|
Starting with version 6.50, Secure Desktop now supports Windows 2000 & 2003 Server Terminal Services. To accomplish this, quite a few changes were necessary. These changes affect customers with 2000/2003 Terminal Services, and just Windows 2000 and Windows XP desktop, so please read on.
A Little History
In the many years of development of Secure Desktop, starting in Windows 3.1, we have always strived to maintain the same configuration files and file locations. We wanted each new version to easily use existing configurations. Because of this, we kept using the INI file format. We kept the same file names. We kept the same file locations.
In the early days, there was one configuration file, called VISUAUTO.INI, stored in the Windows folder. When we added user-specific configurations, we simply placed additional VISUAUTO.INI files in the user's profile area. The VISUAUTO.INI file in the Windows folder is used for non-specific user settings and a few important "global" settings. When we added sFile support, we created an additional file name called VISUFILE.INI. When we added data logging, we created a file called VAPRGMAN.LOG, and we placed it in the Windows folder.
Why We Needed To Change This For Terminal Services
In Windows 2000/2003 Server Terminal Services mode, there are potentially multiple users running the same Secure Desktop program at a given point in time. Because of this, Microsoft does not allow a configuration file in the real Windows folder anymore. Rather, when a program tries to access a Windows folder file, it creates a private Windows folder for that user. So, in the user's profile area, a Windows folder will appear with that file inside of it.
For our non-specific settings, we wanted a file to be located in a general location, so that all users could access it. There is a specific place for this kind of file, in a profile area for all users. This is now where the VISUAUTO.INI file is located for non-specific users, the file that used to be located in the Windows folder. There is now a small window in the dialogs that show these file locations, to give you the exact file path of the file being edited. The non-specific settings for sFile, VISUFILE.INI, will be in the same place.
Why We Changed Our Method for Windows 2000 and XP Desktop
For user specific settings, the VISUAUTO.INI and VISUFILE.INI files should be in the same location as they were before. However, we have improved the method that we use to retrieve the appropriate file path. Windows versions previous to Windows 2000 did not have an easy method of finding a user's profile path, so we dug it out of a registry location. Although this worked in nearly all situations, there have been issues with a given user having multiple profiles, depending on the login. This method continued to work in Windows 2000 and Windows XP desktop in most cases, but it was sometimes confusing.
However, in a Terminal Services environment, the chances of multiple profiles per user is even higher. So, we now use the new method, whether Secure Desktop is being used in 2000/2003 Terminal Services, or just in the 2000 or XP desktop versions. Because of this, there are new rules about who can edit what, as follows.
Who Can Edit What File?
In Windows 2000/2003 Server Terminal Services, to edit a user specific setting, you will need to login as that user and run Secure Setup. To edit the non-specific settings, you will need to login as an Administrator. Only an administrator can edit the VISUAUTO.INI and VISUFILE.INI files found in the "all users" portion of the profile area. This is a Microsoft security rule.
In Windows 2000 and Windows XP desktop, you will need to login as a user and run Secure Setup just one time. We then store the full path to that file, so that you can then edit the user specific file from an Administrator account from then on. This is very different from earlier versions, where a list of all users was displayed. Non-specific user settings can still be edited when logged in as any user, but only that user's "user specific" settings can be edited, if that user is not an Administrator.
What About VAPRGMAN.LOG?
This file location does not really change. In Windows 2000 and XP desktop, this file is still stored in the Windows folder. In Windows 2000/2003 Terminal Services, this file is stored in the Windows folder for that user's profile. This file logs events for a given user, so this seemed to be the logical place to keep it.
Where Are The Exact File Paths?
In the Classic Setup, Express Setup, Options, Window, and sFile dialogs, there is now a text window that displays the exact file you are currently editing. In the Options dialog | Alarms tab, there is also a text window to display the exact location of the vaprgman.log file.
|