[WEB4LIB] Safe Mode Blues

[Jay Smith]

Jeff et al.,

How about disabling the keyboard until late in the boot process?
I have two small programs that 1) disable the keyboard when
config.sys is loaded, and 2) enable the keyboard during autoexec.bat
execution.


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   Jay Smith                      voice (650) 591-1110 ext. 335 (Tuesdays)
   Reference Librarian            fax (650) 591-1585   (Tuesdays)
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   Peninsula Library System       smithj at pls.lib.ca.us

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   Foster City Library, 1000 E. Hillsdale, Foster City, CA 94404

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On Tue, 23 Feb 1999, Jeff Papier wrote:

> Greetings,
> 
> I've got our public Win 95/98 PC's well-secured with a number of built-in
> features (e.g. CMOS password), and with third-party software.
> 
> However, nothing I do at the software level prevents users from turning
> the PC's off and on until the Menu Choice offering Safe Mode comes up.
> When they get into Safe Mode, some amount of havoc can be wrought.
> 
> Yes, I have set msdos.sys settings so that you shouldn't get this Menu.
> This really has never worked properly (just as setting AutoScan doesn't
> prevent diskscan upon bootup on our PC's.)  Yes, I have disabled the
> Function keys such as F5 and F8 so that they do nothing during bootup.
> No, these PC's unfortunately do not have passwords for boot-up itself,
> just for CMOS access.
> 
> I also know I can use the System Policy Editor to prevent certain apps
> from running, but I want to prevent kids from getting into Safe Mode in
> the first place.
> 
> Any ideas, short of constructing steel-reinforced padlocked boxes around
> the PC's, or at least around the on/off and reset buttons?
> 
> Thanks as always,
> J Papier
> jpapier at lmxac.org
> 
> 
>