Using Linux to scan and remove viruses from a Windows computer

A common problem with viruses is that they are often extremely difficult to remove. Most of the time, you easily understand that there is something strange about your Windows box (apart from the usual Windows behaviour, that is :D) , so you run a virus scan and indeed, confirm your worry that you have been infected. But what is the worth of your antivirus application if it is unable to remove the virus, not to mention detect it in the first place?! Often, you need to find a dedicated mini-application that removes a particular virus, but if you can't, you're screwed.

The following is a recipe that works:
1. Install Ubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron) Persistent on a USB stick (see this guide, and read my reasons why)
2.Install antivirus applications on the Ubuntu system on the USB stick.

• Avast Antivirus is easy to install (.deb available) and is free but requires email registration for a key (no spam).
  
• Clam Antivirus is free and also available from repositories (enable universe). If you prefer a graphical user interface (GUI), also install clamtk using Synaptic.
  
• AVG Anti-Virus Free for Linux/Freebsd 7.5.50 is not their latest release but might do the job.
  
• Trend Micro HouseCall is a free online scanning service. Linux distributions must support libc6.

3. Make sure the antivirus applications and virus definitions are all updated.
4. Boot up Ubuntu on the infected Windows computer using your USB stick. You may have to enter the BIOS setup to change the boot order to boot from USB before booting from the (Windows) hard drive.
5. Launch an antivirus application in Ubuntu and tell it to scan the directory /media, where the windows partitions shall have been automounted as /media/disk, /media/disk-1, etc. at boot time.

(Note: I have only tried Avast and Clam. I noted that Clam seemed to be unresponsive upon starting a scan, but after 30 seconds or so started scanning.)

When you have successfully cleaned your mom's/dad's/friend's computer, lend them your USB stick (with all the usual snacks like Compiz Fusion/the 3D cube, OpenOffice, Opera 9.5 with email set up, Amarok, VLC player etc.) and tell them that anything they can accomplish in Windows (well, perhaps with the exception of premium video editing suites such as Adobe Premiere Pro) they can do with free software in a virusfree Linux environment!

How to synchronise files with rsync

Everyone knows it is a good idea to backup your data. However, the good ol' copy'n'paste routine is time consuming, inefficient, and prone to errors. By using rsync, you can achieve efficient synchronisation of files as only the change in data will be transferred.

For example, you might want to synchronise your home directory, /home/username/, to your external hard drive, /media/externalhdd/homebackup/. A oneliner is all that is needed:

rsync -ra --progress --stats --log-file=rsynclog /home/username/ /media/externalhdd/homebackup

The options used are:

• -r recursive (includes subfolders)
  
• -a archive (preserves, ownership, timestamps, etc.)
  
• --progress (shows progress of files being synchronised)
  
• --stats (print some statistics after synchronisation)
  
• --log-file=rsynclog (save useful information in file rsynclog in current directory)
  

For other options, do

rsync --help

You can also use rsync for synchronisation to remote servers. If so, you may do

rsync -ra --progress --size-only /home/username/ server.example.com:/home/username/homebackup/

Note that such a connection to a remote server is insecure! You should be using SSH. Google it to find out how. One possible starting point is here.

Finally, you may want to use a script that runs at scheduled times to automate your backup process. An example script can be downloaded here (see below). Modify the script by removing the user input and use cron to run it at regular times, e.g., every night. rsyncbackup.sh

Free online chess at FICS

If you are tired of playing chess against your computer and/or do not have many friends who can or want to play chess, you may want to check out online chess. Perhaps the most popular free online chess provider is the Free Internet Chess Server (FICS). Logging on to one of their servers, you can play normal chess (lightning, blitz, standard) or variants such as suicide, atomic, or crazyhouse.

In order to play you should download a chess client. This is a graphical user interface (GUI) which typically provides all the necessary functionality and communicates with the chess server. Log in anonymously or with a username that you have registered at FICS, who also provide links to popular chess clients for Windows, Mac, or Unix/Linux. Good choices are Babaschess for Windows and eboard for Unix/Linux.

Being registered at FICS is highly recommended, as you get an official rating, comparable, but not identical, to those used by Kasparov (well, he is retired), Kramnik, Norwegian Magnus Carlsen (ranked fifth in the world) and others (check out the FIDE ratings). The server keeps track of your statistics such as number of games lost, drawn, or won, your rating in the various gameplays, as well as other details such as percentage of life online (!).

Steps to take:
1. Register a username ("handle").
2. Download a chess client, for example Babaschess or eboard.
3. Connect to FICS via the chess client.

Useful commands:

help, finger, history, seek, match

For more information, see Wikipedia.