xls tries to open with excel services when searching

Scenario:
I had an issue with excel documents trying to open with Excel Service when using search. Although Excel Services wasn’t even configured on the Sharepoint Server.
When looking at the Site level, feature for always open with clientprogram was activated. Same thing at the list-level, Server default was activated.
Workaround Solution:
When searching, check for preferences at the bottom


Activate Open in the browser. This will probably only solve for the current user, but if in a tight spot.

Retrieve latest timerjobs

To get a quick overview over latest timerruns and get rid of scrolling endlessly in Central Admin
-----getTimerJobHistories.ps1--------
Add-PSSnapin microsoft.sharepoint.powershell
$number= 10 #total results
$timername = "User Profile Service Application_LMTRepopulationJob"
$timerjob = Get-SPTimerJob $timername
$timerjob.HistoryEntries | select jobdefinitiontitle,starttime,endtime,status,errormessage -first $number|format-table
#$timerjob.HistoryEntries
------------eof---------------------

Overall steps to move from Active Directory to ADFS authentication in Sharepoint 2013

This is for birds-eye perspective. I found it difficult to find resources that outlined the procedure. This omits everything that happens on the ADFS-server and focuses on sharepoint-parts.

1. Backup all contentdatabases, take snapshots of servers
2. Add relying party identifiers on ADFS-server. Add endpoints with ws_federation for all web applications that are going to use ADFS.
3. Add identity provider on sharepointserver (PS1.ConfigSPIdentifier)
4. Activate wsreply on sharepointserver
5. Add Identity provider to relevant web applications
Authentication Provider > Claims Authentication Types > Trusted Identity Provider
6. Configure new User Profiler Synchronization, use Authentication Provider type = Trusted Claims > your adfs
Configure User properties >
email = mail
Claim User Identifier = mail
Run full sync
7. Convert all users on webapplications. Don’t convert searchaccounts, don’t convert authenticated users. Change it to for example domain users
Use move-spuser
8. Change SuperUser and Super Reader accounts to adfs
Run change cachereaders on each webbapp and change accounts on User Policy on webapps.
9. Change loginpage for ADFS (optional, but enables automatic signin for directory users) (also enabled crawl to run as AD-user)
Copy autologin.aspx to common files\template….
Change in autologin.aspx to use current ADFS-provider
Change CentralAdministration> authpolicy > default signin page = autologin.aspx
10. Check search engine so everything works.
11. Install LDAPCP to solve peoplepicker issues.
12. Hide AD from selectionlist
13. Done.

Issues that occurred:
Couldn’t view any others mysites – solution add / permissions for all users.

Otherwise it worked quite nicely. 6000+ plus users migrated. This solution used email as primary claim. This then required the email field in AD to be populated with unique value.

Do I need to say that I take no responsbility for when this goes sideways? I don’t. But it worked for me.

PS1.ConfigSPIdentifier

$cert = New-Object System.Security.Cryptography.X509Certificates.X509Certificate2("C:\xss\ADFS-Token-Signing.cer")

New-SPTrustedRootAuthority -Name "Token Signing Cert" -Certificate $cert

$map = New-SPClaimTypeMapping -IncomingClaimType "http://schemas.xmlsoap.org/ws/2005/05/identity/claims/upn" -IncomingClaimTypeDisplayName "upn" -SameAsIncoming

$map2 = New-SPClaimTypeMapping -IncomingClaimType "http://schemas.microsoft.com/ws/2008/06/identity/claims/role" -IncomingClaimTypeDisplayName "Role" -SameAsIncoming

$map3 = New-SPClaimTypeMapping -IncomingClaimType "http://schemas.xmlsoap.org/ws/2005/05/identity/claims/emailaddress" -IncomingClaimTypeDisplayName "EmailAddress" -SameAsIncoming

$realm = "urn:test-intranet:sharepoint"

$ap = New-SPTrustedIdentityTokenIssuer -Name "TEST_ADFS@contoso.com" -Description "STS-IP id1.contoso.com" -realm $realm -ImportTrustCertificate $cert -ClaimsMappings $map,$map2,$map3 -SignInUrl "https://id1.contoso.com/adfs/ls" -IdentifierClaim http://schemas.xmlsoap.org/ws/2005/05/identity/claims/emailaddress

PS2.Activatewsreply

$tit = Get-SPTrustedIdentityTokenIssuer fs.contoso.com
$tit.UseWReplyParameter = $true
$tit.Update()

PS6.HideADfromLookup
$cpm = Get-SPClaimProviderManager
$ad = get-spclaimprovider -identity "AD"
$ad.IsVisible = $false
$cpm.Update()

References:
http://blogs.msdn.com/b/scicoria/archive/2011/06/10/sharepoint-2010-fba-and-sliding-sessions.aspx - Explains sliding sessions
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh446526.aspx - explains adfs token
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/office/hh147183%28v=office.14%29.aspx
http://blog.robgarrett.com/2013/05/06/sharepoint-authentication-and-session-management/ – good information on authentication process
http://www.wictorwilen.se/sharepoint-2013-with-saml-claims-and-sharepoint-hosted-apps – wsreply
http://weblogs.asp.net/wesleybakker/adfs-sharepoint-2013-single-sign-on-skip-authentication-provider-selection-page - ADFS Sharepoint 2013 Skip authentication Provider Page – autologin.aspx

Workflow Manager installation

Scenario:
Sharepoint 2013 farm needs Sharepoint 2013 workflow support.

 

1. Install webplattforminstaller on computer with internetacess. Go to c:\program files\microsoft\web plattform installer\ with cmd
2. Run webpicmd.exe (for scenarios when internetaccess is unavailable)
1. WebpiCMd.exe /Offline /Products:WorkflowManagerRefresh /Path:c:\xss\workflowmanagerrefresh
2. Webpicmd /install /products:workmanagerrefresh /xml:c:\xss\workflowmanagerrefresh\feeds\latest\webproductlist.xml
3. On members on the farm (not hosting workflow manager)webpicmd /install /products:workflowclient /xml:c:\xss\workflowmanagerrefresh\feeds\latest\webproductlist.xml
3. Run Workflowmanager config
4. Register-workflow från sharepoint shell (ps)
1. Register-SPWorkflowService -SPSite http://sharepoint.mycompany.com –WorkflowHostUri http://wf.myscompany.com:12291 –AllowOAuthHttp –Force -ScopeName SharePoint
5. Verify installation with Sharepoint designer, Workflow 2013 available.

References:
https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj658588.aspx
http://blog.lekman.com/2015/02/troubleshoot-workflow-manager-errors-in.html
http://www.harbar.net/articles/wfm2.aspx
http://blog.lekman.com/2015/02/troubleshoot-workflow-manager-errors-in.html
https://olafd.wordpress.com/2013/10/04/install-workflow-manager-in-sharepoint-development-environment/

Check for updates

 

Going through the Installed Updates list to check for a specific update that might or might not mess things up can be tedious using appwiz.cpl

Introduced in Powershell version 4 we have a new cmdlet for this purpose that come in handy.

Show list of all installed hotfixes
/> get-hotfix

Show if a specific update is installed:
/>get-hotfix -id "kb2843630"

 

References:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh849836.aspx – syntax

Users cant create subsites with publishing template

Overview:
Funny thing happend the other day…
Site migrated from sharepoint 2010 to 2013. Certain groups can’t create subsites using Publishing template. They really want to…
Owners and members of constructor group can work fine.
Groups are using custom permission level.

Symptoms:
- Creating subsite with publishing or publishing with approval workflow results in :
              - EventID 4965 – Web Content Management – Couldt initate … properties
              - Server Error in ‘/’ Application – Runtime error
              - ULS throws errors when trying to create.
- Works for members of owner or constructor group.
- Works when creating a non-localized default format publishing site.
- Works when creating Team Site

Solution:
- Added Apply Themes and Border, Apply Style Sheets permission for the custom permission levels
- Added the relevant groups with read permissions for the /devicechannels list on each Site Collection.

Lessons learned:

- Devicechannels is a new feature of sp2013, permissions aren’t added automaticly if using custom groups, permissions levels and allowing for custom css.

References:

http://meandmysharepoint.blogspot.se/2014/03/runtime-error-when-creating-sharepoint.html -

Cachehost is null

We're getting error Cachehost is null when trying to start Distributed Cache or removing the service with remove-spdistributedcacheserviceinstance

First of all verify these settings

- Windows Firewall have AppFabric Caching Service (TCP-Out) enabled on servers running DistributedCache

- Verify DistributedCache ports open between servers running Distributed Cache : 22233-22236 and Ping/Echo

- Verify following ports for AppFabric to talk sufficiently: 445, 139,135

- Can’t start Distributed Cache from the Central Admin

- Verify server and Active Directory talking ok.

- Verify DNS working

Verify status of Cachecluster. Is AppFabric and Sharepoint Server talking ok?

- Script : compareDCvsAppFabric-------

Add-PSSnapin microsoft.sharepoint.powershell

$instancename = "SPDistributedCacheService name=AppFabricCachingService"

$DC = get-spserviceinstance |where-object {($_.service.tostring()) -eq $instancename }

write-host "Sharepoint says..."

$DC |select typename, status,id,server |format-table

Use-CacheCluster

write-host "AppFabric says...."

Get-CacheHost |format-table

Result: Something is not ok. Sharepoint says fours servers and AppFabric says two. If same servers are reporting on both DC and AF then the problem is elsewehere.

Solution:

Remove the serviceinstance from the missing servers and add them again.

Script below removes serviceinstance from the computer the script runs from!

---------script: forceremovedistcache.ps1 --------------

Add-PSSnapin microsoft.sharepoint.powershell

$instanceName ="SPDistributedCacheService Name=AppFabricCachingService"

$serviceInstance = Get-SPServiceInstance | ? {($_.service.tostring()) -eq $instanceName –and ($_.server.name) -eq $env:computername}

$serviceInstance

write-host "Deleting instance $serviceinstance.id"

$serviceInstance.Delete()

write-host "Adding distributed cache..."

Add-SPDistributedCacheServiceInstance

write-host "Done"

Scenario 2: The other way around. AppFabric says other stuff than sharepoint.

Solution:  Remove the host from the cluster.

----script: remove host from cluster ----

Add-PSSnapin microsoft.sharepoint.powershell

$cachehost =  $env:computername

Use-CacheCluster

Get-CacheHost

Unregister-CacheHost -hostname $cachehost -ProviderType SPDistributedCacheClusterProvider -connectionstring "<INSERTREGVALUE1>"

Add-SPDistributedCacheServiceInstance

Where regvalue1 is found : HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\AppFabric\V1.0\Configuration\ConnectionString  (remove “;enlist=false” from the string)

And then try to add distributed cache again.

Lessons learned:

- In a locked down environment make sure all relevant Distributed Cache ports are open before adding the service to server.

- AppFabric and Distributed Cache is not the same thing! Appfabric is a windows service while Distributed Cache is a sharepoint service instance. They don’t always agree! Make sure they’re talking!

References:

http://blogs.msdn.com/b/besidethepoint/archive/2013/03/27/appfabric-caching-and-sharepoint-2.aspx

http://www.ericjochens.com/2014/02/sharepoint-2013-distributed-cache-issues.html

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj891124%28v=office.15%29.aspx

http://blogs.msdn.com/b/uksharepoint/archive/2009/01/05/sharepoint-ports-proxies-and-protocols-an-overview-of-farm

http://sharepointjournal.com/2014/08/19/sharepoint-2013-distributed-cache-boon-or-bane/

http://granitestatehacker.kataire.com/2014/03/sharepoint-2013-distributed-cache-error.html

http://almondlabs.com/blog/manage-the-distributed-cache/

http://blogs.msdn.com/b/sambetts/archive/2014/03/19/sharepoint-2013-distributed-cache-appfabric-troubleshoo

http://techblog.rakasatria.com/2013/02/04/sharepoint-2013-spdistributedcacheserviceinstance-cac