[Paul Sadlik]

As you all know, I started to use Windows 7 just two days ago. I doubt, my system was misused by my staff. Can I check the history on my system. I have tried it myself but things look quite different than Win XP.

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Do you really want to know if your staff is misusing your computers? If there is a lot of abuse then it's time to take action. If it is just a little abuse here and there, the knowledge may cause great harm in your relationships with your staff. You have to decide how much you want to know.

That said you need to look at the index.dat files on the computers. They will tell you every website they visited. Just do a search for the files. You may find more than you really want to look at.

Download a dat viewer here.

http://www.pointston...dex.dat-Viewer/

Start, and Search, then For Files & Folders, and All Files & Folders, now enter "index.dat" in the Filename field. Before searching:

Limit the search to C: drive using the Look In drop-down.
Check the following options using the More Advanced Options line:
Search windows Files
Search history Files & Folders
Search Subfolders
Click Search.
Be amazed at how many "index/date" files there are.
Minimize the Search Results window.

You need the viewer tool to read the index/date files. They are NOT text files.


If someone is deleting the index dat files from the computer and trying to hide where they are going, then the index dat files will be empty or very small. That tells you something right away. You can Use undelete software if your dat files have been deleted, but it's really not necessary. Talking to the staff member and just letting them know you can see whats happening could stop the problem.

SRX660

[SRX660]

Do you really want to know if your staff is misusing your computers? If there is a lot of abuse then it's time to take action. If it is just a little abuse here and there, the knowledge may cause great harm in your relationships with your staff. You have to decide how much you want to know.

That said you need to look at the index.dat files on the computers. They will tell you every website they visited. Just do a search for the files. You may find more than you really want to look at.

Download a dat viewer here.

http://www.pointston...dex.dat-Viewer/

Start, and Search, then For Files & Folders, and All Files & Folders, now enter "index.dat" in the Filename field. Before searching:

Limit the search to C: drive using the Look In drop-down.
Check the following options using the More Advanced Options line:
Search windows Files
Search history Files & Folders
Search Subfolders
Click Search.
Be amazed at how many "index/date" files there are.
Minimize the Search Results window.

You need the viewer tool to read the index/date files. They are NOT text files.


If someone is deleting the index dat files from the computer and trying to hide where they are going, then the index dat files will be empty or very small. That tells you something right away. You can Use undelete software if your dat files have been deleted, but it's really not necessary. Talking to the staff member and just letting them know you can see whats happening could stop the problem.

SRX660