Hobbling a PC

[Walsingham]

Is there some hardware to smash which will prevent a PC going online? I want it totally offline short of parts being replaced.

[Gorth]

Is there some hardware to smash which will prevent a PC going online? I want it totally offline short of parts being replaced.

Unplug the network cable?

 

If it's wireless, either switch off the router or if shared with other PS's) simply disable (don't uninstall, just disable) the netcard driver in your hardware list. Re-enable as needed.

[Walsingham]

I want it disabled beyond the point where I or my staff might re-enable it without giving it serious thought and effort. Hence hardware knackering.

[Spider]

Again, unplugging the cable won't do it?

 

Removing the network card if separate then, or uninstalling drivers if it's integrated .

Edited December 27, 2011 by Spider

[Gorth]

I want it disabled beyond the point where I or my staff might re-enable it without giving it serious thought and effort. Hence hardware knackering.

If your PC has onboard netcard, that's going to be a bit tricky. If you use wires (as opposed to wireless), couldn't you just block any access from that machine at the firewall (which you of course have between your intranet and the internet )?

[Gorgon]

He's over compensating because a work account of his was hacked. Imagine the scene from Mission Impossible where they have to break into the Pentagon traversing a web of laserwire to get to an isolated work station with no network access and you will have an idea of where he is going with this.

[kalimeeri]

You can also usually disable the device in the bios. That takes more than two steps to get to. (And if you password-protect the bios and forget the password, sayonara forever). But the problem is that if you're on a local network, any of these schemes is going to shut that down too.

[Gorgon]

If you forget the bios password you can still use the reset switch on the motherboard to clear it, but it's not a bad idea. You can usually disable components in the BIOS to deal with possible hardware conflicts. Also, being on a local network with the machine in question kind of defeats the purpose of doing all this.

Edited December 27, 2011 by Gorgon

[Pidesco]

You want the PC to access the LAN but not the internet?

[Walsingham]

No. We've always had a PC that sits offline. But there have been occasions in the past (usually after one or two office whiskies) when we've run a cable across and hooked her up to play games with another machine on site or remotely. I want to knacker that, but obviously not irrevocably in case we have to re-network it.

 

I'm not overcompensating because we got hacked. I'm overcompensating because someone we know got hacked. Their procedures were far inferior to ours. But I want to learn from their mistakes.

[Walsingham]

I should clarify that removing the office whisky is not an option.

 

People who sit in offices without whisky do not work; they make work for other people.

[Pidesco]

You want to knacker the networking for whom exactly? Which users in the network have administrator access to the PC?

[Maria Caliban]

I should clarify that removing the office whisky is not an option.

There goes my suggestion.

[Walsingham]

You want to knacker the networking for whom exactly? Which users in the network have administrator access to the PC?

 

I have a small team I trust as far as myself. We all have admin access. I need something to stop any of us from networking the bastard on a whim.

[Pidesco]

Break the network port on the mobo in a way that doesn't short the thing.

 

You'll never be able to fix it, though.

[Gorth]

Best suggestion so far seems to be disabling it in the Bios and throw away the bios password. That way, you'll have to hard reset the bios to get access to it again.

 

In an emergency, you can put in a usb netcard then

 

There is really no good solutions short of having a dedicated file/information "server" with confidential info locked away and firewalled against the rest of the PC's.

[Walsingham]

I'm going to take my chances with the soul of the machine, and open her up later. See if I can't simply unhook some of the ports. Otherwise I shall just superglue some thin plastic over the ports. Should hit the right level of discouragement versus changeability.

[bigcrazewolf]

I want it disabled beyond the point where I or my staff might re-enable it without giving it serious thought and effort. Hence hardware knackering.

 

WOW your willie can re-enable internet access......I must say amazing, just amazing......JK Wals

[Walsingham]

I want it disabled beyond the point where I or my staff might re-enable it without giving it serious thought and effort. Hence hardware knackering.

 

WOW your willie can re-enable internet access......I must say amazing, just amazing......JK Wals

 

I don't want to do my undercarriage any disrespect here, but when did I suggest I use my genitals for IT support?

[Gfted1]

I want it disabled beyond the point where I or my staff might re-enable it without giving it serious thought and effort. Hence hardware knackering.

 

WOW your willie can re-enable internet access......I must say amazing, just amazing......JK Wals

 

I don't want to do my undercarriage any disrespect here, but when did I suggest I use my genitals for IT support?

 

...my staff...

 

Hurhur.

[Walsingham]

Damnit.