Remove iislogs

Built a nice script to remove older files from IISLogs.
It has two retentionmodes. Either clear based on number of last changed files or for specific days.

Installing workflow manager on sharepoint 2016

Scenario:
Sharepoint 2016 needs workflow supports since 2010 workflows now seems dead.
This needs to be done offline

Overview of steps

1. Download all programs from internet-enabled client with getOfflinePackages
2. Install packages on server in correct order
3.  Configure workflow manager
4.  Register workflow service in sharepoint

Step 1 - Download necessary files for offlineinstallationen

On client with webaccess

1. Install WebPlattformInstaller
2. Download packages with getOfflinePackages.ps1

Step 2 - Install packages on server in correct order

1. Install packages with InstallWFM.ps1 to get correct order
   

Step 3 - Configure Workflow Manager

1. Update wfmconfig.xml with credentials and databasename
2. Configure with configureWFM.ps1
   
3. Update siteaddress and run registerWFOnsite
   

References:
https://www.helloitsliam.com/2014/11/06/sharepoint-2013-workflow-manager-woes/ - source for the order of installation
http://blog.robgarrett.com/2014/05/12/install-workflow-manager-with-powershell/ - original script for configuring workflow manager

https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/laleh/2014/09/03/sharepoint-2013-workflow-troublehsooting/ - troubleshooting workflow manager
https://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/34407.sharepoint-2016-step-by-step-installation-of-workflow-manager.aspx - another installationguide
https://knowledge.zomers.eu/SharePoint/Pages/How-to-install-and-configure-Workflow-Manager-on-Windows-2012-R2.aspx - more updated information on how to configure worklow manager
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/iis/install/web-platform-installer/web-platform-installer-direct-downloads - webplattforminstaller

Sharepoint and alternate languages

So what happens when a column is created and then changed.
And then, possible, changed again in an alternate language?

First created, staticName is set and the cultured name

When names is changed, only the culturename is changed

When and alternate language is added, and copy of the culturename appears.

When name is changed again to doktor2, only the current language version is changed. Swedish 1053.

Now we have 3 version to manage.
When we choose overwrite language specific version the values dont change.

When we now change the column to Doktor3, only the 1053 version change when we’re using the alternate languagebrowser.

But if we change using the default language (1033) to doktor4, all local variants are overwritten

But then a local editor is at it again, setting doktor5 in swedish and the values are off.

But what happens if we now remove local variants? Then we're down to only the default columns

Changing from swedish gui to doktor6 and the english 1033 is changed.

But what happens if language is enabled again? Well, the old value is still there…

The lesson here?
Stay away from alternate languages!
And also a fun script for checking all the versions of a fields on a list.

Troubleshooting sharepoint alerts

Method for determining what happens with sharepoint alerts from the serverside.

1. To determined which server is sending the mail.
   (Note that this will be different for different webapps, so best is to monitor the whole farm with ULS)
   run Sysinternals procmon on all servers (usually only the frontends) monitor traffic for :25
2. Activate verbose logging for alerts
   
3. Monitor ULSViewer on specific member or the whole farm for events matching below
   Category contains "Alerts" AND Message contains "Alert for" OR Message contains "Successfully sent"
   
   

Now ULS messages will show successfull and failed (based on securityfiltering) sent emails.

References:
https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/steve_chen/alerts-in-sharepoint-troubleshooting-mosswss/

http://sharepointalert.info/troubleshooting-sharepoint-alerts/

http://www.sharepointdiary.com/2012/02/sharepoint-alerts-not-working-troubleshooting-checklist.html

Openhab2 with telldus tellstick duo

The complete steps to get up and running with a raspberry3, openhab2 and telldus tellstick for managing lights.

1. Install sdcard with image openhabian using win32 diskimager 
2. Logon raspberry with openhabian:openhabian using putty
3. Set new password with passwd
4. Set static ip
1. sudo nano /etc/dhcpcd.conf  (insert your own ip)
   interface eth0
   static ip_address=192.168.0.10/24
   static routers=192.168.0.1
   static domain_name_servers=192.168.0.1
5. Update software
1. sudo apt-get update 
2. sudo apt-get upgrade
6. Goto yourip:8080 , and choose standardpackage.
7. Start a new sitemap.config  for example default.sitemap in /etc/openhab2/sitemapsEasiest way to open explorer and go to \openhab-confsitemap default1 label="Main menu" {
    Frame {
            Text label="Information" {
            Text item=Cpu_Load label="System load"              
          }
   Text label="Inställningar" icon="office" {
   Switch item=Scene5                                      
   }
    }
   }
   End example
8. Telldus support
1. Add to /etc/apt/sources.list
   deb http://download.telldus.com/debian/ stable main
2. Add public key
   wget -q http://download.telldus.se/debian/telldus-public.key -O- | sudo apt-key add -
3. Update repository
   sudo apt-get update
4. Install telldus-core
   sudo apt-get install telldus-core
5. Add devices in /etc/tellstick.conf  . Se example belowdevice {

                              id = 3

                              name = "Vardagsrum:rodlampa"

                              controller = 0

                              protocol = "arctech"

                              model="selflearning-switch"

                              parameters {

                              house="7778459"

                              unit="3"

                             }

                          }

6. Train your devices with tdtool --learn 3 (where 3 is deviceID)
   Unplug nexadevice and run command, when system blinks its connected.
6. Restart telldus services
   sudo /etc/init.d/telldusd restart - starta om telldus tjänster
7. Install Tellstick bindings in paperUI
8. Add all things that show up
9. Create item from each things switchchannel and add to sitemap

9. install bindings Weatherinfo for local temperatures and weather
1. Install Eclipse IoT marketplace under Addons>bindings>misc
2. Install weatherunderground
3. Configure thing with location key (that you get att weatherunderground) and location. Works best with bigcitys like Sweden/Gotenburg
10. To allow for js-scripts.
1. Install JS transform
2. Install RegEx Transformation
3. Put scripts in /transform-folder
11. To allow execs (running bash or commands like restart)
1. Install exec-binding
12. To get systeminfo stuff like cpuload
1. Install binding SystemInfo
2. Associate things with items
3. Add items to sitemap
13. To get sunstate
1. Install Astro bindings
2. Add things with your location as position.
3. Create items that you link on sitemap
4. Set category to good icons , like Moon
5. To get phases to show, use formatting in label" [MAP(astro.map):%s]"
14. To format dates in sitemap
1. Show only hours, add to label [%1$tH:%1$tM]
   Example label="Soluppgång [%1$tH:%1$tM]"

Patching Sharepoint with the homebrew-method

Patchning Sharepoint is not something to taken lightly.
It's a high risk not to patch but a guaranteed risk to apply the patches.

Last year I had a difficult experience when I patched a semilarge(7 members) farm for the first time with Cumulative Updates.
This had 5 webapplications and +200 databases. And it took some time. Like 30 hours, most of the time being lost when running psconfig on each host.
Supposedly, sharepoint should only upgrade the databases on the first member run, but something still takes a lot of time, even its only to check if upgrade is required.

So a more effective method was needed.
I looked into the impressive SPPatchify-project but found the results to be too inconsistent. Sometimes the script ran through it all and said everything was green, when actually two servers had failed psconfigs and a lot of other issues giving half-finished state.
So I deviced my own hybrid method using the best parts of the sppatchify-idea and russmax exe-installationscript.

The method took the installationwindow down to 4 hours in total, where only 2 hours was complete downtime.
Its a bit more manual than others, but therefore also gives more control.

The steps
Preperations

1. Take whole farm offline and take snapshots, or use regular backups. Whichever method you trust most.
2. Backup All databases

Installation

1. Stop all sharepointrelated-services
1.  For AppServers 1. App-Prepatching
2.  For Frontends  1. WFE-PrePatching
2. Run exe on all members
3. Start all services 
1. For AppServers 2. App-PostPatching
2. For frontends  2. WFE-PostPatching
4. Export all databasinformation to file.
1. ExportAllDbs.ps1
5. Dismount all databases (after making sure you have all correct info on file from previousStep) This will take everything offline.
1. DismountAllDbs.ps1
6. Run psconfig on all members starting with AppServers
1. RunPSConfig.ps1 on each member 
7. Mount all databases
1. MountAllDbs.ps1  - Update the filename to your exported databases
8. Upgrade databases in parallel. While each db is upgrading website on it will be unavailable. If you're sql supports it you can mitigate this using -usesnapshot  How many concurrent jobs is depending on hardware. I found the sweetspot to be 4 concurrent jobs, after that it started taking longer time that running them in sequence. But this might vary. 
1. UpgradeDatabasesFaster.ps1
9. Check on warnings in Health Analyzer, make repairs if needed. 
10. Make sure User Profile Synchronizer service is running (if your using FIM-sync)

Below all relevant scripts. Use at your own risk.



References:
https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/russmax/2013/04/01/why-sharepoint-2013-cumulative-update-takes-5-hours-to-install/ - Russmax excellent script for halting services before running exe. Saving hours
http://www.spjeff.com/2016/05/16/sppatchify-cu-patch-entire-farm-from-one-script/ - SpJeffs
https://blogs.technet.microsoft.com/stefan_gossner/2015/08/20/why-i-prefer-psconfigui-exe-over-psconfig-exe/ - Excellent resource for patching

Users break dispform

In this particular case a user decided to throw away the main webpart of the dispform.aspx. This caused all kinds of problems since it was a calenderlist.
In this situationen it wasn’t possible to create a new list since a lot of coded things worked with listids. Theres no versioning of dispform.
I first tried to use restore to sitedefinitions, but this kind of change didn’t qualify for making restore for some reason.
So this what came instead.

1. Find a functioning “vanilla” dispform.aspx from a list of same type
2. Open Sharepoint Designer, goto website of above list, find list and copy ListID
3. Find dispform of functioning list and export to file. Save locally on computer
4. Open locally saved dispform with notepad. Find and replace listid of sourcelist with targetlist listID (in calenderar two matches)
5. Opensharepint Designer, goto website of broken list.
6. All Files>Lists><mylist>
7. Take a backup of dispform with export to file, just in case you mess up.
8. Import locally modified dispform
9. Changes take effect immediatly.

References:
https://support.microsoft.com/en-hk/help/2000858/listview-webpart-required-on-dispform.aspx-page-for-document-library