Discussion on:

10 free tools for admins on a tight budget

One of my personal favorites is RemoteDesktopManager (http://remotedesktopmanager.com). I use it extensively for working with client machines on a regular basis, as well as controlling the VMs at our CoLo. It supports all of the popular connection methods, and has an extensive plug-in seleection. If you're willing to pay a modest fee, it can be used in enterprise mode and its resources can be shared throughout your network. It also supports access and security at the user level.

A great tool for those who do a lot of remoting!

I regularly use Microsoft Security Essentials, CCleaner, Defraggler, 7-Zip, and FileZilla; not because I'm on a budget, but because I really like the tools. They are my first choices for their respective primary tasks.

Very useful addition, thanks. Use or have used most of the others already.

Note: Produkey is a (very) limited evaluation version allowing only the first 4 characters of a key to be seen, so as a 'free' tool (or for that matter if I were evaluating it for purchase) is to my mind something of a 'chocolate fireguard'

Malwarebytes, it just seems to work better than anything else I've found. It's been so useful that we purchased the Corporate version for our SMB network. I use it and CCleaner on every machine I work on.

Spiceworks Network management and monitoring. Free application, really good corporate support for this product and the best help forums of any site I've ever used. Over a million members from around the world and the most helpful people around and many very knowledgeable ones willing to help.

I use more than half the tools Jack pointed out, but of course I miss a few, namely:

• PuTTYhttp://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/ SSH suite (I know you know it)
  
• mRemoteNG http://www.mremoteng.org/ (formerly mRemote) All your connections together in one place. A must!
  
• How could you manage the huge amount of user/password pairs? Keepass is my choice http://keepass.info/
  

TightBudget is my first name!

I love their software!
I use it for my little VMWare servers AND for fixing client machines that I cannot remotely reach in other ways!

mRemoteNG looks like good stuff. 'Remote Desktop Manager' is my current tool in this area, but mRemoteNG initially looks like it may be my next preference. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.

I learn a lot from all of you, is nice to give something back to the community.

I have to say, I made a comment about Hiren's a few months ago and I was blasted for everyone was saying that it is all pirated software, so I didn't saying after that. As you said, with hiren's it has nearly every tool you might need and I have been using it for a few years now and sometimes it is all I ever need to solve most of my issues. With regards to it being all pirated, that might have been the case a few years ago, but now you can search on Google and find (I think), most if not all the apps on Hiren's, you can find them for free online.

Anyway, just thought I would find out what people are saying these days about Hiren's. I take it that you have mentioned it here, things are all cool now with it?

Yes, it's still an issue, but not as much as it used to be. If I remember correctly, earlier versions of Hirens included proprietary software that required a paid license for legal use. Since much of the software on Hiren's Boot CD is now free or GPL, that problem is mostly eliminated. The problem now is that much of the free software (CCleaner, SuperAntispyware, Defraggler, Spybot S&D, and many others) included on the disc is only free for personal use. The minute you break them out in a work environment without a paid license for each application you use, you're violating the license terms and, in many countries, the law.

WinSCP is also a good choice for FTP client (among other talents). We normally use Filezilla but needed a client for an FTPS, AUTH SSL connection. Filezilla defaults to FTPS AUTH TLS and wouldn't cooperate with using the older AUTH. WinSCP allowed us to specify all the required connection parameters simply and worked great. Excellent tool, and free as well.

At least two of these utilities are in a bit of a gray area for free software. Piriform CCleaner and Defraggler are free for individual use, but should be paid for when you start to use them in an office environment. These also have a business counterpart which includes support and many more features. Just because you don't think you need support doesn't mean you are not in a licensing violation if you use them on 20, 100, or 1000 computers.

I have to point out, I made a new remark regarding Hiren's earlier and also I seemed to be blasted for everybody seemed to be indicating it is most unlicensed computer software, well, i did not indicating next. Because you claimed, along with hiren's it has virtually any instrument you may want and also I've been deploying it a couple of many years currently and also it is sometimes most I ever ought to clear up nearly all of our difficulties. Concerning that becoming most unlicensed, that will has been true a couple of years before, but you will look on Yahoo and google and locate (I think), nearly all in any other case the many programs upon Hiren's, you will find these individuals totally free on the web.
Regardless, simply just considered We would discover what individuals are indicating nowadays regarding Hiren's. I get it that you have talked about that in this article, things are typical trendy currently with it? ......... free antivirus download

Pretty interesting... I may have to check out the remaining four.

Looks great but I hope it is not a joke or something. On their website (link form TR http://www.hiren.info/pages/bootcd) there is no download link or any info if this thing is free or have to be paid.

Go to "Home" (i.e., http://www.hiren.info/ ) -> "Burn a ISO Image".

Agree with: Hiren's BootCD, 7-Zip, FileZilla.

Diagree with: Microsoft Security Essentials (found it to not be "less resource intensive" on Windows 7), ComboFix (as was infered, this is more a last-resort tool, when you want to take one last stab at cleaning before giving in and re-imaging).

Other recommendations: VNC for remote console management, Cobian backup for a Windows-based backup solution, LibreOffice or OpenOffice for an MS Office substitute.

I tried the Burn an ISO selection and all I got was a Download Manager with add-ins but no clue for how to get to BootCD.