Although, you might have enabled Windows Updates to download and install the latest security patches automatically, it is a good practice to occasionally analyze your system against a baseline. Microsoft has a free tool that allows you to scan your computer and checks for compliance with Microsoft’s security recommendations.
Categories: Security Tags: Analyzer, compliance, fix, MBSA, Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer, Microsoft Update, patch, report, scan, security update, update, Windows Update
The Windows 7 firewall controls traffic that your computer exchanges with the network or Internet and it uses rules to control this behaviour. A single firewall rule allows you to control how a specific type of network traffic behaves.
Categories: Security Tags: Firewall, firewall rules, inbound, network traffic, outbound, rules, traffic
There are a number of commercial and open-source tools available to help you perform system security scanning and vulnerability testing of your Windows 7 system, however, the Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer is a great tool (free and easy t o use) that checks for compliance with Microsoft’s security recommendations.
Read more about Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer tool here – http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/security/cc184924
Categories: Security Tags: Analyzer, Baseline, privileges, UAC, Windows Update
Although, Windows online help may provide users with the latest relevant content, some organizations may still want to disallow it! Organizations may want to save Internet bandwidth or have to comply with specific security requirements and disallow Windows Help to connect online and download updated content. If this is the case, then I suggest that you disable Windows Online Help functionality from through Group Policy as it will generate errors and prompts, every time it tries to connect to the Internet. You can use the Turn off Windows Online Group Policy to prevent the automatic downloading of online Windows Help content.
Categories: Management, Security Tags: forensics, gpedit, gpedit.msc, Group Policy, Help, Local Group Policy, Windows 8, Windows Help, Windows Online
If you share your computer with other users and find other users’ customizations annoying then, Windows 7 allows you to block such functionality. By default, Windows 7 tracks users’ activities and tries to facilitate life by customizing the system according to the user activity such as, personalized menus, frequent programs list in the Start menu and others. One of the most annoying customizations which can happen when users share the same computer, is when users drag the taskbar to another side of the screen with the taskbar option Auto-hide enabled. Subsequent users may not be aware of such functionality and may not be able to find the taskbar at the side or top of the screen!
Categories: GUI, Tweaks Tags: Auto-hide, Customize, gpedit.msc, Group Policy, Local Group Policy, Local Group Policy Editor, taskbar, user tracking
You might have been advised to install Windows operating systems with specific service packs versions such as, Windows XP SP3 or Windows 7 SP1 and you might wonder what’s so important with all these service packs! A brief explanation of service packs will help you understand their specific purpose and what are the best practices when deploying service packs.
Categories: Deployment, Management Tags: beta version, fix, release notes, security update, Service Pack, test, updates
When you apply new regional and language settings on your Windows 7 computer such as, a new language pack, the new settings do not apply to the welcome screen, system accounts and new user accounts. For instance, when applying a new language, the logon screen does not display text in that new language by default!
Categories: Troubleshooting Tags: language, Language Packs, logon, regional setting, system account, welcome screen
