tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75105360845284110992024-03-12T21:44:10.577-04:00Mastering Microsoft UCYour guide to Microsoft Unified CommuncationsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-19430922669340767342014-08-15T16:04:00.001-04:002014-08-15T16:06:28.990-04:00Quick Lync Fix: Requesting Lync Certificates from Comodo<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Have you recently tried requesting a certificate for your Lync environment from Comodo? If you used the Lync Certificate Wizard to generate the request, you will probably run into the same issue I did during a recent deployment - they will reject the request with a non-specific error. Why? There is currently a bug in their system that prevents them from processing the request if there are capital letters embedded in the CSR. The significance here is that when using the Lync Certificate Wizard to generate the CSR, it will maintain the case of the letters used within Topology Builder. Additionally, the Lyncdiscover and Lyncdiscoverinternal names that are automatically added through the wizard to the CSR have the first letter capitalized. Fortunately, we have a couple options to resolve this.</span><br>
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<a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2014/08/quick-lync-fix-requesting-lync.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-42107723581496715322013-11-11T12:17:00.000-05:002013-11-11T13:52:45.247-05:00November 2013 Update for the Lync 2013 Client<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you applied the October 2013 update for the Lync 2013 client, I'm sure you noticed that calendar-based presence updates broke. This was a huge headache for me, as I typically block off my calendar with an appointment for the customer I am working with. Normally, this sets my presence status in Lync to "Busy" so I don't get interrupted (ha!). With the October 2013 update applied, I had to remember to do this manually - which I often forgot to do.</span><br>
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<a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2013/11/november-2013-update-for-lync-2013.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-21720052746780915412013-10-28T16:37:00.000-04:002013-10-28T16:37:05.059-04:00Kemp Load Balancer and Lync Unified Contact Store Integration Note<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During the deployment of Lync 2013 for a customer who was integrating with Exchange 2013, we ran into somewhat of a strange issue with the Unified Contact Store (UCS). Even though EWS access was working, and OAuth appeared to be working, users' contacts were not being migrated into the UCS. After a bit of troubleshooting on our own, a conversation with Kemp support pointed us in the right direction.</span><br>
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<a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2013/10/kemp-load-balancer-and-lync-unified.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-89125929496690654252013-07-02T12:12:00.003-04:002013-07-02T12:43:44.402-04:00Microsoft UC User Group in Saint Louis, MO<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We're building a new Microsoft Unified Communications User Group in the greater Saint Louis, Missouri area. The focus of this group will primarily be Lync, and since the products are so tightly woven, we'll probably have some discussions around Exchange as well. This is an open group, so anyone is welcome to join. If you are a knowledgeable resource and would like to present on a topic, we would be happy to have you do that as well. We're going to keep things informal, and if the turn out is good enough we may have an occasional social event. If you're interested, please register below and we'll look forward to seeing you!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Meetup Page and Registration Link:</span><br />
<a href="http://www.meetup.com/MSUCUG-STL/"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">http://www.meetup.com/MSUCUG-STL/</span></a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-70597870119054287662013-05-08T15:09:00.001-04:002013-06-19T23:15:04.620-04:00Lync Online Federation Issues with Lync 2013 Post-Migration<h3>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">***UPDATED*** - </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">6/19/2013</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As part of the Lync 2013/W15 TAP program with Microsoft, we were one of the first organizations to deploy Lync 2013 into production. In doing so, we also had the joy of experiencing the migration "gotchas" before deploying Lync 2013 into customers' environments. One oddity I ran into when performing the Edge migration from Lync 2010 to Lync 2013 was with our Lync Online federation partnerships. Post-migration, many of these federations flat-out broke, and others that seemed to work were behaving strangely. After looking over the errors and symptoms, we got everything sorted out - and the solution was relatively simple. However, I'm still unsure as to why this issue was allowed to occur in the first place.</span><br>
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<a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2013/05/lync-online-federation-issues-with-lync.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-59780955094525187782013-05-07T18:43:00.000-04:002013-05-07T19:44:33.343-04:00Updated Lync Debugging Utilities!<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I mentioned this on Twitter a while back, but I find it worth posting again as they recently helped me in troubleshooting some issues with a customer. Just prior to RTM of Lync 2013, Microsoft released a new set of Debugging Tools. Included in the bundle are updated versions of Snooper, OCSLogger, OCSTracer, and ClsController.psm1.</span><br>
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<a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2013/05/updated-lync-debugging-utilities.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-61891106834949886392012-11-14T14:05:00.000-05:002012-11-14T14:19:47.325-05:00Creating Custom RBAC Roles in Lync 2013<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the many improvements in Lync 2013 over its predecessors is the ability to create custom RBAC roles. This was a topic that came up often in discussions with large and security-conscious organizations where separation of of administrative roles exist. In these organizations, Lync administrators do not have elevated permissions within the Active Directory domain. This can also assist in limiting or enhancing the administrative scope of support personnel, while at the same time granting the necessary rights for them to perform their daily duties.</span><br>
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<a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2012/11/creating-custom-rbac-roles-in-lync-2013.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-30594876672321617832012-08-28T20:29:00.000-04:002012-09-17T18:09:46.354-04:00Windows 8 Shortcut Keys<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I recently upgraded my Dell XPS 13 to Windows 8 RTM. As most of you are probably aware, Windows 8's primary UI is significantly different than the "desktop" we're all used to working with. So I will be honest and say that it has taken some getting used to. One of the things that has helped greatly with adjusting are shortcut keys. I've started compiling a list of these below. If you find any are missing, please let me know and I will get them added.</span><br>
<a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2012/08/windows-8-shortcut-keys.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-74901700605374025752012-08-07T11:15:00.000-04:002012-08-24T13:01:51.138-04:00Installing Lync 2013 Preview Prerequisites<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While getting the Lync 2013 Preview installed in my lab, I followed the instructions for installing the Front End server prerequisites on TechNet exactly as stated. The differences between Lync 2013 and Lync 2010 are not nearly as great as they were between Lync 2010 and OCS 2007 R2, so I thought nothing of it when I noticed the stated OS Roles/Feature prerequisites were identical to Lync 2010. (You can find the article <a href="http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/gg398686(v=ocs.15)" target="_blank">HERE</a>.) However, when the Lync Server Deployment Wizard ran through the pre-installation checks, it kicked out the following error.</span><br>
<a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2012/08/installing-lync-2013-preview.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-1465144837466416742012-07-17T14:53:00.002-04:002012-07-17T14:55:18.062-04:00Lync 2013 Public Preview Released!<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Lync 2013 Public Preview was released yesterday (7/16/2012). You can register to download the bits here: </span><a href="http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/hh973393.aspx"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/hh973393.aspx</span></a><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Lync 2013 client is also included in the Office 2013 Public Preview, which you can get here: </span><a href="http://technet.microsoft.com/en-US/evalcenter/hh973391"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">http://technet.microsoft.com/en-US/evalcenter/hh973391</span></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Look for some posts that cover new features/functionality in the near future.</span>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-7170626443992259512012-07-09T19:05:00.003-04:002012-07-17T14:55:05.760-04:00Lync Databases Stuck in "Restricted User" Mode After (CU) Update<br>
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In a few cases, I've seen where the Lync 2010 back-end databases seem to get "stuck" in "Restricted User" mode. When the databases get thrown into "Restricted User" mode, the database becomes inaccessible and therefore many of the Lync features become unavailable. In my experience, this usually occurs during a failed run of the database update required for Lync Cumulative Updates (CU). As part of the update, it is important to stop the Lync services using the Stop-CsWindowsService cmdlet on the Front End where you are running the database update command. In environments with larger pools, it is also a good idea to stop Front End services on all servers in the pool, as I have seen "deadlocks" and other strange issues when updating the Lync back-end while multiple servers continue to access it.</span><br>
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<a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2012/07/lync-databases-stuck-in-restricted-user.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-86647221401977865572012-05-30T16:30:00.000-04:002012-05-30T16:36:47.938-04:00How to enable Certificate CRL checking through a Web Proxy<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In most cases, the certificates for internal Lync servers are issued by an internal Certification Authority (CA). In some scenarios, it may be required to use certificates from a third party (public) CA. When issuing a public certificate to an internal server, keep in mind that Certificate Revocation List (CRL) must be reachable. If the CRL cannot be contacted, it may prevent the internal Lync servers from communicating with each other in a timely fashion.</span><br>
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</div><a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2012/05/how-to-enable-certificate-crl-checking.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-43686154497670122992012-05-17T17:03:00.000-04:002012-05-17T17:04:07.721-04:00Lync and Forward (Web) Proxy Exceptions<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've run into a situation a few times where there are problems with joining Lync Meetings both internally and externally when a forward or web proxy is in play. Since the web proxy is typically put in place to control access to external resources, there are a few things to consider when making exceptions.</span><br>
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<a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2012/05/lync-and-forward-web-proxy-exceptions.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-59035694310474187262012-04-18T14:22:00.004-04:002012-04-18T14:22:57.208-04:00Effectively Managing Lync from a 32-bit Windows OS<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Although it is less common these days, occasionally you may run into a situation where you or a customer may need to manage your Lync infrastructure from a 32-bit machine (typically Windows XP or Server 2003). Leveraging both the Lync Control Panel and Lync Management Shell commands run remotely, this becomes one less obstacle for you to worry about.</span><br>
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<a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2012/04/effectively-managing-lync-from-32-bit.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-77077891540709543562012-04-18T00:51:00.000-04:002012-04-18T00:51:50.303-04:00I'm a Microsoft Lync vTSP!<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was recently selected to participate in Microsoft's Virtual Technology Specialist Program (vTSP) for Lync. Every year Microsoft selects a group of from it's top partners to supplement their internal sales and product teams. The goal of the Virtual Technology Specialist Program is to build a stronger relationship between Microsoft and its Partner Community, and at the same time provide customers greater access to product expertise. Those selected for the vTSP work closely with the Microsoft teams on pre-sales activities and provide architectural guidance for Enterprise Integration solutions.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So what does this mean for me? As a vTSP I get access to Microsoft resources, including internal Microsoft technical documentation, VPN access to Microsoft systems, and an @microsoft.com email address.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm definitely excited to be part of the program and see what new opportunities and challenges it puts in front of me!</span>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-17754434261745299722012-03-28T09:02:00.000-04:002012-03-28T10:10:17.120-04:00Exchange UM Messages are not Delivered to Mailboxes<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When MSExchange Unified Messaging Event IDs 1423 and 1446 are being logged on the Exchange Unified Messaging server(s), this indicates that there are issues with the UM server delivering messages to the Hub/Transport server(s). </span><br>
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<a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2012/03/exchange-um-messages-are-not-delivered.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-89167209973795886052012-03-20T13:52:00.000-04:002012-05-14T16:05:57.500-04:00Publishing Lync Simple URLs with F5 Big IP as Reverse Proxy<br>
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While working with customer to publish their Lync Simple URLs through a F5 Big IP running v. 10.2.0, we were having some issues with getting the page to come up externally. </span> <span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">DNS entries all seemed to be correct and pointing to the proper external IP addresses. </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We had verified the firewall rules were configured correctly to perform Port Address Translation from the Public IP on port 443 to the Internal/DMZ F5 VIP on port 4443, and we could see the traffic getting passed all the way through to the Front End server(s). Wireshark captures confirmed this as well.</span><br>
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</div><a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2012/03/publishing-lync-simple-urls-with-f5-big.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-43275124936468381682012-02-23T17:12:00.001-05:002012-02-23T21:42:57.313-05:00Lync Mobile for Android Updated<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">An updated version of the Lync Mobile application was released to the Android Market today. The new version (4.1.5014.8880) enables the "Call via Work" functionality that was already available the in the iOS and Windows Phone 7 versions of the client. You can get the latest version of the Lync Mobile client from the Android Market on your device, or from here:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://market.android.com/details?id=com.microsoft.office.lync">https://market.android.com/details?id=com.microsoft.office.lync</a></span>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-21207411617772129162012-02-20T15:33:00.000-05:002012-02-22T00:52:47.735-05:00Using Public Certificates with an AudioCodes Gateway<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Recently, I was working on a deployment for a customer who did not have PKI deployed internally. As you are probably aware, certificates are a crucial component of a Lync deployment. Due to time constraints, we decided to go ahead and use public certs for all of the servers, including the Front Ends (with collocated A/V and Mediation roles). I thought the process of getting a public cert onto the gateway would be pretty straight forward. Man, was I wrong.</span><br>
<a href="http://blog.masteringmsuc.com/2012/02/using-public-certificates-with.html#more">Read more »</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7510536084528411099.post-8083784569838406972012-02-20T13:57:00.000-05:002012-02-22T00:53:07.942-05:00Welcome to my UC Blog!<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As someone who has worked in the IT field for over 10 years, I have leveraged various blogs to resolve issues and/or clear other stumbling blocks I've encountered along the way. At this point in my career, I feel like I am at a point to where I can return the favor and impart some of my knowledge to others out there. In case you haven't already deduced from the title, my plan is to focus this blog on the Microsoft UC platform(s), particularly OCS 2007/R2, Lync Server 2010, and Exchange. However, you may find other topics covered if I find them worth sharing. As with anything else technology related, this is a work in progress, so please feel free to give me feedback or suggestions. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thanks for stopping by, and I look forward to hearing from you!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Phil</span>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0