The lonely tech post thread.

[UnderOpenSky]

Rant Alert

I think I've been cursed with a poison chalice for my first project in a new the job. Well, first proper IT project ever really. I've got over 1000 phones to get off Sophos MDM and on to Intune for November. There's no way to do it other than factory reset the dam things. I know I've already moaned about this, but there's no equivalent of Autopilot pre-provisioned mode for Android, so the user has to have their phone reset and then sign into it themselves (twice) and hope that Intune works today. Consultants aren't known for having loads of patience with IT. I won't have to do the brunt of the end user stuff, but I don't want the 1.5 person phone team not to hate me forever.

My latest joy in testing is that fucking Microsoft Authenticator is an absolute bitch to transfer to a new phone. I've backed up multiple times with my own account and tried to restore on a new phone and most logins aren't there. That's before needed the dam thing to actually set up the reset phone. I'm hoping I can do this with a conditional access policy, but it doesn't sort the missing logins. Plus, the OAUTH app that most people with be using is deprecated and not available, so we'll have to move it...MS Authenticator. Oh and we'll probably need to reset their VPN connection as well because Sophos is shit. I'm not quite sure what I did to deserve this in my first T3 role.

I'm also the hero of the day because when SCCM broke big style, lots of very important PCs started locking after 5 mins and I discovered it was an Intune setting and fixed it. Except now whenever anyone is having a problem with anything I get call to ask if it could be Intune. No, it's not broken your SQL database. There's like 5 policies there.

 

[existentialist]

My Internet went off at the flat, as planned. But past experience told me that I couldn't assume that it would work seamlessly at the new place.

So I was pleasantly surprised when I carted my mini-rack up to the house, plugged it all in, fired it up, and 30 seconds later had an Internet connection, WiFi, and everything working perfectly.

 

[two sheds]

Do you have Sky tv channels though?

We could do a crowd funder to relieve the poverty if you don't.

 

[UnderOpenSky]

Do you have Sky tv channels though?

We could do a crowd funder to relieve the poverty if you don't.

People still pay for Sky?

 

[two sheds]

I thought that they'd clamped down on people broadcasting it for free? Which internet addresses should be avoided just in case people clicked on them by accident?

 

[UnderOpenSky]

I thought that they'd clamped down on people broadcasting it for free? Which internet addresses should be avoided just in case people clicked on them by accident?

I meant more in terms of how many other ways you can get content. Even the streaming services, although I think it's probably at the bonkers place that if you want a few of them it's the price of sky sub.

I've never really been in the habit of watching TV as it's shown, but if I did or had a partner who wanted it or liked sports, I'd certainly go down the route of an Android TV box with an annual sub to one of the IPTV providers, although I can't recommend a specific one. Many of them have their own libraries of content Netflix style, as well as showing channels from around the world.

 

[gentlegreen]

My old Chinese Bluetooth amp module had a duff on-off switch so I thought I would get a replacement.
£9.99 and this one even has a volume knob and USB input - and it has a human voice.
As usual, shameful 24 hour Amazon prime delivery.
Sound quality at least as good as the previous one through some old speakers and 12 volt supply I nicked from work.
Much smaller chip, but with a heatsink - and much smaller inductors on the outputs so perhaps running PWM at a much higher frequency...

Doubtless I might have found it on AliExpress at half the price...

Edit:-

Apparently there's a "HIFI" version ..

ZK-502H HIFI Bluetooth 5.0 TPA3116D2 Digital Power Audio Amplifier board 50WX2 Stereo AMP Amplificador Home Theater AUX USB - AliExpress 44

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

 

[UnderOpenSky]

My old Chinese Bluetooth amp module had a duff on-off switch so I thought I would get a replacement.
£9.99 and this one even has a volume knob and USB input - and it has a human voice.
As usual, shameful 24 hour Amazon prime delivery.
Sound quality at least as good as the previous one through some old speakers and 12 volt supply I nicked from work.
Much smaller chip, but with a heatsink - and much smaller inductors on the outputs so perhaps running PWM at a much higher frequency...

Doubtless I might have found it on AliExpress at half the price...

Edit:-

Apparently there's a "HIFI" version ..

ZK-502H HIFI Bluetooth 5.0 TPA3116D2 Digital Power Audio Amplifier board 50WX2 Stereo AMP Amplificador Home Theater AUX USB - AliExpress 44

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

View attachment 428794

I keep meaning to get one of those Chinese mini amps. I've got a pair of bookshelf speakers unused and a chromecast audio unused and think it could go well in the kitchen.

 

[Saul Goodman]

I keep meaning to get one of those Chinese mini amps. I've got a pair of bookshelf speakers unused and a chromecast audio unused and think it could go well in the kitchen.

I've just ordered this.

2022 New Fosi Audio Bluetooth Sound Power Amplifier 2.1 Channel Amp Audio Reciver for Speaker Subwoofer 165Wx2 +350W BT30D PRO - AliExpress 44

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

To run these, and a sub



Which I'm currently powering with this



But it just takes up too much room for what's basically a set of PC speakers, and I'm not really doing the getting off my tits and blasting tunes thing these days, so I'm trying to gracefully retire all my old kit , before it retires itself.
And ridiculous wattage claims aside, I'm dying to see whether such a small amp can power these speakers.

 

[UnderOpenSky]

I've just ordered this.

2022 New Fosi Audio Bluetooth Sound Power Amplifier 2.1 Channel Amp Audio Reciver for Speaker Subwoofer 165Wx2 +350W BT30D PRO - AliExpress 44

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

To run these, and a sub

View attachment 428807

Which I'm currently powering with this

View attachment 428813

But it just takes up too much room for what's basically a set of PC speakers, and I'm not really doing the getting off my tits and blasting tunes thing these days, so I'm trying to gracefully retire all my old kit , before it retires itself.
And ridiculous wattage claims aside, I'm dying to see whether such a small amp can power these speakers.

Yeah, wattage is meaningless really and I don't need loud. Main reason I want one is my nice amp and speakers are in the living room and my neighbours don't need to hear me blast it so I can hear it in the kitchen. I upgraded my speakers when we moved, but tbh the main reason was to get something more aesthetically pleasing for the front room (getting wooden ones went a long way with my partner), but old ones still sound great.

I've heard of Fossi, did you spend a while reading reviews etc for that one? It's more then I thought I'd pay, but could be tempted if I know it's going to be something decent. That said I only need two chanels and don't need bluetooth.

 

[Saul Goodman]

Yeah, wattage is meaningless really and I don't need loud. Main reason I want one is my nice amp and speakers are in the living room and my neighbours don't need to hear me blast it so I can hear it in the kitchen. I upgraded my speakers when we moved, but tbh the main reason was to get something more aesthetically pleasing for the front room (getting wooden ones went a long way with my partner), but old ones still sound great.

I've heard of Fossi, did you spend a while reading reviews etc for that one? It's more then I thought I'd pay, but could be tempted if I know it's going to be something decent. That said I only need two chanels and don't need bluetooth.

I'd heard good things about the TPA3255 chip, so I went looking for something with that chip in it, and the Fosi one got good reviews.
There are lots of configurations for the chip. It can be 2 channel, 2.1, chips can be bridged, etc. So there will be a 2 channel version to suit your needs.
In the meantime, I still have this one in my shopping cart, with a view to buying it for no reason other than it's cheap.

YS-AS21 2*220W+350W 2.1 Channel BT Digital Power Amplifier Board TPA3251 AMP Subwoofer Treble Bass Tone Audio APP USB Function - AliExpress 30

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

 

[Saul Goodman]

If you just want something cheap..

ZK-MT21 Channel Bluetooth 5.0 CS8673E 2.1 Subwoofer Amplifier Board 50W X 2+100W Power Audio Stereo Amplifier Board Bass AMP AUX - AliExpress

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

 

[UnderOpenSky]

I'd heard good things about the TPA3255 chip, so I went looking for something with that chip in it, and the Fosi one got good reviews.
There are lots of configurations for the chip. It can be 2 channel, 2.1, chips can be bridged, etc. So there will be a 2 channel version to suit your needs.
In the meantime, I still have this one in my shopping cart, with a view to buying it for no reason other than it's cheap.

YS-AS21 2*220W+350W 2.1 Channel BT Digital Power Amplifier Board TPA3251 AMP Subwoofer Treble Bass Tone Audio APP USB Function - AliExpress 30

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

That's good, a chip is a great starting place. I might actually get bluetooth as the OH has never been impressed by casting as I am.

Mind you with that really cheap one you get some real budget speakers from ebay or even a charity shop and still sound better then many dedicated bluetooth speaker things. If I didn't already have some half decent Creative 2.0s on my PC upstairs I'd be tempted.

 

[UnderOpenSky]

Think I've finally got my first duff second hand hard drive. Didn't make nice noises, despite being new in the bag. eBay have sided with me, but I'm giving the guy a chance and returning the SAS controller for a different one before I send it back. Bargain Hardware's customer service is top notch, despite the name when it's come to returning it and even suggesting a better one for my chassis.

Also, couldn't help myself ordering a 14TB SAS drive from them at the same time now they've got decent sized drives back in stock. Of course if to my surprise the eBay drive works it will mean I'll have 26TB of storage in that machine over the two drives.

 

[Chz]

Think I've finally got my first duff second hand hard drive. Didn't make nice noises, despite being new in the bag. eBay have sided with me, but I'm giving the guy a chance and returning the SAS controller for a different one before I send it back. Bargain Hardware's customer service is top notch, despite the name when it's come to returning it and even suggesting a better one for my chassis.

Also, couldn't help myself ordering a 14TB SAS drive from them at the same time now they've got decent sized drives back in stock. Of course if to my surprise the eBay drive works it will mean I'll have 26TB of storage in that machine over the two drives.

Good lord, that's more storage than I've ever owned, cumulative, in my lifetime! But then I've never owned a disk larger than 3TB.

 

[gentlegreen]

That's good, a chip is a great starting place. I might actually get bluetooth as the OH has never been impressed by casting as I am.

Mind you with that really cheap one you get some real budget speakers from ebay or even a charity shop and still sound better then many dedicated bluetooth speaker things. If I didn't already have some half decent Creative 2.0s on my PC upstairs I'd be tempted.

My Google phone has taken a dislike to the cheap BT speaker - I had it working a couple of times, but no more - it can see it OK - forgotten and re-paired several times...
It's fine with my Android 2 phone and my Android 7 phone, but not Android 14 ...

EDIT. I had to restart my new phone and it seems to work now.
So it's no longer a case of just pushing and holding the power button ...

 

[two sheds]

A mate has left me his laptop to examine and hopefully get up and running. It does seem to work already but I think it may have come from a dubious source so I don't really want to let it near my wifi connection.

It's Windows 10 or 11 so as a first action i looked for Windows Defender but it spooled for a while and didn't bring up any results which I thought a bit sus. I've not used Windows for years though so am not comfortable with it any more.

He only needs it for basic stuff like email, ebay, social media, web searches and things. So I'm thinking of writing down the Microsoft key (although that doesn't look straightforward after a quick web search), wiping the lot and just installing Mint - I did that for him on a previous laptop and he seems to have got on with it ok. That sound reasonable? I could try to do a dual boot but I'm likely to screw the windows software anyway.

 

[prunus]

A mate has left me his laptop to examine and hopefully get up and running. It does seem to work already but I think it may have come from a dubious source so I don't really want to let it near my wifi connection.

It's Windows 10 or 11 so as a first action i looked for Windows Defender but it spooled for a while and didn't bring up any results which I thought a bit sus. I've not used Windows for years though so am not comfortable with it any more.

He only needs it for basic stuff like email, ebay, social media, web searches and things. So I'm thinking of writing down the Microsoft key (although that doesn't look straightforward after a quick web search), wiping the lot and just installing Mint - I did that for him on a previous laptop and he seems to have got on with it ok. That sound reasonable? I could try to do a dual boot but I'm likely to screw the windows software anyway.

If it was me, and I was feeling helpful, and there was sufficient space on the HD, I'd clone the existing windows into a virtualbox vm, then install linux (and virtualbox) and have the original setup as a vm.

 

[UnderOpenSky]

A mate has left me his laptop to examine and hopefully get up and running. It does seem to work already but I think it may have come from a dubious source so I don't really want to let it near my wifi connection.

It's Windows 10 or 11 so as a first action i looked for Windows Defender but it spooled for a while and didn't bring up any results which I thought a bit sus. I've not used Windows for years though so am not comfortable with it any more.

He only needs it for basic stuff like email, ebay, social media, web searches and things. So I'm thinking of writing down the Microsoft key (although that doesn't look straightforward after a quick web search), wiping the lot and just installing Mint - I did that for him on a previous laptop and he seems to have got on with it ok. That sound reasonable? I could try to do a dual boot but I'm likely to screw the windows software anyway.

Unless you want to be responsible for everything, don't install Linux.

Just reinstall Windows. The key is either in the BIOS or you can find it with Magic Jellybean.

 

[Saul Goodman]

A mate has left me his laptop to examine and hopefully get up and running. It does seem to work already but I think it may have come from a dubious source so I don't really want to let it near my wifi connection.

It's Windows 10 or 11 so as a first action i looked for Windows Defender but it spooled for a while and didn't bring up any results which I thought a bit sus. I've not used Windows for years though so am not comfortable with it any more.

He only needs it for basic stuff like email, ebay, social media, web searches and things. So I'm thinking of writing down the Microsoft key (although that doesn't look straightforward after a quick web search), wiping the lot and just installing Mint - I did that for him on a previous laptop and he seems to have got on with it ok. That sound reasonable? I could try to do a dual boot but I'm likely to screw the windows software anyway.

If it's Windows 10, do an 'upgrade' to Windows 11, but do it as a fresh install. If it's already Windows 11, go into System>Recovery and reset the PC with a fresh install.

 

[UnderOpenSky]

If it's Windows 10, do an 'upgrade' to Windows 11, but do it as a fresh install. If it's already Windows 11, go into System>Recovery and reset the PC with a fresh install.

If it's infected, I'd want the drive wiped.

At work we trash the disks, although that's probably a bit much for home.

 

[Saul Goodman]

If it's infected, I'd want the drive wiped.

At work we trash the disks, although that's probably a bit much for home.

Unless it's a rootkit virus, a full reset should work, but it'd definitely be worth checking for a rootkit first.

 

[UnderOpenSky]

Unless it's a rootkit virus, a full reset should work, but it'd definitely be worth checking for a rootkit first.

For the tiny amount of extra effort to make a bootable Windows USB stick, I'd rather not take chances.

 

[Saul Goodman]

For the tiny amount of extra effort to make a bootable Windows USB stick, I'd rather not take chances.

Same as... I was just looking for an option that could be achieved by simply connecting the machine to the internet and pressing go.
But yeah, Windows ISO, a USB stick and Rufus.

 

[Saul Goodman]

Following a recent mishap with a drive or three, I've finally got most of my data back.
I'm backing it all up again to a NAS, but by fuck it's slow.
This was only around a TB, and it's taken 6 hours



Only 4 more drives and about 5TB to go. And that's after spending the full day sorting through and deleting ~3TB of crap

I reckon I'm going to have to get another big SSD, and hook it up to the router as a NAS. These spinners are painfully slow.

 

[UnderOpenSky]

That's a very expensive SSD

Its seems unlikely it is your disk either, seems more likely to be network. MBps vs Mbps etc. But yes it's painful. I'm shuffling stuff around at the moment now I've got that 14TB drive and it's basically set it overnight.

 

[UnderOpenSky]

Is it weird to buy a none tech person a mechanical keyboard for their birthday? It's my little sisters birthday at the weekend and she mostly WFH and probably has most stuff she wants (and I can afford) so I'm often left trying to think of stuff that she never knew she wanted, but would like.

 

[existentialist]

Is it weird to buy a none tech person a mechanical keyboard for their birthday? It's my little sisters birthday at the weekend and she mostly WFH and probably has most stuff she wants (and I can afford) so I'm often left trying to think of stuff that she never knew she wanted, but would like.

Unless you know she wants one, I'd be cautious. As a mechanical fan myself, people often comment, not always favourably, about the noise.

 

[Chz]

Following a recent mishap with a drive or three, I've finally got most of my data back.
I'm backing it all up again to a NAS, but by fuck it's slow.
This was only around a TB, and it's taken 6 hours

View attachment 429449

Only 4 more drives and about 5TB to go. And that's after spending the full day sorting through and deleting ~3TB of crap

I reckon I'm going to have to get another big SSD, and hook it up to the router as a NAS. These spinners are painfully slow.

Yowie, that is a bit slow. My pair of old 3TB IronWolfs can max out the gigabit network normally. (~110MB/sec)

 

[Saul Goodman]

That's a very expensive SSD

Its seems unlikely it is your disk either, seems more likely to be network. MBps vs Mbps etc. But yes it's painful. I'm shuffling stuff around at the moment now I've got that 14TB drive and it's basically set it overnight.

I mean a 4TB one, for the important stuff. I treated myself to one for Christmas, but my birthday is months away, so I might do that thing where I look at it on Amazon, and accidentally add it to my basket, then accidentally buy it

Yowie, that is a bit slow. My pair of old 3TB IronWolfs can max out the gigabit network normally. (~110MB/sec)

Yeah, I'm not happy with it.
The network is definitely up to the task, and WD red drives in the NAS, but it's an aging Synology NAS, and the maximum speed I'm getting is about 60MB/s. I probably need a new NAS at this stage but it's the last thing I want to be spending on right now.