Archive for the ‘Software Fixes’ Category
How to Fix the McAfee Restart Debacle on Your Machines
Posted by kglee | Filed under Software Fixes
McAfee has also released their official fixes here.
This is the fix we have been using on machines that were hit to get them back online; your mileage may vary, but it’s worked for us:
1. If your computer is forcing you to shutdown (you are getting an error with a countdown), go to Start – Run and type cmd. At the command prompt type ’shutdown -a’ without the quotes. [This will abort the Windows shutdown.]
2. Open up the McAfee console (Start -> Programs -> McAfee)
3. Disable Access Protection and On-Access Scanner
4. Double click your Quarantine Manager in that window, and restore the files there (right click on it and select restore).
5. Go to your services console (right click on My Computer, select ‘Manage’, and click on the services in the left pane). Make sure both RPC (Remote Proceedure Call) services are running.
6. Start (or restart if already running) the McAfee Framework service.
7. Back in the McAfee console, select Tools -> Rollback DATs (If this doesn’t work, chances are you need to mess with your network services to get a connection to your corporate repository. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, you probably shouldn’t try).
8. Reboot and you should be all set.
AVG Rescue CD
Posted by kglee | Filed under Software Fixes
AVG has recently changed their shareware Rescue CD into freeware, meaning anyone can use it to scan and clean virus infected machines without owning an AVG license. If you don’t know what is a rescue CD, it is a Live CD mostly used to recover a computer when the system cannot be loaded normally or will not allow normal operation, such as after an extensive or deep-rooted virus infection.
A powerful, free toolset for the rescue and repair of infected machines
The AVG Rescue CD is a powerful must-have toolkit for the rescue and repair of infected machines. It provides essential utilities for system administrators and other IT professionals and includes the following features:
* Comprehensive administration toolset
* System recovery from virus and spyware infections
* Suitable for recovering MS Windows and Linux operating systems (FAT32 and NTFS file systems)
* Ability to perform a clean boot from CD or USB stick
* Free support and service for paid license holders of any AVG product
* FAQ and Free Forum self-help support for AVG Free users
Key technologies
* Anti-virus: protection against viruses, worms and trojans
* Anti-spyware: protection against spyware, adware and identity-theft
* Administration toolkit: system recovery tools
Hamachi – How to remote to your other computer from anywhere?
Posted by kglee | Filed under Software Fixes
Hamachi – How to remote to your other computer from anywhere?
Hamachi is a centrally-managed VPN system, consisting of the server cluster managed by the vendor of the system and the client software, which is installed on end-user computers. Client software adds a virtual network interface to a computer, and it is used for intercepting outbound as well as injecting inbound VPN traffic. Outbound traffic sent by the operating system to this interface is delivered to the client software, which encrypts and authenticates it and then sends it to the destination VPN peer over a specially initiated UDP connection. Hamachi currently handles tunneling of IP traffic including broadcasts and multicast. The Windows version also recognizes and tunnels IPX traffic.
Each Hamachi client is assigned an IP address from the 5.0.0.0/8 address block. This address is assigned when the client logs into the system for the first time, and is henceforth associated with the client’s public crypto key. As long as the client retains its key, it can log into the system and use this 5.x.x.x IP address.
The 5.0.0.0/8 network is used to avoid collisions with private IP networks that might already be in use on the client side. Specifically – 10.0.0.0/8, 172.16.0.0/12 and 192.168.0.0/16. The 5.0.0.0/8 address block is reserved by IANA and is not currently in use in the Internet routing domain, but this is not guaranteed to continue. For example in January 2010 the address range 1.0.0.0/8 “used” by AnoNet became allocated. The IANA free pool is expected to be exhausted by February 2011.[1] If this range is allocated, Hamachi users will not be able to connect to any Internet IP addresses within the range as long as the Hamachi client is running.
Most people use for gaming but is good for vpn remote desktop as well
How to download Hamachi
choose unmanaged check Conditions of Use, click download building
save to your desktop, install
Put a shortcut to the program in your all users startup folder
After powering on click on networl/create a new network type in name and pass go to other computer click on network/join network type in name and pass
go to start menu/accessories/remote desktop connection and click
enter the hamachi provided ip address and click ok
login with name and pass and veiw the remote desktop
to share files map a drive to the desktop
Tutorial below:
Speed up Windows 7
Posted by kglee | Filed under Software Fixes
Microsoft Windows 7
is already a much more responsive operating system than its predecessors, but there are tweaks and changes you can make to speed up Windows 7 even more. By reading this list and implementing some of the suggestions, you can increase performance in a very short period of time. If you have any further suggestions on how to improve the speed of a Windows 7 PC, please let us know in the comments section so that we can keep updating this list.
1. Boost your RAM
Windows 7 is very efficient at using your memory and adding another stick of RAM can give a big performance boost at very little cost. 4GB is plenty for most 64-bit users, and 3GB is a sensible limit for 32-bit users (mainly due to the memory limitations which you can read about here).
If you do more intensive work such as CAD or video editing then added even more than 4GB RAM may be a sensible idea. However it should be noted that simply adding lots of extra memory will not continue to improve overall performance, the bottleneck depends on other components (such as your CPU and hard drive).
2. Switch to SSD
Using a Solid State Drive is going to provide a performance boost in almost all Windows 7 applications, especially when it comes to boot times. SSD’s have no moving parts and therefore are silent and more energy efficient, with the benefit of much faster access times.
The current generation of mechanical hard drives will be obsolete in the coming years, but for the time being SSDs are quite expensive. If you have the money and a high end system to improve upon, this would be an excellent choice.
How to Enable God Mode on Vista and Windows 7
Posted by kglee | Filed under Software Fixes
Windows 7 interface and desktop is rather clean and minimalist. Of course, you can find everything you need in the famous and well-known Control Panel. However this solution won’t allow you to see and easily use all those nested settings included in the main options. Did you know that you can become a God? Well, at least on Windows 7!
One of the less known options on Windows 7 is the God Mode feature. Basically, it lets you have every setting and option right in front of you, ready to be used without having to browse among different settings before getting what you are looking for. Here is how to enable it:
1. Right click on any bank space on your desktop.
2. Click new from the menu and create a New Folder.
3. Rename the folder as follow: GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}
4. DO NOT use this trick on Vista 64X. It will cause your Windows to crash! (read comments below)
This simple command will create a special shortcut to the God Mode option letting you access all Windows 7 functions via a handy GUI!
EDIT: GodMode also works on Windows Vista!
[credit: stadt-bremerhaven.de]
Hack to make a Windows 7 Universal CD
Posted by kglee | Filed under Software Fixes
Windows 7 desktop
Ei.cfg Removal Utility (Windows 7 Universal CD) – Repair Tool of the Week
Lets You Use Any Product Key With Your Windows 7 Disc
Windows: Windows 7 install discs are edition-specific—if you’ve got a valid license key, you still need the right disc for installation. The ei.cfg Removal Utility, however, lets you create a new, universal installation ISO for Windows 7.
One of the biggest frustrations when installing Windows XP was making sure you had the correct CD for your license key. Windows Vista fixed this problem by having a universal CD that contained all versions (all 32bit versions or all 64bit versions, not both) and simply installed the version that the key matched.
Now that Windows 7 is out, Microsoft have reverted back to needing a separate disk for each version which is annoying for us computer technicians. However, the only difference between each DVD is a small 51 byte configuration file called ei.cfg which tells the installer what version disc it is. If you were to turn your DVD into an ISO, remove this ei.cfg file and write it back to a DVD, that DVD would become a Universal DVD.
ei.cfg Removal Utility will make this easy for you. Just create an ISO with your legitimate Windows 7 DVD, run this tool, choose the ISO and let it run. Once it has finished, just write the ISO back to a DVD again and you would only need to carry one 32bit version and one 64bit version to support any Windows 7 install onsite.
Of course, your client would still need to provide you with a working key for the Windows 7 install to work.
Source www.technibble.com
Windows 7 Password Recovery
Posted by kglee | Filed under Software Fixes
winpass, choose Win 7 folder, unlock account, clear password
winpass -u username
http://mirror.tuxinator.org/trinityhome/trinity-rescue-kit.3.3-build-318.iso
I use chntpw a lot and using the hex id (RID) instead of the user name generally saves a lot of head aches.
Type “winpass -l” to to get a list of users then type “winpass -u 0x” replacing with a user’s hex value.
Something like this:
[root@trk]:(~)# winpass -l
…
0e3d | user name | ADMINISTRATOR
…
[root@trk]:(~)# winpass -u 0×0e3d
Hope this helps.
Six Software Tools To Clean up a Slow PC and Increase the Performance
Posted by kglee | Filed under Software Fixes
Clients complain of the virus or slow computer performance. They say their computer crashes, or will not boot up. I get many jobs for my computer repair business due to this. The best thing to do would be a Windows reinstall, but that is the plan B. Usually it is only necessary to clean the PC to get it running smoothly. If the computer will at least boot into safemode, these items can be applied to get the machine up and running. These are the tools I normally use, to get the system running good enough to continue the PC software repair process.
Step 1: Uninstall all unnecessary programs
1. Uninstall all browser toolbars, as well as shareware spy-ware removers.
2. Uninstall all anti-virus and replace it with AVG free download, or AVIRA Free download
3. Uninstall unneeded programs
Use Revo Uninstaller. It gets rid of unnecessary stuff left over from removed programs, along with uninstalling normally.
Step 2: Make sure there is nothing unnecessary starting up with your account login or windows startup
This, by far, is the greatest cause of slow PC’s, in my opinion. Totally unnecessary items such as Adobe Acrobat have startup programs which do nothing useful.
Watch how many processes are running in the back ground as the unnecessary ones will degrade performance – Right click the system tray, click the task manager, press the processes tab, do a search in Google to see what they do. To disable them type in run box type msconfig click on startup tab, and uncheck said ones to disable on next boot.
A more advanced software for doing just this is Autoruns from Sysinternals download
Step 3: Delete all unnecessary files
An extremely handy software that will help you with this is CCleaner – an accredited software endorsed by many reputable sources. download
Try this tool to find what is on your hard drive – Windirstat
Step 4: Do a scan with Malwarebytes’ Anti-Malware scanner download
Scan with your virus scanner, see above:
Step 5: Update your drivers with Device Doctor download
Step 6: Update Windows security patches
turn on your windows firewall, turn off automatic windows updates
Additional Advanced steps to speed up the PC
Add More Memory Crucial
Run a Hard Disk File Defragger or the one that comes with Windows