PuTTY/WinSCP Import/Export

Tips to export/import putty/Winscp sessions

Exporting your PuTTy saved sessions
1. Click Start->Run and type "RegEdt32" in the "Open" dialog. Click "Ok"

2. Drill into HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\SimonTatham

3. Click File->Export. Give your file an appropriate name like, "putty.reg" and click "Save"

4. We're done! Save the putty.reg file somewhere safe. The file doesn't contain any passwords or actual SSH key values so, it's relatively safe from prying eyes. Still, it does contain your configuration and that kind of data is a private matter.

Importing your PuTTy Configuration

1.To import your saved PuTTy configuration on any other Windows computer simply copy your exported registry key, right click on the file and click "Merge
2.Windows will ask you for confirmation that you want to import this set of registry values.



Same for WinSCP sessions:
Drill into “HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Martin Prikryl\WinSCP 2\Sessions” instead

.

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Morning Coffee

Add-on for Firefox

Keeps track of daily routine websites and opens them in tabs.

This extension lets you organize websites by day and open them up simultaneously as part of your daily routine. This is really handy if you read sites that update on a regular schedule (like webcomics, weekly columns, etc.).

Potential future updates include:
- bookmark folder integration
- separating lists by time (so you can have a morning/afternoon list for a day, for example)

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/2677

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How to run Control Panel tools by typing a command

This article describes how to run Control Panel tools in Windows by typing a command at a command prompt or in the Open box.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/192806

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Disable/Enable 'Search' option in Windows XP

To Enable

1. Start>Run: Type 'Regedit'

2. Drill down to HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer

3. Select Explorer and open 'NoFind'

4. Clear the value and click OK

5. Log off and log back in to have the search option available in Start menu

To Disable

1. Select the Run option from the Start menu.

2. Type "cmd" and hit Enter.

3. Type "reg Export HKU backup.reg" and hit Enter.

4. Type "reg add HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer /v NoFind /t REG_DWORD /d 1" and hit Enter.

5. Logoff and log back on.

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Bypass Windows XP LogOn Screen

Windows XP - solution 1:
- Select Run from the Start Menu, type control userpasswords2, and click Ok.
- Turn off the Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer option, and click Ok.

Windows XP - solution 2:
If you have one user account and no password configured, Windows XP will log you in automatically. Otherwise, you'll have to do the following:

- Obtain and install the Windows XP version of TweakUI.
- Open TweakUI (it's in Start -> Programs -> Powertoys for Windows XP).
- Expand the Logon branch, and click Autologon.
- Turn on the Log on automatically at system startup option, type your username and password, and click Ok.

Windows XP - solution 3:
- To disable the Welcome screen you can also open the Registry editor and go to
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\Current Version\WinLogon
- Change the value for LogonType, from a "1" to a "0". This is because a 0 specifies Classic Mode and a 1 specifies Welcome Screen.

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CMOS/BIOS

How to hack CMOS/BIOS password

DISCLAIMER: This information is intended for experienced users. It is not intended for basic users, hackers, or computer thieves. Please do not try any of following procedures if you are not familiar with computer hardware. I’ll not be responsible for the use or misuse of this information, including personal injury, loss of data or hardware damage. So use it at your own risk.

1. Retrive using BIOS backdoor passwords
Some BIOS manufacturer put a backdoor password in BIOS which always works irrespective of what password you have set in BIOS. Its a master password which is used for testing and troubleshooting purposes.

AMI BIOS Passwords:


AWARD BIOS Passwords:
Click to enlarge>


PHOENIX BIOS Passwords:


Other Manufacturer BIOS Passwords:



2. Using MS-Dos prompt
This method works only if you have access to the system when its turned on because this method requires MS DOS. Open MS DOS from programs menu and provide following commands one bye one:

debug
- O 70 2E
- O 71 FF
- Q

NOTE: The first character in the above commands is “O” and not the number 0.

3. Using Mother board Battery

In most motherboards CMOS battery is soldered, which makes it difficult to remove the battery. In this case we use another method. Almost all motherboards contain a jumper that can clear all CMOS settings along with the BIOS password. The location of this jumper varies depending upon the motherboard brand. You should read your motherboard manual to check its location. If you don’t have the manual then look for the jumpers near the CMOS battery. Most of the manufacturer label the jumper as CLR, CLEAR, CLEAR CMOS, etc.

When you find the jumper, look carefully. There will be 3 pins and the jumper will be joining the center pin to either left or right pin. What you need to do, is remove the jumper and join the center pin to the opposite pin. e.g. if the jumper joins center pin to left pin, then remove it and join center pin to right pin. Now wait for a few seconds and then again remove the jumper and join the center pin to left pin. Make sure to turn the PC off before opening the cabinet and resetting the jumper.



5. Using Softwares

a) CMOSPWD
- Download cmospwd from http://www.cgsecurity.org/wiki/CmosPwd
- Save the file to C: drive (unzip the file if needed)
- Using MS Dos reach C:/CMOSPWD>
- Type 'CMOSPWD /K' to kill CMOS password
- Close Dos prompt and restart the machine
http://web.archive.org/web/20020203191544/www.cgsecurity.org/index.html?cmospwd.html

b) !BIOS (More details on below link)
http://www.11a.nu/software/bios-pc-bios-security-and-maintanance-toolkit/

c) KillCmos (More details below)
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download2969.html

Issue I had was with Phoenix BIOS password and I was able to solve the issue using CMOSPWD tool without making any hardware changes. I recommend this tool esp' for laptops as other options might be little bit dangerous to perform on a laptop.

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Gateway v/s Firewall

Gateway
A gateway is a network point that acts as an entrance to another network. On the Internet, a node or stopping point can be either a gateway node or a host (end-point) node. Both the computers of Internet users and the computers that serve pages to users are host nodes. The computers that control traffic within your company's network or at your local Internet service provider (ISP) are gateway nodes.

In the network for an enterprise, a computer server acting as a gateway node is often also acting as a proxy server and a firewall server. A gateway is often associated with both a router, which knows where to direct a given packet of data that arrives at the gateway, and a switch, which furnishes the actual path in and out of the gateway for a given packet. IP is a unique 32-bit number that identifies the location of your computer on a network

Firewalls:
A firewall is simply a program or hardware device that filters the information coming through the Internet connection into your private network or computer system. If an incoming packet of information is flagged by the filters, it is not allowed through.

Firewalls use one or more of three methods to control traffic flowing in and out of the network:

Packet filtering - Packets (small chunks of data) are analyzed against a set of filters. Packets that make it through the filters are sent to the requesting system and all others are discarded.

Proxy service - Information from the Internet is retrieved by the firewall and then sent to the requesting system and vice versa.

Stateful inspection - A newer method that doesn't examine the contents of each packet but instead compares certain key parts of the packet to a database of trusted information. Information traveling from inside the firewall to the outside is monitored for specific defining characteristics, then incoming information is compared to these characteristics. If the comparison yields a reasonable match, the information is allowed through. Otherwise it is discarded

Firewalls are customizable. This means that you can add or remove filters based on several conditions. Some of these are

IP addresses: Each machine on the Internet is assigned a unique address called an IP address

Domain names: A company might block all access to certain domain names, or allow access only to specific domain names.

Protocols: The protocol is the pre-defined way that someone who wants to use a service talks with that service.

- IP (Internet Protocol) - the main delivery system for information over the Internet
- TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) - used to break apart and rebuild information that travels over the Internet
- HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol) - used for Web pages
- FTP (File Transfer Protocol) - used to download and upload files
- UDP (User Datagram Protocol) - used for information that requires no response, such as streaming audio and video
- ICMP (Internet Control Message Protocol) - used by a router to exchange the information with other routers
- SMTP (Simple Mail Transport Protocol) - used to send text-based information (e-mail)
- SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol) - used to collect system information from a remote computer
- Telnet - used to perform commands on a remote computer

Proxy Servers and DMZ
A function that is often combined with a firewall is a proxy server. The proxy server is used to access Web pages by the other computers. When another computer requests a Web page, it is retrieved by the proxy server and then sent to the requesting computer. The net effect of this action is that the remote computer hosting the Web page never comes into direct contact with anything on your home network, other than the proxy server. Proxy servers can also make your Internet access work more efficiently. If you access a page on a Web site, it is cached (stored) on the proxy server. This means that the next time you go back to that page, it normally doesn't have to load again from the Web site. Instead it loads instantaneously from the proxy server.

There are times that you may want remote users to have access to items on your network.

Some examples are:
· Web site

· Online business

· FTP download and upload area

In cases like this, you may want to create a DMZ (Demilitarized Zone). Although this sounds pretty serious, it really is just an area that is outside the firewall. Setting up a DMZ is very easy. If you have multiple computers, you can choose to simply place one of the computers between the Internet connection and the firewall. Most of the software firewalls available will allow you to designate a directory on the gateway computer as a DMZ

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