How to install ADUC (Active Directory users and computers) in Windows 11

In Windows 11 RSAT is installed online as a “feature on demand”. To install the Active Directory RSAT on Windows 11, go to Settings -> Apps -> Optional Features -> Add an optional feature (View features).

Type ‘Active Directory’ in the search bar and select:

RSAT: Active Directory Domain Services and Lightweight Directory Services Tool.

Click Next-> Install to start the installation. Then Windows connects to Microsoft servers, downloads and installs the Active Directory Remote Server Administration Tools (including Active Directory graphical consoles, command prompt tools, and Active Directory PowerShell module).

If this method doesn’t work (how it was on my work laptop) you can also install AD administration tools using Powershell:

Open Powershell with Administrator privileges and type:

Add WindowsCapability -online -Name Rsat.ActiveDirectory.DS-LDS.Tools~~~~0.0.1.0

If you get an error while installing, you can also type the following and retry:

PS-EnableRemoting 

If you prefer Command Prompt more than the PowerShell or the GUI route, this method will suit you the best.

  • To enable the Active Directory this way, first, head to the Start Menu and type cmd to perform a search. Then, right-click on the ‘Command Prompt’ tile and click to select the ‘Run as administrator’ option.
  • Now, a UAC screen will appear on your screen. If you are not logged in with an administrator account, enter the credentials for one. Otherwise, click on the ‘Yes’ button to proceed.
  • After that, on the Command Prompt window, type or copy/paste the below-mentioned command and hit Enter on your keyboard to execute the command and install the ADUC on your system.
DISM.exe /Online /Get-CapabilityInfo /CapabilityName:Rsat.ActiveDirectory.DS-LDS.Tools~~~~0.0.1.0
  • Once installed successfully, head to the Start Menu and type Windows Tools in the menu to perform a search. Then, from the search results, click on the ‘Windows Tools’ tile to open it.
  • Now, on the ‘Windows Tools’ window, locate and double-click on the ‘Active Directory Users and Computers’ tile to open it.
  • After you succesfully installed the feature you need to log-in with your Administrator account or to ‘Run as administrator’ when you launch it.

There you go. You can enable the Active Directory on your Windows 11 PC using the above-mentioned methods and manage all the users centrally.

[mai mult...]

How to create or restore a Disk Image (or Secure Disk Image) in MacOS

For example, a disk image is usually a copy of a certain optical media, but you can also create a disk image from your hard drive or a USB flash drive. As noted by Faronics — a company that “delivers software that helps manage, simplify, and secure multi-user computing environments” — there are several advantages to using them, such as:

  • You can copy one system to a large number of identical computers, which means you don’t have to set up every computer separately or set up the whole operating system from scratch. One image can be put on several Macs.
  • They’re convenient for incremental backups since you can make as many different images as you want.
  • Images are saved as files. If you want/need to keep data from a Mac, you don’t need to keep the actual hardware around. Just create an image of that drive and store it.

You can use the Disk Utility in macOS to create a secure disk image for confidential documents that you don’t want others to see without your permission. With Disk Utility launched:

  • Choose File > New Image > Blank Image.
  • Enter a file name for the disk image, add tags if necessary, then choose where to save it. This is the name that appears in the Finder, where you save the disk image file before opening it.
  • In the Name field, enter the name for the disk image. This is the name that appears on your Desktop and in the Finder sidebar.
  • In the Size field, enter a size for the disk image.
    • Click the Format pop-up menu, then choose the format for the disk: Mac OS Extended (Journaled) or Mac OS Extended (Case-sensitive, Journaled)
    • Click the Encryption pop-up menu, then choose an encryption option.
    • Enter (you’ll have to do this twice) a password to unlock the disk image, then click Choose. Make a note of the password and save it somewhere handy. If you forget it, you can’t open the disk image.

With the Mac’s Disk Utility — which is found in the Utilities folder inside the Applications folder on your Mac’s drive — you can create a disk image that includes the data and free space on a physical disk or connected device, such as a USB device. For example, if a USB device or volume is 80GB with 10GB of data, the disk image will be 80 GB in size and include data and free space. You can then restore that disk image to another volume.

Here’s how:

  • Select a disk, volume, or connected device in the sidebar.
  • Choose File > New Image, then choose “Image from [device name].”

Enter a file name for the disk image, add tags if necessary, then choose where to save it. This is the name that appears in the Finder, where you save the disk image file before opening it.

Click the Format pop-up menu, then choose an option:

  • Read-only: The disk image can’t be written to, and is quicker to create and open.
  • Compressed: Compresses data, so the disk image is smaller than the original data. The disk image is read-only.
  • Read/write: This allows you to add files to the disk image after it’s created.
  • DVD/CD master: Can be used with third-party apps. It includes a copy of all sectors of the disk image, whether they’re used or not. When you use a master disk image to create other DVDs or CDs, all data is copied exactly.
  • To encrypt the disk image, click the Encryption pop-up menu, then choose an encryption option.
  • Click Save, then click Done.

Disk Utility creates the disk image file where you saved it in the Finder and mounts its disk icon on your desktop and in the Finder sidebar.

How to restore a disk image to a disk 

  • You can also use the Disk Utility to restore a disk image to a disk. To restore a disk image with a single volume to a disk:
  • In the sidebar, select the volume that you want to restore, then click the Restore button or choose Edit > Restore. This is the volume that is erased and becomes the exact copy.
  • Click the Restore pop-up menu, then choose the volume you want to copy. If you’re restoring from a disk image, click the Image button, then navigate to that disk image.
  • To restore a disk image with multiple volumes to a disk, you’ll have to partition the destination disk, then restore each volume individually.
  • Open the disk image by double-clicking it in the Finder.
  • The disk image’s volumes appear as disks in the Finder.

Select the disk in the sidebar, click the Partition button, then partition the destination disk.The destination disk must have as many partitions as the disk image, and each of the disk’s partitions must be at least as large as the corresponding partition in the disk image.

  • In the sidebar, select the volume that you want to restore, then click the Restore button or choose Edit > Restore.

This is the volume that is erased and becomes the exact copy.

Do one of the following:

  • Restore from a volume: Click the “Restore from” pop-up menu, then choose the volume you want to copy.
  • Restore from a disk image: Click Image, choose the disk image you want to copy, then click Open.
  • Click Restore.
  • Repeat steps 3–5 for each remaining partition.
[mai mult...]

Actualizare BIOS fara un procesor/sistem de operare instalat

Inainte de a incepe: actualizarea BIOS-ului este intotdeauna riscanta, asigurati-va ca ati descarcat versiunea corecta si ca v-ati documentat in prealabil (instalarea incorecta poate duce la coruperea firmware-ului)!

Ce este BIOS Flashback?

BIOS Flashback este o utilitate BIOS Flash incorporata, care permite actualizarea BIOS-ului sistemului fara a fi nevoie de hardware sau un sistem de operare instalat.

Acest tool este extrem de folositor, de exemplu, pentru cei pasionati de PC Building. Imaginati-va ca vreti sa va faceti un PC nou, de la 0, cumparati toate piesele, ele fiind compatibile, instalati totul corect si observati ca PC-ul nu intra in POST (Power On Self Test). Cautati pe net rezolvarea si vi se confirma ca desi procesorul este compatibil cu socket-ul, placa de baza are o versiune de BIOS care nu este (Ex: Placile de baza cu chipset-ul Z790 care necesita actualizare BIOS pentru a putea fi compatibile cu procesoarele Intel generatia a 14-a). Bun, acum ca am lamurit cat de folositor poate fi aceasta utilitate, putem trece mai departe.

  1. In primul rand va trebui sa stim modelul exact al placii de baza, iar cu o simpla cautare pe internet ar trebui sa il gasim pe pagina oficiala a furnizorului (obligatoriu pe pagina oficiala). Acum ca am gasit modelul, va trebui sa cautam sa vedem daca suporta BIOS Flashback.                                                                                                              
  2. Cu punctul 1 confirmat, vom avea nevoie de un stick USB (4-32 GB, nu are importanta).              Stick-ul USB pe care puneti versiunea de BIOS sa fie formatat FAT/FAT32.De preferat sa fie USB versiunea 2.0.                                                                                                                  
  3. Urmatorul pas va fi sa gasim ultima versiune de BIOS pentru modelul placii de baza. Revenim pe site-ul oficial, iar in majoritatea cazurilor va fi un meniu unde vom gasi “Support”, dupa care “Downloads” sau “Drivers and Utility”.  Ar trebui sa fie o sectiune numita “BIOS & FIRMWARE” sau ceva asemanator.
  4. Vom identifica ultima versiune aparuta (ne putem da seama dupa data lansarii) si vom apasa butonul de Download. O data ce descarcarea este finalizata, cel mai probabil vom gasi un fisier .zip.                                                      
  5. Click dreapta pe fisierul descarcat si selectam “Extract all” si salvam undeva la indemana, de exemplu pe Desktop.
  6. Acum va trebui sa redenumim fisierul. In cazul placilor ASUS, in folder vom gasi un tool numit ‘Biosrenamer.exe’, iar tot ce trebuie sa facem este sa dam dublu-click pe executabil si fisierul BIOS va fi redenumit automat. In cazul altor furnizori va fi o denumire specifica pe care o vom gasi pe site-ul oficial, de exemplu:

AsRock: creative.rom                                                                                                                                    Gigabyte: gigabyte.bin                                                                                                                                  MSI: msi.rom                                                                                                                                               

  1. Mutam fisierul pe care l-am redenumit anterior pe stick-ul USB (formatat FAT32 cum am mentionat mai sus).
  2. Acum ca avem fisierul BIOS pe stick, inainte de a scoate stick-ul va trebui sa intram in File Explorer/This PC, click dreapta pe drive-ul nostru USB  si click dreapta pe ‘Eject’, pentru siguranta.
  3. Conectam placa de baza la sursa de alimentare. Este nevoie de ambii conectori, cel de 24 pini pentru alimentarea placii si cel de 8 pini pentru alimentarea procesorului pentru a putea merge. Dupa ce ne-am asigurat ca totul este conectat, putem conecta sursa la priza si apasa butonul de ‘ON’.                                                                                                                                  
  4. Identificam portul USB folosit pentru ‘BIOS Flashback’, conectam stick-ul USB si apasam butonul de ‘BIOS Flashback’ situat langa portul in care am introdus stick-ul (nu sunt necesare alte componente hardware instalate). Mentiune: trebuie sa tinem apasat butonul de ‘BIOS Flashback’ pentru aproximativ 3 secunde pana se aprinde LED-ul de langa buton.                                                                   
  5. Verificam ca actualizarea de BIOS a fost instalata corect (ar trebui sa dureze cateva minute, dar daca dupa acele minute butonul LED inca lumineaza intermitent, asteptati pana se opreste). Dupa ce LED-ul s-a oprit, putem scoate stick-ul USB si imediat dupa deconectam sursa si cablurile conectate mai devreme.

Acum putem reveni la ansamblarea PC-ului nostru fara probleme.

[mai mult...]