Dec 31, 2007

[IT_Group:4875] Fw: Jobs for Technical Support Engineer

Warm Regards,
Rakesh Parekh
09898338117
rparekh81@yahoo.co.in
rprekh81@gmail.com

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Subject: Jobs for Technical Support Engineer

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[IT_Group:4874] Fwd: Opening With Wipro Infotech --- Mumbai / Pune

Dear All,

I have received some REsumes without mentioning the posts for which they have applied. I cant process the CVs without mentioned posts as there are so many posts vacant.

Those who havn't mentioned their posts, kindly resend your CVs with mentioning the post so that i can send it to the concern department. Moreover i have received some mails in GMAIL id. I have clearly mentioned to forward your CV to bhavin.gohil@wipro.com

Regards,

BHAVIN GOHIL

Ahmedabad

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Bhavin Gohil <bgohil7@googlemail.com>
Date: Dec 29, 2007 2:09 PM
Subject: Opening With Wipro Infotech --- Mumbai / Pune
To: it_group@googlegroups.com, vishubest <vishubest@gmail.com>

Dear All,

Kindly reply me with your suitable posts along with your updated resume to bhavin.gohil@wipro.com

-----------------------------------------

Reply me with your suitable positions and send me your resumes ASAP.
------------------------------------

1) Server Managment : Windows L2 (3 Positions)
Skill : Windows NT,2K/2k3, Active Directory,Exchange, Antivirous, WSUS,Cluster
Experience : 3.5 - 6 Years
Location : Mumbai/Pune
Position : Core

2) Network Management : (L2) (2 Positions)
Skill : Routing,Switches,WAN/MPLS/MGX/MRTG
Experience : 2 - 4
Qualification : Any full time Graduate except BE (3 yrs Engineering Diploma will do)
Position : Core
Location : Mumbai

3) Network Management (L1) (1 Positions)
Skill : LAN,WAN,MPLS
Qualification :Any full time Graduate except BE (3 yrs Engineering Diploma will do)
Position : Retainer
Location : Mumbai/Pune
Experience : 1 -3 Yrs

4) Avaya L2 - Voice
Position : Core
Location : Pune/Mumbai
Skill : Avaya S8, Varient/Nice Logger,CMS Server
Experience : 2 - 5 yrs

5) Site Incharge (3 Position)
Position : Core
Skill : Team Lead,ITIL,Change Management,Problem Management,Crisis Management
Experience : 3 - 6 yrs
Qualification :Any full time Graduate except BE (3 yrs Engineering Diploma will do)

6) Lotus L2
Skill ; Lotus Domino
Experience : 2 - 6 Yrs
Location : Mumbai
Position : Core.
Qualification :Any full time Graduate, Certification in Lotus Domino

7) Application Support Engineer (2)
Experience : 1 - 3 Years.
Skill : HP Openview.
Position : Core
Qualification :Any full time Graduate except BE (3 yrs Engineering Diploma will do)

10) Shift Lead (1 Position)
Position : Core
Skill : Team Lead,ITIL,Change Management,Problem Management
Experience : 3 - 6 yrs
Qualification :Any full time Graduate except BE (3 yrs Engineering Diploma will do)
Location : Pune.

11) Oracle DBA L2
Experience : 2 - 6 Yrs
Location : Mumbai
Position : Core.
Qualification :Any full time Graduate, OCP Certification

12) SQL DBA
Experience : 2 - 5 Yrs
Location : Mumbai
Qualification :Any full time Graduate except BE (3 yrs Engineering Diploma will do)
Position : Core

13) Desktop L2 (3)
Experience : 2 - 4 Years
Location : Mumbai
Skill : Desktop, Lotus Notes,Outlook.
Position : Retainer

14) Sr. Server Managment : Windows L2 (1 Positions)
Skill : Windows NT,2K/2k3, Active Directory,Exchange, Antivirous, WSUS,Lotus Domino
Experience : 3.5 - 6 Years
Location : Mumbai
Position : Core

15) Pragram Manager
Experience : More than 10 Yrs
Skill : PMP Certification,Relationship Management
Location : Mumbai

16) Operation Manager
Experience : 6 - 8 Years
Skill : ITIL,Network
Location : Mumbai

17) Program Manager
Experience : 10+Yrs
Skill : Strong knowledge of Banking domain
Location : Mumbai.

18) Operation Manager
Experience : 6 - 8 Years
Skill : ITIL,Windows
Location : Mumbai.

19) Windows L1
Experience : 2 - 4 Yrs
Skill :Windows Server,AD Backup
Location : Pune.
Position : Retainer
Qualification : Any full time Graduate except BE (3 yrs Engineering Diploma will do)

(20) Avaya L1
Experience : 2 - 4 Yrs
Position : Core
Location : Pune.
Qualification : Any full time Graduate except BE (3 yrs Engineering Diploma will do)

------------------------------

Revert with your resumes ASAP.

------

Thanks & Regards
Bhavin Gohil
Engineer - MIT

Our Spirit: Intensity to Win | Act with Sensitivity | Unyielding Integrity

--
Best Regards,
BHAVIN
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<======= IT_Group ========>
~**~ Disclaimer ~**~
We do not claim to have made any of the Text/Graphics/E Book
or any article / material that we send unless otherwise noted.
They come from a wide variety of web sources & are therefore deemed
to be public domain. As far as we aware they are licensed for personal
use only, & are by their respective artist. Any infringement of said copyright is non-intentional & will be rectified upon notice & proof of ownership. We respect Intellectual Property and its lows.

[IT_Group:4873] Fwd: Technical Support Engineer -Bind view

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Jyoti_Rane-contractor@symantec.com < Jyoti_Rane-contractor@symantec.com>
Date: 31 Dec 2007 15:34:10 +0530
Subject: Technical Support Engineer -Bind view
To: sangram.gohil@gmail.com

For Internal Use of Employer (Please don't delete or modify while replying to this email)

Monster Resume ID: 5800925 Personal Folder ID: 4785677

Dear Sangramsinh,

Hi,

We have a Job Opening at Symantec, Pune for the position of Technical Support Engineer (Bind view Group).

About Symantec Corporation

Symantec (formerly VERITAS) is a world leader in software security and data availability segments. We are a team of over 17000 professionals working in over 40 countries towards one mission – To enable people to work and play freely in a connected world.

Across the globe, over 150 million people and 99% of fortune 1000 companies trust Symantec with their data and security. To know more about Symantec and our products visit us at www.symantec.com

A) TECH SUPPORT ENGINEER (WINDOWS)

Qualifications

BE/BCS/MCS/MCM from reputed institutes
MCSE certification preferred !
3+years experience providing enterprise level support.
Sound working knowledge of Windows 2000 and Windows 2003 (Active Directory).
Experience of working in cross platforms server environments.
Knowledge on Security concepts, Network, Exchange, Clustering, TCP/IP will be desirable.
Should have worked on 24X7, voice support.
Excellent communication skills
Demonstrated strong customer service/support skills

Responsibilities
Provide professional and helpful support to Symantec enterprise customers
Respond to customers, partners technical issues via telephone, emails
Gather and record all the collected information about the product issues.
Analyze the root cause of the problem; In-house simulation of problems
Provide regular updates to customers about The progress of the work.
Contributing to knowledge base system
interacting with Development & QA members
Success Factors
Strong customer relationship skills
Strong technical and analytical skills
Excellent communication skills
Team player, willing to share knowledge
Positive attitude; commitment to work
Good in documentation

B) Tech Support Engineer- UNIX

Qualification:

-BE/BCS/MCS/MCM from reputed institutes
-3+ years experience providing enterprise level support.
-Should have worked on 24x7, voice support.
-Excellent communication skills
-Demonstrated strong customer service/support skills
-Red Hat Certification / Sun Certification

Essential Technical skills:
- Sound working knowledge of Unix Operating System, Installation, Configuration. Awareness ! of file system
- Knowledge of scripting on Unix
- Experience of working in cross platforms server environments; managing large customer environments
- Knowledge on Security concepts, Network, TCP/IP will be desirable

Request you to please send us the following details if interested
1. Updated resume
2. CTC
3. ECTC

Thanks & Regards,
Jyoti
HR Staffing Team
Office:+91-020-66055744
Email: Jyoti_Rane-contractor@symantec.com

This mail has been sent by one of the employers (Employer name: Symantec Corporation) accessing the services of monsterindia.com and not by Monster. Monster is committed to protecting the privacy of our users and our "Terms of Use" prohibits any misuse including spamming. If you consider the contents of the mails inappropriate or as spam, please forward this mail to spam@monsterindia.com

Double your chances of getting the right job by keeping your resume updated.
Update Resume now

--
Regards,

Sam
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~**~ Disclaimer ~**~
We do not claim to have made any of the Text/Graphics/E Book
or any article / material that we send unless otherwise noted.
They come from a wide variety of web sources & are therefore deemed
to be public domain. As far as we aware they are licensed for personal
use only, & are by their respective artist. Any infringement of said copyright is non-intentional & will be rectified upon notice & proof of ownership. We respect Intellectual Property and its lows.

[IT_Group:4872] Ultimate wireless security guide: Microsoft IAS RADIUS for wireless authentication

Ultimate wireless security guide: Microsoft IAS RADIUS for wireless authentication

by George Ou | Jan 11, 2007 5:00:00 PM

Tags: Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Network security, Servers, George Ou, authentication, Microsoft Corp., wireless, IAS, Cisco ACS, Cisco Systems Inc., RADIUS, Microsoft Windows

58 comment(s)

Takeaway: Enterprise wireless LAN security is a persistent concern for every system administrator and CIO. This article, part of the TechRepublic ultimate guide to enterprise wireless LAN security, describes how to configure Microsoft's IAS RADIUS server, provided free with Windows Server 20003, for wireless authentication.

The complete TechRepublic Ultimate Wireless Security Guide is available as a download in PDF form.

Windows Server 2003 comes bundled with a very capable RADIUS (also known as AAA) server that's extremely stable, secure, and robust. When you search on Internet security databases for Microsoft IAS vulnerabilities, you won't find any. The IAS service just runs for years without the need to patch IAS. If your Windows Server 2003 box is hardened to only accept IAS requests with host-based firewall restrictions on all other ports and you install no other services on a Windows 2003 box, you can literally keep an IAS RADIUS server up for years of zero downtime or reboots.

IAS competitors

One of IAS' biggest competitors in the Enterprise market is Cisco ACS which people often assume they must use if they're using Cisco networking equipment which simply isn't true. Your Cisco network equipment works perfectly fine so long as you avoid proprietary, less-secure harder-to-deploy protocols, like LEAP or EAP-FAST.

Furthermore, the stability of ACS is questionable and there is an endless patch cycle for it since it has been plagued with security vulnerabilities and bugs. I've spent my share of time troubleshooting ACS and many hours on tech support. I have had a lot of hands-on experience with Cisco ACS. The latest version of Cisco ACS 4.x currently has two unpatched security vulnerabilities one of which is critical. Version 3.x and 2.x also have their share of critical vulnerabilities some of which are unpatched as of December 10, 2006.

Cisco ACS also lacks the ability to act as a relay RADIUS server which limits its ability to serve in a more robust multi-tier RADIUS environment. You need that ability to link to multiple Active Directories or other user directories that are not tied to each other. ACS also costs around $8000 per copy whereas Microsoft IAS comes with Windows Server 2003. Two redundant RADIUS servers would add up pretty quickly. Cisco ACS also comes on a dedicated appliance but that's even harder to use in my experience since you don't even get a Windows console graphical interface to work with.

Funk software (acquired by Juniper) has a pretty good solution with Steel-belted RADIUS at around $4000 per copy but that is still a significant cost especially when you need two RADIUS servers for redundancy. Funk is a great solution for companies which don't run a Windows Active Directory environment because IAS is tightly wound in to Microsoft Active Directory and doesn't support non-Microsoft databases.

Linux users have FreeRADIUS available to them. FreeRADIUS has had critical flaws (0.x and 1.x) in the past but they're all patched now unlike Cisco. FreeRADIUS still isn't as clean as the Funk or Microsoft RADIUS solutions but it's completely free if you're rolling your own Linux distribution or you don't need enterprise Linux support. If you're talking about SuSE or Red Hat and you want enterprise support, then the annual support contracts is double the cost of a perpetual Windows Server 2003 license. It all depends on usage model and some people will prefer Linux and some will prefer Microsoft.

Install IAS

Windows Server 2003 doesn't come with any extra services installed by default for security reasons so you'll need to manually install IAS. It's fairly simple if you have the Windows Server 2003 install CD. To install IAS, simply open "Add remove programs" from your control panel and select "Add remove windows components". You will see the following window (Figure OO) so you'll need to scroll down to "Network Services". You don't want to just check it because you don't want all Network Services installed, just highlight it and hit the "Details" button.

Figure OO

Networking services

Once you get to the screen shown in Figure PP, scroll down and just check off "Internet Authentication Service" IAS for short.

Figure PP

Internet Authentication

Once you've installed IAS, you'll be able to launch IAS from your Administrative Tools either from the control panel or from the start menu. You'll see the following interface. (Figure QQ)

Figure QQ

Service

Set logging policies

The first thing we'll do is look at and set the logging policies (Figure RR). Right click on "Internet Authentication Service (Local)" and click Properties.

Figure RR

IAS Properties

You will now see the screen in Figure SS. If you check off the two checkmarks here, you will force IAS to log successful and reject authentication requests to the Windows Event Viewer. If you're intending to use text or SQL based logging, you don't need to check these unless you want the logs showing up in both places.

Figure SS

Local Properties

If you click on the "Ports" tab, you'll see the screen shown in Listing TT. These are the default RADIUS ports and you should generally leave them alone for standardized RADIUS conventions. Microsoft IAS will actually listen on two sets of ports. The lower number ports are the more traditional port numbers, Microsoft applications prefer the higher number ports. You should generally leave this setting alone as is.

Listing TT

Ports

This next part lets you set the standalone text and SQL logging capability of Microsoft IAS. You right click on "Local File" under "Remote Access Logging" page and hit "Properties". (Figure UU)

Figure UU

Remote Access Logging

The first "settings" tab lets you set what events you want to log. (Figure VV)

Figure VV

Local file properties

The "Log File" tab lets you set the file format and the log size limits. (Figure WW)

Figure WW

Log file

We won't go in to SQL logging in this article because it gets rather complex to set up a SQL database. You have to manually create the accounts and tables in SQL in order for this to work. Furthermore, IAS under Windows Server 2003 insists on stopping the RADIUS service if logging doesn't work so if the SQL server doesn't respond, all of your RADIUS servers stop working. Unfortunately, Microsoft doesn't give you any way to override this "fail-shut" behavior because they claim customers want it this way because it's more secure but every customer I've talked to wants a choice on this behavior.

There is no security risk because the Authentication and Authorization component of Microsoft IAS is working perfectly fine, it's merely unable to make a record of the transaction. I've spoken with Microsoft and they're telling me they will correct this with Windows Server 2007 (or whatever it's going to be called when it's released next year). Hopefully they'll automate the SQL database creation process with a script too.

Add RADIUS clients

A RADIUS "client" is not what you would typically think of as a "client" as in a user. A RADIUS client is something like a wireless access point, a router, a switch, a firewall, or a VPN concentrator. Any device that provides network access that needs to delegate AAA (Access, Authorization, and Accounting) to a RADIUS server is considered a RADIUS client. For the purpose of this tutorial, we'll set up a single access point as a client.

To start, we'll right click on "RADIUS Clients" and select "New RADIUS Client" as shown in Figure XX.

Figure XX

Radius Client

You then get the screen shown in Figure YY where we give the device its name and set the IP address of the access device which in this case is an access point. Be aware that if you're talking about a router or firewall that has multiple IP addresses because it has multiple interfaces, you must configure the IP address that is closes to the RADIUS server. This is because the RADIUS request is seen as coming from the closest interface on a multi-homed access device and if you configure the wrong IP, it will not be able to communicate with the RADIUS server.

Figure YY

New RADIUS client name and IP

Then we set the RADIUS type and RADIUS secret. The RADIUS type is almost always set to "RADIUS Standard". Cisco devices are the exception and you must select "Cisco" for the "Client-Vendor" field if you want your Cisco devices to work. There are exceptions like Cisco wireless switches because the switches were acquired from Airespace in 2005.

Airespace wireless switches use "RADIUS Standard" like everyone else in the industry. The "shared secret" is the secret shared between the RADIUS server and the access device (Figure ZZ). Try to make the secret 10 characters or more comprised of random numbers and letters. Avoid spaces and special characters since that might have incompatibilities in some devices and software and you'll have a rough time troubleshooting.

Figure ZZ

Setting the shared secret

Click "Finish" to complete. You'll need to repeat this for all of your access devices.

Add remote access policies

Now we need to create a remote access policy to authenticate and authorize the user trying to access our access devices. To do this, right click on "Remote Access Policies" and click "New Remote Access Policy". (Figure AAA)

Figure AAA

New Remote Access Policy

Click "Next" to move to the next screen (Figure BBB).

Figure BBB

Policy Wizard

Give your policy a name and use the wizard. Hit "Next". (Figure CCC)

Figure CCC

Policy Name

Choose "Wireless" and hit "Next". (Figure DDD)

Figure DDD

Wireless

Here you'll need to grant access to your users and computers. Hit "Add". (Figure EEE)

Figure EEE

Group Access

Here you'll need to adjust the location to your domain. Hit "Locations". (Figure FFF)

Figure FFF

Select Groups

Choose the domain you're trying to authenticate to and hit "Ok". Note that the IAS server must be joined to the domain you're authenticating to or a trusted domain. (Figure GGG)

Figure GGG

Select Location

Type "Domain Users" and "Domain Computers and separate them with a semicolon. (Figure HHH) Then click on "Check Names" to force it to underline and validate your entries. You may of course restrict access to a smaller group of users and computers since the following option allows all domain users and all domain computers to connect to your wireless LAN. Hit "Ok".

Figure HHH

Enter domain

Note that "Domain Computers" is used to authenticate your computer for "machine authentication" which connects your wireless PC before the user even logs in. This is a very useful and unique benefit of the Windows Wireless Client since it emulates the full wired experience for wireless users.

If "machine authentication" isn't implemented, group policies and login scripts won't fire off. Furthermore, only cached users can login to the wireless computer, because users who have never signed on to that PC can't authenticate with the domain. For this reason alone is enough for me to always recommend using the Windows Wireless client for Windows users not to mention the auto-deployment capability.

Now you see the screen shown in Figure III with a summary of the user and computer groups you're allowing access. Note that this is an OR operator between these two group names. Either one true registers a success. Hit "Next".

Figure III

Group access defined

Choose "Protected EAP (PEAP)" authentication. Then hit "Configure". (Figure JJJ)

Figure JJJ

Authentication

Before you get to this page, you must either have a valid Machine Certificate from a Certificate Authority or you have already self-signed one yourself. Leave the rest of the settings like you see in Figure KKK and click OK.

Figure KKK

PEAP Properties

Finalize the remaining dialog box and you're finished making a new wireless authentication profile. Now we'll move on to fine tuning the configuration.

Tweak remote access policies

Once you complete the previous steps, you'll see a new Remote Access Policy called whatever name you gave it. The two default policies you see in Figure LLL the one we created are just there as samples and are disabled by default. We'll right click on it and hit "Properties".

Figure LLL

Remote Access Properties

You'll notice there are two "Policy conditions" shown in Figure MMM. Note that there is an AND operator operating between the two conditions. That means both conditions must be true or else the policy spits out a rejection and it moves on to the next "Remote Access Policy". The first policy forces "Wi-Fi Policy" to only permit users coming in from 802.11 connections. The second policy is the permissible user or computer groups we set earlier. Click on "Edit Profile" to continue.

Figure MMM

WiFi Policy Properties

The "Dial-in Constraints" tab lets you set the dial-in and session limit restrictions (Figure NNN). It also lets you restrict the times people are allowed to log in.

Figure NNN

Dial-in Profile

The "Encryption" tab is important for security (Figure OOO). You must uncheck the three insecure checkmarks to enforce maximum strength encryption.

Figure OOO

Encryption

The "Advanced" tab (Figure PPP) is something we won't go in to now, but note that this is a very powerful tab for advanced features. With special RADIUS attributes configured on this page, you can do things like tell your Cisco VPN concentrator what user group a user belongs to so that the concentrator will set VLAN and firewall policies on that user matching their group rights. You can also do things like set VLANs or group association for an Aruba wireless switch which has a built-in firewall. We'll leave the details for a future advanced RADIUS configuration article.

Figure PPP

Advanced tab

Under the "Authentication" tab, you can tweak the EAP methods (Figure QQQ). For wireless LAN PEAP authentication, you actually leave all the checkmarks alone. These settings are for more traditional RADIUS applications like a modem dialup service provider that proxies to your RADIUS server. Let's click on the "EAP Methods" button to see what it has.

Figure QQQ

Authentication

Here you can edit the PEAP configuration. (Figure RRR) We already set these settings during the initial policy wizard. Click "OK".

Figure RRR

EAP Providers

You'll need to click OK one more time to get out of the Dial-in profile window.

This final section in the IAS interface is something we won't do in this article. (Figure SSS) I just wanted to give you a preview of what it does. The "Connection Request Processing" section lets you set advanced RADIUS relaying features. You have granular control of what kind of RADIUS requests you want to relay off to a different RADIUS server and which RADIUS requests you want to handle in the local "Remote Access Policy" engine.

You can even configure groups of RADIUS servers that you want to forward to. This allows IAS to participate in a multi-tier RADIUS environment. For example, if you have a user that isn't in your domain belonging to a business partner's network that needs guest access to your environment, you can forward to the RADIUS request to your business partner for them to process. There are even Universities that honor each other's students and staff by allowing a student to securely log in to any campus participating in the network.

Figure SSS

Connection Request

Backup and restore IAS policy

Finally, after all this work we want to be able to backup our RADIUS configuration and maybe even restore it on to a redundant RADIUS server. Microsoft gives you a simple command line tool for exporting and importing the RADIUS configuration.

To perform the backup operation, simply run the following command.

netsh aaaa show config c:\IAS.txt

Note that you can use any name for the file. You can use that file locally if you ever screw up the IAS configuration and you want to rapidly recover or if you want to copy the IAS setting to another IAS RADIUS server. To restore the IAS settings from the text file you created, simply run the following command assuming the correct path and file name.

netsh exec c:\IAS.txt

This makes it easy to rapidly deploy multiple redundant IAS RADIUS servers and it also gives you the peace of mind to rapidly repair an IAS server.

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<======= IT_Group ========>
~**~ Disclaimer ~**~
We do not claim to have made any of the Text/Graphics/E Book
or any article / material that we send unless otherwise noted.
They come from a wide variety of web sources & are therefore deemed
to be public domain. As far as we aware they are licensed for personal
use only, & are by their respective artist. Any infringement of said copyright is non-intentional & will be rectified upon notice & proof of ownership. We respect Intellectual Property and its lows.

[IT_Group:4871] Remove clutter with Windows XP SP2's Duplicate Finder tool

Remove clutter with Windows XP SP2's Duplicate Finder tool

by Greg Shultz | Feb 21, 2007 8:00:00 AM

Tags: Operating systems, Service Pack 2, Greg Shultz, Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Windows, Duplicate Finder, tool, Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 2, Windows XP Tips Newsletter

Takeaway: Hidden clutter exists on your Windows XP machine in the form of duplicate files. Here's how to free up valuable hard disk space by doing some early spring cleaning with the Duplicate Finder tool.

Even if you're a conscientious computer user (i.e., you regularly delete unnecessary files, empty the Recycle Bin, and run Disk Defragmenter), you may be unaware of a potentially big waster of hard disk space: duplicate files. Applications can litter your hard disk with duplicate files, or you can actually create duplicate files by copying files from one folder to another.

Windows XP's default installation doesn't provide you with a decent utility for tracking down duplicate files. However, Microsoft does have a tool called Duplicate Finder, which is part of the Windows XP Service Pack 2 Support Tools. Here's how to install and use the Duplicate Finder tool:

Download the Windows XP Service Pack 2 Support Tools and follow the instructions for installing the Complete installation version.
Open the Run dialog box by pressing [Windows]R.
Type Dupfinder in the Open text box and click OK.
Once DupFinder loads, simply select the drive or folder to search and then click the Start Search button.
When DupFinder completes its search, you can scan through the list and examine the duplicate files.

Here are tips for working with the list of duplicate files:

Use either the Print Report or Export Data commands on the File menu to create a permanent record of the duplicate files.
Use the Sort command on the View menu to reorganize the list for better analysis.
To get more detailed information about any file, select the file, pull down the File menu, and select the Info command.
Leave duplicate files in the Windows folder and its subfolders alone.
If you don't recognize the duplicate file, it's better to use the Rename or Move commands on the File menu rather than the Delete command.

Note: This tip applies to both Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional.

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[IT_Group:4870] Build a great PC on a budget with these parts and procedures

Build a great PC on a budget with these parts and procedures

by George Ou | Feb 22, 2007 8:00:00 AM

Tags: Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Processors, George Ou, Vista Home Premium, Microsoft Windows Vista, Vista Home, PC

Takeaway: A Vista-capable system with quality components at a reasonable price can be yours--if you're willing to build it. George Ou explains the parts you'll need and provides illustrated, step-by-step instructions to guide you successfully through the assembly process.

This article is also available as a PDF download and a TechRepublic photo gallery.

A lot of people don't realize that it's possible to build a dual-core workstation with good 2D graphics and even some decent 3D performance that's fully Vista capable for a reasonable price. In fact, you can do it for around $1,133. That price includes a massive 22" LCD and Vista Home Premium OEM software, as well as the cost of shipping. For that kind of money in the retail sector or mail order, you wouldn't get close to these specifications and you'd probably end up with lousy embedded graphics chipsets. The only catch is that you actually have to build it. But in this tutorial, I'll explain the parts you need and show you how to assemble it all. Not only do you get the satisfaction of knowing you've put in good components, you also get the satisfaction of giving the PC life with your own hands. I can't think of a better hobby to have. We'll start with the parts list. Note that the pictures shown aren't necessarily the same parts in the list, but they're close enough for the purposes of this tutorial.

Parts list

Mainstream home or office dual-core workstation	Cost
Biostar TForce965PT with Realtek gigabit LAN and 7.1 audio *	$105
Intel dual-core C2D E6300 (can clock very high) **	$184
Stock Intel retail CPU fan (included with CPU)
Seagate 400 GB SATA II HDD	$120
Cooler Master CAV-T03-UW	$70
NVIDIA GeForce 7300 PCI-Express with 256 MB (w/HDTV out)	$70
Patriot 1 GB (2 x 512MB) DDR2-667 RAM ***	$72
SeaSonic silent/efficient 330 watt PSU	$60
Lite-on 16x SATA-based dual-layer DVD burner	$36
Dell 22" widescreen 1680x1050 LCD monitor	$296
Vista Home Premium Edition OEM 32-bit (64-bit same price)	$120
Total (shipping included but not taxes)	$1,133

*You will need Vista drivers found on Realtek's Web site for LAN and audio. This is especially true if you get Vista 64-bit edition, since the sound drivers included won't run correctly without the updated drivers. All other hardware should run fine on a fresh Vista install, though it's recommended that you use the latest 32-bit NVIDIA drivers (64-bit).

** This CPU can typically safely overclock 25% over the stock speed with minor voltage increases to keep it stable in Vista and permit SpeedStep power saving mode to function. Some more aggressive overclockers have been known to push this to 50% and even beyond, with high voltage increases and massive cooling fans. Do not attempt more than 25% with the stock Intel CPU fan and stick with modest voltage increases if you want your system to be stable and without error. You can read more on how this type of hardware works with Windows Vista. This type of a mainstream system isn't meant for massive overclocking and a free 25% boost in performance (bumped up to 2.33 GHz) is very safe and doable. Also note that you'll need to bump up to DDR2-800 if you want to clock the CPU any higher.

*** 1 GB in Vista will offer good performance. If you double the RAM to 2 GBs, it will offer premium performance and allow you to work with much larger graphics files or run multiple virtual machines inside the free Virtual PC 2007.

Assembly instructions

We'll start by taking the PC chassis out of the box. The chassis shown is the Cooler Master CAV-T03-UW, which is solidly built and relatively cheap at $60. There's usually a small bag or box that contains screws you need to put the system together. In Photo A, it's lying on the chassis on top of the drive bays. I've also taken the power supply out of the box and laid it inside the chassis, shown in the upper-right of the photo Note how the power supply has the fan grill exposed toward the motherboard. That is the orientation you want.

Photo A

Next, we need to find the following kind of screw to hold down the power supply shown in Photo B.

Photo B

Now, we need to use four of those screws to screw in the power supply. Note the location of the four highlighting circles I drew in the bottom left of Photo C.

Note on the power supply: I'm using a SeaSonic S12-330 330 watt power supply, which can be had for $55. I swear by these power supplies, and I own five of them because they're super efficient at above 80 percent, they're dead silent, and they're very affordable. Most power supplies make much more noise and are typically in the 60-70 percent energy efficiency range. Many people spend upwards of $100 on a higher power supply, citing the myth that you need at least 400 watts and higher on a modern computer. That's utter nonsense even for a high-end PC. Even the highest-end PCs peak out at around 250 watts. The measured power consumption at the plug for the PC in this tutorial idled at around 73 watts and peaked out at around 110 watts during intense CPU loads. The high wattage power supply proponents will often cite video card manuals specifying that they need a 400 watt power supply, but those numbers were just pulled out of thin air and aren't based on actual power consumption measurements. 330 watts happens to be one of the smallest ATX power supplies you can find, and it's more than enough for what we're building here.

Photo C

Next, we have to find the following types of screws, shown in Photo D, to mount the motherboard in place. You'll usually need nine of them.

Photo D

You can mostly put these screws in with your finger, but you'll still need something like the tool shown in Photo E.

Photo E

Note the location of the nine red circles shown in Photo F. That's where the screws typically go for mainstream ATX motherboards. Some motherboards may be smaller, so you'll need to mount the three top screws one notch lower. Be sure to examine your motherboard to confirm the placement of the screws. You'll need to use the tool shown in Photo E to tighten them, but do not make them so tight that you strip them. It's just as bad if you make them too loose, because you'll never be able to get your motherboard out.

Photo F

Next, you'll need to find the I/O panel that came with your motherboard, which will look something like the one in Photo G. Be sure to knock out the necessary holes if your motherboard has that component. The red square shown in Photo G is the main LAN interface port hole, and it needs to be knocked out.

Photo G

Carefully knock out the old placeholder I/O plate with the dull end of a screwdriver. (If you use your finger, you could get cut.) You want to strike from the outside in. Then, place the new I/O plate in from the inside and press all four corners in place, as shown in Photo H. I usually do this with the dull end of the screwdriver hitting all four corners so I don't get cut. The edges here are sharp.

Photo H

Next, you want to find the kind of screws shown in Photo I to hold down the motherboard. You'll need nine of them.

Photo I

Gently screw them in where the red circles are in Photo J. DO NOT overtighten because if you lose a screw below the motherboard, you'll never get the screw out. You want it all the way in but not too tight, unless you want a stuck motherboard. The only way to get it out will be to take something and carefully cut the screw without damaging the motherboard--not something you want to have to do. Note that for Intel-based Socket 775 systems, you should probably put the CPU and fan on the motherboard before you put the motherboard in, since those things aren't easy to put into place with the flexing of the motherboard.

Photo J

If you didn't do this before you put in the motherboard, find the CPU socket and remove the cover, shown in Photo K.

Photo K

Photo L shows an Intel Socket 775, used in most recent Intel-based desktop PCs. You must open the lever and then pop open the lid to expose the pins in the socket.

Photo L

Photo M shows a retail Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 and the fan it comes with. In the red square is the CPU. The radiator device on top is the CPU cooler.

Photo M

Take the CPU out and remove the protection cap, as shown in Photo N. Note the positions of the CPU notches. I've circled them because they have to be aligned with the CPU socket.

Photo N

Photo O shows the chip in place. To get it there, you simply line up the notches and place the chip on the socket. Close the lid and then close the lever and secure it under the hooks.

Photo O

Photo P shows some generic thermal grease. A much better material made of liquid metal is available, and you might want to use that if you have a higher-end system.

Photo P

Photo Q shows the CPU cooler in place. Putting in those four pins isn't easy because of the motherboard flexing away. That's why it's a good idea to put the cooler in before the motherboard. All four pins need to be snug and securely inserted into the motherboard holes. Note the four-pin connector, shown by the red rectangle. You use that to power the fans. The four-pin connector allows RPM readings as well as dynamic fan speed control based on the temperature. The stock Intel CPU fan works well for all Intel processors when the chip runs at official stock speeds.

Photo Q

Photo R shows a mess of front LED and switch connectors going to the chassis. It's a crying shame that in 20 years, the motherboard industry hasn't figured out a way to standardize this so that you have a simple connector for everything. It hasn't really changed all that much. Even the front speaker/microphone connectors are a mess, and I actually decided not to hook them up, since I have 5.1 audio anyway and the front ports on the chassis support only 2 channel audio. Unfortunately, you'll have to dig out the motherboard manual and figure out where the pins for all these connectors go on the motherboard, and you might want to use some long tweezers if you have them.

Photo R

Photo S shows all the connectors for the front of the chassis plugged in. Note that the HDD fan connector shown on top is for the 80 mm fan cooling the hard drives in the bay. I generally don't use this if there is only one hard drive in the bay, since it can cool off relatively easily. Two or more drives definitely need it.

Photo S

Photo T shows the motherboard power connectors, with the SATA power cables in the red rectangle on the bottom. The motherboard connectors are plugged in, but the SATA connectors aren't yet. Be careful how you connect these motherboard connectors and make sure the clips line up and snap into place for both the left and right connectors shown in Photo T. If you reverse it, or worse, shift it over (which is pretty hard to do), it's possible you'll see smoke coming out of the motherboard when you try to plug it in and turn it on. I've seen someone do this before, and it isn't pretty. If nothing snaps into place and you can easily pull it out without having to squeeze on the release clips, it's plugged in wrong.

Photo T

Photo U shows a Gigabyte made NVIDIA 6600 PCI-Express 128 MB video card with completely silent passive cooling. This particular video card seems to be discontinued, and a NVIDIA 7300 with 256 MB is the closest I could find in the $65 price range. It's not for gaming, but it's perfect for business and non-3D graphics design usage. It can be used for moderate 3D gaming, and it's much better than the embedded Intel or NVIDIA 6100 graphics chipsets you get with those expensive retail computers. If you want a higher-end model with dual digital DVI ports, you can try an NVIDIA 7600GT card for $120 on an "open-box" model. I must also stress the fact that all the cards I'm showing here are passively cooled, which means they contribute zero noise to the system. The finished system shown in this tutorial is almost completely silent, which is music to my ears.

Photo U

Photo V shows a 400 GB SATA II hard drive. To the left of the image are the SATA power and data connectors. These drives can be obtained from discount retailers for around $110.

Photo V

Photo W shows a new Lite-on 16x SATA-based dual-layer DVD burner, which is now only $32. DVD drives have always used those wide PATA connectors, but most new motherboards have only one--or often, no PATA connectors at all. On the other hand, even a cheaper motherboard will have four SATA connectors. This is the first time I've used an SATA DVD drive, and I will say it's a pleasure to work with compared to PATA.

Photo W

My drive came with a black faceplate, but the case is silver. So I had to swap out the faceplate with the gray one that came with the drive in the box. Photo X shows how you take these apart. First, you have to use the pin (paperclip will work) and insert it in the hole in the front to pop open the tray. Then, you slide the tray lid up and out and take off the front panel. You put the new panel on and then the new tray lid.

Photo X

Photo Y shows the DVD burner and hard drive inserted into the chassis. This particular chassis uses a screwless locking mechanism to hold the drives in place. The photo also shows the PCI-Express Video card plugged in at the bottom-right of the photo.

Photo Y

Photo Z shows the gray SATA data cables connected and the SATA power cables plugged into the drives.

Photo Z

Photo AA shows the DDR2-800 memory DIMMs. DDR2-533 is all that's needed for this system, but since the price isn't all that different, I went with the higher-end memory. Note where the notches are because they need to line up with the motherboard memory socket.

Photo AA

Photo AB shows the memory DIMMs inserted. Be sure you line up the notches and open the side clips before you insert the memory. It should work its way in relatively easily, and you should feel the clips on the side snap into place. Squeeze the clips in to make it secure.

Photo AB

Now, everything should be working. But before you put the side panel on, try to see whether the system BIOS will post. If it doesn't, don't panic. It's usually something you forgot to connect or something that isn't seated properly. Just check all your connectors and it should work. If the LED lights in the front don't light up, simply reverse the connectors. Those LED connectors are no big deal, and nothing bad will happen if you plug them in wrong. Every other connector in the system is pretty much idiot-proof, since you'd have to be formidably strong to connect them incorrectly. Just make sure the clips and notches are all aligned correctly.

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[IT_Group:4869] SolutionBase: Surveying the dual-core processor landscape

SolutionBase: Surveying the dual-core processor landscape

by Greg Shultz | Apr 12, 2007 2:36:00 PM

Tags: Processors, Branding, Greg Shultz, dual-core processor, processor, Advanced Micro Devices Inc., Intel Corp.

Takeaway: Dual-core processors are almost standard equipment on laptops and desktops today. There are so many different kinds, however, that it can become confusing to understand how the processors differ. In this article, Greg Shultz outlines the differences.

This article is also available as a TechRepublic download.

With the release of Microsoft's Windows Vista operating system, chances are very good that you've been thinking about getting a new computer. Whether you're looking for a new desktop or a new laptop, you've undoubtedly encountered systems with dual-core processors from either Intel or AMD. At face value, the idea of getting a system with two processors rather than one sounds like a no-brainer, especially when the price is reasonable.

However, you'll quickly discover a bewildering number of brand names and model numbers attached to dual-core processors available from Intel and AMD. For example, Intel's dual-core brand names include: Pentium D, Pentium Extreme Edition, Core Duo, Core 2 Duo, and the Core 2 Extreme. In the AMD arena: Athlon 64 X2, Athlon 64 FX, and Turion 64 X2. That no-brainer can quickly turn into a big headache.

In this article, I'll provide you with a generalized overview of the dual-core processor brands from both Intel and AMD. As I do, I'll explain the differences in each to help in your purchase of a new PC with a dual-core processor.

The genesis of dual-core technology

The road to dual-core processors really began when Intel and AMD discovered that the goal of improving processor efficiency and performance by increasing the clock speeds towards the 3-GHz mark and beyond was actually having the opposite effect. The faster clock speeds were producing more heat and consuming more energy, both of which were hindering the efficiency and performance of the processors. Both companies realized that they needed to move towards dual-core processor technology in order to continue to improve processor performance.

Dual-core processors contain two processor cores on one chip; consequently, they can simultaneously perform calculations on two streams of data, which increases efficiency and speed when running multiple programs. This is especially true when running new, multi-threaded software, such as video and audio editing applications.

Intel's dual-core lineup

To dramatically mark their break into the new dual-core technology arena, Intel decided to abandon the Pentium brand name in favor of a brand name called Core. In developing the Core brand of processors, Intel took the low heat and low voltage technologies developed for its recent mobile processor, the Pentium M, along with the EM64T 64-bit architecture technology, and combined that with its newly developed dual-core technology.

When you begin looking at the Core processors, keep in mind that the clock speeds are down a bit from the Pentium line. This is because the Core technology focuses on improving performance per clock cycle rather than on improving performance by increasing clock cycles.

The Pentium dual-cores

Before inventing the Core technology, Intel experimented with making Pentium-based dual-core processors. In early 2005, Intel released Pentium D and Pentium Extreme, which are essentially made up of two Pentium 4 dies placed together in a single package. You can still purchase a computer with the Pentium D and Pentium Extreme processors; however, keep in mind that while these Pentium dual-core processors are very powerful, they still fall victim to the high-heat generation and high-energy consumption problems that the Core technology was designed to overcome.

Core Duo

Intel's first processor in the Core lineup is called the Core Duo. At the time of the Core Duo's release, Intel was still focusing on the Pentium D for desktop computers, so the Core Duo was designed specifically for mobile computers. While the Core Duo utilizes the low heat and low voltage technologies of the Core technology, it doesn't incorporate the EM64T 64-bit architecture technology. As such, it is a 32-bit processor, something you might want to take into consideration when evaluating your dual-core options.

As of this writing, the current crop of Core 2 Duo processor's model number system use the 2000 series; the higher the model number, the higher the clock speed. The model numbers also contain single-letter prefixes to designate the processor's power consumption. The letter "T" is used for the Standard versions, and indicates 31 watts. The letter "L" is used for the Low Voltage versions, and indicates 15 watts. The letter "U" is used for the Ultra Low Voltage versions, and indicates nine watts.

Specifications for the Core Duo processors are listed in Table A.

Table A

Intel's Core Duo processors

Model	Clock Speed	L2 Cache	Bus Speed
T2050	1.66 GHz	2 MB	533 MHz
T2250	1.73 GHz	2 MB	533 MHz
T2300E	1.66 GHz	2 MB	667 MHz
T2300	1.66 GHz	2 MB	667 MHz
T2400	1.83 GHz	2 MB	667 MHz
T2500	2.00 GHZ	2 MB	667 MHz
T2600	2.16 GHz	2 MB	667 MHz
T2700	2.33 GHz	2 MB	667 MHz
L2300	1.50 GHz	2 MB	667 MHz
L2400	1.66 GHz	2 MB	667 MHz
L2500	1.83 GHz	2 MB	667 MHz
U2400	1.06 GHz	2 MB	533 MHz
U2500	1.20 GHz	2 MB	533 MHz

Core Solo

When manufacturing the Core Duo processors, Intel encountered defects that rendered one of the two cores inoperable. Since one of the cores was perfectly functional, Intel decided to disable the second core and call the processor the Core Solo. Like the Core Duo, the Core Solo is used exclusively for mobile computers and is not a 64-bit processor.

Taking advantage of a manufacturing defect is nothing new: Intel took 486DX processors with defective Floating Point Unit components, renamed them a 486SX, and sold them as lower cost processors.

Table B lists members of the Core Solo family.

Table B

Intel's Core Solo processors

Model	Clock Speed	L2 Cache	Bus Speed
T1300	1.66 GHz	2 MB	667 MHz
T1350	1.86 GHz	2 MB	533 MHz
T1400	2.33 GHz	2 MB	667 MHz
U1300	1.06 GHz	2 MB	533 MHz
U1400	1.20 GHz	2 MB	533 MHz

Core 2 Duo

The Core 2 Duo is the second iteration of Intel's Core-branded dual-core processor and is probably the best choice when purchasing a PC with an Intel dual-core processor. The major difference between the Core Duo and the Core 2 Duo is this new version combines the dual-core technology with Intel's EM64T technology, making the Core 2 Duo a true 64-bit processor. Further differentiating the Core 2 Duo is that it is designed for both desktops and laptops.

As of this writing, the current crop of Core 2 Duo processor's model number system uses the 6000 series for desktops and the 5000 and 7000 series for laptops. The higher the model number, the higher the clock speed.

The model numbers also contain single-letter prefixes to designate the processor's power consumption. On desktops, the letter "E" is used, and it indicates 55-75 watts. On laptops, the letter "T" is used, and it indicates 25-55 watts.

Table C lists the members of the Core 2 Duo family.

Table C

Intel's Core 2 Duo processors

Model	Clock Speed	L2 Cache	Bus Speed
E6300	1.86 GHz	2 MB	1066 MHz
E6400	2.13 GHz	2 MB	1066 MHz
E6600	2.40 GHz	4 MB	1066 MHz
E6700	2.67 GHz	4 MB	1066 MHz
T5200	1.60 GHz	2 MB	533 MHz
T5500	1.66 GHz	2 MB	667 MHz
T5600	1.83 GHz	2 MB	667 MHz
T7200	2.00 GHZ	4 MB	667 MHz
T7400	2.16 GHz	4 MB	667 MHz
T7600	2.33 GHz	4 MB	667 MHz

Core 2 Extreme

The Core 2 Extreme is a version of the Intel's dual-core processor aimed at gamers and digital media creation professionals. It has a higher clock speed than the Core 2 Duo, a fully loaded L2 cache, and a host of other features specifically aimed at enhancing graphics, video, and animation. To take gaming or digital media creation up another level, there is also a quad-core processor version of the Core 2 Extreme with twice the L2 cache.

Table D lists the members of the Core 2 Extreme family.

Table D

Intel's Core 2 Extreme processors

Model	Clock Speed	L2 Cache	Bus Speed
X6800	2.93 GHz	4 MB	1066 MHz
QX6700	2.66 GHz	8 MB	1066 MHz

AMD's dual-core lineup

Like Intel, AMD has several processors in its dual-core lineup. However, before AMD made the move to dual-core processor technology, it focused on integrating 64-bit technology into the Athlon XP processors. In doing so, AMD was able to take into account the transition to dual-core processors earlier in the design process. The lineup of AMD's dual-core processors is much easier to analyze when compared to Intel's lineup.

Athlon 64 X2

Athlon 64 X2 is the brand name for AMD's line of 64-bit, dual-core processors for desktop computers. The model numbers and clock speeds associated with the Athlon 64 X2 processors are closely aligned with model numbers and clock speeds of previous Athlon 64 processors. This is due to the fact that AMD's transition from 64-bit processors to dual-core processors was better engineered.

As of this writing, the current crop of Athlon 64 X2 processor's model number system starts with 3800+ and move up to 5600+. The higher the model number, the higher the clock speed. Youâ€™ll find the members of the Athlon 64 X2 family in Table E.

Table E

Athlon 64 X2 processors

Model	Clock Speed	L2 Cache	Bus Speed
3800+	2.00 GHz	1 MB	2000 MHz
4200+	2.20 GHz	1 MB	2000 MHz
4400+	2.20 GHz	2 MB	2000 MHz
4600+	2.40 GHz	1 MB	2000 MHz
4800+	2.40 GHz	2 MB	2000 MHz
5000+	2.60 GHz	1 MB	2000 MHz
5200+	2.60 GHz	2 MB	2000 MHz
5400+	2.80 GHz	1 MB	2000 MHz
5600+	2.80 GHz	2 MB	2000 MHz

Athlon 64 FX

Athlon 64 FX is a version of the Athlon 64 processor aimed at gamers and digital media creation professionals. It has a higher clock speed than Athlon 64 X2, as well a host of other features specifically aimed at enhancing graphics, video, and animation.

Athlon 64 FX is available in dual- and quad-core versions: Athlon 64 FX-60 is the dual-core version; Athlon 64 FX-70, Athlon 64 FX-72, and Athlon 64 FX-74 are the quad-core versions. (Model details are shown in Table F.) The FX-70 series of processors are actually dual-core processors specifically designed to work together via what AMD is calling the AMD Quad FX platform, which includes a dual-socket motherboard featuring Dual Socket Direct Connect (DSDC) Architecture for high-bandwidth processor-to-processor communication.

Table F

AMD's Athlon 64 FX processors

Model	Clock Speed	L2 Cache	Bus Speed
FX-60	2.60 GHz	2 MB	2000 MHz
FX-70	2.60 GHz	2 MB	2000 MHz
FX-72	2.80 GHz	2 MB	2000 MHz
FX-74	3.00 GHz	2 MB	2000 MHz

Turion 64 X2

Turion 64 X2 is AMD's 64-bit, dual-core, low-power processor designed for laptops. As of this writing, the current crop of Turion 64 X2 processor's model number system consists of two letters followed by two numbers: They start with TL-50 and move up to TL-60 (shown in Table G). The letters designate the processor class and the degree of mobility features (power consumption and heat generation.) The higher the numbers, the higher the clock speed.

Table G

AMD's Turion 64 X2 processors

Model	Clock Speed	L2 Cache	Bus Speed
TL-50	1.60 GHz	512 KB	1600 MHz
TL-52	1.60 GHz	1 MB	1600 MHz
TL-56	1.80 GHz	1 MB	1600 MHz
TL-60	2.00 GHz	1 MB	1600 MHz

Moving forward

When you begin investigating the current crop of dual-core processors from Intel and AMD, it's easy to get confused by the various brand names and model numbers. In this article, I've presented you with a general overview of the dual-core technologies from Intel and AMD. Of course, there is a lot more to these dual-core processors than I've presented here; but, now you have a good basis on which to continue your analysis.

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[IT_Group:4868] 10 things you'll miss when you upgrade to Vista (and how to get some of them back)

10 things you'll miss when you upgrade to Vista (and how to get some of them back)

by Deb Shinder | Feb 01, 2007 8:00:00 AM

Tags: Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Deb Shinder, Quick Launch, toolbar, Microsoft Windows Vista, taskbar, Microsoft Windows

Takeaway: Most of us expect a learning curve when we adopt a new OS--it comes with the territory. But Windows Vista may throw you a few curves, too. Along with its visual dazzle and assorted new features, Vista has jettisoned a lot of familiar functionality. Here's Deb Shinder's list of what she misses the most and the workarounds she's devised to close some of the gaps.

This article is also available as a PDF download.

Windows Vista has lots of cool new features, eye candy, and security enhancements we didn't have with Windows XP. But as with any software upgrade, there are also some missing pieces--features or capabilities you may find yourself wishing for after the upgrade. Luckily, in many cases you can get back what's missing with a simple download, a registry edit, or an "undocumented" technique.

After I switched to Vista fulltime as my primary operating system, I missed several things. Here's how I got some of them back and worked around others.

#1: Why can't I separate my toolbars anymore?

One of the first things I do when I set up a new operating system for daily use is configure the desktop to suit my working habits. For years, that has included dragging the Quick Launch bar off of the main taskbar and docking it vertically on one side of my screen. That gives me more room for the open program icons on the taskbar and more room to place program icons on the Quick Launch bar for easy and fast access.

In the first few Vista betas, I found that I was unable to move the taskbar or separate its sections, even after unlocking it. I figured it was a "beta thing" and would be fixed in the final version. Imagine my surprise to discover, after installing the RTM, that I could now move the entire taskbar to the side of the screen, but there was no way to detach the Quick Launch bar, no matter how hard I tried. A little research revealed that this was no oversight, but instead is a new "feature" designed to prevent the problem of people inadvertently separating the toolbars. Ouch! Apparently the thinking at Microsoft is that the Start Menu Search box substitutes for the QL bar. Well, not for me.

Thank goodness I found a way to get my Quick Launch bar back where it's supposed to be:

In Windows Explorer, browse to the Quick Launch folder (typically Application Data\Microsoft\Internet Explorer). Vista's Start menu search feature makes it easy to find: Just type Quick Launch in the box.
Drag the Quick Launch folder to the edge of your desktop. It creates a toolbar there. You'll probably want to right-click and select View | Small Icons to make it look better.

You can do this with any folder to create a toolbar of its contents. Figure A shows my Vista desktop, with the detached QL bar holding shortcuts to my favorite programs. I closed the QL bar on the Vista taskbar and created a custom toolbar there for accessing frequently used folders and drives.

Figure A

You can create a separate Quick Launch toolbar by dragging the folder to the edge of the desktop.

#2: Text-based Setup is gone

Okay, this isn't something anyone's likely to spend a lot of time mourning, but for those of us who have been installing Windows operating systems for years, the lack of "part one" of the Setup process, featuring white text on a blue background, is definitely a difference. The Vista installation program is graphical from the very beginning--and it's pretty, in keeping with the visual "wow" factor that Microsoft was aiming for with Vista.

#3: What's happened to my favorite third-party programs?

I created the custom toolbar for my folders and drives because I found I wasn't able to use the PowerDesk 5.0 toolbar I'd been using in Windows XP, which had a section for such shortcuts. PowerDesk itself installed on Vista and worked fine, but when I tried to create or open a toolbar, I got the error message shown in Figure B.

Figure B

Some programs, or parts of programs, such as the PowerDesk toolbar, don't work in Vista.

Older versions of many programs won't work in Vista, but many software vendors are bringing out new versions that do, or releasing updates to make their programs Vista-capable.

In some cases, you can get the old programs to install or run by running the installation file or the installed program in Compatibility mode. To do so:

In Windows Explorer, navigate to the installation file or the program executable.
Right-click and select Properties.
Click the Compatibility tab.
Select the Run This Program In Compatibility Mode For check box and choose the operating system you were previously running it on from the drop-down list (for example, Windows XP (Service Pack 2).
You may also need to check the box to run the program as an administrator.

If it still doesn't work, you can try adjusting the settings for running the program (color depth and resolution) or disable visual themes, desktop composition, and/or display scaling.

Another program you might have been running in XP that has problems with Vista is the Diskeeper defragmentation software. This brings us to the next MIA feature, which is the reason some of you might want to run a third-party defrag utility.

#4: Where did the Defrag progress bars go?

The Vista Defrag utility now has a scheduler feature, something users have been asking for, but not everyone likes the simplicity of the new Defragmenter interface and the fact that there are no progress indicators. (See the view of a defragmentation in progress in Figure C.)

Figure C

The new Disk Defragmenter GUI does away with the progress indicators.

Figure D shows the old XP Defragmenter interface, which some folks are longing for.

Figure D

The XP Defragmentation interface graphically indicates the progress of the process.

The good news is that for those who want to use a third-party defrag utility, there's now a free update for Diskeeper 2007 that's compatible with Vista. See the January 22 post on the Diskeeper Weblog for information about how to get it. Other third-party defragmenters also work with Vista. Raxco's PerfectDisk has a free trial of its Vista-compatible beta (version 8).

#5: Why is it so much harder to use multiple monitors?

It took me longer than it otherwise would have to embrace Vista wholeheartedly because of problems I had with multiple monitor support. I started using multiple monitors regularly back with Windows 2000, although it was sometimes a bit of a hassle to get it configured on a new computer.

Windows XP perfected multi-monitor support. It became truly plug and play; I could throw two or three video cards into a computer's PCI slots, plug in my monitors, and XP recognized them almost every time.

Then along came Vista. When I installed it on my XP machine that was running four monitors, two off an ATI x600 PCIe card and two off a Matrox 450G PCI card, I got the Aero Glass interface on the first two (ATI), and nothing--black screen--on the second pair (Matrox). Research showed the Matrox card wasn't Vista capable, so I bought a card that, according to advertising, was: a GeForce 5200. Still no joy; still no third screen.

Finally, documentation became available on the Microsoft site indicating that to run Aero Glass on multiple video cards, they must use the same WDDM driver. If you have two Aero-capable cards that use different WDDM drivers (e.g., an ATI card and an nVidia card), Vista will disable one of them. It turns out that it is possible to use the cards together with the older XPDM drivers, but you don't get the Glass interface and associated Vista eye candy. Now I have three monitors working fine on my Vista machine, with a GeForce 7900 card paired up with the GeForce 5200. Figure E shows my setup.

Figure E

Vista still supports multiple monitors, but it's not the no brainer it was in XP.

Multiple monitor support still isn't as stable in Vista as it was in XP. Even with the RTM, I occasionally turn on my system to find that my monitors have mysteriously "switched places" in the operating system's eyes. That is, my taskbar and sidebar have moved from my middle monitor to the right side monitor, which now thinks it's the primary monitor. It's a quick fix in the Display Properties dialog box, shown in Figure F, but it's an annoyance. I miss XP's user-transparent support of multiple monitors.

Figure F

Vista occasionally "forgets" which monitor I've designated as the main monitor.

#6: Where's Windows Messenger?

XP came with Windows Messenger installed. Vista doesn't--but the Start menu does contain a link to the download page for Windows Live Messenger. Some folks may be annoyed at having to download and install the program (especially those who are restricted from installing programs), but this is probably a good idea for a couple of reasons:

It makes it easier for network administrators to keep users from chatting online, if your company's policies don't allow that.
It ensures that you'll get the most updated version of the Messenger program no matter when you install the operating system.

#7: Why is the new security system nagging me all the time?

Probably the most-missed characteristic of XP is its more demure behavior. If you were logged on as an administrator and you decided to install a program or perform some other administrative task, XP didn't question your decision. Vista's security is more in your face--even admins will encounter the User Account Control "nag box," shown in Figure G.

Figure G

XP didn't argue when you wanted to install a program.

Vista's best-kept secret: It's possible to turn off the User Account Control feature--but it's not recommended. UAC takes some of the risk out of logging on with an administrative account, and if you regularly do so, you should let Vista protect you. That said, if you really want to get rid of those nag screens, here's how:

In the Administrative Tools menu of Control Panel, select Local Security Policy.
When prompted, click Continue.
In the left pane, expand Local Policies and click Security Options.
In the right pane, scroll down to User Account Control: Behavior Of The Elevation Prompt For Administrators In Admin Approval Mode and double-click it.
In the drop-down box on the Local Security Settings tab, select Elevate Without Prompting, as shown in Figure H.
Click OK.

Figure H

You can configure Vista not to prompt administrators for permission when performing admin tasks.

Tip

You can modify a number of security behaviors via the Local Security Settings console. For example, I had to disable the policy User Account Control: Switch To The Secure Desktop When Prompting For Elevation to get a screenshot of the elevation prompt dialog box shown in Figure G. By default, the secure desktop prevents any other programs from interacting when this dialog box is being displayed.

#8: Windows Explorer looks different

The first time you open Windows Explorer, you may be a little disconcerted by the new look. In particular, you're likely to miss the old familiar menu bar, the one that says File, Edit, View, Favorites, Tools, Help. In fact, you may find it a little difficult to get around without it. Figure I shows the new Explorer.

Figure I

The top menu bar in Windows Explorer appears to have gone missing.

This one is an easy fix: Just click the down arrow on the Organize button, select Layout, and then click Menu Bar. A check mark there means your old friend the menu bar is back at the top of the window, right where it belongs, as shown in Figure J.

Figure J

You can get the menu bar back with a few quick clicks of your mouse.

#9: What's up with the Up button?

Another difference in Windows Explorer is the missing Up button. This has been replaced by the Back button--but that takes you back to where you started, not necessarily to the top level of the path you're in. It would have been nice to have both.

In most cases, you can work around this by using the new clickable folder path. Now you can click at any level of the path shown in the top address/navigation bar. You can also click the down arrows beside each level and see a clickable list of all the files and folders contained at that level.

In addition, you can use the Recent Pages button, which is a small down arrow located between the back and forward buttons and the address bar, to display locations to or through which you've recently navigated. This is a great help in finding your way around the file system.

#10: Vista requires too many clicks

Many new Vista users have complained that some operations now require more clicks to complete than they did in XP. For example, in XP you could right-click the Network icon on the desktop and select Properties to see a list of your network connections.

In Vista, that same right-click selection displays the Network And Sharing Center, shown in Figure K. An extra click is required to get to the list of network connections. You must select Manage Network Connections in the left Tasks pane.

Figure K

Some users miss being able to access the list of network connections with two clicks.

If getting to the network connections list quickly is an issue, you can easily create a shortcut to it by dragging its icon to the desktop (Figure L) or Quick Launch bar, giving you access with one click instead of two.

Figure L

To work around the extra click requirement, just make a shortcut on the desktop.

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[IT_Group:4867] 10+ tweaks, tricks, and hacks to make Windows Vista fly

10+ tweaks, tricks, and hacks to make Windows Vista fly

by Mark Kaelin | Jan 25, 2007 9:32:00 PM

Tags: Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Operating systems, Mark Kaelin, Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows, Welcome Center, Run Command, Start Menu, Right Click

Takeaway: No matter how well designed an operating system purports to be, there are ways to tweak it for performance. Here are 10+ tweaks, tricks, and hacks you can apply to Microsoft Windows Vista to make it run like a champion and perform to your particular specifications.

This article is also available as a TechRepublic download.

Every operating system could stand some tweaking. No matter how many developers you throw at an OS as complicated as Windows Vista, power users will always find something they can modify or hack to make it run faster, or better, or just differently. Here are just a few of the Windows Vista tweaks, tricks, and hacks we have discovered so far.

1: Add the Run command to the Start Menu

Beginning way back with the release of Windows 1.0, Microsoft has been all about the GUI interface (more or less effectively). But sometimes you just want to run a program without having to navigate the GUI maze of menus and folders. Windows Vista, by default, does not include the Run command on the Start Menu. This was a common and favorite feature of Windows XP.

To add the Run command back to the Vista Start Menu, follow these steps:

Right click the Taskbar in an open area
Click on Properties

Click on the Start Menu tab (See Figure A)

Figure A

Taskbar and Start Menu Properties

Click the Customize button to get to the Customize Start Menu

Scroll down the list until you find the Run command checkbox and check it (See Figure B).

Click OK and the Run command will now appear on the Start Menu.

Figure B

Customize Start Menu

2. Disable the Welcome Center and Sidebar

The Windows Vista default setting is to show the Welcome Center on startup. While the Welcome Center is mildly interesting the first time you see it, you will quickly tire of it appearing every time you boot your Vista PC. This behavior is easily changed by unchecking the Run a Startup button located at the bottom of the Welcome Center as shown in Figure C.

Figure C

Welcome Center

Similarly, the Vista Sidebar is also on by default. While some users will find the Sidebar and its widgets useful, many will desire the desktop real estate and underlying resources for other more productive uses. You can turn the Sidebar off by:

Right clicking the Windows Sidebar icon in the system tray
Click Properties
Uncheck the Start Sidebar when Windows starts checkbox (See Figure D)
Click OK

Figure D

Windows Sidebar Properties

3: Change the Product Key

A Windows Vista installation disk essentially has all of the various editions of Vista included on that one disk. Which version gets installed is dependent on what product key you enter during the installation process. At some point you may want to upgrade your current version to a version with more bells and whistles, which would require a new Product Key.

Or you may want to Activate your Windows Vista under a different Product Key for some reason. The easiest way to change your Product Key is through the System applet in the Control Panel. (See Figure E)

Figure E

System applet

Under the Windows Activation section there is a link: Change Product Key. Clicking that link brings up the screen shown in Figure F where you can enter in a different Product Key.

Figure F

Windows Activation

4: Start Windows Explorer at somewhere other than documents

While Windows Vista has desktop search that will theoretically allow you the option of merely typing in a location on your hard disk to get an Explorer view, some users will undoubtedly prefer to use Windows Explorer. By default, Windows Explorer in Vista shows you the files located in the user Documents folder. Follow these steps to have Windows Explorer start in a different folder:

Copy the Windows Explorer shortcut, usually found in the Start Menu under Accessories, to the Desktop.
Right click the shortcut and click properties.

Click on the Shortcut tab to get the window shown in Figure G.

Figure G

Windows Explorer Properties

Change the Target filed to the desired location.

For example, to have Windows Explorer start at C:\ type in"

C:\Windows\explorer.exe /n, /e, c:\

Click OK

5: Privacy tweak

As a convenience, Windows Vista by default saves and displays a list of recently opened files and programs on the Start Menu. Ostensibly, this is supposed to make it easier to find a file or program. However, many users would prefer that information to remain hidden. Here is how to turn it off:

Right click the Taskbar and click Properties on the resulting menu
Click the Start Menu tab

Uncheck the checkboxes under Privacy (See Figure H)

Click OK

Figure H

Privacy settings

6: Smaller icons on Start Menu

The icons located on the Windows Vista Start Menu default to large (Figure I).

Figure I

Large icons

For many users, the personal preference will be for those icons to be much smaller. Here is how:

Right click the Taskbar and click on Properties
Click the Start Menu tab
Click the Customize button
Scroll down to the bottom of the list (See Figure J)
Uncheck the Use large icons checkbox
Click OK twice

Figure J

No more large icons

7. Add Internet Explorer to the Vista Desktop

For some reason known only to the Windows Vista development team, there is no easy option to add the Windows Explorer icon to the Vista Desktop. You can add Computer, Recycle Bin, and the Control Panel --- perhaps someone can explain that to us. In the meantime, if you want to add Internet Explorer you can do it with a Registry hack. Before editing the Windows Registry it is always advisable to make a backup of the Registry file.

Click the Start button
Open the Run dialog box (or type regedit in to the search box on the Start Menu)
Type in regedit and press Enter
Navigate to the following registry key:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\HideDesktopIcons\NewStartPanel
Create a new DWORD 32-bit by right clicking in the key area (See Figure K)
Copy this as the key name including the brackets:
{871C5380-42A0-1069-A2EA-08002B30309D}
Close regedit
Right click on the Desktop and click the Refresh menu entry --- Internet Explorer should now appear.

Figure K

Regedit Internet Explorer

8: Change Security Center notifications

One of the most often leveled criticisms of Windows has been its lack of security. To overcome that perception Microsoft had programmed Vista to complain loudly and often if it discovers your malware, firewall or virus protection software is off or requires maintenance. For many users, the constant badgering to update your virus definitions is more annoying then effective. To calm Vista down a bit you can change the way you are notified of potential lax security.

Open the control panel and click the Windows Security Center as shown in Figure L.

Figure L

Windows Security Center

Click the link Change the way Security Center alerts me to reach the dialog box shown in Figure M.

Choose you preference for notification

Figure M

Chose your preference

9: Set Folder options

One of the first things experienced users change when they get a new Windows computer is change the Folder View options to a preferred setting. Windows Vista is no exception to this rule.

Open the Control Panel and click on the Folder Options icon
Click on the View tab (See Figure N)

Figure N

Folder options

Check or uncheck your folder preferences --- some suggestions:

Check show hidden files and folders
Uncheck Hide extensions for known file types
Uncheck protected operating system files

10: Adjust power settings

By default, Windows Vista sets the power options to what it calls a "Balanced" plan. While for many users this plan will be adequate, there are many who will want to make adjustments. For laptop users specifically, settings can vary greatly when operating on battery power versus plugged into an outlet. To adjust power settings:

Open the Control Panel and then click the Power Options icon (See Figure O)

Figure O

Power Options

Click on the Change Plan Settings under one of the default plans to make changes (See Figure P)

Figure P

Power settings

For additional fine tuning click Change advanced power settings (See Figure Q)

Figure Q

Advanced power settings

11: Reduce Desktop Icons

By default, the Windows Vista Aero GUI uses what it classifies as "Medium" icons on the Desktop. Medium in this case is really quite large. (There is also a Large icon setting, but we won't go there.) To bring the icons back to a less eye-popping size:

Right click on the Desktop
Choose the View menu item
Change to Classic Icons (Figure R)

Figure R

Classic

12 Add another time zone

For many of us working away from home offices at satellite offices, home or on the road, knowing the time across various time zones can be a necessary evil. Windows Vista will allow you to keep time in two additional time zones to the machine time.

Right click on the time display located in Taskbar System Tray
Select the Adjust Date/Time menu item
Click on the Additional Clocks tab (See Figure S)

Figure S

Add clocks

Choose a time zone
Click the checkbox next to Show this clock
Click OK

Now when you mouse over the time in the Taskbar System Tray you will get the time in your chosen time zones.

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[IT_Group:4866] Create a bootable Windows XP CD slipstreamed with SP2 and hotfixes

Create a bootable Windows XP CD slipstreamed with SP2 and hotfixes

by Louis Nel | Jan 17, 2007 8:00:00 AM

Tags: Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 2, Louis Nel, Microsoft Windows XP, Service Pack 2, service pack, Microsoft Windows, CD

Takeaway: Since Microsoft released Windows XP SP2, there have been more than 120 hotfixes and updates. So even if you've slipstreamed your copy of WinXP with SP2, you could be stuck applying patch after patch for each new install. Here's a much better option: Slipstream your copy of Win XP with SP2, integrate the latest updates (and a few useful utilities), and then burn the image to a bootable CD.

This article is also available as a PDF download.

Applying a service pack after every reinstallation of Windows XP is a schlep and a waste of time, especially in a business environment. That's why it's a good idea to have a copy of XP with the latest service pack already integrated into it--a process known as slipstreaming.

But that's not nearly the end of the story. What about adding all the subsequent hotfixes/updates Microsoft has released since Service Pack 2 for Windows XP was released eons ago (August 2004, to be exact)? There have been more than 120 since then. Downloading and installing every one of them is no fun; doing it every time for every new Windows installation is plain crazy.

Even so, you can't really take a chance on ignoring the updates. Venturing onto the Internet without the protection of the latest updates and patches is downright dangerous. Tests have shown that Windows vulnerabilities can be exploited within minutes after exposing such a system on the Net.

So wouldn't it be great if you could integrate all (or at least most) of those Microsoft updates right into a copy of XP, together with the latest service pack? Well, you can--and it's a relatively simple process. And once you've done it the first time, subsequent procedures (to make new CDs with the latest updates) is a walk in the park.

To top it all, you can even add some useful utilities to your customized version of Windows and make the disk bootable.

I'm going to walk you through the whole process of first slipstreaming your copy of XP with SP2, integrating most of the updates/hotfixes since the release of SP2 into your new installation pack, and then burning the image to a bootable CD.

Slipstreaming with SP2

Let's first slipstream XP with SP2:

If you don't already have it, get the full ("network installation") version of the service pack. You can download it here. For the purposes of this article, we'll save it to the folder XP_SP2 on the C: drive.
Copy the contents of your Windows XP CD to your hard drive. We'll name this folder (also on the C: drive) WinXP.
Open a command prompt and go to the folder containing SP2 (XP_SP2 in our example).
Type the command: servicepackfilename /integrate:drive:\XPfolder. In my example, the command is:
WindowsXP-KB835935-SP2-ENU /integrate:C:\WinXP
See Figure A and Figure B.

Figure A

The command to integrate the service pack

Figure B

The integration process

If the process has been successful, a message to this effect will be displayed (Figure C).

Figure C

Success!

Note

When you try slipstreaming using OEM disks from some big companies, you might run into the following error:

"This Service Pack cannot be integrated into a destination that also has integrated Software Updates."

Not to worry, there are ways and means. A program called nLite will do the trick (although it needs the .NET framework).

Integrating post-SP2 updates

Now we're ready to integrate most of the post-SP2 updates, thanks to a guy called Ryan VanderMeulen. As Ryan says on his Web site, his update pack and Integrator software are "designed to bring a Windows XP CD with SP2 integrated fully up to date with all of the latest hotfixes released by Microsoft since SP2's release. It accomplishes this task via direct integration, where files on the CD are directly overwritten by the updated files". He also says: "All necessary registry entries needed by Windows Update, QFECheck, and Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer are imported during Windows setup, meaning that the integration is transparent to Windows. Security Catalogs necessary for Windows File Protection to recognize the updated files as digitally signed are installed, once again ensuring maximum transparency to Windows. Since the updated files are being directly overwritten on the CD, this pack has the minimum possible amount of overhead associated with integrating hotfixes in comparison to other methods--both in space used on the CD and in Windows installation time."

Sound good? It sure is!

A word of warning before you begin: Ryan strongly recommends that you start with a fresh XP installation source with no previous update packs integrated into it.

With that out of the way, let's get down to business.

Download the latest version of RVM Integrator and Update Pack (also the optional add-on packs if you want to--see note) here. On this page, you'll see the list of the included updates.

Note

Ryan has several add-ons available. One includes some useful programs and utilities; another integrates Windows Genuine Advantage Validation (KB892130) into the XP install CD.

Start RVM Integrator. At the top of the screen you'll see the message Browse to the location which contains the i386 directory. In our example, that's C:\WinXP (Figure D). Note that this is the root folder that contains the i386 folder (do NOT select the i386 directory!).

Figure D

Providing the path to the i386 folder in RVM Integrator

The detected version of Windows will be displayed. You can also select a destination directory if you want to create the new installation source in a different folder. Otherwise, leave the field blank.
Select Choose An Update Pack CAB to browse to the location of the update pack. My update pack was called rvmupdatepack2.1.1.7z. In your case, the version might be different.
If you downloaded any add-on packs, add them next.
The final step is the integration. Click Integrate, and the process will start (Figure E). Go get yourself another cup of coffee.

Figure E

RVM Integrator doing its job

Creating a bootable CD

To make our bootable CD, we'll use Bart's approach. Bart Lagerweij, as you probably know, is the doyen of boot disks. I'll provide an overview of the steps, but if you want to read Bart's full instructions on how to create a bootable Windows XP CD, go here.

Other methods are available. If you already have a preferred way, by all means go ahead and use that. You can, for example, use IsoBuster and Nero Burning ROM 6 (you'll need at least version 5.5.9.0) or you can use nLite (but you'll need .NET framework installed).

I prefer Bart's way. Apart for a couple of small extras you need to download the first time, you won't need things like the full version of Nero and .NET like other methods. Besides, I just love to watch Bart's command-line magic.

Here are the essential steps:

Download Bart's BCD software (523 KB).
Unzip BCD to a folder. We'll unzip it to c:\bcd for this example.
Download the file wnaspi32.dll from here and copy it into BCD's \bin folder (in our example, to c:\bcd\bin).
Download this Windows XP file (5 KB). Unzip it into BCD's root folder (c:\bdc in our example). Make sure the subfolders are also unpacked.
Copy the i386 folder (in our example, from C:\WinXP) into one of the following folders, depending on whether it's Windows XP Home or Professional:

c:\bcd\cds\wxphome\files\ (Windows XP Home Edition)
c:\bcd\cds\wxppro\files\ (Windows XP Professional)

Copy the win51ic.SPx or win51ip.SPx file here as well (See Figure F). Optionally, you can also copy the following files (not needed for bootable CD installation):

autorun.inf

readme.htm

setup.exe

Figure F

Copy the files to the relevant locations in the bcd folder

Note

If you have a Windows XP CD from MSDN, edit the file i386\txtsetup.sif:

section [SetupData]

and change the setup source path to:

SetupSourcePath = "\"

Now you're ready to roll. Open a command prompt, go to the c:\bcd folder, and type in and run one of the following commands (depending on whether it's XP Home or XP Pro):

bcd wxphome (For Windows XP Home edition)

or:

bcd wxppro (For Windows XP Professional)

This will start creating the bootable ISO image and burn it to a CD for you. Armed with this CD, reinstalling XP or installing it on new machines will be a breeze.

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[IT_Group:4865] Illustrated walk-through: Creating a bootable USB flash drive for Windows XP

Illustrated walk-through: Creating a bootable USB flash drive for Windows XP

by Greg Shultz | Feb 16, 2007 8:00:00 AM

Tags: Microsoft Windows, bootable USB, Greg Shultz, Microsoft Windows XP, USB flash drive, bootable device, BIOS, bootable USB flash drive, PC

Takeaway: A bootable flash drive can come in handy--but trying to create one might have you pulling out your hair. Windows expert Greg Shultz shares the method he followed, from configuring the BIOS to allow the USB port to act as a bootable device to creating a bootable image of Windows XP using the free PE Builder software (and a pair of Windows Server 2003 SP1 files) to formatting and copying the image onto a UFD.

This article is also available as a PDF download and a gallery.

The ability to boot Windows XP from a USB Flash Drive (UFD) offers endless possibilities. For example, you might make an easy-to-use troubleshooting tool for booting and analyzing seemingly dead PCs. Or you could transport your favorite applications back and forth from home to work without having to install them on both PCs.

However, before you can create a bootable UFD, you must clear a few hurdles. You saw that one coming didn't you?

The first hurdle is having a PC in which the BIOS will allow you to configure the USB port to act as a bootable device. The second hurdle is having a UFD that that will work as a bootable device and that's large enough and fast enough to boot an operating system such as Windows XP. The third hurdle is finding a way to condense and install Windows XP on a UFD.

If you have a PC that was manufactured in the last several years, chances are that its BIOS will allow you to configure the USB port to act as a bootable device. If you have a good quality UFD that's at least 512 KB and that was manufactured in the last couple of years, you've probably cleared the second hurdle. And once you've cleared those first two hurdles, the third one is a piece of cake. All you have to do is download and run some free software to create the bootable UFD.

I'll start by showing you how to determine whether your PC's BIOS will support booting from USB and explain how to configure it to do so. Then, I'll show you how to download and use the free software to create a bootable UFD running Windows XP Professional.

The UFD hurdle

You probably noticed that I didn't mention how to determine if your UFD would support being configured as a bootable device, except that it must be a good quality unit of recent manufacture. Well, I've discovered that when it comes to the actual UFD, you'll just have to try it and see what happens. As long as you have a PC with a BIOS that will allow you to configure the USB port to act as a bootable device and you have configured the installation correctly, it should work. If it doesn't, you probably have a UFD that can't boot.

I tested three UFDs on two new computers and had mixed success. First, I attempted to use a 128 MB PNY Attache but received an error message that said "Invalid or damaged Bootable partition" on both PCs. Next, I tried a 1GB Gateway UFD and it worked on both PCs. Then, I tried a 256 MB Lexar JumpDrive Pro and it worked on only one of the PCs. You can find lists of UFD brands that others have had success with on the Internet.

Checking the BIOS

Not every new BIOS will allow you to configure the USB port to act as a bootable device. And some that do allow it don't make it easy. On one of my example systems, it was a no-brainer. On the other, the UFD had to be connected to the USB port before it was apparent that I could configure it as a bootable device. Let's take a closer look.

On the test system with a PhoenixBIOS version 62.04, I accessed the BIOS, went to the boot screen, and found that USB Storage Stick was one of the options. I then moved it to the top of the list, as shown in Figure A, thus making it the first device to check during the boot sequence. (This particular BIOS also allowed me to press the [F10] key during the boot sequence and select any one of the available bootable devices, so it really wasn't necessary to move it to the top.)

Figure A

The settings on the Boot Screen of the PhoenixBIOS made it a no-brainer to select the device.

On the test system with an AMI BIOS version 2.59, I accessed the BIOS, went to the Boot Sequence screen, and didn't find a USB boot option, as shown in Figure B. I then went one step further and checked the Hard Disk Drives screen and still didn't find a USB boot option, as shown in Figure C.

Figure B

A USB boot option didn't appear on the Boot Sequence screen.

Figure C

The Hard Disk Drives screen only showed the SATA hard disk.

I then plugged a UFD into the USB port, booted up the system, and accessed the BIOS. When I checked the Hard Disk Drives screen, the UFD appeared in the list and I could select it as the first drive (Figure D).

Figure D

With the UFD plugged into the USB port, I could configure the UFD as a bootable device.

When I returned to the Boot Sequence screen, the UFD was indeed set as the first bootable device (Figure E).

Figure E

As the Boot Sequence screen indicates, the UFD was set to be the first bootable device.

Rounding up the software

To condense and install Windows XP on a UFD, you'll need a program called PE Builder by Bart Lagerweij. You'll also need two files from the Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1. And of course, you need to have a Windows XP Professional CD.

You can download PE Builder from Bart's Web site. At the time of this writing, the most current version of PE Builder was 3.1.10a.

You can download Windows Server 2003 SP1 by following the link in the Knowledge Base article "How to obtain the latest service pack for Windows Server 2003." Be sure to get the 32-bit version!

Keep in mind that at 329 MB, Windows Server 2003 SP1 will take some time to download. And although you need just two small files, the only way to get them is to download the entire package.

Warning

Do not run the Windows Server 2003 SP1 executable file! Doing so will completely corrupt Windows XP. We will use a set of special commands to extract the two files and then delete the rest of the package.

Preparing the software

Installing PE Builder is quick and easy. Just run the installation program and follow the onscreen instructions. To make things simpler, I installed the program in the root directory in a folder called PEBUILDER3110a.

Once PE Builder is installed, you'll need to create a folder in C:\PEBUILDER3110a called SRSP1, as shown in Figure F. This is the folder in which PE Builder will look for the extracted Windows Server 2003 SP1 files.

Figure F

Once PE Builder is installed, you'll need to create folder called SRSP1 in C:\PEBUILDER3110a.

Now, you can begin extracting the two needed files from Windows Server 2003 SP1. When you download the Windows Server 2003 SP1, the executable file will have a long name: WindowsServer2003-KB889101-SP1-ENU.exe. To save on typing, you can rename the file to something shorter, such as WS-SP1.exe.

To begin, open a Command Prompt window and use the CD command to change to the folder in which you downloaded the Windows Server 2003 SP1 executable file. I downloaded the file to a folder called Downloads. Now, to extract the files contained in SP1, type the command

WS-SP1.exe -x

You'll immediately see a dialog box that prompts you to select a folder in which to extract the files and can type the name of the same folder, as shown in Figure G. Click OK to proceed with the extraction procedure. When the procedure is complete, just leave the Command Prompt window open.

Figure G

You can extract the files into the same folder containing the Windows Server 2003 SP1 executable file

The extraction procedure will create a subdirectory called i386 and extract all the Windows Server 2003 SP1 files there. Use the CD command to change to the i386 folder and then copy the setupldr.bin file to the SRSP1 folder with the command:

copy setupldr.bin c:\pebuilder3110a\srsp1

Expand the ramdisk.sy_ file to the SRSP1 folder with the command:

expand -r ramdisk.sy_ c:\pebuilder3110a\srsp1

These three steps are illustrated in Figure H.

Figure H

You'll copy and expand the two necessary files to the SRSP1 folder.

Now, using Windows Explorer, verify that the two necessary files are in the SRSP1 folder, as shown in Figure I. Once you do so, you can delete all the Windows Server 2003 SP1 files.

Figure I

You'll want to verify that the setupldr.bin and ramdisk.sys files are in the SRSP1 folder.

Running PE Builder

Now that you've extracted the necessary files from the Windows Server 2003 SP1 package, you're ready to use PE Builder to create a compressed version of Windows XP. To begin, place your Windows XP Professional CD into the drive and hold down the [Shift] key to prevent Autostart from launching the CD. Then, launch PE Builder.

In the Source field on the main PE Builder screen, simply type the letter of drive in which you put the Windows XP Professional CD, as shown in Figure J. Make sure that the Output box contains BartPE and that the None option is selected in the Media Output panel. Then, click the Build button.

Figure J

Fill in the Source field on the main PE Builder screen.

As PE Builder compresses Windows XP Professional into a bootable image, you'll see a detailed progress dialog box. When the operation is complete, as shown in Figure K, click the Close button.

Figure K

PE Builder displays a detailed progress report.

Preparing the UFD to boot Windows XP

At this point, you're ready to format and copy the Windows XP Professional bootable image to the UFD with the BartPE USB Installer. To do so, open a Command Prompt window and use the CD command to change to the pebuilder3110a folder. Then, insert your UFD into a USB port and take note of the drive letter that it is assigned. On my example system, the UFD was assigned drive E.

Now, type the command

pe2usb -f e:

You'll then be prompted to confirm this part of the operation, as shown in Figure L. While the operation is underway, you'll see progress indicators.

Figure L

You'll be prompted to confirm that you want to format your UFD.

Once the BartPE USB Installer finishes its job, you'll be prompted press any key to exit the program. Now you can use your UFD to boot your computer into the BartPE interface for Windows XP, as shown in Figure M.

Figure M

The BartPE interface provides you with a pared down version of Windows XP.

You can find a list of specialized applications on Bart's Web site, which you can install on your UFD as Plugins. For example, you can find such things as Firefox or McAfee command-line virus scanner.

Conclusion

Booting Windows XP from a UFD requires that your PC's BIOS support booting from USB and that you have a UFD that can be formatted as a bootable device. If you can meet these two requirements, all you need is PE Builder, a couple of files from the Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1, and a little effort to configure a UFD to boot the BartPE interface to Windows XP.

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[IT_Group:4864] Don't be misled by these 10 Windows Vista myths

Don't be misled by these 10 Windows Vista myths

by Deb Shinder | Feb 05, 2007 8:00:00 AM

Tags: Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Microsoft Corp., Deb Shinder, Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Windows Vista, operating system, security

Takeaway: The official consumer launch of Windows Vista has brought with it a great deal of confusion, misinformation, and some fairly ignorant assertions. Windows expert Deb Shinder debunks some of the misconceptions she's been hearing, from exaggerated cost and hardware requirements to feature limitations and compatibility issues.

This article is also available as a PDF download.

Now that Windows Vista has officially launched and is available to consumers, everybody's talking about it. Unfortunately, a lot of what I'm hearing--from both Windows fans and the ABM (Anybody But Microsoft) crowd--needs to be taken with a grain of salt. In many cases, what the information lacks in accuracy, it makes up for in sensationalism. But how do you sort through all the hype and get a real picture of what the new OS will and won't do for you?

In this article, I'll take a look at some of the exaggerations, distortions, and out-and-out untruths I've heard floating around about Vista.

Myth #1: You'll have to buy a new, high-end PC to run Vista

Many in the mainstream media are claiming that to run Vista, you'll almost certainly have to buy a new computer. This myth is undoubtedly being encouraged by hardware vendors, but it's not true. I was able to install Vista on my existing Dell Dimension mid-priced system with no problems, and the existing video card, an ATI x600, runs Aero Glass.

If your computer is older or a low-end machine, you can still probably install and use Vista but you may not get the Aero Glass interface. Although Glass adds a lot of "wow" factor, it's not something that's essential to getting work done. You'll still benefit from Vista's security enhancements, search functionality, and added features. If you do want the Glass look, you still may not need to buy a new system. Instead, you can add RAM to bring your system up to the 1 GB recommended for Glass and install a new video card that supports it.

Another myth I've heard is that only PCI Express (PCIe) video cards support Aero Glass, so if your computer doesn't have a PCIe slot, you're out of luck. That's not true either. Video card vendors have regular PCI cards that will run Glass. I'm running it on a system with a relatively inexpensive GeForce 5200 card with 256 MB of memory in a regular PCI slot.

If you do choose to buy a new PC, you don't need a high-end one that costs thousands of dollars to run Vista. Just a couple of days after the launch, retailers began offering machines preloaded with Vista Home Premium, complete with LCD monitors, for as low as $600.

Myth #2: Vista will solve all your security problems

Microsoft is touting Vista's improved security, but no operating system is perfectly secure (and no OS ever will be). Running Vista doesn't mean you don't still need perimeter firewalls, antivirus protection, and other third-party security mechanisms.

Because much of operating system, including its networking technologies, has been redesigned and new code written, Vista is likely to present some vulnerabilities that weren't in older versions of the OS even as it fixes many that were. This is true of any new software and Vista, despite its focus on security and Microsoft's best efforts, is no exception.

In fact, Microsoft shipped the first critical security update for Vista over a year ago, when it was still in the beta testing stage. It will be just as important with Vista as with any other operating system to ensure that updates are installed regularly. The danger is that novice users, hearing that Vista is more secure, may let their guard down and fail to take the protective measures necessary to prevent attacks, virus infestations, etc.

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Myth #3: Vista is no more secure than XP SP2

On the other hand, some of Vista's detractors have been claiming that the new operating system offers no security advantage at all. I've heard computer "experts" on the radio say that Vista is no more secure than Windows XP with Service Pack 2, and an eWeek article last summer went so far as to report that Symantec security researchers were contending that Vista "could harbor a range of vulnerabilities that will make it less secure than previous iterations of Windows."

It's true that, properly updated, Windows XP is a pretty secure OS. But Vista includes a number of new security enhancements that XP doesn't have. For example, User Account Control (UAC) in Vista protects against attacks that rely on elevation of privileges. Internet Explorer 7, when running on Vista, leverages UAC to run in Protected Mode, which keeps Web applications from writing to system folders. IE7 doesn't run in Protected Mode on XP.

BitLocker drive encryption, available in Vista Enterprise and Ultimate versions, provides a way to keep unauthorized persons from accessing sensitive data on a stolen or lost laptop. The Windows Firewall in Vista allows you to block outgoing traffic as well as incoming. Windows service hardening reduces the potential for damage if one of Windows' services is compromised. Vista includes the Network Access Protection client, which allows administrators to restrict computers that are properly updated or don't have antivirus, anti-spyware, or firewalls from connecting to company networks.

Those are just a few of the new security improvements included in Vista.

Myth #4: The only thing new about Vista is the eye candy

Your first impression of an operating system, like your first impression when meeting another person, is often based on appearance. And Vista's appearance does make an impression. With Aero Glass turned on, the transparent window borders, 3 D animations, and other visual effects make it clear (no pun intended) that this is a whole new Windows.

However, the changes to Vista amount to more than just a pretty interface. In addition to the security improvements discussed above, many aspects of the operating system have been reworked to improve usability and provide new functionality. For example:

The search capabilities have been greatly expanded, so that you can easily find documents, programs, and other objects, and even run applications, from a single box in the Start menu.
New productivity applications are built into Vista, including a calendaring/task list program called Windows Calendar and a new, improved address book called Windows Contacts. Together with Windows Mail (the replacement for Outlook Express), these provide much of the same functionality as Outlook, without the need to purchase Office. There are other new built-in applications, too, such as the Snipping Tool that makes it easy to do a screen capture of any desired area without installing third-party software such as SnagIt.
Changes to Windows Explorer make it easier to organize and view your files, with more options. For example, you can see thumbnails of all files (not just graphics) and view their contents in the preview pane without opening them, as shown in Figure A.

Figure A

You can preview files in Windows Explorer without opening them.

Explorer also features automatic horizontal scrolling when needed, and you can select multiple files using check boxes instead of the old method of holding down the [Ctrl] key. Many little things make the user experience less frustrating; for example, when you select to rename a file in Explorer, only the filename is changed; by default the extension remains the same.

These are only a few of the new Vista features that can be enjoyed with or without the Aero Glass interface.

Myth #5: You can't dual boot Vista with another operating system

One of the strangest and most inaccurate statements I heard was that "With Vista, you can't run two operating systems on the same computer like you could in the past." That's news to me, as I'm currently running two computers that dual boot Vista and XP. As with previous versions, a boot menu is displayed when the computer starts, and you can choose either Vista or Previous version of Windows.

Now, it is true that for some reason, on the Boot tab of the System Configuration Utility in Vista, only the Vista operating system shows up even though I can boot into XP from the boot menu. As with XP, the System Configuration Utility is accessed by typing msconfigat the command line. Figure B shows the tool.

Figure B

You can dual boot Vista with another OS, but the other OS doesn't show up in the Boot tab of the System Configuration Utility.

You may also notice that the old boot.ini file, which was used to edit the boot configuration information in Windows NT, 2000, and XP, is missing. Now the boot options are stored in the Boot Configuration Data (BCD) store, and the system is started by the Windows Boot Manager. You use a tool called Bcdedit.exe to change the boot information.

Myth #6: Vista requires (or includes) Office 2007

I recently read an article in a well-respected national publication that, in listing a number of things the author didn't like about Vista, included the new "ribbon bar" in Word. Oops--that's not a Vista feature; it's a feature of Office 2007, which apparently was installed on the Vista machine he was testing.

I've also seen several references to the need to upgrade to Office 2007 when you install Vista. Well, of course you can, but it's by no means a requirement. Office 2003 runs fine on Vista. This bit of misinformation seems to be most often used in articles that inflate the projected cost to deploy Vista; you can make those numbers look higher if you add in the cost of upgrading Office, too.

Also, contrary to the rumor that Microsoft made Vista so open source competitors of its office products won't run on it, I had no problems at all installing and running Open Office, the open source alternative to Microsoft Office, shown in Figure C.

Figure C

You can install the free Open Office software on Vista if you don't want to buy Microsoft Office.

Myth #7: Most old applications and peripherals won't work with Vista

Circulating amongst the FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) being spread about Vista is the idea that upgrading will subject you to all kinds of application incompatibilities. Some programs made for XP, especially those that hook into the kernel, like antivirus programs and some system utilities, won't work with Vista. However, the majority of applications that run on XP will also run on Vista.

In some cases, you may need to install or run older programs in Compatibility mode (right-click the program file, select Properties, and click the Compatibility tab to select compatibility options) and/or run the program as an administrator for it to work properly.

You don't have to figure out most compatibility issues for yourself. Vista comes with the Program Compatibility Assistant, which can detect what changes need to be made to run a program and resolve conflicts with UAC that may be preventing a program from running correctly. It runs automatically when it detects an older program that has compatibility issues. You can also use the Program Compatibility Wizard, a tool that you run manually from the Control Panel | Programs and Features section (in native view).

There have also been many reports about hardware peripherals, especially printers and scanners, that don't work with Vista. It's true that some hardware vendors were slow to provide Vista drivers during the Vista beta testing period. By the time Vista launched to the consumer market, though, many hardware drivers were included on the installation DVD and many more will be made available in the next few months.

My older HP OfficeJet G55 had no problems working with Vista, and if you peruse the list of supported printers (Control Panel | Printers | Add A Printer Wizard), you'll see that Vista supports a large number of printers from HP, IBM, Brother, Canon, Citizen, Dell, Epson, Fujitsu, Konica, Kyocera Mita, Lexmark, Minolta, NEC, Oki, Panasonic, Ricoh, Samsung, Sharp, Sony, Xerox, and other major printer vendors.

Myth #8: You have to buy a Premium version of Vista if you have a dual core machine

There was initially some confusion over the specification that Vista Home Editions support only a single processor. Some folks took this to mean that that version of Vista wouldn't run on dual core machines.

Dual core CPUs do contain two processors--but they're combined on one chip or die. This is called chip-level multiprocessing and it's different from having two separate physical processors installed on the same machine. Even though a dual core machine will show the activity of two processors in Windows performance monitoring tools (see the two separate graphs for processor activity in Figure D), Microsoft's definition of "processor" refers to the number of physical CPUs, not the number of cores. (This policy is laid out in "Multicore Processor Licensing.")

Figure D

Dual core machines show the activity of two processors in performance monitoring tools.

In fact, all versions of Vista will run on a machine with multiple processors installed--but Home Basic and Premium will recognize and use only one of the processors.

Myth #9: You won't be able to play ripped music in Vista

Have you heard about the horrors of Vista's DRM (Digital Rights Management)? Some people have implied that it will prevent you from playing any music or movie files unless you download and pay for them online. Others are speculating that even the media you do buy may be blocked.

Interestingly, the people who are spreading this one all seem to be folks who have never used Vista (and, according to many of them, never will). The real story: I have no problem playing music files that were ripped from CDs on Windows Media Player 10 or in Vista's Windows Media Center application. Yes, I legally own the CDs, but Vista has no way of knowing that. All of the media that imported from my XP Windows Media Center computer, including recorded TV programs, played without a problem.

For a more thorough discussion of content protection in Vista, see this article from CreateDigitalMusic.com.

Myth #10: Vista costs a lot more than XP

Ever since pricing for the various editions of Vista was announced, I've heard a lot of griping and grumbling about how much it costs. Windows XP came in only two versions that were available at retail: Home, which was priced at $199 for the full package and $99 for the upgrade, and Professional, which was priced at $299 for the full package and $199 for the upgrade.

Vista gives you many more options:

Home Basic: $199 full, $99 upgrade
Home Premium: $239 full, $159 upgrade
Business: $299 full, $199 upgrade
Ultimate: $399 full, $259 upgrade

Everyone seems to be focusing on the price for Ultimate, but if you look at the versions that are directly comparable to the two versions of XP (Home Basic and Business), you'll see that they cost exactly the same as their XP counterparts did five years ago.

Home Premium includes the Windows Media Center and Tablet PC functionality, along with Aero Glass and extra applications such as Windows Movie Maker, Windows Meeting Space, Mobility Center, and Scheduled Backup. Windows XP Media Center Edition and Tablet PC Edition weren't available at retail; you could only get them preinstalled by the OEM.

Ultimate Edition also includes Media Center and Tablet PC, along with business extras such as BitLocker encryption, Remote Desktop, and Windows Complete Backup and Restore. In fact, Ultimate includes all the home entertainment features of Home Premium plus all the corporate goodies of Business and Enterprise editions, and the upgrade to Ultimate costs only $59 more than the XP Pro upgrade while offering a great deal more functionality.

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[IT_Group:4863] How do I... Install Windows Vista in a dual-boot configuration along with Windows XP?

How do I... Install Windows Vista in a dual-boot configuration along with Windows XP?

by Greg Shultz | Feb 08, 2007 6:37:00 PM

Tags: Microsoft Windows Vista (Longhorn), Operating systems, Greg Shultz, hard drive, Microsoft Windows, second hard-disk, second partition, Microsoft Windows Vista, dual-boot configuration, Microsoft Windows XP

Takeaway: Are you really excited about the prospect of experimenting with the new features in the Windows Vista operating system, but are not yet ready to give up your existing Windows XP installation? Greg Shultz walks you step by step through the entire dual boot configuration procedure.

This article is also available as a TechRepublic download. A TechRepublic gallery explaining how to create a dual boot configuration is available as well.

Are you really excited about the prospect of experimenting with the new features in the Windows Vista operating system, but are not yet ready to give up your existing Windows XP installation? For instance, you may be on the fence, because you're not 100 percent sure that all your existing hardware and software will work in Vista and you still need them to get your work done.

If so, then you may be the perfect candidate for a dual-boot configuration. With this type of configuration, you can easily experiment with Windows Vista and still use Windows XP. In other words, you get to have your cake and eat it too.

In this article, I'll discuss some of the options you'll need to consider as you begin thinking about and planning for adding Windows Vista to your existing system in a dual-boot configuration. I'll then walk you step by step through the entire procedure.

The location options

In order to install Windows Vista in a dual-boot configuration along with Windows XP, you need to have either a second partition on your existing hard disk or a second hard disk in your system. To give yourself enough room to experiment, you should have at least 20 GB and preferably 40 GB of space available on either the second partition or on the second hard disk.

If you don't have enough available space on your existing hard disk for a second partition, then you'll need to connect a second hard disk to your system. If you do have enough available space on your exiting hard disk for a second partition, then you'll need to obtain a partitioning software package. I recommend, Symantec's Norton PartitionMagic only because I've used PartitionMagic for years. However, there are other partitioning software packages that I've heard are just as good, such as Acronis Disk Director or VCOM Partition Commander Professional.

Of course, detailed instructions on connecting a second hard disk or partitioning your existing hard disk are beyond the scope of this article. However, in either case, the second hard disk or the second partition must be formatted with NTFS before you begin the installation operation. If you add a second partition to your existing hard disk via a partitioning software package, you will be able to format it as NTFS at the same time as you create the partition. If you're installing a second hard disk, the easiest way to format it as NTFS is from within Windows XP's Disk Manager, which you can quickly access by pressing [Windows]+R to access the Run dialog box and typing diskmgmt.msc in the Open text box.

The installation options

You can approach the dual-boot installation operation in one of two ways -- by cold booting from the Windows Vista DVD or by inserting the Windows Vista DVD while Windows XP is running. As you can imagine, you'll encounter slightly different introductory screens depending on which approach you use, but once you get stared the operation is essentially the same.

While both methods will produce the same result, I prefer the cold booting from the DVD method. The main reason is that you don't have to worry about any interference from antivirus/antispyware/firewall software on your existing Windows XP installation.

Performing the installation

Once you have your second partition or second hard disk operational, just insert your Windows Vista DVD, restart the system, and boot from the DVD. Once the system boots from the DVD, Windows Vista's Setup will begin loading and will display the screen shown in Figure A.

Figure A:

Windows Vista's Setup will take a few moments to load files before the installation actually commences.

In a few moments, you'll see the screen that prompts you to choose the regional and language options, as shown in Figure B. As you can see, the default settings are for U.S. and English and if that's you, you can just click Next to move on.

Figure B:

The default settings on the regional and language screen are for the U.S. and English.

On the next screen, you'll be prompted to begin the installation procedure, as shown in Figure C. To begin, just click the Install Now button

Figure C:

To get started, click the Install Now button.

In the next screen, you'll be prompted to type in your product key for activation, as shown in Figure D. By default, the Automatically Activate Windows When I'm online check box is selected; however, you'll notice that I've cleared it. The main reason that I've done so here is that while writing this article, I've experimented over and over with this installation procedure and want to conserve on the number of times that I can legitimately activate this copy of Windows Vista before Microsoft locks it down and requires me to call in and manually request a new product key.

Figure D:

At this point in the installation, you're prompted to type in your product key for activation.

Now, if you just want to temporarily install Vista in a dual-boot configuration while you experiment, but plan on installing it as your main operating system once you're satisfied with the way that Vista behaves with your hardware and software, you too may want to disable the automatic activation routine. Even though you've disabled the automatic activation routine, you can still install Windows Vista and use it as you normally would for 30 days.

If you want to keep Vista in a dual-boot configuration, you can activate your license online anytime you want. If you decide to make Vista your main operating system, you can repartition your hard disk, reinstall Vista on the main partition and activate the new installation in the process.

If you decide to disable the automatic activation routine, you'll see a confirmation dialog box, as shown in Figure E, which contains a harsh warning and prompts you to reconsider. You can just click No to continue.

Figure E:

Even though this dialog box contains a harsh warning, Microsoft wouldn't have made automatic activation a choice if opting out was really dangerous.

Because, I didn't enter in a product key, Setup doesn't know what edition I've purchased and prompts me to select one of the seven editions on this disk, as shown in Figure F. Since, I'm working with the Ultimate edition, I selected that edition, checked the box, and clicked Next.

Figure F:

When you don't enter a product key, Setup doesn't know what edition you have a license for and so prompts you to select one of the seven editions

On the next page (Figure G), you'll see the Microsoft Software License Terms and are prompted to read through them. However, unless you're very curious you can just select the I Accept The License Terms check box and click Next.

Figure G:

Unless you're very curious, you can just click through the license terms screen.

If you're booting from the DVD, when you get to the Which Type Of Installation Do You Want page, the only option is Custom (advanced) as shown in Figure H. To move on, just click the Custom icon.

Figure H:

When you boot from the Windows Vista DVD, the only installation type that is available is the Custom (advanced).

When you arrive at the Where Do You Want To Install Windows? page, you'll see your second partition or second drive. I created a second partition on which to install Windows Vista, so my page looked like the one in Figure I.

Figure I:

I created a second partition on a 160 GB hard disk on which to install Windows Vista.

Once the select a partition or disk and click Next, the rest of the installation will continue as it normally would. As such, I won't follow the installation procedure any further in this article.

Windows Boot Manager

Once the installation is complete, you'll see the Windows Boot Manager screen, as shown in Figure K. As you can see, booting either Windows XP (listed as an Earlier Version of Windows) or Windows Vista is a simple menu choice. This menu will appear on the screen for 30 seconds before Windows Boot Manager launches the default operating system, which is Windows Vista.

Figure J:

The Windows Boot Manager allows you to select which operating system you want to boot.

The Activation countdown

Since I described installing Windows Vista without activating it for testing purposes, I wanted to point out that the Windows Vista will indeed keep track of your 30 day trial on the System screen, as shown in Figure K. In addition, it will regularly display

Figure K:

If you decide not to activate during your dual-boot installation, you can keep track of how many days you have until you must activate on the System page.

Configuring Windows Boot Manager

As I mentioned, the Windows Boot Manager menu will appear on the screen for 30 seconds before Windows Boot Manager launches the default operating system -- Windows Vista. However, if you wish to adjust the countdown or change the default operating system, you can do so from within Windows Vista.

Once you've booted into Windows Vista, press [Windows]+[Break] to access the System page. Next, click the Advance System Setting link in the Tasks pane and confirm though the UAC prompt. When you see the System Properties dialog box, click Settings in the Startup and Recovery panel. You'll then see the Startup and Recovery dialog box, as shown in Figure L.

Figure L:

You can use the controls in the Startup and Recovery dialog box change the default operating system and the number of seconds that the Windows Boot Manager menu will appear on the screen.

In the System Startup pane, you can change the Default Operating System setting from the drop down list as well as use the spin buttons to adjust, up or down, the number of seconds to display the menu before launching the default operating system.

Conclusion

Installing Windows Vista in a dual-boot configuration along side Windows XP is a great way to experiment with the new operating system until you get comfortable with it. In this article, I've shown you how to how to create a Windows Vista dual-boot configuration.

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[IT_Group:4862] Re: Needs network Monitor Tools

Hi Dhaval,

Check below url. IT was relied to you.

http://groups.google.com/group/IT_Group/browse_thread/thread/1106594d028ff2a7?hl=en#

Sam

On Dec 31, 2:50 pm, Dhaval SHah <dhavalashah1...@yahoo.co.in> wrote:
> Hi All,
>
> Any one can please reply??
>
> Thanks,
> Dhaval Shah
> (09428246043)
>
> Dhaval SHah <dhavalashah1...@yahoo.co.in> wrote:
>
> Hi All,
>
> Hope everybody are fine.
>
> Actually i have one problem,
> In my network, We are using ISA 2000 as Internet proxy server.
>
> Now one of the user/IP is using more bandhwidth & Due to this my Internet working slow.
>
> And i wants to realtime monitor / tracks usage from the entire network down to a single user or IP address.
>
> Is there any free tools which can help my requirement, Pls. suggest me.
>
> While replying Pls. CC to ds...@ismnet.com
>
> Thanks,
> Dhaval Shah
> (09428246043)
> (System Administrator)
>
> Thanks,
> Dhaval Shah.
> ---------------------------------
> Chat on a cool, new interface. No download required. Click here.
>
> Thanks,
> Dhaval Shah.
>
> ---------------------------------
> Get the freedom to save as many mails as you wish. Click here to know how.
--~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~
<======= IT_Group ========>
~**~ Disclaimer ~**~
We do not claim to have made any of the Text/Graphics/E Book
or any article / material that we send unless otherwise noted.
They come from a wide variety of web sources & are therefore deemed
to be public domain. As far as we aware they are licensed for personal
use only, & are by their respective artist. Any infringement of said copyright is non-intentional & will be rectified upon notice & proof of ownership. We respect Intellectual Property and its lows.

[IT_Group:4861] Re: Needs network Monitor Tools

Hi All,

Any one can please reply??

Thanks,

Dhaval Shah

(09428246043)

Dhaval SHah <dhavalashah1986@yahoo.co.in> wrote:

Hi All,

Hope everybody are fine.

Actually i have one problem,

In my network, We are using ISA 2000 as Internet proxy server.

Now one of the user/IP is using more bandhwidth & Due to this my Internet working slow.

And i wants to realtime monitor / tracks usage from the entire network down to a single user or IP address.

Is there any free tools which can help my requirement, Pls. suggest me.

While replying Pls. CC to dshah@ismnet.com

Thanks,

Dhaval Shah

(09428246043)

(System Administrator)

Thanks,
Dhaval Shah.

Chat on a cool, new interface. No download required. Click here.

Thanks,
Dhaval Shah.

Get the freedom to save as many mails as you wish. Click here to know how. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~
<======= IT_Group ========>
~**~ Disclaimer ~**~
We do not claim to have made any of the Text/Graphics/E Book
or any article / material that we send unless otherwise noted.
They come from a wide variety of web sources & are therefore deemed
to be public domain. As far as we aware they are licensed for personal
use only, & are by their respective artist. Any infringement of said copyright is non-intentional & will be rectified upon notice & proof of ownership. We respect Intellectual Property and its lows.

[IT_Group:4860] Fwd: IT Job requirement -USA, UK, Canada, India and Other parts of world In IT and Non IT.

Hi All

FYI

Srinivas Retneni

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Brains IT Solutions <jobs@topglobaljobs.com >
Date: Dec 31, 2007 1:16 PM
Subject: IT Job requirement -USA, UK, Canada, India and Other parts of world In IT and Non IT.
To: svr.vin@gmail.com

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[IT_Group:4859] Fwd: Your CV has been Shortlisted for Lotus Notes

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: naagaraju@krownos.com
Date: Mon, 31 Dec 2007 15:09:27 +0530
Subject: Your CV has been Shortlisted for Lotus Notes
To:

HI PROFESSIONALS,
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The candidate will be on the team supporting Notes clients world wide
on Intel platform. The candidate will also support the compliance
system Instant messaging and Blackberry services for the company.
Additionally the candidate will be involved in the upgrade of our
Lotus Notes environment to version 8.x
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED WITH THIS OPENING PLS FORWARD YOUR UPDATED RESUME.

PEASE FURNISH THE BELOW MENTIONED DETAILS:

CTC:
EXPECTION:
TOTAL EXPERIENCE:
RELEVANT EXPERIENCE INTO NMS/OSS/EMS/:
NOTICE PERIOD:

*NOTE NOTICE PERIOD CAN BE BUYABLE FOR THE OFFRED CANDIDATES*

*CANDIDATES SHOULD BE READY TO JOIN WITH IN 20 TO 30 DAYS*

KINDLY REFER SOME OF YOUR FRIENDS OR COLLEGUES NUMBERS WHO ARE LOOKING
FOR JOB CHANGE.

Thanks & Regards

Naagaraju

KROWNOS
No: 35, 36th Main, Dollars Scheme,
BTM Layout 1st Stage,
Bangalore- 560068.
Tel - 080- 26685088-95

Cell -9740243301
Fax - 080- 26685096
mailto:naagaraju@krownos.com
URL: http://www.krownos.com/, http://www.esquiresystems.com/,
http://www.meritindia.com/

The sender of this email is registered with naukri.com as Esquire
Systems (sujajagan@optimetech.co.in, 4D IV Floor, Kences Tower, North
Usman Road T Nagar, Chennai, Tamil Nadu - 600017) using Naukri.com
services. The responsibility of checking the authenticity of
offers/correspondence lies with you.

If you consider the content of this email inappropriate or spam, you may:
1. Report abuse by forwarding this email to : abuse@naukri.com
2. Block this company - Esquire Systems (ref no: 6019) from accessing
your resume by logging into your naukri account and selecting Block
Company in the Privacy Settings section.

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payments, or sharing of bank account details.

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281710

[IT_Group:4858] Fwd: WINDOWS MOBILE PROFESSIONALS REQUIRED IMMEDIATELY

roshani@taurusit.com wrote:

Date: 31 Dec 2007 11:49:15 +0530
From: roshani@taurusit.com
To: daksheshkhatri@yahoo.com
Subject: WINDOWS MOBILE PROFESSIONALS REQUIRED IMMEDIATELY

For Internal Use of Employer (Please don't delete or modify while replying to this email)

Monster Resume ID: 3185925 Personal Folder ID: 4784520

Dear Dakshesh,

Hi,

We would like to inform you about Excellent & Immediate JOB opportunities with our Client which is a CMM Level 3 Client Rave Technologies having immediate openings for WinCE / Windows Mobile Developer

Job Description

WinCE / Windows Mobile Developer:

Primary Skills : C++

Secondary Skills :Windows Mobile application development in Native and managed code.

Preferred Skills :Having cross platform skills in Windows Mobile, Palm, Symbian, etc

Operating Skills :Windows CE

Backend Skills : SqlCE

Tools :Windows Mobile SDK, Simulators

Role :Developer

Experience :3-8 yrs

Domain :Windows Mobile

Mandatory Skills :Native and Managed application development on Windows Mobile.

Location: Mumbai

Experience: 3+ years

URL: www.rave-tech.com

Please immediately forward me your updated Resume; also mention your Current CTC, Expected CTC & Joining Period.

We will appreciate if you refer this to your Friends & Colleague.

Thanks and Regards,

Roshani

This mail has been sent by one of the employers (Employer name: Taurus Information & Technology Pvt Ltd) accessing the services of monsterindia.com and not by Monster. Monster is committed to protecting the privacy of our users and our "Terms of Use" prohibits any misuse including spamming. If you consider the contents of the mails inappropriate or as spam, please forward this mail to spam@monsterindia.com

Double your chances of getting the right job by keeping your resume updated.
Update Resume now

Looking for last minute shopping deals? Find them fast with Yahoo! Search. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~
<======= IT_Group ========>
~**~ Disclaimer ~**~
We do not claim to have made any of the Text/Graphics/E Book
or any article / material that we send unless otherwise noted.
They come from a wide variety of web sources & are therefore deemed
to be public domain. As far as we aware they are licensed for personal
use only, & are by their respective artist. Any infringement of said copyright is non-intentional & will be rectified upon notice & proof of ownership. We respect Intellectual Property and its lows.

Dec 30, 2007

[IT_Group:4857] [FW]Openings_for_Remedy_Professionals _for_Accenture_–_Delhi/_Bangalore

---------[ Received Mail Content ]----------

Subject : Openings_for_Remedy_Professionals _for_Accenture_–_Delhi/_Bangalore

Date : Mon, 31 Dec 2007 12:05:44 +0530

From : "Placements Solution" <placementssolution@gmail.com>

To : placementssolution@gmail.com

Hi

I have the following requirements for our client:

Client : *ACCENTURE* a fortune 500 Company

ACCENTURE is a global management consulting, technology services and

outsourcing company, with net revenues of US$16.65 billion wit! h more than

1.5 Lacs employees.

Location : *DELHI** *or *BANGALORE*

Experience : 2 – 5 yrs

Job Title : *Remedy Professionals* **

* *

*Technical Qualifications**:*

Working knowledge of Remedy ARS platform.

Hands-on experience with remedy's 6.3 (HelpDesk, Change and SLA modules).

Skilled in working on enhancements and customizations of the out-of-box

modules.

Able to work with home grown modules in Remedy.

Exposure to Integrations.

*Preferred/Nice-to-have Skills**:*

Experience in ITSM version 7.0, CMDB 2.0 & Discovery applications is an

added advantage.

*Experience with /J2EE*

Pls reply back your resume to (placementssolution@gmail.com) while

mentioning the follow! ing details

Date of Birth:

< br>Current Company:

Total Experience:

Relevant Exp:

Experience in Remedy:

Experience in ARS:

Current CTC:

Expected CTC:

Open For Delhi or Bangalore:

Have you ever applied for Accenture before (Yes/No):

Contact details

Thanks & Regards

Abhimanyu Vats

Director

Placements Solution (IT Consultants)

Noida, UP

placementssolution@gmail.com

[IT_Group:4856] Fwd: Opening with Wipro for Java/ J2EE Developers

Hi All

FYI

Srinivas Retneni

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <velraj@6sos.com>
Date: Dec 31, 2007 10:24 AM
Subject: Opening with Wipro for Java/ J2EE Developers
To:

We have an immediate opening for A CMM Level 5 Company - Chennai - Java / J2EE Developer - Ref No. 50722

Pls click on the below Link or copy & paste it into your browser address bar to view the job details and fill up the necessary information in order to apply

http://www.6sos.com/members/confirmation.asp?id=28000&db=3&sr=1

Any Queries Pls contact :

Velraj. M
Executive Resources

Six Sigma Softsolutions Pvt Ltd,

Email : velraj@6sos.com
www.6sos.com

Disclaimer:

This message and any attachment(s) contained here are information that is confidential, proprietary to SixSigma Soft Solutions and its customers. Contents may be privileged or otherwise protected by law. The information is solely intended for the individual or the entity it is addressed to. If you are not the intended recipient of this message, you are not authorized to read, forward, print, retain, copy or disseminate this message or any part of it.

If you have received this e-mail in error, please click here to unsubscribe from this service.

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249127

[IT_Group:4855] Fwd: Urgent requirement for UK based IT Company

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: cybernetplacements@gmail.com < cybernetplacements@gmail.com>
Date: 29 Dec 2007 22:31:03 +0530
Subject: Urgent requirement for UK based IT Company
To: roni.patel@gmail.com

For Internal Use of Employer (Please don't delete or modify while replying to this email)

Monster Resume ID: 2843408 Personal Folder ID: 4783409

Dear Ronak,

Job Title L2 Engineer – Networks

Location: Vadodara, Gujarat

Package Offered: Anything between 5.4 Lacs to 7.8 Lacs per Annum

Summary: The person should have thorough understanding of LAN/WAN network expertise to provide support to International Customers. Ensure stable operation of large wide area network (WAN) to include ability to troubleshoot complex network issues. Support other members of Network Engineering Group in providing technical requirements and review of new WAN network designs.
Provide and support new technology implementations through creation of Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) and best practices.
Work independently or as a member of an integrated team as well as offer technical direction to the network operations center (NOC) staff.
Work in a 24x7 Support Team providing Escalation Support.

Supervision Received Will be working under the direct supervision of L2 Support Supervisor

Responsibilities
•Primary responsibilities include configuration, deployment, and administration of networking systems including routers, switches, firewalls, wireless access points and bridges, internet services, UPS, VPN concentrators, and load balancers.
•The individual will perform hands-on support of production LAN/WAN, internal security systems, and take ownership of all network documentation initiatives.
•S/he is responsible for the daily monitoring of the network and security appliances.
•S/he reports on network and system capacity utilization and drives initiatives to improve the network.
•S/he is responsible for monitoring and reporting on security logs from firewalls and IPS/IDS systems. As the senior network person on staff, s/he is the second level of escalation and should be reachable when there is a network issue that requires senior attention.
•S/he provides leadership and mentoring for junior level team members.
•Develop and maintain standard operating procedures for the various assigned tasks.
•Execute customer / internal technical projects.
•Interact professionally with the clients or users on technical areas for providing solutions or analyzing the root cause of problems.

Knowledge Areas
•Strong knowledge of networking fundamentals.
•Strong knowledge of VPN fundamentals.
•Strong knowledge in security systems, methods and architecture.
•Strong knowledge and expertise in local and wide are networking communications.
•Provide management, administration and support of Cisco routers series 6507, 7206, 2600; must have considerable depth with routing protocols, especially BGP4
•Provide management, administration and support for Cisco switches series 65xx, 4500, 4000, 2500, 3500, and 3750.
•Provide management, administration and support of Cisco VPN appliances, firewall, and security gateways: PIX 500 series, 520, and 525; VPN concentrators 3000 series; ASA 5500 series,
•Provide management, administration and support for Cisco Aironet series 1100, 1200, 1230, and 1300
•Must possess strong understanding of switching principles and protocols including, VLAN, STP, VTP, ISL, 802.1Q, Etherchannel
•Must possess strong understanding of wireless technologies and protocols (802.11a, b, and g)
•Must possess strong understanding of packet analysis tools and be proficient at reading network packet streams
•Provide management and support for all security components within the environment
•Must possess good hardware, network operating systems and troubleshooting skills
•Must be familiar with network events monitoring tools;
•Provide management and support for internet services and related systems.
•Setup and provide support for VPN communications (IPSEC and SSL)
•Must possess good project management and organizational skills necessary to coordinate across diverse IT and non IT groups to deliver projects on time and within budget.
•Will be required to provide to provide on-call support for critical production issues
•Working experience with HP OpenView, Cisco Works and/or Cisco Secure ACS

Skill Areas
•Strong analytical and problem solving skills
•Excellent network troubleshooting experience,
•Proven experience with network capacity planning, network security, principles, and general network management best practices.
•Exceptional customer service orientation
•Excellent interpersonal and Oral and written English communication skills.
•Ability to work in a team oriented environment.

Education
•Bachelor's (or equivalent) degree in Computer Science or Information Technology (and/or equivalent experience).
•Any professional certifications in networking or operating systems would be an added advantage
•Certifications CCNP required.

Experience
•5 + years experience in Networks Support and Security.
•Experience in supporting big global accounts

Thanks and Regards

Vineet Tripathi
HR, Business Development & Recruitment
Cybernet Infosolutions Limited.
Software Technology Parks of India,
Kanpur-24. India.
Phone - 0512-2580771 Cell – 9839786401,
E-Mail – Vineet.Tripathi@cil.co.in
URL - www.cil.co.in

This mail has been sent by one of the employers (Employer name: Cybernet Infosolutions Ltd) accessing the services of monsterindia.com and not by Monster. Monster is committed to protecting the privacy of our users and our "Terms of Use" prohibits any misuse including spamming. If you consider the contents of the mails inappropriate or as spam, please forward this mail to spam@monsterindia.com

Double your chances of getting the right job by keeping your resume updated.
Update Resume now

[IT_Group:4854] Fwd: H1b - IT Professionals for US

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: kamatchi@mountconsulting.com < kamatchi@mountconsulting.com>
Date: 31 Dec 2007 06:52
Subject: H1b - IT Professionals for US
To:

Greetings from Mountconsulting!!!!...

Hi All,

we are into H1B Visa Process for 2008..

IT Professionals for US....

if u r interested n ready to work in US by 2008,plz fwd ur profile...

v have our office at US,Chennai,Bangalore and Hyderabad and v will help u to get H1B.....

Exp:3+yrs

Skills:ETL developers..
Excellent Communication Skills...

Fwd ur profiles with CTC,ECTC,Exp,Notice period,DOB,Passport details......

We wish u ALL THE BEST!!!!!!!

The sender of this email is registered with naukri.com as Everest Consulting Group India P Ltd., (kumaresanrds@mountconsulting.com , Auras Corporate Centre,, 98 A, 3rd Floor,, Dr.Radhakrishna Salai, Chennai, Tamilnadu - 600004) using Naukri.com services. The responsibility of checking the authenticity of offers/correspondence lies with you.

If you consider the content of this email inappropriate or spam, you may:
1. Report abuse by forwarding this email to : abuse@naukri.com
2. Block this company - Everest Consulting Group India P Ltd., (ref no: 12489) from accessing your resume by logging into your naukri account and selecting Block Company in the Privacy Settings section.

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126322

[IT_Group:4853] Fwd: Opportunities With Wipro Infotech !!Bangalore

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: swathi.bhat@wipro.com < swathi.bhat@wipro.com>
Date: 31 Dec 2007 07:20
Subject: Opportunities With Wipro Infotech !!Bangalore
To:

Hi ,

We invite you for a career with Wipro Infotech. We are looking out for people with 4 - 8 years of work experience, as Technical specialist for Bangalore location.

Rol! es and Responsibilities

Responsible for proposing and designing solutions to meet customer requirements and address complex business / technical process requirements Responsible for process implementation for large accounts and ensure process compliance Develop and sustain excellent customer relationship through deep engagement and delivering continuous value by meeting customer expectations and handling issues Ensure th at service delivery takes place based on the Service level agreements Provide technical consultation to the customers and keep them updated with the current technological advancements Ensure that qual ity is used as a tool to improve customer satisfaction and enhance service delivery Provide technical assistance to other team members by way of assisting them in solving challenging technical problem s, sh! aring technical knowledge and adhering to quality processes in! ensurin g team objectives are met. Ability to drive people to ensure that project deliverables are met and project time is maintained Responsible for generating Installation analysis report and other such documents Establish and enhance relationship with customers/clients and Principals
Skills Required

Qualifications: Experience: 4-5 years : Aix admin experience for 3-4 years. Understanding of AIX technology (hardware & software) and specific AIX domain expertise.Willingness to learn and work in tea ms Good problem solving skills and analytical skills. Good trouble shooting experience in IBM AIX clusters. Good knowledge on IBM storage and Tivoli.Knowledge of shell scripting is desirable Effectiv e communication and interpersonal ski! lls Strong project management skills including successful management of people and budgets. Willingness to learn and work in teams

Would request you to please mail me an updated resume of yours, along with details of

Current CTC
Expected CTC and
Notice period.
Location Preference
Data Of Birth

Not looking out for a Change ?

Please Do forward this mail to any of your friends looking for exploring Oppurtunities with us.

Thank you

Have a Great DAY !!!

Regards,

Swathi

The sender of this email is registered with naukri.com as Wipro Infotech (swathi.bhat@wipro.com, Sarjapur Campus1, Sarjapur Road, Doddakanelli, Bangalore, Karnataka - 560035) using Naukri.com services. The responsibility of checking the authenticity of offers/correspondence lies with you.

If you consider the content of this email inappropriate or spam, you may:
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2. Block this company - Wipro Infotech (ref no: 110897) from accessing your resume by logging into your naukri account and selecting Block Company in the Privacy Settings section .

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236896

[IT_Group:4852] Fwd: Opening with IBM ..Lotus Notes ,Application Developer - Lotus Notes Domino ..

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: amit.mishra@sourceone.co.in < amit.mishra@sourceone.co.in>
Date: 28 Dec 2007 23:57
Subject: Opening with IBM ..Lotus Notes ,Application Developer - Lotus Notes Domino ..
To: vachhani.ketan@gmail.com

Dear Ketan,

Hi All !!!
Hope you are doing well !!!!!
IBM is conducting a Personal Interview for Lotus Notes ,Application Developer - Lotus Notes Domino having 2.8 yrs - 5 years of Relevant Exp for Bangalore/ Hyderabad/ Pune work locations in India for its permanent Payroll.

NOTE: Contract Employee must have Company ID Badge / Access Card... full time education....should have good communication skill.
Job Description
Lotus Notes ,Application Developer - Lotus Notes Domino
IT Exp- 2.8Yrs to 5Yrs, - (Relevant Exp- 2.8Yrs) ]
JOB Type: Permanent
Work Locations: !Bangalore , Hyderabad , Pune

Kindly send! your up dated CV with below required inputs if you are interested for this exciting opportunity and interested to attend Personal interview.
Full Name:
DOB:
Total Exp:
Relevant Exp:
Current salary:
Expected salary:
Notice Period:
Willing to attend Personal / Telephonic Interview ! (YES/NO)::
Kindly send your updated CV with above inputs ASAP so that we process it further. Kindly refer us few of your colleagues/friends who would be interested for this wonderful opportunity.
Thanking You,
Regards,
__________________________________
Amit Mishra

Source One Management Services Pvt. Ltd.
55/A, First Floor,
Nanjappa Road, Shanthi Nagar
Bangalore-27, India
Tel. No.: 080-40796564
email :amit.mishra@sourceone.co.inurl : www.sourceone.co.in

Regards
Sowmya

--~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~
<======= IT_Group ========>
~**~ Disclaimer ~**~
We do not claim to have made any of the Text/Graphics/E Book
or any article / material that we send unless otherwise noted.
They come from a wide variety of web sources & are therefore deemed
to be public domain. As far as we aware they are licensed for personal
use only, & are by their respective artist. Any infringement of said copyright is non-intentional & will be rectified upon notice & proof of ownership. We respect Intellectual Property and its lows.

Dec 29, 2007

[IT_Group:4851] Fw: Excellent opportunity with CITOS (CITI Group), Mumbai for Citrix Administrator's

Warm Regards,
Rakesh Parekh
09898338117
rparekh81@yahoo.co.in
rprekh81@gmail.com

----- Forwarded Message ----
From: "deepti@vertexcorp.com" <deepti@vertexcorp.com>
To: rparekh81@yahoo.co.in
Sent: Saturday, 29 December, 2007 3:24:26 PM
Subject: Excellent opportunity with CITOS (CITI Group), Mumbai for Citrix Administrator's

For Internal Use of Employer (Please don't delete or modify while replying to this email)

Monster Resume ID: 1523456 Personal Folder ID: 4781751

Dear Rakesh,

Dear,

I would like to take the opportunity to inform you about openings with one of our Prime and Biggest client – CITOS (Citigroup IT Operations & Solutions) Mumbai. One of the Best Paymasters. CITOS Mumbai interviewing Citrix Administrator Professionals ---- this is excellent opportunity for finance domain professionals.

A detailed description of the position is given below:

Position: Citrix Administrators
Total Exp: 3Yr. to 6 Yr.
Domain: Any, Finance & Banking will be plus point
CTC: Best in the Industry.
 Work Location: Mumbai.

Technical Skills Required:

o VPN (Nortel, Juniper, AT&T) support Remote Access Dial, PoP, RADIUS, Neoteris IVE, Hoblink, or equivalent Enterprise Remote
o Access technologies Citrix Presentation Server 4.0 and 4.5
o Enterprise operations experience Web Server and Web Site administration. .
o Net, IIS 6, reporting and web access technologies Microsoft Office and Collaboration product knowledge and support experience

Non Technical Skills Required:
•Relationship builder & team player
•Able to respond under pressure to many demands.
•Excellent Oral and written communication
About the Company
Our client is CITOS (Citigroup) Citigroup Information Technology Operations and Solutions.
Citigroup Inc. is today's pre-eminent financial services company, with some 200 million customer accounts in more than 100 countries.

CITOS is a wholly owned Citigroup entity setup as a low cost utility for leveraging proximity and relationship with Indian Technology vendors and capitalizing on the low cost skilled manpower resources available in India.

Operating as a part of Citibank India for 3 years till December 2004, CITOS became operational as a separate legal vehicle from January 1, 2005 with the mission of offering effective value-added technology services to all units within Citigroup.

As a unit of Corporate Operations and Technology, CITOS provides services to all business units and regions within Citigroup. CITOS delivers technology services to in-country technology units, regional and global technology centers across more than 30 countries.

CITOS complies with all Citigroup policies like CITMP, Outsourcing and Information Security. It is audited by corporate ARR as a separate unit and also participates in all customer audits.

CITOS provides Continuity-of-Business (COB) based on customer needs. The requirements are discussed and documented in a Service Level Agreement and can vary from falling back to the sending unit to a full-fledged inter-city COB.

Send your updated profile with following details:
1) Name of Current Employer
2) Name of Current Location
3) Total Exp
4) Relevant Exp
5) Current CTC
6) Expected CTC
7) Reason for change
8) Joining Notice Period
9) Domain

• Are u on Contract?
• Are you ready to relocate to Mumbai for CITOS (Citigroup)?

Pls send us any of your friend's references since we have multiple openings.

"You can also log onto our website http://careersdesk.com and apply for this and similar positions there. You can also set your job alert preferences, so that we inform you about jobs which may be of interest to you, immediately when they are posted. The site is regularly updated with premier jobs from the best companies, it provides articles and discussions on a host of career issues, and provides opportunities for career networking etc."

Warm Regards
Deepti Kasbe
-------------------------------------------------
Asst.HRD-Manager
Vertex Corporate Services (I) Pvt.Ltd
(022) 2596 0596/94/92 Ext- 23
Email Id: deepti@vertexcorp.com

This mail has been sent by one of the employers (Employer name: Vertex Corporate Services) accessing the services of monsterindia.com and not by Monster. Monster is committed to protecting the privacy of our users and our "Terms of Use" prohibits any misuse including spamming. If you consider the contents of the mails inappropriate or as spam, please forward this mail to spam@monsterindia.com

Double your chances of getting the right job by keeping your resume updated.
Update Resume now

Why delete messages? Unlimited storage is just a click away.
--~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~
<======= IT_Group ========>
~**~ Disclaimer ~**~
We do not claim to have made any of the Text/Graphics/E Book
or any article / material that we send unless otherwise noted.
They come from a wide variety of web sources & are therefore deemed
to be public domain. As far as we aware they are licensed for personal
use only, & are by their respective artist. Any infringement of said copyright is non-intentional & will be rectified upon notice & proof of ownership. We respect Intellectual Property and its lows.

[IT_Group:4850] Fwd: Your JobPrompt forSunday, 30th Dec

Hi All

FYI

Srinivas Retneni

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: ClickJobs <jobprompt-noreply@clickjobs.com >
Date: Dec 30, 2007 5:01 AM
Subject: Your JobPrompt forSunday, 30th Dec
To: svr.vin@gmail.com

Dear Srinivas,

Your Job Alerts has caught the new jobs that match the criteria you specified. Below you would find the list of opportunities that may suit you.

You had set your JobPrompt Criteria as:

it - software, Software Developer in Java, J2EE, VB and SQL, Any

Position Title	Senior Java Developer - Bangalore / USA - Onsite
Company	Askexim Services Private Limited
Experience	4 - 8 Yrs
Location	Bangalore, California

Position Title	Java/J2EE - Senior Developers / Developers
Company	Askexim Services Private Limited
Experience	5 - 7 Yrs
Location	Bangalore

Position Title	Project Leader -Embedded Systems
Company	Needs & Solutions
Experience	5 - 8 Yrs
Location	Bangalore

Position Title	Software Developer
Company	Wipro Technologies
Experience	3 - 4 Yrs
Location	Bangalore

Position Title	IBM SOA Architects
Company	Wipro Technologies
Experience	4 - 6 Yrs
Location	Hyderabad

Position Title	Senior webmethods B2B Developer
Company	Wipro Technologies
Experience	3 - 4 Yrs
Location	Hyderabad

Position Title	Software Engineer - ATG
Company	Wipro Technologies
Experience	1 - 3 Yrs
Location	Chennai

Position Title	Project Lead - ATG
Company	Wipro Technologies
Experience	3 - 4 Yrs
Location	Chennai

Position Title	Java J2EE
Company	Brains IT Solutions
Experience	4 - 10 Yrs
Location	Free State, Bangalore, Northern Cape

Position Title	Java - J2EE, Struts Programmer Exp 2 -6yrs CTS
Company	Brains IT Solutions
Experience	2 - 9 Yrs
Location	Kolkata

Position Title	BPEL requirement
Company	Brains IT Solutions
Experience	2 - 12 Yrs
Location	Free State, Bangalore, Northern Cape

Position Title	JAVA/J2EE Requirement
Company	Brains IT Solutions
Experience	4 - 8 Yrs
Location	Free State

Position Title	Opening in USA for Java-J2EE Professionals on H1B
Company	Brains IT Solutions
Experience	3 - -1 Yrs
Location	California

Position Title	Software Engineer - ATG
Company	Wipro Technologies
Experience	1 - 3 Yrs
Location	Bangalore

Position Title	Senior Software Engineer - JBPM
Company	Wipro Technologies
Experience	3 - 4 Yrs
Location	Chennai

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[IT_Group:4849] Fwd: IT Job requirement -USA, UK, Canada, India and Other parts of world In IT and Non IT.

Hi All

FYI
Srinivas Retneni

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Brains IT Solutions <jobs@topglobaljobs.com >
Date: Dec 29, 2007 4:56 PM
Subject: IT Job requirement -USA, UK, Canada, India and Other parts of world In IT and Non IT.
To: svr.vin@gmail.com

[IT_Group:4848] Fwd: Reg: Urgent Opening for JAVA and WEBSPHERE professionals in SINGAPORE

Hi All

FYI
Srinivas Retneni

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <shruthi@focusonit.com>
Date: Dec 29, 2007 3:53 PM
Subject: Reg: Urgent Opening for JAVA and WEBSPHERE professionals in SINGAPORE
To:

Hi,

We are having an urgent opening for our a Fortune Company in Singapore for JAVA and WEBSPHERE DEVELOPERS

PRIMARY SkillSet: JAVA & WEBSPHERE DEVELOPER

Secondary Skill: Sybase - SQL, Stored Procedured, Unix,

 Role: DEVELOPER

Exp: 3- 4 years

Role:  SE/SSE

Joining period: 10 -15 days

Location:  Singapore

Qualification: Full time graduates only 
Any Full-Time Graduate
Plz. Mention Your Passed Out Years:
     Class-X
     Class-XII
    Graduation(Full-Time)-

If interested in the opening, kindly forward your profile with the following details: 
1)Total Experience & Relv. Exp. 
2)Current & Expected CTC? both in Indian & Singapore dollars
4) Date Of Birth ?
5) Notice Period ? 10-15 days
6) Current Job Location?
7) Availability for an Tele-interview with Client on a weekday  
8) Passport Details

Thank You!

The sender of this email is registered with naukri.com as Focus Management Consultants Pvt Ltd. (bangalore@focusonit.com, C/258, Oshiwara Industrial Estate,, Goregaon-W,, Mumbai, Maha - 400104) using Naukri.com services. The responsibility of checking the authenticity of offers/correspondence lies with you.

If you consider the content of this email inappropriate or spam, you may:
1. Report abuse by forwarding this email to : abuse@naukri.com
2. Block this company - Focus Management Consultants Pvt Ltd. (ref no: 10820) from accessing your resume by logging into your naukri account and selecting Block Company in the Privacy Settings section.

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[IT_Group:4847] Fwd: Regarding the opening with US Company

Hi All

FYI

Srinvas Retneni

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Raventure Solutions - Sushila < sushila@raventure.com>
Date: Dec 29, 2007 3:14 PM
Subject: Regarding the opening with US Company
To: svr.vin@gmail.com

Hi,

We are the recruitment consultants based at Bangalore, I gone through your profile in one of the portal, we have an Openings with US Company. Please let me know if you are interested

Send your updated CV with following details

Full name:

DOB:

CTC:

Expected CTC:

Total yrs of exp:

Relevant exp:

Preferred Location:

Notice period

Current Location.

Sushila

Raventure Solutions

080-41263060, 25356030 Ext: 126

Email: - sushila@raventure.com

[IT_Group:4846] Fwd: Immediate Requirement at DUBAI for JAVA Developers & Team Leader

Hi All

FYI

Srinvas Retneni

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: mohit walia <walia.gss@gmail.com >
Date: Dec 29, 2007 10:50 AM
Subject: Immediate Requirement at DUBAI for JAVA Developers & Team Leader
To: mastan.j2ee@gmail.com, monojit_das@rediffmail.com, javamurali@yahoo.com, naga.raghavendra@indiatimes.com, naveensh30@gmail.com , padmapriya.prasad@yahoo.co.in, pratap.se@gmail.com, praveendhumaley@gmail.com , priyadarshipattnaik@yahoo.com, Pattnaik_priyadarshi@yahoo.co.in, ramansivan@gmail.com , ramesh.salla@gmail.com, gulatirashi@yahoo.com, samit_katiyar@rediffmail.com, j2ee.sandeep@gmail.com, satish.g43@gmail.com, satyanarayana02@gmail.com, Sheikh.shah@hotmail.com , shruthi.chacham@rediffmail.com, sharmas.shweta@gmail.com, sridhar_tota@yahoo.com , srihari.dn@gmail.com, srikanthnalam@gmail.com, svr.vin@gmail.com, svr_vin@yahoo.co.uk, svrpalle@rediff.com, g.subbu1000@gmail.com, subbajava@gmail.com, mailsumukha@yahoo.com, suryaprakash.ganapa@gmail.com, swati_issar@yahoo.co.in, surajmca13@rediff.com , azais.syed@gmail.com, mailtovasureddy.soft@gmail.com, venkanna@ssktechnosoft.com , Venkanna100@gmail.com, venki.bandaru@yahoo.co.in, dhanyasi59@gmail.com, yasir.ahmed@babelmedia.com, yuva.munagapati@gmail.com
Cc: sales.goldscape@gmail.com

Dear Sir/Madam,

Immediate Requirement at DUBAI for JAVA Developers & Team Leader

One of a client of GoldScape Solutions Pvt Ltd is looking for the candidates who are having 3-5Yrs of experience in JAVA as Developers & Team Leaders. Both Positions will be based at Dubai.

Java Team Leader:

At least 5 years experience in:
• Java, Threads, ODBC, Spring framework, JSP, Servlets, EJB, STRUTS, SQL, UML, J2EE design patterns, Database design skills
• Oracle Applications Development environment (Eclipse/JDeveloper IDE, Oracle AS OC4J, ..Etc.)
• Struts.
• JUnit.
• Oracle Client and/or Toad.
• CM / Source control tools experience, preferably CVS / SVN.
• J2EE design patterns
• Web Services
• SOA
• ESB
• Considered a Plus:
o Performance tracking
o Enterprise Integration

Java Developer:

• At least 3 years of practical experience in the IT field in application development using Java.
• Good understanding of UML concepts.
• Mastering Java Standard Edition J2SE Ver. 1.5
• Solid overall understanding of Java Enterprise Edition J2EE. (4+ years of practical experience)
• Servlets/JSP knowledge, EJB, Hibernate.
• Spring framework.
• Shows good understanding of the core OO concepts & OO design techniques.
• Solid understanding of SQL & DB design.
• Related Tools / Technologies: Struts, JUnit, Oracle Client and/or Toad.
& Oracle Applications development environment (Eclipse/JDeveloper IDE, Oracle AS OC4J, etc.)
& CM / Source control tools experience, preferably CVS / VN.

& Design Patterns/J2EE Design Patterns.
& Web Services

Qualification: Degree in a relevant discipline e.g. engineering or computer science.

For Further enquiries Feel Free to call to the below number.
--
Mohit Walia
GoldScape Solutions Pvt Ltd
Bangalore-37
Ph: +91-9986726703

[IT_Group:4845] Fwd: Your JobPrompt forSaturday, 29th Dec

Hi All

FYI

Srinivas Retneni

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: ClickJobs <jobprompt-noreply@clickjobs.com >
Date: Dec 29, 2007 4:37 AM
Subject: Your JobPrompt forSaturday, 29th Dec
To: svr.vin@gmail.com

Dear Srinivas,

Your Job Alerts has caught the new jobs that match the criteria you specified. Below you would find the list of opportunities that may suit you.

You had set your JobPrompt Criteria as:

it - software, Software Developer in Java, J2EE, VB and SQL, Any

Position Title	Senior Java Developer - Bangalore / USA - Onsite
Company	Askexim Services Private Limited
Experience	4 - 8 Yrs
Location	Bangalore, California

Position Title	Java/J2EE - Senior Developers / Developers
Company	Askexim Services Private Limited
Experience	5 - 7 Yrs
Location	Bangalore

Position Title	Software Engineer- 3-4 years Exp.
Company	SM NETSERV TECHNOLOGIES
Experience	3 - 5 Yrs
Location	Bangalore

Position Title	Project Lead - Java , NMS/EMS
Company	ROLAND & ASSOCIATES
Experience	4 - 8 Yrs
Location	Bangalore

Position Title	Project Lead - ATG
Company	Wipro Technologies
Experience	3 - 4 Yrs
Location	Chennai

Position Title	Module Lead
Company	Wipro Technologies
Experience	4 - 6 Yrs
Location	Pune

Position Title	Software Engineer - ATG
Company	Wipro Technologies
Experience	1 - 3 Yrs
Location	Bangalore

Forgot Password

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Resume Writing
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Resume Broadcast
Get your resume transmitted to hundreds of employers in a span of minutes.

Resume Highlight
Get your resume noticed by employers in a resume database by visible highlights.

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With Best Regards,

ClickJobs.com Team

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IndiaList.com | IndiaPages.com | Loan Wala.com

[IT_Group:4844] Fwd: Virtusa is now hiring Java/J2EE Professionals

Hi All

FYI

Srinivas Retneni

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <priya@tvainfotech.com>
Date: Dec 28, 2007 6:50 PM
Subject: Virtusa is now hiring Java/J2EE Professionals
To:

Hi!
Greetings of the day!!

We currently have openings with Virtusa. Positions are based in Hyderabad .

About Virtusa:

Virtusa Corporation (NASDAQ: VRTU) is a global information technology (IT) services company providing IT consulting,
technology and outsourcing services.Founded in 1996 and headquartered in Massachusetts, we have offices and technology centers throughout the U.S., U.K. and Asia.
We serve Global 2000 enterprises and the leading software vendors in communications & technology; banking,financial
services & insurance; and media & information industries.
Over 3500 people worldwide. Over 1000 in Chennai and over 1200 in Hyderabad employee strength.
To know more about Virtusa log on to: www.virtusa.com

Position: Senior Software Engine! er
Experience: 3-5 years
Skill Requirement: Should have worked on Design patterns, ejb,weblogic,struts, xml,uml,ooad

Work Location:- Hyderabad
EDUCATION:- B.E/B.Tech/ME/M.Tech/MCA/Msc only

Short listed Candidates will be Interviewed on 5th January,2008 in Hyderabad.

If interested, Kindly send your updated profile in a word document format asap to priya@tvainfotech.com along with
the following details:-

1. Current CTC:
2. Expected CTC:
3. Notice Period:
4. Are you a Permanent Employee?
5. Current Company:
6. Availability for the interview on 5th January, 2008 in Hyderabad:

If you are looking for a change of job this is a great opportunity that should not be missed!!!!!
It would be great if you could refer us to your friends or colleagues...!

PS: Kindly revert back to the same subject line.

Have a nice DAY !!!

Thanks & Regards,

Priya Pai
Recruitment Specialist
~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~
TVA INFOTECH, Bangalore.
URL: www.tvainfotech.com
Tel No. Direct: 080- 40125587
Email - priya@tvainfotech.com

TVA Infotech -India's fastest recruitment company

RPO . Recruitment Events . Technical Search

****************************************************************************************************************************************************************
The information contained in this communication is intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom it is addressed and others authorized to r! eceive it. It may contain confidential or legally privileged information. If you are not the intended recipient you are hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution or taking any action in reliance on the contents of this information is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you have received this communication in error, please notify us immediately by responding to this email and then delete it from your system. Further ,Any opinions contained in this message are those of the author and are not given or endorsed by TVA Infotech through which this message is sent unless otherwise clearly indicated in this message and the authority of the author to so bind TVA Infotech is duly verified.
****************************************************************************************************************************************************************

The sender of this email is registered with naukri.com as TVA Infotech Pvt Ltd (namratha@tvainfotech.com, 203,St Mark, Bangalore, Karnataka - 560001) using Naukri.com services. The responsibility of checking the authenticity of offers/correspondence lies with you.

If you consider the content of this email inappropriate or spam, you may:
1. Report abuse by forwarding this email to : abuse@naukri.com
2. Block this company - TVA Infotech Pvt Ltd (ref no: 1299) from accessing your resume by logging into your naukri account and selecting Block Company in the Privacy Settings section .

Please note that Naukri.com does NOT endorse any requests for money payments, or sharing of bank account details.

To be on the top of Employer's Resume Search Update Your Resume Now

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Java Consulting Rates	JSP	Testing
SQL	JMS Consulting

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Buy/Sell/Rent Property on 99acres.com	Build your professional network on Brijj.com

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159415

[IT_Group:4843] Fwd: Oppertunities with IBM

Hi All

FYI

Srinivas Retneni

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: dileepa@careerdestiny.net < rzmails@indiatimes.com>
Date: Dec 28, 2007 4:38 PM
Subject: Oppertunities with IBM
To:

Hi,

We are a premier consultant based in Bangalore – CAREER DESTINY, focusing on the manpower requirements of major IT Companies in India. We have immediate openings with our Client: IBM.

Skill : Java / J2ee

Experience level : 3 to 6 years, (3 years relevant experience is must)

Job location : Bangalore,Hyderabad,Pune,Chennai,Kolkata,Gurgon

If you are interested please let me have your profile as soon as possible.

Thanks and Regards

Dileepa . S
Resource Consultant
Career Destiny
Mysore.

Cell : 9916134773
Email id : dileepa@careerdestiny.net

The sender career_destiny of this email has accessed your resume on timesjobs.com. Please note that there is no charge for registering on Timesjobs.com. Products for which charges are payable are clearly indicated on the site. It is the sole responsibility of the candidate to verify the content of the mails sent by the employers/recruiters. Further, you are advised to make appropriate/thorough enquiries before acting upon any unsolicited mail that you may receive from any individual/firm/company, asking for advance payment for any service that they may claim to be offering. Timesjobs.com does not vouch/guarantee for any such offers made by the above said parties.

The sender of this email is registered with timesjobs.com as Career Destiny(sorabh@careerdestiny.net ,No. 5, Silver Glade, Wellington Street, Richmond Town) using timesjobs.com services. The responsibility of checking the authenticity of offers/correspondence lies with you.

If you consider the content of this email inappropriate or spam, you may report abuse by forwarding this email to: timesjobs@timesgroup.com

Please note that timesjobs.com does NOT endorse any requests for money payments, or sharing of bank account details.

Legal Disclaimer:

This Website/ E-mail are vulnerable to data corruption, interception, tampering, viruses as well as delivery errors and we do not accept liability for any consequence that may arise therefrom

[IT_Group:4842] Fwd: Urgent and Excellent Job opportunity for Embedded Linux Software Development Engineer for (Singapore)

Hi All

FYI

Srinivas Retneni

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <sheela@nityo.com>
Date: Dec 28, 2007 5:45 PM
Subject: Urgent and Excellent Job opportunity for Embedded Linux Software Development Engineer for (Singapore)
To:

Hi!

This is Sheela from Nityo Infotech.

We are a US based I.T. consulting company. We cater to the IT (Consulting & Resourcing) needs of some of the renowned MNCs in India and South East Asia, Australia, South Africa, Hong Kong and USA.

Some of our esteemed clients are Barclays, Credit Sussie,BMC Software Kanbay, US JADE, IBM, MBT, LNT, Wipro, Accenture, Zensar, Target, BMC, Bank of New York, Pfizer, Dr.Reddy, ABN AMRO, Walmart, united Group, DBS Singapore, and CitiGroup Singapore, G1 Software Singapore, Max New York Life (USA).

Currently we have urgent permanent openings with SmartBridges Pvt Ltd the details for which are given below-

Below given are the necessary details:

Client name                    : SmartBridges Pvt Ltd (Payroll of Nityo Infotech)
Location                         &! nbsp;: Singapore!
Position                            : Embedded Linux Software Development Engineer

JD
Basic qualifications:

Degree in Electronics/Communications/Computer Engineering with majors in Networking Concepts and Design.
At least 3 years experience as a software development engineer contributing throughout the full SDLC lifecycle including desi! gn, implementation, testing and customer acceptance
Good track record of estimating and completing development tasks on time.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills

Technical qualifications:

Proficiency in Linux C development, Socket Programming experience
In-depth knowledge in TCP/IP
Prior knowledge of Linux drivers/kernel, QoS, VoIP and 802.11 protocols
Linux Kernel/driver development exposure
Exposu re to development in wireless 802.11 domain is highly desirable
Strong design and debugging skills
Understanding of various network security features (ACL, firewall filtering, VPN etc.).

About Fiserv:

Fortune 500 Company
NASADQ Listed
Well Known in US Market
230 US Location and 20 International
Rank 2^nd in financial data service

Dec 31, 2007

Set logging policies

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