So after a season of study and training, I'm getting back into the swing of things. I thought that as I wrap up projects going forward, I might jot down solutions to things that hang me up along the way. I figure that by writing them down, I'll remember a little quicker next time! And of course… the hope is that someone else may benefit. So I'll start off with lessons learned during a sweet gig in Bermuda (more on that later) that I just wrapped up. As usually, I hit my head on a couple of things. So here are a few tidbits:
Lesson #1: Authentication and Localhost Loopback Check:
I do a lot of projects related to migrating content into SharePoint. I learned long ago that migration throughput is much higher if my migration server is a WFE and I upload content to "localhost". Basically, I add an entry in my host file that points the Portal host header to 127.0.0.1. The performance benefit comes from the fact that certain API and web service calls are much faster since data traffic doesn't leave the box until it's headed for the SQL Server (via SharePoint).
Well, the last couple of projects keep hanging me up because I can't seem to authenticate to the "localhost" host header site. That stupid auth box keeps popping up! And then it hits me… Once again I've forgotten about the magic "DisableLoopbackCheck" registry value. A while back, one of the MS updates (or service packs, I forget which), Microsoft introduced a security feature that is meant to prevent reflection attacks by blocking authentication when using 127.0.0.1 with a host name that doesn't match the FQDN of the machine. The fix for this is to implement one of two possible registry tweaks described here: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/896861 I'll be honest, I usually just go with the sledgehammer approach and use the DisableLoopbackCheck key. Most of the SharePoint servers I deal with are internal and are in no danger of a reflection attack.
Lesson #2: MOSS Search Error
I run into some crazy stuff sometimes related to search. Since we tend to put hundreds of thousands or even up to tens of millions of documents into SharePoint regularly, we occasionally find a rough edge or two. Also, KnowledgeLake software uses the search API exposed by MOSS search so that also adds a dimension of interest. Today I came across a wierd result where our search interface was surfacing a strange error. The error shows up in the UI as something like "specified network name is no longer available". In the event log we find something like "Query machine [servername] has been taken out of rotation due to this error: The specified network name is no longer available"
My first thought was that I had a corrupt index because certain search criteria would yield normal results while others cause the error. So after a hard core "reset all crawled content" and full crawl didn't fix the problem. I researched further. It turns out that this is an issue on Windows Server 2008 machines with something called the "TransactNamedPipe" function call. If the function is used to request more than 8,000 bytes of data, the error occurs. So a quick trip to the hotfix store and PROBLEM SOLVED! If you come across this error, have a go at the hotfix found in this KB article: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/946487/en-us
So that's it for the lessons learned on this gig. As for Bermuda… Well, what do you expect! It was beautiful. I was fortunate to have the weekend to myself. So I buzzed my little scooter all over the country (island). I checked out the crystal caves and visited several awesome beaches, the best of which is found in Horseshoe Bay. This truely is a postcard beach. If you're a photo buff, check out some of the shots I snapped here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/37780535@N05/sets/72157617260859413/ Living smack dab in the middle of the US, it's a privilidge when I'm able to get out and admire this amazing earth that God created. Bermuda is amazing.. a bit expensive!.. but amazing. It is basically untouched by industrial polution so the water is impossibly clear!
Finally, I have to give a shout out to Mark and Ben at Mad Hatters. Mark is the head waiter, Ben is the Executive Chef, and the two of them co-own an awesome restaurant tucked back in Hamilton Bermuda. It's a bit hard to find! If you can locate the Robin Hood pub, then you're just about across the street! Anyway, if you ever make it to Bermuda, I HIGHLY recommend it. I went twice and each time in addition to the (exceptional) fare that I ordered, Ben also whipped up a little extra something special. The first trip yielded an unexpected soft shell crab. The second trip offered an extra "salmon sampler" plate. Both were absolutely delicious. Ben is very gifted! Also, I was blown away by a black olive pesto that topped some veal I had ordered. I hate black olives. I hate almonds. I hate walnuts. I can only handle so much garlic. But Ben managed to chop it all up very finely and saute it in some olive oil. It was absolutely brilliant. All in all, I had some great food in Bermuda, including the local favorite "wahoo" fish steak and fish chowder. But Mad Hatters was definately the "hidden gem" of the trip.
Anyway, I had a good time in Bermuda. Greg and Murray were excellent hosts and with Sharon's help on the business rules side, we knocked it out of the park. Thanks guys!
It looks like there are some interesting potential projects on tap for the summer… Including a very large project that involves an MSFAST solution. Looking forward to that one! If that one lands on my plate, I'm hoping to have a bunch of cool stuff to post about MSFAST.
Cheers
Russ Houberg