O.T. Missing Folder/files

Success!

https://postimg.cc/SX2dFdtq

Now do the same for the 8500?

Robert

Here's the 8500

https://postimg.cc/9RyvVCNW

Robert

Although we've fixed the 780 boot menu problem, Sea Monkey
and got the side bar back, and resolved the mice problems with
a new mouse for each computer and F-lock gave me back my
Function keys. The backspace problem still remains and we've
tested everything.

Since were at this point it makes since to clone the hd's so we don't
loose any of our hard work and they are about as clean as we can get
them unless you can think of something to bring back the backspace
key function.

Speaking of cloning; can you explain why you want to split the C: partition
in half and have a D: partition? I'm not understanding the reasoning behind
it?

In passing, the 8500 power on switch is acting allot better. However,
if I had a motherboard failure could I buy a new or refurbished Win 10
computer(since they don't sell any Win 7 computers anymore that I see)
and put a Win 7 hd inside? Would it work?



Thoughts/suggestions?
Robert

Robert in CA wrote:
Success!

https://postimg.cc/SX2dFdtq

Now do the same for the 8500?

Robert

Were you using a limited user account
on the 8500 when installing ?

If so, then I might fix it the same as
the 780.

It depends on whether you were administrator,
when installing. Administrator is needed, for
the ability to "impersonate" or "elevate to"
TrustedInstaller. Only TrustedInstaller writes
to Program Files. A limited account should not
be able to write there. This is a mechanism to
make it harder for malware to get in there.

Whereas installing in AppData, there's no protection
for the materials at all. A malware doesn't even have to
be elevated to get in there.

If Seamonkey is located in Program Files or Program Files (x86),
then that would be fine for the 8500.

Check and see if it's mis-installed in the same
way or not, then make up your mind as to
the next step.

Paul

Robert in CA wrote:
Although we've fixed the 780 boot menu problem, Sea Monkey
and got the side bar back, and resolved the mice problems with
a new mouse for each computer and F-lock gave me back my
Function keys. The backspace problem still remains and we've
tested everything.

I've got no traction on the Backspace issue, and I don't
know how to deal with it. The tracer I was playing with,
didn't pan out (too buggy).

Since were at this point it makes since to clone the hd's so we don't
loose any of our hard work and they are about as clean as we can get
them unless you can think of something to bring back the backspace
key function.

You can make exact clones if you want.

Speaking of cloning; can you explain why you want to split the C: partition
in half and have a D: partition? I'm not understanding the reasoning behind
it?

I split C: and D: type partitions, to aid in backups. I only
try to keep in C:, what must be kept in there. For example,
if I had a movie collection in my Downloads folder on C: , then
I'd move that to another partition or another disk drive.

Sometimes I need to do temporary backups of C: , because
something I'm doing is dangerous. Well, I don't want to be
transferring 800GB of MRIMG files from one disk to another,
to do that. I only want to back up 30GB of OS files and materials.
Then, if I screw up (which happens), I have a 30GB MRIMG to restore.

But you don't have to do anything you don't want to. As
long as your drives are properly labeled with the Sharpie,
there is nothing to fear.

Mine all have numbers on them, and, I keep an "inventory" folder,
with rough lists of what is on the disks. Then, if there's a
particular MRIMG I need, I would know it is on "12". Then I
search through the pile of disks and look for "12". And so on.


In passing, the 8500 power on switch is acting allot better. However,
if I had a motherboard failure could I buy a new or refurbished Win 10
computer(since they don't sell any Win 7 computers anymore that I see)
and put a Win 7 hd inside? Would it work?

I don't think the refurbisher removes the SLIC table in the
BIOS, so in theory, you could put a Dell Windows 7 OS in there.
Whereas your 780, has a "Refurbisher Windows 7", and it
has a discrete license key (the kind that really belongs
printed on a COA sticker). The 780 doesn't happen to be
activated via SLIC, so you could not move the 780 disk
to a new refurbisher machine. The refurbisher machine
will have a unique (COA-like) Windows 10 key on it. It
isn't SLIC activated either.

The 8500 disk on the other hand, is SLIC activated.
Moving the 8500 disk drive to a new machine,
some drivers would be missing. But if, say, both
motherboards used Intel chipsets, it would probably
boot. And then you could spend many joyous hours
adding drivers for Windows 7 on the new refurb.

If the 8500 failed then, you might cook up such
an idea, but it's not guaranteed to work, because
we don't know if the refurbishers modify the BIOS
or not. Normally, people like that do as little
work as they have to (meet terms of MSFT agreement
and that's it).
can
780 ----X +- NewRefurb ----X
/ go SLIC
8500 ------------+
SLIC

It the refurb was "HP" and the 8500 was "Dell",
the SLIC doesn't work then on the moved disk drive.
Both machines would need to have Dell SLIC.

Ships Refurb
with...

WinXP SLIC SLIC+win10key
Vista SLIC SLIC+win10key
Win7 (8500) SLIC SLIC+win10key
Win8 MSDM MSDM+win10key
Win10 MSDM MSDM+win10key

The Win7 machines go up to "Skylake" CPU or so.

If you had a Win10 Kaby Lake machine that was
refurbed, the Win10-only MSDM table in the BIOS
would only activate more Windows 10 disk drives.
It would not activate Windows 7, and the 8500
disk would likely say "Not Genuine" if it was
plugged into a Kaby Lake refurb.

*******

If you spot a machine that you want to buy,
post back and I'll try to do a quick check
of how it fits into the table. While the 780
works, Microsoft is rapidly outpacing our ability
to keep up. The Win10 21H1 uses virtualization
and that makes some of the older refurb machines
less desirable. I still don't really have info
on what hardware won't take the 21H1 release
(which was just released). I have one virtual
machine, that is not getting offered 21H1 Win10
and I suspect it's not going to receive any
more upgrades.

I think I'm approaching the point, I only have
one machine that is any good for future Win10 work.

Paul

No, I did the exact same procedure you advised for the 8500. I
uninstalled Sea Monkey then logged into the Admin Account
and downloaded it from there.

I checked and Sea Monkey is indeed installed in Program Files
(X86)

https://postimg.cc/MX65bNCM

here's the 780 and its also in Program Files (X86)

https://postimg.cc/k2vDcY3G

I think at this point I'll create System Restore points for both computers
and also Mrimgs and then we can start cloning. I'm not as active as
you in backups etc. but I do have quite allot of data and photo collections
to aid in my work; essentially everything in 'My Documents'. So you suggest
putting it on a D: partition would be a good idea or can I leave it as is?

I will make sure to label the disks and what's on them and for which
computer and date. Your numbering system is a good idea which I think
I'll use.

I wasn't actually in the market to buy another computer but just posing a
hypothetical situation if my motherboard fails. I have backup power supplies,
(which you helped me pick out) and the external hd's/Mrimgs and backup hd's
but if the motherboard itself failed then I was just curious what would be my
options?

I did a search on Newegg on refurbished Dell computers:

https://www.newegg.com/p/pl?N=100019...016%2050010772

What do you think of this one?

https://www.newegg.com/dell-optiplex...9SIADFMEEU9126

Yes, they keep replacing the products so you have to buy the latest version
if you want to keep up but I'm not so sure about the quality and I definitely
don't want to go to Win10 if I can help it. I'll continue to use Win 7 Pro as long
as possible but its lucky we created the Win10 hd's when we did although
they would be probably need updating if installed of course. However I've
seen on YouTube where computers with XP and older OS still function.
Maybe not lighting fast but they work.


So let me know what you think about the partitions if you think I should need
them or not? I actually like what I have it seems to complicate things if I
create another partition.

Robert

Robert in CA wrote:
No, I did the exact same procedure you advised for the 8500. I
uninstalled Sea Monkey then logged into the Admin Account
and downloaded it from there.

I checked and Sea Monkey is indeed installed in Program Files
(X86)

https://postimg.cc/MX65bNCM

here's the 780 and its also in Program Files (X86)

https://postimg.cc/k2vDcY3G

I think at this point I'll create System Restore points for both computers
and also Mrimgs and then we can start cloning. I'm not as active as
you in backups etc. but I do have quite allot of data and photo collections
to aid in my work; essentially everything in 'My Documents'. So you suggest
putting it on a D: partition would be a good idea or can I leave it as is?

I will make sure to label the disks and what's on them and for which
computer and date. Your numbering system is a good idea which I think
I'll use.

I wasn't actually in the market to buy another computer but just posing a
hypothetical situation if my motherboard fails. I have backup power supplies,
(which you helped me pick out) and the external hd's/Mrimgs and backup hd's
but if the motherboard itself failed then I was just curious what would be my
options?

I did a search on Newegg on refurbished Dell computers:

https://www.newegg.com/p/pl?N=100019...016%2050010772

What do you think of this one?

https://www.newegg.com/dell-optiplex...9SIADFMEEU9126

Yes, they keep replacing the products so you have to buy the latest version
if you want to keep up but I'm not so sure about the quality and I definitely
don't want to go to Win10 if I can help it. I'll continue to use Win 7 Pro as long
as possible but its lucky we created the Win10 hd's when we did although
they would be probably need updating if installed of course. However I've
seen on YouTube where computers with XP and older OS still function.
Maybe not lighting fast but they work.


So let me know what you think about the partitions if you think I should need
them or not? I actually like what I have it seems to complicate things if I
create another partition.

Robert

Optiplex 9020 with 4570

https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us...-3-60-ghz.html

Haswell (internal FIVR regulator inside CPU for power, running at ~200MHz)

4C 4T 3.2GHz 6MB cache ("comfortable" for Win10)
MaxMem 32GB as four 8GB DDR3 sticks DDR3-1333 (same mem as 780?)
HD4600 GPU inside CPU (onboard graphics)
Intel Quicksync (hardware movie decode for limited formats)

# Now, the Win10 stuff - it's containerization/virtualization ready

Intel Virtualization Technology (VT-x) Yes \
Intel Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d) Yes \_ Everything
Intel VT-x with Extended Page Tables (EPT) Yes / Microsoft wants

Machine is Windows 7 era, so SLIC activated and a candidate
for moving the 8500 disk (if ever there was a candidate).

This is a good match.

*******

You don't have to change your data practices for me.

Just continue to do things that make sense to you.

You have sufficient copies of things (like with cloning),
you'll never be as bad off as some people who come along here :-)

You're probably more prepared now, than I am.

I don't do as many experiments as I used to, but my setup
is more with the machine as a toy than anything else, so
my partition splitting practices are prefaced around that.

Summary: Just clone the whole disk, label disk with a Sharpie.

Paul

I created System Restore points in both computers
and ran Mrimg backups on both computers.

I can understand why you would want a D: partition with all
the testing that you do but I like my setup as is. It works well
for me. I'm finishing up the Mrimg backup for the 8500 then I'll
start cloning the 780. I labeled the new hd (with a sharpie on the
metal)- 780, Win 7 Pro, 5-30-21 and #1.

I also notice none of the refurbished computers have card slots
only USB ports. In fact, only the 8500 has card slots. I'd If I do
buy another computer as replacement for the 8500 should
the motherboard fail I'd like to get one with card slots if I could.
However, this is something I'd do down the road in about a year.

I just have too much on my plate and buying the (4) hd's and
all the rest was a huge investment for me.

I want to thank you for all your help and good advice and
getting the computers clean. I'll let you know how the cloning goes
and hopefully I won't have any problems.

Many Thanks,
Robert

Robert in CA wrote:
I created System Restore points in both computers
and ran Mrimg backups on both computers.

I can understand why you would want a D: partition with all
the testing that you do but I like my setup as is. It works well
for me. I'm finishing up the Mrimg backup for the 8500 then I'll
start cloning the 780. I labeled the new hd (with a sharpie on the
metal)- 780, Win 7 Pro, 5-30-21 and #1.

I also notice none of the refurbished computers have card slots
only USB ports. In fact, only the 8500 has card slots. I'd If I do
buy another computer as replacement for the 8500 should
the motherboard fail I'd like to get one with card slots if I could.
However, this is something I'd do down the road in about a year.

I just have too much on my plate and buying the (4) hd's and
all the rest was a huge investment for me.

I want to thank you for all your help and good advice and
getting the computers clean. I'll let you know how the cloning goes
and hopefully I won't have any problems.

Many Thanks,
Robert


The 9020 refurb still has slots of some kind.
I see room for four slots on the back, and there
is the same kind of latch as is used on the 780.
There could be cover plates on there.

https://c1.neweggimages.com/ProductI...JNCK50Iu59.jpg

The cloning will take a fair bit of time, but
other than that, I would hope will be uneventful.
One of the downsides of big disks is everything
seems to take the whole day.

Paul

It has a fair number of USB ports but not for cards like
Sandisk's I use in my camera. The 8500 has them in
front (4 different sizes and 2 quite large that I have no
idea what would connect to them maybe a video camera?)
and to be honest I didn't know what they were for when I
bought it.

I started to clone the 780, I put a blank hd in the Startech case,
then labeled it but when I connected it to the 780 there was no
response or pop-up or icon to safely remove it. I had to restart
the computer twice to remove the USB cable and opened the
Startech case to check the seating of the hd. Then tried it again
but this time on the right USB port.

Now this is strange, I was pulling it in the left port and nothing
happened but the right port connected. So it appears I have a bad
or dirty left USB port on the 780.

The right side connected and am now in the process of cloning
Win7 Pro then to make it bootable I'll replace the hd with the clone
to make sure it boots and then put the old hd back and repeat the
process. (2) hd's for the 780 and (2) hds for the 8500.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Robert

Robert in CA wrote:
It has a fair number of USB ports but not for cards like
Sandisk's I use in my camera. The 8500 has them in
front (4 different sizes and 2 quite large that I have no
idea what would connect to them maybe a video camera?)
and to be honest I didn't know what they were for when I
bought it.

I started to clone the 780, I put a blank hd in the Startech case,
then labeled it but when I connected it to the 780 there was no
response or pop-up or icon to safely remove it. I had to restart
the computer twice to remove the USB cable and opened the
Startech case to check the seating of the hd. Then tried it again
but this time on the right USB port.

Now this is strange, I was pulling it in the left port and nothing
happened but the right port connected. So it appears I have a bad
or dirty left USB port on the 780.

The right side connected and am now in the process of cloning
Win7 Pro then to make it bootable I'll replace the hd with the clone
to make sure it boots and then put the old hd back and repeat the
process. (2) hd's for the 780 and (2) hds for the 8500.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Robert


USB2 ports have been known to "blow out", but this
typically happens on NEC USB2 chips. I don't recollect
any other bad ones, with the exception of the
ICH4?/ICH5 problem. In that one, when ESD affects
USB, it cause latchup, a lot of current flows inside
the Southbridge chip, and it burns (the top develops
a crack in it and the Magic Smoke escapes).

Those are examples of famous failures.

With a flashlight, I would inspect both ends
that were being used, for signs of mechanical damage.
Depending on the enclosure design, some of those have
a removable cable, and you can pick up another cable
to replace it.

The other possibility, is the ENUM table is corrupted
somehow, and electrically it connected, but the registry
contents were not conducive to operation. That does not
happen too often these days.

You probably already have a copy of USBTreeView. The
download links are near the bottom of the page.

https://www.uwe-sieber.de/usbtreeview_e.html

https://www.uwe-sieber.de/files/UsbTreeView_x64.zip

You start USBTreeView running, plug in the USB cable
to the duff port, then see if the USBTreeView display
notes a new entry or not. That's just to give you some
idea whether there's an electrical response.

You can also plug your USB flash stick into the duff
port, and see if the USB stick mounts or not and the
files are visible. Then Safely Remove before removal.
That would be a separate test case for broken electricals.

Paul

Just finished cloning and swapped the hd's so will try
booting the 780 and if all is well I'll replace the hd and
clone another.

I clicked both your links and they failed to open it said
because of a Trojan.

https://postimg.cc/RJc52zhs

I'm booting the 780 and all looks good, and I've got the
desktop! Success! It says its installing device driver
software (ST2000DM001 - 1ER164). It finished but wants
a restart so I'll let it then shut down. I won't do anything else.

Robert

The first cloning was textbook perfect until I had to restart
after it loaded the drivers. It said it did not shut down
properly so I let it boot normally and then once at the desk
top I waited until the Action Center icon showed before
shutting it down with no issues.

https://postimg.cc/SX7MyJHS

https://postimg.cc/S2SzjmpW

I'm now starting on the second 780 clone.

Robert

I was thinking again about the Dell 9020 computer as a
spare for the 8500 just in case its motherboard should
fail and realized I don't have enough room for 3 monitors
so what I thought I would do is share the 780 monitor and
plug in the 9020 occasionally for updates etc and then
switch the monitor back to the 780 for normal use which
isn't much. So maybe once a month I could switch the
monitor to update anything on the 9020 but otherwise let it
lay dormant until needed.

While rummaging around for extra static envelopes I found
the original hd for the 780 and the bad hd which I still want
to test again after all the cloning is done. Only because it
isn't labeled at all. If it turns out to be good on either computer
it may solve the backspace problem, maybe not but I'd still
like to test it on both computers to see if its really bad. btw
the new hd's came in reusable static liners which I thought
was pretty nice I also numbered those and the boxes for the
hd's and the hd's themselves so they all have the same
corresponding number so they can't get mixed up.

The second cloning is about 3/4 complete and going smoothly.
The true test is when I try to boot with it afterwards, We'll see
if this time if it loads drivers also and if there's a problem
shutting down. I'll wait till I see the Action Center icon before I
shut it down just to be sure.


Robert

The second cloning was perfect with no issues. It again loaded
the drivers and needed to be restarted and the desktop appeared
as before. I waited until I saw the Action Center icon before shutting
down.

I'm going to take a break and then I'll be back later and do the 8500
clones and will keep you posted.

Robert