Ready Boost Your Computer With a USB Flash Drive

By Derek Rogers
If you have found that your computer is running a little slower and you want to speed up games, videos and the Windows operating system itself, there could be a solution. Since Windows is able to access memory much faster than it can get things off the hard drive, recently used programs run more quickly than ones that you haven't touched in a while. Unfortunately, newer versions of Windows, including Vista, require a lot more memory than earlier ones.

It's possible to buy new memory just about everywhere, but there are some reasons this might not be the best solution. Inexperienced users may have trouble installing these cards and it's possible to run out of extra slots. The solution that can make things easier is your USB port, plug a flash drive into it and you will be able to add a little more to your system.

Using Ready Boost along with a USB flash drive allows you to easily and quickly add more memory to your computer, speeding things up for software and you're OS. It's just a matter of plugging in the drive, installing the program and adding the extra memory to your computer. Make sure you have a flash drive and a computer capable of USB 2.0. Once you plug the drive into your computer, you will get an autoplay dialog box, including a selection for "Speed up my system". Turn on "Use this device" and you will get more memory! Try out your most resource heavy program, like a game or computer art program, to test the results. The flash drive will be used just like the RAM inside the computer, offering a boost in speed.

Ready Boost doesn't just work with USB drives, either, it will also work with SD cards and Compact Flash cards, such as the ones used in a digital camera. However, your computer must have a built in card slot to use these, external card readers won't work. In addition, you must have Windows Vista and a card that offers Ready Boost compatibility. Look on the packaging to find a Ready Boost logo.

Only one flash drive can be used per computer and there are size limitations, you can only use Ready Boost with memory devices between 256 Mb and 4 Gb in capacity. Larger or smaller drives don't work. The speed boost you will get depends on the capacity of the drive. Try using a USB flash drive with the same capacity as your computer's memory.

Therefore, a 1 Gb RAM computer should use a 1 Gb flash drive; smaller flash drives would significantly reduce the speed you'd get from using Ready Boost. It's also important to remember that you can't use this flash drive for file storage while it's being used by Ready Boost. You will have to change the settings under Properties, or reformat the drive if you want to do this.

For Vista computers that need a boost of speed, a USB flash drive and Ready Boost could be the solution. Remember to pay attention to the drive size and other factors and you will soon be surfing, gaming and working a whole lot faster.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Derek_Rogers

How to Password Protect and Partition a USB Flash Drive

By Derek RogersKnowing how to password protect and partition a USB flash drive is very important to the safety, integrity, and manageability of your data.

When you partition a USB flash drive, you make it so that you can write software into your flash memory while at once running software in another bank of your flash memory (thus you will need a flash memory with at least two banks; one bank = four memory chips). Partitioning is used to enhance manageability, performance, or data availability.

The BIOS command for partitioning your USB flash drive is: Router (config) #partition flash partitions [size1 size2]

Note: if you are running a Cisco 1600 or 3600 series router (modular, multiservice access platforms), your command would be: Router (config) #partition flash-filesystem: [number-of-partitions] [partition-size]

There is software called BootIt that you can download and use to cause Windows XP or Vista to allow you multiple USB flash drive partitions by "Flipping the Removable Bit" that restricts partitioning. However, this software is potentially harmful to your flash memory drive and is not recommended. Two other flash memory partition software packages that are more reliable are Advanced Partition Manager 6.0 (lets you create, copy, resize, and move hard drive partitions without data loss), and Rohos Mini Drive (lets you create a password protected USB drive partition on a guest computer).

Cisco routers permit more than two flash drive partitions (it all depends on how many banks your flash drive has). Every other platform will permit just two partitions.

For password protection of your USB flash memory drive, there is a free program called Cryptainer LE that many people use. Now, to use this program you need to slice up your drive into segments (the software does that for you), but the maximum volume size per segment is 25Mb--meaning that a lot of files that aren't the usual text files can't be protected unless you use multiple drives, which is very cumbersome. Another program that is similar but isn't quite as restricted is Folder Lock, which allows you to set up a password protection system on your PC and then export it to your USB flash drive and then put different folders under digital lock and key in different "lockers".

Another program called Securestix (not free) let's you pick and choose which USB flash drive files you will password protect. Let's face it: some files that are highly valuable to you just don't have any meaning to a would-be identity thief.

Some flash memory drive devices come with password protection software. These typically allow you to designate some files as "public" or "private", and some might even come with fingerprint reading security programming.

Again, knowing how to password protect and partition a USB flash drive is important knowledge that allows you to operate your flash drive with safety and better performance.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Derek_Rogers

How to Restrict USB Flash Drive to Virtual Machine

By Derek Rogers

Knowing how to restrict a USB flash drive to a virtual machine operation can be highly useful and help your applications to be more secure.

A virtual machine is essentially a software program that imitates a hardware program. According to the Computer Desktop Encyclopaedia, this is a "traditional virtualization technique that enables different operating systems to run in the same computer as well as to prevent applications from interfering with each other. Each virtual machine is like a 'machine within the machine and functions as if it owned the entire computer. The operating systems in each virtual machine communicate with the hardware via an abstraction layer called a 'virtual machine monitor' (VMM) or 'hypervisor'. The operating systems run without modification unless they use the para-virtualization method."

1. Virtual machines are very useful for these three applications:Eliminating the need for a whole new computer to run an application that requires a foreign OS.

2. Running development and production programs at the same time so that if the program under development crashes production is not interfered with.

3. Using multiple production virtual machines to protect against interference or corruption from the simultaneous running of allegedly safe and secure commercial applications without the need to run multiple servers.

Restricting a USB flash drive so that it is used as a virtual machine is an ideal way of using a flash memory drive. You would first want to partition your USB flash memory drive so that you can simultaneously run two different applications: one is a software writing application and the other is an already existing application. Once you have your USB flash memory drive partitioned, you can then apply it as a virtual machine for all three of a virtual machine's main functions. This is especially useful if you are a computer tech. If you are trying to troubleshoot a computer that would require you to access a foreign OS the flash drive can be made use of. If you need to make use of code, that writing program may crash frequently, but that won't affect your other running program. And, you can rest assured that your flash drive's data won't be corrupted by any corrupted data on the computer.

Another great point to keep in mind about using your flash memory drive in this way is that this creates a synchronous operating of multiple operating systems; this is not a mere multiboot or dual-boot system that you effect.

As databases grow and more applications with more diverse operating systems are developed, the use of virtual machines is likely to become ever more important and widespread, and the USB flash memory drive, with its data compression and portability, will likely grow ever more useful as a facilitator for the easy creation of a virtual machine environment. Knowing how to restrict a USB flash drive to a virtual machine operation enables you to access multiple "streams of consciousness" at once without fear of them causing each other to crash or be corrupted.

Derek Rogers is a freelance writer who writes for a number of UK businesses. For logo branded USB Flash Drives, he recommends Flashbay.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Derek_Rogers

The Advantages of USB Flash Drive

By Shawn Paul

A USB flash drive is a NAND type flash memory. The NAND type flash memory was designed for the exchange and saving of data as alternative to the magnetic disk. The NAND type flash memory has the capacity to hold large volumes of data. The writing and erasing speed is also fast. On the other hand the random access is rather slow because it uses block as a unit for the purpose of writing and reading.

The USB drive is made up of secure case small circuit board and is integrated with a universal serial bus connector. The secure case is typically made up of rubber or metal. This secure case protects the circuit board of the USB drive from damage and increases the robustness. The USB drives are very much smaller than the floppy disks and are rewritable.

The USB drive can be easily inserted into the USB port of the computer. With the help of USB flash drive, data can be safely and easily transferred. The USB drive is more reliable and safer than the floppy disks. The USB drives are small and compact, therefore the users can carry them easily in their pockets or they can attach it with their key chains as well.

The USB drives are more reliable when huge amounts of data has to be moved. Some of the USB drives allow 1 million erase or write cycles. The USB Memory card readers have a removable flash memory card. The USB flash drives provide more benefits to its users than the other storage devices. Almost all the computers and laptops have the USB ports, therefore the users can easily transfer the data. Most of the modern operating systems have the USB mass storage standard which is required by the USB flash drives to operate.

The USB 2.0 are much faster than the optical disk in terms of the data storage in much smaller space. The name "drive" is given to the USB flash drive because the USB flash appears to the OS of the computer like a mechanical drive and the method of access is also the same.

The USB connector must be protected and kept safe using a removable cap or by retracting the USB connector into the body of the USB flash drive.The USB flash drives use all the power supply from the host connection. Some high speed USB drives may require more power supply than provided by the bus powered USB hub. Therefore these drives will function when they are directly plugged into the self powered hub or the host controller.

The USB drives are most often composed of three components, the male connector type A, crystal oscillator and the USB mass storage controller. The function of the type A connector is to interface with the system of the host computer. While on the other hand the USB mass storage controller helps in balancing and storage of the data. The USB mass storage controller enhances and carries out smooth processing of the decoding, encryption and transfer of the data between the systems. The function of the crystal oscillator is to make sure that the out put of the flash drive is of the best quality.

The reason that the USB drives became more popular is that the floppy drives were most of the time failed to read the data from the floppy disk. Therefore, the users had problems while transferring the data using the floppy disks. The USB flash drives do not have movable parts like the floppy disks had.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Shawn_Paul

USB Flash Drives - More Reliable Than Its Predecessors

By Sarah Reece

Over the years there have been several implementations in regard to storing electronic data. From floppy discs to DVDs, there are a plethora of options for you and your electronic storage needs. While both of these options are useful and reliable, a USB flash drive is compact, portable, and safer than its media storage predecessors.

USB flash drives are safer than traditional storage methods as they can seamlessly transfer and store files between the unit and your computer. There's no "burn time" or time needed for the files to be encoded onto the drive as opposed to storing media on a disk. No more worrying about whether or not someone is looking over your shoulder to see what you're storing; flash drives allow for quick storage in just a few seconds.

Flash drives are also safeguarded from hacking. If you feel at all weary of whose hands your USB flash drive could fall into, password protect your unit! Most USB flash drives come automatically encrypted for your file safety. You can also delete files as necessary from your drive whenever you deem it necessary.

They are also less susceptible to damage as opposed to a storage medium like a CD. Most drives come with caps to protect the drive itself from dirt or moisture. You can feel confident your media is protected while using the flash drive.

USB flash drives are small, lightweight and can hold a lot of data. They won't break after routine use, and can last a very long time. Media can be added and deleted with a click of a button, and they are compact enough to fit on a key ring. Is there any reason why USB flash drives are not useful?

Sarah Reece writes for Ciniva Systems, an award winning Virginia web design company. Ciniva specializes in web design and SEO. Sarah Reece is an SEO Specialist with Ciniva. Ciniva Systems is in charge of SEO for iFox Technologies

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sarah_Reece

Flash Drives

By :Derek R Andrews

Flash Storage Drives are wonderful little devices. Gone are the days of storing three or four word documents on your floppy disk. Now you can store tens of thousands of documents and files on a single tiny flash storage drive! They are very resilient, so you no longer have to worry about dropping it, or storing it near a magnet. Your data is much safer on a flash storage drive then it ever was on a floppy disk! If you often use more than one computer (such as one at work or school, and one at home), you know how important it is to be able to move files between your computers. Flash storage drives make it simple. All you have to do is plug it in the USB slot, copy your files over, and you're done. There's really nothing to it. Despite their ease of use and convenience, flash storage drives are also very inexpensive. For around 10 dollars, sometimes less, you can now get a basic drive that will suit most of your needs.

There are also a few other neat uses for Flash Storage Drives you may not know about. For instance, you can store music on them, so you can listen to your favorite songs anywhere you can plug it into a PC. There is also new audio equipment that has a built-in USB port so you can just plug a USB flash drive directly into the unit and listen to your music without a PC!

You can also use your flash storage drives to encrypt sensitive data. There are freely available programs such as TrueCrypt that will allow you to encode your data with a password so that if your flash drive gets lost or stolen, the files will be unreadable by anyone without the password.

Flash Storage Drives also make a great toolkit for PC repair. Just load your favorite antivirus, antispyware, and diagnostic tools on the drive and you're ready to go! There are many more uses for flash storage drives, and with a little creativity you'll be amazed at how versatile and handy they can be!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Derek_R_Andrews

Flash Drives in the Workplace No More

By: Terry Detty

The last few years we have seen an increase in sales of the fancy looking USB flash drives. They have been made as small as a keychain figurine or a tie clip. Yes, USB flash drives to wear on your tie. Now that these flash drives have made their way to everyone because of the affordable pricing, many workplaces are banning them from the office.

It is one of the best ways to steal company information without anyone knowing about it. Many companies have as far as disabling the USB ports on employee’s computers. This may seem a little extreme, but companies have to protect their information.

Although some businesses give these little units to their employees for advertising purposes, they are not allowed to use them in the workplace. They are basically given as an advertisement with the company logo on them for others to see. There are so many harmful affects that these flash drives can have on a business.

Because of their different shapes and designs, businesses have decided to pull the plug on the USB ports. You might look at someone’s keychain and think that little gadget they have is cute, but that cute little gadget could ruin your business.

This type of theft and the creation of the USB flash drives brought concern from many businesses and individuals alike. What if you are individual that carries around a USB flash drive in their purse or on a keychain would lose the unit?

All information would be lost and open to anyone who finds the flash drive. This causes concern for concern for how to properly store the flash drives that have sensitive information recorded. Carrying around a flash drive is just like carrying around your credit card. If you lose it, you are vulnerable to fraud.

For the most part, flash drives have allowed people to download music, pictures and files and free up room on the laptop or the desktop computer. These are also valuable in the event you would lose information on your computer due to a hacker or a virus. In this case, the USB flash drives are extremely necessary.

You can buy different size flash drives to hold different amounts of information. If you download a huge amount of music, you may want a USB flash drive that can accommodate all the files or more than one.

New technology has enhanced the use of the computer for more than one reason. People can now use flash drives for file storage and businesses can storage vital information on these drives in order to keep it safe from potential security leaks. Although businesses ban the use of the flash drives from employee’s, the company themselves do use these as way’s to conduct business during travels. They can make presentations and instead of carrying a laptop along on their travels, they just take the flash drive.

Today, with the higher security in airports, it is always important to check with new security rules before attempting to take a flash drive on the airplane to make sure it will be accepted. In most cases, you will find that they are allowed. Other business concerns the flash drives are a valuable and handy little piece of technology that will help secure important files and information.

Article Source:http://www.articlebiz.com/

Disposing of Your USB Flash Drives

By Chris Proth

After using your USB Flash Drive for a couple of years you'll probably find it dated old looking and of poor spec compared to something else you could buy for half the price. Not surprisingly you'll probably trade it in for a newer USB Flash Drive with more data capacity. However before throwing your flash drive away, it is important that you erase any sensitive data held on the USB Flash Drive in case it gets into the wrong hands. Giving out your own personal data could lead to somebody committing fraud against you; losing somebody else's could lead to a criminal conviction.

USB Flash Drives are seen as a security threat by many businesses and government agencies; this concern is not unjustified as there have been a number of security breaches as a consequence of their misuse. US Military USD Flash Drives were found be sold in markets in Afghanistan, some of these Flash Drives contained names of suspects and the personal details of over 600 troops. This information could have been used for all sorts of purposes if it had got into the wrong hands, and was caused, one would hope, by ignorance of the soldiers who disposed of them.

To prevent such leaks organisations should have policies set for the disposal of memory products such as hard drives and USB Flash Drives. One commonly used option is file shredding, which deletes the chosen files and folders and then writes over them in random patterns, the more this is done the harder it is to recover the information from the disk.
Chris Proth is an avid commentator on promotional technology for USB Flash Drive Chris Proth recommends Flashbay .Ltd

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chris_Proth

The Lightweight and Convenient USB Drives

By Shawn Paul

The USB flash drives were first introduced in 1998. The popularity of USB drives has increased since then. The USB drive is actually a plug and play device used for storage purpose. USB drives use flash memory. The USB drives are so lightweight that you can even attach it to a key chain. The popular names of USB drives are the keychain and flash drives. The USB drives are alternatives to the other storage devices like the compact disk, zip drive and floppy disks. These USB drives are easily compatible as the operating system of the computer recognizes the USB drive when it is plugged into the USB port. The operating system recognizes the USB drive by assigning a removable drive letter to it. The USB drives are compatible with both computers and digital cameras. These drives are very compact. To store data, the USB drive usually uses USB 1.1 or 2.0 interface.

The USB flash drives are the form of NAND type flash memory. This type of flash memory was developed for the purpose of transferring of data information. The NAND type memory has the new and latest technology to record huge amounts of data and also has fast writing/erasing speed. USB drive is composed of small circuit board which is sealed by a secure case made of metal or rubber. The purpose of the ssecure case is to protect the inner circuit board. It also has a serial bus connector.

The new and advanced design of the USB drives help them to record more amount of data. The USB drives provide ease and convenient to its users. After its attachment to the system, it does not require the system to reboot like other removable drives require. These USB drives also do not rely on external power supply or the batteries. The drives do not depend upon the platform. In order to make compatible the USB drives to the older systems that do not have the USB ports, the manufacturers have added some additional features to the USB drives. These features are like the downloadable drivers and password protection.

The USB drives benefits its users because it can retain the data for longer periods after being unplugged from the computer. The data in the USB drive is also retained when the drive is left in and the computer is powered down. That is why the USB drives are considered as the most convenient drives for backup needs and the transferring of data. The USB drives are the substitutes for the floppy disks. The USB flash drives are faster, reliable and can store more amounts of data as compared to the previous devices.

The USB drives usually have 3 components. The first component is the type A male connector. This connector interfaces with the host computer system. The storage and the balance of information are done by the USB mass storage controller. The USB mass storage controller increases the process of data transfer, encryption and decoding. The USB flash drive provides the best quality of output with the help of the crystal oscillator.

The floppy disks had the problem of not being properly read by the floppy drive, and therefore, it caused problems to its users while transferring of the data. The floppy disks had many parts inside them that were movable that is why most of the time the floppy drives were not able to read the data. The USB drives have overcome this problem.

USB Flash Drives a Security Threat?

By Chris Proth

Progress in new technology, driven by the fall in Nand Flash price, has led to a number of small devices that can hold a significant amount of data. The device that epitomises all of these is the USB Flash Drive. In 1999 a 16MB USB Flash Drive cost £50 now a 4GB USB Flash Drive costs only £10.

USB Flash Drives have been a great friend to businesses over the last few years, making it quick and easy to transfer data from one machine to another and to carry work home to finish without needing to haul around a heavy laptop. However, with flash drives being able to hold ever growing amounts of data and transfer data faster than ever, USB flash drives are being looked at by some companies as one of their biggest threats to security.

The use of USB Flash Drives in business poses three categories of risk: the contraction of a computer virus; the loss of data and the theft of data. All three of these are considerably serious: a computer virus could totally wipe out a company's IT infrastructure and delete their most important files, if the company hasn't an effective data backup this could ruin it; if a company holds sensitive information and loses it, the company could be found to have broken the DPA and could get fined a crippling sum of money, not to mention the damage to its reputation; if a sales person walks out with your entire clients database and gives it to his new firm you're going to lose at least a few customers.

Fortunately there are some solutions out there to reduce the chances of businesses being a victim of one of the sad situations mentioned above. 1. Removal of USB ports - The removal of USB ports is a rather severe reaction to this potential threat and is often a practically difficult one to implement, a lot of firms use USB ports for their mice and keyboards and these would all have to be changed.

2. Encryption of USB Drives - Encryption on USB Flash Drive can take one of two forms either a hardware encryption or software encryption. Forms of hard ware inscription may include only allowing access to the USB Flash Drive after the user has authenticated his or her authority using a password, encryption certificate or biometric authentication (most commonly finger print recognition but sometimes also retina recognition). The encryption of storage media can also be managed via software two examples are Microsoft's Active Directory and Novell's eDirectory, both can be set up to use certificates to data held on USB Flash Drives.

3. Restrict access to important files on critical servers - As with all company information access should be given on a need to basis and taken away from employees as soon as they no longer need that access: if you're going to give someone their notice is it worth letting them have access while they sit it out?

4. Monitor access of company employees to sensitive files - Just because your employees have access to the data doesn't mean they have ant rights to do with as they please. Monitoring their behaviour with sensitive data is the best way to spot any unusual pattern and can give you time to act and stop any possible data leaks.

5. Limit size of data transferred to USB drives- Data transfer restriction software can be used to protect sensitive files by capping the sizes of files that can be copied to a USB Flash Drive. The file size limit simply needs to be set to the size of the smallest sensitive files.

6. Enforce USB Flash Drive policies - Enforcing USB Flash Drive Policies can go a long way to reducing the risk of accidental loss of data, policies alone aren't likely to stop a disgruntled employee from doing any damage. Here are some policies you might want to consider: USB Flash Drives should only be used for data transfer and not storage. Data should not be on USB Flash Drives for over a week. Data should not be transferred to USB flash drives without prior consent form a manager.

7. Firewalls and Anti viruses - Viruses can be contracted from USB Flash Drive just as they can be contracted from any other type of media. To keep yourself safe make sure you have the latest updates installed for whichever antivirus software you use.

Although the removal of USB ports is the only 100% certain way of making sure USB flash drives pose you no risk it is not a solution, the benefits of USB flash drives are vast and getting rid of them would be a step back for computing. By being vigilant to the behaviour of business staff and using one or a variety of the security solutions mentioned above you can protect yourself from flash drive misuse but still benefit from their versatility.

Chris Proth is a writer with a keen interest in the USB Flash Drive market, for promotional USB Flash Drive he recommends Flashbay Ltd.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chris_Proth

USB Flash Drives - What They Are and Why You Might Want One

By Pamela Lund

If you are an average computer user, you may not be very familiar with USB flash drives (also called USB memory sticks, thumb drives, etc.). Even if you do have a USB flash drive or two, the newest technology is impressive and less expensive than what was available just one or two years ago.

The most impressive technological leap has occurred in the amount of memory USB flash drives can hold. Today, 32GB USB memory sticks the size of a business card cost less than two hundred dollars. 32GB of memory is more memory than some computers have! And 64GB USB flash drives have recently become available.

USB flash drives are also uniquely durable compared to other external storage devices like CDs and DVDs. Since USB flash drives are made with solid-state (no moving parts) technology and are encased in a durable plastic shell, they require no special handling like CDs and DVDs do. A recent Consumer Reports independent lab test showed that some USB memory sticks can survive hours on the dashboard of a hot car and some even survived laundering and drying as if they had been left in a pants pocket.

Another feature that USB flash drives have that can be beneficial is that they offer almost unlimited rewrite-ability. Some USB pens have tested successfully on over 500,000 rewrites. This rewrite capacity makes USB memory sticks a great data storage option when your data changes daily. If you keep a regularly updated Word documents or run a small accounting firm where you need to backup your system daily, this rewrite-ability can be a major plus.
Because of their large storage capacity and sturdiness, USB memory sticks can also be a great way to store important pictures, videos, and documents without fear that an accidental scratch will corrupt your files. USB flash drives also take up very little room, so you can easily add them to your safe deposit box or fireproof box. Or, if backing up data as mentioned above, dropping your USB flash drive in your purse, pocket, or briefcase will not risk its data integrity.
Finally, USB flash drives are great for people who work on different computers regularly. Some USB memory sticks allow you to save your desktop applications, utilities, and personal settings. This allows you to take your preferences with you to any computer that has a USB port. Since almost every computer today has multiple USB ports, personal data portability is a snap if you use your personalized USB drive. For some people, this portability and compatibility is practically a necessity.

Top Uses for a USB Flash Drive

USB flash drives are convenient little gadgets. I remember the days when we were using 1.44 MB floppy drives to move things around. What a pain those were! The capacity was pitiful, giving rise to utilities designed to split up a single file among multiple floppies. Then CDs became the norm. CDs offer much higher capacity, but they do not operate like a hard drive. They are also pretty slow. DVDs offer even higher capacity, but you are still dealing with all the restrictions (and annoyances) of optical media.

USB flash drives are so much better. Today, they offer respectable capacities. USB 2.0 makes them pretty fast. The BIOS of many motherboards even has the capability of booting from a USB drive. They are more dependable then optical media because they cannot be scratched. They are more dependable than even hard drives because they have no moving parts. So, there are a lot of possibilities for these little sticks.

Below, I will go over the most useful uses for your USB flash drive.