We fix your tech problems
APC and its readers can be one giant helpdesk. If you have a technical problem, chances are one of us can solve it.
SECURITY
IS THIS RANSOMWARE?
A few days ago, I spotted a couple of strange-looking folders on my data drive: Tprogram136 and Oapplication5. An internet search revealed nothing, so I tried deleting one of the files only for Cybereason RansomFree to pop up and claim it had blocked an attempt to lock my computer. I selected the option to remove the ransomware, but then another file popped up in its place: Tfiles37. Inside these are seemingly random files with various formats. Where are they coming from? John Buchanan
After some extensive research and further scans using John’s other tools – Avast FREE, EEK and Malwarebytes – we suddenly had our eureka moment! The folders in question – hidden by default – are created by Cybereason RansomFree as bait.
It monitors these folders and, if it notices attempts to delete or modify the files, it leaps into action.
This so-called ‘heuristic’ detection means the application works solely by looking for certain types of suspicious behaviour associated with ransomware rather than relying on definition updates to spot potential infections. It can be effective, but is rather blunt. Cybereason has discontinued the tool now, but as John knows what it’s doing, he can leave it in place if he wishes. Alternatively, he could try a free alternative such as Acronis Ransomware Protection (www.acronis. com/en-gb/personal/free-dataprotection/), which works in a similar way but also offers 5GB of free online space where you can store particularly sensitive files out of any ransomware infection’s reach, even if breaches Acronis’s defences. Nick Peers
WINDOWS
BLANK WINDOWS ON STARTUP
Can you help me please? On my Acer laptop I get six or so blank windows appear at startup, vanishing as soon as they start. I
“The application works solely by looking for certain types of suspicious behaviour associated with ransomware rather than relying on definition updates to spot potential infections. ”
think it’s something to do with Office trying to start. Raymond Whithall
Raymond eventually traced his specific problem to a driver update – once installed, the blank windows vanished. If you’re plagued by something similar, use a tool like Autoruns (https://bit.ly/autoruns) to see what’s set to load with Windows – run the tool as an administrator and investigate the Logon tab.
Disable any suspicious looking entries and then reboot to see if the blank windows disappear – if they do, investigate the disabled entries further (right-click it and choose ‘Virus Total’ to see if the file is known malware, then right-click and choose ‘Search Online’ to investigate the filename further using Google.
BootRacer (https://greatis.com/ bootracer) can monitor the start-up process to see which background program is starting when the windows flash up, then use that as the basis for further research. Ian Sleightholm
HARDWARE
CAN’T UPGRADE LAPTOP RAM
I bought a second-hand Toshiba Satellite c660 laptop for $150. It came with 3GB and I’ve tried upgrading it to 8GB RAM using Crucial’s website to guide me to a purchase on eBay. But on installing it I get a blue screen “Kernel security check failure” error. A local shop also tried installing RAM and updating the BIOS but got the same error. I’m now at a loss as to what I can do – any suggestions? Peter Blachford
We first advised Peter on upgrading to an SSD drive to improve performance, which would also give him the opportunity to see if installing a fresh copy of Windows with the 8GB fitted would work, but sadly the same error message came up before anything was written to the drive. Older Toshiba Satellite laptops have a bad reputation for being sticklers about RAM – many users have reported success with
adding a single stick of 4GB to the current 2GB stick, so Peter might like to try this to see if he can bump things up to 6GB. Otherwise it may be a case of entering the BIOS to see if he can find and write down the memory timing settings for the original 3GB sticks, then fit the new RAM (which is recognised correctly in the BIOS) and compare its memory timings – if necessary, alter these to match the original RAM. If Peter can get at least 6GB RAM working, then clone his Windows installation to his new SSD drive, he should see a significant improvement in performance. Alex Cox
HARDWARE
MOUSE AND KEYBOARD PROBLEMS
My new PC is giving me problems – or rather my keyboard and mouse. Keystrokes are periodically delayed by a few seconds, while mouse movements can also appear jerky. The problems are intermittent, but if I reboot will occasionally go away for a while. Andrew Inglis
This sounded like a classic issue of system resource issues – some rogue process or heavy duty program (Andrew was using Photoshop in conjunction with a scanner to sort through over 50 years of accumulated photos) consuming so much processor time and RAM that the system grinds to a halt.
The problem was that Andrew had just purchased an impressively spec’d PC: Intel Core i7 processor, 16GB RAM, GeForce GTX 1660 graphics card with 2GB onboard VRAM and an NVMe M.2 SSD drive. We directed Andrew to https://helpx.adobe.com/au/ photoshop/kb/photoshop-slow-lags. html.html for an extensive list of remedial steps to try in case it helped, but after much to-ing and fro-ing he was advised to create a new user account. Logging into the new account seems to have cured the problem, suggesting a corrupt file or profile setting was to blame. Carrie Marshall
WINDOWS EXTRACT WINDOWS SPOTLIGHT IMAGES
I’m loving the images that pop up on my Windows 10 lock screen at startup – where does Windows store these, and can I extract them for use as, say, the wallpaper on my desktop? Angie Johnson
It’s fiddly, but certainly possible to find them. Press Windows-r and type %LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages and hit Enter to open this hidden folder. Now browse further to Microsoft. Windows.ContentDeliveryManager_ cw5n1h2txyewy\LocalState\Assets where you’ll find a load of files with apparent gibberish for names. Copy these into another folder, then browse to that folder in File Explorer, click inside the Address bar at the top, type cmd and press Enter to open a command prompt window. Type the following command and hit Enter: ren *.* ???-pic.jpg You’ll immediately see the file icons update to show a thumbnail of each image, making it easy to identify the backgrounds from other photos in the same folder. Ian Sleightholm
HARDWARE
PRINTERS HAVE GONE MISSING
My Canon and Epson printers, which connect through my Apple Time Capsule, have stopped working wirelessly out of the blue. How can I work out what’s gone wrong? Harvey Beaudette
First, using AirPort Utility, check your Time Capsule’s Wi-Fi setup and ensure that its firmware is fully up to date. Apple details this at bit.ly/ mf344airpfw. If everything there seems fine, make a note of its IP address on your local network, and compare that with the address set on your Mac. For devices to connect, they need to be on the same subnet, with the same numbers in the first three groups, such as 192.168.1.3 and 192.168.1.12. Next, quit all open apps and run Wireless Diagnostics on your Mac. The easiest way to do that is by clicking the Wi-Fi item at the right of the menu bar with the option key held down: select the Open Wireless Diagnostics… command, and look for signs of problems there. This is largely self-explanatory and detailed at bit.ly/mf344macwifi. When you’re happy that your Wi-Fi network is healthy and the printers, Mac and Time Capsule should all able to connect properly, remove the printers from the System Preferences > Printers & Scanners pane on your Mac, close System Preferences, then open it again and add both printers back. If the Wi-Fi in your Time Capsule isn’t working properly and can’t be fixed using AirPort Utility, contact Apple Support to see whether it can be repaired or needs replacement. If it’s old, you could connect both printers to your Mac via USB and share them through a Wi-Fi router instead. Howard Oakley
“US$22 isn’t a huge amount to pay for a program, however infrequently you use it. ”
APPLICATION
PRINT MUSIC
FOLDER LIST WITH METADATA
I’ve ripped songs to separate folders per CD. I wish to make a printed list where first the folder is displayed and then all the songs inside that folder, displaying title, contributing artist and album. I tried the free version of Directory List & Print Pro but greys out the detail I’m looking for as I’ve not purchased a licence. Can you suggest a workaround or freeware alternative?
Gerald Gibson
US$22 isn’t a huge amount to pay for a program, however infrequently you use it. We hunted high and low for a free directory printing tool with metadata support and came up short. In the course of our search we discovered Directory List & Print Pro (www.infonautics-software.ch/ directorylistprint/) is the simplest tool for the job, another big tick in favour of paying the modest one-off fee for the features you need. A portable version exists too, which means you can run it without cluttering up your system. Catherine Ellis
NETWORKING
EMULATE A WI-FI ADAPTER
I have a VirtualBox machine running Windows 8.1, and I’d like to be able to emulate a Wi-Fi adapter in it. John Dexter
You’ll need a compatible external Wi-Fi adapter. Open your virtual machine and click Settings > USB to add a filter selecting your USB device. Now start your VM – leave any existing network settings enabled for now to allow you to download and install any required drivers. Assuming the device is detected correctly, clicking the Network button in the Taskbar notification area should bring up the Networks list, with Wi-Fi options indicating you’re now able to surf wirelessly with your VM.
Once you’ve confirmed this, shut down your VM and open Settings > Network to disable the virtual network adapter, then restart to access your network exclusively through the wireless USB adapter. Nick Peers
STORAGE
MOVE PROGRAMS TO ANOTHER DRIVE
Is there some way to free up space on my Lenovo Miix 310’s internal storage (a paltry 32GB)? I have no room left to update Windows 10. Richard Croucher
If you can get it to recognise a 64GB microSD card, then use that for additional storage – first move your documents and other user data across, then follow this guide to move apps over without having to reinstall them first.
Download Steam Mover from www.traynier.com – once done, right-click SteamMover_v0_1.zip and choose Extract All. Open the extracted folder, right-click SteamMover.exe and choose ‘Run as administrator’ to launch it.
If Steam Mover doesn’t automatically select your Program Files folder, click … next to ‘Steam Apps Common Folder’ to choose C:\ Program Files. Click … next to ‘Alternative Folder’ to select a suitable folder on your secondary drive.
A list of installed apps will appear in the list. Hold Ctrl and click on each app you wish to transfer to highlight it. Try to focus on larger apps and those you don’t use that often. Once done, click > to move the files.
After the command prompt window closes, you should find the apps are now on your D drive, and space has been recovered. They should work as normal, but you can restore them by selecting them and clicking < at any time. Alex Cox