Vista Previous Versions, A High Level Overview

It really should not be difficult to fully understand the Volume Shadow Copy/Restore point/Previous Versions/backup capabilities of Windows Vista.  Sadly it takes allot of research and hands on use to piece together how they all interact.  This post sheds some light on the Previous Versions piece.

First things first, Previous Versions is not a record of all changes made to a file. Your File System must be NTFS in order to use Volume Shadow Copy.  Restore points and Shadow Copies are stored in the System Volume Information Folder.  In some instances Previous Versions might be able to help you if a file was accidentally overwritten or deleted or damaged.

Microsoft documentation states that in Vista, Only Windows Vista Business, Windows Vista Enterprise, and Windows Vista Ultimate editions support previous versions of files.  However it seems only the GUI is not in the other versions and you can use the following tool to access it  http://www.shadowexplorer.com/

In Vista SP1 the following command line commands can be used.  Be sure to run cmd as administrator.

VSSADMIN followed by one of the following arguments.

List Providers        – List registered volume shadow copy providers
List Shadows          – List existing volume shadow copies
List ShadowStorage    – List volume shadow copy storage associations
List Volumes          – List volumes eligible for shadow copies
List Writers          – List subscribed volume shadow copy writers
Re-size ShadowStorage  – Re-size a volume shadow copy storage association

The following Microsoft FAQ on Previous Versions will show you how to enable and use previous versions.  http://windowshelp.microsoft.com/Windows/en-us/help/afb7ed89-ed63-4e07-a482-d7004a8f40121033.mspx#EXD

WINDOWS 7 PC SafeGuard

Did you know Windows 7 includes a nifty feature called PC SafeGuard.  You can protect your computer from your kids or guests who might install unwanted programs.  Basically changes made to the computer from a protected  account disappear after you reboot.   So what do you do if you have Windows XP or Vista?  You can purchase a program like Clean Slate or you can download for free from Microsoft Steady State.  Check it out. http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/sharedaccess/default.mspx

CBO Guest Post WUBI/Ubuntu Flash Install Issue

Guest Post below is from CBO

In a previous post from Ralph, he experienced having trouble installing Adobe Flash on his newly installed WUBI Ubuntu Linux. Being a first time Ubuntu user he tried the steps that work on Windows. He attempted to download Adobe Flash from the Adobe website and got an error message saying Adobe flash could not be found. And I must admit that this would of worked for most Linux distribution. However, Ubuntu wants to make installation easy, secure and consistent with its method of software delivery. In this particular case, it did not work as planned. The problem had to do with the desktop network connection. I had previously tested Ralph’s installation in a lab environment using a wired desktop connection and was successful in installing Adobe Flash without updating the 244 packages. I then posted my results which prompted Ralph to reveal that his desktop had a wireless connection to the network. The reason why this is important is because Ubuntu towards the end of the installation process connects to its repositories (a repository is an on-line library of a Linux distribution’s approved software) so that it can know about all the freely available software on-line. Within this repository exists the adobe flash plugin which is not available on the Ubuntu CDROM or WUBI initial install. However, the update to the repository never happened because Ubuntu is looking for a wired connection at the end of the installation process. It therefore fails and Ubuntu is installed without checking the repository. To remedy this problem all that is needed is to initiate an update to the Ubuntu repository. Make sure you are connected wirelessly to an access point with Internet access. You can then click on System > Administration > Update Manager > Check button. This will sync the on-line repository on your wireless desktop which will help Ubuntu locate the Adobe Flash plugin. You don’t need to install the 244 updates but it is recommended as you would like to have the latest security updates, feature upgrades, and driver enhancements on your newly Ubuntu desktop. Ubuntu update manager will maintain all installed software and will automatically prompt you when a new version has been tested and is available for upgrade. This includes drivers for your computer hardware and printers. At this point you can close the Update Manager without installing the 244 updates. You can now launch firefox and navigate to a website that uses flash. It will prompt you to install the flash plugin just continue as normal and it will work. Remember to close firefox and relaunch it after the plugin installs and Happy Ubuntu computing.

Ubuntu Experience Part 1

In my previous post I describe what I used to install ubuntu. For this post I will tell you what my first experience was using ubuntu.  Logging into ubntu and setting up my Wifi connection was extremely easy.  I was on the Internet within a minute of logging onto ubuntu.  I logged onto wordpress and posted my previous blog.  Then the problems started.  I noticed that the portion of wordpress that required flash was not working.  There was an information bar across the screen that did inform me I needed to install a plug-in for the page to display properly.  I clicked the download button and there began my 3 hour odyssey of trying to get flash player installed.  I’ll spare you all the details of what I tried and tell you what I needed to do in order to get it installed.  At some point I noticed a “sun” icon with an arrow pointing down on the panel.  When I clicked it I was notified there were 244 updates.  I installed all 244 updates and then tried the flash install again.  Success!  I was able to install Flash player.  Lesson Learned — install all updates after installing an operating system.  It will save you time!

WUBI — The easy way to Install Ubuntu

For over 20 years I have used the Microsoft operating systems exclusively.  However, now I have made the decision to check out ubuntu.  There are many ways to run ubuntu,  Inside a VM, USB Drive, CD etc…  I opted for installing it “inside” VISTA using WUBI.  In 15 min it was installed and I did not have to do anything, it installed its self.  Now when I boot my computer I see a boot menu and can choose Vista or Ubuntu.  So far I find ubuntu intuitive.  I posted this latest entry by  booting into ubuntu and accessing wordpress with firefox  Over the next few weeks I will use ubuntu and blog about my experiences as a Windows only guy using ubuntu.

Here is the link if you would like to install ubuntu inside windows.  http://wubi-installer.org/

How Secure are External Backup Drives?

Over the past few days I have taken a closer look at an external hard drive backup solution for personal computers.  In the past I have not recommended the use of these devices for use in an “open” office because they are soooo easy to steal.  However after my experience with a Maxtor OneTouch 4 Plus I have changed my mind.  

My enlightenment happened by accident.  I received a Maxtor OneTouch 4 Plus from a department that did not have a need for it.  Before reappropriating it I wanted to test it and wipe it clean.  After connecting it to my computer via a usb cable it was recognized by the system but a drive letter was not assigned.  I went into disk manager to try and partition it or format it but to no avail.  It turns out the hard drive was password protected and in simplest terms was not writable so I could not easily wipe the drive.  To wipe the password protected drive you need to use the maxtor manager software that comes preloaded on the drive.  Since I did not have access to the drive I looked to download it from the Internet — to no avail.  Seagate does not provide it on the website for download.  I had to open a service ticket via email providing my information and the serial number of the drive.  To my amazement I received an email response the next day, a Saturday no less, with all the information I needed to access the password protected download.  The Maxtor manager software install was easy and it was intuitive to use.  It took over 2.5 hours to wipe the drive.  I suspect it took so long because it was a true wipe,  rendering the data unretrievable.  I will try to recover the data to prove this point. 

I must say my opinion of these devices has changed.  They can be a very secure solution to backup your data if configured properly.  But what happens if there is a fire or flood?  Then you loose both your computer and the backup.  If you are backing up mission critical data, iosafe might be the solution for you.  Here is the url if you want to check it out.  http://www.iosafe.com/

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Part 2

I ran Malwarebytes on two computers I use everyday and fortunately it found zero objects infected.   A few people in my office ran it on three computers that are shared by Student Aids on our help desk.  I was expecting that we would find  many objects to be infected.  To my surprise 1 computer had no infections and the other two had only a few.  I assume our infection count is kept to a minimum by our security appliances.  Good for us but bad for the testing I needed to accomplish.  Then a made to order test came my way via my father in-law.  He had the MSAV 2009 Rogue Security Program on his computer even though the computer had the latest Symantec antivirus definitions installed.

I installed and ran Malwarebytes anti-malware and started with the  full scan option.  An hour passed and it was up to 100,000 objects scanned when I stopped it.  I restarted the scan but this time I used the fast scan option.  It froze at about 20,000 objects scanned.  I restarted the computer and selected the fast scan option again and it froze once again, this time much sooner.  I restarted the computer in safe mode and this time the fast scan ran to completion.  It detected and deleted the rouge application in two files.  I restarted the computer, uninstalled Symantec and installed AVAST antivirus.  Note, this is the first time I am using AVAST.  Maybe my next post will be on AVAST antivirus.  I ran Avast and it found and deleted two more files that were infected.  Even though Malwarebytes froze twice, Overall I am  happy with  Malwarebytes Anti-malware  and recommend using it.

Malwarebytes Free Anti-Malware remover

First I want to thank Jose Ramirez for getting me started with using wordpress.  I also want to thank Sami Baig for inspiring this first Blog.  Sami introduced me to a product from MALWAREBYTES Corporation called “malwarebytes anti-malware”.   The claim  is “Malwarebytes’ Anti-Malware is an anti-malware application that can thoroughly remove even the most advanced malware.”  Malwarebytes has both free and paid versions of the software.    The full version includes realtime protection, scheduled scanning, and scheduled updating.  I will be testing the free version and will give an update of myfindings in a few days.  If you want to check it out — http://www.malwarebytes.org/products.php