How to enable multiple remote desktop user logins in Windows 7

Windows remote desktop connection application can be used in order to connect to another PC on the same network or the internet. Both computers should use Windows and have the “Remote desktop connection” application available. For example, you can use all of your work computer’s programs, files, and network resources from your home computer, and it’s just like you’re sitting in front of your computer at work. You can also use it to access an application that is only installed on a single computer, by multiple users at the same time.
Windows 7 do not allow the concurrent use of a single computer by multiple users. This means that a user needs to be signed out before a second user logs in. This is not the case for the server editions of Windows. Luckily there is a patch that allows you to override this setting and connect multiple users at the same time on a single computer. The will even be able to use the same applications at the same time.
CAUTION: The following steps are probably going against the windows EULA agreement and could cause harm to your computer. I have already tested both of the patched below on windows 7 professional edition installations and could not find any issues.

Patch 1

The first patch just enables multi-user support for the Windows remote desktop connection tool:

1. You need to download the following zip file: Win7RDP.zip.
2. Unzip the contents in a folder (let’s say you have used the following path:  “C:\Win7RDP\”).
3. Execute the file install.cmd by double clicking on it.
4. You should see a screen similar to the one below, if everything works fine.
   
5. After the end of the patching process the remote desktop connection of your pc provides multi-user support.

Patch 2

The following patch application lets you choose whether or not to enable multiuser support for the remote desktop connection process or/and to disable the no blank password policy that is enforced on users that need to connect remotely. Follow the steps below to access the application.

1. Download the file Concurrent_RDP_Patcher_2-22-2011.zip
2. Open the compressed file and execute the file “Concurrent RDP Patcher.exe”
3. You should see the following screen
   
4. Check the desired options and then click the patch button.

Configure IP Address and DNS from Command Line

he IP address of your computer can be set from the command prompt by running the following commands at an administrative level prompt:

netsh interface ip set address name="Local Area Connection" static 123.123.123.123 255.255.255.0 123.123.123.1 1

Local Area Connection is the name of the adapter you want to modify. In single NIC systems it is normally called Local Area Connection.

123.123.123.123 is the IP address you want to set.

255.255.255.0 is the subnet mask.

123.123.123.1 is the gateway.

1 is the gateway metric. You can leave this as 1 for almost all cases. 

If you want to enable DHCP you can run:

netsh interface ip set address name="Local Area Connection" dhcp

There are two commands for DNS since administrators typically configure a primary and secondary DNS server.

For the primary DNS run:

netsh interface ip set dns name="Local Area Connection" static 208.67.222.222

For the secondary run:

netsh interface ip add dns name="Local Area Connection" 208.67.220.220 index=2

If you want to configure the computer to use DNS from DHCP run:

netsh interface ip set dnsservers name="Local Area Connection" source=dhcp

When you are finished with all of your IP and DNS changes run ipconfig -all to review the new settings.

"Not enough server storage is available to process this command"

To resolve this issue, increase the value of the IRPStackSize registry entry. To do this, follow these steps:

Click Start, click Run, type regedit, and then click OK.

Locate and then click the following registry subkey:

 

 HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\LanmanServer\Parameters

 

If the IRPStackSize entry is not present in this subkey, follow these steps:

1. Click Edit, point to New, and then click DWORD Value.
2. Type IRPStackSize, and then press ENTER.
   
   Note Type IRPStackSize exactly as it appears. The value name is case sensitive.

Click IRPStackSize, click Edit, and then click Modify.
In the Data Value box, type a larger value, and then click OK.

Note Values may range from 0x1 to 0xC. These values are equivalent to 1 to 12 in decimal notation.
If the problem persists after you complete the previous procedure, increase the value of IRPStackSize more.

Share a Printer from XP to Windows 7

One common problem I have run into with clients is trying to share a printer connected to a Windows XP machine with Windows 7. There are lots of people out there that have USB connected printers attached to one computer, usually a Windows XP machine.
If you get a new laptop running Windows 7, it makes sense to share that printer so that any computer can print to it. Unfortunately, trying to print to an shared printer on XP from Windows 7 is not as simple as it should be!
In this article I will walk you through the steps for XP to Windows 7 printer sharing. I am assuming your printer is directly attached to a Windows XP machine and you want to print from a Windows 7 machine.
Step 1: First make sure that the printer on the XP machine is shared. You can do this by right-clicking on the printer and choosing Sharing.



Click the Share this printer radio button and give your printer a share name. Make sure is less than 8 characters and does not contain any symbols.



Step 2: Make sure you can see the printer share from the network browsing area in Windows 7. You can do this by going to Control Panel and clicking on Network and Internet.



Then click on View network computers and devices under Network and Sharing Center.



At this point, you should see the name of your XP computer in the list of computers. Mine XP machine is called Aseem.



Double-click on the computer name and you should see your shared printer in the list. Here you can try to add the printer by right-clicking on it and choosing Connect.



If everything goes perfectly, Windows 7 should automatically add the printer to your set of printers. However, if you get a message like “Cannot connect to printer”, follow the next steps.
Step 3: Click on Start and then click on Devices and Printers. At the top, click on the Add a printer link.



Step 4: Next choose Add a local printer. Yes, that sounds counter-intuitive, but this is what you have to do!



Step 5: Next, click Create a new port and choose Local port from the list of options.



Step 6:  Click Next and in the Port name box, type in the path to the shared printer. It should be something like \\Aseem\HPXP, where Aseem is the name of your XP machine and HPXP is the shared name of the printer.



Step 7: Now choose the printer driver from the list or download the latest driver for the printer and choose Have Disk. Note that if you printer is a little older, it’s a good idea to download the Windows 7 driver for the printer and click Have Disk.



That’s it! Windows 7 will load the driver and you’ll be able to print to the XP machine from Windows 7! The main things to remember are sharing the XP printer and downloading the latest driver for the printer on the Windows 7 machine.
If you have any problems sharing your printer on XP and printing from Windows 7, post a comment here and I will try to help! Enjoy!

“The file is corrupt and cannot be opened” in Excel

Usually when upgrading you expect nothing but improvements. So it can be really disappointing when after moving to Excel 2010 you have no chance to access your .xls file created in the application version 2003 and earlier. You understand what I’m talking about if you ever encountered “The file is corrupt and cannot be opened” error in Excel 2010. Still think you can’t open it? Actually you can!

Try the following to see how your precious .xls data appear in MS Excel

1. Open the application.
2. Click on File -> Options.
3. Select Trust Center and press the Trust center settings button.
    
4. Pick Protected view.
   
5. Uncheck all the options under Protected View and confirm by pressing OK.
6. Restart Excel and try to open the broken Excel documents.

For safety reasons, you should save your document with new Office format like .xlsx. You can do it this way: File > Options -> Trust Center -> Trust Center settings -> Protected View.
Check all the options again under Protected View, click OK and restart Excel.

This will set the security options back. Sure, you don’t want to open any file unsafely.
That’s it. Hope it will work for you and your documents .
Thanks and see you!

"Stop: c0000218 {Registry File Failure} The registry cannot load the hive (file): \SystemRoot\System32\Config\SECURITY or its log or alternate".

You start the Recovery Console, create a temporary folder, back up the existing registry files to a new location, delete the registry files at their existing location, and then copy the registry files from the repair folder to the System32\Config folder. When you have finished this procedure, a registry is created that you can use to start Windows XP. This registry was created and saved during the initial setup of Windows XP. Therefore any changes and settings that occurred after the Setup program was finished are lost.

To complete part one, follow these steps:

1. Insert the Windows XP startup disk into the floppy disk drive, or insert the Windows XP CD-ROM into the CD-ROM drive, and then restart the computer.
   Click to select any options that are required to start the computer from the CD-ROM drive if you are prompted to do so.
2. When the "Welcome to Setup" screen appears, press R to start the Recovery Console.
3. If you have a dual-boot or multiple-boot computer, select the installation that you want to access from the Recovery Console.
4. When you are prompted to do so, type the Administrator password. If the administrator password is blank, just press ENTER.
5. At the Recovery Console command prompt, type the following lines, pressing ENTER after you type each line:
   md tmp
   copy c:\windows\system32\config\system c:\windows\tmp\system.bak
   copy c:\windows\system32\config\software c:\windows\tmp\software.bak
   copy c:\windows\system32\config\sam c:\windows\tmp\sam.bak
   copy c:\windows\system32\config\security c:\windows\tmp\security.bak
   copy c:\windows\system32\config\default c:\windows\tmp\default.bak
   
   delete c:\windows\system32\config\system
   delete c:\windows\system32\config\software
   delete c:\windows\system32\config\sam
   delete c:\windows\system32\config\security
   delete c:\windows\system32\config\default
   
   copy c:\windows\repair\system c:\windows\system32\config\system
   copy c:\windows\repair\software c:\windows\system32\config\software
   copy c:\windows\repair\sam c:\windows\system32\config\sam
   copy c:\windows\repair\security c:\windows\system32\config\security
   copy c:\windows\repair\default c:\windows\system32\config\default
6. Type exit to quit Recovery Console. Your computer will restart.

Note This procedure assumes that Windows XP is installed to the C:\Windows folder. Make sure to change C:\Windows to the appropriate windows_folder if it is a different location.

Internet Explorer Unable to View FTP Sites

Microsoft Internet Explorer has the ability to view FTP site like a normal local folders. This is a feature that lots of people are not aware of or don't really use it. I have always been using some freeware FTP clients for a while and find them don't really improves anything. At times, I would use command line, but when transferring many files, command line is not very convenient.

As I begin using Internet Explorer not too long ago, I never use any other clients since then. It is convenient as it is pre-installed in every machine!

Recently, as I tried to use it on a different computer, I keep getting "Page not found" error. But the FTP server is working fine when I try to access using command line FTP.

After spending sometime to search for solution, I found a setting in Internet options that fixes it. Go to Tools > Internet Options > Advanced tab > tick Enable folder view for FTP sites.

If you have never use IE for this purpose, I recommend you to try it.

Just type in address bar: ftp://www.yoursite.com

Unless you need some extraordinary functions, IE is good enough.

Fixing the dreaded “Unmountable Boot Volume” error

One unfortunately common problem is data corruption on a hard drive and the dreaded “Unmountable Boot Volume” error. Many people feel they are forced to format the drive and start from scratch in this situation. However, frequently there is a better way of save your installation, as long as you have the installation media available. Directions for both XP and Windows 7 included.

If you receive the “unmountable boot volume” error and have an installation disk, you still have a chance to save your system.
This error is frequently caused by unfortunate wear and tear corruption of the data on the hard drive. By using the following utilities, you often can repair the damaged hard drive and prevent a complete reinstallation of your system.

XP Directions:

1. Insert your XP installation disc into an optical drive and boot up your computer.

2. When you see a welcome screen, hit the R key on your keyboard. This will enter you into recovery mode with a DOS prompt.

3. Now type chkdsk /p and hit Enter. This will launch a utility which will check for errors on your hard drive.

4. After the process is done, type fixboot or fixmbr and hit Enter to repair any damaged boot files which may have become corrupted. When asked to say yes or no, type the Y key on your keyboard.

5. Type exit and press the Enter key to reboot your computer.

Windows 7 Directions:

1. Boot from the Windows 7 DVD.

2. Select Repair my computer.

3. Select Command Prompt

4. From the command prompt enter the following command: Chkdsk /R C: where “C” is your boot drive.

5. Answer Y to check the disk the next time that the system restarts.

6. Reboot the system. After the reboot, Windows will check the hard disk and try to repair the damaged area.

7. If you still get the error after this process, repeat the process but try rebuilding the master boot record at the command prompt with the following command: bootrec /fixboot and then rebooting
If your system can be saved, you should now be able to boot back into Windows without a problem!

Fix Services MMC Extended View Is Blank in Windows XP

The Extended view of Services Management Console (services.msc) displays the service description and also has links to Start or Stop services. In some systems, the Extended view may appear blank, as in figure below:



This has to do with broken JScript.dll registration. To fix this problem, login as Administrator or equivalent, and then run the following command from Start, Run dialog:

regsvr32.exe  jscript.dll

Press {ENTER}
You should see the output message "DllRegisterServer in jscript.dll succeeded."
This fixes the Extended view. Close and re-open Services MMC.

How to Add Downloads Folder to the Windows 7 Start Menu

To add the Downloads folder to your Start menu in Windows Vista, the only way was to employ our registry hack that replaced the Games link with Downloads. This isn’t required in Windows 7, where you can show the Downloads folder to the Start menu using the Taskbar and Start menu Properties. This is pretty basic guide, but written specifically to let the users know about this option, a welcome addition to Windows 7, that didn’t exist in Windows Vista and Windows XP.
1. Right-click on an empty area in the Taskbar, and click Properties
2. Click Customize


3. Scroll down until you see the option "Downloads", and choose "Display as a link" or "Display as a menu" button.


Click OK.

Fix Services MMC Error “One or More ActiveX Controls Could Not Be Displayed”

When you open the Services MMC (services.msc), the following errors appear, and the list of services may or may not display after dismissing the error message dialog boxes.

One or more ActiveX controls could not be displayed because either:
1) Your current security settings prohibit running ActiveX controls on this page, or
2) You have blocked a publisher of one of the controls.
As a result, the page might not display correctly.

… followed by the error Object doesn’t support property or method ‘ConnectTo’ in URL mmcndmgr.dll/views.js.

Resolution

[Windows 7 Users] Download the Fix it solution by clicking the image above, and run the executable. The problem should be taken care of, automatically.
To Fix the Problem Manually
1. Click Start, type Regedit.exe and press {ENTER}
2. Navigate to the following branch:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Internet Settings \ Zones

 

3. Under the Zones key, delete the subkey shown with an ASCII character, as in the above graphic. If it doesn’t exist, ignore and proceed to the following registry key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Internet Settings \ Zones \ 0

 

4. Double-click the DWORD value named 1200, and type 0 as its value data.


The DWORD value 1200 corresponds to IE Security Zone setting "Run ActiveX controls and plug-ins". Setting the value to 0 permits ActiveX controls and plug-ins.

5. Exit the Registry Editor.

6. Logoff and login back to your account.

Linux: Delete user password

Command to delete user password under Linux

Type the following command to delete a user password:

# passwd --delete username

OR

# passwd -d username

Above command delete a user's password (make it empty). This is a quick way to disable a password for an account. It will set the named account passwordless. User will not able to login. It is also a good idea to setup user shell to nologin to avoid security related problems: 

# usrmod -s /sbin/nologin username

For example to delete password for user sweta, Type:

# passwd -d sweta

# usrmod -s /sbin/nologin sweta

Reset Your Forgotten Ubuntu Password in 2 Minutes or Less

If you’ve ever forgotten your password, you aren’t alone… it’s probably one of the most common tech support problems I’ve encountered over the years. Luckily if you are using Ubuntu they made it incredibly easy to reset your password.

All it takes is adjusting the boot parameters slightly and typing a command or two, but we’ll walk you through it.
Reset Your Ubuntu Password
Reboot your computer, and then as soon as you see the GRUB Loading screen, make sure to hit the ESC key so that you can get to the menu.

Root Shell – Easy Method
If you have the option, you can choose the “recovery mode” item on the menu, usually found right below your default kernel option.

Then choose “Drop to root shell prompt” from this menu.

This should give you a root shell prompt.
Alternate Root Shell Method
If you don’t have the recovery mode option, this is the alternate way to manually edit the grub options to allow for a root shell.
First you’ll want to make sure to choose the regular boot kernel that you use (typically just the default one), and then use the “e” key to choose to edit that boot option.

Now just hit the down arrow key over to the “kernel” option, and then use the “e” key to switch to edit mode for the kernel option.

You’ll first be presented with a screen that looks very similar to this one:

You’ll want to remove the “ro quiet splash” part with the backspace key, and then add this onto the end:

rw init=/bin/bash

Once you hit enter after adjusting the kernel line, you’ll need to use the B key to choose to boot with that option.

At this point the system should boot up very quickly to a command prompt.
Changing the Actual Password
You can use the following command to reset your password:

passwd <username>

For example my username being geek I used this command:

passwd geek

After changing your password, use the following commands to reboot your system. (The sync command makes sure to write out data to the disk before rebooting)

sync
reboot –f

I found that the –f parameter was necessary to get the reboot command to work for some reason. You could always hardware reset instead, but make sure to use the sync command first.
And now you should be able to login without any issues.