Installing Windows 7:Part II

  The last part ended with the creation of partitions.Lets move to the next part:
 1.This starts off with a status message "Installing Windows" and things go on automatically..

2.In the following screens type the username and an optional password..

3.Next enter the product key:

4.Activate/deactivate Automatic updates..

5.Choose the Time Zone and Date settings..

 6.Select the computer's location(home or office network)

  That's it.After a few seconds the desktop will be displayed and installation is complete.

Installing Windows 7:Part I

  Today I'm going to describe how to steps involved in installing Windows 7 in a pc.Lets start off:
 1.Boot up from the installation dvd:

2.After pressing a key the following startup screen is displayed.

3.Next select the language and other options;then select next.

4.In the next screen select install now to install the OS;or select repair your computer option to repair the OS.

 5.Accept the license:

6. Next create the partitions and select the system partition.

         Select New option to create a partition..

   That's it for now.I'll describe the following steps in my next post.

Working with Disk Images

  Here I'll give you some background on  my previous blog topic.
  After reading the topic you'd be wondering what is a disk image;it is the backup of data that is present on a disk.A disk can be a partition or a complete hard disk.Many of us would usually make copies of critical data and store it at multiple locations;extend the same concept to a disk and the end result is a disk image.
  Now the disk image can be used just as you would use a backup copy of a file in case the original file is deleted/damaged i.e. restore the disk image to the original disk and continue using it as before.This is how Vista installation works.The process is fast because it mainly involves copying.
  What is done is that the C drive is backed up after installing the Operating System and Drivers.This data is stored in the image file present in a different partition.The image file is in the .wim format.Read the article in wikipedia to know more:
Windows Imaging Format
  Now I thought how to use this idea to speed up the installation on my pc.I wanted to see if it was possible to install my software and backup the C drive.This would make the job short and simple.
  Well I did some research on the internet and also talked with friends.The feedback I got was that this is how OS issues are solved in companies.My friend Ajay told me that this is done on a regular basis on his pc;this is because he tests software and the OS gets corrupted over time.
  Another friend, a senior told me to learn how to do this over the network i.e. sit in one pc and do a backup/restore of a single/multiple remote computers.I was baffled wondering how to try it out practically.I did a little research found the technique was called multicasting and decided to save this for the future.
In the following posts I'll discuss the usage of a few disk imaging software.Here's a good list of disk imaging software:
List of Disk Imaging Software

Take a Shortcut to Reinstall Vista

The usual way is to do this is to boot up from the dvd and follow the on-screen instructions.But there is an alternate way;This is applicable if your pc is made by manufacturers like Dell,HP,etc.Now the obvious question arises..
What is the advantage of this method?
The answer is that the process of installing the Operating System and Drivers will be over in 15 minutes.
Additionally the process is automated;the user has to just start the process and come back when its
completed.
Now before starting off take a backup of important data that is present on the C drive and follow these steps:
1.During booting press F8 to enter safe mode options.
2.Choose the first option i.e. Repair Your Computer.
3.In the next menu select the last select the last option which is called as:
(a)Recovery Manager:for HP computers.
(b)Dell Factory Image Restore:for Dell computers.
For others computers a similar option would be present.To verify the option read on to see what it does.
4.The next screen says that this operation will format and install the OS in the C drive.Additionally it may say that all data in the C drive will be destroyed.
If this is what present on the screen then you're on the right track.
5.Start the process.
6.After 15 minutes the installation will be completed.
7.Now restart the pc and you'll start over with a brand new pc.
At this point the question arises how come it completed so fast.Read my next post to find out..

Resolving Virus Infections

   Last weekend my friend called me over to check his pc.His troubles started when he plugged a pen drive to his pc.Soon things took a turn for the worse;he did a scan using his anti-virus software.That resulted in a total of some 200 viruses being deleted from his system.
   This was regular;the only thing different was that there was no data in any of the drives.Hearing this I had a feeling that maybe his data were hidden by a virus.I told him to restore all settings and folders using smart virus remover.This worked..
   Another thing was when he opened my computer or any of the drives a message from some software popped up saying 'the feature you're trying to access is on a disk,insert the cd-rom and install'.Thinking it was some virus I asked him to scan again.
   Then I tried scanning using different anti-virus and anti-malware software.Alongwith this I opened task manager to see which process was causing the message.To my surprise it was the explorer process.That got me thinking maybe the process was corrupted and left me perplexed.
   Something clicked and the next thing I was in google searching for a solution.Here I got to know that message was related to the printing software.I felt that maybe the installed software had got corrupted.
  That turned out to be true;the data had been deleted but an entry was present in the Add/Remove programs folder.I removed this entry and restarted the pc;to my relief that solved the issue.
  However there was one issue I could nothing do about;during startup a strange message appeared..

Online Scanners

   Previously I've described about virustotal.com.This is a good service;the only problem is if its not available(server down or busy).This got me thinking about alternatives (free ones).
   Well I sat on this the previous weekend and started a serious search.I ended up getting many sites.Here too usage is similar to virustotal.com;upload a file and scan.There are a few additional options,these are site-specific:
1.scanner.virus.org-the file size limit is 5 mb.Under advanced scan one can enter the email id to which results can be sent plus there is a option to not distribute the file to anti-virus software companies.
2.filterbit.com-this is still in beta.The maximum file size is 20 mb.This site features a lesser number of anti-virus scanners as compared to other sites.
3.jotti's malware scan-apart from a limit of 15 mb this site has two features:the service load is displayed and the linux implementations of the anti virus scanners are used.
  Well I hope this will be useful..

  

Screenshot Tools

  The common way to capture a part of the screen is to do a print screen and cut the image using paint.Things can be simplified by using screenshot tools like lightscreen.
  Here using the mouse a part of the screen can be selected and saved as an image.Hotkeys can also be used.The part of the screen can be a rectangle,ellipse,etc.The screenshot can be saved in multplie image formats.Winsnap extends functionality by adding features like basic image editing.
 Lightscreen is free software while Winsnap is free upto version 2.0.Here are the links to download:
  Winsnap
  Lightscreen

Virustotal.com

  At times anti-virus software reports that a file is or could be a virus.This uncertainity is difficult to clear.
  Now the usual thing that is done is to seek an opinion from others before doing anything.There is a similar online solution too.Similar in the sense that you've the opportunity to test the file using multiple anti-virus software and then decide what to do.
  This is the service offered by virustotal.com.The file to be tested can be uploaded directly(in this case max. file size is 10 mb) or sent by email(max. file size is 20 mb).For sending the file by email the address should be scan@virustotal.com and the subject is scan.
  After a few minutes the detailed results are displayed:either a link is provided or an email is sent.I sent a file by email and this is the result:

The best part is that this is a free service accessible by all.