IpManager v1.2

Author:	Todd M Stafney
Company:	Software Pipeline, Inc.
website:	http://stafney.com/
e-mail:	tstafney@bigfoot.com
License:	GNU General Public License
Source Code:	Send me an e-mail and ask nicely.

Description
Setup
Usage
Notes
Future Enhancements
Change History
Special Thanks

Description

Designed for Windows 2000 (but works on XP too). I wrote this application because I was tired of manually changing the TCP/IP settings for my PCMCIA network adapter on my laptop. Moving from my home network to various contract sites to friends houses required constantly adjusting my TCP/IP settings. This application allows TCP/IP settings to be saved and restored (by adapter) in a much easier "one click" operation. The application is accessed via it's icon in the notification window of the taskbar (what some people refer to erroneously as the "systray"). NOTE: only Network Interface Card connections are listed. Dial up, VPN and other types of connections will not be displayed.

Setup

This application is pretty simple. It uses the Windows Installer (v2.0) so installation/removal is a snap. Although the setup program ensures proper behavior, the only distributable is the .exe itself so I am sure it will end up propagating without those benefits. So for those who will thwart my setup I give you the following warning: the first time IpManager is run it will add itself to the registry (under the current user not local machine). For this reason it is important to run the application from the location where you will want it to live BEFORE running it. If you do run the .exe then move it to a new location you will need to re-save the configuration by opening the Preferences dialog and clicking "Ok". You won't notice the difference, but the application will! Trust me on this one...

In an attempt to keep the design as simple as possible I decided to implement the "saved configurations" as simple files. By default the directory will be located in:

%USERPROFILE%\IpManager\connection_name\save_name

On most systems %USERPROFILE% will be:

C:\Documents and Settings\username

If you decide to change the location to which the application saves the configurations (via the Preferences dialog) you will need to manually move the directories and files contained in the old location to the new location or you will not see your existing configurations!

Usage

Menu options, accessed by right clicking the GIR icon in the notification window (aka 'SysTray'), are as follows:

connection

There will be one connection entry for each network connection currently available to the operating system. This means that as you remove PCMCIA cards, undock a laptop or disable network connections some of the connections will not show up. This is per design.

Each connection will have a submenu consisting of the following:

config

There will be one config entry for each configuration you have saved. Clicking on one will restore those settings. NOTE: The first time the application is run there will be no saved config entries. It is up to you, the user, to reconfigure TCP/IP settings then save them with IpManager. This thing isn't rocket science people, you have to figure it out the first time! Then IpManager can quickly and easily swap the settings around.

Save

Saves the current TCP/IP settings for the connection.

Preferences

Displays the Preferences dialog:

Load On Startup	Checking this box causes the application to be run when the user logs in. This is why the application should not be moved. When checked the application is added to the Run section of the registry based on the current instance of the .exe. If you move the application the Run section of the registry will point to a different location.
Save Settings To	The directory that settings will be saved to. Settings are saved in subdirectories corresponding to the name of the connection. If you change the name of a network connection (via the Network and Dial-up Connections) the saved configurations for that (now renamed) connection will not show up. You can manually change the name of the subdirectory to match it to correct this.

About

Displays the About dialog

Exit

Closes the application and removes the icon from the notification window.

Notes

Because this application changes the network settings of the computer it is run on, the user running the app must be an administrator. Sorry, dem's da breaks. Switching from a non-DHCP configuration to a DHCP configuration or from one DHCP configuration to another DHCP configuration SHOULD renew the lease. If anyone has issues with this functionality please let me know!

Future Enhancements

Allow non-administrator accounts to use IpManager (I haven't decided if a service that runs with privedges OR asking for Administrative credentials at Save/Restore points is the way to go. I like the latter as it doesn't break my "one tiny .exe" rule. Any comments/feedback on the issue are appreciated.)
An actual help system (not a cheesy HTML doc!)
"Check For Updates" functionality
Notification when a network connections settings were changed by something other than IpManager

Change History

version	date	description
1.2	2002/02/03	Drastically improved installation. Fixed problem with newly installed program having goofed up registry setting for the saved configuration directory.
1.1		Fixed small bug with multiple network adapters where I was using the same ID for the dynamic popup menu options. Although multiple adapters were listed in the menu it would only save to new configs under the first adapter entry!!! Added the neato sounds to the links on the About dialog!
1.0		Initial release. Kind of buggy due to lack of test cases.

Special Thanks

To Nickelodeon for Invader Zim (and GIR whose face adorns this application). I am sad to say that on January 17, 2002 they decided to cancel this wonderful cartoon. If Nickelodeon has a problem with my using GIR's likeness or the .wav file from the show, I'll gladly remove them if they bring the show back!!!