The decline of email clients has reached its peak with Thunderbird, the well-known Mozilla application. The foundation behind Firefox has been trying for years to get rid of Thunderbird. However, it has then had to keep it, albeit by putting it under Mozilla Corporation. Certainly, at first it caused a feeling of resignation. But now the reality is that there are ambitious plans to renew the application. In addition, an Android version is on the way from the conversion of K-9 Mail. Yes, mail clients are not living their golden years. However, at least Thunderbird is once again a development worth keeping an eye on. This motivated us to learn more about email clients.

What email clients offer us.

E-mail clients are a type of application that interfaces with an e-mail service. This can be public (Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo… ). It can also be installed in a closed infrastructure (e.g., a company). Its basic functions include accessing e-mails to read them and download attachments. In addition, we can send messages by creating new threads or replying to one that the user has previously received.

Obviously, it is always possible to encounter a wide range of possibilities. For example, it is possible to send messages only in plain text or HTML format and to deal with electronic signatures. Strangely enough, it is still possible to meet people who are very suspicious of HTML e-mails because of the possible embedding of malware. In any case, however, it is advisable not to display any messages of suspicious origin. Nor is it advisable never to load images by default. As you know, always be cautious when it comes to security.

Existing modalities. POP3

When it comes to viewing e-mails, users tend to use two ways. The first is Post Office Protocol. This is better known as POP3 in reference to its third version. This is a protocol that downloads e-mail so that it can be viewed locally and without an Internet connection. Therefore, it can be very useful in contexts or situations where the Internet connection is not of high quality. On the downside, much more space is lost for data storage. Due to the decreasing use of e-mail clients and the improvement of the quality of Internet connections, their use has been dropping. Even many clients no longer offer POP3 support, so they are forced to rely on IMAP.

IMAP

And then there is Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP). This is a standard Internet protocol used by e-mail clients to retrieve messages from a server over a TCP/IP connection. It is designed to allow the complete management of an e-mail box by multiple e-mail clients. Consequently, clients generally leave messages on the server until the user explicitly decides to delete them.

With IMAP, mail clients are connected to the server all the time. In addition, their interface remains active to download messages on demand. That way, they can offer faster response times for users. Especially in situations where there are numerous messages.

JMAP

More recently, in 2019, start JSON Meta Application Protocol (JMAP). This is a set of open standard Internet protocols related to e-mail handling. This is a set of open standard Internet protocols related to e-mail handling. In addition, the JMAP implementation uses the JSON API over HTTP. Its development makes it an alternative to IMAP/SMTP and proprietary email APIs such as Gmail and Outlook.

The current research aims to obtain additional protocols and data models on the JMAP. Specifically for contact management and calendar synchronization. The purpose of this is to offer potential replacements for CardDAV and CalDAV. The current research aims to obtain additional protocols and data models on the JMAP. Specifically for contact management and calendar synchronization. The purpose of this is to offer potential replacements for CardDAV and CalDAV. However, in terms of usage, IMAP is still the preferred one.

SMTP

Finally, there is Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP). This is a standard Internet communication protocol for email transmission. User-level email clients generally use SMTP only to send messages to a server for relaying. Typically, through port 587 or 465.

Does this information seem excessive and too technical? The reality is that modern email clients have long tended to automatically configure access to a popular service such as Gmail and Outlook. This obviously reduces the knowledge required on the part of the user. Generally, after entering the password, the application usually asks whether you want to use POP3 or IMAP for receiving e-mail. As mentioned, many applications use the latter as the only option. Without further ado, let’s mention three such applications available at least for Windows and one exclusive for Linux.

Mozilla Thunderbird

We start with one of the options that offer powerful multi-format support, Thunderbird. It officially covers Windows, Linux, and macOS. It is also preparing its landing on Android through the aforementioned K-9 Mail conversion. In addition, it is free software, as the source code of its desktop application is published under the MPL 2 license.

During its first years, it stood out for being a simple and easy to configure mail client. It also made it easy, especially for those users who used IMAP. Let’s remember that this feature is far from being exclusive. In addition, there are those who think that it is currently better implemented in other applications.

In the second decade of the 21st century, it ended up in a state of semi-abandonment. Even Mozilla publicly showed its intentions to get rid of Thunderbird. However, after failing to find a new home for it, it had to keep the client, albeit under a different organization.

It is a very complete application with support for calendars, address books and the Matrix communications protocol. On the other hand, its interface is being redesigned to adjust to the times. Although it still has the disadvantage of not having support for Microsoft Exchange by default.

Mailspring

Another option that stands out for being free and multiplatform software. Additionally, it comes with support for Windows, Linux, and macOS. Mailspring supports multiple accounts via IMAP and Office 365, unified inbox, touch gestures, themes and layouts, spell checking, contact management. Plus the ability to undo sending and advanced keyboard shortcuts. However, its most attractive feature is that its design is more in line with the lines that are usually used in recent years. Therefore, its appearance is modern and fresh.

Mailspring was born as a fork of another email client, originally called Nylas N1 and then Nylas Mail. However, the lead developer decided to discontinue the project in September 2017 and had the gesture to release its source code under the MIT license. Since then, one of the lead developers decided to continue its development by creating the aforementioned Mailspring. However, he licensed the source code to GPLv3 in order to prevent derivative projects from shutting it down.

Mailspring offers a Pro version for eight dollars a month. This offers powerful template support, rich contact profiles, company summaries and the ability to postpone messages. Still, the regular version should be sufficient for the average user.

Microsoft Outlook

We could not forget the email client that has traditionally been part of Microsoft Office. Therefore, hundreds of millions of users have had it or have it on their computers. Of course, it is likely that they do not use it, since the use of such an application is only necessary if you need to automate correspondence.

Given its origin, it is obvious that it is a proprietary application. In addition, its main platform is Windows, although it also supports macOS and makes available applications for Android and iOS. These can be obtained from the Play Store and the App Store, respectively.

We are talking about an application widely used in business environments (or at least it used to be). Therefore, its value is more than demonstrated. However, 20 years ago it had to introduce some barriers such as not loading images by default in HTML messages in order to avoid possible malware attacks. Like the other options mentioned in this article, it also supports calendars. Some of them are CalDAV, iCalendar, SyncML and vCard 3.0, and it is possible to set up a Gmail account if the user wishes.

Evolution

We close the list with the exclusive Linux application: Evolution. Many people criticize its old interface and the fact that it is a bit rough. However, it is a mail client that has more than proved its worth and also has support for Microsoft Exchange.

Evolution was created by Ximian, a company focused on the development of products around GNOME. Moreover, it was created by Miguel de Icaza, one of the fathers of the aforementioned desktop environment. It has changed hands several times due to the purchase of Ximian by Novell and the various reorganizations that SUSE has undergone. However, in 2013, its development was mainly handled by Red Hat after SUSE decided to disengage from Evolution in 2012. It is currently part of GNOME, and the Windows and Mac versions were discontinued about a decade ago.

It is free software, supports IMAP and POP3. In addition, over the years, it has incorporated mechanisms to automate the configuration of Gmail and Outlook accounts. However, it is also capable of integrating with accounts configured at the GNOME desktop level. Despite its advances, it can be a bit rough to configure. However, it is an application that has proven its worth. Finally, it is one of the most solid alternatives to Microsoft Office Outlook for businesses.

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What are backups, and what are they for?

Your computer stores all the data you have on it on the hard disk. This includes your photos and even your videos. As well as for settings and any kind of adjustments. Certainly, everything should work correctly. However, there may be glitches and problems that cause something to go wrong. With the consequent partial loss of the data you have.

Problems can range from a single software or hardware failure. But they also include a virus infection that corrupts files or ransomware that blocks access to the computer. It can also be a bad update that causes something to break at the operating system level. Consequently, it causes a malfunction. Such a situation can be a catastrophe. Especially when files are lost due to these failures. One way to avoid this is to make copies of the most important files or computer settings. You can also make a complete copy of everything, from files to settings. This is what we call a backup.

On the other hand, the process of applying this backup and regenerating the state is known as restoring the backup. It can also be useful in case you have changed or reset your computer. There are many types of backups. There are some superficial ones. For example, saving photos from your computer to an external hard drive. There are also more complete ones. In fact, some are made by Windows itself on an external drive that you assign to it. In this case, they are all packed in specific files. Certainly, we are talking about a single file, and inside are all the other files that make up the copy.

What types of data should you include in the backup?

An important aspect is that these backups should not be indiscriminate. That is, they should focus on storing only essential files. Your computer stores a large amount of data. However, many programs and applications make their internal backups by storing this data in your user profile. As a result, they are automatically recovered. Therefore, saving this type of data is a waste of storage space.

However, what is considered important data will depend on the individual. Certainly, each of us has an opinion about the type of files or documents we consider significant or essential. In addition, you can also make copies of other files in the cloud. So you can save photos and other documents to services such as Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive or Apple iCloud.

All the things you save in the cloud should not need to be saved also in the internal backups you make on Windows. In fact, you will always be able to recover them from the cloud as well. Unless you feel safer adding another backup within Windows.

Backups can be made inside your hard drive or on an external drive. Actually, it is recommended to do them on external storage units. This way, you make sure that they are not affected by any virus or malware that could infect your computer. This way you can also have them well located somewhere physical. So you will be able to use them whenever you need them.

Finally, you should know that there are two ways in which you can make backup copies on Windows. The first is by using the internal tool offered by Windows 11 itself to create copies. And the second is by using third-party applications. These are specifically created to allow you to make backups.

Types of backups

When making a backup, one of the decisions you must make is the type of backup it will be. Indeed, the way in which the data is stored will depend on it. There are four types of backups you can make. Moreover, using one or the other depends mainly on the amount of storage you have. It also depends on how much time you want to spend on it, or simply on the way you work. Here are these four types.

Listing

• Full backup: This is the most basic type of backup. It simply copies all data to a single external storage drive. Therefore, the time it takes to restore them afterwards is much less. On the downside, however, the process of making the full backup is slower. Besides that, it is also the one that requires more space in the unit where we are going to do it. These are the copies that Windows 10 makes by default.
• Incremental backup: This type of backup only copies the data that has changed since the last backup you performed. Therefore, leaving the rest intact. To do it the computer uses the dates and times of modification. Consequently, by only copying the data from the computer that you have modified, it is much faster to make than a full backup. Also, since some space is already taken up by previous copies, it requires less space than if you simply made a second full copy.
• Differential backup: This is a type of backup very similar to the incremental backup. However, instead of taking as a reference the last backup, whatever it is, it will take the last full backup. This means that it will only copy the data that has been modified since the last full backup. Also, even if you have recently made other differential backups, it will always copy the modified data from the full backup.
• Mirror backup: It is a type of backup similar to the full backup. But in this case, it only clones the files you copy without compressing them. This means that they take up more space and are more insecure because they cannot be password protected. But in exchange, you gain a little more speed in the restoration.

Some additional recommendations

The above are the main four types of backups you will encounter. However, there may be more. There may also be fewer, vary or change names. Actually, it all depends on the tool you are going to use to make the backups. A useful tip is to try to combine several types of backups. For example, instead of making full backups on a whim, you can supplement them with incremental or differential backups. This way, you will keep the files that have not changed. So you can save time when making backups.

There is also another type of backup you can do. We are talking about system images. This type of backups make exact copies of how your hard drive is. Additionally, they include the state of your operating system and the files on it. With them, you can then recover the exact state your computer was in when the copy was made. Even if you format everything and leave it without an operating system.

Choose what type of data to save in your copy

As we told you a little above, each of us has our own opinion about which data we consider important. Therefore, this influences which ones we want to keep in the backups. We are going to try to tell you some tips to help you prioritize the types of data. However, this is always going to depend on the individual and their situation. In addition to, aspects such as the storage available for backup can help you decide, especially in the case of limited storage.

If you have little space, then it is best to give priority to professional or personal documents. Especially if you don’t have them stored anywhere else. It may also be advisable to save project documents, jobs of various types or e-mails that you have downloaded via POP3. Remember that in this case, they may have been deleted from the server of your email account when you downloaded them.

The importance of multimedia files

In the case of photos, it all depends on our level of insecurity. You may store them on a separate drive or in the cloud. In such a case, it is not strictly necessary to store them in the backups. Indeed, you can retrieve them from those other sites. Your personal photos and videos may be among the items that take up the most space. That is, you can save them elsewhere unless you have a lot of space left on the drive where you will be backing them up.

And then there are the multimedia files you may have downloaded from the internet. We’re talking about everything from music and videos to more random ones. If they are files that you can re-download with relative ease, there is no need to spend space on backing them up. If not, then you can consider copying them to another external storage drive. But in any case, they should be last on your priority list.

But as we have told you several times, it all depends on your personal opinion. Particularly on what you consider essential files. What you should do is ask yourself what you would want to be saved if your computer was lost or crashed right now. Surely, in the answer to this question, you can find out what your priorities are. Consequently, this will help you to set up your backups.

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What is Obfsproxy

When talking about Obfsproxy we refer to a subproject that belongs to Tor. It is used to hide web traffic when surfing the Internet. Basically, it is similar to surfing through a VPN or the Tor browser. In fact, the purpose is the same: to hide the IP address and encrypt the information we transfer when browsing. So, what is its raison d’être? The reason is that there are certain countries that use what is known as IPR. These tools are used to block VPN connections so that users cannot bypass geo-blocking, for example. There are even governments that can force operators to filter SSL traffic.

The Obfsproxy project is used to bypass these blockages. In this way we can surf the Internet without information being leaked. Certainly, it was created for Tor. However, it has features that can be exploited by developers to design, implement and test traffic hiding layers that have nothing to do with Tor. In this way, it also began to be used to hide traffic through OpenVPN.

Therefore, Obfsproxy is a project devised from Tor to improve users’ privacy. In other words, it is a way to avoid possible blocks that may exist for the use of a normal VPN or the Onion browser itself. Let’s remember that both are very popular options for accessing the network. On the other hand, it was created mainly for use in countries such as China or Venezuela, where there may be problems to browse freely.

What it is used for and how it works

By now, you are probably wondering what Obfsproxy is really for. Actually, the answer is clear. The purpose of this tool is to make browsing more private. It serves to prevent a government of a certain country from classifying Internet traffic by protocols. In fact, they know exactly what they are: (HTTPS, HTTP, SSL, VPN…). In this way, it could block the protocol it is interested in and cause users to have problems.

If, for example, a user uses OpenVPN, Obfsproxy will hide the traffic to make it look like normal and harmless HTTP traffic. This way, you will avoid blockages and problems to enter a certain web page or use an online service.

An interesting point of Obfsproxy compared to other encryption options is that its developers have managed to leave no trace. The linking protocol it uses has no recognizable patterns. This allows communication to be established without network monitors being able to detect anything strange. Obfsproxy can be used in both OpenVPN and Wireguard. To use it, it is necessary to have a working OpenVPN server. It can be one of our own or of a third party.

Is it enough to maintain privacy?

We have seen how tools such as VPN or proxy help to maintain privacy. However, this is often not enough. It is essential to take certain measures, beyond using Tor or the Obfsproxy project. For this reason, we are going to give you some tips to surf the Internet without problems and without compromising your personal data.

Always use security software

To surf the Internet safely and without privacy problems, it is essential to have a good antivirus and other programs that protect us. For example, Windows Defender is one of the most widely used. You can also try others such as Bitdefender or Avast.

However, there are tools such as a firewall that can block insecure connections. There are also browser add-ons that help improve privacy. Consequently, it avoids attacks that can compromise our personal data and affect us at any given moment.

Avoid exposing data

In this case, it is a common-sense advice. To maintain privacy on the network, it is necessary to avoid making our personal data public. For example, you should not make your e-mail address public when you post a comment on a web page or in an open forum.

It is also advisable to take care of the data we expose through social networks. On this type of platform, there may be bots that collect personal information from users to subsequently trade with it and make a profit. Therefore, it is advisable to control what information we will be exposing publicly on the network and thus improve privacy.

Install applications only from reliable sources

Another tip is to install software only from safe and official sources. For example, websites of the application itself, official stores and warranty platforms. This way we will avoid installing software that can be dangerous and steal our personal data.

It is true that sometimes we can find unofficial applications that may have interesting features. However, we do not really know who may be behind that software. Perhaps it has been created maliciously with the sole purpose of stealing personal information.

Try not to make mistakes

Finally, another recommendation is to avoid making mistakes that could expose our personal data. For example, do not open an attachment that arrives by e-mail without really knowing where it comes from. We do not know if it could be a security threat.

Most cyber-attacks, threats that put privacy at risk, will require the victim’s interaction. They will need us to make a mistake, such as opening a file or installing a program. This also includes exposing our data in some way and thus stealing information.

In short, protecting privacy when surfing the Internet is essential. We can make use of tools such as a VPN, proxy or the Tor browser. In addition, to avoid possible blocking in certain countries, the Obfsproxy project has appeared. As we have seen, this is a great way to enhance our privacy when surfing the Internet. Bye!

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Windows PE is a classic rescue disk

On the other hand, most rescue disks use a Linux environment (Live CD or Live USB). Even those that work on Microsoft systems. However, this version is created from Windows. In addition, it is very complete. It supports all Windows applications, drivers, network tools, partitions, administrators, Hyper-V virtualizer and others. Additionally, we will be able to add free and open-source tools for maintenance and troubleshooting and security solutions against malware.

5 Windows PE environments

There are ways to create such disks and customize them to the user’s liking. However, there are developers who do the work for us. In effect, we only have to download an image and burn it to an optical or USB medium. From there we can use it to recover, restore, maintain or analyze our PC for errors. Some of the best ones are:

Hiren’s BootCD PE

One of the legendary all-in-one rescue discs. Indeed, it is packed with tools to help the user fix operating system bugs and remove malware. It also allows for password recovery, account management and much more. Recall that the original Hiren BootCD was a Linux environment. However, it stopped receiving updates years ago and in 2018 it was revitalized as a Windows PE rescue disk. It has a lot of free and open-source tools within a familiar Windows environment.

Bob.Omb’s Modified Win10PEx64

Another modified Windows PE environment with a long list of tools for analysis and recovery. It also includes programs against infections with Malwarebytes Antimalware or for data recovery with EaseUS Data Recovery. In addition to the classic functions of others on the list, it also includes differentiating elements. Indeed, it includes some ransomware decrypts. These tools scan the system for this type of malware and remove it. In addition, they also allow you to restore files as long as they are available. Remember that many types of ransomware have not been decrypted.

Gandalf’s Windows 10PE x64

Without any doubt, the most complete of these environments. Not in vain, it adds about 200 tools. Of course, in this accumulation of programs, there is a bit of everything. In fact, we will get hardware and software diagnostics, backup programs, anti-malware applications, network analysis and much more. It also stands out for its updates, every few months.

Kyhi’s Recovery Drive.

This tool is one of the most powerful tools against Windows failures, disk and partition repair, backup and recovery. However, it also has antivirus, administration tools and many others. The developer stopped updating it, but older versions can still be used.

Sergei Streclec’s WinPE

Another highlight of the list that includes numerous Windows maintenance and recovery applications. However, the special touch is provided by the organization of the items. Indeed, all the tools are organized into practical categories that help you find what you need.

Paragon Backup & Recovery Community Edition

The main function of this tool is to create system backups. In this sense, it offers multiple options to facilitate this task. However, it also works as Windows PE. Remember that this is the free version. However, it is sufficient for domestic needs. In it, we will find everything we need to analyze our disk, solve problems and recover data that has been deleted. Besides being able to create our own portable Windows, we can also use this complete backup software to keep our data safe. Finally, the interface is very user-friendly for creating this type of media.

AOMEI PE Builder

AOMEI PE Builder is a tool designed to create bootable CDs, DVDs or USB flash drives with a portable version of Windows. Totally ideal for system recovery when all else fails and it is impossible to access it by normal means. As you can see, it allows you to create a Windows PE from a base ISO. For this particular, using any Windows PE distribution you already have, or you can also create one from scratch using its base system. You can add several tools, including those of computer maintenance of the brand. This free program is available for download here.

Windows PE customized on demand.

The above solutions work very well. They certainly have almost everything you need and make it easy to create these rescue disks without any knowledge beyond managing an ISO. The issue is that they do not allow customization of the applications to be included in the media. If you want to create a solution tailored to your needs, you can do it from scratch.

For these cases, it is best to use Win10XPE. We are talking about a complete Windows PE environment developed by the renowned customizer ChrisR. The project provides a good basis for building such environments using Windows 10. In addition, a second, lighter Win10PESE variant with the minimum necessary applications is available.

It supports both 32-bit and 64-bit architectures and has a wide range of core Windows functions. In addition, we can add a wide variety of custom applications. If you want to create it yourself, you also need a Windows 10 ISO image that you can download from the official site.

Very well, in this way we have seen the 5 Windows PE rescue environments for repair and maintenance. This way you won’t get stuck in case your main system fails. See you soon.

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What is GPO in Windows 10.

A GPO is a Group Policy Object. Therefore, it comprises a set of group policies. In addition, it sets a particular configuration to the object to which it is bound. GPOs define a set of settings that will determine how a system looks and acts. GPOs are located within four different types of objects:

• Active Directory locations
• Local computers
• Active Directory Domains
• Active Directory Organizational Units.

It may sometimes be necessary to know what group policy a specific user or computer has. In such a case, it would be complex to enter the group policy editor and verify which ones are enabled. Indeed, while one user may have 3 group policies enabled, another may have 50. In this tutorial, we will show you some practical methods to view group policies applied in Windows 10.

How to view Policies applied to a Windows 10 computer with RSOP

The Resulting Set Of Policies is an integrated tool in Windows. When run, it will display a list of all active policies for the specific user account from which it was generated. That is, we will see all the policies applied to a user account. On the contrary, it cannot show the policies applied to the whole computer. To access it, press Win+R and run the command rsop.msc.

The tool will scan the policies. It will also display all active policies for the current user account. It is also possible to get additional information about each policy by browsing the folder and double-clicking on it. In this aspect, it works just like the GPO editor in Windows 10.

How to view Policies applied to a Windows 10 computer with CMD

We can also use CMD to see all the policies applied to Windows 10. Obviously, the main difference is the absence of graphical interface. However, we will also be able to see the active policies on the whole system and not only on a particular user. With this intention, launch a command prompt as administrator. To accomplish this, enter CMD in the search box and select the corresponding option.

Next, run this command:

gpresult /Scope User /v

The tool will search and display all active policies for the current user. When active policies are detected, it will display Folder ID, Value and Status of the policies.

We can also visualize all active policies on the computer. Just run the following command:

gpresult /Scope Computer /v

How to view Policies applied to a user in Windows 10

We can also see the group policy objects associated to a user and computer. As a result, we will see specific information such as the application date, domain controller or security group to which both the user and the PC belong. To view applied GPO objects, use this command:

gpresult / r

Let’s see some other uses of this command. View GPO objects applied to a user.

gpresult /r /scope:user

Display GPO objects applied to a computer.

gpresult /r /scope:computer

View GPO objects applied to a remote computer:

gpresult /s pc2 /r

Create an HTML report

We can create an HTML file that includes all those GPOs that are applied. Additionally, if you do not specify a route, it will be saved by default in the system32 folder.

gpresult /h c:\reports.html

Exporting the file in text format

You can also create an output text file. This can be very helpful if the output produces a lot of information:

gpresult /r >c:\results.txt

This is how simple we can see all GPO applied in Windows 10. We can also find out which policies apply to a team. This way, we will know which policies are applied to a computer. In addition to the restrictions and permissions applied. See you soon!

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Configuring Windows Firewall from PowerShell

The first thing you need to know is that Windows incorporates a module called NetSecurity. In addition, it allows you to add, delete and modify Firewall rules. However, the first thing we will do is to open PowerShell. You can do this from the Start menu. Or by pressing the Win+X combination.

Listing the rules available for Windows Firewall

Once in the PowerShell, it is necessary to load the NetSecurity module. Consequently, we have to import it. With this in mind, run the following command:

Import-Module -Name 'NetSecurity'

Well, the module is now loaded into the system. Now we are going to obtain a list of available commands. Please note that there are a lot of them to use. So it depends on the needs of each user. To see a list of all existing FireWall rules, please use the following command:

Get-NetFirewallRule

However, we have commented that there are many rules. But we can refine the search. For example, to see the first 10 rules:

Get-NetFirewallRule | Select-Object DisplayName, Enabled, Direction, Action -First 10

Creating a new rule for FireWall

You may need a new custom rule of your own. A great solution for users who want to protect the system to the maximum. In any case, please use the following syntax:

Net-NewFirewallRule

In addition, there are some variables to consider. These are added to make the command work correctly:

• DisplayName: refers to the custom name of the new Firewall rule.
• Direction: URL from which we want to block the traffic leaving the computer or arriving at us.
• Action: the action to be taken if the rule is satisfied, i.e. Allow or Block. So we use the parameters Allow and Block.

How to modify an existing rule

Sometimes it is necessary to modify a rule without having to delete it completely. For this work, the same parameters must be taken into account as for the creation. That is, DisplayName, Direction, and Action. These will be used to set the new behavior of the rule. In addition, this command can operate on multiple rules at the same time. With this in mind, we will use the following syntax.

Set-NetFirewallRule

Delete an existing Firewall rule

Finally, we will see how to delete an existing Firewall rule. Once it is no longer needed. Of course, we can also do it from PowerShell. Therefore, just use the following syntax:

Remove-NetFirewallRule

Please remember to attach the name of the specific rule to be deleted. Otherwise, you will delete all the rules present. This will leave the system in a state of insecurity. Okay, so we have seen how to configure Windows Firewall with PowerShell. So if you prefer the command line, this is your preferred option. See you soon!

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Install Docker on Linux

The first step is to install Docker and for that, we present you with some tutorials in different Linux distributions.

If you are using Ubuntu: How to install Docker on Ubuntu 20.04
For CentOS 8: How to install Docker on CentOS 8?
For CentOS 7: How to install Docker CE on CentOS 7?
If you use Windows: How to install Docker in Windows 10?
Or, if you are using Debian 10: How to install Docker on Debian 10?

And using your distribution’s package manager, you can install Docker Compose. For example:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install docker-compose

For Debian, Ubuntu, and derivatives.

sudo dnf install docker-compose

Or, for RHEL, CentOS and derivatives.

Once Docker and Docker compose are installed now is the Gits turn.

Deploy Ampache using Docker

Now with Docker installed on our operating system, it’s time to deploy Ampache.

To do this, first, create the folder where the Docker Compose file will be and access it.

mkdir ampache && cd ampache

You can change both the path and the name of the folder but set an indicative name.

Inside it, create a file called docker-compose.yml with the help of a text editor. In this case, I will use nano.

nano docker.compose.yml

And add the following content:

version: '3'

services:
  ampache:
    image: ampache/ampache:latest
    container_name: ampache
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - 80:80
    volumes:
      - ./data/config:/var/www/config
      - ./data/log:/var/log/ampache
      - ./data/media:/media
      - ./data/mysql:/var/lib/mysql

Save the changes and close the editor.

Now, deploy the Docker container by running

sudo docker-compose up -d

This will start the whole process of downloading and deploying the images. When finished, set the necessary permissions on the created folders.

sudo chown www-data:www-data ./data/config -R
sudo chmod 777 ./data/config -R

Before completing the installation via the web, we will need to obtain the default MySQL key. To do this, find out the Ampache container ID.

sudo docker ps

You will get an output screen similar to this one

CONTAINER ID   IMAGE                    COMMAND                  CREATED         STATUS         PORTS                               NAMES
8e0e2c7dec77   ampache/ampache:latest   "docker-entrypoint.s…"   5 minutes ago   Up 2 seconds   0.0.0.0:80->80/tcp, :::80->80/tcp   ampache

From it, we will know that the ID is 8e0e2c7dec77 and now check the logs for that container.

sudo docker logs 8e0e2c7dec77

You’ll get a widescreen output but you’ll see something similar to this

========================================================================
You can now connect to this MySQL Server using:

    mysql -uadmin -pbbgqpKn52t7c -h<host> -P<port>

Please remember to change the above password as soon as possible!
MySQL user 'root' has no password but only allows local connections

The password is what is after -p in this case it is bbgqpKn52t7c.

Now open a web browser and visit http://ip-server/install.php and you can start the installation process with the language selection.

Next, set the configuration parameters.

And continue the process.

So, enjoy it.

Conclusion

In this post, you learned how with the help of Docker we can quickly have an Ampache installation on a server. This simple process allows us a lot of flexibility and portability.

The post Deploy Ampache using Docker appeared first on Linux Windows and android Tutorials.

eSpeak to convert text to speech

In general, we can say that eSpeak is an application written in open-source C that allows transforming the text into a voice file. In short, it works as a synthesizer.

The application can be installed in multiple operating systems such as Windows, Linux and macOS. However, in Linux there is a fork called eSpeak NG that was born with the aim of facilitating the compilation for unix systems.

eSpeak is quite a wonder. In the first place, because it supports many languages including the most spoken as English, Cantonese, Japanese and others. Also because the audio quality is quite good and is very reliable in its target.

One aspect to keep in mind the application is that it is a tool purely used in the terminal. So you have to get to work on it. But do not worry the community has developed a graphical interface for the program called gespeaker.

So, let us install it.

Install eSpeak on Ubuntu 20.04 / 18.04 / Linux Mint 19/20

A great advantage is that eSpeak is an application that is available in the official repositories of Ubuntu- So to install it, just use the following command:

:~$ sudo apt install espeak

Once installed, it will be ready for action. If you don’t want to use eSpeak from the temrinal, you can install gespeaker which is a graphical interface for the application.

:~$ sudo apt install gespeaker

And now you can use the application.

Install eSpeak on CentOS 7 / CentOS 8

In the case of CentOS 7 and 8, they are also available in the official repositories. So as a root user you run some of these commands depending on which version of CentOS you are running:

For CentOS 7:

:~$ su 
:~# yum install espeak 

But if you use CentOS 8:

:~$ su
:~# dnf install espeak

This way, you will have the application running.

Basic use of eSpeak

The most basic way to use eSpeak through the console is with the following syntax:

:~$ espeak "[text_to_convert]" -w [output_file] -g [x] -p [x] -s [x] -v [language]

I’ll explain briefly. First we invoke the command and pass it the text we want it to “read”. With the -w option we simply point to the path of the output file. The -g option is used to set the pause time between words. -p defines the pitch. To define the reading time we use the option -s and finally we set the language of the reading.

An example would be the following:

:~$ espeak "Hello welcome to osradar" -w /tmp/output.wav -g 10 -p 80 -s 100 -v en-uk

Then, open the file with VLC or another media player.

If you want to use the graphical interface, just install it. This is how it looks.

And enjoy it.

The post How to install eSpeak on CentOS 8 / Ubuntu 20.04 / 18.04? appeared first on Linux Windows and android Tutorials.

Exchange Server 2019 requires Windows Server 2019. Exchange Server 2019 brings a new set of technologies, features, and services to Exchange Server, the messaging platform that provides email, scheduling, and tools for custom collaboration and messaging service applications. Its goal is to support people and organizations as their work habits evolve from a communication focus to a collaboration focus. At the same time, Exchange 2019 helps lower the total cost of ownership. whether you deploy Exchange 2019 on-premises or provision your mailboxes in the cloud.

This article will illustrate step-by-step Installation of Exchange Server 2019.

Pre-Requisite:

There are pre-requisite for smooth installation of Exchange Server 2019.

Hardware & Software Pre-requisite:

• Operating System:           Windows Server 2019 Standard/Datacenter edition (Latest updates)
• Processor:                          64-Bit
• Memory:                            128 GB Recommended
• Disk Space:                        30 GB free space for Exchange Installation
• File System:                 NTFS
• Active Directory Schema: AD Forest Functional Level Windows Server 2012 or Higher

.Net Framework Supported:

• Exchange 2019 Version CU4 to CU8         .Net Framework 4.8
• Version CU2, CU3             .Net Framework 4.8 or Net Framework 4.7.2
• Version RTM, CU1            .Net Framework 4.7.2

Supported Clients:

• Microsoft 365 Apps for Enterprise
• Outlook 2019, 2016, 2013
• For Mac for Office 365
• Outlook 2016 for Mac

Important Links:  

1. You need KB3140245 to apply registry keys to enable TLS 1.1 & 1.2 support for Windows 7.
2. Click to download .NET Framework 4.7.2 or Higher.
3. Download Visual C++ Redistributable Package for Visual Studio 2013.
4. Install Unified Communications Managed API 4.0.

Installation Steps:

1. .Net Installation

No need to click on Windows Update.

• Visual Redistribute Package Installation

• Install Unified Communications Managed API

No need to click on Windows Update.

After click on Finish, Reboot the computer system.

• Installation of IIS and other windows components with PowerShell. Open Windows Power Shell and run following commands
• Install-WindowsFeature NET-Framework-45-Features, RPC-over-HTTP-proxy, RSAT-Clustering, RSAT-Clustering-CmdInterface, RSAT-Clustering-Mgmt, RSAT-Clustering-PowerShell, Web-Mgmt-Console, WAS-Process-Model, Web-Asp-Net45, Web-Basic-Auth, Web-Client-Auth, Web-Digest-Auth, Web-Dir-Browsing, Web-Dyn-Compression, Web-Http-Errors, Web-Http-Logging, Web-Http-Redirect, Web-Http-Tracing, Web-ISAPI-Ext, Web-ISAPI-Filter, Web-Lgcy-Mgmt-Console, Web-Metabase, Web-Mgmt-Console, Web-Mgmt-Service, Web-Net-Ext45, Web-Request-Monitor, Web-Server, Web-Stat-Compression, Web-Static-Content, Web-Windows-Auth, Web-WMI, Windows-Identity-Foundation, RSAT-ADDS

This command will install server pre-requisites.

Download the ISO Image of Exchange 2019 from the Microsoft Website and mount the Image in the server where you want to install Exchange 2019.

Click on Setup to begin the Exchange 2019 installation

Select Connect to the Internet and check for updates if you have internet and you need to download and updates for the exchange 2019 else you can check Don’t check for updates right now and click on Next

Press Next.

Click I accept the terms in the license agreement and Press Next

Select Use recommended settings and press Next

Choose Mailbox Role, here Management tools is default selected, If you want to install EDGE in the server, Select Edge Transport Role

Note: You can select automatically install Windows Server roles and features that are required to install Exchange Server to install all the required items for Exchange 2019
Click on Next

Specify the Exchange Organization here. Please carefully type the name of Organization. After selection of Exchange Organization you can’t change it later.

If you change it then you have to re-install complete domain.

Click next once you have decided and typed Exchange organization.

Click on Next.

Successfully you have installed Exchange Server 2019.  It is best practice that you should reboot your Exchange Server after successful installation.

The post Step By Step Installation Exchange Server 2019 appeared first on Linux Windows and android Tutorials.

Prerequisites

• A web server such as Apache, Nginx or Microsoft IIS
• Any of the following databases: MySQL – 5.5.3 (MariaDB 5.5.20, Percona 5.5.8) or higher with an InnoDB-compatible primary storage engine. PostgreSQL – 9.1.2 or higher. SQLite – 3.4.2 or higher

However, all these requirements can be met by using a program like XAMPP. See here how to use and configure it.

Downloading Drupal for Windows 10

This software can be downloaded for free from here. Please download the compressed file in .zip format.

Creating the new database.

Now it is necessary to create the new database. Indeed, this is essential to be able to use Drupal. Consequently, it opens the XAMMP control center. Once there, please click on the MySQL Configure button.

Immediately the database manager will be deployed. Please click on New. Then assign the name you want and finally click on Create.

Decompressing the downloaded file.

Back to the previously downloaded file, it’s time to do two steps. First decompress it and assign a simpler name to the folder. In my case Drupal. Then move it to the next location:

C:\xampp\htdocs

Starting the Drupal installation in Windows 10

Once these previous steps are done, it is time to start the installation of Drupal. With this in mind, open the following address in your web browser.

http://localhost/Drupal 

Please note that this address may vary depending on the name of the assigned folder. The installer will be immediately deployed. First set the preferred language.

Then, the wizard offers the installation mode. Standard, minimum or a sample Demo. For the purposes of this tutorial, I selected the Standard installation

The assistant will then verify the requirements for running Drupal. In this case, my server needs opcache. However, this component is not essential to run the installation. Therefore, we can skip it

In the next screen, please enter the parameters of the database. Please remember to enter the name of the database you just created.

Now wait a few moments while the installation of Drupal

Once the installation is complete, it is time to set up the website. Please set the name and email address of the website. It is also necessary to assign a username and password. This user must also be provided with an email address. In addition to the region parameters.

Finally the installation will be finished!

From now on, you just have to start the server and paste the following web address:

http://localhost/drupal 

This way we have seen how to install Drupal in Windows 10. So you can enjoy this powerful and friendly framework. See you soon!

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