Re: Authentication before windows login

Tech-Archive recommends: Fix windows errors by optimizing your registry

From: Juergen Thuemmler (thue_at_gmx.de)
Date: 05/29/04 

Date: Sat, 29 May 2004 17:01:00 +0200

> can resume. Actually the scenario is something like that , We have a
> biometric fingerprint device and we want to authenticate users by using
this
> device before they log in. On successfull authentication the user shall be
> able to use the system.

What about running your app (not neccessarily a service) as Windows Shell
and after authentification you'll start the Windows Shell ("explorer.exe")?
I've done so often for similar purposes...
You can set this behaviour using the registry value
HKLM\software\microsoft\windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon->Shell.
But notice, bevore starting the "explorer.exe", you must reset this value to
"Explorer.exe", otherwise you'll start the Windows Explorer, not the Windows
Shell. So you have to reset this value to your app's path before Windows is
shutting down. You can do this automatically with an invisible helper app.

Juergen.

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