Ventoy is an open source tool to create bootable USB drive for ISO/WIM/IMG/VHD(x)/EFI files.
With ventoy, you don’t need to format the disk over and over, you just need to copy the ISO/WIM/IMG/VHD(x)/EFI files to the USB drive and boot them directly.
You can copy many files at a time and ventoy will give you a boot menu to select them (screenshot).
You can also browse ISO/WIM/IMG/VHD(x)/EFI files in local disks and boot them.
x86 Legacy BIOS, IA32 UEFI, x86_64 UEFI, ARM64 UEFI and MIPS64EL UEFI are supported in the same way.
Most types of OS supported (Windows/WinPE/Linux/ChromeOS/Unix/VMware/Xen…)
What Are App Execution Aliases, and How Do You Use Them?
If you’re trying to open an app like Microsoft Paint in the Run Dialog and see an error message, it could be caused by your app aliases. But what exactly are App Execution Aliases, where do you find them, and how do you use them?
What Are App Execution Aliases?
An alias is an alternative name given to something. The most obvious example is the codename given to a spy or undercover agent. On Windows, aliases have nothing to do with spying. Instead, they are used for streamlining tasks, such as entering commands.
Windows 10 and 11 both allow aliases to be declared for some apps by default. The available apps vary but are often those commonly associated with command line tools. Giving an app an alias allows it to be executed using a shorter title rather than the full name or path.
App aliases can be used in several Windows Command Line Interfaces (CLI), including the Run Dialog, Command Prompt, and PowerShell. If you use these tools with any regularity, app aliases can help to streamline entering commands.
How to Enable App Execution Aliases in Settings
You can enable and disable aliases for compatible apps in the main settings in both Windows 10 and 11. If more than one app uses the same alias name, you can choose which has the alias applied to it.
In Windows 11:
Open Settings > Apps, and look for Advanced app settings.
In the advanced app settings, click App execution aliases to see the list of compatible apps.
Use the slider switches to enable or disable the alias for each app. You can see the alias name below each app.
In Windows 10:
If you’re using Windows 10, you’ll find the aliases in Settings > Apps & features.
Click the App execution aliases link near the top of the Apps & features page.
You can then enable and disable aliases using the switches.
By default, in both Windows 10 and 11, you can only enable or disable existing app aliases. But if you don’t mind editing the Registry, you can create new aliases for many other apps.
Create App Execution Aliases in Registry Editor
Before editing or creating registry keys, it is advisable to create a full backup of the Windows Registry. Of course, you should also ensure you understand how to restore the Registry from that backup.
The process below for creating app execution aliases in the Registry Editor should be the same in both Windows 10 and 11.
Open Windows Search, type Registry Editor, and click on the search result to open it.
In the editor, navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App Paths.
Next, right-click on the App Paths key in the left-hand pane, and select New > Key.
Give the new key an alias name that relates to the app and ends with .exe. For example, if the alias is for Calendar, call it something like cal.exe.
With the alias selected, double-click the Default value in the right-hand pane.
In the Value data field, you will need to enter the full path to the app executable file. For example C:\Program Files (x86)\Calendar.exe.
Right-click in the right pane and select New > String value. Name the string path. The change the Value data to the same path as above, but without the app filename.
You can now close the Registry Editor. The new App Execution Alias will now be available to use in the Windows CLIs.
Using and Creating App Execution Aliases
Entering commands into tools such as Command Prompt and PowerShell can be laborious. You can streamline that process by enabling or creating aliases for apps that commonly feature in those commands. Why type out a full path to an executable file when you can point to it with a few keystrokes?
Here are some commands that I’ve compiled over my time working with pfSense. My pfSense cheat sheet!
Description
Command
Reload the Firewall with all the configuration. This also restarts the webgui and sshd – but keeps the current ssh sessions active just as a regular sshd restart.
/etc/rc.reload_all
Manually edit the configuration in /conf/config.xml. Once file has been saved and editor exited, the /tmp/config.cache is removed so the next config reload event will load config.xml, not the cached version. You could run the next command to trigger an instant reload.
viconfig
Show rule/filter information
pfctl -s rules
Show rule/filter info for what FILTER rules hit
pfctl -v -s rules
Show rule/filter info, includes rule counters, ID numbers, etc.
pfctl -vvsr
Shows the current state table
pfctl -ss
Shows current filter rules
pfctl -sr
Show as much as possible.
pfctl -sa
Shows current NAT rules
pfctl -sn
Show NAT information for which rules hit
pfctl -v -s nat
Show NAT information for interface GE1
pfctl -s nat -i ge1
Show QUEUE information
pfctl -s queue
Show LABEL information
pfctl -s label
Show contents of the STATE table
pfctl -s state
Show statistics for state tables and packet normalization
pfctl -s info
Show everything
pfctl -s all
Enable the packet filter – enables all firewall functions
pfctl -e
Disable the packet filter – disables all firewall functions
pfctl -d
Run qiuet
pfctl -q
flush ALL
pfctl -F all
flush only the RULES
pfctl -F rules
flush only queues
pfctl -f queue
flush only NAT
pfctl -F nat
pfctl -F info
flush all stats that are not part of any rule
pfctl -z clear
all counters
Playback Scripts
Changes password for the defined user. Prompts to reset the account properties if it is disabled or expired
pfSsh.php playback changepassword
Enable/Disable CARP high availability functions. Will deactivate the CARP virtual IP addresses. Does not persist across reboots.
pfSsh.php playback disablecard
pfSsh.php playback enablecarp
Enable/Disable CARP maintenance mode. This leaves CARP active but demotes the unit so that another can assume control. Maintenance mode will persist across reboots.
pfSsh.php playback disablecarpmaint
pfSsh.php playback enablecarpmaint
Removes all DHCP configuration from the firewall causing DHCP to be disabled. It completely removes all of its settings.
pfSsh.php playback disabledhcp
Disables the HTTP_REFERER check in Browser HTTP_REFERER enforcement. This can aid in gaining access to the GUI if the browser session is triggering this protection.
pfSsh.php playback disablereferercheck
Adds an allow all rule for IPv4 and IPv6 to the WAN interface
Be extremely careful with this option, it is meant to be a temporary measure to gain access to services on the WAN interface of the firewall in situations where the LAN is not usable. Once proper access rules are put in place, remove the rules added by this script.
pfSsh.php playback enableallowallwan
Enables the SSH daemon – same as the menu option or in the GUI
pfSsh.php playback enablesshd
This script looks for a config.xml file on the external device, such as a USB drive. Then move it in place for use by the firewall.
pfSsh.php playback externalconfiglocator
Prints the current gateway status and statistics. This also accepts an optional parameter brief, which prints only the gateway name and status, omitting the addresses and statistical data.
pfSsh.php playback gatewaystatus
Creates a new self-signed certificate for the firewall and activates for use in the GUI. This can be useful in cases where the previous certificate is invalid or unusable. It also fills in the certificate details using the firewall hostname and other custom information for better identifying your host.
pfSsh.php playback generateguicert
A complex script that synchronizes the PHP and other script sources with the files from the pfSense GitHub repository. This is most useful on development snapshots to pick up changes from more recent commits.
This script can be dangerous to use in other circumstances. Only use this under the direction of a knowledgeable developer or support representative.
pfSsh.php playback gitsync
pfSsh.php playback install pkg
pfSsh.php playback listpkg
pfSsh.php playback uninstallpkg
View additional rules in anchors from packages or features, such as UPnP.
pfSsh.php playback pfanchordrill
Prints the contents of all pf tables, which contain addresses used in firewall aliases, as well as built-in system tables for features such as bogon network blocking, snort, and GUI/SSH lockout. This is also useful for checking if a specific IP address is found in any table, rather than searching individually.
pfSsh.php playback pftabledrill
Removes all traces of package configuration data from the running config.xml. This can be useful if a package has corrupted settings or has otherwise left the packages in an inconsistent state.
pfSsh.php playback removepkgconfig
Removes ALTQ traffic shaper settings, which can be useful if the shaper configuration is preventing rules from loading or is otherwise incorrect and preventing proper operations of the firewall.
pfSsh.php playback removeshaper
Resets the GUI settings for widgets, dashboard columns, the theme, and other GUI-related settings. It can return the GUI, particularly the dashboard, to a stable state if it is not functioning properly.
pfSsh.php playback resetwebgui
Disables and re-enables each WAN-type interface, which reapplies the interface configuration
pfSsh.php playback restartallwan
Stops and restarts the DHCP daemon
pfSsh.php playback restartdhcpd
Rewrites and reloads the IPsec configuration for strongSwan
pfSsh.php playback restartipsec
Controls the services running on the firewall, similar to interacting with services at Status > Services
The action can be stop, start, or restart.
The service name is the name of the services as found under Status > Services. If the name includes a space, enclose the name in quotes.
The service-specific options vary depending on the service, they are used to uniquely identify services with multiple instances, such as OpenVPN or Captive Portal entries.
The shell version of Easy Rule, easyrule, can add a firewall rule from a shell prompt. When the easyrule command is run without parameters, it prints a usage message to explain its syntax.
The way easyrule adds a block rule using an alias, or a precise pass rule specifying the protocol, source, and destination, work similar to the GUI version.
How do I change the local user account name in Windows 10?
Windows Key+R > Type netplwiz > Enter
In the User Accounts window, on the Users tab, select the user account you wish to change the name for and click Properties.
In the property sheet, on the General tab, edit the User name.
