Weeks ago I posted my problem here on this forum and was given much help, but no solution, so I tried my own experiment. First a little background. My computer would freeze every 3 days until I posted on here that it was every three days. As soon as I posted that, it changed to every day. I tried downgrading my video driver. That didn’t work. I tried downloading MemTest (I think that’s what it was called) from the OpenSuse repos, but it just locked up, so I downloaded the ISO and burned a DVD with the memtest direct from their website. That ran for a couple of days and after the third scan, I stopped it as it showed no errors, so my memory is fine. It was suggested that it might be BOINC or TeamViewer. So I disabled BOINC and uninstalled TeamViewer. That made no difference. Then it was suggested that I delete some KDE config files, but I didn’t want to try that before I did an experiment.
Now for my experiment: I decided to disable my internet during the idle times. That worked for a couple of days, but I made the mistake of announcing my plan here, because against my own advice, I ran a system update from OpenSuse and a couple of hours later my computer froze, but not only did it freeze, it damaged my hardware. I got banned from this forum until today because I was so upset, but now I’m back and it’s been weeks that I have run my experiment without running Opensuse updates and I have had no problems other than not being able to run my computer normally.
What I think is that someone has hacked into my computer causing these lockups and I will not accept any other explanation. What I ask is how do I catch/stop this hacker. Should I stop my experiment and run an Opensuse update? What should I do next? Thanks for listening!!!>:(
Hi
Since you believe it’s the operating system, then as a test wipe openSUSE and install another OS, and move on with that, I doubt the hundreds of openSUSE installs on many different hardware systems and never seen anything like this means nothing…
Tested your power supply? Leaky electrolytic capacitors (bulging tops) on the motherboard?
What I think is that someone has hacked into my computer causing these lockups and I will not accept any other explanation. What I ask is how do I catch/stop this hacker. Should I stop my experiment and run an Opensuse update? What should I do next? Thanks for listening!!!>:(
Maybe format the partitions, reinstall, and make the installation most secure.
Set the firewall to protect “external” and examine the Services that you are allowing (see firewall in Yast).
Also, have a look at this from the wiki: SUSE Security Lockdown - Hardening Your Linux System - openSUSE Wiki
And also there are significant tools in Yast to help you, go to Yast ==> Security & users ==> Security center and hardening.
Examine your logs frequently, it beats surmising.
I think a tool like wireshark would help me identify the software installed on my computer, but I am not good at sifting through the hours of data that will be collected before the computer locks up, but I guess I have no choice. What network scanning program do you recommend?
It’s been a few days since I implemented wireshark and no lockups. I wonder if the hacker is reading my posts and I must have hit on the correct tool to fight him/her. Internet has been up for days. I still wonder if wireshark is the best tool. Why hasn’t anyone suggested anything? Please help…
If I do any of your advice, I will run updates on OpenSUSE and it will install the hacker’s software and I will be right back to where I was. I neglected to say in this thread that I recently switched back to OpenSUSE from a previous OS, so you might say I did that already. Since I have to supply my root password it installs the hacker’s software during an update.
Since my last post, The hacker froze my computer again. So, I am searching the Wireshark log for clues. Still haven’t found the culprit’s IP or Port. I will work on it for a week or two before I give up. Is there anyone who can give me hints on how to search for the culprit’s IP or Port? Any help would be appreciated.
No, not even close. If any of it were true we would all see this. I think you have a problem but I doubt it is a hacker. Most common is the video system. To be a hacker he would need to act as a man in the middle to effect uploads and they all are signed and thus a flag would be raised if changed en-route . Also unless you have the fire wall down nothing can really get through unless you run a Internet facing system that has a bug. Could be hardware thermal problems I guess but without more info we can’t really know. You would be better off looking at logs rather then searching through packets.
I confiscated his laptop and now the little rascal is on house arrest for the next few days without dessert after dinner. Maybe we should not have named him “little bobby tables” for a start.
The title of this thread is a clue.
“My computer locks up during long idles” Sounds like a memory leak to me. There is a program running in the background or maybe even foreground that is eating memory until it finally exhausts the free memory, then locks up. Just for grins let it idle for a long period and during that period run free to check memory usage and see if you are losing memory. You never know.
I already checked memory. It’s a long story but here goes. One of the suggestions before I was banned was to check memory. So, I downloaded MemTest (Or whatever it was called) from the opensuse repos, but it locked up without running the test, so I went to the MemTest website and burned a DVD, booted off of it, ran the memtest for three days during which it was on it’s third pass on a list of tests without any errors, so I stopped it. Waste of time to test mem again. Also, I went weeks without a problem by disabling my internet during idles, but when I turned the internet on full time, two days later it froze. I will not accept any explanation other than a hacker…
Do you have Screen energy savings and or suspend or screen locking on?? These kick in after a set time of not being used. Any of those not waking may indicate a video or other driver problem
Which desktop?? try a different one. Try a different user account may be a user config issue
Could it be a hacker. Maybe highly unlikely but could be but if you want any here to believe this and you seem to refuse any other explanation then you need to present some evidence and not just your suspicions.
Hi
Unfortunately you have yet to provide any ‘Physical’ evidence of such intrusions… it could be your graphics card, or your ethernet port failing, logs logs and logs and post the info and folks will try to help.
If you can’t provide info or don’t know what to provide, just ask…
But, if you think it’s a hacker, then I suggest you remove openSUSE and find another operating system to see if the same thing happens…
I tried using a different user and it didn’t lock up either. I guess there will be suggestions already made since my original post was deleted. I am using KDE and I hate GNOME, so not willing to try that since my disabling the internet during idles has completely stopped the lockups. No configs or memory are causing the lockups. I ran for weeks with the internet disabled during idles without any lock ups, os my configs, memory, cpu, motherboard, desktop, are all fine. It is a piece of software loaded onto my computer during an update from OpenSuse that as of yet I cannot identify. To repeat myself, I will not accept any explanation other than a hacker.
Hi
OK, unless you can provide proof of said hacking, then it is pure speculation and FUD and I’m guessing. will be repeating that until the cows come home.
These forums are for technical help, provide the information requested for some help, else the thread will be closed.
I asked for help to catch the hacker. That’s the technical help I need. I love Opensuse and have tried 7 other OS’s in the last year and came back to Opensuse because there is nothing better. How can I get the proof you need for showing you it’s a hacker. I am willing to provide proof, but I don’t know how to get it. Please help me. Please do not close this thread. I will repeat my self yet again, I spent weeks without a lockup with the Internet being down during idles, but when I changed the internet to be up full time, it locked up again. You imply that maybe it is my WIFI card that is causing the lock ups. Okay, how do I prove it’s the WIFI card? How do I find the software I believe is on my system that allows the hacker to lock up my computer?
There, two tech requests. Please don’t close this thread…
On Thu 16 Feb 2017 11:26:01 PM CST, trekjunky wrote:
I asked for help to catch the hacker. That’s the technical help I need.
I love Opensuse and have tried 7 other OS’s in the last year and came
back to Opensuse because there is nothing better. How can I get the
proof you need for showing you it’s a hacker. I am willing to provide
proof, but I don’t know how to get it. Please help me. Please do not
close this thread. I will repeat my self yet again, I spent weeks
without a lockup with the Internet being down during idles, but when I
changed the internet to be up full time, it locked up again. You imply
that maybe it is my WIFI card that is causing the lock ups. Okay, how do
I prove it’s the WIFI card? How do I find the software I believe is on
my system that allows the hacker to lock up my computer?
Hi
OK, so your using wireless exclusively? No ethernet?
Your connecting to your own wireless router, not a public or shared
system?
Provide as root user the output from the following two commands (use
code tags when pasting the info);
hwinfo --netcard
So, with the ‘lockup’ your whole system freezes or just the desktop
(as in GUI)? Or you just don’t get internet access?
Have you tried after a lockup to press ctrl+alt+del+F1 key to get a
console session?
–
Cheers Malcolm °¿° SUSE Knowledge Partner (Linux Counter #276890)
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I really think you have hardware issues
a hard drive with bad sectors, bad ram chip, bad vram chip or an overheating cpu or gpu will cause said symptoms
if you think you’re being hacked (for testing purposes) create a new user with a new password and use that account, unless the ‘hacker’ knows the root password he shouldn’t be able to get to the new account
afiak the opensuse firewall blocks all unrequested incoming connections you could try going off line for a day or two or
if you think the install has been compromised you could try running a live system for a few days (you could burn the iso to a dvd and be sure that no hacker could modify that OS as it will be read only)
there is a a live tw image or try the live variation of leap ie opensuse li-f-e or even try ubuntu https://en.opensuse.org/openSUSE:Education-Li-f-e https://en.opensuse.org/openSUSE:Tumbleweed_installation
I still wonder if wireshark is the best tool. Why hasn’t anyone suggested anything? Please help…