Windows Secrets > Articles by: Lance Whitney

Author Archives: Lance Whitney

How to Control Windows 10 Security via Group Policy

Posted on March 23, 2017 by Lance Whitney in Privacy, Security Baseline

You can adjust and strengthen Windows 10 security settings through Group Policy. Here’s how. You want to tighten the security features and policies in Windows 10 but you’re not sure where to go. Well, there is a Settings screen where you can enable or disable several privacy settings. But if you want to manage and maintain the security settings in the OS, one method is through the Group Policy Editor. Using this tool, you can control settings for anyone who uses the same computer. You’ll find settings for password length and complexity, the account lockout policy, the Windows firewall, and the audit policies. Though Group Policy is typically used in an organization, it can also be recruited to tweak settings on an individual computer, whether that PC is used by one person or by multiple people in a home or small office. The local security policies for Windows 10 are contained in a Group Policy snap-in called secpol.msc. By opening this snap-in in your Group Policy Editor, you can tweak each individual setting. This gives you the power to set security policy for any Windows 10 computer in your home or office. Anyone who logs into a computer for which … Read More »

How to Best Secure the Microsoft Edge Browser

Posted on March 21, 2017 by Lance Whitney in Best Practices, Security Baseline, Web Issues

Microsoft Edge already has some security tricks up its sleeve, but you can beef up the browser still further. Windows 10 users, you’re probably using Microsoft Edge to surf the web. But how secure is the newest browser on the block? And how can you tweak it to make it more secure? Edge already includes or takes advantage of several features that enhance your security. But it also offers several options that you can enable or disable to better protect your privacy on the web and ensure that you’re practicing safe surfing. You can make sure the SmartScreen filter is turned on to protect you from malicious websites. You can use InPrivate browsing so no cookies or other data are collected. You can opt to block cookies, especially ones from third-party websites. You can choose to clear your browsing history, especially whenever you shut down Edge. And you can remove your Bing search history. First, let’s go over the security features already built into or used by Edge. One item is SmartScreen. Initially developed for Internet Explorer 8, SmartScreen checks each webpage you visit and each file you download to make sure they don’t contain malware. The feature works by … Read More »

Manage Your Website Passwords Across All Your PCs and Mobile Devices

Posted on March 16, 2017 by Lance Whitney in Best Practices, Top Story, Windows Secrets

You can use a password manager to generate, store, and apply your website passwords. Here’s how to set one up for each browser and device you use. Managing the passwords for all your websites is a challenge. Not only are you supposed to come up with a complex password that can’t easily be guessed or hacked. But you’re supposed to employ a different password for each website you use. Some require both upper- and lowercase letters, others require that plus a number and a special character, some grade your password on degree of difficulty to crack, forcing you to break away from any tricks you’ve used to generate passwords you can remember. And now, we all live in a world where we are hitting the same websites and services across a broad array of devices, from desktop computers to mobile phones. You’ll want to manage your passwords on all your web browsers on all your devices. And you’ll want to sync your website passwords across all your browsers and devices. How is all that possible? We have a two-word answer for you: password managers. Such tools can conjure up complex passwords for each website and then automatically apply those passwords every time … Read More »

Password Managers: The Pros and Cons

Posted on March 14, 2017 by Lance Whitney in Best Practices, Top Story

You can rely on password managers to automatically take care of your website passwords, but there are a few hurdles you’ll have to overcome. Password managers provide an effective means of cooking up and controlling your website passwords so you don’t have to deal with the hard part of creating them, using them on the Web and — this is key — remembering them. Such tools offer several benefits, including the ability to generate complex passwords, store and remember your passwords, and automatically apply them at their respective websites. But you still need to be aware of potential snags when using a password manager. For example, you have to create and remember a complex master password that can protect all your other passwords, otherwise there’s the possibility of someone gaining access to your passwords. Your passwords are typically stored on a server maintained by the vendor, and we know that servers can be hacked. Plus, password managers are only good on the devices on which they’re installed. Use a friend’s PC or a computer at the library, and you’re stuck because you don’t have access to the passwords for your sites. How can you benefit from the pros of password managers … Read More »

My Favorite Free Microsoft Windows Utilities, and How They Can Help You

Posted on March 9, 2017 by Lance Whitney in Windows Secrets

I’m a sucker for a free software utility. I love discovering programs that can make my computing life easier. Microsoft offers an array of useful and free utilities, and some of my favorites fall under the umbrella of a group known as Windows Sysinternals. Created by Microsoft Azure Chief Technology Officer Mark Russinovich, Sysinternals consists of utilities that can enhance Windows, gather useful information, and troubleshoot specific problems. What’s cool about the Sysinternals tools is that they run the gamut from simple to complex, are well-designed, and don’t require an installation. I’ve used several of the Sysinternals tools over the years and have come up with some favorites that I think would help many Windows users. Let’s look at each tool. Autologon Windows 10 and 8.1 force you to enter your password at the sign in or lock screen as a means of security. If you’re working in an office or other public place and step away, you wouldn’t want someone to be able to access the information on your computer. But if you’re at home or another private place, entering your login credentials isn’t as necessary since no one else is around to peek at your data. In this … Read More »

How to Sync Your Microsoft Outlook and iPhone Calendars

Posted on March 7, 2017 by Lance Whitney in Mobility

It’s a multiplatform world: You can be a Windows user on your desktop or laptop, yet still be happily carrying an iPhone or using an iPad. Now, say you use Microsoft Outlook on your Windows machine and you want to synchronize your calendar appointments in both Outlook and on your iOS device. How can you do this? Well, if you run Microsoft Outlook on the same PC on which iTunes is installed, the operation is fairly simple. You can use either iTunes or iCloud to perform the synchronization. But what if your Outlook and iTunes computers are different? For example, I run Outlook on my laptop and iTunes on my desktop. The sync procedure becomes a bit more challenging but still doable. One option is to set up a sync between your Outlook calendar and a Google calendar and then between your Google and iPhone calendars. Sounds tricky, but it works. Let’s go over the different ways you can accomplish your calendar synchronization. Sync Through iTunes This article is part of our premium content. Join Now.Already a paid subscriber? Click here to login.

How to Check Windows for Disk or Memory Problems

Posted on March 2, 2017 by Lance Whitney in Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows Secrets

Is Windows misbehaving on you? Freezing? Crashing? Blue screening? Problems like that can be tough to troubleshoot. They could be hardware-related. They could be software-related. How can you tell? Well, one step you can take is to run two commands in Windows to check for disk or memory issues. The chkdsk command can scan your hard drive for trouble. And the Windows Memory Diagnostic Tool can scan your memory for any glitches. These tools have been around for years and are still available in Windows 10 as they still get the job done. Check for Disk Errors with Chkdsk Let’s try out the chkdsk command first. Your hard drive, whether it’s physical disk or a solid state drive, uses a file system to keep track of all its data. Sometimes that file system can become corrupted with errors that affect its performance and reliability. Your disk drive can also develop bad sectors, which are small areas of storage that take up a certain amount of space. These problems often result in unreadable files, among other problems. In both cases, the chkdsk command can reveal errors with your file system or hard disk and hopefully fix them. You can trigger the … Read More »

Hey, What is Microsoft Sway, and Is It Worth Using?

Posted on February 28, 2017 by Lance Whitney in Top Story

Are you familiar with Microsoft Sway? If not, don’t panic. It’s one of those applications that isn’t exactly a household name. Part of Microsoft Office, Sway allows you to create interactive reports, presentations, and personal stories, in a fresher visual style than PowerPoint. Students, business professionals, and everyday folks can build a presentation using text, graphics, videos, charts, maps, tweets, and other media. The software is available as a downloadable Windows app and as a component of Microsoft’s Office Online suite. So is the program worth trying? And should you bother using it when you’re already rocking PowerPoint? I used Sway to create an interactive presentation to try to answer those questions. You can snag Sway one of a few ways: You can download it as an app from the Windows Store in Windows 10, or use the online version. Both offer the same features and functionality; there is no advantage to selecting one option over the other. The downloadable app, however, is available only for Windows 10, while the online edition is accessible in prior versions of Windows, including Windows 7 and 8.1. You’re not limited to creating your Sway on a computer. You can cook a Sway up on an iPhone … Read More »

How to Back Up Your Microsoft Outlook PST File

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Lance Whitney in Office, Top Story, Windows Secrets

Your PST file contains all your Outlook email, so you need a safe and reliable way to back it up on a recurring basis. A little backtracking, for those of us who haven’t run across this term before. If you use Microsoft Outlook for your email, your PST files contain all your messages, calendar events, contacts, and other data. As the PST file is critical, you need a way to back it up on a regular basis in case something goes kerflooey with the live file. You can then always retrieve the backup, whether to locate an individual e-mail that’s been lost or deleted or to recover the entire PST file in case it gets corrupted. Outlook itself offers no way to back up the file, but you can turn to a couple of free utilities to do the work. Microsoft provides a free program called Personal Folders Backup, which sets itself up as an add-in for Outlook and can automatically back up your PST file at regular intervals. The drawback with Personal Folders Backup is that it works only with older versions of Outlook up to the 2010 edition. But no cause for worry. Those of us who run Outlook 2013 … Read More »

How to Sync Your Microsoft Outlook and Google Calendars

Posted on February 16, 2017 by Lance Whitney in Best Utilities, Office, Top Story

Here’s the challenge: You use both Microsoft Outlook and Google for your calendar appointments, and you need a way to keep both of them in sync. Google once offered a free utility to sync your Gmail calendar with your Outlook calendar, but that tool has since bit the dust. So does that mean you’re out of luck? Nope — you can accomplish the same trick with help from a couple of third-party utilities. One free tool called Outlook Google Calendar Sync can keep your Outlook and Google calendars on the same path. Another utility known as Calendar Sync can also synchronize both calendars. Before we look at both tools, let’s just clarify one item. When I say Outlook, I’m not talking about the Outlook.com email service; I’m referring to the full version of the Microsoft Outlook email client that comes with Microsoft Office. Outlook currently is part of Office 2016 and Office 365. I’ve run Outlook for years and currently use the 2016 version through an Office 365 subscription. I also use Google for Gmail, as well as for my calendar appointments and contacts. So I’ve always needed a way to keep my Outlook and Google calendars in sync. In … Read More »

Author Archives: Lance Whitney

How to Control Windows 10 Security via Group Policy

How to Best Secure the Microsoft Edge Browser

Manage Your Website Passwords Across All Your PCs and Mobile Devices

Password Managers: The Pros and Cons

My Favorite Free Microsoft Windows Utilities, and How They Can Help You

How to Sync Your Microsoft Outlook and iPhone Calendars

How to Check Windows for Disk or Memory Problems

Hey, What is Microsoft Sway, and Is It Worth Using?

How to Back Up Your Microsoft Outlook PST File

How to Sync Your Microsoft Outlook and Google Calendars

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