If your fixed-line ADSL broadband connection has gone down completely you will need to contact your ISP however, you can save yourself some time by checking some basic things.

Turning off your Broadband Router for between 5-10secs then turning it back on again may be enough to get you back online. If that fails, checking the cables are all plugged in correctly and even replacing the micro filter.

If you do have to contact your ISP it’s worth remembering that if it isn’t the fault of your ISP you may be liable to an expensive call out fee. IT Works customers should call us as there are a number of checks we can perform before you need to make that call.

The procedure below will help you through configuring Outlook 2010 with our Hosted Exchange.

Configuration Steps

1. Create a new mail profile for Outlook 2010
   Start -> Control Panel -> Mail -> Show Profiles -> Click Add.
   Give this profile an appropriate name like Hosted Exchange.
2. Next a window will appear to configure your mail profile Choose to manually configure server settings or additional server types.
3. Choose E-mail Service: Select Microsoft Exchange.
4. Microsoft Exchange Settings
   Microsoft Exchange Server: server.hostedexchange
   Use Cached Exchange Mode: This should be checked
   User Name: Provided during your signup
   Before Clicking Next, Choose More Settings.
5. After a few seconds a message is displayed:
   “The action could not be completed. The connection to the Microsoft exchange server is unavailable. Outlook must be online or connected to complete this section.”
   Click “OK”. A window with Microsoft Exchange Server name and Mailbox name pops up. Click “OK”.
6. A new dialog box will pop-up; Go to “Connection” tab. Check the box near “Connect to my Exchange mailbox using HTTP”
   Note: This option will not show up if you don’t have the hot-fix installed. You should either have Service Pack 2
   This will highlight the ‘Exchange Proxy Settings’
7. Click “Exchange Proxy Settings” and enter cas.hostedexchange.com
   Check Box “Only connect to proxy servers that have this principal name or certificate”
   Then enter msstd:cas.messageexchange.com
   Check Box for “On fast networks, connect using HTTP first, then connect using TCP/IP”
8. Choose “Basic Authentication” under Proxy authentication settings.
9. Click OK then Apply, click OK then Next and Finish
10. When starting Microsoft Office Outlook, use this profile select: “Prompt for a profile to be used” and click Apply Open Outlook 2010 and launch the newly created profile.

***If there was a pre-existing mail profile, you can specify a default mail profile by opening the control panel, select the Mail icon, select Show Profiles, select Always Use this Profile and use the drop down box to specify the profile created above.

Also known as Ransomware, Scareware is designed, as the name suggests, to scare computer users into taking an action – typically paying for or downloading useless or often virus infected software. This often manifests itself during web browsing as a pop up purporting to be a system message warning that your computer is infected or worse that you have inadvertently committed an illegal act online. This is the “scare”. Once downloaded, the infected software can impact your computer in a number of different ways. This can include loading unwanted webpages, hiding your start menu items, hiding your desktop icons, blocking software from loading or even preventing you from booting your PC without paying a fee.

Removal Techniques

Attempting Windows System Restore is the first step of removing Scareware. Failing that, Malwarebytes is free software designed to help to remove Scareware. Download Malwarebytes

Prevention techniques

• Keep your browser up to date to the latest version.
• Install Windows Updates.
• Keep your virus definitions up to date
• Never click yes or run on the internet unless you are sure what you are saying yes to.

Getting Help

Phone us for further assistance on removal: 01383 749 966.

Common reasons for a printer failing to print include:

• printer has run out of ink or toner
• a paper jam occurs
• the printer is out of paper

Nearly all printers will report these issues to you, either by the software installed on your computer or the screen on the printer itself.

However if a document fails to print and the reason is not clear there are a number of things you can do before getting help:

1. Clear your print queue.
2. Check your USB cable/Network cable is securely connected to your computer and to your printer.
3. Moving the printer from one USB port on your computer to another port can make your computer redetect the printer

.

4. Finally restart your computer to see if this resolves your issue.

Getting Help

Phone for assistance with your printer on: 01383 749 966

The following are common reasons emails are unable to send check these first:

• The email address contains an error
• The mail client you are using is not setup correctly
• The size of your attachment is too large.

If you’re having difficulties receiving your email you may first wish to consider:

• can I get online?
• does Microsoft Outlook say “Connected”?

More often than not, your email client will give you an error code or explanation why you cannot connect. Please take a note of this before you call. This will help us determine the issue with your email.

Getting Help

For help with your email phone: 01383 749 966.

Over time your computer gathers data from the photos you add to your PC, from the websites you browse and the software you load on your PC. These can cause your PC to slow down.

Maintenance is the key to keep your PC fast and responsive. Remove applications you no longer use from Programs and Features. Defragment your hard-drive once a month. Clear your internet history and cache files. A utility to help you remove temporary cache files is freely available here: [CCleaner Download.]

A memory (RAM) upgrade is a quick way of giving your pc a lease of life. Often PC’s have free memory slots available. Upgrading your RAM is an affordable upgrade that will lengthen the life of your PC.

Getting Help

Would you like help speeding up your PC? Please phone 01383 749 966.

Most people these days receive some kind of spam. We would advise people not to disclose their email address unnecessarily. Often people share their email address on Online Forums and News Groups. Today businesses can’t afford not to be protected. There are many ways to address spam but the best way is to use a managed service. At IT Works we protect our clients by stopping almost One Million spam emails a month reach their network. For more information about our add-on subscription Anti-Spam service click here.

Cybercriminals don’t just send fraudulent email messages and set up fake websites. They might also call you on the telephone and claim to be from Microsoft. They might offer to help solve your computer problems or sell you a software license.

Once they have access to your computer, they can do the following:

• Trick you into installing malicious software that could capture sensitive data, such as online banking user names and passwords. They might also then charge you to remove this software.
• Take control of your computer remotely and adjust settings to leave your computer vulnerable.
• Request credit card information so they can bill you for phoney services.
• Direct you to fraudulent websites and ask you to enter credit card and other personal or financial information there.

Neither Microsoft nor their partners make unsolicited phone calls (also known as cold calls) to charge you for computer security or software fixes.

Here are some of the organizations that cybercriminals claim to be from:

• Windows Helpdesk
• Windows Service Centre
• Microsoft Tech Support
• Microsoft Support
• Windows Technical Department Support Group
• Microsoft Research and Development Team (Microsoft R & D Team)

How to protect yourself from telephone tech support scams.

If someone claiming to be from Microsoft tech support calls you:

• Do not purchase any software or services.
• Ask if there is a fee or subscription associated with the “service.” If there is, hang up.
• Never give control of your computer to a third party unless you can confirm that it is a legitimate representative of a computer support team with whom you are already a customer.
• Never provide your credit card or financial information to someone claiming to be from Microsoft tech support.

What to do if you already gave information to a tech support person

If you think that you might have downloaded malware from a phone tech support scam website or allowed a cybercriminal to access your computer, take these steps:

• Change your computer’s password, change the password on your main email account, and change the password for any financial accounts, especially your bank and credit card.
• Scan your computer with the Microsoft Safety Scanner to find out if you have malware installed on your computer.
• Install Microsoft Security Essentials. (Microsoft Security Essentials is a free program. If someone calls you to install this product and then charge you for it, this is also a scam.)

Information from: http://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/security/online-privacy/avoid-phone-scams.aspx

With The Uninstaller

The best way is using the uninstaller that came with the application.

Windows XP Click Start > Settings > Control Panel. You should be able to uninstall the toolbar here.

Windows 7 Click Start Orb > Control Panel > Programs and Features. You should be able to uninstall the toolbar here.

This is often the best way to remove toolbars. This will remove traces of files and registry keys of the toolbar.

Removing Toolbars through Internet Explorer Options

Load Internet Explorer and browse to Tools > Manage Add-ons

The Manage Add-on dialog will appears. In here you can select toolbars and choose to disable them. Finish off by clicking Ok. Close Internet Explorer and open it again.

Every Company and even individual needs some kind of Disaster Recovery Plan to ensure that they can continue to operate when the worse happens. From hardware failure to user error an effective recover plan will reduce the impact on your productivity.

At IT Works we provide a secure managed offsite back plan in which your data is protected at our offices. For more information on our backup product, click here.

If you have lost data and are already on our managed backup service please call or email us and we will restore your data.