Technocrat

Microsoft Forefront Unified Access Gateway (UAG) is a comprehensive, secure remote access solution; and as such provides  robust logging capabilities including the following options: Built-in RADIUS Syslog Mail SQL Please, note that all file locations mentioned in this article are installation defaults and may differ from locations you have selected during the installation. Most of the logging options (with the exception of SQL logging configured via TMG) can be configured via "Admin > Event Logs Settings":   UAG built-in option is enabled by default and default log files location is  C:\Program Files\Microsoft Forefront Unified Access Gateway\Logs\Events\ . It could be a good idea to periodically backup the content of this directory either via a backup software or a script. UAG  Web Monitor can then be used to query event log files, and to filter events according to type, time, and other parameters: The following briefly outlines other logging option

Every organization should have disaster recovery and continuity of operations plans that commensurate with its risk reduction goals and its overall risk  management  profile. And of course UAG infrastructure should be an integral part of such plans, subject to associated backup and recovery procedures. However, this post doesn't have much to do with these fundamental things. Instead, it aims to cover the very basics of UAG configuration settings backup or import/export. Here's where one would configure automatic backups (that will be performed automatically every time new configuration is activated):   Please, note that all file locations mentioned in this article are installation defaults and may differ from locations you have selected during the installation. The password must be at least 8 characters long and backup default location is  C:\Program files\Microsoft Forefront Unified Access Gateway\Backup\ . It could be a good idea to periodically backup the content of

For information on how to change basic logon page settings please, refer to the first part of this post -  UAG Basic Customization, Part 1 . Please, note that all file locations mentioned in this article are installation defaults and may differ from locations you have selected during the installation. We can also customize basic properties of the UAG Portal pages (displayed  after successful logon  on trunks that use built-in Portal as a default application ):         header & toolbar footer Under  C:\Program Files\Microsoft Forefront Unified Access Gateway\von\PortalHomePage\Data\Languages\  locate an appropriate language file, in our case  en-US.xml , and copy it to  C:\Program Files\Microsoft Forefront Unified Access Gateway\von\PortalHomePage\Data\Languages\CustomUpdate\ . Open en-US.xml file in the \CustomUpdate folder using Notepad and perform the following edits (based on the above sample): <String id="12" _locID="12"> - desir

In one of my previous posts I have referenced a couple of good resources on the subject of UAG customization:  TechNet resource " Customizing Forefront UAG " is a good starting point, and there’s a book that was just published that covers this very topic – “ Mastering Microsoft Forefront UAG 2010 Customization ” by Erez Ben-Ari. Much is possible when it comes to customizing and extending UAG, and this is when you would need to refer to those materials mentioned above and to study them carefully; but in some cases only basic customization may be desired, like changing default logon page (say edit the title and add a standard security banner). This post aims to cover those basic changes. So, let's say we want our default logon page to look somewhat like this: And here are the things we would need to do: Please, note that all file locations mentioned in this article are installation defaults and may differ from locations you have selected during the installation.

I have written on similar or related topics before in this blog: The Challenge of the Computer Utility The Big Blue Cloud Computing And I am always excited to read another good story on the subject done by somebody else. So, check out the following excellent piece on the first computer -  UNIVAC (or Universal Automatic Computer) .

When I started this blog my intent was to stay clear of work related subjects, but it is not easy considering that computers and technology in general are all around us. Plus, work is something I spend a lion share of my time on (as do many people). So, I decided to declare it to be unavoidable! When doing research for the Cloud Computing whitepaper, I came across a reference to the following book - "The Challenge of the Computer Utility" by Douglas F. Parkhill (ISBN-10: 0201057204). "Could this really be?" I thought. A book on computer utility published in 1966? This definitely sparked my interest and through the power of cloud services at Amazon.com I was able, within minutes, to find and procure the book at a great price of only $7.70! It arrived a few days later and I got right to it. The book certainly exceeded my expectations as the author projects a great clarity of thought. Two main reasons I liked the book: It provides a good historical overview of

Yes, you have guessed it right - the subject of this post is not " The Big Blue " (Le Grand Bleu) a 1988 English-language film by French director Luc Besson (though it would be an interesting topic in and by itself), it is the corporation - International Business Machines (better known as simply IBM). Established in 1896 under the name of Tabulating Machine Company it adopted its current name in 1924 under the leadership of Thomas J. Watson. In my opinion, IBM holds a special place in the history of computing as over the years the company has made tremendous contributions to the science and the industry through its continued research and innovation. Metaphorically speaking, it is one of computing founding fathers. So, it should not come as a surprise that IBM is also one of the Cloud Computing pioneers. The company’s research into large scale computing, its long history and a wealth of experience with building and running complex systems and large datacenters, coupled with

Overview The concepts underlying cloud computing date back to at least 1960s, when American computer scientist John  McCarthy said that "computation may someday be organized as a public utility". Cloud computing is still an evolving paradigm, but it seems well positioned to displace client-server computing model, much like it displaced mainframe based computing in the early 1980’s. It may also be argued that cloud computing represents a return to a centralized (mainframe based) model, but at the next evolutionary level (including incorporation of some aspects of the client-server model and various new technologies) – with distributed systems and datacenters replacing the central mainframe; high-powered, reach media devices (personal computers, smart phones, etc.) replacing dumb terminals; and with more or less ubiquitous broadband Internet access replacing low bandwidth private communication links. Previous attempts to bring about models similar in concept to cloud compu