Most of my website work has involved Linux servers. On a few occasions, however, I’ve been lucky enough to deal with a WordPress Windows installation. A common problem I’ve run in to with the WordPress IIS combination is the all-too-frustrating Update Failed Could Not Create Directory WordPress issue.

The setup I was dealing with was WordPress on an Azure VM running Windows Server 2016 and IIS 10. The WordPress IIS combo isn’t inherently difficult – IIS as a web server plays nicely in my experience. Not as nicely as Apache or NGINX but nice enough. That’s why I was confused when I recently tried to update a WordPress plugin and it failed with the seemingly clear error message of:

An error occurred while updating Yoast SEO Premium: Could not create directory. wordpress-seo-premium/admin/config-ui

The error sounds simple enough – usually that’s a permissions issue. WordPress must not have the proper permissions to create this directory. So I went to the folder and set the correct permissions and the update still failed.

Next attempt at resolving my Could Not Create Directory WordPress problem: check the length of the folder path. As you may recall, Windows used to have this problem with limiting the length of folder and file paths in the file system to somewhere around 260 characters. So I counted the character and the total was less than 200 – nowhere near the magic 260 character limit. Little did I know, I was actually getting very close to solving the problem.

After going through a bunch of iterations where I changed a few factors and tried the upgrade again (all attempts failed), I noticed something…the name of the file being downloaded from Yoast.com was like 7,000 characters long. Which would put me slightly over the 260-character file system limit. At this point I was certain this was not a WordPress IIS issue but more likely a WordPress Windows issue – since 260 characters is a limitation of the Windows Operating System and not IIS.

After Googling “character limit windows file system” I started to feel a little better. As it turns out, Windows Server 2016 (and Windows 10, for that matter) are no longer stuck in the 260-character file system limitation. The trick is, you have to turn the limit OFF. Windows ships with the limit turned ON. How do you do it? You’ll need to edit your registry. If you don’t know how to do this, please visit a site that clearly explains the procedures and risks of doing so. There are risks and you should be very cautious when editing your registry. You’ve been warned!

Here’s the registry key to edit:

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem]

Change LongPathsEnabled from 0 to 1.

After restarting IIS, update was successful and all was well again.

There are other ways to address this issue. See this page on MSDN for alternatives.

I have an iPhone 7 Plus and was having problems installing firmware on the Plantronics Backbeat Fit. The firmware installation process would make it about 40% through, then the headset would disconnect and go through an “Update Interrupted” cycle, over and over again.

Here’s what happened.

Part 1. I installed the PLT Hub and Backbeat FIT apps by Plantronics from the App Store. After the Backbeat FIT connected it immediately explained that I needed to install a firmware update. I followed the instructions – plugged the headset into a charging adapter, which signaled the headset to begin the update process.

Part 2. After a few seconds, the Backbeat FIT app reads, “Downloading Update” with a percent counter steadily increasing. The Backbeat FIT headset itself lights up with magenta color (no red, not blue, but somewhere in between). The light blinks steadily until around 40% complete, when the headset goes dark. There’s a message on the app saying there are just a few moments left and to be patient.

Part 3. About 10 seconds pass and the light comes back on. The message disappears from the app. The counter starts moving up again. It stops about a second later with the message “Update Interrupted.” I assume it lost Bluetooth connectivity so I tried reconnecting, but it won’t reconnect. I don’t hear any response in the earpiece when I try to re-pair the device, but the app says I’ve reconnected. I wait a second or two and it says something about Restoring Update because it didn’t properly install the update last time. This Update Interrupted cycle repeats over and over until you realize you’re defining insanity and start trying different things.

Part 4. THE SOLUTION. On one of the Update Interrupted repetitions I noticed that the headset had an easier time connecting if I pressed the play/pause button. I assume the Backbeat Fit (or the iPhone 7 Plus) disconnects after a certain amount of time, probably to save battery life – unless there is some input that tells the headset (or the phone) to stay connected. So I repeated Part 2 and Part 3 above except when I got to about 35%, I pressed the play/pause button and tapped the iPhone screen to keep the phone from going to sleep. The headset still went dark at 40% – but while it was lights out, I pressed the play/pause button every 5 seconds or so. After the lights came back on, the counter kept going. Every 10% (so at 50%, 60%, etc.) I pressed the play/pause button, and also made sure to tap the screen to keep the phone from going to sleep. The “Update Interrupted” error never happened and the firmware update made it entirely to 100% and completed with no problems.

After it was all done, the magenta light goes out and red and blue alternating lights came on. I unplugged the headset and it works just great.

If this helped you, please feel free to share this article.

I was trying to change the channel with my DIRECTV remote control and it wouldn’t work. Naturally, I swapped out the batteries and tried again. Still nothing. I kept going through my internal troubleshooting checklist until I realized that it was probably time to replace the remote.

A Replacement DIRECTV Remote Control is NOT Expensive

The main reason I wasted my time on my “DIRECTV Remote Control Internal Troubleshooting Checklist” was because I’ve had to replace remote controls before and they were always super expensive. Of course, the last time I actually had one of these break was back in 2001, and anything with a satellite drawn on it anywhere cost a lot of money back then. I figured I was going to be out at least $50 for a new one, but much to my amazement, these are available on Amazon for much less, like 10 times less.

Who Knew There Was So Much to Know About Remote Controls

I had to do some research to fully understand my options. Here’s a pretty good overall guide on ebay. To summarize: these remotes come in an infrared (IR), radio frequency (RF) or both options. Remote controls with IR capability require line-of-sight visibility between the DIRECTV remote control and the DIRECTV receiver. This is the default or most common mode of communication between DIRECTV remotes and receivers. RF remotes will communicate with a receiver that’s around a corner or concealed inside an entertainment center. They are also designed to work with a certain set of DIRECTV receiver model numbers. The ebay article suggests considering used remotes, but the new ones are so inexpensive, why bother?

This is My Remote. There are Many Like It, But This One is Mine.

Eventually I plan to hide my DIRECTV receiver in a cabinet, so I figured I’d want a remote control that offered RF capabilities. From previous experiences I know that RF doesn’t always work that well, so I figured I should get a remote that had both IR and RF. Two is one and one is none, right?

• Here are some model numbers I considered:
  • RC66RX. This is the one I ultimately purchased for my DIRECTV Genie HR44-700. It works like a dream. The “X” at the end of the model number generally means the remote is IR only. The “RX” means the remote will do both RF and IR. The difference between this one and the RC71 (and RC73 below) is that it’s a universal remote that will work with several different devices.
  • RC73. I wasn’t sure if this one worked with my receiver, and it didn’t look anything like the remote I was replacing, so I kept looking. As it turns out, this one may control your TV’s volume and power function, so it’s almost like a universal remote. But not quite.
  • RC73B. This one appears to be backlit (hence the “B” on the end of the model number), which would be nice to have. From what I can tell, it can control multiple devices, so this might have been a better option for me since I like the backlit feature. But since I’m afraid of things that are different, I stuck with the one that looks like what I already have.

Here’s a visual of the different options:


 

Whether you’re an average everyday computer user or a networking equipment installer, no one enjoys looking at the jumbled mass of patch cable encircling your computer equipment, often with three or four feet of patch cable slack wound up and secured with tape, twisties, or velcro bands.

Patch cable frustrations

In fact, all that excess wire might even add a millisecond or two of delay to your data signals reaching their destination. You’ve probably tripped over all that wire a time or two, and we all know what it’s like to try and fish it out when it’s way back behind your computer. You know that end plug thingie (also known as a “termination” or “cable end” or “modular connector“)? Hopefully it doesn’t get its little snaggly tab stuck on another wire in the patch cable mass. Then you’d have to reach back there and get it un-stuck so you can pull it another six inches just to have it get snagged again. Personally, I was tired of this routine and decided to simplify things.

You don’t need all that extra wire

I’m someone who never wants to get caught with too little of something. Electronics are no different; whenever I purchase an Apple product, I become irritated because the included cords and cables eventually prove themselves to be too short for comfort. Whether it was the keyboard on my Mac Pro or the EarPods that came with my iPhone, they always end up about 6 inches too short for comfort. On the other hand, when it comes to cleaning up a server room, a shorter patch cable is almost always better than a long one. At home, I replaced every three-foot long patch cable with a one-foot patch cable. The difference it made was amazing. I can see where all the cables belong and where they go and which devices they’re connected to. I certainly do not miss the other 24 inches of patch cable.

Learn from my bad experiences, and buy the good stuff

You wouldn’t think a dumb patch cable is something to research or something you’d want the best version of, but after I bought a super cheap roll of so-called “Cat 6 Copper Clad Aluminum Cable” (there’s no such thing – CCA doesn’t meet the Cat 6 standard), I decided it was important to always take a second look at my cabling choices before pressing the “Buy Now” button. This is a 10-pack of 1-foot patch cables I purchased based on good Amazon reviews: Cable Matters 10-Pack, Cat6 Snagless Ethernet Patch Cable in Black 1 Foot.

Impressions

Once I received them, I was impressed by the packaging. Each cable was individually sealed, which I like because it gives the impression that these materials were protected from the elements after production and during shipping. After unpackaging each patch cable, of course I tested them with my Klein VDV Scout and they all passed the continuity test.  This patch cable product is 24 AWG stranded copper. They’re pretty stiff for stranded cable but this is a function of their short length, as I’ve also purchased the three-foot equivalent patch cable and it’s pretty flexible.

Way too much about strain-relief boots

These cables have strain-relief boots which are solidly attached to the cabling. I’ve had plenty of generic patch cable products where the strain relief boots just slid down the cable instead of staying in place – totally defeating their main mission in life. This is particularly important for a patch cable product like this because the strain relief boot is integral with the anti-snag cover over the RJ45 locking tab. In other words, if the boot isn’t adjacent to the tab, the tab gets caught on stuff when you’re trying to pull the wire around other wire. The last thing I’ll say about RJ45 locking tabs, in the voice of the “Most Interesting Man in the World“: I don’t always buy pre-terminated patch cable products, but when I do, I buy snagless because the strain relief boot also keeps the locking tabs from folding over on themselves and eventually breaking off and rendering the RJ45 connector 95% useless.

Uses for shorty cables

Some handy uses for a pre-terminated RJ45 patch cable in a 1-foot length:

• Connecting your router directly to your cable modem or DSL modem, since most people keep these items right next to each other.
• If your equipment is mounted in a server rack, a 1-foot patch cable is perfect for connecting your switch to your patch panel or any of your other nearby rack-mounted networking equipment.
• A lot of offices have switch to Voice-Over-IP (VOIP) phones. A shorty patch cable can get rid of a bunch of excess cabling on your desk if you’re lucky enough to have a data port above your desktop or in your worksurface.
• Remember that Klein tester I mentioned earlier? Guess what: it doesn’t come with a little tiny patch cable. So if you just terminated some ports in a wall plate, you have to run around and find a shorty to run between your tester and the wall. Or, you could save some time and keep a 1-footer in the case with your tester.

If you’re interested in knowing which contracts were awarded to US federal government contractors, there’s an app for that. Actually, there are several. Here’s the first one: https://www.fpds.gov/fpdsng_cms/index.php/en. Once you get there, just type the vendor name into the “ezSearch” box.

FOIA Request Not Required

There was a time when you had to file a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to get contract award data from the US Federal Government. Now you can simply go to the Federal Procurement Data System – Next Generation and perform a search using an interface similar to any leading commercial search engine. You can search by the name of the government contractors, the name of the contract or project, and a whole host of other procurement data.

FPDS is Not Your Only Source for Data About US Federal Government Contractors

Check out some of these sites. Not all of them list data specific to individual vendors, but the links are still useful and relevant to the topic of this article:

• USASpending.gov is a site established pursuant to the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006. You can search for specific government contractors by typing their name into the “SEARCH FOR A RECIPIENT” box.
• Data.gov is the US federal government’s data catalog, with information regarding just about any topic. The referenced link is to a search by keyword “contractor”. You’ll may come across some datasets that include specific government contractors, but its main benefit is the dozens of aggregate data sets.
• The Schedule Sales Query (SSQ) provides access to sales and other data provided to the General Services Administration (GSA) by government contractors on the Federal Supply Schedule (FSS). Follow the links to the Schedules e-Library and you can view the services offered by vendors through their listings on the FSS.

Happy hunting and be sure to check out some of the other Resources available at AJGK5.

Recently I purchased a Samsung SSD and ran into an SSD installation problem. What’s SSD, you may ask? SSD stands for “solid state drive,” a faster version of a standard hard drive that has no moving parts to break.  As successor to the Samsung 840 EVO, the Samsung 850 EVO is very similar but features 3D V-NAND and a five-year warranty compared to the three-year warranty of the 840 EVO. I decided on this 500GB SSD because I wasn’t ready to part with my older Dell Precision T3500 and figured a faster primary hard drive would extend the service life another couple of years until I can afford to replace it. I also needed faster load times on my Creative Cloud apps because it drives me crazy to wait for one app to open when I’m inspired creatively in another app.

We couldn’t create a new partition or locate an existing one. For more information, see the setup log files.

Usually SSD installation is pretty straightforward but this one wasn’t quite that simple. Normally I would power down the computer, install the SSD, turn the computer back on and access the boot device menu. Then I would select the DVD-ROM drive or USB storage volume (whichever was serving as the installation media) to boot from, and it would boot into the Windows 10 installation screen. From there it was always a simple matter of partitioning the new SSD and allowing the Windows 10 installation media to install the operating system on the new drive.

This time, however, my standard method didn’t work. I tried various other methods and all I kept getting was “We couldn’t create a new partition or locate an existing one. For more information, see the setup log files.” This was particularly frustrating because one day earlier I installed a Crucial MX300 750GB SSD in an ASUS notebook and the installation went seamlessly. So I went opposite of my instincts and actually read the instructions.

To solve my SSD installation problem, I *wait for it* followed the instructions

The instructions say to take the SATA-to-USB adapter that is NOT INCLUDED (you have one of these, right? I didn’t…so clearly I was annoyed even further at this point…), connect it to your new SSD, then plug it into the computer you’re planning to install it in. Insert the installation CD (hopefully your machine actually has an optical drive-lots of computers don’t even come with these anymore) and install the included Samsung Magician and Data Migration software.


Follow the instructions and Samsung Magician will clone your existing drive onto your new SSD. Power down, install your new SSD, and boot back up. This worked! SSD installation problem solved. Not as seamless as I’d hoped, but it worked nonetheless.

The Samsung 850 EVO is performing well as expected. All my apps start instantaneously and the cloned Windows 10 operating system is, surprisingly, working flawlessly. This cloning procedure when upgrading hard drives is not endorsed by Microsoft. I’ve never had any luck cloning a running Windows OS because cloning software (especially free stuff produced by the hardware manufacturer) has a hard time unlocking and accessing system files in use by the active OS. I was pleasantly surprised, to say the least. With that said, I did have some complaints about this whole ordeal:

1. Not everyone wants to clone their existing operating system. I wanted to do a clean install of Windows 10 and I couldn’t because none of the interwebs-endorsed methods of getting the Windows 10 installer to recognize the SSD succeeded. The only successful method of solving my SSD installation problem was cloning my old operating system onto the new SSD.
2. Not everyone has a SATA-to-USB adapter laying around. After digging around in the garage, it turns out I did have an old adapter available but it was pulled from an ancient LaCie portable hard drive. This adapter failed because the Samsung Magician software didn’t recognize the 850 EVO because the adapter made it look like a generic portable USB storage device. It wouldn’t clone anything to the SSD because it wasn’t a Samsung 850 EVO.
3. Because I didn’t have the correct SATA-to-USB adapter, I had to install the SSD into the T3500 as a third hard drive. Not a problem except that I had already installed it in place of the primary drive, Windows 10 installer didn’t recognize it, so I swapped the old drive back where the SSD had just been freshly installed in order to try the cloning procedure in the instructions. Since this is a 2.5-inch drive being installed in a desktop, I have a 2.5-3.5 inch converter mounting kit installed on the SSD. That had to come off so I could try putting my SATA-to-USB adapter on. Once I figured out that wouldn’t work, I reinstalled the converter mounting kit, reinstalled the SSD back into the computer, rebooted, and tried cloning again.
4. The instructions make it look like the 850 EVO is supposed to come with a SATA-to-USB adapter and the bare minimum mounting hardware (screws). It did not come with any of that. The instructions are beautifully simplistic in the spirit of IKEA directions, but even IKEA gives you the screws and widgets necessary to assemble your NORNÄS.