how to block U Torrent

[Sybex]

hiya,

have a small XP pro system 9 computers in workgroup network, users despite warnings are using the portable version of UTorrent, and downloading nasty illegal stuff, blocking flash drives to prevent them using them to use U Torrent is not an option.

Its a community center where public access is free but not always able to be supervised properly

anyone have any brilliant idea's ?

rgds
Syb

[ruirib]

Get a firewall such as Online Armor and block the app used, preventing it from having internet access or even from being run.

[CLiNT]

If you have a sufficiently advanced firewall that no one else but an admin can access then you may be able to block the program from there.

[Doc Brown]

If you were on a domain, you can restrict the running of executable from removable media. There is a local software that can be set under Administrative Tools/Local Security Policy. But I have never tried this as a local policy on XP. So you may have to do some reading and testing to get it to prevent users from running executables.

EDIT: Looking at the other responses, I'm thinking that firewall software is the best solution to this problem.

[chowur]

You can try;
How To Use the Group Policy Editor to Manage Local Computer Policy in Windows XP;http://support.microsoft.com/kb/307882

How To Use Computer Management in Windows XP;http://support.microsoft.com/kb/308423/EN-US

[Doc Brown]

chowur, Group Policy requires a Windows Domain. The OP said he's got a workgroup not a domain. Given that its a small network with I'm assuming limited funds, putting up a Windows server to have a domain probably isn't feasible.

[Paul T]

As long as the users are not local administrators you should be able to use Windows Firewall to block torrents. The best method is to block everything except ports 80, 443, 21 and ICMP at your internet router, or install Smoothwall on an old PC and let it block the ports. Then they can only surf with a browser and use FTP.

cheers, Paul