If the new user account has MFA enabled in the per user (legacy) way, under Microsoft 365 admin center -> Active users -> Multi-factor authentication, then Microsoft may insist on a phone number being added at login with no option for other methods to prove identity. I.e. no authenticator app, email or other MFA. To … Continue reading Microsoft 365 Login Requires Phone
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Windows Laptop Battery and Power Savings Plans
Windows provides several battery status levels to allow appropriate actions. Tune these as appropriate to your requirements. Settings -> System -> Power and Sleep: Settings -> System -> Battery: Control Panel -> Power Options -> Advanced settings:
RDP to IP address for Entra joined Windows 11 computer
To RDP to a Win11 computer using an Entra ID (i.e. Azure AD, AAD), the official requirement is to select the Advanced tab in the remote desktop client and tick the option for “Use a web account to sign in to the remote computer”. This mechanism then uses Edge to provide web authentication for the … Continue reading RDP to IP address for Entra joined Windows 11 computer
IPsec on Debian Bookworm with Swanctl
Strongswan-swanctl introduces the new configuration format for IPsec on Debian Bookworm. Unfortunately the configuration is more convoluted. Start by installing charon-systemd, which will bring in the required packages: sudo apt install charon-systemd Key component packages: Example road-warrior config shown below, using IKEv2 with a certificate to authenticate the server and a user ID and password … Continue reading IPsec on Debian Bookworm with Swanctl
Remove Search bar in Thunderbird 115
Thunderird update 115, Supernova, adds a bar above the start menu that includes a lot of wasted space and a search box in the middle. Whilst the bar can be customised, unfortunately Mozilla developers have chosen not to add an option to remove it through settings. To remove the bar: unified-toolbar { display: none !important; … Continue reading Remove Search bar in Thunderbird 115
Draytek IPsec VPN errors
The following errors occur on a Draytek IPsec if the VPN name has been modified: ISAKMP Identification Payload has an unknown value … … ISAKMP payload must be zero … … smalformed payload: probable authentication (preshared secret) failure … Matching General Setup key for dynamic ip client … To fix the problem it is necessary … Continue reading Draytek IPsec VPN errors
How to install Debian from Windows without writing a USB or CD-ROM, on UEFI system
This post outlines how to install Debian without requiring writing the ISO image to a USB or burning to DVD drive.
Rename a user in Linux
If you have a single user account it is not possible to rename the user login name whilst logged on. To do so use cron to run the necessary commands. Create a script with the required commands: nano /usr/local/bin/rename_user # First rename the user login: /usr/sbin/usermod –login newlogin oldlogin # Second rename the group account: … Continue reading Rename a user in Linux
Practical IPsec VPN Information
IPsec (common for IKEv1 and IKEv2): IKEv1: AH vs ESP: Perfect Forward Security (PFS): Dead-Peer Detection (DPD): Aggressive vs. Main: IKEv2 enhancements: Xauth: L2TP/IPsec:
Driver for ACPI INT34c6 on Dell server
If you have an unknown device on a Dell server and msinfo32 shows the component problem device ID as ACPI/INT34C6, you need to install the Intel chipset Tatlow Platform LPSS driver, this will install the Intel Serial IO GPIO driver for the device.