LAN Doctor's Computer Info For You

Microsoft Security Updates

2011-01-04T10:09:00.001-08:00

Every month Microsoft releases a number of updates and patches for its software. Every so often, e-mails are sent to e-mail accounts purporting to contain or lead to an important security update for a Microsoft product. These are fakes, trying to get you to download malicious software onto your computer. The people sending these e-mails go to great pains to make it look like a communication from Microsoft. Just keep in mind; should you see one of these e-mails, you should delete it.

However, you can get notifications from Microsoft about security updates and patches that are being released, normally on the 2^nd Tuesday of the month, also known as "Patch Tuesday". Here, copied from one of those messages, is how you can sign-up to receive these security bulletins:

To receive automatic notifications whenever Microsoft Security Bulletins are issued, subscribe to Microsoft Technical Security Notifications on http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/notify.mspx.

This monthly e-mail will alert you to the products that are receiving updates and give you a link to follow to get more information about them. If an out of cycle patch is released, you will also get notification of that as well. If you are concerned about security, and want to keep abreast of what is happening from Microsoft, this would be a good investment of a few minutes a month.

Keep in mind that these are just the items that Microsoft considers to be critical. There are a lot more updates and patches released over the course of the year that may just be enhancements of a product, or fix a small problem with a product, etc. that are not considered to be critical, or even important. The automatic updates service built into your Microsoft Windows will only get those two categories of updates. To see what else may be available, fire up your Internet Explorer, click on Tools and select Windows Update from the drop down menu. This will take you to the Windows Update site. If you have not used this previously, you will be asked to download an Active-X component, then some software. When, or if, you are given the choice, switch to the Microsoft updates site. This site will show updates and patches available and needed for all your Microsoft products on your computer after a search. You can go through these patches and updates to pick and choose the ones you would wish to install.

For those of you in corporate environments, Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) can be used to control updating throughout the network. It does take some time to set up and some time to originally deploy, but once the initial setup and deployment are done it does not take long at all to maintain.

If you need help with your updating or any other computer related items, feel free to call LAN Doctor, Your IT Department, 703.356.3070 for assistance.

Outlook 2007 Problems After 12/14/10 Patch

2010-12-20T09:14:00.001-08:00

Those who are conscientious about patching their machines when Microsoft releases new patches may be having problems with Outlook 2007 after the release of patches on Tuesday December 14, 2010. Symptoms include loss of the archive and auto-archive feature, slow to respond when changing folders, accounts using Secure Password Authentication have problems connecting, Outlook accounts connection to an Exchange server have problems connecting when using Outlook Anywhere with NTLM authentication, IMAP accounts and accounts connecting via SSL may give send/receive errors specifically, but not limited to Gmail which reports a 0x800CCC78 error when trying to send a message. Another error seen is 0x800CCC1A.

All these problems from a patch meant to improve performance.

When I was reviewing material today in preparation to writing this piece, I found that Microsoft has now pulled the patch, KB2412171 so those of you who have not applied the latest patches yet should not have to worry about
accidently applying the patch. However, if the patch has already been downloaded to your machine by automatic updates, you'll need to choose custom install and uncheck this patch so it does not install.

A hotfix was released purporting to fix this problem (KB2458611), but it has its own problems as well. This hotfix is still available on the Microsoft site, but it is not suggested that you install it.

For those of you who have installed the patch, you can uninstall it, and return your Outlook to its former performance level. To do so, simply follow these instructions:

Win7/Vista: Start > Control Panel > Uninstall a Program > View Installed Updates...find KB2412171 and remove it.
WinXP: Start > Control Panel > Add/Remove Programs. Make sure "Show updates" (at the bottom) is checked. Find KB2412171 and remove it.

Once you have removed the patch, you may still have a problem with authentication when using some e-mail accounts. To fix this you need to go to your account that is having the problem (Tools > Account Settings > E-mail accounts) and change the Secure Password Authentication setting.

As always, we stand ready to help you with all your computer problems. Give us a call at 703 356 3070.

Which Version of Windows 7 Is Right for YOU?

2010-12-14T15:21:00.001-08:00

There are four versions of Windows 7 available to the user. The big question is which version is the right version for you to use. The answer is not necessarily the one that comes pre-loaded on your new machine from the store or mail-order house. The versions are Starter (you are not likely to see this one except on a net book or if you are purchasing in a third world country), Home Premium, Professional, and Ultimate. They each come in 32-bit and 64-bit versions. They each have different limits on what they can do.

You do not need a 64-bit operating system if you have less than 4 GB of RAM in your machine. If you have more than 4 GB of RAM, or think you will be adding memory in the future that will exceed 4 GB, you should have the 64-bit version. The 64-bit operating system requires 64-bit device drivers. It will not run drivers designed for a 32-bit operating system.

For many people, especially if you have other equipment that is relatively new, software that can run on Vista, and you are not connecting to a home or corporate network, Home Premium that is found on most systems sold at retail is a perfectly good choice for you. There are a few gotcha, however. Most systems are sold as 64-bit systems. You need to check before you buy that the drivers for your equipment are 64-bit drivers. Not all are. Software that predates Vista may or may not run on any version of Windows 7. You need to check with the vendor to determine if it will work on Windows 7.

Windows 7 Professional is probably the choice that many people should make, especially if you need to run old software that is not compatible with Windows 7. In a corporate environment, Professional is a must. Professional, and Ultimate, allows you to run in XP mode for older programs, with a download from Microsoft. You can find the details here: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/virtual-pc/download.aspx. There is a bit of a learning curve to go through, but once you have it down, this becomes downright a pleasure to use.

Professional also allows you to use off-line files. This is important if you connect to a corporate network from the outside. You can select a folder to use for offline use, and once you get it setup, select the folder, the files will download and be stored on your local machine. Changes made locally by you are synchronized with the server. Changes made by those in the office are replicated to your PC. You always have the latest version possible at your finger tips.

For the corporate user, Professional allows you to join a domain, and many corporate networks are designed following the domain model. It also allows the workgroup model, which is what most home networks are designed. You have better connectivity overall with the Professional version.

The Ultimate version adds some more features. If you often work in more than one language, you will like the ability to easily switch between languages as offered in this version. There are 35 languages offered. Encryption of files is also offered in this version. Bitlocker will encrypt your whole drive and offers immediate encryption for any files you save.

For advice on purchasing your corporate hardware and software, give LAN Doctor a call at 703-356-3070. Your IT department, serving the DC Metro area.

Get a Handle on Your Gmail Account

2010-11-29T10:00:00.001-08:00

If you use Gmail for e-mail, whether as your main mail account, or as a supplemental account, this article may help you get a handle on the mail coming through that account. It explains how to use filters available in the Gmail system to sort messages prior to your reading them.

Point your browser to http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/google/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=217400014&pgno=1&queryText=&isPrev= (or, TinyURL: http://tinyurl.com/272bcf2) to read it.

No matter what you use for your e-mail, remember to call LAN Doctor for your computer needs, 703.356.3070.

Online Privacy

2010-11-23T08:49:00.001-08:00

Online privacy is a concern, or should be, for everyone who uses the Internet. Books can be filled with information about maintaining online privacy; yet, there is always something new that should be of concern. Generally, however, there are some things that are well known and easily available to help you with certain sites.

Weekly, it seems, there is another privacy concern raised about Facebook and its policies. Probably, the best you can do is to check your profile settings each time you login to Facebook, to ensure they have not changed. Also, seriously consider any personal information before you post it to Facebook to ensure that should it become public, you will not , um, shall we say suffer, should it become disclosed. You might also want to keep up with information your friends may post about you. Remember that party a few weeks ago, the one you were having so much fun about? Oh, you don't really remember it, only what people have told you about? You might want to keep an eye out for pictures that may not show you in your best light. You might also want to bring this topic up with your friends so that such things don't happen in the future. They may think you as somewhat of a prude, but just remind them that you also would abide by this rule so that information that may damage their careers does not propagate across the web.

Google is another site you might want to be aware of the use of your information. The article found at http://www.networkworld.com/news/2009/051109-6-ways-to-protect-your.html?page=1 gives you six ways to protect your privacy while using Google. Take a look at the Google areas mentioned in the article for further information. The Google Privacy Tips feed has a number of videos about protecting your privacy in a number of areas on Google, and are short, so you do not need to spend a lot of time with them.

Until next time, remember to keep LAN Doctor in mind for your computing and networking needs. You can reach us at info@landoctor.com.

Google, G-Mail & Google Maps Tips

2010-11-15T07:23:00.001-08:00

Here is an article if you are a user of any of the web applications listed in the title. Gives you 19 tips to make better use of them, doing things you may not yet be aware they can be used for.

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9132247/Gmail_Google_maps_and_Google_search_19_cool_tips?taxonomyId=18&pageNumber=1

Remember, tips or not, you need LAN Doctor to keep your computers and network running up to snuff. Give us a call at 703 356 3070.

More On E-Mail

2010-11-01T07:25:00.001-07:00

Outlook's rules provide you with a basic sorting mechanism when messages arrive in your Inbox or are sent. It is basic because one cannot use any Boolean expressions in their creation. The later versions of Outlook have an auto-rule function when creating a rule, but I've always found it better to skip that and go right into the nitty-gritty of creating a rule.

Before you create the rule, you should first decide what you want the rule to do. If you wish to place messages in another folder, make sure the folder already exists. If you are going to forward the message, make sure the address it will be sent to already exists. If you wish to have an auto-reply sent out, make sure it is prepared and ready for action. Now you can start to create your rule.

Click on Tools | Rules and Alerts when you have Outlook open. Click on New Rule and then, down near the bottom of the first section of the window that opens, under Start from a blank rule click on Check when messages arrive, then click the Next button. This opens to a screen that gives you a number of choices. Select the one that fits how you want to sort out a particular group of messages. If you have a number of criteria to sort on, check the criteria that apply. You will note that many of the choices have a blue underlined word or phrase. After you have selected the criteria, they appear in the bottom section of the window, here you click on the underlined portion and are prompted to fill in the appropriate address, word, or phrase that you want to use. Then click on the Next button again.

The next screen provides choices on how you wish to handle the message. Most commonly, it is to place the message in another folder, but you do have other choices. You may wish to send a message in response to the sorted message—an auto-response, or you may wish to just delete it, or you may wish to forward it to someone or a group of people. Once you make you selection, it will again appear as part of the rule being formed below, and you will need to select the underline work or phrase and place the appropriate action there.

At this point, select also "stop further processing of rules", so no further rules are processed on this message. Then click on the Finish button. If you have exceptions you wish to make, select the Next button.

Choose your exception, and fill in the exception type if offered. Note that your choice will appear above the stop processing line. Then choose the Finish button.

When you are finished creating the rule, it will appear on the initial screen with a check mark in the box showing that it will run when a message is received. If you wish, the rule can be run now by selecting the Run Rules now choice above, or you can just wait until the messages the rule is intended to sort is received. If you wish to run the rule now, select that choice, and select the rules you wish to run, the folder they are to be run in, normally the Inbox, against all messages, unread messages, or read messages. This is a good way to test the rule before you place it into active service. Whether you are running the rule immediately or not, you can now start on another rule or just close out the dialog.

Remember, whatever you need in the way of help, you can count on LAN Doctor, your It Department, to be ready to help you. Send us an e-mail at support@landoctor.com or give us a call at 703.356.3070.

More on Taming Your E-Mail

2010-10-25T14:11:00.001-07:00

Now that we have covered spam, let's take a look at sorting your e-mail. Outlook provides a number of ways to sort e-mail. It allows you to colorize the "subject" lines in your Inbox, you can assign categories for different types of e-mail, you can use rules to deal one way or another with incoming messages and you can use Search Folders to separate certain e-mail from the rest of your Inbox.

My favorite method is the colorization of "subject" lines of incoming mail. This is simple to set up and easy to see e-mail from certain people. The drawback is that you only have a few colors to choose from, 16, if you count the default black. This method works best with list mail, mail you get from mailing lists. Select a message from a sender to mark. Then select Tools, Organize from your menu, select Using Colors, then select the To or From field (normally you would use the from field), and select a color and click on the Apply Color button. Look at your Inbox, and you will note that all messages from that sender are now shown in the color you have chosen.

You may have noted that there are two other options given you to sort messages. Using folders is one, and it is a one off method of moving a message to another folder, but if this is to be a regular sort for you, you are better off creating a rule to handle these messages as they come in. The other is Using Views, which gives you a number of ways to view your Inbox messages, or messages in another folder. I prefer Messages with Auto preview, which gives me unread messages with the first three lines of text shown. In many cases, this is enough to tell me if I need to read more of the message. Unfortunately, this does not work terribly well for those HTML messages sent in mass mailings as it normally with show HTML code. I do not recommend using the preview window, though it is not nearly as dangerous to use as it used to be.

Next time around, we'll talk about creating rules to sort messages as they are received.

Keep in mind LAN Doctor for all your computing needs. We are "Your IT Department".

Taming the E-Mail Monster

2010-10-19T06:39:00.001-07:00

Do you ever feel overwhelmed by the volume of e-mail you see during the day? Ever feel like just deleting the whole Inbox just to get done with it? Maybe you just feel that you spend far too much time dealing with e-mail during the day. Here are a few tips to help you tame your Inbox and decrease the amount of time you spend dealing with e-mail.

You are probably still seeing spam coming into your Inbox, no matter how good the spam filters are up line from you. The official definition of spam is unsolicited commercial e-mail, which means someone trying to sell something to you without your inquiry first. The personal definition of spam is all over the map, but can be boiled down to I do not want to read this [add your own expletive]. Take a look at what you consider to be spam. If the origin of the mail is a mailing list, newsletter mail, simply unsubscribe from it. There should be a link at the end of the mail that will unsubscribe you. Chances are that you did, wittingly or not, somewhere along the line, sign up for it. The link will either prepare a new mail for you to send to unsubscribe, or will bring up a web page in your browser. This takes only seconds to do, and should relieve you of the burden of seeing that unwanted mail again.

The Outlook Junk E-Mail filter does a decent job of removing spam, and you can whitelist and blacklist messages. I don't use it. I prefer to use a product called Spam Bayes. It is an open source project and works very well. You'll need to create 2 new folders in your Outlook and the mail will be sorted into spam or suspect spam. The Bayes in the name refers to the method used to determine spam, which is a Bayesian filter. That indicates that there will be some training involved. Before you install it, make sure that your Inbox is free of spam, and the spam has been placed into another folder. The Inbox messages will serve as examples of good e-mail, and the other folder will serve as examples of spam. Run the training routine, and you are on your way. For the first few weeks, even with the initial training, you will continue to train the filter by

Rescuing messages marked as spam that are not from the spam folder;
Marking messages in the suspect folder as good or spam; and,
Marking messages in your Inbox as spam, if they fit your criteria of spam.

Gradually, you will note that you see less and less spam in your Inbox and being correctly identified as spam. My experience has shown that by the end of week 2 using this product, you will be doing very little rescuing or damning of messages. There will always be need of your manual intervention, but soon it will be very rare, and only require the click of a button.

More tips will come with my next entry. In the meanwhile, when it comes to filling your IT needs, think LAN Doctor, and give us a call at 703.356.3070.

BotNets

2010-10-04T08:50:00.001-07:00

What are botnets? BotNets are a number of PC's that have been infected by malware that reports to a central control server or servers. Individually, these PC's are known as bots which comes from the word robot. This should give you a pretty good idea of what is happening to a machine that is infected with a certain type of malware—they then can be controlled by someone else.

BotNets can be used for any number of tasks, but the most common is to generate spam. Another use is to participate in DDoS attacks. A DDoS attack is one where many requests coming from many machines attempt to take a server or a number of servers offline for one reason or another. A Distributed Denial of Service attack is launched against a target because a person or group of persons feel they have been slighted by a company, or a security firm is felt to be coming too close to discovering the bad guy writing and/or distributing malware, and/or a number of other reasons.

It has been claimed that a bot PC an put out as many as 25,000 pieces of spam an hour. Something doing that much work can be bad for you, and in more ways than one. First, it can hamper your machine, making it slow to respond to your actions. It can put a heavy load on your network, whether at home or at work. Your ISP is likely to notice the heavy traffic coming from your public IP address, and may shut down your service, your public IP can become blacklisted and those using RBL's (Real time Block Lists), public or private, will stop your legitimate mail before it reaches the intended recipient. As you can see, especially if you are a business, having only one bot PC on your network can put a real crimp in your business.

What can you do?

If a user complains about a slow machine, take the complaint seriously. Sure they can be complaining in hopes of getting a new machine, or has recently worked on a machine that is much faster than their work machine, or it may merely be a perception issue. But do take the complaint seriously and investigate the complaint.
Run an online virus scan on the machine that is different from your anti-virus program of choice. I'd like to be confident about any A/V program and say that this one or these few will get 100% of the malware, but it just does not happen.
Find a web site like http://www.anti-abuse.org/multi-rbl-check/ to check to see if your domain is listed on a block list.
Naturally, you can also call LAN Doctor to perform these tasks and more for you if you are in the DC Metro area. Our phone is 703 356 3070, or use e-mail: info@landoctor.com to arrange a remote session or visit to your site.

Can Malware Kill Your Machine?

2010-09-27T08:40:00.001-07:00

Malware can definitely kill your machine. There are at least 4 known pieces of malware that contain the code to do so, on purpose, though the common wisdom is that malware requires the machine to be working. The methods that are used are different, some will remove critical files, others will remove important portions of the registry, but the end result is the same.

Then, there is malware that makes use of your machine, by you, not practical or impossible. In most cases, restarting the machine in safe mode allows you to gain control of your machine. Then you are able to take steps to remove the malware and make your machine yours again.

Why is this done? There is no real reason that is known, but it is suspected that in the former case it gives the bad guys a window of opportunity to use the data they have stolen without fear of outside interference.

What can you do to prevent this from happening? The first line of defense is always to practice safe computing. Do not open attachments on e-mail from unknown sources or from known sources when you are not expecting them. Use of a good spam filter will remove many of these e-mails from your Inbox, and anti-malware products that have the ability to scan e-mail and attachments will also neutralize many infectious e-mails and attachments.

Try to avoid clicking on links to unknown sites. Doing so is not a surefire method, since many attacks can be launched from ads shown on trusted sites. McAfee produces a free product that works with most browsers, to help determine the trustworthiness of a site. Go to www.siteadvisor.com for more info about this product.

Check daily to ensure your anti-malware product is up-to-date. Usually, if you just place your cursor over the icon for the product that appears in your system tray, the version and last update time is shown in a bubble.

You can always call LAN Doctor, in McLean, VA, if you need help removing malware, or for help in protecting your machine. You can reach us via e-mail at info@landoctor.com or via the phone at 703.356.3070.

Windows Updates

2010-04-20T09:05:00.001-07:00

For quite some time I have been seeing machines that are not properly updated with the most current patches and updates from Microsoft. While I know that many are not going to patch as soon as the latest crop of patches are released (Patch Tuesday, the second Tuesday of each month), but sit back and wait to see if there is feedback from others about patches that may cause problems with various machines, most should be patched within about 10 days of that date. For fear of sounding as a shill for Microsoft, I do need to say that these patches are important in that they make your machine more secure against malware attacks from the bad guys out there on the Internet.

You should turn on the Automatic update feature of your Windows Operating System. Set it to automatically download patches and updates, but not install them. With the problem that a patch had with machines infected with a certain piece of malware a couple of months ago, I now recommend that you do a complete scan of your machine, preferably with an online scanner from a company other than the software you use every day (I'll give some links at the end of this piece) to ensure your machine is free of malware. It may be worthwhile to do this overnight, so the performance of your machine is not affected while you are using it. If anything is found, remove it. Once you are sure your machine is clean, then go ahead and let Windows install the updates that are available at the time.

The real problem with not doing updates and patches is that you leave yourself wider open for attacks, since the bad guys often step up their activities around Patch Tuesday, often utilizing a vulnerability that is being patched. The task is to keep these guys out so you are not a victim of identity theft, or a machine that is now part of an army to send spam or used in other ways against other machines, companies, or governments.

Here is a listing of various scanners available for online scanning. Most will install parts of themselves on your machine and/or ActiveX programs. Not all of them will clean malware found. This is not meant to be a comprehensive list, but an example of what you may find.

HouseCall - Trend Micro USA http://housecall.trendmicro.com/

Free Virus Protection, Free Virus Scan | FreeScan | McAfee http://home.mcafee.com/Downloads/FreeScan.aspx

Free Virus Scan-Free Antivirus Software | Norton Security Scan http://security.symantec.com/sscv6/WelcomePage.asp

Free ESET Online Antivirus Scanner http://www.eset.com/onlinescan/

FREE ANTIVIRUS online: ActiveScan 2.0 - PANDA SECURITY http://www.pandasecurity.com/activescan/index/?track=96062

Free Online Virus Scan | BitDefender Online Scanner http://www.bitdefender.com/scanner/online/free.html

Free Online Scanner - Online Virus Scanner | F-Secure http://www.f-secure.com/en_EMEA/security/security-lab/tools-and-services/online-scanner/index.htm

Remember, LAN Doctor, Inc., "Your IT Department" is ready to help you whether your issue is patching, malware, or something else. Give us a call to schedule a visit. http://www.landoctor.com.

TEN REASONS YOU NEED A SERVER

2010-04-08T08:18:00.001-07:00

There are a number of these lists floating around the web, but they do make some good points. All of these lists say basically the same thing, and, since we do sell and maintain Dell servers as part of our business, this list is being cribbed from Dell.

You have more than two business computers.
You have more than one employee.
Your customers think you are owned by Go Daddy.
You, or your employees, conduct business outside the office.
You are tripping over cords.
You can never find that Master Document when you need it.
Your PCs are old and grumpy.
Your computer crashed and you lost critical data.
You want to protect information from unauthorized users.
You want to improve communication with employees and customers.

Now, some explanations: There comes a time when you will need a server for your business. You may actually have more than two computers before a server will need to be in your plans, or, you may want to start off with a server in place. This is something that LAN Doctor can help you decide. Sure, we want to sell and install servers, but, if it is not the best fit for your needs yet, then that would not be the right choice for you.

Some of the nice things about servers are that all your data can reside in one place AND be backed up regularly. You can control access to information pertinent to your business that not everyone should see or know about. Databases are important to many businesses. Many are designed to be run on a server and to allow multi-user access. With your own server, you can host your own e-mail and web site—some may see this as a plus, others as a negative. However, if you choose to do it yourself, it will mean fewer dollars going out each month for those services that are hosted elsewhere.

The line I really like is the locating of the Master Document. Heck, even with a server, I can't find it right off. I think that reason is a wash either way. The only advantage it might give is that you KNOW it is on the server, so you only need to search one machine, instead of having to search several.

Having all your data on one machine is a great idea for when you are on the road or on a customer site. If you need to look up some information, there are a number of options available for accessing that data, and you could look quite good at having access to data like that.

Microsoft Windows 7

2009-06-08T08:18:00.001-07:00

The release date has been made public for the new operating system from Microsoft, Windows 7. October 22 is the day, but I am not yet ready to rush out and advise anyone to install it. We still need to have a wait and see attitude to see what glitches may arise once it is in the hands of the public. It probably will not take more than a month to determine what hardware does not work, even though it is said to work, what software may need to be upgraded to work with the new OS, what other problems may be found with glitches and possible security issues, all of which may have been passed by the beta testers, or ignored, if reported, by the programmers.

If you cannot wait for a new machine, there will be an upgrade program available for machines sold with Vista. Apparently this program is to start around the end of June, according a leaked Best Buy memo, and the actual program has been announced, but no actual date has yet been officially given by Microsoft, nor has a price been yet placed on it—it may be no cost, or it could cost you some money to take advantage of this program. The downside here is that there is no direct upgrade path from Windows XP, just from Vista. If you have a PC running Vista, you will be able to do a direct upgrade, or so they say—in the past a direct in place upgrade was like shooting yourself in the foot, you were better off, in some instances to do what is known as a bare metal install. Whether this will be the case upgrading to Windows 7 from Vista remains to be seen.

If you have an XP downgrade from Vista, you'll need to upgrade to the copy of Vista supplied with your machine, then upgrade to the Windows 7 OS. It may just be easier to do a bare metal install, in this case, directly installing Windows 7. If you just have Windows XP, then you will need to do the bare metal install, since Windows 7 will not upgrade your copy of XP.

I've not found an "official" Microsoft site for hardware compatibility with Windows 7 yet, but two places you might keep an eye on are: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/compatibility and http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/hcl/default.mspx which should have the information as it becomes public.

If your current computers are doing the work you need them to do, there may be no compelling reason to update them. If your current computers are more than 4 years old, you should at least start thinking about replacement. If your computers are 5 years older, or more, then you should seriously think about replacement. While a mechanical failure can occur at anytime in a computer's life, the older a machine gets, the closer to failure you come. The time to replace a machine is before it breaks down, not when it breaks down. Transitioning from a working computer to a new one is much easier to accomplish than to trransistion from a non-working computer.

As always, we, here at LAN Doctor, are here to help you make these decisions and determinations to more efficieintly run your business.Feel free to give us a call, 703.356.3070, e-mail us, info@landoctor.com , or visit our web site at http://www.landoctor.com.

Mac Botnet Activated

2009-05-12T09:41:00.001-07:00

Well, the operating system that is supposed to be impervious to malware, at least according to the fanboys out there, is now hosting a botnet. You may rationally ask, what is a botnet? A botnet is a group of computers that are linked together, unknown by the users, usually by some form of malware. They communicate with a central computer, which may change, to receive their instructions, which may be nearly anything from sending out spam to participating in a denial of service attack against a network, a group of computers, or, even, a single computer that has a connection to the internet, to collecting personal information that may include user names and passwords, bank account information, and credit card information. The article I read, was published on April 17, 2009 by Network World, who garnered the information from macworld.co.uk. The malware creating this botnet was contained in two program files available via P2P (peer to peer) networks, iWork '09 and Photoshop CS4.

Subsequent readings, and notes I have found on the web mainly consist of fanboys claiming this to be merely FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) being spread by the evil foe of Apple, Microsoft, or, another unknown entity, still claiming that Macs are invulnerable. Even when confronted by others with evidence of the existence of this botnet, and earlier instances of Macs being affected by various Trojans, the merely dismiss the facts and proclaim the superiority of their chosen computing gear and OS.

For us in the PC world, what the heck does this mean? For those in the Mac world, should you be frightened and running for cover, or should you believe in the fanboy choir? Obviously, for all of us, there is one overriding lesson here. If you have the opportunity to get a piece of commercial software free for a download, be very wary of the offer. If you do not know the source of the software, avoid it as it may well be infected with some form of malware. Another lesson is that on should always protect one's equipment and software by using a good anti-virus program. This means that you need to ensure that the program is not only installed and running, but that it is being updated regularly, preferably at least once each day, and that regular scans of your machine are scheduled. These days it is much easier to prevent infection than to clean it.

One factor that is often overlooked is that while Windows users are infected with malware much more often, it is primarily because it is the dominant operating system in the world. The Mac operating systems in use make up a very small percentage—in the single digit range—of available operating systems. It is much more profitable for those who write malware to infect a Windows machine, than it is to infect a Mac. Since the advent of the much maligned Vista has been on the scene, there has been a subtle shift to using the Mac instead of a PC. The creation of this botnet may be looked upon as, perhaps, an experiment to test the waters of using Macs to elicit a payday for the creators of this botnet. If they are seen as being successful, then this will be far from being the exception, and Mac users can look to the need to be much more proactive in defense of their computing environment than they have been in the past.

Oh, and you Linux users out there, don't get yourselves into a fret, such things will eventually come to your operating system as well.

As LAN Doctor, we primarily work with PCs that run Windows, but have come to the rescue for the occasional Mac as well. Feel free to contact us with your problems, 703.356.3070.

You can read the article I mentioned at First Mac OS X botnet activated.

When Do I Replace My Computer

2009-05-01T11:39:00.001-07:00

We are faced with the question whether a computer should be replaced or not. Generally, if the computer needs repairs where the costs associated with the repair will exceed a reasonable limit, we will advise that the computer be replaced. Otherwise, one should determine a reasonable amount of time to replace computers in the place of business. Many businesses follow a plan of replacing computers on a regular schedule of 3-5 years. In some cases, it is done for technological reasons, others for tax purposes, and still others for a combination of the two. See your accountant to discuss the depreciation of your computer equipment since rules may vary from locality to locality, and, I am not an accountant.

Some may ask why they should follow a schedule; why not use the machine until it is no longer usable? One reason is that you can plan the outlay of certain amounts of money to replace the machines used in your business. Another is that the technology is always advancing, not only in the hardware arena, but in the software arena also. An unfortunate fact is that sooner or later, the software you need to use will no longer run on earlier hardware, and the hardware will need to be replaced. In other cases, the software may run slow on the hardware provided for it (often leading to complaints that the machine is slow). Older machines that have a problem may not be fixable, simply because replacement parts are no longer available, or have become very expensive to replace.

How should you go about formulating a policy? This is a very good question. A policy would need to be crafted to meet your needs as a business, so, there is not a one size fits all kind of policy. We have worked for many years with a non-profit group that has about 35 users, though that number has varied over the years. They buy a certain number of new machines each year, as well as a new server to replace the oldest server they have. The new machines go to a group, different each year, based on the age of their current machine and their ranking in the organization. The machines that are replaced are then re-imaged and passed along to those in the next tier, and those machines are repurposed to the lowest tier. The machines that no longer have a home are eventually disposed, some by being sold to the employees of the organization, and some living on as emergency replacements.

This may not work for you, if you have four employees. In that case, you may want to replace one machine each year, or maybe replace them all every 4 or 5 years. Your policy would need to take into account your business needs and your particular situation.

We will be able to help you to determine your policy for your business as well as providing current recommendations for the machines to be purchased as replacements. You can then purchase the machines on your own, or we can work with you to supply the new machines. If you need help of this kind, please do give LAN Doctor a call, or drop us an e-mail addressed to support@ladoctor.com.

New On Conficker

2009-04-14T15:00:00.001-07:00

Now, one stop can give you an idea if you are infected by Conficker. This web page was designed by the Conficker Working Group. Just go to the page and scroll down. If you see all six images presented at the start of the page, you are probably not infected. However, if you are missing images, scrolling down will explain what this means to you, and whether it means that you may be infected by Conficker.

Conficker Eye Chart.

The Conficker Working Group is a group of security professionals who have been working to slow the spread and eventually eradicate Conficker. The page referenced above was created by Joe Stewart of SecureWorks. If you would like to learn more about Conficker, visit the Conficker Working Group.

Conficker Now At Work

2009-04-10T07:41:00.001-07:00

The first sightings of the Conficker malware at work have occurred. It is pushing fake anti-virus/spyware software that claims to have found malware on your machine (Spyware Protect 2009) and for a mere $49.95 one can download the software to clean the purported infection. Of course, the software does nothing but remove the annoying pop-ups and other tricks used to get you to pay, and the cyber thieves now have your money.

Conficker has also been observed downloading and installing a mass e-mailer that makes your machine part of another botnet that is linked with data theft.

Just how concerned should you be? If you keep up with the Microsoft updates and patches, as well as keeping your anti-virus protection up to date, you probably have nothing to worry about. Conficker depends on a security vulnerability in Windows that Microsoft patched last year. All the major anti-virus vendors have the means to detect and remove Conficker. If you wish to do a simple test, open your Internet Explorer click Tools | Windows Update which should bring you to the Microsoft update site. If you reach it, you are probably not infected. You can also try to reach the major A/V vendors web sites, www.trendmicro.com, www.symantec.com, and/or www.mcafee.com. Successfully reaching these sites will indicate that you are probably not infected. The actual infection rate in the US has been variously estimated at between 4 and 6%, not a very high rate, but that includes millions of computers.

If you would like some expert help to assess your systems and their vulnerability to malware, please give LAN Doctor, Inc. a call at 703.356.3070 or e-mail us.

Make Internet Explorer More Secure

2009-04-09T10:37:00.001-07:00

Adapted from an article found at Network World dated 03/23/2009, authored by Bill Brenner, CSO.

Despite sometimes severe security holes found in versions of Internet Explorer (IE), it is the most widely used browser today. Here are some tips to help make IE more secure. As you go through this list and make the suggested changes, note what you are changing, and what the previous setting was before you change the setting. This way, if one of the changes disables the functionality of a frequently visited site, you can change the setting back to the original setting to restore this functionality.

XPS Documents: XPS documents are a new image format that Microsoft introduced with Vista. Images are a favorite attack vector, so the fewer image formats the browser supports, the better your chances are of having a safe browsing experience.

Font Downloads: Some web sites use fonts that may not be available on all machines that will be used to view the site. To enable visitors to the site to see the site as designed, they have enabled the site to download, to your machine, a font that you do not have. These files may contain vulnerabilities that enable attackers to reach your machine. Unless you often view web sites using another language, you really do not need the availability of this feature.

Click on Tools | Internet Options | Security Tab | Internet Zone | Custom and disable Font Download.

File Path for Upload: When you upload files to a service, such as Flickr or Shutterfly for your photos, the whole file path can be exposed to any intermediate party in the path from your machine to the web site. This path can, possibly, expose information, such as your user name, that could be of use to a hacker. The web site does not need the whole path to your local file, but just the filename. To disable this:

Click on Tools | Internet Options | Security Tab | Internet Zone | Custom and disable Include local file directory path when uploading files to a server.

Disable Prompting: If you, like many people, even those, like you, who know better, are prone to just click yes when a pop-up is displayed asking a yes/no question, just disable all such instance that will cause this prompt to appear.

Click on Tools | Internet Options | Security Tab | Internet Zone | Custom and scroll through the whole list presented. You will see the "Prompt" action displayed in many sections. Where the Prompt option is available, just set the action to disable. Generally, there is no downside to this action, but, perhaps one of your favorite sites needs to run an Active-X program or a script that you have disabled. As I mentioned above, and this is really important here, make a list of what you are changing and what the change was that you made. You can refer to this list if a site or two no longer function as you need them to.

SSL 2.0 Support: SSL 2.0 (Secure Sockets Layer) was released in 1995. In 1996, it was superseded by SSL 3.0, with improved security features. If a site accepts nothing other than SSL 2.0, you can be fairly certain that it is up to no good, and should be avoided. Turning off SSL 2.0 will enable you to avoid any such sites that may pose such a hazard.

Click on Tools | Internet Options | Advanced Tab and uncheck Use SSL 2.0

TLS Support: TLS 1.0 (Transport Layer Security) is the next in the evolutionary line started with SSL. If this protocol is offered by the web site you are visiting, it should be used. To ensure it is:

Click on Tools | Internet Options | Advanced Tab and check Use TLS 1.0.

Disable Searching from the Address Bar: I don't know about you, but it drives me batty when I mistype a web address and I am redirected to a search site. I know where I want to go, I just cannot type <g>. If you are also driven nuts by this behavior, you can put a stop to it and prevent the possibility of divulging any private information about yourself:

Click on Tools | Internet Options | Advanced Tab | Search from the address bar and select Do not search from the address bar.

Add-ons: It seems that every program you install on your computer, and even some web sites themselves, want to add something to your browser. I've seen browsers on other's desktops where the toolbars seem to take up more screen real estate than the viewing window of the browser. In fact, some of these add-ons can be deleterious to your browsing experience and may even affect other functions on your computer. Sometimes, you cannot easily discern what should be left alone and what can safe3ly be disabled. You need to peruse the list of add-ons that will be presented to you to determine what is no longer being used, or serves no purpose for you.

Click on Tools | Internet Options | Programs Tab | Manage Add-ons to see the list and disable those you do not need.

If you are in the Metropolitan Washington, DC, area, and need help with your network and/or computers and printers, contact us via email or give us a call at 703 356 3070. Visit our web site.

Welcome to our Blog

2009-04-09T07:48:00.001-07:00

On behalf of LAN Doctor, Inc. I'd like to welcome you to our blog. We hope to present you with information that is relevant to you in the feeding and care of your computers and networks.

If you are in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, and you do need help, please send us an e-mail at info@landoctor.com, or give us a call at 703 356 3070. We specialize in serving the small business and small non-profit market in this area. Our services include repair and maintenance of computers, servers, printers, and scanners. We also perform network administration. We offer remote support, when possible. To learn more about our company, visit our website at LAN Doctor, Inc.

We hope you find this blog helpful and informative, and, of course, keep us in mind when you need our service.