FreePBX – convert WAV call recordings to MP3

One of our customers recently reported an interesting issue. They were running FreePBX on a machine with a very small amount of hard drive space. Usually, this would not be an issue, as FreePBX can be installed easily onto a small drive, even less than 10GB (I have a moment of reflection now, thinking that actually 10GB is massive!!)

In any case, when you start recording calls on a system, the free space is quickly eaten up.
Within FreePBX, there is no way to set the call recording to MP3, and as a result, large WAV files are created.
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Join a wireless network before login

Export the existing wifi setup

​netsh wlan export profile %SSIDName% folder=c:\temp
XML files of the existing connections will be exported to c:\temp. Find the one you want all users to access. You need to modify the to false and enter the wireless key.

You will end up with something like this:

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<WLANProfile xmlns="http://www.microsoft.com/networking/WLAN/profile/v1">
<name>Best Network</name>
<SSIDConfig>
<SSID>
<hex>42657374204E6574776F726B</hex>
<name>Best Network</name>
</SSID>
</SSIDConfig>
<connectionType>ESS</connectionType>
<connectionMode>auto</connectionMode>
<MSM>
<security>
<authEncryption>
<authentication>WPA2PSK</authentication>

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How to reset a network card in Windows

Open Control Panel
Click Hardware and Sound
Click Device Manager

In Network Adapters, find the LAN card you want to reset – this is often something like:

• Realtek PCIe GBE Family Controller
• Broadcom NetXtreme 57xx Gigabit Controller
• Intel PRO/1000MT Network Adapter

Right click on the adapter and click Uninstall
You will be warned that this will remove the device from the system – ensure that ‘Delete the driver software’ is *not* ticked if this is shown

Note: Clicking OK will disconnect your remote access session if you are connected!

Click OK
The icon will disappear, and the network adapter will be disabled
At the top of the device manager list, the PC name is displayed
Right click this PC name and select Scan for hardware changes

- See more...

Windows XP Recovery Console – KB310994 download

To manually install the Windows Recovery Console, you have to have the necessary updates. It seems Microsoft have removed the link to the recovery console that used to be linked to from here.

This makes running tools like ComboFix for example, quite difficult.

I’ve sourced the files (at least for SP2 and up) they are mirrored here:

windowsxp-kb310994-sp2-home-bootdisk-enu.exe – For Windows XP Home SP2 and newer.
windowsxp-kb310994-sp2-pro-bootdisk-enu.exe – For Windows XP Professional SP2 and newer.
To install for combofix use, you can download the file to your PC and drag and drop onto the combofix.exe file, as detailed here.

- See more...

Office365 – Distribution list blank return path

When you are using Office365, you may find that external email addresses in a distrbution list do not recieve mails sent to the distribution list email address.

Many spam filters will block emails with a blank or empty return path, but Office365 sets this blank as default, to prevent email bounce loops.
This is normal behaviour – a large distribution list shouldn’t distribute a bounce/DSN report to the entire membership.
For a single membership list for use with Zendesk, Help Scout or other similar mailbox monitoring applications, it may be necessary. - See more...

Session setup failed: NT_STATUS_INVALID_PARAMETER

When trying to link to a Windows Vista, 7 or 8 shared printer from Mac OS 10.6 or newer, you may find that the printer gives this error message.
Essentially, SMB printing from CUPS (the Mac OS printing system) seems broken – it does not pass along the correct user name and password (even when entered manually). The solution is quite long winded… Firstly, ensure that the printer is shared on the Windows machine - See more...

On Hold (Authentication Required) – Mac OSX and Windows printing

The solution to this issue is the same as another error: Session setup failed: NT_STATUS_INVALID_PARAMETER We have detailed the solution here.
Read more...

Conficker Virus – Think you have it?

Conficker Virus – Think you have it?

The Conficker virus has to be one of the most difficult to get rid of. But how can you quickly diagnose if you have it? There are some well known signs: Windows Update and Automatic Updates are blocked System Restore has been turned off You cannot access anti-virus websites (such as Symantec, McAfee, AVG etc.) There is now also an even quicker way: Click Here Think you might be infected? - See more...

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This WordPress error message appears when a plugin update fails half way through. The fix is extremely simple: FTP to your WordPress installation directory Delete the .maintenance file at the root wordpress folder (where wp-config.php lives) Login and retry the plugin operation - See more...

Sage Accounts

Sage Accounts: Username in use 

This is a very common issue with Sage – if the program crashes for whatever reason, you are unable to log back into the program. Before you start! I’d always recommend taking a backup of the company files before making any changes to Sage program or data files – just in case! The Sage file database system is a little antiquated and can be temperamental. The fix itself is simple: Browse to the Sage company file directory on your computer (this will vary, although if you check the COMPANY file in your install directory, it will be listed) Open the ACCDATA directory Delete the queue.dta file - See more...

Blocking browsing to website subdirectories – 1&1

If you are using a webhost like 1&1, you may find that adding additional domains to your hosting package sets the default directory (the ‘home’ directory) as a subdirectory of the main site. Imagine you have two sites: www.abc.com www.newsite.com After adding the newsite.com entry to your list of domains the home directory may be set to www.abc.com/newsite/ – this will allow a user to browse to www.abc.com/newsite and access the new site. Why is this a bad thing? It’s uncertain whether sites like google treat multiple domains pointing to content as a bad thing – there is some information out there, like here, but the situation isn’t 100% clear. The best situation is to have the content isolated properly, so that the new site we have created newsite.com cannot be browsed in this fashion. There are two methods to resolve this issue: Set the home directory of the primary website to a subdirectory

• Configure abc.com to have a home directory of /http_docs/abc.com (or similar) 
• Configure newsite.com to have a home directory of /http_docs/newsite.com (or similar)

See more...

Scheduled Tasks – Running Tasks Without A Password in Windows XP

 

If you try to run a scheduled task in Windows XP, it will balk if you don’t enter a password (or if your main account has no password, it won’t let you proceed). There are two potential fixes: Run the task as the administrator (i.e. your-machine-name\administrator) You can then enter the administrators password. You may need to set this in Computer Management first: Right click My Computer Click Manage In the right hand window, click into Users and Groups Right click the Administrator account, and click Change Password Enter a password of your choice. You can then run the task as the system administrator. - See more... 

Enable Telnet Command in Windows 7

 

Telnet is a simple but extremely popular protocol for exchanging data between two computers. It is often used for testing computer programs. The Telnet utility is included with Windows Vista and Windows 7 computers although it is not enabled by default. Enable Telnet for Windows Vista/Windows 7 If you would like to enable Telnet, follow these steps: 1. Go to Control Panel. 2. Click into Programs and Features. 3. Click Turn Windows Features on or off. - See more...

Windows cannot load the device driver for this hardware. The driver may be corrupted or missing. (Code 39)

 

This is a common problem with Windows Vista – most typically, the CD-ROM or DVD drive will fail to function correctly. Here are the steps we take to fix the issue (be cautious – you’ll have to edit the registry of the computer) Click the Start button, and then in the search box, type regedit. Press the Enter key. NOTE: If prompted for an administrator password or a User Account Control prompt is displayed, type the appropriate password or click Continue. In the Registry Editor window, in the left pane, double-click the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE folder. - See more...

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This WordPress error message appears when a plugin update fails half way through.

The fix is extremely simple:

• FTP to your WordPress installation directory
• Delete the .maintenance file at the root wordpress folder (where wp-config.php lives)
• Login and retry the plugin operation

The issue should be resolved.

- See more 

Using a BlackBerry with ubuntu Hardy Heron 8.04

Barry, the software package he reccomends installing can also be installed by double-clicking on the RPM files that are available on the SourceForge.net site for the tool: -
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Alternatives to Microsoft Office

 

Sun Microsystems have now released v3.0 of their popular ‘OpenOffice.org’ productivity suite. It’s a fantastic alternative for current users of Microsoft Office, or those who wish to have the functionality of the Microsoft Office suite, but do not like the high pricetag.

It has compatibility with all the Microsoft Office file types (including new .docx for Microsoft Word 2007)

- See more at: http://www.jaytag.co.uk/blog/page/4/#sthash.VmCsdRU8.dpuf

 Sun Microsystems have now released v3.0 of their popular ‘OpenOffice.org’ productivity suite. It’s a fantastic alternative for current users of Microsoft Office, or those who wish to have the functionality of the Microsoft Office suite, but do not like the high pricetag.

It has compatibility with all the Microsoft Office file types (including new .docx for Microsoft Word 2007)

- See more

Conficker Virus – Think you have it?

 

The Conficker virus has to be one of the most difficult to get rid of. But how can you quickly diagnose if you have it?
There are some well known signs:

Windows Update and Automatic Updates are blocked System Restore has been turned off You cannot access anti-virus websites (such as Symantec, McAfee, AVG etc.)

There is now also an even quicker way:

Click Here Think you might be infected? - See more

Using Gmail as your SMTP server

If you are anything like us, you will often find yourself on the go, but needing to send and recieve emails. Changing your ISPs regularly (in our example, to Vodafone 3G) might mean that you cannot use the SMTP server you have set in your favourite mail program.

There is a way around this however – you can use Google’s Gmail as your SMTP server – that way you will be free of your ISP’s grip over outgoing mail.

You will first need to set up a gmail account – any address will do.
Here is how it is done within your normal email client:

1. In your email client software, set the ougoing SMTP server to smtp.gmail.com
    
2. Set the username on the SMTP server to yourgmailemailaddress@gmail.com and make sure “Use username and password” is checked. 
3. Ensure “TLS” is selected under “Use secure connection” 
4. Set the Outgoing SMTP port to 465. 

It has been noted that Google have replaced the ‘sent from’ address with your gmail address. There is a way around this. The solution is to go into your gmail Settings, then accounts and make an account other than your gmail account the default. This will re-write the From field with whatever the default account’s email address is. Here are a couple of pictures of the configuration in Outlook 2007: - See more

Microsoft Office has not been installed for the current user...

 

This is quite a common problem it seems – after installing an update to Microsoft office, some of the applications will not open.

Here is one solution:
Create a temporary Windows login account with administrative rights, then log into that new account.

While logged in as the temporary user, open every Office product you have, then close one at a time (Excel, Word, Powerpoint, Project etc…) After opening every Office application, start regedit.

 (Start > Run > then type in Regedit)
Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER > Software > Microsoft > Office, and highlight Office Right click on Office, and select ‘Export’ Save the .reg file somewhere on your computer – note down the location... See More