A. Microsoft has released a utility called USB Flash Drive Manager for Windows XP, which you can use to manage USB flash devices. You can download the utility at http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/ThankYou.aspx?familyId=94991901-bfc4-485e-bcae-c9df0accdaae&displayLang=en. After you download the program, execute the .msi file to install the software. The USB Flash Drive Manager Setup Manager Wizard, which the figure shows, walks you through the rest of the installation.

You can configure USB Flash Drive Manager to copy files to and from flash drives; create images of the flash drives for backup purposes (by default, the images are placed in your My Documents folder in a USB Flash Drive Backup subfolder); configure autorun capabilities on a flash drive; and enable wireless configuration settings to be stored on a flash drive.

Reader Comments

stupid.. users need write access in the program directory for this tool... which conflicts with normal user rights... microsoft needs to reeducate the author of this tool in security

I've used it and it totally screwed by 1GB USB Stick - avoid this at all costs!!

While not perfect, it atleast allows me to launch a program with the press of a button (after a little modification of the autorun.ini and creation of a VB 'launcher app)