IT Nerds - Johnny on the Spot Tools?

[Ben]

So as I sit in my office on a SATURDAY doing vulnerability mitigation and security updates on the network, I've been using my waiting times to try and organize some of my IT software tools.

As I've mentioned in the past, this is a collateral duty for me, so I'm not an IT hotshot, and I mostly find myself in the "reaction" versus "prepared" mode. As in wandering down the hall, or going to another office, minding my own business, and getting accosted with pleas and/or demands for computer help. I'm trying to get better at having useful diagnostic tools handy for such ambush incidents.

So I am wondering what those of you who are full time and sharper than me carry around with you on your jumpdrive or whatever, handy in your pocket, for on-the-spot diagnostics and troubleshooting for machine and network problems.

[grislyatoms]

Jump drive - current phone list and on-call schedule. Have a bunch of other utilities but they are site-specific. DCL I have written through the years. Sometimes save local profiles to it if I need to blow them away for some reason. Printer and thin client config. "cheat sheets".

Hex keys - for time clocks and bar code printers

Slotted and Phillips screwdrivers

Facilities Maintenance and Clinical Engineering on speed dial.

So I am wondering what those of you who are full time and sharper than me

Your confidence in us is misplaced...

[charby]

8lb sledge to use on the equipment or users, depending which one is worth more.

[grislyatoms]

8lb sledge to use on the equipment or users, depending which one is worth more.

Major dilemma, there, making that decision...

[Ben]

Why decide? Use it on both -- it's the only way to be sure.

(grumpy because I'm still at work)

[Ben]

Since none of you knuckleheads helped me out      

I got un-lazy and did some google research. Found the "computer repair utility toolkit". Not offered in a bundle anymore, but has some interesting and useful looking stuff. Some of them I already had, but some that I'd not seen before look pretty handy. You can still download files in the toolkit individually via the below link, which I'm doing right now.

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/a_computer_repair_utility_kit.php

[mellestad]

For problems that can't be solved with Google, I usually turn to my Ultimate Windows Boot CD or a Knoppix boot CD.  As long as the hard drive is not dead you can do just about anything with those.

I have about 120 workstations and a smaller site in China, but honestly I don't have to crack open any special software more than a few times a year.  I have been playing with a network monitoring tool called PRTG lately though, and I like that.  Nessus for security stuff.

McAfee, Ad-Aware, Spybot, Eusing Registry Cleaner, smitfraudfix, Process Explorer, Handy Backup, Kiwi syslog stuff, Hijackthis, sysinternals tools...Other than that, Google, Experts Exchange and Safari Books Online are about all I use.

[TechMan]

Kinda of similar to the Ultimate Windows Boot CD:
Info on CD - http://www.hiren.info/pages/bootcd
Download ISO - http://www.hirensbootcd.net/

I have found that some programs work and some don't.