👻 Ghosty Tools

Official Website: ghostyware.com

🚀 Download Latest Release

The Professional All-in-One Cross-Platform Optimization & Security Suite

Ghosty Tools is a high-performance, modular utility designed to secure and optimize your Windows, Linux, and macOS environments. Built with a focus on Security First, it combines system maintenance, security auditing, and professional-grade password management into a single, sleek interface.

🆕 What's New in v8.0.1

• 🐛 Driver list fixed: System report driver list no longer shows garbled/corrupted characters — switched from driverquery (OEM encoding) to Get-CimInstance Win32_PnPSignedDriver via PowerShell for clean Unicode output.
• 🔧 Full System Maintenance expanded: Phase 1 now includes DISM /ScanHealth (corruption detection) and DISM /StartComponentCleanup /ResetBase (WinSxS component store cleanup) alongside the existing CheckHealth and RestoreHealth passes.
• 📋 Export Report auto-fill: Clicking "Submit to GhostyWare Support" now automatically copies the full report to your clipboard before opening the intake form — paste it directly into the "Reported Issues" field.
• 🎮 Gaming Mode fully stops Windows Update: Previously only changed the service startup type (effective on next boot). Now immediately stops wuauserv, UsoSvc, and WaaSMedicSvc, and sets the NoAutoUpdate registry policy — updates and restarts are properly suppressed while Gaming Mode is active. Revert restores all three services and clears the policy.

✨ Features

📊 Dashboard & System Overview

• Live System Usage: Real-time monitoring of CPU, RAM, and GPU utilisation with colour-coded health indicators.
• System Health Score: Multi-factor score (0–100) accounting for CPU, RAM, disk, pending reboots, and available updates.
• Live System Alerts: Dynamic alerts for high memory, low disk, pending reboots, and update availability — auto-refreshed every 60 seconds.
• Recent Activity: Persistent log of recent app actions shown on the Dashboard.
• System Specifications: Detailed hardware information (CPU, GPU, RAM, Motherboard) — cross-platform.
• Battery & Disk Health: Real-time health status monitoring for battery and system drives.
• Quick Actions: One-click shortcuts for common tasks, platform-aware (Windows Update / macOS Update / APT).

🌐 Network Hub

• Network Speed Test: Integrated speed test with persistent history of the last 3 results.
• IP Intelligence: Display local/public IP, ISP details, and geographic location.
• DNS Benchmarker: Compare response times of major DNS providers to find the fastest one.
• Port Scanner: Check for open ports to identify potential security exposure.

🔧 System Maintenance & Advanced Tools

• Full Maintenance: One-click execution of SFC, DISM, GPUpdate, and CHKDSK.
• Hosts File Editor: Safe GUI for managing system-level domain mapping and telemetry blocking.
• DNS Flush & Network Repair: Quickly clear DNS cache or run a full network repair sequence.
• Windows Updates: Check for and initiate Windows Update installations.
• Restore Points: Create system restore points before making major changes.

🛡️ Privacy & Security

• Privacy Audit: Scans for privacy-invasive settings and helps disable them.
• Browser Privacy Cleaner: Clear cookies, cache, and history across Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Safari.
• Secure File Shredder: Permanently delete sensitive files by overwriting them multiple times.
• Vulnerability Scanner: Checks Windows Defender, Firewall, UAC, SMBv1, RDP exposure, Windows Update status, autorun entries, BitLocker, Guest account, and open ports (11 checks on Windows, 5 on Linux).

🖥️ Hardware & Sensors

• Live Sensor Data: Real-time CPU/GPU temperatures, fan speeds, and voltages via LibreHardwareMonitor.
• One-click LHM Setup: Install LibreHardwareMonitor via winget, auto-configure its web server, and launch it minimised — sensors appear automatically.
• S.M.A.R.T. Diagnostics: Disk health checks and battery info.

🚀 Task & Process Management

• Resource Hog Detector: Lists top processes by CPU/RAM with a one-click "Optimize" button.
• Process Manager: Real-time process monitoring and management.

🗑️ Windows Debloat & Tool Manager

• System Scan: Detect installed bloatware across multiple categories (Xbox, Cortana, Bing, etc.).
• Smart Uninstaller: Sequences from Winget ID → Name → Specialised PowerShell removal for stubborn apps.
• App Essentials: One-click installation for 7-Zip, VLC, Brave, Discord, HWiNFO, and more via Winget.
• Tidy Desktop: Automatically organise desktop files into library folders (Pictures, Videos, Music, Documents, Downloads) — shortcuts and folders untouched.
• Game Compatibility Analyzer: Check if your system meets the minimum/recommended requirements for 30+ popular games. Drag & drop an exe or type a game name for an instant scored report.

🔐 Password Management

• Password Generator: Generate cryptographically secure passwords.
• ShadowKeys Vault: AES-256 encrypted local password storage with PBKDF2-HMAC key derivation.
• Clipboard Security: Copied passwords are automatically cleared after 30 seconds.

⚙️ Settings & Startup

• Settings Page: Control minimize-to-tray, alert refresh interval, and startup page from within the app.
• Startup Manager (Windows): Add/remove Ghosty Tools from the Windows registry Run key.
• Startup Manager (Linux): Add/remove a .desktop autostart entry for your desktop environment.

🔔 Tray & Notifications

• System Tray Icon: Always-available tray icon with quick-access menu for common actions.
• Tray Notifications: Desktop notifications for completed scans, updates, speed tests, and more.
• Minimize Behaviour: By default, minimising keeps the window in the taskbar and Task View. Tray-on-minimize is optional in Settings.

🌍 Cross-Platform Support

Ghosty Tools v8.0.1 is fully optimised for Windows, Linux, and macOS.

• Windows: Deep system tweaks, Winget integration, registry startup manager, and PowerShell-based maintenance.
• Linux: UFW firewall management, package manager detection (apt/dnf/pacman/zypper), autostart .desktop management, and native log viewing.
• macOS: Homebrew integration, app residue cleaning, and native maintenance scripts.

Note for Linux & macOS users: Core features (Dashboard, Network Hub, Security Scanner, Task Manager, Privacy Audit, Password Vault) are fully functional on all platforms. Some Windows-specific features (Debloat, Registry Tweaks, Tidy Desktop, Game Compatibility Analyzer, Event Viewer) are automatically hidden or replaced with a platform notice on non-Windows systems. macOS support continues to expand — see LINUX_SUPPORT.md for build instructions and a full feature matrix.

See LINUX_SUPPORT.md for Linux build instructions.

📦 Install via Winget

You can install Ghosty Tools directly from the Windows Package Manager:

winget install ghostytools

🚀 Quick Start

Prerequisites

• Python 3.10+ (Fully compatible with Python 3.14)
• Windows 10/11, Linux, or macOS
• Administrator Privileges (optional for launch, required for system modifications)

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/Ghostshadowplays/Ghosty-Tools.git
   cd Ghosty-Tools

2. Create and activate a virtual environment (recommended):

   # Windows
   python -m venv venv
   .\venv\Scripts\activate
   
   # Linux/macOS
   python3 -m venv venv
   source venv/bin/activate

3. Install dependencies:

   pip install -r requirements.txt

Running the App

python main.py

📁 Project Structure

• src/core/ — Logic engines for scanning, cleaning, updates, and security.
• src/gui/ — User interface components built with PyQt6.
• src/utils/ — Helper functions, theme manager, and logging configuration.
• config/ — JSON configuration files for bloatware definitions and version info.
• images/ — Brand assets and icons.

🔒 Security Policy

• No Data Collection: Ghosty Tools operates entirely locally. No passwords or system data are ever transmitted externally.
• Secure Commands: All system operations use secure subprocess calls without shell execution (where possible) to prevent command injection.
• Encryption: ShadowKeys uses industry-standard Fernet (AES) encryption with secure key derivation (PBKDF2-HMAC-SHA256).
• Key Verification: The vault includes a verification block to ensure the master password is correct before attempting to decrypt your data.
• Local Storage: All config, vault, and log files are stored in platform-specific directories with restricted permissions:
  • Windows: %APPDATA%\GhostyTools\
  • Linux/macOS: ~/.config/GhostyTools/
• Clipboard Security: Copied passwords are automatically cleared from the clipboard after 30 seconds.
• Least Privilege: The application launches with standard user privileges. Admin elevation is only requested when performing system-level operations.

📝 License

This project is licensed under the GNU General Public License v3.0. See the LICENSE file for details.

🙏 Special Thanks

A big thank you to haywardgg — systems admin, vibe coder from Manchester, and founder of a chill coding community where devs share projects, help each other out, and keep it low-pressure. This project would not be as great as it is without him.

Join the communities:

• GhostyWare Discord: discord.gg/YKsAJYx
• haywardgg's Coding Server: discord.gg/UUuafBYMdG

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Disclaimer: Ghosty Tools provides advanced system modification capabilities. While safety checks are included, use these tools at your own risk. Always back up important data before making system changes.