Below are the 7 most recent journal entries recorded in bradjanet14's InsaneJournal:

Thursday, January 5th, 2012
10:30 am	How to secure your small business with a PIX firewall One of the more popular firewall products for the small business market is the Cisco PIX 501. Out of the box it requires just a few ... entries and you are up and running. In this guide, we One of the more popular firewall products for the small business market is the Cisco PIX 501. Out of the box it requires just a few configuration entries and you are up and running. This guide is written for the user who has no knowledge of the PIX firewall. As such, it is not a treatise on network security, but a quick, by-the numbers guide to configuring a PIX firewall with as little jargon as possible. We are assuming that you have an internet connection with at least one static IP address. While the PIX can easily handle a dynamic IP address (that is the default configuration), you wont be able to easily configure remote access, VPNs, Mail, or web servers without a static IP address network security. Your PIX should have come with an AC adapter, a yellow CAT 5 cable, an orange CAT5 cable and a flat, (typically) baby blue cable with a 9-pin serial connector on one end and an RJ-45 plug on the other. The yellow CAT5 cable is a standard Ethernet cable and is used to connect your pc or server to the 4-port Ethernet switch built into the PIX. The Orange CAT5 cable is a cross-over cable and may be required to connect the outside interface of the PIX to your ISPs router (if your PCs or workstations are plugged into a Cisco switch inside the network, you will also require a cross-over cable for connecting to one of the switch ports on the PIX). What we are going to use for our configuration is the baby blue rollover cable. Insert the serial jack into one of the serial ports on the back of the PC or laptop you will be using to configure the PIX. Then, insert the RJ-45 plug into the port on the back of the PIX labeled console. Windows has a built in application that is used for (among other things) configuring serial devices. Using the start menu, go to Start > Programs > Accessories > Communications > Hyper Terminal. Choose the Hyper Terminal application. You may get a dialog box asking if youd like to make Hyper Terminal your default telnet application. Unless you have a preference, go ahead and choose yes. Then you will be asked for the area code from which you are dialing, although it isnt applicable here, the program still wants to know, so fill it in and click next or ok. Next, well be asked to enter the details for the phone number wed like to dial. Since we aren't dialing a phone number, use the drop-down selector at the bottom of the box to choose COM1 or COM2 (whichever is applicable). If you have no idea which one is which, you may need to try it both ways. Luckily, it isnt too complex, just remember 9600, 8, none, and 1. Enter these settings into the drop down selectors of the box on your screen. Now we are ready to set up the PIX. Insert the power cable and you will be greeted with the startup monologue (its not a dialog in this case, its just informing you of what is occurring). Then, you will be greeted with a screen that asks if youd like to program the PIX using interactive prompts. For the purpose of this exercise, type no and click enter. You will now get a prompt that looks like this: pixfirewall> Type the word enable (no quotes), when prompted for the password, just click enter as the default is no password. The prompt has changed to a hash mark: Pixfirewall# Type the phrase configure terminal (no quotes); you are telling the PIX that you want to enter the global configuration mode and you will be doing your configuration via the terminal window. Now, the domain name; its alright if you dont have a domain set up on your network, you can call it whatever you like. However, give some thought to whether a domain might be a possibility at some point and plan your naming scheme appropriately. pixfirewall(config)# domain-name mydomain.com As you can see from the configuration above, the ethernet0 interface is the outside interface, with a security setting of 0, while ethernet1 is the inside interface with a security setting of 100. Additionally, you can see that the interfaces are shutdown. All we need do to bring them up is enter the speed at which they should operate. As they are Ethernet interfaces, any software version after 6.3(3) will take 100full, prior to that, use 10full. Now to assign an address to the inside and outside interfaces; the ip address command sets the ip address of an interface. The syntax is as follows: Ip address pixfirewall(config)# ip address outside 12.25.241.2 255.255.255.252 (this IP address, netmask combination should not be used, it is shown here for example only. Use the IP address/mask given to you by your ISP). One way that is used to conserve public IP addresses is through the use of non-routable IP addressing blocks specified in RFC 1597. You may sometimes hear them referred to as private IP addresses, which is fine, but not quite technically accurate. There are three different blocks to choose from: 10.0.0.0 10.255.255.255 with a netmask of 255.0.0.0 172.16.0.0 172.31.255.255 with a netmask of 255.255.0.0 192.168.0.0 192.168.255.255 with a netmask of 255.255.255.0 as long as your internal network's IP addresses are all within one of those blocks of address space, you will not need to introduce the complexity of routing within your LAN. An example scheme for those who are not familiar is shown below: PIX 192.168.0.1 netmask 255.255.255.0 File/DHCP server 192.168.0.2 netmask 255.255.255.0 Workstations 192.168.0.10 192.168.0.254 netmask (each) 255.255.255.0 * I intentionally skipped over the 192.168.0.3-9 addresses to plan for future expansion and the possible need for additional servers, you don't have to do this. * Configure your DHCP server to hand out addresses in the specified block using your ISP-provided DNS servers for name resolution. Make sure to change this should you ever decide to install a name server within your own network. * If you don't want to set up a DHCP server, just configure each PC with the IP address, default gateway, netmask & DNS servers It is very important now to add a default route to the PIX configuration. Another term for default route is the default gateway. You need to tell the PIX that if it receives traffic destined for a network that isnt directly connected, it should send it to the connected ISP router. Your ISP should have given you the IP address of your default gateway when you received your setup information. Here is the syntax: Route The English translation is if packets destined for interface on the network specified by network address are bounded by mask then route it via a next hop at the optional command is used to give an indication of distance. network security For example pixfirewall(config)# Route outside 0 0 1 (if packets are destined outside the network to any ip address with any netmask, send them through the ISPs default gateway, which is one hop away, meaning it is the device to which the PIX is connected on the outside interface). To password protect your PIX in order to prevent unauthorized access, use something that is secure and hard to guess. Try to stay away from the names of spouses, children, pets, birthdays or other easily guessed variable. Whenever possible, use a combination of letters and numbers. The syntax is as follows (but please dont use cisco as your actual password) pixfirewall(config)# Passwd cisco (note the abbreviated spelling of the word password) this will set a password for basic access (rembember the pixfirewall> prompt) pixfirewall(config)# Enable password cisco this will set the password for administrative access Now that your PIX has been given a basic configuration, you should be able to access the internet, while preventing unauthorized access to your resources. Current Mood: happy (Comment on this)
Saturday, December 31st, 2011
10:33 pm	Life of laptop battery A short laptop battery life can largely dampen your ability to use your laptop efficiently. It is quite distracting to constantly have to be in search of a power outlet to recharge your quickly diminishing battery power. There are ways in which you can extend the life of your laptop battery, regardless of the type of laptop which you possess. Whether you own a Toshiba laptop, an HP laptop, or one of the many types of Dell laptop batteries. These following tips can help you to maintain 1. Dim Screen In order to do your work, you probably don't need your screen to be on the brightest setting. firewall hardware Instead, dim your screen and save some dell inspiron 6000 battery life this way. 2. Remove External Devices Devices such as your mouse or USB drive can drain the battery power. When you do not need to use these items, shut them down and disconnect them from your computer. Additionally, buy a wall charger and charge your iPod there instead of in your computer as this can quickly drain your power. 3. Purchase Additional RAM Extra RAM will allow you to utilize more memory actually present on the computer instead of having to use virtual memory, which requires the use of the hard drive. Virtual memory is renowned for draining battery life. RAM will require additional energy but, if you typically use large amounts of virtual memory, the extra RAM could actually help conserve power. 4. firewall hardware Defrag The quicker the hard drive is able to work, the less energy is required. In order to increase hard drive efficiency, defrag often. 5. Clean Battery Contacts Clean the metal contacts of the battery every other month using rubbing alcohol. This makes the use of TOSHIBA PA3399U 2BAS battery power more efficient. 6. Hibernate Instead of using standby, hibernate your computer when not in use as this will save power. Not only will this save power, it will also enable you to begin where you left off when you next use your laptop. 7. Shut Down Background/Idle Programs Instead of having multiple programs open at once, which can reduce power quickly, only leave the ones that are essential open firewall hardware. 9. Make Sure Computer is always Cool A cooler computer will use less battery power. Make sure that the air vents on the laptop are clean. You can clean the area using a keyboard cleaner or a soft cloth. 10. Use Optimal Power Options for long laptop battery life Use the max battery option on the computer. This can be adjusted by going to the power options section on your laptop's control panel. description: A short laptop battery life can largely dampen your ability to use your laptop efficiently. It is quite distracting to constantly have to be in search of a power outlet to recharge your quickly diminishing battery power. Current Mood: peaceful (Comment on this)
Tuesday, December 27th, 2011
12:45 pm	Best Windows Based Firewall Software Programs A couple months ago I wrote an article about the best firewall software known to modern man, Guard Dog. Not only will it protect and defend your computer from malicious attacks, but it will also counter strike the attacker. This is a based program that does work on Windows, but it is a little difficult to "finagle" into a setting and not all of the features can be used. This has made many people a little timid about using Guard Dog (that and the malware and attack tools that it unleashes on your assailant possibly getting loose on your machine). This has lead to several people asking me about different firewall suites that are geared to windows. firewall hardware Here is a look at a couple of the better ones, but this is not an all inclusive list. There are many more out there and I urge you to add any that you like to the comments. This may help someone find the perfect software for them. The first one that we will look at is . This has been rated as one of the top firewall suites on the market. If you really need firewall software, this one has a lot of protection. It causes a little lag, but the protection is well worth the speed loss. You can even upgrade your protection levels (for a fee), but much of that is not necessary. This program has been geared for windows and will work on most platforms (it has problems with some of the dinosaurs out there). It has a very small footprint on your memory and works mostly in the background. The best part of this one is the name (I love reptiles and it reminds me of the dragon). This platform goes well beyond the name. It comes with a very well established anti-virus and offers some award winning protection. Comodo is definitely worth a try. After all, it is free. from Check Point Software Technologies is another great one. This is a little smaller than Comodo and runs a little faster as well. It is not as well known as the others, but it works just as well. There are many people out there that swear by Zone Alarm. One of the best features of this one is that you can control the outgoing traffic as well. This will help you to limit spyware and some needed programs that send your personal info back "home". This is a great package for anyone that is into or iTunes downloads. It can really limit the amount of outgoing traffic that these companies set their software to send. I really like the fact that there are few alarms that I deal with as well as fewer popups. This thing really runs on its own. All you need to do is set it up and let it go. There is almost no loss of speed as well firewall software. is the last of the suites that we will look at today. This one has gotten some good reviews from and has been given the five cow award (you can see the video on the Online Armor site). For the casual surfer that doesn't need a lot of protection, this is a great setup. It is very easy to use and reliable. The best thing about this is the cheap upgrades. While the basic firewall is free, you can get added protection for relatively cheap. This will expand Online Armor to protect your banking, protect from malware, phishing, and spyware, and several other features. If you need total protection, you will have to pay for it and Online Armor has one of the best prices. This suite is quite capable whether you are using the free version or upgrade. These are just three of the different software suites on the market network security. If you feel that you really need a firewall, there are several more. You need to try out a couple of them and see which one works best with your machine. For most Windows based computers, the Windows Firewall that comes installed can be suitable if you know how to use it. Many people get tired of the popups and permissions and shut it down or make it very weak. Try increasing the settings and see if it works for you. If you are on your own personal network, your router's built in firewall should also be sufficient. Most routers have top of the line firewalls built in and can give you better protection than software based ones. The problem is if you travel with your computer. Once you leave your home network, the router's firewall stops protecting you. For all of your laptops and portables, you may want to look into a software suite. If you use a lot of public (library, rec centers, or other free to the public networks) you may need to get one of these three suites. Constant access to unsecure and widely used networks can expose you to attacks. Hopefully, you are never attacked, but if you are, I hope this article helps you. Current Mood: working (Comment on this)
Friday, December 23rd, 2011
4:05 am	What Your Business Should Know About Laptop Rentals A lot of businesses switch from purchasing laptops to laptop rentals due to the fact that technology advances so rapidly. In todays economic scenario, too, a comparatively low laptop rental cost is very appealing and rentals are seen as a very cost-effective means to carry on business where capital can be freed up for your companys primary functions. Let us look at how else a laptop rental is advantageous for your business. Computer rental companies, more often than not offer a range of machines that are the latest models available, and provide these not just as desktop computers but also as the most advanced laptops. Established computer rental firms also proffer customers a wide variety of top brands for hire. Most of these companies rent out peripherals like audiovisual presentation equipment, servers, data storage systems and printers network security. It is possible to rent laptops from as little as a day to as long as a couple of years. This kind of arrangement offers businesses a huge amount of flexibility that can meet fluctuating business and technology requirements in the ensuing period. Other terms offered by some rental companies are also equally flexible, like the clause that enables you to rent the laptop for a year or two and then either switch to a newer model or even purchase it upfront for a fixed rate at the end of the rental period. Rental companies prefer to keep their inventories up-to-date at all times and would grab every opportunity to get rid of an old piece of equipment that they would have bought at a wholesale rate, but which might just continue to do the job quite well for your business. The main benefit of a laptop rental is that it helps free up the cash flow of a business as opposed to a purchase which ties up capital. Customers can exchange their laptop for a new model down the line at a relatively low laptop rental cost. Often advances in computing mean that the old machine cannot do the job any more at that point in time. In the case of purchased equipment, continuing to use such machines would mean operating at a disadvantage with the only alternative being to purchase new replacements at huge capital expense while selling the obsolete machines at a loss. firewall hardware The budgeting exercise becomes simplified and more effective because the laptop rental cost is fixed for the period of the rental and there are laptops available for rent to suit every budget. In most instances, the rental rate includes insurance, so that if the machine is damaged, breaks down, is lost or stolen, all you need to do is report the fact and get a replacement. In most cases the rental cost is tax deductible, though it is best to check with your companys tax advisor for details on this issue. Generally there are no hidden expenses involved in the laptop rental cost. The rental rate is the actual price that you will be paying, and antivirus software is typically included in the rental package. Now that you are aware of the benefits to your business, sign up for your rented laptop today! Current Mood: hopeful (Comment on this)
Monday, December 19th, 2011
12:03 am	Peachtree Accounting Software Hosting Fulfills SMBs Accounting Requirements Peachtree application is one of the leading accounting business software. Peachtree application simplifies accounting tasks. Peachtree financial software lets you easily manage customers' contacts and sales, customize inventory and vendor management, track jobs and projects, automate purchasing and shipping, and more. With Peachtree Premium accounting software version and higher, you can capture approvals, maintain notes, attach documents, and update estimates and end dates. Features offered by Peachtree software vary among different versions. With Peachtree software one can create on the fly custom reports with real time totals from job modules on the dashboard. With Peachtree software one can output reports to PDF, email, or Microsoft Excel. Peachtree accounting and financial software hosting is a much better option than the desktop version. Small and medium size businesses or SMBs get boosted by availing Peachtree accounting software hosting service. Peachtree accounting software hosting allows for multiple user accessibility. Multiple users like you and your employees can access the Peachtree business software's data and files simultaneously that means at the same time from any place round the world. This is the advantage of Peachtree accounting software hosting over desktop deployment of Peachtree accounting software. You are not required to install Peachtree business application on your laptop or local personal computer. As all of the data is located on the Peachtree accounting software hosting solution provider's server, what you require to access this data is only a laptop or a personal computer with a web browser like Internet Explorer and an Internet connection. To satisfy the needs of different types of small and medium size businesses or SMBs, Sage Peachtree accounting application add-ons can be hosted along with Peachtree accounting software hosting solution. Add-ons provide certain essential functions along with some enhancements for a particular business' requirements. There are many Peachtree accounting application add-ons available for co-hosting with Peachtree accounting software. This add-on software has been designed to boost accounting and financial management software. Peachtree accounting software hosting provider fully possesses the knowledge required for hosting Peachtree add-ons including Fixed Assets, Business Analytics, Online Backup, Online Bill Pay, Retirement Services, Link to Sage ACT!, Remote Solutions, Business Intelligence, and Third-Party Add-Ons. Peachtree accounting software hosting provides the ability to clients to access Peachtree accounting application from any where and at any time. Your application and data files are located in hosting solution provider's secured data center, and are fully ready to be accessed anytime as per your desire. Peachtree accounting software hosting provides a solution which can be fully integrated with MS Office applications for importing or exporting your Peachtree accounting data files. You can very easily export or import Peachtree accounting data into Peachtree files, and send e-mails directly from Microsoft Office Outlook software via hosted Peachtree application. The Peachtree hosting solution is fully compatible and suitable for CRM or Customer Relationship Management software such as Sugar CRM, Sales Force, and ACT! By Sage, etc. On your part, you have to just provide your Peachtree accounting software hosting solution vendor the detailed information so that host can make adjustments on server carrying your Peachtree financial data. Security is an important consideration when choosing a hosting provider for your software and data. It is important to remember how much more robust, secure, and redundant Peachtree application hosting solution vendor's network is compared to what you can deploy on your own. Peachtree application hosting solution provider gives you the ability to leverage the use of an Enterprise Server system that is housed in a SAS 70 data center; the cost to run this by your own is not financially realistic. Application hosting solution vendor's servers, switches, power supplies, and cooling supplies are all redundant. The data center facility has biometric and key card access, redundant internet connections and routes, diesel backup generators, cooling systems, fire suppression systems, and multiple UPS systems to provide conditioned power to servers. Hosting solution vendor's technology platform offers the latest in secure technology with user authentication, SSL session encryption, and single sign on. network security Your software and data are housed on Peachtree accounting software hosting solution provider's servers in secure data center and your data is backed up daily and stored for future access. Application hosting solution vendor utilizes extensive firewalls to protect the network against intrusion. It provides 128 bit encryption technology to protect client connections to the data center business firewalls. Current Mood: mellow (Comment on this)
Saturday, December 10th, 2011
1:25 pm	Tablet PC Wholesaler Ankaka Adds New gTab E9 Android 2.3 Tablet firewall hardware Haven't heard of Android It's only the most popular operating system in the world and includes true multi-tasking, widgets, and many more features that can't be found anywhere else. CPU Samsung S5PV210, ARM CortexTM-A8, 1.2G MHz RAM Installed Size 512MB DDR2 RAM Screen Size 8 inch Max Resolution 800*600 HDMI Output Support 1080P output Display Technology Capacitive Double-Touch Screen Graphics Type Integrated Graphics Operating System Android 2.3 Product Type Tablet PC, MID Keyboard Touch screen Pointing Device Stylus or finger Battery Type 1-Cell 3800MAH Li-ion Battery Battery / Run Time (up to) working time: about 3-4 hours; standby time: about 48-72 hours Voltage required 100/240V AC Adapter W x D x H 210 x 161 x 14mm G-sensor Yes Built-in Speaker Yes Web Camera YES, 1.3MP Skype YES Android Market Yes Flash Support Flash 10.2 YouTube Yes Email and Browser Yes Multi-Touch Double-Touch GPS No Bluetooth No network security Support Formats Video AVI/MOV/MP4/RMVB/FLV/MKV Audio MP3, WMA, OGG, AAC, FLAC, APE, WAV Picture JPG, BMP, PNG, GIF Ebook WORD, EXCEL, PPT, PDF, TXT, HTML Languages Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Spanish, French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Swedish, Turkish, Chinese. 1 x gTab E9: Android 2.3 Tablet, Double-touch Capacitive 8" Screen, 3D Game, Flash 10.2, WiFi, 1.2 GHz CPU, 512MB DDR2 RAM, 1080P HDMI Output,3G 1 x AC Adapter 1 x USB cable 1 x Earphone 1 x English User Manual (2). The computer cannot be turn on. a. Check the battery to make sure it is charged. b. Check the machine again after connecting the power adapter. (4). Noise a. Check whether the earphone plug is clear as dirt could bring noise. b. Check if the music file is broken. Confirm the problem by trying another one (6). WiFi is not working All of Tablet PCs have been inspected by Ankaka QC team before shipment. However if you still can not make it work well, please check out the following: a. Check if there is any metal that may block the wifi signal. b. Please try the several signal models of your wireless router one by one. firewall software c. Check if the password of wireless connection is correct. Current Mood: morose (Comment on this)
Friday, December 9th, 2011
12:23 pm	Linksys Routers An Overview Routers are one of the most useful computer peripherals that users connect to access Internet on multiple computers, sharing files, or playing games among other things. Linksys routers are undoubtedly the first choice of most of the users when it comes to using wireless devices. Routers offer all-in-one solution for different computing, internet needs of users. This router can provide lightening fast speed, much better than a Dialup connection without engaging your phone. Linksys knows no limits when it comes to sharing connections or network at a time. The router helps in fastening the network, the sharing of files, printers and hard drive among others. Moreover, you can choose to play multiplayer games with the help of this router. The router is capable of connecting four computers attached directly. The size of the network can be altered and any number of hubs or switches can be connected to create whatever size is required for a network. This enables you to share your whole network within a single high-speed Internet connection. 1. The Linksys router facilitates port filtering, MAC and IP address filtering, DM2 hosting and NAT technology etc. It also provides the advanced security to its users. 2. It is very easy to setup and configure a Linksys router with a Personal Computer or a laptop firewall software. 3. It has 4 LAN ports which are of the advanced technology and 1 ASDL port. The 4 LAN ports are 10/100 Auto MDI0x and are equipped with the latest technology. 4. The router supports PPPoE, PPPoA and RFC1483 connections. These are the most advanced connection features found in next generation routers. 5. It provides upto 25 Mbps speed and ADSL/2+ compliant- SPI firewall with Denial of Service attach prevention. This is the reason why the speed is very high. Therefore people across the world have been quite keen to get this router. 6. The security events are minutely observed and hence there are minimal changes of security threat when it comes to Hacking. Linksys router enables web-based and Email logging of security events. 7. It also supports 5 VPN Tunnels for IPSec and VPN Pass-through for IPSec. Moreover, it also supports for PPTP and L2TP products. 8. It has a manufacturer warranty for two years and hence is safe to use. Now with the manufacturer's warranty, there are no worries regarding the quality. Even if you face any problems with the Linksys router, you can always seek help from the Linksys router support offered by the various online technical support companies. Current Mood: pessimistic (Comment on this)