Sending files over IrDA after reboot.

[yak]

Hi,

lately I decided to make use of the infrared port in my T41. I stumbled upon a problem that I couldn't resolve. I've searched all the forums to no avail. Since I found the solution lately, I decided to share it wit you.

I have enabled the IrDA port in BIOS, booted into Windows and it detected and installed appropriate drivers correctly. The port worked as expected, my cell phone was detected and an IrDA icon appeared in system tray allowing me to send files to it. It was also recognized as a modem.

However, after a reboot things got bad. The phone was still recognized as a modem but the icon didn't appear anymore so I was not able to send any files.

I've tracked down the cause to this Microsoft article:
"You cannot use infrared communications to transfer files on a computer that is running Windows XP Service Pack 2"
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/885855

However, the fix isn't available there. I had to google for KB885855. Here's one link with the fix for various Windows versions:
http://www.maxdata.de/services/fm/index ... rId=116337

After installing, the problem disappeared.