Some of very useful tools from Windows. Some of these have been vital to be
vital in the past years.
Rating:
* Good
** Good and unique (not many tools offering these functions on Windows)
*** Vital, could not have done my job without it.
System:
Filemon
by Sysinternals (Now Microsoft): ***
This tool is critical to system administrators. This tool
basically will list, in a GUI, the files being accessed in real time on your server. You
can use that information for many troubleshooting tasks (high CPU, something
weird happening on the server....etc...). This tool will show when a file
access is being denied because of a lack of permissions. This is very useful
when you run Services under a restricted user account (versus the default
System) and you application does not work. With this tool you can slowly build a
list of the files and folders that will require permissions. Note: I've used
FileMon without any issue for years on Windows 2000, recently on Windows
2003, I've notice some occasional refreshing issue.
Regmonitor
by Sysinternals: *
Same as Filemon for the registry.
ProcessExplorer
by Sysinternals (Now Microsoft): *
Very comprehensive tool to inspect currently running processes.
CurrProcess
by NirSoft: *
Inspect currently running processes.
OpenedFilesView
by NirSoft: *
Inspect currently open files with many details.
Autoruns
by Sysinternals: *
Very comprehensive tool to inspect startups programs and more.
StartupRun
by NirSoft: *
Basic tool to inspect startups programs.
ServiWin
by NirSoft: *
Inspect and configure drivers and services.
Network:
Active Ports 1.4: **
This tools will list all the network connections, in a nice GUI. It's kind of like a graphical netstat command.
This tool has not been upgraded since years but does the job. Note: Some Anti-Virus tools
(like Symantec AV Corporate) detect this tool has a potential "hack" software.
It is not unless you install a real "hack" program that uses the API Active
Ports offers.
TCPView
by Sysinternals (Now Microsoft): *
Detailed listing detailed listings of all TCP and UDP endpoints on your system.
CurrPorts
by NirSoft: *
Displays the list of all currently opened TCP/IP and UDP ports on your local
computer. Just started using this tool.
SmartSniff
by NirSoft: **
Capture TCP packs in real-time. Just started using this tool, it's very nice so
far.
IPNetInfo
by NirSoft: **
Find all available information about an IP address. This tool will save you some
time when you try to track down ips on a regular basis.
Security:
AccessEnum
by Sysinternals: *
Quickly list the folder or registry access permissions.
RootkitRevealer
by Sysinternals: *
Tool to detect root kits.