going to a Lan security...

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Norwich
Hi all

i will be attending the I34 lan event.

its going to be my first lan and im a little paranoid so what i want to do is make it so that when booting the pc a password is required to log on. but i want to be able to remove this feature easily when i return home and there is only me with access to the pc.

secondly i would like to be able to set it so that when i leave the pc i can turn on a scrensaver which will again require a password to get back to the desktop.

can these things be done easily through windows xp or will other software be needed?

thanks

Loki
 
Create a password in BIOS so when you start up it will prompt for a password and the screensaver can be done by right clicking the desktop, cant remember the exact place "screensaver" probably and selecting password on screensaver, something along that lines. Im on vista so cant remember the XP tabs. Im sure someone will know where the option is. You wont need extra software :)
 
so on start up go into bios and look for a password option? can this be disabled via the bios as well?

thanks

The password must be entered as soon as it posts i believe, so unless you reset CMOS (maybe physically lock the box too?) you have to enter the password before you can enter BIOS.

I presume you have considered network intrusion attempts etc. and your software security is upto scratch?
 
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Its a bit extreme but when i used to goto lans i had 2 installs of xp on removable drives. One was my normal home system and one was a clean install with only patches and games on it. When i was hooked to the lan network i used only the games install... plus external drives with films and stuff on to share ( naughty me... ).

That way even if someone did hack into my system it didnt matter much. When i wanted to use my normal install i just unplugged the cable and swapped drives. I still used firewall and AV software of course but if someone had gotten into my machine there would be nothing of value to steal or mess with.

Maybe something to think about for future events.
 
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Its a bit extreme but when i used to goto lans i had 2 installs of xp on removable drives. One was my normal home system and one was a clean install with only patches and games on it. When i was hooked to the lan network i used only the games install... plus external drives with films and stuff on to share ( naughty me... ).

That way even if someone did hack into my system it didnt matter much. When i wanted to use my normal install i just unplugged the cable and swapped drives. I still used firewall and AV software of course but if someone had gotten into my machine there would be nothing of value to steal or mess with.

Maybe something to think about for future events.

Good idea that one :)
 
well i will have a firewall running and will have done all the security updates is that enough?

i want to set the passwords for my own security i dont think i need to go as far as locking the pc as my clan mates (if i get enough to go) will be in the area and no doubt keep an eye on my kit.
 
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