Windows – Page 5 – Paul's Tech Talk

Windows Update in September causes printing issues in IT Support

PaulOctober 4, 2021

Print Nightmare Patch

Microsoft released an update for Windows (KB5005565 , KB5005566, and KB5005652) that is causing quite some problems with Printers and networking. There have been reports that I’ve seen of this affecting business and all around. I’ve seen this in my Job also, Drivers not installing and Windows updates not installing because the drivers isn’t being able to be installed. Paper sizes and even POS printers not printing due to the Printer spooler being patched by Microsoft. Bleeping Computers even says that it broke the point to a network printer and is causing issues with people being able to print on the network.

Significant problems

Even I’ve seen the problems that came along with the new update. The real problem is how to protect the business who need to use their network for business purposes. What are some ways to do it and keep the business safe? These are all the questions that need to be answered but as of yet no one knows what the really way to patch the problem associated with the Print Spooler and Print Network.

IT admins have said as much as uninstalling the update resolves most if not all the printer issues they’ve seen the last week or two but that isn’t really suggested by Microsoft due to the Print Nightmare issues and ransomware issues that might arise from it. All I know is IT admins are left on the side of the road as to how to fix the issue without the patch or if there will be a hotfix now the road to fix the September update. Either way there isn’t much we can do but wait and see.

Possible ways to Mitigate this issue:

Change your Group Policy Object (GPO) in Active Directory on the target computers on the network to “RestrictDriverInstallationToAdministrators = 0” but than again we are just opening up that hole that Microsoft is trying to close.

Registry add:

reg add “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows NT\Printers\PointAndPrint” /v RestrictDriverInstallationToAdministrators /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f

Again this will only bypass what Microsoft is trying to close with the vulnerability in Windows point and print issue on the network. You should be able to start printing after you reboot. This however isn’t suggested by me or anyone who is looking to keep the printer from being used in a ransomware attack.

Installing V4 drivers instead of V3 Drivers will solve this issue also but some vendors don’t even have V4 drivers available to install as of yet. Until they make those drivers available, there isn’t really much we can do about it or even suggest to the business that are having difficulty with the printing issue at hand.

Resources:

So you failed one or both A+ exam Tests and Now what?

PaulSeptember 17, 2021

I failed the CompTIA A+ Core 1 Certification

I am sure you are so surprised that I am saying this with very little hesitancy. I figure those of use who had to hear the bad news should at least know we aren’t alone in the struggle of get the certification. You’re probably thinking Now what do I do? I figure you have a couple of options to consider and we’ll talk about some of the options and what you might be able to do about it. First thing you have to consider is was your score really low or just missed it like I did. I’ve been doing IT on the side for several years. You’d think I would pass it on the first try, I was so hopeful. I missed it only be a several points to get to the 675, If you’re score is really under a 100 or so, you really need to consider what you can do better next time and be more prepared. You may even keep failing CompTIA A+ for several times before you can get to the 675 or higher to pass the core 1 exam.

Now what are you going to do?

This might be the first time or even the second time that you failed the exam. You have to consider why you are doing and consider if maybe you’re not ready to get the certification. It could just be dumb luck that you didn’t get, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t at least consider these questions for myself and think hard and long about what I wanted and why I wanted it. I’m not sure what goals you might of set for yourself but these are some important to think about. You might even need to cry to get the frustrations and disappointment out to be able to think clearly. In the end, it’s all about how you deal with the situation that makes or breaks your intentions to get the certifications.

What’s next?

Well for me, I’m going to have to take the test again for the Core 1 Test at least. I’ve scheduled the Core 2 for the next few weeks and intend to do that one just because I have already scheduled it and might as well see if I can pass at least one exam. If I can do at least the one exam the other one will be a lot simpler for me I think. You have to consider what you are wanting to do or if you think you can pass the next exam. I’m not going to give up just because I failed the first time. I’ve gotten this far and I won’t stop going farther. I know I can pass this exam if I just work on the questions and try to keep working to my goals. Some ways you can get ready for the next time:

I know I am not going to fail the next time and if I do, at least I have the experience to learn from and getting better. I am sure I am not the only one who has had this happen before. I’ve seen videos about people failing the CompTIA A+ certifications, so I guess it isn’t just me. This is what you need to learn for yourself that you’re not alone in the struggle of getting that exam certification and we all have had to do it at least once or twice. Hopefully this helps you to know you’re not alone.

Getting the interview and how I will be ready for those questions

PaulSeptember 10, 2021

Getting that interview

I talked about the job market and how that will be more difficult to find a job. That seems to be changing for me. If you didn’t read my post about Tuesday’s call, I will go back and say it was quite a surprise to get a call 30 mins after I applied a a technical support specialist job. Fast forward two days, they call me and setup an interview time for Next Day. This would be the Thursday after the call on Tuesday and my Interview is Friday. So that’s been my week this week. I am not sure what to think, but I thought it would be a good idea to at least talk about how to know what questions they might ask me or what even if I should have questions to ask them.

Questions and Answers

Some of the questions I saw and looked over came from Indeed and other hiring sites but I compressed them into a small subset of questions and you can go back and see what they might want to ask you in your interview if you ever have one for a technical support specialist. Although this won’t be exactly what they might ask you but you should at least be somewhat prepared for the questions they ask you and have a few good answers waiting to give back to them. I am sure what you do is going to be a little bit different from company to company but you should at least have a few good answers ready.

What made you get into technical support?
What is your troubleshooting process? (see some of how I troubleshoot motherboards post issues)
Where do you see yourself in five years?
Why are you interested in Technical Support?
Why should we hire you?
What do you feel your strong Points are?
What do you feel your week points are?
What’s your strength
Why do you want to work here?
Why did you apply to our company?

These are just a few of the questions that they might ask you for a technical support job. I’ve went through as many sites as I could just to see what they might ask you but every site including Glassdoor has many different questions that might be relevant or not. No matter how well we prepare, there will be that questions that might be a surprise to you and you should approach it with the best intentions. Always remember that you are there for a reason.

Tell me about yourself?

That’s either where it begins or it ends depending on the interviewers point or if they need to know a lot about you. The one thing I can tell you and know it works is being yourself and always smiling. If they are going to hire you, that because they see potential in you. That’s pretty much how I see it. They are looking for the ideal employee but in life we rarely find that perfect person to fit the job description. This is why you should always apply for jobs that might not seem like your a good fit. You’ll know when they call you, take the ques from how they communicate with you. Are they trying to be helpful? are they trying to learn more about you? are they open to your questions? Sure you’ll have questions and that is a good sign that you want to know more about the company. Also do some research on the company and be prepared to know more about it and that way you could be ready for those types of questions.

As you can see it is a whole new world for people to hire employees but most of the time it’s just takes a little bit of effort to do the job right and nothing we say or do will ever make the greatest impact that knowing we are making a difference each and every day in someone’s life. What’s your experience been with interviews? How’d that go for you? why not leave a comment and talk about it with others who might want to know what to expect.

How to prepare for Comptia A+ certification exam

PaulSeptember 6, 2021

Can You do it?

This is probably the first time you’ve come to this class and you’ve seen what is going to be like. You sweating and worried you’re going to not get your certification. This is what most of you are thinking at least to a point. I can see those blank faces and those stares. CompTIA isn’t going to be easy, in fact, most you will probably have to do it at least twice to get the certification. I am sure it isn’t going to be fun, and we will see people get sick over trying to pass the certification. Just like everything else, if it was easy there would be so many more people doing the jobs that we wanted. You’ve seen the economy and the need for CompTIA A+ certification, if you haven’t go do some basic research or looking for your self what field you will be going into and what you are trying to accomplish in your academic studies. Is it for the dream job, or is it just because you want to be able to talk about how good you are. If you’re that guy, you might want to learn to be more humble and know that it’s not all about the certifications. Now for the rest of US that are looking for a serious career in IT and having that CompTIA A+ certification, you don’t know there are resources out on the web to help you to even make sure you are even ready to take the final test to get that A+ that you’ve been wanting since you started this journey.

CompTIA (Computing Technology Industry Association)

When it comes to understanding technology, we’ve been doing it forever it might seem. It however is still relatively new area that has developed over the years. I can remember a time when just having a computer was a big deal. I can even remember a time when having a TV was like the biggest thing in the house. You’d go to work and say, Yea we watch “So and so” and be able to brag about having that TV to your coworkers. Boy am I showing my age. There are people who have seen students pass and even fail in courses just like this and I don’t want anyone to fail the exam. This is where I am going to impart to you my wisdom, ack there’s my age again. I’ve seen a lot and that might be saying a lot but this isn’t going to be as difficult as you are thinking or even worrying. If you’ve seen the video an Core 1 Test Objectives Video and not at least thought about what you will do to prepare for this exam, Then your either over sure of yourself or not here to take the exam, either way this is probably not going to phase you.

Web Resources

Now what can you do to prepare for this exam? This is probably what you are thinking or wanting to at least know if you haven’t already thought about it. Here is what I am going to show you some great ways to get ready for the exam. This isn’t a complete list and it by far isn’t going to be anything that I haven’t at least looked at and even thought about doing. It however will probably make it so much easier for the time when you are going to want to take the test again or maybe it will help you get that certification the first time around. If you really try, you might be see a certification in your hand by the end of all this.

Check out the CompTIA Website (https://www.comptia.org/home) — CompTIA have some great pretest exams and will help you know where you might need to work on even more to pass the exam.
IT Pro TV (https://www.itpro.tv/) — If you haven’t checked out this website, you really should. They have some great free videos to help you prepare to take the exam. If you are wanting to go farther than that, this this is a great resource to keep you getting those certifications.
Professor Messer Free Videos on the A+ Certifications

Here are some sites Practice test exams for the CompTIA A+:

These are few sites that I know from just doing my research in this area and being that I like to listen to podcasts. I’m always listening to a lot of InfoSec and there’s an exam for that also. Either way, if you’re truly serious about passing the exam, you’d be nuts not to at least look at these places and search even more for other resources that might even help you even more. Just remember, you’re not in this alone. You’ve got your friends, family, and even teachers rooting for you to pass this course and other courses. That’s what they are here for to help you get the education that you need to get that job you are wanting or dreamed about. Even I have seen teachers help those who are struggling, just to see them pass the course. All the teachers here are available to help you if you just remember to ask for the help, if you ask them. Happy Monday and hope every succeeds in the field you are looking to get into.

How virtual desktop infrastructure will help us in the IT field

PaulAugust 30, 2021

What’s is VDI and why do we need it in IT?

Virtual Desktop Infrastructures (VDI) are just that Virtual desktops that anyone can use on any given system around the world. According to Citrix each VDI “includes an operating system image, typically Microsoft Windows“. So what does that really mean? The real question we should be asking ourselves is what does it do or how can we use that in virtualization. The answer is quite simple, the truth of the matter is that VDI will help servers move a desktop from one server or even allow the user to do what they would normally do in the office and be able to do it anywhere the world. The company could also give them really cheap or maybe even Chromebooks to do their work from home. Ever since the start of virtual machines this has been something that was readily deployed because it kept the information in a centralized server and the user wouldn’t need to worry about any sensitive information leaks by someone stealing a laptop or a desktop.

Persistent and non-Persistent

Each VDI can allow a user to make changes to the desktop or not make changes depending on the settings the administrator decides to use. Although this has not been a major point to people to try to get around the need to make the desktop a more personable environment. It does help to prevent unwanted programs and people making changes to the OS which could make it even harder to prevent malware and viruses from getting onto the VDI. Administrator’s have the option to allow users to change the desktop or keep the desktop as it is and you have to use it like it is. If you have several users that are using the same exact desktop than this would be my option to keep all the users happy.

Considerations of VDI

Even I know the power of Virtualization but some users will not know what they are missing or getting when they are using a VDI. According to IT Pro Today, We should consider a multitude of things when we deploy a VDI. Security is always going to be a big issue when it comes to how the user will interact with the virtual desktop, which could bring even more problems but most of time it will help keep the problems away. They even go as far as to make a point of how important it is to control the BYOD or even know the level of the user who is using the Virtual Desktop. Each one of these is important to keep the user safe and secure. It just depends on how well we control what they do and how they do it on it. We should be able to monitor the VM and know that it is safe in our hands as we can control the group policies of it and keep the user from going to sites or installing software that isn’t approved to be used on the system. Yet, I am sure we will see more users try to get around those restrictions because of one reason or another. Time will always be against the administrator because someone is bound to test the limits.

Do you agree or disagree, or do you think it will help us or hinder us to have to be watchful of the users and how they use the VDI?