Manual Table of Contents i Table of Contents Table of Contents Introduction 1 Foreword ......................................................................................................... 1 Legal Notices................................................................................................... 1 Document Conventions................................................................................... 2 What Virtual CD can do for you....................................................................... 3 New Features in Version 8 .............................................................................. 4 Virtual CD Licensing........................................................................................ 5 System Requirements..................................................................................... 5 Technical Support............................................................................................ 6 Installation 7 Notes on Installation........................................................................................ 7 Demo vs. Full Version ..................................................................................... 7 The Installation................................................................................................ 8 Quick Installation............................................................................................. 9 Advanced Installation ...................................................................................... 10 After Installation............................................................................................... 10 Folders Installed.............................................................................................. 11 Removing Virtual CD from Your System ......................................................... 12 First Steps 13 Getting Started the Fast Way .......................................................................... 13 Your First Virtual CD in 5 Easy Steps.............................................................. 13 Virtual CD Step by Step 17 Introduction to the User Interfaces .................................................................. 17 Using Virtual CD 17 Toolbox 18 Virtual CD Sidebar 19 Quick Start Utility 21 Explorer Extension 23 CD Management: The Virtual CD Control Center 26 Creating Virtual CDs........................................................................................ 28 What you need to know 28 Supported CD Types 29 Image Wizard 31 Creating a Data CD 32 Creating an Audio CD 40 Image Writer 43 i Virtual CD v8 Manual Table of Contents Using Copy Templates 44 Creating a Virtual CD Copy Template 47 Quick Copy - The Fast Way to Make Virtual CDs 49 One-Click Copy 53 Composing Your Own Virtual CDs .................................................................. 54 Making a Customized Virtual CD 54 Editing a Virtual CD 56 Working with Virtual CDs................................................................................. 56 Inserting a Virtual CD 56 Shortcuts for Fast Access 57 Ejecting a Virtual CD 58 Three Types of Drive for Virtual CDs 58 Use of the First Physical CD Drive 58 Configuring the First Physical CD Drive 59 Important Considerations 60 Copying Virtual CDs 61 Deleting Virtual CDs 62 Properties of a Virtual CD 64 Keeping Track of Your Virtual CDs 66 User-Defined Views 67 Using Layouts 70 Using Scripts – No Programming Required! 71 Command Line Program 74 How the Virtual Burner Works ......................................................................... 75 Setting up the Virtual Burner 75 Comparison of Virtual and Physical CD Burners 75 Blank Virtual Media 77 Creating Blank Virtual Media 78 Detection of a Virtual Blank 82 The Windows XP CD-writing Function 83 Burning a Virtual Data CD 84 Burning a Virtual Audio CD 86 Post-Processing 88 Supported Formats 89 Using a DVD-RAM 89 Creating a DVD-RAM 90 Using a DVD-RAM as an Encrypted Hard Disk 90 General Procedures 93 Data Search .................................................................................................... 93 Search Options 93 Integrating Existing Virtual CDs 94 Tasks in the CD Search Program 96 Find and Delete 100 Virtual CD Catalog Functions 100 Display of Catalogs 101 Searching in Catalogs 102 Catalog Management 104 ii iii Virtual CD v8 Manual Table of Contents Non-Virtual CD File Formats ........................................................................... 105 ISO Images and Other Formats 105 Limitations of ISO Images 107 Converting Images 107 Burning Virtual CDs on CD-ROMs .................................................................. 111 Methods for Backing Up Virtual CDs 111 Notes on Burning CDs 111 Creating 1:1 Copies 111 Burning Smart Virtual CDs 114 Using Smart Virtual CDs 116 Removing the Smart Virtual CD Reader 117 Advantages of Smart Virtual CD Technology 117 Physical CD Drives.......................................................................................... 118 Drive Properties 118 Denoiser: for a Quieter System 119 Reducing the Noise from a CD Drive 121 Security Measures for Physical CDs............................................................... 122 Controlling the Use of CDs 122 Disabling the Use of Physical CDs 123 Permitting the Use of Specified CDs 125 Configuring your Virtual CD Program.............................................................. 126 Virtual CD Settings 126 Adding/Removing Virtual CD Drives 127 Virtual CD in the Network 129 Before you get started..................................................................................... 129 Global Configuration Path ............................................................................... 130 Access to Virtual CD Data............................................................................... 132 Client Setup Program...................................................................................... 132 Creating a Client Setup ................................................................................... 133 Using Multiple License Codes......................................................................... 142 Problems – and Their Solutions 143 Stay up to date! ............................................................................................... 143 Questions and Answers................................................................................... 143 Contacting VCD Support................................................................................. 144 Troubleshooting............................................................................................... 145 Frequently Asked Questions 145 What to do if a virtual CD doesn’t work 145 What to do if you cannot make a virtual CD 146 What to do if a virtual audio CD cannot be played 146 What to do if one of your programs no longer detects your CD burner 149 Driver Problems 150 ii iii Virtual CD v8 Manual Questions on Network Operation 150 General Questions 151 Glossar 153 Index 159 iv 1 Virtual CD v8 Manual Introduction Introduction Foreword Thank you for choosing Virtual CD. Thank you for choosing Virtual CD. Once again, we have integrated a number of suggestions from users of earlier versions (for example, the Virtual CD Burner). We would like thank all of you who took the time to contribute your ideas and express your opinions about the program and its features, and hope you will continue to do so in future. This documentation explains how Virtual CD works and how you can work with it. You may wish to use it for reference purposes, to look up specific points as you need them. The information provided here is divided into the following sections: • Introduction: Provides an overview and general information. • Installation: Describes the installation of Virtual CD and what you need to know to make it run smoothly. • First Steps: This section is specifically directed at newcomers, and tells how to make your first virtual CD. • Virtual CD Step by Step: Here you will find detailed descriptions and practical examples of Virtual CD functions. • Virtual CD in the Network: If you use Virtual CD in a network, check here for the information you need about configuration and operation. • Problems – and Their Solutions: This sections offers additional details about the program, as well as tips on solving problems that may arise when you use Virtual CD. This documentation was written on the basis of a full Virtual CD version installed under Windows XP. If you use Windows 2000 or if you have already changed some of the Virtual CD settings, the windows displayed and the controls available may not be the same as those shown here. The examples given in this documentation often describe only one of several possible methods for executing a particular task. Once you know your way around the program, you may find other techniques for activating the functions you need. Legal Notices If you use Virtual CD with CDs or DVDs that are under license, then creating multiple virtual images from a given CD/DVD or running the Virtual CD program with a given virtual CD on more than one computer at a time may constitute a breach of the iv 1 Virtual CD v8 Manual software licensing agreement you entered into with the manu- facturer of the CD/DVD in question. Make sure to check your licensing agreements for detailed information. Copyrights on the software, the Virtual CD trademark and all corresponding documentation are owned by H+H Software GmbH. Microsoft and Windows are registered in the US as trademarks of Microsoft