Steve's blog about RMPrepUSB, Easy2Boot and USB booting and sometimes other stuff too! Don't forget to Subscribe! PDF eBooks here
Visit www.rmprepusb.com for over 140 Tutorials on USB booting or www.easy2boot.xyz for a unique USB multiboot solution.
Sunday, 5 February 2023
Where have all the birds and insects gone - and should we care?
Sunday, 22 January 2023
Add OpenCore to your Easy2Boot USB drive
Copy the EFI\OC folder to Partition 2 (which should be FAT32) at \EFI\OC
Copy the \EFI\BOOT\BOOTX64.EFI file from your OC source to the same \EFI\OC folder on Partition 2
Add your \EFI\OC\config.plist file (edit as required)
UEFI64 boot to the E2B agFM menu and browse to the \EFI\OC\BOOTX64.EFI file on Partition 2 and select it and press ENTER key.
If you are using your own startup menu, you can add the following entry into the \boot\grubfm\startup_menu.txt file:
if [ -f "(${user})/EFI/OC/BOOTX64.EFI" ] ; then
menuentry "OpenCore (UEFI64)" --class=settings {
set grubfm_file="(${user})/EFI/OC/BOOTX64.EFI"
grubfm_open "${grubfm_file}"
}
fi
fi
https://easy2boot.xyz/create-your-website-with-blocks/add-payload-files/opencore/
Thursday, 19 January 2023
New Windows Update for XP
Tuesday, 17 January 2023
New money saving tips eBook (PDF)
This 39 page eBook (PDF format) contains many of the money saving tips that I use every day (well most of them anyway :-) as well as some crafty tricks. For instance, I get £60 off my normal supermarket shopping bill every month using a simple trick to get £15 money-off vouchers every week. It can be used with other retail stores too and should work in most countries, not just the UK.
It also contains some heating/energy tips too as well as many other tips for other savings.
You may be familiar with some of these tips already, but even if you only actually use just one of them you will have saved the cost of the eBook!
It is currently on SALE at just $1 for two weeks only (normally $5).
Steve's Money-Saving Tips for 2023 (39pp.)
Sunday, 15 January 2023
Anyone can make a small business website in 2 hours (free PDF eBook)
Help - my kitchen ceiling is leaking!
I recently hired a plumber because there was water dripping from my kitchen ceiling and I couldn't find the source!
Friday, 6 January 2023
Try the new Rescue WinPE from AIOBoot
It seems to work for Legacy 64-bit and UEFI64 systems. Place the two files in the correct locations as instructed:
It claims to be semi-persistent as the “Program Files”, “ProgramData” and “Users” folders in drive X: are moved to drive Y: and data written to these folders and Y: drive will be saved.
Thursday, 5 January 2023
Run grub4dos commands from the Ventoy (or any grub2) menu system
Ventoy is based on grub2 and although it is very good at booting most legacy payloads, it is not that good at booting some DOS floppy images and some other legacy BIOS payloads.
If you need to boot using grub4dos, you can define your own grub2 external user menu (\ventoy\ventoy_grub.cfg) which can be run from Ventoy by pressing F6 in the Ventoy menu system.
My eBook 'Getting started with Ventoy' gives a few examples of how to do this.
Monday, 2 January 2023
Easy2Boot v2.19 released
- New grub4dos /grldr to fix changing wallpaper bmp/jpg whilst animation is running in background.
- Revise E2B Launcher.exe to add ‘Download and Update E2B’.
- Update some files - hotkey utility, Add_Ventoy.cmd, CheckForUpdate.cmd, CreatePersistentFile.sh,Download and Update E2B.cmd also tells user which version is installed on USB drive.
- Add new INDONESIAN menu language (thanks to mikail)
- Add ‘+DPMS’ or ‘ – No DPMS’ to default MAIN MENU heading so user can tell which version is installed.
- Add “\_ISO\docs\E2B Utilities\GetWindowsProductKey.vbs” – run this to get the current Windows system Product Key.
Sunday, 1 January 2023
Formatting, copying and writing floppy disks
Personally, I have not used a floppy disk in over 15 years, but if you are into retro computers and still use them, then you must check out this excellent Adrian's Digital Basement YT video:
In the video, he describes how to use the DOS ImageDisk program to test, read and write all sorts of floppy disks.
Wednesday, 28 December 2022
Latest eBook (PDF) 'Getting started with Ventoy v1.14' is now available
- E2B #1 - Getting started with Easy2Boot_v2.22.pdf
- E2B #2 - How to install Microsoft Windows using Easy2Boot_v1.9.pdf
- E2B #3 - How to make a UEFI multi-boot Easy2Boot USB drive using .imgPTN files v1.03.pdf
- E2B #4 - UEFI-multiboot using the a1ive grub2 File Manager_v1.26.pdf
- Getting started with Ventoy v1.14 (for Ventoy v1.0.86).pdf
- Getting started with grub4dos_v1.03.pdf
Thursday, 22 December 2022
Free Christmas games
Don't just watch TV at Christmas, enjoy the time that you are together!
After a hearty and boozy Xmas lunch, many families play Charades, but here are two more games my family like and play quite often:
Call my Bluff
Like or Hate
Going round the table or room one person at a time, each person must say out loud one thing that they either hate or love, e.g. horror movies, Marmite crisps, oysters, Mr Bean, yellow cars, etc. and write either LOVE or HATE on a card. The others must put their hand on their heart if they think you love that thing or stick their finger in their mouth if they think you hate it. You then must show the card and explain why you love/hate it. You record the scores as one point for anyone who guessed correctly and as you take the scores, each person must explain if they agree with you or not and why, as they lower their 'voting' hand.
Instead of points, you can substitute shots (but maybe not for granny).
What are your favourite family games?
Tuesday, 13 December 2022
How to prevent DropBox interfering with compilers and other programs
Sunday, 4 December 2022
E2B v2.19c Beta available with INDONESIAN language menu option
Saturday, 26 November 2022
Quickly improve the Windows Explorer right-click context menu
Wednesday, 23 November 2022
How to run DOS utilities directly from an Easy2Boot USB drive
Sunday, 20 November 2022
Black Friday website host deals
Thursday, 17 November 2022
VentoyPlugson 1.0.82 for E2B now available
- Ventoy2Disk.exe: Add exFAT/NTFS/FAT32 options in Option-->Partition Configuration for Ventoy installation.
- Ventoy2Disk.exe: Display Ventoy partition file system in selected disk
- Ventoy2Disk.exe: Fix the issue that string "Status x%" is missing for translations (#1667)
- Update Shim/Mokmanager efi file from Fedora 37.
- Add VTOY_SHOW_PASSWORD_ASTERISK option in global control plugon. (#1931)
- VentoyPlugson: Fix the issue that secondary boot menu option mismatch between web page and json file.
- Fix the issue that Linux WEB/GUI version does not restore MBR when updating. (#1935)
- Change Ventoy LiveCD GUI default language to English (#1938)
- Fix the issue that help line disappears when auto-going to a Fn submenu. (#1939)
- Fix an issue that CGI backup tool can not open after boot WePE.
- Optimization for Windows unattended install process.
- Fix the disk display error when pCloud virtual disk is installed in Windows OS.
- languages.json update
Saturday, 12 November 2022
Test AMD Radeon GPU RAM memory using Linux Scripts
First watch the Learn Electronics Repair YT videos (and subscribe :-):
Using Linux to diagnose a fault:
How to run the test scripts:
Adding the test to any E2B USB drive
1. Download and add the ArchLinux ISO and copy to \_ISO\LINUX folder and make the file contiguous.
2. Download the two scripts, unpack and copy to a \scripts folder on your E2B USB drive.
3. Boot to the ISO and follow the instructions in the video (see screenshot below):
Type the correct command as explained in the video
I used these commands to get to the scripts folder:
fdisk -l
mkdir /ss
mount /dev/sda1 /ss
/ss/scripts
dmgg - test Polaris and Navi AMD GPU (RX400/RX500/RX5000)
memtest - generic test
This can also be done using Ventoy, but you should use the VTOY_LINUX_REMOUNT option in the global control section of the ventoy.json user config file so that the volume is accessible once booted to Linux.
See Also - other video card tests
See also MATS/MODS test article here and Kings OverKill article here.
Saturday, 5 November 2022
Add your own animated gif to E2B
You can make your own animation like the shuffle dancer shown in the screenshot above (download here) in just a few minutes. The hardest part is finding an animated GIF in the first place like this one.
Friday, 4 November 2022
E2B Theme (Rosalind Franklin + DNA animation)
E2B menu plus DNA gif with transparent background |
- 1024x768
- Rosalind Franklin wallpaper
- Animated rotating DNA model
Thursday, 3 November 2022
agFM v1.98 released
agFM default theme with menu heading text + boot mode |
To update to the newest version, run:
Monday, 31 October 2022
VentoyPlugson.exe v1.0.81 for E2B drives now available
Sunday, 30 October 2022
E2B and agFM updates
- E2B latest version is now v2.18 2022-10-28
- agFM latest version is now agFM v1.97 2022-10-29
- 'Ventoy for Easy2Boot' is still at 1.0.79d 20220-09-13
E2B recent changes:
Saturday, 29 October 2022
How to quickly identify what's in your old PC or Notebook (DOS SysInfo tools)
Thursday, 27 October 2022
Boot pmagic_2022_09_04.iso from E2B\agFM\Ventoy with persistence
It is possible to boot Partition Magic 2022 from an ISO file and use the LIVE SAVE (persistence) feature which allows you to create a persistence file which is saved on exit and automatically loaded on boot.
My personalized purple Pmagic with persistence. |
Wednesday, 26 October 2022
Add Gandalf’s Windows 10PE x64 Redstone 7 Spring 2022 Edition to E2B
GandalfsWin10PEx64RS7-20H1_.isomap64.agfmisomap64.ISO
Sunday, 23 October 2022
Add PhilsComputerLab's DOSBENCHMARK test utilities to your E2B or Ventoy USB drive (and run Quake and Doom!)
Speedsys 4.78 run on Lenovo IdeaPad300 notebook |
Monday, 17 October 2022
Boot or Install ReactOS Live from E2B
If you want to try ReactOS (which is at Alpha status - so still very buggy!) you can download a .imgPTN23 file here which should boot to the LiveCD ISO.
ReactOS itself does not fully support USB 2/3 AFAIK, so you may need to attach a PS/2 keyboard and mouse if using a real system.
Friday, 14 October 2022
E2B v2.16 released
- New - Support new .wimboot file extension (can use xxxxx_.wimboot.wim to make E2B boot using iPXE wimboot method instead of NTBOOT and bootmgr\BCD).
- New - skip the prompt ‘Press ENTER to not use WIMBOOT’ if characters ‘WIMBOOT’ are in Windows Install ISO filename.
- New - Ctrl+F7 hotkey to switch display to text mode. Use Ctrl+F8 to reload menu in default mode.
- New - Alt+F7 hotkey to switch display to 1024×768 mode. Use Ctrl+F8 to reload menu in default mode.
- New - \_ISO\WINDOWS\SVR2022 folder added for Server 2022 ISOs/IMPTN files.
- New - Add support for Ventoy Linux VHD/VDI .vtoy files. \_ISO\docs\Sample mnu Files\Linux Mint VHD_VDI (ventoy).mnu, \_ISO\docs\Sample mnu Files\Linux\ventoy_grub.cfg added.
- New - Check USB drive is not a GPT drive added.
- New - Can use set QMENU=1 in MyE2B.cfg for faster loading of E2B menus (but no ISO volume info in descriptions and no ‘not contiguous’ warnings given). Improve menu loading time if many files in menu folder.
- New - Add “\_ISO\docs\Make_E2B_USB_Drive\Download and update E2B.cmd” – this script will download the latest currently released version of E2B (or latest Beta if available) and then update the E2B version on the USB drive, then proceed to download and update agFM and Ventoy for Easy2Boot and Ventoy Plugins.
- Bugfix - SWITCH_E2B.exe fix not switching if partition 4 has start/size parameters but is Type 0.
- E2B Menu F1 ENGlish help text updated, hotkey grub4dos utility updated, \grldr grub4dos version updated.
Tuesday, 11 October 2022
Three new ways to make or save money (but be quick!)
Here are some ideas to get approx. £40 in less than an hour (no risk) and save up to 30% on Christmas gifts or purchases and save £££s on your weekly supermarket shopping bills for ever!
Monday, 10 October 2022
E2B v2.16j available with E2B update script
v2.16j - Add "\_ISO\docs\Make_E2B_USB_Drive\Download and update E2B.cmd" - this script will download the latest currently released version of E2B (or latest Beta if available) and then update the E2B version on the USB drive, then proceed to download and update agFM and Ventoy for Easy2Boot and Ventoy Plugins.
If an E2B Beta is available you can download and install that version, otherwise it will download the currently released version.
You can download any E2B version and drag-and-drop the .zip file onto the Download and update E2B.cmd script and it will use that file instead of downloading one.
The script will then go on to download and install the latest current release of agFM and Ventoy for Easy2Boot (you will be asked if you want to update first).
Note: If you abort the script during operation, it may leave some temporary files on your Windows system. You can delete them by simply running the script again and answer No at the first question.
Thursday, 6 October 2022
Easy2Boot v2.16h Beta available
I have made a slight improvement to speed up the enumeration/loading time of an E2B menu folder.
In addition, if you add
into your \_ISO\MyE2B.cfg file it will also speed up the menu load time (but the ISO volume name and the contiguous file status will not be checked or displayed).
The E2B grub4dos+grub4efi Beta version has also been updated if you want to experiment and UEFI-boot to a UEFI E2B menu system.
I am thinking of releasing E2B 2.16 soon so please let me know if you spot any issues.
Beta downloads are in the Alternate Download Areas as usual - Latest Betas folder.
Tuesday, 4 October 2022
New Linux VHD\VDI video
You can also boot to the .VTOY file using your own grub2/grub4dos/rEFInd menu system - see the vdiskchain github project for details.
Beaware of this VentoyPlugson issue!
Wednesday, 28 September 2022
Testing a Ventoy USB drive using VirtualBox under Windows 10/11 (and why it didn't work!)
Monday, 26 September 2022
E2B v2.16g and agFM v1.92 now have .vtoy support for full Linux OS VHD\VDI booting
To update your E2B USB drive
agFM v1.92 supports .vtoy files - run Ptn2:\e2b\Update agFM\Download and update agFM_v2.cmd to get the latest version of agFM.
Wednesday, 14 September 2022
'Ventoy for Easy2Boot' v1.0.79d released
The current release of the official Ventoy v1.0.79 does not currently support Windows .7z file injection if you use the Ctrl+W WIMBOOT override key (some PCs will not boot Windows ISOs without using WIMBOOT).
My latest version includes the latest Beta code so that WIMBOOT mode will also work with file injection (the next official version - Ventoy v1.0.80 will probably have this fix too).
Also, my new version will respond to the w, i, u and r keys (with or without the ctrl key) which means you can use those modifier keys on a Mac AirBook or other non-standard computer which does not recognise the Ctrl key.
Please run \e2b\Update agFM\Update_to_latest_Ventoy_version.cmd on Ptn2 to update to the latest version of 'Ventoy for Easy2Boot'.
Saturday, 10 September 2022
'Ventoy for Easy2Boot' v1.0.79c released (bugfix)
Another problem was found with 'Ventoy for Easy2Boot 1.0.79' - Windows zip file injection was not working.
The issue has now been fixed in 1.0.79c.
Problem seems to be to do with the FAT code needing to specify ".xz " as file extension rather than ".xz" for FAT32 filesystems (three character extensions worked but not two character extensions) and also a bug in LongPanda's code created a file on X: even if the source file did not exist.The new version is 1.0.79c (press F7 in Ventoy Menu to show version number).
Please run \e2b\Update agFM\Update_to_latest_Ventoy_version.cmd on Ptn2 to update to the latest version.
Check that the \ventoy\vtoyjump32.exe and vtoyjump64.exe has a date of 2022-09-09.
Monday, 5 September 2022
Major bank security loophole exposed - don't be a victim - use this simple fix!
Saturday, 3 September 2022
E2B v2.16f Beta
Current changes in 2.16f are:
- Add .wimboot file extension support. Use xxxxx_.wimboot.wim to make E2B boot using iPXE wimboot method instead of NTBOOT and bootmgr\BCD.
- Add Ctrl+F7 hotkey to switch display to text mode. Use Ctrl+F8 to reload menu in default mode.
- Add Alt+F7 hotkey to switch display to 1024×768 mode. Use Ctrl+F8 to reload menu in default mode.
- New SWITCH_E2B.exe to fix not switching if partition 4 has start/size parameters but is Type 0
- New \_ISO\WINDOWS\SVR2022 folder added for Server 2022 with XML and KEY files.
- F1 ENGlish help text file updated.
Wednesday, 31 August 2022
eBooks updated
- E2B #1 - Getting started with Easy2Boot_v2.21.pdf
- E2B #2 - How to install Microsoft Windows using Easy2Boot_v1.9.pdf
- E2B #3 - How to make a UEFI multi-boot Easy2Boot USB drive using .imgPTN files v1.03.pdf
- E2B #4 - UEFI-multiboot using the a1ive grub2 File Manager_v1.25.pdf
- Getting started with Ventoy v1.11 (for Ventoy v1.0.79).pdf
- Getting started with grub4dos_v1.02.pdf
Monday, 29 August 2022
'Ventoy for Easy2Boot' v1.0.79 bugfix for Windows Install ISOs and WinPE ISOs
I found a problem with 'Ventoy for Easy2Boot' v1.0.79 - it does not load a Windows/WINPE ISO as a virtual drive as it seems LongPanda has added an additional check into the code. This means Windows Installs and some WinPEs did not work correctly.
Please update 'Ventoy for Easy2Boot' using the instructions here.
The new version is still called v1.0.79 - so please update even if the cmd file says that you already have v1.0.79 installed.
The \ventoy\vtoyjump64.exe file on Partition 2 should be dated 2022-08-28 after updating to v1.0.79b.
Thursday, 25 August 2022
Quick! - check out the Amazon 'End of Summer' sale bargains
- Amazon Echo Dot (4th gen) for 54% off!
- Fire TV Stick with 38% off.
- Sandisk Extreme Pro 512GB USB 3.2 with 37% off.
- 20%-50% off laptops - e.g. LG gram Laptop 16Z90Q - 16 Inch, Intel Evo Core i5 - 12th Gen, 80Wh Battery, (2560 x 1600 px), 16GB RAM, 512 GB SSD Memory, Windows 11 OS
- Up to 38% off Crucial Memory modules
- 1TB 2.5" SATA SSD 23% off
- Large discounts in Kitchen Electrical appliances (some -38%)
Sunday, 21 August 2022
Ventoy for Easy2Boot v1.0.79 is now fully released
To update to the latest 'Ventoy for Easy2Boot' v1.0.79 just run
\e2b\Update agFM\Update_to_latest_Ventoy_version.cmd
from Partition 2 of the E2B USB drive.
You can run Download and update agFM_v2.cmd to ensure your version of agFM is up to date first.
The .cmd file will also download and update the Ventoy plugin files and copy on a version of VentoyPlugsonE2B.exe that will work on E2B USB drives.
Wednesday, 17 August 2022
Is YouTube getting worse or is it just broken?
Tuesday, 16 August 2022
Microsoft just made Secure Boot multibooting more difficult!
Summary
This security update makes improvements to Secure Boot DBX for the supported Windows versions listed in the "Applies to" section. Key changes include the following:Windows devices that has Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) based firmware can run with Secure Boot enabled. The Secure Boot Forbidden Signature Database (DBX) prevents UEFI modules from loading. This update adds modules to the DBX.
A security feature bypass vulnerability exists in secure boot. An attacker who successfully exploited the vulnerability might bypass secure boot and load untrusted software.
This security update addresses the vulnerability by adding the signatures of the known vulnerable UEFI modules to the DBX.
KB5012170
Introduction
Solutions
Monday, 15 August 2022
E2B v2.16b Beta available
I have added support for the CTRL+F7 hotkey into the E2B menu system.
This hotkey sets the menu system to graphicsmode 3 and text mode.
If you have display issues on some systems and the E2B graphics mode menu system cannot be displayed properly on a particular graphics adaptor or monitor, you may see a 'fuzzy' or 'garbled' or 'corrupt' screen. In this case, hitting Ctrl+F7 may fix the display issue.
Please let me know if this causes you any issues and if you think it is worth keeping this feature in for the next full release.
Friday, 12 August 2022
VentoyPlugson.exe for 'Ventoy for Easy2Boot' available
\e2b\Update agFM\GetLatestVentoyPluginFiles.cmd
now adds a \ventoy\VentoyPlugsonE2B folder to the first partition. You can then run \ventoy\VentoyPlugsonE2B\VentoyPlugsonE2B.exe from that folder.
Thursday, 11 August 2022
Send faxes for free online (no fax machine required)
Recently I had to send a solicitor who was located over 100 miles away, some copies of my ID documents (passport, driving licence, etc.).
Now solicitors do not like receiving emails with attachments as, of course, opening an email attachment carries serious security risks, so they automatically bin all emails with attachments and they wanted me to either send a fax or use snail mail.
However, in the UK, we have just had a warning of a forthcoming Royal Mail postal service strike and so I was afraid that my documents would be delayed or worse - lost if I posted them! So it seemed that it was best to send them faxes of my ID docs.
My printer does actually have fax capability, but I needed a BT phone socket adaptor for it which I didn't have. So instead I decided to try an online fax service.
Wednesday, 10 August 2022
E2B v2.16a Beta
While testing all the .wim files in Medicat 21.12, I found that the Lockpick.wim file would not Legacy-boot from the Easy2Boot menu system.
All the other .wim files seem to Legacy-boot OK (except for the DiskGenius.wim file which seems to load and briefly display the WinPE Desktop and then immediately reboot on E2B, agFM and Ventoy???).
Easy2Boot 2.15 and previous versions booted a .wim file by using a default boot.sdi and bootmgr file and it creates a BCD dynamically with the name of the boot file in it. For some reason it seems to crash however on the Lockpick.wim file.
So Easy2Boot v2.16a Beta now supports the .wimboot file extension and this will load the wim file using the wimboot method (derived from the iPXE github project and used by agFM and Ventoy).
Download E2B v2.16a from the 'Latest Betas' folder - https://easy2boot.xyz/download/alternate-download-sites/
QRUN will suggest that you try .wimboot instead of .wim, or you can just give the .wim file a _.wimboot.wim file extension and it will automatically use the wimboot method without prompting you.
e.g.
Saturday, 6 August 2022
Add MX Linux with persistence to agFM
If you want to UEFI64 (or legacy) boot to an MX-Linux ISO and have persistence, you can use a .grubfm file. The .grubfm file must be the same name as the ISO file and in the same folder, e.g.
- \_ISO\LINUX\MX-21.1_x64.iso
- \_ISO\LINUX\MX-21.1_x64.grubfm
1. Copy on the two files. The grubfm file can be found on Partition 2 at "\e2b\Sample agFM menu files\LINUX\MX-21.1_x64.grubfm" folder or download from here.
2. The persistence files that will be created by MX-Linux must be stored on either Partition 2 of the E2B USB drive or Partition 3. Check that you have enough room (the default files are 8GB and 10GB but you can choose a smaller size). If you do not have a Partition 3 on the E2B USB drive then you could resize the partitions using EaseUS Home Partition Master or a similar tool.
3. Edit the .grubfm file and change the partition number to the one that you are going to use - either 2 or 3, e.g. line 15-17, make sure set PERSIST_PTN= 2 (or 3) as the only line and comment out any other set PERSIST_PTN= line...