Autorun.inf -
How to use on usb drive.
This will be brief but
I will try to help those that would like this info
on Autorun.inf files. Go here to read from MSDN.
To begin, autorun is not
supported on XP and later for usb drives. Fortunately,
Autoplay is and that is what we will use. Autoplay
must be enabled for this to work. Easiest way to accomplish
this is with TweakUI.
Install and enable autoplay for removable drives. Also,
you will need Windows XP SP2 or later.
Below is a copy of one
of my Autorun.inf files when I need to assist someone
on their machine.
[Autorun]
label=A43 Jump Drive
icon=a43\a43.exe
open=a43\a43.exe
action=A43 File Management Utility
Shell\Autoruns=Autoruns
Shell\Autoruns\Command=Autoruns\autoruns.exe
Shell\Stinger=Stinger
Shell\Stinger\Command=stinger\stinger.exe
Shell\HiJackThis=HiJackThis
Shell\HiJackThis\Command=HiJackThis\HiJackThis.exe
Shell\HiJackFree=HiJackFree
Shell\HiJackFree\Command=HiJackFree\a2hijackfree.exe
Shell\Recuva=Recuva - Undelete
Shell\Recuva\Command=Recuva\Recuva.exe
Now let's break it down
into something, hopefully, understandable.
[Autorun] --
This lets the parser know this is an Autorun Section.
label=A43
Jump Drive -- Just as it sounds.
Assigns A43 Jump Drive as the label for the drive.
icon=a43\a43.exe -- We need a
pretty icon so let's use the one in the A43 executable.
You can use any icon file you like, just let the parser
know where to find it. Notice, too, that A43 is in
a directory on the usb drive named A43. (a43\a43.exe)
open=a43\a43.exe -- Under XP and later points to the
file we want to execute.
action=A43 File Management Utility --
This is the line that actually starts Autoplay and
selects A43 File Management Utility as the default
in the Autoplay window. Remember, this line executes
the file in open=a43\a43.exe.
Now,
we need something to help us once we have A43 running
and are ready to start aiding our friend or neighbor.
We have apps at our disposal on the usb drive we
will be using. Alas, we would rather not have to
dig for them if avoidable. So let's place links to
these apps in the context menu of A43 Jump Drive.
Right click the drive then we have our speedy access. Now
we'll break down two lines that grant us this access.
Shell\Autoruns=Autoruns -- Tell Windows what we want
with Shell\. Autoruns is the variable we will use
for the menu =Autoruns which will be Autoruns when
we right click.
Shell\Autoruns\Command=Autoruns\autoruns.exe --
Now we tell Windows where to find this file when we
click Autoruns from context menu. In a directory named
Autoruns on the usb drive and the file to run is autoruns.exe.
The remainder of the script is the same for other apps
I might use. I'm sure you have used some of them.
Shell\Stinger=Stinger
Shell\Stinger\Command=stinger\stinger.exe
Shell\HiJackThis=HiJackThis
Shell\HiJackThis\Command=HiJackThis\HiJackThis.exe
Shell\HiJackFree=HiJackFree
Shell\HiJackFree\Command=HiJackFree\a2hijackfree.exe
Shell\Recuva=Recuva - Undelete
Shell\Recuva\Command=Recuva\Recuva.exe
I know this was short but I hope it will help those
who truly need it.
One last note. You
might want to title your apps in the context menu
with a prefix, A43 - Stinger, to see them faster
on a cluttered menu.
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