The MCAS: Windows Vista for the Business Worker exam is designed for the professionals who have hands-on experience using Windows Vista for at least one year. The professionals should be very productive, collaborative, and efficient in using the Windows Vista technology. The exam measures your skills and ability to accomplish technical tasks, such as protecting your computer, managing mobile and remote computing, managing files and folders, etc. On passing the exam 77-600, you earn credit toward the MCAS: Windows Vista for the Business Worker certification.

This exam prepares you for job roles that require knowledge and use of the Windows Vista technologies to complete business-related tasks, such as managing mobile and remote computing, software, disks, and devices, and also managing files and folders.

The format of the MCAS: Windows Vista for the Business Worker exam varies from those of other Microsoft certifications exams. The 77-600 exam basically covers performance-based or simulated questions. There are no Case study type questions and multiple-choice questions might be asked.

Many of the questions in this exam require you to complete a series of tasks. For example, you might be instructed as follows:

Configure the firewall settings to allow a program to pass through it.

Color depth is a term that describes the number of bits used to represent the color of a single pixel in a bitmap image. It is also referred to as bit depth, as it is directly related to the number of bits used for each pixel.

A network printer is a printer that is not physically attached to the user’s computer but it is installed over a network. Any user connected to the network can install it and then use it. It is accessible to any computer that is connected to the network.

A local printer is a printer that is attached to a stand-alone computer. Users of only that computer are able to use the printer.

A default printer is a printer that accepts print requests automatically unless any other printer is specified manually. When more than one printer is installed on a computer, then one printer has to be a default printer to which all the print requests are sent automatically.

In the previous post of “Windows Automatic Updates“, I have talked about Windows Automatic Updates and their use. In this post I will be discussing about configuring the Windows Update settings.

The steps to configure the Windows Update settings are as follows:

1. Open the Control Panel window, and click Security.



2. In the Security window, click Windows Update.



3. In the left pane of the Windows Update window, click Change settings.



4. The Change settings dialog box will appear. Select the update options, and click on the OK button.

Windows Automatic Updates include the latest security and critical updates and service packs. These updates ensure that the computer is protected against the latest viruses and other security threats. Through Automatic Updates, Windows automatically downloads the latest updates on the computer on a pre-determined schedule.

Windows Update can be setup to automatically update your PC by automatically downloading and installing both Important updates and Recommended updates in Windows Vista. Windows Update is a free service built into Windows. It is designed to help you keep your PC more secure, reliable, compatible with devices, and able to run new features that may enhance your experience. With Windows Update, you can easily get the following:

1. The latest security updates to protect against malware and other potentially unwanted software
2. Updates that improve reliability and performance
3. Upgrades to Windows features
4. Drivers from Microsoft partners

In the forthcoming posts, I’ll be discussing about configuring the Windows Update settings.

For security reasons, a firewall is essential for a computer. It prevents any malicious program from running. It is a set of related programs configured to protect private networks connected to the Internet from intrusion. It regulates the network traffic between different computer networks. It permits or denies the transmission of a network packet to its destination based on a set of rules.

Sometimes there is a need to allow certain programs to pass through the firewall. In this post, the procedure to configure firewall to allow certain programs is discussed.

The steps for configuring firewall access for specific programs are as follows:

1. Open the Control Panel window, and then click Security.



2. In the Security window, click Windows Firewall.



3. In the left pane of the dialog box, click Allow a program through Windows Firewall.



4. The Windows Firewall Settings dialog box will appear with the Exceptions tab selected. Check or uncheck the programs according to the requirement, and then click the OK button.

Note: If you need to include programs that are not listed, click the Add program button. Click on the program you want or browse the location of the program’s exe file if it is not in the list, and then click OK. The program you have included can now pass through the firewall and can access external networks or the Internet.

In the next post, I will discuss about Windows Automatic Updates.

Malware is a combination of the terms malicious and software. It refers to a variety of hostile programs, such as a virus or a Trojan horse, designed to damage or disrupt a computer. It gathers information about a computer without the user’s permission or knowledge.

Adware is software that automatically downloads and display advertisements in the Web browser without user permission. When a user visits a site or downloads software, sometimes a hidden adware software is also downloaded to display advertisement automatically. This can be quite irritating to user. Some adware can also be spyware.

Spyware is software that gathers information about a user without his knowledge. Spyware can get into a computer when the user downloads software from the Internet. Spyware can search the contents of a hard disk, address book of an e-mail, or any information about the computer, and transmits the information to the advertisers or other interested parties.

Windows Defender is a software product from Microsoft to prevent, remove and quarantine spyware in Microsoft Windows. It was formerly known as Microsoft AntiSpyware. It is included and enabled by default in Windows Vista and Windows 7, and is available as a free download for Windows XP and Windows Server 2003.

Windows Defender features system scan capabilities similar to other free products on the market, and includes a number of real-time security agents that monitor several common areas of Windows for changes which may be caused by spyware. It also includes the ability to easily remove ActiveX applications that are installed. If it detects anything suspicious, an alert will appear on the screen.

BitLocker Drive Encryption is a full disk encryption feature included with the Ultimate and Enterprise editions of Microsoft’s Windows Vista and Windows 7 desktop operating systems, as well as the Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2008 R2 server platforms. It is used to protect all files stored on the drive Windows is installed on. It encrypts the entire system drive and helps block hackers from accessing the system files they rely on to discover user passwords. By default it uses the AES encryption algorithm in CBC mode with a 128 bit key, combined with the Elephant diffuser for additional disk encryption specific security not provided by AES. BitLocker also prevents hackers from accessing the hard disk by removing it from a computer and installing it on a different computer.

BitLocker is available only in the Enterprise and Ultimate editions of Windows Vista and Windows 7. Users of other versions of Windows Vista could use a 3rd party encryption program to satisfy the need for full drive encryption.

I am an MCAS: Windows Vista. I gave the exam at the Certiport center. I passed the 77-600 exam with 837 marks out of 1000. The total number of questions were 38 and the time alloted was 50 minutes. The questions were of simulative type and multiple choice type. In the simulation questions, the environment of Windows Visted was provided and I was asked to perform a particular task. In the MCAS exam, your practical knowledge is tested.

Therefore, the practical knowledge of Vista is must. If, for one or other reason, you do not have practical experience then you should at least know how to perform various tasks. But my suggestion is, “Have hands on experience on Windows Vista. It will help you a lot in passing the certification exam.”

What you think about the MCAS exam. Share your experience here. If you have any problem related to any topic of MCAS, you can ask here.

Good Luck for the exam.

Internet Explorer 7+ provides the following security features to help protect security and privacy when a user surfs the Internet:

1. Protected mode: The protected mode feature of IE 7+ prevents a computer from saving the files or programs of a Web site. Protected mode makes it more difficult for malware to be installed. In case such a program is installed, it makes difficult for the program to damage a user’s file and other operating system files. Protected mode is enabled by default for Internet, local intranet, and restricted sites. However, it is not enabled for trusted sites.
2. Phishing Filter: Phishing filter of IE 7+ provides protection from online phishing attacks, fraud, and spoofed Web sites. The filter helps determine whether a Web site is a legitimate site or a phishing site. The filter blocks Web sites and cautions users about both reported and suspected phishing Web sites.
3. Pop-up blocker: IE 7+ pop-up blocker allows users block most pop-ups while surfing the Internet on their computers. Users can select the level of blocking. They can either block all pop-up windows or allow pop-ups they want to see. By default, the pop-up blocker is enabled in IE 7+. While the pop-up blocker is enabled, a user can see the blocked pop-ups by clicking the IE 7+ information bar.
4. Security zones: IE 7+ provides a user the facility of configuring security through Security zones. It allows a user or systems administrator to categorize Web sites that a user visits into several groups with a suitable security level. There are four security zones found in Internet Explorer. They are as follows:
   
   • Internet
   • Local Intranet
   • Trusted Site
   • Restricted Sites

Each zone or group has four security levels, which are defined as follows:

• High
• Medium
• Medium-Low
• Low

These levels determine the type of content a user can download and run. Security zones allow users to set the appropriate level of security for various types of Web contents that they are likely to visit. For any zone, a user can configure the security level, modify the security defaults, or use custom settings for other configurations. All the security zones with their default security levels are described as follows: 

• Internet zone: All sites on the Internet that are not in the Trusted or Restricted Sites zones are included in this zone. The default security level for this zone is Medium.
• Local Intranet zone: This zone includes all sites inside an organization’s firewall. The default security level for the zone is Medium.
• Trusted Sites zone: This is the zone where a user specifies Internet sites, which are trusted by the user. These sites might include corporate subsidiaries or perhaps the Web site of a trusted business partner. The default security level for the zone is Low.
• Restricted Sites zone: This is the zone where a user specifies sites that he does not trust and wants to restrict access of these sites to his computer. The default security level for the zone is High.

Note: Except the Internet zone, all the other zones do not include Web sites by default. Web sites must be placed manually into these zones. A user or an administrator can assign a Web site to a zone with a suitable security level. Whenever one attempts to open or download any content from the Web, Internet Explorer always checks the security zone’s settings and behaves according to the applied settings.

The following five levels of predefined security settings exist for security zones:

• High
• Medium-high
• Mediu
• Medium-low
• Low
5. Privacy settings: IE 7+ provides a privacy feature to help protect users’ privacy while they are online. Privacy settings specify how a computer handles cookies. The six settings available for defining privacy are as follows:
   • Block All Cookies
   • High
   • Medium High
   • Medium
   • Low
   • Accept All Cookies

The default setting is Medium.

6. Manage Add-ons: This feature of IE 7+ enables a user disable or allow Web browser Add-ons and delete unwanted ActiveX controls.

IE 7+ is shipped with Windows Vista.

The Microsoft exam 77-600 consists of multiple choice questions and simulation questions. In the simulation type questions, you will be given an environment of Windows Vista and have to perform a given task. Before giving the exam, you must have hands-on practice to accomplish the following tasks:

1. Managing Windows Firewall.
2. Locking a computer.
3. Managing Windows Internet Explorer security.
4. Configuring local user accounts.
5. Managing network connections.
6. Managing remote access to your computer.
7. Connecting to another computer.
8. Managing devices and drivers.
9. Managing display settings.
10.  Managing Windows Explorer settings.
11.  Managing and securing folders.
12.  Searching for files and folders.
13.  Customizing and modifying the Start menu.
14.  Customizing the taskbar.
15.  Personalizing the appearance of a computer.
16.  Optimizing and troubleshooting your computer.

The different power plans available in Windows Vista are as follows:

1. Balanced: This power plan offers full performance when a user needs it and saves the power during periods of inactivity. It balances energy consumption and system performance by adjusting the processor speed of a computer to match the user’s activity.
2. Power Saver: This power plan saves the power by reducing the system performance and extending the battery life.
3. High Performance: This power plan maximizes system performance and responsiveness but consumes the most energy.