InTheWayBoy

Very Nice...I'll play with this at work today! Thanx!

In regards to your request about installing the applications...having a menu of sorts that you can customize or 'Install All"...I suggest you use WPI. It's a great little application that is developed here that accomplishes what you need very well. It won't do anything to make your installs silent...you still have to figure that out, but it will help you organize and automate your installs. Check out the sub-forum for more info: http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showforum=93

Yes...you can place the wpa.dbl in the $OEM$\$$\System32 and it will work...of course, it will only work on the computer that created it, so don't go thinking you can use it on other PC's. Here's a link: http://unattended.msfn.org/intermediate/activate.htm#backup And just to be clear: 1. THERE IS NO VERSION OF WINXP HOME THAT CAN BYPASS ACTIVATION 2. WHEN YOU SEE AN COPY THAT DOESN'T REQUIRE ACTIVATION, IT'S BECAUSE THE OEM DID IT IN ADVANCE, USING ANY OF SEVERAL METHODS. OR IT'S HACKED AND ILLEGAL.

Outstanding!

Home isn't offered in an way that doesn't require activation. And OEM, as it is offered from M$, does require activation and a unique CDKey. However, many OEMs use several methods to bypass the user needing to activate. Large OEMs like Dell use the system BIOS in their scheme. They may bypass the need for a CDKey with their CD, as mentioned, but they still must maintain a unique CDKey per installation.

A very good point...one which I have stopped suggesting because no one seems to understand. If you're paying money for it, then I can't see why you would want pro unless necessary.The two biggest reasons I can see for most is either joining a domain or dual CPU support. All the others are good, and to many very useful, but I can't say I've met anyone who said the needed Pro because of Remote Desktop...at least after I inform them that you can use VNC for free. And to be clear, this is not an attack against RDP users...I use it daily, but only because I need Pro for domain support.

You could edit the "Default Domain Policy", and many recommend that...but most will suggest that you leave that alone. The idea is that if you create a new GPO and then things don't work right you can go back and just disable or delete the one that is getting in the way. If you edit the "Default Domain Policy" too much and then find things are working you'll have a much harder time undoing the changes. In the end it's your call, but that's the way many people do it...I for instance have a few different GPO's...one for Folder Redirection, another for Software Distrobution, and various others to control desktop settings and the like. Also, by setting different GPO's you can easily apply them to certain groups if you have your AD setup for it. You can accomplish this other ways, but I find this to be another good reason to seperate the GPO's.

When you go to connect via RDP, there is a options button...then go to "Local Resources" and you'll see at the bottom a section called "Local Devices". Configure as you like...

This is a sticky subject....just got done p*ssing off a few people in another thread about this: http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=55424 In MCE you apparently can't join a domain by default, but you can with a few hacks I hear. Also, if you use MCE as a media center then you'll have to use MCE compatible hardware. You can't just use any tv tuner or video card as they need MCE drivers.

Exactly...seems like it's getting more popular now that people understand what it can do.

They are just gonna tell you that you need to use each key on a different compuer. It sounds rough, but it's not...just take a few minutes and make a spreadsheet or document that has explains which computer has which CDKey...then you could just save that in a share and grab it when you need to. By law, you need to use a unique one for each computer...that's why Dell doesn't enter them in for you, it's easier for them if you do it. Now if you were to jump up to a different class, like VLK for instance then you could do what you want. But not with OEM or Retail.

Don't forget the Default User profile too...a couple of things hide in there..."Remote Assistance" comes to mind! Good luck!

I pulled this from an old post on here a while back: Open Explorer/Tools/Folder Options/{File types}. Select the entry for ISO and click "Advanced". Click 'New' and name it "Open with Nero" In the Application area enter: "C:\Program Files\Ahead\Nero\nero.exe" "%1" Works like a charm for me!

You know, I was almost gonna start making fun of you again, as this seems to make less sense than the last. The whole point of this topic was to explain the differences between Windows XP Home and Pro...not a computer it's running on, not your computer, not a bunch of flash drive brands...just the differences with the OS versions. And I'm just gonna leave it like that...although I will say for such a smarty pants, your spelling and grammar really needs some work.

Yeah, I know I keep talking about RIS, but it's a really nice feature. And seeing the amount of RIS questions coming in lately, wouldn't it be nice if we had a sub-forum for it? Obviously it would be most appropriate under the "Unattended Windows Discussion & Support" forum. Any takers?

That is awesome...the search results are soo much better now. Thanx again!

This is turning into an excellent guide...have you thought about making a simple webpage for it? If I ever get enough free time I would love to help with that. I have space to host and all that. Keep up the good work man!

It would be nice...but I think most people don't really utilize that feature too much. I personally only use it for the following: [Components] msmsgs="Off" msnexplr="Off" indexsrv_system="Off" fax="On" OEAccess="Off" Which are all pretty easy to figure out. But hell, don't let that stop ya...the more info the better!

Yeah, wish I had a better answer than that...maybe someone will post a previous thread or something that explains more. Good luck!

Got this from the guide...under the detailed winnt.sif section: http://unattended.msfn.org/global/components_list.txt As far as what each item means...that's a toss up. Trial and error is a good friend, or you could try googling the term with a few keywords and see whats what. Most of the time, those entries have some form of entry in the the Add/Remove Windows Components application...

Well then I'm all out...other than fubar'd file permissions, I've never seen anything like that.

Which is what I said

Depends on how he has RIS setup...if he has it so the user can do it, then no...cause the user would need read access to the files. Now if he made it so only a handful of people can use it, then he might be able to deny access to the file for everyone but the RIS users. Again, it's all in how he's running it...but a **** find suggestion none the less!

Actually, since SP2 both Home and Pro have the cool blue loading bar...and they don't distinguish between the two while loading either. Both just say "Windows XP". XP in general is built off 2000, so they both share the same guts to an extent. It's kinda like Intel, where they used to (Still do?) take a chip that could be a P4, but then 'break' it to make it a Celeron. They both start out the same, just somewhere along the line things change.

Have you read any of the KB articles on this error? Most seem to think it's related to improrer configuration of the User Shell Folders...like if you redirect your My Documents to another drive and such. Are you on any kinda network? Could be a bunch of things...you might wanna check the NTFS file permissions as well, and see if they are any restrictions to the folder. Also, what kind of user is installing this? Admin or Regular? Here's a few links I got from google: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?...Ben-us%3B315352 http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?...kb;en-us;886549 http://support.installshield.com/kb/view.a...ticleid=Q107061 Are you running Norton Antivirus 2003?