LEARN TECHNOLOGY

BlackArch Customization - change Blackarch wallpaper and Fontsize

2020-07-30T14:14:00.001-07:00

Metasploit Tutirial Part-1 - Ethical Hacking - 6

2020-07-17T14:49:00.001-07:00

NMAP Tutorial - Ethical Hacking - 5

2020-07-14T08:29:00.001-07:00

nmap 192.168.127.135 -p 22 ##single ssh port

nmap 192.168.127.135 -p 1-25 ## port range from 1 to 25

nmap 192.168.127.0/24 or 1-254 ##scanning full subnet or range of subnets

nmap -iL uphosts.txt ##using the uphosts.txt file

nmpa -sL 192.168.127.0/24 ##it just scan only all IP address list

nmap -sn 192.168.127.0/24 ###ping scan

Output to file

nmap -sn 192.168.127.0/24 -oN test ##normal output file

nmap -sn 192.168.127.0/24 -oG test ##graphable file

Nmap -sU 192.168.127.135 - 53 ##scanning UDP port

Different SCAN Techniques

nmap -sS 192.168.127.135 -p 21 – 25 ##sysn scan

nmap -sT 192.168.127.135 -p 21 – 25 ##connect scan

sudo nmap -sA 192.168.127.135 -p 21-25 ##Ack scan

-sN; -sF; -sX (TCP NULL, FIN, and Xmas scans)

-sI zombie scan

Version Detection

nmap -sV 192.168.127.135 ###version detection

sudo nmap -O 192.168.127.135 ###OS version detection

sudo nmap -A 192.168.127.135 ### Aggressive scan OS and version detection

Output File formats

nmap -A 192.168.127.135 -oX output.xml ##output to xml file

xsltproc output.xml -o output.html

Ethical Hacking -3 (netcat TCP/IP swiss army knife)

2020-07-13T06:23:00.002-07:00

Ethicak Hacking - How Tos (Hashcat)

2020-07-11T14:49:00.002-07:00

below command will help you to seperate the hash from the /etc/shadow file

sudo head -n 1 /etc/shadow | awk -F":" {'print $2'} > hash.lst

Options: -n --> number of line to pick from top in shadow file

-F --> will seperator to devide in to columns ($2 is column number)

then using the hash cat to crack the password

sudo hashcat -m 1800 -O -a 0 -o carck.txt hash.lst master.txt

Ethical Hacking - Basic Networking

2020-07-10T15:35:00.005-07:00

Macchanger -r → random mac address

-A → random vendor

-a → set random vendor mac of the same kind

-p –> back to permanent mac

-m → set manually

Ping -c → number of times to ping

-f → flooding the destination

-s 1000 → ping with jumbo packets

-b → ping broadcast address

ARP -e → displays the ARP table into columns

-a → displays the ARP table

-d → delete ARP entry

Ip address → display IP address

IP-s neigh flush all → flush all ARP table

Ip add/del <ip address> <interface> → delete or add IP address

Ip link set <interface> up/down → bring interface up and down

IP route add/del → add delete route

Common Ports and Protocols

Well Known Ports: 0 through 1023.

Registered Ports: 1024 through 49151.

Dynamic/Private : 49152 through 65535.

BlackArch Installation Step by Step in UEFI

2020-06-17T16:05:00.001-07:00

hello guys, in this video we explained how to install BlackArch installation in UEFI and also explained installing XFCE4 Desktop Environemnt

10 Basic things After Arch Installation

2020-06-15T15:34:00.001-07:00

Here is the commands for this:
sudo pacman -S linux-lts ## install LTS kernal
sudo pacman -S linux-lts-headers ## install LTS kernal headers
sudo pacman -Rs linux ## remove kernal
sudo pacman -S intel-ucode ##install intel ucode
sudo grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg ##cnfigure the grub after install
sudo pacman-optimize ##optimize pacman
sudo pacman -S arch-audit ##install Arch Audit to find the security issue
sudo pacman -S ufw ## install firewall
sudo ufw enable ##enable firewall
sudo ufw status verbos ##to see the firewall policy
sudo pacman -Rns $(pacman -Qtdq) ## rmove prphans
sudo systemctl enable fstrim.timer ##optimize SSD drive
sudo pacman -S binutils make gcc pkg-config fakeroot base-devel git ##install basic build packages
git clone https://aur.archlinux.org/pamac-aur.git ~/tempfolder ##install pamac (pacman GUI)
cd ~/tempfolder
makepkg -sic BUILDDIR="~/tempfolder" ##build pamac package
sudo pacman -S openssh firefox kate htop ##install basic ssh, firefox and kate

Arch Linux Installation Step BY Step

2020-06-14T14:47:00.003-07:00

Please follow the commands to installArch Linux

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gaGx97x8R-E

gpg --keyserver-options auto-key-retrieve --verify archlinux-2020.06.01-x86_64.iso.sig ###checking the Signature

dd bs=4M if=archlinux-2020.06.01-x86_64.iso of=/dev/sdc status=progress && sync ###iso to usb

ls /sys/firmware/efi/efivars ##check the firmware

wifi-menu

timedatectl set-ntp true ###setup time and date

lsblk ###list disks

fdisk -l ###find the disk

cfdisk /dev/sda ##installation disk partition the disks

mkfs.fat -F32 /dev/sda1

mkfs.ext4 /dev/sda2 ###format the EXT4 partition

mount /dev/sda2 /mnt ###mount the root partition

mkdir /mnt/home ###make the home directory

mount /dev/sda3 /mnt/home ####mount the sda3 to home folder to use the user files

pacstrap /mnt base linux linux-firmware ##installing the linux

genfstab -U /mnt >> /mnt/etc/fstab ##generating fstab file

cat /mnt/etc/fstab ###display the fstab file

arch-chroot /mnt /bin/bash ###changing in to installed Arch

ln -sf /usr/share/zoneinfo/London /etc/localtime

hwclock --systohc --utc ###settime zone

then set locale to en_GB.utf8

echo LANG=en_GB.UTF-8 > /etc/locale.conf

echo MyPC > /etc/hostname

nano /etc/hosts add this 127.0.0.1 localhost.localdomain MyPC

pacman -S networkmanager ###installing Network Manager

systemctl enable NetworkManager ###enabling the NetworkManager

###Create password using passwd ####

pacman -S grub efibootmgr ##installing grub and EFI manager

mkdir /boot/efi

mount /dev/sda1 /boot/efi mounting the SDA1 in to efi partition

grub-install --target=x86_64-efi --efi-directory=/boot/efi --bootloader-id=GRUB --removable

grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg

exit

umount -R /mnt

reboot

useradd -m -g users -G wheel -s /bin/bash <username>

then change password using passwd

pacman -S sudo

EDITOR=nano visudo ### uncomment the line %wheel ALL=(ALL) ALL

then exit and login with user account

sudo fallocate -l 3G /swapfile

sudo chmod 600 /swapfile ##change the permission on swapfile

sudo mkswap /swapfile ### format swapfile

sudo swapon /swapfile #### turn swap

free -m ### check the swapfile enabled or not

###then edit the fstab file add below line###

/swapfile none swap sw 0 0

sudo pacman -S xf86-video-intel mesa

sudo pacman -S xf86-video-amdgpu mesa

sudo pacman -S nvidia nvidia-utils

sudo pacman -S xorg

sudo pacman -S xorg-server

sudo pacman -S xfce4 xfce4-goodies

startxfce4

sudo pacman -S lightdm lightdm-gtk-greeter

sudo systemctl enable lightdm

Booleans in python - Python Basics Part 2

2020-05-26T10:03:00.001-07:00

Python Basics Assessment Test 1

2020-05-24T04:16:00.001-07:00

5 Python Basics Dictionaries, Tuples and Sets

2020-05-22T07:54:00.001-07:00

4 Python Basics lists

2020-05-21T09:07:00.001-07:00

3 Python Basics Arithmetic methods and operations

2020-05-20T09:00:00.001-07:00

2 Python Basics - String methods and Indexing and slicing

2020-05-19T06:57:00.001-07:00

1 Basic Python

2020-05-18T06:57:00.001-07:00

Creating Local Repository | AppStream | BaseOS in CentOS and Red Hat

2020-04-03T04:44:00.002-07:00

To create local YUM repository you need to copy DVD contents to your local directory on server

To mount the DVD First we need to find a correct CD/DVD block device. To do this execute a command blkid as root user

#blkid

/dev/sda1: UUID="2122c197-7d49-405c-a242-7ca82548952f" TYPE="ext4" PARTUUID="21d5a638-01"

/dev/sda2: UUID="wjkcLP-ULnh-yFdB-Q3HD-JHK2-UuOn-QljGW1" TYPE="LVM2_member" PARTUUID="21d5a638-02"

/dev/sr0: UUID="2020-01-03-21-42-40-00" LABEL="CentOS-8-1-1911-x86_64-dvd" TYPE="iso9660" PTUUID="087a73cc" PTTYPE="dos"

Take a note of the relevant block device eg. /dev/sr0
2. Create Mount Point:
Mount point will be a directory where you wish to mount your CD/DVD drive. It can be any arbitrary directory. For example in this case we will be using /software/iso as a directory mount point:
# mkdir /software/iso

3. Mount CD/DVD:
We are now ready to mount CD/DVD by using the mount command:
#mount /dev/sr0 /software/iso
mount: /software/iso: WARNING: device write-protected, mounted read-only.

At this point you should be able to access all files on your DVD drive
#ls
AppStream BaseOS EFI images isolinux media.repo TRANS.TBL

4. Now create a folder for YUM repository here I creating a folder called rpms in root directroty
# mkdir /rpms

5. and copy AppStream folder and BaseOS folder to /rpms folder

root@cent1 ~#cd /sofware/iso
root@cent1 iso#cp -R AppStream /rpms/
root@cent1 iso#cp -R BaseOS /rpms/
root@cent1 iso]# cp media.repo /etc/yum.repos.d/AppStream.repo

6. Now edit the AppStream.repo file as below

7. and now copy the Appstream.repo file as BaseOS.repo and edit as below

Note: if you want, you can keep these AppStream and BaseOS settings in single .repo file

now clean the yum repository using yum clean all

then you can install software with out internet connection which is located in /rpms/ folder

you can see the repo list using the yum repolist as below. From below list top two repolists which we created.

NMCLI - Network Manager Command Line Interface

2020-04-02T11:44:00.000-07:00

To troubleshooting network in Linux we need to first find the status of the device. here i am using the virtual box for it
to find the status of the device

nmcli device status

nmcli connection show # shows connection profiles

to add the new profile #must run with sudo privileges
nmcli connection add type ethernet con-name <profile name> ifname enp0s3

adding the ip address to profile manual method not DHCP
nmcli connection modify <profile name> ipv4.addresses 192.168.2.1/24 ipv4.gateway 192.168.2.254 ipv4.dns 192.168.2.254 +ipv4.dns 4.4.4.4 (2nd DNS) connection.autoconnect yes ipv4.method manual

nmcli connection up <profile name> #to bring up connection

if it still cause any issue one option is to restart network with the current configuration files

systemctl restart newtwork

Here is more nmcli commands to troubleshoot

view the configuration file list

/etc/sysconfig/network-scripts

Configure a network card using Text Based User Interface:

backp the configuration  
cp /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-enp0s3 /tmp/
sudo nmtui # configure the ip addresses using the TUI
edit the configuration as required
deactivate and then reactivate
sudo ifdown enp0s3
sudo ifup enp0s3

see the changes

ip addr show enp0s3  #to display interface details
ip route  #to display the ip route

Ifconfig Command Not Found In CentOS 7 Minimal Installation

2015-01-14T06:25:00.001-08:00

As we all know, ifconfig command is used to configure a network interfaces in GNU/Linux systems. It displays the details of a network interface like IP address, MAC Address, and the status of a network interface etc. But, this command is obsolete, and is not found in the minimal versions of RHEL 7 and its clones like CentOS 7 and Oracle Linux 7.

instead of that these OSs comes with
ip addr - To view the details of the network interface
ip link - To view the statistics of network interface

to enable the ifconfig in CenOS and RHEL we need to install net-tools package
yum install net-tools

net-tools also enable the other commands like netstat which is obsoleted in CenOS 7, RHEL and Oracle Linux 7.

thank you,

Installing Squid Proxy in Clustered CentOS 7 using Corosync, Pacemaker and PCS

2015-01-14T03:26:00.000-08:00

Here I am writing how to set up a squid proxy server in clustered environment using pacemaker, corosync and PCS. You can use this for other cluster setups like Httpd also.

in this writing I am using single NIC on each server

node1 IP address: 172.16.1.11/24
node2 IP address: 172.16.1.12/24
virtiual_ip: 172.16.1.10/24

1) Install the Cent OS 7 minimal using default settings
configure the nic using the your favorite editor
here is my configuration
Node1
TYPE=Ethernet
BOOTPROTO=none
DEFROUTE=yes
IPV4_FAILURE_FATAL=no
IPV6INIT=yes
IPV6_AUTOCONF=yes
IPV6_DEFROUTE=yes
IPV6_FAILURE_FATAL=no
NAME=ens32
UUID=ba623de6-cad5-4fc3-a8cc-bf92ca099b52
ONBOOT=yes
HWADDR=00:50:56:9E:5E:65
IPADDR0=172.16.1.11
PREFIX0=24
GATEWAY0=172.16.1.254
IPV6_PEERDNS=yes
IPV6_PEERROUTES=yes

Node2

TYPE=Ethernet
BOOTPROTO=none
DEFROUTE=yes
IPV4_FAILURE_FATAL=no
IPV6INIT=yes
IPV6_AUTOCONF=yes
IPV6_DEFROUTE=yes
IPV6_FAILURE_FATAL=no
NAME=ens32
UUID=d01dd909-cc00-4c0c-9712-5c79b1a0e0d6
ONBOOT=yes
HWADDR=00:50:56:9E:02:1C
IPADDR0=172.16.1.12
PREFIX0=24
GATEWAY0=172.16.1.254
IPV6_PEERDNS=yes
IPV6_PEERROUTES=yes

2) update the system and install the corosync, pacemaker and pcs

yum install -y corosync pcs pacemaker

3) change SElinux settings to premissive

nano /etc/sysconfig/selinux

and change it to permissive as below

SELINUX=permissive

3) add the firewall rules to accept the ports for pacemaker, corosync and squid proxy

here is my firewall rules

firewall-cmd --permanent --zone=internal --change-interface=ifcfg-ens160 //change the nic in to public to internal zone

firewall-cmd --zone=internal --add-service=ssh --permanent

firewall-cmd --zone=internal --add-service=http --permanent

firewall-cmd --zone=internal --add-service=https --permanent

firewall-cmd --zone=internal --add-port=3126/tcp --permanent

firewall-cmd --zone=internal --add-port=3127/tcp --permanent

firewall-cmd --zone=internal --add-port=3128/tcp --permanent

firewall-cmd --zone=internal --add-port=5404/udp --permanent

firewall-cmd --zone=internal --add-port=5405/udp --permanent

Note: if you experience any issues with firewall simply disable it using

systemctl disable firewalld //disable firewall

systemctl stop firewalld // stop firewall service

4) after that install net-tools package, it is very important for squid proxy HA, as default Cent OS 7 do not come with netstat command but squid ocf:heartbeatagent:Squid will use the netstat command to check the squid service on both nodes

yum install net-tools -y //network tools (otherwise squid HA resource agent doesn't start )

5) configure the node names in hosts file pacemaker and corosync will use node names only

6) then configure the password for hacluster user. this username created during the pacemaker and corosync installation

passwd hacluster //create hacluster password must be same on both nodes

then start the pacemaker service and that to start at booting

systemctl start pcsd //start the pcsd service

systemctl enable pcsd //adding as startup service

UP to Here you must run all commands on both nodes

from below you must run these on single node only

Starting the cluster configuration on single node

pcs cluster auth node1 node2 //execute this on only one node to check the authentication of hacluster

setup the cluster with the name squid_clu

pcs cluster setup --name squid_clu node1 node2 //setup cluster with clustername squid_clu

then starting the cluster service

pcs cluster start --all //starting cluster on all servers

pcs cluster enable --all //adding as startup service

below commands will useful for monitoring and trouble shooting

pcs status cluster

pcs status nodes

corosync-cmapctl | grep members

pcs status corosync

7) disabling the Quorum and Stonith

in this lab I am using only two nodes that is why I am disabling quorum policy and stonith

you can read about these settings here

pcs property set stonith-enabled=false //disable stonith

pcs property set no-quorum-policy=ignore //disable the quorum

8) creating the virtual node with IP 172.16.1.10

pcs resource create virtual_ip ocf:heartbeat:IPaddr2 ip=172.16.1.10 cidr_netmask=24 op monitor interval=30s meta target-role="Started"

to check the virtual IP status use below command

pcs status | grep virtual_ip

Installing Squid Proxy

9) install squid package

yum install -y squid //to install the squid proxy

then start the service for squid

systemctl start squid //start the squid service (you must run this on both nodes)

systemctl enable squid //start the squid service after every boot (you must run this on both nodes)

10) adding virtual squid service using ocf resource. I am using the resource name also using squid which is marked as red in below command. you can change if you like

pcs resource create squid ocf:heartbeat:Squid squid_exe="/usr/sbin/squid" squid_conf="/etc/squid/squid.conf" squid_pidfile="/var/run/squid.pid" squid_port="3128" squid_stop_timeout="30" op start interval="0" timeout="60s" op stop interval="0" timeout="120s" op monitor interval="20s" timeout="30s" meta target-role="Started"

11) Binding/grouping the virtual IP and squid together other virtual IP will start on node1 and squid service will start on different node or vice versa.

pcs resource group add ProxyAndIP virtual_ip squid

pcs resource meta ProxyAndIP target-role="Started"

12 ) configuring the order of service to start first virtual IP then Squid will start

pcs constraint order virtual_ip then squid

then restart all cluster services using the below command

pcs cluster stop --all && sudo pcs cluster start --all

crm_mon //monitoring the cluster

if everything works fine you will see as below

Last updated: Wed Jan 14 11:19:30 2015

Last change: Mon Jan 12 16:27:53 2015 via cibadmin on pcltsquvt01

Stack: corosync

Current DC: pcltsquvt02 (2) - partition with quorum

Version: 1.1.10-32.el7_0.1-368c726

2 Nodes configured

2 Resources configured

Online: [ node1 node2 ]

Resource Group: ProxyAndIP

virtual_ip (ocf::heartbeat:IPaddr2): Started node1

squid (ocf::heartbeat:Squid): Started node1

if you issue the systemctl status squid on both nodes you can see that service is failed but you can see that it started as parent and started the service on one kid as below

squid.service - Squid caching proxy

Loaded: loaded (/usr/lib/systemd/system/squid.service; enabled)

Active: failed (Result: signal) since Mon 2015-01-12 16:30:02 GMT; 1 day 18h ago

Process: 2372 ExecStop=/usr/sbin/squid -k shutdown -f $SQUID_CONF (code=exited, status=0/SUCCESS)

Process: 883 ExecStart=/usr/sbin/squid $SQUID_OPTS -f $SQUID_CONF (code=exited, status=0/SUCCESS)

Process: 869 ExecStartPre=/usr/libexec/squid/cache_swap.sh (code=exited, status=0/SUCCESS)

Main PID: 914 (code=killed, signal=KILL)

CGroup: /system.slice/squid.service

Jan 12 16:29:27 pcltsquvt01 squid[914]: Squid Parent: will start 1 kids

Jan 12 16:29:27 pcltsquvt01 systemd[1]: Started Squid caching proxy.

Jan 12 16:29:27 pcltsquvt01 squid[914]: Squid Parent: (squid-1) process 919 started

Jan 12 16:30:02 pcltsquvt01 systemd[1]: squid.service: main process exited, code=killed, status=9/KILL

Jan 12 16:30:02 pcltsquvt01 systemd[1]: Unit squid.service entered failed state.

Troubleshooting:

Check the firewall configuration
Make sure that selinux is properly configured

make sure you installed the net-tools installed
make sure squid is installed on both nodes and squid.conf is identical
make sure squid is listening on the right port
make sure squid is storing the pid file in the right location

Installing Webmin on Ubuntu 12.04 server

2014-03-28T05:55:00.002-07:00

Preparing your system

1. Open the terminal and run the following command

sudo apt-get install perl libnet-ssleay-perl openssl libauthen-pam-perl libpam-runtime libio-pty-perl apt-show versions python

Downloading the Webmin

2. Now you need to dpwnload webmin deb package using the following command

wget http://prdownloads.sourceforge.net/webadmin/webmin_1.580_all.deb

Installing Webmin

3. Install downloaded package using the following command

sudo dpkg -i webmin_1.580_all.deb

4. This will install webmin now you need to access https://ubuntu-serverip:10000

How to Remove The GUI from Ubuntu

2014-03-28T05:23:00.002-07:00

1. You should be able to simply remove lightdm

sudo apt-get remove lightdm

This will remove the ubuntu-desktop meta package.

2. You can also edit /etc/default/grub

and change

GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT=”quiet splash”

GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT=”text”

3. then run

sudo update-grub

Master List of Windows 8 Keyboard Shortcuts

2012-11-01T04:36:00.001-07:00

Note: Keyboard combos that are new to the Consumer Preview are in bold.

Start screen/Metro

The following Windows key shortcuts work in the new Windows shell/Start screen.

WINKEY (tap)- Toggles between the Start screen and the foremost running app (Metro-style) or the Windows Desktop.

WINKEY + 1, WINKEY + 2, etc. - Switch to the (classic) Windows desktop and launch the nth shortcut in the Windows taskbar. So WINKEY + 1 would launch whichever application is first in the list, from left to right.

WINKEY + B - Switch to the (classic) Windows desktop and select the tray notification area.

WINKEY + C - Display Charms and time/date/notification overlay.

WINKEY + D - Switch to the (classic) Windows desktop and toggle Show Desktop (hides/shows any applications and other windows).

WINKEY + E. Switch to the (classic) Windows desktop and launch Windows Explorer with Computer view displayed.

WINKEY + F - Display File Search pane

WINKEY + H - Display Share charm.

WINKEY + I - Display Settings charm.

WINKEY + J - Swaps foreground between the snapped and filled apps.

WINKEY + K - Display Connect charm.

WINKEY + L - Lock PC and return to Lock screen.

WINKEY + M - Minimize the selected Explorer window.

WINKEY + O - Toggle orientation switching on slate and tablet PCs.

WINKEY + P - Display the new Project (for "projection") pane for choosing between available displays.

WINKEY + Q - Search (within) Apps using the new Search pane.

WINKEY + R - Switch to the (classic) Windows desktop and display the Run box.

WINKEY + U - Switch to the (classic) Windows desktop and launch the Ease of Access Center.

WINKEY + V - Cycles through Notification toasts.

WINKEY + W - Display Settings Search pane

WINKEY + SHIFT + V - Cycles through Notification toasts in reverse order.

WINKEY + X - Access the advanced context menu on the Start preview tip.

WINKEY + Z - Access the App Bar.

WINKEY + ENTER - Launches Narrator.

WINKEY + SPACEBAR - Switch input language and keyboard layout

WINKEY + TAB - Cycle through apps in Switcher.

WINKEY + SHIFT + TAB - Cycle through apps in Switcher in reverse order.

WINKEY + CTRL + TAB - Cycle through apps, snapping them as you go.

WINKEY + , - Peeks at the Windows desktop.

WINKEY + . - Snaps application to the left.

WINKEY + SHIFT + . - Snaps application to the right.

WINKEY + PGUP - Moves the Start screen to the display on the left.

WINKEY + PGDN - Moves the Start screen to the display on the right.

Windows desktop/Explorer

The following Windows key shortcuts work in the classic Windows desktop. Note that while many of these shortcuts also work in Windows 7, some are new to Windows 8.

WINKEY (tap)- Toggles between the Windows desktop environment and the new Start screen.

WINKEY + 1, WINKEY + 2, etc. - Launch the nth shortcut in the Windows taskbar. So WINKEY + 1 would launch whichever application is first in the list, from left to right.

WINKEY + B - Select the tray notification area.

WINKEY + C - Display Charms and time/date/notification overlay.

WINKEY + D - Toggle Show Desktop (hides/shows any applications and other windows).

WINKEY + E. Launch Windows Explorer with Computer view displayed.

WINKEY + F - Search Files using the new Windows Search pane.

WINKEY + I - Display Settings pane for Windows Desktop (also provides access to Networks, Volume, Screen Brightness, Notifications, Power, and Language).

WINKEY + L - Lock PC and return to Lock screen.

WINKEY + M - Minimize the selected Explorer window.

WINKEY + O - Toggle orientation switching on slate and tablet PCs.

WINKEY + P - Display the new Project (for "projection") pane for choosing between available displays.

WINKEY + Q - Search (within) Apps using the new Windows Search pane.

WINKEY + R - Display Run box.

WINKEY + U - Launch Ease of Access Center.

WINKEY + W - Search Settings using the new Windows Search pane.

WINKEY + X - Display Windows Mobility Center application.

WINKEY + ARROW KEYS - Aero Snap.

If you learn just one keyboard shortcut, this it is: WINKEY + C will bring up the Charms bar, a system-wide menu of sorts that provides access to several key Windows 8 capabilities: Search, Share, Start, Devices, and Settings.

Of course, if you’re an overachiever, you may want to access these capabilities directly. Not surprisingly, you can do so, using WINKEY keyboard shortcuts that are dedicated to each:

WINKEY + Q: Search the current app or Search Apps

WINKEY + W: Search Settings (and control panels)

WINKEY + F: Search Files

WINKEY + H: Share

WINKEY: Start (acts as a toggle between Start screen and the current experience)

WINKEY + K: Devices

WINKEY + I: Settings

If you were going to learn just two keyboard shortcuts, I’d recommend WINKEY + C (Charms) and WINKEY + I (Settings). That’s because, after several months of using Windows 8 exclusively, those are the two keyboard shortcuts I use the most frequently. (I use Start Search for searching, where you tap the WINKEY key and then just start typing.)

Other useful keyboard shortcuts

In addition to the keyboard shortcuts listed above, there are a handful of capabilities that are easily accessed via keyboard. These include:

Printing. While the Devices shortcut (WINKEY + K) can get you to your list of printers (and other devices), using CTRL + P is more direct, assuming it’s supported. What I’ve found is that some, but not all, Metro-style apps support the desktop-based CTRL + P shortcut. If that doesn’t work, just use the Devices pane (WINKEY + K) instead.

Presentation mode. In Windows 7, using WINKEY + P would bring up a Presentation Mode pop-up, letting you quickly determine how to handle a second screen, or projector. This still works in Windows 8, and offers the same choices, though the interface is now a Metro pane instead.

App bar. To open the app bar in any Metro experience (Start screen, PC Settings, apps), typeWINKEY + Z.

Power user menu. To open the power user menu on the desktop, type WINKEY + X.

Lock. Also not new to Windows 8, WINKEY + L will lock the PC and, by default, display the new lock screen.

Magnifier. This Ease of Access feature is served by a surprising range of keyboard shortcuts, including WINKEY + =, which turns on Magnifier, or, if it’s already on, zooms in the view. WINKEY + - can be used to zoom out the view (assuming Magnifier is currently running). CTRL + ALT + Dwill dock Magnifier at the top of the screen. CTRL + ALT + L will place Magnifier in Lens mode.CTRL + ALT + I will invert the colors in the Magnifier display (it’s a toggle). And ESC will exit Magnifier.

HR Interview Questions

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1. Tell me about yourself.
Since this is often the opening question in an interview, be extra careful that you don’t run off at the mouth. Keep your answer to a minute or two at most (only brief about your work experience and related to current position). Cover topics: your Higher qualification, work history, and recent career experience. Emphasize this last subject. Remember that this is likely to be a warm-up question. Don’t waste your best points on it.

2. What do you know about our organization?
You should be able to discuss products or services, revenues, reputation, image, goals, problems, management style, people, history and philosophy. But don’t act as if you know everything about the place. Let your answer show that you have taken the time to do some research, but don’t overwhelm the interviewer, and make it clear that you wish to learn more.
You might start your answer in this manner: “In my job search, I’ve investigated a number of companies.
Yours is one of the few that interests me, for these reasons…”
Give your answer a positive tone. Don’t say, “Well, everyone tells me that you’re in all sorts of trouble, and that’s why I’m here”, even if that is why you’re there.

3. Why do you want to work for us?
The deadliest answer you can give is “Because I like people.” What else would you like-animals?
Here, and throughout the interview, a good answer comes from having done your homework so that you can speak in terms of the company’s needs. You might say that your research has shown that the company is doing things you would like to be involved with, and that it’s doing them in ways that greatly interest you. For example, if the organization is known for strong management, your answer should mention that fact and show that you would like to be a part of that team. If the company places a great deal of emphasis on research and development, emphasize the fact that you want to create new things and that you know this is a place in which such activity is encouraged. If the organization stresses financial controls, your answer should mention a reverence for numbers.
If you feel that you have to concoct an answer to this question – if, for example, the company stresses research, and you feel that you should mention it even though it really doesn’t interest you- then you probably should not be taking that interview, because you probably shouldn’t be considering a job with that organization.
Your homework should include learning enough about the company to avoid approaching places where you wouldn’t be able -or wouldn’t want- to function. Since most of us are poor liars, it’s difficult to con anyone in an interview. But even if you should succeed at it, your prize is a job you don’t really want.

4. What can you do for us that someone else can’t?
Here you have every right, and perhaps an obligation, to toot your own horn and be a bit egotistical. Talk about your record of getting things done, and mention specifics from your resume or list of career accomplishments. Say that your skills and interests, combined with this history of getting results, make you valuable. Mention your ability to set priorities, identify problems, and use your experience and energy to solve them.

5. What do you find most attractive about this position? What seems least attractive about it?
List three or four attractive factors of the job, and mention a single, minor, unattractive item.

6. Why should we hire you?
Create your answer by thinking in terms of your ability, your experience, and your energy. (See question 4.)

7. What do you look for in a job?
Keep your answer oriented to opportunities at this organization. Talk about your desire to perform and be recognized for your contributions. Make your answer oriented toward opportunity rather than personal security.

8. Please give me your definition of [the position for which you are being interviewed].
Keep your answer brief and task oriented. Think in terms of responsibilities and accountability. Make sure that you really do understand what the position involves before you attempt an answer. If you are not certain, ask the interviewers; he / she may answer the question for you.

9. How long would it take you to make a meaningful contribution to our firm?
Be realistic. Say that, while you would expect to meet pressing demands and pull your own weight from the first day, it might take six months to a year before you could expect to know the organization and its needs well enough to make a major contribution.

10. How long would you stay with us?
Say that you are interested in a career with the organization, but admit that you would have to continue to feel challenged to remain with any organization. Think in terms of, “As long as we both feel achievement-oriented.”

11. Your resume suggests that you may be over-qualified or too experienced for this position. What’s Your opinion?
Emphasize your interest in establishing a long-term association with the organization, and say that you assume that if you perform well in his job, new opportunities will open up for you. Mention that a strong company needs a strong staff. Observe that experienced executives are always at a premium. Suggest that since you are so well qualified, the employer will get a fast return on his investment. Say that a growing, energetic company can never have too much talent.

12. What is your management style?
You should know enough about the company’s style to know that your management style will complement it. Possible styles include: task oriented (I’ll enjoy problem-solving identifying what’s wrong, choosing a solution and implementing it”), results-oriented (“Every management decision I make is determined by how it will affect the bottom line”), or even paternalistic (“I’m committed to taking care of my subordinates and pointing them in the right direction”).
A participative style is currently quite popular: an open-door method of managing in which you get things done by motivating people and delegating responsibility.
As you consider this question, think about whether your style will let you work happily and effectively within the organization.

13. Are you a good manager? Can you give me some examples? Do you feel that you have top managerial potential?
Keep your answer achievement and ask-oriented. Rely on example to buttress your argument. Stress your experience and your energy.

14. What do you look for when you hire people?
Think in terms of skills, initiative, and the adaptability to be able to work comfortably and effectively with others. Mention that you like to hire people who appear capable of moving up in the organization.

15. Have you ever had to fire people? What were the reasons, and how did you handle the situation?
Admit that the situation was not easy, but say that it worked out well, both for the company and, you think, for the individual. Show that, like anyone else, you don’t enjoy unpleasant tasks but that you can resolve them efficiently and -in the case of firing someone- humanely.

16. What do you think is the most difficult thing about being a manager or executive?
Mention planning, execution, and cost-control. The most difficult task is to motivate and manage employees to get something planned and completed on time and within the budget.

17. What important trends do you see in our industry?
Be prepared with two or three trends that illustrate how well you understand your industry. You might consider technological challenges or opportunities, economic conditions, or even regulatory demands as you collect your thoughts about the direction in which your business is heading.

18. Be brief, to the point, and as honest as you can without hurting yourself. Refer back to the planning phase of your job search. Where you considered this topic as you set your reference statements? If you were laid off in an across-the-board cutback, say so; otherwise, indicate that the move was your decision, the result of your action. Do not mention personality conflicts.
The interviewer may spend some time probing you on this issue, particularly if it is clear that you were terminated. The “We agreed to disagree” approach may be useful. Remember that your references are likely to be checked, so don’t concoct a story for an interview.

19. How do you feel about leaving all your benefits to find a new job?
Mention that you are concerned, naturally, but not panicked. You are willing to accept some risk to find the right job for yourself. Don’t suggest that security might interest you more than getting the job done successfully.

20. In your current (last) position, what features do (did) you like the most? The least?
Be careful and be positive. Describe more features that you liked than disliked. Don’t cite personality problems. If you make your last job sound terrible, an interviewer may wonder why you remained there until now.

21. What do you think of your boss?
Be as positive as you can. A potential boss is likely to wonder if you might talk about him in similar terms at some point in the future.

22. Why aren’t you earning more at your age?
Say that this is one reason that you are conducting this job search. Don’t be defensive.

23. What do you feel this position should pay?
Salary is a delicate topic. We suggest that you defer tying yourself to a precise figure for as long as you can do so politely. You might say, “I understand that the range for this job is between $$.______ and $$.______. That seems appropriate for the job as I understand it.” You might answer the question with a question: “Perhaps you can help me on this one. Can you tell me if there is a range for similar jobs in the organization?”
If you are asked the question during an initial screening interview, you might say that you feel you need to know more about the position’s responsibilities before you could give a meaningful answer to that question. Here, too, either by asking the interviewer or search executive (if one is involved), or in research done as part of your homework, you can try to find out whether there is a salary grade attached to the job. If there is, and if you can live with it, say that the range seems right to you.
If the interviewer continues to probe, you might say, “You know that I’m making $$.______ now. Like everyone else, I’d like to improve on that figure, but my major interest is with the job itself.” Remember that the act of taking a new job does not, in and of itself, make you worth more money.
If a search firm is involved, your contact there may be able to help with the salary question. He or she may even be able to run interference for you. If, for instance, he tells you what the position pays, and you tell him that you are earning that amount now and would like to do a bit better, he might go back to the employer and propose that you be offered an additional 10%.
If no price range is attached to the job, and the interviewer continues to press the subject, then you will have to respond with a number. You cannot leave the impression that it does not really matter, that you’ll accept whatever is offered. If you’ve been making $70,000a year, you can’t say that a $ 60,000 figure would be fine without sounding as if you’ve given up on yourself. (If you are making a radical career change, however, this kind of disparity may be more reasonable and understandable.)
Don’t sell yourself short, but continue to stress the fact that the job itself is the most important thing in your mind. The interviewer may be trying to determine just how much you want the job. Don’t leave the impression that money is the only thing that is important to you. Link questions of salary to the work itself.
But whenever possible, say as little as you can about salary until you reach the “final” stage of the interview process. At that point, you know that the company is genuinely interested in you and that it is likely to be flexible in salary negotiations.

24. What are your long-range goals?
Refer back to the planning phase of your job search. Don’t answer, “I want the job you’ve advertised.” Relate your goals to the company you are interviewing: ‘in a firm like yours, I would like to…”

25. How successful do you you’ve been so far?
Say that, all-in-all; you’re happy with the way your career has progressed so far. Given the normal ups and downs of life, you feel that you’ve done quite well and have no complaints.
Present a positive and confident picture of yourself, but don’t overstate your case. An answer like, “Everything’s wonderful! I can’t think of a time when things were going better! I’m overjoyed!” is likely to make an interviewer wonder whether you’re trying to fool him / her or yourself. The most convincing confidence is usually quiet confidence.

Desktop Support Interview Questions

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General Questions

1Q. what desktop operating systems are you familiar with?
A. Before you answer this question, you should have some background information on what operating systems are used within the organization you are interviewing with. Undoubtedly, you will be asked to elaborate on your skill set with each of these operating systems so it’s best to tailor your elaboration to the operating systems that are relevant to the hiring manager. This being said, don’t leave out mentioning experience in other operating systems. You never know whether the company may be evaluating the migration to a different OS.

2Q. Have you used imaging software before? How do you find these tools useful?
A. Automation tools are an important part of your job as a desktop support technician. Elaborate on the tools that you’ve used. Hiring managers want to assess your in-depth knowledge and experience with using these tools. This means talking about how you use their various feature sets. (If you have an opinion, you probably know the product pretty well.)

3Q. What are the pitfalls of using imaging software?
A. This question is meant to assess how well you know these products. For example, discussing the importance of testing the image demonstrates that you use these tools on a regular basis.

4Q. Have you used any software distribution tools? If so, which ones and how were they used?
A. Like imaging software, software distribution tools are an important part of your job. Hiring managers are looking for knowledge that these tools exist and how they can be used to support your organization.

5Q. What do you like most about desktop support?
A. Hiring managers are looking for what motivates you. Hopefully your answer will match the characteristics of the job: being busy, working with different people, and the challenges of learning new operating systems and configurations.

5Q. What do you like least about desktop support?
A. The hiring manager is testing whether you will fit in with the existing team. An appropriate answer here would be not being able to resolve a problem in a timely manner for reasons outside your control, such as hardware failure. Stick to things outside of your control for the best response.

6Q. When solving a desktop problem, do you prefer to work with the end-user, your peers, or on your own?
A. This is another question to determine your fit within the organization. Hiring managers understand that to be successful as a support technician you will have to work in a team environment. This means working with other employees, vendors, and end-users on a constant basis.

7Q. Can you describe a situation where you have had to deal with a unhappy user? How did you handle it? Would you do anything differently?
A. Desktop support can be very demanding some days. End-users only see their own priority needs and often are not interested in other demands on your time. This question explores how you deal with a difficult end-user by understanding their problem, assessing priorities, and communicating a timeframe for resolution. Often good communication can help both sides come to an agreement. Make sure you have an example with a successful outcome.

8Q. How would you say you are able to handle stress?
A. Hiring managers are looking to see what coping techniques you can draw on to deal with stress. Sometimes from the answer, they can also determine whether you are prone to stress. When responding, some techniques for handling stress that you may want to talk about include continually evaluating what’s on your plate and prioritizing, communicating with your manager on what your priorities are, and making sure that you take a break to reenergize, particularly at lunch time.

9Q. What do you see yourself doing two or three years from now?
A. Hiring managers want you to stick around. They realize that you will not be in this position forever, and they want to make sure there’s a desire to move up within the organization as well as the right fit. They ask this question to see whether there’s a growth path for you possible within the organization. As a desktop technician, natural growth paths are team leads, quality assurance, engineering positions, and entry-level development. Be honest about where you want to be in two to three years, and ask the interviewer whether they see your career path as a possibility.

10Q. How do you learn new technologies?
A. Learning is an inherent part of the job. Hiring managers are looking for someone who enjoys learning technology on their own and who has the foresight to look for training opportunities. Besides the traditional books and manuals, don’t forget to include user groups, eLearning subscriptions, and IT professional sites such as CramSession.

11Q. How do you prioritize tasks and manage your time?
A. What hiring managers want to know is whether you have time-management skills. Everyone manages their time differently, but think about how you handle e-mail, when you check voice mail, how you respond to pages, when you research and document, and how you pick up new trouble tickets.

11Q. Imagine the following situation: you receive three simultaneous calls from three vice-presidents who need assistance immediately. How do you manage these conflicting priorities?
A. Obviously this is a trick question. What the hiring manager is trying to assess is how you set expectations with each of the individuals, knowing very well that you won’t be able to assist all of them at the same time. They are also looking for how you will prioritize each of these incidents, including seeking assistance from peers and supervisors in order to meet user expectations. Don’t allow the “tyranny of the urgent” to divert you from management established support priorities.

12Q. How would you handle a user who continually misdiagnoses their PC issues?
A. By asking this question, the hiring manager is assessing your customer service skills. In this situation, you may want to discuss that the key is to not offend the user and turn them off to your support services. In handling this situation, you would pay particular attention to ways you can build trust with the user and lead them to the right resolution to their problem.
These components may include:

Acknowledging the user’s diagnosis
Asking the user to reproduce the problem
Finding a solution that work

13Q. How do you handle setting up new employees?
A. This question is used by the hiring manager to assess your knowledge of common practices within the IT department, such as setting up new users. Obviously, the IT department plays a critical role in the productivity of the new employee. The role of the desktop technician is to help ease the new employee into the resources available to them and get them up to speed quickly. In responding to this question, you may want to talk about some of the tools you’ve used in
the past to help users acquaint themselves with their new environment. Some tools that help are:

A new-user welcome letter that is customized to the specific user with all their relevant information including telephone extension, how to access voice mail, and how to log in. It might also include a FAQ on getting help.
A “Getting to Know Your Helpdesk” document that provides an orientation to helpdesk service, such as how to contact the helpdesk, its hours of operation, what is and what is not supported by the helpdesk, and answers to common new-user questions.

Technical Questions

1Q. What questions would you ask to help isolate a user’s problem?
A. This question is used by the hiring manger to assess your problem-solving abilities. The following represent some of the common questions that you would ask the end-user to help diagnose a situation:

When did the problem first start?
Has the system ever worked properly?
What was the last thing done to the system prior to the failure?
Is the issue intermittent or ongoing/constant?
Are there any error messages? If so, what are the specific error messages?
Has any new hardware been added to the system?
Has any new software been added to the system, including downloads from the Internet?
Has anything changed with the system (for example, has it been moved) since the issue presented itself?
Has anyone else had access to the system?
Are there any environmental factors that could be causing the issue?
Have you done any troubleshooting on the system on your own?
Have you checked all the cables/connections for a tight fit?

2Q. What are the main differences between the following operating systems?
A. Unfortunately, most companies have not been able to standardize the operating systems used by users. It’s always critical that you know more than just the current version because there will always be a user who has a problem with an older version. By asking this question, the hiring manager is actually testing your knowledge of different operating systems that you may need to support. The following provides a concise summary of some of the major differences.

Windows 2000 and XP

Overall, XP is a minor update with Windows 2000 designed to get Windows 2000 technology into the hands of consumers. The major changes include the following:

Device driver rollback
Remote control (single-user terminal services)
New Start menu, control panel, and user interface elements
Fast user switching
Encrypted file system support for redirected folders
Better support for roaming wireless networking
Enhanced policies
Credential Manager
Personal firewall

3Q. What are typical virus sources and how do you prevent virus attacks?
A. This is virus protection 101 just to ensure that you understand the basics of protecting against viruses. Possible virus sources include e-mail attachments; Internet downloads, and infected floppy disks. To prevent virus infections:

Use anti-virus software.
Perform regular updates to the virus software definition files and scan engines. Verify updates have succeeded.
Perform regularly scheduled virus checks.
Configure software to check all files, not just program files.
Educate users on virus attacks, their consequences, and how to prevent them.
Know where all software came from.
Do regular backups.
Develop reporting mechanisms to inform server administrators of observed desktop infections and how these could impact the server environment (such as deletions or corruption of files on public shares, hidden payload files that might have been uploaded to servers, and so on).

4Q. What are some of the guidelines you would recommend for implementing security at the user level?

A. Security is a major part of the desktop technician’s day-to-day responsibilities. As the closest point of contact to the end-users, technicians need to be savvy on the different methods for enforcing security. Some of the top techniques are included below.

Anti-virus software:

Ensure that all users install and regularly use anti-virus software on their PCs.
Instruct users to immediately notify the helpdesk when they suspect they’ve contracted a virus.

Password security:

Instruct users not to give out their passwords.
Instruct users not to write down their passwords.
Instruct users to make sure their password cannot be easily guessed by using a combination of alphanumeric characters, including special characters (~ ! @ # $ % ^ & * ( ) + = [ ] { } / ? < > , ; : \ | ` ’ ” .).
Instruct users to change their password if they think there is even a slight chance someone knows it.
Instruct users to ensure their password is at least eight characters long.
Instruct users not to use a variation of their user ID.
Regularly change passwords on Administrator accounts on PCs (NT, Windows 2000 and XP)

Desktop security:

Instruct users not to leave their workstation logged in overnight.
Instruct users to enable screen savers that automatically lock their PC when there is no activity on it for more than five minutes.