DDNS --- How to register & configure DDNS on FreeDNS/DD-WRT AP

If we don’t buy any Domain Name and use the dynamic public IP such as ADSL, how to let Internet user access the personal system as website or mail?  Maybe DDNS can resolve this problem because it will automatically update the dynamic public ip so that the dns name will never been changed even after the dynamic ip is changed as AP reboot or power on.

Due to the personal AP with DD-WRT firmware has DDNS feature, I will choose the FreeDNS.afraid.org to register a free DDNS service for me.
How to do it?
Register FreeDNS and create an A record
To create an account on freedns.afraid.org and verify it by activating the received email, we will visit this Web page and click [ Mail Menu] link in left panel.

The signup page will show up. Please key in UserID and password next to click Login button

Click [ Subdomains ] link

Click Add a subdomain link

In the Add a new subdomain diaglog, select a type such as “A”, define a subdomain such as “dwlab”, pick one of the available domains such as “mooo.com(public)”, enter the current WAN IP of AP in the Destination field and leave TTL & Wildcard setting as the default next to click Save! button
So does that the new & free subdomain such as “dwlab.mooo.com” has already been added.

To manually set the DNS for the subdomain to the WAN IP of the AP, please Click [Dynamic DNS] –> Direct URL link

The explorer will be opened. Please select some string as follows mark and copy it to the system’s clip board.

Set up DDNS on AP (# 1)To log in to the DD-WRT AP, select “freedns.afraid.org” as the DDNS service, enter the User Name and Password that belong to the freedns.afraid.org account, enter the full suddomain such as “dwlab.mooo.com” + comma such as “,” + paste the unique udpate token in the Hostname field
Once click Apply Settings button, we can see messages appear that verify the settings are working at the bottom of the DDNS status.

So do that we can ping this subdomain now.

Reference
(# 1)    dd-wrt Dynamic DNS

hMailServer 5.6.4 --- How to install hMailServer with SQL Server 2016 CTP 3.1 on Windows Server 2016 TP4

If we want to find a free, easy setup, email server on windows platform, maybe we can choose an open source product “hMailServer”.
It support the common email protocols as IMAP, SMTP, POP3 and its license is under AGPLv3 (# 1) that it is free in most commercial scenarios.

For using hMailServer, we need to realize what is the system requirements at first next to install/configure/active it.
According to the latest document in hMailServer Official Web, the current version as hMailServer 5.6 can be confirmed on Windows XP with Service Pack 3, Vista, 7, 2003, 2008 and 2012.
It also depends on Database server as built-in a light-weight version of MSSQL or select the other database engine as MySQL 4 or 5, Microsoft 2000 or 2005 or 2008, PostgreSQL 8 by officially being tested.

After installing the SQL Server 2016 CTP 3.1 (# 2), we will download the latest version “hMailServer” from Official Web.

and double click this file so that the setup wizard will pop up. Click Next > to continure for installing hMailServer.

Due to the server and management tool will install on the same computer, we will select all check box next to click Next > button

We will use external database engine so that choose this option next to click Next > button.

To create a folder for allocating the hMailServer component together (# 3) so that define a name next to click Next > button

Please define a password for managing the hMailServer system in the future.

In the installation process, we need to enter this password for initializing hMailServer database at the first time.

In the hMailServer database setup wizard, click Next > button for beginning to create a new hMailServer database now.

To select “Create a new hMailServer database” option next to click Next > button.

Select “Microsoft SQL Server”  option next to click Next > button.

Enter the server connection information as database server address, database name, authentication and so on next to click Next > button

Due to the hMailServer service is dependent on a database service on this compuer, we need to set the hMailServer service dependency as “SQL Server (MSSQLSERVER)(MSSQLSERVER)” for ensuring the database service is running before hMailServer is started.

To click Close button to complete the hMailServer database setup wizard.

Also click Finish button to complete the hMailServer setup wizard and launch “hMailServer Administrator”.

Select the Host name and hMailServer Username next to click Connect button

Of course, need to enter the hMailServer pasword.

Until now, the hMailServer system has already been finished the installation process.

Reference
(# 1)   Affero General Public License & 因應網路時代與雲端應用而生的 AGPL-3.0 授權條款
(# 2)   Install SQL Server 2016 from the Installation Wizard (Setup)
(# 3)   When we do it, the hMailServer executable program will be located under this folder.

Windows Server 2016 --- How to resolve the Edge Browser cannot be explored by Built-in Administrator account on Windows Server 2016 TP4

If we login the built-in Administrator account and navigate Edge Browser on Windows Server 2016 TP4, we will get the error message “Microsoft Edge can’t be opened using the Built-in Administrator account.  Sign in with a different account and try again”

How to get around this message?Open the local security policy on Windows Server 2016 TP4 by typing secpol.msc at the command prompt.

In the local security policy dialog, expand Security Settings –> Local Policy –> Security Options and set the policy “User Account Control Admin Approval Mode for the Built-in Administrator account” to Enabled.

AS-IS

TO-BE

To restart the OS for taking effect the change so that the Edge Browser can be opened by Administrator account now