Lesson 4: Installing, Managing, and Troubleshooting Other Devices | MCSE Training Kit(c) Microsoft Windows 2000 Accelerated 2000

This lesson explains how to install, configure, and troubleshoot miscellaneous devices, including fax and mouse support.

After this lesson, you will be able to

Configure and troubleshoot a fax device
Manage and troubleshoot I/O devices

Estimated lesson time: 15 minutes

Configuring and Troubleshooting Fax Support

If you have a fax device, such as a fax modem installed, then Control Panel will have a Fax icon. You can use the Fax icon to add, monitor, and troubleshoot fax devices, including fax modems and fax printers. Double-click the Fax icon, and then select the Advanced Options tab.

NOTE
The Advanced Options tab appears only if you are logged on as Administrator or have administrator privileges.

The following three options are available on the Advanced Options page:

Open Fax Service Management Console. This option allows you to view any fax devices you have installed and to change properties for these devices.
Open Fax Services Management Help. This option allows you to start a Help session for the Open Fax Services Management Console.
Add A Fax Printer. This option allows you to install a fax printer.

Using the Fax Service Management Console

Using the Fax Service Management window, you can administer fax support on your local computer or on other computers on your network. According to your default settings, you are set up to send faxs, not to receive them. The Fax Service Management is used for the folowing tasks:

Setting up your fax devices to receive faxes
Changing security permissions for users
Changing the number of rings before a fax device answers a fax receive
Configuring the number of retries before a fax terminates a fax send
Configuring where to store sent and received faxes

The Open Fax Services Management Help option provides Help for the Fax Service Management console. You can use the third option, Add A Fax Printer, to install a fax printer. The newly installed fax printer is added to the Printers folder.

Faxing a Document

You can use any Windows-based application that contains a Print command to fax a document. Click File and then click Print to open the Print dialog box. Select the fax printer, and then click Print to open the Send Fax wizard. The wizard guides you through configuration and help you send the fax.

Monitoring a Fax

Open Fax in Control Panel and select the Status Monitor tab. Ensure that Display The Status Monitor is selected, and then click OK. With this option selected, the Fax Monitor dialog box will automatically be displayed when a fax is sent or a call is received. The Fax Monitor dialog box allows you to view details of the fax being sent—for example, you can see if the fax is actually being sent or if the system is still dialing and trying to establish a connection. The Fax dialog box also allows you to easily end a fax call.

Managing and Troubleshooting Input/Output Devices

The list of devices that you can install is too long to include in this training kit. This section includes some of the more common devices you can install and explains how they are installed, configured, and managed.

Scanners and Cameras

Most scanners and cameras are Plug and Play devices, and Windows 2000 installs them automatically when you connect them to your computer. If they are not installed automatically when you connect your computer, or if they are not Plug and Play compatible, use the Scanner And Camera Installation wizard. To open this wizard, double-click Scanners And Cameras in Control Panel, and then click Add.

To configure a scanner or a camera, double-click Scanners And Cameras in Control Panel to open the Scanners And Cameras Properties dialog box, select the appropriate device, and then click Properties. For example, you can configure an alternate color profile for a device. The standard color profile for Integrated Color Management (ICM 2) is RGB, but you can add, remove, or select an alternate color profile. To change the color profile for a device, click the Color Management tab. If you are having problems with your scanner or camera, click Troubleshoot in the Scanners And Cameras Properties dialog box.

Mouse Devices

Double-click the Mouse icon in Control Panel to open the Mouse Properties dialog box, which you can use to configure and troubleshoot your mouse. The Buttons tab allows you to configure your Mouse for a left-handed or right-handed user. It also allows you to configure your mouse so that a single mouse click either selects or opens an item. You can also use this tab to control the double-click speed of your mouse.

From the Pointers tab, you can select or create a custom scheme for your pointer. From the Motion tab you can adjust the speed and acceleration of your pointer and to set Snap To Default, which moves the pointer automatically to the default button in dialog boxes. From the Hardware tab you can access the troubleshooter and advanced configuration for your mouse's port. Options for advanced configuration include uninstalling or updating your driver, viewing or changing the resources allocated to your mouse, and increasing or decreasing the sensitivity of your mouse by varying the sample rate, which changes how often Windows 2000 determines the position of your mouse.

Modems

To install or configure a modem, double-click Phone And Modem Options in Control Panel, and select the Modems tab. To configure an installed modem, select the modem from the list of installed modems and click Properties. Select the appropriate tab or check box according to what changes you want to make. For example, select the General tab if you want to set the maximum port speed, and select the Wait For Dial Tone Before Dialing check box if you want the modem to wait for a dial tone before dialing in to another computer. You can get help troubleshooting the modem from the Diagnostics tab. If you want to add a modem, click Add to start the Add/Remove Hardware wizard, which will step you through the process of installing a modem.

Universal Serial Bus Devices

To install a Universal Serial Bus Device (USB), for example, a USB game controller, attach the USB game controller to a USB port. If a USB device doesn't install properly, in Device Manager, look under Human Interface Devices. If the controller isn't listed, check to make sure that USB is enabled in BIOS. When prompted during system startup, enter BIOS setup and enable USB. If USB is enabled in BIOS, contact the maker or vendor of your computer and obtain the current version of BIOS.

To configure the controller, in Device Manager right-click the appropriate controller and then select Properties. In Device Status, a message will describe any problems and suggest what action you can take. You might also need to check the USB port entry in Device Manager. Click Universal Serial Bus Controllers, right-click USB Hub, and then click Properties.

IrDA Devices and Wireless Devices

Most Internal Infrared Data Association (IrDA) devices should be installed by Windows 2000 Setup, or once you start Windows 2000 after adding one of these devices. If you attach an IrDA transceiver to a serial port, you must install it using the Add/Remove Hardware wizard.

To configure an IrDA device, in Control Panel, click Wireless Link. On the Hardware tab, click the device you want to configure, and then click Properties.

Keyboards

To configure your keyboard, double-click Keyboards in Control Panel. From the Input Locales tab, you can add and remove locales and control the hot keys to switch between locales.

NOTE
What icons appear in Control Panel depend on what devices you have installed.

Lesson Summary

In this lesson you learned that you can use the Fax program in Control Panel, to add, monitor, and troubleshoot fax devices you have installed, including fax modems and fax printers. As a default, you are set up to send faxes, but not to receive them.

You also learned that you can use the Fax Service Management window to administer fax support on your local computer or on other computers on your network, including setting up fax devices to receive faxes, changing security permissions for users, configuring where to store sent and received faxes, and other settings. You also learned that you can use any Windows-based application that contains a Print command to fax a document. Generally, this involves using a Send Fax wizard that guides you through any configuration settings and helps you send the fax.

Finally, you learned how to install, configure, and manage some of the more common devices that may be connected to your system, including scanners and cameras, mouse devices, modems, USB devices, IrDA devices, wireless devices, and keyboards.