The secrets that Microsoft hides in your computer, and how much effort has been made to prevent people from discovering these hidden files!
There are many file directories on your computer that Microsoft tries to hide. In these directories, you will (mainly) find two things: Microsoft Internet Explorer records all the sites you have visited - even if you have cleared your cache,
Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Outlook Express record all your E-MAIL information - even if you have deleted them from the trash (including attachments in incoming and outgoing emails). Please believe me, what I said is less than 50% of the actual situation.
The reason I say these files are well hidden is because they really are very well hidden. So that if you don't have any knowledge of DOS, you won't be able to find these things. The reason I say this is because some of these files can only be displayed in DOS or only in Windows Explorer. Some files cannot be displayed in both DOS and Windows, but can be displayed through a specific working environment. Basically, if you don't know about these things in advance, the chance of encountering them in daily use is very small.
To show you these hidden files, I will give a simple example. There are three hidden folders including: your name, address, phone number, the websites you have visited, every email you sent or received, every attachment you sent or received, every keyword you searched through the search engine, every file name you downloaded, the document names containing "sensitive" information, all copies of your Cookies, fully readable E-MAIL from your HOTMAIL account, your PGP key, and more...
Interestingly, none of the above is mentioned on Microsoft's official website.
Foreword
I know that some people have already realized the aspects I mentioned. But I am sure that most people don't know all this. The purpose of this guide is to tell everyone what Microsoft's products are really doing and how to regain our own privacy from Microsoft.
Thank you for reading this article.
Index
1. Definitions and abbreviations
2. Why you should delete these files
3. How to delete these files as soon as possible (recommended for non-professionals)
3.1 If you use Microsoft Internet Explorer
3.2 Clean your registry
3.3 If you use Microsoft Outlook Express
3.4 Completely delete files
3.5 Continue to use Microsoft Internet Explorer (strongly not recommended)
4. Step by step to approach these hidden files (recommended for professionals)
5. Take a look at the real face of OUTLOOK
6. How Microsoft does all this
7. +s means hidden instead of system
8. The real face of FIND FAST
8.1 Delete FIND FAST
9. See how much effort Microsoft has made to prevent people from discovering these hidden files
10. Final notes and contact information
1. Definitions and abbreviations
The best definition I put forward is the following:
I) The so-called "deeply hidden" file/folder is such a file/folder that it cannot be displayed by Windows Explorer even when you choose the "Show all files" option, cannot be displayed when listing files in MS-DOS, and cannot be found by "Find".
a) Explorer must be able to display them through at least one working environment (deeply hidden file/folder)
Explorer must be able to display them through at least one working environment (deeply hidden file/folder)
c) "Find" must be able to find them through at least one working environment (deeply hidden file/folder)
d) They are deliberately hidden.
II) Distinguish "deeply hidden" file/folders from simply hidden attribute files/folders (such as MSDOS.SYS or SYSBCKUP folders).
III) Distinguish "deeply hidden" file/folders from some other deliberately hidden files (such as a file named????x￥.).
DOS = Disk Operating System
MSIE = Microsoft Internet Explorer
TIF = Temporary Internet Files (folder) (temporary Internet files/folder)
HD = hard disk
OS = operating system
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2. Why should I delete these files?
1) Because this obviously involves your privacy and security issues
2) Because Microsoft deliberately wants to keep these records (as for the reason, I can only guess)
3) Because these files occupy a large amount of disk space. I once found that 200 megabytes of space on a computer was occupied by such files. Now you can understand what makes your computer slower and slower. After following the following measures, you may find that the performance of your computer has been greatly improved.
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3. How to delete these files as soon as possible
This part will gradually tell you how to delete these files as soon as possible. This part is recommended for non-professionals. Further research will be discussed in part 4. Please note that the following steps will delete all your cache files, all cookie files, all E-MAIL information. If you are using MSIE's offline browsing function, these offline files will also be deleted.
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3.1 If you use Microsoft Internet Explorer
1) First, turn off your computer and then restart it.
2) Press the F8 key during the computer boot process until you see a selection menu
3) Select "Command line mode" (this will make you enter the real DOS mode)
4) After your computer starts up, you will see C:>_, then enter the following commands and press the "Enter" key at the end of each line.
CD\WINDOWS\TEMPOR~1
DELTREE/Y CONTENT.IE5
(If the above command is invalid, then enter the following command
CD\WINDOWS\APPLIC~1\TEMPOR~1
DELTREE/Y CONTENT.IE5
(If the above command is still invalid, then enter the following command
CD\WINDOWS\LOCALS~1\TEMPOR~1
DELTREE/Y CONTENT.IE5
(If you are sure that you are using MSIE and the above steps are all invalid, then please send an E-MAIL to me. Finding the location of this folder is my task, and I am very interested in where MSIE likes to hide its cache. I know that lower versions of MSIE usually put the cache in "C:\WINDOWS\CONTENT".)
5) This usually takes a relatively long time to complete the deletion. The longer the deletion time, the more personal information Microsoft records about you. After the above operation is completed, carry out the following operations:
CD\
DELTREE/Y TEMP
DELTREE/Y WIN386.SWP
CD\WINDOWS
DELTREE/Y COOKIES
DELTREE/Y TEMP
DELTREE/Y WIN386.SWP
DELTREE/Y HISTORY
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3.2 Clean your registry
Restart your computer and wait for WINDOWS to load
1) Enter DOS ("Start" > "All Programs" > "Command Prompt (MS-DOS Prompt)") and type the following command at the command line:
regedit
2) At this time, the registry editor will be displayed. Select "Edit" > "Find".
3) Enter "TypedURLs" and then click "Find Next". You will be taken to the place where all the connections you manually entered are.
4) Delete all the connections you found. Do not delete folders (such as "01", "02", "03", etc.). Double-click on the found key value to confirm that they are indeed connections. The key values I found are as follows:
HKEY_USERS/Default/Software/Microsoft/Internet Explorer/TypedURLs/
HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Internet Explorer/TypedURLs/
5) In the registry editor, you find this key value:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion
/Explorer/RemoteComputer/NameSpace/{d6277990-4c6a-11cf-8d87-00aa0060f5b5}
6) Delete the key value {d6277990-4c6a-11cf-8d87-00aa0060f5b5}. This will make your "Find: Files or Folders" program run faster.
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3.3 If you install OUTLOOK or OUTLOOK EXPRESS
1) Install a third-party E-MAIL management program such as: Eudora or Pegasus Mail. (Translator's note: Chinese people recommend using FOXMAIL) and make sure the installation is completed correctly.
2) Back up all the E-MAIL you want to save (print them out or send them to other email boxes)
3) Uninstall OUTLOOK
Warning: Following the above steps will not lose any of your E-MAIL information. After rechecking, return to the command line (DOS prompt) and continue to enter the following commands:
dir *.mbx /s/p
dir *.mbx /s/p/ah
You will see the following files:
INBOX.MBX
OUTBOX.MBX
SENTIT~1.MBX
DELETE~1.MBX
DRAFTS.MBX
If these files are displayed, these files must exist in any of the following directories:
C:\WINDOWS\APPLICATION DATA\MICROSOFT\OUTLOOK EXPRESS\MAIL
C:\PROGRAM FILES\INTERNET MAIL or NEWS\%USER%\MAIL
Next, enter one of the following commands (depending on the location of your.mbx file). Remember, this will delete all your E-MAIL information, so if you want to keep your E-MAIL information, please print it out in advance or forward it to other email boxes. At this time, you can use the Eudora or Pegasus Mail you have installed (Translator's note: FOXMAIL).
CD\WINDOWS\APPLIC~1\MICROS~1\OUTLOO~1
DELTREE/Y MAIL
or
CD\PROGRA~1\INTERN~1\%USER%
(replace %USER% with your user name)
DELTREE/Y MAIL
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3.4 Completely delete your files
Maybe you already know that deleting a file only deletes the index pointing to this file. In fact, the file you deleted still exists on your hard drive, and anyone can easily recover it.
BCWipe is a very good program for completely deleting files.
If you use DOS, FileDust is a very good program that got 5 stars on ZDNET and can do this task.
If you use PGP, then in PGPtools you will find an option "Freespace Wipe".
Norton Utilities also includes a very good program for completely deleting files.
You can also use Evidence Eliminator with a 30-day trial period. This may be the best program to ensure your privacy.
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3.5 Continue to use Microsoft Internet Explorer
If you insist on continuing to use Microsoft Internet Explorer, then I recommend that you have at least one of the following programs:
PurgeIE
Anonymizer Window Washer
Cache and Cookie Washer for IE
I have also tried and tested some other similar programs. If you know the number of them that cannot pass the test, you may be very surprised. For example, HistoryKiller 2001 claims that it can clear all files, but I advise you not to believe it.
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4. Step by step to approach these hidden files
The following part is for readers who are interested in the details of their computers. This part is for professionals.
1) First, enter DOS mode and type the following command at the command line (all in lowercase):
c:\windows\explorer /e,c:\windows\tempor~1\content.ie5
Do you see the files named with numbers and letters in the "content.ie5" directory? This is Microsoft trying to make his plan more and more difficult to understand by using complex file names. (Earlier versions of IE were only named "cache#.") These folders named with numbers and letters are the folders generated by Microsoft to save your cookies and cache. Write down their names (they should be like this: 6YQ2GSWF, QRMTKLWF, U7YHQKI4, 7YMZ516U, WQK6Z9UV, etc.) If you double-click on any of these folders, nothing will be displayed. This does not mean that there are no files in it, but Windows Explorer is lying to you. If you really want to know the content in these folders named with numbers and letters, it can only be achieved under DOS. (In fact, Skywalker once taught me a way to view its content using a working environment, but it is a bit difficult to explain in words. I promise to make this method clear in the next version.)
2) Restart to enter MS-DOS mode (the reason you need to restart is because Windows "locks" some of these files)
3) Type the following command at the command line:
CD\WINDOWS\TEMPOR~1\CONTENT.IE5
CD %alphanumeric%
(replace %alphanumeric% with the first name you wrote down just now)
DIR/P
Note: You are now entering a directory that DOS claims does not exist, and the cache and cookies that Windows Explorer claims do not exist are stored in this directory. (Translator's note: Lying Microsoft!)
These directories are the direct cause of the mystery of the reduced hard disk space you discovered. Maybe you will find some interesting things in it:
All the pictures of the pornographic websites you visited (Translator's note: There are none in my computer)
And other Internet temporary files that are completely a waste of your hard disk space
If you use HOTMAIL (or other some web-based email service systems), you can see that some of your old information is stored there. If you want to browse them again, just copy them to other directories and open them with your browser. It is very easy to regain your personal information from these cookies. For example, if you have shopped on Amazon.com, then your name and E-MAIL are here. If you are a user of Hollywood.com, then your city, country and postal code are here. MP3.com also retains similar information. Then, before proceeding to the next step, enjoy the "fun" brought to you by the folders named with numbers and letters slowly.
5) Type the following command:
CD\WINDOWS\TEMPOR~1\CONTENT.IE5
EDIT /75 INDEX.DAT (or "EDIT /16 index.dat")
You will see a blue editing interface full of binary strings.
6) Hold down "Page Down" until you start to see a list of connections. These are all the sites you have visited and the summaries of these sites. In addition to these connections, you will also find that it even records every keyword you entered in the search engine in plain text.
7) After you have finished searching, you can choose "File" > "Exit" to exit.
You can delete these files by typing the following command:
8) DELTREE/Y C:\WINDOWS\TEMPOR~1
(If your TIF folder is not C:\WINDOWS\TEMPOR~1, replace it with the correct one)
This operation may also take a relatively long time. When you are finished, let's take a look at your history record.
9) Type the following command:
CD\WINDOWS\HISTORY\HISTORY.IE5
EDIT /75 INDEX.DAT (or "EDIT /16 index.dat")
You will see a blue editing interface full of binary strings again.
10) Hold down "Page Down" until you start to see a list of connections. These are another record of the sites you have visited. There may be some other things here. If you see anything interesting, you can send an E-MAIL to me. Now I will share some fragments from my index.dat with you.
Client UrlCache
MMF Ver 5.2@
@ 3 yia
?
àOD ê:+0
0?
‘
}*á? 5.t
xt
59
MS6C:%
\DAVE'S
HD.TXT
MSIE5.
C:
Do you notice "C:" and "\DAVE'S HD\MSIE5.TXT"?
"DAVE" is my user name in my computer, "DAVE'S HD" is the root folder in my local area network. And "MSIE5.TXT" is the file name of a text file stored in my computer, which contains the results of my research, mainly some connections and comments.
Do you find anything wrong when you see this scene? Oh my god! It actually meddles with the files in my hard disk! Moreover, it also stores this file in a place that cannot be found by DOS or Windows Explorer. This file is related to my research. Is this just a coincidence?!
Obviously, my first assumption is that Microsoft scans my hard disk to record any information containing "sensitive" characters. In the above example, it may be that my "MSIE5.TXT" contains something that Microsoft doesn't want to see. If you want to know what else I found, please refer to part 8 "The real face of FIND FAST".
1) If you are still reading my article patiently, then type the following command:
CD\WINDOWS\HISTORY
2) Find these mmXXX.dat, then type the following command:
CD\WINDOWS\HISTORY\HISTORY.IE5
CD MSHIST~1
EDIT /75 INDEX.DAT (or "EDIT /16 index.dat")
You will find more of your Internet history records here. Note that there may be other mshist~x folders here.
3) You can repeat the above steps for each mshistxx file you find.
4) At this point, you may be so angry that you want to delete something. Then type the following command:
CD WINDOWS
DELTREE/Y HISTORY
That's all I know. If you use Outlook, you can check your *.mbx files again (dir *.mbx/s). In the next chapter, we will continue our discussion more deeply.
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5. Take a look at the real face of OUTLOOK EXPRESS
Think carefully about what you would say if all your E-MAIL information was secretly recorded. The E-MAIL record retains all the records of what you said, even if you have used OUTLOOK to delete it. You were deceived by OUTLOOK. You thought that if you deleted it twice, then that information should completely disappear from this world. First, OUTLOOK first moves the files you deleted to a "Deleted Items" folder. When you empty this folder, OUTLOOK just "pretends" that the files you want to delete are really physically deleted from your computer. In fact, the files you deleted are just secretly stored in a "deeply hidden" folder.
What's more, OUTLOOK EXPRESS also secretly stores the information of each attachment of your E-MAIL in an encrypted database. Oh my god! Can you believe this is true?!
Let's do an experiment. I will send a ZIP file as an attachment to my own email box.
PK '…?*}?? P AAA-à?? ??)-83PK +…?*8?M3 P
BBB-à?? ×?%-83PK .…?*??.? P CCC-à?? ??!-83PK
2…?*2 ?` P DDD-à?? ù? -83PK '…?*}?? P
AAAPK +…?*8?M3 P 1BBBPK
.…?*??.? P bCCCPK 2…?*2 ?` P
“DDDPK ??
In this way, the information of this file is recorded in both my inbox.mbx and outbox.mbx files.
UEsDBBQAAAAIACeFjip9jZkaEAAAAFAAAAADAAAAQUFBrcCBA
AAAAIAg1vgpljizAFBLAwQUAAAA
CAArhY4qOPhNMxAAAABQAAAAAwAAAEJCQq3AgQAAAACAINf4JZY
4swBQSwMEFAAAAAgALoWOKsTW
Lp0QAAAAUAAAAAMAAABDQ0OtwIEAAAAAgCDY+CGWOLMAUEsDBB
QAAAAIADKFjiqyEuVgEAAAAFAA
AAADAAAARERErcCBAAAAAIAg2fgdljizAFBLAQIUABQAAAAIACeF
jip9jZkaEAAAAFAAAAADAAAA
AAAAAAEAIAAAAAAAAABBQUFQSwECFAAUAAAACAArhY4qOPhNMxAA
AABQAAAAAwAAAAAAAAABACAA
AAAxAAAAQkJCUEsBAhQAFAAAAAgALoWOKsTWLp0QAAAAUAAAAAMAA
AAAAAAAAQAgAAAAYgAAAEND
Q1BLAQIUABQAAAAIADKFjiqyEuVgEAAAAFAAAAADAAAAAAAAAAEAI
AAAAJMAAABERERQSwUGAAAA
AAQABADEAAAAxAAAAAAA
I hope someone can crack the decryption algorithm as soon as possible.
At this point, you may be eager to know where these records are stored. Don't worry, they are stored here:
c:\program files\internet mail and news\%user%\mail\*.mbx
(replace %user% with your user name)
If you are lucky, you will find them in the following directory:
c:\windows\application data\microsoft\outlook\mail\*.mbx
When I first installed OUTLOOK, I only found the above files in the "internet mail and news." directory. And when I uninstalled OUTLOOK and reinstalled it, these files were stored in the "application data" folder again.
To delete these secretly retained information, you just need to type the following command
Deltree c:\windows\intern~1\%user%\mail
or
Deltree c:\windows\applic~1\micros~1\outloo~1\mail
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6. How Microsoft does all this
Have you ever considered how Microsoft makes these files invisible in both DOS and Windows Explorer?
I was once very confused because I still couldn't see these files even when I used a DOS6.2 boot disk to start the computer. This problem puzzled me for a long time, but in the end I still found the reason in these folders.
"desktop.ini" is a standard text file in a folder, used to customize certain aspects of the behavior of a class of folders. In this regard, Microsoft uses the "desktop.ini" file to make these files invisible. Make these files invisible to Windows Explorer, DOS, and the "Find" function. (This is the reason why you can't perform the "Find" function in these folders.)
Here are some examples:
In the c:\windows\temporary internet files\desktop.ini and c:\windows\temporary internet files\content.ie5\desktop.ini files, you can find the following some code:
[.ShellClassInfo]
UICLSID={7BD29E00-76C1-11CF-9DD0-00A0C9034933}
and
[.ShellClassInfo]
UICLSID={7BD29E00-76C1-11CF-9DD0-00A0C9034933}
CLSID={FF393560-C2A7-11CF-BFF4-444553540000}
The UICLSID key value makes this folder invisible in both DOS and Explorer, and the CLSID disables the search function in this folder. In addition, they also make these folders behave as "history" status. (If you study these things carefully, you will understand what I mean.)
After deleting the "desktop.ini" file, DOS and Windows Explorer restored the function of correctly displaying this folder. The problem is that when your computer restarts next time, windows will regenerate this "desktop.ini" file. The solution is to edit the "desktop.ini" file and delete all content except [.ShellClassInfo]. This can deceive windows into thinking that it has restored this file, and it will not generate "desktop.ini" file again.
By the way, if you want to delete this key value in your registry, these folders will also not be displayed. However, I still firmly believe that there will always be someone who can find a thorough solution to the "deeply hidden" files that Microsoft has in your computer.
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7. +s means hidden instead of system
Now there are 3 simple yes or no questions about DOS. Just be patient and do it like you are getting your A+ certificate:
1) Yes or no: Executing dir/s in the root directory will display all normal attribute files and folders in your hard disk. The correct answer is: "Yes! "
2) Yes or no: Executing dir/s/ah in the root directory will display all hidden attribute files and folders in your hard disk. The correct answer is also: "Yes! "
3) Yes or no: Executing dir/s/as in the root directory will display all system attribute files and folders in your hard disk. The correct answer is also: "That's just what you think! "
When DOS wants to obtain the file list of any subdirectory containing a system attribute, it will encounter an invisible blocking wall. This not only means that Microsoft has taken special precautions to prevent people from finding these system files, but also makes the first "/s" in the parameter completely invalid. "Really ruthless! "
If you still don't understand, you might as well do a small experiment to see what I mean.
Because the content.ie5 and history.ie5 folders both contain system attributes, the correct search command should be as follows:
CD\
DIR *.IE5 /s/as
The screen will display the error message "No files found".
This proves that all files or folders containing system attributes will not be displayed, but please believe me, they do exist!
Now, the most interesting thing is that you can bypass this invisible blocking wall. The method is that once you enter a system directory, then this blocking wall will be invalid when listing directories. For example:
CD\WINDOWS\TEMPOR~1
DIR *.IE5 /as
1 folder(s) found.
Now, you can see them (but the condition is that you know their exact location). In other words, if you don't know the existence of these folders in advance, then you won't be able to find them!
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8. The real face of FIND FAST
Have you ever considered why the "FIND FAST" program appears in your control panel? I once spent an hour reading the help file on microsoft.com, but I still don't know what this program is used for. The following is the information about "FIND FAST" I found on microsoft.com.
"The FIND FAST index is a tool used to speed up the speed of performing "Open" or "Open OFFICE document" in Microsoft OFFICE programs including Microsoft OUTLOOK."
What does this mean? Well, if you read this fragment carefully again, you will see that Microsoft did not mention any words that will speed up the "Find" speed. In fact, it has nothing to do with the "Find: Files or Programs" function. I think what Microsoft really wants to express is that when you choose in Microsoft WORD
If what they said is really what I expressed above, Microsoft has told another lie! I hope you don't think I am taking Microsoft out of context. I just try to let you understand that all Microsoft does is to make this "FIND FAST" seem to exist for the purpose of speeding up the search.
For example, if you choose "Edit" in Microsoft WORD, you will find that there is a "FAST FIND" icon (telescope icon) in it. This is a program that is obviously related to "FIND FAST". But if you read that fragment again, you will find that it doesn't mention finding words in a document at all, but it means finding the document itself. Here are some more fragments from Microsoft:
"The FIND FAST index will default to record all WORD documents on the hard disk. When one of the documents is moved, the FIND FAST index will automatically update its own index."
"The index is used to find files faster in OFFICE programs."
"The FIND FAST index will be automatically installed on your computer when you install Microsoft OFFICE97. The FIND FAST index will speed up the speed of finding files when you select the Open file dialog box in Microsoft OFFICE programs"
After reading the above fragments, do you think you know the truth of the matter?!
If I tell you that FIND FAST is actually scanning and indexing all the files on your hard disk, will you be surprised?! Do you still remember that in OFFICE95, the FIND FAST index had a filter list including ".exe,.swp,.dll and some other extensions"? Has this function been canceled?! If you are a programmer, then when you make a filter list for FIND FAST, will you choose all files or only those with OFFICE extensions?!
Here are some very interesting truths:
FIND FAST automatically runs every time it starts (because it is added to your startup group).
If there is an error during the disk scanning process (due to "disk write" problems), then it is because FIND FAST is quietly indexing your hard disk in the background.
Here is a good example to illustrate that Microsoft has gone to great lengths to prevent people from discovering that FIND FAST is quietly indexing your hard disk (Microsoft is always very good at finding excuses to cover up). I quote as follows:
"When you want to specify the types of documents to be indexed through the Generate Index dialog box, then the following table lists all types of documents."
Doc Type File Name Extension
Microsoft Office files All the Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Web documents PowerPoint, Microsoft Project, and Microsoft Word document types listed in this table. Microsoft Binder (.odb, .obt) and Microsoft Access (.mdb) files. Note that in .mdb files, only document properties are indexed.
Microsoft Excel workbooks .xl* files
Microsoft PowerPoint files .ppt (presentation), .pot (template), .pps (auto-running presentation) files
Microsoft Project files .mpp, .mpw, .mpt, .mpx, .mpd files
Microsoft Word documents .doc (document), .dot (template), .ht* (Hypertext Markup Language document), .txt (text file), .rtf (Rich Text Format) files
All files *.* files
Do you notice the last part? Suppose you are a very rich person and you are going to buy every car in the store. Then you will say:
a) "I want to buy all red, all blue, all silver, all white, all champagne, and all cars." or
"I want to buy all cars."
As you can see, Microsoft doesn't want people to realize that FIND FAST is indexing your entire hard disk. They just take you to say "I want to buy all red, all blue, all silver..."
Personally, I found that this "FIND FAST index" slipped back into my "startup group" after I deleted it from my "startup group". It can't be that I did it on purpose, unless I first create a shortcut for FIND FAST and then manually move this shortcut to my "startup group", because there is no option in the FIND FAST program to add it to the "startup group".
Then how can I make up for this back door?! Don't I think about it? But even if I do, it can't change the irreparable contradiction it brings. For example:
1) Enter DOS mode
2) CD\
3) DIR FF*.* /AH (this will display all files related to FIND FAST)
4) edit /75 %ff% (replace %ff% with all the file names displayed above)
Do you notice that there are an incredible number of files pointing to the "deeply hidden" folder "Temporary Internet Files"? Then what exactly does FIND FAST do to these "deeply hidden" folders?!
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8.1 Delete FIND FAST
1) Restart your computer and enter MS-DOS mode
2) Delete the FindFast.CPL file from c:\windows\system
3) Delete the shortcut in c:\windows\start menu\programs\startup
4) Delete the FindFast.EXE file from c:\progra~1\micros~1\office
There are also some related files that can be safely deleted:
5) FFNT.exe, FFSetup.dll, FFService.dll, FFast_bb.dll, and c:>ff*.* files
You will find that after you delete these files, you have not lost any functions. In fact, you have re-gained your proper functions.
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9. See how much effort Microsoft has made to prevent people from discovering these hidden files
If the above-mentioned "desktop.ini" file is not sufficient to explain (oh my god, I don't know that the desktop.ini file can also make the folder invisible!), if you think that the "/s" in DOS for the system folder is invalid only a "bug", if you think that Microsoft shielding the "Find" function in these "deeply hidden" folders is just to save your time (hahaha), then go to the BBS of Hackers.com and search for this keyword again, and you won't be disappointed!!
There are many file directories on your computer that Microsoft tries to hide. In these directories, you will (mainly) find two things: Microsoft Internet Explorer records all the sites you have visited - even if you have cleared your cache,
Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Outlook Express record all your E-MAIL information - even if you have deleted them from the trash (including attachments in incoming and outgoing emails). Please believe me, what I said is less than 50% of the actual situation.
The reason I say these files are well hidden is because they really are very well hidden. So that if you don't have any knowledge of DOS, you won't be able to find these things. The reason I say this is because some of these files can only be displayed in DOS or only in Windows Explorer. Some files cannot be displayed in both DOS and Windows, but can be displayed through a specific working environment. Basically, if you don't know about these things in advance, the chance of encountering them in daily use is very small.
To show you these hidden files, I will give a simple example. There are three hidden folders including: your name, address, phone number, the websites you have visited, every email you sent or received, every attachment you sent or received, every keyword you searched through the search engine, every file name you downloaded, the document names containing "sensitive" information, all copies of your Cookies, fully readable E-MAIL from your HOTMAIL account, your PGP key, and more...
Interestingly, none of the above is mentioned on Microsoft's official website.
Foreword
I know that some people have already realized the aspects I mentioned. But I am sure that most people don't know all this. The purpose of this guide is to tell everyone what Microsoft's products are really doing and how to regain our own privacy from Microsoft.
Thank you for reading this article.
Index
1. Definitions and abbreviations
2. Why you should delete these files
3. How to delete these files as soon as possible (recommended for non-professionals)
3.1 If you use Microsoft Internet Explorer
3.2 Clean your registry
3.3 If you use Microsoft Outlook Express
3.4 Completely delete files
3.5 Continue to use Microsoft Internet Explorer (strongly not recommended)
4. Step by step to approach these hidden files (recommended for professionals)
5. Take a look at the real face of OUTLOOK
6. How Microsoft does all this
7. +s means hidden instead of system
8. The real face of FIND FAST
8.1 Delete FIND FAST
9. See how much effort Microsoft has made to prevent people from discovering these hidden files
10. Final notes and contact information
1. Definitions and abbreviations
The best definition I put forward is the following:
I) The so-called "deeply hidden" file/folder is such a file/folder that it cannot be displayed by Windows Explorer even when you choose the "Show all files" option, cannot be displayed when listing files in MS-DOS, and cannot be found by "Find".
a) Explorer must be able to display them through at least one working environment (deeply hidden file/folder)
Explorer must be able to display them through at least one working environment (deeply hidden file/folder)
c) "Find" must be able to find them through at least one working environment (deeply hidden file/folder)
d) They are deliberately hidden.
II) Distinguish "deeply hidden" file/folders from simply hidden attribute files/folders (such as MSDOS.SYS or SYSBCKUP folders).
III) Distinguish "deeply hidden" file/folders from some other deliberately hidden files (such as a file named????x￥.).
DOS = Disk Operating System
MSIE = Microsoft Internet Explorer
TIF = Temporary Internet Files (folder) (temporary Internet files/folder)
HD = hard disk
OS = operating system
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2. Why should I delete these files?
1) Because this obviously involves your privacy and security issues
2) Because Microsoft deliberately wants to keep these records (as for the reason, I can only guess)
3) Because these files occupy a large amount of disk space. I once found that 200 megabytes of space on a computer was occupied by such files. Now you can understand what makes your computer slower and slower. After following the following measures, you may find that the performance of your computer has been greatly improved.
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3. How to delete these files as soon as possible
This part will gradually tell you how to delete these files as soon as possible. This part is recommended for non-professionals. Further research will be discussed in part 4. Please note that the following steps will delete all your cache files, all cookie files, all E-MAIL information. If you are using MSIE's offline browsing function, these offline files will also be deleted.
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3.1 If you use Microsoft Internet Explorer
1) First, turn off your computer and then restart it.
2) Press the F8 key during the computer boot process until you see a selection menu
3) Select "Command line mode" (this will make you enter the real DOS mode)
4) After your computer starts up, you will see C:>_, then enter the following commands and press the "Enter" key at the end of each line.
CD\WINDOWS\TEMPOR~1
DELTREE/Y CONTENT.IE5
(If the above command is invalid, then enter the following command
CD\WINDOWS\APPLIC~1\TEMPOR~1
DELTREE/Y CONTENT.IE5
(If the above command is still invalid, then enter the following command
CD\WINDOWS\LOCALS~1\TEMPOR~1
DELTREE/Y CONTENT.IE5
(If you are sure that you are using MSIE and the above steps are all invalid, then please send an E-MAIL to me. Finding the location of this folder is my task, and I am very interested in where MSIE likes to hide its cache. I know that lower versions of MSIE usually put the cache in "C:\WINDOWS\CONTENT".)
5) This usually takes a relatively long time to complete the deletion. The longer the deletion time, the more personal information Microsoft records about you. After the above operation is completed, carry out the following operations:
CD\
DELTREE/Y TEMP
DELTREE/Y WIN386.SWP
CD\WINDOWS
DELTREE/Y COOKIES
DELTREE/Y TEMP
DELTREE/Y WIN386.SWP
DELTREE/Y HISTORY
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3.2 Clean your registry
Restart your computer and wait for WINDOWS to load
1) Enter DOS ("Start" > "All Programs" > "Command Prompt (MS-DOS Prompt)") and type the following command at the command line:
regedit
2) At this time, the registry editor will be displayed. Select "Edit" > "Find".
3) Enter "TypedURLs" and then click "Find Next". You will be taken to the place where all the connections you manually entered are.
4) Delete all the connections you found. Do not delete folders (such as "01", "02", "03", etc.). Double-click on the found key value to confirm that they are indeed connections. The key values I found are as follows:
HKEY_USERS/Default/Software/Microsoft/Internet Explorer/TypedURLs/
HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Internet Explorer/TypedURLs/
5) In the registry editor, you find this key value:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion
/Explorer/RemoteComputer/NameSpace/{d6277990-4c6a-11cf-8d87-00aa0060f5b5}
6) Delete the key value {d6277990-4c6a-11cf-8d87-00aa0060f5b5}. This will make your "Find: Files or Folders" program run faster.
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3.3 If you install OUTLOOK or OUTLOOK EXPRESS
1) Install a third-party E-MAIL management program such as: Eudora or Pegasus Mail. (Translator's note: Chinese people recommend using FOXMAIL) and make sure the installation is completed correctly.
2) Back up all the E-MAIL you want to save (print them out or send them to other email boxes)
3) Uninstall OUTLOOK
Warning: Following the above steps will not lose any of your E-MAIL information. After rechecking, return to the command line (DOS prompt) and continue to enter the following commands:
dir *.mbx /s/p
dir *.mbx /s/p/ah
You will see the following files:
INBOX.MBX
OUTBOX.MBX
SENTIT~1.MBX
DELETE~1.MBX
DRAFTS.MBX
If these files are displayed, these files must exist in any of the following directories:
C:\WINDOWS\APPLICATION DATA\MICROSOFT\OUTLOOK EXPRESS\MAIL
C:\PROGRAM FILES\INTERNET MAIL or NEWS\%USER%\MAIL
Next, enter one of the following commands (depending on the location of your.mbx file). Remember, this will delete all your E-MAIL information, so if you want to keep your E-MAIL information, please print it out in advance or forward it to other email boxes. At this time, you can use the Eudora or Pegasus Mail you have installed (Translator's note: FOXMAIL).
CD\WINDOWS\APPLIC~1\MICROS~1\OUTLOO~1
DELTREE/Y MAIL
or
CD\PROGRA~1\INTERN~1\%USER%
(replace %USER% with your user name)
DELTREE/Y MAIL
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3.4 Completely delete your files
Maybe you already know that deleting a file only deletes the index pointing to this file. In fact, the file you deleted still exists on your hard drive, and anyone can easily recover it.
BCWipe is a very good program for completely deleting files.
If you use DOS, FileDust is a very good program that got 5 stars on ZDNET and can do this task.
If you use PGP, then in PGPtools you will find an option "Freespace Wipe".
Norton Utilities also includes a very good program for completely deleting files.
You can also use Evidence Eliminator with a 30-day trial period. This may be the best program to ensure your privacy.
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3.5 Continue to use Microsoft Internet Explorer
If you insist on continuing to use Microsoft Internet Explorer, then I recommend that you have at least one of the following programs:
PurgeIE
Anonymizer Window Washer
Cache and Cookie Washer for IE
I have also tried and tested some other similar programs. If you know the number of them that cannot pass the test, you may be very surprised. For example, HistoryKiller 2001 claims that it can clear all files, but I advise you not to believe it.
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4. Step by step to approach these hidden files
The following part is for readers who are interested in the details of their computers. This part is for professionals.
1) First, enter DOS mode and type the following command at the command line (all in lowercase):
c:\windows\explorer /e,c:\windows\tempor~1\content.ie5
Do you see the files named with numbers and letters in the "content.ie5" directory? This is Microsoft trying to make his plan more and more difficult to understand by using complex file names. (Earlier versions of IE were only named "cache#.") These folders named with numbers and letters are the folders generated by Microsoft to save your cookies and cache. Write down their names (they should be like this: 6YQ2GSWF, QRMTKLWF, U7YHQKI4, 7YMZ516U, WQK6Z9UV, etc.) If you double-click on any of these folders, nothing will be displayed. This does not mean that there are no files in it, but Windows Explorer is lying to you. If you really want to know the content in these folders named with numbers and letters, it can only be achieved under DOS. (In fact, Skywalker once taught me a way to view its content using a working environment, but it is a bit difficult to explain in words. I promise to make this method clear in the next version.)
2) Restart to enter MS-DOS mode (the reason you need to restart is because Windows "locks" some of these files)
3) Type the following command at the command line:
CD\WINDOWS\TEMPOR~1\CONTENT.IE5
CD %alphanumeric%
(replace %alphanumeric% with the first name you wrote down just now)
DIR/P
Note: You are now entering a directory that DOS claims does not exist, and the cache and cookies that Windows Explorer claims do not exist are stored in this directory. (Translator's note: Lying Microsoft!)
These directories are the direct cause of the mystery of the reduced hard disk space you discovered. Maybe you will find some interesting things in it:
All the pictures of the pornographic websites you visited (Translator's note: There are none in my computer)
And other Internet temporary files that are completely a waste of your hard disk space
If you use HOTMAIL (or other some web-based email service systems), you can see that some of your old information is stored there. If you want to browse them again, just copy them to other directories and open them with your browser. It is very easy to regain your personal information from these cookies. For example, if you have shopped on Amazon.com, then your name and E-MAIL are here. If you are a user of Hollywood.com, then your city, country and postal code are here. MP3.com also retains similar information. Then, before proceeding to the next step, enjoy the "fun" brought to you by the folders named with numbers and letters slowly.
5) Type the following command:
CD\WINDOWS\TEMPOR~1\CONTENT.IE5
EDIT /75 INDEX.DAT (or "EDIT /16 index.dat")
You will see a blue editing interface full of binary strings.
6) Hold down "Page Down" until you start to see a list of connections. These are all the sites you have visited and the summaries of these sites. In addition to these connections, you will also find that it even records every keyword you entered in the search engine in plain text.
7) After you have finished searching, you can choose "File" > "Exit" to exit.
You can delete these files by typing the following command:
8) DELTREE/Y C:\WINDOWS\TEMPOR~1
(If your TIF folder is not C:\WINDOWS\TEMPOR~1, replace it with the correct one)
This operation may also take a relatively long time. When you are finished, let's take a look at your history record.
9) Type the following command:
CD\WINDOWS\HISTORY\HISTORY.IE5
EDIT /75 INDEX.DAT (or "EDIT /16 index.dat")
You will see a blue editing interface full of binary strings again.
10) Hold down "Page Down" until you start to see a list of connections. These are another record of the sites you have visited. There may be some other things here. If you see anything interesting, you can send an E-MAIL to me. Now I will share some fragments from my index.dat with you.
Client UrlCache
MMF Ver 5.2@
@ 3 yia
?
àOD ê:+0
0?
‘
}*á? 5.t
xt
59
MS6C:%
\DAVE'S
HD.TXT
MSIE5.
C:
Do you notice "C:" and "\DAVE'S HD\MSIE5.TXT"?
"DAVE" is my user name in my computer, "DAVE'S HD" is the root folder in my local area network. And "MSIE5.TXT" is the file name of a text file stored in my computer, which contains the results of my research, mainly some connections and comments.
Do you find anything wrong when you see this scene? Oh my god! It actually meddles with the files in my hard disk! Moreover, it also stores this file in a place that cannot be found by DOS or Windows Explorer. This file is related to my research. Is this just a coincidence?!
Obviously, my first assumption is that Microsoft scans my hard disk to record any information containing "sensitive" characters. In the above example, it may be that my "MSIE5.TXT" contains something that Microsoft doesn't want to see. If you want to know what else I found, please refer to part 8 "The real face of FIND FAST".
1) If you are still reading my article patiently, then type the following command:
CD\WINDOWS\HISTORY
2) Find these mmXXX.dat, then type the following command:
CD\WINDOWS\HISTORY\HISTORY.IE5
CD MSHIST~1
EDIT /75 INDEX.DAT (or "EDIT /16 index.dat")
You will find more of your Internet history records here. Note that there may be other mshist~x folders here.
3) You can repeat the above steps for each mshistxx file you find.
4) At this point, you may be so angry that you want to delete something. Then type the following command:
CD WINDOWS
DELTREE/Y HISTORY
That's all I know. If you use Outlook, you can check your *.mbx files again (dir *.mbx/s). In the next chapter, we will continue our discussion more deeply.
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5. Take a look at the real face of OUTLOOK EXPRESS
Think carefully about what you would say if all your E-MAIL information was secretly recorded. The E-MAIL record retains all the records of what you said, even if you have used OUTLOOK to delete it. You were deceived by OUTLOOK. You thought that if you deleted it twice, then that information should completely disappear from this world. First, OUTLOOK first moves the files you deleted to a "Deleted Items" folder. When you empty this folder, OUTLOOK just "pretends" that the files you want to delete are really physically deleted from your computer. In fact, the files you deleted are just secretly stored in a "deeply hidden" folder.
What's more, OUTLOOK EXPRESS also secretly stores the information of each attachment of your E-MAIL in an encrypted database. Oh my god! Can you believe this is true?!
Let's do an experiment. I will send a ZIP file as an attachment to my own email box.
PK '…?*}?? P AAA-à?? ??)-83PK +…?*8?M3 P
BBB-à?? ×?%-83PK .…?*??.? P CCC-à?? ??!-83PK
2…?*2 ?` P DDD-à?? ù? -83PK '…?*}?? P
AAAPK +…?*8?M3 P 1BBBPK
.…?*??.? P bCCCPK 2…?*2 ?` P
“DDDPK ??
In this way, the information of this file is recorded in both my inbox.mbx and outbox.mbx files.
UEsDBBQAAAAIACeFjip9jZkaEAAAAFAAAAADAAAAQUFBrcCBA
AAAAIAg1vgpljizAFBLAwQUAAAA
CAArhY4qOPhNMxAAAABQAAAAAwAAAEJCQq3AgQAAAACAINf4JZY
4swBQSwMEFAAAAAgALoWOKsTW
Lp0QAAAAUAAAAAMAAABDQ0OtwIEAAAAAgCDY+CGWOLMAUEsDBB
QAAAAIADKFjiqyEuVgEAAAAFAA
AAADAAAARERErcCBAAAAAIAg2fgdljizAFBLAQIUABQAAAAIACeF
jip9jZkaEAAAAFAAAAADAAAA
AAAAAAEAIAAAAAAAAABBQUFQSwECFAAUAAAACAArhY4qOPhNMxAA
AABQAAAAAwAAAAAAAAABACAA
AAAxAAAAQkJCUEsBAhQAFAAAAAgALoWOKsTWLp0QAAAAUAAAAAMAA
AAAAAAAAQAgAAAAYgAAAEND
Q1BLAQIUABQAAAAIADKFjiqyEuVgEAAAAFAAAAADAAAAAAAAAAEAI
AAAAJMAAABERERQSwUGAAAA
AAQABADEAAAAxAAAAAAA
I hope someone can crack the decryption algorithm as soon as possible.
At this point, you may be eager to know where these records are stored. Don't worry, they are stored here:
c:\program files\internet mail and news\%user%\mail\*.mbx
(replace %user% with your user name)
If you are lucky, you will find them in the following directory:
c:\windows\application data\microsoft\outlook\mail\*.mbx
When I first installed OUTLOOK, I only found the above files in the "internet mail and news." directory. And when I uninstalled OUTLOOK and reinstalled it, these files were stored in the "application data" folder again.
To delete these secretly retained information, you just need to type the following command
Deltree c:\windows\intern~1\%user%\mail
or
Deltree c:\windows\applic~1\micros~1\outloo~1\mail
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6. How Microsoft does all this
Have you ever considered how Microsoft makes these files invisible in both DOS and Windows Explorer?
I was once very confused because I still couldn't see these files even when I used a DOS6.2 boot disk to start the computer. This problem puzzled me for a long time, but in the end I still found the reason in these folders.
"desktop.ini" is a standard text file in a folder, used to customize certain aspects of the behavior of a class of folders. In this regard, Microsoft uses the "desktop.ini" file to make these files invisible. Make these files invisible to Windows Explorer, DOS, and the "Find" function. (This is the reason why you can't perform the "Find" function in these folders.)
Here are some examples:
In the c:\windows\temporary internet files\desktop.ini and c:\windows\temporary internet files\content.ie5\desktop.ini files, you can find the following some code:
[.ShellClassInfo]
UICLSID={7BD29E00-76C1-11CF-9DD0-00A0C9034933}
and
[.ShellClassInfo]
UICLSID={7BD29E00-76C1-11CF-9DD0-00A0C9034933}
CLSID={FF393560-C2A7-11CF-BFF4-444553540000}
The UICLSID key value makes this folder invisible in both DOS and Explorer, and the CLSID disables the search function in this folder. In addition, they also make these folders behave as "history" status. (If you study these things carefully, you will understand what I mean.)
After deleting the "desktop.ini" file, DOS and Windows Explorer restored the function of correctly displaying this folder. The problem is that when your computer restarts next time, windows will regenerate this "desktop.ini" file. The solution is to edit the "desktop.ini" file and delete all content except [.ShellClassInfo]. This can deceive windows into thinking that it has restored this file, and it will not generate "desktop.ini" file again.
By the way, if you want to delete this key value in your registry, these folders will also not be displayed. However, I still firmly believe that there will always be someone who can find a thorough solution to the "deeply hidden" files that Microsoft has in your computer.
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7. +s means hidden instead of system
Now there are 3 simple yes or no questions about DOS. Just be patient and do it like you are getting your A+ certificate:
1) Yes or no: Executing dir/s in the root directory will display all normal attribute files and folders in your hard disk. The correct answer is: "Yes! "
2) Yes or no: Executing dir/s/ah in the root directory will display all hidden attribute files and folders in your hard disk. The correct answer is also: "Yes! "
3) Yes or no: Executing dir/s/as in the root directory will display all system attribute files and folders in your hard disk. The correct answer is also: "That's just what you think! "
When DOS wants to obtain the file list of any subdirectory containing a system attribute, it will encounter an invisible blocking wall. This not only means that Microsoft has taken special precautions to prevent people from finding these system files, but also makes the first "/s" in the parameter completely invalid. "Really ruthless! "
If you still don't understand, you might as well do a small experiment to see what I mean.
Because the content.ie5 and history.ie5 folders both contain system attributes, the correct search command should be as follows:
CD\
DIR *.IE5 /s/as
The screen will display the error message "No files found".
This proves that all files or folders containing system attributes will not be displayed, but please believe me, they do exist!
Now, the most interesting thing is that you can bypass this invisible blocking wall. The method is that once you enter a system directory, then this blocking wall will be invalid when listing directories. For example:
CD\WINDOWS\TEMPOR~1
DIR *.IE5 /as
1 folder(s) found.
Now, you can see them (but the condition is that you know their exact location). In other words, if you don't know the existence of these folders in advance, then you won't be able to find them!
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8. The real face of FIND FAST
Have you ever considered why the "FIND FAST" program appears in your control panel? I once spent an hour reading the help file on microsoft.com, but I still don't know what this program is used for. The following is the information about "FIND FAST" I found on microsoft.com.
"The FIND FAST index is a tool used to speed up the speed of performing "Open" or "Open OFFICE document" in Microsoft OFFICE programs including Microsoft OUTLOOK."
What does this mean? Well, if you read this fragment carefully again, you will see that Microsoft did not mention any words that will speed up the "Find" speed. In fact, it has nothing to do with the "Find: Files or Programs" function. I think what Microsoft really wants to express is that when you choose in Microsoft WORD
If what they said is really what I expressed above, Microsoft has told another lie! I hope you don't think I am taking Microsoft out of context. I just try to let you understand that all Microsoft does is to make this "FIND FAST" seem to exist for the purpose of speeding up the search.
For example, if you choose "Edit" in Microsoft WORD, you will find that there is a "FAST FIND" icon (telescope icon) in it. This is a program that is obviously related to "FIND FAST". But if you read that fragment again, you will find that it doesn't mention finding words in a document at all, but it means finding the document itself. Here are some more fragments from Microsoft:
"The FIND FAST index will default to record all WORD documents on the hard disk. When one of the documents is moved, the FIND FAST index will automatically update its own index."
"The index is used to find files faster in OFFICE programs."
"The FIND FAST index will be automatically installed on your computer when you install Microsoft OFFICE97. The FIND FAST index will speed up the speed of finding files when you select the Open file dialog box in Microsoft OFFICE programs"
After reading the above fragments, do you think you know the truth of the matter?!
If I tell you that FIND FAST is actually scanning and indexing all the files on your hard disk, will you be surprised?! Do you still remember that in OFFICE95, the FIND FAST index had a filter list including ".exe,.swp,.dll and some other extensions"? Has this function been canceled?! If you are a programmer, then when you make a filter list for FIND FAST, will you choose all files or only those with OFFICE extensions?!
Here are some very interesting truths:
FIND FAST automatically runs every time it starts (because it is added to your startup group).
If there is an error during the disk scanning process (due to "disk write" problems), then it is because FIND FAST is quietly indexing your hard disk in the background.
Here is a good example to illustrate that Microsoft has gone to great lengths to prevent people from discovering that FIND FAST is quietly indexing your hard disk (Microsoft is always very good at finding excuses to cover up). I quote as follows:
"When you want to specify the types of documents to be indexed through the Generate Index dialog box, then the following table lists all types of documents."
Doc Type File Name Extension
Microsoft Office files All the Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Web documents PowerPoint, Microsoft Project, and Microsoft Word document types listed in this table. Microsoft Binder (.odb, .obt) and Microsoft Access (.mdb) files. Note that in .mdb files, only document properties are indexed.
Microsoft Excel workbooks .xl* files
Microsoft PowerPoint files .ppt (presentation), .pot (template), .pps (auto-running presentation) files
Microsoft Project files .mpp, .mpw, .mpt, .mpx, .mpd files
Microsoft Word documents .doc (document), .dot (template), .ht* (Hypertext Markup Language document), .txt (text file), .rtf (Rich Text Format) files
All files *.* files
Do you notice the last part? Suppose you are a very rich person and you are going to buy every car in the store. Then you will say:
a) "I want to buy all red, all blue, all silver, all white, all champagne, and all cars." or
"I want to buy all cars."
As you can see, Microsoft doesn't want people to realize that FIND FAST is indexing your entire hard disk. They just take you to say "I want to buy all red, all blue, all silver..."
Personally, I found that this "FIND FAST index" slipped back into my "startup group" after I deleted it from my "startup group". It can't be that I did it on purpose, unless I first create a shortcut for FIND FAST and then manually move this shortcut to my "startup group", because there is no option in the FIND FAST program to add it to the "startup group".
Then how can I make up for this back door?! Don't I think about it? But even if I do, it can't change the irreparable contradiction it brings. For example:
1) Enter DOS mode
2) CD\
3) DIR FF*.* /AH (this will display all files related to FIND FAST)
4) edit /75 %ff% (replace %ff% with all the file names displayed above)
Do you notice that there are an incredible number of files pointing to the "deeply hidden" folder "Temporary Internet Files"? Then what exactly does FIND FAST do to these "deeply hidden" folders?!
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8.1 Delete FIND FAST
1) Restart your computer and enter MS-DOS mode
2) Delete the FindFast.CPL file from c:\windows\system
3) Delete the shortcut in c:\windows\start menu\programs\startup
4) Delete the FindFast.EXE file from c:\progra~1\micros~1\office
There are also some related files that can be safely deleted:
5) FFNT.exe, FFSetup.dll, FFService.dll, FFast_bb.dll, and c:>ff*.* files
You will find that after you delete these files, you have not lost any functions. In fact, you have re-gained your proper functions.
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9. See how much effort Microsoft has made to prevent people from discovering these hidden files
If the above-mentioned "desktop.ini" file is not sufficient to explain (oh my god, I don't know that the desktop.ini file can also make the folder invisible!), if you think that the "/s" in DOS for the system folder is invalid only a "bug", if you think that Microsoft shielding the "Find" function in these "deeply hidden" folders is just to save your time (hahaha), then go to the BBS of Hackers.com and search for this keyword again, and you won't be disappointed!!
