WIN10 install questions

[zackyc]

I searched but could not find a clear cut answer.  My college classes are forcing me to download and use Respondus Lockdown Browser. If you haven't used it or heard of it basically it has circle 0 access and changes your registry to stop everything on your PC when in use. That part is fine but it's buggy and can cause issues when not using it. It is the definition of malware IMO.  I'm not trying to start another debate on this program just looking for a solution. 

 

I attempted to put in in a VM (and use every work around I could find) and would not allow me to use it. I decided to just partition a drive and do a win10 install there and boot into it only when needed and will keep the rest of my pc malware free. Since this partition will only be for the one browser and will be wiped after the semester is over is a 50GB partition enough?  I know windows can get a bit fickle with smaller capacities.  Anything I should look out for?   The drive itself has almost 2TB free but don't want to bog it down since it is a mechanical drive.

[RMTM]

1 hour ago, zackyc said:

I searched but could not find a clear cut answer.  My college classes are forcing me to download and use Respondus Lockdown Browser. If you haven't used it or heard of it basically it has circle 0 access and changes your registry to stop everything on your PC when in use. That part is fine but it's buggy and can cause issues when not using it. It is the definition of malware IMO.  I'm not trying to start another debate on this program just looking for a solution. 

 

I attempted to put in in a VM (and use every work around I could find) and would not allow me to use it. I decided to just partition a drive and do a win10 install there and boot into it only when needed and will keep the rest of my pc malware free. Since this partition will only be for the one browser and will be wiped after the semester is over is a 50GB partition enough?  I know windows can get a bit fickle with smaller capacities.  Anything I should look out for?   The drive itself has almost 2TB free but don't want to bog it down since it is a mechanical drive.

I suggest for you to create an external Windows10 bootable USB (type C if possible for faster operation) drive instead. A 32gb type C(or USB 3.0) flashdrive will do.

[zackyc]

@RMTM I thought about that but I'm not as organized as I like to pretend I am and I don't want to lose the USB which is why I'm doing it on an installed drive.  I like the clean look I have with nothing plugged into my PC and everything ran behind it. Unfortunately I have every USB port already filled.   I could go digging to see if I have a USB hub and group things together.  I'm also on a budget of free99.    Wife and kids get my paychecks.   My hardware is also pretty outdated (running Ryzen 1600X I got right after 2000 was announced and prices dropped).  I do have usb 3.0 and one usb-c slot but the C is occupied by my oculus    Do they make type C hubs?   I could do that and do have an external drive that runs type C   I won't use them together so no issues with conflicting traffic

[RMTM]

21 minutes ago, zackyc said:

@RMTM I thought about that but I'm not as organized as I like to pretend I am and I don't want to lose the USB which is why I'm doing it on an installed drive.  I like the clean look I have with nothing plugged into my PC and everything ran behind it. Unfortunately I have every USB port already filled.   I could go digging to see if I have a USB hub and group things together.  I'm also on a budget of free99.    Wife and kids get my paychecks.   My hardware is also pretty outdated (running Ryzen 1600X I got right after 2000 was announced and prices dropped).  I do have usb 3.0 and one usb-c slot but the C is occupied by my oculus    Do they make type C hubs?   I could do that and do have an external drive that runs type C   I won't use them together so no issues with conflicting traffic

I don't think a type-C hub is a practical choice if they do make them. But I don't know if you'll go with a thunderbolt option since you're on a tight budget. For you to be able not to complicate things, and end up with cluttered stuff - you may still do it with a freed-partition in one of your existing drives. But for me, I'd rather go with the USB external flashdrive option first. And that option will guarantee you not to touch anything in your existing system. All existing drives will just serve as storage. USB flashdrive, plug it and leave it. Until you decide to wipe-off everything, all your stuff will still be intact if you opt to use an external bootable drive. I do that to troubleshoot PCs with valuable data to preserve. Your choice.

[GoodBytes]

2 hours ago, zackyc said:

I attempted to put in in a VM (and use every work around I could find) and would not allow me to use it. I decided to just partition a drive and do a win10 install there and boot into it only when needed and will keep the rest of my pc malware free. Since this partition will only be for the one browser and will be wiped after the semester is over is a 50GB partition enough?  I know windows can get a bit fickle with smaller capacities.  Anything I should look out for?   The drive itself has almost 2TB free but don't want to bog it down since it is a mechanical drive.

Windows 11 requires at minimum 64GB of storage.

Windows 10 technically can be installed with 32GB of storage, but 64GB should be the minimum if you don't want to hit your head on a wall once an update comes along.

 

I would suggest 128GB partition at least, if you have a 1TB of greater free space. This should be plenty for:

• Office + OneNote (Note: Office might consider your dual boot as a different device and so might consume another license... you should have 5 PCs if you have the free Office 365 student license (iPad, iPhone, Android tablet/phone are considered as "devices" and has another 5 licenses))
• Web browser (and space for cache)
• Spotify, and many small apps which can be helpful as a student
• OS and apps updates
• Plenty of free space to not have Windows annoy you that you are low in space.

This way, you are sure to have plenty of space, Windows won't annoy you, defrag won't be blocked due to limited space, should handle OS updates (and back for roll backs) just fine, and should be enough in the case you want to have "school" Windows. Once you have everything installed, you can even enable the equivalent of "S Mode" to lock it down so that no executable can run beside the ones you already installed, by picking: "Microsoft Store only" for teh option "Choose where to get apps" under Settings > Apps panel.

[zackyc]

I installed win10 on the 50GB partition I made.   Downloaded the lockdown browser required and when I went to restart I had no options to shut down or restart.   I knew this was malware and everyone else that has half a brain.   I did have to install nvidia drivers to get my displays working.    Most unfortunate thing this malware doesn't let me switch to what I use as my main display     I have 3    left right center     my center I use as my main but my desktop icons and everything is left and opens there so I can place it where it needs to go.      My biggest issue is it wouldn't let me restart or shut down   what else is it blocking?      This is 100% malware and I'm glad I put it in a separate partition. 

[zackyc]

Update I did just 50GB on the new OS    I did have to install nvidia drivers to get all 3 displays working correctly.   I installed the browser as well and looked at it in detail. It's straight malware.     It's wanting to send everything it can find to it's source also the registry changes it makes is awful  everything I may or may not have privately it's wanting access to    I'm really glad this is in it's own install     This program wants to send everything on your PC to their servers     That's a no from me      Screw it Lets start the debate on this.     The people need to know how awful this program is.      DO NOT INSTALL ON YOUR MAIN DRIVE     This this is creepy and I will be wiping it after every semester

[RMTM]

19 hours ago, zackyc said:

Update I did just 50GB on the new OS    I did have to install nvidia drivers to get all 3 displays working correctly.   I installed the browser as well and looked at it in detail. It's straight malware.     It's wanting to send everything it can find to it's source also the registry changes it makes is awful  everything I may or may not have privately it's wanting access to    I'm really glad this is in it's own install     This program wants to send everything on your PC to their servers     That's a no from me      Screw it Lets start the debate on this.     The people need to know how awful this program is.      DO NOT INSTALL ON YOUR MAIN DRIVE     This this is creepy and I will be wiping it after every semester

What I always do to have a peace of mind whenever I suspect a virus or a malware attack in my system, is I get a clean drive or drives(use it for storage purposes only) that will fit all my files that I need to keep. Then disconnect all the drives from my motherboard. Run a thumbdrive 64-bit OS and install anti-virus and anti-malware software I trust. Then plug all the drive(s) where I placed all my precious files only. While disconnected to the internet and intranet, scan to clean all possible/infected files in the entire drive(s). Unplug all created storage and scanned-clean drives. Then re-format everthing in my boot system. And wipe all other drives. Turn internet back on and do a Windows 10 64-bit clean install. Update all necessary Winidows security updates. And install all of my firmware and apps after I install my updated anti-virus. Then scan for a virus/malware free environment before plugging all your storage drive(s) back and re-introduce it to your system. It works every time. Though that rarely happens to me in my over 10 years of experience in building and running my own rigs. Good luck.

[zackyc]

On 1/26/2022 at 8:21 PM, RMTM said:

What I always do to have a peace of mind whenever I suspect a virus or a malware attack in my system, is I get a clean drive or drives(use it for storage purposes only) that will fit all my files that I need to keep. Then disconnect all the drives from my motherboard. Run a thumbdrive 64-bit OS and install anti-virus and anti-malware software I trust. Then plug all the drive(s) where I placed all my precious files only. While disconnected to the internet and intranet, scan to clean all possible/infected files in the entire drive(s). Unplug all created storage and scanned-clean drives. Then re-format everthing in my boot system. And wipe all other drives. Turn internet back on and do a Windows 10 64-bit clean install. Update all necessary Winidows security updates. And install all of my firmware and apps after I install my updated anti-virus. Then scan for a virus/malware free environment before plugging all your storage drive(s) back and re-introduce it to your system. It works every time. Though that rarely happens to me in my over 10 years of experience in building and running my own rigs. Good luck.

The program messing with registry is my biggest concern.   Isolating a partition and not allowing access to other drives is how I went around the problem. Using the program about 4-6 times a year I could justify giving up 50 gigs to keep everything else safe.   I'm not excited about the solution but it works for my use case.   Am I happy? no.  Will I live with it and do a full wipe of the drive later? yes.