apt-get update fails in Ubuntu Server

Normal Ubuntu releases are supported for 9 months, whereas LTS (Long Term Support) releases are supported for 5 years.  Once support is up for the version of Ubuntu you are using the repository is moved to another server and will no longer be available on the standard 

apt-get update error - W: Failed to fetch mirrors / Some index files failed to download. They have been ignored, or old ones used instead

DHCP Server - Backup & restore Procedures

BACKUP & RESTORE OF DHCP SERVER

Manual DHCP server backup

You can also run backups manually through the DHCP management console. This feature can be useful if you intend to make major changes to your DHCP settings. You can back up the database to a location other than the default folder. Note that this won’t change the location of the regular automatic backups. This setting can only be changed in the Windows Registry with the BackupDatabasePath parameter.

Rebuilding the Windows 7 Icon Cache.

Follow these directions:

1. Close all folder windows that are currently open.
2. Launch Task Manager using the CTRL+SHIFT+ESC key sequence, or by running taskmgr.exe
3. In the Process tab, right-click on the Explorer.exe process and select End Process

Configuring Linux Server for NTP Client to External NTP Server

NTP is used to synchronize the time on your Linux system with a centralized NTP server.

You can Install NTP Service using

$ sudo yum install ntp  
or
$ sudo apt-get install ntpd

Reverting new network interface naming schemes to original in Ubuntu 14.04 Server

Gone are the days, where all network interfaces were called eth<N> in Ubuntu. Starting with Ubuntu 14.04, BIOS-given names are used in the LTS line of the distro.

So, it is possible your NIC isn't called eth0 anymore, but p2p1, or em0. According to biosdevname(1), the scheme for cards sitting in PCI slots is p<slot>p<port> and for embedded NICs, it is em<port>

Allow ssh root login on Ubuntu 14.04 Linux server

By default the root ssh login to Ubuntu 14.04 Linux server is disable. This is a security feature and even though you change the root password the root ssh login will be denied showing message similar to the one below:

$ ssh root@1.1.1.1
root@1.1.1.1's password:
Permission denied, please try again.
root@1.1.1.1's password:
Permission denied, please try again.
root@1.1.1.1's password:
Permission denied (publickey,password).

How to send emails using blat

Blat is a handy Win32 console utility that enables you to send emails via the command line, on Windows machines. This is especially useful within batch scripts.
Given below are some how-to’s on basic uses of blat. Refer the blat syntax page for more options with blat. The commands below have been tested on Windows Server 2003 with blat v2.6.2, unless otherwise stated.
You can download this from
http://sourceforge.net/projects/blat/files/latest/download?source=typ_redirect

HOW-TO 1: Configure the SMTP Relay for blat
The blat utility can perform functions of both an MUA and an MTA. Before using blat, you may configure certain options in the Windows Registry to avoid typing them repeatedly whenever sending emails (using overrides on the command line). An example configuration is given below: