If you’re running Windows XP Home, the Simple File Sharing is enabled by default, and unlike in Windows XP Professional, there is no easy way to turn it off. While some users will find this version of file sharing simple to use, it does lack much of the granularity typically associated with assigning NTFS and […]

If you choose to apply both shared folder and NTFS permissions to a folder, you need to consider which permissions will actually apply. For example, let’s say that you granted a user named Paul the shared folder permission Read, and the NTFS permission Full Control. When accessing this folder over the network, the more restrictive […]

Besides increased system stability, the best reason for choosing Windows XP or Windows 2000 as a desktop OS is the ability to take advantage of the NTFS file system. Unlike FAT and FAT32, NTFS provides the ability to configure file and folder security permissions that apply to both local and remote users. On a Windows […]

For system administration purposes, both Windows XP and Windows 2000 Professional systems share the root of each drive. By default, this “folder” is shared using a name created by taking the drive letter (such as C) and appending a dollar sign ($) to the end of it. On a Windows XP/2000 Professional system, these administratively […]

If you’re running Windows XP Home (or Professional as part of a workgroup), Microsoft has introduced a new feature known as Simple File Sharing. This feature is meant to make the process of sharing files with other users both on the network and the same PC more intuitive. Unfortunately, this method strays from the standard […]

The primary purpose for implementing a network is to allow users to share resources. For example, users on one PC might want to access the contents of a folder or use a printer on another system. Although sharing a folder or printer on a system running any Windows version from 95 forward is a relatively […]

While good internal security starts with user accounts, more important still is the strength of the passwords assigned to those accounts. Far too many users take the easy way out on this one, assigning very common or “guessable” words as their password. In the same way that it’s a bad idea to set your PIN […]

Securing your internal network always starts with the same concept, namely authentication. In the same way that you need a unique card to access your bank account, all users of a network should have their own unique username for identification purposes. While have all users access a network using the same username is obviously simpler, […]

When it comes to securing a home network, most users fall into the trap of believe that a simple home firewall device will provide all the security they need. While some type of firewall device or firewall software package is imperative for any network, this is where properly securing a network begins, not where it […]

Once TCP/IP is installed and configured on the computers on your network, a variety of helpful and interesting diagnostic and troubleshooting utilities become available to you. Most of these utilities are meant to be run from the command line, so make sure that you have that command prompt icon nice and handy on your desktop. […]