WA2HIP - Information & Utilities Current date is - Thursday, July 10, 2025 - 04:51:03
GMT date is - Thursday, July 10, 2025 - 08:51:03
Your IP address is - 216.73.216.197
Host is - wa2hip.com


OVERVIEW

All computers are runing Windows 10 (r) 64 bit

Desktops and Laptops internal HDD are WD 1TB SSD
These drives are split into a C: and D: drive with the C: drive being the larger of the two.

They are networked (hard wired) See Diagram

All routers are Linksys AC-1900 model.
Routers are running after-market firmware DD-WRT which if free.
It is far betterthen the defaut firmware that comes with these routers.
Of particular interest is better security including WiFi MAC Address filtering, in browser information screens, scripting and much more.


SYSTEM UTILITIES / ADD-ONS

CPU temperatures are monitored with "HWInfo". This shows in the system's tray.

All drives' health is monitored with "Crystal Disk Info".
This includes the drives' temperatures which can be shown in the tray.

Computer clock synchroniztion is accomplished with "Net Time".
This is automatic and typically done every 20 minutes.
The program retains a log. There is also an Icon in the tray.

The default clock in the tray is also enhanced by a program called "TClock".
This is very configurable and can be setup for hourly chimes.

A utility called "Desktop OK" also provides for saving and restoring the positions of the Desktop Icons.

I use a utility called "DirSyncPro" which has the ability to synchronize directories from one drive to another.
It can copy/replace files in the target directory.
It can be run manually and/or on schedule(s)

**** BACKUP

For backup purposes I use a FREE version of "Macrium Reflect".
It is far better than Windows backup.
It also will create a compressed version of the drive(s) as a file on another drive.
The backup file can be "mounted" as another drive or drives and the content can be viewed using any file manager.
It is great to recover single of multiple files that have been lost or corrupted.

It can be run manually or on schedule.
It also provides for automatic managmemt of the backup image files.

One can simply instal the program (free version) and then they will send you a License Code for the machine.
s BTW, I run this program on all 7 (4 Desktops and 3 Laptops) machines here.


VERY USEFUL

**** FILE MANAGER

I use a file manager, which is side-by-side, called "Salamander" - Also known as "Altap Salamander.
It is better than Windows.
It has provisions for copying, moving, renaming and more.
It also has built-in viewers for common file such as JPG, PNG, GIF, TXT and ZIP.
It supports creating, updating/adding, and viewing ZIP contents, and more.

IMPORTANT: Configure the program to require confirmations of actions being perfromed !!

The program can also be configured with shortcuts to one's favorite and commonly-used directories and drives (local and networked).

The program also has an FTP Client built in.


**** PING INFO View

There is a program called "Ping Info View" which has a very useful interface to ping one's network and/or chosen Web sites.


**** Tray Clock

You can enhance your clock in the system tray with a program called "TClock".
This allows for customizing the display adding alarms (eg. chimes on the hour), and much more.


SECURITY RELATED

I use a free utility called "iSPY" for my security cameras around the outside of my home.
It is very versatile and allows for local storage on a computer.
It supports both video and sound.

Note that I have written my own CMD file and VBS to move the previous day(s) captures to an approprite sub directory.

 
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