Sometimes jump list items will get “stuck” within Windows 7.
To remove these entries, open a Explorer window and enter the following path:
%APPDATA%\Microsoft\Windows\Recent\AutomaticDestinations
The list displayed will be odd file names. You can open the files within Notepad to hopefully determine the entry to delete.
This utility offers a GUI for several Registry hacks.
http://www.thewindowsclub.com/repair-fix-windows-7-vista-problems-with-fixwin-utility
Core Configurator is a piece of software designed to offer some GUI configuration options for a Windows Server Core installation.
Certain files within Windows 7 can not be deleted even as using the administrator account. Launch a command prompt with administrative privileges and use the following commands.
takeown /f C:\folder\file
cacls C:\folder\file /G account:F
The links below are for Linux distributions that are intended for children.
Windows 7 (and Vista) have an option to create a system image backup. Click on the Start Menu and type “backup” in the search dialog box. Select the Backup and Restore menu item.
Click on the “Create a system image” option.
It is easier to create a system image using an external USB hard drive. If you have one connected, select the device under the hard drive drop-down box. Click on the Next button once a selection has been made.
Once selected, click on the “Start backup” button.
A dialog box should appear displaying progress of the backup.
A dialog box will appear asking if you wish to create a System Repair disc. You can create one now or later.
Once a decision has been made concerning the System Repair disc, the final dialog box should be displayed.
Windows 7 includes a new type of service called trigger. A trigger-start service is a regular service that you can configure to run (or stop running) only when certain criteria and conditions that you define are met. Some conditions would be:
Device arrival or departure
Joining or leaving a domain
Opening or closing a firewall port
Group policy change
To view trigger information, use the sc command with the parameter of qtriggerinfo.
Certain services will not have any triggers present.
Dia is a diagram application that could be considered a replacement for Microsoft’s Visio.
http://dia-installer.de/index_en.html
A portable version is also available.
A System Repair disc can be used to boot a computer to attempt to recover the locally installed operating system. To create a disc, access the Start Menu and type “system repair” in the search dialog box.
Place a blank DVD disc in your DVD writable drive and click on the “Create disc” button.
As long as the blank disc is found successfully, a progress bar should appear.
A final dialog box should appear asking for you to label the disc that was created.
The link below contains the instructions to enable the Quick Launch toolbar within Windows 7.
UNetbootin allows you to create bootable Live USB drives for a variety of Linux distributions from Windows or Linux, without requiring you to burn a CD.
As a follow-up to a previous posting concerning troubleshooting WSUS connectivity, Microsoft has made available a Fix It solution for Windows Update issues.
http://support.microsoft.com/Default.aspx?kbid=971058
Some manual steps would include:
a. Stop the Automatic Updates service
b. Rename the software distribution folder (i.e. C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution).
c. Restart the Automatic Update service
d. Run wuauclt /resetauthorization /detectnow
e. Run wuauclt /reportnow
If a machine does not appear within the WSUS console, a client ID may be the same as another computer.
a. Stop the automatic service
b. Delete the SUSclientID reg key
HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WindowsUpdate
c. Restart the automatic service
d. Run wuauclt /resetauthorization /detectnow
e. Run wuauclt /reportnow
This is small tool that adds Attach and Detach option to contextual (aka right-click) menu of Virtual disk (vhd) files.
Virtual CloneDrive works and behaves just like a physical CD/DVD drive, however it exists only virtually. Image files generated with CloneDVD or CloneCD can be mounted onto a virtual drive from your hard-disk or from a network drive and used in the same manner as inserting them into a normal CD/DVD drive.
The SS64 web site is a reference for command line options for several different databases and operating systems.
Webconverger is a Debian-based Linux distribution for web kiosks with the Firefox web browser as the only application.
Skydrive is a free storage area offered via skydrive.live.com (current space limit is 25 GB). The normal access method is via a web browser. But the software below allows access via the local Windows Explorer interface.
This utility offers details concerning the processes running under the generic svchost.exe process.
Windows has a feature called Prefetch. Prefetch is designed to “cache” certain components over time so popular applications on a system will launch faster in the future.
A folder is present under the SystemRoot folder called Prefetch:
The .pf files are associated with the application in question. A file should be present under this directory called Layout.ini. This file includes the full path of the executables that have been processed:
To obtain more information, download and unzip the Windows File Analyzer tool found at:
This utility will display data such as the date of creation and the last access time.
More information concerning the Prefetch folder can be found within the documentation file included with the Windows File Analyzer download.
Below are some sites that offer network speed tests.
Below is some general information concerning the Nmap application found at:
-sL –> list scan
-PS port number –> sends a TCP SYN packet to ports listed
-PA port number –> sends a TCP ACK packet to the ports listed
-PU port number –> sends a UDP packet to the ports listed
-n –> no DNS resolution
-R –> DNS resolution for all hosts
-sP –> ping scan
-PN –> disable ping; treat all hosts as online
-6 –> TCP/IP version 6
-T4 –> more aggressive timing policy to speed up the scan
-sS –> TCP SYN stealth
-sT –> TCP connect
-sU –> UDP
-sI –> TCP idle scan
-p –> port selection
-A –> aggressive tests, including OS and version detection
-v –> verbose
--append output
--packet-trace
--reason
--randomize-hosts
--traceroute
--dns-servers
Reports
-oN –> normal report
-oG –> grepable report
-oX –> XML report
-oA –> all three report formats
Ninite is a web page that allows you to select different applications and create a custom installer. This allows multiple programs to be installed at one time.
Microsoft’s Virtual PC and XP Mode within Windows 7 requires hardware-assisted virtualization. Microsoft has released a tool found at the link below to test a computer for this component:
Another option to check for this requirement would be to use the Securable application from GRC:
http://www.grc.com/securable.htm
In some situations such as software conflicts and/or malware, Internet Explorer may not function properly. As a short-term solution, a portable version of Firefox can be used. The advantage of a “portable” application is it does not modify any system files or folders on your computer. These types of programs are designed to run from an USB thumb drive.
The instructions below describe how to download and extract the portable version of Firefox. If your Internet Explorer version is too unstable to complete these tasks, another computer will need to be used. The web site to find the portable version of Firefox (and other portable applications) is http://portableapps.com/.
In the example below, Microsoft Vista was used, so the screen may appear somewhat different if you are using another operating system such as Windows XP. But the concepts are the same. In our example, we will save the .EXE file to our Desktop. But any location will work as long as you can remember the path to the .EXE.
The main download page may appear similar to the screen capture below.
Once the download process has completed, double-click on the .EXE file. Click on the Run button.
Click on the Next button.
Click on the Browse button and select your Desktop folder. If you wish to use an USB thumb drive, select the path to the device.
You can select another folder path if you wish. Click on the Install button.
Click on the Finish button once the extraction process has completed.
Once the extraction process has completed, a folder named FirefoxPortable should be present. At this point, you can copy this folder to an USB thumb or flash drive if you are using another computer. Under this folder should be an .EXE file named FirefoxPortable.exe.
When the application is first launched, use the default parameter.
To remove the application from your computer or USB thumb drive, simply delete the FirefoxPortable folder. One disadvantage of Portable Firefox is some common plug-ins such as Adobe Flash is not present by default. In the example below, simply click on the hyperlink to install Flash.
Below are commands for a PacketShaper device available via the command-line interface.
hostdb info -> Tells you what hosts are active and how much bandwidth they are using
hostdb show -> Tells you the active host and if they are sending TCP/UDP packets
hostdb topusers -> Similar to top talkers/top listeners
links show -> Display the current programmed link speeds with link statistics
net nic -> View network statistics such as packets transmitted and discarded
setup shaping on|off|bypass|passthru|watch -> When shaping is turned on, traffic is classified and measured, and control policies are enforced. When shaping is off, traffic is classified and measured but not managed
traffic active -> Display the current, maximum, and possible number of sessions for TCP, UDP, and Legacy traffic types
traffic bandwidth -> Display bandwidth utilization for a partition
traffic flow -to -uo -> Display summary information about some or all currently active TCP connections and/or UDP sessions
traffic flow -tup -> Displays the source and destination IP address, port numbers, Inbound and Outbound classes the traffic is hitting, and the PacketWise service name
traffic history find IP ADDRESS -> Is useful for determining the servers that a specified client IP address is transferring data with, or the clients that are retrieving data from a specific server. It can also be used to determine exactly what type of network applications a specified PC is using
traffic tree -> Provides detailed information about how often classes and their associated policies are accessed by the PacketWise classification process, along with rate information for each class
version verbose -> Display the software version, model, serial number, and memory capacity. Use the verbose option to list the part number, the inside and outside MAC addresses, installed keys, and installed classification plug-ins.
setup show -> Use the setup show command to see a list of sharable settings that are stored in the configuration file.
class test -> Test a traffic flow against the present classification tree. class test [ ]
sys limits -> List the Packeteer unit's configuration limits. For each object (such as classes, partitions, and policies), the sys limits output lists the maximum number of objects allowed, currently used, and remaining. For example, you can use this command to determine how many more classes you can create on your unit.
host info -sf -n 20 -> This command will display the top 20 hosts with the most connections.
host info -sr -n 20 -> This command displays the top 20 bandwidth users sorted by their usage.
host show ip address -> This command will display data concerning a certain IP address.
traffic history find ip address -> This command displays past activity for a particular IP address.
traffic flow -tupIA ip address -> This command displays current activity for a particular IP address.
net pna -> Display network statistics
traffic flow -tupIxc class -> This command will display all the tcp and udp flows hitting the specified class.
traffic flow -tupIn 100 -> This command displays 100 current flows.
traffic history recent class -> This command displays which users are using an application.
traffic flow -tpc class -> This command will display the current users of a particular class.
host info -sp -n 20 -> This command will display the top 20 hosts that have the most failed flows the last 1 minute.
sys health -> This command will show if a unit is being overloaded.
packetcapture status -> List the current packet capture settings.
packetcapture add class: -> Specify a class for which you want to capture packets.
packetcapture remove class: -> Remove an existing filter for a class.
packetcapture on -> Enable packet capture.
packetcapture off -> Disable packet capture.
Most everyone has heard of or used YouTube, but the sites below offer video content as well.
Microsoft has released an utility to accept an .ISO image and create a USB drive that can be used to install Windows 7.
http://store.microsoft.com/Help/ISO-Tool
http://images2.store.microsoft.com/prod/clustera/framework/w7udt/1.0/en-us/Windows7-USB-DVD-tool.exe
A common Registry path for items to load automatically in Windows is HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run. Under a 64-bit version of Windows, this path may be different with 32-bit applications.
PaperCut Print Logger is a free print logging application for Windows systems designed to provide real-time activity logs detailing all printer use.
Windows PowerShell Pack contains 10 modules to help supercharge your Windows PowerShell scripting. The PowerShellPack lets you write user interfaces in PowerShell script, manage RSS feeds, schedule operating system tasks, etc. The PowerShell Pack contains over 800 scripts in 10 different modules.
The information below is concerning the Windows Update process and a WSUS service on the backend. To manually start the process to have a Windows client to check for new updates, run this command at the command prompt:
wuauclt.exe /detectnow
If new updates to not appear to be downloaded, open the following file and check for errors.
%SystemRoot%\windowsupdate.log
One procedure to use if updates are not “flowing” is to stop the automatic updates service, delete the %SystemRoot%\softwaredistribution folder, start automatic updates service, run wuauclt.exe /detectnow and wait about 10 minutes.
Another procedure would be to at a command prompt run:
regsvr32 /u wuaueng.dll
Delete the folder %SystemRoot%\softwaredistibution
Delete %SystemRoot%\windowsupdate.log
At a command prompt run:
regsvr32 wuaueng.dll
At a command prompt run:
net start wuauserv
At a command prompt run:
wuauclt.exe /resetauthorization /detectnow
Another possibility is to download an updated client. Details can be found at:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/949104
When updating the local client, the following command line parameter may be used to force the installation:
WindowsUpdateAgent30-x86.exe /wuforce
The SUSID is how WSUS identifies each and every system in it's environment. The path within the Registry for this information is:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WindowsUpdate\SusClientId
If a computer is being cloned, the key above may need to be deleted so the new machines are displayed as separate items within the WSUS console.
By default, Google will search the entire current index. For example, if I enter the text “word” within Google, I received numerous entries from different sources:
But what if I wished to search for Word within Microsoft’s web site? I could use the “site:” parameter. I enter the web site I wish to limit my search to after the text of “site:” then the text I wish to search for. Notice all of the results below are to www.microsoft.com compared to the results above.
The search results can also be limited to a particular domain type, such as .EDU.
If I am looking for a particular file type, I can use the “filetype:” parameter. Below is a search of Microsoft’s site for .DOC files:
If you wish to search for a string of text, enclose the entire string within quotes.
Google can be used as a dictionary using the “define:” parameter.
Google can also offer the current time of any location by typing time followed by the site:
The same trick can be used for weather:
Google can also be used as a calculator.
The “related:” parameter allows a search for other web sites with similar topics or content.
If you are curious who has hyperlinks to a site, the “link:” parameter can be used.
If a web site is off-line for some reason, the “cache:” parameter plus the normal web site address can allow access to a version that Google has kept.
Additional Links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_hacking
http://www.google.com/help/cheatsheet.html
http://www.google.com/experimental/
http://www.google.com/options/specialsearches.html
