Virus removal can be a tricky thing, so a good anti-virus program is a must. And remember that you can only have one anti-virus program installed at a time because they will conflict with each other and degrade system performance. But did you know that there are programs that work as companions to your existing anti-virus software? One of my favorites is Malwarebytes Anti-Malware.

The main screen inside of Malwarebytes Anti-Malware

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware looks for items that may otherwise be overlooked by anti-virus software, like keystroke/password loggers, rootkits, and spyware. It works great for finding PUP's (probably unwanted program), PUM's (potentially unwanted modifications), and P2P (peer to peer) software.

The settings screen inside of Malwarebytes Anti-Malware

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware comes in four (4) versions; Free, Pro, Small Business, and Enterprise.

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Free features include:

• Advanced malware detection and removal
• Industry-proven clean-up technologies eradicate existing malware infections
• Rapid response malware database and heuristics updates
• Access to expert community and knowledgeable support teams through e-mail and forums
• Chameleon technology gets Malwarebytes running on infected systems
• Multi-language support

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Pro, Small Business and Enterprise features include:

• All of the features of the free version
• Real-time active malware prevention engine blocks known threats
• Heuristic protection prevents new zero-day malware infections
• Malicious website protection blocks access to known and zero-day malicious web content
• Automatic priority updates and scheduled scanning
• Fast flash scans

Here's a quote from Malwarebytes website:

Detect and Protect with Byte

Malware is big and malware is bad. Your computer is constantly at risk from infection by malware including viruses, worms, trojans, rootkits, dialers and spyware. Malwarebytes specializes in fighting malware.

If viruses are mischief, malware is mayhem. Malware doesn't just want to disrupt your network, it wants your keystrokes, logins, passwords, address book, data, credit card information, favorite t-shirt and possibly your cat.

Malware is not going away any time soon. Malware is growing, developing, constantly evolving. Malware is becoming more difficult to detect, and even harder to remove.

Only the most sophisticated anti-malware techniques can detect and remove malicious programs from your computer. Malwarebytes Anti-Malware PRO combines powerful new technologies designed to seek out, destroy, and prevent malware.

For more information on Malwarebytes Anti-Malware, just follow the link below:

Malwarebytes Anti-Malware

As a computer repair technician, I do a fair share of data recovery. One of the most asked questions is, "How can I recover a file that I accidentally deleted?". For simple recovery of deleted files on a Windows-based computer, I always recommend Recuva from Piriform.

The main screen inside of Recuva

When you delete a file or folder, it's not entirely erased. It's just not visible to the operating system anymore. Recuva scans for these files/folders and allows you to undelete them quickly and safely. It works on internal and external hard drives, memory cards, mp3 players, and iPods.

The advanced scanning options inside of Recuva

Recuva even scans inside files, like Outlook Express and Windows Live Mail database files, for deleted e-mails. And it works excellent for undeleting photos from memory cards used in digital cameras. Recuva is from Piriform, maker of CCleaner and Defraggler, and has a simple interface and is easy to use. Here's a quote from Piriform's website:

Accidentally deleted an important file? Lost something important when your computer crashed? No problem! Recuva recovers files deleted from your Windows computer, Recycle Bin, digital camera card, or MP3 player. And it's free!

Recuva - Features

File Recovery

Undelete files on your computer
Deleted a file by mistake? Recuva brings lost files on your computer, USB drive, camera or iPod.

Recovery from damaged or formatted disks
Even if you've formatted a drive so that it looks blank, Recuva can still find your files on it.

Recover deleted emails
Emptied your email trash and need it back? Recuva's got you covered with full support for Microsoft Outlook Express, Mozilla Thunderbird, or Windows Live Mail.

Recover deleted iPod music
Deleted music from your iPod or MP3 player? No problem, Recuva will get this back for you along with any additional track data.

Restore unsaved Word documents
Did Microsoft Word crash or did you forget to save that important Word document. No problem with Recuva! As it can intelligently rebuild Word documents from their temporary files.

Quick-Start Wizard
If you need your files back right away without fiddling with options, Recuva's Quick-Start Wizard is the answer.

Deep Scan
Recuva can find most files within a minute. Or, set the Deep Scan to look for more deeply-buried results.

Securely delete files you want to erase forever
Want to protect your deleted files? Recuva also allows you to permanently erase any traces of deleted files.

Portable version
Take Recuva with you wherever you go with the portable version.

Full Windows OS support and many languages
Recuva has support for every modern version of Windows and 37+ languages.

Recuva is available in three editions: Free (no support), Professional (priority support), and Business (premium support). For more information on Recuva, just follow the link below:

Recuva - Undelete, Unerase, File and Disk Recovery

As many of you know, I've been using two monitors on my workstation for over ten years. I like being able to view two or more programs all at the same time. So when Windows 8 came out, I was happy to see better multiple monitor support. Still, I didn't particularly appreciate running Windows RT / Metro apps, as they took up the full display area. They are nice, but it was just too much for me with a screen size of 2560 x 1024. Then the folks at Stardock came out with a program to run Windows RT / Metro apps in a window on the desktop called ModernMix.

Two Windows RT apps running on a desktop with two monitors using ModernMix in Windows 8

ModernMix allows almost any Windows RT / Metro app to run inside a window on the desktop in Windows 8. It remembers the settings of all of the Windows RT apps you have run, and you can manually modify them if needed. I came across a couple of apps that would only run in full screen. It also has a screen overlay you can enable in the upper right-hand corner that allows you to switch between modes (full screen, maximized, and windowed) and bring up the Settings charm for that app. You can even Pin a program to the Taskbar with ModernMix.

Application settings page inside of ModernMix

Here's a quote from the ModernMix website:

What is ModernMix?

ModernMix is a revolutionary new program that lets you run Windows 8 "Modern" apps in a window on the desktop. Windows 8 Modern apps, also known as Metro or RT apps, will use the full screen on your display regardless of how much of the screen they really need. As a result, that weather app, mail program or stock ticker is going to use the entirety of your computer display.

Features

Run modern apps in windows
• ModernMix enables you to run multiple Modern apps in individual separate windows on the desktop as well as launch them from the desktop.

Apply custom settings
• Modern app window sizes are remembered the next time you launch them.

Pin modern apps to the taskbar
• Active Modern apps will also appear on your taskbar where they can be pinned for quick access later. Also create desktop shortcuts for Modern apps.

Bring back the familiar Windows look
• Standard Windows 8 title bar is enabled for Modern apps.
• Explicitly close Modern apps by clicking its close button.

The price of ModernMix is $4.99 (at the time this article was written). For more information on ModernMix and Stardock, just follow the links below:

ModernMix

Stardock

Do you have an old Windows-based computer you want to get rid of but want to ensure that all of your data is securely erased? Or would you like to wipe all the data from your hard drive and perform a clean Windows installation? Either way, you'll want to make the data is completely wiped out. Here's how to securely erase all the data from your Windows-based computer.

Backup all folder(s) and file(s) you want to save

This is the time to double and triple-check for any folder(s) and file(s) you may want to keep. If you plan on reinstalling Windows, make sure that you have all of the installation media available. If you need to create the recovery media stored on your computer, this is the time to do it. Once the hard drive is wiped clean, the recovery media images will be gone, too.

Windows 11 Backup

Windows 10 Backup

Windows 8 Backup

Windows 7 / Windows Vista Backup

Windows XP Backup

Download and create bootable media with disk-wiping software

The best way to completely wipe clean a hard drive is by booting the computer on a CD/DVD or USB drive. This way, you can erase all the space on the hard drive. Several free utilities exist for doing this, including Darik's Boot And Nuke, CMRR - Secure Erase, and PC Disk Eraser. I recommend the Ultimate Boot CD (UBCD), which has all of these and more already built-in.

Once you download the UBCD image file (.ISO), you can either create a bootable USB drive using Rufus or burn the image to a disk with Windows built-in disk burning software. I recommend Rufus, as it has predefined settings creating a bootable UBCD USB drive.

Encrypt the contents of your hard drive

This step may seem unnecessary, but it makes data recovery virtually impossible on the drive you will wipe. Windows has a built-in feature called Encrypting File System (EFS), but it's disabled by default. It encrypts files transparently with a File Encryption Key (FEK). For more on EFS, check out this Wikipedia article. So, even if someone could recover the data on the drive after wiping it, it would be in deplorable condition. After that, the data would have to be unencrypted, and being in such a bad condition would be hard, if not impossible.

1. Open File Explorer / Windows Explorer (Windows logo key + E).
2. Select the file(s) and/or folder(s) you want to encrypt.
3. Right-click on the items selected and then left-click on Properties from the context menu that appears.
4. On the General tab, left-click on Advanced.
5. Left-click the check box for Encrypt contents to secure data.
6. Left-click on OK. Be patient; encrypting the folders and files may take some time.

Insert bootable media and restart the system

When you restart your system, it should boot up on the media you created. Follow the on-screen instructions. If using the UBCD, navigate to HDD > Disk Wiping for the list of utilities. Each program will have similar data destruction settings. I always look for the latest Department of Defense standard (DOD 5220.22-M). If you really want to clean your hard drive, just run two or more of the disk-wiping programs included on the UBCD.

If your system does not boot up on the media you created, you may have to change your computer's boot order and turn off the secure / UEFI boot feature inside of the BIOS (Basic Input Output System). The BIOS can generally be accessed by pressing the DEL or F2 key when the 'splash' screen (motherboard/computer manufacturer logo) appears. It's always recommended to check your motherboard documentation on which keys are used to access the BIOS and where in the BIOS to change the boot order and turn off secure / UEFI boot.

Being in computer repair, I have to keep track of a lot of client files and folders. The Search charm in Windows 8 works great, but sometimes the files or folders I'm looking for are not in any of the default (libraries, off-line files, and e-mail) index locations (program and system files are excluded, as most people rarely need to search them). Adding files and folders to the Indexing Options is easy. Here's how to modify the Indexing Options inside of Windows 8.

How to access the Indexing Options in Windows 8

Main screen for Indexing Options inside of Windows 8

1. Swipe in from the right side of the screen or press the Windows logo key + C to bring up the Charm bar. Left-click on Search button in Charm Bar, then Left-click on Settings in the Search charm.
   or
   Press the Windows logo key + W to bring up Settings in the Search charm.
2. Type Indexing Options in the Search field on the Search pane.
3. In the results on the left-hand side, left-click on Indexing Options.

How to add a file type to the index in Windows 8

If you use an unusual file type that's not currently recognized by the index, you can add it to the index so you can search in Windows 8 by that file type.

Advanced Indexing Options File Types tab inside of Windows 8

1. Open Indexing Options (see above).
2. Let-click on Advanced. If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
3. In the Advanced Options dialog box, left-click the File Types tab.
4. In the Add new extension to list box, type the file name extension (for example, "txt"), and then left-click Add.
5. Left-click Index Properties Only or Index Properties and File Contents, and then left-click OK.

How to add a folder to the index in Windows 8

Indexed Locations screen for Indexing Options inside of Windows 8

1. Open Indexing Options (see above).
2. Left-click on Modify.

• To add or remove a location, select or clear its check box in the Change selected locations list, and then left-click on OK.
• If you don't see all locations on your PC in the list, choose Show all locations. Administrator permission required You might be asked for an admin password or to confirm your choice. (If all locations are already listed, Show all locations won't be available.)
• If you want to include a folder but not all of its subfolders, select the folder, expand the folder, and then clear the check box next to any subfolder you don't want to be included in the index. These folders will appear in the Exclude column of the Summary of selected locations list.
• Indexing all of the files/folders on your system is not recommended. It is recommended that you index only your frequently used files and folders for best performance.

How to rebuild the Index inside of Windows 8

The index requires almost no maintenance. However, if the index can't find a file that you know exists in an indexed location, you might need to rebuild the index. Rebuilding the index can take several hours, and searches might be incomplete until the index is fully rebuilt.

1. Open Indexing Options (see above).
2. Left-click on Advanced. If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
3. In the Advanced Options dialog box, left-click the Index Settings tab, and then left-click on Rebuild. If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.

How to index encrypted files in Windows 8

Before you add encrypted files to the index, we recommend that you have Windows BitLocker (Windows 8 Pro and Windows 8 Enterprise only) or a non-Microsoft encryption program enabled on your system drive (the drive that Windows is installed on). The index will automatically rebuild each time this setting is changed. This can take a long time and might cause searches to be incomplete until the process is complete.

1. Open Indexing Options (see above).
2. Left-click on Advanced. If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
3. In the Advanced Options dialog box, left-click the Index Settings tab,
4. Left-click the Index encrypted files check box to select it and then left-click OK. If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.

Notes:
• Although you can use a non-Microsoft program to encrypt your system drive, non-Microsoft file encryption programs are not supported. Windows only supports files encrypted using the Encrypting File System (EFS).
• Suppose you add encrypted files to the index, and you're not using full-volume encryption for the location of the index, encrypted data from your files, for example. In that case, text from an encrypted Microsoft Word document will be added to the index. The index is obscured so that it's not easily readable if someone tries to open the index files, but it doesn't have strong data encryption. If someone were to gain access to your computer, they could extract your data from the index. Therefore, the location of the index should also be encrypted to help protect your indexed data.

How to index words with and without diacritics as different words in Windows 8

Suppose you commonly use diacritics (small signs added to letters to change the pronunciation of words) in your file and folder names. In that case, you can configure the index to recognize words with diacritics differently. By default, Windows recognizes diacritics according to the language version you are using. If you change this setting, all diacritics will be recognized. The index will automatically be rebuilt each time this setting is changed. This can take a long time and might cause searches to be incomplete until the process is complete.

1. Open Indexing Options (see above).
2. Left-click on Advanced. If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
3. In the Advanced Options dialog box, left-click the Index Settings tab.
4. Left-click the Treat similar words with diacritics as different words check box to select it, then left-click OK.

How to change the location where the index is stored in Windows 8

If you need to free up space on a hard disk, you can change the index's location. If you change this location, the Windows Search service will automatically be restarted, and the change will not go into effect until the restart is complete.

1. Open Indexing Options (see above).
2. Left-click on Advanced. If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
3. In the Advanced Options dialog box, left-click the Index Settings tab.
4. Under Index location, left-click on Select new, browse to and left-click the new location, then left-click on OK.

Note:
• When you change the index location, you should choose a location on a non-removable hard disk formatted using the NTFS file system.