danielson81

Hi, We are currently setting up our Windows 10 image. One thing I can't work out is how to white list one type of USB stick, and block the others. On Windows 7, the Computer Configuration/Administrative Templates/System/Device Installation/Device Installation Restrictions policy works fine. Our Windows 10 machine seems to ignore this and lets any USB stick be plugged in. When I set a policy to block all removable devices it does indeed block all USB drives (System/Removable Storage/Removable Disks: Deny read access Enabled) ), but can't work out how to white-list one. Should in theory it work with the policy for Windows 7, or does it need something else? I have tried editing the GPO locally and took the PC off the domain to rule out server/network issues etc. We have Win Server 2008 R2.

Hi, I've received three quotes for 32 new PCs, the third one looks tempting, but is the first one worth paying extra for? I get the impression it wont make a lot of difference with a SSD drive and 8GB RAM already there. 1) Intel Core i5 4460 Processor 8GB DDR3 1600Mhz Memory 128Gb SSD DVD-RW Keyboard & Mouse Windows 8.1 Pro 5yr On Site Warranty 18.5" VGA LED Monitor - £430+VAT - Supplier builds own PCs. - x 32 = £13,760 2) Intel Core i5-4440 Quad Core 3.1Ghz 6MB LGA1150 Processor 8GB RAM DVD-RW Keyboard & Mouse 120GB SSD Windows 8.1 Pro 64Bit 5 Year On Site WARRANTY 18.5" VGA LED Monitor - £429+VAT - Supplier resells PCs (HP/Lenovo/Zoostorm/Dell etc) - x 32 = £13,728 3) Intel Core i5 Processor i5-3340 3.10GHz, Quad Core with 6MB Cache 8GB RAM DVD-RW Keyboard & Mouse 120GB SSD Windows 8.1 Pro 64Bit 5 Year On Site WARRANTY 19.5" VGA LED Monitor - £404+VAT - Supplier builds own PCs. - x 32 = £12,928

Hi, Can anyone tell me if this ram: 4GB DDR3 PC3-10600 Unbuffered NON-ECC 1.5V 512Meg x 64 | Crucial UK GBP Store Organization Is compatible with this motherboard:GIGABYTE - Motherboard - BGA FT1 - GA-E350N WIN8 (rev. 1.0) Crucial say no, however the specs seems ok?

Think its Handwriting for Windows ? HfW

Thanks for all replies. Managed to get it working by: - Installing Windows 8 Pro - Running Win 7 Pro Setup from within Windows 8 - Turning off UEFI mode and rebooting - Installing Win 7 as normal!

Thanks, tried that. Going to install Win 8 Pro, then downgrade to Win 7 and see if that works.

Hi, A school has bought 40 HP DM1-4400SA mini laptops. They come with Win 8 64 Bit installed. However when trying to install Windows 7 32bit or 64bit they keep comgin up with "A CD/DVD Driver file is missing". After a bit of googling it suggests it could be any driver. So on a working one with Win 8 running I guessed it was the AMD Chipset/SATA Controller driver from Device Manager. However I have downloaded the latest drivers from AMD, extracted them, but still no joy. Edit: Chipset is: AMD A68M FCH Anyone have any ideas! Dan

Hi there, We are interested in buying 2 of these for our 40 x HP dm1-4400sa Laptops. I am trying to work out the dimensions. Our laptops will be: H/W/D - 32 X 292 X 215 - HP Pavilion dm1-4400sa Laptop with 2 year warranty - HP Store UK The loxit spec says: Maximum laptop size 70h x 360w x 230d with 60mm depth allowance for transformer. Which sounds fine, however is this this the maximum for two on a shelf or one on a shelf? Daniel EDIT - Or suggest anything suitable. It has to be quite secure as school is bang in the middle of city centre.

Hi, Just wondered if the following was possible in excel. Basically have a spreadsheet with three columns of data, users username for different system ,(ie email, network, sims etc) Is there a magic formula that can go through them all, and sort/put them together in a row. Currenty its about 80 rows: simsuser emailuser networkuser jsmith john.smith john smith dcameron david.cameron david cameron etc However some people dont have a email or sims account so doing an A-Z sort results in gaps and manually dragging cells across. eg simsuser emailuser networkuser jsmith john smith david.cameron david cameron etc Doing it to tidy up usernames and duplication etc in schools. Eventually will probably use it to migrate to Office365, but thats a different story!

Yes its up to date with .net Framework etc, it runs SIMS.net. However I admitted defeat and reimaged the machine, and it works fine now. Thanks for your help.

Win XP Pro, SP3

Hi, I've spent 3 hours trying to install Smart Drivers on to a PC, it almost finished and gets to the end and rolls the whole thing back. It says "setup was interrrupted before Smart Board drivers could finish installing. Tried old version 10.6 and latest Smart Educational Software 2013 and did the same each time, even with SB unplugged etc. Notebook installed fine. Ditto when logged in as local and domain admin on PC! Enclosed is the msiexec.log smartboard.zip

Hi, That line was in there to remove UltraVNC which was already on our machines. However I can't find a TightVNC uninstaller, maybe just delete the folder or rename/delete etc?

I use this script as a batch file and it works brilliantly! VNC password is set as cheese in this example. First bit removed Ultravnc (if you already have a VNC client installed, remove if necessary) Second line installs mirror driver. Useful on Win 7 machines. Finally, it installs Tight VNC with the password set etc. "C:\Program Files\UltraVNC\unins000.exe" /VERYSILENT /norestart "\\server01\msi$\Tight VNC\dfmirage-setup-2.0.301.exe" /VERYSILENT /norestart msiexec.exe /i "\\server01\msi$\Tight VNC\tightvnc-2.6.4-setup-32bit.msi" /quiet /norestart SET_USEVNCAUTHENTICATION=1 VALUE_OF_USEVNCAUTHENTICATION=1 SET_PASSWORD=1 VALUE_OF_PASSWORD=cheese SET_VIEWONLYPASSWORD=1 VALUE_OF_VIEWONLYPASSWORD=cheese SET_USECONTROLAUTHENTICATION=1 VALUE_OF_USECONTROLAUTHENTICATION=1 SET_CONTROLPASSWORD=1 VALUE_OF_CONTROLPASSWORD=cheese

Transport Tycoon Deluxe

Think I've got it, this works on my local PC, so I assume getting a batch file to run as a daily scheduled task would work? REM Delete Existing Wallpaper del c:\wallpapers\current\*.* /q REM Setting random variables set /a myRand=%random%%%10+1 set /a myRand=%random%%%10+1 REM Copy Random file to specified dir. copy wallpaper%myRand%.jpg c:\wallpapers\current REM Renaming file in specified dir to match one specified in GPO rename c:\wallpapers\current\wall*.jpg wallpaper00.jpg So batch file on server... del d:\wallpapers\current\*.* /q set /a myRand=%random%%%10+1 set /a myRand=%random%%%10+1 copy wallpaper%myRand%.jpg d:\wallpapers\current rename d:\wallpapers\current\wall*.jpg wallpaper00.jpg Wheresas d:\wallpapers\current is a share of \\server01\wallpapers GPO points wallpaper to \\server01\wallpaper\current\wallpaper00.jpg Its doesn't pick them in any order, like a advent calendar, but I think it will do! Script above assumes you have 10 images called wallpaper1.jpg, wallpaper2.jpg etc. EDIT - Works fine, is you specify directory in script for Sched. Task etc, so: cd d:\wallpapers d: del "D:\wallpapers\current\*.*" /q set /a myRand=%random%%%10+1 set /a myRand=%random%%%10+1 copy wallpaper%myRand%.jpg "D:\wallpaper\current" rename "D:\wallpaper\current\wall*.jpg" wallpaper00.jpg

Hi, One of my schools is looking to replace there clapped out HP3600n in the ICT Suite. I have picked a few printers at random and done a unscientific price comparison. I'm torn between the cheapo Brother option, or the reliable Kyocera! All prices exclude VAT Toner prices based on suppliesforschools / misco.com This is a very rough guide! Printer: Current HP 3600 using Compatible Toner Black Cyan Magneta Yellow Cost £55.36 £55.36 £55.36 £55.36 Pages 6000 4000 4000 4000 Cost Per Sheet £0.009 £0.014 £0.014 £0.014 Total Cost Colour per page: £0.051 (all 4 colours x 4) Total Cost Mono per page: £0.009 Printer: HP LaserJet Pro 400 M451dn Colour Laser Printer Cost: £295 - HP LaserJet Pro 400 M451dn Colour Laser Printer (CE957A#B19) - www.misco.co.uk Black Cyan Magneta Yellow Cost £59.15 £71.52 £71.52 £71.52 Pages 4000 2600 2600 2600 Cost Per Sheet £0.015 £0.028 £0.028 £0.028 Total Cost Colour per page: £0.097 (all 4 colours x 4) Total Cost Mono per page: £0.015 Printer: Kyocera Fs-c5250dn Colour Laser Printer Cost: £415 - Kyocera Fs-c5250dn Colour Laser Printer (1102KV3NL0) - www.misco.co.uk Black Cyan Magneta Yellow Cost £64.54 £73.54 £73.54 £73.54 Pages 7000 5000 5000 5000 Cost Per Sheet £0.009 £0.015 £0.015 £0.015 Total Cost Colour per page: £0.053 (all 4 colours x 4) Total Cost Mono per page: £0.009 Printer: Samsung CLP-680ND Colour Laser Printer (Free 5 Year Warranty) Cost: £240 (including £80 cashback) Samsung CLP-680ND Colour Laser Printer (CLP-680ND/SEE) - www.misco.co.uk Black Cyan Magneta Yellow Cost £64.16 £79.16 £79.16 £79.16 Pages 6000 3500 3500 3500 Cost Per Sheet £0.011 £0.023 £0.023 £0.023 Total Cost Colour per page: £0.079 (all 4 colours x 4) Total Cost Mono per page: £0.011 Printer: Brother HL-4150CDN Colour Laser Printer Cost: £208 - Brother HL-4150CDN Colour Laser Printer (HL4150CDNZU1) - www.misco.co.uk (Using original toner!) Black Cyan Magneta Yellow Cost £37.90 £79.20 £79.20 £79.20 Pages 4000 3500 3500 3500 Cost Per Sheet £0.009 £0.023 £0.023 £0.023 Total Cost Colour per page: £0.077 (all 4 colours x 4) Total Cost Mono per page: £0.009 Printer: Brother HL-4150CDN Colour Laser Printer Cost: £208 - Brother HL-4150CDN Colour Laser Printer (HL4150CDNZU1) - www.misco.co.uk (Using compatible toner!) Black Cyan Magneta Yellow Cost £37.90 £39.53 £39.53 £39.53 Pages 4000 3500 3500 3500 Cost Per Sheet £0.009 £0.011 £0.011 £0.011 Total Cost Colour per page: £0.043 (all 4 colours x 4) Total Cost Mono per page: £0.009

Yep, they only have one work PC. I think the "router" is a load balancer, which makes more sense. The modems in use are two of these: DrayTek Vigor 120 ADSL2+ Ethernet Modem - V120

This isn't technically schools related, but my brother works for a small voluntary organisation that basically rents out office space to co-workers/new business startups etc. There currently not impressed by their IT company and asked if I could have a look. They have no central servers, the network is just for internet access etc. There IT support contract is up for renewal. There current set up (in order of connections): - 2 x Draytek Modems (with a respective ADSL Line each) -One of these (Router/Load Balancer) -3Com 3300XM Switch - Netgear GS748TS - Then from there to the Ethernet sockets around the building via the patch panel etc - Plus several Draytek wireless access points hang off them. They are planning to ditch the IT company, and asked if I could set them up, the IT company will take back the Modems, load balancer, 3com switch, and Draytek Access Points. So is it as simple as me adding 2 new ADSL Modems, replacing load balancer, replacing the 3com switch with another Netgear GS748TS?, adding some Netgear Wireless Access points ((2x WNDAP350), a POE switch ( GS108T) and a Wireless controller? (WMS5316) . They already have 2 WNDAP350s I put in last week and are really happy with them. Which one of the devices will be the DHCP controller, the router? Any tips appreciated and/or hardware suggestions. Thanks, sorry for long post.

Hi there, I just wondered if there is anyway to automatically change a wallpaper every day or every few days. Basically I was going to set a Christmas Wallpaper for some of my schools and either do the "12 days of Christmas" or just a different wallpaper each week day. Currently I simply replace (eg) Wallpaper.jpg in \\server1\wallpaper\wallpaper.jpg which the GPO points to. Or about 24 scheduled tasks to run a script? ie DEL \\sever1\wallpaper\wallpaper.jpg COPY \\server1\wallpaper\dec15.jpg RENAME \\server1\wallpaper\dec15.jpg wallpaper.jpg etc I am also aware there are far more important things to be getting on with!

They took two a few weeks ago, and came back for more this week. They ripped them from the mounts. Unfortunately it happened when a member of staff was still in the building so the building wasn't alarmed. However I don't think the kids would set them off, there high up. Good point about the water though, although I would hope the 115db noise would scare them off!

Hi just wondered if anyone has used them? One of my primary schools has had about six projectors stolen recently, finding them online for about £70 each. Old link/info: http://www.viglen.co.uk/viglen/Attachments/peripherals/sonic-shock.pdf Or how do you secure your projectors?

Thanks Marc, I am not back at that school till Wednesday, but will let you know first thing, Daniel

Hi, The school bought a Optoma EP726i DLP Projector for occasional use in the hall on 5th January 2011, it was used about twice a week for half an hour or so. After Christmas they went to use it and its dead! I've changed the power cable, taken the bulb in and out and nothing happens. Supplies for Schools who we bought it from say its out of warranty, 3 months with them, the rest direct with Optoma. However Optoma UK haven't responded to the support request I sent over a week ago. So, although it is out of warranty, could the school go down the route of the Sale of Goods Act 1979, ie goods must last a reasonable amount of time etc. Or, someone may know a fix! I admit projector was a cheap job at £268+vat but thought it would last a bit longer! Thanks, Dan

Hi, I had some issues with this, but this format seemed to work in Excel: LEA DFES No Year of Entry UPN Surname Forename Gender DOB (in this format!) Class Postcode (do not put this line in the CSV 123 2001 2012 C1234678901 SAVILLE Jimmy M 25/05/2007 RCP BN1 1AA