Re: Microsoft VM

From: Jim Byrd (jrbyrd_at_spamlessadelphia.net)
Date: 10/29/04 

Date: Thu, 28 Oct 2004 22:42:52 -0700

Hi Hawkide - Well, I'm hoping that we only need to find some info there -
not modify it - but it may be the case that we will need to. And it's
ALWAYS the rule that you backup the Registry before you mess with it.
ERDNT/ERUNT is, as you surmised, a very fine highly recommended tool to do
that, and well worth you having on your system in any event. Let's get it
downloaded and installed and then backup your Registry. Here's my
'standard' post about that. For your purposes right now don't worry about
setting up schedules backups, etc. Just get it installed and make a backup.

"Get Erunt here for all NT-based computers including XP:
http://home.t-online.de/home/lars.hederer/erunt/ I've set it up to take a
scheduled backup each night at 12:01AM on a weekly round-robin basis, and a
Monthly on the 1st of each month. See here for how to set that up:
http://home.t-online.de/home/lars.hederer/erunt/erunt.txt, and for some
useful information about this subject

This program is one of the best things around - saved my *** on many
occasions, and will also run very nicely from a DOS prompt (in case you've
done something that won't let you boot any more and need to revert to a
previous Registry) IF you're FAT32 OR have a DOS startup disk with NTFS
write drivers in an NTFS system. (There is also a way using the Recovery
Console to get back to being "bootable" even without separate DOS write NTFS
drivers, after which you can do a normal ERDNT restore. If you make your
backup into a folder inside your Windows or Winnt folder, you can restore at
a Recovery Console boot by copying the files from that ERDNT folder into the
system32\config one. After a good boot, then do another normal ERDNT
restore to also restore the user hives.) (BTW, it also includes a Registry
defragger program). Free, and very, very highly recommended.

FYI, quoting from the above document:

Note: The "Export registry" function in Regedit is USELESS (!) to make a
complete backup of the registry. Neither does it export the whole registry
(for example, no information from the "SECURITY" hive is saved), nor can the
exported file be used later to replace the current registry with the old
one. Instead, if you re-import the file, it is merged with the current
registry, leaving you with an absolute mess of old and new registry keys."

In what you're about to do now, you will NOT be deleting or modifying
anything in the Registry , so you can be a bit at ease. :)

After you've backed up the Registry, go to Start|Run and enter regedit
In Regedit, navigate to this key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall

and expand it. You should see a bunch of folders with names that look like:

{7148F0A8-6813-11D6-A77B-00B0D0142050}

These CLSID's are what we're after. The one I exampled just above is the
one for JRE 1.4.2_05 and one which you should have as one of these folder
(key) names, since it's installed on your machine. What you need to do is
to click on each one of these keys and look on the right for a "Display
Version" string value of 1.3.0 (or similar - I don't have it installed, so I
can't be exact.) When/If you find it, what I need to know is the CLSID
associated with it - the folder name in the curly brackets. If you right
click on the folder, you can "Copy Key Name" and then paste that into your
post back. It will look something like this (but with a different value, of
course):
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\{7148
F0A8-6813-11D6-A77B-00B0D0142050} Then close things up for tonight. (I
will be leaving the nwsgp for tonight, or at least for a while, after this
post.)

If you find it, post back with that info, or just tell me that you couldn't
find it (but be sure and look at EVERY folder though), and we'll do a search
of the Registry to try and locate it.

Also, I've been thinking - would you perhaps like to just install the latest
and greatest Sun Java J2SE 5.0 JRE instead of just re-installing 1.4.2_05
when we get done fooling around here? It's what I use, and I'd recommend
it. Think about it. 

-- 
Please respond in the same thread.
Regards, Jim Byrd, MS-MVP
In news:196FD9B3-7455-4AF5-9222-D8DC106E9541@microsoft.com,
Hawkide <Hawkide@discussions.microsoft.com> typed:
> Not too comfy in the registry, but we can give it a shot if you think
> that's the best approach.  I don't know what ERDNT/ERUNT is (i would
> imagine it is some sort of recovery tool for the registry?)  I had no
> idea this would get so complicated...What ae your thoughts?
>
> "Jim Byrd" wrote:
>
>> Hi Hawkide - Are you comfortable working with the Registry to find
>> some information?  Do you know how to navigate in it, etc.?  Do you
>> have ERDNT/ERUNT installed?
>>
>> --
>> Please respond in the same thread.
>> Regards, Jim Byrd, MS-MVP
>>
>>
>>
>> In news:5DFDB271-D0CE-4831-9BD8-2014B9D95D45@microsoft.com,
>> Hawkide <Hawkide@discussions.microsoft.com> typed:
>>> Before I do that I have a few questions:
>>>
>>> In Add/Remove Programs I only have the uninstall for the 1.4.2
>>> version (not
>>> 1.3).  Therefore, I will not be able to uninstall 1.3.  Is that a
>>> problem?
>>>
>>> Also, I remember that when I was installing IE6  a few nights back I
>>> did get a message during the middle of the installation saying that
>>> it could not find a file.  I canceled the install and after trying
>>> to run the install again it seemed as though it picked up where it
>>> left off.  I got the same missing file message again.  This time I
>>> searsched the harddrive for the file, found it, and told the install
>>> where it was (I think it was in System32).  The install completed
>>> successfully (or so it seemed).
>>>
>>> Also, when I was installing some of the critical updates, I forgot
>>> to turn off Zone Alarm, and I had to keep clicking the Allow button
>>> to let the updates proceed.
>>>
>>> I just wanted to let you know those details incase you thought that
>>> they might have something to do with the problem.
>>>
>>> Anyway...I can uninstall JRE 1.4.2, but not 1.3...Should I proceed
>>> with your suggestions, or do you have another plan of attack due to
>>> the info I just detailed?
>>>
>>> BTW I run AVG6 for virus protection...I don't care much for Norton
>>> either.
>>>
>>> "Jim Byrd" wrote:
>>>
>>>> Hi Hawkide - I'd like to try completely uninstalling ALL versions
>>>> of the Sun Java VM that you currently have installed (both 1.3 and
>>>> 1.4.2_5?) from Add/Remove Programs.  Reboot after each uninstall.
>>>>
>>>> Now go to  http://java.com/en/download/manual.jsp and check the
>>>> directions for (Windows Installation) (ignore the "How to get it"
>>>> stuff) and then download and install
>>>> j2re-1_4_2_05-windows-i586-p-iftw.exe  by clicking on the Download
>>>> button and then saving it.  Then try doing the install from the
>>>> location where you saved it as Administrator from either Safe mode
>>>> w/Internet Access or after a Clean Boot.  Be sure that as far as
>>>> possible programs, especially ALL AV, very especially ANYTHING by
>>>> Symantec/Norton are turned off (or even better in Symantec's case,
>>>> permanently uninstalled - :)  sorry, my justified prejudice I'm
>>>> afraid - Symantec stuff is notorious for interfering with installs
>>>> of other software and a major cause of problems).
>>>>
>>>> To perform a Clean Boot:
>>>>
>>>> 1.  Start|Run  enter    msconfig.
>>>> 2.  In the Startup tab, click the "Disable All" button.
>>>> 3.  In the Services tab, check the "Hide All Microsoft Services"
>>>> checkbox, and then click the "Disable All" button.
>>>> 4.  Click OK and then reboot.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Set things up in accordance w/
>>>> http://java.com/en/download/help/win_manual.jsp#download Enable and
>>>> Configure, and again in IE as you have them now (if they should
>>>> change, which they shouldn't) after the install and a reboot and
>>>> try the test sites and your problem sites again and let me know
>>>> what happens.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> If your Java still fails, we'll try installing the Microsoft VM
>>>> next following the directions here:
>>>> http://support.microsoft.com/Default.aspx?id=820101 in Question and
>>>> Answer
>>>> 2.  In this case, you may also want to install Mitch Gallant's JVM
>>>> Selector utility here:
>>>> http://www.jensign.com/JavaScience/SelectIEJVM/index.html
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Please respond in the same thread.
>>>> Regards, Jim Byrd, MS-MVP
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> In news:6F01376B-6F3A-4A2E-B1E3-675C35F00DFD@microsoft.com,
>>>> Hawkide <Hawkide@discussions.microsoft.com> typed:
>>>>> Well, no luck.
>>>>>
>>>>> I closed IE
>>>>>
>>>>> Went to the Java Plug-In in the control panel and set the JRE to
>>>>> 1.42_05 on the <Advanced> tab
>>>>>
>>>>> Under Tools -> IE Options -> Advanced, The Sun Java 1.4.2 was
>>>>> already ticked, so I ticked MS JIT (Unticked Console and Logging)
>>>>>
>>>>> Closed IE, and restarted computer (since JIT option says it
>>>>> requires a restart)
>>>>>
>>>>> I then went to the first link and I get the Install On Demand
>>>>> message saying that I need the Java Virtual Machine.
>>>>>
>>>>> If I click the <Cancel> button the Jav applet does not work.  IF I
>>>>> click the <Download> button the applet works.  However, when I go
>>>>> to the next link, I get the same Install On Demand message.
>>>>>
>>>>> This is the same problem I have had all along.  I think I want to
>>>>> cry...Help me Obi-Jim Kenobi, youu're my only hope