Virus Tutorial
Viruses,
viruses, viruses
If you don't know anything about computers, you know that viruses are bad and that you have to protect your computer
from being infested with them. The anti-virus companies have a
pretty good handle on viruses, but it is not perfect. Currently
anti-virus protection is reactive and not proactive in the least
bit. The scene is set like this:
- A Virus infests 100,000 computers
- Anti-virus companies start working on fix
- The fix is distributed out to the public
This is problematic, especially if your machine is part of the first
wave of attacks. Also, most people don't read up on the latest
virus alerts nor do they update their virus definitions. So even
though the fix came out in 2001, you still got infected because
you don't periodically update your definitions. Anti-virus
companies are now incorporating more heuristics. Heuristics
involve monitoring program activity on the computer and if the
activity "matches" the same activity as a virus would
display, then the
activity is logged and the user alerted. By incorporating this
monitoring into their anti-virus software, any "suspect" activity
being performed by a program will alert the user and hopefully
stop the machine from spreading the virus to other computers
as well as allowing the machine to disinfect itself. This will cut
down the number of infected computers. It will also allow you
to update your virus definitions in the event that you haven't
downloaded the fix yet.
Below are links to update virus definitions for some AV products:
NOTE: Anti-virus software
should be set to automatically run daily. This
includes updates and scanning.
Heuristics provide more breathing room before a virus can run
rampant. However, they do not provide a perfect solution. In
fact, depending on the level setting (high med low), the heuristics engine
may set off an alert that a virus is running on your computer
when in actuality, all you are doing is saving a Word document. So
what do we do to have full virus protection?
Backups, backups, backups
If you routinely backup your system, then not only can you
recover from a virus attack, but you can also retrieve files or
e-mail that you may have accidentally deleted. You also have
protection in case your computer crashes or your hard drive
fails. A backup involves "copying" your computer's hard drive to
another type of media in case your main drive is damaged by a
virus or physical mishap.
STEP 1 - Where to put my backup
There are different media you can use to backup your system:
- Floppy disks = 1000 disks per
gigabyte
- Tape (very expensive)
- CD = 2 disks per gigabyte
- Zip drive = 4 disk per gigabyte
- Jaz drive = .5 disk per gigabyte
- Internal hard drive (good choice)
- External drive (good choice)
NOTE: Multiply the number by
the size of your hard drive and you'll know how many disks
you'll need to backup your hard drive. For instance,
if you have a 10GB hard drive then you will need 10000
disks (10GB x 1000).
Bottom line: Get another hard drive the same size
as your current system. Internal or external? I
would say that this boils down to personal preference:
Internal
- pros: very convenient, not as expensive as an
external l
drive (although paying someone to install it will
drive up the cost)
- cons: must open computer to move or install drive;
drive is not in a protected area
External
- pros: easily transferred to another computer
and can be stored in a safe place
- cons: requires extra space, more expensive than internal drive
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Step 2 - Install the new device (hard drive, tape drive)
These instructions should come with the drive.
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Step 3 - Boop boop boop...Back it up!
All Windows operating systems have the Backup Utility feature located in the following menu path:
-
Start - -> Programs --> Accessories - -> System Tools --> Backup
- Click on Backup to Launch the Utility
- Click the Help menu
- Click on the Help Topics item
- Here is where you'll have to do a
little bit of hunting. Search through the Help
Topics and try to locate the instructions for a full
backup. In some systems it may not say
"full backup". For instance, Windows
2000 refers to a full backup as a normal backup.
In any case, you want instructions for the backup that
will not only backup your files and folders, but also
system files. If you have problems, you can send
me an .
NOTE: Once you find the instructions to run your
backup, don't forget to select your destination drive as the new hard drive or whatever
media you're backing up to. Also, I would suggest
that for your first full backup, you run it overnight when
you won't be using the computer, because the backup could
take a very long time depending on the size of your hard
drive.
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Step 4 - Just in case... If
you've found the instructions for the full backup, you
probably also notice different backup types listed.
The three that we are concerned with are:
- Incremental - This backup type
will allow you to perform backups after your first
full backup of only those files that have changed
since the last backup. English: Let's say you're
compiling a list of gifts to get me for my birthday,
and you have 3 things you're going to get me (thank
you). Well, if you have an idea for another a
gift (you're the best) there is no need to rewrite the
whole list again, you merely add it to the list.
Also, let's say one of the items was a 19" flat
monitor, but you decide that since I'm such a great
person you're going to go with the 21", again,
instead rewriting the list, you just change the
19" to 21". This is the concept of
incremental backups.
- System files - This backup
will only backup the system files. This is a
time saver if for some reason only your Windows system
files need to be recovered and not the whole system.
- ERD - The Emergency Repair
Disk is a floppy disk that you can boot from that
holds the necessary Windows files. If your
system is unbootable for some reason, you can use the
disk to boot and then run your restore.
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Step 5 - Putting it all together
The backup schedule that you run will be
important in determining how much damage you suffer.
For instance, if your last backup was done a year ago, when
you recover your system it will look the way it did one
year ago. Here is an example of a backup schedule:
Full backup - Once a quarter
Incremental backup - Once a week
ERD - Once a month
This means that the "oldest"
your machine will be after a restore is one week.
Now you can run any schedule that you want to, but
understand that backups take time to run and space on your
"backup" hard drive. You will be limited
by these factors.
NOTE: Restore is the term used
to describe retrieving the files or system from a
backup. To do this in windows, simply follow the
instructions in the Help section for the Backup
Utility. In addition, it is a good idea to print out
the instructions for restoring from a backup so that you
have them in case your computer goes "splat".
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Step 6 - I just called to say "Help me with backups"
I've directed you to Microsoft's backup utility and the help files that come along with it. This is different from the other
"labs" where I walked you through actual steps. This is because each Windows platform 95, 98, 2000,
NT, XP is different, so it's best to direct you to the platform's particular
Help file. However, if you need help in running the backup or creating a viable backup schedule,
then send me an .
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Step 7 - Extra, Extra, Read All About It!!
There is software on the market that
will image your drive for you rather than run
backups. The difference here is that you can boot
from the imaged drive rather than restore your old drive
from a backup. This is by far the best way to do
things. The imaging takes at most an hour. I
have used Norton's Ghost for the past 3 years and it is an
amazing product.
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