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Posted on by Posted in Geeking, Technology Networking, Windows Leave a comment



With a new job, comes new responsibilities!  Which is why I’ve fallen hopelessly behind in updating my blog.

On the upside, I’m looking forward to posting several new articles in the coming weeks on a few things I’ve been working on.

  • Amazon services
    • Virtual Private Clouds
    • EC2 instances
    • Routing in a VPC
    • Security in a VPC
  • Windows Server 2008 R2
    • Network Protection Services Overview
    • RADIUS authentication
  • Imaging Windows 7 using ImageX and the pile of Windows tools

Now you may be saying, “but that sort of stuff has all been done already?”  Yes, it has, however I’ve noted some missing details on quite a few of the wonderous information troves available online-and I’m hoping to fill in the gaps.

Stay tuned!

Missing Shared Calendars since updating to iOS 5? Some solutions to try out!

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If you’re missing calendars shared with you on Google Calendar, it is likely either a setting has changed on your Google account or an update to iOS corrupted the account setup on your iDevice.

Start by configuring your shared calendars that are displayed on mobile devices by logging into the Google account on your iDevice’s browser by visiting http://m.google.com/sync to view the settings for your sync account.

If that is configured properly then the issue is likely local to your device.  Simply go to Settings.App (the settings icon on your iDevice), locate and tap “Mail, Contacts, Calendars”.  Find the Google account in question in your list, tap on its name and then scroll to the bottom of the page, tap delete (this will NOT delete data on the account, but will delete the data cached on your device.  The next step is to go ahead and re-add the account to your device.  Once completed, you should now be able to view the shared calendars through Calendar.App (the Calendar icon on your iDevice).

Please feel free to leave a comment if this helped or didn’t.

“This Operation Requires an interactive window station” or the message that is not helpful

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So today I received my replacement motherboard from Memory Express after the defective onboard sound debacle. This time round, I figured I’d primarily use the onboard sound, but keep the X-Fi for situations where it was needed. So, I selected to place the X-Fi into the very top PCIe slot (x1_1). Problem-it spat out the above error when I attempted to install drivers.

Now, after going to Google to check what was going on, I realized that the answer wasn’t going to be something simple. So, Step 1, update the BIOS in case it is a resource conflict (or a user-setting something wrong when configuring the uEFI configuration-meaning ME). In the end, it looked to be a conflict between the P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3 configuration for the x16_3 slot’s number of PCIe lanes.

Moral of the story, leave it at AUTO as x1 seems to not agree with PCIe x1_1 and disables the mid-board USB 3 ports.

Quick update on DPC3825

Posted on by Posted in Geeking, Technology Networking 12 Comments

So I recently found myself with my very own DPC3825 to work with (and to troubleshoot). Suffice to say, I quickly learned that using an ASUS Wireless N USB adapter and attempting to use Bittorrent with it connected to the DPC3825 resulted in the wireless adapter losing its network connection after beginning a download. While previously, using the ASUS adapter connected to a D-Link DGL-4500, using Bittorrent worked just fine and didn’t exhibit any odd behaviors.

Conclusion? One more issue to add to the list. On the upside, hardwired works just fine! I can’t wait to get my real router back.

Have you encountered any incompatibilities with your DPC3825?

iOS 5 & the iPhone 4: Some Teething Problems

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So I’ve lived with iOS 5 on my iPhone 4 GSM for a month and a half.  What have I found during that time?  Random issues, that’s what.

General

With the general OS, I’ve noticed a few slow-downs and keyboard entry lag.  Things simply aren’t as responsive as in iOS 4 which felt far more “tight” and well tested.  Twitter integration is handy, but Facebook integration would have been far more useful.

One issue with the OS that I experienced that shocked me was when my vibrate feature ceased to work, no matter how I changed a setting or toggled things on or off, vibrate would not come back to life.  As someone whose vibrate motor was shot from the factory, this was un-settling and concerned me that my vibrate motor may have died.  So I performed a simple reboot by holding the sleep button and the home button until the phone powered down and showed the Apple logo.  The first odd thing I noticed was the loading bar-which hearkened back to my Over-The-Air (OTA) update experience with the iOS 5.0.1 update.  This was a hint that something else was going on.

Once my phone was back up and running, the battery meter percentage feature was turned off, the screen brightness was dimmed and help pop-ups were showing up.  My sound settings (ringtone, text tone, etc.) were all reset to factory defaults as well.  Oddly enough, my vibrate feature came back to life (though now it does require the occasional shake to get it to heave to, so it is sticking *le sigh*)

Music.App

Prior to iOS 5 I had some minor issues with the iPod.App application.  They were the occasional small hiccups.  With the new Music.App I’ve experienced lag issues, tracks often stuttering when attempting to begin playback using the headphone remote after waking the iPhone from standby and the displayed info on a track belonging to a completely different song.

 

Those are the problems I’ve encountered to date, I’ll post back if and when I find some more!  Thanks for reading!

Cisco DPC3825 from Shaw: Clearer Answers

Posted on by Posted in Geeking, Technology Networking 64 Comments

A few weeks back I posted some vague instructions about the issues I encountered with the Shaw provided DPC3825 Modem/Router.  Since then, a few people have commented in various forums that linked to my article that they didn’t quite understand how to follow my instructions, all experiencing either similar issues or wanting to use their own router.

If you’re not aware, there are some issues with the router-functionality in the DPC3825 and the firmware that ships when Shaw has deployed these Modem/Routers up till this point.  Basically, the Stateful Packet Inspection firewall (the software built into the router hardware that protects your computer(s) from certain attacks directly against the router from the internet also blocks certain media websites (such as the cue to me that something was wrong, videos on http://tv.adobe.com wouldn’t load).

On top of that, any traffic involving a media sharing format (i.e. Bonjour, DLNA, Windows Media) do not work.  So those trying to share media via iTunes, Windows Media Sharing to Xbox 360 or DLNA to PS3 or DLNA-compatible TVs or devices will end up stonewalled with no way to access their media servers over the network.

So, I thought I’d follow up with some more information I saw in those threads from helpful Shaw employees and clear up my instructions.

If you’re about to upgrade or start your service with Shaw and want to sign up for one of their new Broadband plans, when contacting Shaw to place your order ensure that you let them know that you would like the Modem configured in “bridge-mode”.  Alternatively, if you call in to Shaw technical support, they can push the firmware update within 30 minutes.

If you would prefer the Do-it-Yourself solution using both the Cisco DPC3825 and your third party router after already having received your unit, here are the details (note: do this from a hard-wired ethernet cable connection directly to the Cisco DPC3825 gateway and ensure that your previous router is not connected yet):

Step 1: Ensure that you are connected directly to the DPC3825 by a network cable. Login to the Cisco DPC3825 router interface (on my Shaw provided DPC3825, the IP was 192.168.0.1, so I typed into the address bar of my browser http://192.168.0.1 and it took me to the web interface).  You should now see an image like the picture to the right. The username is cusadmin, if you’re with Shaw, the password is on the sticker on the DPC3825, if with Rogers, it is simply password (really creative and not what the manual says).

 

Logon Screen of the DPC3825

Logon Screen of the DPC382

 

 

Step 2: The first screen that you are taken to is the “Setup” page’s”Quick Setup” tab.  From here, you can disable the wireless on the router under “WLAN”.  You should do this to prevent any possible confusion or difficulties later in the process. Click “Save Settings” and when prompted to restart, restart it immediately.

 

Quick Setup screen from the DPC3825 Gateway

Quick Setup screen from the DPC3825 Gateway

 

Step 3: Log back in . Click on “Lan Setup”. Now, there are two boxes to the right of “Starting IP Address”, set the starting IP to 10. What this step does is set the IP address range for the DPC3825 and devices on the network managed by it. This makes things easier when setting up an additional router behind the Cisco box as well so that you don’t have to do nearly as much re-configuring. Now, if you know how to manually set the IP address of your computer, you can click on “Disable” beside “DHCP Server:” as we don’t need any additional addresses handed out from the DPC3825, however if you do not know how, then leave this setting alone for now. Click “Save Settings” and when prompted to restart, do so.  If you are NOT presented with a reboot/restart option, unplug the power from the DPC3825.

LAN Setup Screen

LAN Setup Screen

 

 

 

 

Step 4:You will be disconnected from the DPC3825 at this point, you will either need to renew the IP of your computer or restart it. To determine if you can connect to the DPC3825, again visit its web address (http://192.168.10.1) if you can see the login screen, login. If not, you will need to either renew the address if you left DHCP on OR manually set the IP of your network adapter (advanced users). Once logged in, you will need to Click on “Security” from the top menu. Uncheck all of the options below EXCEPT “Block Anonymous Internet Requests”, click Save Settings then click “Disable” beside “SPI Firewall Protection”. Click “Save Settings” again and if prompted to restart the DPC3825, do so by clicking the prompt button.

 

DPC Firewall Screen

DPC Firewall Screen

 

 

 

 

Step 5: Click on “Applications & Gaming” from the top menu then click on the “DMZ” tab. Click on “Enable” by “DMZ Hosting” and set the DMZ Host IP Address to 192.168.10.15 which will be the address you will need to set your other router’s Wide Area Network (WAN)/Internet port to (for instructions on this, please see the manual for your router). Click “Save Settings” and when prompted to restart, click “Restart”.

 

 

Screenshot of the DPC3825 DMZ screen

Screenshot of the DPC3825 DMZ screen

 

Step 6: Attempt to reconnect to the DPC3825. From here, you will need to log back into the DPC3825′s router interface and click on the “Status” link at the top of the interface. Once there, write down the DNS addresses listed as you will need them when configuring your own router in Step 7.

 

 

 

Step 7: You need to consult the manual for your router to configure it for a Static DHCP address on the WAN port (which you need to set to set to the previously mentioned 192.168.10.15 which we set the DMZ to in Step 5. For the DNS entries (DNS 1, DNS 2) you will need to enter those ones that you wrote down from the DPC3825.

Please see your own router’s manual for screenshots or examples.

Please feel free to share any questions in the comments!

UPDATE:

Due to a few requests for more info on router-specific configuration, check out the below quick set of notes for newer D-Link Routers.  Please ensure that your Computer is plugged directly into the D-Link router and that the WAN/Internet port on the D-Link router is connected to one of the 4 yellow ports on the DPC3825 (it doesn’t matter which port really).

DIR-655:   Log into the management interface which is by default http://192.168.0.1, click on “SETUP” at the top, you should be taken to the Internet Connection page. At the bottom, click on “Manual Internet Connection Setup” and on that page set the top drop down which is My Internet Connection is: to “Static IP”.

Lower down the page, set your IP address to 192.168.10.15, the subnet mask should be 255.255.255.0 and Default Gateway should be 192.168.10.1. Copy the DNS information that you wrote down in Step 6 of the above tutorial into the two DNS fields, scroll back to the top of the page and click “Save Settings”. You should now be online.

DGL-4500: Log into the management interface which is by default http://192.168.0.1, click on “BASIC” at the top, you should be taken to the Internet Connection page. At the bottom, click on “Manual Configure” and on that page set the top drop down which is My Internet Connection is: to “Static IP”.

Lower down the page, set your IP address to 192.168.10.15, the subnet mask should be 255.255.255.0 and Default Gateway should be 192.168.10.1. Copy the DNS information that you wrote down in Step 6 of the above tutorial into the two DNS fields, scroll back to the top of the page and click “Save Settings”. You should now be online.

Shaw’s Cisco DPC3825 for DOCSIS 3.0 Service

Posted on by Posted in Geeking, Technology Networking 13 Comments

UPDATE: For clearer instructions, please visit this article!

My room-mates just upgraded to Shaw’s Broadband 100 plan. Included with it is the requirement that you use a Cisco DPC3825 hybrid modem/router. What they don’t tell you though is that the firmware on this box is yet another case of half-baked Linksys firmware. The box doesn’t allow for DLNA or Bonjour traffic over the LAN. Best of all, the SPI firewall blocks tv.adobe.com for some reason.

A few forums have said that by calling Shaw directly and asking them to escalate the issue you can get them to swap the firmware on the DPC3825 for a “bridged” mode so that you can use a standard router with it and avoid the issues that they don’t mention.

Now, if you don’t have the time or desire to fight your way through bureaucratic hoops, you can always check out the step-by-step guide I’ve put together here.

iOS Bugs: 4GB Random Upload & Download

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Apparently, this one has been around for a while on Apple’s support forum and is so rare that it isn’t considered a problem. Anyways, randomly an iPhone can increment its cellular data usage counters up 4GB both up and down simultaneously. So you could go from say, 15MB down to 4GB up AND down.

This can have a rather un-desirable un-healthy reaction. Simply put, if your iPhone does the jump and you catch it and you haven’t been tethering or doing unsavoury things with it, relax. Your carrier doesn’t rely on your phone for your bill, so you’re safe!

Developing an Excel VBA Reporting Tool

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Last year I was presented with a problem. A problem that could, in my mind, only be effectively solved using an application. Software designed to accept input from a reporting system’s output in different formats. The goal, was to take all of that information, calculate the specific data that wasn’t generated by the reporting system and provided the line of business’ key performance indicators (KPIs).

The tool that I developed went through a number of iterations because it had been at least 10 years since I had programmed in Visual Basic 6 (it may have been Visual Basic 5, admittedly my memory isn’t that good on it since the software environment was boring) for Computer Science class in high school.

On that subject, I need to apologize to my CS teacher, Mr. Stromberg, for not paying more attention in his class, but admittedly the course materials were very dry and not very interesting. It also didn’t help that we were programming applications that I couldn’t sink my teeth into and felt like there wasn’t a truly useful purpose.

This project gave me a purpose.

The initial version only calculated one KPI as it used data from a single report provided by the chat service provider, but quickly it was made a priority to integrate an additional report to gather 3 additional KPIs. Then another KPI was tacked on which included another report.

The application was evolving slowly, with an initial push while adding functionality to try and add some ‘safety’ features to reduce user error issues. We often had end-users trying to use the wrong source report or settings when generating it.

I was asked to add additional features over time, but it was quickly becoming apparent that I was pushing the envelope too far and Excel was pushing back, at least, due to the overall application structure.

The software was ‘monolithic’ in design with some modular capabilities, but it was missing the boat since a lot of it was a cludge. My coding was already looking like a disaster to me since I had been steadily learning more. Meanwhile, I was being asked to add in more features and the program was crashing more and more often.

July came around and I started developing a new design with a concept focused on modularity and ease of use. It also began the separation of application functionality and user interface. Work on the UI ran into a brick wall with my inability to figure out how to use the multipage control. I kept working on the modular design and did some testing with other interfaces, but I knew that it was critical to provide those who use the application with a wizard-like UI.

As someone who has used a variety of software from the simple and easy to the complex and difficult, my application was shaping up to be straight-forward, but without any additional instructions for the end-user to make things easy to understand, they’d most likely continue to encounter problems with the report generation phase which required them to use someone else’s web interface to request the chat system to generate the data.

August came around and I got fed up with the current iteration of the application, so I made another push and got the interface working with the multipage control and the basic functionality (enough to match the current tool on it’s basic operations).

When October rolled around, I had managed to add instructions to the tool finally and began integrating a report format for another line of business. November came and I had to write a report for yet another line of business, based off of the tool I had wrote. This resulted in three days of hardcore programming, which included some fixing and code structure changes to make the application overall a more efficient design.

Just to give you an idea, I was using Do loops with boolean statements triggered by counters in the original design and continued into the new UI. With the overhaul for the new line of business, I switched to For loops that would simply roll through a range and generally were used in specific sub routines. A number of other changes were integrated under the hood to make things operate more efficiently.

A later revision gave me the opportunity to integrate security measures that also doubled to make the application as a whole function in a much more streamlined fashion. I started removing global variables, utilizing encapsulation, shifted procedures out of class modules that really shouldn’t have been there in the first place and included additional documentation to allow others to easily pick up the application and work with it from a code perspective.

In any case, I hope to follow up this post with a bit more detail on my code and what the end results of my learning were.