Netstat displays active TCP connections, ports on which the computer is listening, Ethernet statistics, the IP routing table, IPv4 statistics (for the IP, ICMP, TCP, and UDP protocols), and IPv6 statistics (for the IPv6, ICMPv6, TCP over IPv6, and UDP over IPv6 protocols). This tool is very useful when you are trying to diagnose open connections to other computers.

A good use for this tool is to run this on a computer when you think that the computer may be talking to an unauthorized computer without your knowledge (example : spyware).

If you suspect your computer is making connections to another computer and passing information without your knowledge, you can use this to see which connections/post are currently in use and use this information to try and diagnose the issue at hand.

Occasionally you will need to use FTP and you will not have any software.  I have found these 2 links very useful in diagnosing many problems.

List of FTP commands for the Microsoft command-line FTP client

List of raw FTP commands

A little known program in Windows XP called "iexpress" will allow users to create EXE installation files. These EXE files can be used to automate muli-part VBS(VBScript) and BAT(Batch) files that you hae into a nice installation package that can be run by other people that you give the EXE too.

This can be helpful if you have a complex multi-part batch file that calls other smaller batch files and VBScript files and you would like to have it all rolled up into one small package so your users don't get confused.

Step 1
Click on the Start Menu and click "Run"

Step 2

YamiPod (Yet Another Manager for Ipod) is a freeware solution for people that want to manage their Ipod from multiple computers at the same time without installing programs such as ITunes.

Here's a brief description of the features in YamiPod:

# stand alone program, no installation required
# mp3 and AAC files can be copied to/from iPod
# read/write access to mp3 id3 and AAC infos
# playlist support (On-The-Go included)
# playlists import (PLS,M3U)
# playlists export (PLS,M3U)
# full unicode support
# auto-download new versions

Most people think that VPN's are only for corporate networks or Computer People. The truth is VPN's are very easy to set up and they provide a level of security that is really needed in today's world.

There are may ways to set up a VPN, some of these options are more difficult then others. You can set up a VPN using client side software, or you can be a little more conplex and set up a domain at home and use your router to pass authentication to a RADIUS server.

Today, I will talk about a program called "Hamachi" that will allow you to have a very secure VPN, with almost no work at all.

This article describes how to change the port that Remote Desktop listens on.

Note The Remote Desktop Connection Client for the Mac supports only port 3389. 3389 is the default port.

You can use the Remote Desktop feature in Microsoft Windows XP Professional to connect to your computer from another remote computer.

Warning The Remote Assistance feature in Microsoft Windows XP may not work correctly if you change the listening port.

To change the port that Remote Desktop listens on, follow these steps.

Warning If you use Registry Editor incorrectly, you may cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that you can solve problems that result from using Registry Editor incorrectly. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

GParted is an industrial-strength package for creating, destroying, resizing, checking and copying partitions, and the file systems on them. This is useful for creating space for new operating systems, reorganizing disk usage, copying data residing on hard disks and mirroring one partition with another (disk imaging).

This is the perfect solution for someone who needs to resize partitions on a Hard Drive, but doesn't want to spend the money on a commercial software such as Partition Magic.

Every once in a while I need to open a command prompt in a certain place. The way to do this is to go to the command prompt and navigate your way to the directory that you need to be in, or open that directory by typing out the entire directory name exactly as it should be.

I've found it easier to just install a registry hack that allows you to right click on any folder and then open a command prompt there. Your options to do this are to install the Windows XP power toy located on this page or you can use this simple registry entry and just install it yourself.

I work on alot of servers in my job, and sometimes its hard to remember which server I'm on, or even sometimes which user I'm logged in as. This registry entry will rename the "My Computer" icon to %USER% on %COMPUERNAME%. for those of you that use Terminal Services on a daily basis you can understand the frustration when you have just deleted a file on the wrong server and now you have to recover it. This can be used as a quick check just to make sure that you are in the right place before you do a unrecoverable operation.

You can download the registry file here. Just click on the link and save the information in a location that you like (with a .reg extention) and then double click it to run.

As many of you may know the windows registry is just about EVERYTHING when it comes to windows. Within this vast space you will find the settings to programs you never know existed.

Have you ever been on the phone with someone and you have seen that they are having some issue that must be related to some other program installed on the computer but you just can't seem to put your finger on what that program is. Well you can always have them reaqd off the "Add/Remove programs" from the control panel but who kows if that information that give you is good.

A good thing to do is to just have them give you the information.