Application: JPE portaCrypt (my own app, based on: Jaunte PE by redllar)
Category: Security
Description: JPE portaCrypt is an open-source (flash) drive encryption utility for non-admin users.
JPE portaCrypt 0.0.0.1 Development Test 2 [4.94MB download / 16.1MB installed]
(MD5: 741503e5a4afc2a08b4bfd8aa39bd5c7) source
Make sure to read the help file before use!
Release Notes:
Development Test 2 (2011-03-25): Just unzip to the root of the drive.
- features added:
- New folder-layout to separate the encrypted apps from the rest of the drive. Mainly for testing purposes.
- Included the PA.c menu and CubicExplorerPortable, so the package is ready to use.
- Only apps within the 'Path=[folder]' setting will be injected.
- Better password implementation.
- Over all, this package should be little bit easier to grasp for anybody else than just me
Development Test 1 (2011-03-12): Initial release
Disclaimer: The utility is in a very early stage of development and so should only be used for testing purposes. The developer is in no way responsible for lost or broken files.
Acknowledgment: All credit for this app goes to redllar, the developer of Jaunte PE.
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This is an invalid release. It's installing to CommonFiles for some reason. It doesn't even launch properly on Win x64 (on which JPE has ongoing issues anyway). It's attempting to launch the PA.c Platform for some reason. All of these make it an invalid PAF.
Why would you base a simple encryption engine on JPE which is designed to hook EXEs and intercept DLL calls?
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!
The latest releases of JauntePE supposedly does not have issues with 32bit apps running on 64 bit machines aswell as Vista and Windows 7 should work fine. I cant find the posts right now of the testing a couple of months ago, but supposedly the runtime is stable. Probably it's something with my code, I'll have to look into it, that said, I wouldn't know how, I do not have a 64 bit to test it on
I make it install in CommonFiles cause it should not be run from the menu, but it actually has to start the menu it self, so from there on it can hook all child-processes.
And yes then it hooks a couple of file-system API's to encrypt newly created files or decrypt others.
This would be the only way to get real-time encryption working without having to install a driver.
Originally JauntPE already had a start of a virtual-drive encryption coded into it, what I done is strip it down till just the API-hooks I needed and modify them so it works together with the PA.c format on a real drive, instead of a virtual one.
It does work for me in XP admin and guest account, but definitively needs a lot of additional work done to it. I just released it for now and see what the pottential is before I waist to much time on it.
Personally I tested this with ThundebirdP, CubicEplorerP, SumatraP, FirefoxP.
If a certain app has an issue with reading or writing certain file types, it's possible to exclude these file extensions from encryption.
Anyway, it's all in the help file
Formerly Gringoloco
Windows XP Pro sp3 x32
When I start it, I was prompted to put in my passphrase. I made one, pressed enter, then I get an error in a message box (with the title "JauntePE") that says that there was some sort of error, which means that the application was not portablized correctly or something and behind it, there was another message box that said a config file wasn't found. Then my menu popped up. I was trying to figure out how to close JPE portaCrypt, then I looked at daphne, but there didn't seem to be any process of it running.
EDIT: Ok, I set Cubic Explorer Portable to be my explorer, but still nothing happens. The "JauntePE" message box didn't show up, but neither did Cubic Explorer (and still no proccess). What's supposed to happen?
XP SP3 32-bit, admin rights.
BTW: I don't like the name. It seems too long and it looks ugly.
First of all, the JauntePE error message shouldn't happen, and actually I haven't experienced it (yet) on my XP sp3 32-bit. Ah ok maybe it's the message what says something like JauntePE's pipe is timed out, but I do not think it matters much. There is still a lot of little and bigger things to solve in this app. It's just a first test release to see if it has any potential.
For your other questions, JPE portaCrypt shouldn't be visually working, so that's ok. But after it's used every child-process should be hooked, the first thing to check if it's working is by using one of the folder explorer buttons int the PAM. Like clicking Documents, should be executing CubicExplorerPortable, and every program executed from the menu should get any newly created file encrypted. Basically encryption will only happen to the files in the portable app's data folder. Ini files are excluded from encryption by default.
So, do be careful if you do not have any important files in the specific apps data folder, or set-up a separate folder or separate usb-drive for testing.
Formerly Gringoloco
Windows XP Pro sp3 x32
Does it start with the menu, or do I have to manually start it each time? After it's started, how do I turn it off? Does it close after I exit the menu?
This does look promising, though (assuming that it works ;)).
JPE portaCrypt is setup to start the menu and inject the dll file into the menu, after that each child-process started (by the menu or by any child-process again) will be injected with the dll. The dll deals with hooking the API's (intercept the windows instuctions) so that every newly created file on the specific drive will be encrypted when written or decrypted when read. (Probably I should also limit the child-processes to only the executables located on this specific drive)
You can turn it off by simply closing the menu and every child-process. (I could look into a, stable, way to identify which process has been injected with the dll).
To see if it works start CubicExplorerP ( either with the Explorer button from the menu started by JPE portaCrypt, or from the portable apps list in the menu started by JPE portaCrypt). Then copy a (.txt) file to anywhere on the specific JPE portaCrypt drive. This will newly create the file and thus encrypt it. When you'd view this file by the same instance of CubicExplorerP you will see no difference, but when viewed with e.g. windows notepad (lets say started from the windows Start button), you will see it's been encrypted.
Same for Notepad++P started from the menu started by JPE portaCrypt, (open a already existing text file or) create a new file with some readable text, then save that file to the JPE portaCrypt drive. Again try top view it from the windows notepad, it will be encrypted. Reopen it from Notepad++P and you will be able to read it again.
I thought it was all in the help file, but probably I didn't explain things good enough
Let me know if you have anymore questions, or let me know if it works now (it should do, especially on XP)
Formerly Gringoloco
Windows XP Pro sp3 x32
They're usually all the same, so I normally don't bother. (but I now remember you saying "it's all in the help file" earlier...)
Yes. Perhaps you could make it identify the a portable app launcher and it's base app, and have it also close all the base apps when you exit JPE portaCrypt (maybe create an icon in the task bar? I think that based on the info you've given, it would be hard to close it without closing the menu.)?
I'll have to test it out more.
Impossible to stop if the initial menu is not closed. So yes close the menu and all other processes started by it.
For testing you are best of, creating a separated drive or folder for encryption, so things do not get mixed up.
Next release I'll do a zip file instead of an installer, and probably set it up so its all contained into a separated 'PortableAppsEncrypted' folder.
Just problem like always, have to find time to work on this project
Formerly Gringoloco
Windows XP Pro sp3 x32
updated.
This update should be a bit user/tester friendly and got rid of the error message.
Formerly Gringoloco
Windows XP Pro sp3 x32