When you choose to run a Full format on a volume, files are removed from the volume that you are formatting and the hard disk is scanned for bad sectors. The scan for bad sectors is the reason why the Full format takes twice as long as the Quick format.

If you choose the Quick format option, the format removes files from the partition, but does not scan the disk for bad sectors. This option is best when your hard disk has been previously formatted and you are sure that your hard disk is not damaged nor has bad sectors. This can be a problem later because bad sectors that are not located can cause damage to the hard drive. For example, if data is later installed on this “bad sector” the data will read errors or as corrupted files.

In simple terms, a Full format will truly scrub through the hard drive from scratch, rebuild all of its file structures, and scans the drive to make sure that everything is on a satisfactory level. On the other hand, what a Quick format does is lay down a blank FAT and directory table without checking for bad sectors.

This is why when you buy a brand-new unformatted hard drive; you cannot give it a Quick format. The drive needs a Full Format because it needs the entire file structures set-up, so the FAT actually has blocks and sectors to track, rather than a chaotic mess. However, like we mention earlier, if your hard drive is already has a clean slate and has no bad sectors, a Quick format will be suitable.

Also, if you installed Windows on a partition that was formatted by using the Quick format option, you can check your hard drive by using the chkdsk /r command after the installation of Windows is completed. In conclusion—don’t be lazy. You already went the distance with the tedious task of reformatting. Select the Full Format and both your computer and you will live in harmony…until the next format.

Microsoft really outdid themselves this month by releasing the biggest patch Tuesday ever and fixing a whopping 49 vulnerabilities. Computer World reports that there are 16 groups of patches total and two patches in particular should get priority. One is patch MS10-071 for Internet Explorer and the other is for Windows, number MS10-076. Microsoft feels that it is very likely that attack code will be developed targeting the vulnerabilities fixed by those two patches.

NCircle Director of Security Operations Andrew Storms agrees that those two updates should be a top priority as they could be leveraged in a drive-by Internet attack. In this common type of attack, a hacker tricks the victim into visiting a Web page that takes advantage of the bug to install a malicious program on the victim’s machine.

The MS10-071 update for IE fixes 10 bugs, 2 of which are rated Critical and could be used in a drive-by attack. MS10-076 fixes a single bug in the Windows Embedded OpenType (EOT) Font Engine which Internet Explorer uses. Newer versions of Windows have ASLR (address space layer randomization) that protect from attacks on that kind of bug. Therefore, Windows XP is expected to be the target for exploits on the EOT bug along with other older versions of Windows.

Two other updates that are regarded as crucial are MS10-077, a fix for a .NET framework bug that affects only x64 systems, and MS10-075 which fixes a bug in Microsoft Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service which is used by Windows Media Player to share media over the network. In addition to the high profile updates there are a number of lower-ranking vulnerabilities that are regarded as possible avenues of attack, specifically 35 out of the 49 bugs could allow unauthorized code execution. As a result, Microsoft expects a number of exploits for lower-ranking bugs.

Stuxnet teaches us that bugs that aren’t ranked Critical can still be dangerous,

one of Tuesday’s updates — MS10-073; rated important by Microsoft — fixes a Windows XP bug that was leveraged by the creators of the Stuxent worm. Stuxnet is the first publicly known worm built to attack industrial systems and it has made headlines during the past weeks amidst speculation that it was designed to target nuclear systems in Iran.

For more info see the official Microsoft bulletin.

It appears that antivirus companies have begun to sell their products on USB thumb drives. This is a great idea now that Netbooks are more common since many of them don’t have an optical drive. In fact, some antivirus companies such as Panda Security are making a Netbook specific versions of their antivirus products which are lighter on resources and come on a USB drive.

Another great thing about antivirus products coming on a USB drive is that the installation of the antivirus product (which usually takes ages) would happen much faster, since it is usually much faster than installing something from a CD.

Lastly, at the end of the day the customer is left with a USB drive which they could use for other purposes.

The default power settings for Windows is to have the computer go to sleep after about 15-30 minutes of inactivity (such as no keyboard input or mouse movement). This is great for the client because it saves power but not so great for a technician who is working on the computer.

Insomnia is a small, freeware and portable application designed to prevent the computer from going to sleep. As long as the Insomnia window is open, the computer wont go to sleep. This is great for a technician who is running malware or diagnosis scans on a computer which can potentially take hours.

If you are a technician who makes use of .BAT file or AutoIT scripting, this would be a nice addition to your script to keep the computers awake while your script does its task.

One of the biggest frustrations when installing Windows XP was making sure you had the correct CD for your license key. Windows Vista fixed this problem by having a universal CD that contained all versions (all 32bit versions or all 64bit versions, not both) and simply installed the version that the key matched.

Now that Windows 7 is out, Microsoft have reverted back to needing a separate disk for each version which is annoying for us computer technicians. However, the only difference between each DVD is a small 51 byte configuration file called ei.cfg which tells the installer what version disc it is. If you were to turn your DVD into an ISO, remove this ei.cfg file and write it back to a DVD, that DVD would become a Universal DVD.

ei.cfg Removal Utility will make this easy for you. Just create an ISO with your legitimate Windows 7 DVD, run this tool, choose the ISO and let it run. Once it has finished, just write the ISO back to a DVD again and you would only need to carry one 32bit version and one 64bit version to support any Windows 7 install onsite.

Of course, your client would still need to provide you with a working key for the Windows 7 install to work.

The critical security bug in vPro processors has been patched by Intel. The affected chipsets are Q35, GM45, PM45 Express, Q45, and Q43 Express.

The bug is about implementation errors in the company’s trusted execution technology (TXT).

“We again showed that an attacker can compromise the integrity of a software loaded via an Intel TXT-based loader in a generic way, fully circumventing any protection TXT is supposed to provide,” said Invisible Things Lab researchers.

The overhaul of Firefox’s interface has been delayed. Instead of debuting in version 3.7, it is now scheduled to debut in version 4.0 which is a major release slated for a 2010 release.

Mozilla, the developer of Firefox, would “ribbonize” the browser and borrow graphics graphics concepts from Microsoft. This means eliminating the top-of-the-frame menus.

Stephen Horlander of Mozilla said that there will be an “App Button” that will take place of the menus.