Official MediCat USB - A Multiboot Linux USB for PC Repair

Jayro · Aug 22, 2016

TeamScriptKiddies said:
I just want to say, Medicat has bailed me out quite a few times in the past, working in the tech industry. @Jayro is the man! All hail jayro .

In all seriousness, I love what you're doing, but if you haven't already, you should set up some sort of donation page for this. You're putting a lot of hardwork into this, and I love that its free, but for those of us who would like to throw some money your way for your efforts, we should have that option! Keep up the good work!

As much as I appreciate you guys wanting to repay me, I can't accept donations... This project is my labor of love. It's my way to give back to the tech industry. And it's just overall fun to work on. I have no financial need, so I wouldn't benefit from donations.

However, there ARE many smaller projects you can direct your donations to (listed below), as they help keep MediCat alive:

4MLinux

Snappy Driver Installer

Ubuntu

Gparted

PortableApps

Giving Center / Computers with Causes

I have added these links to the bottom of the first post in the OP.

jtphenom · Aug 23, 2016

Please someone help? I'm sorry if I should have read all 23 pages before I posted this but I'm super confused. I created the Medicat disk so I can reset user passwords on a Win 8.1 x64 machine. First issue is that it fails to load a bunch of things when I go into Mini Win 10. Then I try to use the user password reset tool, and even though I know there are accounts on this hard drive, and it sees the hard drive, it says no accounts are found. Then it won't let me run net user from the command prompt. Wrong version of Windows, it says. Do I have to have the 64-bit Win 10 in order to do any of this stuff on a 64-bit machine? I'm sorry if this is a newb question. Lol

Thank you for any help you can provide!

TeamScriptKiddies · Aug 28, 2016

Yes you need to use the 64-bit version or it won't properly be able to reset the password. Also resetting the password only works if there is a local account being used and NOT a microsoft account. If its a microsoft account it can only be reset officially through one of microsoft's websites as it compares the password against what's on microsoft's servers when you login. It's an extra security measure microsoft uses if you choose to use a microsoft account to log in.

jtphenom · Aug 28, 2016

TeamScriptKiddies said:
Yes you need to use the 64-bit version or it won't properly be able to reset the password. Also resetting the password only works if there is a local account being used and NOT a microsoft account. If its a microsoft account it can only be reset officially through one of microsoft's websites as it compares the password against what's on microsoft's servers when you login. It's an extra security measure microsoft uses if you choose to use a microsoft account to log in.

Thank you. I did try the 64-bit version but it still didn't reset it. Very strange. Anyway, Jayro was kind enough to provide another tool I can use. I still haven't tried it yet, though, because I was able to get in using the Utilman.exe trick.

TeamScriptKiddies · Aug 28, 2016

jtphenom said:
Thank you. I did try the 64-bit version but it still didn't reset it. Very strange. Anyway, Jayro was kind enough to provide another tool I can use. I still haven't tried it yet, though, because I was able to get in using the Utilman.exe trick.

Ah OK, well glad you were able to get in one way or another

Jayro · Aug 30, 2016

Sadly, there's no other way to access a user account tied to a Microsoft account without using Microsoft's official password reset method. But the tool I provided (And will be included on the next release in October) will allow you to reboot the PC without removing the password, essentially using a one-time bypass method, or you can alternatively create a new user (if you just need PC access).

Jayro · Sep 5, 2016

Some progression news:

- MediCat has shifted today from Alpha stages into Beta.
- A stable Beta will be released on the 24th of September. (Following Lubuntu's Beta 2 release on the 22nd)
- The download files upon the Beta release will be cut up into 700MB 7-Zipped segments. This makes downloading easier for some people.
- All segments will have their own sets of hashes to compare themselves against as well in hashes.txt under the downloads section.
- Rufus has been updated to v2.11 Beta in the Downloads section.
- The date versioning for MediCat now follows that of Ubuntu, since it's cleaner looking and easy to understand. (If I need to release later versions with hotfixes after the initial October release, It will be labeled as such: 16.10.1, 16.10.2, etc)
- I'll be getting new 16GB of RAM soon, to help speed up MediCat development. This will allow me to test and save ISOs rapidly to an 8GB RAMdisk, before flushing a final to harddisk. (UltraISO is painfully slow at saving large ISOs to harddisks)
- There will be a new Easter Egg to find in the Beta.

Here's a couple of screenshots reflecting the latest changes.

The main menu, of course:

And the new "Reset User Account Passwords" menu, with not just one, or even two... But THREE different password removal tools that work, totalling less than 100MB of space combined:

So sit tight, soak up this sweet info, and have a great week! :yay3ds:

Luckkill4u · Sep 5, 2016

@Jayro thank you again for making this. I have been using MediCat for 2 years now and it is awesome

Jayro · Sep 5, 2016

Thanks for your support, it means a lot!

TeamScriptKiddies · Sep 6, 2016

Jayro said:
Some progression news:

- MediCat has shifted today from Alpha stages into Beta.
- A stable Beta will be released on the 24th of September. (Following Lubuntu's Beta 2 release on the 22nd)
- The download files upon the Beta release will be cut up into 1GB 7-Zipped segments. This makes downloading easier for some people.
- All segments will have their own sets of hashes to compare themselves against as well in hashes.txt under the downloads section.
- Rufus has been updated to v2.11 Beta in the Downloads section.
- The date versioning for MediCat now follows that of Ubuntu, since it's cleaner looking and easy to understand. (If I need to release later versions with hotfixes after the initial October release, It will be labeled as such: 16.10.1, 16.10.2, etc)
- I'll be getting new 16GB of RAM soon, to help speed up MediCat development. This will allow me to test and save ISOs rapidly to an 8GB RAMdisk, before flushing a final to harddisk. (UltraISO is painfully slow at saving large ISOs to harddisks)
- There will be a new Easter Egg to find in the Beta.

Here's a couple of screenshots reflecting the latest changes.

The main menu, of course:

View attachment 61506

And the new "Reset User Account Passwords" menu, with not just one, or even two... But THREE different password removal tools that work, totalling less than 100MB of space combined:

View attachment 61507

So sit tight, soak up this sweet info, and have a great week!

ITS OVER 9000!!!!11111!!!!!!!!!111!!!!!!!

cputester · Sep 12, 2016

Although I am new here, I work on these stuff for years. I am tracking Hiren's, Falcon's and Ultimate Boot CDs and have a custom Hiren's cd I am trying to update from now or then. I found this project and tried it to get an idea of this distro.
It is very good work but there are many things missing in order to "replace" Hiren's work. I believe the main thing that needs improvement is the Boot menu in my opinion to add apps like Acronis TrueImage and DiskDirector and Kon-Boot.
However I loved the Portable Apps idea to load the apps...
Keep on the good work!

Jayro · Sep 12, 2016

cputester said:
Although I am new here, I work on these stuff for years. I am tracking Hiren's, Falcon's and Ultimate Boot CDs and have a custom Hiren's cd I am trying to update from now or then. I found this project and tried it to get an idea of this distro.
It is very good work but there are many things missing in order to "replace" Hiren's work. I believe the main thing that needs improvement is the Boot menu in my opinion to add apps like Acronis TrueImage and DiskDirector and Kon-Boot.
However I loved the Portable Apps idea to load the apps...
Keep on the good work!

Thank you. Many of those apps you have mentioned have updated alternatives that work just as good, or better. I have three bootable password removers, and one of them can bypass passwords just like Kon-boot. Acronis Disk Director is included as a PortableApp within Mini Windows 10, and there are a couple applications that can handle disk imaging included as well. These would be DriveImageXML, Drive Snapshot, Disk2VHD, and Macrium Reflect. Macrium Reflect is in the Start menu, but the rest are Portable Apps.

cputester · Sep 13, 2016

Thank you for your update. I didn't know that PCUnlocker can bypass password, so thanks for that info. I see that there are several imaging software included however since I have more than 20 images from existing PCs in .tib files how can I restore them without using True Image? By searching at the internet I don't see any of those reading tib files...
Moreover, after reading several pages I saw that the next release will be by default on 64-bits. I would suggest not to neglect 32-bit systems yet as there are several working PCs even upgraded to Win10... Try to maintain two isos...

cputester · Sep 19, 2016

Moreover, have you checked Gandalf’s Windows 10PE at http://windowsmatters.com/tag/winpe/ ? There are some interesting tools also there that you probably could absorb at your distro. Although I like better your way with the Portable apps container...

Jayro · Sep 20, 2016

cputester said:
Moreover, have you checked Gandalf’s Windows 10PE at http://windowsmatters.com/tag/winpe/ ? There are some interesting tools also there that you probably could absorb at your distro. Although I like better your way with the Portable apps container...

Yeah, its very useful. I think its definitely easier to update and add to the portable apps rather than stuff them into the wim file as preinstalled.

Jayro · Sep 21, 2016

While we wait for the 24th to roll around for the full MediCat DVD Beta...

I have the 64-Bit Mini Windows 10 Beta for everyone to try!*
*(This Beta will not be on the front page. Editing the front page takes a lot of time and effort, so I save that for final releases now.)

Changelog:

Updated:
^ PortableApps platform to v14.1, and all PortableApps were updated to their latest versions, just before release.
^ The driverpacks in Snappy Driver Installer with only the latest Windows 10 x64 drivers.
^ "MediaCreationTool (Win 8.1)" for downloading Windows 8.1 ISOs.
^ "MediaCreationTool (Win 10)" to v10.0.14393.0, for downloading the "Anniversary Update" build of Windows 10 ISOs.
^ DriverPack DP_Chipset_16091.7z for Chipsets.
^ DriverPack DP_LAN_Intel_16060.7z for intel LAN.
^ Driverpack DP_LAN_Realtek-NT_16083.7z for RealTek LAN.
^ DriverPack DP_MassStorage_16091.7z for Mass Storage.
^ Driverpack DP_Vendor_16091.7z for vendor-specific hardware.
^ Driverpack DP_WLAN-WiFi_16091.7z for WLAN.

Changed/Replaced:
~ The pre-login screen now has it's own wallpaper (x:\Windows\Web\Wallpaper\Windows\img1.jpg), and says "Loading the Mini Windows 10 desktop... Please Wait." upon loading the desktop.
~ New widescreen desktop wallpaper with clouds.
~ Winkey.exe with PCUnlocker.exe, when you launch the "Reset Windows Passwords" shortcut from the desktop.

Added:
+ AIDA64 Network Audit
+ AIDA64 Portable
+ AOMEI Partition Assistant v6.0
+ BlueScreenView
+ CCleaner
+ Convert.exe, a multi-unit conversion tool.
+ Disk2vhd.exe which makes VHD copies of physical disks.
+ Error Lookup
+ EaseUS Partition Master v11.5
+ McAfee Stinger64
+ Pale Moon 64 (browser)
+ PCloudCleaner (Panda Cloud Cleaner)
+ PCUnlocker to the PortableApps menu as well, favorited at the top as "Reset User Account Passwords".
+ Recuva
+ RegAlyzer
+ RegistryLoader
+ Registry Workshop v5.0.0
+ Speccy
+ VHD Tool ++ v0.6.0.5 by IODD Inc.
+ UltraISO v9.6.5
+ WinDirStat
+ WinMerge
+ Windows Error Lookup Tool
+ WinToHDD v2.1, for installing Windows.
+ A desktop shortcut to change the screen resolution. (For best results, install your graphics drivers by Snappy Driver Installer first)
+ A new widescreen wallpaper for Mini Windows 10 x64; Just the MediCat, and some clouds against the gradient blue sky.
+ SpeedCrunch to the PortableApps Menu (as well as in System32). When you launch Calc.exe from the RUN dialogue, it opens SpeedCrunch since there wasn't any native calculator app in Mini Windows 10 before.
+ Wabbitemu (TI-84 Plus graphing calculator emulator) for really complicated math and familiarity with the TI calculators.
+ A basic Rainmeter for system information; I decided against BGInfo because it's system information is static, and isn't updated.
+ Driverpack DP_xUSB_16091.7z for USB controllers.
+ Calculator shortcut to the desktop.

Added more time-wasters under the "Games" category:

+ Kobo Deluxe - a paralax space shooter.
+ Mines-Perfect - A failthful Minesweeper clone with advanced gamemode options added.
+ Sudoku - A simple Sudoku puzzle generator.
+ Tile World - A "Chip's Challenge" reimplementation.

Added some popular 2D cartridge system emulators:

+ bsnes - Super NES.
+ DeSmuME_x64 - NDS/NTR.
+ emu64 - Commodore 64.
+ fceux - Original NES.
+ Fusion - Genesis/32x/GG/SMS.
+ mGBA - GB/Color/Advance.
(No BIOS or ROMs included, so don't ask)

Removed:
- 32-bit Mini Windows 10 support, moved the v4.23.2016 32-bit version to the "Legacy" folder.

Jayro · Sep 24, 2016

The 16.10 Beta is uploading... Will take a few hours.

Jayro · Sep 25, 2016

The MediCat DVD 16.10 Beta has just been released!

Download it here:

Changelog:

Changelog for v16.10:

Fixed:
USB creation with Rufus works again with default settings. (MBR partition scheme for BIOS or UEFI, FAT32, 16 kilobyte cluster size) This was broken in the 4.23.2016 release and difficult to track down, but it's fixed now.

Updated:
^ Grub.exe to grub4dos-0.4.5c-2015-04-08
^ Microsoft's 64-bit Windows 10 Recovery Disc; I made a fresh one from my "Anniversary Update" PC.
^ Microsoft's 64-bit Windows 7 Recovery Disc; I injected the boot.wim with USB 3.0 drivers by Intel and AMD, to make it boot properly from USB 3.0 devices.

Changed/Replaced:
~ The harddisk_menu.cfg to partitions_menu.cfg, for less confusion when editing the ISO; This change is transparent for normal users.
~ The date versioning to match Lubuntu's. (Example: MediCat DVD v16.10 means the 10th month of 2016)
~ New darker theme, with menacing clouds and LIGHTNING!
~ The "Windows" MediCat in the "64-Bit Recovery Menu" now reflects the same cat that Mini Windows 10 uses.

Added:
+ rEFInd EFI boot manager is back in this release, as many found it useful.
+ Paragon Hard Disk Manager (Linux version) to the "Harddisk Tools" menu. Launching it in "Normal Mode" takes quite a few minutes to boot, so be please patient with the load time.
+ DBAN v2.3.0 (Darik's Boot and Nuke) to the "Harddisk Tools" menu with a large warning, to prevent accidental selection.
+ Help-text descriptions on the bottom of every menu item, to tell users what each tool is or does.
+ Resized and enlarged the menu boxes slightly, for menu expansion as time goes on. (Properly centered now as well.)
+ Easy Recovery Essentials recovery discs as alternatives to the official Microsoft recovery discs, under the "64-Bit Windows Recovery" menu. These are recommended to boot from USB 2.0 for the best compatibility.
+ GParted under the "Harddisk Tools" menu.
+ "Remove User Account Passwords" menu entry, to remove forgotten passwords on local user accounts. (This will not work for Microsoft accounts, only local accounts) contains four of the best tools: Daossoft Windows Password Rescuer, PCUnlocker, Kon-boot, and Offline NT Password & Registry Editor. Contains new artwork as well.
+ A new hidden Easter egg to find, paying tribute to a fallen hero.

Removed:
- All 32-Bit Windows Recovery discs.
- Both Windows 8 recovery discs (But the 64-bit Windows 8.1 discs remain).

Mini Windows 10 changes:

Updated:
^ PortableApps platform to v14.1, and all PortableApps were updated to their latest versions, just before release.
^ The driverpacks in Snappy Driver Installer with only the latest Windows 10 x64 drivers.
^ "MediaCreationTool (Win 8.1)" for downloading Windows 8.1 ISOs.
^ "MediaCreationTool (Win 10)" to v10.0.14393.0, for downloading the "Anniversary Update" build of Windows 10 ISOs.
^ 7-Zip to v16.02
^ DriverPack DP_Chipset_16091.7z for Chipsets.
^ DriverPack DP_LAN_Intel_16060.7z for intel LAN.
^ Driverpack DP_LAN_Realtek-NT_16083.7z for RealTek LAN.
^ DriverPack DP_MassStorage_16091.7z for Mass Storage.
^ Driverpack DP_Vendor_16091.7z for vendor-specific hardware.
^ Driverpack DP_WLAN-WiFi_16091.7z for WLAN.

Changed/Replaced:
~ The pre-login now screen now has it's own wallpaper (x:\Windows\Web\Wallpaper\Windows\img1.jpg), and says "Loading the Mini Windows 10 desktop... Please Wait." upon loading the desktop.
~ New widescreen desktop wallpaper with clouds.
~ Winkey.exe with PCUnlocker.exe, when you launch the "Reset Windows Passwords" shortcut from the desktop.

Added:
+ Acronis TrueImage 2016
+ Active@ Partition Manager 5
+ AIDA64 Network Audit
+ AIDA64 Portable
+ AOMEI Partition Assistant v6.0
+ AusLogicsDiskDefrag
+ BlueScreenView
+ CCleaner
+ Convert.exe, a multi-unit conversion tool.
+ DiskCryptor
+ Disk2vhd.exe which makes VHD copies of physical disks.
+ Error Lookup
+ EaseUS Partition Master v11.5
+ HWInfo x64
+ Malwarebytes Anti-Malware x64
+ McAfee Stinger64
+ Pale Moon 64 (browser)
+ PCloudCleaner (Panda Cloud Cleaner)
+ PCUnlocker to the PortableApps menu as well, favorited at the top as "Reset User Account Passwords".
+ Recuva
+ RegAlyzer
+ RegistryLoader
+ Registry Workshop v5.0.0
+ Speccy
+ VHD Tool ++ v0.6.0.5 by IODD Inc.
+ UltraISO v9.6.5
+ Unlocker x64
+ VLC v2.2.2
+ WinDirStat
+ WinMerge
+ Windows Error Lookup Tool
+ WinToHDD v2.1, for installing Windows.
+ A desktop shortcut to change the screen resolution. (For best results, install your graphics drivers by Snappy Driver Installer first)
+ A new widescreen wallpaper for Mini Windows 10 x64; Just the MediCat, and some clouds against the gradient blue sky.
+ SpeedCrunch to the PortableApps Menu (as well as in System32). When you launch Calc.exe from the RUN dialogue, it opens SpeedCrunch since there wasn't any native calculator app in Mini Windows 10 before.
+ Wabbitemu (TI-84 Plus graphing calculator emulator) for really complicated math and familiarity with the TI calculators.
+ A basic Rainmeter for system information; I decided against BGInfo because it's system information is static, and isn't updated.
+ Driverpack DP_xUSB_16091.7z for USB controllers.
+ Calculator shortcut to the desktop.

Added more time-wasters under the "Games" category:

+ Kobo Deluxe - a paralax space shooter.
+ Mines-Perfect - A failthful Minesweeper clone with advanced gamemode options added.
+ Sudoku - A simple Sudoku puzzle generator.
+ Tile World - A "Chip's Challenge" reimplementation.

Removed:
- 32-bit Mini Windows 10 support, moved the v4.23.2016 32-bit version to the "Legacy" folder.

Bugi · Sep 27, 2016

Yo bro, thank you so much for your work, i love what you do it's awesome.

What is the best actually, do i have to use the 4.23.2016 or the latest v16.10 (it's a Beta) ?

Because the Beta look pretty good, all soft is update, i think it's the best if the revision have no bugs.

Also... Can you explain quickly how to make an .iso with the .7z file ?
(Maybe, do a 1 file .iso or a quick README ?)

Have a good day !

Jayro · Sep 27, 2016

Bugi said:
Yo bro, thank you so much for your work, i love what you do it's awesome.

What is the best actually, do i have to use the 4.23.2016 or the latest v16.10 (it's a Beta) ?

Because the Beta look pretty good, all soft is update, i think it's the best if the revision have no bugs.

Also... Can you explain quickly how to make an .iso with the .7z file ?
(Maybe, do a 1 file .iso or a quick README ?)

Have a good day !

Thank you, and I recommend the 16.10 Beta, it's very stable. Fixes a big USB bug too. Just extract the ISO using 7zip. You have to open.001 with 7Zip, and it will do the rest by itself. Then use Rufus to make it bootable on USB. (8GB USB stick minimum.)

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