Microsoft have released details on a worm that is getting around called Morto. It can get onto a network using RDP, Remote Desktop Protocol, which is used to connect to PCs remotely.

Once in, it will try to log on as a variety of usernames and passwords, as listed by Microsoft on their security bulletin.

All the usual basic passwords are there, such as password, and admin, and qwerty1234. It will try logging with usernames such as admin, administrator, user, and owner. It will even try logging in as john!

Morto can cause all sorts of issues, as listed on the Microsoft site.

This highlights the great importance of having a strong password policy. Our advice is to ensure all users have strong passwords, and that you use unique usernames.

The product lifecycle of Windows Operating Systems continue, as the end of support for Windows Vista fast approaches.

According to the Windows Lifecycle, support for Windows Vista Service Pack 2 ends on the 10th April 2012. This is for all home editions, which also includes Ultimate.

Business customers have extended support up until 2017.

Got an Open License?
If you have an Open Value Subscription agreement or an Open License agreement with SA, you have upgrade rights to the latest version of Windows, Windows 7. Not only that, but you should also have entitlement to Windows 7 Enterprise.

And if I don’t have an Open License?
If you have purchased an OEM (preinstalled) or an FPP (boxed product) license, then your product won’t be supported after 10th April 2012 if you are on a home edition, or 2017 if you are a business customer. However, you are still licensed to use the product.

If you are a support client and you have any questions, remember to give us a call!

UPDATE 13/07/2011 : Support for Windows Vista Service Pack 1 has now come to an end. This means that any computer on Vista Service Pack 1 will not continue to recieve updates or support. You can however upgrade to Service Pack 2 and continue to be supported by Microsoft, or alternatively switch to Windows 7 (which is now at Service Pack 1 itself).

Microsoft are due to release quite a lot of updates on Tuesday 14th June 2011 that will address some security issues. This includes some updates for Office Excel and for Internet Explorer 9.

These updates are important and must be done. If you are Windows 7, you can either update when you shut down the PC or set it to update while you are working. If your PC is set to do the latter, then you will need to reboot for the updates to take place.

If you are a supported client then you are welcome to contact us if you have any quesions or queries regarding this security update.

If Microsofts three year software cycle is anything to go by, we are half way through the life of Windows 7, which was released back in October 2009. This of course means that Microsoft are already talking about Windows 8. In fact, according to ZDNet, we could be seeing a preview of the next version of the operating system this autumn.

But before then, with Internet Explorer 9 only just out, Internet Explorer 10 is already being previewed, with a look to release around the same time as Windows 8.

From a licensing aspect, this is good news for people planning to go onto an Open Value Subscription or purchasing Software Assurance with their Open Licenses as this would mean automatic upgrade to Windows 8 when its released. This also means users on Windows XP who haven’t migrated to Windows 7 should strongly consider doing so as there will simply be no upgrade path to Windows 8 from XP.

It is a worrying figure, but still over 10% of people in the world are still using Internet Explorer 6, a browser that was released 10 years ago and is very much dead today.

According to Microsoft, 11.6% of the world was still using Internet Explorer 6, while 3.3% of users in the UK alone are still using the age old browser. There are a variety of problems with using Internet Explorer 6:

1. It is no longer supported by Microsoft
2. Therefore, it no longer has updates released for it, therefore it is highly insecure
3. Many of todays website will not work in Internet Explorer 6

Here at C Data, we would go as far as to say if you are running Internet Explorer 7 or earlier it is highly advised that you upgrade at the soonest opportunity to either 8 or, if you are using Vista or 7, Internet Explorer 9.

It has been revealed that there are some issues with Service Pack 1 for Windows 7. Users are apparently reporting PCs are hanging, and in some cases not booting, instead being presented with an error code. Worst case scenarios are seeing people having to rebuild their machines and leaving SP1 off.

The Register reports that it could be something to do with an OEM Windows 7 connected to a server running WSUS (Windows Server update Services) with default settings.

Microsoft are working hard to see what the problem is and what the fix is, but our advice is if you are using Windows 7, no matter how its licensed, and you are not connected to a server running WSUS, then you should be safe and would recommend you download SP1. If you are unsure then speak to your IT department – if that is us, then please do call us first if in any doubt.

We have just installed our first Small Business Server 2011 at a clients site which, all told went fairly smoothly. Released early this year, Small Business Server 2011 is the latest incarnation of the SBS family, bringing Windows Server 2008 R2, Microsoft SQL Server 2008 and Exchange Server 2010 together (SQL is only available with Small Business Server 2011 Premium).

We wanted Small Business Server 2011 Premium, and we wanted it licensed OEM (as we were building the system) so how do we get it? At the time of researching this, it had only just come out. We called Microsoft, we called our reseller, we called another reseller and all were telling us different stories. The gist of it was:

If we wanted to buy SBS 2011 Premium as an OEM, we had to buy the media separately at £40 for both Standard and Premium as SBS 2011 is not a downloadable product, even through the volume licensing channel. You buy the keys separately which will get sent to you (with a CoA I guess).

So, many delays later we finally recieve the media and the keys, but we also recieved OEM media with the keys! So now we have two forms of media. It all got very confusing, so I took it upon mysefl to dig around further for Small Business Server 2011 licensing.

And now, for all of you who are totally confused, here is a guideline on how license Microsoft Small Business Server 2011:

• Small Business Server 2011 comes in two flavours – Standard and Premium.
• To use Premium, you need to buy Standard, and buy Premium as an add on (think of it as ‘bolting on’ premium stuff onto standard stuff in order to get premium stuff).
• You can buy Small Business Server 2011 Standard as a boxed product (FPP), pre-installed (OEM) and under an Open License (OL).

I apologise, but this is when things start getting quite confusing.

• It appears you can’t buy Small Business Server 2011 Premium Add On as a boxed product. You can buy it under an Open License.
• You can buy the OS of Small Business Server 2011 Premium on an OEM – but not the CALs.
• Small Business Server 2011 Premium CALs are only available under an Open License.
• Therefore, if you want to buy Small Business Server 2011 Standard OEM + Premium Add On, together with any CALs you want, you need to buy OEM for the Standard OS, Standard CALs, Premium OS, but then you have to buy Premium Add On CALs under an Open License (!!!!)

And now, I will delve into how actually GET the product (!):

• When you buy Small Business Server 2011 Standard as a Boxed Product (FPP), you get the media and the key straight up. Easy.
• You want Small Business Server 2011 Premium Add On? You need to get an Open License.
• But wait, if Small Business Server 2011 isn’t available to download from the Licensing site, then how do you install it? If you are buying Small Business Server 2011 Standard or Premium on an Open License, you need to buy the media separately. The product SKU numbers you are looking for here are 2XG-00072 and T72-02800.
• But wait, Small Business Server 2011 Standard IS available to download! You can download a trial at the SBS Site, and then activate it with a key when the trial expires!
• If you are told that you need to buy media for OEM, don’t believe it – when you buy Small Business Server 2011 under an OEM license, you are given the media to install it with, as well as the keys. This is for both Standard and Premium.

I hope this helps all of you who are a tad confused on how to buy SBS 2011 – it wasn’t made clear to us how to obtain SBS 2011, both from Microsoft and the Resellers, so please, I ask you not to make the same mistakes as I did!

You may have a document that has hidden text, and although you have found how to show hidden text, when you go to print, the hidden text is not there in the print preview.

So how do you print hidden text in Word 2010?

Simple – go to File – Print and then hit “Page Setup”. Select the “Paper” tab and click “Print Options”.

You are now in “Word Options”. Under Display (you should automatically be there), there is printing options. Under there is an option called “Print hidden text”. Tick that box,and click OK.

Over the weekend, Microsoft released a Security Advisory that details a security vulnerability within Internet Explorer / Windows. Although they have released a Fix It, a security update will be issued via Windows Update.

Microsoft have not given any indication on when this fix is due to come out, but as always, it is important to ensure that your computer is up to date with any official Windows Updates you are asked to install.

in the meantime, stay safe and if you are ever unsure or have any concerns and you are a supported client, do call us!

I read a report today on The Register that 50,000 Apple iTunes accounts have been compromised and are on sale on Chinas version of EBay, taobao.com.

If compromised, users can login to purchase films, music, whatever is available on iTunes and charge it to the account holders credit / debit card!

Although a relatively low percentage of the total number of users of iTunes, you may want to change your password, especially if you feel that you have fallen for a phishing scam of some kind.

Remember to keep your username and password safe, keep your password strong, and if you suspect anything, contact your bank immediately!