Install Windows XP on SATA without a Floppy (F6)

SATA hard drives have become more and more appreciated tending to substitute the IDE drives due to the increasing speed they offer. Motherboard manufacturers started to implement the new standard years ago, when the technology was young and expensive. Now, as the SATA HDD prices have lowered to a level where anybody can afford to choose a SATA enabled HDD instead of an IDE one, a great migration has been observed among the common computer users.


They choose to install Windows and applications on SATA drives because they provide more speed which determines the system to run smoother. Thus, for those owning older mainboards with SATA support an extra step is required while attempting to install Windows XP. Windows XP does not provide drivers for all the SATA controllers, therefore, during the installation procedure, the user must insert a floppy with the drivers that came in the package along with the motherboard.


Not a big deal, not much effort, but the funny thing is that a great number of people passed on their floppy drives. Under these circumstances, no floppy means the impossibility to install Windows XP on SATA (on some mainboards). The result? The installation guide simply won't detect the SATA HDD.


People that were happy they got rid of the old removable drive have now motives to worry. Some may reconsider buying new floppy drives for their computers. Even if I wrote in a precedent article about the utility of the floppy drive, I do not encourage spending your money buying back an obsolete piece of hardware. I will present you a method to avoid this inconvenient by doing a software trick.


Let's take it slow. Where is the problem? We have a driver problem strictly because the SATA driver we need does not come embedded in the Windows XP installation package. What if we add the driver by ourselves before installing Windows?


What ingredients are involved in this operation? The original Windows XP Installation CD, a freeware application named NLite and a blank CD. Moreover, we need the drivers for the SATA controller provided by the manufacturer. In case you did not find any floppy inside the motherboard package or you cannot locate them on the mainboard installation CD, you can consult the manufacturer's website to download the latest versions. To do the trick I have been talking about, it is assumed that you already have a Windows installed on an IDE drive. In case you don't, pay a visit to a friend and ask him to let you use his computer. It won't take too much time, I guarantee.


So, download the drivers and unzip them (in case they come archived) in a desired location. Then download and install the Nlite application. When you start the Nlite application, you will be asked to provide the location for the Windows installation package. Insert the genuine Windows Installation CD into the CD drive and, inside the application, select the CD drive letter.


To insert the SATA drivers within the installation package, you need to have it saved on the HDD. Hence, when the warning window appears click OK and select the destination folder for the files to be saved. Make sure that the destination partition / HDD has enough space to store the contents of the installation CD.


I tested a Windows XP Home Edition and it seems that it required about 566 MB. Immediately after you have chosen the destination folder, the application will start copying the Windows installation files. When finished, it will display some version information regarding the newly copied Windows Installation Package.


Now, click next twice until you get to a screen where you get options sorted in 4 categories: Integrate, Remove, Setup, Create. We are interested in the integration procedure, therefore select the Drivers button and click next. From the next menu window, click Insert and select multiple drive folder option from the drop down menu. This option permits you to browse to the location where the downloaded drivers are found.


Select the containing directory and click next. You will get a list with the available drivers (in case there are more than one) or simply one driver. Select it (them) and click next. Now the application will ask for the permission to start the integration procedure. Choose Yes and wait for the drivers to be inserted into the installation package.






With problematic driver being included in the installation package you can install Windows XP on your SATA HDD...but...the installation package is on the HDD. You need a bootable CD in order to start an installation. Don't worry, once the installation package has been adorned with additional user selected drivers it can be transformed into a bootable disk image and later burned on a CD. To encapsulate the installation into a ISO image use the same Nlite application.


Open it, make sure the HDD installation folder is selected and click next. Select "Last session" preset and click next again. Now from the options menu choose Bootable ISO and click next. In the following window, make sure that the mode is set to "Create Image" and click Make ISO. A destination folder is required where the resulting ISO image will be saved. Once the image saving process finished you have the freedom to burn it on a blank CD with whatever you favorite CD burner software may be.




The new CD will be the twin copy of the Windows Installation CD but with one difference, it includes the SATA driver.

Microsoft DOS attrib command

About attrib Attrib allows a user to change the properties of a specified file. Using attrib, the user has the capability of changing the file to have any of the below attributes. Note if you're wanting to change the ACL's of a file see the CACLS command. Read-only - allowing the file to be only viewed and not written to. Archived - allowing Microsoft backup and other backup programs to know what files to backup. Hidden - making the file invisible to standard users. System - making the file an important system file.

Syntax

Microsoft Windows 95, 98, and ME syntax
Displays or changes file attributes.
ATTRIB [+R | -R] [+A | -A] [+S | -S] [+H | -H] [[drive:][path]filename] [/S]

+	Sets an attribute.
-	Clears an attribute.
R	Read-only file attribute.
A	Archive file attribute.
S	System file attribute.
H	Hidden file attribute.
/S	Processes files in all directories in the specified path.

Microsoft Windows 2000 and Windows XP syntax
Displays or changes file attributes.
ATTRIB [+R | -R] [+A | -A ] [+S | -S] [+H | -H] [[drive:] [path] filename] [/S [/D]]

+	Sets an attribute.
-	Clears an attribute.
R	Read-only file attribute.
A	Archive file attribute.
S	System file attribute.
H	Hidden file attribute.
/S	Processes files in all directories in the specified path.
/D	Process folders as well.

Microsoft Windows 2000 and Windows XP recovery console syntax
Note: The below options are the available options in the Windows recovery console.
Changes attributes on one file or directory.
ATTRIB -R | +R | -S | +S | -H | +H | -C | +C filename

+	Sets an attribute.
-	Clears an attribute.
R	Read-only file attribute.
S	System file attribute.
H	Hidden file attribute.
C	Compressed file attribute.

Examples

attrib

Typing attrib by itself will display all files in the current directory and each of their attributes. If any file is hidden it will also display those files.

attrib +r autoexec.bat

Add the read-only attribute to the autoexec.bat file so it cannot be modified until the read only attribute is taken off. This is helpful for important system files or any other file that you do not want to have mistakenly edited or changed by another program.

attrib +h config.sys

Add the hidden attribute to the config.sys file causing it to be not be seen by the average user.

attrib -h config.sys

This command will do the opposite of the above command. Instead of hiding the file it will unhide the file if hidden.

• Additional examples and information about displaying hidden files in MS-DOS can be found on document CH001039.

Extended information

See our File attributes computer dictionary definition for additional information about file attributes. DOS directory file attribute bit position and Hex Value with bit positions (7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0).

Bit Positions	Hex	Description
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1	01h	Read Only file
0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0	02h	Hidden file
0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0	04h	System file
0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0	08h	Volume Label
0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0	10h	Subdirectory
0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0	20h	Archive
0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0	40h	Reserved
1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0	80h	Reserved
Examples
0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1	21h	Read Only, Archive
0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0	32h	Hidden, Subdirectory, Archive
0 0 1 0 0 1 1 1	27h	Read Only, Hidden, Archive http://www.computerhope.com/attribhl.htm

Virtual Private Network (VPN) Configuration

 

 Introduction

Virtual Private Networks (or VPN) are used to set up secure communications between hosts on a public network (such as the Internet). There are many ways of accomplishing this, and several technologies that facilitate it.
This document deals with using VPN software at Suffield Academy. We provide VPN servers so that faculty and students may connect from off-campus through our firewall and access services that normally would be inaccessible to them. For example, users can connect to our file server (to access their documents), or to the database server (to view records).
At the moment, we provide both L2TP and PPTP VPN services, which are compatible with the majority of VPN clients.
Before you begin, please make sure you know your Network Username (such as "jbogus" or "01abc"), and the corresponding password. You'll need this information in order to connect through our VPN server.

Mac OS X

(This section not yet completed)
This section will detail downloading the Internet Connect configuration file, installing it, and connecting to the VPN.

Windows XP

Windows XP comes with a built-in VPN client that can be used to connect to our network. To set up this client, follow the steps below.
Note that you only need to set up the client once. After the initial setup, you can easily connect using your saved settings.

Configuring the Client

Begin by going to the Control Panel in Windows XP.

If you see a choice that says Network and Internet Connections and looks like the image below, click on it.




Now, open the Network Connections option:



You should now be at a screen that looks like this:



Click on the Create a new connection choice on the left. You'll be shown the following screen:




Choose Next. You'll now be given a list of choices.



Select Connect to the network at my workplace and click Next. You'll now be asked to choose between dial-up and VPN:



Choose Virtual Private Network connection and click Next.
You'll now be asked to enter a company name. Enter anything you like (for example, "Suffield Academy"):


Click Next. You will now be asked to enter the VPN server. You must enter a server depending on whether you are a student or a faculty member.
Students must enter vpn-student.suffieldacademy.org as the address to connect to.
Faculty must enter vpn-faculty.suffieldacademy.org as the address to connect to.
Note: you must enter the proper address for the type of user you are, or it will not work!

Click Next. The system will confirm the addition of the connection, and you may now click Finish.

Using the VPN

In the Network Connections control panel, double-click your new VPN settings icon:

The connection screen will ask you for a username and password. Enter your network username and password, and then click the Connect button.

The system will connect to the VPN server. Upon completion of the connection, a small popup window will appear to alert you that the network is ready for use:

You may now work on the Suffield Network as if you were on campus.
When you're done working, click on the small computer icon in the system tray to get the status window for the connection:

Click the Disconnect button and the VPN will terminate. You are now disconnected and may use your machine normally.

Submit your website to Search Engine and Get visitor

	Submit your just made website to search engines and get more visitors to your website. Here is a list of search engine. You can submit your page by clicking manually.
	Search Engine/ Directory 1.Google 2.Bing 3.Open Directory 4.ASR 5.ScrubTheWeb 6.EntireWeb 7.ExactSeek 8.SearchSight 9.SecretSELabs 10.SoMuch 11.Amfibi 12.Link Centre 13.Web World 14.MasterMOZ 15.A1WebDirectory 16.TXT Links 17.Directory Free 18.24/7 Web Directory 19.Info Tiger 20.Submit 21.Skoobe 22.1WebsDirectory 23.SonicRun 24.Domaining 25.Wikidweb 1 26 704 3,006 3,220 5,508 7,852 9,031 13,005 13,824 14,472 15,635 15,978 16,783 19,878 20,413 20,539 20,657 21,434 21,645 21,712 22,744 22,842 23,185 23,242 9 8 8 6 6 5 3 4 0 5 5 5 5 4 5 4 3 4 4 5 5 4 3 4 4 Search Engine/ Directory 26.GigaBlast 27.FyberSearch 28.Info Listings 29.RDirectory 30.9Sites 31.IS 32.PiSeries 33.OneMillionDirectory 34.Dramba 35.SurfSafely 36.Apex 37.Nuoret 38.KiwiDir 39.IllumiRate 40.BusinessSeek 41.My Directory Live 42.Directory Storm 43.Polypat 44.W3 Catalog 45.Synergy Directory 46.FullLogo 47.What U Seek 48.Wondex 49.Link1 Directory 50.The Living Link 23,902 23,907 24,045 24,057 24,883 26,218 26,581 26,715 26,729 26,781 27,365 27,486 27,737 28,110 28,412 30,002 30,280 30,626 33,854 33,877 35,027 35,436 38,165 40,253 41,095 6 2 4 4 4 3 3 3 3 5 5 4 3 5 4 2 5 4 4 3 3 6 3 3 4

How to Install Windows XP

Install Windows XP

Windows XP is the most popular computer operating system. Some time we need to install operating system. But general user can't do that.

This post will help to install xp in your pc personally. Before install XP you need to setting up Boot sequence in BIOS. Set first boot device as Optical Drive (CD/DVD ROM).

Part 1: Begin the installation

1.	Insert the Windows XP CD into your computer and restart your computer.
2.	If prompted to start from the CD, press SPACEBAR. If you miss the prompt (it only appears for a few seconds), restart your computer to try again.
3.	Windows XP Setup begins. During this portion of setup, your mouse will not work, so you must use the keyboard. On the Welcome to Setup page, press ENTER.
4.	On the Windows XP Licensing Agreement page, read the licensing agreement. Press the PAGE DOWN key to scroll to the bottom of the agreement. Then press F8.
5.	This page enables you to select the hard disk drive on which Windows XP will be installed. Once you complete this step, all data on your hard disk drive will be removed and cannot be recovered. It is extremely important that you have a recent backup copy of your files before continuing. When you have a backup copy, press D, and then press L when prompted. This deletes your existing data.
6.	Press ENTER to select Unpartitioned space, which appears by default.
7.	Press ENTER again to select Format the partition using the NTFS file system, which appears by default.
8.	Windows XP erases your hard disk drive using a process called formatting and then copies the setup files. You can leave your computer and return in 20 to 30 minutes. Part 2: Continue the installation
9.	Windows XP restarts and then continues with the installation process. From this point forward, you can use your mouse. Eventually, the Regional and Language Options page appears. Click Next to accept the default settings. If you are multilingual or prefer a language other than English, you can change language settings after setup is complete.
10.	On the Personalize Your Software page, type your name and your organization name. Some programs use this information to automatically fill in your name when required. Then, click Next.
11.	On the Your Product Key page, type your product key as it appears on your Windows XP CD case. The product key is unique for every Windows XP installation. Then, click Next.
12.	On the Computer Name and Administrator Password page, in the Computer name box, type a name that uniquely identifies your computer in your house, such as FAMILYROOM or TOMS. You cannot use spaces or punctuation. If you connect your computer to a network, you will use this computer name to find shared files and printers. Type a strong password that you can remember in the Administrator password box, and then retype it in the Confirm password box. Write the password down and store it in a secure place. Click Next.
13.	On the Date and Time Settings page, set your computer’s clock. Then, click the Time Zone down arrow, and select your time zone. Click Next.
14.	Windows XP will spend about a minute configuring your computer. On the Networking Settings page, click Next.
15.	On the Workgroup or Computer Domain page, click Next. Part 3: Complete the installation
16.	Windows XP will spend 20 or 30 minutes configuring your computer and will automatically restart when finished. When the Display Settings dialog appears, click OK.
17.	When the Monitor Settings dialog box appears, click OK.
18.	The final stage of setup begins. On the Welcome to Microsoft Windows page, click Next.
19.	On the Help protect your PC page, click Help protect my PC by turning on Automatic Updates now. Then, click Next.
20.	Windows XP will then check if you are connected to the Internet: • If you are connected to the Internet, select the choice that describes your network connection on the Will this computer connect to the Internet directly, or through a network? page. If you’re not sure, accept the default selection, and click Next. • If you use dial-up Internet access, or if Windows XP cannot connect to the Internet, you can connect to the Internet after setup is complete. On the How will this computer connect to the Internet? page, click Skip.
21.	Windows XP Setup displays the Ready to activate Windows? page. If you are connected to the Internet, click Yes, and then click Next. If you are not yet connected to the Internet, click No, click Next, and then skip to step 24. After setup is complete, Windows XP will automatically remind you to activate and register your copy of Windows XP.
22.	On the Ready to register with Microsoft? page, click Yes, and then click Next.
23.	On the Collecting Registration Information page, complete the form. Then, click Next.
24.	On the Who will use this computer? page, type the name of each person who will use the computer. You can use first names only, nicknames, or full names. Then click Next. To add users after setup is complete or to specify a password to keep your account private, read Create and customize user accounts.
25.	On the Thank you! page, click Finish.

Congratulations! Windows XP setup is complete. You can log on by clicking your name on the logon screen. If you’ve installed Windows XP on a new computer or new hard disk drive, you can now use the File and Settings Transfer Wizard to copy your important data to your computer or hard disk drive.

Folder locking freeware List to lock Windows folder with password

My Folder

A free windows folder lock program designed to protect your files and folders privacy. My Folder allows you attach password to any windows folder that you on local hard drive. Then a password is required on access attempt to the protected folder. Meanwhile, My Folder lock program can even use on multi user environment and even Folder are locked with password in safe mode or DOS mode.
Download My Folder
Instant Lock – Free File and folder lock freeware

Free locking program that provides password protection on your windows files and folder. Beside locking folder with password, Instant lock even can make folders completely invisible from other users and the protected files are not even accessible from safe mode and DOS prompt. Plus more, it’s a fully portable security program to lock your files and data on portable removable drive and support run on XP and vista.
Download Instant Lock
Microsoft Private Folder

Microsoft Private Folder is a Windows folder password tool to protect your private data. With this folder password locking tool, you will get one password protected folder called My Private Folder in your account to save your personal files.
Download Microsoft Private Folder
Folder Lockbox

Folder Lockbox is a folder locking utility that will help you to password protect any folder on your computer. Meanwhile, the protected folder (lockbox) can be hidden from any user and application of your system.
The folder locking program is simple to use. You can set the lockbox location and the password during the setup procedure. After the setup is done, folder lockbox will be hidden and locked until you enter the valid password.
Download Folder LockBox
SonySoft Folder Lock – Simple Windows folder locking utility

A windows folder locking utility that allows you attach password on windows folders to prevent other viewing your folder files information. Each time you will be prompted for password when open the protected windows folder by SonySoft Folder lock.
Download Sonysoft Folder Lock
So, the folder locking freeware with password protection for sure bring your folder files privacy better and more secure.

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