Hardware & Devices

How to get the properties of more than one display monitor attached to my computer

4-Sep-12 2:14

First question...

WHY are you trying to get a HID toekn from a bootloader?? To what end?

A guide to posting questions on CodeProject[^]

Dave Kreskowiak

Nathaniel Lim29-Aug-12 10:10

Nathaniel Lim

29-Aug-12 10:10

Hello everyone,

I posted this question in the C# forum, but felt that those on this forum might be able to help as well.

I have a project that requires me to gather inventory data for my computer. I am having problems trying to get the properties of the monitors attached to my computer.

I have one computer that can potentially use a max of 4 monitors, wherein I have a primary monitor and 3 other potential monitors which act as extension screens when I move my mouse to them ( depending on whether they are connected or not ).

I need to grab the following information from each monitor :

DeviceId,
Name,
Horizontal and Vertical resolution,
Whether or not the monitor is the primary one ( a true or false value will suffice ).

I tried using the WMI, Win32_DesktopMonitor class but it is only giving me ONE monitor's results ( the primary monitor ).

I then tried using the Win32_PnPEntity class.
This works, and gives me the number of monitors attached to my computer, but it only gives me Name and DeviceId ( no horizontal and vertical resolution information in this class ).

I then tried the Screen class (using the System.Windows.Forms.Screen), however the result is erratic. In one environment, it gives me the right number of monitors attached to my computer, in others, it does not.

Does anyone know of a Class provided by .NET 4 that will help me gather the information I need?

I am using .NET Framework 4 and building my application as a Console Application.

Any suggestions and advise will be highly appreciated.

Re: How to get the properties of more than one display monitor attached to my computer

Dave Kreskowiak29-Aug-12 13:06

A couple of questions about graphics cards

29-Aug-12 13:06

Don't post your question more than once. Pick a single forum and stick with it.

It makes collaboration on an answer nearly impossible when you cross post.

A guide to posting questions on CodeProject[^]

Dave Kreskowiak

LloydA11127-Aug-12 8:04

LloydA111

27-Aug-12 8:04

I've been looking into getting a GPU.

In the spec sheet for the GPU it says this:

Quote:
PCI Express® 2.1 x16 bus interface
Double slot form factor

Looking at a picture of the GPU it only has one PCI connector on it. Does "double form factor" mean that it has two PCI connectors on it, or that it simply takes up the available physical space of the other PCI slot?

Also, the motherboard I have been looking into says that All PCI Express slots conform to the PCI Express 2.0 Standard[^]

So will the GPU I have found work with a motherboard that only supports the 2.0 standard, instead of the 2.1 standard?

Thanks

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Re: A couple of questions about graphics cards

Michael Martin27-Aug-12 16:07

Michael Martin

27-Aug-12 16:07

Lloyd Atkinson wrote:
Looking at a picture of the GPU it only has one PCI connector on it. Does "double form factor" mean that it has two PCI connectors on it, or that it simply takes up the available physical space of the other PCI slot?

It only has one PCI connector, but the overall thickness of the graphics card covers two PCI widths, so if the motherboard doesn't allow for this with a gap you will have a PCI connector that can't be used.

Lloyd Atkinson wrote:
So will the GPU I have found work with a motherboard that only supports the 2.0 standard, instead of the 2.1 standard?

I'm leaning towards yes, but wait until someone with more current knowledge ways in.

Michael Martin
Australia

"I controlled my laughter and simple said "No,I am very busy,so I can't write any code for you". The moment they heard this all the smiling face turned into a sad looking face and one of them farted. So I had to leave the place as soon as possible."
- Mr.Prakash One Fine Saturday. 24/04/2004

Re: A couple of questions about graphics cards

A NasseR8-Nov-12 3:17

A NasseR

8-Nov-12 3:17

You need to give more information OMG | :OMG:

about the :

* motherboard model
* graphic card model

then we can decide

Intel I7 2670QM processor

ForNow19-Aug-12 15:48

ForNow

19-Aug-12 15:48

Hi,

I just bought a laptop which has an I7 2670QM processor the intel specs for this processor state is 4 cores and 8 threrads

I assume that 4 cores means that 4 threads/tasks can run simoustanly

would anyone what 8 threads mean

Re: Intel I7 2670QM processor

Richard Andrew x6419-Aug-12 17:13

Richard Andrew x64

19-Aug-12 17:13

Intel processors use something called Hyperthreading. This technology allows each core to behave as two separate cores, doubling its processing power.

So with 4 physical cores, you can have 8 separate threads running at once.

The difficult we do right away...
...the impossible takes slightly longer.

File folder tables of Windows 7: Home Premium

Brandon-X120004-Aug-12 17:08

Re: File folder tables of Windows 7: Home Premium

4-Aug-12 17:08

Does anyone know of a resource that I could use that shows which files and folders that are required or important for the Windows 7 operating system to work, since I wiped out my HDD and absolutely nothing is on it. The reason why I want to do this is that I was wondering if I could copy the operating system files and folders of anther computer (that is working, or has that operating system) and copy-and-paste those files and folders on an externel device and then copy-and-paste those files and folders on another computer (which is mine of course), that it's HDD has been wiped out, and see if it works (if it does), and feedback on if it will work or not, is very welcome.

Simple Thanks and Regards,
Brandon T. H.

Programming in C and C++ now, now developing applications, services and drivers (and maybe some kernel modules...psst kernel-mode drivers...psst).

Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up. - Thomas Edison

Dave Kreskowiak4-Aug-12 17:27

Re: File folder tables of Windows 7: Home Premium

4-Aug-12 17:27

There's no such thing. You need just about everything under the Windows folder. Nobody maintains such a list as the number of files requires is quite large and differs depending on the configuration of Windows and the features and options installed.

Just copying the files over is not going to do you any good as the hardware installation is different (even the HAL can be different and not work on your machine) and the licensing will no longer work and you will be required to activate Windows again with a valid CD key.

A guide to posting questions on CodeProject[^]

Dave Kreskowiak

SoMad4-Aug-12 17:41

SoMad

4-Aug-12 17:41

Sorry. I am afraid I cannot bring you good news. You have to reinstall Windows all over again. Sniff | :^)

Hardware differences, installed options/programs and a ton of other issues makes it impossible to do that. This reminds me that I need to do a backup of my drive.

You posted a message here a few days ago about your nuclearBoot program - I guess it works, so that part must feel good Wink | ;)

Again, I feel your pain.

Soren Madsen

Installing a filter driver

MarkB7771-Aug-12 2:09

MarkB777

1-Aug-12 2:09

Hi all,

So this deep dive I am taking into the world of Windows driver development has got to the stage where I want to automate the installation of my driver.

Ultimately I am trying to quietly install and uninstall a system filter driver (so there is no 'attached device', it gets installed under System devices).

The driver I am trying to install at the moment is the cool example posted by Prikarna (Simple Serial Port Monitor).

I have been playing around with dpinst, which seems to pick up the .inf file, but shows the status as not needed, because there is 'no device for update'. So if dpinst is capable of installing Prikarna's driver, I suspect the issue is something in the .inf file.

#1. Is running dpinst in quiet mode with a VS2008 setup application a good approach for what I am trying to achieve?

If dpinst is a good approach..
#2. What are the key tags/sections that need to be added to an .INF file (or some other file?) to have dpinst install a filter driver under System Devices?

Thank you,
Mark.

Mark Brock
"We're definitely not going to make a G or a PG version of this. It's not PillowfightCraft." -- Chris Metzen

Overwrite file and delete file/folder driver

Brandon-X1200025-Jul-12 22:33

Re: Overwrite file and delete file/folder driver

25-Jul-12 22:33

Hello all, I'm creating a software called nuclearBoot which, removes the operating system and an option for the user to keep his/her documents or include them in the process as well for erasing sensitive information and data, basically wiping the HDD completely clear, my question is how do you overwrite and delete a file using a driver? And how to tell what the operating system is?

Also, I've heard online, that if the hardware in the computer is bad, it will result in a kernel panic, while bootstrapping and activating a HDD clearing software. So any questions on how to make the software still do it's job, even though the hardware is bad or avoid a kernel panic or any other generic fatal error?

Richard MacCutchan26-Jul-12 0:18

Richard MacCutchan

26-Jul-12 0:18

Brandon T. H. wrote:
how do you overwrite and delete a file using a driver?

You would probably need to read the file tables from which you can get information about which sectors a specific file occupies. This information is proprietary to each file system type, NTFS etc: Google will find you lots of references.

Brandon T. H. wrote:
And how to tell what the operating system is?

You will already know this as your driver will need to be customised to each OS.

Brandon T. H. wrote:
I've heard online, that if the hardware in the computer is bad, it will result in a kernel panic,

That may or may not happen depending on what your driver and the OS are trying to do with the hardware.

Brandon T. H. wrote:
how to make the software still do it's job, even though the hardware is bad or avoid a kernel panic or any other generic fatal error?

Probably you need to trap all contingencies and make a decision what to do about them. For example, if your driver is writing to a disk and the system reports an error, you may need to make a note of where the error occurred and avoid that disk address in future. I am not sure how much of this information existing drivers will pass back to you, but most OSes give drivers the option to recover from hard errors. Again you would need to consult the driver documentation for the specific OS.

One of these days I'm going to think of a really clever signature.

Re: Overwrite file and delete file/folder driver

Brandon-X1200026-Jul-12 14:08

Broken Ethernet adapter help

26-Jul-12 14:08

Thanks for the advice, that really helped Thumbs Up | :thumbsup:

Brandon-X1200024-Jul-12 14:09

24-Jul-12 14:09

So I little while ago, someone forcefully yanked the Ethernet cord (that blue wire) that connects to my router/modem, and after that happened, my Ethernet cord does not "snap-in," like, my cord just slides out very easy, all it takes is a little jerk or shake on my desk and the whole thing dis-connects from my computer PC, and I don't get internet, and I always have to check to see if it's connected on my computer by looking at my notification area (I have Microsoft Windows: 7, Home Premium), and by hand push it in a little to see if it's connected. The only way to guarantee a stable (non-disconnecting) connection, is wirelessly, the reason I prefer cable, is that it's 10x faster.

A picture of my Ethernet adapter is here:
External link 1
External link 2
External link 3 (CONNECTED)
External link 4 (DISCONNECTED)

What do you'll think is wrong? Sigh | :sigh:

Richard Andrew x6424-Jul-12 15:02

Richard Andrew x64

24-Jul-12 15:02

Are you sure it's not just that the locking tab on the cable is broken?

The difficult we do right away...
...the impossible takes slightly longer.

Brandon-X120004-Aug-12 17:21

4-Aug-12 17:21

It "looks" like it's good shape, I've tried it with another cable thats rarely used and thats in good shape, and it's slided out too.

Dave Kreskowiak24-Jul-12 18:54

24-Jul-12 18:54

Replace the cable. It's wires are possibly ripped out of the connector even if it looks like they haven't been.

If, after that, it still doesn't work, you may have a damaged enternet connector, in which case you either better be real good with a soldering iron and replace that connector or (FAR, FAR more likely) replace the device that the cable was yanked out of, which by your pictures appears to be the motherboard of a laptop.

A guide to posting questions on CodeProject[^]

Dave Kreskowiak

Brandon-X120004-Aug-12 17:22

4-Aug-12 17:22

I've used a different cable, thats rarely used and is in good shape, and it's slided out too.

Dave Kreskowiak5-Aug-12 4:32

5-Aug-12 4:32

"Slided"?? There's no such word. I think you're looking for "slid".

If the cable is still falling out of the socket, the socket is broken. It could be fixable, but it would be a hack with a piece of wire and cement. It's best to replace the socket if at all possible.

A guide to posting questions on CodeProject[^]

Dave Kreskowiak