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06/04/2012

Microsoft Releases “Fix It” Portable Troubleshooting Tool to Automatically Fix Windows Problems


Many times you need to fix a computer system which doesn't have Internet connection and you can't download these Fix It tools in that system to fix the problem. In such situation a new portable version of Fix It might come very handy.
Microsoft_Fixit_Logo.png
Microsoft has released a portable version of Fix It which can be carried on USB drive and then you can fix any computer system without any need of Internet connection or download several Fix It tools one by one.
To use this new portable version, first you need to download the main setup file from following link:
After downloading, run the EXE file and it'll download the full Fix It tools archive on your system. You can save the folder in any desired location or on your USB device.
It takes a few seconds in downloading the files and its a one-time process only. Once the download completes, you can run "Launch Fix it.exe" file to start Fix It portable version.
The main interface shows links to all available Fix It tools as shown in following screenshot:
Microsoft_Fix_It_Portable_Tool.png
Click on "Run Now" button given near the issue which is related to your problem and it'll automatically start the troubleshooter. Follow the instructions given by the troubleshooter and you'll be able to fix your problem.
Following are main areas which are covered by these automatic troubleshooters:
  • Aero Theme
  • Audio Playback
  • Audio Recording
  • CD/DVD
  • Codecs
  • Devices
  • Display Quality
  • Exchange Connected
  • IE Add-on
  • IE Performance
  • Maintenance
  • Malware
  • MSN Client
  • Performance
  • Pictures
  • Power
  • Printing
  • Program Install and Uninstall
  • Windows Search
  • Windows Firewall
  • Windows Files/Folders
  • Windows Media Player
  • Windows Security
  • Windows USB
  • Windows Phone 7 or Zune
  • Windows Update
All these Fix It portable troubleshooter tools are stored in "Fix it portable\Resources\Troubleshooters" folder. You can also directly run any of them from there if required.
Its really very handy portable utility which might come very useful in many situations. A must have tool to carry in your USB drive.

Unknown Awesome Notepad Funny Tricks You Might Have Missed


Here are some cool notepad tricks for you guys. Some of these are pranks, they may not work if they are pretty good with computers or you’re trying these on anyone whose background originates from computer field. Apart from these any kind of victims will do. This is just a fun article, just enjoy reading and I’m sure you’ll learn something new about notepad.

Notepad Diary :

Do you keep a diary (Or maybe a journal or something to keep a track of your daily activities and routines) Or do you wish to make notes where the notes keep the date automatically?Do you watch movies and keep a track of them??Like when you’ve watched it and stuff?? Well here is a cool trick that im gonna show you.Its upto you how you use it. All you need is notepad.
1) Open a blank notepad file.
2) Type .LOG in all caps at the top and hit enter.
3) Now save the file as you wish.
4) After closing the file, open it again and you will notice that the date & time is now listed on the second line.
5) You will also notice that the cursor is ready for you to start typing on the next line.
6) Now every time you open it, type something on the next line and then save it,close it, when you open it again, it will have automatically saved the date and time on the last line.
It keeps a running record of date and time for every save. Now you have a diary ! Have Fun !

Matrix Coding :

Next Trick that I’m gonna show you is to create similar to the Coded-Screen From the movie Matrix!! The screen where random numbers appear in the movie and a techie sits right in front of the computer and guides “Neo” through all troubles.Anyway if you don’t have an idea just have a look at the matrix screen from the following youtube link here.
Lets try to create a similar screen just by using a notepad.Just Copy paste the following code into your Notepad and save the file as Matrix.bat.”Matrix” is not necessary, you can save it with whatever name you wish but its important that you save it with .bat extension.
Here’s the code.
****************************
@echo off
color 02es
echo %random% %random% %random% %random% %random% %random% %random% %random% %random% %random%
goto start
****************************
This is nothing but usage of few simple notepad commands to create out Matrix screen.Let us understand what these commands do and how they function in brief.
Echo - Echos the screen.
Color – Displays the text content in the color that you mentioned.
:- This is similar to the “go-to” marker in C-Language. (Not a problem if you’re not experienced with C-Language. Just thought you should know)
%random – This prints a random number on the screen.
goto – this points that the function must be passed to “start” again to make it an indefinite loop.
Your screen must look something like this.

Fake Virus :

Deleting Files message to freak everyone out.
Just copy the following code and save it as a batch file like we spoke.
@echo off
cls
echo Fatal Error!! Your computer is under attack!!
pause
echo Deleting Files
pause
:files
echo !323%%%@#@GJFGG42JG 
echo !3424%@#%^&@52%@%gs 
echo !@$@^624@$6262$hG 
echo !@#4-07234&5*((6hkd 
echo !&^%78755&*%478*%$& 
echo !^$$68*$78()&4578 
echo !&8898*65$$566$68(9
goto files
If you want your victim to run this,save it in startup or you can just make him click your batch file and enjoy the look on your victim’s face.

Auto-Shutdown Code :

This is the real deal.This trick is so simple and so easy,but really leeches-out the life of even the toughest of the programmers making them wonder how to fix it.Now before you do this,just make sure this is only a prank and nothing more.I’ll tell you each and everything about this but you will have to make sure you restore the computer back to normal after using this trick. Trust me its fun,not at all dangerous.Its the kinda trick that is so easy and makes people wonder why is your computer acting so weird. Lets get started. just open notepad and type the following code.
msg * Fatal Error! Your Computer Will Shutdown in few Moments!*
shutdown -t
That’s it!!! Yep! That’s the code, as simple as it looks. Now save it as virus.bat, or anything you wish, just make sure it’s under .bat extension.Now here’s the real deal that makes this trick so annoying.Now take the batch file that you created and place it in the Windows startup.For those of you all who don’t know where startup is, no problemo! It’s in Start(Windows button on the left bottom of your screen), and there it will be, the windows startup.Just place the batch file in it and your trick is set to play a prank on your victim. The next time you switch on your computer your computer will look for the files in the startup directory and run them!! when your batch file is executed. It will display a message
“Fatal Error! Your Computer Will Shutdown in few Moments! “
You will next get a message box with a count-down for shutdown of your computer.You will have just a minute to remove the batch file from the startup directory to stop this from running again.Unless and until the file is removed from the startup . Your computer will shutdown every time you turn it on!! So don’t forget to remove the file from the startup directory. Just remember use this trick for fun purposes only( or you can use it in your college if you hate your lecturers, Because that’s what I do. :P Psssst,keep it a secret). Anyway I guess you have understood everything clearly.The outcomes of this trick is solely your responsibility.Have Fun!!


Read more: http://www.coolpctips.com/category/hacking-tips/#ixzz1rGqiDpvn

Reset Windows Password


Reset Windows Password

Forgot your administrator password? Don't panic, it happens to some other people too, and you have found the solution! The following instructions will show you step-by-step how to reset your local Windows password. This only works for local user accounts, however, not domain accounts.The password recovery tool from this page is written by Petter Nordahl-Hagen, and the original information, as well as the downloadable tool, can be found from his website. According to the author, this tool should work for Windows NT/2000/XP/Vista.
WARNING! Users who have EFS encrypted files on the Windows XP or Vista computers will loose access to the EFS encrypted files after recovery of your password!
Use this trick at your own risks
The tool to reset your password can be downloaded here.

I. Download the bootdisk:
  1. Download the bootdisk, which includes the password recovery tool here. The file contains the ISO CD image.
  2. Unzip (extract) the ISO file and burn it to a CD. Note that this is an ISO file, you must burn it to CD as an ISO image, not as a "data" file. If you're not sure how, see this article. Also, the image is bootable, you need to burn the image to a CD using the image burning feature; do not extract the contents of the ISO and burn them to the CD, you'll end up with a CD that can't boot!
  3. II. Understanding the process:
    • You'll use the bootdisk created from the above steps to bootup your computer, which you want to reset your administrator password.
    • You'll be asked for things like: which drive is the boot drive, which path to the SAM file, etc.. but don't worry, details will be provided.
    • Once you have selected an account to reset the password, you'll need to type in a new password; however, it is highly recommended to use a BLANK password at this point, then you can change your password later in Windows.
    • Follow the prompts to the end. You'll need to save the changes at the end!

    III. OK! Enough talking. Here are the steps:
    1. Startup your computer with the bootdisk created above. You should see a welcome screen following with a prompt:
       boot:
      
    2. Just wait, the bootup process will continute automatically. Then you should see a screen similar to this:
       =========================================================
       . Step ONE: Select disk where the Windows installation is
       =========================================================
       ....
       NT partitions found:
        1 :   /dev/sda1    4001MB  Boot
        2 :   /dev/sda5    2148MB
       
       Please select partition by number or
       a = show all partitions, d = automatically load new disk drivers
       m = manually load new disk drivers
       l = relist NTFS/FAT partitions, q = quit
       Select: [1]
      
    3. Notice the last line "Select: [1]" which shows the [1] as default selection because the tool detected the bootup partition is [1]. This might be different on your own machine, so you should review the list shown under "NT partitions found:". The partition with the word "Boot" should be selected.
    4. Hit Enter once you confirm the selection. You should see a similar screen as follows:
       =========================================================
       . Step TWO: Select PATH and registry files
       =========================================================
       ....
       What is the path to the registry directory? (relative to windows disk)
       [windows/system32/config] :
      
    5. Notice the last line "[windows/system32/config]" which shows the default path. This was also detected by the tool. If the path is correct, hit Enter, or if you wish to enter a different path, enter it now then hit Enter.
      Here are the paths for different versions of Windows:
      - Windows NT 3.51: winnt35/system32/config
      - Windows NT 4 and Windows 2000: winnt/system32/config
      - Windows XP/2003 (and often Windows 2000 upgraded from Windows 98 or earlier): windows/system32/config
    6. Once you hit "Enter", you should see the next screen similar to the following:
       -r--------    1 0        0          262144 Jan 12 18:01 SAM
       -r--------    1 0        0          262144 Jan 12 18:01 SECURITY
       -r--------    1 0        0          262144 Jan 12 18:01 default
       -r--------    1 0        0         8912896 Jan 12 18:01 software
       -r--------    1 0        0         2359296 Jan 12 18:01 system
       dr-x------    1 0        0            4096 Sep  8 11:37 systemprofile
       -r--------    1 0        0          262144 Sep  8 11:53 userdiff
      
       Select which part of registry to load, use predefined choices
       or list the files with space as delimiter
       1 - Password reset [sam system security]
       2 - RecoveryConsole parameters [software]
       q - quit - return to previous
       [1]
      
    7. Hit "Enter" with the default option selected "[1]". Then ...:
       =========================================================
       . Step THREE: Password or registry edit
       =========================================================
       Loaded hives:   
      
         1 - Edit user data and passwords
         2 - Syskey status & change
         3 - RecoveryConsole settings
          - - -
         9 - Registry editor, now with full write support!
         q - Quit (you will be asked if there is something to save)
      
       What to do? [1] -> 1
      
    8. Hit "Enter" with the default option selected "[1]". Then ...:
       ===== chntpw Edit User Info & Passwords ====
      
       RID: 01f4, Username: <Administrator>
       RID: 01f5, Username: <Guest>, *disabled or locked*
       RID: 03e8, Username: <HelpAssistant>, *disabled or locked*
       RID: 03eb, Username: <pnh>, *disabled or locked*
       RID: 03ea, Username: <SUPPORT_388945a0>, *disabled or locked*
      
       Select: ! - quit, . - list users, 0x<RID> - User with RID (hex)
       or simply enter the username to change: [Administrator]
      
    9. Hit "Enter" with the default option selected "[Administrator]", or select another user account. Here you can enter the full user account surrounded by < and >, CASE-SENSITIVE, or enter the RID number (i.e. 0x1f4). Assuming you select the Administrator account, you should see the following screen:
       RID     : 0500 [01f4]
       Username: Administrator
       fullname: 
       comment : Built-in account for administering the computer/domain
       homedir : 
      
       Account bits: 0x0210 =
       [ ] Disabled        | [ ] Homedir req.    | [ ] Passwd not req. | 
       [ ] Temp. duplicate | [X] Normal account  | [ ] NMS account     | 
       [ ] Domain trust ac | [ ] Wks trust act.  | [ ] Srv trust act   | 
       [X] Pwd don't expir | [ ] Auto lockout    | [ ] (unknown 0x08)  | 
       [ ] (unknown 0x10)  | [ ] (unknown 0x20)  | [ ] (unknown 0x40)  | 
      
       Failed login count: 0, while max tries is: 0
       Total  login count: 3
      
       * = blank the password (This may work better than setting a new password!)
       Enter nothing to leave it unchanged
       Please enter new password: *
      
    10. At the prompt "Please enter new password", Enter the * for a blank password (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!) then press Enter
       Please enter new password: *
       Blanking password!
      
       Do you really wish to change it? (y/n) [n] y
      
    11. At the prompt, type in "y", then press Enter. Note that the default option is "n".
       Do you really wish to change it? (y/n) [n] y
       Changed!
      
       Select: ! - quit, . - list users, 0x - User with RID (hex)
       or simply enter the username to change: [Administrator] !
      
    12. Enter the "!" to go back to the main menu. Then select "q" at the following menu to quit:
       <>========<> chntpw Main Interactive Menu <>========<>
      
       Loaded hives:   
      
         1 - Edit user data and passwords
         2 - Syskey status & change
         3 - RecoveryConsole settings
          - - -
         9 - Registry editor, now with full write support!
         q - Quit (you will be asked if there is something to save)
      
       What to do? [1] -> q
      
    13. A prompt to save changes displays, enter "y" to save:
       =========================================================
       . Step FOUR: Writing back changes
       =========================================================
       About to write file(s) back! Do it? [n] : y
      
    14. The changes are saved! You should see the following screen, press Enter, and reboot your computer.
       Writing  sam
      
       ***** EDIT COMPLETE *****
      
       You can try again if it somehow failed, or you selected wrong
       New run? [n] : n