Protect your computer during your public demos

May 13, 2010

Tags: restricted user accounts, security

For public demos of your website or application, use a restricted user account to protect your computer and private files

One of our customers is excited to demo her application, www.insightfulonlinetarot.com, at trade shows, but is concerned about the security of her computer. She asked how to allow users access to a web browser and her website, but not to other applications or files or other websites. Instead of repeating useful information, here are a few sites that detail how to protect your computer.

Instructions for Mac

Summary for Macs, you will:

Create a new guest user
Restrict applications and websites for that user

Instructions for Windows Vista

Summary for Windows Vista, you will:

Create a new user
Assign the new user as a “Standard” user account

Instructions for Windows XP

Summary for Windows XP, you will:

Navigate to Control Panel > User Accounts
Turn the Guest Account on

That’s all.

During your trade show, you will log into your computer using the restricted user account you created. Now you can feel free to let anyone use your computer without fear of exposing your private files or damaging your applications.