Posey's Tips & Tricks


How Long Should You Retain Your Backups?

Backup retention length may not be an issue for organizations in regulated industries, but for everyone else, it should be based on both practicality and operational requirements.

How To Rename Files in Bulk the Easy Way

With a little creativity, Brien was able to use PowerShell to greatly simplify a bulk renaming task.

How To Speed Up Your Internet Connection

With most of us continuing to work from home and video conferences now the norm, it's more important than ever to make sure your Internet connection is up to snuff.

How To Create Windows 10 Installation Media

Microsoft makes the Windows installation media available for download, but you will have to put it into a format that aligns with how you plan to use the installation files.

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Top 3 Best Practices for Backup Testing

Backup testing is a critical IT process, but no one ever talks about how to do it properly. Here are Brien's best tips for testing your backups.

Windows Sandbox: An Easy Alternative to Windows 10 VMs

Hyper-V virtual machines have their uses, but the sandbox feature in Windows 10 can work just as well, is easier to set up and takes up much less disk space.

What's the Best Way To Learn PowerShell?

Simply experimenting with an existing PowerShell script is an effective way to build expertise. Just make sure to do it inside a virtual machine.

How To Deal with Apostrophes in PowerShell Strings

Punctuation can be problematic in PowerShell, with apostrophes sometimes causing PowerShell to misinterpret strings. Here's how to get around that.

Turning Off Two of Microsoft Word's More Annoying Features

Predictive text and "friendly" URL formatting might be helpful to some Word users, but are more of a distraction to others. If you're in the second group, here's how to disable them.

The One Transcription Feature Microsoft Teams Needs Now

The new live transcription feature in Teams is much-needed, but there's one more feature that Microsoft could add to make Teams truly indispensable to meetings. If only AI technology is advanced enough for it.

To Get the Most from Microsoft Teams, Have Good Hardware

After showing up at a Teams conference looking distinctly blue, Brien went looking for a better videoconferencing setup that's specifically designed for Teams meetings. Here are the three devices that caught his eye.

Putting the Brakes on Automatic Windows Reboots

The last thing a backup or e-discovery project needs is an unexpected PC update forcing everything to start over. Here's the best way to stall an impending Windows update so you can finish a days- or weeks-long project.

How To Easily Monitor Your PC's Temperature

After one of his PCs came close to overheating, Brien is more vigilant than ever about monitoring its CPU temperature. Here's the setup he's using to do it. Bonus: no annoying app notifications required.

What To Do When Your Computing Hardware Gets Too Hot

Brien walks through the process of diagnosing and fixing an overheated machine. First step, especially with summer right around the corner: Invest in a thermal imaging camera.

What Causes SCVMM To Give a Host Zero Stars

System Center Virtual Machine Manager will sometimes flag a Hyper-V host with zero stars even if the host is online and healthy. Here's how to identify the problem.

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