Must have programs?

What would you guys say are a few "must have programs" to keep everything running smooth? Specifically in an office area. For maintenance or repairs or whatever.

Any advice would be great, thank you!

 

My current number 1 must have is Malwarebytes.

 

Not looking for anything specific, but like "top 5 programs every techie needs" sort of thing.

Malwarebytes and CCleaner look great so far, thanks!

 

I dont mind paying if it works

 

1) A system imaging program such as Acronis or one of the free lookalikes such as Easeus Todo Backup

2) A file backup program such as WinRAR or one of the file sync programs such as SyncBack or MS SyncToy

3) A good AV/AS program. I'll leave others to argue about which are best

4) Secunia PSI to make sure all installed programs are up-to-date

 

A BART Pe with Ghost & USB drive- image a system before trying to fix it, that way if you make it worse you can always go back and try again. Or ReDo boot cd (free)

Malware Antibytes, CCleaner, Double Driver or Driver Backup!, NirLauncher with Systernal tools, SIW for system info & Chris Control (remotley install VNC)
SARDU - every boot AV cd rolled into one.
A live Linux CD - just in case (Ubuntu)
NT Pwd disk to clear passwords.
Trinity CD will cover these last 2 items.

A clean OS disk with the correct service pack for running SFC.(system file check)

Common drivers for the systems & printers.
And Google.com

Thats a good start.

 

Make sure you don't forget to check out:

Must have Free downloads
http://www.majorgeeks.com/page.php?id=20
My note: A great listing of the best of the FREE stuff on MG. :cool

4 of of my ESSENTIAL must haves are:

SlickRun.
http://www.bayden.com/SlickRun/
It is my favourite program.
Don't know how anyone can use a computer without it. :-D
I have 170+ MagicWords loaded.
X gets me Excel,
mydocs goes straight to MyDocuments folder.
Gsearch searches my G drive,
IE = Internet Explorer,
Ad =Adaware,
CC = CrapCleaner , etc.
Saves hours of mouse clicking, menu navigating, creating shortcuts on your front page.

FreeRAM XP Pro 1.52
http://majorgeeks.com/download.php?det=1670
Size: 606 KB
License: Freeware
Requires: Win All
Downloaded: 370038 Times
Rating: 4.78 (565 votes)
My note: Ignore the name, a bit.
It works on "Win All", including Vista and Windows 7.

Clipdiary 2.7
http://majorgeeks.com/Clipdiary_d5344.html

ZuluPad
http://www.gersic.com/zulupad/

My note: Make sure you backup more than one copy, each time you add more info, as it sometimes loses its self.

For a couple of these, I have even purchased the "PRO" versions. :-D

Bazza

 

Some of my "must haves":

Makes daily Automatic backups of the Registry - On demand backup anytime.
ERUNT - The Emergency Recovery Utility NT

Very fast utility to defragment the paging file during system boot up.
PageDefrag

Either of the following.
Once you decide on which you like, use it consistently and don't switch back and forth between the two.

Auslogics Disk Defrag
Use "Defrag and Optimize"
Settings > Program Settings > Algorithms:
"Move system files to the beginning of the disk" is Not Necessary.

MyDefrag
Home page and usage tips:
MyDefrag Home

Manage Startup programs
Startup Control Panel Standalone Version

A great little Notepad replacement:
Notepad2

Notepad2 ― Replacing Windows Notepad

System Information:
Speccy

 

Thank YOU, awesome!

 

1. Ccleaner

2. MalwareBytes free scanner

3. Nero

4. DVD Decrypter

5. Clone CD

6. rawdump

7. WavePad Sound Editor

8. Atari800Win (CLASSIC!)

9. Nestopia

10. Project64

:cool

 

I'll second (third? fourth?) the vote for Malware Bytes. If you use the free edition, run a full scan every week or so. It has caught issues in Java twice my antivirus (AVG on desktop, Windows Defender on notebook) missed.

For an all-in-one tuneup program I'd go with Advanced System Care. There is a free edition (non-commercial use) at the MajorGeeks download section; the pro version ($14.95 upgrade) does a deeper registry scan.

Although many people like Ccleaner, I had two bad experiences with it where it "cleaned" too much out of the registry resulting in Windows becoming unstable. Granted, this was with XP a few years ago but once bitten, twice shy.

 

That's a very good suggestion. I am still using version 1.5.0.2.
I tried version 2.0 and did not like what they have done with the interface and expanded options.


Secunia PSI does Not check All installed programs.
It only checks installations that may have Security issues.


I have not used this, but it received an Editor's Choice here.
Review and comparison with Secunia along with download links are here.
Be sure to read the Warning about selecting the proper download link.

Software Update Monitor NoRK

 

1. Firefox with AdBlock+ and NoScript

2. Malware Bytes Free version

3. ImgBurn

4. Revo uninstaller

5. VLC with Shark007 codecs

 

Thanks for the heads up on selecting the proper download and the link to the site.