Stumbled Upon A Really Neat Trick

So a user was upgraded to a new laptop today.

As part of her migration process I had gotten everything over to her new computer except I had forgotten her mapped network drives.

Not really a problem.

I sneakernet back to my repair lab and fire up her old laptop. I drag and drop her mapped drives onto the USB stick thinking I would simply use the letters and names to recreate them on her new computer.

However...that last step wasn't needed.

Oh, you think I just dragged and dropped them? No.

With the USB stick in, simply right click on each mapped drive and select properties. Then take a look at the "My Computer" window. Those drive are mapped automatically. Really...that easy.

I love finding things by mistake!

Add 'Copy to' & Move To' Into Your Context Menu

Too many times to count I've had to move files from one directory to another. Either move them entirely or simply copy them.

I use a Windows Explorer replacement called Directory Opus (which I highly recommend, worth every cent) so it makes moving files a bit easier - because it has tabs and dual vertical or horizontal windows for dragging and dropping.

As I've stated, I'm very lazy when it comes to administration tasks, so if I can automate it or, at the very least, cut down on some mouse clicks I'm all for it.

So I discovered this neat little trick. You can add commands to copy or move files around your computer until you're drunk with power.

See for yourself, non-believers: experiencing



Of course you can click the image for a larger view, silly.

How do you do this?

Open your new favorite text editor: NoteTab Light, enter the following code:
Copy To --

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AllFilesystemObjects\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AllFilesystemObjects\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\{C2FBB630-2971-11D1-A18C-00C04FD75D13}]

Move To --

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AllFilesystemObjects\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AllFilesystemObjects\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\{C2FBB631-2971-11D1-A18C-00C04FD75D13}]

Save the first one as "copy-to.reg" and the second one as, yep you guessed it, "move-to.reg". Double click the files and you'll be all set to copy and move all day long!

.exe Files Won't Run

A user was recently having an issue with her system.

Whenever she would click on a file, shortcut or icon of any type Windows came up with the infamous "Choose a program to open this type of file" window. Even using Start > Run and typing the command she was faced with a rundll32.exe error. Crazy, right?

This was happening with shortcuts and programs she used on a daily basis, so she was concerned. Once I got the ticket I remember having seen this before and doing the research. Being the type of lazy admin I am, even re-googling something is too much for me.

My lucky thumb drive held the answer, per usual.

Open NoteTab Light (you do have this for your default text editor, right? RIGHT?) If not, there is an empty seat on the failboat for you. Your captain will show you to your seat where you'll be given a complimentary serving of failjuice.

Anyway, open NoteTab Light and copy the following code into a new file. Close it, saving it as xp_exe_fix.reg. Double click that file, reboot and all will be set.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.exe]
@="exefile"
"Content Type"="application/x-msdownload"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.exe\PersistentHandler]
@="{098f2470-bae0-11cd-b579-08002b30bfeb}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile]
@="Application"
"EditFlags"=hex:38,07,00,00
"TileInfo"="prop:FileDescription;Company;FileVersion"
"InfoTip"="prop:FileDescription;Company;FileVersion;Create;Size"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\DefaultIcon]
@="%1"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\open]
"EditFlags"=hex:00,00,00,00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\open\command]
@="\"%1\" %*"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\runas]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\runas\command]
@="\"%1\" %*"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\DropHandler]
@="{86C86720-42A0-1069-A2E8-08002B30309D}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\PropertySheetHandlers]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\PropertySheetHandlers\PEAnalyser]
@="{09A63660-16F9-11d0-B1DF-004F56001CA7}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\PropertySheetHandlers\PifProps]
@="{86F19A00-42A0-1069-A2E9-08002B30309D}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\PropertySheetHandlers\ShimLayer Property Page]
@="{513D916F-2A8E-4F51-AEAB-0CBC76FB1AF8}"

Make That Reinstall Less Painful

After a number of years of either prepping computers for production use, or simply reformatting mine (though my latest computer had it's first complete Windows reinstall last night after 4 years), I've found, as I'm sure you have, that there are a certain amount of programs you constantly install.

To make this easier, compile a list of those programs and download all their installers onto a flash drive. In case you've got no connectivity you can at least start installing some apps.

I also save shortcuts to sysdm.cpl, devmgmt.msc, cmd.exe and a few shortcuts to my company's network shares so that I can can quickly navigate to those drives and install any proprietary software.

Another dandy tip I came up with was saving my theme.

Whenever I deploy a machine, the first thing I do is get rid of the XP theme with all the shiny buttons and change it to 'Windows Classic' and make any changes.

Usually I'll hit Windows Key +R to bring up the run dialog and type sysdm.cpl. Then navigate to "Advanced", then "Settings" and then tick the radio button in front of "Adjust for best performance". However, there's a few things in there I still like to have turned on, that I believe have little to no effect on the speed of the computer.

• Smooth Edges Of Screen Fonts
• Use Drop Shadows For Icon Labels On The Desktop

The first one is pretty obvious, but the second one isn't as much.


Have you ever had a wallpaper installed and the icon's title text has a block around it, exposing the background color you've chosen, you can see what I'm referring to on the left? Well, the second Visual Effects option takes care of that and displays the missing sections of the wallpaper. As seen to the right.

Once you've made these changes, you can then go to 'Display Properties' and click 'Save As'. That will save the theme, including all the changes you've made to a Windows .theme file. Save that file to your flash drive and double click it before you get to work. Saves a ton of time.

.exe Files Won't Run

A user was recently having an issue with her system.

Whenever she would click on a file, shortcut or icon of any type Windows came up with the infamous "Choose a program to open this type of file" window. Even using Start > Run and typing the command she was faced with a rundll32.exe error. Crazy, right?

This was happening with shortcuts and programs she used on a daily basis, so she was concerned. Once I got the ticket I remember having seen this before and doing the research. Being the type of lazy admin I am, even re-googling something is too much for me.

My lucky thumb drive held the answer, per usual.

Open NoteTab Light (you do have this for your default text editor, right? RIGHT?) If not, there is an empty seat on the failboat for you. Your captain will show you to your seat where you'll be given a complimentary serving of failjuice.

Anyway, open NoteTab Light and copy the following code into a new file. Close it, saving it as xp_exe_fix.reg. Double click that file, reboot and all will be set.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.exe]
@="exefile"
"Content Type"="application/x-msdownload"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.exe\PersistentHandler]
@="{098f2470-bae0-11cd-b579-08002b30bfeb}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile]
@="Application"
"EditFlags"=hex:38,07,00,00
"TileInfo"="prop:FileDescription;Company;FileVersion"
"InfoTip"="prop:FileDescription;Company;FileVersion;Create;Size"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\DefaultIcon]
@="%1"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\open]
"EditFlags"=hex:00,00,00,00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\open\command]
@="\"%1\" %*"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\runas]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\runas\command]
@="\"%1\" %*"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\DropHandler]
@="{86C86720-42A0-1069-A2E8-08002B30309D}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\PropertySheetHandlers]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\PropertySheetHandlers\PEAnalyser]
@="{09A63660-16F9-11d0-B1DF-004F56001CA7}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\PropertySheetHandlers\PifProps]
@="{86F19A00-42A0-1069-A2E9-08002B30309D}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shellex\PropertySheetHandlers\ShimLayer Property Page]
@="{513D916F-2A8E-4F51-AEAB-0CBC76FB1AF8}"

Make That Reinstall Less Painful

After a number of years of either prepping computers for production use, or simply reformatting mine (though my latest computer had it's first complete Windows reinstall last night after 4 years), I've found, as I'm sure you have, that there are a certain amount of programs you constantly install.

To make this easier, compile a list of those programs and download all their installers onto a flash drive. In case you've got no connectivity you can at least start installing some apps.

I also save shortcuts to sysdm.cpl, devmgmt.msc, cmd.exe and a few shortcuts to my company's network shares so that I can can quickly navigate to those drives and install any proprietary software.

Another dandy tip I came up with was saving my theme.

Whenever I deploy a machine, the first thing I do is get rid of the XP theme with all the shiny buttons and change it to 'Windows Classic' and make any changes.

Usually I'll hit Windows Key +R to bring up the run dialog and type sysdm.cpl. Then navigate to "Advanced", then "Settings" and then tick the radio button in front of "Adjust for best performance". However, there's a few things in there I still like to have turned on, that I believe have little to no effect on the speed of the computer.

• Smooth Edges Of Screen Fonts
• Use Drop Shadows For Icon Labels On The Desktop

The first one is pretty obvious, but the second one isn't as much.


Have you ever had a wallpaper installed and the icon's title text has a block around it, exposing the background color you've chosen, you can see what I'm referring to on the left? Well, the second Visual Effects option takes care of that and displays the missing sections of the wallpaper. As seen to the right.

Once you've made these changes, you can then go to 'Display Properties' and click 'Save As'. That will save the theme, including all the changes you've made to a Windows .theme file. Save that file to your flash drive and double click it before you get to work. Saves a ton of time.