How to Force Using the Lync Web App

If you have the Lync 2010 client installed it will automatically launch when you click to join a meeting using the meeting URL.  If you don't have Lync 2010 installed you will see a Microsoft Lync 2010 join page similar to the following:

From this web page you can join the meeting using your browser (Lync Web App), download the thick Lync 2010 Attendee client, or use your OCS 2007 Communicator (with reduced functionality) if it's installed.

Lync Web App is supported on multiple Windows and Mac platforms (see Lync Web App Supported Platforms for details).  It also requires the Microsoft Silverlight browser plug-in version 4.0 or better installed.  Lync Web App will download various ActiveX components as needed to add functionality, such as screen sharing.  Previously, Lync Web App used to be called the reach client.

The Lync 2010 Attendee client is a thick client (it must be downloaded and installed), so it requires rights to install software.  The Lync 2010 Attendee is very similar to the Lync 2010 client, but it does not allow you to create buddy lists or create meetings.  Both Lync Web App and Lync 2010 Attendee allow you to join as guests or with your corporate credentials.

As mentioned earlier, the Lync 2010 client will automatically launch if it is installed when you click the "Join Online Meeting" URL.  However, you may find that you need to use Lync Web App instead.  Maybe your want to demo the web join page, above, or you're in an environment where the firewall blocks access using the Lync 2010 client.  To do this, simply add ?sl= to the meeting URL.  For example:

https://meet.extrateam.com/jeff/3MK1BW1F?sl=

Viola!  The Lync Client will not launch and you can choose to run Lync Web App.

Read more ...

I'm now an MCITP:Microsoft Lync Server 2010, Administrator

Over the past week I've completed the exams needed to attain the MCITP:Microsoft Lync Server 2010, Administrator certification.

This is my fifth Microsoft Certified IT Professional (MCITP) credential, the others being Enterprise Messaging Administrator (Exchange 2010 and 2007),
Windows Server 2008 Enterprise Administrator, and Virtualization Administrator 2008 R2.  Booyah!

Read more ...

Deploying the Lync 2010 Mobility Service Step-by-Step

Now that Microsoft has released the Lync 2010 mobile clients for Windows Phone 7, Android and Apple IOS devices, you're probably wondering how to deploy the Lync 2010 Mobility Service.  Normally that's something I might cover here on this blog, but Lync MVP Jeff Schertz has already done an excellent job on his blog. 

Grab a cup of coffee and head on over to Deploying the Lync 2010 Mobility Service.  Jeff has done a fantastic job of explaining how to set this up!

Read more ...

Lync 2010 Mobile Client Released for Apple IOS

Finally!  The Microsoft Lync 2010 mobile client for Apple IOS devices has been released.  Now you can get your Lync on from your iPhone or iPad.

Go and get it from the Apple App Store for the iPhone or the iPad.

Read more ...

Lync 2010 Mobile Client Released for Android

The Lync 2010 mobile client for Android devices is now available from the Android Market. 

Go forth and Lync!

Read more ...

Lync Mobile Client for Windows Phone Now Available

Microsoft released the Lync 2010 Mobile Client for Windows Phone on the Windows Phone Marketplace.  No sign of it yet on the Apple App Store.

IMPORTANT: Microsoft Lync 2010 for Windows Phone requires a Lync Server or Office365/Lync Online account and will not work without it. If you are unsure about your account status, please contact your IT department.


Lync 2010 for Windows Phone extends the power of Lync to your mobile device – including rich presence, instant messaging, audio conferencing, and calling features from a single, easy-to-use interface. a single touch

Key Features:
- View colleagues’ availability in real time and select the best way to communicate – initiating an instant message (IM), email, or a phone call.

- Connect to Lync conference calls without requiring long numeric passcodes or conference numbers.

- Make and receive calls using your Enterprise Voice (Lync ID) number only, so you can connect with others using a single, consistent identity.



IMPORTANT: THIS SOFTWARE REQUIRES CONNECTIVITY TO VALIDLY LICENSED COPIES OF MICROSOFT LYNC SERVER 2010 OR OFFICE365/LYNC ONLINE AND WILL NOT WORK WITHOUT IT. UPDATES TO MICROSOFT LYNC SERVER 2010 MAY BE REQUIRED

- Lync 2010 for Windows Phone provides transport layer security (TLS) and perimeter/internal network protection without requiring a VPN, so your communications experience is safer no matter where you are or what network you use.

FOR PROPER PERFORMANCE. SOME FUNCTIONALITY MAY NOT BE AVAILABLE IN ALL COUNTRIES. IF YOU ARE UNSURE ABOUT YOUR COMPANY’S LICENSE TO AND/OR DEPLOYMENT OF LYNC, PLEASE CONTACT YOUR IT DEPARTMENT.

Read more ...

Microsoft Lync Mobility is Coming Soon!

Microsoft is planning to release the Lync mobile client for various platforms soon.  The PowerPoint presentation below come from a Microsoft presentation this morning.  Microsoft confirmed that this information is not NDA and can be shared with others, so here you go!

Lync Mobility will provide a mobile client for Windows Phone 7, iPhone, iPad, Android and Symbian devices.  There is no ETA for these clients at this time.  Microsoft is dependent on the various partner marketplaces for actual client availability.

Microsoft Lync Mobility Presentation

Enjoy!

Read more ...

New Scripts in Exchange 2010 SP2

As with most Microsoft Exchange Service Packs and some Update Rollups, Exchange Server SP2 introduces five new scripts that are useful to manage and monitor your Exchange organization. 

All the canned Exchange scripts are located in the %ExchangeInstallPath%\Scripts folder (normally, C:\Program Files\Microsoft\Exchange Server\V14\Scripts).  You can easily change to this folder within the Exchange Management Shell (EMS) using the command cd $exscripts.  It looks dirty, but it's not.  :)

The five new(ish) Exchange Service Pack 2 scripts are:

• ConvertOABVDir.ps1 - This script will convert the OAB virtual directory to an IIS web application, as well as create a new application pool called MSExchangeOabAppPool. Converting the OAB virtual directory is necessary to support different authentication methods like Kerberos and Certificate authentication.  You need to execute this script on each Client Access Server.  Ross Smith wrote about this script in his article, Recommendation: Enabling Kerberos Authentication for MAPI Clients. 
• LargeToken-IIS_EWS.ps1 -- This script and the following script, LargeToken-Kerberos.ps1, were actually released in Update Rollup 4 for Exchange Server SP1.  LargeToken-IIS_EWS.ps1 increases the value of the MaxFieldLength and MaxRequestBytes IIS parameters on all CAS servers in the Active Directory site. In addition, it changes the EWS Web.config bindings on Exchange 2010 SP1 and the CAS servers.  See the article, You cannot view the free/busy information of users in a mixed Exchange Server 2007 and Exchange Server 2010 environment for more info.
• LargeToken-Kerberos.ps1 -- This script sets HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Lsa\Kerberos\Parameters values MaxPacketSize to DWORD 1 and MaxTokenSize to DWORD 65535 on all machines in the domain (or on specified machines).  See New resolution for problems with Kerberos authentication when users belong to many groups for more information on these keys.
• Reenable-AuditLoggingAgent.ps1 -- On Exchange 2010 RTM, if you run "Setup.com /prepareAD" to upgrade to Exchange 2010 SP1, the "Admin Audit Log Agent" gets disabled.  It will not run again until the SP1 installation has completed, meaning that admin auditing will not be captured.  This script fixes that issue by rolling back msExchVersion of the agent in Active Directory.  Note: The issue goes away once SP1 installation is complete.

It's great to see these new scripts make it into mainstream production rollouts.

Read more ...

Fix for MSExchange Availability Event ID 4002 Errors

You may find in an Exchange 2007 to Exchange 2010 coexistance enviroment that the following event is logged with some regularity:

Log Name:      Application
Source:        MSExchange Availability
Date:          12/7/2011 12:49:41 PM
Event ID:      4002
Task Category: Availability Service
Level:         Error
Keywords:      Classic
User:          N/A
Computer:      exch2.domain.com
Description:
Process 2540: ProxyWebRequest IntraSite from S-1-1-0 to https://email.domain.com/ews/exchange.asmx failed. Caller SIDs: NetworkCredentials. The exception returned is Microsoft.Exchange.InfoWorker.Common.Availability.ProxyWebRequestProcessingException: System.Web.Services.Protocols.SoapException: Microsoft.Exchange.InfoWorker.Common.Availability.TimeIntervalTooBigException: The requested time duration specified for FreeBusyViewOptions.TimeWindow is too long. The allowed limit = 42 days; the actual limit = 62 days. ---> The requested time duration specified for FreeBusyViewOptions.TimeWindow is too long. The allowed limit = 42 days; the actual limit = 62 days.
   at System.Web.Services.Protocols.SoapHttpClientProtocol.ReadResponse(SoapClientMessage message, WebResponse response, Stream responseStream, Boolean asyncCall)
   at System.Web.Services.Protocols.SoapHttpClientProtocol.EndInvoke(IAsyncResult asyncResult)
   at Microsoft.Exchange.InfoWorker.Common.Availability.Proxy.Service.EndGetUserAvailability(IAsyncResult asyncResult)
   at Microsoft.Exchange.InfoWorker.Common.Availability.FreeBusyApplication.EndProxyWebRequest(ProxyWebRequest proxyWebRequest, QueryList queryList, Service service, IAsyncResult asyncResult)
   at Microsoft.Exchange.InfoWorker.Common.Availability.ProxyWebRequest.EndInvoke(IAsyncResult asyncResult)
   at Microsoft.Exchange.InfoWorker.Common.Availability.AsyncWebRequest.EndInvokeWithErrorHandling(). The request information is ProxyWebRequest type = IntraSite, url = https://email.domain.com/ews/exchange.asmx
Mailbox list = <Robert Donaldson>SMTP:RDonaldson@domain.com, Parameters: windowStart = 12/1/2011 12:00:00 AM, windowEnd = 2/1/2012 12:00:00 AM, MergedFBInterval = 30, RequestedView = FreeBusy
. ---> System.Web.Services.Protocols.SoapException: Microsoft.Exchange.InfoWorker.Common.Availability.TimeIntervalTooBigException: The requested time duration specified for FreeBusyViewOptions.TimeWindow is too long. The allowed limit = 42 days; the actual limit = 62 days. ---> The requested time duration specified for FreeBusyViewOptions.TimeWindow is too long. The allowed limit = 42 days; the actual limit = 62 days.
   at System.Web.Services.Protocols.SoapHttpClientProtocol.ReadResponse(SoapClientMessage message, WebResponse response, Stream responseStream, Boolean asyncCall)
   at System.Web.Services.Protocols.SoapHttpClientProtocol.EndInvoke(IAsyncResult asyncResult)
   at Microsoft.Exchange.InfoWorker.Common.Availability.Proxy.Service.EndGetUserAvailability(IAsyncResult asyncResult)
   at Microsoft.Exchange.InfoWorker.Common.Availability.FreeBusyApplication.EndProxyWebRequest(ProxyWebRequest proxyWebRequest, QueryList queryList, Service service, IAsyncResult asyncResult)
   at Microsoft.Exchange.InfoWorker.Common.Availability.ProxyWebRequest.EndInvoke(IAsyncResult asyncResult)
   at Microsoft.Exchange.InfoWorker.Common.Availability.AsyncWebRequest.EndInvokeWithErrorHandling()
   --- End of inner exception stack trace ---
. Name of the server where exception originated: EXCH2. Make sure that the Active Directory site/forest that contain the user's mailbox has at least one local Exchange 2010 server running the Availability service. Turn up logging for the Availability service and test basic network connectivity.

This happens because the default values used for publishing free\busy are different between Exchange 2007 and Exchange 2010.  The fix is to extend the free\busy value on the Exchange 2007 client access servers in IIS.

• Log into the Exchange 2007 Client Access Server (CAS)
• Open Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager in Adminstrative Tools
• Navigate to Sites > Default Web Site > EWS
• Double-click Application Settings under the ASP.NET heading
• Click Add in the Actions pane and create the following new application setting:
• Name: maximumQueryIntervalDays
• Value: 62
• Click OK to set the new value and close IIS Manager
• Repeat for each Exchange 2007 CAS

There's no need to restart IIS on the Exchange 2007 CAS.  The event 4002 errors will go away.

Read more ...

New Prerequisite for Exchange 2010 SP2

Exchange Server 2010 Service Pack 2 (SP2) was released today without the accompanying release notes.  Until they are released, know that SP2 requires an additional role service for Client Access Servers to support the new Outlook Web App Mini feature: The IIS 6 WMI Compatibility component.

Before you install Exchange 2010 SP2 you need to add this role service using either of the two following methods.

From Windows Server Manager:

• Open Server Manager and navigate to Roles | Web Server (IIS)
• Right-click Web Server (IIS) and select Add Role Services
• Scroll down to IIS 6 Management Compatibility and select IIS 6 WMI Compatibility and click Install

From Windows Powershell:

• Open Windows Powershell as administrator
• Enter the following commands:

Import-Module ServerManager
Add-WindowsFeature Web-WMI

Now you can install Exchange 2010 SP2 as planned.

Read more ...

Exchange 2010 Service Pack 2 is Now Available

Today Microsoft released Exchange Server 2010 Service Pack 2 (SP2).  Along with numerous bugfixes, SP2 includes the following new features:

• Cross-Site Silent Redirection for Outlook Web App (a.k.a. my favorite new feature): With Service Pack 2, you will have the ability to enable silent redirection when CAS must redirect an OWA request to CAS infrastructure located in another Active Directory site. Silent redirection can also provide a single sign-on experience when Forms-Based Authentication is used. Yes!
• Address Book Policies: Allows organizations to segment their address books into smaller scoped subsets of users providing a more refined user experience than the previous manual configuration approach. The Exchange Team blogged about this new feature recently in GAL Segmentation, Exchange Server 2010 and Address Book Policies.
• Outlook Web App (OWA) Mini: A browse-only version of OWA designed for low bandwidth and resolution devices. Based on the existing Exchange 2010 SP1 OWA infrastructure, this feature provides a simple text based interface to navigate the user’s mailbox and access to the global address list from a plurality of mobile devices.
• Hybrid Configuration Wizard: Organizations can choose to deploy a hybrid scenario where some mailboxes are on-premises and some are in Exchange Online with Microsoft Office 365. Hybrid deployments may be needed for migrations taking place over weeks, months or indefinite timeframes. This wizard helps simplify the configuration of Exchange sharing features, like: calendar and free/busy sharing, secure mailflow, mailbox moves, as well as online archive.

All fixes contained within update rollups released prior to Service Pack 2 will also be contained within SP2. Details of the regular Exchange 2010 release rhythm can be found in Exchange 2010 Servicing.

You can download Microsoft Exchange Server Service Pack 2 here.

Read more ...