Using NetSupport School version 8.02 and above, it is easy to run the Tutor from a portable device (such as USB pen drive, memory stick or flash drive).
NetSupport School installs a Portable Tutor folder when the Tutor is installed. By copying this folder to a portable device, you can run the Tutor application from this device when it is attached to any machine. This removes the need to have the Tutor installed on numerous PCs and is useful if a teacher moves between machines and wants to keep their configuration settings.
Adding the NetSupport School Tutor to a portable device
- Install NetSupport School ensuring you select the Tutor option.
- Once installed, navigate to the Portable Tutor folder in the NetSupport School installation folder:
32bit C:\Program Files\NetSupport\NetSupport School\Portable Tutor
64bit C:\Program Files (x86)\NetSupport\NetSupport School\Portable Tutor - Copy this folder to your portable device.
- You now have a Tutor (pcinssui.exe) that can be run from any machine which has the portable device attached.
Setting up the NetSupport School Tutor on your portable device
To save the configuration options for the portable Tutor, you need to specify the location of a file in which to store these settings. These settings are items such as the Tutor password, security key etc.
Create a shortcut to the Tutor on your portable device and run the following command line:
F:\NSS Tutor\pcinssui.exe /RTutor.cfg
Where “F:\NSS Tutor\pcinssui.exe” is the path to the Tutor and “Tutor.cfg” is the name of the file to save the configuration to.
It is also possible to save the configuration file to a network drive, by modifying the /R parameter:
Mapped drives: /RDrive:\Directory\Filename
UNC Paths: /R\\ServerName\ShareName\Directory\Filename
The teacher can then move from machine to machine within your network environment, without needing to have any software installed and ensuring they are using their own configuration.
Automatically running the NetSupport School Tutor when you attach your portable device
The NetSupport School Tutor can be configured to automatically start each time the portable device is inserted into a machine.
- Create a file called autorun.inf in the root of the device.
- In this file, place the following text, replacing the path with the relevant options for your portable device:
[autorun]
open=F:\NSS Tutor\pcinssui.exe /RTutor.cfg
When the operating system recognises that the device has been inserted, the command listed in the “open” parameter of the autorun.inf will be executed.
Note: This functionality relies on the ‘Auto Insert Notification’ of the operating system and the portable device hardware in use – subsequently, this may not function in all configurations.