Sharepoint configuration wizard hangs at step 5

Scenario: The Sharepoint Products and Technologies Configuration Wizard hangs at step 5.

Nothing really happens, step 5 just won’t finish. I managed to  get the wizard to at least crash by starting and stopping the Windows Sharepoint Search Service. This way, i also got an link to the log file. The last log entry before the wizard crashed was:

Calling SPServiceInstance.Provision for instance Microsoft.SharePoint.Search.Administration.SPSearchServiceInstance, service Microsoft.SharePoint.Search.Administration.SPSearchService

My solution was to simply delete all registry keys under 

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Shared Tools\Web Server Extensions\12.0\WSS\Services\

that had the term “search” in the key name, such as:

 Microsoft.SharePoint.Search.Administration.SPSearchService

When i ran the wizard again it ran like a charm.

Sharepoint–reduce number of logons

Tired of having to logon at least twice when opening a document from a Sharepoint document library?

This solution will significally reduce that number:

1. Add the Sharepoint site to the zone Local Intranet (if this is appropriate for your environment): Open Internet explorer, navigate to the sharepoint site, choose Internet Options, tab Security, mark Local Intranet, click on Sites, click on Advanced.
2. Turn off the service WebClient (Open the run prompt, enter services.msc, find Webclient, right-click and choose Stop.
3. Open a document from a sharepoint library (you have to enter you credentials). Keep the document open while you open another document. This time you won’t have to login at all!