<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 3.2//EN">
<HTML>
<HEAD>
<META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=us-ascii">
<META NAME="Generator" CONTENT="MS Exchange Server version 6.5.7650.28">
<TITLE>Possible Solution to USB KEY Drive Issues</TITLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
<!-- Converted from text/rtf format -->
<P><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Our local Web Guru Greg Weller just came across some great information that I wanted to go ahead and pass along to the group about USB Drive issues on locked down machines. As most of you know not all USB Stick, keys, fob, or whatever you want to call them work on public computers. That is because a lot of them use a proprietary driver. Greg has discovered that holding the shift key down when inserting the device bypasses the request for driver installation and recognizes the key as a basic drive. </FONT></P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Here is the text from Greg:</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">There is a distinct class of USB drives that are labeled as a 'U3' device, or a SmartDrive. A lot of the Sandisk Cruzers are this type of device. Some other big ones are: Kingston U3 DataTraveler, Verbatim Store 'n' Go U3 Smart Drive, Intuix Smart Drive, Memorex Mini TravelDrive, and GeekSquad Flash Drives. The U3 home page is here:</FONT><FONT FACE="Times New Roman"> </FONT></P>
<P><A HREF="http://www.u3.com/default.aspx"><U><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">http://www.u3.com/default.aspx</FONT></U></A><FONT FACE="Times New Roman"> </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">And there's a more comprehensive list of drives and what they look like here:</FONT><FONT FACE="Times New Roman"> </FONT>
<BR><A HREF="http://www.u3.com/smartdrives/default.aspx"><U><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">http://www.u3.com/smartdrives/default.aspx</FONT></U></A><FONT FACE="Times New Roman"> </FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">The U3 device has a launcher application that starts when you plug it in and while they say that it doesn't affect the operating system it does in the sense that it needs to load some drivers in and then wants you to reboot the PC in order for it to work. Obviously, this is not going to work on a Dell in the branch. Here's the fix: Hold down the Shift key while you are plugging in the device, and keep the shift key held down for around 30 seconds. This disables the launch pad and it now looks like a plain old USB drive instead of a SmartDrive. The only other apparent solution to this is to wipe the drive completely to remove the software, which is not something that I would ever tell a patron to do. This 'fix' is from the USB page, and does not harm the drive. I tested it out on our Dell behind the help desk, and on a couple of machines down at PAS and devices that I've never gotten to work on a Dell, worked fine. As far as it goes, it might just be a good idea to tell people to hold down the Shift key no matter what kind of USB drive they're plugging in.</FONT> </P>
<P><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Thanks for the info Greg!</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Regards,</FONT>
<BR><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Jim Kenzig</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial"><BR>
</FONT><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Network Manager</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial"><BR>
</FONT><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Cuyahoga County Public Library<BR>
Microsoft MVP -</FONT> <A HREF="https://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile=23AEC72D-4582-47DE-8516-85D400AD929A"><U></U><U><FONT COLOR="#003399" SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Terminal Services</FONT></U></A><BR>
<A HREF="http://www.citrix.com/English/ps2/products/feature.asp?contentID=38494"><U></U><U><FONT COLOR="#003399" SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Citrix Technology Professional</FONT></U></A><BR>
<A HREF="http://www.provisionnetworks.com/vips/members.aspx"><U></U><U><FONT COLOR="#003399" SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Provision Networks VIP</FONT></U></A><BR>
<FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">jkenzig@cuyahogalibrary.org</FONT><BR>
<FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">216-749-9389</FONT><FONT FACE="Arial"> </FONT>
</P>
<BR>
</BODY>
</HTML>