Using a document scanner at the "Welcome screen" - AutoExNT?

[Capn Stoobie]

Hi,

Is it possible to use a document scanner (by pressing the "Quick"
buttons on the scanner itself) without logging on as a user - ie just
sitting at the Welcome screen?

The scanner is hooked up to a pc running XP Pro - there are 3 users on
that pc, but most of the time the pc is idle, sitting at the Welcome
screen waiting for someone to log on. The scanner's Quick buttons are
set to automatically scan to PDF and save to a file. Can I set it up so
that I can simply press one of the scanner buttons so that it scans to a
file, even though the pc is at the Welcome screen?

I have read about using AutoExNT, except that in this case I don't think
there is a program to run at boot time - nothing needs to happen until
someone presses a scanner button.

I hope someone can help.

Stoobie.

 

[Guest]

There will be a service that checks the scanner-button. This might be started
in user-space instead of under the machine registry, in which case it won't
work until after logon. MSCONFIG might tell you which this is, or you could
use Sysinternals' Autoruns to find it. If you launch this as a service
(hint: search MS site for 'srvany') it might work. But maybe not, as the
scanner software may have to load into user-space.

The simpler option might be to use autologon. To set this up, type 'control
userpasswords2' into a Run... box. You can always change user by
logging-off. (If necessary, hold the Shift key to prevent auto-relogon)

I guess you need to evaluate whether you actually need three users on the
computer. If the three users are there purely because of a need to logon to a
network under three names, there being no actual need for three local users,
then MyLogon will solve that one. Depends on your situation, of course.

 

[Capn Stoobie]

There will be a service that checks the scanner-button. This might be started
in user-space instead of under the machine registry, in which case it won't
work until after logon. MSCONFIG might tell you which this is, or you could
use Sysinternals' Autoruns to find it. If you launch this as a service
(hint: search MS site for 'srvany') it might work. But maybe not, as the
scanner software may have to load into user-space.

The simpler option might be to use autologon. To set this up, type 'control
userpasswords2' into a Run... box. You can always change user by
logging-off. (If necessary, hold the Shift key to prevent auto-relogon)

I guess you need to evaluate whether you actually need three users on the
computer. If the three users are there purely because of a need to logon to a
network under three names, there being no actual need for three local users,
then MyLogon will solve that one. Depends on your situation, of course.

Thanks for your help Ian. I think I identifed the service that checks
the scanner button, though I couldn't get this to work as a service on
booting to the Welcome screen. Maybe you are right and it still
requires a user to log on.

The main reason for the 3 separate logons is to separate the email for
the 3 users, so I think I do actually need 3 users on the computer.

Back to the drawing board....

- Stoobie.