MS Office – Couldn’t update license – Error Code: 18
A small business from Oxford recently contacted us with a little IT Support query. They were trying to activate a Microsoft Office 365 license in Microsoft Outlook. However, after entering the user’s login credentials (with an active Microsoft 365 license), the following error popped up: I’ve seen similar errors before and the first port of […]
OneDrive on Mac stuck on “Preparing to upload”
This small issue occasionally affects OneDrive application and it’s not the first time I’ve seen it. In this particular case, it happened on a Mac, but the same can occur on a Windows PC. OneDrive stays in a permanent “updating” status. Clicking on the app icon shows “preparing to upload”. Sometimes it can happen if […]
Virgin Media Business + Static IP prevents modem mode
I have quite a few clients in and around Oxford using Virgin Media Business broadband. I normally don’t recommend Virgin Media as a primary business broadband provider due to inconsistent and somewhat unreliable service (fine if you combine it with another non-Virgin broadband in a dual-WAN setup). Regardless, Virgin Media offers good headline speeds for […]
Remove restrictions from protected PDF file
A client from Oxford sent me a restricted PDF file which he wanted to modify (to add notes and highlight some text). The document was encrypted with the owner’s password, but didn’t require any password to open and print it. There are a few ways to remove edit restrictions from such files. I tried 3 […]
Adobe Reader quit unexpectedly…
A few people contacted me from a business client in Oxford with a minor IT issue. Adobe Acrobat Reader would keep popping the error below: The Adobe Reader wasn’t actually crashing, however, it was quite annoying receiving these errors multiple times per day. The software was up to date and the “Learn More” link was […]
Microsoft Office 365 IMAP / SMTP account keeps asking for a password
I had a call from a customer in Abingdon (just a few miles from Oxford) who could no longer configure his Microsoft Office 365 email account inside a Windows 10 desktop email client. After a bit of back and forth, it became clear that he was using IMAP / SMTP configuration and some sort of […]
Garmin Edge not recognised by a PC – charge only
A friend from Bicester (Oxfordshire) recently contacted me with a personal, non-business query. His Windows 11 PC suddenly stopped recognising the Garmin Edge 530 cycling computer. Upon connecting with a mini USB cable the computer would make the usual short “device connected” sound, but then nothing happens… Garmin Express software doesn’t “see” the device, and […]
Copying meetings is not supported
A user from one of the Oxford companies I provide IT Support to recently contacted me with a small issue. Suddenly, for no apparent reason, he could no longer copy calendar appointments from one Office 365 Outlook calendar to another. Tim has been doing this for years, but now Outlook was refusing to play ball, […]
Moving from Godaddy to Microsoft Office 365
Godaddy is one of the biggest web domain and website hosting companies. In 2014 they struck a deal with Microsoft to re-sell Office 365 Exchange email services. Many small businesses sign up for this as it looks like a great deal and is very easy to do when setting up a new domain or website. […]
MS Teams install – app package is not supported
Here is a new issue an owner of a small business in Oxford came to me with – on his brand new DELL Latitude laptop (running Windows 11 Pro) he couldn’t install Microsoft Teams that he just downloaded from Microsoft. The installer would start and then immediately fail with the following error: As usual, the […]