Maelstorm

When installing an application, and files that are currently in use need to be replaced, users are prompted to reboot. How is this done? How do you tell Windows to replace files on a reboot? How do you do a reboot in the first place?

Interesting. I've formatted USB flash drives with UFS file systems. The only problem is that Windows can't read UFS. Oh well.

Yes. You are correct. What I was thinking was somehow 'getting' a table already done from somewhere. Getting the Government one would be cool. The thing that you have to realize about the government is that they have access to way faster machines than we do. I'm talking about big iron, like a parallel super computer. Computing a hash table is so very parallel that it can be easily spread out over the 64K+ CPUs that one of these monsters have...I'm talking about computers like Blue Gene/L or Red Storm.

Well Martin, once again you have shown me the true enlightenment of MSFN... Seriously, I didn't even know that existed. And it's under the regtweaks to boot. That about tells you how long it has been since I fully explored the site. Maybe it's time that I do so before I submit a request for a feature that allready exists, to reduce embarrasing situations like this one.

What kind of archive file is it? What's the extension? I've used 7-zip on some pretty big files myself. Do a google on it. Do you remember how big your My Docs was? Does 20.5GB sound about right to you for all your data files? Remember, if it is your data, then it's going to be everything that was in all profiles that was on the machine, include everything in %SYSTEMDRIVE%\Documents and Settings\%USERNAME%\Application Data, and Local Data (Both of which includes the browser cache depending on which web browser you use). That hidden restore partition IS a good idea, but you should also get the recovery CDs with the machine, or be able to burn them yourself, just in case the HD dies. At the very least, get a Windows XP CD. Then you can boot off the CD and have it try to repair the Windows installation. I've done that a couple of times on a WinXP install that wouldn't boot. You can also run the recovery console from the CD as well. But, since you have a Compaq, try contacting HP and have them send you the CDs. There was a recent (middle of 2005 I think) class-action lawsuit against them that they settled reguarding this very issue. [OFF TOPIC RANT] Granted, this is my personal opinion, and will probably get me in hot water with the mods here (not sure if this is against the posting rules or not (I didn't see it in the posting rules)), but when you buy a Compaq, you get what you get, and whatever happens, happens. And lately, HP has been going the same route, they are the same company after all. So my advise is to NEVER buy a Compaq or a HP. Cheap hardware, and even cheaper workmanship. You couldn't pay me to get one. And this is also my personal preference: Stay away from OEM's like HP/Compaq, Gateway, Dell, Sony, Toshiba, Leveno(sp?), etc. Alot of propriatary hardware and software. The best way to go is to build your own machine. [/OFF TOPIC RANT]

Looking at the application database, can something similar be done for a registry tweak database? I know that there are a number of massive threads on the subject in the forums, but it can be really annoying trying to search through the forums looking for that perfect tweak to your unattended install.

I have read the following threads: http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=53366 http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=62321 http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=41147 http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=14316 http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=40604 http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=37939 http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=25100 http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=14316 http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=18150 Here's my setup: BOOT.INI [boot loader] timeout=10 default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS [operating systems] multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional Drive C:" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(1)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional Drive D:" /noexecute=optin /fastdetect C:\CMDCONS\BOOTSECT.DAT="Microsoft Windows Recovery Console" /cmdcons C:\BOOTSECT.DAT="Microsoft Windows XPE" DIR C:\ AUTOEXEC.BAT boot.ini BOOTSECT.DAT cmdcons cmldr CONFIG.SYS Documents and Settings hiberfil.sys IO.SYS MININT MSDOS.SYS NTDETECT.COM ntldr Program Files WINDOWS The two WinXPs and the RC boot perfectly, but when I boot into WinPE, there's some kind of error and then it reboots. The error starts off with "Not enough...." and then the maching reboots. I have tried 5 times to read this error to see what it's complaining about to no avail. It get's as far as showing the background. Any ideas as to what is going on and how I can fix it? I am new to using WinPE, but it seems quite powerfull for unattended installs for WinXP. Oh, and I did make sure that I was using SP2 for WinPE too, as in the RC and WinXP itself.

Does anyone know where the following for the Help and Support Center are located? 1. H&SC Favorites 2. H&SC Options I tried looking in the registry for the second one, but I don't see it. Is it stored on the HD somewhere?

Ah yes, that was exactly what I was looking for. Here's the modified version of your script: Option Explicit Dim objWMIService, objComputer, colComputer Dim strLogonUser, strLogonUser1, strComputer strComputer = "." Set objWMIService = GetObject("winmgmts:" & "{impersonationLevel=impersonate}!\\" _ & strComputer & "\root\cimv2") Set colComputer = objWMIService.ExecQuery("Select * from Win32_ComputerSystem") Wscript.Echo "Users currently logged in" & vbNewLine For Each objComputer in colComputer If not objComputer.UserName = "" Then strLogonUser = Split(objComputer.UserName,"\") strLogonUser(1) = UCase(Left(strLogonUser(1),1)) & Trim(Mid(strLogonUser(1),2,20)) Wscript.Echo vbTab & strLogonUser(1) Else Wscript.Echo vbTab & "None." End If Next Wscript.Echo vbNewLine & "Done." & vbNewLine And when I run it, I get this: E:\Deployment\Development\temp>cscript.exe login.vbs Microsoft (R) Windows Script Host Version 5.6 Copyright (C) Microsoft Corporation 1996-2001. All rights reserved. Users currently logged in Administrator Done. E:\Deployment\Development\temp>

It doesn't matter as long as it prints out on the command line, otherwise I will not be able to see it. That is the only requirement: must display on the command line. I'm doing this remotely through telnet. If you have a vbscript, then I could probably modify it to print on the command line using wscript.echo...

Is there a way, from the command line, to find out who is logged into a computer remotely? I can telnet into a machine to get a command prompt on that machine, but I don't know the command to see who is logged in. I'm looking for the Windows equivilent to the Unix who command, if that helps.

How can a virus survive a reformat? Granted, you can do a quick format which will not touch the file data, but if nothing is pointing to it? True, but it's been years since I heard of a boot sector virus. The last one that I can recall was Michaelangelo. Most virus/worms today use the OS resources to perform DDoS attacks, install keyloggers, adware/spyware, backdoors, rootkits, etc. I had a Western Digital do that. Model WD1000BB-32CCB0. What would happen was that you could run all the tests in the world on it and it would pass, even zeroing out the drive would work. But when you installed Windows onto it, the physical media would lose it's magnetic charge. Unfortunately, the areas where this would happen would be in the middle of certian critial files like system.dat. That failure killed Windows. It would not even boot. After it happened for something like 5 times, I replaced the drive. Beleive it or not, Western Digital wanted the old drive back and offered a discount on a bran new one right off the assembly line.

I did use the "search" feature. But, of the search terms that I tried (and I did use Google against the web), I admit that "restore partition" did not even cross my mind. I was using things like "host protected access", "host protected area", "hidden parition", etc... Pretty much everything but. So I guess that [Q] isn't good enough to denote a question?

Does anyone have any information on a subject called Host Protected Area and how to create one? Basically, it is a hidden area on the harddisk that contains all the restore information. What I would like to do is when create this protected area on the harddisk. How does one do it? I find lots of info on what it is and how it works, but nothing on creating it. I would like to do an unattended creation of this parition.

Because some programs cannot be installed silently. MusicMatch Jukebox and iTunes are two examples. What this does is allow an UNATTENDED installation of a program. Yes, the user still sees the screens fly by, but their interaction is not required to install the program. A silent installation is one that you describe: Minimal or non-existant indications that a program is being installed. Many programs can be installed like this, others can't. The two terms are sometimes confused.

It may be because your processor is malfunctioning. Did you test it with a 24-hour run of Prime95? Um...No. If that was the case, then the machine would be crashing all the time...or at least all the programs would start going squirlly at the very least. I haven't seen a blue screen in quite some time now.

I guess that this issue is pretty much closed. It seems that after they moved to a different server, the problem has disappeared.

Sure. ------ Build started: Project: wihu, Configuration: Debug Win32 ------ Compiling... wihuuser.c c:\documents and settings\administrator\my documents\visual studio 2005\projects\wihu.src\stdafx.h(22) : fatal error C1083: Cannot open include file: 'windows.h': No such file or directory Build log was saved at "file://c:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\My Documents\Visual Studio 2005\Projects\wihu.src\Debug\BuildLog.htm" wihu - 1 error(s), 0 warning(s) ========== Build: 0 succeeded, 1 failed, 0 up-to-date, 0 skipped ==========

On 1/31/2006, I recieved a number of emails from MSFN. The emails are as follows: I click on the first link, and a new browser window opens to the site that says that the pending operation does not exist. I click on the second link, and I get a list of pending operations. What is this and what would I do with this?

My appologies for the long time before replying. In Mozilla, I'm getting dialog box that pops up saying "The requested operation has timed out." or something to that effect.

Intermittently, I'm getting timeout errors from the forum. It seems to happen most when I click on a link like add reply or new topic, or other links that seem to require the server to "think" a little bit.

I'm using Visual C++ 2005 Express Edition and it doesn't want to build correctly. I keep getting a bunch of errors what I try to compile the source. I think it may have something to do with the Platform SDK that I have loaded in the machine. What does your include/lib paths look like?

What happened to the username/password fields at the top of the page when you first enter the forums? I've noticed over the past few days that it has been mising.

It works now. Just out of curiosity, what development platform are you running? I have Visual Studio .NET Professional 2003 and it says that it cannot edit ver 8.0 project files, while Visual Studio .NET 2005 says it want's to convert the project to the new format.

I tried a couple. Your default install.ini failed as well as this one: ;test.ini [Environment] [settings] DiableLoadMenu = 0 SplitterPos = 40% Dimension.Update = 0 Dimension.Width =60% Dimension.Height =60% DefaultHelp=helpfile.rtf [Test] description=Test File selected=1 collapsed=1 helptext=This is a test command=nocmd.cmd [Users] But, if I do this: wihu /SkipSettings /ini="install.ini" it works just fine. It's only when I hit NEXT on that second screen that it dies. Oh, and I did a lookup on the 1d exception...Illegal Instruction. Here's the disassembly: 00415489 call dword ptr ds:[42D2B0h] 0041548F mov ecx,dword ptr [esi] 00415491 and dword ptr [esi+4],0 00415495 sub ecx,10h 00415498 pop esi 00415499 jmp 00405AD6 0041549E push ebp 0041549F mov ebp,esp 004154A1 movss xmm0,dword ptr [ebp+0Ch] << Failure Address 004154A6 push esi 004154A7 mov esi,ecx 004154A9 mov ecx,dword ptr [ebp+8] 004154AC or dword ptr [esi+18h],0FFFFFFFFh 004154B0 xor eax,eax 004154B2 mov dword ptr [esi+8],ecx 004154B5 mov ecx,dword ptr [ebp+18h] 004154B8 movss dword ptr [esi+0Ch],xmm0 004154BD movss xmm0,dword ptr [ebp+10h] 004154C2 mov dword ptr [esi+24h],ecx I'm running a AMD Thunderbird 1400MHz. I've attached the core dump from the failure as well. Program version is 2.1.25.2 as stated in the exe file resource. One other thing, I had to add a .txt to the dmp file, so you will need to remove it before you work with it. edit 2006-01-21: removed attachments