Subaru Tech Post! P0457 CEL Problem & Fix

The P0457 CEL (check engine light) isn't actually documented in my 2002 Subaru WRX factory repair manual. Luckily, Google does list it ;)
The problem is "Evaporative Emissions Control System - [Gross] Leak Detected"
...Sounds bad.

The good news is that it's likely one of two things.
1. Your gas cap isn't on tight enough
-Or if you're like me and just installed a new turbo inlet host (Perrin!) it's probably
2. The EVAP purge hose.

Here is what I'm talking about. Look at the blue nozzle that isn't connected to anything. It's down under the intake manifold to the left of the alternator.


The little hose down and to the right of the blue nozzle is supposed to be connected. I must have yanked it off while changing the intake.

The picture below is what it's supposed to look like when the hose is hooked up properly. If you snapped the connector (I didn't) you'll need to buy a new part.


Cheers!

Getting Rid of The Bonjour Service

I hate it when applications I do want install things I don't want. A great example of this is the Bonjour Service that Apple and Adobe deploy.

Here's how to get rid of it:

1. Stop the service via either sc, net, or services.msc

2. Delete service:
sc delete "Bonjour Service"

3. Remove the socket driver:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\WinSock2\Parameters\NameSpace_Catalog5\Catalog_Entries\00000000000X
Note: X is a number (usually 4) but be sure that the value for LibraryPath shows a path to "mdnsNSP.dll"

4. Change the value Endabled from 1 to 0

5. Reboot

Au'revoir Bonjour!!

Changing the default backup directory for SQL 2005

I got tired of using regedit to do this (the value is in HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Microsoft SQL Server\{your instance}\MSSQLServer\BackupDirectory) and write a quick script to do it. I found it really tedious to change this on so many servers and clusters. It'll work with all versions of SQL 2005 and Express AFAIK.

I've posted it for anyone else interested, and be aware that it does use the "undocumented" xp_instance_regread and xp_instance_regwrite extended stored procedures.


DECLARE @SmoDefaultFile nvarchar(512), @NewBackupDir nvarchar(250);
SET @NewBackupDir = N'\\dbs51ykf\SQL_Backups'; --THE NEW BACKUP DIRECTORY TO USE

--LIST THE CURRENT DIRECTORY
EXEC master.dbo.xp_instance_regread
N'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE',
N'Software\Microsoft\MSSQLServer\MSSQLServer',
N'BackupDirectory',
@SmoDefaultFile OUTPUT;

SELECT @SmoDefaultFile as [Old Backup Directory];

--CHANGE THE DIRECTORY
EXEC xp_instance_regwrite
N'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE',
N'Software\Microsoft\MSSQLServer\MSSQLServer',
N'BackupDirectory',
REG_SZ,
@NewBackupDir;

--CONFIRM CHANGE
EXEC master.dbo.xp_instance_regread
N'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE',
N'Software\Microsoft\MSSQLServer\MSSQLServer',
N'BackupDirectory',
@SmoDefaultFile OUTPUT;

SELECT @SmoDefaultFile as [New Backup Directory];


Hiding Panels in ASP.NET

When you're using the AJAX controls with Visual Studio you'll probably eventually make use of the ModalPopupExtender control. I like it.
The one issue is that you'll see it flicker while loading the page unless you add the following to the panel style:

Style="display:none"

This will ensure the panel doesn't show and then disappear during a page load.