write to system32 folder

[gammaman]

I am trying to write to this folder as I need to replace 2 drivers with more updated versions. I am running as Admin and I have the UAC set to Never Notify. I right click on the folder and uncheck read only. Then I go to the Security tab and attempt to edit the permissions. However even as Admin the buttons to add and edit permissions are "Ghosted Out".

 

[boohbah]

you may need to take ownership first
tutorial on how to here
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/1911-take-ownership-shortcut.html

 

[gammaman]

Thank You very much.

 

[boohbah]

your welcome

 

[logicearth]

...Do not take ownership of the System32 folder... *sigh* never mind I'm not going to care.

 

[wilywombat]

This is strange Guys....This is supposed to be a forum for advice but here we have 2 replies from different people, both with the "Seven Guru" status and both are giving contradictory advice to a Junior member asking the original question. How is that member supposed to come to the correct conclussion over taking ownership? Personally, I am one of the "logicearth" advice group since it would be too easy to screw your system. The first question that I would like to have seen asked of the OP was..."Why are you trying to update the drivers by writing directly to the system32 directory instead of using the manufacturers program to update the drivers?"
Please note this is just my opinion and I appreciate that both gurus are trying to help th OP out.. but you must admit, any newbies could easy be confused".

 

[gammaman]

"Why are you trying to update the drivers by writing directly to the system32 directory instead of using the manufacturers program to update the drivers?"

Well I just purchased a 2TB Seagate GoFlex External HDD and it is not being recogznied by my machine. Under device manager the device is listed as "Unknown" and it says it is missing the driver. Seagate claims that the driver is a Microsoft Windows Driver. So I tried to update the Driver on my system and it said that there were no updates.

So I then hooked up the external HDD to another computer also running Windows 7 (only the home edition) and the Drive detected right away. So I then looked at the Driver details and noted what drivers it was using and then copied them onto a USB.

I then went back to the non working Computer and saw that I have these driver files too. However the file size of the Drivers are much smaller than that of the working computer. So I figured if I take my driver files and rename them and then take the driver files from the working computer and copy them over, that my problem just may be solved.

 

[wilywombat]

I see the logic you are following in copying the driver to your stick but have you tried contacting Seagate and asking them for a windows 7 specific driver? You could aslo try adding the drive by plugging it in and nominate to use the driver that you saved to your stick. Either of these would be better than potentially screwing your system by taking ownership of the system32 directory, doing that, you may end up causing more problems than you cure...remember that system32/config is where the registry is kept!! There, is the way to dragons and downfalls!!

 

[karlsnooks]

Gammaman,
Were you able to 'replace' the drivers?

With all of the opinionation, I lost site of the status.

 

[gammaman]

I am at work right now. I won't be able to try until 7:00PM EST. I will post later tonight or tommorow to let you guys know.

 

[gammaman]

You could aslo try adding the drive by plugging it in and nominate to use the driver that you saved to your stick.

How would I tell it to use the driver on the stick?

 

[gammaman]

I see the logic you are following in copying the driver to your stick but have you tried contacting Seagate and asking them for a windows 7 specific driver?

Yes, and this is what they told me

"The drivers for all our drives are preloaded with the operating system, we do not have them."

Which is why I am baffled as to why it does not work.

 

[karlsnooks]

Gammaman,

1. Boot up your computer from a System Repair Disc.
2. Remove the system repair disc. You don't need it anymore.
3. Go to a command prompt.
4. Navigate to the folder with the drivers you desire to place.
5. Rename the existing driver(s), for example, if they end in .inf then .fni would work fine.
6. copy the new drivers to the destination folder
7. exit command prompt
8. shut down computer.
9. Power up computer.

Now here's some how-tos:

​

​

[FONT=&quot]DISC - CREATE A SYSTEM REPAIR DISC[/FONT]​

START | type System Repair | Enter key | Create Disc button

​

​

​

COMMAND PROMPT - GO TO A COMMAND PROMPT USING A SYSTEM REPAIR DISC

1) Insert System Repair Disc into optical reader.
2) Shutdown your computer.
3) Boot up your computer from the System Repair Disc
If your computer doesn’t boot from the optical drive, then
Immediately after pushing your Power ON button, start tapping the F2 key to get to the BIOS to change the boot order.OR
Immediately after pushing your Power ON button, start tapping the F12 key and choose CD/DVD to change the boot order only for this time.
4) Wait while a mini-version of Windows is loaded and finally the System Recovery Options dialog appears.
5) SYSTEM RECOVERY OPTIONS dialog |
Select a keyboard input method |
NEXT button
6) SYSTEM RECOVERY OPTIONS dialog
will search your system for installed versions of Windows.
7) SYSTEM RECOVERY OPTIONS dialog |
select the Use recovery tools that can help fix problems starting Windows radio button |
NEXT button
8) SYSTEM RECOVERY OPTIONS |
Choose a recovery tool |
9) Click on command prompt from the list shown

Run any desired commands and type EXIT when finished.
Remove the System Repair Disc.
Shutdown your computer.
Power on your computer.

​

 

[gammaman]

The only Physical Disk I have is the "Windows 7 OS Disk". Is this the disk you are referring to.

 

[wilywombat]

You could aslo try adding the drive by plugging it in and nominate to use the driver that you saved to your stick.

How would I tell it to use the driver on the stick?

Without trying to stand on "karlsnooks" toes with "opinionation" ... You can replace the driver by:-
Start Control Panel, Select "System" then from the list on the left"Device Manager". This shows the system conents list like in XP. Select "Disk Drives" and then RIGHT click on the 2TB drive from the displayed list. From the displayed options select "Update Driver Software" then "Browse my computer for driver software". Then route to the driver on your stick.

Feel free to ignore my opinionation though.!!

 

[karlsnooks]

The only Physical Disk I have is the "Windows 7 OS Disk". Is this the disk you are referring to.

​

​

[FONT=&quot]DISC - CREATE A SYSTEM REPAIR DISC[/FONT]​

START | type System Repair | Enter key | Create Disc button

​

​

 

[gammaman]

OK, thanks becauase I have tried everything else and nothing has worked. I have not however tried to do a system repair/restore. I am somwhat aprehensive to try this because I do not want to risk losing any of my data. I am also not sure what will happen because the computers original OS was VISA and when I upgraded to Windows 7 it created a Windows.OLD folder on my computer. So if I were to do a repair/restore, would it create a 2nd Windows.OLD? or would it relace the existing one? I fear that the computer might get confused somehow and I might loose everything.


One more STUPID question.

The official name of the External Drive is Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex DESK.

Does this mean that it will only work for desktop computers?

 

[karlsnooks]

What is startup repair?
Following is direct from the Win 7 Help system:
Startup Repair is a Windows recovery tool that can fix certain system problems that might prevent Windows from starting. Startup Repair scans your computer for the problem and then tries to fix it so your computer can start correctly.



What is system restore?
Following is direct from the Win 7 help system:
System Restore helps you restore your computer's system files to an earlier point in time. It's a way to undo system changes to your computer without affecting your personal files, such as e‑mail, documents, or photos.
Sometimes, the installation of a program or a driver can cause an unexpected change to your computer or cause Windows to behave unpredictably. Usually, uninstalling the program or driver corrects the problem. If uninstalling doesn't fix the problem, you can try restoring your computer's system to an earlier date when everything worked correctly.

A startup repair is not going to alter any of your data files.

A system restore is not going to alter any of your data files.

You will find the following tutorials instructive:
Startup Repair
System Restore - How to use

If you boot from a System Repair Disc, and go to a command prompt, then you will be able to rename files/replace files without any permission difficulties.

 

[gammaman]

I have already replaced the files. Nothing bad happened but the drive was still not detected, so I just swithced it back the way it was. Do you think it is possible that in since the drive is USB 3.0 with 2.0 backward compatibility that the reason it is not working is because the drive needs dual (two) usb plugins? In other words the drive needs the support of two to get enough power? I dought this is the case however since the computer shows it under unknown devices.

 

[karlsnooks]

I have no direct experience with usb 3.0, so I am going to bow out. I'm sure there are others who do have direct experience.