I logged into a Linux machine running Ubuntu tonight and noticed it had a lot of updates to install. I tried several times through the GUI but it failed without an explanation as to what was wrong. So I fired up the command line and ran the update hoping to see a better explanation.
I ran the command sudo apt-get update and found the error “W: GPG error: http://packages.medibuntu.org natty InRelease: The following signatures couldn’t be verified because the public key is not available: NO_PUBKEY 2EBC26B60C5A2783” which gave me the error that I needed to search Google for help.
Could not log on to timsieved daemon on your IMAP server localhost:2000 Error Encountered: 255
This error started not lon ago on a CentOS 5.6 server and I started troubleshooting as a SquirrelMail issue but later found that an update to Cyrus must have changed the imapd.conf file.
Issue effected all users of the system.
The paths listed in the file for the tls_cert_file were now incorrect.
Symantec Antivirus was infected which left PC unprotected and the User Unaware.
Working on another Windows XP system that was brought to me with the user complaining of random shutdowns.
Cracked open the case to find one of the dirtiest computers that I have seen in a while so after a good cleaning I set it up and ran it for a few days without issue.
Wanting to be thorough I asked for login information to check out the desktop and look at the logs. What I found was a system that was not running quite right so I investigated a little further.
Items that I noticed.
Long start up time, especially for Symantec.
Once in a while on startup Symantec icon in System Tray would show an exclamation point as if something was wrong but it went away.
Some websites would not open, Windows Update, Spybot Search and Destroy, and other security related sites.
Icons missing from the desktop or not working.
Rebooted the system and started it up off AVG Rescue CD and found that a file belonging to the Symantec Antivirus program; sysplant.sys was “patched” with win32/patched.dx, and not letting the user know about the infection. I did not let AVG clean this particular file, and instead chose a different route. Instead went and researched this issue and proceeded as follows.
Remove Symantec Antivirus.
Backup the system. I made an image of system using Acronis True Image in case something goes wrong. Could have run this first but I was not going to use a corrupt install of Symantec.
Since Sysplant.sys is involved with their firewall I ran OpenVAS against the system just to double check.
Rebooted the system and started it up off AVG Rescue CD and found the file tcpip7x.sys was infected with Trojan Horse Hider.MVP. I had AVG rename the file, and restarted the system in Windows XP, verified everything was working and deleted the file.
Rebooted the system and started it up off AVG Rescue CD and this time there were no problems. Rebooted back into XP, loaded any remaining updates, updated Microsoft Security Essentials, scanned one last time and returned the computer to the customer.
The most important part is probably the backup and f you do not have the tools to do this then let someone else work on the system.
While the tools listed are free for home use they do take a lot of time to complete, but are not labor intensive. Some of these tools may require you do some research before using or to seek the help of an IT Pro.
Windows XP: Search Companion Starts If You Double-Click a Folder or My Computer Icon.
Missing options on menu when right clicking an icon.
This problem is caused by users changing settings in the Edit File Type dialog box for the Drive or File Folder registered file types. Some others have told me it can be caused by viruses and malware.
Regardless here are some of the fixes that have worked for me.
Open a command prompt and run regsvr32 /i shell32.dll. If this fails enter cd c:\windows\system32 and try again.
If you are comfortable with editing the registry:
Start Registry Editor (Regedt32.exe).
Locate and then click the Default value under the following keys in the registry if this problem occurs with folders:
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell
If this problem occurs with drives:
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\shell
Click Modify on the Edit menu.
Type none in the Value data box, and then click OK.
Setting up email with Godaddy, or most hosting providers is pretty simple as long as you follow all of the steps.
I’m not going to spend time writing a technical aritcle on setting up Outlook 2010 or any other email client as most ISP and Web Host do a great job already. See an example here at Godaddy, but I am going to point out a few places where the customer fails.
Most of the failures comes from letting Outlook attempt to configure itself which leads to errors like “The operation failed. An object could not be found” or inability to send email but you can receive email. Unless your email provider tells you to use the automated installation, then the manual setup is the route to go.
The next most common problem in setting up Outlook 2010 comes from not reading all the instructions and collecting a few key pieces of information before starting.
Setting up Outlook 2010 is simple if you get the provider information before starting. Ask questions!
What type of mail do I have? pop or imap.
What are the URL’s for the outgoing and incoming mail servers?
What ports are used?
Manual setup of Outlook 2010 is only 13 or 14 steps max, but it is step 9 and 10 that confuse most users.
Open Microsoft Outlook 2010. Click File, and then click Add Account.
At the bottom, select Manually configure server settings or additional server types, and click Next.
Select Internet E-mail, and click Next.
Enter Your Name and full E-mail Address.
If you have IMAP, select IMAP for your Account Type. If you’re not sure, stop and contact your provider.
Set Incoming mail server.
Set Outgoing mail server.
Enter your User Name (your full email address) and Password, and select Remember password.
Click More Settings.
Click the Outgoing Server tab. Select My outgoing server (SMTP) requires authentication and Use same settings as my incoming mail server.
Select the Advanced tab.
Click Next.
Outlook 2010 will test your settings. When it’s done, click Close.
7 Steps to Securing a Microsoft Windows 7 computer.
These steps can be used for a new or used system, and if you are attempting to secure an already used computer there is a chance the process could cause you to lose valuable data so first backup the computer.
Backup:
To guard against data loss a full backup or your hard drive is recommended. Windows 7 is the first version of Windows to have a truly functional backup utility built-in. To use the Windows 7 Backup and Restore function you will need some media to store your data with the most popular being a USB drive large enough to hold the whole system. MLD Services wrote an article on backing up your system.
Set restore points in Windows:
If you are attempting to secure an already used computer there is a chance that the securing process causes Windows to function incorrectly. To guard against this you should set a Restore Point. If Windows starts to behave incorrectly you can sometimes fix it by restoring to an earlier restore point.
If you are attempting to secure an already used computer there is a chance that the securing process causes malware already on the computer to make Windows function incorrectly. I personally use Microsoft Security Essentials which guards your PC against viruses, spyware, and other malicious software.
Make sure Windows Update is turned on:
Windows, like most software, has many security flaws that can be taken advantage of by malware. Many security patches are made available for Windows by Microsoft to fix these flaws. Before putting any security software on Windows you should make sure it is updated using Windows AutomaticUpdate feature.
Set your update preference:
By default Windows automatically checks for updates, downloads them, and installs them. However, Windows does have a habit of downloading and running updates at inopportune times.
Check for automatic update functions in program menus and make sure function is enabled. If no automatic update function then check software’s web site for updates or use an online service such as The Secunia Online Software Inspector. Secunia is a fast way to scan your PC for the most common programs and vulnerabilities, thus checking if your PC has a minimum security baseline against known patched vulnerabilities.
Try free or low cost DNS alternative instead of the DNS supplied by your ISP. Using OpenDNS, Symantec or other DNS service offers another layer of protection.
Microsoft which earlier promised a security update earlier this week released a temporary patch to deal with the virus, which targets victims via email with a Microsoft Word attachment.
Security researchers became aware of Duqu in October when Symantec said it had found a virus that contained code similar to Stuxnet, a piece of malicious software believed to have wreaked havoc on Iran’s nuclear program
The virus is not in the email, but in the attachment itself. A Symantec researcher said if a user opens the Word document, the attacker could take control of the PC, and nose around in an organization’s network to look for data, and the virus could propagate itself.
To learn more about Duqu visit the following sites.
“The security advisory provides a workaround that can be applied to any Windows system,” wrote Jerry Bryant of Microsoft’s Trustworthy Computing Group on the company’s blog. “To make it easy for customers to install, we have released a Fix it that will allow one-click installation of the workaround and an easy way for enterprises to deploy.”
Why you might want to switch from your Internet Service Providers name resolution servers?
Faster browsing speed, security features, and reliability.
Security is achieved through real-time block list (RBL) of harmful websites, phishing sites, malware sites, and spyware sites.
Speed can be achieved by improved latency between client and DNS resolving server, latency between resolving servers and other name servers, under provisioning or lack of server resources to handle the load, and malicious traffic.
Reliability is achieved by using techniques such as Anycast. Anycast is a network addressing and routing methodology in which datagrams from a single sender are routed to the topologically nearest node in a group of potential receivers all identified by the same destination address. Read more about Anycast on Wikipedia.
Several players in internet cloud services now offer free DNS, some antivirus and security firms also offer DNS which can include even more security features. For example Symantec’s service offers several levels of security from which you can choose.
If backing up your computer’s data is so easy to do, then why do so many companies and people fail to backup?
Here are statistics that I recently looked up concerning home users and data backups.
89.1% of home PC users do not perform regular backups.
67.1% of home PC users have lost pictures and files on their home PC.
69.2% of home PC users are most worried about losing their digital pictures.
Here are statistics that I recently looked up concerning business and data backups.
U.S. businesses lose over $12 billion per year because of data loss.
Hardware or system failure accounts for 78% of all data loss.
Human error accounts for 11% of all data loss.
As we move our personal, professional, and business to computers, laptops, tablets, and smart phones why are people not backing up their data?
Bad advice.
It has not happened to me so I will be OK.
Too busy or just forget.
Lack of technical people on staff.
This machine has run for 8 years without a problem.
Different backup media examined.
USB Flash Drives:
One device I see so many people purchase, and in my opinion is the worse device for data backup, to is the 4GB USB flash drive or what some people call a USB thumb drive.
Simply put the lack of quality backup software, the small size, and the difficulty in manually copying files, are the main reasons I think the USB flash drives are terrible choice for backup, but another reason is they are small and easy to forget about, out of site, out of mind, and no backups get done.
My advice is to save your money.
USB External Hard Drives and Network Attached Storage (NAS):
External USB hard drives or Network Attached storage units are a good choice. A lot of great software comes with these devices and can be used for multiple computers. Some of the Network Attached Storage now have multiple hard disks in configurations that offer redundancy and added data protection.
The only down side here is the data never gets taken off site, and if you were to have a fire, natural disaster, or theft then all of your data is lost.
Another plus for NAS is streaming audio, pictures, video, and file sharing.
Online Backup Solutions:
Online backup solutions from Carbonite, Norton Online Backup, Idrive, and of course My Secure Backup from MLD Services are a good option.
A lot of pluses with remote storage or online backup services.
Simple setup and then let it run.
Incremental Backups.
Multiple versions of files.
Redundant hardware so your data is safe.
More disk space when compared to USB solutions.
Off site so fire, natural disaster, and theft are not an issue.
Down side is on going cost, but with more and more of your life stored in digital format it might be worth the cost.
Have an iPhone or an iPad that you want to backup? There is an app for that!
My Secure Backup is more than an online or cloud based backup.
Computer failures, missing or stolen laptops, and corrupted files are facts of life and without a fail-safe backup, your business is exposed.
Secure Automatic Backup –
Allows users to easily backup important data to the cloud in a set-it-and-forget-it fashion.
Protect data with AES-256 encryption! The same as our Server Edition.
Multi-way Sync –
Allows users to synchronize folders on their computers with folders on a cloud-based network drive – and with folders on other computers.
Network Drive -
Gives users a secure place to store and share files as if they were already on their computers. Easily control and limit access for each user.
Backup History –
Improves the ability to restore files “as they existed” during a particular backup.
Web-based Access to Network Drive Files –
Improves the way users can access files from any web browser anywhere in the world. Access and Manage data remotely using any
Mac, Windows, or Linux computer with equal functionality on each platform.
My Secure Backup – Server Edition
My Secure Backup Server Edition is designed for organizations looking for an easy, secure, efficient way to back up and protect their Windows or Linux servers.
Home Users can get the same benefits at very competitive prices with local support.
Have an iPhone or an iPad that you want to backup? There is an app for that!
We are proud to offer this quality product, and believe this product is the best of them all,
so much in fact that we let the competition advertise here on our site, because your data is the most valuable
asset that your business owns and you should check out every solution.
So go ahead and give them a call, and then call us or fill out the form below and see who treats you right.
