GotFreeFax.com is another website that allows user to send free fax online to the US and Canada. User can either upload a PDF/Word file or enter text to fax. Plus, it does not add Ads to user's fax, which makes it more suitable for faxing formal documents.

hotdog.. that's where it's not showing.. My Computer or Windows Explorer. Not a returnil thing for me since I don't have that installed. As you said, my USB drives went for a walk!

Just Right Click My Computer you see the drives I hope!. (Returnil)I fit & pick Z:Drive you can as you like,No yellow question marks in my P C on Drivers looks good not work so good need to Put USB in a few times to get to work don't know if this a Returnil thing or a USB thing I thing drives went for a walk?

Well, just found out one part of my problem. Kept showing a G: drive as a CD drive. Been poking around with it, found it was connected to something called Tune Clone. That created a Virtual CD-RW SCSI CD Rom. Got rid of that program and uninstalled that drive. But.. now I still cannot get my machine to recognize the drive letters for my card reader.. just shows in remove hardware as Mass Storage Device and under system with yellow question marks. SOOOOOO frustrating!

That's what happened to me.. USB hub not showing in "my computer" or "windows explorer" and yet it does show in system with big yellow question marks. So I can't use my USB card reader. Also I now have a G drive that shows as a CD drive, and I really only have a D: and E: CD drive. Does that mean my G: drive is what your referring to as a virtual drive?? I can't find returnil listed in my task manager or start menu, but (perhaps) I might have installed it when offered and later deleted it. Can't remember.

USB stop working no drivers so up date now is RVSYSTM.sys (Returnil) & VolSnap.sys may be the best XP can find now work some times!

Though this is late and I apologize for not having seen this in the past, I have a reply for those who may experience an issue similar to June M..

RVS has a safety option that should only be deactivated by an experienced user who is not concerned about potential uninstall issues (using RVS inside a VM (VMWare, VPC, etc)). This option is located in the Preferences > System Protection tab:

"Disable System Protection while in Windows Safe-mode"

This ensures that should your preference file become damaged or corrupt for any reason, the protection will be OFF when you enter Safe-Mode regardless of your current protection settings. Further, this allows you to uninstall the software so you can enter Windows normally and then reinstall a new copy of the software to correct the issue.

For those that may have experienced this, please let us know (http://www.returnilvirtualsystem.com/support/tech) which GOATD promotion you participated in (the date and link would be helpful) and the circumstances surrounding the loss of the software. We will review the submissions and do our best to help get you set up with the latest version release.

Mike

Note: Do NOT try to modify Returnil Virtual Partition properties if the partition is mounted -- UNMOUNT IT FIRST!

I found out the hard way... I got the recent 2.0.0.5007 version of Returnil a month or so ago when it was offered here on gaotd, meant to install the Virtual Partition in a partition OTHER THAN my system partition (ie, I should have installed it somewhere like my D:\Data partition), but didn't do that in my initial installation, so I went back sometime later to change that. The recommended way to change VP properties in versions older than their new 2.0.1 version is to go to the StartMenu\Programs\Returnil\Uninstall link, and choose the "Repair" option there. However, you should make sure the Virtual Partition is NOT mounted when you attempt to change it's properties (location, drive letter assignment, etc.). If it is mounted when you try to do it, it will be unable to change those properties, and will give you two options: to skip the step you were considering and proceed with the rest of the "repair" procedure ("Not recommended", advises the program text there), or to "Cancel/Abort" what you were trying to do. If you choose Cancel or Abort (I don't remember the exact terminology they used), it is very likely that the program will actually UN-install Returnil!!

As a very helpful company rep explained to me after that happened to me, this is a built-in protective safeguard the program engages in so as not to damage your system due to your having a possibly damaged installation of Returnil, which could in turn threaten collateral damage to Windows. The uninstalling of the program would not be a big deal to people who have purchased it directly from the vendor, as they could re-install the program, but obviously for anyone who had gotten the program from gaotd, they would not be able to reinstall the program, and would be totally out of luck (tho you could go to the vendor site and download the free Personal version -- but not the Premium version).

So... be aware of that. Don't attempt to modify the Virtual Partition properties if the Virtual Partition is mounted!

By the way, there's a major new version of the program that came out recently with some new features in both the free version as well as the paid version. Check out the vendor web site for info on that...

Robert...

Thanks for the confirmation RichU (probable at the very least, lol), and for the interesting discussion that has ensued from the original question. :)

Hey Messenger, that unreal anthology is a real bargain isn’t it, especially with all the modifications you can download from places like fileplanet and filefront. I bought it several months ago despite having unreal 2004 and the original already. I didn’t realize you could get no CD/DVD disc patches when I bought it. I wanted two discs so that I could play cooperatively with my so on our home network. It cost less than the price of an arcade game. The rest were a bonus. You can now get the latest unreal tournament for a third of the price it was when it was released last November 07. The game is excellent and a quality game, though the modding community hasn’t taken to it as much as they did with UT2004. There are hundreds of extra missions for all of the modes, many of which are as good as the default missions.

Mod’s for UT2004:

http://software.filefront.com/Unreal%20Tournament%202004/;582;/software_information.html

http://www.unrealtournament2004.com/

I’ve not played UT2007 much because I bought Call of Duty 4 and Crysis around the same time. I enjoyed them just that little bit more; but now that you’ve mentioned it, I’m going to reinstall UT2007.

butlerwm, From what I have read and been told, Intel's CPUs have caught up with AMD's anyway, so I had planned to stay with an Intel motherboard and CPU. It seems (?) that having a 64 bit MB and/or CPU should be OK, but changing to a 64 bit OS could be very problematic in other than a brand new OS install. My first inclination would be to try changing the motherboard only, but since the Pentium D's run very hot, changing the CPU to a cooler chip (Core 2 Duo or higher) would seem prudent. I still have not had time to check out the tests that Messenger used successfully on his similar machine, so that should be my next step.

WhiteRabbit, I would guess that there is some kind of code in the MB and/or CPU and probably in other hardware, because MS uses some kind of hardware algorithm to calculate if you have made too many changes to your system. Too many hardware changes prompt a message from MS to re-validate your system. And I believe that police and security organizations can tell exactly which DVD drive a CD or DVD was burned from. Whether GAOTD's programs use anything other than the registry and maybe the HD info, I don't know.

Thanks, RichU

If you OS is a OEM may not work in system name & number if it got OEM may not work or you may be ok, try & make a OEM disk work say from HP in none HP it not work all so change Hardware not the same may not work,I keep Acer software it say new PC is not Acer & so it not work, best to check with Gateway.

Hey Rich,

I've done dozens (actually closer to a hundred) of HDD migrations. There are a few things to remember, but beyond that it's not that big a deal. If you go from Intel to AMD or AMD to Intel, expect to have to do a full repair with the XP install disk. If that fails, you're stuck doing a reinstall and may lose your GOTD licensed programs. The reason is that XP uses a different low-level driver file (one of the dll files), before XP boots, for the respective CPUs.

I've never done an Intel 32bit to Intel 64bit migration. Also, the main difference between Pentium D and Core 2 Duo is that even dual-core Pentiums are still 32bit processors. Needless to say, Core 2 Duos and AMD 64bit (single and dual-core) will run 32bit XP with no problems. I just can't say if you'll run into a similar low-level driver problem when you go from the 32bit CPU to a 64bit but stay with Intel. As I said, from Intel to AMD like you indicated, you'll most likely have to do the full repair with the XP install disk. But after you finish, your setting are still good. That means you shouldn't lose your GOTD licenses.

Whichever route you pick, be sure to back up the data on your old drive.

William

PS: The full repaid I refer to with the XP install disk, looks just like a fresh install. That's up to and including having to input your Product Key.

Hi aRenegade, Thank you. Your answer to bios upgrades is yes, as for compatibility issues, the MoBo was the same make as the one I was replacing, so I assume there wouldn't be any incompatibility issues.

With regards to the 'Magic code' that I imply. If this is not so, why can I not use the same unlock code for any game I buy from Reflexive on any computer? Every game requires an unlock code which is obtained by sending Reflexive arcade the product code for the game. The product code is different for every computer its installed onto. I've reinstalled a game onto the same computer and the code is always the same for that computer. The same goes for several other softwares I have. I cannot figure out how the coding works if each computer doesn't have a serial number??? Any ideas?

AHHH, but sometimes wishes do come true! Windows Live has that kind of capability where members can enjoy secure communiques, set-up shared folders where although the folder itself may be in a public domain, the contents of the folders can be encrypted. So even if Mr. Spam Bot comes strolling alone he better be carrying some high power decrypt-ors' else he be "bot-in" some place else. But if you're still uncomfortable with something like that then, do I dare say it, there's always the "Postal Service."

Now if you excuse me I have to go wash out my mouth with soap, then drive out to a Church for a confessional ;)

Hey guys and gals, what GREAT and helpful posts!!! Thank you! Sorry I didn't get back to you earlier, but I spent a lot of yesterday doing research at CompUSA and online.

Messenger, since you have a System almost identical to mine, your post was especially useful and verified the information I got yesterday from a tech at CompUSA, who builds a lot of his own PCs. He said he tested his Pentium D running at 88 degrees C, which is very hot. He also mentioned sometimes seeing bulging capacitors (due to excess heat) and some kind of residue (he said possibly from disintegrated solder) within his case. coincidentally, this PC is the one I keep in the family room for multimedia stuff and one of its main functions is backing up my movies using, wait for it... DVDShrink! :^) Does your CPU have a hood over the CPU and fan?

While I was at CompUSA, I saw some Intel 45nm wafer CPUs, which he said run very cool.

Well, before I go forward with any upgrade, I will try what you did to maybe get this one re-started. Maybe I'll throw some ice in the case first. :^)
If I was sure the existing gateway boot drive would work with a new MB and CPU, I would probably just go ahead and upgrade. But given the uncertainty of being able to keep all the GAOTD programs, I'll try to get the existing PC back up first.

Thanks again to everyone!

Rich

PS: Messenger - Since our systems are so close, I wish there was an easy way to exchange email addresses without having some spam bots harvest them.

Whiterabbit you said "I've tried to transpose a HDD with OS to a new MoBo and CPU and it doesn't work."

Did you check for any compatability issues between the HD and the new board?

Before you remove your first screw, it is critical that you upgrade your BIOS to the latest version. Manufacturers often update BIOS's to allow support for newer boards. Was this done? Did you check all the firmware on the board?

Hardware is hardware and software is software. Their is no magic code that gets burned into a CPU. As I said in my last post the activities going on here are akin to open heart surgury. It's a complicated procedure! Manufactures don't want people to trash their hardware for someone else's. So they make tough by specialty coded the firmware. I have taken a Hard Drive out of an HP (program files in all, including the GAOTD's), put it in a Dell and everything was fine. I won't kid anybody, it took a bit of work, it's not like changing flashlight batteries. I've also backup my program files with Macrium Reflect, burned those file on a DVD, taken that DVD to another PC (with MR), performed a restore, and it's time to relax. If it were the case, where a code of sorts locks a program into only working on the original PC it was installed in, the state of computer forensic's would be in bad shape. Good Luck

RichU
I have a Gateway GM840 MCE which is like a cousin of your Gateway GT5224 MCE.
We both have almost identical features. The motherboards are almost the same setup. 250 GB SATA II Hard Drive, 4 memory banks for up to 4GB Ram, Intel Graphics Media Intel(R) 82945G Express Chipset Family with the Accelerator 950. Beside a couple of minor hardware differences both are Pentium D.
Mine - Pentium D 830 3.0 GHz
Yours - Pentium D 915 2.8 GHz

You maybe going through the same problem I had... No matter what I threw at my computer it never failed me. What did get my attention was when using ShrinkDVD the cooling fans being temperature controlled would sound to be maxed out. Certain games and video/photo editors would also get the fans going fast.

One day the computer being 16 months old, I loaded the full 4 disc version of the Unreal Tournament Anthology game. (A real processor load.) Played the game almost nonstop for 2 days and then the flat screen blacked out and the computer shut down. Like your description I turned it on and screen would turn on for a second then box would come on telling me no signal then monitor would go to sleep mode. The power comes on and the fans would be blowing full speed but nothing else. I couldn’t even shut it down, everything on the board was locked up. I had to pull the plug to shut it off. I opened the side and looked carefully around. I took the ram sticks out to visually check them put them back in and turned the computer on and it worked. Pulling the sticks out and putting them back in after a few seconds to let the memory dump and it unlocked the board. The computer worked good for the next few days and then it did it again while running ShrinkDVD, but this time when I got it to run again by repeating what I did above, I got a message telling me that the computer had to shut down due to thermal overheating. After hitting any key it booted normally to windows xp.

After many Google searches I came across the biggest problem was with Pentium D heat issues. Downloaded a temp monitor, the specs for my processor is 69.8C/157.64F and the temp was hitting up to 171F. Not good. I added a fan on top of the heat sink and that didn’t help much. Closer looking I noticed when the temps went up the 2 variable fans kicked in a little later then I think they should have. I downloaded a nice little fan software controller SpeedFan to monitor and manually control the fans and that helped much more then the fan on top of the heat sink which I took off. I also cleaned and added some good heat compound between the processor and heat sink. The better then stock compound did seem to help in the temp during light loads and idle periods, but only by a few degrees. Using the SpeedFan to adjust my fans to full board before running hoggy software helped a lot, but on real hot room temp days (no air condition here) I’ll still get temps as high as 159-160 F. which is better, but not what it should be down too.

Also, another problem that was caused by the high heat was that a square 4 pin voltage connector just above the heat sink, because of the high amount of draw from the processor, the connector was arching and getting a coating of carbon on both male and female pins. A few times when the computer acted up like described above I had to unplug and clean the pins. Right at the moment I’m eyeing a few different water cooling setups.
Here are a couple of links to look into.

http://www.google.com/search?q=pentium+d+heat+issues&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

Both our Pentium Ds do have 64 bit support. When our computers were built in 2005 Vista was just starting to be loaded in some of the models and some Windows 64 and others Windows MCE Pro.

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16819116253

With the new Core 2 Duo, Vista got more attention. You should be able to run Windows 64 and the 64 bit Vista.

Core 2 Duo share the same pin socket LGA775 as the Pen-D, also known as socket T.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socket_T

From a July 16, 2006 article
http://techreport.com/articles.x/10351

“In fact, the Core 2 can act as a drop-in replacement for a Pentium D or Pentium Extreme Edition, provided that the motherboard is capable of supplying the lower voltages that Core 2 processors require. Only the most recent motherboards seem to have Core 2 support, so you'll want to check carefully with the motherboard maker before assuming a board is compatible.”
The Core 2Duos use less voltage and run much cooler.

Gateway shows support for your board and other processors
http://support.gateway.com/s/MOTHERBD/INTEL/4006158R/4006158Rsp2.shtml

Some reviews on the Pen-D and Core 2 Duo

http://www.techspot.com/vb/showthread.php?s=dccfcb6800a12b8c4b97932530fbb179&t=57843

http://forums.cnet.com/5208-7810_102-0.html?forumID=77&threadID=244350&messageID=2467375

Here’s a chart for processors. Pen-Ds are halfway down the list and the Core2 Duos’ little further down.

http://users.erols.com/chare/elec.htm#intel

P830= 3.0G 69.8C/157.64 F Max Temp
P915= 2,8G 63.4C/146.12F MaxTemp

I hope this helps. I know if I do ever come to having to refurbish mine I’ll be throwing in a Core 2 Duo myself. The prices are coming down on them every few months.

I've tried to transpose a HDD with OS to a new MoBo and CPU and it doesn't work. When you install the OS it is somehow linked to the serial number of your cpu (I think).

I may be wrong, but I've tried it a couple of times and I've always had to reinstall the operating system; which means you lose all of your software programs registered via the giveaway project.

I'd still give it a try. Do let me know if it did work. I wish you luck

Regards Stephen

p.s

If you try using the old cpu on the new MoBo (if it's compatible) then you may be lucky. :)

The changes you're talking about will have no affect on the integrity of your program files (GAOTD's included). The limiting factor here is the operating system, such as certain programs having problems running on Vista, or programs created when Windows 95 or ME was around no longer running under a Win XP OS. As long as that hard drive is healthy the program files on them will be fine.

However, the changes you’re making are more akin to “open heart surgery”. You might consider finding a healthy PC where you can temporarily hook-up your hard drive. Then use a good imaging program (like Macrium Reflect, Starburn, etc) to burn your program files on a DVD (I’ve done that procedure a couple of times without any problems). This way later on if that hard drive is damaged during your "operation" you’ll be able to restore those files from that backup DVD. There’s a good article on PC World that in your case might be a good reference source, it’s entitled “Hands On: Upgrading Your CPU”. Good Luck & Have Fun

http://www.pcworld.com/article/148910/article.html?tk=nl_hoxsld

I think that will work, as long as the bit-bus is the same (32-bits). You may run into some minor problems with games (speed, maybe graphics processing, etc.) and a couple other apps, but everything else should be fine.

Thanks. I did think about the 32bit thing after I wrote the last post. Even if I upgraded to a 64bit CPU and Motherboard, it would probably do me no good because I am guessing that my current Gateway OS is not 64bit and nothing could probably use the 64bit hardware pipeline without a 64bit OS. Additionally, as you said, if I did spring for a 64bit OS, many or most of my existing programs might not work. I have no idea how backward compatible these new systems are. Which brings another question to mind. What happens if I were to upgrade to a Tri or Quad processor?

Thanks again,

Rich

Well, maybe your new motherboard won't fit in your case, but you could just buy a new tower. As long as all your parts don't have proprietary connectors, it should fit into the new motherboard fine. As for upgrading the processor, there may be complications. I have personally never upgraded a processor before, so I don't know the outcome. However, I do know that you probably will get compatibility problems if you upgrade to 64-bit, from the operating system, drivers, and likely your giveaways. Your computer probably will crash if you directly transfer your old Windows into a new 64-bit system. In any case, though, you should back up your hard drive. If something doesn't work out, you can always restore your backup and retain your giveaways.

To add, part of my concern is that the proprietary nature of the Gateway computer system would not allow me to install a different motherboard and still boot from the existing Gateway hard drive and operating system???

Thanks,

Rich

Thanks for your reply. To reiterate, if I install a new motherboard, and then install the Gateway XP Media Center hard drive with the GAOTD programs from my dead motherboard as the C: drive, the system would boot up OK and the programs would still be licensed? Would that still be true if I upgrade the motherboard and the CPU? If I changed from Intel dual core to AMD? To 64 bit? My thought is that since this happened, I might as well take the opportunity to upgrade, but on the other hand, I DO NOT want to lose my GAOTD programs.

Thanks,

Rich

Hi, Rich. What I would say is that your method should work fine. After all, unlike Windows XP and above, your licenses are not tethered to your hardware configuration. So after you install a new motherboard, all that should require reactivation would be Windows. Of course, if you want to transfer all your GAOTDs onto a new computer (different hard drive), you'll be out of like unless you've somehow backed up your giveaways (it's possible), or the giveaways come around again.

I recently returned from a vacation to find that the motherboard on my Gateway GT5224 Media Center Computer had died. Power and fans come on, but no Video and no post diagnostics. Since all the GAOTD programs are legally installed on my hard drive, and assuming that the hard drive is still intact, what can I do to retain my GAOTD licenses. Will I be able to upgrade the motherboard and CPU, while keeping the same hard drive as my boot drive? The OS is Windows XP Media edition 2005 from Gateway.
Any help will be appreciated.

It took me almost a year to get all of Returnil off my computer. I cleaned the Registry, temp files, program files, did a search, and RETURNIL still showed up every time I restarted my computer. I still am not sure where it hid some of its files but it was frustrating trying to get ALL of it off my computer. (GAOTD offered this program last yeat.) It would be nice to have advice like: Newbies beware! or Experienced users only.

I am not a newbie, but I am not a computer technician either. Probably more of a "middle" type user. I am extremely careful of downloading any type of cleaning program as I have crashed my computer before because I used a "junk" remover. I would not recommend "RETURNIL" to anyone who is not completely computer savy.

Photoshop CS problem with returnil.
Photoshop CS (legitimate copy) shuts down after start and asks for a new install. Returnil seems to be incompatible with photoshop's copy protection mechanism. When returnil is turned off, Photoshop works fine. Does anybody has a solution for this problem? Thanks.

Coldmoon Thank you for that nice to know I not kill it so it still run when Returnil stop's,do you know name of the system like is this the bit we see & is 2st system not in task manger.

Hi hotdoge3,
Thank you for trying Returnil and we look forward to your feedback.

The System Protection/Session Lock is not effected by termination of the GUI (Returnil.exe). The GUI is simply a 32 bit program that allows the user to access the functions and features and does not control these features.

Mike