how to make a program portable?...

Is there anyway to make a program thats supposed to be runned by hard drive to be ran off disc on another computer. I know this would involve having every system driver and file required but how to know which files the installer installs... I tried to use a tracking program but its cheap and doesn't work. Anybody have any ideas. I am guessing you might need the reg entries as well.... any thoughts? The reason I want it portable is the computer I want to use it on doesnt have installation permission but doesnt mind if you run a program... Tried it before with the more basic progams and it worked..

The easiest way is to ask permission to install the programme from the administrator who set the security settings. If you dont have permission to install a program on the computer then there is a reason for it.

for educational purposes...

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for educational purposes...

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Yours?
Maybe you should clarify why you need to by pass the security put in place by the network admin firstly. Also you could give more information on the type of program you are trying to run and on what type of system.
Cheers

or you could use....the run as feature

then type the administrator username and password in.


If you dont know the administrator password....

.....go get your own machine and run it on that
:cool:

MLF

ok how bout just a program that lets you track waht gets installed for security purposes...How do you want me to narrow down what type of program. -Windows

I get it now...you want to run windows...while you are logged onto and using a computer that wont let you install progams...but will allow you to run them...from a drive...other then the drive running the operating system....... :rolleyes:

Wow...I think this may be way over my head :cool:

MLF

Wow i'm glad you summed it up Morganlefay I wasn't sure I understood. Acdspit what we are trying to say is we cant answer your question as you haven't given us enought information on the technical side of what you want to do. When we ask the type of program it is because a command line program isn' the same as a multi-user accountancy programe that calls on a few database servers on the side. One is fairly easy to make "portable" the other isn't. And on the second part we wont answer your question as is because you aren't clear enought about why you want to do this and what the program is meant to do. Maybe you should rephrase your question or ask it on one of the many hacking sites on the web! :D Still you haven't been negged yet so it is not all bad.

I dont neg newbs...unless they get rude ;)

but other people do :eek:

as MURACU stated....we will need more info other then

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How do you want me to narrow down what type of program. -Windows

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Windows has many flavors?

Windows what????


MLF

Write it in a high level programming language. You could also
check out the difference between dynamic linking and static linking.
Simple executables don't really need to be "installed"
:cool:

Program was made with Visual Basic 6.0 I see... and using PEID I find that its using armadilla protection. I dont know if that matters. Its about 8mb extracted. I could probably even extract the contents of the extracted exe but I dont know if its gonna do any good. I just want to find out what drivers/services/reg entries/ the program is relying on. I know during the install I see files goto c:\windows\system32\ so maybe it would just be useful in this case and in any other case to have some kind of tracking to see what the installer modifies or creates in the case of viruses as well as trying to make something portable. I know UPX could compress it and make it to where its just one file that I need to run the program but I dont even need it to be one file a folder would be just fine to keep on my USB. Well thanks for the help

Hmmm,

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I find that its using armadilla protection.

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Which means that it is someone else's intellectual property, and what you are proposing is illegal.

:rolleyes:

I am not talking. Reverse engineering. I do not wish to crack the program. I already "own" the rights to running the program at its current state. Why does this have to be such a technical argument. I was just looking for a program that tells you exactly what the installer does. Isn't this good to know for everyone that wants to be computer security savvy?

Look it is simple..

It has copy protection?

Anything else is cracking.. reverse engineering IS CRACKING

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I was just looking for a program that tells you exactly what the installer does

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that is one step in reverese engineering..

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Isn't this good to know for everyone that wants to be computer security savvy?

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You had better explain what this has to do with Computer security..
If your were asking how to findout what XYZ virus does when it installed. to learn how to remove it .. well we may have been a little more helpful

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I am not talking. Reverse engineering.

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Why does this have to be such a technical argument.

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Wrong.. I think you will find the argument is Legal..

might as well delete this thread... I am embarassed to look at it. As I should be for asking such a stupid question... Thanks for making me see the light.

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I do not wish to crack the program

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From what you have said earlier that is exactly what you are proposing to do.

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I already "own" the rights to running the program at its current state

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No! you do not. You (may) have been granted a licence to use the program in accordance with the terms and conditions of its EULA. It would not be protected by armadillo otherwise. Any attempt to circumvent the normal installation process, and functionality is a violation.

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I was just looking for a program that tells you exactly what the installer does

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That is reverse engineering. At best you will find out what has been installed. Google for the tools to do that, you will probably need one for the system and one for the registry.

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Isn't this good to know for everyone that wants to be computer security savvy?

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No, it is irrelevant. If you are security savvy you only install software that you trust, and you are only interested in what has been installed and what it does.

http://www.prismmicrosys.com/install...itor-index.htm
http://www.devhood.com/tools/tool_de...px?tool_id=432

Here are two programs I found if you anyone was interested. I know some of us probably download stuff from other than microsoft or sourceforge..

I was just looking for a more forward answer..someone speaking from experience..but I do understand what kind of forum this is so I apoligize in trying to make an accomplice to any EULA violations..

Hi

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I was just looking for a program that tells you exactly what the installer does

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If you want to know what actually gets installed (inclusively registry entries),
use installwatch[1]. If you want to understand what the program is accessing while
running use filemon[2], regmon[3] and maybe process explorer[4]; and have a look at
this tutorial[5] for a general guideline to forensic analysis.

I see that you have found two other monitoring programs. Would you mind
sharing your experience, once you performed some tests?

Cheers :)



[1] http://www.epsilonsquared.com/installwatch.htm
[2] http://www.sysinternals.com/Utilities/Filemon.html
[3] http://www.sysinternals.com/Utilities/regmon.html
[4] http://www.sysinternals.com/Utilitie...sexplorer.html
[5] http://www.antionline.com/showthread...hreadid=272469

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that it is someone else's intellectual property, and what you are proposing is illegal.

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WTF, are you some kind of vigilante for software companies?
That's a little harsh. If I edit my registry to remove spyware
am I guilty of IP violations because I want to know how they
managed to install it in the first place?

Did you know that if a stream flows through my land, I cannot
arbitrarily dam it up and prevent the water from flowing
downstream to others? Some things resist being categorized
as property

http://www.fsf.org/

rcgreen I shall be charitable and assume that you have been drinking.

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WTF, are you some kind of vigilante for software companies?

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No, but I do have to consider my responsibilites towards JupiterMedia. The rules of this site are clearly stated on the front page.............you really should know that by now?

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If I edit my registry to remove spyware, am I guilty of IP violations because I want to know how they managed to install it in the first place?

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WTF? How is that remotely related to someone wanting to take proprietary software, modify it to "make it mobile" and run it on a machine that he admits that he doesn't have permission to install software on anyway??????????????? The only bloody reason he wants to know this is to achieve that objective.............the guy has all the makings of an "ex-employee, soon to be unemployable"........... we do have a certain responsibility towards these "overenthusiastic individuals" IMO.......... we need to dissuade them from lines of experimentation that will clearly get them into trouble?

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Some things resist being categorized

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Legally owned and copyrighted intellectual property, covered by a clearly stated EULA is not one of those things ..................... particularly when it is protected by a system such as Armadillo.

Get a life folks, this is NOT a skiddie cracking site

:)

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wanting to take proprietary software, modify it to "make it mobile"

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Prolly be easier to go to the office store and shoplift a copy
of Photoshop. Six hunnad an fifty dollahs! Anyway I'm not
convinced that reverse engineering the installer is the same
as actually stealing the software. Like he said, it was
for "educational" purposes. Whaddayou a cynic? LOL
:cool:

PS The thread title was "how to make a program portable"
but maybe that should be "how to make software grow legs?"
:cool:

Hey Hey,

I'm going to weigh in here... although it may not make much sense, I'm fighting a rather nasty cold and I seem to be a little out of it but here it goes anyways..

Portable Apps are becoming more and more common these days - http://portableapps.com/ is just one example of that...

I myself have found portable apps handy on many occasions... However this thread seems to go beyond portable apps..

I'm going out on a limb here when I assume that the OPs first language is not English... if it is... God help us all. Regardless, the horrid writing style has created mass confusion.

The topics here seem to go from making a program portable, to bypassing installation policies, to reversing binaries.

The simple answer to the initial question is: You don't make a closed source, licensed program portable... That's not to say it doesn't happen but it's not worth the time and effort... If you have the source, it's relatively simple to make a program portable... which is why PortableApps.com works with OS software.

So to answer the OP in that aspect... Could you do it? Yes... Is anyone here going to tell you how to do it? Nope... It's 300 different steps and actions and we're not here to hold your hand. The school systems in North America already do enough hand holding, we're not here to do more of it.. Figure out what exactly you need to do and the research each of those steps...

Part II: Bypassing Installation Policy:
This is not appropriate discussion for AO... we're not going to tell some little skiddie how to bypass installation policy and install what they want or run what they want without installing it... That's not this sites purpose and it's a waste of the members time... This identifies the OP as nothing more than a skiddie... Which leads me to wonder if we need a policy to ban skiddies... I've seen a few of them lately... they're mostly useless.

Part III: Reversing Binaries/Reverse Engineering.
I'm a definate supporter of RE. Here's my analogy for it..

When I buy a car, I can look under the hood and figure out exactly how it works... I can then tweak and modify it to suit my needs... Perhaps a new exhaust system.... high end spark plugs... new rims and tires... low rider springs.... Why shouldn't I be able to do that with software... if I'm using something I want to know how it works and it's my right to find that out...

As for acdspit00. I chalk him up to being another skiddie.... no worth the waste of time.

Peace,
HT

acdspit00, it rather simple actually.

All you have to do is regulate the input of the binary datagram while it's installing the .dll for the location of the reference pointer of the file that is being installed. Once you have that, then all you need to do is refresh the input/output resources for the .ini file so that the .dll is linked to the datagram that is being used to refresh the read/open handler that is running. Once you have that, you can just plug in the source assembly code for the output module that manages the .ini file mentioned above. At this point, it becomes child's play.
Use the designated link control of the .ini file with the input/output handle in read only mode. This will ensure that all security mechanisms will see your module as part of the datagram module and won't cause any issues when you go to open the .dll reference pointer. Make sure that you flag the link that is pointing to the outsourced main module before you select the file lock because if you don't, the main security module will reset the link flag to 1 and you'll be screwed (but you know that already). Finally, just add the source of your new linked file datagram to the selected .ini file associated with the installation source code and you're done.

Let me know how it goes.

Ok so you want to make a program portable, do a google search for "Full guide to make portable programs". Download the file and run it, its a container program that has an explanation and the apps associated with it.

Does it work or is it the correct way? Dont know havent tried it.
Should your question be answered as HT did or the best of peoples knowledge? IMO yes.
Should they lecture you on legalities and what not? IMO no, give you the info let you decide what to do with it, you get arrested thats your problem.

If the info posted is illegal, let the mods decide what to do thats how i see it. If i ask a question, its for a reason. If you feel like giving me the correct info by all means i thank you. If not dont lecture me on legalities, obviously i dont care or am aware. Getting off topic and wandering there, rather annoying.

I like HT's answer. Even if i dont fully agree on it. Was probably the most helpful post in this whole damn thread. Shagdevil i have no clue what your talking about.

DarkSnake,
By your response alone, I can further jutsify my theory that understanding sarcasm has become somewhat of a lost art :rolleyes:
My response was pure jibberish (that was the point). If it made sense, then my next reponse would have been: seek help child.
This thread seemed like it was going nowhere good, so I thought I'd inject some abstract humor in the form of overly-verbose, techincal nonsense. My apologies for confusing you, I'll stick to more basic humor next time.

dang shagdevil,
That could explain why when i tried what you explained it only worked half the time. :D I have one word to say : Sysdif