1

I'm using a Limited User account under Windows XP, and I'm having a bit of trouble getting my Adaptoid (the most coveted N64 controller -> USB adapter, because of it's support for sending raw N64 controller commands + the fact that it's been discontinued) to work smoothly: as installed, the included software requires Administrator privileges to load the driver.

Presumably, it is possible to arrange for the driver to be loaded automatically when the Adaptoid is inserted by adding some stuff to the INF file for the driver (wishna1.inf): the question is, what stuff?

(It would also suit me just as well if the driver could be automatically loaded when anything attempted to open \Device\Wish_NA1, or even to have it automatically loaded at every boot, really, but doing it on insertion seems like the right way.)

Note: I do have access to an administrative account, it's just that I prefer not to have to use it day-to-day.

Improve this question
3
  • 1
    Do you only have access to a limited account? Or do you also have administrator privileges and the limited account is the one you use for day-to-day tasks? Commented May 4, 2011 at 9:58
  • @Ilya: Oh, huh, I guess I didn't make that very clear? Yes, I do have an administrator account too; I've now appended a note to this effect. Commented May 4, 2011 at 13:06
  • Don't know if what you want is possible, but you can have it load at boot by modifying the Start value in it's service registry key. Commented May 5, 2011 at 14:44

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
5

First of all, let's clarify that a USB device has a Plug & Play driver on Windows 2000 and higher, so services start modes are irrelevant. The driver will have an entry as a "service" in the registry, but its start mode is irrelevant here.

Let's split the problem into two parts:

  • Installing driver for the device: This requires administrative privileges. This happens when you insert a USB device into a port for the first time. Windows goes over your .INF files to find one that matches your hardware. If the driver is WHQL-certified, it'll load automatically. Otherwise, you'd see the dreaded Add New Hardware wizard. If you're running as admin, a few clicks on Next should be enough to install it. Otherwise, better have that Administrator password ready.

  • Loading the driver for the device: Once the device is installed, the driver will be loaded each time this device is inserted into this USB port without requiring any additional user intervention. Ever noticed how a USB printer, camera or disk drive load much faster the second time you plug it in? That's because that's just loading, without installing.

From looking at the .INF, it looks valid. Also, it's not WHQL-certified, so you'd have to install it manually.

I'm assuming when you insert the Adaptoid, you get an Add New Hardware wizard. If you point it manually to the installation directory, does the Adaptoid install and function? Does it appear in the Device Manager?

P.S. USB devices which have a serial number are an exception. They're installed once for all USB ports. Those devices are rather uncommon, though.

Improve this answer
Sign up to request clarification or add additional context in comments.

6 Comments

Actually, there is no "add new hardware" wizard, probably because the Adaptoid has HID support along with its support for raw N64 controller protocol passthrough. It seems that the driver normally gets loaded by command of the program wishd201.exe (normally set to auto-run) in the same directory as wishna1.inf (which typically ends up at C:\Program Files\Adaptoid, with the kernel-mode driver [wishk201.sys]( wuala.com/naesten/RE/Adaptoid/Adaptoid201/%7Bwin%7D/system32/…) installed to %WINDIR%\system32\drivers).
Once the driver is loaded, though, examining the appropriate device in Device Manager does indicate the driver is associated with the device in the usual way. (I had to switch to "Devices by connection" mode before I could find it, though.)
I doubt that program is what commands this driver to load. Since you have good grasp of the Device Manager, could you check what driver gets loaded for the Adaptoid device? Also, does the device perchance have two sub-devices, one has a driver loaded for it, while the other is an "Unknown device" with a question mark? ("Devices by connection" is useful for answering my latter question)
@Ilya: Well, after moving it to a different port of the USB hub to get it back to using the default drivers, it shows up just like any other HID game controller: a "USB Human Interface Device" with one child, an "HID-compliant game controller". And I guess I used the wrong term to describe what wishd does; I probably should have said that it installs the driver.
And now I see that the Adaptoid driver still handles the device if I put it back in the port it was in before. I guess that's the end of my problem...
|

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Start asking to get answers

Find the answer to your question by asking.

Ask question

Explore related questions

See similar questions with these tags.