Guy recommends:
Free SolarWinds
VM Console
A free desktop tool that monitors, or restarts, your VMware virtual machines. Download your free VM Console
Best Practice Ezine #107 – The Windows registry has a future
I do like to use and to recommend technologies that have a future. Thus my first question when I installed Vista was, ‘Does it still use Regedit?’. Then answer was, ‘Yes, the registry is bigger and more color coordinated than ever’.
Next, I was curious to see if my old AutoAdminLogon =1 setting would work in Vista. Again the answer was yes, it logs me on automatically, just as it does in XP and Windows Server 2003. As ever, to get AutoAdminLogon to work, you need Regedit to set the DefaultUserName and expose the DefaultPassword. The advantage of such a configuration is that it saves time, because you don’t have to type the password every time the machine reboots, which is useful when testing. However, even Gung-ho Guy agrees that bypassing logon security is unacceptable on a production machine.
See more about configuring AutoAdminLogon
Returning to my original question of future proof applications, Vista not only uses Regedit, it extends its capabilities by adding new settings in extra folders / ‘hives’ / sections to the registry.
See more about Windows 8 Registry.
A true story of what happens when Guy was on a bad roll.
Once I had installed Vista, my first job for Regedit was to disable the UAC. (That nagging User Accounts Security Menu). The situation was that in Beta 1 and Beta 2 I was able to configure ConsentPromptBehavior successfully. However, in Vista RC 1 Guy could not get it to work. I asked for help, and Craig kindly explained the excellent Local Security Policy method for disabling the UAC.
Nevertheless, the thought lingered that I OUGHT to be able to control the UAC via the registry. Consequently I applied my trusted Windiff technique.
Save the registry (Before.reg).
Make the change to UAC with Local Policy
Save the registry again (After.reg).
Launch Windiff, compare the two registry files, Before.reg and After.reg.
Eureka! It was that ConsentPromptBehavior value which was the only difference.
Attention to detail revealed that the value changes from zero –> 2. In previous versions I swear it was zero –>1. No matter, I learnt about Local Security Policy and honed my Windiff skills.
During my Windiff / Local Security Policy experiment, the Vista RC1 virtual machine crashed. The virtual machine was beyond recovery, fortunately I save these machines in various stages and thus I soon reverted to a recent version. My (erroneous) conclusion was that having regedit and Local Security Policy open at the same time caused the crash. Fortunately, the scientist in me surfaced and I repeated the experiment, only this time the Vista machine stubbornly refused to crash, thus I concluded that the original crash had nothing to do with Regedit or Local Policies. It was just coincidence, one for my very large book of unrepeatable experiments.
The reason that I relay this account is to give you an insight into the agony and the ecstasy of beta testing. Lack of documentation added to the inherent instability of beta software made me twitchy and induced false conclusions. The happy ending is that I learnt a great deal about ConsentPromptBehavior, the registry and Local Policies.
Finally, this saga reminded me of the frustrations of getting on a bad roll. Indeed, the whole incident reinforces the importance of getting on a good roll, how a tiny success gives me the ‘feel good’ factor. Three successes in a row and I believe that I can walk on water and solve any problem. May you have nothing but success with your next project.
Guy Recommends: Tools4ever’s UMRA
Tired of writing scripts? The User Management Resource Administrator solution by Tools4ever offers an alternative to time-consuming manual processes.
It features 100% auto provisioning, Helpdesk Delegation, Connectors to more than 130 systems/applications, Workflow Management, Self Service and many other benefits. Click on the link for more information onUMRA.
Paul DeBrino writes: One of the things I like about FreePing is the quick ability to manage monitored systems by simply editing the app’s INI file. (1) It’s a lot faster than using their GUI
(2) You can programmatically append new systems to the INI
(3) You can place the app and its INI on an app-server and allow your helpdesk technicians to access it – you change the INI and everyone gets the update immediately.
I also like the ability to receive a pop-up messages, as defined by PopupDestination and PopupMessage.
[192.168.1.3]
Host=192.168.1.100
Timeout=10
Delay=30
PacketSize=32
FailPeriod=30
SuccessPeriod=30
PopupDestination=fred.bossman,tech1,tech2
PopupMessage=Psycho Router dropped (reminder: this msg is from FreePing)
Description=Psycho Router (PR)
See more in my Windows Vista Section
Guy Recommends: The Free IP Address Tracker (IPAT) 
Calculating IP Address ranges is a black art, which many network managers solve by creating custom Excel spreadsheets. IPAT cracks this problem of allocating IP addresses in networks in two ways:
For Mr Organized there is a nifty subnet calculator, you enter the network address and the subnet mask, then IPAT works out the usable addresses and their ranges.
For Mr Lazy IPAT discovers and then displays the IP addresses of existing computers. Download the Free IP Address Tracker
Will and Guy Humour
To help you get on a roll, check out the ten laws of computing
Windows 8 Registry
• Windows 8 new features • Windows 8 Metro UI • AutoAdminLogon • Win 8 Registry
• Windows 8 Registry Hacks • IP Address Manager • Win 8 Start Menu • E 170 Registry
• Litmus Tests • Windiff • Regedit • Ezines
• E 107 Reg • E 84 Reg • E 7 Registry Tips •E 6 Reg • Registry
