DCOM Error 10016 on SBS 2008

We've found SBS 2008 servers report this error as soon as clients begin accessing CompanyWeb:

DCOM    10016    MM/DD/YYYY HH:MM:SS AM 24
Event Details:   
The application-specific permission settings do not grant Local Activation
permission for the COM Server application with CLSID
{61738644-F196-11D0-9953-00C04FD919C1} to the user NT AUTHORITY\NETWORK SERVICE
SID (S-1-5-20) from address LocalHost (Using LRPC). This security permission
can be modified using the Component Services administrative tool.

Our friends at MS PSS provided the fix:

This event can occur if DCOM permission settings are not correct for the application.

CLSID {61738644-F196-11D0-9953-00C04FD919C1} refers to the IIS WAMREG admin Service. To prevent this event, grant Local Activation permission
to NT AUTHORITY\NETWORK SERVICE account as follows:

• In Administrative tools, open Component Services and expand Component Services, Computers, My Computer, DCOM Config
• Look for the IIS WAMREG Admin Service
• Right click and select Properties and then select the Security tab
• Click Edit under Launch and Activation Permissions
• Add the Network Service user
• Add Local Activation rights
• Click OK twice
• Close Component Services

You may need to restart the server to have this take effect.

Windows login hangs at "Applying Internet Explorer Branding Policy"

A problem with group policy can cause Windows to prevent a user from logging in to the system. This issue is documented under KB 941158 as a fix for a 20 second login delay issue. The hotfix is included in XP SP3, Vista SP1 and Server 2008 SP1, however, it's not turned on by default according to our friends at MS PSS.

You'll need to boot in safe mode and tweak the registry in order to have the fix take hold. Take a look at the MS' knowledge base article for specific details.

Seagate Drive Failures

Woops! Looks like Seagate has a little problem on their hands. Certain drive models, including some in their Barracuda and DiamondMax lines have a firmware bug that can cause data loss.

You can download a utility to see exactly what drive you have and then look here to see if it's in their list. If it is, contact Seagate for the appropriate firmware update.

According to the Register, Seagate is offering free data recovery services in certain circumstances.

It's probably a good time to make sure your backup is working.

Forwarding Exchange 2007 Mail To An External Address

This tip comes from Daniel Anderson's blog. Thanks for your help!

First, create a new mail contact in Exchange 2007:

• Using the Exchange Management Console, click on Recipient Configuration.
• From the Actions pane on the right, select “New Mail Contact”. 
• From the New Mail Contact wizard, select New Contact and click next.
• Either accept the default Organizational Unit for the contact or change it as needed.
• Complete the contact information and then press the Edit button at the end of the External e-mail address field.
• Enter in the SMTP Address of the external email address, click Next and then click Finish.

Now we can forward incoming Exchange  2007 mail to the new contact:

• In the Exchange Management Console go to Recipient Configuration and expand the tree to display the Mailbox branch.
• Right click on the mail box you want to use and select properties.
• Click on the Mail Flow Settings tab, select Delivery Options and then Properties.
• Check the “Forward To” box and then click Browse.
• Locate the Mail Contact that you created and click OK.
• If desired, select the “Deliver message to both forwarding address and mailbox” option. 
• Click OK and you’re done.

Adding a Terminal Server to Remote Web Workplace in Small Business Server 2008

We couldn't find where Microsoft documents how a terminal server is added to Small Business Server 2008's Remote Web Workplace. Charlie Russel graciously provides the details on how it's done:

• Make sure that the Terminal Server is in the SBSServers OU (the default will put it in the SBSComputers OU).
• Open dsa.msc, navigate to MyBusiness->Computers container to find the SBSServers and SBSComputers OUs.
• Drag the TS into the SBSServers OU. Ignore the warning.
• Open Regedit, and navigate to HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\SmallBusiness.If there is a RemoteUserPortal key, open it. If it doesn't exist, create it.
• Create a new multi-string value (REG_MULTI_SZ) called TsServerNames.
• Edit the multi-string value, adding the exact server names of your terminal servers, each on its own line.
• Close regedit, and stop and restart RWW.