Frequently Asked Questions

Help Videos

See also some video instructions for RemoteStartup.

How do I install RemoteStartup?

The installation works in 6 steps:

  1. Save the installation package on your SBS.
  2. Extract the files from the ZIP archive.
  3. Start setup and click next.
  4. Edit the automatically opened file ReadDHCP.cmd
    You will find the server IP address in the automatically opened command window:
    Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection: ⇒ IPv4 Address
    The DHCP IP subnet normally corresponds to the IP address of the server, where the last number is replaced by 0. e.g.:
    dhcp2file 192.168.42.10 192.168.42.0 App_Data\maclist.txt
  5. Run ReadDHCP.cmd in opened command window.
  6. Test RemoteStartup in Remote Web Workplace of your SBS.
    You may have to clear you browser cache, or reload (F5) the Remote Web Access website for changes take effect.

How do I activate RemoteStartup?

The software activation works as follows:

  1. Start the purchase at the SBS:
    Start ⇒ All Programs ⇒ RemoteStartup ⇒ RemoteStartup buying
  2. Enter your data in the form and send it.
  3. If you pay per credit card VISA Logo MasterCard Logo American Express Logo you will receive an email with the activation key immediately.
    Otherwise you will receive an email with payment instructions and you have to:
  4. Transfer the amount.
  5. As soon as the payment arrives at KARANITSCH IT Services, you will receive an email with the activation key
  6. Start the activation at the SBS:
    Start ⇒ All Programs ⇒ RemoteStartup ⇒ Activate
    (If you have a proxy server, you may have to bypass the proxy server for the activation.)

If you don't receive an automatic email within a few minutes, please check your SPAM/JUNK folder!

If a client PC does not start, how can I solve the problem?

  • Check the BIOS of the PC if the Wake On Lan (WOL) option is enabled.
  • Check if the running PC answers ping requests from the server. If not, enable ICMP in the firewall.
  • If it is a notebook in a docking station, plug the network cable directly to the notebook.
  • Check the power supply. If the PC is plugged into a power strip with a switch - turned it on.
  • In rare cases, the default broadcast address of the zero network don't work.
    If this is the case, please download the file RemoteStartupReg.zip and edit the appropriate .reg file.
    In the line "IPAddress"="192.168.0.255" enter your subnet's broadcast address.
    In special cases, you can also change "Port"=dword:00000009 port 9 – discard, to e.g. port 7 – echo.
    Then click on the .reg file to write the changes in the registry.

RemoteStartup stops working after some time.

Sometimes other services are consuming too much memory and RemoteStartup can not be started.

A corresponding message appears in Event Viewer - Application - Event ID 3, see example.

How to restrict other services in memory usage can be found here:
Reducing memory usage on SBS servers

Can I boot clients at a branch office?

Starting with version 1.3 of RemoteStartup 2011 you can remotely boot clients at networked (via VPN) branch offices.

Please download the file RemoteStartupReg.zip and edit the appropriate .reg file.
In the line "IPAddress"="192.168.0.255" enter your subnets broadcast addresses separeted by a space, e.g.:
"IPAddress"="192.168.1.255 192.168.2.255 192.168.3.255"

Which utilities are installed with RemoteStartup?

The setup for RemoteStartup installs two additional utilities with prepared scripts for execution.

dhcp2file

With dhcp2file you can read the MAC addresses of your client PCs from the Microsoft DHCP server of your SBS:

dhcp2file <Server IP-Address> <DHCP IP-Subnet> <filename>
  • <Server IP-Address> ... internal IP-Address of your SBS
  • <DHCP IP-Subnet> ... IP-Subnet, to read from the DHCP Server.
    Usual as the internal IP address of your SBS, only the last octet of the IP-Address is 0
  • <filename> ... the file in which the MAC addresses are stored.

The setup creates the script ReadDHCP.cmd which you can use to update the required file with the MAC addresses for RemoteStartup. If you add new PCs to the SBS domain, you can run this script to update the MAC addresses in the file.

WakePC

With WakePC you can switch on a single PC, or all PCs in a file:

WakePC <MAC-Address>
  • <MAC-Address> ... a single MAC-Address, e.g.: 00-13-E8-F6-9E-1D
WakePC @<filename>
  • <filename> ... a file with MAC-addresses.
    There is a 10-second delay between each PC to avoid peaks when simultaneously switching on multiple PCs.

The setup creates the script Wake.cmd which you can use to switch on all PCs in your domain. You can use this script with Task Scheduler to switch on your client PCs before office hours or at the Microsoft Patchday.

You can automatically switch off your PCs with the Windows program:

shutdown

You can find more information at Microsoft TechNet or with:

shutdown /?

I'm using another DHCP server, can I still use RemoteStartup?

Even if you don't use the SBS's DHCP server, you can use RemoteStartup.

You simply create the MAC-file manually. Open Notepad with right-clicking ⇒ Run as administrator and open (File - Open) the the MAC-file from within Notepad to edit it.

How to find your MAC addresses:

  • via the web interface of your router with integrated DHCP server. ⇒ see your router manual.
  • on the client PC:
    • At the command prompt, type ipconfig /all ⇒ Physical Address
    • Control Panel ⇒ Network and Sharing Center ⇒ Change adapter settings ⇒ Local Area Connection ⇒ Details ⇒ Physical Address

What is the file format of the MAC-file?

The file has a similar structure as a hosts file for IP addresses, see sample file maclist.txt :

# Copyright (c) KARANITSCH IT Dienstleistungen 2010
#
# This is a sample maclist.txt file used by KARANITSCH IT WakePC.exe or wol.aspx
#
# This file contains the mappings of MAC addresses to host names. Each
# entry should be kept on an individual line. The MAC address should
# be placed in the first column followed by the corresponding host name.
# The MAC address and the host name should be separated by at least one
# space.
#
# Additionally, comments (such as these) may be inserted on individual
# lines denoted by a '#' symbol.
#
# For example:
#
# 00-22-64-AF-E7-30	PC01
    

How do I uninstall RemoteStartupWeb?

The uninstallation works in 2 steps:

  1. Stop and remove the RSWeb application pool in the IIS Manager.
  2. In Settings - Apps & Features RemoteStartupWeb Uninstall.

Other Questions?

Please contact us!

Copyright © KARANITSCH IT Services, all rights reserved.