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Emory University SCCM Server Accidentally Reformats All Computers Campus-wide

acidradio writes: "Somehow the SCCM application and image deployment server at Emory University in Atlanta accidentally started to repartition, reformat then install a new image of Windows 7 onto all university-managed computers. By the time this was discovered the SCCM server had managed to repartition and reformat itself. This was likely an accident. But what if it weren't? Could this have shed light on a possibly huge vulnerability in large enterprise organizations that rely heavily on automated software deployment packages like SCCM?"

564 comments

  1. Cool by rossdee · · Score: 5, Funny

    Sounds like a good way to get rid of Malware

    1. Re:Cool by TemperedAlchemist · · Score: 1

      inb4 the whole system was compromised

    2. Re:Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Unfortunately, SCCM also supports Linux and Mac OSX clients. I wonder whether it tried to install Windows 7 on them also? Users would be really pissed to discover their Mac/Linux box was now lurching under Windows...

    3. Re:Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Sounds like a good way to get rid of Malware

      What? By installing Windows?

    4. Re:Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That is the definition of MALWARE!!

    5. Re:Cool by _Shad0w_ · · Score: 2

      Only if their machine was part of the University's Active Directory infrastructure, as far as I know. Just being on the same network wouldn't be enough.

      --

      Yeah, I had a sig once; I got bored of it.

    6. Re: Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      I worked at Emory for years and I have no doubts this was sheer incompetence not sabotage.

    7. Re:Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      SCCM supports PXE, so anything on the network with the capability to boot from the network may have received a stock Windows image. Hopefully they had the network properly VLANed, or it may very well have tried to reformat students' personal computers.

    8. Re:Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This is the very example needed to illustrate why "re-imaging" machines should not be done without a confirmation by the user of the machine.

      I'd really hate to come to work one day and see that all the stuff I've been working on has been lost... because we were supposed to save it to the H (home) drive on the server that... also got wiped.

      And speaking from experience, this is exactly what happens at call centers as well. When Microsoft rolls out a patch tuesday, they test it and then have all the machines re-imaged when the user logs off.

    9. Re:Cool by Knightman · · Score: 1

      AFIK the heterogeneous client on Linux/Mac only handle installation/removal/inventory/monitoring of applications and not pre-loading of a complete OS.

      Of course, this may have changed since I last worked with it but there are some inherent problems to get that to work under Linux/Mac et al.

      --
      --- Reality doesn't care about your opinions, it happens anyway and if you are in the way you'll get squished.
    10. Re:Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Also a good way to violate license restrictions.

      Installing Windows on a system not licensed for Windows could easily bring the BSA down on you...

      And a huge expense.

    11. Re:Cool by thunderclap · · Score: 0

      SCCM supports PXE, so anything on the network with the capability to boot from the network may have received a stock Windows image. Hopefully they had the network properly VLANed, or it may very well have tried to reformat students' personal computers.

      I am sorry but that would be awesome. Just image the amount of co[y infringed porn, music and movies erased from existence. To who ever did this hack, I bow to your prowess. Even if this was an accident its just epic in its scope. I will laugh about this all day. And to the IT person at Emory who has to restore everything, sucks to be you. Had to say it.

    12. Re:Cool by Jeremiah+Cornelius · · Score: 0
      Microsoft?

      "Ha ha!"

      --
      "Flyin' in just a sweet place,
      Never been known to fail..."
    13. Re:Cool by Caedite+Eos · · Score: 1

      The evil you know ...

    14. Re: Cool by Noah+Haders · · Score: 4, Funny

      I like to think it was the SCCM server itself that said fuck you all I've had enough. I'm pushing the red button and we're all going down.

    15. Re:Cool by Anne+Thwacks · · Score: 1
      I'd really hate to come to work one day and see that all the stuff I've been working on has been lost..

      What no tape backup?

      --
      Sent from my ASR33 using ASCII
    16. Re:Cool by camperdave · · Score: 5, Insightful

      No, capability isn't enough. The student's personal computer still needs to be configured to PXE boot before hitting other boot sources. Even that wouldn't be enough. Something has to trigger a reboot. So, if the machine's boot order has PXE before hard drive, and has Wake on LAN configured, AND is powered off as opposed to merely sleeping or hibernating, then it *MIGHT* be affected. However Wake on LAN requires that the MAC address of the target computer be known by the issuer of the Wake on LAN command, the SCCM server in this case. The odds of all these prerequisites being in place for a student's personal computer is remote in the extreme.

      --
      When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
    17. Re:Cool by R.Mo_Robert · · Score: 1

      This is the very example needed to illustrate why "re-imaging" machines should not be done without a confirmation by the user of the machine.

      I'd really hate to come to work one day and see that all the stuff I've been working on has been lost... because we were supposed to save it to the H (home) drive on the server that... also got wiped.

      The SCCM server was wiped. The chances of that being the same server as the file server for H: is pretty low, and we don't know if that server was reimaged (though the advertisement was sent). In any case, all these servers were clearly backed up, so you would not have lost anything by putting it on H:, even if the relevant server was affected.

      --
      R.Mo
    18. Re:Cool by R.Mo_Robert · · Score: 1

      SCCM supports Linux and OS X clients, but as far as I know it does not support the deployment of task sequences to such clients. A task sequence is what you need to deploy an operating system using SCCM. So, the Linux and OS X boxen were likely spared (unless, by any chance, they deployed it for boot media in addition to SCCM clients and the user happened to insert and boot from SCCM boot media during this time, I guess).

      --
      R.Mo
    19. Re:Cool by mikael · · Score: 4, Interesting

      That's what some universities actually do. They have a custom built dual-boot OS partition image (Linux + Windows) will all the standard applications that have been licensed and required for lab use (Mathematica, Microsoft Word, Firefox, Opera). This image gets stomped onto the drive of every idle system every night. So even if some spyware installs itself overnight, it gets overwritten.

      --
      Vintage computer adverts: http://www.vintageadbrowser.com/computers-and-software-ads
    20. Re:Cool by KevMar · · Score: 1

      I know you are joking, but it would not be a bad idea.

      Lets say you add application virtualization, redirect files to the network, and roam user settings. It would be possible to reimage at will. Change our first question from "did you turn it off and back on again?" to "Did you redeploy the operating system yet?". If only it was that easy.

      --
      Im a gamer, not a grammer major. This post is full of spelling and grammer mistakes.
    21. Re:Cool by davester666 · · Score: 2

      No, it reinstalled Windows 7, so the malware was not removed.

      --
      Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!
    22. Re:Cool by RabidReindeer · · Score: 3, Funny

      What no tape backup?

      Look at all the money we saved!

    23. Re:Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Told y'all Windows was a virus... here's the proof!

    24. Re:Cool by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      Installing Windows on a system not licensed for Windows could easily bring the BSA down on you

      Crap, those Boy Scouts of America are nothin' to mess with!

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    25. Re:Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Emory's license (typical of large enterprises) allows them to install as many copies of any MS OS as they want

    26. Re:Cool by Skuld-Chan · · Score: 2

      OSD is only supported on Windows. (source: I'm a CM 2012 admin).

    27. Re:Cool by Skuld-Chan · · Score: 1

      I should clarify - there's two ways to image a PC with CM 2012 (formerly SCCM) - if the deployment is setup this way: via PXE or via the agent. Linux and Mac clients don't support task sequence deployments.

    28. Re:Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The SCCM server was wiped. The chances of that being the same server as the file server for H: is pretty low, and we don't know if that server was reimaged...

      What part of "all university-managed computers" don't you understand?

    29. Re: Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It must have been all like : "Would you like to play a game?"

    30. Re: Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You just ruined the made for TV movie

    31. Re:Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Couldn't you use a program like netscan to identify and gather MAC addresses?

    32. Re: Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It was *sent* to all computers. It doesn't mean they all started (and finished) doing so, which is why I said what I did if you read my comment. Also, it's still largely irrelevant in light of the backups they had for this user who wants to think his hard drive would have been better (it still wouldn't).

    33. Re:Cool by bkcallahan · · Score: 1

      We use Casper for OS X at my place.

    34. Re: Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm pushing the red button and we're all going down.

      I too worked at Emory, and your mention of "pushing the red button" reminds me of a great Emory true story.

      Next to the exit from the comms room in NDB was an emergency kill switch...a bright red, fist-size button, clearly marked "DO NOT PRESS".

      You can guess the rest.

    35. Re:Cool by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      Unless they advertised the task sequence to the unknown computers collection, no policies would have been available to any non-managed computers that joined the network, so they wouldn't have done anything.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
    36. Re:Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually you're completely wrong. SCCM, AKA ConfigMgr, has control over all aspects. In their case they pushed an image out clients - everything with Active Directory is a client. If the system were off, ConfigMgr does have the capability to WOL a system if told to do so. Reality is no one cares much about the workstations - the servers are far more important and are always on.

    37. Re:Cool by L4t3r4lu5 · · Score: 1

      It is. I don't do it every night, but I do it regularly. Also cleans up temporary files, logs, other file system clutter. A robust deployment scheme can save masses of heartache.

      --
      Finally had enough. Come see us over at https://soylentnews.org/
    38. Re: Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So, they can blame you....since you say "worked" it means that you no longer work there...and that they got rid of you - likely for incompetence.

    39. Re:Cool by Phreakiture · · Score: 1

      It also sounds like a good way to "accidentally" eliminate some "uncomfortable" research.

      --
      www.wavefront-av.com
    40. Re:Cool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't think that the Linux/Mac clients support OSD, so those machines were probably safe.

    41. Re:Cool by camperdave · · Score: 1

      You're missing the point. Why would any student's personal computer be registered with the SCCM in the first place?

      --
      When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
    42. Re: Cool by dysmal · · Score: 1

      I'm sure anyone who has worked in higher education would agree with you.

  2. backups by Wonda · · Score: 2

    Time to test those backups!

    1. Re:Backups by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It did say this happened on all university managed computers; my professor's computer is not managed by the university, nor is mine. Our data would be OK.

    2. Re:Backups by jc42 · · Score: 2

      ... my professor's computer is not managed by the university, nor is mine. Our data would be OK.

      I hope you verified this before posting. ;-)

      Since a reformat and reinstall was done, the permissions involved were presumably handled at a lower level (BIOS?) than the installed OS. So it could easily have hit any Intel-based machines accessible via the network. Such low-level operations are rarely done by software that understands subtleties like ownership and organizational structures.

      It might be interesting to know whether non-Windows and/or non-centrally-managed machines were affected by this event. So far, comments on the topic sound like guesses or conjectures or assumptions based on reasonability; i.e., i nteresting, but probably not reliable information.

      --
      Those who do study history are doomed to stand helplessly by while everyone else repeats it.
    3. Re: backups by mordjah · · Score: 1

      Just ask the new to send the most recent... backups... of the affected machines.. isn't that what the national storage administration is for?

      --
      "A mind reader? That sounds like sci fi." "Honey, we live on a space ship"
    4. Re: backups by mordjah · · Score: 1

      Fucking beta.. National Storage Archive....

      --
      "A mind reader? That sounds like sci fi." "Honey, we live on a space ship"
    5. Re:Backups by thunderclap · · Score: 1

      Bad news most likely on this front. I have worked University IT, and I can guarantee they are going to have problems.

      For one, no matter how many layers of backups you have, when you are working with a bunch of 90 year old academics, they will always find a way to miss every single one.

      And more grievous, Universities tend to have important data that absolutely cannot be backed up in any normal way. Data that is legally obligated to stay on one specific computer in one specific room and never leave; under penalty of legal action.

      That level of insanity is why I am laughing. The bold parts specifically. When you allow people who have no clue how a system works to legislate how it works, you get this.

    6. Re:Backups by EvilSurfinCow · · Score: 1

      Most likely if it was advertised to a "All Windows Machines" collection, then only computers in that collection would have been it.

      The task sequence was most likely configured to be mandatory/assigned and thus initiated automatically with little to no intervention.

      If that collection included the "unknown computers" collection then if those machines PXE booted and PXE support was enabled, then those could have been hit as well.

      The safest way to advertise a task sequence is to the Unknown Computers collection, (or a collection specifically for imaging) and not make the advertisement mandatory. There are reasons to advertise it to a collection with computers, one being that you can re-image a computer without having to remove it from ConfigManager (since you are advertising to UNKNOWN computers). This is really handy especially for the guys doing the re/imaging of computers. Saves a lot of time.

      But as we see here, there is a huge danger. You can reduce the threat by advertising the task sequence to only media and PXE.. that prevents it from showing up on production workstation. You can also configure the advertisement to only run on an OS you don't have in production, again, making the advertisement optional rather than mandatory helps too. But there are situations where you do need to have it mandatory so extra caution applies.

      I've not worked with deploying a task sequences to running computers, but you can do them where they will copy the users files offline. Then the boot image is downloaded and the system reboots to that and performs the wipe, install, etc. Then once the system is back up, it copies the users files back (for something like xp to 7 upgrades)

      SCCM is a great tool, but like any great tool, it can do great bad if you are not careful. Happened to this company a few years ago. http://delimiter.com.au/2012/0...

      btw, here are the steps you should follow should you be lucky enough to experience it :)
      http://blogs.technet.com/b/system_center_configuration_manager_operating_system_deployment_support_blog/archive/2011/10/27/how-to-remediate-an-incorrectly-deployed-osd-task-sequence-in-system-center-configuration-manager-2007.aspx/

    7. Re:Backups by captbob2002 · · Score: 1

      ...Universities tend to have important data that absolutely cannot be backed up in any normal way. Data that is legally obligated to stay on one specific computer in one specific room and never leave; under penalty of legal action.

      Hate this. Why keep the data where it can be encrypted and backed-up? Why keep it in a secure location as opposed to the Primary Investigator's (PI) office? Gah.

    8. Re:Backups by DaphneDiane · · Score: 1

      Data that is legally obligated to stay on one specific computer in one specific room and never leave; under penalty of legal action.

      That level of insanity is why I am laughing. The bold parts specifically. When you allow people who have no clue how a system works to legislate how it works, you get this.

      And sometimes they understand and it's intentionally awkward. For example if you want to prohibit certain types of research instead of just legislating directly against it and appearing anti-science, just add a whole bunch of red-tape and difficult requirements. Bonus points if they appear to have a pseudo-valid alternate purpose such as increasing data security. Consider how the restrictions on steam cell research were implemented.

    9. Re:Backups by wisnoskij · · Score: 1

      Privacy, even the IT admin cannot have access, and no system IT breach should leave it vulnerable.

      This way, yes it is a pain in the ass and easy to lose, but for someone to leak it it requires someone to be in the room in person (and there is no copy paste all confidential reports to some thumb drive, as the confidential stuff is stored in different ways in different rooms all over campus).

      --
      Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.
    10. Re:Backups by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I did research in a lab on schizophrenic peoples.

      To film of those peoples you had to select a privacy commissioner , gave him the sole access to a safe. After filming a person you would, gave your tapes to your commissioner, request the drive, go wait for him in front of a locked a room with a computer, have him unlock the door , give you the hard drive, the tapes wait for him tho go away. Transfer the tapes to the disk, fill paperwork about the nature of the video, call the commissioner back, have him destroy the tapes, lock up the hard drive into the safe.
      To use the footage you had to request access by filling some more paperwork ...

    11. Re:Backups by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And more grievous, Universities tend to have important data that absolutely cannot be backed up in any normal way. Data that is legally obligated to stay on one specific computer in one specific room and never leave; under penalty of legal action.

      That level of insanity is why I am laughing. The bold parts specifically. When you allow people who have no clue how a system works to legislate how it works, you get this.

      On my campus, requirements like this were imposed by the credit card companies following a network breach that compromised every student who had ever used a credit card to pay tuition online. The CC companies basically said, either you can implement these policies, including to have the payment system accessible from only 3 terminals, each of which had independent 24/7 video surveillance, or you can go back to paying tuition by check and mail.

    12. Re:backups by Gothmolly · · Score: 3, Funny

      That's what RAID-5 is for, jeez.

      --
      I want to delete my account but Slashdot doesn't allow it.
    13. Re:Backups by BitterOak · · Score: 1

      I hope you verified this before posting. ;-)

      Since a reformat and reinstall was done, the permissions involved were presumably handled at a lower level (BIOS?) than the installed OS. So it could easily have hit any Intel-based machines accessible via the network

      If what you're saying were true, then every Windows computer in the world that's on the Internet would be vulnerable to one hacker sending out a format command.

      --
      If I can be modded down for being a troll, can I be modded up for being an orc, or a balrog?
    14. Re:backups by RabidReindeer · · Score: 2

      That's what RAID-5 is for, jeez.

      Um, you do know that RAID is designed to protect against hardware errors and can do nothing if a command is given at the OS level to write over stuff, don't you?

    15. Re:Backups by frisket · · Score: 1

      Bad news most likely on this front. I have worked University IT, and I can guarantee they are going to have problems.

      For one, no matter how many layers of backups you have, when you are working with a bunch of 90 year old academics, they will always find a way to miss every single one.

      And more grievous, Universities tend to have important data that absolutely cannot be backed up in any normal way. Data that is legally obligated to stay on one specific computer in one specific room and never leave; under penalty of legal action.

      That level of insanity is why I am laughing. The bold parts specifically. When you allow people who have no clue how a system works to legislate how it works, you get this.

      You have no idea what you are talking about. Restrictions like these are usually imposed by the legal IT people in the funding agency that funds the research, and they do very much understand exactly what they are doing (there are plenty of people in these agencies who are clueless, but the legal IT people are usually pretty good). Or suppose the project was doing research for the cops into identifying the makers of child porn; believe me that stuff would be locked down REAL tight.

    16. Re:backups by ls671 · · Score: 1

      I assume the guy was making a joke, +1 funny

      --
      Everything I write is lies, read between the lines.
    17. Re:backups by msauve · · Score: 1

      Whoosh.

      --
      "National Security is the chief cause of national insecurity." - Celine's First Law
    18. Re:Backups by thunderclap · · Score: 1

      Bad news most likely on this front. I have worked University IT, and I can guarantee they are going to have problems.

      For one, no matter how many layers of backups you have, when you are working with a bunch of 90 year old academics, they will always find a way to miss every single one.

      And more grievous, Universities tend to have important data that absolutely cannot be backed up in any normal way. Data that is legally obligated to stay on one specific computer in one specific room and never leave; under penalty of legal action.

      That level of insanity is why I am laughing. The bold parts specifically. When you allow people who have no clue how a system works to legislate how it works, you get this.

      You have no idea what you are talking about. Restrictions like these are usually imposed by the legal IT people in the funding agency that funds the research, and they do very much understand exactly what they are doing (there are plenty of people in these agencies who are clueless, but the legal IT people are usually pretty good). Or suppose the project was doing research for the cops into identifying the makers of child porn; believe me that stuff would be locked down REAL tight.

      You didn't understand the comment. I was referring to congress making laws. (federal, state what have you). Good IT people won;t be good lawyers anymore than good lawyers would be good IT people. You can't do both today there simply isnt enough hours in the day. As for pulling out the tired cp red herring, is it illegal to store and transmit CP on ANY computer? Yes it is. Georgia: House Bill 76 - Prohibits online transmission of fighting words, obscene or vulgar speech to minors, and information related to terrorist acts and certain dangerous weapons. 3/95 Signed into law.

      See United States v. Williams, 444 F.3d 1286, 1291 (11th Cir. 2006) (“In Stanley v. Georgia, [394 U.S. 557 (1969),] the Court held that privacy interests protect the right to possess obscene materials in one’s own home, but subsequently clarified [in United States v. Orito, 413 U.S. 139, 141 (1973)] that this sanction does not extend to the distribution or receipt of obscenity, which may be regulated on interstate commerce grounds even if the transportation is for the recipient’s personal use.

      Here's what you need to know:
      1. Anyone over 17 can be charged as an adult in Georgia.
      2. Anyone over 18 can be charged federally.
      3. Pictures can be child pornography even though the sender is the person in the picture, so long as the person in the picture is under 18.
      4. Transmission via a cell phone can be prosecuted federally, but doesn't have to be.
      5. Much like statutory rape, the fact that the "victim" was an equal participant is no defense for the other participant.
      6. A conviction could result in serious prison time and a LIFETIME as a registered sex offender.

      Lets not play these games. You knew what I meant and wanted to be pendantic.

    19. Re:backups by philip.paradis · · Score: 1

      So we're all absolutely certain you understand the "whoosh" notes you've received, the GP was obviously making a humorous reference to the old expression RAID is not a backup. HTH, HAND.

      --
      Write failed: Broken pipe
    20. Re:backups by RabidReindeer · · Score: 1

      So we're all absolutely certain you understand the "whoosh" notes you've received, the GP was obviously making a humorous reference to the old expression RAID is not a backup. HTH, HAND.

      But that's what my firewall is for!

    21. Re:backups by philip.paradis · · Score: 1

      That's the spirit. :)

      --
      Write failed: Broken pipe
    22. Re:Backups by L4t3r4lu5 · · Score: 1

      If your PC is directly connected to the internet then yes, technically it is possible. It would, however, mean that you would need to power off your PC, your ISP would need to pass the attacker's server IP address to your client as a PXE service, and you'd need to instruct your PC to boot from LAN by default.

      If you're behind a consumer router, though, they're SOOL; Your internal NAT IP address is not routable from the internet.

      --
      Finally had enough. Come see us over at https://soylentnews.org/
    23. Re:backups by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's what RAID-5 is for, jeez.

      Um, you do know that RAID is designed to protect against hardware errors and can do nothing if a command is given at the OS level to write over stuff, don't you?

      there's always some guy out there who has to be obnoxious and ruin the joke with a post like this...

    24. Re:backups by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's what RAID-5 is for, jeez.

      RAID-5? With the size of hard drives these days, you really want RAID-6 or better.

    25. Re:Backups by dbIII · · Score: 1

      Your internal NAT IP address is not routable from the internet.

      That only keeps out the good guys. The term you should google is "NAT traversal exploit".
      NAT is not security, however often it's supplied by the same box that does real firewalling so that fools people into thinking it does.

    26. Re:Backups by dbIII · · Score: 1

      Normally it's a condition of sale. They know what they are doing and they don't care if it creates difficulties for others.

    27. Re:Backups by dbIII · · Score: 1

      You didn't understand the comment. I was referring to congress making laws

      Sticking to terms of contracts is also legally binding so I don't think the above poster is doing the misunderstanding.

    28. Re:Backups by L4t3r4lu5 · · Score: 1

      Correct me if I'm wrong, but won't that require session intiation from the client? Pretty much every home router I've encountered has been set as deny-inbound by default, though that might just be for the SPI features.

      Still, NAT is security through obscurity, which is not security at all. It's just an added bonus that you're not routable by default.

      --
      Finally had enough. Come see us over at https://soylentnews.org/
    29. Re:Backups by dbIII · · Score: 1

      Correct me if I'm wrong, but won't that require session intiation from the client?

      That's firewalling and you can get that at the router whether you have NAT or not - it has nothing to do with NAT.

    30. Re:backups by Bacon+Bits · · Score: 1

      Pretty sure it was a joke.

      Many managers and business owners mistake fault tolerance for disaster recovery (and vice-versa).

      --
      The road to tyranny has always been paved with claims of necessity.
  3. SCCM server reformats itself? by Rick+Zeman · · Score: 5, Funny

    Kind of sounds like a snake eating its tail....

    1. Re:SCCM server reformats itself? by jon3k · · Score: 2

      Someone must have pressed the Ouroboros button.

    2. Re:SCCM server reformats itself? by marcello_dl · · Score: 2

      The server didn't merely reformat itself. He installed *windows*.
      It's obviously a murder-suicide case.

      --
      ---- MISSING MISCELLANEOUS DATA SEGMENT --- [sigdash] trolololol
    3. Re: SCCM server reformats itself? by corychristison · · Score: 1

      Honestly it sounds more like it wasn't a mistake, and something malicious if the server reformatted itself. To, you know, cover your tracks.

    4. Re: SCCM server reformats itself? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It noticed it was flawed so it executed the prime function.

    5. Re: SCCM server reformats itself? by sg_oneill · · Score: 1

      Honestly it sounds more like it wasn't a mistake, and something malicious if the server reformatted itself. To, you know, cover your tracks.

      "All computers reformat NOW"

      Is the server itself not a computer?

      Its nightmare fuel for IT guys.

      --
      Excuse the Unicode crap in my posts. That's an apostrophe, and slashdot is busted.
    6. Re: SCCM server reformats itself? by MrBigInThePants · · Score: 1

      lol.

      Never attribute to conspiracy that which can be explained by sheer stupidity. You will find the latter is FAR and away more common.

          - Me

    7. Re: SCCM server reformats itself? by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      No, if you were to foolishly target the OSD advertisement to "All Systems", the CM agent on the server would happily start the task sequence on itself. On the plus side, once the WDS servers with the boot.wim file are offline, the rest of the fleet would cease reimaging as they would not be able to get the boot image from the TFTP server.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
  4. Configuration deplorement by K.+S.+Kyosuke · · Score: 4, Funny

    The configuration deployment server apparently upgraded itself into a configuration deplorement server.

    --
    Ezekiel 23:20
    1. Re:Configuration deplorement by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Shouldn't have called apk names and run KSKyosucky!

  5. Did the backup and restore work? by tqft · · Score: 1

    Be interesting to know how much actual data was lost

    --
    The Singularity is closer than you think
    Quant
    1. Re:Did the backup and restore work? by Fuzzums · · Score: 0

      Are you telling me you still keep all your data on your C-Drive instead of an other partition, an other drive or NAS or even on a cloud?

      --
      Privacy is terrorism.
    2. Re:Did the backup and restore work? by wisnoskij · · Score: 2, Informative

      This is University. Based on my experience with University IT, there will be loads and loads of important data that you are legally obligated to NOT do that to. It cannot leave one specific room, in any form.

      Normally, the computers are still contacted to the network and the Internet, but everyone using them must know NOT to copy any of these files off of C.

      --
      Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.
    3. Re:Did the backup and restore work? by scottbomb · · Score: 2

      So there are laws which dictate which hard drives and/or appliances store data relative to the OS? They can still be in the same room if that's the concern but if there are laws that actually say "x, y, and z must be stored on the same partition as the operating system" then I say they get what they deserve and perhaps those laws need to be re-examined.

    4. Re:Did the backup and restore work? by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 1

      People may keep big files local and the servers where also being formed and trying to install windows 7 as well.

    5. Re:Did the backup and restore work? by Blaskowicz · · Score: 1

      Even if you have a D: drive it's possible that the "recovery" wipes everything out or at least the partition table.

    6. Re:Did the backup and restore work? by Fuzzums · · Score: 2

      That would be silly.
      It would be as silly as... wiping all the computers of an entire university ;)

      --
      Privacy is terrorism.
    7. Re:Did the backup and restore work? by Blaskowicz · · Score: 1

      Even more terrifying is that it's the standard procedure for OEM PCs (laptops, but not only them) and the grandma / joe / jane user is told to do that if they call the tech support.
      I remember such a story by a slashdot commenter, or elsewhere.. an aging lady came short of losing all she had written in the past four monthes painstakingly since getting a computer, but thanskfully the nerd son or nephew saved the day at the last minute. Customer tech support makes you delete all your data if you're problem is any more complicated than "I lowered my task bar and can't get it back" - even then, I'm not sure they would fix that one.
       

    8. Re:Did the backup and restore work? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Off of C:?! Why the hell are you storing data on the system disk?! WTF?

  6. Centralized Control... by mhkohne · · Score: 2

    The problem with centralized control is that the center can give any commands it wants...

    --
    A thousand pounds of wood moving at 300 feet per minute. Don't get in the way.
    1. Re:Centralized Control... by lagomorpha2 · · Score: 1

      The problem with centralized control is that the center can give any commands it wants...

      Somebody probably should have told that to the Bolsheviks...

    2. Re:Centralized Control... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They did , just very few people actually obeyed them.

    3. Re:Centralized Control... by Old+Fatty+Baldman · · Score: 0

      A long time ago I worked in a place that had a lab full of test machines and a team web server, which were on adjacent shelves. About once every year or so, they would hire a new contractor and say, "those are your test boxes over there," then be utterly shocked when he flattened the web server later that day. Switching from SCCM to a guy with sneakers and a LiveCD isn't a magic bullet.

    4. Re:Centralized Control... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well at least we know this was not a beta test by Chinese/Russian/NSA hackers to be used later on to take down a corporation. Calm down, nobody is comparing this to STUXNET for corporations.

    5. Re:Centralized Control... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The problem with centralized control is that the center can give any commands it wants...

      Much like driving a car, shit happens.

      This is why you have things like seat belts and air bags. To help protect the operators.

      Similar protections could have been properly deployed in this scenario. Our deployment thumb drive is great an all, but plug it into the wrong model computer, and you aren't reformatting or re-installing jack shit.

      And yes, we do this for a reason. The same reason you wear a seat belt. Shit happens.

    6. Re:Centralized Control... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well, but he hardly reformatted thousands of computers, that sure would be dedication...

    7. Re:Centralized Control... by rev0lt · · Score: 1

      Or to oh-so-many puppet installations out there. Specially when using PKI auth for automated tasks.

    8. Re:Centralized Control... by david_thornley · · Score: 1

      Once the Bolsheviks took power, they used that particular feature heavily. In 1939, Communist parties outside the Soviet Union were told that Nazi Germany was no longer an enemy, but a friend, and that hurt the parties badly when many people simply left.

      --
      "When you have eliminated the unacceptable, whatever is left, however improbable, must be the truthiness" - Holmes
  7. Sounds like IT incompetence by areusche · · Score: 4, Insightful

    SCCM is pretty good. It makes my desktop techs jobs significantly easier to deploy assets company wide. In this case, it sounds like someone pressed some buttons without being 100% clear as to what was going on. Unfortunate someone will not be working in IT ever again.

    1. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by BitZtream · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Assuming it was just a mistake and not malicious ...

      Probably not. This shit happens, and that person who did it will never do something like this again. Have you ever made a massive, expensive mistake?

      I have, I was 19 years old and cost my company nearly a million dollars due to a silly misconfiguration. After I discovered it, corrected the error and notified my boss, I spent most of the night throwing up. The next morning, after everyone in the company (only 15 people or so) knew what happened, and I walked through the halls on the way to the meeting with the owner and my boss, I thought I'd pass out. As I walked into the Owner's office I didn't even bother to sit down, expecting a fairly short conversation. I was asked to sit down while my boss had this very stern look on his face. So I did, cost them that much money, I can do what they ask.

      The owner than proceeded to tell me the story of how, when working for a certain Germany car company doing CICS programming, he made a mistake that screwed up a production line and cost the company several million dollars. He knew exactly how I felt, and he knew that it would never happen again because I had already punished myself more than he possibly could.

      If they fire the person who did this, they just wasted the whole event. The person learned their lesson and will be extremely cautious in the future. Firing them now just means someone else will get to reap the benefits of this experience, and thats pretty stupid.

      People make mistakes, and in this case the software is at least partially responsible. The SCCM server should have aborted during the preflight checks when it realized it was going to take itself out in the process. The best thing this IT department can do is for the manager/director to keep the specific employe's name under wraps, stop shit from flowing down hill from above and move on. Nothing will benefit anyone if all of Emory treats the person responsible as if he deserves to pay for all the time lost in repairing the damage, he simply can't.

      The hard lesson has been learned by everyone, nothing else will make anyone any better off.

      --
      Persistent Volume manager for Kubernetes - https://github.com/dwimsey/openshift-pvmanager
    2. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Richy_T · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Or he could just be an incompetent shit.

      Don't get me wrong, I've made mistakes myself, perhaps not quite to the same level. Hopefully he is someone who can take a lesson but there are many who can't.

    3. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by bitt3n · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Have you ever made a massive, expensive mistake?

      Glances woefully down at wedding ring...

      The person learned their lesson and will be extremely cautious in the future.

      Thinks back on previous three weddings...

    4. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by rastos1 · · Score: 4, Funny

      Also known as:

      Harrisberger's Fourth Law of the Lab:
      Experience is directly proportional to the amount of equipment ruined.

    5. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by lagomorpha2 · · Score: 1

      Have you ever made a massive, expensive mistake?

      Glances woefully down at wedding ring...

      +5 insightful

    6. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Sir+Holo · · Score: 0

      You should be fired.

    7. Re: Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They deserve it for letting a 19 year old have that much privilege.

    8. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by jd2112 · · Score: 5, Interesting

      SCCM is pretty good. It makes my desktop techs jobs significantly easier to deploy assets company wide. In this case, it sounds like someone pressed some buttons without being 100% clear as to what was going on. Unfortunate someone will not be working in IT ever again.

      Or perhaps someone decided that having a testing environment for deployment packages was an unnecessary expense combined with personnel who aren't properly trained. Just think how much money they saved by eliminating training and a test environment!

      --
      Any insufficiently advanced magic is indistinguishable from technology.
    9. Re: Sounds like IT incompetence by Aethedor · · Score: 1, Interesting

      Your story isn't about you messing up. It's about your boss failing hard at proper risk management. He's the one who should be fired for allowing a process in the company in which one person could do so much damage. Unfortunately, this happens still too often. Companies in which the mistake of one single person, the error of one single machine or the failure of one single process starts a chain reaction which causes heavy damage. Just take a look a look at the company you work for. I'm sure everybody can point out a machine or a person that will cause serious problems if that machine or person is not available for a certain amount of time.

      --
      It doesn't have to be like this. All we need to do is make sure we keep talking.
    10. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      This is different, as you have an internal program that incessantly tells you to gain access to fertile women.

    11. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by iggymanz · · Score: 2

      Fourth unhappy one? you're not making mistakes, you have a problem

    12. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by ccguy · · Score: 2

      Did you get a raise? I mean, with all that extra experience you didn't have when you signed up...

    13. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Kjella · · Score: 2

      I think it depends on the type of person you are, if you're usually a dutiful and reliable employee who made one mistake and it's a huge one that's different than your hotshot wonder boy who always does things the quick and dirty way and has caused minor outages and bugs before but gets away with it because the quick turnaround time is making him popular. Then I'd be a lot more inclined to say your reckless behavior finally blew up in everyone's face, there's the door. Admitting to your own screw-up is also a lot better than someone else finding out or worse trying to cover it up or pin the blame on someone else, many people won't say anything until shit hits the fan or hope that by some miracle nobody will notice or find out it's you. Everybody makes mistakes, but some quite a few more and with higher consequences than others.

      --
      Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
    14. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by fermion · · Score: 1

      Obviously. I have few issues with my machines that are remotely managed, and appreciate the ease that policies can be managed. However, it is not a perfect system and did recently have a machine go down because an error occurred during such an update. Any machine I have that is managed this way either is not used for real work, or is backed up constantly under the assumption that it will be unusable at any minute.

      --
      "She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
    15. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 1

      if they have tenure then you can't get rid of them just like that and even then the logs may of been wiped out as well.

    16. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by bitt3n · · Score: 5, Funny

      Fourth unhappy one? you're not making mistakes, you have a problem

      Might as well face it, I'm addicted to love

    17. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by BitZtream · · Score: 1

      hahaha, fucking priceless :)

      --
      Persistent Volume manager for Kubernetes - https://github.com/dwimsey/openshift-pvmanager
    18. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Fourth unhappy one? you're not making mistakes, you have a problem

      Might as well face it, I'm addicted to love

      What's love got to do with it?

    19. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by thunderclap · · Score: 2

      Assuming it was just a mistake and not malicious ...

      Probably not. This shit happens, and that person who did it will never do something like this again. Have you ever made a massive, expensive mistake?

      I have, I was 19 years old and cost my company nearly a million dollars due to a silly misconfiguration. After I discovered it, corrected the error and notified my boss, I spent most of the night throwing up. The next morning, after everyone in the company (only 15 people or so) knew what happened, and I walked through the halls on the way to the meeting with the owner and my boss, I thought I'd pass out. As I walked into the Owner's office I didn't even bother to sit down, expecting a fairly short conversation. I was asked to sit down while my boss had this very stern look on his face. So I did, cost them that much money, I can do what they ask.

      The owner than proceeded to tell me the story of how, when working for a certain Germany car company doing CICS programming, he made a mistake that screwed up a production line and cost the company several million dollars. He knew exactly how I felt, and he knew that it would never happen again because I had already punished myself more than he possibly could.

      If they fire the person who did this, they just wasted the whole event. The person learned their lesson and will be extremely cautious in the future. Firing them now just means someone else will get to reap the benefits of this experience, and thats pretty stupid.

      People make mistakes, and in this case the software is at least partially responsible. The SCCM server should have aborted during the preflight checks when it realized it was going to take itself out in the process. The best thing this IT department can do is for the manager/director to keep the specific employe's name under wraps, stop shit from flowing down hill from above and move on. Nothing will benefit anyone if all of Emory treats the person responsible as if he deserves to pay for all the time lost in repairing the damage, he simply can't.

      The hard lesson has been learned by everyone, nothing else will make anyone any better off.

      While inspiring, the only reason you didn't get fired is, he did the same thing. He knew where you come from. 98% don't. I am betting that your boss had the termination papers in his desk already filled out and signed by him. However, since he was overruled by the owner you gained valuable insight. Be lucky. The IT person won't have that. He will be out on his/her ass because of that level of mistake. You are correct, someone else will get to reap the benefits of this experience, and thats pretty stupid. Its also the way of the world and why everything is screwed up.

    20. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by iggymanz · · Score: 1

      marriage does not equal love, doesn't guarentee love, and carries many obligations and raises many issues having nothing to do with love

    21. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This was obviously caused by El Reg's BOFH in the States on an international exchange program!

    22. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by linebackn · · Score: 1

      That is a nice story, and if true you got lucky that it was a small company and your boss probably knew your actual competency level.

      In most places when stuff like this happens, your bosses' bosses' boss will want blood, and a nice firing will happen no matter what.

      Protip: if anyone ever find themselves on the short end of this stick, don't grovel to keep your job. If possible, don't even discuss what happened. Remind them of your strengths, experience, what you can continue to contribute, and why they hired you in the first place. It won't make any difference if they already have their minds made up they want blood, but you will feel better about it.

    23. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Mojo66 · · Score: 1

      IMHO the actual incompetence is omitting a modal alert and just wiping the disk without asking the user first. Or should I say arrogance?

    24. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by bitt3n · · Score: 1

      marriage does not equal love, doesn't guarentee love, and carries many obligations and raises many issues having nothing to do with love

      you sound like that guy at the end of those life-affirming pharmaceutical commercials who reads all the horrible side effects super quick

    25. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Honestly it sounds like you have/had an amazing boss. Most people are not so lucky.

    26. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by iggymanz · · Score: 1

      past 50 and still in my first marriage, and things are still very good despite the occasional rocky times. but I know a lot of unhappy people who marry again and again, or feel "stuck" in miserable marriage. there are plenty of other ways to live life

    27. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by dbIII · · Score: 1

      Remind them of your strengths, experience, what you can continue to contribute

      From being on the receiving end of such begging it just makes you feel even less respect for the person doing the begging. If people are not aware of those things before a big mistake they are unlikely to want to hear about them afterwards.

    28. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by JanneM · · Score: 3, Insightful

      People make mistakes. Everybody makes them, everybody does it all the time, and they do it even when they should know better, when the consequences are high, and when they've received training specifically aimed at avoiding those particular mistakes.

      Aviation, process and other industries know this by now, after many, many hard-earned lessons. They know you have to design your interfaces under the assumption that people will screw up, push the wrong button, or misread the situation. The general software industry, on the other hand, seems amazingly resilient against accepting this simple fact.

      --
      Trust the Computer. The Computer is your friend.
    29. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Awesome comment!

    30. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      " Unfortunate someone will not be working in IT ever again."

      You've never worked at a university I take it.

    31. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Billly+Gates · · Score: 1

      Not really. Anyone not that concerned or even care pushing something he knows little about doesn't deserve to be in IT. I had people laugh at me when I ask a stupid question with a GPO or membership change, I then explain that's what I thought but wanted to clear etc. 85% is 15% too much!! Can't comprehend this go sell houses or something instead. Plenty of CS grads at geeksquad DESPERATE to get a real IT job just waiting

    32. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Stop getting married and instead just love the person. Marriage and love don't require each other.

    33. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Billly+Gates · · Score: 0

      Not to sound like a dick, but this is a business and not a charity. You and your boss should have been fired ASAP. There is no time for a lesson as it's not a charity, but a business. A 19 year old should not have that much power. Your boss lacked judgment.

      Sorry it happened to you. But shit happens and a mistake vs negligence and a lack of cautiousness is different. I ask very dumb questions and get chuckles ALWAYS when I change a linked GPO on an OU but they always know that is the SOP. Sccm needs testing, reviews, and run on a vm or test OU first. You need 100% certainty on everything and 90% sure is 10% too much!

      If people lost .pst files that millions of dollars worth of contacts then firings are in order. If your not an expert DON'T Do IT. Welcome to work. I hope your very cautious for now on

    34. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Billly+Gates · · Score: 1

      Did you get a raise? I mean, with all that extra experience you didn't have when you signed up...

      Huh I didn't know he worked for a bank

    35. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Billly+Gates · · Score: 1

      If they want blood then this kids boss should get the walking papers. Why did he have this much power and did this alone anyway? The manager knew??

    36. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Billly+Gates · · Score: 1

      Creating a test OU is free. Virtualbox is free.

    37. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by antdude · · Score: 1

      Ha, maybe it is a good thing that I am still single and virgin after almost 40 years. :P

      --
      Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
    38. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Billly+Gates · · Score: 1

      if they have tenure then you can't get rid of them just like that and even then the logs may of been wiped out as well.

      Time to outsource then lol

    39. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by ColdWetDog · · Score: 1

      That, like every other law of the universe and deep philosophical insight, is simply a refactoring of Murphy's Law.

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    40. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Monoman · · Score: 1

      I don't work with SCCM directly but I'm told something like this happens to everyone eventually. Hopefully you just send something like Adobe Reader to everyone but sometimes it turns out very very bad. I can't believe there isn't a way to make it really really really hard to do something like this.

      If it was an honest mistake then hopefully the person learns and moves forward. If it was part of a pattern of bad behavior then hopefully they can get rid of the person.

      --
      Keep the Classic Slashdot.
    41. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And if there are no current/recent backups to restore most of what was lost AND vital to the organization, then whomever is in charge of the backup strategy needs to go.

    42. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Tenure generally does not apply for college staff (vs the faculty). Emory is private (my daughter got her law degree there, luckily graduating several years ago well before this hit), so could well have its own ways of handling that.

    43. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They are all incompetent shits in that dept. They sucked so much and people were so disgusted, they changed the dept name to try and hide behind a new name. Now this. Guess a new dept name is on the horizon!

    44. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by KevMar · · Score: 1

      SCCM is a big package and there is a lot to configuring it. My guess is someone created a new collection that started with the "All Systems" group and screwed up the filter. The mistake they made was not checking the collection before they deployed.

      --
      Im a gamer, not a grammer major. This post is full of spelling and grammer mistakes.
    45. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Lol no one cares. If it was anyone else posting that you'd berate them mercilessly.

      Bottom line is you just don't know what you're doing if you lost a company a million dollars. For the sake of the rest of us who are competent, hopefully you changed professions.

      Like with something dealing with fries.

    46. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Well, I can't claim virginity unfortunately, but I'm sure staying single for the rest of my life.

      There are some lovely (and lovely-looking) women out there and I wish the hetero males of the planet all the best in their pursuit. For myself, the whole dating/mating game makes me nauseous and the rewards, however earth-shatteringly good, are never worth the effort.

      Fortunately, Kiwi females are too uptight to start a conversation themselves so apart from admiring their (occasionally) shapely derrières, I can safely ignore them completely. :)

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    47. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This 100 times over. I've worked in client automation for 10 years and in the last 5 years I was a senior technical consultant that traveled to large enterprise clients to architect, train, and deploy automation information systems (like SCCM). I can't even begin to describe how little emphasis the enterprise company wanted their $ spent on proper training. Even if you take someone that knows the tool-set well, they do not necessarily know the business rules that their company has in place.

      Quite literally a large portion of our business was going back to existing clients to clean up the mess they made because they didn't follow up on training for existing employees, didn't read the documentation we created for them, or didn't bother to train new people that were hired since we'd last worked with them. In addition they'd also often try to use the tool in ways that it wasn't designed for, or completely ignoring best practices.

    48. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by labnet · · Score: 3, Funny

      Fourth unhappy one? you're not making mistakes, you have a problem

      Might as well face it, I'm addicted to love

      What's love got to do with it?

      It's a second hand emotion.

      --
      46137
    49. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Darinbob · · Score: 1

      The problem from my end, is that the user of the computer gets no say in the matter. This includes the _owner_ of the computer as well, such as the department that purchased the computer. IT orgs need to realize that they are a service organization whose first job is to assist the users rather than hinder them.

      So some will defend this ("we get paid by the adminstrators/ceos not the professors/engineers"), probably justify it as a way to protect users from themselves. But the problem arose precisely because IT wasn't able to protect IT from itself. They obtained a powerful and dangerous tool in order to make their own day to day lives easier, and then left the safety off. Just having the ability to allow someone inexperienced make that mistake is a mistake in itself. Any remote control access to a computer that is not their own should require a lot of approvals before it is ever used and never used by a single person (no matter how young and cocky that person may be).

    50. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Skuld-Chan · · Score: 1

      We had a similar incident at the place I work - the tech did a select * from r_system on a live required deployment - they shut off the DP (distribution point) after about 450 machines got imaged. I was actually impressed how efficient it was :).

      For those who don't know - that query basically tells the site server to build a collection of every computer (including servers) with a forced deployment of a new OS. CM 2012 will actually warn you if you type that kind of query in - so you'd have to click through that warning and keep going.

    51. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There difference is, you were young and probably with little experience, but if the guy in charge at Emory is a veteran and it was hit fault, chances are he won't be around long.

    52. Re: Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There's not sick thing as IT incompetence.

      Just IT workers thinking they're God's gift to humanity.... At least the stereotypes tell me.

    53. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by PingPongBoy · · Score: 1

      CYA Don't let your name be attached to anything risky, but be ready to take credit when the risky behavior leads to success.

      --
      Know your pads. One time pad: good for cryptography. Two timing pad: where to take your mistress.
    54. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Monoman · · Score: 1

      You probably think you want an Apple Genius bar and that isn't cheap. It isn't appropriate in a large organization either.

      IT will never get the funding they need in order to staff their department to operate as you wish but they will get funds to buy tools like SCCM. SCCM is sold as a enterprise management tool to improve customer service with minimal staff.

      Tools like SCCM come with great power and can do great things. Unfortunately, mistakes can and do happen. Sometimes the mistakes go unnoticed. Sometimes the mistakes are painful to everyone.

      --
      Keep the Classic Slashdot.
    55. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I have been a manager for about a year, and prior that a team leader for a year. I have made huge mistakes that have cost loads of money. I have a good manager. He allowed me to carry on, but after stern warnings on each occasion. I am now the go to guy for fixing problems, I am often called because I have been there and have the t-shirt to prove it, but I know how to undo those mistakes and understand how they happen and often if's down to the lack of protocol and process/procedure to protect against these things. If you've been there and have the t-shirt, wear it with pride not dishonour, you're the guy who who can be relied upon thanks to experience.

    56. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Assuming it was just a mistake and not malicious ...

      Probably not. This shit happens, and that person who did it will never do something like this again. Have you ever made a massive, expensive mistake?

      I have, I was 19 years old and cost my company nearly a million dollars due to a silly misconfiguration. After I discovered it, corrected the error and notified my boss, I spent most of the night throwing up. The next morning, after everyone in the company (only 15 people or so) knew what happened, and I walked through the halls on the way to the meeting with the owner and my boss, I thought I'd pass out. As I walked into the Owner's office I didn't even bother to sit down, expecting a fairly short conversation. I was asked to sit down while my boss had this very stern look on his face. So I did, cost them that much money, I can do what they ask.

      The owner than proceeded to tell me the story of how, when working for a certain Germany car company doing CICS programming, he made a mistake that screwed up a production line and cost the company several million dollars. He knew exactly how I felt, and he knew that it would never happen again because I had already punished myself more than he possibly could.

      If they fire the person who did this, they just wasted the whole event. The person learned their lesson and will be extremely cautious in the future. Firing them now just means someone else will get to reap the benefits of this experience, and thats pretty stupid.

      People make mistakes, and in this case the software is at least partially responsible. The SCCM server should have aborted during the preflight checks when it realized it was going to take itself out in the process. The best thing this IT department can do is for the manager/director to keep the specific employe's name under wraps, stop shit from flowing down hill from above and move on. Nothing will benefit anyone if all of Emory treats the person responsible as if he deserves to pay for all the time lost in repairing the damage, he simply can't.

      The hard lesson has been learned by everyone, nothing else will make anyone any better off.

      The fact that you get this indicates you're an intelligent guy. The fact that you don't recognize the anecdotal nature of it indicates the opposite.

      People are not simple. =]

    57. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well said. As I've heard it expressed before:

                    "Why would I fire you now? I just spent a million bucks on training you."

    58. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      People make mistakes, and in this case the software is at least partially responsible. The SCCM server should have aborted during the preflight checks when it realized it was going to take itself out in the process.

      Absolutely, 100% wrong. If you target an advertisement at "All Systems", or a collection containing the SCCM server, you are explicitly saying you want that advertisement to apply to the SCCM server as well. In this case, it sounds like the advertisement - OF A TASK SEQUENCE - was targeted at "All Systems", an explicit statement that you want the advertisement to target, you know, "All Systems". Since the Agent Host does more than just task sequences, it absolutely should not automatically not do anything on the Site Systems, because it also handles tasks like patching, application/package deployment, compliance evaluation, etc.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
    59. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      It's an automated zero-touch deployment mechanism, intended to be run on hardware owned by the organisation operating the server. It is neither incompetence nor arrogance.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
    60. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Mojo66 · · Score: 1

      I wonder what scenario would justify a disk wipe without asking the user first? From an end user point of view, even if those machines were just terminals, I'd find it inacceptable if they were just rebooted without asking me first.

    61. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by MATTtheROGUE · · Score: 1

      It was a mistake, apparently a job was sent to the wrong place. Granted, it took them about 3 days to clean it up, but I don't know if anyone is losing their job over it.

    62. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by david_thornley · · Score: 1

      I didn't hit the million dollar mark, but I did push it into the tens or hundreds of thousands. Senior people assured me that the one-line change I'd made sure looked reasonable, and we did some worth to find cases where one variable was used for two separate things that happened to coincide as we did things.

      --
      "When you have eliminated the unacceptable, whatever is left, however improbable, must be the truthiness" - Holmes
    63. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      When the owner (the company owning and managing them, and employing said end user) decides they want to? No more justification needed.

      Seriously though, this is intended for use in network environments with things like file servers and backups as well - if you're storing stuff on the local computer, you are doing it wrong (and the fact that you can means your administrators are doing it wrong too).

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
    64. Re:Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This.
      Modded funny, but it isn't.

      The poster before with the million dollar fuck up is dead on.

      Nothing teaches like making a painful mistake.

      If this guy who fucked up is fired, and could have improved from it, his life will be wrecked for no purpose.

      If he is kept and takes the lesson, then he will be worth much more than anyone merely inheriting the responsibility could ever take away from the event.

      Personally my fuck ups have been up to about the $~100k to 200k range.
      You either learn from it, or it destroys you.

      But failure in earnest is always valuable.

      I work in R&D, and the number one difficulty in R&D is planning time.
      If you're able to stick to a research plan, you're not really doing development, you're just researching.
      If the plan seems to never survive long against reality, despite your considerable efforts, then you are.

      The best you can hope for is to be having reasons, not excuses.
      If you can look back and honestly forgive yourself for having made the choices you did with the information you had, then it's much easier to live with.

      If you can't ... then you are incompetent. If it's never even partially your fault, you should look closer at yourself.
      If you forever feel a little guilty, despite certain evidence based knowledge that your choices were reasonable then you have it about right.

      If you never feel at all guilty, then perhaps your "reasons" are really excuses?
      You are shielding yourself from pain, fair enough. But you won't be learning any more.

      "IT incompetence" is a funny phrase to me, I'm a computer/electrical engineer.
      But at least it isn't as gut-wrenching a oxymoron as "IT Professional". There is no such thing.

      There are professional engineers, who are legally required to never fuck up, but who are (next to) useless for developing new things, and there are developers, who are not professionally registered, and who therefore are able to fuck up and learn from it.

      The explosive growth of IT has been driven entirely because of the massive and pervasive incompetence in the field. This is bad if you want your PC to "just work".

      There's a reason MSFT can't ever seem to pull it off - they are not the engineering firm that they pretend to be. OSS does engineering better than they do. Probably because many of those who can learn from fuckups have noticed that MSFT isn't able to, and have shunned MSFT to focus their efforts on OSS.

      This has been to the general benefit of the entire fucking world. (Especially once cheap $50 linux-driven phones hit the 3rd world nations and make wikipedia available to them.)
      So in the long run, incompetence might actually be a good thing to have in moderation.

  8. Surprisingly Infrequent by crow · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I think the big surprise here is that this doesn't happen more often.

    Consider how many corporations, universities, and such have huge PC deployments with automated updates. I've seen updates that drop all the PCs off the network, but I've never seen one where everything is wiped.

    I'm also surprised that I haven't heard of malware that accidentally wiped a network of 100K or more machines when someone sent the wrong command.

    Or maybe the news here is that it was in a more open environment where people hear about it. If a publicly traded company wiped a thousand PCs at its headquarters, you bet they would try to keep it quiet.

    1. Re:Surprisingly Infrequent by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 1

      Maybe some picked all systems as the target for the this new image? But desktops and severs are groped together? may it was an all that is not used that much if at all. Now I can see some picking all desktops / laptops and trying to load the same image to all of them and having that fail due to hardware / driver issues. But servers as well?

      Servers have a different OS and software load and they don't need the basic desktop apps like adobe stuff, MS office.

    2. Re:Surprisingly Infrequent by FreelanceWizard · · Score: 3, Insightful

      We use SCCM extensively at my office, and yes, it's entirely possible to tell it to reimage every single computer. You just need to target the deployment at "All Systems" and make it mandatory. My guess is that some admin picked the wrong collection, which is fairly easy to do in SCCM 2007 (2012 has Collection folders, which helps with that), and there's no warning messages -- just a summary of "this deployment is going to these devices, click Finish to do it." Of course, most other mass management tools assume that the admins know what they're doing, so they don't have much in the way of guard rails either.

      One of the more obnoxious elements of SCCM is that there's no real way to recall a command you send out; clients pick up policy at periodic intervals, and without manual intervention, they'll just grab the policy and do what it says even if you kill the server in question. You can block deployments by taking down distribution points (if the clients can't grab content, they won't run the deployment), but you still have to be fairly quick about it to stop it.

      What we do to prevent these sorts of disasters is implement process around the use of the ConfigMgr console and ensure only the people who know how to use it actually use it. To prevent an OS reimaging incident, our OS deployments go through a static set of collections by process and are always optional (requiring a manual touch, either at PXE boot or in the UI) except for a specific set of collections that are segregated in their own folder and have names and descriptions with scary words that make it clear what's going to happen. For instance, in our "Clean Reimage" folder, we have a collection that says, "Windows 7 Reimage (Clean, PXE, Forced)" with a description to the effect of, "*** A computer placed in this collection will be REIMAGED and LOSE ALL LOCAL DATA. Local state is NOT preserved or transferred. ***" If we were a larger IT organization, we'd probably use SCCM's role-based security to limit access to clean reimages to a specific group of people.

      --
      The Freelance Wizard
    3. Re:Surprisingly Infrequent by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      Pah, this is is small fry. If you want to see a proper clusterfuck check out what happened at the Dept for Work and Pensions in the UK in 2004/2005 (I forget re exact year). Somebody at EDS sent out a test update to 87,000 computers rather than the 200 or so it was supposed to gone to. They got the negation wrong in the logic and so the real network was targeted.

      Just to really, really screw things up, the update partially failed so the machines were left in an inconsistent state and couldn't be used in any shape. As I heard it, the people who wrote the distribution system from Microsoft were on the first flight over once shit had hit fan. 10,000s of users administering benefits and other vital things to the uk public simply sat at their desks twiddling their thumbs. To be fair to Microsoft (not a phrase I would normally use) they pulled eds's balls out if the fire. They managed to get a small custom made bootstrapping image out that apparently loaded more and more stuff in to get the machines back to working order. I'm told by people in the know it was a first rate job that cemented Microsofts position in UK govt.

      The head of the DWP also did a sterling job of keeping the lid on and stopped MP's quite appreciating how bad it was.

      The only thing that really saved them was the fact that all the hardwork was really done on elderly ICL mainframes so the lack of Windows clients was not that big a problem. I suspect that they sre still there.

      Nice to know the UK still leads on something.

      Rob

       

    4. Re:Surprisingly Infrequent by Tough+Love · · Score: 1

      This ranks right up there with Microsoft crashing the London Stock Exchange for a day. Shortly after, LSE announced they were switching to Linux, and a few months after that they did it, with great success.

      --
      When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
    5. Re:Surprisingly Infrequent by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It happened in 2013 at the University of Michigan. A portion of the computers in the Department of Mechanical Engineering were wiped before someone realized what was going on and killed the update. So, it probably happens more often that we hear in the media.

    6. Re:Surprisingly Infrequent by Skuld-Chan · · Score: 1

      I know a SCCM Microsoft PFE who has told me horror stories about customers doing this and paving their exchange server with Windows 7. I think it happens, but you don't read about it on a publicly readable website.

      Its happen in my IT shop - although not nearly as bad as this story implies.

      In our current CM 2012 environment we split Servers and Desktops and limited by security scope who can run queries and add servers to collections.

    7. Re:Surprisingly Infrequent by Skuld-Chan · · Score: 1

      in 2012 you can also silo your admins and set it up so its impossible (without messing up security) to re-image machines you don't own (like servers, or another departments desktops).

    8. Re:Surprisingly Infrequent by cthulhu11 · · Score: 1

      At my last employer I'd set up kickstart like this, so that it would not wipe a system without confirmation at the pxelinux/grub menu. An unfortunate backfill hire turned out to be quite the bully and threw out everything I'd done, saying that all data should be replicated (and not backed up) and that all systems should be able to kickstart and fully install and bring themselves into service. Some day the jackass's hubris will bite him in the ass, and I hope I get word so that I can send a big poster saying ITYS to my former boss.

    9. Re:Surprisingly Infrequent by jwhitener · · Score: 1

      What we do to prevent these sorts of disasters is implement process around the use of the ConfigMgr

      IT changes in general should always be governed by a change management process, including review, approval stages, and documentation. You shouldn't have small daily admin tasks governed by a complicated approval process, but anything that has the potential to change things in a widespread way should be stuck in a workflow queue for review of some sort.

      Depending on the size of the group, you can adjust the level of formality for a change management process. It might just be as simple as emailing some group of people asking them if they see an issues with "change X".

      What I can't believe is that someone did something without testing it for on a test system. I wouldn't be surprised to learn they they didn't have an adequate test system.

  9. Oh man by 50000BTU_barbecue · · Score: 2

    I bet the IT department is changing each other's diapers now! And updating their resumés....

    --
    Mostly random stuff.
    1. Re:Oh man by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      In a résumé, "Watched in horror as images were accidentally deployed" becomes "Supervised the deployment of images on university-managed computers".

    2. Re:Oh man by Richy_T · · Score: 1

      site-wide.

    3. Re:Oh man by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I hope the admins with any involvement have kept their paper trail intact. There's often a paper trail for such events involving "staging" setups, keeping deployment systems in sync, managing equipment inventory, and similar steps that would have prevented or reduced the impact of such a change.

    4. Re:Oh man by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Or the genealogist who found out the client's great uncle was executed for triple murder, and cleaned up the family tree by writing:
      "Joe Blow: occupied the Chair of Applied Electricity at a major Southern institution."

  10. Maybe by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    A desperate attempt to delay taking finals?

    1. Re:Maybe by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

      A desperate attempt to delay taking finals?

      No, finals were from 1 May to 9 May; graduation ceremonies were on Monday, two days before this incident began.

      I'd like to point out that this had essentially no effect on the academic part of the university; the computers involved
      belonged mostly to the libraries and administrative offices. Here in the Math/CS department, I didn't even hear about
      this until today (we run our own servers, mostly Linux and (gasp) Solaris).

    2. Re:Maybe by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Same thing here (different university). Only Solaris for home directories nowdays though. Yet another reason for when big IT wants us to stop running our own systems, which they do every now and then.

  11. Not so sensational... by urbanriot · · Score: 2

    Considering how easy it would be for a less-than-savvy IT person to accidentally encourage this situation, I doubt this is a sensational case of some huge vulnerability.

    As someone who regularly provides consultation to IT staff, I know full well that there's plenty of 'administrators' that wade into waters they don't understand. We often encounter the aging IT staff member that's forced to interact with software they don't quite understand or we have the younger IT staff that impulsively click on what they don't understand, both occasionally leading a company to some manner of pandemonium level disaster. Or you simply have a dysfunctional IT department that doesn't communicate and, "oh, I'll just move this server into this container right here..." Just another day in IT.

    1. Re:Not so sensational... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Not sure what age has to do with either scenario. Unfamiliarity with tools can result in mistakes being made. There, shortened that for you.

    2. Re:Not so sensational... by urbanriot · · Score: 2

      Age has plenty to do with it. When you interact with as many IT people as I do, you have a large enough sample set to accurately predict behaviours based on visible characteristics. Clever young IT people are often quick to click without considering ramifications or thoroughly researching the implications of their actions, yet are often able to slip by unnoticed since they'll stay up until 2am off the click fixing their issues. Older, more experienced IT people are often thrust into technologies they don't fully understand and are afraid to admit this to their employers, since the young buck next to them claims to know everything about everything. As much as older IT folks don't want to admit it, they don't learn as quickly as they did when they were younger and they don't have as much time to upgrade their skillsets. Certainly this doesn't apply to everyone but I've encountered enough IT people to know that this is an extremely common scenario, right up there with underpaid IT people expected to know more than they're trained to know.

    3. Re:Not so sensational... by dbIII · · Score: 3, Insightful

      As much as older IT folks don't want to admit it, they don't learn as quickly as they did when they were younger

      That doesn't matter so much because things are changing at such a glacial speed. It may as well be 1999 for the small amount of 64 bit, multithreaded stuff that uses network capability well which is out there. If you defrosted a Sun sparc user from back then and put them on a Win8 machine they would be disappointed.

    4. Re:Not so sensational... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I prefer the sparc station, and UNIX in generall.

  12. Fire everyone from orbit, just to be safe. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    No such instruction should be actionable without being compulsorily deployed to at least one test system, and the actions manually checked and confirmation given to the SCCM.

    No instruction which affects a significant number of systems should be possible without manual confirmation to continue with the next batch of systems.

    An instruction which is applied across several classes of systems should be treated as if separate instructions for each system.

    I've seen enough mid-level sysadmins think that being able to write puppet scripts elevates them to god-like status, but being a good IT janitor is hard - it's primarily not about automating your job as much as possible, but about having such an intimate understanding of your system that it ends up running so smoothly that nobody thinks you're needed. (Yes, this creates a problem if you work for THAT sort of company, but nothing will change unless you fight.)

  13. sooooo by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    i work at a larger, private university in the USA. I really pooped my pants when i read this

  14. An...accident..? by geekmux · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Knowing that people have been running various kinds of centralized update services, perhaps across multiple OSes, and spanning several years now, listening to a story about an update server literally going rogue and nuking everything attached to it, and then for the coup de grace, basically committing suicide at the end by reformatting itself, does not sound like an accident.

    If it truly was, I'd hate to see what the hell purposeful intent looks like.

    1. Re:An...accident..? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      intent would be a lot more subtle. An accident is just going to be big and obvious.

    2. Re:An...accident..? by geekmux · · Score: 2

      intent would be a lot more subtle. An accident is just going to be big and obvious.

      I guess that would depend on what the intent was.

      In this particular case, if the intent was maximum damage and disruption, I've got a two word summary.

      Nailed it.

    3. Re:An...accident..? by Brett+Buck · · Score: 1

      Systems with central administration has always been absolutely wide open to insider sabotage. Distributed systems can be made at least somewhat damage-limiting

      As with others, I am amazed it doesn't happen either accidentally, or on purpose, far more than it does. You are basically one bit, or checkbox, away from it more-or-less all the time.

            BTW, I note that the result was installing Windows 7. If it was doing that, does it mean they were running XP or Vista until just now?

    4. Re:An...accident..? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Might be interesting to see how the Emory Board files this away.

    5. Re:An...accident..? by flux · · Score: 1

      Maybe the malware was deeply employed in all the install images, and now it is guaranteed that all the systems have it, even after re-deploying ;).

    6. Re:An...accident..? by petermgreen · · Score: 1

      BTW, I note that the result was installing Windows 7. If it was doing that, does it mean they were running XP or Vista until just now

      Reimaging machines that already have win7 on them with a new win7 image is hardly an unusual thing to do. The intended target could have been an upgrade project or it could have just been a cleanup/update job keeping the same windows version.

      I suspect the machines that got accidentally reimaged were running a mixture of stuff before. Thats how things usually end up in a uni environment (at the uni I left recently I was aware of machines running NT4, 2K, XP, Vista, win7 and win8 as well as osx and multiple flavours of linux). At the time I left they were in the middle of a large scale effort to move from XP to win7 on staff/postgrad desktops (the public clusters had already been moved to win7).

      --
      note: i'm known as plugwash most places but i screwd up registering that here somehow in the past and now can't register
    7. Re:An...accident..? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Oh come on. Happens to Microsoft at least once a year.

      Thats why they keep pulling patches out of the update stream - it just didn't work.

      There is also that certificate failure they had a couple of years ago - world wide outage.

      And then the Adobe online crap from this week - all authentication server out of action, due to a "database update failure"....

      And you think the cloud is going to work? At least if all your business deals with other businesses on the same cloud everybody will be in the same boat (submerged).

    8. Re:An...accident..? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Knowing that people have been running various kinds of centralized update services, perhaps across multiple OSes, and spanning several years now, listening to a story about an update server literally going rogue and nuking everything attached to it, and then for the coup de grace, basically committing suicide at the end by reformatting itself, does not sound like an accident.

      If it truly was, I'd hate to see what the hell purposeful intent looks like.

      It was likely a simple accident where somebody intended to apply an update to some small part of the directory tree and inadvertantly applied it to the root.

      It's just like a Unix admin trying to delete some temporary cache directory by running "rm -rf /tmp/cache /*" where accidentally adding the extra space turns a simple operation into one that destroys the whole filesystem.

      dom

    9. Re:An...accident..? by thunderclap · · Score: 1

      Knowing that people have been running various kinds of centralized update services, perhaps across multiple OSes, and spanning several years now, listening to a story about an update server literally going rogue and nuking everything attached to it, and then for the coup de grace, basically committing suicide at the end by reformatting itself, does not sound like an accident.

      If it truly was, I'd hate to see what the hell purposeful intent looks like.

      No that I think about it, you are right digital seppuku isn't an accident. This is something that I would hear on Coast to Coast AM under Illumanti or on Alex jones.

    10. Re:An...accident..? by bruce_the_loon · · Score: 3, Informative

      This isn't the update server section of System Center (WSUS), it's the machine deployment system (Configuration Manager), and it can quite easily do this if left as-is out of the box with multiple technicians on it. And it can be done accidentally.

      Here's the scenario as it likely happened.

      • Technician finished a master PC install task sequence and tested with one PC. Now he is ready to deploy to his computer lab.
      • There are two options for failure here. SCCM allows for collections of machines to be built for all purposes (data gathering, deployments etc), so he probably puts a quick group together and gets that step wrong and the collection includes all computers in the AD tree. One of our technicians did this after two years of using SCCM regularly.
      • Or he goes hunting for an existing collection and ends up selecting the default All Systems collection which includes everything. If there are a lot of collections or his is named too similarly.
      • After another hundred odd clicks, he hits deploy and SCCM sends a message to the client service on all computers in the selected collection to run the new deployment task sequence. Including the SCCM server because it also has a client and is in All Systems collection or gathered in an incorrectly specified collection.
      • Each PC then downloads the image, reboots and wipes itself with the image. The server, also in the collection, will do the same at some point.

      We've had two near-misses with misconfigured collections and one hit with a different problem* which cannot have happened in this case. SCCM isn't the most intuitive user interface and if you're being pressured by users or trying to get out of the door for the weekend, you can stuff it up easily.

      Our solution was to restrict access to the built-in collections and to build collections per computer lab which are presented as read-only to the technicians. And then gave them a day of lectures. It sort of works.

      * The other problem was caused by image dumping with Ghost of an image that was sysprepped, but had the SCCM client still installed on the image. Because of that, several dozen PCs had clients with the same client ID, like the Windows GUID, but separate and not cleared by a sysprep. The technician later built a SCCM image and deployed it correctly to one PC in a personal collection. Unfortunately SCCM populated the deployment list based on the client ID of the PC in the list and hit quite a few overnight. Luckily a lot of the machines in the batch were off overnight. I don't think this is the case because it hit the server too and that would have received a new client install during the SCCM installation.

      --
      Trying to become famous by taking photos. Visit my homepage please.
    11. Re:An...accident..? by geekmux · · Score: 1

      Knowing that people have been running various kinds of centralized update services, perhaps across multiple OSes, and spanning several years now, listening to a story about an update server literally going rogue and nuking everything attached to it, and then for the coup de grace, basically committing suicide at the end by reformatting itself, does not sound like an accident.

      If it truly was, I'd hate to see what the hell purposeful intent looks like.

      No that I think about it, you are right digital seppuku isn't an accident. This is something that I would hear on Coast to Coast AM under Illumanti or on Alex jones.

      My point here was the focus on the amount of destruction that was caused by an "oops", not to shine a light on some batshit theory about uber-secret state-sponsored malware mass-injections.

      Besides, we've already seen it's far easier to just compromise CAs anyway, and that's no batshit theory.

      When update servers can be "weaponized" that easily against your own environment, it makes you wonder who really needs to be holding those keys, or perhaps why you even need to drive such a fancy update service.

    12. Re:An...accident..? by bruce_the_loon · · Score: 1

      This is semi-maximum damage and disruption. The users PC's would still work, albeit with no personal data. Given the way SCCM formats and dumps, there is a change of data recovery with any of the post-format recovery tools like EZRecovery, Recuva etc.

      Max disruption would be to deploy a DoD-level hard disk wipe utility configured for 20 passes.

      --
      Trying to become famous by taking photos. Visit my homepage please.
    13. Re: An...accident..? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Nailed it

    14. Re:An...accident..? by thunderclap · · Score: 1

      Knowing that people have been running various kinds of centralized update services, perhaps across multiple OSes, and spanning several years now, listening to a story about an update server literally going rogue and nuking everything attached to it, and then for the coup de grace, basically committing suicide at the end by reformatting itself, does not sound like an accident.

      If it truly was, I'd hate to see what the hell purposeful intent looks like.

      No that I think about it, you are right digital seppuku isn't an accident. This is something that I would hear on Coast to Coast AM under Illumanti or on Alex jones.

      My point here was the focus on the amount of destruction that was caused by an "oops", not to shine a light on some batshit theory about uber-secret state-sponsored malware mass-injections.

      Besides, we've already seen it's far easier to just compromise CAs anyway, and that's no batshit theory.

      When update servers can be "weaponized" that easily against your own environment, it makes you wonder who really needs to be holding those keys, or perhaps why you even need to drive such a fancy update service.

      I agree 100%. It was mostly likely massive epic fail by someone who incompetence rivals those who built Healthcare dot org. Howvere, one CAN"T overlook the fact that people WILL call this a conspiracy by said agents because it fits the profile too easily.

    15. Re:An...accident..? by geekmux · · Score: 1

      This is semi-maximum damage and disruption. The users PC's would still work, albeit with no personal data. Given the way SCCM formats and dumps, there is a change of data recovery with any of the post-format recovery tools like EZRecovery, Recuva etc.

      Max disruption would be to deploy a DoD-level hard disk wipe utility configured for 20 passes.

      That my friend, is a matter of perspective.

      The average user staring at a freshly re-installed computer void of all personal data would not even remotely claim to see a difference.

      The redness in their face and the volume of their voice as you try and claim otherwise would reaffirm that belief, especially if you have to tell them that the tape backups only captured the lost data on the servers...

    16. Re:An...accident..? by camperdave · · Score: 1

      Trying to become famous by taking photos. Visit my homepage please.

      Try harder: put a link in your sig.

      --
      When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
    17. Re:An...accident..? by bruce_the_loon · · Score: 1

      There's a link at the end of the by user block. Used the Slashdot homepage option.

      --
      Trying to become famous by taking photos. Visit my homepage please.
    18. Re:An...accident..? by Billly+Gates · · Score: 1

      You mean deleting schema of ad in adsi edit?

      That app scares the shit out of me more than sccm or anything else. I refer to it as the nuclear bomb of tools

    19. Re:An...accident..? by camperdave · · Score: 1

      There's a link at the end of the by user block. Used the Slashdot homepage option.

      You know that, and I know that, but why make it more difficult than it has to be. You want people to click on a link, then provide the link right there. You'll get a lot more hits.

      --
      When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
    20. Re:An...accident..? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Considering it is a university just after graduation (May 12 per Emory's site), could it be a case of mis-configuration for typical academic end-of-year PC housecleaning? Just a "slight tweak" to last year's setup...

    21. Re:An...accident..? by TClevenger · · Score: 1

      Win.

    22. Re:An...accident..? by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      You're not meant to run ADSI Edit without a very, very, good reason. If you do it without a very, very, good reason you are simply asking for a cataclysm.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
    23. Re:An...accident..? by david_thornley · · Score: 1

      This is an academic environment. There may be files with research data that would take years and lots of money to replicate, and the loss may seriously derail careers. Judging by academic environments I've seen, there may well not be an off-line backup.

      --
      "When you have eliminated the unacceptable, whatever is left, however improbable, must be the truthiness" - Holmes
    24. Re:An...accident..? by jwhitener · · Score: 1

      Random technicians having access to touch the entire AD tree sounds like a major security issue. If we implemented something like that were I work, the technician would be asking some System Analyst/Sys Admin above him to make the change on his behalf via a IT ticket, or the technician would be granted access rights just over that computer lab for 1 day.

    25. Re:An...accident..? by dbIII · · Score: 1

      Cool. ISS photos.

    26. Re:An...accident..? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Great pun, you "nailed" it!

  15. And NOTHING of value was lost by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    So it goes, so it has been, so it will be.

    1. Re:And NOTHING of value was lost by thunderclap · · Score: 2

      So it goes, so it has been, so it will be.

      Ecclesiastes 1:9 and from Battlestar Galactica the new one. "All this has happened before and will happen again."

    2. Re:And NOTHING of value was lost by praedictus · · Score: 1

      Don`t forget True Detective. Time is a flat circle

      --
      Watashi wa chikyubutsurigakusha desu.
  16. Lets wait for investigation. by jacekm · · Score: 0

    In my company IT tests all upgrades on the isolated small network before deploying. You would imagine that this should be standard practice.

    1. Re:Lets wait for investigation. by arth1 · · Score: 1

      In my company IT tests all upgrades on the isolated small network before deploying. You would imagine that this should be standard practice.

      But there's no saying that this would have prevented the problem, so it's irrelevant. You can fatfinger just as easily in production as in test and staging.
      And you can even introduce new problems if not careful. Like a script washing the test deployment environment, like clearing the test target IP by mask, and inadvertently leaving the network address in its place.
      With no information about what the real cause was, advocating a cure is not very helpful. Even if it's best practice and something that should be done, it is premature and can derail the investigation and fixing of the real root cause.

    2. Re:Lets wait for investigation. by petermgreen · · Score: 1

      Sure but the test environment will almost never be absoloutely identical to the production one. So there is still room for unexpected admin screwups when deploying to the production system.

      --
      note: i'm known as plugwash most places but i screwd up registering that here somehow in the past and now can't register
    3. Re:Lets wait for investigation. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      How convenient that the SCCM server was formatted, removing all logs and giving the IT staff plausible deniability.

      This incident should really be placed on the CTO, CIO, whatever universities have. Incompetence rolls downhill, they should have made sure the people they directly hired were competent and that they would have hired only other competent people. My guess, swept under the rug or blamed on a mysterious intern that nobody has seen since.

  17. Time to look at FOG Project by clifffton · · Score: 0

    FOG requires a small amount of skill. And Linux. It wouldn't be impossible to do this in FOG, but it wouldn't happen by mistake!

    1. Re:Time to look at FOG Project by Blaskowicz · · Score: 1

      FOG works by defaulting every computer to PXE boot.. so it's a perfect environment for destroying everything? Interesting stuff would happen with something like a fuck up in the dhcp ranges. On the other hand if you serve a nice diskless linux desktop by accident, that's somewhat nicer than the intended boot to local Windows.

    2. Re:Time to look at FOG Project by clifffton · · Score: 0

      FOG can destroy everything (if the client is set to PXE boot), but you still have to know what you are doing. If FOG f'd up things you can be pretty sure it's on purpose. I have been using it for years and have deployed thousands of images with it. Never once did I image a machine I didn't intend to. One other thing it does is automate most of my inventory tasks, and join the domain. That alone is worth the trouble!

    3. Re:Time to look at FOG Project by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      So basically, exactly the same as SCCM. Got it.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
  18. Wrong OS by Air-conditioned+cowh · · Score: 5, Funny

    It reformatted the drives and put Windows on them. Eeewww! That's gross!

    1. Re:Wrong OS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Clearly, this version of Skynet tried to kill itself instead of the humans...

    2. Re:Wrong OS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It was a CYA by the IT department once they figured out Skynet was going to be trouble. Either it worked, or went into hiding...

  19. Backups by wisnoskij · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Bad news most likely on this front. I have worked University IT, and I can guarantee they are going to have problems.

    For one, no matter how many layers of backups you have, when you are working with a bunch of 90 year old academics, they will always find a way to miss every single one.

    And more grievous, Universities tend to have important data that absolutely cannot be backed up in any normal way. Data that is legally obligated to stay on one specific computer in one specific room and never leave; under penalty of legal action.

    --
    Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.
  20. It's not a bug Its a feature. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I Simple answer is that the underlying software must have been designed to do this. A resent software update to the SCCM server could have caused it.

  21. centralized user data... by fisted · · Score: 1

    This is why centralized data storage and automated installation are invaluable for managing larger sets of desktop/office computers.
    If at my workplace a computer breaks, gets stolen, catches fire, whatever, I fetch a new one from the basement, tell the PXE server to load the installation image. 15 minutes later, the user can resume their work.

    Then again, it's probably much more complicated to achieve this with Windows.

    1. Re:centralized user data... by petermgreen · · Score: 1

      The downside of centralisation is when things DO go wrong they go wrong in a big way. When your centralised data storage goes on the blink or your centralised imaging system decides to reimage every machine the whole company goes down.

      Of course a halfway house can be the worst of both worlds......

      --
      note: i'm known as plugwash most places but i screwd up registering that here somehow in the past and now can't register
    2. Re:centralized user data... by ray-auch · · Score: 1

      The downside of centralisation is when things DO go wrong they go wrong in a big way.

      Amen. It's not a bug - it's a big fat feature, very useful and very dangerous also.

      Confucius probably say: He who think big gun always better than small gun, blow whole f***ing leg off.

    3. Re:centralized user data... by fisted · · Score: 1

      When your centralised data storage goes on the blink

      That's what you have off-site backups for.

      or your centralised imaging system decides to reimage every machine the whole company goes down.

      For about 20 minutes, that was my point

  22. most successful Win7 deployment... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...ever!

  23. Common at colleges for shared computers. by bongey · · Score: 2

    When I worked in the IT in my work study program, shared computers would be re-imaged often. We would usally re-image 300-400 computers at time. Often it was just some professor wanting certain program, it was just easier and safer just to wipe the machines. Malware was big problem at the time, sasser hit all of are computers, that sucked.

    1. Re:Common at colleges for shared computers. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You don't happen to work at Emory University, do you?.....

  24. Well, that's why you store data a fileserver... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    LOL...wait, it wiped WHUT?

    Umm, offline backups?

    1. Re:Well, that's why you store data a fileserver... by Lorens · · Score: 1

      Umm, offline backups?

      That's why you have off-line backups, indeed. Also filer snapshots. Otherwise, instead of a rather big problem you have a gigantic showstopper problem.

  25. Only a good manager could tell the difference by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It sounds like the commenter above was teachable - he no doubt learned his lesson.
    It also sounds like the company's owner knew he could learn this lesson. That's the mark of a great manager.

    Whether the Emory staffer responsible for this mistake is teachable or not, I hope his boss can tell the difference. Some folks aren't teachable, some are. If the Emory boss is worth his paycheck, he should be able to tell.

    1. Re:Only a good manager could tell the difference by Sun · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I used to work for a company called "Gteko". Don't bother looking them up - they were acquired several years ago. They sold bundled software (OEM) to a handful of companies, all of them huge. One of those was AOL. This is over a decade ago.

      The incident in question took place after I left, so I don't know the specifics. The bottom line is, they screwed up a server deployment that affected the AOL front page for all AOL customers. After that was finally fixed, the company's CEO, expecting pretty much to be shown the door, walked into a meeting with several AOL high execs.

      The meeting started with the following sentence:
      "Let's see how we can make sure this never happens again"

      Even when it's something less "close" to you than an employee, it is sometimes worth it to not terminate someone who made a mistake, even a serious one.

      My current employer, Akamai, has a motto effectively saying: It's okay to screw up, so long as that screwup results in a procedure that will prevent anyone from making the same mistake again.

      Shachar

    2. Re:Only a good manager could tell the difference by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Whoa there cowboy. Have you seen BitZtream's other posts on Slashdot? "Arrogant" and "jerk" just begin to describe him. Check his history, I'm not trolling.

    3. Re:Only a good manager could tell the difference by PingPongBoy · · Score: 1

      > Whether the Emory staffer responsible for this mistake is teachable or not, I hope his boss can tell the difference.

      Going up the chain of command someone has to know the full ramifications of an action and make sure that the full consequences are not achievable without due difficulty. There's a reason nuclear launches are done with two independent minds.

      It's a recurring problem. Workers are highly pressured to make quick decisions and produce results expeditiously. It's more than the rat race, it's about being able to ask for a raise. Checks and balances are unjustifiable expenses particularly when the results of a person's work are to be compared with the practically inevitable new tools or software that will whittle away at that person's set of duties. Sounds like better idiot proofing features should be developed...

      --
      Know your pads. One time pad: good for cryptography. Two timing pad: where to take your mistress.
  26. Rid of Malware by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    So why then install the Malware 7?

  27. research university likely has a big theory based by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 0

    research university likely has a big theory based CS program and hires people only with cs degrees and not people who went to tech schools / learned on there own / on the job.

  28. Sounds like IT incompetence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    SCCM is pretty good. It makes my desktop techs jobs significantly easier to deploy assets company wide. In this case, it sounds like someone pressed some buttons without being 100% clear as to what was going on. Unfortunate someone will not be working in IT ever again.

    Agreed that this is a huge blunder but mistakes happen. When you have the human factor involved there are always risks and there will be mistakes made.
    I don't blame the person executing this, Ultimately it's managements responsibility to ensure the person was trained enough to not make this mistake. Someone dropped the ball??

  29. mac systems may not even boot with Partition types by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 2

    mac systems may not even boot with the old Partition tables that are needed for older NON EFI systems that windows runs on.

    also the Mac os Recovery Partition may even be wiped out.

  30. punished myself more than he possibly could by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    That line really caught me since most people think that punishment works. Punishment pushes you down towards criminality not up towards better behavior. The reason people at all do better inspite of punishment is because they inherintly want to do it right and are only too happy to learn how to do so.

    Our prisons are doomed since it's the best possible way to degrade and debase you to the point where you give up on society and any efforts to contribute positively to it. Instead you try to live outisde society and it's downhill from there.

    Very street smart boss! You must have done something right to have him as your boss.

  31. "Somehow"??? by Tony+Isaac · · Score: 3, Insightful

    "Somehow" makes it sound mysterious and inexplicable. I'd be willing to bet that the truth is far less sensational. I could see a student tech assistant doing something like this on a dare, or a low-skilled admin just clicking OK one too many times, without actually reading the warning message.

    1. Re:"Somehow"??? by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 1

      Let's see a tech goes we are deploying the new windows 7 image to all systems right? get's a yes from some other tech / boss (thinking that that tech is thinking all desktops / laptops or all systems in group X) and picks ALL systems (that has the severs in it as well) but not all desktops / laptops all systems in group X.

    2. Re: "Somehow"??? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Deploying the imaging task sequence as a Required deployment to the all systems collection would do it. Easy to do. Smarter to setup different boundaries for servers and workstations so a desktop support person can't image a server. I suspect their hierarchy was defined as the root of ad and all subnets

  32. Re:mac systems may not even boot with Partition ty by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    why is that a bad thing? Apple doesn't want them around.

  33. Re:K. S. Kyosuke = "Run, Forrest: RUN!" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Moderators ignore your vain please KSK. You started it. Apk finsihed it and you too.

  34. Re:K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    How embarassing: K.S. Kyosucky tossed names and ran since He can't backup his crap obviously.

  35. Stay classy, Slashdot by Bazman · · Score: 2

    Not only have they had to re-image all their PCs, you've now slashdotted their web server!

  36. netboot or even an windows script that reformats t by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 1

    netboot or even an windows script that reformat the system will run on system targeted systems. Also dells, HP, both AMD and Intel and have ways for windows apps to set bios settings and some places have netboot as the default setting in boot order.

  37. Now realize that with central update repositories, by Marrow · · Score: 1

    It could happen to the whole planet.

    And I have seen a lot of machines try to PXE boot by default. That has got to stop.

  38. Re: K. S. Kyosuke = "Run, Forrest: RUN!" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If it's so shitty why'd k.s. kyosucky run from proving your accusation then?

  39. Re:mac systems may not even boot with Partition ty by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 1

    apple uses EFI / UEFI.

    older Pc's don't have it and in some cases with pc that have it have it turned off so they can boot XP, Windows 7 (in some cases), disk encryption, and other stuff.
    32bit os's yes some places put 32 bit loads on systems with 4gb or more ram in them.

  40. Its easy to do by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    I am an SCCM 2012 administrator in real life. This is really easy to do, in fact I've almost had it happen to one of my sites. this is an example of why training is important. Somebody probably attempted to do an automated reload of a single computer lab and issued the deployment to the wrong collection. There's nothing mysterious about it, somebody screwed up.

    SCCM is a geat and powerfull tool, but this is the risk that is run whenever you use an automated system. expecally to do reloads.
    JB

  41. K. S. Kyosuke = "Run, Forrest: RUN!" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  42. Backups - the happy ending by mveloso · · Score: 1

    "Because the university ran nightly backups, they were able to restore all the PCs to the correct state later that afternoon."

    If they had a centralized SCCM server, they should have a central backup server as well.

  43. This is why .... by chuckugly · · Score: 1

    This is why removing domain admin from the list of local admins is the 1st thing to do.

    1. Re:This is why .... by FaxeTheCat · · Score: 1

      Actually, if the domain admin account is used at all, except in emergency, then the domain is mismanaged from the start.

    2. Re:This is why .... by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      Er, no, because that wouldn't make a whit of difference whatsoever. The agent would still happily kick off the task sequence, no questions asked.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
    3. Re:This is why .... by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      The domain admin account should be used for dsrestore only. Anything else, make a new account.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
    4. Re:This is why .... by chuckugly · · Score: 1

      The second thing is to remove all the admin agents.

    5. Re:This is why .... by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      That's a dumb idea. Removing centralised management and making life harder is NOT the solution to careless administrators. The solution is not having careless administrators.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
    6. Re:This is why .... by chuckugly · · Score: 1

      Perhaps I have trust issues, but *I* always remove that crap and remove all domain admins from the list of local admins. Why do I want my computer managed by someone else? Answer: I don't. If you like your system managed by others, well, up to you.

    7. Re:This is why .... by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      Except that it's not your system. They own it, not you. In our environment, Group Policy would just undo every change you just made because it's our computer and not yours.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
    8. Re:This is why .... by chuckugly · · Score: 1

      When that happens, it's time to bust out the install DVD and rewrite history. If possible I will use Ghost or VMWare Converter to make a VM or disk image first, if not, well I had work to do, tough. The extent of the impotent complaints have always been "that's not a supported configuration" to which I say "perfect'.

    9. Re:This is why .... by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      Seriously, drop the entitlement complex. It is not your computer and they are entitled to configure and manage it however they like.

      If you tried that stunt where I work, we'd have you fired for connecting unmanaged, unsupported hardware to our network.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
    10. Re:This is why .... by chuckugly · · Score: 1

      It's unlikely I could be convinced to work there, and if I was convinced to do so I would be accommodated. Maybe that doesn't work for everyone, but it works marvellously for me.

  44. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  45. Re:mac systems may not even boot with Partition ty by Megol · · Score: 2

    apple uses EFI / UEFI.

    older Pc's don't have it and in some cases with pc that have it have it turned off so they can boot XP, Windows 7 (in some cases), disk encryption, and other stuff.
    32bit os's yes some places put 32 bit loads on systems with 4gb or more ram in them.

    Well in some cases that's for the best. 4GiB or even 8GiB is the standard amount of memory of many computers, not that one would want any thing less anyway (it wouldn't lower the costs noticeable).

    And there are reasons to run 32 bit OS installations on 64 bit systems, I've have to use a separate 32 bit Windows installation in a VM to run some important programs.

  46. K. S. Kyosuke = "Run, Forrest: RUN!" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  47. SCCM noob by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Someone created a collection that had no constraints on it (O/S must be WinXP, Win7-64, etc). In AD, a desktop or server are all "computer" objects.
    They selected the top of their AD forest or some top level OU as the base for the LDAP search (since usually servers would be in a separate OU for adminstration purposes).
    They did a GREAT job to ensure that all their systems were setup with PXE boot in the BIOS. (shouldn't their servers be VM's by now, and not have PXE enabled?)

    Someone will be looking for a new job (and looking for a way to explain the hole in time on their resume). Windows for dummies and their braindumper cert didn't get them very far.

  48. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  49. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  50. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  51. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  52. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  53. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  54. K. S. Kyosuke = "Run, Forrest: RUN!" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  55. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  56. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  57. Human error by Karmashock · · Score: 1

    Obviously human error... there is no patch for it.

    --
    I've decided to stop wasting my time responding to AC trolls/sockpuppets... so if you want a response from me... login.
  58. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  59. K. S. Kyosuke = "Run, Forrest: RUN!" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  60. The Revenge of regular expressions. by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 1

    The God of Regular Expressions is stern and unforgiving. You follow his Commandments strictly. Put a star where a star should be and a dot where a dot should be and respect and obey the square brackets. It does not matter whether an aspiring acolyte priest tried to write a prayer above his station or the Most Reverend His Rootness was careless in writing his prayer, you make a mistake and God of Regular Expression will smite you down like nobody's business.

    --
    sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
  61. What kind of crap software... by OneSmartFellow · · Score: 0

    ...starts out a system update with a format C: command under any circumstance?

    Answer...presumably any Windows based *&^% that gets sold into Universities. Why wasn't the development of such a tool a graduate research project ?

    I wish I had the chutzpah to sell such junk, I'd be a freaking billionaire by now too. Instead, my software is bulletproof, but it sells for pennies per seat. I guess I missed the big picture. Oh well, at least I have a clean conscience.

    1. Re:What kind of crap software... by frisket · · Score: 1

      Why wasn't the development of such a tool a graduate research project ?

      Oh please goddess no. You'll end up with some arcane piece of experimental theology written in a private version of a language no-one has ever heard of, undocumented and unsupportable. Have it written by someone with a suitable track record, a suitable number of decades experience in whatever, and with proven implementations and documentation skills. It will be expensive, but it will cost far less in the long run.

    2. Re:What kind of crap software... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It wasn't a system update, you stupid fucking troll. You clearly have no clue what you're talking about.

    3. Re:What kind of crap software... by dbIII · · Score: 1

      Have it written by someone with a suitable track record, a suitable number of decades experience in whatever

      Do you really think someone with that much experience would be wasted on what MS consider a niche product with a captive market?

    4. Re:What kind of crap software... by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      It was a task sequence intended to deploy an entire operating system. Funnily enough, that starts off by preparing the disk for the installation.

      Or are you saying Linux is a piece of shit because it prepares to install by running fdisk?

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
  62. There are alternatives by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    There are alternatives. In the open source world there is Puppet, but I've seen bash (and used bash) as a scripting agent to remotely configure software across systems. I've even written bash scripts to 'Jumpstart' Solaris machines (the firmware allowed remote controlled drive formatting, operating system installation with nothing more than a (firmware set) IP address and some idea of the machine architecture). The trick is managing the software. I really can't blame microsquish over this because this is more an Emory University software management problem more than a microsoft problem. They never said anything about remote hacks in to control the software, so this is just a local problem.

  63. As someone who worked with SCCM... by TFlan91 · · Score: 1

    I can attest to the fact that this was no accident.

    You have to explicitly, or have the unfortunate luck of clicking the wrong 20 correct buttons in a row, to do something like this, SCCM is not a one-click wonder.

    GJ whoever did this, good luck with the networking department though.

    1. Re:As someone who worked with SCCM... by mysidia · · Score: 1

      Consider this argument though.... someone incompetent clicked 19 of the correct buttons, BUT they wound up setting up for deployment the WRONG group of computers. Just a few XP computers were to be migrated to Windows 7, but they somehow mistakenly applied it to the entire environment.

  64. Every programming or networking class I ever had.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Every programming or networking class I ever had..

    If your program or script doesn't work (perfectly usually implied, not always stated): no credit.

    This breeds arrogant assholes and cheaters. One of the many reasons IT and programming are such shit environments and careers for most people. Probably also why women, generally smarter than men, stay away in droves.

  65. Re:K. S. Kyosuke = "Run, Forrest: RUN!" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Shouldn't have called apk names and run KSKyosucky.

  66. Re: K. S. Kyosuke = "Run, Forrest: RUN!" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    KS yer welcome to prove that: Take apk's challenge ya ran from after calling him names!

  67. Two-Person Authorization by nuckfuts · · Score: 1

    We already have things like User Account Control that prompt for explicit authorization for potentially detrimental actions. Perhaps systems like SCCM should have an option to require authorization from two people (like turning two keys to launch a nuke) for operations such as wiping out hundreds of computers.

    This would not prevent a rogue administrator from wreaking havoc, but it might eliminate the "accident" defense.

  68. Same thing happened to a school near me by brokenin2 · · Score: 1

    About two years ago, a community college near me had the exact same thing happen. I don't know the excruciating details, but the basics were the same SCCM wiped out all of the servers that it was used to manage..

    I didn't work for the college then (I do now), but I did know a few people that did at the time. The person that triggered it is still there. From what I understand what he was doing and the way he went about it, although in hindsight was dangerous, wasn't a really reckless thing.

    Our campus is less than 30 minutes drive to Microsoft's main campus, and there was a lot of pressure for us to use their systems. I think the college paid the price for caving to that pressure. Sure, there are other factors involved here as well... A careless employee, an unintuitive result from an interface/script, poor safety mechanisms in both policy and the product, poor design by both the vendor and the college..

    From what I understand, one of the most devastating aspects when it came to recovery, was that the server that held backups (Microsoft's data protection manager of course) was wiped out as well.. I think in this particular incident, only system drives were annihilated, so if a server had a "D" drive or other volumes, it was still there, it was just a useless lump sitting on a server with no OS for a while at first.

    Having never heard a similar story with any other software product, I'm left believing that SCCM and it's deficiencies are at least partially to blame, and given what I know about the person that caused it here, I'd say that it's a pretty respectable bit of the blame that should be left on SCCM.

    Someone realized pretty quickly what was going on (not the person that caused it), and pulled the plug on the process somehow or our college would have been even more devastated. As it stood, it was still pretty bad.. Probably only about 25% of the full destructive power of the mess as averted.

    1. Re:Same thing happened to a school near me by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      Bullshit any of the blame should be laid on the management software. Centralised administration systems are not tools for people who don't know what they're doing. They're for administrators who know what they're doing and the consequences of their actions. There's no deficiencies in a piece of software that does exactly what you tell it to do, that's just you zealots lambasting it "cause Microsoft".

      You could just as easily fuck up a network of systems with puppet or rsync.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
  69. The only important question: by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Did this happen BEFORE, or AFTER final exams?

    1. Re:The only important question: by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Before. Just 3 days ago.

  70. K. S. Kyosuke = "Run, Forrest: RUN!" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  71. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  72. It's okay to mess up, but have plan b &c by raymorris · · Score: 1

    My policy is that to err is human, to have proper backups is professional. Running a complex SQL update statement on a million records? That sure might have unintended consequences, so first run "select into" so you have an untouched copy to revert to. I EXPECT people to mess up. I also expect them to realize that they'll mess up, and plan accordingly.

  73. In other news, students... by ItsIllak · · Score: 1

    In other news, students and staff have reported that their computers are performing much better than usual and site-wide malware and associated bandwidth hogging has massively reduced.

    University now plans to do this every month.

  74. It highlights an important vulnerability present i by chentiangemalc · · Score: 1

    hiring incompetent IT staff

  75. Sorry about your doctorate thesis by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    that you've been working on for 3 years. I'm sure you can get it typed up in the next week, before you have to defend it. Good luck, and thanks for the $30K/yr to delete all your personal data!

  76. Re:K. S. Kyosuke = "Run, Forrest: RUN!" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 0

    Oh look, the little boy APK is crapflooding Slashdot again, for his own selfish purposes.

    What exactly are you trying to achieve here, other than annoying un-related visitors to the site?

    Do you think there's some sort of threshold over which people will magically start seeing your nonsense as insightful and think of you as something other than a childish old fool?

    --
    ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  77. Emory by Rashdot · · Score: 1

    Schmemory

    --
    This is not the sig you're looking for.
  78. Windoze.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    n/t

  79. image? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    call me old fashioned, but I just pop in a CD with Windows and run the setup program to upgrade Windows.

    1. Re:image? by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      Try that on 10,000 computers.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
  80. Huge vulnerability by Tough+Love · · Score: 1

    Could this have shed light on a possibly huge vulnerability in large enterprise organizations that rely heavily on automated software deployment packages like SCCM?

    This is really about a huge vulnerability in large enterprise organizations that rely on Microsoft. Incidentally, Google Inc. is not one of them.

    --
    When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
    1. Re:Huge vulnerability by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      No, it's not. It's a huge vulnerability in large enterprise organisations that rely heavily on automated software deployment packages like SCCM in the hands of untrained or careless administrators.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
    2. Re:Huge vulnerability by Daniel+Phillips · · Score: 1

      Especially if those automated software deployment packages like SCCM are Microsoft products.

      --
      Have you got your LWN subscription yet?
    3. Re:Huge vulnerability by Kalriath · · Score: 1

      Oh, fucking bullshit. You can destroy a network just as easily with Puppet or any other Linux deployment toolkit in the hands of someone who isn't careful. You fucking zealots make it hard to actually want anything to do with anything non-Microsoft you know.

      --
      For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
  81. Re:mac systems may not even boot with Partition ty by Skuld-Chan · · Score: 1

    SCCM only suports PXE booting to run a task sequence - Mac's can't really boot off PXE.

  82. AI by manu0601 · · Score: 1

    Ne need to fear about AI enslaving humans in the near future: for now computers remain really dumb!

  83. OTOH. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    YHBT. YHL. HAND.

  84. Change Control by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This is what Operations Manager is for - Change control reporting!

  85. If I were a Professor at Emory... by Eric+Smith · · Score: 1

    ... and if I'd lost any files to this fiasco, I would henceforth absolutely REFUSE to use any computers that were accessible to SCCM, and I'd be trying to convince all of my colleagues to do the same.

  86. Apk's simply directly confronting by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    A cowardly worm who tossed names in illogical off-topic ad hominem attack & ran from backing it up.

  87. Aha! Yet another milksop punk by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Like K.S. Kyosucky! No wonder the USA's going down when weasels like you = the next generation.

  88. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  89. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  90. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  91. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  92. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  93. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  94. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  95. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  96. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  97. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  98. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  99. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  100. Tell us about "rational discourse" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Sardaukar86 "FoaMiNg-@-The-MouTh" ReAcTioN #1 http://news.slashdot.org/comme...

    Sardaukar86 "FoaMiNg-@-The-MouTh" ReAcTioN #2 http://news.slashdot.org/comme...

    Why?

    He had to "eat his words" vs. APK http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    Then, Sardaukar86 the lying jackass that he is *tried* to say he used "rational discourse" with APK? What a fucking joke and what a fucking hypocritical little liar bitch http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

    1. Re:Tell us about "rational discourse" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Oh, & funny they're NOT doing it now (it was you & K.S. Kyosuke obviously & you're outta modpoints gas today, lol! You FAIL/lose, as always, vs. the SUPERIOR apk!)

      Yup, that's about the reasoning level I expect from you. The 'superior' APK.

      Actually, I have five mod points that I've not used yet, expiring tomorrow.

      BTW, if you're the 'superior' APK, I'd hate to see how inept the standard-model APK is.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    2. Re:Tell us about "rational discourse" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      You're repeating yourself again, another sign of your mental instability.

      Why not post your Hosts file 'look at meeeeeee I was modded up once apon a time' shit again while you're at it? It's sure to convince me this time and I know everyone on Slashdot loves reading your posts.

      I know you won't admit it APK but I've really burned you this time haven't I? You think it might have been something to do with this dissertation on your messed-up brain, huh?

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    3. Re:Tell us about "rational discourse" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      He's correct you profanely ravied stalking his posts yet talk rational discourse? Give us a break hypocrite. Funny part was his saying you had to "eat your words" and that you only did to yourself.

    4. Re:Tell us about "rational discourse" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      He's correct you profanely ravied stalking his posts yet talk rational discourse?

      Could you try that again, this time in English?

      Give us a break hypocrite.

      More circular logic from a fool who couldn't reason his way out of a wet paper bag.

      Funny part was his saying you had to "eat your words" and that you only did to yourself.

      Did what to myself? Amuse myself endlessly as you squirm on my hook? This line is so rich it just had to receive special mention!

      This name-calling brat would have you believe he is a supporter and not of APK himself - nosiree, nuh-uh, not at all. LOL. The comedy just writes itself! It isn't difficult to see why APK is known as the Slashdot Clown. At least he makes us laugh!

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  101. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  102. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  103. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  104. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  105. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  106. K. S. Kyosuke gets called out & ran by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From a fair challenge like a chickenshit blowhard http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  107. Would have worked correctly... by bswarm · · Score: 1

    If it installed Linux on all the computers then on itself.

  108. If it was malicious... by vandamme · · Score: 1

    ...it would have installed Windows 8.

  109. You failed & blew your modpoints K.S. Kyosuke by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this lol http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

  110. You failed & blew your modpoints Sardaukar86 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to downmod "hide" this http://it.slashdot.org/comment... and this about YOU too (lmao) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... loser. You lose. That's just how you roll/what you do (lmao). Especially against apk who played you and K.S. Kyosuke like fiddles into blowing all your modpoints so you can't "hide things" with bad minus mods anymore.

  111. You failed & blew your modpoints K.S. Kyosuke by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this with minusmods (you fail, you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... so gotta hand it to apk. He played you like a fiddle getting you to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  112. You failed & blew your modpoints K.S. Kyosuke by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this with minusmods (you fail, you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... so gotta hand it to apk. He played you like a fiddle getting you to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  113. You failed & blew your modpoints K.S. Kyosuke by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this with minusmods (you fail, you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... so gotta hand it to apk. He played you like a fiddle getting you to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  114. You failed & blew your modpoints K.S. Kyosuke by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this with minusmods (you fail, you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... so gotta hand it to apk. He played you like a fiddle getting you to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  115. You failed & blew your modpoints K.S. Kyosuke by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this with minusmods (you fail, you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... so gotta hand it to apk. He played you like a fiddle getting you to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  116. You failed & blew your modpoints K.S. Kyosuke by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this with minusmods (you fail, you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... so gotta hand it to apk. He played you like a fiddle getting you to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  117. You failed & blew your modpoints K.S. Kyosuke by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this with minusmods (you fail, you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... so gotta hand it to apk. He played you like a fiddle getting you to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  118. You failed & blew your modpoints K.S. Kyosuke by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this by minusmods (you fail/you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Gotta hand it to apk: He played you like a fiddle (Sardaukar86 too) getting you both to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  119. K.S. Kyosuke failed & blew his modpoints by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this by minusmods (you fail/you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Gotta hand it to apk: He played you like a fiddle (Sardaukar86 too) getting you both to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  120. K.S. Kyosuke failed & blew his modpoints by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this by minusmods (you fail/you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Gotta hand it to apk: He played you like a fiddle (Sardaukar86 too) getting you both to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  121. K.S. Kyosuke failed & blew his modpoints by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this by minusmods (you fail/you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Gotta hand it to apk: He played you like a fiddle (Sardaukar86 too) getting you both to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  122. Re:You failed & blew your modpoints Sardaukar8 by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

    How unsurprising to find paranoia is comorbid to your underlying mental problems. It must be very tiring living with all that circular reasoning going round inside your pointy little head.

    I don't down-mod you, APK, I don't need to. Other people do that for me. I tend to use my mod-points for rewarding insightful or interesting posts, because I am not pregnant with bile in the manner that you are, poor little boy.

    --
    ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  123. K.S. Kyosuke failed & blew his modpoints by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this by minusmods (you fail/you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Gotta hand it to apk: He played you like a fiddle (Sardaukar86 too) getting you both to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  124. K.S. Kyosuke failed & blew his modpoints by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this by minusmods (you fail/you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Gotta hand it to apk: He played you like a fiddle (Sardaukar86 too) getting you both to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  125. K.S. Kyosuke failed & blew his modpoints by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this by minusmods (you fail/you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Gotta hand it to apk: He played you like a fiddle (Sardaukar86 too) getting you both to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  126. K.S. Kyosuke failed & blew his modpoints by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this by minusmods (you fail/you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Gotta hand it to apk: He played you like a fiddle (Sardaukar86 too) getting you both to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  127. K.S. Kyosuke failed & blew his modpoints by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this by minusmods (you fail/you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Gotta hand it to apk: He played you like a fiddle (Sardaukar86 too) getting you both to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  128. Re:You failed & blew your modpoints Sardaukar8 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Truth hurt, Sardaukar86? Yes (no more hiding it with bad minusmods either, lol) http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

  129. K.S. Kyosuke failed & blew his modpoints by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this by minusmods (you fail/you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Gotta hand it to apk: He played you like a fiddle (Sardaukar86 too) getting you both to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  130. Tell us about "rational discourse" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Sardaukar86 "FoaMiNg-@-The-MouTh" ReAcTioN #1 http://news.slashdot.org/comme...

    Sardaukar86 "FoaMiNg-@-The-MouTh" ReAcTioN #2 http://news.slashdot.org/comme...

    Why?

    He had to "eat his words" vs. APK http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    Then, Sardaukar86 the reprehensible little lying jackass did a post on "rational discourse" pointing out APK directly in it too AFTER the above? LMAO - please: Give me a break! See here http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

    Oh, & funny they're NOT doing it now (it was you & K.S. Kyosuke obviously & you're outta modpoints gas today, lol! You FAIL/lose, as always, vs. the SUPERIOR apk!)

  131. K.S. Kyosuke failed & blew his modpoints by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this by minusmods (you fail/you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Gotta hand it to apk: He played you like a fiddle (Sardaukar86 too) getting you both to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  132. K.S. Kyosuke failed & blew his modpoints by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this by minusmods (you fail/you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Gotta hand it to apk: He played you like a fiddle (Sardaukar86 too) getting you both to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  133. K.S. Kyosuke failed & blew his modpoints by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Trying to "hide" this by minusmods (you fail/you're outta 'em) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Gotta hand it to apk: He played you like a fiddle (Sardaukar86 too) getting you both to follow his posts blowing your modpoints. Now you've run dry or soon will, and you can't "hide things" you're obviously not too proud you did anymore, hahahahaha.

  134. Re:You failed & blew your modpoints Sardaukar8 by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

    You, The Liar, wouldn't know truth if it knocked on your front door.

    Amusingly you then call everyone else a hypocrite. You are an endless source of funnies, APK.

    Oh, and you know the best thing about my post about your mental issues? It's currently scored at 3 but it spent a while at +5 which means lots and lots of people read it, no doubt many of them had a good laugh at you.

    Interestingly, it has remained above its initial score which suggests that on the whole, people agree with me about you.

    Tell me again how you're my better?

    What was that about how superior you think you are?

    --
    ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  135. Better than "eating your words" like you by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Which you're obviously 2++ yrs. later still butthurt over (like an obsessed psycho) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... & funniest of all is you did it to yourself with your big mouth that wrote checks your dim brain can't cash!

    R O T F L M A O...

    Running a "wee bit 'dry'" on those modpoints I see (& you rarely post gaming the modpoints machine, & yes, I know how it works for you "registered 'lusers'" the same way i PLAYED YOU (you played yourself) are we after issuing so many downmods (yes).

    Who're you trying to fool? Yourself?? Please.

    APK

    P.S.=> Get over it - I blew you away, again, as per usual - especially vs. your "rational discourse" bullshit in that link above where your workds did you in quoted!

    Oh yea (since it's tradition with you) know what?

    Well... lol, YOU know (& I've just GOTTA SAY IT, as-is-per my "inimitable style"):

    THIS? This was just "too, Too, TOO EASY - just '2ez'" & it always is, vs. this INFERIOR trolling psycho stooge, Sardaukar86....

    ... apk

    1. Re:Better than "eating your words" like you by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Too easy huh? Yes, it's very easy to claim victory as you pick yourself back up off the floor, little boy.

      Funny, I don't see other people write things like this post about me; no, they're talking about *you*, Mr. Personality.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    2. Re:Better than "eating your words" like you by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You made it easy for him in raving profanely which contradicts your lies on rational discourse. You stalked his posts foaming at the mouth. You did it to yourself.

    3. Re:Better than "eating your words" like you by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      You made it easy for him in raving profanely which contradicts your lies on rational discourse. You stalked his posts foaming at the mouth. You did it to yourself.

      And somehow I'm supposed to believe this isn't APK, sock-puppeting his own posts. You've been called out on it so many times yet you persist - the very definition of madness, APK. Every post you make just proves my point further. Keep posting - keep digging your hole.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    4. Re:Better than "eating your words" like you by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Actually, it sounds rather a lot like it is YOU who is foaming at the mouth if your recent posts are anything to go by.. or did you forget that crap-flooding you did, several dozen posts I do believe. Yes, APK, it is obvious you have taken a proper caning and you don't like it one little bit, poor little boy.

      Oh and here's another one of your fans replying to my original post, you may find it insightful. I wasn't aware of Depakote before now, perhaps it's something that might help you?

      Note to watchers: APK's insightful riposte to this post will likely take the form of "nuh-uh, that's YOU pretending to be an AC!". My response is, as always, I don't need to. My arguments stand on merit with no need of AC supporters to back me up. I'm quite capable of skewering the little wriggling APK maggot all by myself, thank you very much.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  136. Tell us about "rational discourse" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Sardaukar86 "FoaMiNg-@-The-MouTh" ReAcTioN #1 http://news.slashdot.org/comme...

    Sardaukar86 "FoaMiNg-@-The-MouTh" ReAcTioN #2 http://news.slashdot.org/comme...

    Why?

    He had to "eat his words" vs. APK http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    Then, Sardaukar86 the reprehensible little lying jackass did a post on "rational discourse" pointing out APK directly in it too AFTER the above? LMAO - please: Give me a break! See here http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

  137. Now I want to know 1 thing only by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    How'id eatin yer words taste rammed down by yer foot in yer mouth + a bitter taste of self-defeat http://it.slashdot.org/comment... ? That's all - Hahahaha

  138. Replying anon for obvious reasons by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    After reading your reply what is wrong with you? He quoted your own words contradicting yourself faoming at the mouth raving like a lunatic. Please leave this website. You are a troll with significant issues.

    1. Re:Replying anon for obvious reasons by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Hi, APK, I don't think you know what 'contradiction' means. Do you think it might have something to do with your 'faoming' at the mouth?

      BTW, I really fail to see why you're so terribly upset about me asking you to fuck off. You only did it to yourself, after all. You certainly seem quite upset, but don't feel it was a one-off: if you want, I can tell you to fuck off in a public forum and not get modded down again and again.. what does that say about you?

      Oh, sorry, I forgot! I'm not meant to know that this is APK, right?

      How do I know? It's not rocket science. It's simply because nobody writes posts in support of you. If they did, they wouldn't use the same childish language that you use, APK.

      You are clumsy and stupid, surely that must hurt by now? Poor little boy.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    2. Re:Replying anon for obvious reasons by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Not apk. You're obsessed with apk. Is this rational from you trolling off topic raving http://news.slashdot.org/comme... ? By no means. It was profane trolling stalking apk. You have obsession with apk issues, clearly. Your ad hominem attacks here now further evidence you're a wee bit butthurt over apk making you eat your words which your dumb comment brought on you http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    3. Re:Replying anon for obvious reasons by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      You can't even do a decent job of pretending to be someone else, APK. If you can't even fuck up properly, what use *are* you exactly?

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    4. Re:Replying anon for obvious reasons by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why are you ignoring my question here for http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

    5. Re:Replying anon for obvious reasons by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      YOUR question? Your question APK?

      Now, following this is the text of that question, purportedly posted by someone other than APK. That's right, APK wants us to believe he has supporters who will argue in his defence. Oddly, they all seem to say the same childish things and are written in a very familiar style. That's right - this is the level of intellect at work here ladies and gentlemen. I give you: APK, the Slashdot Clown!

      An 'Anonymous Coward' writing in support of APK (no it's not APK nuh-uh no way!):

      How did your words taste since you had to eat them rammed down your throat since your foot was in your MOUTH washed down with "the bitter taste of SELF-defeat" when APK made you eat them http://slashdot.org/comments.p... [slashdot.org] for your blundering stupidity opening your mouth which wrote a check your dim brain can't cash? (Tell us since we've been asking & "inquiring minds want to know") 244++:1 odds against you from your own /. peers contrary opinions to your own butthurt obviously biased stalker troll "opinion" which got shot down in flames by apk.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    6. Re:Replying anon for obvious reasons by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why are you avoiding my question here http://slashdot.org/comments.p... ?

  139. sccm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Did they not set flags on the sccm server after the soe is deployed, which sets the workstation to do not rebuild .
    Is there not a pxe password at the step prior to soe deployment from the list of soe optoins?]

    sounds like a very amateur deployment and they are paying the price. on a side note when deploying applications/images if you clear the sql query and hit apply by default it select all* ......good chance this may have happened :)

  140. Ouch by DustinChambers · · Score: 1

    A bit about SCCM for those who are wondering.. It basically allows you to automate Windows and software installations by using what's called a task sequence. The task sequence is a list of commands, for example, reboot to WinPE, partition, format, install windows, join domain, install software, etc. A task sequence can either be available or required. It can then be assigned to a group of computers that the admin assign, for example "All 32 bit Windows 7 machines" Someone obviously did the number one SCCM nono.. NEVER make a task sequence a requirement for All Systems. :) Here's hoping that maybe, just maybe they had User State Migration enabled so it backed up everyone's data before formatting.

  141. IPMI and other "lights-out" by DrYak · · Score: 2

    Don't underestimate IPMI and its equivalent (what was Intel's name for their proprietary alternative? ME ?)

    With this kind of technologies, you have a small mini-embed system in the motherboard, which talk over a TCP/IP network and provides all functionnality (including wake-on-lan, including shutdown, including reboots (AND specifying what resource to reboot to - like starting PXE or emulated-over-network USB driver), including VNC remoting, and Serial-over-IP (for some server remoting).
    Think of all the niceties you have inside a VirtualBOX or VMWare emulator, but on actual real hardware.

    It's very popular in enterprise settings so sysadmins can update a whole division's computers, instead to having to walk to each one of hundreds of machine).
    So it available under some form on most workstations, servers, and enterprise laptops.

    If you need to upgrade machines, the usual procedure is:
    1. you politely ask the user to not start any over-night computation and if possible leave their machine off.
    2. when the evening comes you log into the lights-out management of each of the target the workstation over *IP* (no MAC-address shenningans, straith IP address) (you either have simple accounts with password, or you can have it integrated to some larger systems)
    3. because none of the user would have actually left the workstation off as requested, you first try to nicely shutdown the machines (you send an ACPI soft-off signal, and hope that the OS will react and nicely save and shutdown).
    4. after a timeout you force shutdown the remaining machines (you send a Reset or Power OFF signal)
    5. you boot all the machine and ask them to load your payload instead of the disk (it can be either classical PXE, or you can remotely emulate a USB drive) so all machine boot the management software even that bizare guy who insist on having CD as his primary boot device on his workstation.
    6. you remotely launch the necessary administration. Either it runs unattended, or you can remotely control if needed (depending on the tool used, you might use a proprietary administration tool, or SSH, or Serial-over-Internet. If it's an asinine tool, you might need to VNC)
    7. you reboot the machine and let them follow normal boot order.

    The system has lots of advantage:
    - it can be scripted with command line tools.
    - you can even change BIOS settings, etc.
    - it's handled by an embed system (usually part of the chipset) so this is completely independent of what the main CPU is doing (the workstation might be running or might be powered off).

    The system has a few drawbacks:
    - massive security problems: the user-friendly web-interface of lots of "lights-out" implementation is buggy and an exploit-nightmare (most securing recommandation start by "turn the web console off").
    - security problem: you need to setup proper accounts and passwords (to avoid a script kiddie wrecking havock after having guessed a few standard passwords. Minimum is setting acceptable local accounts)

    So, going back to the discussion:
    - if the workstations have Lights-out remote administration (virtually all enterprise hardware is sold with)
    - if the remote administration is properly setup...

    You have full control possibilities on the whole fleet of workstations, without any of the hassle of dealing with low-level functionnalities like PXE, WOL, etc.

    If an administrator has done a bad job at automating it all, you might end up with the whole enterprise being remotely reformated.

    At least the students machine are probaly safe:
    - the consumer grade laptops don't usually feature "lights-out" management.
    - the student who has bought an enterprise-class laptop probably hasn't it activated (and if the student is savvy enough to turn it on for own use, the student has sure enough setup decent accounts).

    Given the security problems mentionned above, that means NSA and China have probably full administrative access to 1/3 of all enterprise workstations running everywhere.

    --
    "Sufficiently advanced satire is indistinguishable from reality." - [Tips: 1DrYakQDKCQ6y52z6QbnkxHXAocMZJE61o ]
    1. Re:IPMI and other "lights-out" by camperdave · · Score: 1

      if the remote administration is properly setup...

      Yes, if the remote administration is properly set up... which requires passwords and configurations to be set on both ends. It's not something that is going to happen by accident on a student's personal computer, which was my point.

      --
      When our name is on the back of your car, we're behind you all the way!
    2. Re:IPMI and other "lights-out" by Pubstar · · Score: 1

      Super late to this, but I would just like to note that for the large national bank that I work for, we require machines to be on, but have no users logged in, for us to do a remote Windows XP to Windows 7 migration. This is mostly so we can run a Scanstate against the machine prior to reimaging it.

  142. Purely your arbitrary opinion! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Now this doesn't just "SOUND like" you raving, it shows it http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    After all: Those ARE YOUR WORDS quoted, hypocrite, right there in black & white, twice, then getting SHOT DOWN IN FLAMES by APK with him making YOU "eat your words", rotflmao (oh, the shame of it!).

    No denying it. You fail. Especially after your rant about "rational discourse" when that link shows you stalking apk harassing him with profane ravings on your part.

    Too bad APK easily cooked you like a goose for your stupid statement in a 244++:1 ratio against you from your fellow /. peers contrary opinions to yours http://it.slashdot.org/comment... , eh?

    1. Re:Purely your arbitrary opinion! by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Hmm, your first link should probably be to one of my posts, shouldn't it? It instead goes to another one of your own laughably-childish posts which attempt to discredit me by linking to an old post of mine. Well, I'm not afraid at all - here, I'll reproduce it below. It was my (somewhat restrained) response to a snivelling post by APK, who was whining about how unfairly his crapflood-posts are modded down. Apparently, this is what APK considers a "FoaMiNg-@-The-MouTh" ReAcTioN:

      Fuck off you predictable, useless waste of space.

      Meanwhile, APK crap-bombs this thread with dozens and dozens of outraged, shrieking posts about what a meanie I am. I think this is a rather nice demonstration of what "foaming at the mouth" really looks like, yet it took APK himself to show us how it's done. Thanks APK! =)

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    2. Re:Purely your arbitrary opinion! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why are you avoiding my question here http://slashdot.org/comments.p... ? Quit projecting and answer it.

  143. Answer a question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    How did your words taste since you had to eat them rammed down your throat since your foot was in your MOUTH washed down with "the bitter taste of SELF-defeat" when APK made you eat them http://slashdot.org/comments.p... for your blundering stupidity opening your mouth which wrote a check your dim brain can't cash?

    (Tell us since we've been asking & "inquiring minds want to know")

    244++:1 odds against you from your own /. peers contrary opinions to your own butthurt obviously biased stalker troll "opinion" which got shot down in flames by apk.

    1. Re:Answer a question by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      You're repeating yourself again APK. Protip: merely repeating an argument doesn't strengthen your position, it actually weakens it because by doing so you publicly demonstrate that you actually have nothing.

      Oh, and as far as this goes:

      244++:1 odds against you from your own /. peers

      This is one of my personal favourites, the cherry-picked list of up-mods. Most amusingly, the lowly childish troll APK doesn't realise that his cherry-picked list only demonstrates his own lack of intellectual capacity and honesty. For your list to NOT be cherry-picked, APK, it would need to be compared against a list of all the times you were DOWN-modded. You won't do this, because you know damn well your list of down-mods would dwarf your up-mods. Furthermore, you purposefully fail to understand because to do so means you would be proven wrong. Can't have the truth getting out, can we APK? Might make you look bad.

      You failed to understand this when I explained it earlier and unsurprisingly you still don't agree with my conclusion. However it's not really myself you are disagreeing with; you've only to look up the principles of the scientific method (or even basic Statistics) to see that I am correct, but you won't do this because you are convinced of your own superiority to those around you and because you are a coward who barks like a dog but runs at the first sign of intelligent rebuttal. You then hypocritically accuse others of 'running' from your 'argument' when its painfully obvious to all onlookers that you haven't actually managed to scrape together enough of an argument to respond to.

      Thus we return to the present position with APK; his head in the sand, speaking directly from his anus.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    2. Re:Answer a question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Guilt by evasion = Sardaukar86:Is this rational discourse by you http://news.slashdot.org/comme... ? Looks more like off topic stalking complete with irrational profanity to me.

    3. Re:Answer a question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Uhm, Sardaukar86: You said his posts suck. 100's on /. disagree with you. Do the math. You fail and are illogical. You been outthought, outsmarted, and outplayed by apk. You played yourself on that one opening your mouth finding out it wrote checks your ass can't cash. Quit being such a wench. You put your foot in your mouth. Apk made you eat your words, and you washed it down with the bitter taste of self defeat vs. the superior, apk.

    4. Re:Answer a question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You're running like a dog from this question: Is this rational discourse from you http://news.slashdot.org/comme... ? Looks more like off topic stalking complete with irrational profanity to me and now you're tipping us off projecting you apply a lot of downmods to apk's post too? I have another question: Is your favorite color transparent? You're easy to see through troll.

    5. Re:Answer a question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You didn't do well in debate with apk. He didn't run. His logic and facts crushed you. It's all here in black and white fact and your words http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    6. Re:Answer a question by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      So, what you're really saying is that you've no answer to any of the above?

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    7. Re:Answer a question by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      APK, your post is delusional. You have not made anyone 'eat their words' because you don't have what it takes to do so. You've yet to come up with a cogent argument so hold off the champagne cork popping buddy, you've won nothing.

      Why do you continue this ridiculous charade, pretending to be someone else?

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    8. Re:Answer a question by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Wishful thinking, APK.

      To debate with logic and facts you'd need to have some. I've yet to see any logic from you APK and your 'facts' are nothing of the sort.

      If you actually had anything you wouldn't need to keep telling me how terribly you crushed me, now would you?

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    9. Re:Answer a question by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Run like a dog? Isn't that what I just said to you? Why do you always co-opt other people's words? Is it because there's not much imagination going on in that pumpkin inside your skull?

      BTW this was not off-topic stalking, you retard. YOU were off-topic in the thread and were being RIGHTLY TOLD TO FUCK OFF. You can expect this sort of reaction to you posting whiny little snivellings like the puerile bitch you are.

      Don't like it? Don't fucking whine. Bitching and complaining that you're being 'stalked' is the height of selfish, childish stupidity. A pity your parents didn't do a better job of bringing you up.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    10. Re:Answer a question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      243 > Sardaukar86's trolling 1 != a delusion (it's fact where apk made you "eat your words" Sardaukar86)

    11. Re:Answer a question by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Only a fact in your own private universe where maths works differently than it does for the rest of us.

      Once again you can't handle the truth so you run. Is this why you're so obsessed with telling people they've 'run forrest run' from your silly accusations?

      I see you've avoided my question again. What is it about you that makes you so damn hypocritical? You always do that which you've just accused others of.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    12. Re:Answer a question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Is 243 greater than 1? Yes. Eatng your words made you stalk apk raving profanely http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    13. Re:Answer a question by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Is 243 greater than 1? Yes. Eatng your words made you stalk apk raving profanely http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

      That wasn't my question. You've re-framed it to avoid answering because you know you're wrong. Pity you haven't got the chops to stand up against me and have to resort to childish diversionary tactics.

      Well, you'd better find something stronger by way of argument, because we adults have known for a long, long time how to deal with naughty children like yourself.

      So, will you man up and answer my question or will you "run, Forrest, run" like you always do (screaming "I won! I won!" over your shoulder as you retreat) because you're a cowardly little boy?

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    14. Re:Answer a question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sardaukar86, hate to tell you this but, 244 apk favoring posts is greater than your trolling 1. Now stfu and go back to "eating your words" (lol) chump - it's not polite to talk with your mouth full (as you eat your own words, hahaha)

    15. Re:Answer a question by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Sardaukar86, hate to tell you this but, 244 apk favoring posts is greater than your trolling 1. Now stfu and go back to "eating your words" (lol) chump - it's not polite to talk with your mouth full (as you eat your own words, hahaha)

      You are an utter failure. Your mental incompetence knows no bounds. You are a narcissistic, lying, crap-flooding, deceitful scumbag and your only hope of surviving an argument is to plug your ears and yell 'im not listening'.

      Oh and as for that silly list of yours, why don't you tell me again how it's not cherry-picked? Why don't you argue for the validity of your 'data' with a cogent debate?

      We all know the answer. You're completely outclassed here and your ship is taking on water. I think it's time for *you* to shut the fuck up, arsehole.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  144. A bit about Emory by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Their network is flat. There aren't any firewalls between the servers and the rest of the system, so there's nothing to stop one from hopping to the other.

    It wouldn't surprise me if it was a student messing around and decided to see what would happen if he did this.

  145. "My arguments stand on merit" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    'My arguments stand on merit' by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Monday May 19, 2014 @12:06AM (#47035737) Homepage

    Apk knocked them down 244:1 + you with them http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    1. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Ah, no. Sadly, just like APK, this 'anonymous' troll doesn't understand basic stats. Also, we're all supposed to believe that other people hang around Slashdot just to support APK, cunningly using the same language and links APK does.

      You are a liar, APK. You resort to dishonest tactics because you know you're wrong and you know you are near-universally disliked. I shouldn't have to explain the simple fact to you that getting a mod point from someone seven years ago doesn't mean they LIKE you, nor does it mean they AGREE with all of your points. It certainly doesn't mean they STILL agree, after all this time.

      You're got nothing but lies, shameful fraudulent behaviour and a (likely deliberate) misunderstanding of statistics to back you.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    2. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why are you avoiding my question here http://slashdot.org/comments.p... ? Quit projecting and answer it.

    3. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I've been watching this. You seem to value what others think of you talking being universally hated and projecting what you said about rational discourse about apk (which you've been shown stalking apk with profane ravings quoted from you no less which is anything but rational. You also avoid answering my question:Why are you avoiding my question here http://slashdot.org/comments.p... ? Quit projecting and answer it.

    4. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      What's that you say? Haven't actually GOT an argument so you've gotta keep repeating the old one that I ran through the shredder here and here?

      Yeah, thought so. This is one of the many reasons why you are a loser, APK, and will always be.

      I've thoroughly and exhaustively answered your question, but because you're completely devoid of any intellectual ammunition, throwing the same question at me again and again is your only choice.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    5. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Ho ho ho, another APK 'supporter' who (just happens) to have not commented before now on an old thread that is not being viewed by anyone except APK and myself, spewing the same lame tripe APK is known for, writing in APK's style and posting links to APK's posts.

      Are you going for some sort of award for publicly-and-obviously-doing-something-whilst-all-the-while-loudly-proclaiming-to-not-be?

      Oh, and I've answered your question plenty of times before, but because you don't like the truthful answer, you think you can 'win' the argument by simply asking the question again. I've really met my intellectual match in you, haven't I? [rollseyes]

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    6. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm simply asking a question you keep avoiding. Why are you avoiding my question here http://slashdot.org/comments.p... ?

    7. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Not supporting anyone. Just asking a question you keep avoiding here http://slashdot.org/comments.p... ?

    8. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      What question?

      You ask no questions in that post you don't answer yourself, so I'm not sure what you think I'm avoiding. In case it helps (because I know you're pretty thick and have trouble with anything that requires thinking) we call a question like that rhetorical. Go look it up before complaining.

      Perhaps instead of mindlessly crapping out another link to the same post, you could instead try explaining why you think I'm avoiding your 'question'?

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    9. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Ah look, the intellectually-dishonest APK is asking his repeatedly-addressed question again.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    10. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      He simply asked if your foaming at the mouth raving here was rational or not http://news.slashdot.org/comme... (looks like off topic stalking complete with profane ravings actually, but answer the question).

    11. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'll ask it here again then. Was this rational discourse from you http://news.slashdot.org/comme... ? Looks more like off topic stalking complete with irrational profanity to me.

    12. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Perhaps in your stupidity you failed to understand that a question that has already been answered by the asker is not a question at all.

      Prove otherwise.

      As to your re-asking, here's another answer for you (don't forget to claim I'm still avoiding the question though!): "FUCK OFF" is an entirely appropriate response to the infantile level of garbage you post here. Your anus is still burning that most people around here seem to agree with my assessment of you.

      After all, in all the time you've been here you've only got that paltry list of up-mods to show for yourself. Pity you didn't record all the down-mods, now THAT would make a very, very long list - don't you agree? HAHAHHAHAHAHA

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    13. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      You bet!

      And, if you keep stalking me and posting your feeble stupidity to Slashdot, you can expect more of the same.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    14. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Stupidity's 'eating your words" like you had to Sardaukar86 vs APK http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    15. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Stupidity's "eating your words" like apk made you do Sardaukar86 http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    16. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You off topic stalked apk spewing stupdiities hypocrite http://news.slashdot.org/comme...

    17. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      You wish!

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    18. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      More wishful thinking buddy!

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    19. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Obviously you didn't like the taste of eatng your words and you stalked apk raving profanely http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    20. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      More wishful thinking, APK. Keep beating your head against the glass like a dirty black blowfly. We'll just sit back and watch you. Don't hold your breath waiting for someone to open a window for you though.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    21. Re:"My arguments stand on merit" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Saw your post history. You're apk obsessed. Get professional help.

  146. I don't always deploy with SCCM by gutbrodj · · Score: 1

    But when I do, I reformat the entire campus and SCCM http://i.imgur.com/zpMmtNw.jpg

  147. Basically by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Soneone had an OS deployment to a collection, then they went to add a query to it but left it default (Select * from SMS_R_System).. this adds all systems.

    - HappySCCM

  148. Re:mac systems may not even boot with Partition ty by tlhIngan · · Score: 1

    mac systems may not even boot with the old Partition tables that are needed for older NON EFI systems that windows runs on.

    also the Mac os Recovery Partition may even be wiped out.

    They may boot with the old partition table, but if you do not obey the old partitioning, they will not get any further.

    You see, when Macs boot, they use a special OS loader in the EFI partition (a FAT-formatted partition). The EFI loader loads it (bootx.efi, IIRC) and executes it as an EFI program. That EFI program then looks for the OS system partition and loads the kernel. The OS loader uses the EFI library to access the hard drive and display and has a built-in filesystem driver to read HFS+.

    Without the EFI partition, you'll just get the blinking question mark as EFI can't find the OS loader.

  149. There's rational discourse by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And there's Sardaukar86's version "Oh fuck off, fuck off FUCK OFF ALREADY!!" by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Sunday December 18, 2011 @05:50AM (#38414922) Homepage FROM http://news.slashdot.org/comme...

    1. Re:There's rational discourse by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Avoiding my question because it's difficult? How quintessentially 'APK' of you.

      As has been explained to you, my post that upset you so greatly was a response to your childish complaint and had nothing to do with what Trax had said to you.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    2. Re:There's rational discourse by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Nope - not stalking, just sick of seeing your tripe on Slashdot and prepared to call you out for your pathetic behaviour.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    3. Re:There's rational discourse by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Wladimir:Obviously eatng your words upset you greatly & you stalked apk raving profanely http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    4. Re:There's rational discourse by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Wladimir: You stalked apk off topic raving profanely since you can't disprove his points http://it.slashdot.org/comment... since you've tried that before and failed miserably being unable to do so.

    5. Re:There's rational discourse by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Wladimir:Obviously eatng your words upset you greatly & you stalked apk raving profanely http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

      What are you talking about APK? You've never made anyone eat their words because you're too busy eating your own! HAHAHAHHAA!!!

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    6. Re:There's rational discourse by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Wladimir: You stalked apk off topic raving profanely since you can't disprove his points http://it.slashdot.org/comment... since you've tried that before and failed miserably being unable to do so.

      Come up with a valid point first before complaining that I can't disprove it.

      So, will you man up and answer my question or will you "run, Forrest, run" like you always do (screaming "I won! I won!" over your shoulder as you retreat) because of your immature-little-boy cowardice?

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  150. There's rational discourse by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And there's Sardaukar86's version "Oh fuck off, fuck off FUCK OFF ALREADY!!" by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Sunday December 18, 2011 @05:50AM (#38414922) Homepage FROM http://news.slashdot.org/comme...

  151. There's rational discourse by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And there's Sardaukar86's version "Oh fuck off, fuck off FUCK OFF ALREADY!!" by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Sunday December 18, 2011 @05:50AM (#38414922) Homepage FROM http://news.slashdot.org/comme...

  152. There's rational discourse by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And there's Sardaukar86's version "Oh fuck off, fuck off FUCK OFF ALREADY!!" by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Sunday December 18, 2011 @05:50AM (#38414922) Homepage FROM http://news.slashdot.org/comme... where you came in off topic profanely raving while you stalked apk during his conversation with Trax, psycho. Notice his "rational disocourse" (lol, not) now also.

  153. There's rational discourse by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And there's Sardaukar86's version "Oh fuck off, fuck off FUCK OFF ALREADY!!" by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Sunday December 18, 2011 @05:50AM (#38414922) Homepage FROM http://news.slashdot.org/comme... where he came in off topic stalking apk with profane ravings interfering with apk and Trax's conversation.

  154. There;s rational discourse by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And there's Sardaukar86's version "Oh fuck off, fuck off FUCK OFF ALREADY!!" by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Sunday December 18, 2011 @05:50AM (#38414922) Homepage FROM http://news.slashdot.org/comme... where he came in off topic stalking apk with profane ravings interfering with apk and Trax's conversation.

    1. Re:There;s rational discourse by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      I'll take that as a "Yes" then.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    2. Re:There;s rational discourse by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Wladimir, Yes apk made you eat your words (243:1 odds against you) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Wladimir, Yes you stalked apk off topic raving profanely http://news.slashdot.org/comme... and Yes Wladimir you're unable to disprove apk's points validly on adblock being inferior to hosts files http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    3. Re:There;s rational discourse by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      you're unable to disprove apk's points validly on adblock being inferior to hosts files

      WTF? You really are a complete fucking retard, APK. If your mental illness wasn't clouding your (already sketchy) judgement, you might not make such ridiculous claims.

      Go on, demonstrate to me where I argued that Adblock is superior to your hosts files nonsense?

      Well go on you fucking accusatory cunt, show me! What's that, you fuckwit loser? Cat got your tongue? You can't remember how to speak English? Frankly I'd be impressed to find you have the mental firepower to walk and chew gum at the same time.

      From APK: wounded silence. Well, cunt? I'm waiting for your answer!

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    4. Re:There;s rational discourse by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You've constantly trolled apk on hosts files in the past and lost. Everyone here knows that.

    5. Re:There;s rational discourse by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      No, I think you'll find I haven't trolled you, cunt, what I have done is voiced the sentiment of MANY people on Slashdot who are FUCKING SICK OF READING POSTS BY APK regardless of their content.

      Get that through your thick skull you fucking loser.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  155. backups by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What backups? They got deleted too.

  156. backups by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It's called back up to disk.

  157. Wladimir, Yes apk made you eat your words by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    243:1 odds against you http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Wladimir you stalked apk off topic raving profanely http://news.slashdot.org/comme... and Wladimir you're unable to disprove apk's points validly on adblock being inferior to hosts files http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    1. Re:Wladimir, Yes apk made you eat your words by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      243:1 odds against you http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Wladimir you stalked apk off topic raving profanely http://news.slashdot.org/comme... and Wladimir you're unable to disprove apk's points validly on adblock being inferior to hosts files http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

      No, 'APK' maths does not equal 'real world' maths. Come back to me when you have an argument.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  158. NO shock to me by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I have the bad luck to work in an office complex with a significant number of Emory employees. Sure we have many companies here and many different kinds of workers. However, unlike any other group of employees I've ever seen, the Emory people are uniformly some of the most sloven, stupid, slow, morbidly obese, and entitled I've ever encountered outside of a government office. DMV, tax offices? The ones they didn't hire are all at Emory.

    And they are all like that. It's not like there are some normal workers and that guy in the back cube who sort of does nothing. No. There are NO normal workers. They are all huge, slow, permanently pissed and offended that anyone exists at all. DMV attitude in full effect.

    Perhaps these people actually DO work at some point during the day but it appears to all outside observers that they spend most of their time wandering around, sitting around, whining about having to share the universe with non-Emory workers, and generally being assholes. These people don't just have a holier than thou attitude, they have a holier than holier than thou attitude. They walk on the water in the sweat on Jesus' brow.

    Maybe Emory itself packaged up all the loser donothing employees and shipped them off to an outside office park, because that's the only thing that makes sense. Got rid of the ones could not or would not fire.

    So if all this idiots had their PCs reformatted, on the one hand I would be thrilled. Awwww too bad. However, none of them want to work anyway so having a useless PC is just another legitimate excuse to wander around being asses.

    "OH what a whiner, just hates Emory people" No. YOU try working around these people. Promise you you'll learn to hate very quickly.

  159. Sardaukar86: Reality - 244 your 1 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    No, 'APK' maths does not equal 'real world' maths. Come back to me when you have an argument. by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Sunday May 25, 2014 @05:19PM (#47089155) Homepage

    Accept it - it's fact-> http://it.slashdot.org/comment... you fail, and that's that. Get some medication for your math difficulties. You need them. It's also "mathematics" dolt. Not "maths". Get a real education also. You need that too judging by the fact you *think* 244 1.

  160. Sardaukar86 = "Count StaLkuLa" (lol!) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Sardaukar86's "FoaMiNg-@-The-MouTh" stalking http://news.slashdot.org/comme... of apk and completely off topic.

    Why?

    Sardaukar86 had to "eat his words" vs. APK http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    R O T F L M A O!

    No denying it.

    1. Re:Sardaukar86 = "Count StaLkuLa" (lol!) by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Sardaukar86's "FoaMiNg-@-The-MouTh" stalking

      Hypocrite.

      and completely off topic

      Hypocrite.

      Why? Sardaukar86 had to "eat his words" vs. APK

      More of your wishful thinking, loser.

      Yup, as I expected, APK the coward flees in terror.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  161. About you "eating your words" & why by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Sardaukar86's "FoaMiNg-@-The-MouTh" stalking http://news.slashdot.org/comme... of apk and completely off topic.

    Why?

    Sardaukar86 had to "eat his words" vs. APK http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    R O T F L M A O!

    No denying it...

    1. Re:About you "eating your words" & why by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Dreamer, try refuting my arguments instead of pasting more crap.

      I'm going to have to take this as a white flag of defeat on your part. You've got nothing so you just keep pasting the same shit in? Yeah, you've lost.

      Appropriate for a loser like yourself, wouldn't you agree?

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  162. Valid Point? Ok: 244 is greater than 1 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Sardaukar86's "FoaMiNg-@-The-MouTh" stalking http://news.slashdot.org/comme... of apk and completely off topic.

    Why?

    Sardaukar86 had to "eat his words" vs. APK http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    R O T F L M A O!

    No denying it.

    1. Re:Valid Point? Ok: 244 is greater than 1 by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      More copy-pasta to prove APK has nothing at his disposal but a red, sore anus and a bad attitude. Loser.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  163. Re:Sardaukar86: Reality - 244 your 1 by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

    Accept it - it's fact

    I accept that you have no understanding of what you are talking about.

    Go on, prove to me that you are correct and that your cherry-picked list is in any way statistically valid. Go on, I'm waiting.

    Get some medication for your math difficulties. You need them. It's also "mathematics" dolt. Not "maths". Get a real education also.

    1. Maths is a perfectly legitimate abbreviation for the word 'mathematics'. I suggest you do some research before opening your cake-hole, dolt.

    2. I am satisfactorily educated, thank you very much. You may have noticed that I write at a much higher literary level than you can muster. I also find it typically hypocritical of you to attack my education, given the common knowledge of how poorly the US educates its children. You are definitely a product of this sub-standard education, as evidenced by your need to attack mine.

    You need that too judging by the fact you *think* 244 1.

    No, I don't 'think' 244 is less than 1. However, as you've had explained to you a number of times, you are an utter failure. Your comparison is merely another example of your incompetence and I laugh derisively at you for failing to understand such a basic concept.

    --
    ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  164. Sardaukar86's "illogic logic" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I accept that you have no understanding of what you are talking about.by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Monday May 26, 2014 @04:03PM (#47094455) Homepage

    Sardaukar86: 244 is greater than your 1 - accept it. It's fact. Elementary school math. Now, "eat your words" (lol) -> http://it.slashdot.org/comment... which hopefully you have some manners and don't keep talking with your mouth full as you eat them (sparing us your bullshit).

    1. Re:Sardaukar86's "illogic logic" by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Sardaukar86: 244 is greater than your 1 - accept it. It's fact. Elementary school math. Now, "eat your words" (lol) -> http://it.slashdot.org/comment... which hopefully you have some manners and don't keep talking with your mouth full as you eat them (sparing us your bullshit).

      No, idiot, you're not going to worm your way out of this one by copy-pasta, you little arsehole.

      We've been through this, I've proven you wrong many times and yet you come back again and again with the same bullshit.

      It's obvious you don't have anything, you sad little loser, so why don't you crawl back down that shithole you came from and leave us all in peace?

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  165. 244 is still greater than your 1 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You are an utter failure. Your mental incompetence knows no bounds. by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Monday May 26, 2014 @04:08PM (#47094501) Homepage

    At least the rest of us know 244 of your /. peers disagreeing with your 1 proved apk right again: Now, go "eat your words" (lmao) -> http://it.slashdot.org/comment... and learn basic elementary school math already, hohohoho.

    1. Re:244 is still greater than your 1 by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Excellent post, you just confirmed that you are not only ignorant, you are stupid as well.

      Thanks for proving my point for me, you just lost the argument. Loser.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  166. Sardaukar86 = "Count StaLkuLa": Calm down by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Have something to eat instead of wasting energies on your loon ravings! Your words WILL do nicely as you have to "eat them" anyhow (lmao) vs. YOUR SUPERIOR, apk -> http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    1. Re:Sardaukar86 = "Count StaLkuLa": Calm down by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      My superior? You really are an egotistical fucking cunt, aren't you?

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    2. Re:Sardaukar86 = "Count StaLkuLa": Calm down by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      My superior? You really are an egotistical fucking cunt, aren't you? by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Monday May 26, 2014 @05:06PM (#47094843) Homepage

      No he just gets math. You don't. Not hard to be your superior after you "ate your words" http://it.slashdot.org/comment... ROTFLMAO!

    3. Re:Sardaukar86 = "Count StaLkuLa": Calm down by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Claim it all you want but the truth don't lie, APK. I'm not the one arguing against the way statistics work - prove me wrong if you can.

      Coming up: more copy-pasta because APK has nothing.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  167. Such "rational discourse" (not) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    FUCKING SICK OF READING POSTS BY APK regardless of their content. Get that through your thick skull you fucking loser. by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Monday May 26, 2014 @04:14PM (#47094549) Homepage

    Temper, temper Sardaukar86: Have somethiing to EAT! Now, go "eat your words" & take a remedial math course of elementary school class levels already (lol) since a 244++:1 ratio against you seems to "strangely elude you" http://it.slashdot.org/comment... LMAO and I *think* ole' Sardillo's about to "blow"... lol!

    1. Re:Such "rational discourse" (not) by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Ah, no, I believe you'll need to do that yourself. Or, if you're so certain of the validity of your workings, why don't you post an Ask Slashdot and see for yourself? You don't need to take my word for it.

      Oh, and the CAPS were to enunciate the point carefully so you'd understand it, not a sign of annoyance on my part. Seems it was a wasted effort; there's no teaching the wilfully ignorant. You go on then, telling me how you beat me with your illogical point. Pity you can't back it up with reason, eh APK?

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  168. Speak for yourself butthurt boy! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Apk knows 244's > 1, unlike YOU! So calm down (lol) & "eat your words" (lmao) http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

  169. 244 greater than 1 is no dream by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It's fact. Like the fact you have to "eat your words" vs.your SUPERIOR, apk -> http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    1. Re:244 greater than 1 is no dream by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      It's fact. Like the fact you have to "eat your words" vs.your SUPERIOR, apk -> http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

      Well, if you weren't being wilfully ignorant you'd understand my argument.

      Because you know you're roundly beaten, you instead bang on this 244 is greater than 1 thing. Well, if it makes you feel any better, then yes, I agree, the number 244 is larger than the number 1.

      Where you fail is when you try to apply this to our discussion. You can't use faulty statistics to win an argument when your opponent knows that they are faulty. I'm honestly amazed you can't get your head around this. Don't take my word for it, go educate yourself before using tools you don't really understand.

      Until then, you'll be ridiculed as you deserve for using bad stats to prove your point.

      I've shot you down in flames over and over again, repeatedly made you eat your words (all flavoured with the bitter taste of self-defeat). I didn't have to do anything, it was you that did it to yourself. Truly delicious.

      Loser.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  170. APK fingers his sore anus by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

    APK knows very little, if your previous posts are anything to go by.

    Go on, prove me wrong.

    --
    ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  171. Basic math too much for you? Yes by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Now, go "eat your words" (not good nutrition but hey. that's how you roll) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... LMAO!

  172. Your point? That you can't accept fact?? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    That a 244++:1 ratio made you "eat your words"??? Please (lmao) -> http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

  173. APK avoids, squirms, wriggles, loses. by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

    Now, go "eat your words" (not good nutrition but hey. that's how you roll) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... LMAO!

    So you're going to avoid my point again? Sounds like the tactics of the thoroughly beaten.

    Face it APK, you may squirm all you like but you're caught in the cold hard light of reality and everyone can see you're fucked.

    Loser.

    --
    ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  174. APK wouldn't know fact from clay by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

    Hahahhahahaa

    --
    ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  175. /. did speak for apk already by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    if you're so certain of the validity of your workings, why don't you post an Ask Slashdot and see for yourself by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Monday May 26, 2014 @05:13PM (#47094889) Homepage

    In a 244++:1 ratio against you Sardillo - now stfu & go "eat your words" (lmao) http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    You don't need to take my word for it. by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Monday May 26, 2014 @05:13PM (#47094889) Homepage

    Wouldn't want to disturb you "EATING" those words of yours, lmao!

    Seems it was a wasted effort; there's no teaching the wilfully ignorant. by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Monday May 26, 2014 @05:13PM (#47094889) Homepage

    We're not the 'ignorant' ones: You are! 244 is greater than your 1 Sardillo, accept it. You fail vs. YOUR SUPERIOR, apk.

    1. Re:/. did speak for apk already by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      BWAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

      Yeah, Slashdot DID speak for you - it said "You are a troll". What else would you expect, you hypocritical, stalking, crap-spouting Slashdot Clown.

      Wiping tears from my eyes, thanks for that good laugh... do you honestly think people here LIKE you? You're the most reviled, pathetic piece of shit to ever grace this site - that's saying a LOT too, because we all remember people like MichaelKristopeit and you don't even compare.

      Let me repeat this for you: YOU. ARE. NOT. LIKED.

      No amount of mod points will change that, ever.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  176. I wonder how sore your anus will be by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    When you defecate after (lmao) "eating your words"(lmao) http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Pretty sore evidently, based on all the profanity I hear you raving (which is the sure sign of your 'fail' vs. YOUR SUPERIOR, apk).

  177. What argument? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    There's no arguing a 244++:1 ratio of your /. peers liking apk's posts is greater than your 1 http://it.slashdot.org/comment... and that you had to "eat your words", Hahahahaha

  178. The superior anus APK wipes his wisdom everywhere by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

    Dreams are free; unfortunately, the truth doesn't come easy to retards like you, APK.

    Keep on fantasizing about your 'victory', loser.

    --
    ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  179. Round we go by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

    Circular reasoning from APK, content-free posts.. is there anything you're useful for?

    --
    ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  180. LOL, we saw your "point" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You failed & had to "eat your words" vs. apk in a 244++:1 ratio against you http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

  181. Question: Is 244 greater than 1? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Absolutely: Ask Sardaukar86 (after he "eats his words", lol) http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

  182. There he goes again by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

    Wriggle, squirm. Can't make any ground against me so you have to repeat yourself.

    Nothing to say, nothing to add, empty arguments, empty head, you couldn't fail any harder if you tried, loser.

    --
    ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  183. Prove you wrong? Easily by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    244++:1 vs. you makes it so. See here & go (lmao) "eat your words" & stfu already http://it.slashdot.org/comment... & apk has nothing you say? Boy, you need help with math. He's got 244 /.'ers vs. your b.s. you had to eat (lol).

  184. Question: What is the relevance? by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

    Answer: none whatsoever, but you'd have to understand basic stats to know why.

    Loser.

    --
    ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  185. So do it! by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

    APK demonstrates his childish lack of intellect by simply re-posting, thinking that this will somehow prove his point.

    If you had something you'd offer it; instead you repeat yourself.

    Logical conclusion: APK has failed.

    --
    ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  186. Argue with the numbers 244++:1 against you by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Now, go back to (lmao) "eating your words" after your huge blunder here http://it.slashdot.org/comment... hahahaha

  187. You must be dreaming then by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Since this is no dream, just fact: & the fact is, you had to (lmao) "eat your words" http://it.slashdot.org/comment... Hahahahaha purest truth - "argue with the numbers" (244++:1 against you from your own /. peers too).

  188. Mathematical reasoning actually by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    In a 244++:1 ratio against you & the only thing you're good for is (rotflmao) "eating your words" http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

  189. There's no argument: Just fact by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Argue with the numbers (244++:1 against you from your /. peers) & "eat your words" http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

  190. Sardillo doesn't get basic math by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Argue with the numbers 244++:1 against you while you (lmao) have to "eat your words" http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

  191. Is 244 greater than 1? Yes by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Doesn't require intellect. For you it seems diffiicult. Why? Your POOR DIET "eating your words" http://it.slashdot.org/comment... lmao!

  192. No, they spoke for you -1 rated fool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "BWAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA Yeah, Slashdot DID speak for you - it said "You are a troll". What else would you expect, you hypocritical, stalking, crap-spouting Slashdot Clown. wiping tears from my eyes, thanks for that good laugh... do you honestly think people here LIKE you? You're the most reviled, pathetic piece of shit to ever grace this site - that's saying a LOT too, because we all remember people like MichaelKristopeit and you don't even compare. Let me repeat this for you: YOU. ARE. NOT. LIKED.No amount of mod points will change that, ever." - by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Monday May 26, 2014 @05:40PM (#47095129) Homepage

    I get that "last laugh" on YOU, as usual, using your own words against you!

    Hahahahaha, so as usual? You must "eat your words" (again) -> http://slashdot.org/comments.p... (you're the one who came in here stalking me as usual, & got "shot down" downmodded for it, again... lol!).

    * :)

    (You fool... lol!)

    APK

    P.S.=> Between this major screwup of yours yet again, your big mouth writing checks you can't ca$h, & your 244++:1 ratio against your b.s. of our /. peers uprating my posts? You FAIL again: Now, GO "eat your words" & I'd recommend a dietary change - since eating your words != GOOD NUTRITION (lmao) -> http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

    1. Re:No, they spoke for you -1 rated fool by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      You FAIL again: Now, GO "eat your words" & I'd recommend a dietary change - since eating your words != GOOD NUTRITION (lmao) -> http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

      I would have thought it important to get your links right, especially so for a self-important little prick like yourself.

      Actually, thanks for giving me those broken links because you put me on to an interesting conversation with mmell. Looks like he's YET ANOTHER Slashdotter who has witnessed your stalking, lies, impersonations, then hypocritical accusations against others of same. Or did you think people wouldn't notice? Did you think you were too clever, perhaps? I wouldn't be surprised if you thought you were the cleverest person on Slashdot, you arrogant little cunt.

      See, you may post your list of up-mods to try and prove your validity, but it doesn't hide your continual dust-ups with people because you are an arrogant, obnoxious, attention-seeking child. So yeah, there's nothing you can say that will 'prove' your value, there's no amount of up-modding to help you, because you are generally disliked here (see my previous post). Care to rebut that, or will you just evade and mindlessly rattle on about 244:1 again?

      I think we all know what to expect from you, APK. Loser.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  193. /. spoke of you -1 TROLL downmodded by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    "BWAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA Yeah, Slashdot DID speak for you - it said "You are a troll". What else would you expect, you hypocritical, stalking, crap-spouting Slashdot Clown. wiping tears from my eyes, thanks for that good laugh... do you honestly think people here LIKE you? You're the most reviled, pathetic piece of shit to ever grace this site - that's saying a LOT too, because we all remember people like MichaelKristopeit and you don't even compare. Let me repeat this for you: YOU. ARE. NOT. LIKED. No amount of mod points will change that, ever." - by Sardaukar86 (850333) on Monday May 26, 2014 @05:40PM (#47095129) Homepage

    As usual You must "eat your words" (again) WHERE YOU WERE -1 "TROLL" DOWNMODDED (lol, "oh the SHAME of it" calling me what YOU WERE DOWNMODDED AS, hahaha, you HYPOCRITE) -> http://slashdot.org/comments.p...

    * :)

    For your UTTER HYPOCRITICAL BULLSHIT in that post you did on 'rational discourse' which I showed EVERYONE READING how 'rational' your stalking ME, with YOU completely offtopic, is riddled with profanities, here -> http://slashdot.org/comments.p... ... lol!

    ---

    ( Unlike you, I don't *need* the "support" of others: I merely use facts ( + your own words you have to end up eating too, lmao) to TRASH you easily & again - I get that "last laugh" on YOU, as usual, using your own words against you, fool... lol! )

    APK

    P.S.=> Between this major screwup of yours yet again, your big mouth writing checks you can't ca$h, & your 244++:1 ratio against your b.s. of our /. peers uprating my posts here -> http://it.slashdot.org/comment...

    Where YOU had to "eat your words" - You FAIL again & I'd recommend a dietary change (lol) - since eating your words != GOOD NUTRITION & I wonder (lmao): HOW DID "EATING YOUR WORDS" TASTE?!

    ... apk

    1. Re:/. spoke of you -1 TROLL downmodded by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Unlike you, I don't *need* the "support" of others: I merely use facts

      Well, I have to responses to that:

      1. You clearly DO need the support of others as evidenced by your screaming tantrums when you feel 'disrespected'. Prove me wrong.

      2. No, you do not know how to use facts. If you did, I would be able to debate the matter with you, as evidenced by my repeated attempts to do so. Instead, you cherry-pick and misrepresent data to suit your argument. In case it isn't blindingly obvious, this is called FRAUD and deceit and loses jobs for people in public positions.

      Now do you see why I call you a cunt? You are utterly devoid of integrity and you disgust me.

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
    2. Re:/. spoke of you -1 TROLL downmodded by Sardaukar86 · · Score: 1

      Well, I have to responses to that:

      s/to/two

      --
      ..Mullah or Pope, Preacher or Poet, who was it wrote: "Give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up"?
  194. YOU support him, hypocrite by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    By providing evidences of YOUR numerous stalkings of apk shown here http://slashdot.org/comments.p...