A security conscious buddy of mine is an advocate of the Sysinternals freeware utilities. For those of you who don’t know, Mark Russinovich, one of the Sysinternals co founders, was the guy that discovered and exposed the Sony BMG root kit back in 2005. In other words, the crew at Sysinternals knew their $h*t. Microsoft […]

If you maintain a website that’s hosted on a Linux server, you’re aware the process of editing pages locally and uploading them to the server is often a hassle. Most server administrators run an ftp daemon to enable file transferring. Some of the file types a client may transfer include, but aren’t limited to: images, […]

Note: This is a guest post by Scott Hughes, administrator of Philosophy Forums. For most experienced computer users, basic security is common sense. Computer professionals and computer geeks usually know how to protect their computer and privacy. But most people who use computers regularly still do not seem to take even the most basic steps at […]

This is what happened when I took down my network’s defenses the other day. Fortunately my Windows machines were patched, or I might have been hit with a nasty remote exploit, or eighty. Click the thumbnail for the larger version.

Those are all incoming connections initiated via Netbios. If you don’t take the time to define […]

Just when you thought you’ve seen everything, the Internet comes to the rescue. Enter: jerryleecooper and boy he sure has a special treat for everyone. Here’s an excerpt of this guy’s beautiful logic. You are kidding arent you ? Are you saying that this linux can run on a computer without windows underneath it, at all […]

A lot of organizations intentionally block remote desktop capabilities. With that in mind, please be aware that following the instructions in this post may lead to consequences depending on policies outlined within your organization. This guide will demonstrate ways to evade firewalls, which could result in enough justification for termination, so be careful! I’m going to […]

Several sites reported noticeable performance increases after installing XP SP3, but there’s only one way to really find out; test the service pack yourself. A side by side comparison of two Dell Latitude D820 notebooks, one with SP2 and one with SP3 (beta), was very surprising. XP’s Task Manager displayed pretty dramatic differences when comparing […]

The workstation used at my day job is configured to prevent any sort of netbios activity (file shares, broadcasts, how useless is this protocol? jeez), incoming and outgoing. But, there may come a time when sharing information, testing a software pilot, or local web development has to occur. Enter: SHTTPD. Creator Sergey Lyubka had the right […]

Out of the box, a fresh installation of Windows XP is weak, full of holes, and a guaranteed zombie if connected to the Internet. This post is not a guaranteed way to ensure your computer’s security, but should definitely add to the existing Windows XP hardening guides available. Manage Window’s Users and Groups While logged in as […]

For years, Windows users have battled with the notorious load times that seem to get worse with every startup. I’ve developed a ritual of reinstalling windows every six to twelve months, which becomes obnoxious, but almost necessary to maintain usability. A list of potential causes and short term resolutions are listed below. Installing and Uninstalling Software If […]