WMU > OIT > Help Desk > Viruses and Security > File Sharing Safety Precautions

File Sharing Safety Precautions

Uploading Tips

Uploading means sharing your personal files with other internet users. Uploading may leave your computer vulnerable to security threats including hackers and viruses. We suggest that if you are using a file sharing program, disable file uploads. For instructions click one of the programs listed below.

Sharing copyrighted material is illegal. For more information please see "Digital Millennium Copyright Act Violations".

Downloading Tips

File sharing programs allow you to connect to other user's computers to download files which may contain viruses. The only way to prevent the downloading of viruses through file sharing programs is to discontinue downloading.

Disabling File Sharing Uploads

Aimster

Complete the following steps to disable Aimster file sharing.

1. Open Aimster.
2. From the Aimster control panel select Settings.
3. Click on the Transfers tab.
4. Change the Max Aimster Uploads field to 0.
5. Exit out of Aimster.

Note: Aimster is now referred to as Madster.

BearShare

Complete the following steps to disable BearShare file sharing.

1. Open Bearshare.
2. From the Setup menu select Options.
3. Click on the Sharing tab.
4. Select all options that appear under the Share files in these directories and their sub-directories:.
5. Click Remove.
   The Shared Directory listing should be empty.
6. Click OK.
   File sharing is now disabled.

KaZaA

Complete the following steps to disable KaZaA file sharing.

1. Open KaZaA.
2. Select Options from the Tools menu.
3. Click on the Traffic tab.
4. Click in the box marked Disable sharing of files with other KaZaA members:.
5. Click OK.
   File sharing is now disabled.

iMesh

Complete the following steps to disable iMesh file sharing.

Note: There are several items that have to be disabled. They are: Registration, Sharing Options, Shared Folders List, and Selected/Non selected folders.

iMesh Registration

1. Open iMESH.
2. Select Options from the Preferences menu.
3. Under Share, click in the box next to Allow other users to view my shared files option to remove the checkmark and disable this option.
4. Click OK.

iMesh Sharing Options

The next step is to make sure you are not sharing any folders.

1. Click on the Media Manager menu item.
2. Look for any drives or folders that have a grayed-out box to the right of it. If a grayed out box is visible, then these drives or folders have sub folders that are being shared and must be disabled.
3. Expand the drive tree until you find all folders that have a checkmark in the box next to them.
4. Click on each checkmark to remove it from the boxes.
   The folders will not longer be shared.
   Note: When you have unselected all of the check boxes, there should be no grayed-out boxes left.

Note: The easiest time to disable file sharing in iMesh is during the installation process inside the Registration Wizard. At this time, unselect the Share download folder and all of its sub-folders automatically and the Allow other users to view my shared files options. Additionally, do not allow iMesh to scan your hard drives looking for media files to share.

eDonkey2000

We suggest that you not use the eDonkey2000 file sharing client due to the following reasons:

• The eDonkey2000 MFTP client automatically shares the contents of whichever folder you have specified to receive incoming files.
• This software does not allow you to to restrict file sharing in other client settings.

Direct Connect

Direct Connect's peer-to-peer file sharing allows a user to connect to a "hub" server. The hub server maintains an index of clients that are connected and the files that are available. These hubs are content based groupings that you can join to participate in a particular chat. It isn't uncommon for hub operators to set a minimum amount of data that clients are required to share to participate on the hub.

Therefore, once you've taken the following steps, you may find that you are not no longer able to connect to Direct Connect hubs.

Complete the following steps to disable DirectConnect file sharing.

1. Open Direct Connect.
2. Select Settings from the menu bar.
   The Settings dialog box is displayed.
3. Click on the File Transfers tab.
4. Click Add to add a shared folder.
5. Select the folder where you want to create a new empty folder.
6. Click the New Folder button and type a name for the folder.
7. Click OK.
   The folder you created will appear under the Shared Folders: window. Leave this folder empty to prevent the sharing of files.

Gnotella

Complete the following steps to disable Gnotella file sharing.

1. Open Gnotella.
2. Click Setup on the Gnotella window.
   The Configuration window is displayed.
3. Click on the Shared Files tab.
4. Select the directory that is displayed within the Shared Files portion of the window and click Remove.
   There should be no directories listed in this window.
5. Click OK.
   Gnotella file sharing will be disabled.

Gnucleus

Complete the following steps to disable Gnucleus file sharing.

1. Open Gnucleus.
2. From the Edit menu select Preferences.
3. Click on Share in the Properties window.
4. Highlight each shared directory in the Shared Directories field and click Remove until the field is empty.
5. Click OK.

GTK-Gnutella

Complete the following steps to disable GTK-Gnutella file sharing.

1. Open GTK-Gnutella.
2. From the upper left-hand corner of the GTK-Gnutella window click on Uploads.
3. In the Maximum simultaneous uploads field enter 0.
4. Click Quit to close the window.

LimeWire

Complete the following steps to disable LimeWire file sharing.

1. Open LimeWire.
2. Select the Tools menu and click on Options.
3. In the Options window, click on Uploads and change the Maximum Uploads field to 0.
4. Click Apply and then OK to apply the changes and dismiss the window.

Mactella

Complete the following steps to disable Mactella file sharing.

Note: These instructions are for both the PPC and OS X versions.

1. Open the Mactella application.
2. On the Upload tab, click on the check box next to Enable sharing ck box to disable file sharing.
3. Click Stop.
   File sharing is disabled for the current session. Make sure that the next time you access Mactella that you complete these same steps.

Morpheus

Complete the following steps to disable Morpheus file sharing.

1. Open Morpheus.
2. From the Edit menu select Options.
3. On the left side of the Options window, select Traffic.
4. Change Maximum simultaneous uploads to 0.
5. Click OK.

Phex

Complete the following steps to disable Phex file sharing.

1. Open Phex.
2. From the Setting menu select Phex Options.
3. From the Phex Options window, select Sharing under the Download/Sharing Settings.
4. On the Sharing window, set the Max Simultaneous Uploads field to 0.
5. Click OK.

Qtella

Complete the following steps to disable Qtella file sharing.

1. Open Qtella.
2. On the main Qtella window, click on the Configuration tab.
3. In the Max Uploads field (located at the bottom left-hand corner of the window) change the Max Uploads field to 0.
4. Click OK.

Shareaza

Note: When you first open Shareaza you can choose to turn off uploading at that time. The Shareaza Wizard window is displayed. Select the folders listed and click Remove. When all folders are removed, click Next and follow the instructions provided.

Complete the following steps to disable Shareaza file sharing.

1. Open Shareaza.
2. From the Tools menu select Shareaza options.
3. Click on the Sharing tab and set Total Transfers to 0.
4. Click OK.

WinMX

Note: When you initially install WinMX you can choose to turn off uploading or file sharing. The WinMX Setup window is displayed with a list of folders that can be shared. Click on any folder listed in the box and then click Unshare Selected Folders. When all folders have been removed click "Next". File sharing will be disabled.

Complete the following steps to disable WinMX file sharing.

If you have already installed WinMX and want to disable file sharing follow the steps below:

1. Open WinMX.
2. Click Shared Files.
   A list of all directories that are labeled to share are displayed
3. Select a folder and then click on Unshare Folder.
4. Once there are no folders listed WinMX file sharing is unavailable.

XoLoX

Note: If this is the first time you are using XoLox and are in the process of installing the application, the XoloX startup window is displayed. It contains a list of recommended directories to share files in. At the bottom of the window are instructions on how to disable file sharing. Follow the instructions provided by selecting directory names and clicking Remove. Click Next to continue. File sharing will be disabled.

If XoLoX is already installed, complete the following steps to disable XoLoX file sharing.

1. Open XoloX.
2. From the Tools menu select Preferences.
3. Click on the Sharing tab.
4. Select each directory in the Share the files in these directories and subdirectories window and click Remove.
5. Click Apply and Close when completed.