M-shwari

M-Pesa customers will now have access to interest bearing saving accounts and take out small loans through a new service, called M-Shwari a result of a new partnership between Safaricom and the Commercial Bank of Africa (CBA).

Safaricom customers can sign up to the M-Shwari account, provided by CBA, directly through the M-Pesa menu on their phone. No need to visit a bank or fill in any forms. M-Pesa customers can also apply to CBA for a mini-loan, again directly from their phone. Based on the individual customer’s M-Pesa transactions and savings history. The loan money is immediately sent by CBA to the customer’s M-Pesa account immediately.

How to activate Mshwari
To open an M-Shwari account, consumers will go to the Safaricom menu in their phones, select “M-Pesa”, go to “My Account”, “Update Menu”, enter “M-Pesa PIN” and wait to receive the updated M-Pesa menu

Its goodbye to ‘lost’ phones

True its time we say goodbye to lost phones, thanks to avast! Mobile Security.

avast! Mobile Security Is a security solution for Android devices. It comes complete with Android antivirus protection, to keep you safe from malicious apps, but also an Anti-Theft solution.
Its time to say goodbye to ‘lost’ phones the Anti-Theft component is practically invisible to would-be thieves, and provides remote options via web portal or SMS commands for locating and recovering a stolen phone.

Aside from the web portal, the new update also brings a handful of other features, including a network meter, incoming message scanning, real-time app protection, a widget, and an improved interface for tablets.

Recently @peteretelej lost his phone and using Avast Mobile security he managed to recover his phone within days Click Here to see More

Operating Systems Supported
• Android 2.1.x
• Android 2.2.x
• Android 2.3.x
• Android 3.x
• Android 4.x

Minimum Hardware Requirements
• Any phone capable of running a supported system

Installation
The installation of the software is simple. Just follow these steps:
1. Open up the Google Play Store
2. Search for “avast” (no quotes)
3. Tap on the avast! Mobile Security entry
4. Tap Install
5. Tap Accept & download

Stop Windows Update from restarting your computer after windows update

Windows Update’s automatic reboot after a windows update is one of the most annoying “features” in Microsoft operating systems.

Lucky enough in Windows Vista and 7, you can postpone the restarting for up to a few hours. However, it can be frustrating if your downloading a large file or letting an operation run while away from your PC, expecting it to be finished upon return or if you have step away from a work session and come back to a freshly rebooted system

I found ways of stopping Windows Update from restarting your computer after windows update.

Windows XP: Start > Run > enter gpedit.msc. Navigate to Local Computer Policy > Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update. Double click “No auto-restart for scheduled Automatic Updates installation,” then choose Enabled and click OK.

Windows Vista/7: Start > search for gpedit.msc. Navigate to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update and enable “No auto-restart for scheduled Automatic Updates installations”.

Windows RT

Windows RT is the newest kid on the block in Windows family, It is also known as Windows on ARM or WOA and runs on devices powered by ARM-based chips which are typically mobile devices like tablets.

Why Windows RT

“RT” stands for runtime, which is usually abbreviated WinRT is technically Microsoft’s developer platform for Windows 8.

WinRT is a Windows API created and owned by WinDiv. .NET is owned by DevDiv. Windows itself is a native OS (written in native code, C and C++), and thus any API they create would be native – and so is WinRT.

Windows RT includes touch-optimized desktop versions of the new Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote.

Microsoft Surface Tablets unveiled on 18th June 2012 run Windows RT OS see video below

Dropbox Vs Google Drive

Comparison charts can never tell everything you need to know about the difference between Dropbox and Google Drive

For example, others prefer Dropbox because a lot of other people are using it, while others choose Google Drive because you already use lots of other Google services and want to tie in cloud storage
Dropbox deserves credit for showing the others how to do it, Apple iCloud aside. Excellent integration on Mac and Windows, and excellent apps on the supported mobile platforms. Though its security record is not the best.

Google Drive presents as a folder in Windows and on the Mac, but it is as much an extension of Google Apps, the online office suite, as it is a storage service. This can introduce friction. Documents in Google Apps appear there, with extensions like .gdoc and .gsheet, and if you double-click them they open in your web browser.

One of the problems for all these services is that 2GB of data is actually a lot, unless you get into space-devouring things like multimedia files or system backups. This means that many will never pay to upgrade.

Desktop Clients
Google’s desktop client is very similar to Dropbox’s—in fact, certain parts just seem copied exactly from Dropbox’s interface. When you install it, you can choose where to put your Google Drive folder, as well as choose which folders you actually want synced to your desktop. You can choose to sync Google Docs files or not sync them, your choice.

Once it downloads all your files, you’ll see them in your Google Drive folder, just like Dropbox. Each has a green checkmark if it’s synced, or a blue refresh icon if it’s currently syncing. Items created in Google Docs have their own special icons, and can only be opened in Google Docs. If you double-click on them, they’ll open up in a new browser tab. This is fine if you want to use Google Docs, and it works well with Google Docs’ offline viewing,
Its annoying if you want to tweak docs in your favorite desktop word processor—you actually have to go to the Drive webapp, export them as an Office-compatible file, then open that copy up instead.
Worth noting is the fact that Linux users don’t have access to Google Drive, but they will have access to Dropbox.

File Sharing
Both apps do pretty well at sharing files, they just work in slightly different ways. Dropbox lets you share files by right-clicking on them in Windows Explorer or the Finder and getting a link to share with your friends. Google Drive forces you to go the webapp, and has a slightly confusing method of sharing files

Google Drive, however, has an edge in the collaboration department. Not only can you share folders, but it also has all of Google Docs’ built-in collaboration features that we love so much. By sharing a document with another Docs user, they can edit the file, make comments, and so on. That way, you don’t just see the edited file, you see what they’ve done and can chat with them in real time as they do it.

Pricing
Dropbox provides users with 2 GB of free storage space just for signing up. Users can get more by referring friends to the service, 500MB per referral, up to a limit of 16 GB.
Dropbox offers Pro 50, Pro 100, and Team plans. The Pro 50 plan gives you 50 GB for $9.99/month and the Pro 100 gives you 100GB for $19.99/month. Both Pro Plans give users 1 GB for referrals up to a limit of 32 GB.

Dropbox Team plans are ideally for businesses or groups, they start at 1TB and give 5 users shared access for $795/year. Additional users boost the storage capacity by 200 GB and can be added for $125/year.
Google Drive starts you off with 5GB for free. Google Drive gives you much more flexibility at a cheaper rate:

Availability
Google Drive is available on Android, Mac OS X, and Windows. iOS applications are on the way.
Dropbox is available for iOS, Blackberry, Android, Mac OS X, Linux, and Windows.

Security
A visit to Dropbox website it says, “Your files are actually safer while stored in your Dropbox than on your computer in some cases.”
Google Drive links directly to your existing Google Account, with a two-step authentication and the security features. Two-step authentication gives you an added layer because even if someone has your username and password, they still will not be able to access your files.
If someone wants to access your Dropbox account, they just need your username and password. There’s no backup like Google offers.

Linking
Dropbox recently added a killer feature allowing you to share content by generating a link to any file in your folder, even with non-users. Simply click a button and enter an email address or user name and they will receive a link and be able to view the file you choose.
Google Drive allows sharing with a link by copying and pasting the URL of any file and sending it in an email.

Search
Search with Google drive is simple, easy, and quick because the search bar is always with you. Google Drive can even recognize objects in your images and text in scanned documents.
Moving away from the Dropbox home page takes the search bar away and you have to go back home to find it. Search is not inscribed into every page of Dropbox.

Working Offline
Here both storage applications tie.
If have the Dropbox app installed on your computer, files can be accessed when offline from the folder that lives on your desktop. You always have your files, whether or not you have a connection without having to do anything.
Google Drive works the same way,

Accessing Deleted Files
When you delete an item by mistake? Dropbox keeps a one-month history of your work. so files can be restored after deletion. Google Drive tracks every change you make. When you hit the save button, a new revision is saved. You can look back as far as 30 days automatically, or choose a revision to save forever.

Google Drive is definitely a better choice, the saving forever option is awesome because it’s… forever.
Sharing
Google Drive allows you to create a document and work on it at the same time with a colleague. You choose who has access and who can edit or make changes. The changes then appear instantly so everyone can stay in sync.

Dropbox prides itself on simplicity. Instead of just inviting someone to change a document you can invite someone to view a folder and all of its contents. Dropbox says, “it’s as if the folder is saved directly to the other person’s computer.” Creating photo galleries viewable by anyone you choose is perfect for sharing your recent vacation with distant relatives.

Synchronizing Files
When adding a file to your Dropbox from your computer it’s as simple as dragging and dropping. Dropbox fails because the original file is removed from your computer’s hard drive and is only accessible in Dropbox.

When you upload a document to Google Drive it gives you the option to convert that file to Google Docs for easy sharing and collaboration. The process is simple and fast. In addition, the ability to open over 30 file types right in your browser—including HD video, Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop—even if you don’t have the program installed on your computer

Samsung Galaxy Pocket S5300 Vs LG Optimus L3 E400

With the rise of android operating system taking on the likes of Nokia’s Symbian, Blackberry’s RIM and Iphone IOS there has been a recent push for the android phones in the Kenyan Market.
Samsung has its Samsung Galaxy Pocket S5300 while LG are have LG Optimus L3 E400. Both phones come at a price of about Kshs 10,000 /=

If you’re looking for mobile phone that is designed to fit your life. You find satisfaction in a design that has both an exquisite style and a comfortable grip. Be confident with a slim and sleek style that demands attention then LG Optimus L3 E400 is for you.

While if you want you want a smart device that is compact and light with superior functionality and outstanding performance. Then Samsung GALAXY Pocket is a smartphone specially made for you.

Both phones were released in 2012 with Samsung coming out in February 2012 while LG Optimus in January 2012. Both phones operate on both 3G and 2G networks and both run on Android Gingerbread 2.3
Its almost very difficult to say which phone of the two one outshines the other, but with a look at the differences in specifications below we surely can tell which one is superior than the other.

BODY
Samsung Galaxy Pocket
Dimensions 103.7 x 57.5 x 12 mm
Weight 97 g

LG Optimus
Dimensions 102.6 x 61.6 x 11.9 mm
Weight 110 g

BATTERY TIME
Samsung Galaxy Pocket
Stand-by Up to 800 h (2G) / Up to 500 h (3G) Up to 600 h (2G) / Up to 600 h (3G)
Talk time Up to 17 h (2G) / Up to 5 h 40 min (3G)

LG Optimus
Stand-by Up to 12 h 30 min (2G) / Up to 10 h (3G)
Talk time Up to 12 h 30 min (2G) / Up to 10 h (3G)

FEATURES
CPU
Samsung Galaxy Pocket
832 MHz ARM 11

LG Optimus
800 MHz

CAMERA
Samsung Galaxy Pocket
Camera Primary 2 MP, 1600×1200 pixels

LG Optimus
3.15 MP, 2048×1536 pixels

INTENAL MEMORY
Samsung Galaxy Pocket
3 GB

LG Optimus
1 GB storage, 384 MB RAM

DISPLAY SIZE
Samsung Galaxy Pocket
240 x 320 pixels, 2.8 inches (~143 ppi pixel density)

LG Optimus
240 x 320 pixels, 3.2 inches

Whole Samsung boasts of being lighter at 97gms, 3GB internal memory and 832 MHz ARM 11
Processor speed, High battery stand time its camera is only 2 megapixels as compared to 3.15MP by LG and with a bigger display screen at 3.2 inches.

With the six items we have looked at Samsung Galaxy Pocket beats LG Optimus on Body weight, Battery time, CPU speed and Internal memory, hence scoring 4/6 with LG 2/6

Share your thoughts

Do You Really Need to Eject USB Drives Before Removing Them?

There is so much confusion as to whether one should “eject” or “safely remove hardware”? Or is it OK to just pull the drive out of your machine and go about your business?

You should probably always eject a drive before removing it, Mac and Linux will always provide you a way to eject a drive, but sometimes Windows doesn’t have an obvious “Eject” button for certain drives. On Windows, click the “Safely Remove Hardware” icon in the system tray, choose your drive from the list, and then remove it once it notifies you of its safe removal which means they do not cache (temporary storage) write requests.

What the “safe removal” icon does is to block all subsequent writes to the drive and set it to “offline” status, so that you know beyond the shadow of a doubt that it is safe to pull it out.
So as long as you do not try to pull the drive out in the middle of copying or writing something to it you are not likely to cause any problems. Nevertheless if you do happen to pull the drive out in the middle of a write operation, then the drive might end up corrupted.

What about removing other devices such as camera memory cards and CDs? Do they need to be ejected too? CDs are fine to take out as long as you aren’t burning or writing anything to them. This is because CDs are generally read-only devices that have information recorded once onto them and therefore are almost impervious to corruption. Cameras fall into the same category in that as long as you aren’t transferring pictures when you’re about to take out the memory card, there’s no real risk of data corruption.

USB External hard disk drives, these drives use spinning plates to store data, and the plates require electricity to spin. Sometimes the USB will provide power to the drive, so if you unplug it prematurely, the internal mechanisms don’t have a chance to slowly spin down. This causes unnecessary wear and tear on the drive,

so no matter what operating system you use, Its always safe to eject these drives properly.

Quick Tips to removing your flash drive:

1. Never remove a flash drive while data is being copied to or from it.
2. If you have a Mac or Linux always “eject” the drive before removing it.
3. If you use Windows, I recommend “safely removing” the device, just to be on the safe side.
4. Always safely remove an external hard disk drive to prevent wear and tear.

IT Certifications that could earn you a good Job

Choosing a professional to manage your company’s network, hardware, and software is no easy task.
Most computer certification programs don’t require a college degree, and they can give help-desk professionals and network managers a competitive advantage and an earnings boost. For example, CCNA and PMP lead the way among the top IT certifications.

Below are some of the most popular IT certifications for help desk, systems and networking professionals.

PMP (Project Management Professional)
PMP credential is the most important industry-recognized certification for project managers. Globally recognized and demanded, This recognition demonstrates that you have the experience, education and competency to successfully lead and direct projects.

According to the PMI Salary Survey — Sixth Edition, a PMP increases your salary up to 10% more than your non-credentialed colleagues and peers.

CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate)
The demand for Cisco skills remains strong. Adding Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) expertise to your resume does no harm and helps convince larger organizations, in particular, that you have the knowledge and skills necessary to deploy and troubleshoot Cisco routing and switching hardware.

A+
Adding A+ certification to a resume tells hiring managers and department heads that you have proven support expertise. Whether an organization requires desktop installation, problem diagnosis, preventive maintenance, or computer or network error troubleshooting, many organizations have found A+-certified technicians to be more productive than their noncertified counterparts.

Changes to the A+ certification, which requires passing multiple exams, are aimed at keeping the popular credential relevant. Basic prerequisite requirements are now followed by testing that covers specific fields of expertise (such as IT, remote support, or depot technician). The accreditation is aimed at those working in desktop support, on help desks, and in the field, and while many of these staffers are new to the industry, the importance of an A+ certification should not be overlooked.

Network+ MCP (Microsoft Certified Professional)
We can never denying the fact that IT professionals must know and understand the network principles and concepts that power everything within an organization’s IT infrastructure, whether running Windows, Linux, Apple, or other technologies. Instead of dismissing CompTIA’s Network+ as a baseline accreditation, every IT professional should add it to their resume.

CISSP (Certified Information Systems Security Professional)
The Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) your capable of handling computer security for a company or client. The certification was developed and is maintained by the International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium (ISC²). The exam certifies security professionals in ten different areas:
Access control systems and methodology, Application and systems development security
Business continuity planning & disaster recovery planning, Cryptography Law, investigation, and ethics
Operations security, Physical security, Security architecture and models, Security management practices
Telecommunications and networking security

ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library)
ITIL is the most widely adopted approach for IT Service Management in the world. It provides a practical, no-nonsense framework for identifying, planning, delivering and supporting IT services to the business.

ITIL has its place, particularly in larger environments. RHCP (or Linux+) and VCP have roles within enterprises dependent upon Red Hat/Linux and VMware virtualization technologies certainly, but those organizations remain hit or miss.

MCITP (Microsoft Certified IT Professional)
The world runs on Microsoft. Those professionals earning Microsoft Certified IT Professional (MCITP) certification give employers and clients confidence that they’ve developed the knowledge and skills necessary to plan, deploy, support, maintain, and optimize Windows technologies. Specifically, the Enterprise Desktop Administrator 7 and Server Administrator tracks hold great appeal, as will Enterprise Messaging Administrator 2010, as older Exchange servers are retired in favor of the newer platform.

The writer is a skilled Systems/Network Administrator email to rebizz@gmail.com

My take on Apache vs IIS Webhost

On the wake of Kenyan government websites getting hacked ht.ly/8w3rM It immediately reminded me of the Windows Vs Linux debate that has been going on forever. So does the Apache vs IIS debate.

Apache vs IIS is the hardest decision System Administrators and Web Host Administrators face. And this decision is more than the simple comparison of pros and cons of Apache and IIS. For example, If you go for IIS then you have to use Windows, while if you decided to go for Apache Web Server you have a right to choose between Unix, Linux and even different versions Windows.

When I got out of University, I worked for an ISP, and one of my job descriptions was to handle the Web hosting side of the business. Initially we started out on IIS until later on when we moved to Linux based servers and Apache as a Web server.

Understanding IIS and Apache

Apache

Apache HTTP Server is an open-source Web server that operates on UNIX, Windows, Mac or Netware computers. According to The Apache Foundation, it “has been the most popular web server on the Internet since April 1996.” The current recommended release is 2.2, as of October 2010. This version was principally a security and bug fix release. The Apache Software Foundation has a security team that documents and corrects security bugs and implements fixes.

IIS

Formerly known as Internet Information Server, IIS 7.5 is an integral part of the Microsoft family of servers, currently Windows Server 2008. IIS is not installed by default but is available through “Add and Remove Programs.” Like Apache, Microsoft released IIS to the public in mid-1995. Although Apache has the lead in the general market share, IIS is the preferred Web platform for Fortune 1000 companies.

While both Apache and IIS service HTTP requests, each Web server has its own architecture, built-in features, and common add-ons. Though developed independently, both Web servers provide many of the same features, through either built-in functionality or add-on modules. Both servers support the following functions:

• HTTP request processing

• Authentication

• Access control

• Encryption (SSL)

• Caching

• Web site isolation

• Bandwidth throttling

• Load balancing

• Web frameworks and middleware

• Configuration files and management APIs

• Modular architecture

In solving this questions a systems administrator has to answer the most common questions on performance and scalability, stability setup and maintenance costs, reliability and security

Performance and scalability

Both Apache and IIS 7.0 allow administrators to optimize performance and scalability with bandwidth throttling, compression, and some load balancing. Static and dynamic compressions are built in to IIS 7.0 in order to use bandwidth efficiently and IIS 7.0 also supports bandwidth throttling,

Caching often provides the biggest performance improvement for Web sites, and IIS provides built-in output caching and object caching that can automatically detect when the underlying database has changed. Apache administrators will find that these IIS 7.0 features are similar in functionality to the caching modules that they typically use with Apache.

Setup and Maintenance Costs

If you do your own cost comparisons, you’ll likely find that the total cost of IIS on Windows is the same or less than Apache on Linux.

Apache may be free software, but users should keep in mind that up-front cost is not the only type of price to be paid. Software vendors often market against free software by talking about the total cost of ownership.

I will give you an example, although Apache is free, it does not come with support. Organizations deal with this lack of support in two ways. One method involves paying for support though a Linux subscription such as Red Hat Enterprise Linux or Novell SUSE Linux Enterprise though this might be even more expensive than, Windows licensing.

Another alternative is to support Apache with internal expertise. This means getting highly skilled experts in order to Apache—in some regions these experts are hard to find. In contrast, Windows expertise is relatively common.

Apache records errors in a log file that includes information from the Apache HTTP server and additional information from the relevant modules. Apache also lets users control the amount of information logged, ranging from emergency issues only to verbose debugging information. If users need additional information, they can add such things as mod_log_forensic to capture entire requests.

IIS also logs errors, and Microsoft has focused on ensuring that IIS error messages are understandable and useful. IIS defaults to providing verbose error information on the localhost and a more generic message to remote users to ensure that security information is not remotely disclosed. Error information often includes suggested causes and solutions. IIS also provides Failed Request Tracing, which lets users capture entire requests. Failed Request Tracing lets you set the number of log files to keep, which URLs should be traced, and which response codes should generate a trace. Users can even specify that requests for certain URLs be captured only if those requests take over a certain amount of time to process.

Reliability

Like Apache, IIS has a number of features to help ensure reliable and available operation.

Apache administrators are familiar with using open-source projects like monit to restart Apache based on failed requests, CPU usage, or other factors. IIS also enables administrators to restart the process based on simple configuration options. IIS can monitor and recycle the process based on an apparent crash, elapsed time, total number of requests, amount of memory usage, or other factors. A controlled IIS process “recycle” should not result in any dropped requests.

Because apache is open source bugs are communicated and easily fixed, updates follow the bug fix and this has made apache more reliable.

Security

IIS includes a number of new security features. For example, IIS 7.0 isolates each Web site into its own “sandbox” to help prevent single-site exploits and failures from compromising other sites or the entire server. The IIS process, which executes requests from the web, run as a restricted user account by default, and does not require administrative privileges. To further protect the Web server, IIS 7.0 includes request filtering. Request filtering is a rules-based security module that inspects every incoming request for malicious request patterns, such as SQL injection attacks. This prevents some malicious requests from ever reaching the core Web server.

PHP applications

PHP is one of the most popular server side scripting languages running today. It is used for creating dynamic webpages that interact with the user offering customized information In addition to providing the basic infrastructure for running PHP applications, IIS-specific features are also available for those workloads. For example, you can use IIS authentication mechanisms such as NTLM that integrate with Active Directory. You can use the SQL Server driver for PHP. In addition, PHP applications get the benefit of IIS application pools and sandboxing. PHP also benefits from the performance that IIS Kernel Mode Caching offers. PHP and ASP.NET can be combined for quick development by leveraging certain functionality that ASP.NET provides out of the box, such as Forms Authentication.

Apache is designed so that other programs can be incorporated into it as part of itself, and PHP is designed so that it can be used this way. When the two programs are merged together, the things PHP can do become built-in features of Apache, and PHP is said to be a module of Apache, or an Apache module. While Apache is processing a file, the execution of PHP code to produce the result text is something that it now inherently knows how to do using only the code that’s been built into it.

“According to Netctaft’s Web Server Survey, the percentage of websites using Microsoft’s IIS is rapidly decreasing. Netcraft’s survey covers a total of more than 340 million websites. The percentage of websites using Microsoft IIS has decreased to such an extent that it is now at the level that it was before 1998. Within a one month period between May 2011 and June 2011, Microsoft IIS lost as many as 1.4 million host names while Apache gained 21 million host names. With the market share of Microsoft IIS down to around 16% only, Apache with a market share of around 65% is the only major web server software left.

Although both IIS and Apache are similar in features my take would be Linux and apache given the advantages of running Linux box as compared to windows. but then as a systems administrator you get to be answerable on the platform you pick in case of eventualities like the recent web hacking of government websites. What a tough choice? but then that is why we paid to do what we do.

Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6)

It’s a version of the Internet Protocol (IP). It is designed to succeed the Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4). The Internet operates by transferring data between hosts in small packets that are independently routed across networks as specified by an international communications protocol known as the Internet Protocol.

The growth of the Internet has created a need for more addresses than are possible with IPv4. IPv6 was developed by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) to deal with this long-anticipated IPv4 address exhaustion.

IPv6 implements additional features not present in IPv4. It simplifies aspects of address assignment, network renumbering and router announcements when changing Internet connectivity providers. The IPv6 subnet size has been standardized by fixing the size of the host identifier portion of an address to 64 bits to facilitate an automatic mechanism for forming the host identifier from link layer media addressing information (MAC address). Network security is also integrated into the design of the IPv6 architecture, and the IPv6 specification mandates support for IPsec as a fundamental interoperability requirement.

IPV6 Terminologies The following terminologies are used to define IPv6 concepts and describe IPv6 features:

• Node An IPv6-enabled network device that includes both hosts and routers.

• Host An IPv6-enabled network device that cannot forward IPv6 packets that are not explicitly addressed to itself. A host is an endpoint for IPv6 communications (either the source or destination) and drops all traffic not explicitly addressed to it.

• Router An IPv6-enabled network device that can forward IPv6 packets that are not explicitly addressed to itself. IPv6 routers also typically advertise their presence to IPv6 hosts on their attached links.

• Link One or more LAN (such as Ethernet) or wide area network (WAN, such as Pointto- Point Protocol [PPP]) network segments bounded by routers. Like interfaces, links may be either physical or logical.

• Neighbors Nodes that are connected to the same physical or logical link.

• Subnet One or more links having the same 64-bit IPv6 address prefix.

• Interface A representation of a node’s attachment to a link. This can be a physical interface (such as a network adapter) or a logical interface (such as a tunnel interface).

Understanding Name Queries
Because the dual-layer TCP/IP stack in Windows 7 means that both IPv4 and IPv6 are enabled by default, DNS name lookups by clients running Windows 7 can involve the use of both A and AAAA records. (This is true only if your name servers support IPv6) By default, the DNS client in Windows 7 uses the following procedure when performing a name lookup using a particular interface:

1. The client computer checks to see whether it has a non-link-local IPv6 address assigned to the interface. If it has no non-link-local addresses assigned, the client sends a single name lookup to the name server to query for A records and does not query for AAAA records. If the only non-link-local address assigned to the interface is a Teredo address, the client again does not query for AAAA records. (The Teredo client in Windows Vista and later versions is explicitly built not to automatically perform AAAA lookups or register with DNS to prevent overloading of DNS servers.)

2. If the client computer has a non-link-local address assigned to the interface, the client sends a name lookup to query for A records.

o If the client then receives a response to its query (not an error message), it follows with a second lookup to query for AAAA records.

o If the client receives no response or receives any error message (except for Name Not Found), it does not send a second lookup to query for AAAA records. Note Because an interface on an IPv6 host typically has multiple IPv6 addresses, the process by which source and address selection works during a name query is more complex than when DNS names are resolved by IPv4 hosts.