InTheWayBoy

Yeah, but he want to map it to a network drive, and according to the syntax for subst you can't link to a network drive.

You're gonna be skating on a line with that setup...while XP has the ability to host connections for up to 10 computers, I bet you'll still have issues with people not getting access to the server. I think that it may intepret access to resources differently...meaning, if one computer is trying to access a file and print at the same time, it might count that as two connections. I don't know if that's how it really works, but it's something to check out. As for how to configure it, I agree with section II of the post above...give each computer the same user/pass as is on the 'server' and all should be well. Opening up Guest is just too dangerous in my opinion, and the last option is just too painful if users decide they want to change names and passwords. Have you thought about a linux solution? It should be able to handle everything you need, with the exception of the printer. It can share printers, but some printer drivers are too windows-centric to work on a linux machine. A simple solution would be something like ClarkConnect.

That's awesome...been wondering about this myself but could never find an answer using search. Sucks when all the keywords are so basic Thanx again!

If this is on a domain there is a group policy for this called Folder Redirection. If it's not part of a domain, then a simple regedit will do you good. Look here: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders You should be able to change the data in the keys in UNC paths no problem. Export the changes to a reg file and you can apply them at boot to make sure they are applied at all times. I didn't this at a previous job, and it worked very well. I had a simple batch file that was inserted into the startup routine, and all it did was silently import the custom reg settings...a poor mans Folder Redirection.

Don't forget, a large amount of nasty stuff hangs out in your profiles...you wouldn't want to preserve that pesky spyware/virus between backups. Your best bet is to establish a scheme, and then configure your unattended to work around it. For instance, your core files, like your Documents, Desktop, etc can all be redirected with simple scripts/regedits. Put those on a seperate partition, and use whatever method to apply the changes during the unattended. For programs like Thuderbird, Firefox, Opera, etc you can preconfigure the applications to run from a different location. It takes a little trial-and-error but in the end you have your profiles stored on a seperate partition while the program lives on your disposable system partition. This also helps when new versions of the apps roll out, unless it changes the way you handle the profile redirection. Even so, it's a slick way to seperate the critical custom data from the common program data. For things like system settings and such, that's a little trickier...I've just gotten real good and blowing through the menus once to configure as I like. You could use something like AutoIT to help with that. It should work fine if you design the script on the same computer it will run on, but in environments with different hardware/software the results can be spotty. There are many posts in the applications sub-forum that would help in configuring Firefox and Thunderbird for this, and the redirection of My Documents, Desktop, Favorites, etc is done via registry and can be found very easily here or via google.

Usually all you have to do is set the BIOS to auto-detect the IDE drives, and then make sure you have the latest chipset drivers installed. But, as with everything else, there is always a gotcha or two: 1. Are both drives UDMA capable? If you have one drive that is and one that isn't I think it drops to the slowest of the the two. 2. Check for BIOS, Driver, or Firmware updates for your hardware. Also, more info on the mobo and HD's you are using would help too. 3. Check your device manager like jaclaz mentioned. If you install the chipset drivers you shouldn't have to worry about it, but just to make sure check the properties of all your disk controllers and make sure it's set properly. If you go into your BIOS, and you have it set to auto-detect, it should tell you somewhere what it found. Some BIOS will even report what it's capable of AND what it's currently set for, allowing you to easily troubleshoot if the problem lies with the BIOS or somewhere else.

http://www.vmware.com/products/p2v/

I don't know if VirtualPC support that...VMWare has a seperate tool called P2V Assistant...the P is for Physical, and the V is for Virtual. So it makes an image of a physical machine that can run in a virtual environment. You still keep most of your stuff, other than exotic hardware. But again, that's only for VMWare.

That's kinda what I thought, as PS = PostScript which I've only heard referenced when talking about graphics stuff. They are just networked black and white copiers, so no need for advanced features. So far today I haven't seen any issues since switching over to them, but it's only been three hour

A BIOS password would require a user to enter in a password before the system even boots...or, at least before it starts to boot. It's a very low level of security, locking a user out before anything can even start if they don't have the right password. Of course, most don't use this as it's very annoying...every reboot requires you to enter in a password. Dell and other companies offer a HD lock, which is similar in that you need to enter in a password to access the HD. Even if the HD is moved to a different computer you need to enter in a password to access it. Nice, but sounds like trouble to me...what happens if that chip that controls the HD lock goes south? Is all your data lost? That would suck...at least with a BIOS password you can normally just reset the CMOS and you're back to defaults.

That's good to know too! Geez...been doing this all wrong What, if any, actual differences are there between the two...at least in regards to the end user. All functions are still the same, just different ways of implimenting it on the printer?

That's some good info. Firstly, no print monitor apps are loaded, it's straight inf drivers. There are three different options for the driver; PCL5e, PCL6, and PS. I always have used the PCL6 with no problems, and PCL5e when needed, but have never used PS drivers...any idea if the type of driver might be a problem? Currently they are on default spooler settings, which I think is print after first page is loaded. I've tried waiting until the whole document is spooled, but never printed straight to printer. I assumed since it's going through the server first that would be a bad selection, but I'll give it a shot. And the hookup on the app is nice. I'll play with it and see what happens. I figure I could integrate that into my logon script; remove the printer, run the tool, then map the printer.

Both Sygate and Kerio are about to be put to bed...Symantec bought Sygate and just today released info that they are discontinuing it...and Kerio has long said they are soon to end the product. That leaves very little choice...basically just the major players. There are some freeware ones popping up, but I don't trust most of them. Firewall and Antivirus is something you can't just figure out and make cheaply...to be effective you need research and development behind it. That doesn't mean the most expensive is the best, but I would rather drop a few bucks for a decent package then pay twice as much later to get the unit fixed. ZoneAlarm is about the last good free one I would suggest.

Okay, so I have a domain that has been working fine for the most part...the last issue that I can't really figure out has to do with printers. We have two network printers in our organization. They are Canon 4570's if you want to know specifically. Both have the ability to be IP printers. But, that means I would have to host the drivers elsewhere and educate users on how to install them should an issue pop up. I really wish the printers were smart enough to host their own drivers, but I guess that's not such a wanted feature...go figure. So to circumvent that I have the two printers installed on the server, and then shared from there. The clients map the printer from the server, which gives me the ability to not have to worry about drivers since the server has the appropriate drivers already. So if the printers go south all the user has to do is navigate to the server and double-click the printer to install...no muss, no fuss. But, I still have an ongoing issue...throughout the day clients are dropping the printer. We use a terminal program of sorts for medicare billing, and it usually happens in that application. It's Citrix if that helps. When the printer drops there is no visible error message, and when you go to the "Printers and Faxes" it's still listed...but it has access denied or unable to open as the status message. So far the only way I can get this to work is for the user to reboot the client machine. I use an application called "Desktop Authority" which handles a lot of the little things, like mapping printers and drives. The application is configured to first remove all previous mapped printers, then install the mapped printer. That way should the previous mapped printer be in error, it's removed and freshly installed at each login. I think this is what is helping me out when they reboot, which is exactly what I expect it to do. So then it boils down to what is causing the issue? The users can still access their shared drives, and their Desktop and My Docs are redirected to the server and are accessable as well. So just at random it will break the printers....I have no idea what to troubleshoot with this? Are there any steps to properly sharing a printer that I might be missing? What about troubleshooting, is there any place on either the client or server that I can look as get some info? I've tried things like restarting the print spooler, but that doesn't seem to work. It almost seems like an authentication issue, but since they still have access to all other resources I'm lost...HELP! Oh, and there is one event that happens occassionally, but it doesn't seem to be related. Here it is: Event Type: Error Event Source: Print Event Category: None Event ID: 6161 Date: 11/22/2005 Time: 1:37:45 PM User: Computer: Description: The document Microsoft Word - Document1 owned by failed to print on printer \\canon\net. Data type: RAW. Size of the spool file in bytes: 13174. Number of bytes printed: 0. Total number of pages in the document: 4. Number of pages printed: 0. Client machine: \\computer. Win32 error code returned by the print processor: 123. The filename, directory name, or volume label syntax is incorrect. For more information, see Help and Support Center at http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp. This error is almost unrelated in that it effects people who can print all day long...just that one item errors out. And the people who are dropping the printer don't get this message, at least not close enough to be related. I've done some research on the event id and all of it is basic stuff that I have double and triple checked. The print drivers are the latest from the manufacturer, and many have recently be reRIS'd so the workstations are almost spotless. All clients are Dells, with minor config differences. All clients run the same level OS and applications, so I don't it has much to do with that. I'm really looking for some good methods to deduce just what is up with printers...so if you could just point me in the right direction that would be great. Thanx again!!!

In your case it may be easier to change your IDE controller driver to a standard one, and then do the swap out. After your computer loads up then you can install the new boards IDE drivers and you're cooking with grease... You could also do an in-place upgrade, which will reinstall most of windows but SHOULD keep all your settings and applications in tact. Should is a keyword here...it doesn't always work out that way. And yes, Sysprep will work for you too. When you sysprep something it strips most of the hardware info from the registry, leaving the mini-setup to find all the hardware again. Should it find a piece of hardware that it's not capable of installing, it will put it in device manager as an unknown device. Once the mini-setup is done you can then install any remaining drivers. You can also, if you want to invest the time, script sysprep to locate drivers for your hardware. You must provide the drivers and configure the script. In my opinion, that's too much time to waste when any of the previous suggestion work just as well, and much faster. Good luck!

Why not use the new free VMPlayer for something like this. I don't know exactly how you would integrate it into the system, but by providing access to just that you could then let the user do whatever they want to the virutal machine. The idea is that even if they manage to fubar the VM, it won't matter since you can just reboot the VM and all changes are lost. Besides, the VM is just a file so as long as you make a backup then you won't have to worry much. XP, on it's own, is not made to function with something like you are talking about. You could get better results if you were running a domain, as you can limit access to devices and applications, but that requires more computers and tech knowledge. Your other option might be to use some kind of boot loader, one with password support. Then setup a dual-boot. That way you could have two options, one regular one (That requires a password) and one limited one. Once either starts booting, the boot loader should 'hide' the other partition so you won't get access to the files. Of course, this too requires more software and tech knowledge. And finally, what are you wanting the user to do? Just surf the net? As everyone has mentioned if someone can sit down in front of the PC there isn't a whole lot you can do to prevent access. If you are that worried about it, maybe look into making a seperate workstation just for guest access. Then, depending on what you want to allow them to do, you could limit the box accordingly. Since this would be a guest only workstation, you could even do something 'extreme' and throw linux on there. That would not only keep costs down, but would make most script kiddies or so-called power users left high and dry since most don't know how to effectively use linux. But it can surf the net with the best of em...good luck!

Well, as a round about, couldn't you move the execution of the WMI script to after the setup has completed. I don't even know what a WMI script is, so lets use a batch as an example. Using various methods, you could insert the batch into the first startup. I would assume by then that the WMI info would be filled with the units info, as at that point it's fully loaded. And, if you positioned it to run first above all else, you could use the results to effect the next running tasks. So if you don't want a certain application to run if it matches a WMI result, then it would remove it from the list. The nice thing about this would be that you could leave most enabled, and then use results from the WMI script to limit the commands to precisely what you want. Of course there is more work to test and configure that way, but just in case you can't get any WMI info during mini-setup...good luck!

It's logmein.com And it's a great application, no config needed in regards to routers. But, you have to sign up for the account and configure for external access unless you give out all your login info. It's nice, but for something like this it's probably not what he needs. They do have paid versions that offer a single .exe that setups up everything, but it costs $$$.

Then you're right on. I use UltraISO to make cd images, but you can use almost any. Most common applications don't have any copy protection for that yet, so you shouldn't have to worry about it. To make life even easier you could script some kind of install script that a client machine could run that would mount the iso using a virtual cd application, run the installer, and then remove the virtual cd. Daemon Tools supports command line, but I think the driver needs to be loaded. You could use AutoIt if you feel up to it. Also, if you can get a script working, you could use psTools to run it. Great set of tools if you don't already have it, the psExec is the one you'll want specifically.

Sounds to me like you need roaming profiles...or folder redirection. Either one should work for you...but both require an Active Directory based network. The manditory profile that a user previously suggested will work too, but the thing you have to take into account is how to sync the profiles across all the computers. Without the two features I mentioned, you'll either have to devise your own login script to handle all that, or do it manually on each machine. But then when you change something on one, you'll need to manually change it for all of them. Unless I'm misunderstanding you, which is quite easy these days

Sure, you can do that...but I don't see what the question is in regards to remote administration. Also, you pointed out copy protection...if it has protection, you may not be able to make an image. What are you trying to do? A little more info may go a long way...

robocopy will do that...copy the files and folders along with permissions. I don't think you can copy a folders share properties, but someone will prove me wrong http://www.ss64.com/nt/robocopyXP.html Here's another method: http://www.windowsitpro.com/Windows/Articl...6252/16252.html It's more 2000-based, but should translate well to 2003. It also looks to take care of share settings too! Good luck!

So then you're just going to use the RAID array as a local backup for the 120GB?

True, but many of the poll answers question if the frequency or methods are for educational purposes. If you were to take that a step further, then using VMWare as a system to install and reinstall Windows in order to learn more would count. It's the same paints, just different medium.

To answer the thread question, you should be fine using XP to run this app. XP has a 10 concurrent connections limit, but since the application itself has a limit of eight then you won't have to worry about that. If you need more than 10, you'll need to run a server class OS. Other than that, you won't run into much else if it's just a database application like you say. If it requires more functions then that's different, but to just serve up some files all you need is XP. You wouldn't get things like Shadow Copies or Offline Files, but for an app like that I doubt you want that anyway. And Active Directory came out with 2000, not NT4.