I bet you don't know this.

Task Manager Has Been Disabled, How to Fix It?

2008-05-30T04:37:00.000-07:00

Many times when working on a computer that has been infected with a virus, trojan, or piece of spyware I find myself with the Task Manager being disabled. Malware creators like to disable Task Manager so it makes solving the problem and removing the issue difficult.

If this happens you'll normally have to edit the Windows registry to fix the problem. A restriction has been placed on the user to not allow them to run Task Manager, this might be ok in an office environment where the IT department wants to control things, but in a home office this can cause major problems trying to fix a malware or virus issue.

Listed below you will find the many ways to reenable Task Manager along with an automatic method that works wonders.

To open the Task Manager, you normally would do one of the following:

* Press CTRL-ALT-DEL on the keyboard
* Press CTRL-SHIFT-ESC on the keyboard
* Right-click on a blank area on the start bar and choose Task Manager
* Click on Start, Run and type TASKMGR in the run box and press Enter

Sometimes instead of Task Manager opening you'll see the following screen. In these cases, you'll have to follow the methods below to re-enable access to the Task Manager.
Task Manager has been disabled by your administrator

First we'll begin with the various registry modification methods for correcting this problem.

Method 1 - Using the Group Policy Editor in Windows XP Professional

1. Click Start, Run, type gpedit.msc and click OK.
2. Under User Configuration, Click on the plus (+) next to Administrative Templates
3. Click on the plus (+) next tSystem, then click on Ctrl+Alt+Delete Options
4. Find Remove Task Manager in the right-hand pane and double click on it
5. Choose the option "Not Configured" and click Ok.
6. Close the Group Policy Window

Method 2: Change the Task Manager Option through the Run line

1. Click on Start, Run and type the following command exactly and press Enter

REG add HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System /v DisableTaskMgr /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f

Method 3: Change Task Manager through a Registry REG file

1. Click on Start, Run, and type Notepad and press Enter
2. Copy and paste the information between the dotted lines into Notepad and save it to your desktop as taskmanager.reg

------------------------------------
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System]
"DisableTaskMgr"=dword:00000000
-------------------------------------

3. Double click on the taskmanager.reg file to enter the information into the Windows registry

Method 4: Delete the restriction in the registry manually

1. Click on Start, Run, and type REGEDIT and press Enter
2. Navigate to the following branch

HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Policies\ System

3. In the right pane, find and delete the value named DisableTaskMgr
4. Close the registry editor

Method 5: Download and Run FixTaskManager program

1. Click on the following links and download the program FixTaskManager to your Desktop

Main Site

Backup Location
2. Double-click on the file FixTaskManager on your desktop and run it

How to delete undeletable files?

2008-05-21T21:24:00.000-07:00

Many times when trying to remove an unwanted program, especially a piece of adware or spyware, you may run across a file that is undeletable by any normal method.

When you try to remove it you'll receive the error message shown below telling you "access denied" and explaining the file may be in use.

You may also receive one of the following messages.

Cannot delete file: Access is deniedThere has been a sharing violation.

The source or destination file may be in use.The file is in use by another program or user.

Make sure the disk is not full or write-protected and that the file is not currently in use.

So if the file is in use, how do you delete it?I'll show you several ways of removing these types of files and even some freeware programs that help you remove these pesky undeletable files. Windows 95/98/MEIf you are using Windows 95, 98, or Windows ME, the easiest way to remove an undeleteable file is to boot to a DOS prompt and manually delete the file. Before you do this, you'll want to make a note of the location of the file including the entire path to it.

Follow the steps below to delete these types of files.

If you already know the path to the file, please skip to Step 7

Click on Start, Find, Files and Folders Type the name of the undeletable file in the Named or Search For box Make sure the Look In box shows the correct drive letter Click on Find Now or Search Now and let the computer find the file Once the file is located, right-click on it and choose properties, make a note of the file location.

Usually this is something similar to c:\windows\system32\undeleteablefilesname.exeClose the search box Locate a boot disk for your version of Windows, if you do not have a boot disk, follow the steps on the link below to create an emergency boot disk.How to Create an Emergency Boot Disk for WindowsShut down and restart your computer with the boot disk in your floppy drive. The computer will boot to a DOS prompt that will look similar to c:\Type the following command and press Enter to delete the filer, substituting the phrase with the actual path and file name you discovered in Step 5 above.

del Example: del c:\windows\undeleteablefile.exeRemove the boot disk in the floppy drive and restart your computer The file should now be deleted.

Windows XPIn Windows XP, there are a couple ways to remove an undeleteable file, a manual way, and a couple automated ways using some freeware programs. First, I'll show you the manual way.

Manual MethodIf you already know the path to the file, please skip to Step 7Click on Start, Search, All Files and Folders Type the name of the undeletable file in the box shown Make sure the Look In box shows the correct drive letter Click Search and let the computer find the file Once the file is located, right-click on it and choose properties, make a note of the file location. Usually this is something similar to c:\windows\system32\undeleteablefilesname.exeClose the search box Click on Start, Run, and type CMD and Press Enter to open a Command Prompt window Leave the Command Prompt window open, but proceed to close all other open programs Click on Start, Run and type TASKMGR.EXE and press Enter to start Task Manager Click on the Processes tab, click on the process named Explorer.exe and click on End Process.

Minimize Task Manager but leave it open Go back to the Command Prompt window and change to the directory where the file is located.

To do this, use the CD command.

You can follow the example below.Example: to change to the Windows\System32 directory you would enter the following command and Press Entercd \windows\system32Now use the DEL command to delete the offending file. Type DEL where is the file you wish to delete.

Example: del undeletable.exeUse ALT-TAB to go back to Task Manager In Task Manager, click File, New Task and enter EXPLORER.EXE to restart the Windows shell. Close Task ManagerPrograms to automatically delete a fileRemove on Reboot Shell ExtensionThis is a nice extension that loads into the right click menu.

All you have to do is right-click on a file and choose "Remove on Next Reboot" and the file will be deleted the next time the computer restarts. Although it probably should only be used by more advanced computer users since it may be TOO easy to delete files using this program.

Pocket KillboxA simple .exe file that you can use to delete undeleteable files, although the program will also delete temporary files, edit the HOSTS file, and more.

A definite must have program when you are fighting an annoying spyware or adware program that won't remove. UnlockerUnlocker is another program that runs from the right click menu. Its simple and very effective.

The website even has a side by side comparision of other programs that accomplish this task. Using one of the three tools shown above, you should be able to remove those annoying undeleteable files once and for all.

What is thumbs.db?

2008-05-08T21:45:00.000-07:00

I'm sure everyone using Windows XP has seen a small file in some directories called thumbs.db. This file is a cache of the thumbnail pictures in a directory. It speeds up the showing of thumbnails when you are viewing a folder in Thumbnail view.
The only drawback of the thumbs.db file is that it takes up disk space. Although this space is very small in most cases, if you have a lot of thumbs.db files littering your hard drive you may be able to save some valuable space by removing them. Follow the steps below to turn off the creation of this file and delete the thumbs.db files that are on your hard drive.To turn this feature off, do the following:

1) Open My Computer

2) Click on Tools

3) Click on Folder Options

4) Click on the View Tab

5) Place a check in the option "Do not cache thumbnails"

6) Click Ok

7) Close My Computer

Now follow the next steps to remove the thumbs.db files from your hard drive

1) Click on Start

2) Click on Search

3) Click on All Files and Folders

4) Type the following in the section called "all or part of the file name"thumbs.db

5) In the Look in box, make sure Local Hard Drives is chosen

6) Click Search

7) A long list of thumbs.db files should appear, click on Edit, Select All

8) Click on File, and choose Delete

9) Close the Search Results window

Although this tip isn't for everyone, if you are low on disk space and dont use the Thumbnail view to show your files, this may save you some valuable disk space.

Forgotten the Administrator Password

2008-03-14T02:11:00.000-07:00

I have often ran across computers that I needed to gain access to for data recovery, but I didnt have the administrator password to access the hard drive. Since in many situations, there is just one administrator account I can't log into another administrator account and change the password so I have to rely on other methods. I could put the hard drive into another computer as a slave and gain access (sometimes) or I could try installing a second copy of the operating system in parallel and gain access but there must be a better way.That way is to try to reset the administrator password to something you do know and allow you to access to the user profile and the data. In most cases, this is the best solution. However, you have to make sure the data is not encrypted using the Windows XP Encrypting File System (EFS) or other encryption. If the data is encrypted, you probably will not be able to gain access to those encrypted files by changing the administrator password.
Petter Nordahl-Hagen's Offline NT Password & Registry Editor This is absolutely one of the best free tools to reset the administrator password and gain access that I have ever used. It modifies the encrypted password in the registry's SAM file allowing you access to the account in Windows NT/2000/XP/2003/Vista systems.There is an image file to create a bootable floppy disk or bootable CD to modify the admin password and access NTFS partitions. You do not need to know the old password to set a new one. It will also offer to unlock disabled or locked user accounts (a very helpful feature). The program was just updated on April 9, 2007 to include Vista support.Please visit the site by clicking on the link below to download a CD image or floppy image of this great program.http://home.eunet.no/~pnordahl/ntpasswd/LoginRecovery.comAnother option is to decrypt the password and show you the actual administrator password. A great site for doing this is loginrecovery.com. Basically, you download a small program to extract the password from the computer, then you submit the encrypted password file to their site and they will recover the lost password. Of course, you need a computer with Internet access to upload the file and find the password. With this option, the administrator password is not changed so you wont lose access to EFS encrypted files. Visit their site by clicking belowhttp://www.loginrecovery.comAlthough there are probably other options to recover an administrator password, I find the two option shown above to be the quickest and easiest ways to either change or discover the password and allow you access to the user profile and data stored on the hard drive.

How to keep your computer Up to date?

2008-02-25T23:14:00.000-08:00

An important part of owning a personal computer is keeping your software up-to-date. Security patches, upgrades, and hotfixes need to be installed to make your computer safer while connected to the Internet. When using a computer running Microsoft Windows, this checklist can include windows, antivirus, antispyware, and firewall updates. However, for most computer users this can seem like a daunting task and I hardly ever work on a customer's computer without finding at least one missing needed update concerning hardware or software.
The Basic Updates
Windows UpdatesAt the very least, you should keep your computer up-to-date with the latest Windows security patches and updates for your operating system. Microsoft has made it fairly easy to keep everything updated by including an automatic updates feature in Windows XP and Windows Vista. Although its not always advised to install Windows updates when they are immediately released, it is a good idea to install these updates shortly after they are released. In most cases, Windows updates are created to fix security holes and vunerabilities in Windows that can be exploited by hackers to take over your computer or use it to send spam or viruses. If you don't have Windows set to automatically update, you can visit the following website to check your computer for these updates and download them.http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/Antivirus UpdatesKeeping your antivirus software up-to-date is also an important step in keeping your computer running properly while connected to the Internet. I run across many computers that have antivirus software installed, but the virus signatures have not been updated in several months or even years. Your antivirus software is only as good as the last virus signature update you have installed. If a virus was discovered yesterday, and you havent updated your antivirus product today, then you are susceptible to being infected by that particular virus. I have written step-by-step instructions for updating the virus signatures for Norton, McAfee, and Trend Micro antivirus products. Most free antivirus programs such as AVAST, AVG, and Anti-Vir check for updates on a daily basis as long as your computer is connected to the Internet.Anti-Spyware UpdatesWhether you are running Lavasoft Ad-Aware SE, Spybot Search and Destroy, Windows Defender, Webroot SpySweeper, or another antispyware product, you need to update the software regularly for it to be effective. Just like antivirus software, software to remove adware and spyware can't remove problems if it doesnt have that program in its database. Unfortunately, many of these programs don't update themselves automatically. When you open your antispyware program look for a button or tab to update the adware database and do this on a regular monthly basis before scanning your system.Firewall UpdatesMost firewall programs will prompt you that there is a newer version to download. Its always a good idea to download these updates when they become available.Other UpdatesWhat about the other programs installed on your computer, do they need to be updated to remain secure? The easy answer is yes, however most of these other programs don't automatically tell you when a new version is available. The average computer user usually doesn't have the time or the patience to check all these other installed programs and update them. However, a couple utilities have come to the rescue and provide fairly in-depth checks for insecure or outdated software.FileHippo.com's Update CheckerFileHippo.com, a software download website, released a small program to download and run on your computer that will check your machine for unpatched, outdated, and insecure versions of installed software. The program checks video drivers, software updates for java and flash, adobe acrobat reader, chat programs, and more. If Update Checker finds a problem, it will provide the name of the program as well as a link to download the latest version of the outdated software. The program gets its updates based on the software available on the FileHippo.com's website. So although its not an absolutely complete list of updates its very close. Follow the steps below to download Update Checker and run it.1) Click on the following link to download FileHippo's Update Checker to your desktop or Visit the Update Checker web page to read more.http://www.filehippo.com/updatechecker/udc.exe2) Once the Update Checker is saved to your desktop, find the UDC.EXE file and double-click on it to start scanning3) After the scan is completed, you'll be presented with a screen similar to the one shown below. Download and install any updates you wish by clicking on the link provided in the Update Checker report.

Possible errors when installing Update CheckerWhen you try to install Update Checker, you may receive the application error "The application failed to initialize properly (0xc0000135). Click on OK to terminate the application. The message is shown below:
Update Checker requires Microsoft .Net Framework 2.0 to be installed. If it is not, you will likely receive the error message shown above. To resolve this, download and install Microsoft's .Net Framework 2.0 before running Update Checker. Click on the following link to download Microsoft's .Net Framework 2.0:Download Microsoft .Net Framework 2.0
How to Check What Version of .Net Framework is InstalledIf you are wondering what version of Microsoft .Net Framework is installed on your computer, you can download the following program to check your systemhttp://www.tmgdevelopment.co.uk/versioncheck.htmSecunia's Online Software InspectorSecunia, a well known security company, has created an online checker for outdated and insecure software on your computer. Although they don't require you to download a program, the site does require java to be installed to operate properly. You can visit their Online Software Inspector by visiting the link below.http://www.secunia.com/software_inspector/If you don't have Java installed or would rather just install a program to check your system for updates, Secunia has released a beta version of Personal Software Inspector. Secunia's Personal Software InspectorAccording to their website:"The Secunia PSI detects installed software and categorises your software as either Insecure, End-of-Life, or Up-To-Date. Effectively enabling you to focus your attention on software installations where more secure versions are available from the vendors."

Personal Software Inspector detects and advises on problems with more than 4,700 applications and also provides links to updates for the affected programs. PSI installs in your Startup group to monitor your applications each time your computer boots. You can read more about PSI or download it by clicking on this link:
https://psi.secunia.com/
In many cases, these old and outdated versions that PSI finds can be removed from your computer by using the Add or Remove Programs section in Control Panel. Installing a newer version of a program (for instance Java) will leave the old version still intact and you'll have to go to Add or Remove Programs to remove the old version.
Old versions of Adobe Flash Player can sometimes be difficult to find and remove. Adobe has created an uninstaller to find a remove Flash Player. If you have old version of Flash Player installed on your computer, you may want to download the Adobe Flash Uninstaller.
FileHippo's Update Checker and Secunia's Software Inspector evaluate your installed programs based on different databases, so each finds a comparable although not identical list of outdated applications. For this reason, it may be a good idea to run both programs at first on your computer, and then settle on which one you like better.
While Secunia's Personal Software Inspector focuses on insecure and "end of life" software, FileHippo's Update Checker will check for updated versions of software as well as some hardware.In either case, these programs should become part of your monthly checklist when updating your computer and protecting yourself from threats from the outside world.
Hardware and Device Driver Updates
What about hardware updates? While software updates keep your computer from being infected or otherwise compromised, hardware updates can solve issues from computer lockups, screen freezes, and printing problems among other problems. There is a cool utility from a company called RadarSync that checks your computer against currently 90,000 updates. The free version allows you to scan your computer and shows you updates for your hardware including manufacturer and filename, but does not provide direct download links. You'll have to go to the manufacturers website and find the driver yourself. RadarSync's Premium version does provide direct download links to drivers, email notification when a new driver is available, and rollback protection when a driver doesn't work as expected.

Download and run Radarsync and check for updates now