Windows on Notities

Windows Server 2022 — Active Directory and DNS Installation

Fri, 27 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0100

In this article I describe step by step how I installed Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS) and DNS on a Windows Server 2022 Datacenter VM in a VMware Fusion lab environment. The result is a fully functional domain controller for the domain lab.local, as the foundation for a Windows DevOps lab.

Environment

Component	Value
Virtualisation	VMware Fusion (macOS)
Guest operating system	Windows Server 2022 Datacenter (Desktop Experience)
Hostname	DC01
Domain name	lab.local
NetBIOS name	LAB
Lab network adapter	Ethernet1 — 172.16.37.10 (static IP)
Internet adapter	Ethernet0 — DHCP via VMware NAT

Step 1 — Configure Networking

Before installing Active Directory, the domain controller needs a static IP address. AD DS and DNS depend on a stable address.

Windows packet capturing for example for an LDAPS traffic analysis

Sun, 18 Jan 2026 18:55:54 +0000

Open a Windows Terminal or Command session As Administrator

Check existing filters
# pktmon filter list

Clear all filters
# pktmon filter remove

Check capture status
# pktmon status

Add a filter for LDAPS
# pktmon filter add -p 636

Start the capture
# pktmon start --etw

Try to connect again to the LDAP server / If you want to monitor a different port, repeat the command that generates the network traffic.

Deskflow: Control multiple computers with 1 keyboard and mouse for: macOS, Windows and Linux

Mon, 24 Mar 2025 17:57:51 +0000

With Deskflow you control multiple computers — macOS, Windows or Linux — using a single mouse and keyboard. It works as a software-based KVM switch (without video) and is sponsored by Synergy. This program is still actively maintained, with an intuitive interface that makes it easy to use. Tip: disable TLS in the settings for a smooth start.

Download it via: https://github.com/deskflow/deskflow/releases. Look for the “latest” tag and check all assets for the correct version!

How to burn an *.iso file to CD or DVD in Windows

Fri, 21 Jul 2023 17:04:59 +0000

In File Explorer right-click on the *.ISO file and choose Properties.
Then, click Change from the General tab, choose Windows Explorer, and click OK.
Next, save the change by clicking Apply > OK
Now right click on the *.ISO file and choose: Burn disc image or on: Show more options to find this.

Creating a shortcut with an icon on the desktop

Wed, 10 May 2023 19:09:51 +0000

Part 1: creating the shortcut

Go to the website you find useful and want quick access to
For example: nu.nl , open in your browser: https:/www.nu.nl
Click (with the left mouse button) on the address bar where the website address is shown, it will turn blue.
If it does not automatically turn blue, you need to select the address and highlight it yourself
Right-click on the blue text and choose: Copy
Click the minus sign to minimise the web browser so you can see the desktop
Right-click on the desktop and choose: New -> Shortcut
Right-click in the location rectangle and choose: Paste
Click Next
Give the shortcut the name of the website and click: Finish

You now have your shortcut

Part 2: changing the icon to the website’s logo

Create a Windows - God Mode - shortcut

Sun, 05 Mar 2023 13:40:14 +0000

Right-click on the Desktop
Choose: New -> Folder
Name the folder: GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}
Open the folder for a huge number of advanced settings
The shortcuts in this folder can be copied to, for example, the Desktop for even faster access

Automatically log in to a Linux server using PuTTY on Windows

Fri, 17 Feb 2023 14:51:15 +0000

You can automatically log in to a Linux server on Windows using PuTTY by making use of a key file. Below I explain step by step how to do this.

Create a key: start: puttygen.exe
Click on: Generate
Click on: Save private key
Go to PuTTY Configuration -> Session
Load a previously created session or create a new one
Go to: Connection -> SSH -> Auth -> Private key file for authentication -> Browse
Select your file with the private key: *.ppk
Go back to Session and click on: Save
Log in to the Linux server using the Saved Sessions and still with your password
Create a new directory in the home directory: .ssh
Give this directory the correct permissions: chmod 700 ~/.ssh
Create and edit the file authorized_keys: vi ~/ssh/authorized_keys
Copy the Public key for pasting from the PuTTY Key Generator
Paste it into the authorized_keys file on the Linux server
Save the authorized_keys file (for vi type: :wq)
Give this file the correct permissions: chmod 600 ~/.ssh/authorized_keys
Close the logged-in PuTTY session to the Linux Server
Open the session again to verify that you can now log in automatically

Change your Windows password using a shortcut

Thu, 16 Feb 2023 10:56:24 +0000

Change your Windows password by using a shortcut on your desktop. (CTRL+ALT+DEL key combination by clicking a shortcut)

Right-click on your desktop, choose New and then Shortcut
Enter the following command for the item location:
C:\Windows\explorer.exe shell:::{2559a1f2-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}
Click: Next
Give the shortcut a name, for example: Reset password
Click: Finish

Prevent opening Windows 11 Store when typing the command python

Thu, 01 Dec 2022 19:30:38 +0000

Step 1: Open Settings in Windows 11

Step 2: Go to Apps

Step 3: Go to Advanced app settings

Step 4: Go to App execution aliases

Step 5: Disable the option for python.exe and python3.exe

Python dependencies when installing Oracle VirtualBox on Windows 11

Thu, 01 Dec 2022 19:24:55 +0000

Step 1: install Python

Step 2: add both the scripts folder and its parent folder to the path

Step 3: CMD> pip install pywin32

Any iMac as a second display with extended desktop

Mon, 31 Oct 2022 17:55:56 +0000

Install Windows on your iMac and use the software utility spacedesk.

Such a simple solution to turn any iMac into a second (or even a third or more) display to extended your desktop.

Automatically log in to Windows

Wed, 09 Mar 2022 11:58:22 +0100

Entering a password or PIN is not equally convenient for everyone.
Do you find it annoying to enter a password or PIN every time you log in to Windows?
You can also automatically log in to Windows. When the computer has finished starting up, you will immediately see the desktop. On the desktop you can make all your useful programs accessible and you have that immediately in front of you when you have turned on the computer. You can then immediately start using the computer, without having to enter a password or PIN first.

New life in an old Apple computer (iMac, MacBook)

Fri, 25 Feb 2022 11:09:02 +0000

Install the VirtualBox application and run a virtual machine inside it with the latest version of Linux or Windows. In many cases this can solve problems with browsing the internet — for example, making it possible to visit websites that no longer work in the old Apple environment.