More problems with the U3 virus.
John Corliss
(memory stick) at Walmart. The stick works good, but unfortunately it's
infected (as usual) with that miserable U3 virus. Well, that's what I
consider U3 to be anyway.
When I inserted the stick in my card reader, a message appeared
informing me that software had been installed. WHAT? I didn't give
permission for anything to be installed! And there's nothing on the
stick's packaging to indicate that this would happen!
Specifically, the stick put the following files on my hard drive without
asking me:
__________________________________________________________________________
(created this folder) C:\DOCUME~1\(my user account name)\Application
Data\U3\
(created this subfolder and the files in it) C:\DOCUME~1\(my user
account name)\Application Data\U3\(some long code that I'm sure
identifies the stick)\
110,592 07-10-23 cleanup.exe
3,493,888 08-05-02 Launchpad Removal.exe
4,603,904 08-05-04 LaunchPad.exe
58,842 07-10-23 Loading.gif
328 07-10-23 Loading.htm
78,576 07-10-23 LPHelp-ch.chm
98,339 07-10-23 LPHelp-de.chm
109,621 07-10-23 LPHelp-en.chm
94,194 07-10-23 LPHelp-es.chm
95,968 07-10-23 LPHelp-fr.chm
94,331 07-10-23 LPHelp-it.chm
90,017 07-10-23 LPHelp-jp.chm
88,034 07-10-23 LPHelp-tw.chm
475 08-10-30 lplog.txt
2,129,920 07-10-23 LPSecurityExtension.dll
1,901 07-10-23 LPSecurityExtension.dll.sig
35,070 07-10-23 PelicanBusy.gif
82 07-10-23 PelicanBusyPage.htm
593,920 07-12-09 PelicanExtension.dll
1,901 07-12-09 PelicanExtension.dll.sig
544,768 07-10-23 SanDiskFormatExtension.dll
1,901 07-10-23 SanDiskFormatExtension.dll.sig
54,584 07-10-23 U3AccessGrant.exe
2,600,960 07-10-23 u3dapi10.dll
718,336 07-10-23 U3LauncherSetup.msi
9 08-05-06 version.dat
(created this subfolder and the files in it) C:\DOCUME~1\(my user
account name)\Application Data\U3\temp\
110,592 07-10-23 cleanup.exe
3,493,888 08-05-02 Launchpad Removal.exe
____________________________________________________________________
I tried going into the U3 Launchpad's Settings, clicking on the
Uninstall tab and then on the Uninstall U3 Launchpad button, but that
only started a process running in the background that did nothing and
opened no window.
Next I tried downloading and running the uninstaller program from here:
but it did the same thing.
I tried manually deleting the files from the larger partition on the
stick, but almost immediately it got automatically restored from the
smaller read-only partition!
There is NO WAY that I will insert this factory-installed-virus
containing stick into anybody else's computer. And further, my advice is
to totally steer clear of any U3 containing sticks. The software, if you
can call it that, is IMO an insidious virus.
I fired off a very nasty email to Sandisk support, reminding them of
Sony's DRM rootkit and how much damage that incident did to Sony.
**********************************************************************
(Later, and here's what this post has to do with freeware) I found this
updated uninstaller at Softpedia:
http://www.softpedia.com/get/Tweak/Uninstallers/U3-Launchpad-Removal-Tool.shtml
Without much hope for success I downloaded the file, ran it and where
everything else failed, this program worked perfectly. My new stick is
now cured of U3.
However, my advice not to insert a U3 enabled stick in somebody else's
computer remains.
I like and have had good luck with my other Sandisk Cruzer Micro, but
sure wish that Sandisk would pull their heads out of their asses and
stop shoving that U3 crap at everybody.
--
John Corliss BS206. I use nFilter to block all Google Groups posts
because of Googlespam. No ad, cd, commercial, cripple, demo, dotnet,
nag, share, spy, time-limited, trial or web wares OR warez for me, please.
Craig
> Yesterday, I bought a Sandisc Cruzer Micro 8 gb USB 2.0 Flash Drive
> (memory stick) at Walmart. The stick works good, but unfortunately it's
> infected (as usual) with that miserable U3 virus. Well, that's what I
> consider U3 to be anyway.
>
> When I inserted the stick in my card reader, a message appeared
> informing me that software had been installed. WHAT? I didn't give
> permission for anything to be installed! And there's nothing on the
> stick's packaging to indicate that this would happen!
> **********************************************************************
> (Later, and here's what this post has to do with freeware) I found this
> updated uninstaller at Softpedia:
>
> http://www.softpedia.com/get/Tweak/Uninstallers/U3-Launchpad-Removal-Tool.shtml
>
>
> Without much hope for success I downloaded the file, ran it and where
> everything else failed, this program worked perfectly. My new stick is
> now cured of U3.
Amazing behavior. John, is it possible you have XP's autoplay enabled?
It is by default but, the reason I ask is that it would be, uh,
"disconcerting" if an app could load & execute itself automagically from
a key if autoplay were /disabled/.
Regardless, thx for the notice.
-Craig
Mike Easter
> Yesterday, I bought a Sandisc Cruzer Micro 8 gb USB 2.0 Flash Drive
> (memory stick) at Walmart. The stick works good, but unfortunately it's
> infected (as usual) with that miserable U3 virus. Well, that's what I
> consider U3 to be anyway.
>
> When I inserted the stick in my card reader, a message appeared
> informing me that software had been installed. WHAT? I didn't give
> permission for anything to be installed! And there's nothing on the
> stick's packaging to indicate that this would happen!
You shouldn't be configured to autorun things that you stick in your
machine.
Snipped from a blog-review^1:
//In a nutshell, U3 allows you to take portable applications with you
between computers, without ever needing to install software on any of the
machines being used, without the need for administrator access. The way U3
does this is by acting as a virtual CD-ROM drive, thus taking advantage of
Windows Autorun and automatically starting the Launchpad software//
^1 http://www.everythingusb.com/sandisk_cruzer_contour_4gb_12563.html
--
Mike Easter
hummingbird
On Thu, 30 Oct 2008 09:39:39 -0700 'John Corliss'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
IIRC it was Sandisk who first did the dirty deal with MS on U3.
When I bought several USB flash sticks, I ensured buying a brand
that has no U3 muck on them, so they appear to XP as removal
drives.
--
"All truth passes through three stages.
First, it is ridiculed, second it is violently opposed,
and third, it is accepted as self-evident"
(Arthur Schopenhauer)
bay...@gmail.com
>
> >Without much hope for success I downloaded the file, ran it and where
> >everything else failed, this program worked perfectly. My new stick is
> >now cured of U3.
>
> >However, my advice not to insert a U3 enabled stick in somebody else's
> >computer remains.
>
> >I like and have had good luck with my other Sandisk Cruzer Micro, but
> >sure wish that Sandisk would pull their heads out of their asses and
> >stop shoving that U3 crap at everybody.
>
> IIRC it was Sandisk who first did the dirty deal with MS on U3.
>
> When I bought several USB flash sticks, I ensured buying a brand
> that has no U3 muck on them, so they appear to XP as removal
> drives.
>
> --
> "All truth passes through three stages.
> First, it is ridiculed, second it is violently opposed,
> and third, it is accepted as self-evident"
> (Arthur Schopenhauer)
What brands are the ones without the U3 junk? I have all but given up
on thumbdrives ( & they are very cheap now too ) because of this
nuisance.
John Corliss
Actually, you're right. I left autoplay turned on for my USB sticks
because I use an Autorun.inf file to name the stick and to make an icon
show up in Windows Explorer.
Good catch, Craig! However, I still think that the program should ask
for permission before writing files to the hard drive.
Craig
Beginner's luck <grin>.
> However, I still think that the program should ask
> for permission before writing files to the hard drive.
Oh yes. Damned straight! It's behavior is in the same neighborhood as
a virus. Easier to see & eradicate maybe but, man. No thanks. Btw,
someone else earlier in this thread found a U3 marketing blurb asserting
it loaded nothing onto the host. Talk about misdirection...
-Craig
John Corliss
From the Wikipedia U3 article:
"Microsoft and Sandisk are working on a successor called StartKey. It
should be available by the end of 2008 or early 2009."
God help us.
I bought several USB flash sticks, I ensured buying a brand
> that has no U3 muck on them, so they appear to XP as removal
> drives.
Well actually, if you can remove U3 from a Sandisk Cruzer, it's really
very excellent and reliable hardware. As Craig and Mike have pointed out
though, it installed the files because I have autoplay activated for my
USB sticks. OTOH, the program should have asked before installing files
on my hard drive.
Me.Here
Been there, done that. I first came across this U3 crap about 2 years
ago I think and I've hated it with a passion ever since. Like you, I
was severely pissed off that software arbitrarily got installed without
me even agreeing to anything. There was no warning on the packaging
that gave me notice other than a trademark reference to U3. Took me
ages to get rid of it off the stick first time round. Now I avoid
buying U3 enabled sticks.
Speaking of auto-loading programs (sorry, going a little OT here), does
anyone know if you can make an auto-booting USB drive that replaces the
Windows XP CD? I'd like to be able to create a XP SP3 USB instead of
having to drag around re-install CD's all the time.
--
ACF FAQ - http://mehere.fileave.com/
=========================================================================
45. Where can I download Usenet Newsgroup Control Messages?
=========================================================================
In the resources section of http://www.isc.org/index.pl You will need
an FTP client.
- random(signature) 1.4
hummingbird
On Thu, 30 Oct 2008 13:43:27 -0700 (PDT) 'bayn...@yahoo.com'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
Bear in mind I'm in the UK ...I bought 2 x 4GB Dane Elec sticks
from here, exactly like this:
http://www.7dayshop.com/catalog/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=&products_id=101824
hummingbird
On Thu, 30 Oct 2008 13:52:27 -0700 'John Corliss'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
Translation: U3 has been too easy for users to remove, so they
want something more tamperproof ;-)
Time to stock up ...
>I bought several USB flash sticks, I ensured buying a brand
>> that has no U3 muck on them, so they appear to XP as removal
>> drives.
>
>Well actually, if you can remove U3 from a Sandisk Cruzer, it's really
>very excellent and reliable hardware. As Craig and Mike have pointed out
>though, it installed the files because I have autoplay activated for my
>USB sticks. OTOH, the program should have asked before installing files
>on my hard drive.
Indeed. But my Dane Elec 4GB sticks just plugged in from day 1.
PDFrank
> Yesterday, I bought a Sandisc Cruzer Micro 8 gb USB 2.0 Flash Drive
> (memory stick) at Walmart. The stick works good, but unfortunately it's
> infected (as usual) with that miserable U3 virus. Well, that's what I
> consider U3 to be anyway.
I love U3. I have three Cruzers. I've never had a problem with them
and they always clean up their little "messes" before they leave.
Anyway, you can always uninstall U3 if you don't care for it.
Hope I didn't offend anyone.
John Corliss
hummingbird
On Thu, 30 Oct 2008 21:33:25 -0400 'PDFrank'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
Have you ever tried a flash stick with PStart instead of U3?
I've never used U3 but it appears to be bloated.
John Corliss
> bayn...@yahoo.com wrote:
>> hummingbird wrote:
>>> John Corliss wrote:
>>>
>>>> Yesterday, I bought a Sandisc Cruzer Micro 8 gb USB 2.0 Flash Drive
>>>> (memory stick) at Walmart. The stick works good, but unfortunately it's
>>>> infected (as usual) with that miserable U3 virus. Well, that's what I
>>>> consider U3 to be anyway.
>>>> **********************************************************************
>>>> (Later, and here's what this post has to do with freeware) I found this
>>>> updated uninstaller at Softpedia:
>>>> http://www.softpedia.com/get/Tweak/Uninstallers/U3-Launchpad-Removal-...
>>>> Without much hope for success I downloaded the file, ran it and where
>>>> everything else failed, this program worked perfectly. My new stick is
>>>> now cured of U3.
>>>> However, my advice not to insert a U3 enabled stick in somebody else's
>>>> computer remains.
>>>> I like and have had good luck with my other Sandisk Cruzer Micro, but
>>>> sure wish that Sandisk would pull their heads out of their asses and
>>>> stop shoving that U3 crap at everybody.
>>> IIRC it was Sandisk who first did the dirty deal with MS on U3.
>>>
>>> When I bought several USB flash sticks, I ensured buying a brand
>>> that has no U3 muck on them, so they appear to XP as removal
>>> drives.
>>
>> on thumbdrives ( & they are very cheap now too ) because of this
>> nuisance.
SanDisk, Kingston, Verbatim, Samsung and I'm sure others. However, I was
able to use this U3 remover:
http://www.softpedia.com/get/Tweak/Uninstallers/U3-Launchpad-Removal-Tool.shtml
to remove U3 from my new stick this morning. Other versions of this
program may not work. Strangely enough, the version I see available on
he U3 site is an older version.
> Bear in mind I'm in the UK ...I bought 2 x 4GB Dane Elec sticks
> from here, exactly like this:
> http://www.7dayshop.com/catalog/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=&products_id=101824
Hummingbird, my NewsProxy whitelist doesn't work because I have
bayn...@yahoo.com whitelisted and I didn't see his or her post until
you replied to it.
John Corliss
AFAIK, that's a function of the system's BIOS. Not sure it's possible to
configure a computer to boot off of a USB stick. Maybe you can off of a
newer computer.
John Corliss
> On Thu, 30 Oct 2008 21:33:25 -0400 'PDFrank'
> wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
>
>> John Corliss wrote:
>>
>>> Yesterday, I bought a Sandisc Cruzer Micro 8 gb USB 2.0 Flash Drive
>>> (memory stick) at Walmart. The stick works good, but unfortunately it's
>>> infected (as usual) with that miserable U3 virus. Well, that's what I
>>> consider U3 to be anyway.
>> I love U3. I have three Cruzers. I've never had a problem with them
>> and they always clean up their little "messes" before they leave.
>>
>> Anyway, you can always uninstall U3 if you don't care for it.
>>
>> Hope I didn't offend anyone.
>
> Have you ever tried a flash stick with PStart instead of U3?
> I've never used U3 but it appears to be bloated.
Worst thing about U3 is that it installs crap on any computer the stick
is inserted into.
I also hate the two partition method it uses, which shows up in Windows
Explorer as two drives.
U3 seems like a solution in search of a problem to me.
But (to PDFrank) to each their own I suppose.
Franklin
<news:XqidnQef1bsl8ZfU...@posted.ccountrynet>:
> hummingbird wrote:
>> On Thu, 30 Oct 2008 21:33:25 -0400 'PDFrank'
>> wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
>>
>>> John Corliss wrote:
>>>
>>>> Yesterday, I bought a Sandisc Cruzer Micro 8 gb USB 2.0 Flash
>>>> Drive (memory stick) at Walmart. The stick works good, but
>>>> unfortunately it's infected (as usual) with that miserable U3
>>>> virus. Well, that's what I consider U3 to be anyway.
>>> I love U3. I have three Cruzers. I've never had a problem with
>>> them and they always clean up their little "messes" before they
>>> leave.
>>>
>>> Anyway, you can always uninstall U3 if you don't care for it.
>>>
>>> Hope I didn't offend anyone.
>>
>> Have you ever tried a flash stick with PStart instead of U3?
>> I've never used U3 but it appears to be bloated.
>
> Worst thing about U3 is that it installs crap on any computer the
> stick is inserted into.
>
> I also hate the two partition method it uses, which shows up in
> Windows Explorer as two drives.
Having two partitions is ugly. A hidden folder for the U3 files would
have been neater. And easier to remove.
>
> U3 seems like a solution in search of a problem to me.
>
> But (to PDFrank) to each their own I suppose.
>
At least U3 compliance means an app should remove its own data from the
PC. Also the antivirus feature may give a bit of help.
But the locks and slow transfers which some people get with U3 are
unwelcome.
Steve H
wrote:
<snip>
>
>Having two partitions is ugly. A hidden folder for the U3 files would
>have been neater. And easier to remove.
>
I have 4 Cruzer sticks - all came with U3, but as I never enable
autoplay from either ram sticks or cd/dvd I simply ran the supplied
uninstall routine which both removed U3 from the sticks and
reformatted them to a single partition.
Regards,
--
Steve ( out in the sticks )
Email: Take time to reply: timefrom_usenet{at}gmx.net
hummingbird
On Thu, 30 Oct 2008 19:01:03 -0700 'John Corliss'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
>hummingbird wrote:
John, I can only assume it's because of NP v1.20 which you run.
Here's a copy/paste of the aflag filter I used for baynole in
NP v1.24 before I moved over to Hamster for filtering:
alt.comp.freeware aflag: From:bayn...@yahoo.com
It appeared in my filter list BEFORE the google drop filter:
alt.comp.freeware drop Message-ID:*googlegroups.com*
hummingbird
On Thu, 30 Oct 2008 19:25:58 -0700 'John Corliss'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
>hummingbird wrote:
>> On Thu, 30 Oct 2008 21:33:25 -0400 'PDFrank'
>> wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
>>
>>> John Corliss wrote:
>>>
>>>> Yesterday, I bought a Sandisc Cruzer Micro 8 gb USB 2.0 Flash Drive
>>>> (memory stick) at Walmart. The stick works good, but unfortunately it's
>>>> infected (as usual) with that miserable U3 virus. Well, that's what I
>>>> consider U3 to be anyway.
>>> I love U3. I have three Cruzers. I've never had a problem with them
>>> and they always clean up their little "messes" before they leave.
>>>
>>> Anyway, you can always uninstall U3 if you don't care for it.
>>>
>>> Hope I didn't offend anyone.
>> Have you ever tried a flash stick with PStart instead of U3?
>> I've never used U3 but it appears to be bloated.
>Worst thing about U3 is that it installs crap on any computer the stick
>is inserted into.
>
>I also hate the two partition method it uses, which shows up in Windows
>Explorer as two drives.
>
>U3 seems like a solution in search of a problem to me.
>
>But (to PDFrank) to each their own I suppose.
When I read your initial post about U3, I was horrified that it
behaved like that in this day and age. Like yourself, I demand
control of what is installed on my HDD, not MS or Sandisk.
Similar problems arose with iPod and MP3 players a while ago.
MS appear to have a major problem learning this lesson, such is
their obsession with controlling everything.
PStart gives me everything I want and more for USB sticks,
and each stick appears to XP as a single removable drive.
John Corliss
I have to take it back. I noticed right after I posted that Why Tea's
posts are coming through. I just removed the gmail email address that I
had after baynole2's nym, making that rule identical to the one you
listed above. Since that person uses an email address for a nym, that
might be the problem.
Think I'm going to be using my Motzarella account to acquire my own
whitelist, because the one you gave me a while back is probably a little
long in the tooth. 80)>
Me.Here
John Corliss wrote:
> Me.Here wrote:
>> Been there, done that. I first came across this U3 crap about 2 years
>> ago I think and I've hated it with a passion ever since. Like you, I
>> was severely pissed off that software arbitrarily got installed
>> without me even agreeing to anything. There was no warning on the
>> packaging that gave me notice other than a trademark reference to U3.
>> Took me ages to get rid of it off the stick first time round. Now I
>> avoid buying U3 enabled sticks.
>>
>> Speaking of auto-loading programs (sorry, going a little OT here),
>> does anyone know if you can make an auto-booting USB drive that
>> replaces the Windows XP CD? I'd like to be able to create a XP SP3
>> USB instead of having to drag around re-install CD's all the time.
>
> AFAIK, that's a function of the system's BIOS. Not sure it's possible to
> configure a computer to boot off of a USB stick. Maybe you can off of a
> newer computer.
>
Yep, my BIOS allows booting from USB devices, however, I'm yet to find
out how to create a boot USB disk so I can install XP SP3 from the USB
disk instead of a CD.
--
ACF FAQ - http://mehere.fileave.com/
=========================================================================
31. Am I required to use a certain posting style in ACF.
=========================================================================
No, however, most readers of ACF seem to prefer bottom or interleaved
posting and there are those who would kill-file you for daring to breach
that commonly accepted posting style netiquette.
- random(signature) 1.4
John Corliss
> John Corliss wrote:
>> hummingbird wrote:
>>> PDFrank wrote:
>>>> John Corliss wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Yesterday, I bought a Sandisc Cruzer Micro 8 gb USB 2.0 Flash
>>>>> Drive (memory stick) at Walmart. The stick works good, but
>>>>> unfortunately it's infected (as usual) with that miserable U3
>>>>> virus. Well, that's what I consider U3 to be anyway.
>>>>
>>>> I love U3. I have three Cruzers. I've never had a problem with
>>>> them and they always clean up their little "messes" before they
>>>> leave.
>>>>
>>>> Anyway, you can always uninstall U3 if you don't care for it.
>>>>
>>>> Hope I didn't offend anyone.
>>>
>>> Have you ever tried a flash stick with PStart instead of U3?
>>> I've never used U3 but it appears to be bloated.
>>
>> Worst thing about U3 is that it installs crap on any computer the
>> stick is inserted into.
>>
>> I also hate the two partition method it uses, which shows up in
>> Windows Explorer as two drives.
>
> Having two partitions is ugly. A hidden folder for the U3 files would
> have been neater. And easier to remove.
Well it would seem that this is exactly why they used the two partition
scheme, to prevent removal of U3. When it first came out, you couldn't
remove it from a stick. Public outcry led to the creation of various
uninstallers and now the U3 site has a copy (which, IME yesterday
doesn't work) available on their website. However, before you can
download it, you get blasted with arguments why you shouldn't remove U3.
This is very similar to the way spyware toolbars try to talk you out of
removing them sometimes:
>> U3 seems like a solution in search of a problem to me.
>> But (to PDFrank) to each their own I suppose.
>
> At least U3 compliance means an app should remove its own data from the
> PC.
The standard only says that all *personal* data is removed:
http://www.u3.com/smart/default.aspx
This careful bit of wording implies that *non-personal* data may, in
fact, be left on a host computer.
Ironically, and I can tell you from personal experience only yesterday,
uninstalling U3 from the stick doesn't remove the files that merely
inserting the stick into a computer leaves on that computer's hard
drive. I listed those files in the OP.
> Also the antivirus feature may give a bit of help.
Heh. If you're talking about the McAfee crap that came pre-loaded my new
stick, I deleted that immediately. I wouldn't put a McAfee product on my
worst enemy's computer.
There's a lot of stuff listed on this page:
http://software.u3.com/ProductCategoryList.aspx?CategoryId=8&Selection=13&lang=en-US
but you don't know how limited the features for those programs are until
you load and try them, even if there's a green "FREE" download button by it.
> But the locks and slow transfers which some people get with U3 are
> unwelcome.
I've also read about people taking their stick in to a store and trying
to get photos off of it for printing, but the machine reading the stick
is unable to do so because it has U3 on it.
I think the reasons I got so pissed off at U3 were the following:
1. Simply plugging it into my computer resulted in it writing files and
registry entries to my hard drive.
2. Attempting to manually delete U3 from a stick results in it being
restored magically (and infuriatingly) right before your eyes. Even if
you're not running the U3 Launchpad IIRC.
4. There is no way (at least that I'm aware of) to remove the CD
emulating partition which contains the read-only restoration files on it.
3. Attempting to use the provided uninstallers didn't work, including
the built in removal button in the U3 Launchpad Options and both Sandisk
and U3's uinstallers.
It took downloading this uninstaller to get U3 off of my new stick:
http://www.softpedia.com/get/Tweak/Uninstallers/U3-Launchpad-Removal-Tool.shtml
which, strangely enough, is a newer version of the same tool that is
available at the U3 site and which didn't work for me.
John Corliss
Another one is Portableapps.com:
which kind of looks and runs like U3 but without the infuriating extra
partition.
I finally realized that I never use portable applications though. I only
use my sticks to transport files.
John Corliss
>
> John Corliss wrote:
>> Me.Here wrote:
>>> Been there, done that. I first came across this U3 crap about 2
>>> years ago I think and I've hated it with a passion ever since. Like
>>> you, I was severely pissed off that software arbitrarily got
>>> installed without me even agreeing to anything. There was no warning
>>> on the packaging that gave me notice other than a trademark reference
>>> to U3. Took me ages to get rid of it off the stick first time
>>> round. Now I avoid buying U3 enabled sticks.
>>>
>>> Speaking of auto-loading programs (sorry, going a little OT here),
>>> does anyone know if you can make an auto-booting USB drive that
>>> replaces the Windows XP CD? I'd like to be able to create a XP SP3
>>> USB instead of having to drag around re-install CD's all the time.
>>
>> AFAIK, that's a function of the system's BIOS. Not sure it's possible
>> to configure a computer to boot off of a USB stick. Maybe you can off
>> of a newer computer.
>>
>
> Yep, my BIOS allows booting from USB devices, however, I'm yet to find
> out how to create a boot USB disk so I can install XP SP3 from the USB
> disk instead of a CD.
Do you mean "stick" instead of "disk" or are you talking about an
external USB hard drive or CD player?
Me.Here
John Corliss wrote:
> Me.Here wrote:
>>
>> John Corliss wrote:
>>> Me.Here wrote:
>>>> Been there, done that. I first came across this U3 crap about 2
>>>> years ago I think and I've hated it with a passion ever since. Like
>>>> you, I was severely pissed off that software arbitrarily got
>>>> installed without me even agreeing to anything. There was no
>>>> warning on the packaging that gave me notice other than a trademark
>>>> reference to U3. Took me ages to get rid of it off the stick first
>>>> time round. Now I avoid buying U3 enabled sticks.
>>>>
>>>> Speaking of auto-loading programs (sorry, going a little OT here),
>>>> does anyone know if you can make an auto-booting USB drive that
>>>> replaces the Windows XP CD? I'd like to be able to create a XP SP3
>>>> USB instead of having to drag around re-install CD's all the time.
>>>
>>> AFAIK, that's a function of the system's BIOS. Not sure it's possible
>>> to configure a computer to boot off of a USB stick. Maybe you can off
>>> of a newer computer.
>>>
>>
>> Yep, my BIOS allows booting from USB devices, however, I'm yet to find
>> out how to create a boot USB disk so I can install XP SP3 from the USB
>> disk instead of a CD.
>
> Do you mean "stick" instead of "disk" or are you talking about an
> external USB hard drive or CD player?
>
Sorry, stick.
--
ACF FAQ - http://mehere.fileave.com/
=========================================================================
17. Are there any Signature conventions?
=========================================================================
The following advice is the generally accepted netiquette in regards to
signatures. Please keep your signatures as concise as possible because
people do not appreciate having to pay to continually download them
every time they view one of your posts. 3 or 4 lines is usually plenty.
Long signatures are definitely frowned upon, as is drawings, pictures
and other graphics in your signature. Including such material in your
signature is considered as extremely rude by other readers and you
invite a barrage of nasty posts by including them.
- random(signature) 1.4
Franklin
<news:1lvkg41arap7jp6nd...@4ax.com>:
> On Fri, 31 Oct 2008 02:25:58 GMT, Franklin <see_REPLY-TO_header>
> wrote:
> <snip>
>
>>
>>Having two partitions is ugly. A hidden folder for the U3 files
>>would have been neater. And easier to remove.
>>
> I have 4 Cruzer sticks - all came with U3, but as I never enable
> autoplay from either ram sticks or cd/dvd I simply ran the supplied
> uninstall routine which both removed U3 from the sticks and
> reformatted them to a single partition.
>
I gather U3 made the uninstall routine avaialable after complaints
from users who couldn't remove their code. I was assuming the removal
by deleting a special folder would be supported by U3, so the damn
thing wouldn't reinstall itself in the way it currently does! Unlike
a second partition, that folder could be made hidden.
Unfortunately U3 does restore deleted code and probably hides itself
by making use of a entry in the flash device's Master File Table which
diverts control to their code.
I don't know all the details of U3's particular implementation but it
sounds like U3 uses a second partition to emulate an optical device
which could then permit automatic loading in machines which are
configured to do that. The emulated optical *seems* be read-only, so
the read/write functions which the actual memory device is being used
for would need to be accessed by the existence of a second partition.
Bit naughty really.
Franklin
John, all this reminds me a bit of the way Real Player would dig its
unwelcome claws into a system and stubbornly resist attempts at part
removal.
The disingenuous way U3 explains itself to users sounds like those
anti-spyware apps which persuade the user to install them and then
bombard him to death with adverts for their $$$ware solution to
address the warnings which their application remorselessly keeps
popping onto the screen.
As you say, in U3's case, it doesn't really seem to offer any must-
have benefits. It's another one to avoid.
hummingbird
On Fri, 31 Oct 2008 04:39:07 -0700 'John Corliss'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
It could be the @ character in the nym, although it did work OK
on NP v1.24.
>Think I'm going to be using my Motzarella account to acquire my own
>whitelist, because the one you gave me a while back is probably a little
>long in the tooth. 80)>
That's a good idea. I guess the old list will be a tad out of date
now. Even with Hamster, I still find myself updating filters quite
often.
hummingbird
On Thu, 30 Oct 2008 18:38:27 -0700 'John Corliss'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
Reading that article, it looks like MS are trying to introduce a
new solution for a problem which they created.
Having imposed the Registry and Documents and Settings concept
onto users to exercise op/sys control over how people install and
manage their programs, they now appear to be trying to implement
a portable version of D+S to make it more flexible. That might be
a step forward except that anything from MS will be bloated, as
you discovered with U3.
A much better approach would be for MS to dump the registry and
D+S concept for programs altogether and revert to the original use
of .INI files to store program settings. That is essentially what
portable apps do today, and is clearly what users prefer given the
huge demand growth for such programs.
If MS did that, it would just leave the use of the registry for
storing hardware and op/sys data which users might tolerate. It
would also make it far easier for users to backup their program
folders.
hummingbird
On Fri, 31 Oct 2008 05:12:22 -0700 'John Corliss'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
If it were possible, I'd have portable versions of every single
program I use. Then, I could easily install them on a seperate
partition/drive and quickly back up to a flash drive.
Running them could be easily done through my file manager which
is also completely portable.
Documents and Settings folders would become a thing of the past
which would also make it easier to backup the op/sys partition
by imaging.
Me.Here
John, it should be:
alt.comp.freeware aflag: From:"bayn...@yahoo.com"
--
ACF FAQ - http://mehere.fileave.com/
=========================================================================
42. What is alt.comp.freeware.games (ACFG)?
=========================================================================
ACFG is an unmoderated Usenet newsgroup created by Brian (Aguydude) in
Jan 2001. It has a lengthy charter which I won't post here, however,
it's prime focus is the discussion of freeware games which would include
providing information about new freeware games, requesting the location
of freeware games, providing assistance with troubleshooting,
requesting information about the creation of freeware games, and
requesting help winning freeware games.
- random(signature) 1.4
Rod
> John Corliss wrote:
>> Me.Here wrote:
>>> Been there, done that. I first came across this U3 crap about 2 years
>>> ago I think and I've hated it with a passion ever since. Like you, I
>>> was severely pissed off that software arbitrarily got installed
>>> without me even agreeing to anything. There was no warning on the
>>> packaging that gave me notice other than a trademark reference to U3.
>>> Took me ages to get rid of it off the stick first time round. Now I
>>> avoid buying U3 enabled sticks.
>>>
>>> Speaking of auto-loading programs (sorry, going a little OT here),
>>> does anyone know if you can make an auto-booting USB drive that
>>> replaces the Windows XP CD? I'd like to be able to create a XP SP3
>>> USB instead of having to drag around re-install CD's all the time.
>>
>> AFAIK, that's a function of the system's BIOS. Not sure it's possible to
>> configure a computer to boot off of a USB stick. Maybe you can off of a
>> newer computer.
>>
>
> Yep, my BIOS allows booting from USB devices, however, I'm yet to find
> out how to create a boot USB disk so I can install XP SP3 from the USB
> disk instead of a CD.
I haven't tried this myself, but found instructions for installing XP
from a USB stick. This probably would give you the basic install if
you used a slipstreamed version, but you still would need to install
all the drivers for a particular computer. These tend to be different
for each mobo, and are usually on a CD.
http://www.boot-land.net/forums/?showtopic=4900
John Corliss
Right on. I totally agree.
John Corliss
But that's the user name, not really the email address. The email
address is a gmail one.
H-Man
I did this a while back but can't remember where I got the info from. I
know I googled it though. I made a bootable 2GB XP install USB stick. Used
it to install a copy of XP onto my EEEPC as I didn't have an optical drive
I could connect to it. Worked like a charm. It is quite doable.
Mine was just an SP2 install, I installed SP3 after the fact. If you can
slipstream the original disk, I can't see a reason why this won't work.
On a side note, installation, it seems, should be quicker from a USB stick,
but such is not the case. Installation seemed very slow. Of course it was
on an EEEPC so maybe that's why.
--
HK
John Corliss
Okay. I wonder if it would be possible to make a slipstreamed CD image
and then "burn" that image to the stick. Maybe that would work?
John Corliss
That's a nice way to put it. 80)>
Me.Here
In that case, use:
alt.comp.freeware aflag: From:"bayn...@yahoo.com"*<bay...@gmail.com>
--
ACF FAQ - http://mehere.fileave.com/
=========================================================================
22. What do people mean by "mungeing" your email address?
=========================================================================
"Mungeing" is simply a means to disguise your email address from robots
but allow humans to extract it easily. An example of a munged email
address would be: <Me....@MYhotmailADDRESS.comREMOVE_CAPS_AFTER_AT>.
If you are interested in mungeing email addresses, I recommend you read
the following: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Munge
- random(signature) 1.4
Me.Here
Yes, but you still need to create a "bootable" image on the stick (eg.
like a CDROM has or the the old floppy disks did). It's this bootable
image part I'm not sure on.
--
ACF FAQ - http://mehere.fileave.com/
=========================================================================
Me.Here
Thanks H-Man, that's great news and exactly what I want to do. Now I
know it's do-able, I've just got to work out how to do it :-)
--
ACF FAQ - http://mehere.fileave.com/
=========================================================================
52. Where can I find the Pricelessware Lists?
=========================================================================
The following is a list of sites serving up the Pricelessware List:
- http://www.pricelessware.org/
- http://www.pricelesswarehome.org/
- http://bearware.info/
- random(signature) 1.4
Me.Here
Thanks Rod - I'll check it out.
--
ACF FAQ - http://mehere.fileave.com/
=========================================================================
hummingbird
On Sat, 01 Nov 2008 11:44:40 +1100 'Me.Here'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
Interesting thread MH. I spent some time trying to get PStart to
auto-start when I plugged in a USB stick some while ago without
success, even though I have an autorun.inf in the root directory.
So I'm very interested to see if you find a solution.
John Corliss
> John Corliss wrote:
>> Me.Here wrote:
>>> [LEGIT] hummingbird wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> (snip)
>>>>> Hummingbird, my NewsProxy whitelist doesn't work because I have
>>>>> bayn...@yahoo.com whitelisted and I didn't see his or her post
>>>>> until you replied to it.
>>>>
>>>> John, I can only assume it's because of NP v1.20 which you run.
>>>> Here's a copy/paste of the aflag filter I used for baynole in NP
>>>> v1.24 before I moved over to Hamster for filtering:
>>>>
>>>> alt.comp.freeware aflag: From:bayn...@yahoo.com
>>>>
>>>> It appeared in my filter list BEFORE the google drop filter:
>>>>
>>>> alt.comp.freeware drop Message-ID:*googlegroups.com*
>>>
>>> John, it should be:
>>> alt.comp.freeware aflag: From:"bayn...@yahoo.com"
>>
>> But that's the user name, not really the email address. The email
>> address is a gmail one.
>
> In that case, use:
> alt.comp.freeware aflag: From:"bayn...@yahoo.com"*<bay...@gmail.com>
Here's the examples that were originally in my filter file:
_________________________________________________________________
# $Revision: 1 $
# $Author: Mark Burkley $
# $Log: /NewsProxy/newsproxy.ini $
#
# 1 11/03/99 13:26 Mark Burkley
# Initial version
#
# ============================
#
# Flag any posts in alt.animals.foo which are cross-posted to
# newsgroup alt.fan.foo as JUNK
#
#alt.animals.foo flag:JUNK xref:*alt.fan.foo*
#
# Flag any posts in any group starting with alt.disasters which are
# cross-posted to any newsgroups that contain alt.aviation as XPOST
#
#alt.disasters.* flag:XPOST xref:*alt.aviation*
#
# Drop any posts in any newsgroups that don't have an nntp-posting-host
# header and that are cross-posted to a newsgroup that contains the
# word flame.
#
#* drop nntp-posting-host:(none) xref:*flame*
#
# Flag any posts in any newsgroups that passed through the news site
# news.foo.com as FOO
#
#* flag:FOO path:*news.foo.com*
#
# Drop any posts from i_am_a_flamer@domain that are posted to a rec
# group.
#
#rec.* drop from:*i_am_a_flamer@domain*
_____________________________________________________________________
I don't see any quotation marks used in these, but I do see an asterisk
at the start of the nym, and I wasn't doing that. I just went into my
filter file and added them. We'll see if it works now.
Franklin
<news:QqGdnUjlzeQx6JbU...@posted.ccountrynet>:
>> On Fri 31 Oct08 03:47, Steve H <Ava...@Sig.UK> wrote in
>> <news:1lvkg41arap7jp6nd...@4ax.com>:
>>
>>
>> from users who couldn't remove their code. I was assuming the
>> removal by deleting a special folder would be supported by U3, so
>> the damn thing wouldn't reinstall itself in the way it currently
>> does! Unlike a second partition, that folder could be made hidden.
>>
>> Unfortunately U3 does restore deleted code and probably hides
>> itself by making use of a entry in the flash device's Master File
>> Table which diverts control to their code.
>>
>> I don't know all the details of U3's particular implementation but
>> it sounds like U3 uses a second partition to emulate an optical
>> device which could then permit automatic loading in machines which
>> are configured to do that. The emulated optical *seems* be
>> read-only, so the read/write functions which the actual memory
>> device is being used for would need to be accessed by the existence
>> of a second partition.
>>
>> Bit naughty really.
>
> That's a nice way to put it. 80)>
>
The British have a knack for understatement. I think I must have
picked up a little of it during my studies there. Often made me laugh.
Uxbridge to Wellington: "By God sir, I've lost my leg."
Heh heh!
Me.Here
Because you've use a wildcard at the beginning of the From line which
would substitute for a ". There's nothing wrong with doing this so long
as you are aware that you have to be careful when using wildcards or you
run the risk of dropping more than the intended target.
--
ACF FAQ - http://mehere.fileave.com/
=========================================================================
48. Are there any limits to how much I can post in one day?
=========================================================================
No, however, you should be aware that if you post rubbish, you'll likely
be tagged as a spammer and kill-filed by everyone.
- random(signature) 1.4
Me.Here
It's on my To-Do list along with about 1000 other things at the moment :-)
Hopefully, I'll get some time this weekend to chase it up if I'm not too
drunk (Melbourne Cup weekend - lots of parties and drinking) :-)
--
ACF FAQ - http://mehere.fileave.com/
=========================================================================
36. Do I need to quote the entire message when responding?
=========================================================================
This is not easily answered. Sometimes it's required and sometimes it's
not. I guess it depends on what you're responding to. If you decide
not to quote the full text, you must be careful not to quote out of
context (sometimes referred to as selective quoting) because you could
end up changing the entire meaning of a post and then you'll be the
brunt of some nasty responses. For a greater understanding of how
quoting out of context can effect the messages meaning, see:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fallacy_of_quoting_out_of_context
- random(signature) 1.4
hummingbird
On Sat, 01 Nov 2008 14:46:55 +1100 'Me.Here'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
Springtime in Oz. Good luck :-)
John Corliss
In this case, I wouldn't be dropping intended targets, but rather
allowing them. I can deal with that probably.
John Corliss
Hey, check this out. Maybe this is happening on your system too:
1. Insert your USB stick
2. When it appears in Windows Explorer, right click on it and select
"Properties".
3. Click on the "Autoplay" tab
4. Change the "Content Type" to "Mixed Content" and press the "OK" button
5. Reopen Properties on the stick and notice that the Content Type has
been reset back to "Music Files".
Gee... thanks Microsoft. I guess I really don't know what type of files
I have on that drive *even though there's not one single audio file on it*.
Don't know if this happens in Vista though because I use XP Home SP3.
As for autorunning things off of a USB stick, I found this page:
http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/archive/usbfaq.mspx
Do a search for "Autorun" and you get:
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Q: What must I do to trigger Autorun on my USB storage device?
The Autorun capabilities are restricted to CD-ROM drives and fixed disk
drives. If you need to make a USB storage device perform Autorun, the
device must not be marked as a removable media device and the device
must contain an Autorun.inf file and a startup application.
The removable media device setting is a flag contained within the SCSI
Inquiry Data response to the SCSI Inquiry command. Bit 7 of byte 1
(indexed from 0) is the Removable Media Bit (RMB). A RMB set to zero
indicates that the device is not a removable media device. A RMB of one
indicates that the device is a removable media device. Drivers obtain
this information by using the StorageDeviceProperty request.
For more information about the SCSI Inquiry command, see the T10
committee located at http://www.t10.org. This link leaves the
Microsoft.com site
For more information about the StorageDeviceProperty, see the
STORAGE_DEVICE_DESCRIPTOR storage structure in the Windows DDK, located
at http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-gb/library/aa510117.aspx.
For more information on Autorun.inf files see the "Creating an
AutoRun-Enabled Application" article located at
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa969330.aspx.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
whatever the hell all that means. 80)>
Me.Here
The easiest thing I've found to do is to view the source of the post and
use precisely what's on the header line and just add wildcards where needed.
Just remember, NewsProxy does a precise match on a line (it's the
Thunderbird filter line equivalent of *is*), which is why you must
include wildcards if you don't use the entire line.
Here's an example of what I mean:
* aflag: From:Yrrah*
* aflag: From:*<Yrrah_use...@themailbox.ca>
* aflag: From:Yrrah*<Yrrah_use...@themailbox.ca>
--
ACF FAQ - http://mehere.fileave.com/
=========================================================================
6. Should I mention payware/warez if no free versions of a software
exist?
=========================================================================
No. If you need a reason, refer to Q5.
- random(signature) 1.4
John Corliss
Probably a better idea for me is to continue using Giganews, but flag
Googlers for a while instead of blocking them. That way, I'll be able to
see who's not spamming.
Me.Here
Or you could use Google Groups and search for @gmail.com in the
alt.comp.freeware group. That would bring up a list of Googlers and
Google spammers.
--
ACF FAQ - http://mehere.fileave.com/
=========================================================================
15. Are there any posting conventions in ACF I need to follow?
=========================================================================
No, this is an unmoderated newsgroup so you are free to post what you
want, how you want and when you want. That said, contained within this
FAQ are several conventions commonly used in ACF to make life easier.
You are not required to follow them, however, it will be appreciated if
you do.
- random(signature) 1.4
John Corliss
I just used your suggestion, and the only problem with it is that a lot
of people who don't post through Google Groups use their gmail address
(munged or otherwise) in the From header.
Since my NewsProxy filter is based on the MID, it'll get more accurate
results. I'll have to put up with Googlespam for a while but oh well.
hummingbird
On Sat, 01 Nov 2008 05:28:30 -0700 'John Corliss'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
Hamster beckons ;-)
With all the spammers/sockpuppets/trolls/forgers these days,
I'm thinking about going over to a pure whitelist filter system.
Currently, it's a mixture of several methods with some regex
filters, built up over many months.
I can then easily scan down the killfile list of posts to validate
any individual poster and add them to the whitelist.
hummingbird
On Sat, 01 Nov 2008 04:27:45 -0700 'John Corliss'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
>Me.Here wrote:
>whatever the hell all that means. 80)>
Whenever you plug a drive in, the s/w driver checks what type of
device it is: _GetDriveType_. If it's an RMB drive, autorun.inf
is unavailable due to SCSI T10 standards committee specs.
The latter document contains this comment:
"Note: Autorun.inf files are not supported under Microsoft Windows
XP for drives that return DRIVE_REMOVABLE from _GetDriveType_"
I haven't got a clue where the RMB 'bit' is stored but it would
need to be changed from 1 to 0 to allow autorun.inf to work on
a flash drive.
John Corliss
> John Corliss wrote:
>>
According to this site:
http://www.uwe-sieber.de/usbtrouble_e.html
in the section titled "On flash drive only the first partition works",
it says:
"The Removable Media Bit can be changed either in the drive's hardware
or by a Windows filter driver."
and they mention this freeware program:
http://www.pendriveapps.com/2008/05/01/bootit-lexar-usb-flip-the-removable-media-bit-tool/
There is this warning about the program at that site though:
"Warning: This tool may not work properly on some sticks as it was made
for Lexar based products. The only function we have tested on our
flashdrives is the Flip the Removable Bit feature. Use at your own risk!"
They also list other portable apps there at this second link. Never
heard of a USB stick referred to as a "pen drive" before.
Back to the first link though, there's another program mentioned here:
"A filter driver for removing the RMB has been made by Hitachi for their
Microdrives (Compatct Flash cards with a mini harddrive):
xpfildrvr1224_320.zip (http://www.uwe-sieber.de/files/xpfildrvr1224_320.zip)
By modifying the included INF file the filter driver can be used with
any other 'removable' drive.
For the device detection there are the lines in section
[cfadisk_device]" etc.
> but it would need to be changed from 1 to 0 to allow autorun.inf to work
> on a flash drive.
I think if you did that though, there's a chance that it might render
the stick read-only.
--
John Corliss BS206. I use nFilter to filter all Google Groups posts
hummingbird
On Sun, 09 Nov 2008 05:38:14 -0800 'John Corliss'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
>hummingbird wrote:
Thanks for those above links John. If I find eureka lurking in
them, I'll get back to you :-)
John Corliss
By the way, IIUC, rendering a stick "read-only" may be why U3 uses a
small, separate partition to run the Autorun.inf from. The other (main)
partition isn't configured as a CD, so it's writable.
Strangely though, I've noticed on my "de-U3ed" 8 gb stick that an
Autorun.inf file will still run, but only certain commands. For
instance, I put an Autorun.inf file and an icon file named
"thumbdrive.ico" on the stick. The Autorun.inf file consists only of the
following:
[autorun]
label=8 GB Stick
icon=Thumbdrv.ICO
This causes the stick to be named, and to have my icon of a thumb beside
that name, in Windows Explorer.
However, when I try to include the "open" command in that same
Autorun.inf file, the command is ignored.
From what I've read, the reasoning (which I agree with) is that since
memory sticks are used to transport files mostly, a virus can easily use
Autoplay to install itself automatically on a computer if a stick is
infected.
hummingbird
On Sun, 09 Nov 2008 05:38:14 -0800 'John Corliss'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
>hummingbird wrote:
>> Whenever you plug a drive in, the s/w driver checks what type of
>> device it is: _GetDriveType_. If it's an RMB drive, autorun.inf
>> is unavailable due to SCSI T10 standards committee specs.
>>
>> The latter document contains this comment:
>>
>> "Note: Autorun.inf files are not supported under Microsoft Windows
>> XP for drives that return DRIVE_REMOVABLE from _GetDriveType_"
>>
>> I haven't got a clue where the RMB 'bit' is stored
>According to this site:
>
> http://www.uwe-sieber.de/usbtrouble_e.html
>
>in the section titled "On flash drive only the first partition works",
>it says:
>
>"The Removable Media Bit can be changed either in the drive's hardware
>or by a Windows filter driver."
>
>and they mention this freeware program:
>
>http://www.pendriveapps.com/2008/05/01/bootit-lexar-usb-flip-the-removable-media-bit-tool/
The Lexar utility listed on that site was not downloadable due to
errors, but you can download it directly from (below).
However, I was unable to get BootIt.exe to make my flash stick
run <autorun.inf> even after flipping the RMB bit. I suspect the
utility is aimed at making a USB flash drive bootable, not
specifically to run autorun.inf.
You may have better luck.
download:
>http://www.911cd.net/forums//index.php?s=34f45174eaec542d6f5c6dcd96f29991&act=attach&type=post&id=369
(beware of link wrap -- ~355KB zipfile)
Some comments before using it:
http://www.911cd.net/forums//index.php?showtopic=15923&mode=threaded
"Using the BootIt application to create a bootable USB device
will erase all and any existing information on the JumpDrive[?].
Please backup all files on the JumpDrive before using the BootIt
application"
>There is this warning about the program at that site though:
>
>"Warning: This tool may not work properly on some sticks as it was made
>for Lexar based products. The only function we have tested on our
>flashdrives is the Flip the Removable Bit feature. Use at your own risk!"
>
>They also list other portable apps there at this second link. Never
>heard of a USB stick referred to as a "pen drive" before.
Afaik it is an old name used in the UK/Europe because flash sticks
were shaped like pens in the early days.
>Back to the first link though, there's another program mentioned here:
>
>"A filter driver for removing the RMB has been made by Hitachi for their
>Microdrives (Compatct Flash cards with a mini harddrive):
>xpfildrvr1224_320.zip (http://www.uwe-sieber.de/files/xpfildrvr1224_320.zip)
I tried this also and did all the changes necessary. I was able to
get XP to see a flash drive as a local HDD instead of a removable
drive, but was still unable to get <autorun.inf> to run when the
stick was plugged in, even after rebooting.
I've given that up at the moment.
Since I don't travel a lot with flash sticks in my pocket, I have
the flash stick program <PStart> start up automatically when the
system boots using a regular shortcut in the C:\..\StartUp folder.
That works well.
>By modifying the included INF file the filter driver can be used with
>any other 'removable' drive.
>For the device detection there are the lines in section
>[cfadisk_device]" etc.
>
>> but it would need to be changed from 1 to 0 to allow autorun.inf to work
>> on a flash drive.
>
>I think if you did that though, there's a chance that it might render
>the stick read-only.
--
John Corliss
> John Corliss wrote:
>>> Whenever you plug a drive in, the s/w driver checks what type of
>>> device it is: _GetDriveType_. If it's an RMB drive, autorun.inf
>>> is unavailable due to SCSI T10 standards committee specs.
>>>
>>> The latter document contains this comment:
>>>
>>> "Note: Autorun.inf files are not supported under Microsoft Windows
>>> XP for drives that return DRIVE_REMOVABLE from _GetDriveType_"
>>>
>>> I haven't got a clue where the RMB 'bit' is stored
>
>> According to this site:
>>
>> http://www.uwe-sieber.de/usbtrouble_e.html
>>
>> in the section titled "On flash drive only the first partition works",
>> it says:
>>
>> "The Removable Media Bit can be changed either in the drive's hardware
>> or by a Windows filter driver."
>>
>> and they mention this freeware program:
>>
>> http://www.pendriveapps.com/2008/05/01/bootit-lexar-usb-flip-the-removable-media-bit-tool/
>
> The Lexar utility listed on that site was not downloadable due to
> errors, but you can download it directly from (below).
Strange, the link worked okay for me. I ran the download through Jotti's
and it came up clean. I also downloaded the file from the link you
provided below and compared the two files' MD5 hashes. They were identical.
I'm not sure if an Autorun.inf file can be run automatically from a
local HDD. Pretty sure Autorun only works with CDs and DVDs.
> I've given that up at the moment.
>
> Since I don't travel a lot with flash sticks in my pocket, I have
> the flash stick program <PStart> start up automatically when the
> system boots using a regular shortcut in the C:\..\StartUp folder.
> That works well.
>
>> By modifying the included INF file the filter driver can be used with
>> any other 'removable' drive.
>> For the device detection there are the lines in section
>> [cfadisk_device]" etc.
>>
>>> but it would need to be changed from 1 to 0 to allow autorun.inf to work
>>> on a flash drive.
>> I think if you did that though, there's a chance that it might render
>> the stick read-only.
HB, thanks very much for giving all that a try and posting back.
hummingbird
On Tue, 11 Nov 2008 01:10:09 -0800 'John Corliss'
wrote this on alt.comp.freeware:
>hummingbird wrote:
>> John Corliss wrote:
>>> hummingbird wrote:
>>>> Whenever you plug a drive in, the s/w driver checks what type of
>>>> device it is: _GetDriveType_. If it's an RMB drive, autorun.inf
>>>> is unavailable due to SCSI T10 standards committee specs.
>>>>
>>>> The latter document contains this comment:
>>>>
>>>> "Note: Autorun.inf files are not supported under Microsoft Windows
>>>> XP for drives that return DRIVE_REMOVABLE from _GetDriveType_"
>>>>
>>>> I haven't got a clue where the RMB 'bit' is stored
>>
>>> According to this site:
>>>
>>> http://www.uwe-sieber.de/usbtrouble_e.html
>>>
>>> in the section titled "On flash drive only the first partition works",
>>> it says:
>>>
>>> "The Removable Media Bit can be changed either in the drive's hardware
>>> or by a Windows filter driver."
>>>
>>> and they mention this freeware program:
>>>
>>> http://www.pendriveapps.com/2008/05/01/bootit-lexar-usb-flip-the-removable-media-bit-tool/
>>
>> The Lexar utility listed on that site was not downloadable due to
>> errors, but you can download it directly from (below).
>
>Strange, the link worked okay for me. I ran the download through Jotti's
>and it came up clean. I also downloaded the file from the link you
>provided below and compared the two files' MD5 hashes. They were identical.
Odd. It may be something to do with cookies. I saw some comments
on that page from other users saying the file download failed.
Anyway, you got it.
Without checking, you may be right. But since my only aim is to
get it to run when I plug in a flash drive, it serves no other
useful purpose for me. So I reverted to the flash drive being seen
as a removable drive as it was before.
>> I've given that up at the moment.
>>
>> Since I don't travel a lot with flash sticks in my pocket, I have
>> the flash stick program <PStart> start up automatically when the
>> system boots using a regular shortcut in the C:\..\StartUp folder.
>> That works well.
>>
>>> By modifying the included INF file the filter driver can be used with
>>> any other 'removable' drive.
>>> For the device detection there are the lines in section
>>> [cfadisk_device]" etc.
>>>
>>>> but it would need to be changed from 1 to 0 to allow autorun.inf to work
>>>> on a flash drive.
>>> I think if you did that though, there's a chance that it might render
>>> the stick read-only.
>
>HB, thanks very much for giving all that a try and posting back.
YW