By on November 28th, 2007

Add-In: Tab Scroller

scroll wheel mouse

If you have lots of add-in’s installed then you are probably already fed up with clicking through a whole list of Home Server tabs to get to the one you need. You could use the previously mentioned Tab Reorder to make sure the tab you require was in the right position or now you can also use Brendan Grant’s new add-in Tab Scroller to use the mouse scroll wheel to scroll through the list.

One unique feature of this add-in is that it is nearly invisible in the Console, making the only obvious presence of the add-in being the functionality it provides and it’s showing up on the Installed Add-Ins tab.

One warning that does need to be made about this add-in is that it is really only recommended for users with more than 7 Console tabs, any fewer and it’ll either be worthless due to not having anything to scroll to and/or it can cause some visual oddities, like the scroll buttons being present and clickable but doing nothing.

Once installed via the normal console, settings, Add-Ins tab it is just a matter of placing your mouse curser within the tab area and using your mouse scroll wheel to scroll the list.

Download Tab Scroller and more information is available from here.

add-ins • Windows Home Server
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By on November 27th, 2007

November Update – Your Network Health Icon Will Turn Red.

After installing the new November update for Windows Home Server you will notice that your network health icon will turn red. With this update, you can now get a trusted SSL certificate for your <your_name>.HomeServer.com domain name.  If you have already set up remote access via the console, settings screen, you will need to quickly unconfigure your existing sub-domain name and re-run Setup to acquire an SSL certificate for your HomeServer.com domain name.

For more details on how to accomplish this, see the following post at the official Windows Home Server Blog.

Installation • Tutorial • Windows Home Server
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By on November 27th, 2007

HP MediaSmart Server Light Show

easter egg

Alex from the MediaSmart Server forums has uncovered an “Easter Egg” feature hidden by the HP R&D team. Entitled the HP MediaSmart Server LED Light Show, it adds some interesting effects to the HP’s HDD LED lights:

* Default System Lights (Recommended)
* Holiday Lights
* Ascending Chaser (all colors)
* Descending Chaser (all colors)
* Pulsing (all colors)
* Night Rider (all colors)
* Morse Code Credits

For the details on how to enable it see Alex’s forum post. Thanks to We Got Served for the details.

News • Windows Home Server
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By on November 27th, 2007

HP MediaSmart Webcast Today and Thursday

A reminder that today and Thursday are the days to view the 2 remaining Webcasts from HP and Microsoft on the MediaSmart Server. The free online demonstration today includes Paul Thurrott from SuperSite for Windows and Ed Bott from ZDNet on Thursday webcast.

Today’s Event Overview

Do you have multiple PCs with increasingly large amounts of digital photos, music, video and documents?  Is managing, accessing and protecting this digital media becoming a seemingly impossible task?
Join HP and Microsoft for one of these FREE live webcasts, featuring a live demonstration of the long-awaited HP MediaSmart Server, based on the wildly popular Windows Home Server software from Microsoft. 

This educational event will show you why the MediaSmart Server is the ultimate solution for:

• Accessing your files easily and securely over the internet
• Sharing your life online with family and friends using HP Photo Webshare
• Organizing your personal files and digital entertainment in one location
• Protecting all of your digital media and documents.

You’ll also hear from consumer technology expert, Paul Thurrott from Supersite for Windows, and representatives from Microsoft will be on-hand to respond directly to audience questions.

To register for free, see this post.

News • Windows Home Server
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By on November 27th, 2007

HP MediaSmart Server UK Launch

HP MediaSmart Server

I had a good opportunity yesterday to see first hand the MediaSmart Server from HP which is due to go on sale here in the UK from December 1st (2007). The unit was being shown to the media at the British Film Institute (BFI Southbank) in London by Microsoft and HP who kindly invited me along as an independent commentator to answer some questions which were raised and to share my experiences of the product with the press.

Over a course of 4 sessions Mike Haigh from Microsoft gave a brief overview, detailing Windows Home Server in the digital age of music, photos and videos which was followed by a demonstration of the MediaSmart Server by Tavis Butler from HP showing the great features available in the EX range including the great Photo Webshare application that HP have included in the bundle as standard. This was followed by the Q&A session which was nice to be involved in.

It was also good to catch up with MVP Terry Walsh from We Got Served and to see Microsoft and the press so enthusiastic about Home Server especially since it is a new product category for Microsoft.

What did amaze me was how quiet and small the MediaSmart Server is, which can even be placed in a bedroom without disturbing anyone especially since the onboard LED’s can even be dimmed via the software – Well thought out.

HP took the Windows Home Server software, which was good to start off, refined and customized it, and produced an even better user experience.

The 500GB EX470 will be available for £399 inc VAT and the 1TB EX475 for £499 inc VAT from UK retail stores and online e-tailers.

Two reviews which are already online from members of the UK media which were at the event can be viewed from here and here.

Hardware • News • Windows Home Server
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By on November 26th, 2007

Busy Monday

Well today has been a busy one for me, spending it with the guys from Microsoft and HP at a press conference in London dedicated to the HP MediaSmart Server – More details tomorrow. Also scheduled for Tuesday is the November update for Windows Home Server, all exiting stuff. Until then:

News • Windows Home Server
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By on November 25th, 2007

The Week in Review – Sunday's Summery

What was going on this week at mswhs.com? Here’s your chance to catch-up if you missed something!

  • Streaming21 & WNC Revitalize Digital Lifestyles With WHS
    • Streaming21, the world leader in broadcast-quality streaming solutions; WNC (Wistron NeWeb Corporation), a global leader in wireless communications, IPTV and the Microsoft Embedded Sever team, will present their fully-integrated, end-to-end digital home solutions December 5-7 at IPTV World Forum…
  • The Biggest HP MediaSmart Server EX475 Review – Ever!
    • Terry Walsh has a hands on review of the HP MediaSmart Server EX475 over on his web site. This is one of the most comprehensive reviews that I have seen on the EX475 unit and is a definite must read if you are thinking about purchasing one. Terry concludes his review by saying: “Well, I said […]
  • Speed up Data Transfer to WHS
    • Janssen Jones has posted 5 handy hints over at the WHS forums to speed up data transfer when copying material to your shared folders on the home server. If transferring LARGE amounts of media to the Music, Photos or Videos folder, disable “Media Sharing” for that folder. When Media sharing is…
  • More Reviews
    • Scouring the web we have four reviews on Windows Home Server for you. The first is from ZDNet where Adrian Kingsley-Hughes describes Building a Windows Home Server – the easy way! Where Adrian points out the best hardware to use. From CPU and motherboard through Heatsink and fan to Ram, Hard drives…
  • Hush HS1 Home Server
    • German manufacturer Hush has released it’s HS1 Home Server. With a power consumption of 45 watts the fanless device is available with a storage capacity of 500GB to 2TB.  Base price is expensive at €923.53 and includes 1GB DDR2 Memory, 10/100 LAN (Gb LAN upgrade available) and 500GB of…
  • SCALEO Home Server 1500 available for Pre-order in Germany

    Fujitsu Siemens online shop in Germany are offering the SCALEO Home Server 1500 for Pre-order with an expected delivery date of February 2008. Thanks to German language Homeserver Blog for the details.

  • Tranquil PC’s NEW T2-WHS-A3
    • Tranquil PC have another Windows Home Server system, the T2-WHS-A3. Due to be released December 12th (2007) it has a the similar low power (29W) benefits of the T2-WHS-A2, but is limited to 10/100 LAN, although the GBe option is optional at an additional £12 and one eSATA card providing four ports.…
  • Client Info Add-In
    • Eric Maurer has posted details about his first add-in he has created on the WHS forums. It uses Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) to get hardware information from the WHS Server machine as standard, and also from the client computers after supplying the usernames and passwords for them. This…
  • Linux WHS Alternative HipServ
    • In the past we have posted information about Linux alternatives to Windows home Server including the Ubuntu Home Server Edition Project.Today I have details of another Linux based product that claims to offer all the features of Windows Home Server. Its HipServ from Axentra Corporation based out of…
  • Add-In: Tab Reorderer
    • Developer Brendan Grant has another add-in for us. Tab Reorderer enables you to change the order of the tabs which are displayed on the main window in the Windows Home Server console.  To install place the downloaded msi file into the \\SERVER\Software\Add-Ins folder and install…
  • Trusted Certificate from Microsoft Street Value $100 5 Year Expiration Date – FREE
    • As previously posted the update due on Tuesday November 27th will amongst many other things improve the remote access experience for Windows Home Server users by providing them with a “trusted SSL certificate” for their home servers. That means customers will be able to access their home server…
  • November Update Package for WHS
    • We posted yesterday about a update package from Microsoft that is going to cure most of the remaining problems that some users were experiencing with Windows Home Server: You will no longer receive certificate warnings in the Web browser when you access your Web site by using an external URL.Data…
  • Technical Brief for Home Computer Backup and Restore
    • Technical Brief for Home Computer Backup and Restore is another technical brief from Microsoft for Windows Home Server. This 26 page PDF document provides an in-depth look at the features and functionality of WHS Home Computer Backup and Restore complete with an overview of the backup process along…
  • Fujitsu-Siemens Scaleo HomeServer Videos
    • The German Homeserver Blog has posted 2 English language videos which feature the Scaleo HomeServer alongside other products from Fujitsu-Siemens.The first Video is 14 minutes long followed by another at 18 minutes in length.
  • WHS Update Package Resolves Lots of Issues
    • We have an exclusive for you. An update package is available for Windows Home Server that address a massive 7 issues, a few of which are/were major ones. The security certificate error in a web browser has finally gone. Data files which contain alternate data streams (ADS) which can potentially…
  • ADS & Data Corruption
    • Some Windows Home Server users have been experiencing data corruption issues in scenarios where data files that contain alternate NTFS data streams can potentially become corrupted when copied to shared folders on WHS.This is a major issue that Microsoft are currently testing and have said that it…
  • Should I re-boot WHS?
    • Windows Home Server should not be rebooted unless absolutely necessary. Necessary re-boots would be required at least once a month for critical/security updates from Microsoft and for other software that requires a reboot. Other reasons would include the addition of new hardware that requires the…
  • Windows Home Server for Dummies Available
    • Windows Home Server For Dummies is finally available as from today from Amazon.com. Woody Leonhard’s 384 page book should be on all our book shelves, dummies or not. And well done to those of you that left ideas here for Woody to include in the book because he has included most of them. Here’s…
  • Data Sheet for SCALEO Home Server 1500 and 1900 Available
    • The data sheet for the Fujitsu Siemens SCALEO Home Server is now available for viewing/download. The SCALEO Home Server will be available as 2 models, the 1900 will come preinstalled with 2x 500GB Sata II hard drives whilst the SCALEO Home Server 1500 model comes with the one 500GB Sata II hard…
Summery • Windows Home Server
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By on November 23rd, 2007

Streaming21 & WNC Revitalize Digital Lifestyles With WHS

Streaming21, the world leader in broadcast-quality streaming solutions; WNC (Wistron NeWeb Corporation), a global leader in wireless communications, IPTV and the Microsoft Embedded Sever team, will present their fully-integrated, end-to-end digital home solutions December 5-7 at IPTV World Forum Asia in Singapore. The live demo is a warm-up event for a worldwide product launch aimed at connecting the digital home with the networked world via must-have “killer” applications, based on Microsoft Home Server.

WNC’s powerful set-top box and reliable server hardware plus Streaming21’s innovative Home Entertainment Server are seamlessly integrated with Microsoft Home Server and Windows Storage Server 2003 R2, making it easy to add or expand applications. The unique Home Sever acts as the central control center for digital home entertainment, automation, surveillance and communication applications. The innovative platform makes ubiquitous access of killer applications for the digital home a market reality. The platform enables media display on TVs and provides an easy management system for personal content through the PC.

The demonstration will showcase the revolutionary platform enabling digital home “killer apps” on IA and home devices through wired and wireless IP networks. It will also demonstrate a new generation of Web 2.0 concepts that are inspired by the universal desire to create community and share personal content on TV with friends and family through easy web-based management. Other key features include Digital Home Theater, Movie Rental, Video on Demand (VOD) with trick play capability, Personal Video Recorder (PVR), Photo Bank, and Real-Time Information Dashboard (RSS: News, Weather, Stocks, Photo Albums, and more).

News • Windows Home Server
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By on November 23rd, 2007

The Biggest HP MediaSmart Server EX475 Review – Ever!

Terry Walsh has a hands on review of the HP MediaSmart Server EX475 over on his web site. This is one of the most comprehensive reviews that I have seen on the EX475 unit and is a definite must read if you are thinking about purchasing one. Terry concludes his review by saying:

“Well, I said that HP was a great hardware company and the HP MediaSmart Server has reinforced my belief – it’s small, powerful and looks fantastic”.

Read the full review here.

Hardware • Windows Home Server
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By on November 23rd, 2007

Speed up Data Transfer to WHS

Janssen Jones has posted 5 handy hints over at the WHS forums to speed up data transfer when copying material to your shared folders on the home server.

  1. If transferring LARGE amounts of media to the Music, Photos or Videos folder, disable “Media Sharing” for that folder. When Media sharing is turned on, WHS is indexing each piece of material as it comes in. Depending on other factors with your machine, this can cause a significant slowdown.
  2. If transferring LARGE amounts of data, disable “Folder Duplication” for that folder. When folder duplication is turned on, WHS is making two copies of each file you send to the server. Depending on other factors with your machine, this can cause a significant slowdown.
  3. If transferring LARGE amounts of data, be aware that USB drives may not perform as well as SATA drives. Depending on other factors with your machine, this can cause a significant slowdown.
  4. If transferring LARGE amounts of data, be aware that ‘multiple’ USB drives may not perform as well as a single attached USB drive, especially if they share the same BUS. Depending on other factors with your machine, this can cause a significant slowdown.
  5. If at all possible, try to ensure that your system drive is the largest drive when you install WHS. If you install on a small system drive (e.g. 80 GB) and then attach a few large (e.g. 500GB) data drives, sooner or later you’ll run into performance issues, at least in the beta.
Tutorial • Windows Home Server
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