SQL Server 2008 SP4 Released

After releasing SQL Server 2008 R2 SP3 earlier in the month, Microsoft followed up with the release of the final service pack for the first revision of SQL Server 2008.

SQL Server 2008 SP4 include s a rollup of all 17 updates released for SQL Server 2008 SP3 (listed here).  According to a Microsoft blog entry, any updates moving forward will not include functional fixes. While this marks the end of cumulative updates, Microsoft will continue to provide security updates as needed and within the guidelines of its mainstream and extended support policies.

For details and download information on SQL Server 2008 R2 SP3, go here. For SQL Server 2008 SP4, go here

Project Server 2010/2013 – how to Deselect and Select ALL Resources

I received support call from a user about selecting and deselecting ALL Resources in Resource Centre. There is no obvious ribbon option to choose from.

What you need to do is to CLICK the Top Left hand corner of the Resource Centre grid which then provides dropdown options to ‘Select All’ or ‘Clear All’. Nice hidden feature! Perhaps this should have been on the ribbon to make it more obvious to the end-users!

In order to see your selected resources, check the ‘Selected Resources’ check box in the Resources Ribbon within ‘Show/Hide’ section.

 

Hope this helps

SharePoint 2013 – Resolving UserProfileImportJob errors

Came across this issue whereby the ‘UserProfileImportJob’ was throwing out a lot errors in the event viewer. See example below.

The Execute method of job definition Microsoft.Office.Server.UserProfiles.UserProfileImportJob (ID d8644501-7ee7-49bb-aa27-1da0cf1bd1ba) threw an exception. More information is included below.

There was no endpoint listening at http://PSL:5725/ResourceManagementService/MEX that could accept the message. This is often caused by an incorrect address or SOAP action. See InnerException, if present, for more details.

On investigation, it was determined that the 'Forefront Identity Manager Service' was not  running.

Restarted this service and all started working smoothly!!

SharePoint/Project Server 2013 – ‘Manage services on server’ link is missing?

Applies: SharePoint 2013 and Project Server 2013 Administrators

So you logged into SharePoint Central Admin and noticed that the ‘Manage services on server’ link is missing from System Settings and Application Management > Service Applications

The reason is that you are not running Internet Explorer with Administrative Rights. Simply, right click on IE and select ‘RUN AS ADMINISTRATOR’ and voila!! the link appears.

I personally launch SharePoint Central Administrator in Administrative Mode each time I administer SharePoint/Project Server.

Hope this helps!

Error when creating Search Service Application - User does not have permission to perform this action

I was contacted by a SharePoint Administrator with an issue relating to SharePoint Search. The user encountered the following error when provisioning a Search Service Application.

The resolution is simple;

Ensure that SharePoint Farm Service Account has the following roles in SQL;

1. DB creator
2. Security Admin

The latter was found to be missing in this case.

Hope this helps.

A tribute to 25 years of Office users

Twenty-five years ago today, Microsoft launched Office, and ever since, Office has been helping people get things done in their work and personal lives. Of course the world is a very different place today than it was 25 years ago, and so is the way people work, but what is constant is how Office has evolved to help people work in new ways, to be more productive and focus on what truly matters. Today, Office apps and services—from the traditional ones like Word, PowerPoint and Excel, to newer experiences like Office 365, Office Online, OneNote and OneDrive—are designed for the modern ways in which people work, delivering ever more personalized experiences, and helping people be productive from wherever they are and on any device. Read more>>

Microsoft EPM 2013 Case Study - Ministry of Health Saudi Arabia

Ministry of Health Saudi Arabia Allows Check-ups on the Move for Health Ministry's IT Projects
Ministry of Health (MoH) in Saudi Arabia could hardly avoid noticing Saudis' enthusiasm for mobile electronic devices, which are used widely, including for accessing social networking websites. In 2013 the ministry’s Project Management Office (PMO) realized that it could exploit that popularity to improve further its oversight of IT projects, by upgrading from its Microsoft Enterprise Project Management (EPM) 2010 software to the 2013 version.

Read More: http://j.mp/CS1EPM

What can CIOs do to avoid project failure?

Excellent article in CIO Magazine;

Projects require the right teams and as CIO you'll need to select individuals who have the right skills, a proper understanding of the methodology based on appropriate training, and very importantly the capacity to take on the project.

By ensuring good governance and clear project specification, which should be driven by business objectives, you can give your team, and your customer, a thorough understanding of the end goal and a clear vision of where a project is heading. It also means that when a project is not working effectively, it can be picked up earlier and prevent much wasted time and resources.

Risk and stakeholder management has an enormous contribution to make if you're looking to be successful.

Read More at CIO: http://j.mp/SpRrPj

Quick Start Guides for Project Online and Project Server 2013

These downloadable PDFs are designed to help you get started with Project Online and Project Server 2013.

To download a guide, right-click the title or image, and then choose Save target as…

Project Online Quick Start Guides

Get started with Project Online

(343 KB, PDF)

Create projects in Project Online

(449 KB, PDF)

Track work in Project Online

(384 KB, PDF)

Project Server 2013 Quick Start Guides

Create projects in Project Web App

(448 KB, PDF)

Track work in Project Web App

(334 KB, PDF)

Service Pack 1 for Microsoft Project Server 2013 (KB2817434)

Service Pack 1 for Microsoft Project Server 2013 contains new updates which improve security, performance, and stability. Additionally, the SP is a roll-up of all previously released updates.

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=42011