March 2009

Site Hints | Shop Hours

Clean it up!

Newsletter Index

A quick reminder...

Steve will be unavailable the first week in March.  Scheduled days off and other information available here.

Annandale Expo --top

That time of year again!  The Annandale Expo is April 18th at the high school - map. 
More information about the Annandale Expo here.

Hope to see you there!

Drive-by Infections --top

More and more we are seeing drive-by malware problems such as "A360" slipping by the antivirus applications, and there is no particular antivirus at fault.  All of them have been ignoring this type of malware. 

This type of infection can be difficult to completely clean up and in some cases, it is necessary to format the drive and reinstall Windows from scratch.  See factory recovery below... 

The latest updates from Microsoft (Feb 11th) may address some of these issues, so be sure to do a manual Windows update and get all available security updates.  Be aware, some of these new updates may be over 200Mb and will take time to download.

Note to dialup users, this size can take something between 12 and 18 hours to complete!  It may be worthwhile taking the computer someplace where these updates can be done on DSL... 

Wondering about download time?  Here's a nice little download calculator.

Mac OS X

Contrary to popular belief, the Mac operating system is not exempt from Internet infections and problems.  Apple has released dozens of security updates, so be sure they get installed on your computer.  More information.

Other drive infections

External and flash (thumb) drives can transport viruses.  If you use an external or flash drive on multiple computers, or are sharing those devices with others, be sure to scan them for viruses on a regular basis!  Certainly after they are used on another machine...

Hardware firewall

Because of increasing problems on the Internet, we are recommending high speed (DSL) users install a hardware firewall.  If you currently have a wired or wireless router, you are likely behind a firewall already.   

If your computer plugs directly into the ISP's device, contact your provider to see if their device contains a strong firewall.  If not, get a router!  Routers with a firewall are fairly inexpensive and relatively easy to install. 

Note: Hardware firewalls do not exempt your computer from having up-to-date antivirus and software firewall applications. 

Factory Recovery  --top

After a virus, a corruption of Windows or just to improve performance, it is often necessary to do a factory recovery. 

Be aware, doing a factory recovery will delete all of your data, settings, programs and updates installed since the computer was new!  Be sure to save all important data* on a CD or an external drive before attempting the recovery. 

*It is not possible to save or back up applications/programs. 
They will need to be reinstalled from the original source.

After doing the factory recovery but BEFORE you pull your data back, get all available Windows Security updates and install and update an antivirus application!

Note: Here is where that hardware firewall comes in handy.  If you are on DSL but not behind a hardware firewall, the computer can become infected before you get a chance to install and update the antivirus application! 

Once you have saved whatever data you want to another device, factory recoveries are fairly simple...

Most computers now come with a built-in recovery partition, so recovery CDs are not needed.  On these machines the hard drive contains the necessary files to rebuild the computer to factory condition.  Older computers require the restoration CDs as supplied by the manufacturer. 

CD recovery systems

If the computer does not have a built-in recovery system, you will need to "boot to" the system recovery CD.  To do so, turn the computer on, open the CD drive door, insert the restoration or Windows operating system CD and reboot the computer.  Then, depending on the manufacturer and recovery system, watch for the prompt and boot to the recovery CD.

Some machines offer a boot device menu (typically F12) where you can select the boot device, e.g., CD Rom, Hard drive, etc.  If you do not see any prompt, you may have to enter the BIOS settings, look for the boot order and make the CD the first boot device.

Once you are booting to the CD, read and follow the prompts.  If you are booting to a Windows operating system CD:

• You will be prompted to press "R" to repair* or Enter to install Windows. 
  Press Enter to do the install. 

• Press F8 on the agreement. 

• Press Escape to skip the repair mode and from there follow the prompts...  

We recommend deleting the existing Windows partition, then recreate and format that partition. More information.  

Note: If you have RAID or SCSI drives there are special steps you need to take.  Consult the manufacturer's knowledgebase for more information. 

*The Repair mode can be used to resolve some blue screen boot issues where you log on to the boot drive (C:) and at the prompt, type chkdsk /r

Built-in restoration

Common system recovery keys for the built-in restoration systems are listed below.  You need to press the key(s) immediately after starting the computer.  Many computers list the key combination for a second or two on startup, but you have got to be quick... 

• The F10 key is very common, where you continuously tap F10 immediately after starting the machine.

• For some Dell (laptop) products you must HOLD Ctrl and F11 then after the computer beeps, release both keys at the same time.

• Some HP and Compaq products use the F11 key.

• Vista machines mostly use the F8 key where you will have various choices to repair, Windows restore, diagnose, test components, factory recovery, etc.

After doing a factory recovery, be sure to get all
available Windows Security updates and service packs!

If you do not have recovery CDs and even with a built-in recovery system...

Some manufacturers do not ship recovery CDs, instead you have to create them.  Look under the Programs list for a recovery CD creation utility.  If you do not have that utility and do not have the original CDs, the manufacturer may sell you new CDs.  With the serial and model number handy, call the manufacturer's support line and request the kit.

We highly recommend creating or obtaining restoration CDs
even if you are not having problems with the computer!

Norton 360 --top

If you have Norton 360 and it is showing a problem, it could be due to the backup settings.  Open 360 and if it is a backup problem you can simply turn that notification off if desired.  Hover over the big Backup button, click View Details then at the bottom of that window, click Turn off notification.

But as we have mentioned in the past, we would much rather see you under Norton Internet Security, not Norton 360...

Networking and the Internet --top

• Have or setting up a local network? 

• Having network issues?

• Perhaps you are having problems with the Internet not connecting to some sites... 

This article should help.  Includes both Windows XP and Windows Vista information.
~10 pages with images...

Have a Mini/Slim Tower?  --top

These very small cases seem to have more of a problem with lint build-up than the larger cases.  Here's how to clean them out...

Quick Links...  --top

Mommy's helper video

Can We Push Some Of The Stimulus To Cover Economic Education?