Many wud know about BIOS password and logon password
There is also another startup password for more protection
1)Open Run and type syskey
2)A "Securing the windows....." window will open.
3)Click on update button and in the opening window select password start password
4)Give a password.
This will create another password for statrup
Showing posts with label XP. Show all posts
Showing posts with label XP. Show all posts
How to Remove the Popup Ads in Avira Antivirus Free Edition
Windows 2000 / Windows XP Pro
1.Go to Start > Run.
2.Type gpedit.msc and click OK.
3.Navigate through User Configuration > Administrative Templates > System.
4.Double click "Don't run specified Windows applications".
5.Enable it and click show.
6.Add "avnotify.exe".
7.Click OK on all open windows.
8.Restart.
Windows 7 or Windows Vista Business/Ultimate
1.Open the control panel through Start > Control Panel.
2.Go to Administrative Tools > Local security policy.
3.Click on Software Restriction Policy > Action > Create new restriction policy.
4.Right-click, and go to additional rules > new path rule.
5.Click Browse and navigate to C:\Program Files\Avira\AntiVir Desktop\ and double-click avnotify.exe.
6.Set the security level to Disallowed.
7.Click apply and OK.
Windows Vista Home 64-Bit
1.Go to C:\Program Files (x86)\Avira\AntiVir Desktop\avnotify.exe for the current version, 9. For earlier versions, go to C:\Program Files\Avira\AntiVir PersonalEdition Classic\avnotify.exe.
2.Right-click avnotify.exe and go to Properties > Security.
3.Under the group or username SYSTEM, click edit.
4.Put a checkmark under the DENY column for "read and execute".
Windows Vista Home 32-Bit
1.Go to C:\Program Files\Avira\AntiVir Desktop\avnotify.exe for the current version, 9. For earlier versions, go to C:\Program Files\Avira\AntiVir PersonalEdition Classic\avnotify.exe.
2.Right-click avnotify.exe and go to Properties > Security.
3.Under the group or username SYSTEM, click edit.
4.Put a checkmark under the DENY comlumn for "read and execute".
1.Go to Start > Run.
2.Type gpedit.msc and click OK.
3.Navigate through User Configuration > Administrative Templates > System.
4.Double click "Don't run specified Windows applications".
5.Enable it and click show.
6.Add "avnotify.exe".
7.Click OK on all open windows.
8.Restart.
Windows 7 or Windows Vista Business/Ultimate
1.Open the control panel through Start > Control Panel.
2.Go to Administrative Tools > Local security policy.
3.Click on Software Restriction Policy > Action > Create new restriction policy.
4.Right-click, and go to additional rules > new path rule.
5.Click Browse and navigate to C:\Program Files\Avira\AntiVir Desktop\ and double-click avnotify.exe.
6.Set the security level to Disallowed.
7.Click apply and OK.
Windows Vista Home 64-Bit
1.Go to C:\Program Files (x86)\Avira\AntiVir Desktop\avnotify.exe for the current version, 9. For earlier versions, go to C:\Program Files\Avira\AntiVir PersonalEdition Classic\avnotify.exe.
2.Right-click avnotify.exe and go to Properties > Security.
3.Under the group or username SYSTEM, click edit.
4.Put a checkmark under the DENY column for "read and execute".
Windows Vista Home 32-Bit
1.Go to C:\Program Files\Avira\AntiVir Desktop\avnotify.exe for the current version, 9. For earlier versions, go to C:\Program Files\Avira\AntiVir PersonalEdition Classic\avnotify.exe.
2.Right-click avnotify.exe and go to Properties > Security.
3.Under the group or username SYSTEM, click edit.
4.Put a checkmark under the DENY comlumn for "read and execute".
All windows shortcuts
Command Prompt
ANSI.SYS Defines functions that change display graphics, control cursor movement, and reassign keys.
APPEND Causes MS-DOS to look in other directories when editing a file or running a command.
ARP Displays, adds, and removes arp information from network devices.
ASSIGN Assign a drive letter to an alternate letter.
ASSOC View the file associations.
AT Schedule a time to execute commands or programs.
ATMADM Lists connections and addresses seen by Windows ATM call manager.
ATTRIB Display and change file attributes.
BATCH Recovery console command that executes a series of commands in a file.
BOOTCFG Recovery console command that allows a user to view, modify, and rebuild the boot.ini
BREAK Enable / disable CTRL + C feature.
CACLS View and modify file ACL's.
CALL Calls a batch file from another batch file.
CD Changes directories.
CHCP Supplement the International keyboard and character set information.
CHDIR Changes directories.
CHKDSK Check the hard disk drive running FAT for errors.
CHKNTFS Check the hard disk drive running NTFS for errors.
CHOICE Specify a listing of multiple options within a batch file.
CLS Clears the screen.
CMD Opens the command interpreter.
COLOR Easily change the foreground and background color of the MS-DOS window.
COMP Compares files.
COMPACT Compresses and uncompress files.
CONTROL Open control panel icons from the MS-DOS prompt.
CONVERT Convert FAT to NTFS.
COPY Copy one or more files to an alternate location.
CTTY Change the computers input/output devices.
DATE View or change the systems date.
DEBUG Debug utility to create assembly programs to modify hardware settings.
DEFRAG Re-arrange the hard disk drive to help with loading programs.
DEL Deletes one or more files.
DELETE Recovery console command that deletes a file.
DELTREE Deletes one or more files and/or directories.
DIR List the contents of one or more directory.
DISABLE Recovery console command that disables Windows system services or drivers.
DISKCOMP Compare a disk with another disk.
DISKCOPY Copy the contents of one disk and place them on another disk.
DOSKEY Command to view and execute commands that have been run in the past.
DOSSHELL A GUI to help with early MS-DOS users.
DRIVPARM Enables overwrite of original device drivers.
ECHO Displays messages and enables and disables echo.
EDIT View and edit files.
EDLIN View and edit files.
EMM386 Load extended Memory Manager.
ENABLE Recovery console command to enable a disable service or driver.
ENDLOCAL Stops the localization of the environment changes enabled by the setlocal command.
ERASE Erase files from computer.
EXIT Exit from the command interpreter.
EXPAND Expand a M*cros*ft Windows file back to it's original format.
EXTRACT Extract files from the M*cros*ft Windows cabinets.
FASTHELP Displays a listing of MS-DOS commands and information about them.
FC Compare files.
FDISK Utility used to create partitions on the hard disk drive.
FIND Search for text within a file.
FINDSTR Searches for a string of text within a file.
FIXBOOT Writes a new boot sector.
FIXMBR Writes a new boot record to a disk drive.
FOR Boolean used in batch files.
FORMAT Command to erase and prepare a disk drive.
FTP Command to connect and operate on a FTP server.
FTYPE Displays or modifies file types used in file extension associations.
GOTO Moves a batch file to a specific label or location.
GRAFTABL Show extended characters in graphics mode.
HELP Display a listing of commands and brief explanation.
IF Allows for batch files to perform conditional processing.
IFSHLP.SYS 32-bit file manager.
IPCONFIG Network command to view network adapter settings and assigned values.
KEYB Change layout of keyboard.
LABEL Change the label of a disk drive.
LH Load a device driver in to high memory.
LISTSVC Recovery console command that displays the services and drivers.
LOADFIX Load a program above the first 64k.
LOADHIGH Load a device driver in to high memory.
LOCK Lock the hard disk drive.
LOGON Recovery console command to list installations and enable administrator login.
MAP Displays the device name of a drive.
MD Command to create a new directory.
MEM Display memory on system.
MKDIR Command to create a new directory.
MODE Modify the port or display settings.
MORE Display one page at a time.
MOVE Move one or more files from one directory to another directory.
MSAV Early M*cros*ft Virus scanner.
MSD Diagnostics utility.
MSCDEX Utility used to load and provide access to the CD-ROM.
NBTSTAT Displays protocol statistics and current TCP/IP connections using NBT
NET Update, fix, or view the network or network settings
NETSH Configure dynamic and static network information from MS-DOS.
NETSTAT Display the TCP/IP network protocol statistics and information.
NLSFUNC Load country specific information.
NSLOOKUP Look up an IP address of a domain or host on a network.
PATH View and modify the computers path location.
PATHPING View and locate locations of network latency.
PAUSE Command used in batch files to stop the processing of a command.
PING Test / send information to another network computer or network device.
POPD Changes to the directory or network path stored by the pushd command.
POWER Conserve power with computer portables.
PRINT Prints data to a printer port.
PROMPT View and change the MS-DOS prompt.
PUSHD Stores a directory or network path in memory so it can be returned to at any time.
QBASIC Open the QBasic.
RD Removes an empty directory.
REN Renames a file or directory.
RENAME Renames a file or directory.
RMDIR Removes an empty directory.
ROUTE View and configure windows network route tables.
RUNAS Enables a user to execute a program on another computer.
SCANDISK Run the scandisk utility.
SCANREG Scan registry and recover registry from errors.
SET Change one variable or string to another.
SETLOCAL Enables local environments to be changed without affecting anything else.
SETVER Change MS-DOS version to trick older MS-DOS programs.
SHARE Installs support for file sharing and locking capabilities.
SHIFT Changes the position of replaceable parameters in a batch program.
SHUTDOWN Shutdown the computer from the MS-DOS prompt.
SMARTDRV Create a disk cache in conventional memory or extended memory.
SORT Sorts the input and displays the output to the screen.
START Start a separate window in Windows from the MS-DOS prompt.
SUBST Substitute a folder on your computer for another drive letter.
SWITCHES Remove add functions from MS-DOS.
SYS Transfer system files to disk drive.
TELNET Telnet to another computer / device from the prompt.
TIME View or modify the system time.
TITLE Change the title of their MS-DOS window.
TRACERT Visually view a network packets route across a network.
TREE View a visual tree of the hard disk drive.
TYPE Display the contents of a file.
UNDELETE Undelete a file that has been deleted.
UNFORMAT Unformat a hard disk drive.
UNLOCK Unlock a disk drive.
VER Display the version information.
VERIFY Enables or disables the feature to determine if files have been written properly.
VOL Displays the volume information about the designated drive.
XCOPY Copy multiple files, directories, and/or drives from one location to another.
TRUENAME When placed before a file, will display the whole directory in which it exists
TASKKILL It allows you to kill those unneeded or locked up applications
Run Commands To Access The Control Panel
Add/Remove Programs control appwiz.cpl
Date/Time Properties control timedate.cpl
Display Properties control desk.cpl
FindFast control findfast.cpl
Fonts Folder control fonts
Internet Properties control inetcpl.cpl
Keyboard Properties control main.cpl keyboard
Mouse Properties control main.cpl
Multimedia Properties control mmsys.cpl
Network Properties control netcpl.cpl
Password Properties control password.cpl
Printers Folder control printers
Sound Properties control mmsys.cpl sounds
System Properties control sysdm.cp
Run Commands:
compmgmt.msc - Computer management
devmgmt.msc - Device manager
diskmgmt.msc - Disk management
dfrg.msc - Disk defrag
eventvwr.msc - Event viewer
fsmgmt.msc - Shared folders
gpedit.msc - Group policies
lusrmgr.msc - Local users and groups
perfmon.msc - Performance monitor
rsop.msc - Resultant set of policies
secpol.msc - Local security settings
services.msc - Various Services
msconfig - System Configuration Utility
regedit - Registry Editor
msinfo32 _ System Information
sysedit _ System Edit
win.ini _ windows loading information(also system.ini)
winver _ Shows current version of windows
mailto: _ Opens default email client
command _ Opens command prompt
Windows XP Shortcuts:
ALT+- (ALT+hyphen) Displays the Multiple Document Interface (MDI) child window's System menu
ALT+ENTER View properties for the selected item
ALT+ESC Cycle through items in the order they were opened
ALT+F4 Close the active item, or quit the active program
ALT+SPACEBAR Display the System menu for the active window
ALT+TAB Switch between open items
ALT+Underlined letter Display the corresponding menu
BACKSPACE View the folder one level up in My Computer or Windows Explorer
CTRL+A Select all
CTRL+B Bold
CTRL+C Copy
CTRL+I Italics
CTRL+O Open an item
CTRL+U Underline
CTRL+V Paste
CTRL+X Cut
CTRL+Z Undo
CTRL+F4 Close the active document
CTRL while dragging Copy selected item
CTRL+SHIFT while dragging Create shortcut to selected iteM
CTRL+RIGHT ARROW Move the insertion point to the beginning of the next word
CTRL+LEFT ARROW Move the insertion point to the beginning of the previous word
CTRL+DOWN ARROW Move the insertion point to the beginning of the next paragraph
CTRL+UP ARROW Move the insertion point to the beginning of the previous paragraph
SHIFT+DELETE Delete selected item permanently without placing the item in the Recycle Bin
ESC Cancel the current task
F1 Displays Help
F2 Rename selected item
F3 Search for a file or folder
F4 Display the Address bar list in My Computer or Windows Explorer
F5 Refresh the active window
F6 Cycle through screen elements in a window or on the desktop
F10 Activate the menu bar in the active program
SHIFT+F10 Display the shortcut menu for the selected item
CTRL+ESC Display the Start menu
SHIFT+CTRL+ESC Launches Task Manager
SHIFT when you insert a CD Prevent the CD from automatically playing
WIN Display or hide the Start menu
WIN+BREAK Display the System Properties dialog box
WIN+D Minimizes all Windows and shows the Desktop
WIN+E Open Windows Explorer
WIN+F Search for a file or folder
WIN+F+CTRL Search for computers
WIN+L Locks the desktop
WIN+M Minimize or restore all windows
WIN+R Open the Run dialog box
WIN+TAB Switch between open items
Windows Explorer Shortcuts:
ALT+SPACEBAR - Display the current window’s system menu
SHIFT+F10 - Display the item's context menu
CTRL+ESC - Display the Start menu
ALT+TAB - Switch to the window you last used
ALT+F4 - Close the current window or quit
CTRL+A - Select all items
CTRL+X - Cut selected item(s)
CTRL+C - Copy selected item(s)
CTRL+V - Paste item(s)
CTRL+Z - Undo last action
CTRL+(+) - Automatically resize the columns in the right hand pane
TAB - Move forward through options
ALT+RIGHT ARROW - Move forward to a previous view
ALT+LEFT ARROW - Move backward to a previous view
SHIFT+DELETE - Delete an item immediately
BACKSPACE - View the folder one level up
ALT+ENTER - View an item’s properties
F10 - Activate the menu bar in programs
F6 - Switch between left and right panes
F5 - Refresh window contents
F3 - Display Find application
F2 - Rename selected item
Internet Explorer Shortcuts:
CTRL+A - Select all items on the current page
CTRL+D - Add the current page to your Favorites
CTRL+E - Open the Search bar
CTRL+F - Find on this page
CTRL+H - Open the History bar
CTRL+I - Open the Favorites bar
CTRL+N - Open a new window
CTRL+O - Go to a new location
CTRL+P - Print the current page or active frame
CTRL+S - Save the current page
CTRL+W - Close current browser window
CTRL+ENTER - Adds the http://www. (url) .com
SHIFT+CLICK - Open link in new window
BACKSPACE - Go to the previous page
ALT+HOME - Go to your Home page
HOME - Move to the beginning of a document
TAB - Move forward through items on a page
END - Move to the end of a document
ESC - Stop downloading a page
F11 - Toggle full-screen view
F5 - Refresh the current page
F4 - Display list of typed addresses
F6 - Change Address bar and page focus
ALT+RIGHT ARROW - Go to the next page
SHIFT+CTRL+TAB - Move back between frames
SHIFT+F10 - Display a shortcut menu for a link
SHIFT+TAB - Move back through the items on a page
CTRL+TAB - Move forward between frames
CTRL+C - Copy selected items to the clipboard
CTRL+V - Insert contents of the clipboard
ENTER - Activate a selected link
HOME - Move to the beginning of a document
END - Move to the end of a document
F1 - Display Internet Explorer Help
Accessibility Shortcuts
Tap SHIFT 5 times - Toggles StickyKeys on and off.
Press down and hold the right SHIFT key for 8 seconds - Toggles FilterKeys on and off.
Press down and hold the NUM LOCK key for 5 seconds - Toggles ToggleKeys on and off.
Left ALT+left SHIFT+NUM LOCK - Toggles MouseKeys on and off.
Left ALT+left SHIFT+PRINT SCREEN - Toggles High Contrast on and off.
Easy move through Powerpoint
Apply subscript formatting - CTRL+EQUAL SIGN (=)
Apply superscript formatting - CTRL+PLUS SIGN (+)
Bold - CTRL+B
Capitalize - SHIFT+F3
Copy - CTRL+C
Delete a word - CTRL+BACKSPACE
Demote a paragraph - ALT+SHIFT+RIGHT ARROW
Find - CTRL+F
Insert a hyperlink - CTRL+K
Insert a new slide - CTRL+M
Italicize - CTRL+I
Make a duplicate of the current slide - CTRL+D
Open - CTRL+O
Open the Font dialog box - CTRL+T
Paste - CTRL+V
Print - CTRL+P
Promote a paragraph - ALT+SHIFT+LEFT ARROW
Repeat your last action - F4 or CTRL+Y
Save - CTRL+S
Select all - CTRL+A
Start a slide show - F5
Switch to the next pane (clockwise) - F6
Switch to the previous pane - SHIFT+F6
Undo - CTRL+Z
View guides - CTRL+G
Excel Time saving Shortcuts
Move to next cell in row - Tab
Move to previous cell in row - Shift + Tab
Up one screen - Page Up
Down one screen - Page Down
Move to next worksheet - Ctrl + Page Down
Move to previous worksheet - Ctrl + Page Up
Go to first cell in data region - Ctrl + Home
Go to last cell in data region - Ctrl + End
Bold toggle for selection - Ctrl + B
Italic toggle for selection - Ctrl + I
Underline toggle for selection - Ctrl + U
Strikethrough for selection - Ctrl + 5
Change the font - Ctrl + Shift + F
Change the font size - Ctrl + Shift + P
Apply outline borders - Ctrl + Shift + 7
Remove all borders - Ctrl + Shift + Underline
Wrap text in same cell - Alt + Enter
Format cells - Ctrl + 1
Select font - Ctrl + Shift + F
Select point size - Ctrl + Shift + P
Format as currency - Ctrl + Shift + 4
Format as general - Ctrl + Shift + # (hash sign)
Format as percentage - Ctrl + Shift + 5
Format as number - Ctrl + Shift + 1
Autosum a range of cells - Alt + Equals Sign
Insert the date - Ctrl + ; (semi-colon)
Insert the time - Ctrl + Shift + ; (semi-colon)
Insert columns/rows - Ctrl + Shift + + (plus sign)
Insert a new worksheet - Shift + F11
Read Monitor Cell One - Alt + Shift + 1
Read Monitor Cell Two - Alt + Shift + 2
Read Monitor Cell Three - Alt + Shift + 3
Read Monitor Cell Four - Alt + Shift + 4
List Visible Cells With Data - Ctrl + Shift + D
Lists Data In Current Column - Ctrl + Shift + C
List Data In Current Row - Ctrl + Shift + R
Select Hyperlink - Ctrl + Shift + H
Move To Worksheet Listbox - Ctrl + Shift + S
Move To Monitor Cell - Ctrl + Shift + M
Select Worksheet Objects - Ctrl + Shift + O
List Cells At Page Breaks - Ctrl + Shift + B
Options Listbox - Insert + V
Microsoft Office Keyboard Shortcut Keys
All Caps - CTRL+SHIFT+A
Annotation - ALT+CTRL+M
Auto Format - ALT+CTRL+K
Auto Text - F3 or ALT+CTRL+V
Bold - CTRL+B or CTRL+SHIFT+B
Bookmark - CTRL+SHIFT+F5
Copy - CTRL+C or CTRL+INSERT
Copy Format - CTRL+SHIFT+C
Copy Text - SHIFT+F2
Create Auto Text - ALT+F3
Date Field - ALT+SHIFT+D
Delete Back Word - CTRL+BACKSPACE
Delete Word - CTRL+DELETE
Dictionary - ALT+SHIFT+F7
Do Field Click - ALT+SHIFT+F9
Doc Maximize - CTRL+F10
Doc Move - CTRL+F7
Doc Restore - CTRL+F5
Doc Size - CTRL+F8
Grow Font - CTRL+SHIFT+.
Grow Font One Point - CTRL+]Hanging Indent - CTRL+T
Header Footer Link - ALT+SHIFT+R
Help - F1
Hidden - CTRL+SHIFT+H
Hyperlink - CTRL+K
Indent - CTRL+M
Italic - CTRL+I or CTRL+SHIFT+I
Justify Para - CTRL+J
Left Para - CTRL+L
Line Up Extend - SHIFT+UP
List Num Field - ALT+CTRL+L
Outline - ALT+CTRL+O
Outline Collapse - ALT+SHIFT+- or ALT+SHIFT+NUM -
Outline Demote - ALT+SHIFT+RIGHT
Outline Expand - ALT+SHIFT+=
Outline Expand - ALT+SHIFT+NUM +
Outline Move Down - ALT+SHIFT+DOWN
Outline Move Up - ALT+SHIFT+UP
Outline Promote - ALT+SHIFT+LEFT
Outline Show First Line - ALT+SHIFT+L
Lock Fields - CTRL+3 or CTRL+F11
Web Go Back - ALT+LEFT
Web Go Forward - ALT+RIGHT
Word Left - CTRL+LEFT
Word Left Extend - CTRL+SHIFT+LEFT
Word Right - CTRL+RIGHT
ANSI.SYS Defines functions that change display graphics, control cursor movement, and reassign keys.
APPEND Causes MS-DOS to look in other directories when editing a file or running a command.
ARP Displays, adds, and removes arp information from network devices.
ASSIGN Assign a drive letter to an alternate letter.
ASSOC View the file associations.
AT Schedule a time to execute commands or programs.
ATMADM Lists connections and addresses seen by Windows ATM call manager.
ATTRIB Display and change file attributes.
BATCH Recovery console command that executes a series of commands in a file.
BOOTCFG Recovery console command that allows a user to view, modify, and rebuild the boot.ini
BREAK Enable / disable CTRL + C feature.
CACLS View and modify file ACL's.
CALL Calls a batch file from another batch file.
CD Changes directories.
CHCP Supplement the International keyboard and character set information.
CHDIR Changes directories.
CHKDSK Check the hard disk drive running FAT for errors.
CHKNTFS Check the hard disk drive running NTFS for errors.
CHOICE Specify a listing of multiple options within a batch file.
CLS Clears the screen.
CMD Opens the command interpreter.
COLOR Easily change the foreground and background color of the MS-DOS window.
COMP Compares files.
COMPACT Compresses and uncompress files.
CONTROL Open control panel icons from the MS-DOS prompt.
CONVERT Convert FAT to NTFS.
COPY Copy one or more files to an alternate location.
CTTY Change the computers input/output devices.
DATE View or change the systems date.
DEBUG Debug utility to create assembly programs to modify hardware settings.
DEFRAG Re-arrange the hard disk drive to help with loading programs.
DEL Deletes one or more files.
DELETE Recovery console command that deletes a file.
DELTREE Deletes one or more files and/or directories.
DIR List the contents of one or more directory.
DISABLE Recovery console command that disables Windows system services or drivers.
DISKCOMP Compare a disk with another disk.
DISKCOPY Copy the contents of one disk and place them on another disk.
DOSKEY Command to view and execute commands that have been run in the past.
DOSSHELL A GUI to help with early MS-DOS users.
DRIVPARM Enables overwrite of original device drivers.
ECHO Displays messages and enables and disables echo.
EDIT View and edit files.
EDLIN View and edit files.
EMM386 Load extended Memory Manager.
ENABLE Recovery console command to enable a disable service or driver.
ENDLOCAL Stops the localization of the environment changes enabled by the setlocal command.
ERASE Erase files from computer.
EXIT Exit from the command interpreter.
EXPAND Expand a M*cros*ft Windows file back to it's original format.
EXTRACT Extract files from the M*cros*ft Windows cabinets.
FASTHELP Displays a listing of MS-DOS commands and information about them.
FC Compare files.
FDISK Utility used to create partitions on the hard disk drive.
FIND Search for text within a file.
FINDSTR Searches for a string of text within a file.
FIXBOOT Writes a new boot sector.
FIXMBR Writes a new boot record to a disk drive.
FOR Boolean used in batch files.
FORMAT Command to erase and prepare a disk drive.
FTP Command to connect and operate on a FTP server.
FTYPE Displays or modifies file types used in file extension associations.
GOTO Moves a batch file to a specific label or location.
GRAFTABL Show extended characters in graphics mode.
HELP Display a listing of commands and brief explanation.
IF Allows for batch files to perform conditional processing.
IFSHLP.SYS 32-bit file manager.
IPCONFIG Network command to view network adapter settings and assigned values.
KEYB Change layout of keyboard.
LABEL Change the label of a disk drive.
LH Load a device driver in to high memory.
LISTSVC Recovery console command that displays the services and drivers.
LOADFIX Load a program above the first 64k.
LOADHIGH Load a device driver in to high memory.
LOCK Lock the hard disk drive.
LOGON Recovery console command to list installations and enable administrator login.
MAP Displays the device name of a drive.
MD Command to create a new directory.
MEM Display memory on system.
MKDIR Command to create a new directory.
MODE Modify the port or display settings.
MORE Display one page at a time.
MOVE Move one or more files from one directory to another directory.
MSAV Early M*cros*ft Virus scanner.
MSD Diagnostics utility.
MSCDEX Utility used to load and provide access to the CD-ROM.
NBTSTAT Displays protocol statistics and current TCP/IP connections using NBT
NET Update, fix, or view the network or network settings
NETSH Configure dynamic and static network information from MS-DOS.
NETSTAT Display the TCP/IP network protocol statistics and information.
NLSFUNC Load country specific information.
NSLOOKUP Look up an IP address of a domain or host on a network.
PATH View and modify the computers path location.
PATHPING View and locate locations of network latency.
PAUSE Command used in batch files to stop the processing of a command.
PING Test / send information to another network computer or network device.
POPD Changes to the directory or network path stored by the pushd command.
POWER Conserve power with computer portables.
PRINT Prints data to a printer port.
PROMPT View and change the MS-DOS prompt.
PUSHD Stores a directory or network path in memory so it can be returned to at any time.
QBASIC Open the QBasic.
RD Removes an empty directory.
REN Renames a file or directory.
RENAME Renames a file or directory.
RMDIR Removes an empty directory.
ROUTE View and configure windows network route tables.
RUNAS Enables a user to execute a program on another computer.
SCANDISK Run the scandisk utility.
SCANREG Scan registry and recover registry from errors.
SET Change one variable or string to another.
SETLOCAL Enables local environments to be changed without affecting anything else.
SETVER Change MS-DOS version to trick older MS-DOS programs.
SHARE Installs support for file sharing and locking capabilities.
SHIFT Changes the position of replaceable parameters in a batch program.
SHUTDOWN Shutdown the computer from the MS-DOS prompt.
SMARTDRV Create a disk cache in conventional memory or extended memory.
SORT Sorts the input and displays the output to the screen.
START Start a separate window in Windows from the MS-DOS prompt.
SUBST Substitute a folder on your computer for another drive letter.
SWITCHES Remove add functions from MS-DOS.
SYS Transfer system files to disk drive.
TELNET Telnet to another computer / device from the prompt.
TIME View or modify the system time.
TITLE Change the title of their MS-DOS window.
TRACERT Visually view a network packets route across a network.
TREE View a visual tree of the hard disk drive.
TYPE Display the contents of a file.
UNDELETE Undelete a file that has been deleted.
UNFORMAT Unformat a hard disk drive.
UNLOCK Unlock a disk drive.
VER Display the version information.
VERIFY Enables or disables the feature to determine if files have been written properly.
VOL Displays the volume information about the designated drive.
XCOPY Copy multiple files, directories, and/or drives from one location to another.
TRUENAME When placed before a file, will display the whole directory in which it exists
TASKKILL It allows you to kill those unneeded or locked up applications
Run Commands To Access The Control Panel
Add/Remove Programs control appwiz.cpl
Date/Time Properties control timedate.cpl
Display Properties control desk.cpl
FindFast control findfast.cpl
Fonts Folder control fonts
Internet Properties control inetcpl.cpl
Keyboard Properties control main.cpl keyboard
Mouse Properties control main.cpl
Multimedia Properties control mmsys.cpl
Network Properties control netcpl.cpl
Password Properties control password.cpl
Printers Folder control printers
Sound Properties control mmsys.cpl sounds
System Properties control sysdm.cp
Run Commands:
compmgmt.msc - Computer management
devmgmt.msc - Device manager
diskmgmt.msc - Disk management
dfrg.msc - Disk defrag
eventvwr.msc - Event viewer
fsmgmt.msc - Shared folders
gpedit.msc - Group policies
lusrmgr.msc - Local users and groups
perfmon.msc - Performance monitor
rsop.msc - Resultant set of policies
secpol.msc - Local security settings
services.msc - Various Services
msconfig - System Configuration Utility
regedit - Registry Editor
msinfo32 _ System Information
sysedit _ System Edit
win.ini _ windows loading information(also system.ini)
winver _ Shows current version of windows
mailto: _ Opens default email client
command _ Opens command prompt
Windows XP Shortcuts:
ALT+- (ALT+hyphen) Displays the Multiple Document Interface (MDI) child window's System menu
ALT+ENTER View properties for the selected item
ALT+ESC Cycle through items in the order they were opened
ALT+F4 Close the active item, or quit the active program
ALT+SPACEBAR Display the System menu for the active window
ALT+TAB Switch between open items
ALT+Underlined letter Display the corresponding menu
BACKSPACE View the folder one level up in My Computer or Windows Explorer
CTRL+A Select all
CTRL+B Bold
CTRL+C Copy
CTRL+I Italics
CTRL+O Open an item
CTRL+U Underline
CTRL+V Paste
CTRL+X Cut
CTRL+Z Undo
CTRL+F4 Close the active document
CTRL while dragging Copy selected item
CTRL+SHIFT while dragging Create shortcut to selected iteM
CTRL+RIGHT ARROW Move the insertion point to the beginning of the next word
CTRL+LEFT ARROW Move the insertion point to the beginning of the previous word
CTRL+DOWN ARROW Move the insertion point to the beginning of the next paragraph
CTRL+UP ARROW Move the insertion point to the beginning of the previous paragraph
SHIFT+DELETE Delete selected item permanently without placing the item in the Recycle Bin
ESC Cancel the current task
F1 Displays Help
F2 Rename selected item
F3 Search for a file or folder
F4 Display the Address bar list in My Computer or Windows Explorer
F5 Refresh the active window
F6 Cycle through screen elements in a window or on the desktop
F10 Activate the menu bar in the active program
SHIFT+F10 Display the shortcut menu for the selected item
CTRL+ESC Display the Start menu
SHIFT+CTRL+ESC Launches Task Manager
SHIFT when you insert a CD Prevent the CD from automatically playing
WIN Display or hide the Start menu
WIN+BREAK Display the System Properties dialog box
WIN+D Minimizes all Windows and shows the Desktop
WIN+E Open Windows Explorer
WIN+F Search for a file or folder
WIN+F+CTRL Search for computers
WIN+L Locks the desktop
WIN+M Minimize or restore all windows
WIN+R Open the Run dialog box
WIN+TAB Switch between open items
Windows Explorer Shortcuts:
ALT+SPACEBAR - Display the current window’s system menu
SHIFT+F10 - Display the item's context menu
CTRL+ESC - Display the Start menu
ALT+TAB - Switch to the window you last used
ALT+F4 - Close the current window or quit
CTRL+A - Select all items
CTRL+X - Cut selected item(s)
CTRL+C - Copy selected item(s)
CTRL+V - Paste item(s)
CTRL+Z - Undo last action
CTRL+(+) - Automatically resize the columns in the right hand pane
TAB - Move forward through options
ALT+RIGHT ARROW - Move forward to a previous view
ALT+LEFT ARROW - Move backward to a previous view
SHIFT+DELETE - Delete an item immediately
BACKSPACE - View the folder one level up
ALT+ENTER - View an item’s properties
F10 - Activate the menu bar in programs
F6 - Switch between left and right panes
F5 - Refresh window contents
F3 - Display Find application
F2 - Rename selected item
Internet Explorer Shortcuts:
CTRL+A - Select all items on the current page
CTRL+D - Add the current page to your Favorites
CTRL+E - Open the Search bar
CTRL+F - Find on this page
CTRL+H - Open the History bar
CTRL+I - Open the Favorites bar
CTRL+N - Open a new window
CTRL+O - Go to a new location
CTRL+P - Print the current page or active frame
CTRL+S - Save the current page
CTRL+W - Close current browser window
CTRL+ENTER - Adds the http://www. (url) .com
SHIFT+CLICK - Open link in new window
BACKSPACE - Go to the previous page
ALT+HOME - Go to your Home page
HOME - Move to the beginning of a document
TAB - Move forward through items on a page
END - Move to the end of a document
ESC - Stop downloading a page
F11 - Toggle full-screen view
F5 - Refresh the current page
F4 - Display list of typed addresses
F6 - Change Address bar and page focus
ALT+RIGHT ARROW - Go to the next page
SHIFT+CTRL+TAB - Move back between frames
SHIFT+F10 - Display a shortcut menu for a link
SHIFT+TAB - Move back through the items on a page
CTRL+TAB - Move forward between frames
CTRL+C - Copy selected items to the clipboard
CTRL+V - Insert contents of the clipboard
ENTER - Activate a selected link
HOME - Move to the beginning of a document
END - Move to the end of a document
F1 - Display Internet Explorer Help
Accessibility Shortcuts
Tap SHIFT 5 times - Toggles StickyKeys on and off.
Press down and hold the right SHIFT key for 8 seconds - Toggles FilterKeys on and off.
Press down and hold the NUM LOCK key for 5 seconds - Toggles ToggleKeys on and off.
Left ALT+left SHIFT+NUM LOCK - Toggles MouseKeys on and off.
Left ALT+left SHIFT+PRINT SCREEN - Toggles High Contrast on and off.
Easy move through Powerpoint
Apply subscript formatting - CTRL+EQUAL SIGN (=)
Apply superscript formatting - CTRL+PLUS SIGN (+)
Bold - CTRL+B
Capitalize - SHIFT+F3
Copy - CTRL+C
Delete a word - CTRL+BACKSPACE
Demote a paragraph - ALT+SHIFT+RIGHT ARROW
Find - CTRL+F
Insert a hyperlink - CTRL+K
Insert a new slide - CTRL+M
Italicize - CTRL+I
Make a duplicate of the current slide - CTRL+D
Open - CTRL+O
Open the Font dialog box - CTRL+T
Paste - CTRL+V
Print - CTRL+P
Promote a paragraph - ALT+SHIFT+LEFT ARROW
Repeat your last action - F4 or CTRL+Y
Save - CTRL+S
Select all - CTRL+A
Start a slide show - F5
Switch to the next pane (clockwise) - F6
Switch to the previous pane - SHIFT+F6
Undo - CTRL+Z
View guides - CTRL+G
Excel Time saving Shortcuts
Move to next cell in row - Tab
Move to previous cell in row - Shift + Tab
Up one screen - Page Up
Down one screen - Page Down
Move to next worksheet - Ctrl + Page Down
Move to previous worksheet - Ctrl + Page Up
Go to first cell in data region - Ctrl + Home
Go to last cell in data region - Ctrl + End
Bold toggle for selection - Ctrl + B
Italic toggle for selection - Ctrl + I
Underline toggle for selection - Ctrl + U
Strikethrough for selection - Ctrl + 5
Change the font - Ctrl + Shift + F
Change the font size - Ctrl + Shift + P
Apply outline borders - Ctrl + Shift + 7
Remove all borders - Ctrl + Shift + Underline
Wrap text in same cell - Alt + Enter
Format cells - Ctrl + 1
Select font - Ctrl + Shift + F
Select point size - Ctrl + Shift + P
Format as currency - Ctrl + Shift + 4
Format as general - Ctrl + Shift + # (hash sign)
Format as percentage - Ctrl + Shift + 5
Format as number - Ctrl + Shift + 1
Autosum a range of cells - Alt + Equals Sign
Insert the date - Ctrl + ; (semi-colon)
Insert the time - Ctrl + Shift + ; (semi-colon)
Insert columns/rows - Ctrl + Shift + + (plus sign)
Insert a new worksheet - Shift + F11
Read Monitor Cell One - Alt + Shift + 1
Read Monitor Cell Two - Alt + Shift + 2
Read Monitor Cell Three - Alt + Shift + 3
Read Monitor Cell Four - Alt + Shift + 4
List Visible Cells With Data - Ctrl + Shift + D
Lists Data In Current Column - Ctrl + Shift + C
List Data In Current Row - Ctrl + Shift + R
Select Hyperlink - Ctrl + Shift + H
Move To Worksheet Listbox - Ctrl + Shift + S
Move To Monitor Cell - Ctrl + Shift + M
Select Worksheet Objects - Ctrl + Shift + O
List Cells At Page Breaks - Ctrl + Shift + B
Options Listbox - Insert + V
Microsoft Office Keyboard Shortcut Keys
All Caps - CTRL+SHIFT+A
Annotation - ALT+CTRL+M
Auto Format - ALT+CTRL+K
Auto Text - F3 or ALT+CTRL+V
Bold - CTRL+B or CTRL+SHIFT+B
Bookmark - CTRL+SHIFT+F5
Copy - CTRL+C or CTRL+INSERT
Copy Format - CTRL+SHIFT+C
Copy Text - SHIFT+F2
Create Auto Text - ALT+F3
Date Field - ALT+SHIFT+D
Delete Back Word - CTRL+BACKSPACE
Delete Word - CTRL+DELETE
Dictionary - ALT+SHIFT+F7
Do Field Click - ALT+SHIFT+F9
Doc Maximize - CTRL+F10
Doc Move - CTRL+F7
Doc Restore - CTRL+F5
Doc Size - CTRL+F8
Grow Font - CTRL+SHIFT+.
Grow Font One Point - CTRL+]Hanging Indent - CTRL+T
Header Footer Link - ALT+SHIFT+R
Help - F1
Hidden - CTRL+SHIFT+H
Hyperlink - CTRL+K
Indent - CTRL+M
Italic - CTRL+I or CTRL+SHIFT+I
Justify Para - CTRL+J
Left Para - CTRL+L
Line Up Extend - SHIFT+UP
List Num Field - ALT+CTRL+L
Outline - ALT+CTRL+O
Outline Collapse - ALT+SHIFT+- or ALT+SHIFT+NUM -
Outline Demote - ALT+SHIFT+RIGHT
Outline Expand - ALT+SHIFT+=
Outline Expand - ALT+SHIFT+NUM +
Outline Move Down - ALT+SHIFT+DOWN
Outline Move Up - ALT+SHIFT+UP
Outline Promote - ALT+SHIFT+LEFT
Outline Show First Line - ALT+SHIFT+L
Lock Fields - CTRL+3 or CTRL+F11
Web Go Back - ALT+LEFT
Web Go Forward - ALT+RIGHT
Word Left - CTRL+LEFT
Word Left Extend - CTRL+SHIFT+LEFT
Word Right - CTRL+RIGHT
How to View Windows Clipboard Contents Easily in Windows
Sometimes you may wonder what is inside a clipboard before you decide to overwrite it with something else or start pasting it into document. Instead of viewing the content by opening up notepad or word document and paste it, there is a quick way that enables you to know the clipboard content with just a simple click.
To display the clipboard content, user can do it by running clipbrd.exe and it will show you the clipboard content once it is launched. Clipbrd.exe comes together with Windows XP and it is located under C:\WINDOWS\system32. In order to access this utility in faster way, you can create a shortcut and put it in your desktop. Follow below steps to create the shortcut for this utility:
1) Right click on the empty area on desktop, then select New->Shortcut.
2) The ‘Create Shortcut window’ will pop up, type: %windir%\System32\clipbrd.exe and click Next button.
3) Type a name for this shortcut as you like, for example: Clipbrd.exe then click Finish button to create the shortcut on your desktop.
To view the content of your clipboard, just double click this shortcut and it will display the clipboard content immediately. For windows Vista, this utility is not part of windows Vista package. To enable this feature, you can copy clipbrd.exe from windows XP into C:\Windows\System32 in Vista, then create a shortcut on desktop to access it directly.
To display the clipboard content, user can do it by running clipbrd.exe and it will show you the clipboard content once it is launched. Clipbrd.exe comes together with Windows XP and it is located under C:\WINDOWS\system32. In order to access this utility in faster way, you can create a shortcut and put it in your desktop. Follow below steps to create the shortcut for this utility:
1) Right click on the empty area on desktop, then select New->Shortcut.
2) The ‘Create Shortcut window’ will pop up, type: %windir%\System32\clipbrd.exe and click Next button.
3) Type a name for this shortcut as you like, for example: Clipbrd.exe then click Finish button to create the shortcut on your desktop.
To view the content of your clipboard, just double click this shortcut and it will display the clipboard content immediately. For windows Vista, this utility is not part of windows Vista package. To enable this feature, you can copy clipbrd.exe from windows XP into C:\Windows\System32 in Vista, then create a shortcut on desktop to access it directly.
Top 10 Causes of a Slow or Freezing PC
1. System Start-up packed with too many applications (Start-up overload)
Over time, as you add more and more programs to your computer, many of these applications automatically add themselves to your Windows Start-up folder. Additionally, these applications can add themselves quietly to a hidden area of your Windows Start-up system (accessed via the MSCONFIG run command). In extreme cases your PC will appear completely frozen.
Limiting the number of applications loading themselves at start-up can speed boot times considerably and increase overall system performance.
2. Spyware
Malicious programs that stealthily embed themselves into your Windows Registry and core file system are the number two most common cause of a slow PC or poor PC performance.
These applications are usually installed without your knowledge or consent during the installation of a "free" application you're trying out, or pushed out automatically in the background when you visit websites that engage in this practice without the user's knowledge.
These spyware programs must be removed as soon as possible to return your PC to top running speed, and before they damage your file system.
In some cases they can be removed by manually editing the Windows core file system and registry or by using an automatic spyware remover.
3. Corrupted/Bloated Windows Registry
The Windows Registry is the master control center for your operating system and applications it runs. Corruption or overload registry issues can cause all sorts of pc performance problems, including poor application startup times, slow Windows start-up, extremely slow shut down, inability to resume from computer sleep and more.
Cleaning, compacting, and optimizing your Windows registry can go a long way to dramatically speeding up your computer's performance, start-up and shutdown speed.
4. Badly Fragmented Hard Drive
The sixth most common reason for a slow PC is hard drive and file system fragmentation. Over time, your computer's files can be scattered into bits and pieces located all over your hard drive. This is called fragmentation. Windows has a built in tool to help you with hard drive defragmentation:
o Open My Computer,
o Right-click once on your C: Drive and go down to "Properties"
o Select the "Tools" tab and choose the "Defragment Now" option and follow the step by step instructions.
5. Poor Security Software that is stealing system resources
Unfortunately, a large number of security software programs and suites out there demand a huge portion of your system resources and memory. This can lead to sluggish performance from the rest of your PC while your security software is constantly scanning and monitoring your computer for threats.
While threat detection is essential, some security vendors go overboard with their approach and drag your PC down with them.
To see how much memory and system resources your security software is using, press and hold CTRL+ALT+DELETE and choose the task manager.
Once the task manager is open look at the "processes" section to see how much of your system resources are being used by your security apps.
6. Remnants of uninstalled programs
Uninstalling an application either via the control panel or the application's start menu folder has been known to leave behind remnants of the uninstalled program. These remnants can slow down your computer while Windows tries to figure out what to do with them. Additionally, residue of old program stays behind in your system registry, clogging up your PC's core.
Recommended: Remove old uninstall entries.
7. Pagefile
The Windows page file is a temporary area of memory that your computer uses to move files around while it processes functions. Basically, it's a buffer that your computer uses for wiggle room. If your Pagefile is too small, your operating system won't have enough room to move and you could end up with poor performance and error messages.
To increase the size of your Pagefile:
o Right-click on "My Computer" and go down to "Properties"
o Click the "Advanced" tab
o Click "Settings" under the "Performance" section
o Click the "Advanced" button
o Click "Change" under "Virtual Memory"
8. Hard Drive getting full and too many internet temp and windows temp files
If your hard drive has less than 10% free space, you will experience a dramatic slowdown in the performance of your PC. To improve this, free up some space by removing old documents you no longer use or programs that are no longer needed.
Additionally, your Internet Explorer temp files folder can become jam-packed and lead to extraordinary launch times for Internet Explorer.
9. Virus
Closely related to Spyware, viruses can wreak havoc on your system's performance and severely limit your PC's ability to do what you ask it to.
Typically, viruses get onto your computer via infected email or instant messages, although they can also be installed via applications or files that you download from file-sharing networks and other non-trusted web sites.
Manual removal of viruses is very difficult and rarely successful,
10. Hardware Problems
The fourth most common cause of a slow or freezing computer is gradually dying internal hardware components. These can often show up in the form of slow boot and shut down, as well as poor program launches riddled with errors.
There are very few hardware diagnostic utilities out there, so we recommend careful removal of any newly installed pc components to see if they are causing a problem or incompatibility. Other than that, taking your PC to a certified, trusted hardware repair shop is usually a good idea.
Over time, as you add more and more programs to your computer, many of these applications automatically add themselves to your Windows Start-up folder. Additionally, these applications can add themselves quietly to a hidden area of your Windows Start-up system (accessed via the MSCONFIG run command). In extreme cases your PC will appear completely frozen.
Limiting the number of applications loading themselves at start-up can speed boot times considerably and increase overall system performance.
2. Spyware
Malicious programs that stealthily embed themselves into your Windows Registry and core file system are the number two most common cause of a slow PC or poor PC performance.
These applications are usually installed without your knowledge or consent during the installation of a "free" application you're trying out, or pushed out automatically in the background when you visit websites that engage in this practice without the user's knowledge.
These spyware programs must be removed as soon as possible to return your PC to top running speed, and before they damage your file system.
In some cases they can be removed by manually editing the Windows core file system and registry or by using an automatic spyware remover.
3. Corrupted/Bloated Windows Registry
The Windows Registry is the master control center for your operating system and applications it runs. Corruption or overload registry issues can cause all sorts of pc performance problems, including poor application startup times, slow Windows start-up, extremely slow shut down, inability to resume from computer sleep and more.
Cleaning, compacting, and optimizing your Windows registry can go a long way to dramatically speeding up your computer's performance, start-up and shutdown speed.
4. Badly Fragmented Hard Drive
The sixth most common reason for a slow PC is hard drive and file system fragmentation. Over time, your computer's files can be scattered into bits and pieces located all over your hard drive. This is called fragmentation. Windows has a built in tool to help you with hard drive defragmentation:
o Open My Computer,
o Right-click once on your C: Drive and go down to "Properties"
o Select the "Tools" tab and choose the "Defragment Now" option and follow the step by step instructions.
5. Poor Security Software that is stealing system resources
Unfortunately, a large number of security software programs and suites out there demand a huge portion of your system resources and memory. This can lead to sluggish performance from the rest of your PC while your security software is constantly scanning and monitoring your computer for threats.
While threat detection is essential, some security vendors go overboard with their approach and drag your PC down with them.
To see how much memory and system resources your security software is using, press and hold CTRL+ALT+DELETE and choose the task manager.
Once the task manager is open look at the "processes" section to see how much of your system resources are being used by your security apps.
6. Remnants of uninstalled programs
Uninstalling an application either via the control panel or the application's start menu folder has been known to leave behind remnants of the uninstalled program. These remnants can slow down your computer while Windows tries to figure out what to do with them. Additionally, residue of old program stays behind in your system registry, clogging up your PC's core.
Recommended: Remove old uninstall entries.
7. Pagefile
The Windows page file is a temporary area of memory that your computer uses to move files around while it processes functions. Basically, it's a buffer that your computer uses for wiggle room. If your Pagefile is too small, your operating system won't have enough room to move and you could end up with poor performance and error messages.
To increase the size of your Pagefile:
o Right-click on "My Computer" and go down to "Properties"
o Click the "Advanced" tab
o Click "Settings" under the "Performance" section
o Click the "Advanced" button
o Click "Change" under "Virtual Memory"
8. Hard Drive getting full and too many internet temp and windows temp files
If your hard drive has less than 10% free space, you will experience a dramatic slowdown in the performance of your PC. To improve this, free up some space by removing old documents you no longer use or programs that are no longer needed.
Additionally, your Internet Explorer temp files folder can become jam-packed and lead to extraordinary launch times for Internet Explorer.
9. Virus
Closely related to Spyware, viruses can wreak havoc on your system's performance and severely limit your PC's ability to do what you ask it to.
Typically, viruses get onto your computer via infected email or instant messages, although they can also be installed via applications or files that you download from file-sharing networks and other non-trusted web sites.
Manual removal of viruses is very difficult and rarely successful,
10. Hardware Problems
The fourth most common cause of a slow or freezing computer is gradually dying internal hardware components. These can often show up in the form of slow boot and shut down, as well as poor program launches riddled with errors.
There are very few hardware diagnostic utilities out there, so we recommend careful removal of any newly installed pc components to see if they are causing a problem or incompatibility. Other than that, taking your PC to a certified, trusted hardware repair shop is usually a good idea.
Making Windows Xp Start Faster
Whenever you start your computer, you are faced with a few moments of thumb twiddling while Windows XP boots and prompts you to log on. Although you should expect to wait for a few moments, sometimes Windows XP seems to boot rather slowly. In fact, you may notice that over a period of time the PC that used to roar to life seems a bit sluggish instead. Fortunately, you can perform several techniques that help Windows XP get the bootup speed you want. This chapter explores how to put these techniques to work.
Stopping Unneeded Startup Services
Along with the core operating system and programs that Windows XP runs when it starts, there is also a host of services involved. Many of these services are necessary for Windows XP to operate correctly. However, many of them are for features in Windows XP that you may not use at all. You can peruse the services and disable any service that you do not want to run. The fewer services that run, the more quickly Windows XP will boot.
Caution:
Exercise caution when stopping services. If you do not know what a service does or are unsure of the ramifications of stopping the service, leave it alone. Some services are critical to Windows XP's operations, so make sure you understand what the service is before you disable it.
To reduce the number of services that start on bootup, you can access two different areas of Windows XP. The first is the System Configuration Utility. The Services tab shows you the services that start when the computer boots.
You can stop a service from starting by simply clearing the check box next to the service and clicking OK. However, before you do so, there is another way to disable services that you may prefer because the interface gives you more information about the service in question.
Open Control Panel/Administrative ToolsServices or else select Start/Run, type services.msc, and click OK. Either way, you see the Services console.
I prefer to use the Services console instead of the System Configuration Utility because it describes what the service does. Additionally, you can double-click a service and examine its properties.
Notice the Startup Type column in Figure 4-2. This information lists whether the service is automatic or manual. Manual services are only started in Windows XP when you start a process that requires the service. Some other process may require the service that has a "dependency" relationship with it; in this case, the dependency service will start, as well. Because these services do not start automatically when you boot Windows XP, you do not need to do anything with manual services.
However, all services listed as automatic start when Windows XP boots. These are the services that increase boot time. As I have mentioned, many of them are necessary and important, so you should not stop automatic services from booting unless you are sure of the ramifications. You can get this information by looking at the Description column. Here's a quick look at common services you may want to live without:
Automatic Updates: This service enables Windows XP to check the Web automatically for updates. If you don't want to use Automatic Updates, you can disable the service. You can always check for updates manually at the Windows Update Web site.
Computer Browser: If your computer is not on a network, you don't need this service. If you are on a network, leave it alone.
DHCP Client: If you are not on a network, you do not need this service. If you are on a small workgroup, you can still increase boot time by configuring manual IP addresses (which I explore later in this chapter).
DNS Client: If you are not on a network, you do not need this service. If you are, leave it alone.
Error Reporting and Event Log: You don't have to use these services but they can be very helpful, so I would leave them configured as automatic.
Fax: If you don't use your computer for fax services, you can disable this one.
Help and Support: If you never use the Windows XP Help and Support Center (found on the Start menu), you can disable this service.
IMAPI CD-Burning COM: This service enables you to burn CDs on your computer. If you never burn CDs, you can disable the service.
Indexing Service: Your computer keeps an index of files but if you rarely search for files, the service is just a resource hog. You can stop it and turn the service to manual.
Windows Firewall/Internet Connection Sharing: If you do not use these features, you can disable them.
Infrared Monitor: If you do not use infrared devices, you can disable this service.
Messenger: This service sends alert messages on a local area network (it is not the same as Windows Messenger). If you are not on a network, you can disable this service.
Print Spooler: If you do not do any printing from the computer, you can disable this service. If you print, make sure you leave it as automatic.
Remote Registry: This service allows remote users to modify the Registry on your computer. If you are not on a network, you can disable this service.
System Restore Service: This service allows you to use System Restore. If you have turned off System Restore anyway, you do not need to turn off the service. If you do, you turn off System Restore.
Themes: If you do not use themes, you can disable this service.
Windows Image Acquisition: If you do not use scanners or digital cameras, you can disable this service.
Wireless Zero Configuration: If do not use wireless networking devices, you can disable this service.
You may have a number of other automatic services, depending on software and other configurations on your computer. So it's a good idea to look through the services and learn more about them. If you double-click a service, a Properties dialog box appears
Notice that on the General tab, you see a Startup Type drop-down menu. If you want to change an automatic service to manual, select Manual here and click OK. As a general rule, don't disable a service unless you are sure you will never use it. However, manual configuration allows the service to be started when you find it necessary, thus speeding up your boot time.
However, before you change a service to manual, look at the Dependencies tab (see Figure 4-4). This tab shows you which other services depend upon the service you are considering changing.
Keep in mind that services are necessary for the vast functionality you get with Windows XP. Change only those services that you understand and do not use. How you use your Windows XP computer should be the best guide in terms of optional startup services.
Tip:
The Indexing service and the System Restore service take up a lot of disk space and system resources across the board. You can live without the Indexing service but I suggest that you keep using System Restore. It works great when you are in a bind and this is one case where the loss of speed may not be worth the ramifications of not using System Restore.
Speed Tips and Tricks for Windows XP Startup
Aside from startup programs, services, and the Prefetch folder, there are a number of other startup procedures and issues you can modify to help Windows XP start faster. The following sections explore those tips and tricks.
Manual IP Addressing on Small Office/Home Networks
Windows XP is configured to help you take care of networking. It uses the TCP/IP protocol for networking in workgroups, or what you might call small office or home networks that do not use a dedicated server.
The problem is that automatic IP addressing can be slow. When your computer boots, it has to query the network to see what IP addresses are already in use and then assign itself one. If you want to speed up the boot time a bit, consider manually assigning IP addresses to all computers on the network. This way, the network computers do not have to worry about locating an automatic IP address. Because one is manually configured, the operating system doesn't have to spend time solving this problem.
This isn't a networking book, however, so I won't delve into the implications of using a manual IP address, but if you are using a computer that functions as a host computer to the Internet (using Internet Connection Sharing [ICS]), you can get into connectivity problems if you change the configuration of the IP address. However, you can still work around this problem by starting with the ICS host computer.
Select Start/Connect To/Show All Connections. Right-click your network adapter card and click Properties. On the General tab, select TCP/IP in the list of services and click the Properties button.
In the TCP/IP properties, you can see if you use an automatic or manual IP address. In the example in Figure 4-5, I have configured a manual IP address of 90.0.0.1 and a default subnet mask. The other computers on my office network each use a different IP address in the same class, such as 90.0.0.2, 90.0.0.3, 90.0.0.4, and so on. This way, each computer has a permanent IP address, which helps increase boot time. Note that if you change the IP addresses of your computers, they must all use the same subnet mask. A default subject mask of 255.255.255.0 will keep you in good shape.
Make sure you understand the implications of changing IP addresses on your network. If you have no networking experience at all, you may be wiser to leave the automatic IP addressing as is and try to gain some speed using the additional suggestions in this chapter.
Disabling Recent Documents History
Windows XP includes a feature that keeps track of all recent documents you have opened or used. The idea is that you can select Start/Recent Documents History and quickly reopen any document you have recently used. I use many documents each day and never use the feature myself. In my opinion, I can keep up with what I want to use without Windows XP doing it for me.
The bad thing about Recent Documents History is that Windows XP has to calculate what should be put there each time you boot Windows, which can slow things down. So, if you never use the Recent Documents History, it's a good idea to disable it. Here's how:
1. Open the Registry Editor (select Start/Run, type regedit, and click OK).
2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Mcft\Windows\ CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer.
3. Create a NoRecentDocsHistory D_WORD key. Double-click the value to open it once it is created.
4. Set the Data Value to 1 to enable the restriction.
5. Click OK and close the Registry Editor. You'll need to restart the computer for the change to take effect.
Disabling the Boot Logo
You can remove the boot logo that appears when you start Windows XP. This little tweak probably shaves only a few seconds off your boot time but seconds count if you are serious about trying to get Windows XP up and running as quickly as possible. The only negative is that if you remove the boot logo, you will also not see any boot messages, such as check disk. (But if you are not having problems with your computer, this isn't such a big deal.)
To remove the boot logo, follow these steps:
1. Select Start/Run, type msconfig, and click OK.
2. In the System Configuration Utility, click the BOOT.INI tab.
3. On the BOOT.INI tab, click the NOGUIBOOT check box option. Click OK.
Removing Unwanted Fonts
One trick that increases your boot time a bit is to lose any fonts in the Fonts folder in Control Panel that you never use. The more fonts you have, the more processing Windows XP has to do to prep all of those fonts for use. You must be a bit careful here to not remove fonts that you might want, but there is a good chance that you can live without many of them. For instance, you may have foreign language fonts and other symbol fonts (such as Wingdings) that you never use.
To delete unneeded fonts, follow these steps:
1. Open the Fonts folder in Control Panel.
2. Select Edit/Select All and then Edit/Copy.
3. Create a new folder on your desktop, open it, and select Edit/Paste.
4. In this new folder, delete any of the fonts you do not want.
5. Return to the Fonts folder in Control Panel. Right-click the selected fonts and click Delete.
6. Go back to your new desktop folder and click Edit/Select All.
7. Return to your Fonts folder and click Edit/Paste. You now have only the desired fonts in the Fonts folder.
Tip:
You can directly delete fonts from the Fonts folder without creating the secondary folder. However, I recommend the preceding steps to help ensure that you do not make a mistake in the deletion process.
Stopping Remote Assistance and Remote Desktop Sharing
In Windows XP Professional, you have two remote networking features called Remote Assistance and Remote Desktop Sharing. These remote networking features are very helpful in a variety of situations but if you don't use them, it is good idea to disable them to save boot time. You can always enable them later if you want to use them.
Note:
If you are interested in using Remote Desktop or Remote Assistance, see my book Windows XP for Power Users: Power Pack published by John Wiley & Sons.
1. Open the Start menu, right-click My Computer, and choose Properties.
2. Click the Remote Tab.
3. Clear both check boxes to disable Remote Assistance and Remote Desktop.
Speeding Up the Dual-Boot Timeout
If you dual-boot your computer with Windows XP and another operating system, you see an operating system selection menu on startup. If you typically boot into Windows XP and not the other operating system, you can speed up the dual-boot timeout value so that you do not wait so long for the boot process to select your default operating system and continue with the boot process. The default timeout value is 30 seconds but you can change this setting to 10. This gives you enough time to select the alternate operating system if you want but also speeds up the boot process. You can skip this section if you do not use a dual-boot configuration.
Follow these steps:
1. Locate the boot.ini file on your computer. It is a hidden file by default; mine is located in C:\boot.ini.
2. Open the file with Notepad (which is what opens it by default).
3. Change the Timeout value to 10 (see Figure 4-11).
4. Select File/Save and close Notepad.
Speeding Up Your PPPoE Connection
If you use a Point-to-Point Protocol connection over Ethernet (PPPoE), you may notice a delay in using the PPPoE connection after startup. By default, there is a 120 second delay but you can stop this behavior by manually configuring an IP address for the network adapter card. If you do not use a PPPoE connection, you can skip this section.
1. Select Start/Connect to/Show All Connections.
2. Open the TCP/IP properties for your LAN network interface card.
3. Manually set the IP address on the TCP/IP properties to an appropriate IP address and subnet mask for your network.
Reducing the Wait Time
When you start to shut down Windows XP, it has to quit, or "kill," any live applications or processes that are currently running. So close all applications first. However, some applications and processes are always running in the background. You can reduce the amount of time that Windows XP waits for those applications and processes to close before Windows XP kills them. Edit three different Registry settings to change this:
1. Open the Registry Editor.
2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop. Select WaitToKillAppTimeout and set the value to 1000.
3. Select the HungAppTimeout value and set it to 1000 as well.
4. Navigate to HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Desktop. Set the WaitToKillAppTimeout and set the value to 1000. Select the HungAppTimeout \newline value and set it to 1000 as well.
5. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control. Select the WaitToKillServiceTimeout value and set it to 1000.
6. Close the Registry Editor.
Automatically Killing Tasks on Shutdown
You know the drill. You start to shut down the computer, you wait a few moments, and then you see a dialog box asking if you want to kill an application or service that is running. Instead of prompting you, you can make Windows XP take care of the kill task automatically. Here's how:
1. Open the Registry Editor.
2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop.
3. Highlight the value AutoEndTasks and change the value to 1.
4. Close the Registry Editor.
Well thats about it... when you done all the steps you machine most run faster...without ANY errors!
Thanks for the Tips which will make WinXP faster. I would also like to add some tips to make it faster. Here it goes....
Since defragging the disk won't do much to improve Windows XP performance, here are 23 suggestions that will. Each can enhance the performance and reliability of your PCs. Best of all, most of them will cost you nothing.
1.) To decrease a system's boot time and increase system performance, use the money you save by not buying defragmentation software -- the built-in Windows defragmenter works just fine -- and instead equip the computer with an Ultra-133 or Serial ATA hard drive with 8-MB cache buffer.
2.) If a PC has less than 512 MB of RAM, add more memory. This is a relatively inexpensive and easy upgrade that can dramatically improve system performance.
3.) Ensure that Windows XP is utilizing the NTFS file system. If you're not sure, here's how to check: First, double-click the My Computer icon, right-click on the C: Drive, then select Properties. Next, examine the File System type; if it says FAT32, then back-up any important data. Next, click Start, click Run, type CMD, and then click OK. At the prompt, type CONVERT C: /FS:NTFS and press the Enter key. This process may take a while; it's important that the computer be uninterrupted and virus-free. The file system used by the bootable drive will be either FAT32 or NTFS. I highly recommend NTFS for its superior security, reliability, and efficiency with larger disk drives.
4.) Disable file indexing. The indexing service extracts information from documents and other files on the hard drive and creates a "searchable keyword index." As you can imagine, this process can be quite taxing on any system.
The idea is that the user can search for a word, phrase, or property inside a document, should they have hundreds or thousands of documents and not know the file name of the document they want. Windows XP's built-in search functionality can still perform these kinds of searches without the Indexing service. It just takes longer. The OS has to open each file at the time of the request to help find what the user is looking for.
Most people never need this feature of search. Those who do are typically in a large corporate environment where thousands of documents are located on at least one server. But if you're a typical system builder, most of your clients are small and medium businesses. And if your clients have no need for this search feature, I recommend disabling it.
Here's how: First, double-click the My Computer icon. Next, right-click on the C: Drive, then select Properties. Uncheck "Allow Indexing Service to index this disk for fast file searching." Next, apply changes to "C: subfolders and files," and click OK. If a warning or error message appears (such as "Access is denied"), click the Ignore All button.
5.) Update the PC's video and motherboard chipset drivers. Also, update and configure the BIOS. For more information on how to configure your BIOS properly, see this article on my site.
6.) Empty the Windows Prefetch folder every three months or so. Windows XP can "prefetch" portions of data and applications that are used frequently. This makes processes appear to load faster when called upon by the user. That's fine. But over time, the prefetch folder may become overloaded with references to files and applications no longer in use. When that happens, Windows XP is wasting time, and slowing system performance, by pre-loading them. Nothing critical is in this folder, and the entire contents are safe to delete.
7.) Once a month, run a disk cleanup. Here's how: Double-click the My Computer icon. Then right-click on the C: drive and select Properties. Click the Disk Cleanup button -- it's just to the right of the Capacity pie graph -- and delete all temporary files.
8.) In your Device Manager, double-click on the IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers device, and ensure that DMA is enabled for each drive you have connected to the Primary and Secondary controller. Do this by double-clicking on Primary IDE Channel. Then click the Advanced Settings tab. Ensure the Transfer Mode is set to "DMA if available" for both Device 0 and Device 1. Then repeat this process with the Secondary IDE Channel.
9.) Upgrade the cabling. As hard-drive technology improves, the cabling requirements to achieve these performance boosts have become more stringent. Be sure to use 80-wire Ultra-133 cables on all of your IDE devices with the connectors properly assigned to the matching Master/Slave/Motherboard sockets. A single device must be at the end of the cable; connecting a single drive to the middle connector on a ribbon cable will cause signaling problems. With Ultra DMA hard drives, these signaling problems will prevent the drive from performing at its maximum potential. Also, because these cables inherently support "cable select," the location of each drive on the cable is important. For these reasons, the cable is designed so drive positioning is explicitly clear.
10.) Remove all spyware from the computer. Use free programs such as AdAware by Lavasoft or SpyBot Search & Destroy. Once these programs are installed, be sure to check for and download any updates before starting your search. Anything either program finds can be safely removed. Any free software that requires spyware to run will no longer function once the spyware portion has been removed; if your customer really wants the program even though it contains spyware, simply reinstall it. For more information on removing Spyware visit this Web Pro News page.
11.) Remove any unnecessary programs and/or items from Windows Startup routine using the MSCONFIG utility. Here's how: First, click Start, click Run, type MSCONFIG, and click OK. Click the StartUp tab, then uncheck any items you don't want to start when Windows starts. Unsure what some items are? Visit the WinTasks Process Library. It contains known system processes, applications, as well as spyware references and explanations. Or quickly identify them by searching for the filenames using Google or another Web search engine.
12.) Remove any unnecessary or unused programs from the Add/Remove Programs section of the Control Panel.
13.) Turn off any and all unnecessary animations, and disable active desktop. In fact, for optimal performance, turn off all animations. Windows XP offers many different settings in this area. Here's how to do it: First click on the System icon in the Control Panel. Next, click on the Advanced tab. Select the Settings button located under Performance. Feel free to play around with the options offered here, as nothing you can change will alter the reliability of the computer -- only its responsiveness.
14.) If you is an advanced user who is comfortable editing their registry, try some of the performance registry tweaks offered at Tweak XP.
15.) Visit mcft's Windows update site regularly, and download all updates labeled Critical. Download any optional updates at your discretion.
16.) Update the customer's anti-virus software on a weekly, even daily, basis. Make sure they have only one anti-virus software package installed. Mixing anti-virus software is a sure way to spell disaster for performance and reliability.
17.) Make sure the customer has fewer than 500 type fonts installed on their computer. The more fonts they have, the slower the system will become. While Windows XP handles fonts much more efficiently than did the previous versions of Windows, too many fonts -- that is, anything over 500 -- will noticeably tax the system.
18.) Do not partition the hard drive. Windows XP's NTFS file system runs more efficiently on one large partition. The data is no safer on a separate partition, and a reformat is never necessary to reinstall an operating system. The same excuses people offer for using partitions apply to using a folder instead. For example, instead of putting all your data on the D: drive, put it in a folder called "D drive." You'll achieve the same organizational benefits that a separate partition offers, but without the degradation in system performance. Also, your free space won't be limited by the size of the partition; instead, it will be limited by the size of the entire hard drive. This means you won't need to resize any partitions, ever. That task can be time-consuming and also can result in lost data.
19.) Check the system's RAM to ensure it is operating properly. I recommend using a free program called MemTest86. The download will make a bootable CD or diskette (your choice), which will run 10 extensive tests on the PC's memory automatically after you boot to the disk you created. Allow all tests to run until at least three passes of the 10 tests are completed. If the program encounters any errors, turn off and unplug the computer, remove a stick of memory (assuming you have more than one), and run the test again. Remember, bad memory cannot be repaired, but only replaced.
20.) If the PC has a CD or DVD recorder, check the drive manufacturer's Web site for updated firmware. In some cases you'll be able to upgrade the recorder to a faster speed. Best of all, it's free.
21.) Disable unnecessary services. Windows XP loads a lot of services that your customer most likely does not need. To determine which services you can disable for your client, visit the Black Viper site for Windows XP configurations.
22.) If you're sick of a single Windows Explorer window crashing and then taking the rest of your OS down with it, then follow this tip: open My Computer, click on Tools, then Folder Options. Now click on the View tab. Scroll down to "Launch folder windows in a separate process," and enable this option. You'll have to reboot your machine for this option to take effect.
23.) At least once a year, open the computer's cases and blow out all the dust and debris. While you're in there, check that all the fans are turning properly. Also inspect the motherboard capacitors for bulging or leaks.
10 Easy Steps to Speed Up Your Computer - Without, upgrading
It seems that the longer you own your computer, the slower it gets! A lot of people will keep their computer until it gets so slow that they feel they need a newer, faster model. Some feel like the reason it is getting slower is because it is getting older, when that is just not the case. Your computer should run just as fast as the day you brought it home – if you follow these 10 Easy Steps to Speed Up Your Computer.
1. Empty the Temp directory regularly. After a short while, the temp directory fills up with hundreds of temp files that always get scanned over when Windows starts up and when programs launch. This slows everything down immensely.
Rule of thumb for Temp Files: If you don’t have any programs open (and nothing minimized in the bar below), then you shouldn’t have ANY temp files in your temp directory. If you do, delete them.
To delete Temp files, make sure NO programs are open, and…
a. In Windows 95, 98 or Me, go to C:WindowsTemp and delete everything inside the Temp folder.
b. In Windows 2000 or XP, it is a little trickier. First, make sure that you can see hidden folders. Double-click My Computer. Click on the Tools pull-down menu, and then on Folder Options. Click on the View tab. Scroll down and click on Show Hidden Files and Folders. Click Ok. Now you can go to the C ocuments and SettingsAdministratorLocal SettingsTemp folder. Delete everything here or type
%temp% in run.
2. Empty the Temporary Internet Files regularly. To empty Temporary Internet Files, go to your Control Panel and double-click the Internet Options icon. Choose to Delete Cookies, and to Delete Files. This will clear all of your Temporary Internet Files.
3. Check your hard disks for problems.
a. For Windows 95, 98, or Me, double-click My Computer. Right-click the C-drive and click on Properties. Click on the Tools tab and choose to check the computer for problems. If you choose to do a Thorough Scan, this will do the hardware check for physical disk damage or sector damage. Choose to fix any errors it finds.
b. For Windows 2000 and XP, double-click My Computer. Right-click the C-drive and click Properties. Click on the Tools tab and choose to check the computer for problems. Click on Check Now. You will then have two check boxes. The top option is for the file check, and the second option is for the hardware (physical disk) check. Check either one, or both. At least check the top one. Hit ok, and reboot. This may take some time, but let it run.
4. An even more thorough disk check, would be to use a 3rd party utility. One of my favorites is TuneUp Utilities 2004. This program does a really good job of fixing software and physical hard drive problems. It also tunes up your system for increased speed, and streamlines your operating system for peak performance. Download it HERE... http://www.lapeertechgroup.com/downloads.asp
5. Or, you can do a few of the performance tweaks yourself, if you have Windows XP. By default, EVERYTHING is turned on in Windows XP. It isn’t very streamlined for performance, but rather for appearance. You can turn off a few of the unnecessary features, and Windows will still work just fine, and maybe a little faster.
To do this, right-click on My Computer and click on Properties. Click on the Advanced tab. Under the Performance section, click on the Settings button. On the Visual Effects tab, you will see a list of check boxes. By default, these are all on. You really don’t need any of them for Windows to run. Go through the check boxes one by one, and determine which ones you can and can’t live without.
6. Turn off Active Desktop. Active Desktop turns your desktop into a web page, and allows you to have things like a real-time calendar, and up-to-the-minute weather or stocks. These are nice, but really slow down your computer. And even if you don’t use Active Desktop for anything, just having it active can cause a performance decrease. Turn it off.
a. In Windows 95, 98 and Me, right-click on the desktop and in the pop-up menu, choose Active Desktop. Inside that option, uncheck Active Desktop. If there is no check next to it, then it isn’t on. Don’t choose it. Instead, just click the desktop again to get out of the menu.
b. In Windows 2000, right-click on the desktop and in the pop-up menu, choose Active Desktop. Inside that option, uncheck Show Web Content. Again, if there is no check next to it, then it is not on. Do not check it.
c. In Windows XP, right-click on the desktop and in the pop-up menu, choose Properties. On the Desktop tab, choose Customize Desktop. Now, on the Web tab, make sure that there are no websites chosen here. If there aren’t any, then Active Desktop is not on. Cancel and go back to the desktop.
7. Install and run a good AntiVirus program to keep out viruses that can take over your system. One of my favorites is pc-cillin. It is not only a really good AntiVirus program
8. Get rid of Spyware. A lot of computer users have Spyware and don’t even know they have it, much less how to get rid of it. If your computer has been taking you to websites that you don’t want to go to, or if you get pop-ups when you aren’t even on the Internet, or if your computer has been running extremely slowly lately, for no reason, you probably have Spyware.
On all of the computers that I setup, I install two different AntiSpyware programs: AdAware SE and SpyBot. These two programs are highly recommended by TechTV (G4) and other computer authorities . They compliment each other and catch Spyware that the other misses, but together, do a very good job.
Get SpyBot HERE... http://www.lapeertechgroup.com/downloads.asp. Download all updates and run the Immunize option a couple of times.
AdAware SE does a good job when you keep up on the updates and manually scan your system with AdAware. Get it HERE... http://www.lapeertechgroup.com/downloads.asp
In some cases, when the Spyware has become too entwined into your system, even a computer repair technician can’t get rid of the Spyware. At this point, it is better to just backup only what you need and have the operating system reinstalled. Believe me, when your computer gets to this point, you don’t want to just put a “band-aid” on it. Just start from scratch with a clean system. It’s the best way to go.
9. Streamline MSCONFIG. One thing that really causes a HUGE performance decrease is to have unnecessary programs running in the background. Some of these programs can be seen in your System Tray (located next to the clock). These are tiny programs that are robbing you of memory and processing power. Some of them you need, while most you don’t. Some of the programs you DON’T need are printer icons, CD burning icons, shortcuts to programs (such as video settings), AOL, any Instant Messaging Programs, etc. Just because these programs aren’t always running, doesn’t mean that you still can’t print, burn CDs or Instant Message. They can all be run from a shortcut.
You can use a utility, called MSCONFIG, to turn OFF unnecessary Start Up items.
a. In Windows 98, Me, and XP, click on StartRun and type msconfig. Click on the Startup tab. This is a list of everything that is running in the background, some of which show up in the System Tray. Now, be careful, some of these you do need. Some items to keep are Ctfmon.exe (XP), Scan Registry (Win98, Me), Task Monitor (Win98, Me), System Tray (Win98, Me), LoadPowerProfile (Win98, Me), Rundll.32, any AntiVirus programs (such as McAfee, Norton, or AVG). Others, you can uncheck, such as NeroCheck, ypager, qttask, AOL, and any other Instant Messaging programs, or printing programs. Remember, if something doesn’t work, because you turned it off, it can always be turned back on. You just have to reboot every time you make a change here. But, as you uncheck the unnecessary programs that run in the background, you will see that Windows loads much faster, that there are less icons in the System Tray, and that your system is much more “snappy” and quick to respond.
b. In Windows 2000, MSCONFIG wasn’t supplied. You actually have to download and run an MSCONFIG utility. Download the MSCONFIG utility HERE... http://www.perfectdrivers.com/howto/msconfig.html.
After you reboot, you will have a window that says that the configuration utility was edited. Just check not to show that in the future, a check box at the bottom. This just means that there was a change made to the MSCONFIG.
10. Defragment your hard drives. NOTE: to efficiently defragment a hard drive, it likes to have 25% free space. It can still do the defragmentation with only 15% free space, but it takes quite a bit longer. If you can, delete any unnecessary files before deframenting your drives.
a. To defragment your hard drives (in any Windows operating system), double-click on My Computer. Right-click on the c-drive and click on Properties. Click on the Tools tab and choose the bottom button, to Defragment Now
Thats all
Stopping Unneeded Startup Services
Along with the core operating system and programs that Windows XP runs when it starts, there is also a host of services involved. Many of these services are necessary for Windows XP to operate correctly. However, many of them are for features in Windows XP that you may not use at all. You can peruse the services and disable any service that you do not want to run. The fewer services that run, the more quickly Windows XP will boot.
Caution:
Exercise caution when stopping services. If you do not know what a service does or are unsure of the ramifications of stopping the service, leave it alone. Some services are critical to Windows XP's operations, so make sure you understand what the service is before you disable it.
To reduce the number of services that start on bootup, you can access two different areas of Windows XP. The first is the System Configuration Utility. The Services tab shows you the services that start when the computer boots.
You can stop a service from starting by simply clearing the check box next to the service and clicking OK. However, before you do so, there is another way to disable services that you may prefer because the interface gives you more information about the service in question.
Open Control Panel/Administrative ToolsServices or else select Start/Run, type services.msc, and click OK. Either way, you see the Services console.
I prefer to use the Services console instead of the System Configuration Utility because it describes what the service does. Additionally, you can double-click a service and examine its properties.
Notice the Startup Type column in Figure 4-2. This information lists whether the service is automatic or manual. Manual services are only started in Windows XP when you start a process that requires the service. Some other process may require the service that has a "dependency" relationship with it; in this case, the dependency service will start, as well. Because these services do not start automatically when you boot Windows XP, you do not need to do anything with manual services.
However, all services listed as automatic start when Windows XP boots. These are the services that increase boot time. As I have mentioned, many of them are necessary and important, so you should not stop automatic services from booting unless you are sure of the ramifications. You can get this information by looking at the Description column. Here's a quick look at common services you may want to live without:
Automatic Updates: This service enables Windows XP to check the Web automatically for updates. If you don't want to use Automatic Updates, you can disable the service. You can always check for updates manually at the Windows Update Web site.
Computer Browser: If your computer is not on a network, you don't need this service. If you are on a network, leave it alone.
DHCP Client: If you are not on a network, you do not need this service. If you are on a small workgroup, you can still increase boot time by configuring manual IP addresses (which I explore later in this chapter).
DNS Client: If you are not on a network, you do not need this service. If you are, leave it alone.
Error Reporting and Event Log: You don't have to use these services but they can be very helpful, so I would leave them configured as automatic.
Fax: If you don't use your computer for fax services, you can disable this one.
Help and Support: If you never use the Windows XP Help and Support Center (found on the Start menu), you can disable this service.
IMAPI CD-Burning COM: This service enables you to burn CDs on your computer. If you never burn CDs, you can disable the service.
Indexing Service: Your computer keeps an index of files but if you rarely search for files, the service is just a resource hog. You can stop it and turn the service to manual.
Windows Firewall/Internet Connection Sharing: If you do not use these features, you can disable them.
Infrared Monitor: If you do not use infrared devices, you can disable this service.
Messenger: This service sends alert messages on a local area network (it is not the same as Windows Messenger). If you are not on a network, you can disable this service.
Print Spooler: If you do not do any printing from the computer, you can disable this service. If you print, make sure you leave it as automatic.
Remote Registry: This service allows remote users to modify the Registry on your computer. If you are not on a network, you can disable this service.
System Restore Service: This service allows you to use System Restore. If you have turned off System Restore anyway, you do not need to turn off the service. If you do, you turn off System Restore.
Themes: If you do not use themes, you can disable this service.
Windows Image Acquisition: If you do not use scanners or digital cameras, you can disable this service.
Wireless Zero Configuration: If do not use wireless networking devices, you can disable this service.
You may have a number of other automatic services, depending on software and other configurations on your computer. So it's a good idea to look through the services and learn more about them. If you double-click a service, a Properties dialog box appears
Notice that on the General tab, you see a Startup Type drop-down menu. If you want to change an automatic service to manual, select Manual here and click OK. As a general rule, don't disable a service unless you are sure you will never use it. However, manual configuration allows the service to be started when you find it necessary, thus speeding up your boot time.
However, before you change a service to manual, look at the Dependencies tab (see Figure 4-4). This tab shows you which other services depend upon the service you are considering changing.
Keep in mind that services are necessary for the vast functionality you get with Windows XP. Change only those services that you understand and do not use. How you use your Windows XP computer should be the best guide in terms of optional startup services.
Tip:
The Indexing service and the System Restore service take up a lot of disk space and system resources across the board. You can live without the Indexing service but I suggest that you keep using System Restore. It works great when you are in a bind and this is one case where the loss of speed may not be worth the ramifications of not using System Restore.
Speed Tips and Tricks for Windows XP Startup
Aside from startup programs, services, and the Prefetch folder, there are a number of other startup procedures and issues you can modify to help Windows XP start faster. The following sections explore those tips and tricks.
Manual IP Addressing on Small Office/Home Networks
Windows XP is configured to help you take care of networking. It uses the TCP/IP protocol for networking in workgroups, or what you might call small office or home networks that do not use a dedicated server.
The problem is that automatic IP addressing can be slow. When your computer boots, it has to query the network to see what IP addresses are already in use and then assign itself one. If you want to speed up the boot time a bit, consider manually assigning IP addresses to all computers on the network. This way, the network computers do not have to worry about locating an automatic IP address. Because one is manually configured, the operating system doesn't have to spend time solving this problem.
This isn't a networking book, however, so I won't delve into the implications of using a manual IP address, but if you are using a computer that functions as a host computer to the Internet (using Internet Connection Sharing [ICS]), you can get into connectivity problems if you change the configuration of the IP address. However, you can still work around this problem by starting with the ICS host computer.
Select Start/Connect To/Show All Connections. Right-click your network adapter card and click Properties. On the General tab, select TCP/IP in the list of services and click the Properties button.
In the TCP/IP properties, you can see if you use an automatic or manual IP address. In the example in Figure 4-5, I have configured a manual IP address of 90.0.0.1 and a default subnet mask. The other computers on my office network each use a different IP address in the same class, such as 90.0.0.2, 90.0.0.3, 90.0.0.4, and so on. This way, each computer has a permanent IP address, which helps increase boot time. Note that if you change the IP addresses of your computers, they must all use the same subnet mask. A default subject mask of 255.255.255.0 will keep you in good shape.
Make sure you understand the implications of changing IP addresses on your network. If you have no networking experience at all, you may be wiser to leave the automatic IP addressing as is and try to gain some speed using the additional suggestions in this chapter.
Disabling Recent Documents History
Windows XP includes a feature that keeps track of all recent documents you have opened or used. The idea is that you can select Start/Recent Documents History and quickly reopen any document you have recently used. I use many documents each day and never use the feature myself. In my opinion, I can keep up with what I want to use without Windows XP doing it for me.
The bad thing about Recent Documents History is that Windows XP has to calculate what should be put there each time you boot Windows, which can slow things down. So, if you never use the Recent Documents History, it's a good idea to disable it. Here's how:
1. Open the Registry Editor (select Start/Run, type regedit, and click OK).
2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Mcft\Windows\ CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer.
3. Create a NoRecentDocsHistory D_WORD key. Double-click the value to open it once it is created.
4. Set the Data Value to 1 to enable the restriction.
5. Click OK and close the Registry Editor. You'll need to restart the computer for the change to take effect.
Disabling the Boot Logo
You can remove the boot logo that appears when you start Windows XP. This little tweak probably shaves only a few seconds off your boot time but seconds count if you are serious about trying to get Windows XP up and running as quickly as possible. The only negative is that if you remove the boot logo, you will also not see any boot messages, such as check disk. (But if you are not having problems with your computer, this isn't such a big deal.)
To remove the boot logo, follow these steps:
1. Select Start/Run, type msconfig, and click OK.
2. In the System Configuration Utility, click the BOOT.INI tab.
3. On the BOOT.INI tab, click the NOGUIBOOT check box option. Click OK.
Removing Unwanted Fonts
One trick that increases your boot time a bit is to lose any fonts in the Fonts folder in Control Panel that you never use. The more fonts you have, the more processing Windows XP has to do to prep all of those fonts for use. You must be a bit careful here to not remove fonts that you might want, but there is a good chance that you can live without many of them. For instance, you may have foreign language fonts and other symbol fonts (such as Wingdings) that you never use.
To delete unneeded fonts, follow these steps:
1. Open the Fonts folder in Control Panel.
2. Select Edit/Select All and then Edit/Copy.
3. Create a new folder on your desktop, open it, and select Edit/Paste.
4. In this new folder, delete any of the fonts you do not want.
5. Return to the Fonts folder in Control Panel. Right-click the selected fonts and click Delete.
6. Go back to your new desktop folder and click Edit/Select All.
7. Return to your Fonts folder and click Edit/Paste. You now have only the desired fonts in the Fonts folder.
Tip:
You can directly delete fonts from the Fonts folder without creating the secondary folder. However, I recommend the preceding steps to help ensure that you do not make a mistake in the deletion process.
Stopping Remote Assistance and Remote Desktop Sharing
In Windows XP Professional, you have two remote networking features called Remote Assistance and Remote Desktop Sharing. These remote networking features are very helpful in a variety of situations but if you don't use them, it is good idea to disable them to save boot time. You can always enable them later if you want to use them.
Note:
If you are interested in using Remote Desktop or Remote Assistance, see my book Windows XP for Power Users: Power Pack published by John Wiley & Sons.
1. Open the Start menu, right-click My Computer, and choose Properties.
2. Click the Remote Tab.
3. Clear both check boxes to disable Remote Assistance and Remote Desktop.
Speeding Up the Dual-Boot Timeout
If you dual-boot your computer with Windows XP and another operating system, you see an operating system selection menu on startup. If you typically boot into Windows XP and not the other operating system, you can speed up the dual-boot timeout value so that you do not wait so long for the boot process to select your default operating system and continue with the boot process. The default timeout value is 30 seconds but you can change this setting to 10. This gives you enough time to select the alternate operating system if you want but also speeds up the boot process. You can skip this section if you do not use a dual-boot configuration.
Follow these steps:
1. Locate the boot.ini file on your computer. It is a hidden file by default; mine is located in C:\boot.ini.
2. Open the file with Notepad (which is what opens it by default).
3. Change the Timeout value to 10 (see Figure 4-11).
4. Select File/Save and close Notepad.
Speeding Up Your PPPoE Connection
If you use a Point-to-Point Protocol connection over Ethernet (PPPoE), you may notice a delay in using the PPPoE connection after startup. By default, there is a 120 second delay but you can stop this behavior by manually configuring an IP address for the network adapter card. If you do not use a PPPoE connection, you can skip this section.
1. Select Start/Connect to/Show All Connections.
2. Open the TCP/IP properties for your LAN network interface card.
3. Manually set the IP address on the TCP/IP properties to an appropriate IP address and subnet mask for your network.
Reducing the Wait Time
When you start to shut down Windows XP, it has to quit, or "kill," any live applications or processes that are currently running. So close all applications first. However, some applications and processes are always running in the background. You can reduce the amount of time that Windows XP waits for those applications and processes to close before Windows XP kills them. Edit three different Registry settings to change this:
1. Open the Registry Editor.
2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop. Select WaitToKillAppTimeout and set the value to 1000.
3. Select the HungAppTimeout value and set it to 1000 as well.
4. Navigate to HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Desktop. Set the WaitToKillAppTimeout and set the value to 1000. Select the HungAppTimeout \newline value and set it to 1000 as well.
5. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control. Select the WaitToKillServiceTimeout value and set it to 1000.
6. Close the Registry Editor.
Automatically Killing Tasks on Shutdown
You know the drill. You start to shut down the computer, you wait a few moments, and then you see a dialog box asking if you want to kill an application or service that is running. Instead of prompting you, you can make Windows XP take care of the kill task automatically. Here's how:
1. Open the Registry Editor.
2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop.
3. Highlight the value AutoEndTasks and change the value to 1.
4. Close the Registry Editor.
Well thats about it... when you done all the steps you machine most run faster...without ANY errors!
Thanks for the Tips which will make WinXP faster. I would also like to add some tips to make it faster. Here it goes....
Since defragging the disk won't do much to improve Windows XP performance, here are 23 suggestions that will. Each can enhance the performance and reliability of your PCs. Best of all, most of them will cost you nothing.
1.) To decrease a system's boot time and increase system performance, use the money you save by not buying defragmentation software -- the built-in Windows defragmenter works just fine -- and instead equip the computer with an Ultra-133 or Serial ATA hard drive with 8-MB cache buffer.
2.) If a PC has less than 512 MB of RAM, add more memory. This is a relatively inexpensive and easy upgrade that can dramatically improve system performance.
3.) Ensure that Windows XP is utilizing the NTFS file system. If you're not sure, here's how to check: First, double-click the My Computer icon, right-click on the C: Drive, then select Properties. Next, examine the File System type; if it says FAT32, then back-up any important data. Next, click Start, click Run, type CMD, and then click OK. At the prompt, type CONVERT C: /FS:NTFS and press the Enter key. This process may take a while; it's important that the computer be uninterrupted and virus-free. The file system used by the bootable drive will be either FAT32 or NTFS. I highly recommend NTFS for its superior security, reliability, and efficiency with larger disk drives.
4.) Disable file indexing. The indexing service extracts information from documents and other files on the hard drive and creates a "searchable keyword index." As you can imagine, this process can be quite taxing on any system.
The idea is that the user can search for a word, phrase, or property inside a document, should they have hundreds or thousands of documents and not know the file name of the document they want. Windows XP's built-in search functionality can still perform these kinds of searches without the Indexing service. It just takes longer. The OS has to open each file at the time of the request to help find what the user is looking for.
Most people never need this feature of search. Those who do are typically in a large corporate environment where thousands of documents are located on at least one server. But if you're a typical system builder, most of your clients are small and medium businesses. And if your clients have no need for this search feature, I recommend disabling it.
Here's how: First, double-click the My Computer icon. Next, right-click on the C: Drive, then select Properties. Uncheck "Allow Indexing Service to index this disk for fast file searching." Next, apply changes to "C: subfolders and files," and click OK. If a warning or error message appears (such as "Access is denied"), click the Ignore All button.
5.) Update the PC's video and motherboard chipset drivers. Also, update and configure the BIOS. For more information on how to configure your BIOS properly, see this article on my site.
6.) Empty the Windows Prefetch folder every three months or so. Windows XP can "prefetch" portions of data and applications that are used frequently. This makes processes appear to load faster when called upon by the user. That's fine. But over time, the prefetch folder may become overloaded with references to files and applications no longer in use. When that happens, Windows XP is wasting time, and slowing system performance, by pre-loading them. Nothing critical is in this folder, and the entire contents are safe to delete.
7.) Once a month, run a disk cleanup. Here's how: Double-click the My Computer icon. Then right-click on the C: drive and select Properties. Click the Disk Cleanup button -- it's just to the right of the Capacity pie graph -- and delete all temporary files.
8.) In your Device Manager, double-click on the IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers device, and ensure that DMA is enabled for each drive you have connected to the Primary and Secondary controller. Do this by double-clicking on Primary IDE Channel. Then click the Advanced Settings tab. Ensure the Transfer Mode is set to "DMA if available" for both Device 0 and Device 1. Then repeat this process with the Secondary IDE Channel.
9.) Upgrade the cabling. As hard-drive technology improves, the cabling requirements to achieve these performance boosts have become more stringent. Be sure to use 80-wire Ultra-133 cables on all of your IDE devices with the connectors properly assigned to the matching Master/Slave/Motherboard sockets. A single device must be at the end of the cable; connecting a single drive to the middle connector on a ribbon cable will cause signaling problems. With Ultra DMA hard drives, these signaling problems will prevent the drive from performing at its maximum potential. Also, because these cables inherently support "cable select," the location of each drive on the cable is important. For these reasons, the cable is designed so drive positioning is explicitly clear.
10.) Remove all spyware from the computer. Use free programs such as AdAware by Lavasoft or SpyBot Search & Destroy. Once these programs are installed, be sure to check for and download any updates before starting your search. Anything either program finds can be safely removed. Any free software that requires spyware to run will no longer function once the spyware portion has been removed; if your customer really wants the program even though it contains spyware, simply reinstall it. For more information on removing Spyware visit this Web Pro News page.
11.) Remove any unnecessary programs and/or items from Windows Startup routine using the MSCONFIG utility. Here's how: First, click Start, click Run, type MSCONFIG, and click OK. Click the StartUp tab, then uncheck any items you don't want to start when Windows starts. Unsure what some items are? Visit the WinTasks Process Library. It contains known system processes, applications, as well as spyware references and explanations. Or quickly identify them by searching for the filenames using Google or another Web search engine.
12.) Remove any unnecessary or unused programs from the Add/Remove Programs section of the Control Panel.
13.) Turn off any and all unnecessary animations, and disable active desktop. In fact, for optimal performance, turn off all animations. Windows XP offers many different settings in this area. Here's how to do it: First click on the System icon in the Control Panel. Next, click on the Advanced tab. Select the Settings button located under Performance. Feel free to play around with the options offered here, as nothing you can change will alter the reliability of the computer -- only its responsiveness.
14.) If you is an advanced user who is comfortable editing their registry, try some of the performance registry tweaks offered at Tweak XP.
15.) Visit mcft's Windows update site regularly, and download all updates labeled Critical. Download any optional updates at your discretion.
16.) Update the customer's anti-virus software on a weekly, even daily, basis. Make sure they have only one anti-virus software package installed. Mixing anti-virus software is a sure way to spell disaster for performance and reliability.
17.) Make sure the customer has fewer than 500 type fonts installed on their computer. The more fonts they have, the slower the system will become. While Windows XP handles fonts much more efficiently than did the previous versions of Windows, too many fonts -- that is, anything over 500 -- will noticeably tax the system.
18.) Do not partition the hard drive. Windows XP's NTFS file system runs more efficiently on one large partition. The data is no safer on a separate partition, and a reformat is never necessary to reinstall an operating system. The same excuses people offer for using partitions apply to using a folder instead. For example, instead of putting all your data on the D: drive, put it in a folder called "D drive." You'll achieve the same organizational benefits that a separate partition offers, but without the degradation in system performance. Also, your free space won't be limited by the size of the partition; instead, it will be limited by the size of the entire hard drive. This means you won't need to resize any partitions, ever. That task can be time-consuming and also can result in lost data.
19.) Check the system's RAM to ensure it is operating properly. I recommend using a free program called MemTest86. The download will make a bootable CD or diskette (your choice), which will run 10 extensive tests on the PC's memory automatically after you boot to the disk you created. Allow all tests to run until at least three passes of the 10 tests are completed. If the program encounters any errors, turn off and unplug the computer, remove a stick of memory (assuming you have more than one), and run the test again. Remember, bad memory cannot be repaired, but only replaced.
20.) If the PC has a CD or DVD recorder, check the drive manufacturer's Web site for updated firmware. In some cases you'll be able to upgrade the recorder to a faster speed. Best of all, it's free.
21.) Disable unnecessary services. Windows XP loads a lot of services that your customer most likely does not need. To determine which services you can disable for your client, visit the Black Viper site for Windows XP configurations.
22.) If you're sick of a single Windows Explorer window crashing and then taking the rest of your OS down with it, then follow this tip: open My Computer, click on Tools, then Folder Options. Now click on the View tab. Scroll down to "Launch folder windows in a separate process," and enable this option. You'll have to reboot your machine for this option to take effect.
23.) At least once a year, open the computer's cases and blow out all the dust and debris. While you're in there, check that all the fans are turning properly. Also inspect the motherboard capacitors for bulging or leaks.
10 Easy Steps to Speed Up Your Computer - Without, upgrading
It seems that the longer you own your computer, the slower it gets! A lot of people will keep their computer until it gets so slow that they feel they need a newer, faster model. Some feel like the reason it is getting slower is because it is getting older, when that is just not the case. Your computer should run just as fast as the day you brought it home – if you follow these 10 Easy Steps to Speed Up Your Computer.
1. Empty the Temp directory regularly. After a short while, the temp directory fills up with hundreds of temp files that always get scanned over when Windows starts up and when programs launch. This slows everything down immensely.
Rule of thumb for Temp Files: If you don’t have any programs open (and nothing minimized in the bar below), then you shouldn’t have ANY temp files in your temp directory. If you do, delete them.
To delete Temp files, make sure NO programs are open, and…
a. In Windows 95, 98 or Me, go to C:WindowsTemp and delete everything inside the Temp folder.
b. In Windows 2000 or XP, it is a little trickier. First, make sure that you can see hidden folders. Double-click My Computer. Click on the Tools pull-down menu, and then on Folder Options. Click on the View tab. Scroll down and click on Show Hidden Files and Folders. Click Ok. Now you can go to the C ocuments and SettingsAdministratorLocal SettingsTemp folder. Delete everything here or type
%temp% in run.
2. Empty the Temporary Internet Files regularly. To empty Temporary Internet Files, go to your Control Panel and double-click the Internet Options icon. Choose to Delete Cookies, and to Delete Files. This will clear all of your Temporary Internet Files.
3. Check your hard disks for problems.
a. For Windows 95, 98, or Me, double-click My Computer. Right-click the C-drive and click on Properties. Click on the Tools tab and choose to check the computer for problems. If you choose to do a Thorough Scan, this will do the hardware check for physical disk damage or sector damage. Choose to fix any errors it finds.
b. For Windows 2000 and XP, double-click My Computer. Right-click the C-drive and click Properties. Click on the Tools tab and choose to check the computer for problems. Click on Check Now. You will then have two check boxes. The top option is for the file check, and the second option is for the hardware (physical disk) check. Check either one, or both. At least check the top one. Hit ok, and reboot. This may take some time, but let it run.
4. An even more thorough disk check, would be to use a 3rd party utility. One of my favorites is TuneUp Utilities 2004. This program does a really good job of fixing software and physical hard drive problems. It also tunes up your system for increased speed, and streamlines your operating system for peak performance. Download it HERE... http://www.lapeertechgroup.com/downloads.asp
5. Or, you can do a few of the performance tweaks yourself, if you have Windows XP. By default, EVERYTHING is turned on in Windows XP. It isn’t very streamlined for performance, but rather for appearance. You can turn off a few of the unnecessary features, and Windows will still work just fine, and maybe a little faster.
To do this, right-click on My Computer and click on Properties. Click on the Advanced tab. Under the Performance section, click on the Settings button. On the Visual Effects tab, you will see a list of check boxes. By default, these are all on. You really don’t need any of them for Windows to run. Go through the check boxes one by one, and determine which ones you can and can’t live without.
6. Turn off Active Desktop. Active Desktop turns your desktop into a web page, and allows you to have things like a real-time calendar, and up-to-the-minute weather or stocks. These are nice, but really slow down your computer. And even if you don’t use Active Desktop for anything, just having it active can cause a performance decrease. Turn it off.
a. In Windows 95, 98 and Me, right-click on the desktop and in the pop-up menu, choose Active Desktop. Inside that option, uncheck Active Desktop. If there is no check next to it, then it isn’t on. Don’t choose it. Instead, just click the desktop again to get out of the menu.
b. In Windows 2000, right-click on the desktop and in the pop-up menu, choose Active Desktop. Inside that option, uncheck Show Web Content. Again, if there is no check next to it, then it is not on. Do not check it.
c. In Windows XP, right-click on the desktop and in the pop-up menu, choose Properties. On the Desktop tab, choose Customize Desktop. Now, on the Web tab, make sure that there are no websites chosen here. If there aren’t any, then Active Desktop is not on. Cancel and go back to the desktop.
7. Install and run a good AntiVirus program to keep out viruses that can take over your system. One of my favorites is pc-cillin. It is not only a really good AntiVirus program
8. Get rid of Spyware. A lot of computer users have Spyware and don’t even know they have it, much less how to get rid of it. If your computer has been taking you to websites that you don’t want to go to, or if you get pop-ups when you aren’t even on the Internet, or if your computer has been running extremely slowly lately, for no reason, you probably have Spyware.
On all of the computers that I setup, I install two different AntiSpyware programs: AdAware SE and SpyBot. These two programs are highly recommended by TechTV (G4) and other computer authorities . They compliment each other and catch Spyware that the other misses, but together, do a very good job.
Get SpyBot HERE... http://www.lapeertechgroup.com/downloads.asp. Download all updates and run the Immunize option a couple of times.
AdAware SE does a good job when you keep up on the updates and manually scan your system with AdAware. Get it HERE... http://www.lapeertechgroup.com/downloads.asp
In some cases, when the Spyware has become too entwined into your system, even a computer repair technician can’t get rid of the Spyware. At this point, it is better to just backup only what you need and have the operating system reinstalled. Believe me, when your computer gets to this point, you don’t want to just put a “band-aid” on it. Just start from scratch with a clean system. It’s the best way to go.
9. Streamline MSCONFIG. One thing that really causes a HUGE performance decrease is to have unnecessary programs running in the background. Some of these programs can be seen in your System Tray (located next to the clock). These are tiny programs that are robbing you of memory and processing power. Some of them you need, while most you don’t. Some of the programs you DON’T need are printer icons, CD burning icons, shortcuts to programs (such as video settings), AOL, any Instant Messaging Programs, etc. Just because these programs aren’t always running, doesn’t mean that you still can’t print, burn CDs or Instant Message. They can all be run from a shortcut.
You can use a utility, called MSCONFIG, to turn OFF unnecessary Start Up items.
a. In Windows 98, Me, and XP, click on StartRun and type msconfig. Click on the Startup tab. This is a list of everything that is running in the background, some of which show up in the System Tray. Now, be careful, some of these you do need. Some items to keep are Ctfmon.exe (XP), Scan Registry (Win98, Me), Task Monitor (Win98, Me), System Tray (Win98, Me), LoadPowerProfile (Win98, Me), Rundll.32, any AntiVirus programs (such as McAfee, Norton, or AVG). Others, you can uncheck, such as NeroCheck, ypager, qttask, AOL, and any other Instant Messaging programs, or printing programs. Remember, if something doesn’t work, because you turned it off, it can always be turned back on. You just have to reboot every time you make a change here. But, as you uncheck the unnecessary programs that run in the background, you will see that Windows loads much faster, that there are less icons in the System Tray, and that your system is much more “snappy” and quick to respond.
b. In Windows 2000, MSCONFIG wasn’t supplied. You actually have to download and run an MSCONFIG utility. Download the MSCONFIG utility HERE... http://www.perfectdrivers.com/howto/msconfig.html.
After you reboot, you will have a window that says that the configuration utility was edited. Just check not to show that in the future, a check box at the bottom. This just means that there was a change made to the MSCONFIG.
10. Defragment your hard drives. NOTE: to efficiently defragment a hard drive, it likes to have 25% free space. It can still do the defragmentation with only 15% free space, but it takes quite a bit longer. If you can, delete any unnecessary files before deframenting your drives.
a. To defragment your hard drives (in any Windows operating system), double-click on My Computer. Right-click on the c-drive and click on Properties. Click on the Tools tab and choose the bottom button, to Defragment Now
Thats all
How to See What Your Boot Up Time is in Vista/XP
Just uploaded the .exe file for ur convenience:
http://rapidshare.com/files/255352285/Reboot-Time.zip
this file reboots ur PC and shows ur ReBoot time on restart,. Njoy.
whenever u wanna out, u delete the exe file, lol
OR
1) Open your favorite text editor (notepad will do the job perfectly) and copy/paste the following script:
Code:
Option Explicit
On Error Resume Next
Dim Wsh, Time1, Time2, Result, PathFile, MsgResult, MsgA, AppName, KeyA, KeyB, TimeDiff
MsgA = "Please close all running applications and click on OK."
KeyA = "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\RestartTime\"
KeyB = "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\RestartTime"
AppName = "ReBoot-Time"
Set Wsh = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
PathFile = """" & WScript.ScriptFullName & """"
Result = wsh.RegRead(KeyA & "Times")
if Result = "" then
MsgResult = Msgbox (MsgA, vbOKCancel, AppName)
If MsgResult = vbcancel then WScript.Quit
Wsh.RegWrite KeyA & "Times", left(Time,8), "REG_SZ"
Wsh.RegWrite KeyB, PathFile, "REG_SZ"
Wsh.Run "cmd /c Shutdown -r -t 00", false, 0
else
Wsh.RegDelete KeyA & "Times"
Wsh.RegDelete KeyA
Wsh.RegDelete KeyB
TimeDiff = DateDiff("s",Result,left(Time,8))
MsgBox "Your computer reboots in " & TimeDiff & " seconds", VbInformation, AppName
end if
wscript.Quit2) Save the file wherever you want on the same HDD (desktop for example) as ReBoot-Time.vbs (you can choose whatever name as far as the extension is ".VBS"
once u click this file, u will reboot automatically and on reboot u will see the boot up time.. some thing lyk this:
If it isnt working, then renaming hasnt been done properly, see the note
Pls note: u have to rar/zip the file to rename it from .txt to .vbs and then unrar/unzip to desktop
http://rapidshare.com/files/255352285/Reboot-Time.zip
this file reboots ur PC and shows ur ReBoot time on restart,. Njoy.
whenever u wanna out, u delete the exe file, lol
OR
1) Open your favorite text editor (notepad will do the job perfectly) and copy/paste the following script:
Code:
Option Explicit
On Error Resume Next
Dim Wsh, Time1, Time2, Result, PathFile, MsgResult, MsgA, AppName, KeyA, KeyB, TimeDiff
MsgA = "Please close all running applications and click on OK."
KeyA = "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\RestartTime\"
KeyB = "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\RestartTime"
AppName = "ReBoot-Time"
Set Wsh = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
PathFile = """" & WScript.ScriptFullName & """"
Result = wsh.RegRead(KeyA & "Times")
if Result = "" then
MsgResult = Msgbox (MsgA, vbOKCancel, AppName)
If MsgResult = vbcancel then WScript.Quit
Wsh.RegWrite KeyA & "Times", left(Time,8), "REG_SZ"
Wsh.RegWrite KeyB, PathFile, "REG_SZ"
Wsh.Run "cmd /c Shutdown -r -t 00", false, 0
else
Wsh.RegDelete KeyA & "Times"
Wsh.RegDelete KeyA
Wsh.RegDelete KeyB
TimeDiff = DateDiff("s",Result,left(Time,8))
MsgBox "Your computer reboots in " & TimeDiff & " seconds", VbInformation, AppName
end if
wscript.Quit2) Save the file wherever you want on the same HDD (desktop for example) as ReBoot-Time.vbs (you can choose whatever name as far as the extension is ".VBS"
once u click this file, u will reboot automatically and on reboot u will see the boot up time.. some thing lyk this:
If it isnt working, then renaming hasnt been done properly, see the note
Pls note: u have to rar/zip the file to rename it from .txt to .vbs and then unrar/unzip to desktop
Hidden Facts About Windows XP
1. It boasts how long it can stay up. Go to the Command Prompt in the Accessories menu from the All Programs start button option, and then type ’systeminfo’. The computer will produce a lot of useful info, including the uptime. If you want to keep these, type ’systeminfo > info.txt’. This creates a file called info.txt you can look at later with Notepad. (Professional Edition only).
2. You can delete files immediately, without having them move to the Recycle Bin first. Go to the Start menu, select Run… and type ‘gpedit.msc’; then select User Configuration, Administrative Templates, Windows Components, Windows Explorer and find the Do not move deleted files to the Recycle Bin setting. Set it. Poking around in gpedit will reveal a great many interface and system options, but take care — some may stop your computer behaving as you wish. (Professional Edition only).
3. You can lock your XP workstation with two clicks of the mouse. Create a new shortcut on your desktop using a right mouse click, and enter ‘rundll32.exe user32.dll,LockWorkStation’ in the location field. Give the shortcut a name you like. That’s it — just double click on it and your computer will be locked. And if that’s not easy enough, Windows key + L will do the same.
4. XP hides some system software you might want to remove, such as Windows Messenger, but you can make it show everything. Using Notepad or Edit, edit the text file /windows/inf/sysoc.inf, search for the word ‘hide’ and remove it. You can then go to the Add or Remove Programs in the Control Panel, select Add/Remove Windows Components and there will be the software and you can now uninstall it.
5. For those skilled in the art of DOS batch files, XP has a number of interesting new commands. These include ‘eventcreate’ and ‘eventtriggers’ for creating and watching system events, ‘typeperf’ for monitoring performance of various subsystems, and ’schtasks’ for handling scheduled tasks. As usual, typing the command name followed by /? will give a list of options.
6. XP has IP version 6 support — the next generation of IP. Unfortunately this is more than your ISP has, so you can only experiment with this on your LAN. Type ‘ipv6 install’ into Run… (it’s OK, it won’t ruin your existing network setup) and then ‘ipv6 /?’ at the command line to find out more. If you don’t know what IPv6 is, don’t worry.
7. You can at last get rid of tasks on the computer from the command line by using ‘taskkill /pid’ and the task number, or just ‘tskill’ and the process number. Find that out by typing ‘tasklist’, which will also tell you a lot about what’s going on in your system.
8. XP will treat Zip files like folders, which is nice if you’ve got a fast machine. On slower machines, you can make XP leave zip files alone by typing ‘regsvr32 /u zipfldr.dll’ at the command line. If you change your mind later, you can change things back by typing ‘regsvr32 zipfldr.dll’.
9. XP has ClearType — Microsoft’s anti-aliasing font display technology — but doesn’t have it enabled by default. It’s well worth trying, especially if you were there for DOS and all those years of staring at a screen have given you the eyes of an astigmatic bat. To enable ClearType, right click on the desktop, select Properties, Appearance, Effects, select ClearType from the second drop-down menu and enable the selection. Expect best results on laptop displays. If you want to use ClearType on the Welcome login screen as well, set the registry entry HKEY_USERS/.DEFAULT/Control Panel/Desktop/FontSmoothingType to 2.
10. You can use Remote Assistance to help a friend who’s using network address translation (NAT) on a home network, but not automatically. Get your pal to email you a Remote Assistance invitation and edit the file. Under the RCTICKET attribute will be a NAT IP address, like 192.168.1.10. Replace this with your friend’s real IP address — they can find this out by going to www.whatismyip.com — and get them to make sure that they’ve got port 3389 open on their firewall and forwarded to the errant computer.
11. You can run a program as a different user without logging out and back in again. Right click the icon, select Run As… and enter the user name and password you want to use. This only applies for that run. The trick is particularly useful if you need to have administrative permissions to install a program, which many require. Note that you can have some fun by running programs multiple times on the same system as different users, but this can have unforeseen effects.
12. Windows XP can be very insistent about you checking for auto updates, registering a Passport, using Windows Messenger and so on. After a while, the nagging goes away, but if you feel you might go insane before that point, run Regedit, go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Windows/Current Version/Explorer/Advanced and create a DWORD value called EnableBalloonTips with a value of 0.
13. You can start up without needing to enter a user name or password. Select Run… from the start menu and type ‘control userpasswords2′, which will open the user accounts application. On the Users tab, clear the box for Users Must Enter A User Name And Password To Use This Computer, and click on OK. An Automatically Log On dialog box will appear; enter the user name and password for the account you want to use.
14. Internet Explorer 6 will automatically delete temporary files, but only if you tell it to. Start the browser, select Tools / Internet Options… and Advanced, go down to the Security area and check the box to Empty Temporary Internet Files folder when browser is closed.
15. XP comes with a free Network Activity Light, just in case you can’t see the LEDs twinkle on your network card. Right click on My Network Places on the desktop, then select Properties. Right click on the description for your LAN or dial-up connection, select Properties, then check the Show icon in notification area when connected box. You’ll now see a tiny network icon on the right of your task bar that glimmers nicely during network traffic.
16. The Start Menu can be leisurely when it decides to appear, but you can speed things along by changing the registry entry HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Control Panel/Desktop/MenuShowDelay from the default 400 to something a little snappier. Like 0.
17. You can rename loads of files at once in Windows Explorer. Highlight a set of files in a window, then right click on one and rename it. All the other files will be renamed to that name, with individual numbers in brackets to distinguish them. Also, in a folder you can arrange icons in alphabetised groups by View, Arrange Icon By… Show In Groups.
18. Windows Media Player will display the cover art for albums as it plays the tracks — if it found the picture on the Internet when you copied the tracks from the CD. If it didn’t, or if you have lots of pre-WMP music files, you can put your own copy of the cover art in the same directory as the tracks. Just call it folder.jpg and Windows Media Player will pick it up and display it.
19. Windows key + Break brings up the System Properties dialogue box; Windows key + D brings up the desktop; Windows key + Tab moves through the taskbar buttons.
20. Windows XP secretly KNOWS that the average user has no idea what they are doing. Therefore, it doesn’t let you do really stupid things like deleting the windows directory (at least not without spending several hours convincing it that you REALLY want to do this). Oh yeah, and internet explorer kinda sucks, get Firefox.
2. You can delete files immediately, without having them move to the Recycle Bin first. Go to the Start menu, select Run… and type ‘gpedit.msc’; then select User Configuration, Administrative Templates, Windows Components, Windows Explorer and find the Do not move deleted files to the Recycle Bin setting. Set it. Poking around in gpedit will reveal a great many interface and system options, but take care — some may stop your computer behaving as you wish. (Professional Edition only).
3. You can lock your XP workstation with two clicks of the mouse. Create a new shortcut on your desktop using a right mouse click, and enter ‘rundll32.exe user32.dll,LockWorkStation’ in the location field. Give the shortcut a name you like. That’s it — just double click on it and your computer will be locked. And if that’s not easy enough, Windows key + L will do the same.
4. XP hides some system software you might want to remove, such as Windows Messenger, but you can make it show everything. Using Notepad or Edit, edit the text file /windows/inf/sysoc.inf, search for the word ‘hide’ and remove it. You can then go to the Add or Remove Programs in the Control Panel, select Add/Remove Windows Components and there will be the software and you can now uninstall it.
5. For those skilled in the art of DOS batch files, XP has a number of interesting new commands. These include ‘eventcreate’ and ‘eventtriggers’ for creating and watching system events, ‘typeperf’ for monitoring performance of various subsystems, and ’schtasks’ for handling scheduled tasks. As usual, typing the command name followed by /? will give a list of options.
6. XP has IP version 6 support — the next generation of IP. Unfortunately this is more than your ISP has, so you can only experiment with this on your LAN. Type ‘ipv6 install’ into Run… (it’s OK, it won’t ruin your existing network setup) and then ‘ipv6 /?’ at the command line to find out more. If you don’t know what IPv6 is, don’t worry.
7. You can at last get rid of tasks on the computer from the command line by using ‘taskkill /pid’ and the task number, or just ‘tskill’ and the process number. Find that out by typing ‘tasklist’, which will also tell you a lot about what’s going on in your system.
8. XP will treat Zip files like folders, which is nice if you’ve got a fast machine. On slower machines, you can make XP leave zip files alone by typing ‘regsvr32 /u zipfldr.dll’ at the command line. If you change your mind later, you can change things back by typing ‘regsvr32 zipfldr.dll’.
9. XP has ClearType — Microsoft’s anti-aliasing font display technology — but doesn’t have it enabled by default. It’s well worth trying, especially if you were there for DOS and all those years of staring at a screen have given you the eyes of an astigmatic bat. To enable ClearType, right click on the desktop, select Properties, Appearance, Effects, select ClearType from the second drop-down menu and enable the selection. Expect best results on laptop displays. If you want to use ClearType on the Welcome login screen as well, set the registry entry HKEY_USERS/.DEFAULT/Control Panel/Desktop/FontSmoothingType to 2.
10. You can use Remote Assistance to help a friend who’s using network address translation (NAT) on a home network, but not automatically. Get your pal to email you a Remote Assistance invitation and edit the file. Under the RCTICKET attribute will be a NAT IP address, like 192.168.1.10. Replace this with your friend’s real IP address — they can find this out by going to www.whatismyip.com — and get them to make sure that they’ve got port 3389 open on their firewall and forwarded to the errant computer.
11. You can run a program as a different user without logging out and back in again. Right click the icon, select Run As… and enter the user name and password you want to use. This only applies for that run. The trick is particularly useful if you need to have administrative permissions to install a program, which many require. Note that you can have some fun by running programs multiple times on the same system as different users, but this can have unforeseen effects.
12. Windows XP can be very insistent about you checking for auto updates, registering a Passport, using Windows Messenger and so on. After a while, the nagging goes away, but if you feel you might go insane before that point, run Regedit, go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Windows/Current Version/Explorer/Advanced and create a DWORD value called EnableBalloonTips with a value of 0.
13. You can start up without needing to enter a user name or password. Select Run… from the start menu and type ‘control userpasswords2′, which will open the user accounts application. On the Users tab, clear the box for Users Must Enter A User Name And Password To Use This Computer, and click on OK. An Automatically Log On dialog box will appear; enter the user name and password for the account you want to use.
14. Internet Explorer 6 will automatically delete temporary files, but only if you tell it to. Start the browser, select Tools / Internet Options… and Advanced, go down to the Security area and check the box to Empty Temporary Internet Files folder when browser is closed.
15. XP comes with a free Network Activity Light, just in case you can’t see the LEDs twinkle on your network card. Right click on My Network Places on the desktop, then select Properties. Right click on the description for your LAN or dial-up connection, select Properties, then check the Show icon in notification area when connected box. You’ll now see a tiny network icon on the right of your task bar that glimmers nicely during network traffic.
16. The Start Menu can be leisurely when it decides to appear, but you can speed things along by changing the registry entry HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Control Panel/Desktop/MenuShowDelay from the default 400 to something a little snappier. Like 0.
17. You can rename loads of files at once in Windows Explorer. Highlight a set of files in a window, then right click on one and rename it. All the other files will be renamed to that name, with individual numbers in brackets to distinguish them. Also, in a folder you can arrange icons in alphabetised groups by View, Arrange Icon By… Show In Groups.
18. Windows Media Player will display the cover art for albums as it plays the tracks — if it found the picture on the Internet when you copied the tracks from the CD. If it didn’t, or if you have lots of pre-WMP music files, you can put your own copy of the cover art in the same directory as the tracks. Just call it folder.jpg and Windows Media Player will pick it up and display it.
19. Windows key + Break brings up the System Properties dialogue box; Windows key + D brings up the desktop; Windows key + Tab moves through the taskbar buttons.
20. Windows XP secretly KNOWS that the average user has no idea what they are doing. Therefore, it doesn’t let you do really stupid things like deleting the windows directory (at least not without spending several hours convincing it that you REALLY want to do this). Oh yeah, and internet explorer kinda sucks, get Firefox.
How to remove Windows Vista and/or Windows 7 from dual boot system having XP.
I was having my P.C. with X.P. as well Windows Vista and Beta version of Windows 7 as a dual boot.
After some days if uses I stopped using Vista and Windows 7.
Now I wished to get rid of these Operating systems as they were using a lot of space on my Hard Disk and I did not needed them any more.
Then I searched for the solution of How to remove those Operating Systems without losing my Data and even without having to re-install my X.P.?
I think many of you people also have this problem of how to remove Vista and / or Windows 7 on a dual boot system with X.P.
Here is how to do it.
1> Boot your computer in to Windows XP.
2> Ensure you have the Vista DVD in the DVD drive.
3> Go to “Start” and “Run”. Type in “d:\boot\bootsect.exe /nt52 ALL /force” (without quotes, plus replace d: with the drive letter of your Vista DVD).
4> Remove two files (Boot.BAK & Bootsect.BAK) on your XP root folder (C: ).
5> Restart the computer, and you will notice the boot selection menu is gone.
6> Format the partition/drive where you had Vista installed.
And now you have returned your computer to its previous state, without Vista and without the new bootloader.
This is this much simple.
After some days if uses I stopped using Vista and Windows 7.
Now I wished to get rid of these Operating systems as they were using a lot of space on my Hard Disk and I did not needed them any more.
Then I searched for the solution of How to remove those Operating Systems without losing my Data and even without having to re-install my X.P.?
I think many of you people also have this problem of how to remove Vista and / or Windows 7 on a dual boot system with X.P.
Here is how to do it.
1> Boot your computer in to Windows XP.
2> Ensure you have the Vista DVD in the DVD drive.
3> Go to “Start” and “Run”. Type in “d:\boot\bootsect.exe /nt52 ALL /force” (without quotes, plus replace d: with the drive letter of your Vista DVD).
4> Remove two files (Boot.BAK & Bootsect.BAK) on your XP root folder (C: ).
5> Restart the computer, and you will notice the boot selection menu is gone.
6> Format the partition/drive where you had Vista installed.
And now you have returned your computer to its previous state, without Vista and without the new bootloader.
This is this much simple.
Make ur xp genuine in one line steps(no software needed works 100%)
1.Goto "start"
2.Run-type in "regedit"
3.Goto "local-machine-software-microsoft-window s nt-current version-wpaevents"
4.choose "oobe timer" in the rights panel
5.in the window,delete all the things.
6.close regedit
7.goto start-run-type in "%systemroot%\system32\oobe\msoobe.exe /a"
8.choose the second option "use phone to activate"
9.click "change product key"
10.type in the serial:thmpv-77d6f-94376-8hgkg-vrdrq
11.click "update"
12.click"remember later"
13.after that restart the computer
14.after restart goto start-run-type in "%systemroot%\system32\oobe\msoobe.exe /a"
15.it should come up with a message"windows activated"-finished!
It was tested & it works 100 % Only For Windows XP
2.Run-type in "regedit"
3.Goto "local-machine-software-microsoft-window s nt-current version-wpaevents"
4.choose "oobe timer" in the rights panel
5.in the window,delete all the things.
6.close regedit
7.goto start-run-type in "%systemroot%\system32\oobe\msoobe.exe /a"
8.choose the second option "use phone to activate"
9.click "change product key"
10.type in the serial:thmpv-77d6f-94376-8hgkg-vrdrq
11.click "update"
12.click"remember later"
13.after that restart the computer
14.after restart goto start-run-type in "%systemroot%\system32\oobe\msoobe.exe /a"
15.it should come up with a message"windows activated"-finished!
It was tested & it works 100 % Only For Windows XP
Create Hidden Admin Account in XP
Since we are going to do all the Editing in Window Registry it is Recommended to Back Up the Registry before going Further.
After you have Backed up your registry follow the Steps to Create your Hidden Account:
* First Goto Start -> Run -> Type regedit -> Enter
* In the Left Menu goto,
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\WindowsNT\Cu rrentVersion\Winlogon\SpecialAccounts\UserList
* In the Right pane, Right click -> New -> String Value
* Right click on the new String Value and click Rename
* Type the Name of the Account you want to hide.
* Hit Enter then Right click on the String Value again and Change value to 0 which hides it. If you want it to be Visible to all Enter the Value 1.
* Now Save and Exit the Registry and Logoff.
* Goto welcome screen and Hit ctrl+alt+del twice to bring up Logon prompt
* Type hidden Accounts name and password
* Enjoy!!!
After you have Backed up your registry follow the Steps to Create your Hidden Account:
* First Goto Start -> Run -> Type regedit -> Enter
* In the Left Menu goto,
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\WindowsNT\Cu rrentVersion\Winlogon\SpecialAccounts\UserList
* In the Right pane, Right click -> New -> String Value
* Right click on the new String Value and click Rename
* Type the Name of the Account you want to hide.
* Hit Enter then Right click on the String Value again and Change value to 0 which hides it. If you want it to be Visible to all Enter the Value 1.
* Now Save and Exit the Registry and Logoff.
* Goto welcome screen and Hit ctrl+alt+del twice to bring up Logon prompt
* Type hidden Accounts name and password
* Enjoy!!!
Hidden bluetooth software in XP and vista
Now you don't need to install any software for your bluetooth device.
you don't know but you already had it in ur window xp nd vista
it can be used as:-
1.open run command
2.now type "fsquirt" without quotes
3.now just select whether u want 2 send or receive any file very easy.
you don't know but you already had it in ur window xp nd vista
it can be used as:-
1.open run command
2.now type "fsquirt" without quotes
3.now just select whether u want 2 send or receive any file very easy.
Increase XP folder setting
Windows remembers 400 folder settings. When that number is reached some settings aren't retained any longer. You can change this to 8000 by adding this edit to the registry.
1. Copy the following (everything in the box) into notepdad.
QUOTE
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[-HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell NoRoam\BagMRU]
[-HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell NoRoam\Bags]
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell]
"BagMRU Size"=dword:00001f40
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell NoRoam]
"BagMRU Size"=dword:00001f40
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Curre ntVersion\Policies\Explorer]
"NoSaveSettings"=dword:00000000
2. Save the file as folder8000.reg
3. Double click the file to import into your registry
1. Copy the following (everything in the box) into notepdad.
QUOTE
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[-HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell NoRoam\BagMRU]
[-HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell NoRoam\Bags]
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell]
"BagMRU Size"=dword:00001f40
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell NoRoam]
"BagMRU Size"=dword:00001f40
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Curre ntVersion\Policies\Explorer]
"NoSaveSettings"=dword:00000000
2. Save the file as folder8000.reg
3. Double click the file to import into your registry
Graphing calculator for Windows XP
The calculator which ships with Windows is very useful for performing basic arithmetic and low-level scientific functions, however if you are looking for a more powerful calculator, check out Microsoft’s Power Calculator.
download it from that link..
Quote:
http://download.microsoft.com/downlo...ertoySetup.exe
This calculator replacement offers advanced functionality such as graphing, variable storage and full equation writing. If you ever used a TI-8x calculator, the functions of the Power Calculator are similar (although not nearly as fully featured) with respect to the mathematical operations.
This tool is a free download, so if you think it will be useful to you give it a try.
download it from that link..
Quote:
http://download.microsoft.com/downlo...ertoySetup.exe
This calculator replacement offers advanced functionality such as graphing, variable storage and full equation writing. If you ever used a TI-8x calculator, the functions of the Power Calculator are similar (although not nearly as fully featured) with respect to the mathematical operations.
This tool is a free download, so if you think it will be useful to you give it a try.
XP Animations
You can turn off window animation ("exploding" windows), displayed when you play around with minimizing/maximizing open windows. This makes navigating Windows 95/98/ME/NT4/2000/XP a lot quicker, especially if you don't have a fast video controller, or if you got tired of seeing it all the time (like I did).
To do this, run Regedit (or Regedt32) and go to:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER | Control Panel | Desktop | WindowMetrics
or if you are the only user of your Windows computer go to:
HKEY_USERS | .Default | Control Panel | Desktop | WindowMetrics
Right-click on an empty spot in the right hand pane. Select New -> String [REG_SZ] Value. Name it MinAnimate. Click OK. Double-click on "MinAnimate" and type 0 to turn OFF window animation or 1 to turn it ON. Click OK. Close the Registry Editor and restart Windows. Done.
TweakUI, the famous Microsoft Power Toy [110 KB, free, unsupported] can also turn off animated windows.
Just remove the check mark from the "Window Animation" box under the General tab
To do this, run Regedit (or Regedt32) and go to:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER | Control Panel | Desktop | WindowMetrics
or if you are the only user of your Windows computer go to:
HKEY_USERS | .Default | Control Panel | Desktop | WindowMetrics
Right-click on an empty spot in the right hand pane. Select New -> String [REG_SZ] Value. Name it MinAnimate. Click OK. Double-click on "MinAnimate" and type 0 to turn OFF window animation or 1 to turn it ON. Click OK. Close the Registry Editor and restart Windows. Done.
TweakUI, the famous Microsoft Power Toy [110 KB, free, unsupported] can also turn off animated windows.
Just remove the check mark from the "Window Animation" box under the General tab
how to Speed Up Menus in windows XP
1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. Type Regedit in the box, and then click OK.
3. Expand the menu in the left panel and select the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop folder.
4. Scroll down in the right panel and double click on the MenuShowDelay file.
5. In the Value Data box, change to default value for the menu speed from 400 to a lesser number, such as 1.
6. Click OK.
2. Type Regedit in the box, and then click OK.
3. Expand the menu in the left panel and select the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop folder.
4. Scroll down in the right panel and double click on the MenuShowDelay file.
5. In the Value Data box, change to default value for the menu speed from 400 to a lesser number, such as 1.
6. Click OK.
Hide/show installed appz in add/remove programmes
The Add/Remove Programs list is populated from the following registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Uninstall
Under the Uninstall key, there will be several sub-keys, each representing a software program that you installed. The following example shows how to hide the AnalogX Proxy entry from Add/Remove Programs listing:
Click Start, Run and type Regedit.exe
Navigate to the following location:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Uninstall \ AnalogX Proxy
In the right-pane, right-click the DisplayName value and choose Rename
Rename it to anything (For example, NoDisplayName )
The AnalogX Proxy entry is now hidden. To make it visible again, rename the value back to DisplayName
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Uninstall
Under the Uninstall key, there will be several sub-keys, each representing a software program that you installed. The following example shows how to hide the AnalogX Proxy entry from Add/Remove Programs listing:
Click Start, Run and type Regedit.exe
Navigate to the following location:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Uninstall \ AnalogX Proxy
In the right-pane, right-click the DisplayName value and choose Rename
Rename it to anything (For example, NoDisplayName )
The AnalogX Proxy entry is now hidden. To make it visible again, rename the value back to DisplayName
Disable XP Boot Logo
Be aware that removing the splash screen will also cause you not to see any boot-up messages that might come up (chkdsk, convert ... ), but if your system runs without any problems then it should not matter.
1. Edit boot.ini
2. Add " /noguiboot" right after "/fastdetect".
(or check the /noguiboot switch in msconfig on the boot.ini tab)
Upon restarting, the splash screen will be gone. It can be re-enabled by removing the new switch.
1. Edit boot.ini
2. Add " /noguiboot" right after "/fastdetect".
(or check the /noguiboot switch in msconfig on the boot.ini tab)
Upon restarting, the splash screen will be gone. It can be re-enabled by removing the new switch.
How to add your own windows tips
Are you sick of seeing the same tips again and again when you first logon to Windows? Now you can change them to whatever you want, whether it's quotes, jokes or a to-do list, anything is possible.
Open your registry and find the key below.
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ SOFTWARE\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Explorer\ Tips
Create a new string valued named by incrementing the existing value names and set it to the required tip text.
eg. 32 -
Open your registry and find the key below.
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ SOFTWARE\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Explorer\ Tips
Create a new string valued named by incrementing the existing value names and set it to the required tip text.
eg. 32 -
Process to Get The Any Drivers For Your Pc
Code:
- Visit Windows Update (XP Only)
- Look at the left hand pane and under Other Options click Personalize Windows Update.
- Now in the right hand pane check the box - Display the link to the Windows Update Catalog under See Also
- Below Choose which categories and updates to display on Windows Update - make sure you check all the boxes you want shown.
- Click Save Settings
- Now look in the left hand pane under See Also click Windows Update Catalog and choose what you're looking for. Choose either MS updates or drivers for hardware devices.
- Start the Wizard and off you go.
There are a TON of drivers there. I highly recommend you take a look at this page prior to downloading something from the web.
Save Your New Downloads
Since some people are still using modems and since MS is issuing patches right and left for XP wouldn't it be nice if after you downloaded all the updates you could save them? Well, you can and MS has provided a way for you to do it.
Here's How:
- Logon to Windows Update
- Choose Windows Update Catalogue (left hand pane)
- Choose Find updates for Microsoft Windows operating systems (right hand pane)
- Choose your version and language then Search
- Choose one the following:
- Critical Updates and Service Packs
- Service Packs and Recommended Downloads
- Multi-Language Features (0)
- Once chosen simply click on what you want to download and then back at the top click Review Download Basket
- You are taken to the next page where at the top you can specify where the downloads are to be saved.
- Click Download now.
Each patch will make a directory under the root of the folder you saved them to. Once finished you need to go to where you saved the file (s) to and then simply install all your patches.
Read-me's are available in each patch section so you know which one you are installing.
- Visit Windows Update (XP Only)
- Look at the left hand pane and under Other Options click Personalize Windows Update.
- Now in the right hand pane check the box - Display the link to the Windows Update Catalog under See Also
- Below Choose which categories and updates to display on Windows Update - make sure you check all the boxes you want shown.
- Click Save Settings
- Now look in the left hand pane under See Also click Windows Update Catalog and choose what you're looking for. Choose either MS updates or drivers for hardware devices.
- Start the Wizard and off you go.
There are a TON of drivers there. I highly recommend you take a look at this page prior to downloading something from the web.
Save Your New Downloads
Since some people are still using modems and since MS is issuing patches right and left for XP wouldn't it be nice if after you downloaded all the updates you could save them? Well, you can and MS has provided a way for you to do it.
Here's How:
- Logon to Windows Update
- Choose Windows Update Catalogue (left hand pane)
- Choose Find updates for Microsoft Windows operating systems (right hand pane)
- Choose your version and language then Search
- Choose one the following:
- Critical Updates and Service Packs
- Service Packs and Recommended Downloads
- Multi-Language Features (0)
- Once chosen simply click on what you want to download and then back at the top click Review Download Basket
- You are taken to the next page where at the top you can specify where the downloads are to be saved.
- Click Download now.
Each patch will make a directory under the root of the folder you saved them to. Once finished you need to go to where you saved the file (s) to and then simply install all your patches.
Read-me's are available in each patch section so you know which one you are installing.