[Siginet]

Ok folks...

I've just finished coding Beta4 and as promised... I've added support for the new DriverPacks Base.

*Note... in order for the DP to work you must first install the new DP_Base.exe and create a mysettings.ini file through the DP Base. Once you have made your settings file you just select that settings file in the DP section of PowerPacker.

Also a major change you will quickly notice is the new "Advanced" tab. A new advanced feature is the "Run file upon completion" area. This feature is allready built into the RVMIntegrator and now is available in PowerPacker as well. It is very usefult to chain link multiple packaging processes of powerpacker together... or even chain linking powerpacker and the RVMIntegrator together. It is made to help simplify the unattended disc creation. Once you have all of your settings files made for all of the programs... you just start the process and the rest is unattended.

There will be more "Advanced" features added... but this new beta should hold you guys/gals for a bit before Beta5.

Please report any bugs you may find.

Download @ Siginet Software

Enjoy!

This post has been edited by Siginet: 20 June 2006 - 12:57 PM

[Siginet]

Siginet, on Jun 19 2006, 01:46 AM, said:

Ok folks...

I've just finished coding Beta4 and as promised... I've added support for the new DriverPacks Base.

*Note... in order for the DP to work you must first install the new DP_Base.exe and create a mysettings.ini file through the DP Base. Once you have made your settings file you just select that settings file in the DP section of PowerPacker.

Also a major change you will quickly notice is the new "Advanced" tab. A new advanced feature is the "Run file upon completion" area. This feature is allready built into the RVMIntegrator and now is available in PowerPacker as well. It is very usefult to chain link multiple packaging processes of powerpacker together... or even chain linking powerpacker and the RVMIntegrator together. It is made to help simplify the unattended disc creation. Once you have all of your settings files made for all of the programs... you just start the process and the rest is unattended.

There will be more "Advanced" features added... but this new beta should hold you guys/gals for a bit before Beta5.

Please report any bugs you may find.

Download @ Siginet Software

Enjoy!

So am I to assume there are no bugs? Come on guys... I need some Beta testing.

[Super-Magician]

We're getting there...I just encountered this today .

Will test and report. Hopefully, the Extra Pack File function was fixed .

[Siginet]

Super-Magician, on Jun 21 2006, 03:59 PM, said:

We're getting there...I just encountered this today .

Will test and report. Hopefully, the Extra Pack File function was fixed .

Actually I don't remember if I fixed it or not.

Let me know if it doesn't. But I think I fixed it a while back when I first started coding Beta4.

[maybeme]

Well, I can't test it now, but just started once to check out what the advanced tab was about. I found 2 glitches:

File => properties: still there, I think it's unneeded when you have the advanced tab. (now it just does nothing when you click on it)

Info => help isn't working

When I select my source path, will the powerpacker automaticly see if I have a corporate or a retail version? I don't have to activate my windows, but I don't know if it's a corporate version. We bought it via MS-KIS (my mom is a teacher)

Looks like a cool program! Keep up the good work!

(btw: I think you made the RyanVM slipstreamer too, is this integrated in Powerpacker? I can't find it. Should I just first use the slipstreamer and then the XP Powerpacker?)

[Super-Magician]

Quote

Info => help isn't working

Help doesn't work because the actual help file doesn't exist. Siginet hasn't updated it in a while (last update I guess was for 1.0 RC5 or something). It will undoubtedly be packaged into the final RC8, but for now, the actual executable file contains only the program and does not extract anything (except writing a powpack.ini settings file).

Quote

When I select my source path, will the powerpacker automaticly see if I have a corporate or a retail version? I don't have to activate my windows, but I don't know if it's a corporate version. We bought it via MS-KIS (my mom is a teacher)

Looks like a cool program! Keep up the good work!

(btw: I think you made the RyanVM slipstreamer too, is this integrated in Powerpacker? I can't find it. Should I just first use the slipstreamer and then the XP Powerpacker?)

Sorry, I know I'm not Siginet, but I can still answer your questions. PowerPacker doesn't have the ability to detect the type of source you have, but in your case, you should select 'corporate'. It doesn't really matter for the actual packaging, but the options are there so that PowerPacker activates the correct sections in the boot menu files (it also tells the program what to name the folders).

The RyanVM Integrator is maintained by RyanVM (big surprise !). It is not packaged into WXPP though, so yes, you need to download it separately. WXPP can in some way communicate with the RyanVM Integrator, but you need to wait for Siginet to explain this because I am not familiar with that portion of the program.

Hope this helps !

[Siginet]

Super-Magician, on Jun 22 2006, 04:28 PM, said:

Quote

Info => help isn't working

Help doesn't work because the actual help file doesn't exist. Siginet hasn't updated it in a while (last update I guess was for 1.0 RC5 or something). It will undoubtedly be packaged into the final RC8, but for now, the actual executable file contains only the program and does not extract anything (except writing a powpack.ini settings file).

Quote

When I select my source path, will the powerpacker automaticly see if I have a corporate or a retail version? I don't have to activate my windows, but I don't know if it's a corporate version. We bought it via MS-KIS (my mom is a teacher)

Looks like a cool program! Keep up the good work!

(btw: I think you made the RyanVM slipstreamer too, is this integrated in Powerpacker? I can't find it. Should I just first use the slipstreamer and then the XP Powerpacker?)

Sorry, I know I'm not Siginet, but I can still answer your questions. PowerPacker doesn't have the ability to detect the type of source you have, but in your case, you should select 'corporate'. It doesn't really matter for the actual packaging, but the options are there so that PowerPacker activates the correct sections in the boot menu files (it also tells the program what to name the folders).

The RyanVM Integrator is maintained by RyanVM (big surprise !). It is not packaged into WXPP though, so yes, you need to download it separately. WXPP can in some way communicate with the RyanVM Integrator, but you need to wait for Siginet to explain this because I am not familiar with that portion of the program.

Hope this helps !

You were almost correct about everything... except the RyanVM Integrator. I am the creator of the RyanVM Integrator... and I do manage it. I made the integrator for Ryan because I enjoyed his UpdatePacks so much. A lot of the integrator was made by Ryan telling me what he wanted it to do and I coded it to do it. Then I added my ideas to it as well. A lot of the addon capabilities were designed by me.

What I do is I use the RVMIntegrator first... but in the advanced tab I select Run External File, Browse to PowerPacker, then in the parameters box I put:

"X:\Path\To\A\Settings\File\powpack.ini" -PACK

This will utalize both programs. First integrating everything with the integrator then calling powerpacker unattendedly and packaging everything. Then you can use the Run External File feature in powerpacker as well to call the integrator in the same way:

Select the integrator file, Then in the parameters put this:

"X:\Path\To\A\Settings\File\integrator.ini" /INTEGRATE

This is a cool way to chain link the programs together so everything is unattended.

As for PowerPacker detecting the different types of OSes... It will in a later version. The next integrator allready detects the different OSes for you... and I will be implementing that code into powerpacker as well.

[maybeme]

Thanks for the answers, Super-Magician and Siginet!

I'll test it probably by next week.

[bober]

does it have multi-boot for DP driver packs?

[Super-Magician]

Quote

You were almost correct about everything... except the RyanVM Integrator. I am the creator of the RyanVM Integrator... and I do manage it. I made the integrator for Ryan because I enjoyed his UpdatePacks so much. A lot of the integrator was made by Ryan telling me what he wanted it to do and I coded it to do it. Then I added my ideas to it as well. A lot of the addon capabilities were designed by me.

Whoops! So sorry about my ignorance! Guess I should have done some research first !

[kris_h]

maybeme, on Jun 23 2006, 03:10 AM, said:

will the powerpacker automaticly see if I have a corporate or a retail version? I don't have to activate my windows, but I don't know if it's a corporate version. We bought it via MS-KIS (my mom is a teacher)

i have no idea if it does detect the type but it shouldnt be too hard to implement

anything that doesn't require activation is a corporate version.

99% of all software provided to teachers through their work is corporate, well it is here in australia anyway.

[Siginet]

The next integrator... v1.3 will detect all versions of windows Pro Corp, Pro Retail, Pro OEM, Home Corp, Home Retail, Home OEM, Media Center, and so on.

Eventually I will implement the code into powerpacker as well. But we are still in beta. So there is still a lot to be added. But since v1.0 RC8 has so many changes in it I decided to release a bunch of Betas so that users can still use the new features and not have to wait so long for the final RC8.

I also plan on adding an advanced feature to allow a user to use multiple winnt.sif files for a pack... which I think will be an awsome new feature.

[kris_h]

hi...

finally got around to testing it today...

found a problem, it may be just me...

slipstreamed driverpacks using the latest base and latest driver packs as of today into a fresh xp source and tested. all good.

but when i use the mysettings.ini with powerpacker the driverpacks api thing comes up but it finishes up a little to quickly and there is no driverpack files (the 7z ones) copied to my multi folder.

anyone else come accross this or something similar.

[Siginet]

kris_h, on Jun 26 2006, 11:38 PM, said:

hi...

finally got around to testing it today...

found a problem, it may be just me...

slipstreamed driverpacks using the latest base and latest driver packs as of today into a fresh xp source and tested. all good.

but when i use the mysettings.ini with powerpacker the driverpacks api thing comes up but it finishes up a little to quickly and there is no driverpack files (the 7z ones) copied to my multi folder.

anyone else come accross this or something similar.

It shouldn't use the multipack feature of the DP Base. Just use the regular Disc feature.

[kris_h]

Siginet, on Jun 29 2006, 01:19 AM, said:

kris_h, on Jun 26 2006, 11:38 PM, said:

hi...

finally got around to testing it today...

found a problem, it may be just me...

slipstreamed driverpacks using the latest base and latest driver packs as of today into a fresh xp source and tested. all good.

but when i use the mysettings.ini with powerpacker the driverpacks api thing comes up but it finishes up a little to quickly and there is no driverpack files (the 7z ones) copied to my multi folder.

anyone else come accross this or something similar.

It shouldn't use the multipack feature of the DP Base. Just use the regular Disc feature.

multipack feature of dp base?.. i cant see an option for multiple or single

??? i dont quite understand what you are saying...

This post has been edited by kris_h: 28 June 2006 - 11:29 PM

[Siginet]

Sorry I must have mis understood your issue. Your best bet would be to get rid of any spaces in the paths to anything. Anyone else having an issue?

I know I ran many tests myself and fixed any bugs I could find. But it is possible I missed something. That's what I need everyone here to verify for me. I can't keep coding powerpacker if no one gives me feedback. I have no idea if people are successfully able to use it or not. All I know is it works for me.

[Telenut]

Same problem here, the driverpacks themselve are not copied to the target folder... no spaces in the path :s

[Siginet]

Telenut, on Jul 2 2006, 03:44 AM, said:

Same problem here, the driverpacks themselve are not copied to the target folder... no spaces in the path :s

I have a strong feeling that this issue is caused by cmdow.exe being deleted by your antivirus program. Recently Symantec and a few other AV programs have been claiming cmdow.exe is a virus. Which we all know is a crock of sh!t. The DriverPacks use cmdow.exe. PowerPacker utalizes the DP Base unattendedly so that it does everything with no user interaction. What is happening is the DP Base is erroring out on not finding cmdow.exe and then quits before finishing it's job.

I may work on a fake cmdow.exe that will work just like the real one and see if it will work instead of the real cmdow.exe. If it works I will post it for others to use.

[Siginet]

Another thing that could cause this is... check your mysettings.ini

Look in
[Settings]
driverpacks = "select"

if it says:
[Settings]
driverpacks = "all"

Change it to:
[Settings]
driverpacks = "select"

also...

[SelectDriverPacks] should list the DPs you are going to slipstream.

We found a small bug in the DP Base that is somehow triggered by API mode. Which is the mode used when another program utalizes the DP Base like powerpacker does.

I reported it to Bashrat and he is looking into it.

[kris_h]

Siginet, on Jul 2 2006, 06:51 PM, said:

Telenut, on Jul 2 2006, 03:44 AM, said:

Same problem here, the driverpacks themselve are not copied to the target folder... no spaces in the path :s

I have a strong feeling that this issue is caused by cmdow.exe being deleted by your antivirus program.

i too have no spaces in my paths...

cmdow.exe is still there so i'll assume that it wasnt deleted and nod32 hasnt had a whinge about it...

i'll doublecheck mysettings.ini