frankc@skat.usc.edu (Frank H. Callaham III) (11/30/89)
I pulled this out of the Nov 21st issue of mac week --- I thought that anyone running a computer lab or classroom would be interested. I have no connection with the company, except that we are ordering an eval copy. Frank Callaham USC Microcomputer Support ------------------------- SecureInit keeps Mac Setups Safe from Meddlers Blocks unauthorized apps, viruses, 'aliens' By Henry Norr San Francisco -- SecureInit 2.1, an enhanced commercial version of a shareware program imported from Switzerland, promises to keep users' Macs as free from unauthorized meddling as are the banks in the developer's native land. The $99.95 program, distributed in the United States and Canada by Direct Software Inc., is designed to help network administrators, dealers and computer laboratory managers prevent virus infections, deliberate or accidental tampering with system configurations, and unauthorized installation or copying of applications. Itself an application, SecureInit installs invisible protective Startup documents (INITs) in the System folder or directly into the System file of protected start-up disks. Among the features it offersQeach of which can be individually enabled or disabled are options to: - Make the System folder invisible. - Maintain shadow backups of selected files, such as the System file and printer drivers, and use a fresh copy each time the Mac is restarted. - Lock all applications and selected files in the System folder. - Verify the integrity of applications, disable contaminated ones and modify their icons. - "Kill system aliens," erasing all undeclared files in the System folder at start-up. - Lock the configured disks or volumes if the Mac is started from another volume or if the SecureInit INIT is trashed. - Eject any System floppy from any drive and dismount any non-declared System volume. - Prevent users from running any applications not on the protected disks or copying any application from anywhere. Every configuration can be password protected so that only the user or manager with the SecureInit program and the password can make changes. The program, due to ship this week, is of special interest to managers of university computer labs, where virus infections, unauthorized customization and illegal copying are everyday problems. David Wardlaw, a programmer/analyst who manages a 30-Mac lab at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, said he originally looked to the program for better virus protection but soon realized that it could also provide a solution to a variety of other problems, such as students installing their own applications, fonts and desk accessories. Although he is still evaluating the program, Wardlaw said he is impressed with its capabilities and may arrange a site license. Joel Ness, user services specialist at the University of Minnesota at Duluth, said he has already ordered a copy for each of the 16 Mac IIcx machines in a new campus laboratory. "I like the idea of something that will restore the hard disk to its original configuration when a student leaves,' he said. "And with applications like Mathematica and MacroMind Director on the machines, we have to do something to prevent copying." Direct Software Inc. is located at 1032 Irving St., Suite 513, San Francisco, Calif. 94122; (415) 347-1590.