RE: Backup Program Availability
- From: "Delaunay Christophe" <christophe.delaunay@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <jfw@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 17 Aug 2009 16:16:18 +0200
Hi Dave,
Sorry. Not sure I really understood your question but maybe it could be
what you want to know.
You just wrote:
[DC]
>Do you have a process for enabling this capability in the USB port?
[ChD]
For the very first time the PCs I need to maintain were started, I
needed sighted assistance to set up their BIOS in such a way that they
could boot from a USB device. Sometimes, it just consisted of modifying
the boot sequence. Sometimes, in older PCs, I also needed to set a
specific option for them to handle USB keys as removable disks.
In order to know how to configure the PC you're planning to manage, you
must refer to its motherboard manual since I couldn't find two different
brands with the same BIOS settings.
[DC]
>I can't seem to get any autorun capability in any of my USB ports.
[ChD]
Autorun won't be available at this stage since you must be able to
control the PC even though it's unable to start up from its regular
windows partition.
What you need is not a USB key with an autorun but a truly bootable USB
key. Here is how I created my first one:
(1) With a quite old PC equipped with a floppy drive, I booted from
an old DOS disquette.
(2) Before starting the PC, I also plugged in the USB key I wanted to
render bootable.
(3) At the DOS prompt, ("A:\>"), I noticed the key was identified as
C:. Therefore, I entered:
format c: /s
(4) After having formatted the USB key, when the prompt came back, I
switched the PC off, removed the boot disquette and the USB key.
(5) Finally, I rebooted the PC from its regular windows partition and
when the desktop was displayed, I plugged my newly formatted USB key in
again.
(6) I completed the operation by adding the files I need on the key
with windows explorer and creationg the appropriate config.sys and
autoexec.bat files at the root of the key. Please note that the
"command.com" file which must also be at the root of the USB key must be
the exact copy of the one which was used on the floppy disquette.
(7) Now, when one of the PCs I need to maintain has a big big
problem, I only need to turn it off if it is not already, plug in the
USB key and my Braille display, turn it on again and after awhile, I got
a DOS prompt on my Braille display from which I just need to launch
image.
Contrarily to Norton Ghost which also can do this but with highly
graphical (i.e. inaccessible) screens, Image For DOS only displays text
screens and therefore is fully controllable by a blind person.
HTH. Have a nice day. Chris
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