How to Remove the Briefcase During Windows NT 4.0 Installation

ID: Q163481

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0
Microsoft Windows NT Workstation version 4.0

SUMMARY

During the installation of Windows NT 4.0, the Briefcase is created and placed on the desktop by default. You can disable the creation of the Briefcase by editing two information files used to configure Windows NT. However, the only way to activate these changes is by initiating the Windows NT installation over the network or using an unattended Setup.

MORE INFORMATION

WARNING: Incorrect modifications to .inf files can cause serious, system- wide problems that may require you to reinstall Windows NT to correct them. Microsoft cannot guarantee that any problems resulting from modifications to .inf files can be solved. Use this method at your own risk.

To disable the creation of the Briefcase, use the following steps:

Copy the folder that contains the installation files for your computer type (for example, the I386 folder for x86-based computers) from the Windows NT CD-ROM to a hard disk.

Using Notepad or any other text editor, open the Layout.inf file, search for "syncapp.exe," and insert a semicolon in front of the line. The change should look like:
```
      ;syncapp.exe = 1,,28672,,,,,2,0,0 
```

Using Notepad or any other text editor, open the Txtsetup.sif file, search for "syncapp.exe," and insert a semicolon in front of the line. The change should look like:
```
      ;syncapp.exe = 1,,,,,,,2,0,0 
```

Initiate the Windows NT installation over the network or using an unattended Setup.

The semicolon causes Windows NT Setup to treat the line in each file as a comment. The Windows NT installation ignores the commented lines, causing the Briefcase not to be created.

For information about installing Windows NT 4.0 using an unattended Setup, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

ARTICLE-ID: Q155197
TITLE : Unattended Setup Parameters for Unattend.txt File

To enable the creation of the Briefcase for any new installations, use the following steps:

Remove the semicolon from the lines in the Layout.inf and Txtsetup.sif files.

Start the Windows NT installation.

To create a Briefcase in an installation that did not originally install the Briefcase, use the right mouse button to click the desktop, point to New, and then click Briefcase.

Additional query words: my briefcase


Keywords          : kbsetup ntsetup NTSrvWkst ntutil prodnt 
Version           : 4.0
Platform          : winnt 
Issue type        : kbhowto

Last Reviewed: February 5, 1999