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U3 - run pstart instead of U3launchpad?


sid_lexic

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Hi all,

I like U3 but I am not impressed with the U3 launchpad program. Could anyone provide instructions on how to create an ISO that will set the USB drive to run pstart instead of the u3 launchpad when it is plugged in. Then any new program can be added without having to convert to the u3 launchpad format.

Thanks, Sid.

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1. Remove U3 software with the U3 Uninstaller available here.

2. Download Loader.zip available here.

3. Inside the zip are two folders: sandisk and memorex.

4. Flash new loader on the USB drive depending on your drive manufacturer.

5. Create file named "payloads.ini" on the USB drive.

6. Edit the payloads.ini file to represent what you want to run when the drive is inserted.

[DEFAULT] is what to run if no hotkey is selected.

Otherwise, give the path to the file and a hotkey that can be pressed when the drive is inserted to run a different payload.

[DEFAULT]

path=default.bat



[PAYLOAD01]

path=

hotkey=



[PAYLOAD02]

path=

hotkey=

7. Create file name "default.bat" on the USB drive.

8. Edit "default.bat" and add the following:

@echo off

Start PStartPStart.exe

9. Create folder "PStart" and copy PStart into the folder.

10. Make sure you setup PStart to save it's xml config file localy.

11. Add applications to PStart

Your USB drive structure should look like this:

[PStart] - Contains PStart.exe and PStart.xml

default.bat

payloads.ini

* Note - If you change anything in PStart, make a backup file afterwards. PStart only saves it's backup once it closes, if you take the USB drive out before PStart closes correctly, anything you changed will be lost.

* Another note - in the payloads.ini the hotkey only works with single letters/numbers on a standard 101 keyboard. (ie. hotkeys can be a-z,0-9)

[DEFAULT]

path=default.bat



[PAYLOAD01]

path=payload01.bat

hotkey=a



[PAYLOAD02]

path=payload02.bat

hotkey=3

And, you have to hold down this hotkey as the USB drive is inserted, then installs the CD-ROM, then executes the loader.

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Yeah, that could be my fault. The code I used was based on some old Windows hooks for a keylogger I wrote a while ago.

However, I have never had an issue on 3 different computers all running XP pro.

Unfortunately, I wont be updating it anytime soon as I have become extremely busy. I will gladly post the source code if anyone wants it.

Or, it could be how your payloads.ini is setup...

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Source - VB6

Now come to think of it, you probably have to register the dll that is in that source zip.

I didnt think about that until now and this is most likely the issue. This can be fixxed by making loader copy the dll over the system32 and register before looking for hotkeys.

I will try and get around to adding that piece to the loader and recompiling then trying it on a sandbox computer when I get the chance.

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Hi all,

I like U3 but I am not impressed with the U3 launchpad program. Could anyone provide instructions on how to create an ISO that will set the USB drive to run pstart instead of the u3 launchpad when it is plugged in. Then any new program can be added without having to convert to the u3 launchpad format.

Thanks, Sid.

This is what I use:

*autorun.inf

[AutoRun]

open=wscript .autorun.vbs

*autorun.vbs

dim FSO, flash, oShell

Set FSO = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")

Set AllDrives = FSO.Drives

Set oShell = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")

For Each objDrive In fso.Drives

If objDrive.DriveType = "1" And objDrive.IsReady Then

If fso.FileExists(objDrive & "PStart.exe") Then flash = objDrive

oShell.Run flash & "PStart.exe", 1, False

End If

Next

If Len(flash) = 0 Then

MsgBox "Error: PStart.exe not found!",vbCritical,"File Not Found"

WScript.Quit

End if

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That's not what I'm saying. When you replace the U3 Partition, you leave the old one there and just write over it. If you remove it all together, it will REMOVE THE PARTITION. Not the loader the PARTITION. THen you have a REGULAR NON-U3 USB key.

You uninstall the U3 partition that came with the drive. Yes, the U3 program is gone (You can reinstall it even though the site mentions it is irreversible). Then you install the custom loader that gives you more control to run whatever quick launch type of application you want. And, you get 5mb more of free space.

This solution was provided for the OP who wanted to remove U3 all together and have a custom ISO (Loader) that would run PStart instead. This does just that.

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It's easier to use the program to replace the U3 partition, you DO NOT have to uninstall it. Trust me, I've flashed my U3 Partition MANY times, and you DO NOT have to runt eh uninstaller, it's an extra step, and risky. If you remove the partition, its gone, and you have to recreate it. The program doesn't recreate the partition, it jsut flashes it.

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