I love routers! Do you really know all that your router can do? A modern router has multiple “cool” functions that many people don’t realize? Many of my elderly clients don’t understand what a router is or why they need one. This is what I tell them:
1) A router “pure and simple” is a device that passes data (such as web pages and email) between the home computer and the cable or DSL modem which connects to the Internet (through your Internet Service Provider). A router makes things much more secure because all Internet data must first pass through the routers firewall instead of going directly into the machine. The Internet can’t initiate communication with the computer – it’s gotta go through the router first. A router is like having a lock on a door. Don’t ever let the Internet into your machine without first passing through a router. A router can help prevent “malicious” information from entering your beloved computer! Great stuff!
2) A router can also function as a Wireless Access Point. Modern routers have a built in network adapter, antenna and radio transmitter. The router can relay data between wireless computers and printers and any wired devices on the network. The Kindle is a wireless device and the router allows it to connect to a wired network using Wi-Fi. Take your laptop anywhere in the house and connect to the Internet without wires. How awesome is that?
Also a lot of home entertainment now has built in networking. It’s hard to buy a new flat screen television nowadays that doesn’t have a wireless capability built in. If your television can connect to your network and access the Internet, you can watch movies (think Netflix) directly streamed online through your network, through your wireless, to your television. Now that is cool!
That’s not all. Do you know that you can actually get a wireless security camera that will connect to your router/Internet? This will allow you to check up on your home on any computer wherever you may be when you are away. Amazing!
3) The router can also function as a Switch. Most modern routers have physical network ports on the back that you can plug multiple systems into. Usually a home router will have four LAN (Local Area Network) ports on the back for wired connections. If you have eight systems you can just add another Switch to one of the LAN ports and you will have eight computers wired into one router. In fact you can keep adding Switches until you have over 200 systems physically interconnected. How cool is that?
Professor Randy says: Don’t ever connect to the Internet without hooking up a router to your modem. A router will protect you from malicious attacks, give you wireless capabilities, and allow you to connect more PCs to your network.
Part 10.4: Continuing what I started in part 10, 10.1, 10.2, and 10.3, in the next few posts I’ll continue to show you the repair tools that I have on my USB flash drives and tell you what they are used for. At the moment I carry around six USB drives so let’s take a look at some more programs that I have on flash drive #2:
1)RKill: RKill has been great to me! How can I attack malware while the malware processes are still running? RKill is a program that was developed at BleepingComputer.com that attempts to terminate known malware processes so that your normal security software can then run and clean your computer of infections. When RKill runs it will kill malware processes and then import a Registry file that removes incorrect file associations and fixes policies that stop you from using certain tools. When finished it will display a log file that shows the processes that were terminated while the program was running.
As RKill only terminates a program’s running process, and does not delete any files, after running it you should not reboot your computer as any malware processes that are configured to start automatically will just be started again. Instead, after running RKill you should immediately scan your computer using some sort of anti-malware or anti-virus program so that the infections can be properly removed.
RKill is available to download under different filenames. RKill is offered under different filenames because some malware will not allow processes to run unless they have a certain filename. Therefore when attempting to run RKill, if a malware terminates it please try a different filename .
2)SUPERAntiSpyware Portable Scanner: I still use this program on almost every infected machine. The portability makes it awesome! SUPERAntiSpyware Portable Scanner features a complete scanning and removal engine and will detect AND remove over 1,000,000 spyware/malware infections. The scanner does NOT install anything on your Start Menu or Program Files and does NOT need to be uninstalled.
The scanner contains the latest definitions so you DO NOT need Internet Access on the infected system to scan. The scanner is saved under a random filename so that malware infections won’t block the scanner.
3)Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Free: This is a great malware removal tool. There is no portable version so you should download the latest version (use another computer if necessary), then boot into safe mode w/networking (if possible) to update. Run a full scan in safe mode and then another in normal mode. I’ve never seen Malwarebytes conflict with any other antivirus program (free or paid). Another great thing about MBAM is that the program blocks access to known malware sites. Many legitimate sites contain a trojan in script form that targets the Windows operating system. It looks for vulnerabilities in Adobe Reader and Acrobat, Java, QuickTime, and Flash and launches fake antivirus warnings.
4)Microsoft Standalone System Sweeper: I have this on a seperate 1GB SanDisk Cruzer Micro. Microsoft Standalone System Sweeper Beta (MSSS), is a recovery tool that can help you start an infected PC and perform an offline scan to help identify and remove rootkits and other advanced malware. MSSS uses the same definitions as Microsoft Security Essentials.
You can download MSSS from Microsoft Connect and create a bootable media using CD/DVD or your USB drive. The bootable media starts the Windows Preinstallation Environment and launches the Microsoft Standalone System Sweeper application for scanning and removal of virus and malware. MSSS runs in Windows XP SP3, Windows Vista and Windows 7.
5)Trojan Remover: This great program has pulled me out of a jam on quite a few occasions! Most modern Malware programs are memory-resident, which makes their de-activation more difficult. How many times have you been told to start your computer in “Safe” Mode, or even worse, in DOS? Trojan Remover does all this for you. When it finds Malware that is memory-resident, Trojan Remover automatically re-starts (on request) your system and completely DISABLES the Malware before Windows restarts. Trojan Remover scans ALL the files loaded at boot time for Adware, Spyware, Remote Access Trojans, Internet Worms and other malware. Trojan Remover also checks to see if Windows loads Services which are hidden by Rootkit techniques and warns you if it finds any.
Professor Randy says: A computer repair technician without great tools is like milk without cookies! Pointless! Fill your flash drive up with great tools and you’ll have the solution to the problem in the palm of your hand!
I really never thought I’d be writing a post about dial-up access, but here I am! A nice lady called me the other day and asked me if I could take a look at her non-functioning dial-up connection. She lived in a rural area of Tennessee and had no other way to connect to the Internet. It’s only the second time that I’ve had to deal with a dial-up situation in the past three years, so I was excited about doing something different! Here’s what I found:
1) Her ISP was EarthLink and she had installed the EarthLink “dialer software” from a CD. She was paying EarthLink $9.95 a month for the access.
2) Every time that I activated the EarthLink software I noticed that her CPU would max out at 100% and the computer would of course “freeze/hang”.
3) I took a look at the EarthLink software and noticed that it had come bundled with all kinds of unnecessary “features” (a.k.a. “crap”). Stuff like EarthLink Protection Control Center, EarthLink Toolbar, EarthLink Accelerator, and maybe even a couple of other things!
4) I took a look at the old computers CPU and saw that I was dealing with a AMD Athlon working at a “whopping” 1.20 GHz!!
5) I didn’t have to look anymore. I uninstalled all of the EarthLink software and created a simple dial-up connection in Windows XP. I did this:
Create a new dial-up connection
To start the Network Connections tool, click Start, click Control Panel, double-click Network Connections, and then click Create a new connection in the left pane.
Click Set up my connection manually, click Next, click Connect using a Dial Up modem, and then click Next.
Type a descriptive name for the Internet service provider (ISP) that you are using in this connection, and then click Next.
Type the phone number that was provided to you by your ISP. Note that you may need to check with your ISP about long distance or access charges. Click Next.
Choose whether you want this connection to be shared by all users (Anyone’s use) of this computer, or only for yourself (My use only).
In the next screen, type the logon information that was provided by your ISP to access their service.
Click Next, and then click Finish to end the setup process.
6) Case closed! Right click the dial-up connection that now appears in the network connections area of the control panel (or better yet put a shortcut on your desktop), enter the three pieces of information that is required by your ISP (usually ISP username, ISP password, and the local ISP access number to dial). And you my friend will connect to the Internet “as smooth as silk”.
Professor Randy says:Don’t use the “dialer software” that is supplied by your Internet Service Provider! It will slow your computer down and waste precious bandwidth. Create a dial-up connection yourself by using the above method. Enjoy!
Professor Randy quotes Steve Jobs:“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don’t settle.”
In the past year and a half or so I’ve repaired over 350 computers. In this series I’m describing the very repair tools that I use daily. If you would like, you can see the entire series by following these links: part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8, part 9, part 10, part 10.1 and part 10.2.
Part 10.3: Continuing what I started in part 10, 10.1 and 10.2, in the next few posts I’ll show you the repair tools that I have on my USB flash drives and tell you what they are used for. At the moment I carry around six USB drives so let’s take a look at some more programs that I have on flash drive #2:
1)Virus Effect Remover: A gifted group of ex-students (Avinash Sachen, John Fensome, and a third who likes to remain anonymous), saw a problem with ALL of the Windows Operating Systems and came up with this one. Virus Effects Remover (V.E.R.), is a tool to help end-users remove the effects of either a live virus, or the effects left-over by a virus, in any Windows Operating System. Instead of having to do a complete reinstall, V.E.R. will repair/fix the important damaged Operating System items, like the Windows TaskManager, RegEditor, MSConfig, as well as the Operating System’s folder options, and Windows AutoUpdate, and many other OS things as well.
2)Undeleteable SafeBoot Key: A very sharp Belgian guy named Didier Stevens came up with this nifty tool. You know how some malware, viruses, etc. mess up your PC so you can’t get into Windows? One of the normal routes would be to reboot to safe mode and attack the problem from there, but how many times has your safe mode been inaccessible? Often malware is written to “clobber” safe mode to protect its existence. This “cool tool” by Stevens will bullet proof your safe mode so it doesn’t get disabled!
3)Take Ownership: This great program has saved my “bacon” several times! Taking ownership of system files or folders in Windows 7 or Vista is not a simple task. Whether you use the GUI or the command line, it takes far too many steps. Thankfully somebody created a registry hack that will give you a menu item for “Take Ownership” that will handle all the steps for you. After you install this registry hack, “Take Ownership” will show up in your right click menu and you’ll be able to access any file or folder. Great stuff!
4)WhoCrashed: Man, this is a great one! Whenever a computer running Windows suddenly reboots without displaying any notice or blue screen of death, the first thing that is often thought about is a hardware failure. In reality, most crashes are caused by malfunctioning device drivers and kernel modules. In case of a kernel error, most computers running Windows do not show a blue screen unless they are configured to do so. Instead these systems suddenly reboot without any notice. WhoCrashed shows the drivers which have been crashing your computer with a single click. In most cases it can pinpoint the offending drivers which have been causing misery on your computer system in the past. It does post-mortem crashdump analysis and presents all gathered information in a comprehensible way. Normally, debugging skills and a set of debugging tools are required to do post-mortem crash dump analysis. By using this utility you do not need any debugging skills to be able to find out what drivers are causing trouble to your computer.
5)Fix IE Utility: A valuable little tool by Raghu Boddu! If you face any problems while running IE, maybe after recovering from a malware attack, and if you find that the Reset Internet Explorer feature does not help you, run this tool to re-register around 89 dll & ocx files, which are required for the smooth running of Internet Explorer. Fix IE Utility has been tested on IE 7, IE 8 and IE 9, on Windows Vista & Windows 7. Before running the utility, make sure that all your Internet Explorer windows are closed. A must tool for your USB flash drive!
Professor Randy says: A computer repair technician without great tools is like milk without cookies! Pointless! Fill your flash drive up with great tools and you’ll have the solution to the problem in the palm of your hand!
In the past year and a half or so I’ve repaired over 350 computers. In this series I’m describing the very repair tools that I use daily. If you would like, you can see the entire series by following these links: part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8, part 9, part 10, part 10.1.
Part 10.2: Continuing what I started in part 10 and part 10.1, in the next few posts I’ll show you the repair tools that I have on my USB flash drives and tell you what they are used for. At the moment I carry around six USB drives so let’s take a look at some more programs that I have on flash drive #2:
1)Comodo Cleaning Essentials: This is a tool that I have been using a lot lately and it has been very effective in removing malware that other programs miss. Takes a while to update and scan but very effective. I usually run it while I’m out on another call. I really like it!
Comodo Cleaning Essentials (CCE) is a set of computer security tools designed to help users identify and remove malware and unsafe processes from infected computers.
Major features include:
KillSwitch – an advanced system monitoring tool that allows users to identify, monitor and stop any unsafe processes that are running on their system.
Malware scanner – Fully customizable scanner capable of unearthing and removing viruses, rootkits, hidden files and malicious registry keys hidden deep in your system.
CCE is a lightweight, portable application which requires no installation and can be run directly from removable media such as a USB key, CD or DVD. Home users can quickly and easily run scans and operate the software with the minimum of fuss. More experienced users will enjoy the high levels of visibility and control over system processes and the ability to configure customized scans from the granular options menu.
2)Hitman Pro 3: Hitman Pro is very fast and I love the Scan Cloud feature. If a file is suspicious, Hitman Pro will have it checked by five different malware scanners and report back to you. Great stuff!
Hitman Pro is a second opinion scanner, designed to rescue your computer from malware (viruses, trojans, rootkits, etc.) that have infected your computer despite all the security measures you have taken (such as anti virus software, firewalls, etc.). Hitman Pro is designed to work alongside existing security programs without any conflicts. It scans the computer quickly (less than 5 minutes) and does not slow down the computer (except for the few minutes it is scanning). Hitman Pro does not need to be installed. It can be run straight from a USB flash drive, a CD/DVD, local or network attached hard drive.
3)ComboFix: I must tell you that ComboFix is my #1 malware cleaner! I cannot tell you how many times it has “done the job” when other cleaners have come up a bit short. The latest version will disinfect the dreaded ZeroAccess rootkit that “holes up” in the TCP/IP stack. I usually run ComboFix last (after I have run several other malware cleaners), and I’m always impressed with the effectiveness of this great program. In the past ten days alone I have had six infected machines (all with ZeroAccess) and ComboFix has cleaned them all!
ComboFix is a program, created by sUBs, that scans your computer for known malware, and when found, attempts to clean these infections automatically. In addition to being able to remove a large amount of the most common and current malware, ComboFix also displays a report that can be used by trained helpers to remove malware that is not automatically removed by the program.
4)Rogue Removal Kit: There is some overlap here with other individual tools that I use, but this guy John (check out his website), has put many of them into a single “kit”. Great to have on your USB flash drive!
A robust kit from John at EliteKiller.com. John put together this kit using some of the finest tools that detect and remove assorted trojans, rootkits (including the nasty TDL3 & 4 variants), and other rogue antivirus/antispyware that are capable of hiding files on your computer. This form of malware includes those with fake security alerts that goad the end user into downloading and/or purchasing rogue software. Please check the README and follow the directions. In addition, do not be alarmed if some programs detect certain executables in this kit as a “Trojan” and/or “RiskTool”. AV programs cannot distinguish between “good” and “malicious” use of such programs, therefore they may alert the user.
5)aswMBR 0.9.9: I just started using this about ten days ago. MBR rootkits will disable your machine and you have to be very careful when you remove this type of malware or you will end up “wiping out” the Master Boot Record and you’ll be sitting there with a Hard Drive that won’t boot! I use this program and ComboFix for this type of malware.
aswMBR is a anti-rootkit scanner that searchs your computer for Rootkits that infect the Master Boot Record, or MBR, of your computer. This includes the TDL4/3, MBRoot (Sinowal), and Whistler rootkits. For this program to properly work it must first download the Avast virus definitions, so you will need an active Internet connection before using it.
A rootkit is a malware program that is designed to hide itself or other computer infections on your computer. These types of programs are typically harder to remove than generic malware, which is the reason that stand-alone utilities such as TDSSKiller have been developed.
When you run aswMBR, if it is shutdown automatically, then it is most likely the infection detecting that aswMBR is running and terminating it. In this situation you should rename executable to iexplore.exe before you attempt to run it.
Professor Randy says: A computer repair technician without great tools is like milk without cookies! Pointless! Fill your flash drive up with great tools and you’ll have the solution to the problem in the palm of your hand!
Happy New Year! On this the first day of 2012 I would like to give you ten great tech links (actually eight because #1 is my personal Happy New Years wish to you, and #9 is some great motivation for success). These eight links will take you to eight great sites full of useful tech information and more (don’t miss #9 & #10). Enjoy!!
Here is a great video for your enjoyment. If you haven’t seen it yet, be prepared to be amazed! The true story of Christmas told in a modern digital manner! Awesome!!
Professor Randy quotes Roy L. Smith:“He who has not Christmas in his heart will never find it under a tree.”
