or 11.
9. Click the Apply Changes button.
10. Next, click on the Security link under Wireless on the left.
11. Use the Security Mode drop down menu to choose WPA/WPA-2 Personal Security (PSK).
12. Use the Authentication drop down menu to choose WPA-PSK+WPA2-PSK.
13. Enter a password into the PSK (Pre-Shared Key) blank. This password must be at least 8 characters and is case sensitive.
14. Click Apply Changes.

 

 

At this point you should be able to join your new wireless network.

 

How to Change the Channel on a Belkin Wireless Router

Having issues with dropped signal or spotty connections when using a Belkin router?  Other appliances or devices could be interfering with the signal being broadcast from the router.  Please use these instructions to change the channel on a Belkin router and hopefully you can resolve these issues.

1. Open a web browser and go to http://192.168.2.1/.
2. Click Login in the upper right hand corner of the page that appears.
3. When prompted, type your password and click Submit (if you didn't create a password, just click Submit).
4. Click on Channel and SSID on the left under the Wireless Heading.
5. The router may be set to Auto for the channel selection. Try changing it to channel 1, 6, or 11.
6. Click Apply changes near the bottom of the screen.
7. If wireless, your computer will temporarily disconnect while the computer joins the network on the new channel.

Resolving iPhone Exchange 2003 Sync Issues

The first thing you need to do is make sure your Exchange server has service pack 2 loaded. Without service pack 2 the iPhone will not sync correctly. You can check the service pack level by opening System Manager in the Exchange program folder. Then click the + next to Servers and right click your server and choose Properties. The service pack level will be listed there.

If you are not running 2, you can download it from here:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=535BEF85-3096-45F8-AA43-60F1F58B3C40&displaylang=en

Now if you are already running service pack 2, then the next thing you need to check is that you are allowing port 80 through your firewall to your Exchange server (if you use Outlook Web Access your are already forwarding port 80 and can skip this step).

Finally, if you do not have an SSL certificate from a trusted provider like Verisign, then in most cases you need to turn off the SSL check on the iPhone. Tap Settings -> Mail, Contacts, Calendars -> your Exchange account -> Account Info. Then turn Use SSL off.

Resolving WiFi Issues on iPhones

You can use the following method to fix most networking and WiFi issues on your iPhone.  Please keep in mind that performing these instructions will erase any saved WiFi networks or customized networking settings on the device.


1. Tap Settings.
2. Tap General.
3. Tap Reset.
4. Tap Reset Network Settings.
5. The phone will reboot.
6. After the reboot, the issue should be resolved.

How to Cancel an AOL Account

You can cancel an AOL subscription account by using this link:


https://bill.aol.com/SPortal/jsp/reminder.jsp?pricePlanSelected=4100&fromFAQ=true

Click the link above and sign in using your AOL username and password. Then click the Continue button near the bottom of the page. Fill out the resulting form, making sure the check the box for If you do not want your account to be converted to free, or if you want to cancel your free account, check here, is checked. After you click Submit, AOL will cancel the account within 3 days.

How to NAT VPN Traffic on a Cisco ASA

I couldn't find any clear information on the Internet about this, so I thought I would outline it here. Say you have to setup a LAN-to-LAN VPN to a third party who can't accept traffic from the subnet you have created on your internal network because your network overlaps with theirs, or as in my case, they just want one address coming over to their network. The answer is to NAT that VPN traffic using a non-overlapping IP address.

Let's say we have the following parameters:

Your Network: 172.20.30.0/24
Their Network: 172.20.31.0/24
Host you need access to on the other side: 172.20.31.110

Simplistic example but you get the idea. You need to access the host address above to run a certain application. The 3rd party also provides you with the address they want you to use for your NAT.

IP Address Provided by 3rd Party: 192.168.35.17

OK so you know you have to make all of your traffic look like it is coming from 192.168.35.17 to make this VPN work, but the question is how. This is where I got stuck. There are very few articles on the web that deal with this situation and I had to end up piecing the eventual answer together from several different articles. But here you go:

First, create an access-list that will allow your traffic coming from your network to access the host on the 3rd party network

access-list VPN permit ip 172.20.30.0 255.255.255.0 host 172.20.31.110

Next, create an access-list that will allow the NAT address to access the host on the 3rd party network

access-list VPN_NAT permit ip host 192.168.35.17 host 172.20.31.110

Now create a NAT statement that flags traffic coming from your network heading to the 3rd party host

nat (inside) 20 access-list VPN

Next create a GLOBAL statement that NATs the traffic flagged as interesting in the above statement into the address provided by the 3rd pary

global (outside) 20 192.168.35.17

Finally create a crypto map statement in your VPN configuration that flags the necessary traffic as interesting so the VPN knows when to start

crypto map testmap 120 match address VPN_NAT


After performing the above steps, if you ping the address 192.168.35.17, you should be able to see your VPN start up and after a brief delay you should get replies.

The Authentication Service is Unknown When Starting Event Viewer and other System Services

If you find yourself in the above situation in Windows XP or Windows Vista, the first fix you should try is:

1. Open Command Prompt (Start -> Run -> Command and click OK).
2. Type in netsh winsock reset and hit Enter.
3. Reboot.

This should fix the problem and all services should start normally. For more info see:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/811259

Dual Monitors on Citrix XenApp Server for Windows 2003 (Presentation Server 4.5)

To resolve most issues using dual monitors with seamless published apps, simply change the color setting on the application properties in Access Management Console to 16-bit. Most problems arise from running out of virtual video memory on larger LCD displays in dual mode. If you lower the color setting (an unnoticeable difference) then you have enough memory and voila!

1. Open Access Management Console.
2. Expand Applications under your farm.
3. Right click the app you are having trouble with and click Properties.
4. Click the Appearance heading.
5. Click the drop down under Colors and choose 16-bit instead of 24-bit.
6. Click OK and test!

Exchange System Manager Error - The token supplied to the function is invalid ID no: 80090308

If you get the above error when accessing the Public Folders section of Microsoft Exchange Server 2oo3 System Manager, please try the steps below:

1. Remove the SSL requirement from the EXADMIN virtual directory in IIS.
2. Use ADSI edit to remove the Security Binding requirement from EXADMIN.

Specific steps can be found here:

http://groups.google.com/group/microsoft.public.windows.server.sbs/browse_thread/thread/8306a16940f0abcc/de5e626c8621e074%3Flnk=st?pli=1

Your Security Settings May be Preventing the Download of ActiveX Controls

If you get the above error when trying to connect to the Remote Web Workplace in SBS2003 and you have already tried all the other methods to fix (e.g. adding site to Trusted Zones, fiddling with the registry), a simple reset may be all you need.

1. In Internet Explorer, click on Tools -> Internet Options.
2. Click on the Advanced tab.
3. Click the Reset... button.
4. After a bit, IE will reset everything.

FYI: These actions will also reset your search provider and phishing filter settings.

Snap Server Keeps Asking for Password

If you keep getting prompted for a password when trying to connect to your snap shares and your Snap Server is setup to use ADS for authentication, a simple reboot is all that is needed. Most likely the ADS server rebooted and the Snap lost its connection. A reboot will correct this issue.

Fax Routing Fails to Email Small Business Server 2003

If you go through the Fax Setup Wizard in SBS2003 and you find after doing so that faxes are not being sent to the email recipients you designated and the status for incoming faxes is stuck at "Retrying Routing" then the first thing you should check is the authentication methods being used.

1. Go to Printers.
2. Right click your Fax printer and choose Properties.
3. Click the Configuration tab and then click the hyperlink for Fax Services Manager.
4. Right click Fax (Local) and choose Properties.
5. Click on Receipts. Most or all of this info will already be filled out for you thanks to the wizard.
6. Click the Authenication button.
7. The ONLY authentication method used should be Anonymous Access. Since the Fax Server is local to the Exchange Server (this is SBS so all components are on one server) there is no authentication needed.
8. After making the change, click OK twice and close down the fax manager.

All new faxes at this point should be correctly routed to the email recipients.

Symantec Endpoint Protection Installation Fails

If you get a generice "Installation Failed" error when trying to install Symantec Endpoint Protection, please check to make sure that all previous Symantec products are uninstalled, including Symantec System Center Console, AMS, and Central Quarantine. First check the Add/Remove Programs applet to see if they exist and if they do then remove them. If you don't see them in Add/Remove Program, please download the Windows Installer Cleanup Utility here:

http://download.microsoft.com/download/e/9/d/e9d80355-7ab4-45b8-80e8-983a48d5e1bd/msicuu2.exe

After performing these actions, proceed with the installation of Endpoint Protection.

Unable to Reply or Compose Emails Outlook Web Access

If you access OWA (on Exchange 2003) using Vista and get a red X where the message writing area should be, please download the following update on your Exchange Server to fix.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=5BC06E8A-08EB-4976-BC68-A03EBE3A2552&displaylang=en&displaylang=en

Adding Trusted Sites in Citrix Presentation Server 4.5 (or XenApp running on Windows 2003)

To add Trusted Sites for users that use Internet Explorer as a published application on a Citrix Server, the best method to use GPO.

1. Move the Citrix server(s) into an OU, if they are not in one already. Ideally the Citrix server will be the only server located in this OU.
2. Create and link a GPO to this new OU.
3. Turn on loopback processing by going to Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> System -> Group Policy and enabling the 'User Group Policy Loopback Processing' option.
4. Add the sites you want by going to Computer Setttings>Adminstrative Templates>windows components>Internet Explorer>internet control panel>security page>trusted sites zone template. Just type the name of the site in and choose level 2 (the number for Trusted Sites) and click Add.

NOTE: I had trouble at first because I was adding multiple versions of the same site (e.g. https://eservices.paychex.com and *.paychex.com). This is a big no-no as they will conflict and neither site will be added. Try to be as general as possible when adding the sites (e.g. *.domain.com) to avoid these conflicts.

Error 8418: The replication operation failed because of a schema mismatch between the servers involved.

If during the migrations of an SBS 2003 server, you get the error above, I have found that most likely it is the result the service pack level being different on the two servers. Updating both to SP2 seems to resolve the problem in all cases.

Error while archiving folder "inbox" in store "mailbox - user name".

If you get the error message in the title of this post (with no other information such as 'Access Denied') then most likely your problem is a corrupted OST. I have found that turning off Cached Mode fixes the issue, but that is only a temporary fix. The true fix is to delete the OST file located at %userprofile%\local settings\application data\outlook\ (WinXP) or %userprofile%\appdata\local\microsoft\oulook (Vista) and then reopen Outlook so it rebuilds the OST.

Virut.CF Virus Removal

If you get the Virut.CF virus on your computer, you should resign yourself to wiping the hard drive and reinstalling. This particularly nasty virus bypasses Windows File Protection and actually infects pretty much every .exe that is accesses by the computer. In addition it can propogate over networks and flash drives, so be careful!

You have this virus if you notice .tmp files (bn1.tmp, bn2.tmp, a.tmp, 9.tmp, etc) running in your task manager.

If you see this behavior you should disconnect your computer from the network immediately. After doing so, remove the hard drive and attach it with a USB converter to a workstation with up to date antivirus (make sure this workstation is also disconnected from the network just to be safe). Then scan the hard drive using whatever antivirus package you have. More than likely it will find upwards of 500 infections. When it has finished, you may copy any data off of the drive that you want to keep. Then you must wipe the drive and reinstall. This is the ONLY way to insure the virus is gone for good. I have had this virus come back after cleaning systems thoroughly with multiple av and antispyware products.

Windows XP Logs Me Off Right After Login!

If you have the problem listed above, please follow the instructions below (only doable if the computer is networked):

Log on to a networked computer.
Run Regedit.exe
Point your cursor to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
Select File > Connect Remote Registry
Type computer name (infected computer)
Navigate to the following location in registry of destination or infected computer


HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon


Edit these two values in right pane:

Shell
Userinit


Change these two values to
Shell=explorer.exe
Userinit = c:\windows\system32\userinit.exe, (note the comma)
Exit from Registry
Restart Infected computer.
You should be able to log on to computer.

If you still can't login to the PC or if the registry entries listed above were already correct, then the problem is either a corrupt or missing userinit.exe file. You can simply copy this file from another computer and place it on the broken PC over the network.

Audio But No Video on Movie Played in Windows Media Player.

If you attempt to playback a movie in WMP and you get audio but no video, chances are you don't have the correct codec installed. To fix, simply download the full codec package from:

http://www.free-codecs.com/K_lite_codec_pack_download.htm

During the install, choose to install the codecs for Windows Media Player and NOT Classic Media Player and your movies should start playing.

Your mailbox has been temporarily moved on Microsoft exchange server.

If you get this error when opening Outlook 2007:

"Your mailbox has been temporarily moved on Microsoft exchange server. A temporary mailbox exists, but might not have all your previous data.You can connect to the temporary mailbox or work offline with all of your old data. If you choose to work with your old data, you cannot send or receive e-mail messages."

Then you must recreate the user's profile completely to rectify it.

WinConnect Server XP Doesn't Work After Windows XP Service Pack 3

If you install Service Pack 3 on a Windows XP machine and the WinConnect Server XP program gets stuck in Disabled mode, then you simply need to download the newest version of WinConnect Server XP from here:

http://www.thinsoftinc.com/download_form.aspx?pid=wcsxp

You will need to uninstall the current version of the software BEFORE installing the new version, so make sure you record your serial number before the uninstall.

Problem with DNS and Linksys QuickVPN

If you are using the QuickVPN by Linksys (Cisco) then you will not be able to use DNS resolution to access network resources located on the interior network. This is because the VPN 'server' on the Linksys router doesn't provide a customized DNS server. It only provides its own IP address as a DNS server, and of course the router doesn't know squat about your internal network.

A workaround is to install/enable WINS on an internal server and then manually input that server's address into the TCP/IP properties on every client. It's not a great solution but it works.