


Multi-Remote Registry Change v2.5
Copyright  1998, Greg Eytcheson
All Rights Reserved







Contents

1.	Overview
2.	Features
3.	System Requirements
4.	Instructions
a.  General
b.	Main Window
c.	Change Single Key
d.	Change Many Keys (Key Group)
e.	Check for Key
f.	Logging
g.	Shutdown Systems
h.	REG File Operations
i.	Lookup IP Addresses
j.	Change User Rights
k.	Apply from File
l.	Create "Call" Batch File
m.  Retry Log
5.  Contacting the Author 
6.  Ordering Information
7.	License Information 


1.  Overview

Multi-Remote Registry Change is the easiest way to change the registry on multiple remote computers running Windows 95/98/NT.   It was designed primarily for network administrators working with groups of systems requiring the same change(s) on many computers.  

The unregistered version allows only 10 computers at a time in the Computer Names list.  Registration information is near the bottom of this document.


2.  Features:
	
Zero Client Configuration (Windows 95 must have Remote Registry Service installed)
Computer list can be updated manually or by browsing the network.
A log to see what has been changed and what hasn't.
"Retry Log" maintains log of failed changes; One click to retry the failed changes. 
'*' in the Key Path allows changes to multiple subkeys.		
The option to create the key or simply ignore it if it's not already there.
Verify the existence of a key and/or value. 
Delete keys (including subkeys) or values.
Create a simple TAB delimited file to apply many changes to many computers.  Includes a method for creating these files with ease.
Quick Copy from a key on one computer to many others.
Export keys, subkeys and values to .REG file format.
Apply all changes from .REG files to many computers very quickly.
Substitute a different root key and/or key path for keys and values in *.REG files.
Shutdown groups of remote systems.
Save logs of Operation Successes, Operation Failures and Failures to Connect and then reselect computers based on these logs.
Multi-Threaded - do many of these operations at once with each operation having multiple threads (2 to hundreds)! 
Startup parameters allow you to process the 'Retry Log' automatically when you start the program or scheduled via command line. 


3.  System Requirements

Microsoft Windows 95 or greater 
	or
Microsoft Windows NT Version 3.51 or greater.
2 MB Hard Disk Space
User must be a member of the Administrators or Domain Admins group


4.	Instructions

4.a General Instructions

The general operation of the program is simple: Select computers from the list, select the operation, fill in the blanks and RUN!

Each registry entry consists of a hive, a key, and zero or more values.  Values are in the format "Value Name", "Value Type" and "Value". 

This program can operate on all remote hives: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, HKEY_USERS,
HKEY_CURRENT_USER, HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG and HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT.  

Keys other than HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE and HKEY_USERS are automatically mapped to their proper 
location.  All other registry keys are subkeys of these two.  The other hives that show up in 
REGEDIT and REGEDT32 are located as shown:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER is mapped to the FIRST S-1-*  after .DEFAULT under HKEY_USERS
HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG is HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Hardware Profiles\Current
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT is HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Classes

A "key" consists of the full path of the entry. For example, the location of the AutoAdminLogon setting is:

Hive: 		HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE 
Key:  		\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\Current Version\WinLogon 
Value Name: AutoAdminLogon 
ValueType:  	REG_SZ
Value:  	1 (enable autologon) or 0 (disable autologon)

In this case, the key is: \Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\Current Version\WinLogon 

The Value Name is a text identifier for the value, or blank for <default>.

When using the Single Key or 'Apply from File' functions, an asterisk in the Key will be expanded to include all values represented by the asterisk.   For example, if you want to change the Screen Saver to sspipes.scr for every user, you would normally have to use regedt32 to manually click through the unique login identifiers (ex. S-1-5-21-47866669-18273647284-182742842194-1837) but with Multi-Remote Registry Change, you would enter:

	Root Key:		HKEY_USERS
	Key Path: 		\*\Control Panel\Desktop
	Value Name:		SCRNSAVE.EXE
	Value Type: 		REG_SZ
Value:			C:\WINNT\SSPIPES.SCR

Depending on the option, the value type is one of the following:

	REG_SZ
	REG_DWORD
	REG_MULTI_SZ
	REG_EXPAND_SZ
	REG_BINARY 
	REG_NONE

	*DELETE KEY*
	*DELETE VALUE*


Values are entered as follows:

REG_SZ:  			Enter the text directly in the Value box.

REG_DWORD:	Enter the number directly in the Value box.  Alternatively, to enter the value as hex, enter the hex value preceded by a '$'.   For example, to enter the value 0x4AD39F enter $4AD39F

REG_MULTI_SZ:	Enter the values separated by a semicolon.  For example Item1;Item2;Item Number 3;Item 4 is next;Item 5 ...  

REG_EXPAND_SZ:		Enter the item directly in the Value box.  

REG_BINARY:	Cannot be entered manually.  Use the Key Group function to copy from another computer already containing the value or enter the information into a text file in REGEDIT4 (*.REG) format and import the key using the Import From REG function.

REG_NONE:			Should not be used.

*DELETE_KEY*:	Enter the Hive and the Key.  The key entered and all subkeys will be deleted.

*DELETE_VALUE*:	Enter Hive, Key and Value Name to delete this value from the registry.


The Create Key/Ignore Entry option allows you to choose to create a value only if the key already exists.  If you select Create Key, the Key and or Value will always be created.  If you select Ignore Entry, the Value will be entered only if the Key exists.

The first operation on any remote computer can take a second or two.  Future operations on the same computers (during the same session) will be much faster.


4.b  The Main Window

The main window contains the Computer Names list, entries for Single Key, Group Key, Additional, Logging and the Status Area.  

The Computer Names list is a persistent list of computers in your organization.  Computer Names can be edited manually Edit-Edit Computer List or added by searching the network Edit-Search Network.  

The format of the list is:

DOMAIN/ComputerName IP:IPADDRESS  Any additional Comments

Where, DOMAIN is optional -- anything before the Computer Name is treated as a domain name and ignored.  Anything after the first space is considered a comment.  When using the 'Lookup IP Addresses' option on the Additional tab, the IP Address will be entered after the first space and before any other comments.  The length limit on items in the computer names box is 255 characters.  The advantage to all of the comment options is the ability to right click and Group Select or Group Deselect items based on the text in the list.   You can expand the view to show more information by selecting Edit-Expand Window.

The Computer Names list will remember your selections from session to session, and has options to temporarily remember a set of selections and to save and restore selections from permanent groups.

The status area displays the status of all active operations.  You can save the status log to a file by selecting File-Save Log to File or clear the log with File-Clear Log.

4.c  Single Key:  The Single Key tab is used to change a single key on many computers.  Simply select the computers you want to change, complete each entry as shown in the General instructions above and click run.   To stop before the action completes, click the Stop button (it may take several seconds for the stop operation to complete.)

	For example, to remove a service from selected computers you would enter:

		Hive:  		HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
		Key:		\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\ServiceName
		Value Name: DeleteFlag	
		Value Type:	REG_SZ
		Value:		1
		(Also Select Ignore Entry)

4.d  Key Group:  The Key Group  tab is used to copy a key and all subkeys from a source computer to the selected computers.  The key can be copied to the same location on the remote computer as on the source, or to any other location.  If you select Delete Destination Key Before Copying, the program will delete any key at the destination before copying in the new one. NOTE: If you decide to stop the operation, be sure the click the button again after the operation ends before attempting to run another Key Group.

	For example, to copy the Office 97 settings from computer COMPNAME to several others, you would enter:

		Source Computer:	COMPNAME
		Source Hive:		HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
		Source Key:		\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\8.0
		Destination Hive:	*SAME AS SOURCE*
		Destination Key:	*SAME AS SOURCE*

	If you wanted to place these settings in a different location (to back them up for example) you could use:

		Source Computer:	COMPNAME
		Source Hive:		HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
		Source Key:		\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\8.0
		Destination Hive:	HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
		Destination Key:	\SOFTWARE\Backup\Microsoft\Office\8.0



4.e  Check for Key:  The Check for Key window allows you to query the registry on remote computers to confirm the existence of a key or value.  The existence or non-existence will be logged or ignored based on the selections you make.   

4.f  Logging Tab:  The Logging tab of the main window offers the option to log or not log the status of each operation in a standard TAB delimited text file.  You can view or clear (delete) the log file with the option buttons for each log.

The 'On Failure to Connect' log will log any failure to connect to the indicated file.  Failure to connect will usually only happen when the computer is not powered on.

The 'On Operation Failure' log is used to indicated a key or value could not be changed for some reason.  This could be because the computer is not powered on, or refused to accept your authority, or, in the case of changing user rights, the user you are trying to assign the rights to does not exist.

The 'On Operation Success' log keeps track of all operations that complete successfully.

The log files created with the logging tab can be used to reselect computers.   Choose Edit-Select from Log File then choose the name of the log file.  All computers in the log will be selected.


4.g  Shutdown Systems:  Shutdown or abort shutdown on selected computers.  Options include:  a) send a shutdown message; b) select the shutdown timeout; c)  choose to force applications to close; d) Force the computer to reboot after shutdown.

If you begin a shutdown and later change your mind, you have the option to abort a shutdown in progress.  This has no effect on a computer that is not shutting down.

Note:  The cancel button will stop the current operation only.  It will not issue an Abort Shutdown to a computer that has already accepted shutdown.  You must use the Abort button for this.


4.h REG File Operations:  One of the most powerful new features of Multi-Remote Registry Change is its ability to create and use standard REGEDIT4 formatted files.

With this you can:

1. Create a REGEDIT4 formatted file from the local computer or a remote computer. The file will include all keys, subkeys and values from the selected key of the source computer.

Instructions:  Type in the name of the source computer in the 'Source Computer' box.  Select the Root Key.  Enter the Key Path to examine.  For example: '\Software\Microsoft\Windows'.  Then select Edit - Create From Computer. (Depending on the size of the key, the window may appear to freeze for several seconds.)

2.  Apply changes from any REGEDIT4 formatted file - including those created with REGEDIT.EXE - to selected computers on the network.

Instructions: Choose File - Load from the menu.  This will load the selected file into the window.  You may edit it or make changes to the destination key (see below) before applying it to the selected computers.

3.  Make a change in destination root key and/or key path.  This will allow you to "copy" a key from one area of the registry to another.

Instructions:  To make the changes at the time the file is created, simply follow the instructions in step one, but before selecting "Create From Computer" check the Change Destination" box and enter the changes you would like made.

To change a file after it is loaded, in the 'Source Computer' area, select the Root Key and Key Path as they are currently displayed in the file. Check the "Change Destination" box and enter the changes.

  For Example, you create an export file with REGEDIT.EXE exporting the key:

  [HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Software\Eytcheson]

  and want to place it on remote computers as:

  [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\SomethingElse]

  You would select HKEY_USERS in the Source Root Key box, and enter \.DEFAULT\Software\Eytcheson in the Source Root Path. Then, check the "Change Destination" box, select HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE in the Destination Root Key and enter \Software\SomethingElse in the Destination Path.

After you have made your selections, select Edit - Change Destination from the menu.

4.  Apply the changes from the window to all selected computers.

Instructions:  When the text in the right window is exactly what you want
to insert into the registry of the remote computers, Select Apply - Apply to Selected Computers.


4.i Lookup IP Addresses:  The Lookup IP Addresses menu option will query the DNS, WINS or the computer to attempt to find its IP Address.  The IP Address will be added to the Computer Names list.  The reason for this is simple: After the IP Address is added to the Computer Names list, you can use Group Select and Group Deselect to select all (or none) of the computers within a specific range.  

4.j Change User Rights:  One of the most annoying things about Windows NT's default user rights, is that you cannot set the system time from a users login script.  Changing this was a manual process that took lots of time and clicking.  With Multi-Remote Registry Change you can quickly grant or revoke any of the user rights available in User Manager.  

This feature is also handy in a classroom environment where you would like instructors to be able to remotely shutdown all of the computers in a computer lab at the end of the day.

For example, to grant ProfessorA the authority to shutdown all of the computers in Computer Lab 9 you would select all of the computers in Lab 9 from the Computer Names List then select Edit-Change User Rights and enter:

	User Domain or PDC Name:	*AUTO*
	User or Group Name:		ProfessorA
	Right to Grant/Revoke:		Force shutdown from a remote system
	Grant/Revoke:			Grant

And click Run.  Revoking the right is as simple as repeating the steps above but selecting Revoke instead of Grant in the Grant/Revoke box.

When entering the User Domain PDC Name, you can use the default *AUTO*, which will attempt to locate the user account by first searching the Primary Domain Controller (PDC) to which you are attached, then the PDC's in all trusted domains.

If you choose to enter the PDC name for the user, be sure to preface it with "\\".  This will inform the program that you want it to only search the PDC entered.  

The User or Group Name can be any valid User or Group Name on your domain or any trusted domain.

4.k  Apply from File:   When you need to change several scattered keys on remote computers,  instead of changing them one at a time, you can create a file containing the keys to be added or changed and use this file as a sort of script.  The script file must be plain text; TAB delimited with the following format:

Hive<TAB>Key Path<TAB>Value Name<TAB>Value Type<TAB>Value

(An example file called import.txt is included in the application installation directory)

To change the default value (listed as <No Name> in REGEDT32) use a '@' for the Value Name.

The script file accepts all Value Types as shown in the General Instructions, including *DELETE KEY* and *DELETE VALUE*.  It also accepts an asterisk in the Key Path as indicated in the General Instructions.  Value Name and Value may be blank, but the TABs must be maintained.  For example, to delete a key:

Hive<TAB>Key Path<TAB><TAB>*DELETE KEY*<TAB>

You can have as many entries in this file as you wish, but it will process a little faster if you keep like HIVE's together (ex: all HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE then all HKEY_USERS.)

Any line in the file that does not begin with "HKEY_" is considered a comment and will be ignored.

To make it simple to create these import files, the menu option Edit-Create 'Apply from File' will show a dialog where you may enter the keys into a file and know the format is correct.  The keys are entered exactly as you would enter them in the Single Key form.  After making the changes to the selections on the left, click Add to insert the line into the file.  When you are done, assign the file a name in the box at the top and click save.  

4.l  Create "Call" Batch File:  Batch files provide an amazingly powerful way to administer remote Windows NT computers. 

The solution provided here relies on two batch files.  One created by this program, the other created by you. The program will create a batch file with the following format: 

CALLCOMP.CMD 
_______________________________________ 
CALL %1 COMPUTER1 <OPTIONAL PARAMS> 
CALL %1 COMPUTER2 <OPTIONAL PARAMS> 
CALL %1 COMPUTER3 <OPTIONAL PARAMS> 
CALL %1 COMPUTER4 <OPTIONAL PARAMS> 
CALL %1 COMPUTER5 <OPTIONAL PARAMS> 
... 
_______________________________________ 

Used in conjunction with another batch file, you can easily create directories and copy files.  If you have the Windows NT Resource Kit, you can use its command line utilities to set file/directory rights and security as well as a host of other uses. 

The second batch file can contain any valid Windows NT command line that is capable of supporting remote computers.  An example of a batch file to copy files from your computer to another is: 

CPYFILES.CMD 

________________________________________ 
MD \\%1\C$\NEWDIR 
COPY C:\MYDIR\*.* \\%1\C$\NEWDIR
_______________________________________ 

To activate these batch files, on a command line you would enter: 

CALLCOMP CPYFILES.CMD 

For each entry in CALLCOMP.CMD, CPYFILES.CMD would be called receiving its parameters from CALLCOMP.CMD. 

4.m  Retry Log  See the online help for more information.

5.	Contacting the Author:  

For technical support, to report a bug or make a suggestion, please send e-mail to:

	eytch@pair.com

	Please check the Eytcheson Software web site (http://www.pair.com/eytch) for program updates and additional information.


6.	Ordering Information: 

Registration Form
________________________________________________________________

Name:			__________________________________

Company:		__________________________________

Address:		__________________________________

City:			__________________________________

State:			__________________________________

Postal/ZIP Code:	__________________________________

(Country):		__________________________________

Daytime Phone #:	__________________________________

FAX #:		__________________________________

Email:			__________________________________

Multi-Remote Registry Change v2.5

Registration number received via Internet e-mail:

$10 per Administrator 				_________
+ $1 per Computer in Computer Names List 	_________
						Total		_________

(For example: your organization has 5 Administrators and 500 workstations.  The Registration fee is (5 * $10) + (500 * $1)  = $550.)

An Unlimited Worldwide Site License is available for $5000.

TOTAL ENCLOSED US 	 	 		US$	______


Method of Payment
	_____ US Postal Money Order
_____ Check (US Funds drawn on US Bank)
	_____ Purchase Order (Terms NET 15)

Please make remittance payable to Greg Eytcheson. 

Prices and terms subject to change without notice.

Mail or FAX this form to:

Greg Eytcheson
608 S. 4th St.
Independence, KS  67301
USA
Fax (316)331-8295

Credit card registration is available via a secure web site.  Click Help-Secure Credit Card Registration for the registration form.  (Or go to https://www.pslweb.com/cgi-win/psl_ords.exe/ITEM30370)


7.	License

  THE INFORMATION AND CODE PROVIDED IS PROVIDED AS IS WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHOR BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER INCLUDING DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, LOSS OF BUSINESS PROFITS OR SPECIAL DAMAGES, EVEN IF THE AUTHOR HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.


This program is distributed as SHAREWARE.  You may use it free of charge for a period of 30 days.  If you continue to use it after that period, you are required to register it.  Educational institutions may request a 50-computer license at no charge.




