Kortech Services » Windows Vista

Beware Of The System Check Trojan

okorioth — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:23:28 +0000

Lately in the last couple of months I’ve seen this infection making the rounds, and it is a nasty one. The System Check virus/Trojan, part of the FakeHDD family of infections is a fake computer analysis and optimization program designed to look like your Windows system is failing and that you need to purchase their software in order to fix it. The method of infection varies but most likely came from a deceptive pop-up ad that may appear as regular a Windows notification with links which look like buttons reading Yes and No. (Maybe its time to get yourself off Internet Explorer and use Firefox or Chrome with a pop up blocker.) On top of that, this Trojan wreaks havoc on your hard drive by removing all program shortcuts, blanking your desktop and basically hiding all files on the hard drive, including on secondary drives installed in the machine (I’m not sure about external drives but I’m assuming so). You’ll know there’s a problem immediately with your machine. The window that pops up looks like this:

There’s a great write up on BleepingComputer.com on how to get rid of this bug. Frankly, its my opinion there’s no way to really be sure that the machine in question is ever truly going to be the same again. So I would recommend that a format and reinstall is the only way to ensure that this Trojan has been removed. Before doing so you should move any data off the machine you need to save. Don’t worry, the files are still there you just need to unhide them again. You can do so either manually via Folder Options or as this web site instructs download the unhide.exe program to do it for you. Yes I know this is going to be a pain, you did have a good backup didn’t you?

Reminder: Windows Vista Service Pack 1 Support Has Ended

okorioth — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 13:51:31 +0000

Wait..you still run Windows Vista? Hopefully not Service Pack 1 still right? You should move to Windows 7 regardless..a much nicer experience. But for those of you who like to hang on to old stuff, Microsoft recently announced that Service Pack 1 support has ended. So you better upgrade via Windows Update or download to the latest, Service Pack 2 ASAP! How do you find out which service pack you are running? Easy enough! Click on the Start Button (the bubble thingy on the bottom left), in the search box type ‘winver’ without the quotes hit enter and voila! A box will pop open displaying the version of Windows you are running.

Microsoft Releases Massive Batch of Security Updates For October

okorioth — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 02:32:24 +0000

Its the second Tuesday of the month, and that of course means in the Microsoft camp its patch Tuesday. And what a whopper this one is, in fact its the largest amount of patches ever released at one time. The range of patches pretty much covers almost every major product line, from Windows, Server, SQL, Office and even the yet unreleased Windows 7. So I strongly urge everyone to take the time to install these updates. More info on these flaws can be found here.

Windows Vista Service Pack 2 now available

okorioth — Tue, 26 May 2009 16:27:11 +0000

For those of you who can’t wait to dive into new releases from Microsoft, Vista users can now download service pack 2 directly from Microsoft ahead of the scheduled Updates rollout (happening sometime next month).

32 bit is here

64 bit is here

So what does this do? Upgrade to Windows 7? Uhm..not quite sorry. This is primarily a bug fix release, and most of the improved items are happening under the hood. Some notable changes in this Service Pack are:

SP2 includes ability to record data to Blu-Ray Disc media.
SP2 integrates the Windows Vista Feature Pack for Wireless, which contains support for Bluetooth v2.1 and Windows Connect Now (WCN) Wi-Fi Configuration. Bluetooth v2.1 is the most recent specification for Bluetooth wireless technology.
SP2 improves performance for Wi-Fi connections after resuming from sleep mode.
SP2 includes Windows Search 4.0

The full list of changes can be found here. Happy downloading!

So long Windows XP, thanks for all the fish

okorioth — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 16:37:47 +0000

OK, so the overwhelming reaction to Microsoft’s latest operating system has been, well lets say less than stellar. As of June 30th, Windows XP is no longer a viable purchase option for consumers (although there are other ways to get it). The vast majority of computers bought online from Dell or on retail shelves all come with Vista, which for the most part should function just fine for you, as long as your peripherals and older software still work with it. The new user interface may take some getting used to, and its security features are much better than in XP, as long as they don’t get in the way. I could go on with all the problems people have experienced with Vista, even after Service Pack 1 came out.

But, most people can’t stand it, case in point my father in law. I get a lot of questions on how revert back to Windows XP. Unless you already have an install disc, and provided that the computer has driver support you could remove Vista and install XP. But as time goes on, and the fact XP is no longer available on retail shelves this will be harder to do. PC manufacturers will eventually stop developing hardware that is XP compatible. Can you find a driver for your newer printer thats for Windows 98 anywhere? Yeah, though so.

So what is one to do? Either you wait until the next version of Windows (possibly out in 2010) which is no guarantee thats any better than Vista or you could even try ditching Microsoft all together. My earlier post about cloud computing is making whatever your platform of choice irrelevant. You could make the jump over to Apple, which makes a strong product. But for me thats just too pricey, and then you get stuck in the Steve Jobs school of obsoletion every time a new product comes out eventually you are forced to upgrade. I’m not an Apple hater by any means but the hardware lock in really limits the choices for options.

I would propose that now is a great time to make the move over to Linux. Its free, the installation process is now very user friendly and it works an all sorts of hardware. There are so many choices to choose from, but I would recommend checking out Ubuntu, Open Suse and Fedora. Sure, there is a bit of a learning curve to using it but once installed its very robust and easy to use. I have been running the latest Ubuntu in dual boot mode on my laptop since May. I have to say, I find myself going into Ubuntu now more than the Windows side. It incredible how fast this laptop comes online compared to XP. Within two minutes I’m surfing the web via wireless. I have to wait forever for XP to do the same, and if Vista were installed? Forget it!

I have all the apps I need, a browser, email, an office program. Heck I don’t really need much else as most of it is web based now anyway. I enjoy the same Firefox browser program as I do in Windows with all the same plugins. And if eye candy is your thing, Gnome and KDE both come with loads of it. Even more so than in Windows Aero glass. Linux could definitely become a major 3rd party choice if more people knew about it and could just break away from the Microsoft habit.

Windows XP, you’ve had a good run but its time to move on. Sorry Vista we’re just not meant for each other and I’m open to exploring other relationships. No, its not you, its me! Please don’t call me anymore.

Windows Vista SP1 now public

okorioth — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 19:02:53 +0000

Paul Thurrott just posted on his blog that the much awaited Windows Vista Service Pack 1 is now available for public download. For those of you who are adventurous you can get it from the MS Download center (32bit or 64bit). These are fairly large downloads it looks like so low bandwidth folks should expect this could take a while to get. The 32bit is 434 mb and 64 bit clocks in at a whopping 762mb.

UPDATE: Its been widely reported that some installations are breaking peoples systems. So install at your own risk!