ASP.NET 4.0 Videos

This series of short videos introduces you to the new features of ASP.NET 4.
http://www.asp.net/learn/aspnet-4-quick-hit-videos/

MOSS 2007 403 forbidden error after .net framework updates fail to install

After unsuccessfully trying to install .NET framework 3.0 or 3.5 on your MOSS 2007 front end server, users cannot access any of the SharePoint sites including central or shared services administration sites. Error in IE is 403 forbidden. Using a NON-IE browser, the error is Directory Listing Denied.

Open IIS Manager and go to Sites, then Properties, then Home Directory Tab, then Configuration, then in the Wildcard Application Maps box, add the aspnet_isapi.dll located in C:\windows\microsoft.net\"framework" or "framework64"\v2.xxxxx

Ensure that the checkbox "Verify that the file exists" is UNchecked, otherwise error 404 page not found  ill be displayed. This is because the data is rendered from the SQL database and not from IIS locally, and SharePoint will process this on the run while the site is being accessed.

Official Google Blog: Went Walkabout. Brought back Google Wave.

Official Google Blog: Went Walkabout. Brought back Google Wave.

PMP Tips: Point of total assumption

The point of total assumption (PTA) is a point on the cost line of the Profit-cost curve determined by the contract elements associated with a fixed price plus incentive-Firm Target (FPI)contract above which the seller effectively bears all the costs of a cost overrun. The seller bears all of the cost risk at PTA and beyond, due to a dollar for dollar decrease in profit beyond the costs at the PTA. In addition, once the costs on an FPI contract reach PTA, the maximum amount the buyer will pay is the ceiling price. Note, however, that between the cost at PTA and when the cost equals the ceiling price, the seller is still in a profitable position; only after costs exceed the ceiling price is the seller in a loss position.

Any FPI contract specifies a target cost, a target profit, a target price, a ceiling price, and one or more share ratios. The PTA is the difference between the ceiling and target prices, divided by the buyer's portion of the share ratio for that price range, plus the target cost.

PTA = ((Ceiling Price - Target Price)/buyer's Share Ratio) + Target Cost

For example, assume:

Target Cost:	2,000,000
Target Profit:	200,000
Target Price:	2,200,000
Ceiling Price:	2,450,000
Share Ratio:	80% buyer–20% seller for overruns, 50%–50% for underruns

PTA = ((2,450,000 - 2,200,000)/ 0.80) + 2,000,000 = 2,312,500.

If for a moment, PTA is given and you are trying to calculate the ceiling price for the buyer (maximum amout that the buyer will have to spend),the calculation will be

(2,000,000 (target cost) + 200,000 (the profit the buyer pays to the seller) + (2,312,500 - 2,000,000)*0.8 = 2450000.

This is a term used in project management when managing specific fixed price contracts.

For cost reimbursable contract, the Point of Total Assumption does not exist, since the buyer agrees to cover all costs. However, a similar incentive arrangement with similar components, called a Cost-Plus-Incentive_Fee (CPIF) contract sometimes is used. The CPIF includes both a minimum fee and a maximum fee. The share line in combination with the Target Fee, Maximum Fee and Minimum Fee can be used to easily calculate the points at which the incentive arrangement affects fee. The range between these points is called the "range of incentive effectiveness." Edited by oldPCO

For contracts subject to the Federal Acquisition Regulations, FAR 16.403-1 provides the Government description of FPI. The contract type is implemented by calling out FAR Clause 52.216-16 Incentive Price Revision - Firm Target. This clause captures the Ceiling Price as well as the government share ratio(s). If multiple line items are identified as FPI type, the individual line item information shall be included here, otherwise final contract costs and price are reconciled at the contract level.

The idea of a "Point of Total Assumption" is an extremely recent one, and even high-level government logistics specialists often don't know what the term means, or how to calculate it. In the government's efforts to cut cost overruns, however, the PTA is being introduced to FPIF contracts on an increasingly wide basis. Moreover, high-level professional examinations for industry certification, such as the Project Management Professional certification, are beginning to test applicants' knowledge of this concept and its application.

 

PMP Tips: Be Wary of Absolutes

You will find that the some answers to PMP or CAPM questions may contain absolutes such as always, completely or must. As you have studied for your exam you should have learned that in many cases project management is not clear cut. There are many factors to consider in each situation so an absolute in the answer should arouse your suspicions. Make sure that the absolute in the answer is appropriate for the answer you choose.

For instance, you may be given a hypothetical situation in which you as the project manager encounter a problem with scheduling. One of the choices might be that you must immediately inform management to ensure Real Time Issuers Disclosures. The use of an absolute might trigger a subconscious decision to choose that as the right answer, whether it is or not. When you see an absolute used in one of the answers be sure to think twice before choosing that answer. A PM must maintain his/her cool and avoid making snap decisions in a tight spot.

Many of the questions will also contain information that has no bearing on the problem posed. These are usually two paragraphs long and describe a scenario that might arise on a project. Rather than succinctly state the problem, you are given extraneous information that may make it difficult to ferret out the actual situation you're theoretically dealing with. Be careful to focus only on the facts of the case and not the noise surrounding it! These questions are not posed to frustrate you but to prepare you for the real world of project management where very few situations are crisp and clear.

Take many sample tests and/or collaborate with another candidate to create tests for each other. Seeing questions with such unnecessary information will prepare you for encountering them on the real exam and train your mind to focus on the problem and not the mitigating circumstances.

Thanks to Cornelius Fichtner of the PMPrepCast Fame for the above tips.

May the Fourth be with you! PMBOK Fourth changes Part 2/2

May the Fourth be with you! PMBOK Fourth changes Part 2/2

May the Fourth be with you! PMBOK 4 changes Part 1/2

May the Fourth be with you! PMBOK 4 changes Part 1/2

Native Client: Google's craziest idea yet

By Neil McAllister
Created 2008-12-18 04:00 AM

The browser's role is ever increasing. It already has become far more than a mere tool for accessing information. Today we use it to communicate, to collaborate, and to interface with applications. And if Google has its way, we'll soon be able to use it to chalk up a few righteous frags, too.

The Google Native Client
[1] is a new set of components that allows Web browsers to download and execute native x86 code. It's not an emulator, and it's not a virtual machine. The code runs on the actual processor with access to memory and system resources and negligible loss of performance. It even gives browser-based apps access to modern, accelerated CPU instruction sets, such as SSE.

Just how crazy are these guys, anyway?

Beyond the limitations of the browser
The natural comparison
[2] is to Microsoft's ActiveX technology -- and to critics, it's not a flattering one. ActiveX controls allow developers to extend the capabilities of Internet Explorer by creating components that can access native Windows functions. But because ActiveX's security model is largely based on trust, users can easily be tricked into installing components that compromise system security. As a result, ActiveX is now a leading source of malware attacks
[3] on the Windows platform, and many security experts recommend that it be disabled.

There have been plenty of other attempts to extend the capabilities of the browser in ways that don't compromise security. The Java applet technology was among the first. Most rely on some kind of specialized programming language executed with or without the aid of a virtual machine.
[4]

But the problem with these technologies is that they invariably sacrifice performance for security's sake. That won't do for the use cases Google envisions: Not just games, but computation-intensive processes like ray tracing, image manipulation, and distributed calculation. The idea is to take advantage of the native performance of the CPU for problems where traditional, browser-hosted technologies won't suffice.

Modern browsers already include a mechanism for executing native code in the form of plug-ins. But according to Google's research paper,
[5] this route is no better than ActiveX. Experts and end-users alike view plug-ins with distrust, which seriously limits their effectiveness.

A sand castle

Google claims that its Native Client improves upon any of these past technologies by building a "sandbox" security layer around native code downloaded from Web sites. You can think of it as a kind of "virtualization lite" -- except that Native Client avoids the overhead of full-blown virtualization environments such as VMware by placing strict limitations on what kind of code is allowed to run.

As such, the notion that Native Client will execute unmodified native x86 code is a little misleading. While C source may indeed run without modification, you'll need to compile it with special versions of the Gnu C compiler and its related tool chain before it will run in the Native Client. Programs and libraries written in hand-coded assembly language will almost certainly require patches.

Native Client's cleverest security hack is to limit memory access using 80386 memory segmentation.
[6] Each process is assigned its own unique memory address space, rendering it impossible for malicious code to attack memory used by the OS or other processes. To further reinforce this, certain processor instructions and system calls are banned, the code must handle returns from subroutines using a specific method, and modules running in the Native Client can only communicate with the world outside its sandbox through a provided set of APIs.

To make sure code follows the rules, Native Client relies on static source code analysis
[7] to spot security defects and potentially harmful routines before any instructions are executed. According to Google, the rules it enforces on code at compilation time make disassembling and analyzing Native Client binaries a breeze, and the overhead imposed by this verification pass is minuscule compared to the overhead of actually downloading the component.

In addition, Google's engineers are still working on adding a second, "outer" sandbox that will trap malicious behaviors that escape the code verification and memory protection layers.

Crazy cool

It's a sound idea with a lot of promise. Given the pedigrees of Google engineers, Native Client may yet prove to be one browser extension idea that's so crazy that it just might work.

Of course, there are still outstanding questions and issues to be ironed out. Just for starters, while it's true that the x86 instruction set is available on a wide range of computers -- including PCs and modern Macs alike -- this method leaves many handheld devices in the cold, including those based on Intel's ARM chips. Web access via such alternative devices is only expected to increase in coming years, which could make an idea like the Native Client impractical for many applications.

For the processor-intensive applications that Google envisions, however, Native Client could represent a huge leap forward. Perhaps the most pertinent question that remains, then, is whether the average computer user is ready to do the bulk of his or her computing within the browser, rather than using traditional desktop applications. Is Google's vision of browser-based computing really the future? And if so, how will the traditional software industry respond?

Precedence Diagramming Method - PDM

The precedence diagramming method (which is also known by the three letter anagram PDM) refers to a specific project management technique in which the project management team and or the project management team leader employs a schedule network diagramming technique in order to graphically represent any known and preexisting schedule activities via the use of boxes (which can also be referred to as nodes). Once all of these particular schedule activities have been graphically displayed in this box, or node format, at that point all of the individual boxes are linked together via the use of a line which represents any logical relationship (of if there are more than one, logical relationships) that are found to exist. The fundamental and most significant benefit to using the precedence diagramming method format technique is that it quickly and easily allows the project management team and or the project management team leader to view all schedule activities and their relationships with one another.

This term is defined in the 3rd and the 4th edition of the PMBOK.

Activity on Arrow or Arrow Diagram

Purpose: To show the paths to complete a project, find the shortest time possible for the project, and graphically display simultaneous activities.
The arrow diagram is closely related to a CPM (critical path method) or PERT (program evaluation and review technique) diagram. It is also known as an activity network diagram. It can be used to plan the schedule for any series of tasks and to control their completion. The arrow diagram removes most of the complexity of CPM and PERT methods, and retains the flow from task to task and the timing required for each task. It does, however, require that you know what each task is and how long it takes. Without such knowledge, it¹s difficult to develop the arrow diagram. To develop the diagram:

Process

1. Brainstorm all of the tasks required to complete a given project, including the estimated time required for each task. Again, note cards are useful for this process.
   
2. Sequence all of the cards from the start to finish, removing duplications, adding new ones as additional tasks are identified, and placing parallel activities where they belong.
   
3. Reevaluate the shortest, longest, and average estimated times for each task and identify the longest path through the diagram.
   
4. Use the diagram to track progress of each activity throughout the project life cycle. Any time an element gets in jeopardy, it may need to be examined and necessary resources shifted to complete it.
   

Work Authorization System

Work Authorization System: A work authorization system is a method used in conjunction with project management. The work authorization system is used by the project manager and his or her designees in order to approve all project work throughout the course of the current project management venture. The work authorization system is sometimes referred to as a "WAS." The work authorization system will typically be in the form of a list of formally adopted and well- documented procedures. Work authorization procedures specifically detail who may authorize work to be completed and how those authorizations may be obtained. These procedures will include which documents must be completed prior to work being initialized, and whether there are any other prerequisites to work being performed at any particular level during the project. To better assist the efficiency of project management in larger projects, work authorization systems also sometimes detail the timeline of the project. For instance, the work authorization system might include at which points in time certain portions of the project should be completed, in which order those tasks are to be completed, and by whom.

Work Performance Information

Part of the executed project management plan includes the routine collection of work performance information. The information gathered is important, and is useful as input data for quality control measures and programs. It is also useful when audits, quality reviews, and process analyses are conducted. This is especially true of work performance information collected which includes technical performance measures, project deliverables status, required corrective actions, and performance reports.
Pertinent work performance Information is essential to the project management plan and includes, but is not limited to:



- Status information on schedule progress.

- Whether deliverables have been completed, or not.

- Start and finish status of schedule activities.

- Quality standards expectation results.

- Authorized costs vs. costs incurred to date.

- Estimated completion time for scheduled activities in progress.

- Percentage of physical completion of in-progress schedule activities.

- Experience based knowledge acquired, documented, and posted to knowledge base.

- Details of resource utilization.


Gathering and analysis of work performance information is essential to the project management plan and should be considered a priority. Work performance information contributes to the efficient use of resources, identifies potential trouble spots and problems, and serves as an effective project management tool

This term is defined in the 3rd and the 4th edition of the PMBOK.

Project Selection Methods

Project Selection Methods are used to select and prioritize projects within the organization. Selection Methods will let you know if the project is too risky or if it won't make enough money, it is a strategic or isn't likely to succeed.

The PMBOK Guide defines 2 categories of Project Selection Methods:

• Benefit measurement models compare projects by the benefit they bring to the company. Comparative approaches include methods such as Return on Investment (ROI) or Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR).
  
• Mathematical models use complex mathematical formulas that attempt to predict the project's success. Some of these methods apply calculus and linear programming to solve for maximizations. These methods are also known as constrained optimization
  

Rolling Wave Planning and Progressive Elaboration

Rolling wave planning is the process of planning for a project in waves as the project becomes clearer and unfolds. It is important in such projects to at least highlight in the initial plan the key milestones for the project.

Rolling Wave Planning

Rolling Wave Planning acknowledges the fact that we can see more clearly what is in close proximity, but looking further ahead our vision becomes less clear. Rolling Wave Planning is a multi-step, intermittent process like waves - because we cannot provide the details very far out in our planning. Depending upon the project - its length and complexity - we may be able to plan as much as a few weeks or even a few months in advance with a fair amount of clarity. This involves creating a detailed, well-defined Work Breakdown Structure for that period of clarity, but just highlighting the milestone for the rest of the project.

Progressive Elaboration

Progressive Elaboration is what occurs in this rolling wave planning process. Progressive Elaboration means that over time we elaborate the work packages in greater detail. Progressive Elaboration refers to the fact that as the weeks and months pass we have planned to provide that missing, more elaborated detail for the work packages as they now appear on the horizon.

Feasibility Study of Projects

Rolling Wave Planning and Progressive Elaboration are similar concepts. They acknowledge the fact that in many projects, what must be done is unknown, but based upon past experience the project will unfold itself as it progresses. Thus, it is a plan to do more planning when that plan is possible, with the confidence that it will be. We will see more clearly what is ahead of us as we learn from the work that we do in earlier phases.

One question that often arises in project planning, in this area, is whether to actually create separate projects that will in the end produce a product that elaborates what is to be done on another project and taken as a whole these projects essentially are one larger project. Breaking them into separate projects enables budgets to be able to be allocated and provides decision points as to whether to even move on to the next project, or to stop and perhaps even go a different way.

This is sometimes what is done with "Feasibility Study" Projects. Often times an organization may have some good ideals that they would like to pursue, but before they make the total commitment they want to study the Feasibility of what it might take to do the project, or also what impact the project might have. This in essence is a bit of a different approach to progressive elaboration or rolling wave planning.

Process Groups and Knowledge areas

(Based on PMBOK 3rd Edition. For PMP Certification Exam preparation)         To manage Projects effectively those should be divided Phases and smallest possible sub phases. This iterative process should go up to the level where further division creates chaos rather than helping the project. In database terminology we call this as "Atomic" level.
Projects can be managed easily by Phased approach. PMBOK defined and explained processes to manage these sub atomic processes. As per PMBOK3rd edition guide there are 44 processes and grouped in to 5 major Process Groups. 5 Process groups are  Initiation Planning Executing Monitoring & Control Closing.  Certain INPUTS are given to the process. Managers use said TOOLS available for that process to produce OUTPUTS. PMBOK guide also defines Knowledge Areas for the Project Managers. Managers will use these skills (Knowledge) to work on given INPUTS using TOOLS to produce OUTPUTS. Those are Project Integration Management  Project Scope Management  Project Cost Management  Project Time Management  Project Risk Management  Project Quality Management  Project HR Management Project Communication Management  Project Procurement Management Effective Project Management requires knowledge and skills from following 5 areas  The Project Management Body of Knowledge (5 process groups and 9 knowledge areas) Application area knowledge, standards, and regulations Understanding the project environment General management knowledge and skills Interpersonal skills.    Initiation Planning Executing Monitoring and Controlling Closing Integration  4.1 Develop Project Charter 4.2 Develop Preliminary Project Scope Statement  4.3 Develop Project Management Plan  4.4 Direct & Manage Project Execution 4.5 Monitor & Control Project Work 4.6 Integrated Change Control   4.7 Close Project    Scope    5.1 Scope Planning 5.2 Scope Definition 5.3 Create Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)      5.4 Scope Verification 5.5 Scope Control     Time     6.1 Activity Definition 6.2 Activity Sequencing 6.3 Activity Resource Estimating 6.4 Activity Duration Estimation 6.5 Schedule Development     6.6 Schedule Control    Cost     7.1 Cost Estimating 7.2 Cost Budgeting     7.3 Cost Control    Quality     8.1 Quality Planning  8.2 Perform Quality Assurance  8.3 Perform Quality Control    HR     9.1 Human Resources Planning  9.2 Acquire Project Team 9.3 Develop Project Team  9.4 Manage Project Team    Communications     10.1 Communication Planning 10.2 Information Distribution 10.3 Performance Reporting 10.4 Manage Stakeholders    Risk     11.1 Risk Management Planning 11.2 Risk Identification 11.3 Qualitative Risk Analysis 11.4 Quantitative Risk Analysis 11.5 Risk Response Planning    11.6 Risk Monitoring and Control    Procurement     12.1 Plan Purchases and Acquisitions 12.2 Plan Contracting   12.3 Request Seller Responses 12.4 Select Sellers 12.5 Contract Administration  12.6 Contract Closure   Project documents: PMBOK suggest managers to produce at-least 3 major documents for each project Project Charter Project Scope Statement Project Management Plan. (Notice, MS Project Plan is just one section of the bigger document). It has components to represent knowledge areas listed above Scope Management Plan Schedule Management Plan Cost Management Plan Quality Management Plan Staffing Management Plan Communication Management Plan Risk Management Plan Procurement Management Plan

 

PMP Common Estimating Tools and Techniques

The project manager has several tools or techniques available for estimating activity duration, project costs, and preparing the project plan.
Analogous estimating, also known as top-down estimating: Relies on previous or similar projects to establish a broad or high level estimate. This type of estimate relies on expert judgment, lessons learned, and usually requires adjustments throughout the project.

Parametric estimating: Utilizes mathematical models such as the cost per square foot to build a house or commercial building.
Bottom-up estimating: Requires a detailed work breakdown structure, more time and possibly additional experience resources, but will produce a more definitive and more accurate estimate.
There are also several tools available for use by the project manager and team to provide the required estimates. These include project management software, commercial data bases, and internal organization check sheets and estimating models.
An important factor to remember is that estimation tools, like other niche tools, are usually not designed to be metrics tools. Any measurement or metrics type information obtained from an estimation tool is a by-product, or an extra feature. Over time, estimation tools are acquiring more and more utilitarian functions, some of which will support additional capabilities to produce measurement or metrics data or information. This is based on demands from the user community most specifically, the members of that community willing to pay for such capabilities. Some tools use the user's actual project results to adjust the estimating tool's database parameters to provide for a more accurate estimate with the next project. Periodically the maintenance users receive updates that reflect input from users' communities, so the tool continues to improve the accuracy in each new version.
Any estimating tools will have to be adjusted over time to accommodate new information and material cost (construction) if the integrity of the database is to be kept maintained. With software estimating tools, the development platform and the environment both have to be considered. On software development projects where much interaction is necessary with groups of people in various departments, another consideration is how well the interaction with these people is. If these departments are resistant to the project, then the estimate could take considerably longer than with departments where there is great cooperation.

Monte Carlo Simulation

A Monte Carlo method is a technique that involves using random numbers and probability to solve problems. The term Monte Carlo Method was coined by S. Ulam and Nicholas Metropolis in reference to games of chance, a popular attraction in Monte Carlo, Monaco (Hoffman, 1998; Metropolis and Ulam, 1949).

Android, What is it????

Developed by the Open Handset Alliance, Android brings Internet-style innovation and openness to mobile phones.

Android™ delivers a complete set of software for mobile devices: an operating system, middleware and key mobile applications. The AndroidSoftware Development Kit (SDK) is now available.



Open
Android was built from the ground-up to enable developers to create compelling mobile applications that take full advantage of all a handset has to offer. It was built to be truly open. For example, an application can call upon any of the phone's core functionality such as making calls, sending text messages, or using the camera, allowing developers to create richer and more cohesive experiences for users.
Android is built on the open Linux Kernel. Furthermore, it utilizes a custom virtual machine that was designed to optimize memory and hardware resources in a mobile environment. Android is open source; it can be liberally extended to incorporate new cutting edge technologies as they emerge. The platform will continue to evolve as the developercommunity works together to build innovative mobile applications.
All applications are created equal
Android does not differentiate between the phone's core applications and third-party applications. They can all be built to have equal access to a phone's capabilities providing users with a broad spectrum of applications and services. With devices built on the Android Platform, users are able to fully tailor the phone to their interests.
They can swap out the phone's homescreen, the style of the dialer, or any of the applications. They can even instruct their phones to use their favorite photo viewing application to handle the viewing of all photos.
Breaking down application boundaries
Android breaks down the barriers to building new and innovative applications. For example, a developer can combine information from the web with data on an individual's mobile phone -- such as the user's contacts, calendar, or geographic location -- to provide a more relevant user experience. With Android, a developer can build an application that enables users to view the location of their friends and be alerted when they are in the vicinity giving them a chance to connect.
Fast & easy application development
Android provides access to a wide range of useful libraries and tools that can be used to build rich applications. For example, Android enables developers to obtain the location of the device, and allows devices to communicate with one another enabling rich peer-to-peer social applications. In addition, Android includes a full set of tools that have been built from the ground up alongside the platform providing developers with high productivity and deep insight into their applications.

Shortcut keys

Basic PC shortcut keys

The below basic shortcut keys are a listing of shortcut keys that will work with almost all IBM compatible computers and software programs. It is highly recommended that all users keep a good reference of the below short cut keys and/or try to memorize the below keys. Doing so will dramatically increase your productivity.

Shortcut Keys	Description
Alt + F	File menu options in current program.
Alt + E	Edit options in current program
F1	Universal Help in almost every Windows program.
Ctrl + A	Select all text.
Ctrl + X	Cut selected item.
Shift + Del	Cut selected item.
Ctrl + C	Copy selected item.
Ctrl + Ins	Copy selected item
Ctrl + V	Paste
Shift + Ins	Paste
Home	Goes to beginning of current line.
Ctrl + Home	Goes to beginning of document.
End	Goes to end of current line.
Ctrl + End	Goes to end of document.
Shift + Home	Highlights from current position to beginning of line.
Shift + End	Highlights from current position to end of line.
Ctrl + Left arrow	Moves one word to the left at a time.
Ctrl + Right arrow	Moves one word to the right at a time.

Everything you need to know about Network Load Balancing

I came across excellent material on Network Load Balancing with windows 2003. Thought of sharing with people who are looking for good resource on NLB.

You can down load training videos on NLB by clicking on following links. Microsoft has created very good vedeo tutorial on Configuring NLB on Windows 2003. Here is the link -
http://www.placeware.com/cc/mseventsbmo/view?id=1032246805&pw=webcast
Once you click the link it will ask you to provide a recording ID. Enter any ID of your choice and you are good to go.

Here are some useful links on NLB,

NLB Resources

1) Setting up NLB (Step by step)
2) Network Load Balancing Technical Overview
3) Selecting the Unicast or Multicast Method of Distributing Incoming Requests
3) How Network Load Balancing Technology Works
4) NLB Unicast vs. Multicast
5) Stop managing a cluster from Network Load Balancing Manager
6) NLB Fundamentals - FAQ
7) NLB Troubleshooting Overview for Windows® Server 2003
8) Configuration Options for WLBS Hosts Connected to a Layer 2 Switches
9) Cannot Ping a WLBS Server from Another WLBS Server
10) How to Configure WLBS Using a Single Network Interface Card
11) What's New in Clustering/NLB Technologies (It also talks about NLB manager)
12) Fast, Scalable, and Secure Session State Management for Your Web Applications
13) Network Load Balancing, Session State and IP Affinity
14) how to load balance ISA server
15) Load Balancing Exchange 2003 Front-End Servers
16) Web Farming with the Network Load Balancing Service in Windows Server 2003
17) How to Configure Windows Network Load Balancing for pure Terminal Server environments
18) What Network Load Balancing Manager can do and The Network Load Balancing Manager enables you to accomplish many tasks 1
9) Network Load Balancing Event Messages
20) Network Load Balancing: Security Best Practices for Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003
21) How to Configure WLBS Using Multiple Network Interface Cards
22) How to Configure WLBS with Multiple Virtual IP Addresses
23) Load Balancing HTTP with WLBS (web server load balancing)
24) Cannot Ping a WLBS Server from Another WLBS Server
25) How To Configure Network Load Balancing Parameters in Windows 2000

I hope it will help you immensely.Happy learning!!!

Efficient way to count rows when using GROUP BY

Hi All,

One of my friends wanted to find out number of rows returned by a query while he was using group by statement in it.

I found a interesting way to get this while I was browsing google.. here is the query to return count of number of rows while using group by,

Select count(count1) from (SELECT Count(*) as count1 from TABLE where CONDITION B group by Fieldname) t1

Regards,
Karan