Office SharePoint Server Search service in stopping mode

I got this error when I was trying to get a old system using MOSS 2007 to update. I restarted the 'Office SharePoint Server Search' service but it just froze on stopping mode and won't do anything.

I searched online and most of the posts asked to restart the server, which I was not ready to do as it was a production environment.

I got this nice work around and it worked for me:

The service is basically 'OSearch' so what I did was

* Opened a command prompt on the server and type: tasklist /svc
* From the list, check which one you need to close. I checked it was mssearch.exe for 'OSearch' . (remember there will be two mssearch.exe one for moss and wss I guess.)
* Note down its process id
* Run another command to kill that process from command line: taskkill /PID ABCD /F
(where ABCD is your port number)

Once this is done, run services.msc from run prompt and start your search service, it will not be in a hanged state anymore!

Unable to display this Web Part. To troubleshoot the problem, open this Web page in a Microsoft SharePoint Foundation-compatible HTML editor such as Microsoft SharePoint Designer. If the problem persists, contact your Web server administrator

I got this error while working on a SharePoint 2010 - Business Connectivity Services Project. The full error read like:

Unable to display this Web Part. To troubleshoot the problem, open this Web page in a Microsoft SharePoint Foundation-compatible HTML editor such as Microsoft SharePoint Designer. If the problem persists, contact your Web server administrator

It was so that there was mismatch between business data model and the entity defined therein the project.
The resolution:

MisMatch was there between the TypeDescriptors provided by you in the business data model entity's methods and the entity class file (.cs file).

Setting 'The Identifier represented by this TypeDescriptor' wherever applicable.

Also mark the identifier in the typedescriptor wherever it is encountered. Like you will be having two type descriptors customer_id and customer_name of which 

customer_id might be identifier so set it up like that.

The list cannot be displayed in Datasheet view for one or more of the following reasons

The full error popup reads like:

The list cannot be displayed in Datasheet view for one or more of the following reasons

- A datasheet component compatible with Microsoft SharePoint Foundation is not installed.
- Your Web browser does not support ActiveX controls.
- A component is not properly configured for 32-bit or 64-bit support.

And if you've setup environment like me which has

SharePoint 2010 , Office 2010 x64, SharePoint designer x64 then you are bound to get this error!

The resolution

In order to use the datasheet view, download this 2007 Office System Driver: Data Connectivity Component
Once you set it up, reopen the internet explorer and edit in datasheet view!

'~/Telerik.Web.UI.WebResource.axd' is missing in web.config

You might get this telerik exception while developing against software involving telerik rad controls in SharePoint 2010.

Full exception reads like:

Exception information: 

    Exception type: InvalidOperationException 

    Exception message: '~/Telerik.Web.UI.WebResource.axd' is missing in web.config. RadScriptManager requires a HttpHandler registration in web.config. Please, use the control Smart Tag to add the handler automatically, or see the help for more information: Controls > RadScriptManager 

Well, you need to do some entries for supporting telerik controls in SharePoint 2010 but I missed following entry, modifying web.config upon it resolved my issue:

 

  

Please note there are few more entries you need to do inorder to support telerik controls in a custom aspx page under SharePoint 2010 ( you can safely ignore the MS Ajax related entries as 2010 already contains AJAX inbuilt)

The Zone of the assembly that failed was: MyComputer

If you get this error while running any of your custom windows installer or exe files, make sure you unblock the file or package (even if it is a zip file) before you actually use it. By default windows blocks the files downloaded on the computer from internet, because of which security issues occurs. Unblocking the file will allow user to run the program normally.

Content controls are allowed only in content page that references a master page

I was using a custom task edit form when this happened. Actually when I deployed the page to the layouts folder and tried accessing it, the error was displayed.
The full error details reads like:
Content controls are allowed only in content page that references a master page. at System.Web.UI.MasterPage.CreateMaster(TemplateControl owner, HttpContext context, VirtualPath masterPageFile, IDictionary contentTemplateCollection)

at System.Web.UI.Page.get_Master()

at System.Web.UI.Page.ApplyMasterPage()

at System.Web.UI.Page.PerformPreInit()

at System.Web.UI.Page.ProcessRequestMain(Boolean includeStagesBeforeAsyncPoint, Boolean includeStagesAfterAsyncPoint)

Resolution: It is so that you have to use sharepoint website's master page if you have to include the sharepoint chrome. I forgot to set the master page in my custom aspx page deployed to 12 hive. That's why I got the error. If you want to display it that way, put code similar to what I have written below in order to set master page dynamically for your custom page:

using Microsoft.SharePoint.WebControls;
using Microsoft.SharePoint;
SPWeb _web;
protected override void OnPreInit(EventArgs e)
{
base.OnPreInit(e);
//Using current SharePoint site's masterpage
this._web = SPControl.GetContextWeb(Context);
this.MasterPageFile = _web.MasterUrl;
}

A text field contains invalid data. Please check the value and try again

I once entered a paragraph of sample text in my custom task form which submits it to sharepoint list. Now the error surfaced 'A text field contains invalid data. Please check the value and try again'. The problem was that there is basic limit on fields in sharepoint. For text field it was  255. So the moment I add 256 characters or more, it throws this error.

Resolution
255 column limit is there on text field. Ensure that text is entered appropriately

'telnet' is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file

If you get this error on a fresh installation of Windows Server 2008 or so, it means telnet client is not installed yet.
How To: Install telnet client on Windows Server 2008:

Resolution:
You can add telnet client feature by going to Server manager > Features > Add Features link > Select the telnet client
OR
run this command on the server:
Servermanagercmd –I Telnet-Client

This computer seems to be offline - logmein

You generally get this error when you have a system where you just downloaded and installed logmein. Its status is offline and there in the logmein dialog box it shows 'this computer seems to be offline ' and other related information that it'll be online once logmein detects internet.

Resolution: Just sit back and relax, do some other work, in few minutes ( I guess 2-3 probably) logmein will update and your computer will be online and visible under 'My Computers' in logmein website (provided you have logged in!)

Your backup is from a different version of Windows SharePoint Services and cannot be restored to a server running the current version

You get this error when you try to restore a sharepoint backup using STSADM tool.
The full error will read like:

Your backup is from a different version of Windows SharePoint Services and cannot be restored to a server running the current version. The backup file should be restored to a server with version '12.0.0.6421' or later.

Most probable cause for this would be that you took backup from a sharepoint installation which is latest or is updated using a service pack and where you are trying to restore it (possibly in a different machine/ environment) is lacking the service pack.

Resolution:
In my case backup was taken from MOSS installation which had MOSS SP2 installed but the target machine had no service packs, hence I installed WSS service packs then MOSS service packs and then the error disappeared!

Assembly generation failed -- Referenced assembly 'Microsoft.Practices.EnterpriseLibrary.ExceptionHandling' does not have a strong name

You receive this error when you have added reference to the said dll in your project from Microsoft Enterprise library 4.1 (or any version for that matter) and when you try to build your project. The full error detail will read something like this along with your other project details:

Assembly generation failed -- Referenced assembly 'Microsoft.Practices.EnterpriseLibrary.ExceptionHandling' does not have a strong name

Solution:
If you have added a .snk key in  your project to sign your assembly with, remove it, as this error may occur if you are using unsigned dlls of Microsoft Enterprise Library while your own dll will be signed. So removing the key will remove this error, on the other way round, you must use the signed dlls of enterprise library.

Items collection cannot be modified when the DataSource property is set

You get this error 'Items collection cannot be modified when the DataSource property is set' when you try to add/ append items to a already data bound control say for example a combo box in a winform application.

The solution is to insert the item when you are creating the datasource say for example in the following example, insert the 'select' item before binding the combo box with the data table. Many a times it is good to prepare the data source in advance and make any changes required in it thereafter only use it for binding purposes.

Example code:
        Dim dt As New DataTable()
        dt.Columns.Add("Column1")

        Dim dr As DataRow = dt.NewRow()
        dr("Column1") = "data1"
        dt.Rows.Add(dr)

        dr = dt.NewRow()
        dr("Column1") = "-select-"
        dt.Rows.InsertAt(dr, 0)

        ComboBox1.DropDownStyle = ComboBoxStyle.DropDownList
        ComboBox1.ValueMember = "Column1"
        ComboBox1.DisplayMember = "Column1"
        ComboBox1.DataSource = dt

'installutil' is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file.

You get this error when you type 'installutil.exe' in a command prompt.
Reason: .net folder path is not set in the 'PATH' variable because of which location of installutil.exe was not found.

Resolution:

a) Use the visual studio command prompt, it will work there
b) Set .NET folder path in system's 'PATH' variable . Then try it should get the path of 'installutil.exe' and you can use it directly in any command prompt.

Two components with the same id can't be added to the application

I got this error when I had ajax control toolkit extender controls in a usercontrol inside an update panel. Tho the control was working fine, sometimes navigating to the concerned page gave javascript error popup in Internet Explorer 8.
I found one solution online which was to deal with ajaxcontroltoolkit's source and rebuild it after fix. I didn't want to do that.
Its a known issue with extenders as listed in their codeplex site here
Lets see they fix this issue in Ajax Control Toolkit project.

This issue is also there in the latest build 3.0.30930.0

Connection to server pop3.live.com timed out

I was trying out Mozilla Thunderbird to connecto to my windows live account. I got this "connection to server poop3.live.com timed out' error when I had provided all details to the free email client.
However as I soon found out through some R&D online that you need to provide specific details in outgoing as well as incoming settings for it to work, failing to do so will result in the above error. Here I'm listing out them

Incoming settings:

server name: pop3.live.com
port: 995
username: Your full e-mail address
Security: tick SSL , do not select the checkbox

(also set other options regarding email like I have selected not to delete any mail from my box after download)

Outgoing settings:

Server Name: smtp.live.com
Port: 587
User Name: Your full e-mail address
Secure Connection: TLS

Once you do these, your mail will start downloading. After all thunderbird is a good email client

error connecting to undo manager of source file

I got this wierd error while working on a .NET web application which used VSS for source control. Now I'm not sure how this funny error came but it used to crop up when I tried to debug the web application. There are number of solutions available online but this one worked for me:

If you get this error, just save everything, close the Visual Studio IDE and reopen it. It will disappear

A network-related or instance-specific error occurred while establishing a connection to SQL Server

A network-related or instance-specific error occurred while establishing a connection to SQL Server. The server was not found or was not accessible. Verify that the instance name is correct and that SQL Server is configured to allow remote connections. (provider: Named Pipes Provider, error: 40 - Could not open a connection to SQL Server)

 If you get this error, firstly check that if your database is on a separate machine, you are able to ping the machine. Especially make sure that if you are using ip address in the connectionstring for server, ping it ,you should get reply.

Also ensure your firewall is not blocking the connection

In anycase, try changing connection string (if you have options) and see if the error disappears!

Column does not belong to table Table

This type of error is encountered generally when you are dealing with ADO.net code in a .net application.

Resolution: Double check that the column name you are trying to access e.g. from a table inside a dataset is corrrect

Explanation: Generally what happens is that you might have mistyped the column name as for example 'keywrod' instead of 'keyword' and during run time you get this error. It is always good to be proactive regarding such issues and avoid it during coding itself.

Server Error in '/' Application

I got this error regarding system.web.extensions (atleast it seemed like that in first place!). The error title was 'Configuration Error'  and the description read something like this: " An error occured during the processing of a configuration file required to service this request. Please review the specific error details below and modify our configuration file appropriately. "

Resolution: Set the correct version of the ASP.NET framework for the application in IIS

Explanation:

 If you have just setup your website for example by creating and mapping virtual directory with your website folder, chances are that you face this error. Open IIS managr and check the ASP.net version of the concerned virtual directory. If it is version 1.1, make it version 2.0 and save the changes. The error will be resolved.

A transport-level error has occurred when sending the request to the server. (provider: Named Pipes Provider, error: 0 - An unexpected network error occurred.)

You may encounter this error while working with MS Sql Server Management Studio or using MS Sql in the code as data layer.
There are number of reasons because of which you might get this error, I'm listing few of them here, check if it applies to you.
* Ensure that you are connecting to sql using proper method (names pipes / shared memory )
* Check if you are able to ping the machine where sql server is installed from your development machine (where this error is coming), chances are that due to network problems (including loose cable connections) you might not be able to connect to the database!

A comment would be helpful incase this post solved your problem :)