The
event viewer is simply an easy interface to view the various logs that Windows
XP keeps by default. Any program or system errors are recorded
here in the application or system logs, and they can be an invaluable source of information
if you are having recurring problems.
The security log
is inactive by default, and is only used if you decide to enable auditing on your
XP system. More on this later.
As the
application and system logs record all programs and procedures started by
Windows, this is an excellent place to start if you want to know more about what
is going on behind the scenes.
Shared Folders
The shared folders heading contains
a simple but useful list of all the folders that have been enabled for sharing,
or in other words folders that are available to a remote user
who may connect to your system over a network or the internet. Another list, known as a
Sessions List shows all remote users currently connected to your computer, while the Open
Files List illustrates which files are currently being accessed by the remote
users in question.
I don't
have to tell you that this is an important set of screens if you are concerned
about security, as the sessions and open
files lists can easily tell you if you have an uninvited guest
in your system.
Note that the list of shares contains
two or more shares denoted by a $ (ADMIN$ and C$). These
are the administration shares that are installed by default when you load XP. The dollar sign
indicates that they are hidden shares that will not show up in
an explorer window, but can be accessed directly (try going to 'start/run'
and typing '\\(yourcomputername)\c$').
What this
means is that every file in your C: drive is shared by default, which should
illustrate the importance of using a password on ALL your user
accounts. If you do not, every file on your
system is essentially wide open. Now one thing to keep in mind as you pour through the lists of shared folder is that you cannot create or remove shares from this interface; this has to be done on the properties of the individual folders.
You do have the option of disconnecting remote users from the
sessions list, however.
That task can
be accomplished by highlighting the user, going to the 'action' menu and
selecting 'disconnect session.'
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