Affinity Technology Partners’ Post

As most of us are already aware, CrowdStrike experienced an unexpected outage related to their Falcon Sensor, impacting businesses using Windows hosts nationwide. Statement from CrowdStrike: "CrowdStrike is actively working with customers impacted by a defect found in a single content update for Windows hosts. Mac and Linux hosts are not impacted. This is not a security incident or cyberattack." CrowdStrike workaround steps for individual hosts: 1. Reboot the host to give it an opportunity to download the reverted channel file. If the host crashes again, then: 2. Boot Windows into Safe Mode or the Windows Recovery Environment NOTE: Putting the host on a wired network (as opposed to WiFi) and using Safe Mode with Networking can help remediation. 3. Navigate to the %WINDIR%\System32\drivers\CrowdStrike directory Locate the file matching “C-00000291*.sys”, and delete it. 4. Boot the host normally. Note: Bitlocker-encrypted hosts may require a recovery key. Further information for workarounds on Public Cloud/Virtual, Azure, and AWS can be found on CrowdStrike's blog. https://lnkd.in/gFQmuh7z #crowdstrike #microsoft #cybersecurity

🔵 Windows Server 2012 & 2012 R2: End of Support Alert! 🔵 In the ever-evolving world of IT infrastructure, staying updated is paramount. Microsoft's Windows Server 2012 & 2012 R2 have been reliable workhorses, but they've reached their support end on Oct 10, 2023. 🔐 Security at Risk: No more security updates mean potential vulnerabilities. 🐞 No Bug Fixes: Operational efficiency takes a hit without non-security updates and bug fixes. 💼 Technical Support: Microsoft won't provide tech support or updates related to these versions. What's Next? 1️⃣ Extended Security Updates (ESUs): Get up to 3 more years of security updates, free on Azure or paid for on-premises. 2️⃣ Migrate to Azure: Move to Azure cloud and enjoy free Extended Security Updates, plus Azure Hybrid Benefit. 3️⃣ On-Premises Options: Upgrade to Windows Server 2022 or purchase ESUs for Windows Server 2012. Plan ahead and keep your systems secure and efficient. Need guidance? Reach out to Ardent Consulting for expert advice. Details: https://buff.ly/3QJ0T13 #WindowsServer #EndOfSupport #ITInfrastructure #CloudMigration

The latest update for #BDRSuite includes "Ubuntu 24.04 is Here! Protect your #Linux workloads with BDRSuite" and "Understanding the Difference Between BDRSuite and BDRCloud". #Cybersecurity #Backup #DisasterRecovery https://lnkd.in/dCfZWSRE

The latest update for #BDRSuite includes "How to Update and Patch #Windows Hyper-V Hosts and Clusters" and "Microsoft Endpoint Manager Admin Center: An Overview". #Cybersecurity #Backup #DisasterRecovery https://lnkd.in/dCfZWSRE

Important Update from CrowdStrike on Falcon Sensor Issue: We've addressed the Windows hosts issue with a recent Falcon Sensor update. A fix is deployed, and here's how you can ensure your systems are clear: 1. Reboot: Restart the host to download the reverted channel file. 2. Safe Mode: If issues persist, boot Windows into Safe Mode. 3. File Deletion: Navigate to %WINDIR%\System32\drivers\CrowdStrike and delete the file C-00000291*.sys. 4. Normal Boot: Restart your system normally. 5. Cloud and VMs: For cloud or VM environments, detach, fix, and reattach the OS disk volume. 6. Check Your Systems: Ensure no file older than the 0527 UTC timestamp remains. 7. Support: Visit our support portal for continuous updates. We apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience as we ensure your protection. 🛡️ #CrowdStrike #CyberSecurity #TechSupport #WindowsSecurity

After this Azure Windows outage happened today, I would categorically say what I have said earlier. Forcing end users of Windows PCs - whether its business or personal - to use Microsoft Account security validation over Local Windows domain security validation is going to create havoc in future too. We end users don't need to get software patches during every login. Microsoft has decided to remove the official documentation related to this in Windows 11, which is a pathetic decision. My guess is that all those business PCs that failed to boot today, would have been forced to receive the faulty CrowdStrike patch, and forced to restart. Rather taking the ownership of the outage, as a CEO of a software behemoth, blaming or hiding behind a not well known vendor like CrowdStrike is a shame. No wonder why MS has bad reputation over its policies. It's time for other public cloud service providers to step-up. @@@

The latest update for #BDRSuite includes "The New SEXi Ransomware Targets VMware ESXi Servers: What You Need to Know?". #Cybersecurity #Backup #DisasterRecovery https://lnkd.in/dCfZWSRE

Released: 2024 H1 Cumulative Update for Exchange Server. Today we are announcing the availability of the 2024 H1 Cumulative Update (CU) for Exchange Server 2019 (aka CU14). CU14 includes fixes for customer reported issues, a security change, and all previously released Security Updates (SUs). A full list of fixes is contained in the KB article for CU14, but we also want to highlight a few changes in this CU. Extended Protection enabled by default As announced in August 2023, by default, starting with CU14, Setup enables the Windows Extended Protection (EP) feature on the Exchange server being installed. This will happen when running... #techcommunity #azure #microsoft https://lnkd.in/eN43nX4H

Important Update from CrowdStrike on Falcon Sensor Issue: We've addressed the Windows hosts issue with a recent Falcon Sensor update. A fix is deployed, and here's how you can ensure your systems are clear: 1. Reboot: Restart the host to download the reverted channel file. 2. Safe Mode: If issues persist, boot Windows into Safe Mode. 3. File Deletion: Navigate to %WINDIR%\System32\drivers\CrowdStrike and delete the file C-00000291*.sys. 4. Normal Boot: Restart your system normally. 5. Cloud and VMs: For cloud or VM environments, detach, fix, and reattach the OS disk volume. 6. Check Your Systems: Ensure no file older than the 0527 UTC timestamp remains. 7. Support: Visit our support portal for continuous updates. We apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience as we ensure your protection. 🛡️ #CrowdStrike #CyberSecurity #TechSupport #WindowsSecurity