Can a Hot Swap Drive Prevent Viruses?

kwp · 01 Feb 2024

Ghot said:

@kwp

You can also scan any iffy downloads at Virustotal.com
It scans any file (650MB limit), you upload with about 60 antivirus engines.

VirusTotal

The problem is that I'll be downloading huge files in the GBs not the MBs

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Ghot said:

A much easier option is do all your dangerous things on an entirely different computer.
Keep one heavily protected computer just for things like banking, etc.
Don't do anything else on the banking type computer... ever.
But even then... infections can pass from one comp to the other through the router.

That would be ideal except that I'd need to d/l then transfer files from the online PC to the offline PC. The intermediary drive used to transfer files between the 2 PCs may be infected by the offline PC which when connected to the online PC will be infected.

I guess to be really safe... have two different ISPs. One for the banking computer, and the other for the dangerous computer. That way, I don't see how an infection could pass from one comp to the other.)

Sadly theres only 1 ISP allowed in my area.

Ghot · 01 Feb 2024

kwp said:

The problem is that I'll be downloading huge files in the GBs not the MBs

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That would be ideal except that I'd need to d/l then transfer files from the online PC to the offline PC. The intermediary drive used to transfer files between the 2 PCs may be infected by the offline PC which when connected to the online PC will be infected.

Sadly theres only 1 ISP allowed in my area.

Then I would definitely use backup software.
Most of the regulars on here, do use backup software, just to be on the safe side.

Malneb · 02 Feb 2024

Sata is hot swap capable but the drive itself has to be set to do so can be done with the right settings.

I think overall its a bad idea if the gaming hard drive does get malware on it then it will be in memory if you run an application from that drive, if its something like Sality then it will just infect the other drive as soon as you change them over.

I think hot plug overall is not ideal either i never do it even though its possible. Easy way to damage data.
I agree with Ghot is saying basically you want to only have one hard drive at a time and then you need to power down to change over because that means nothing has any grounds to move between either drive. Either that or use a second computer entirely.

The other option would be a VM on the game drive and you run all the games in that VM you even sandbox inside the VM for an extra layer and then further encrypt the virtual disk.