Your problem is most likely #1 on the list below.
These are not mine, just gleaned from all over. Hope they help folk.
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Windows XP Tips
Here are some of the settings I alter after a clean install.
In System Properties.
1. Disable system restore on all drives
2. Disable Automatic Updates.
3. Set a fixed Swap File size on a separate dedicated partition (size = 1.5 X system ram)
4. Disable Error Reporting.
5. In performance options / visual effects disable the following :
Animate windows when minimizing and maximizing screen.
Smooth edges of screen fonts.
Smooth-scroll list boxes
Use a background image for each folder.
In Services accessible from Administrative Tools disable the following :
1.Universal Plug and Play Device Host.
2.SSDP Discovery Service.
3.QoS RSVP.
That is enough to start with. For more info on disabling services click the XP Services Link
This next tip is just a personal preference.
Right click the taskbar and go to properties / task bar appearance then tick "Auto-Hide the taskbar", "Keep the taskbar on top of other windows" and "Show Quick Launch"
Untick "Lock the taskbar" and "Group similar taskbar buttons"
In the Notification area I have both boxes ticked.
Now go to Start Menu tab and click "Customize" then "Advanced" tab and tick the items you want to display in the Start Menu
I also like the Volume Icon displayed in the system tray which is of by default. To enable it got to Sounds and Audio devices in the control panel and tick the box "Place Volume Icon in the Taskbar"
Next I go to Windows Update and let it do its job. That's not quite true as I have most of the update files stored on my backup drive.
Now I'm ready for some essential software covered in another section.
Below is a list of some of the most popular XP Tweaks gleaned from the Net. I recommend you do a registry back up before proceeding. If your system appears to be malfunctioning afterwards you can always go back to its state before you applied the changes.
Here’s how to do it :
1. (Open the registry) : Click Start, and click Run. The Run dialog box appears.
Type regedit and then click OK. The Registry Editor opens.
2. Scroll to the top if necessary, and select My Computer at the top of the left pane.
3. Click File, and then click Export.
4. Click the Desktop icon (or wherever you’d like to save the backup).
5. In the File name box, enter a name that you will remember, such as "goodregbackup".
6. Click Save. The file is saved to your Windows desktop.
In order to restore, simply double-click the backup file.
Increase the Icon Cache
On XP the Max Cached Icons is set too low,to change this go to regedit,
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\currentversion\Explorer
in the right window, double click "Max Cached Icons", type the value 8192 ,then reboot you should see a big speed boost icon load, and opening folders.
Note -If the value is not there, you can simply create it :
go to the above specified location, right-click an empty space in the right window and select « new » -> « string value ». For the name, type :
Max Cached Icons
then double-click it and enter the specified value (8192).
StartMenu Delay
The start menu has a delay between different tiers of the menu hierarchy. To speed this, you can change the value to zero. This will allow the different tiers to appear instantly.
Start Regedit.
Navigate to
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop
Select MenuShowDelay from the list on the right.
Right on it and select Modify.
Change the value to 0.
Reboot your computer.
(Note : If you have other accounts you might also go to
HKEY_USERS/.DEFAULT/Control Panel/Desktop
and do the same thing.)
Speed up Diskcache.
Open Regedit
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\
Memory Management\IoPageLockLimit
Modify the value in Hex depending on the size of your RAM
RAM modified value(Hex)
64M 1000
128M 4000
256M 10000
512M or more 40000
Reboot.
Clear Page file on shutdown.
For added security you should always clear the page file upon shutting down your computer. Windows uses this file as extra ram. Lets say that you are working on a confidential MS Word doc. When you load this document it is loaded into ram. To save ram windows places certain items in the page file. The page file can then be opened and the document can be extracted as well as any other open program or files. However Microsoft has implemented a feature that will clear the page file but they do not have it enabled by default. Please note, this will slightly increase the amount of time it takes to shut down your computer but it is well worth it.
Start Regedit.
Navigate to
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\SessionManager\
Memory Management
Select ClearPageFileAtShutdown from the list on the right.
Right on it and select Modify.
Change the value to 1 to enable.
Reboot your computer
Speed up Nero Burning Rom in XP
Go to "administrative tools" in the control panel, and in the "services" list, disable the IMAPI CD-Burning COM service.
(Note: manual setting is not enough it must be disabled) It is the built-in CD-burning capability for windows XP (incidentally, written by Roxio).
Services Shutdown Time
Windows XP has the service shutdown time set to 20000 ms which equals 20 secs. To change this go to regedit and change this key :
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\
WaitToKillServiceTimeout
setting it to 5-10sec should do the trick (that would be 5000-10000)
Prefetcher Tweak
This is an unique technique for XP, which could improve the performance significantly by tweaking the prefetcher. Recommended hardware: PIII 800 or higher, 512 mb RAM or more.
1. Run "regedit";
2. Go to
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\
Session Manager\Memory Management\PrefetchParameters\EnablePrefetcher
3. Set the value to either 0-Disable, 1-App launch prefetch, 2-Boot Prefetch, 3-Both ("3" is recommended).
4. Reboot.
Large System Cache
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\SessionManager\
Memory Management -> LargeSystemCache
When enabled (the default on Server versions of Windows 2000), this setting tells the OS to devote all but 4 MB of system memory (which is left for disk caching) to the file system cache. The main effect of this is allowing the computer to cache the OS Kernel to memory, making the OS more responsive. The setting is dynamic and if more than 4 MB is needed from the disk cache for some reason, the space will be released to it. By default, 8MB is earmarked for this purpose. This tweak usually makes the OS more responsive. It is a dynamic setting, and the kernel will give up any space deemed necessary for another application (at a performance hit when such changes are needed). As with the previous key, set the value from 0 to 1 to enable. Note that in doing this, you are consuming more of your system RAM than normal. While LargeSystemCache will cut back usage when other apps need more RAM, this process can impede performance in certain intensive situations. According to Microsoft, the "[0] setting is recommended for servers running applications that do their own memory caching, such as Microsoft SQL Server, and for applications that perform best with ample memory, such as Internet Information Services."
Disable Paging Executive
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\SessionManager\
Memory Management -> DisablePagingExecutive
When enabled, this setting will prevent the paging of the Win 2k Executive files to the hard drive, causing the OS and most programs to be more responsive. However, it is advised that people should only perform this tweak if they have a significant amount of RAM on their system (more than 128 MB), because this setting does use a substantial portion of your system resources. By default, the value of this key is 0. To enable it, set it to 1.
Disable Hibernation to save space
Unless you use it, you can disable hibernation in :Control panel > Power Options > Hibernate. If left on, the hibernation reserves disk space equal to your RAM
Annoyances solved
Disable balloon tips
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced then set the value of 'EnableBalloonTips' to 0. (Or if you have TweakUI, disable tips is in that program)
Turn off autoplay for CDs
Click Start , click Run , type regedit in the Open box, and then press ENTER.
Locate and click the following registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\CDRom
-To disable automatically running CD-ROMs, change the Autorun value to 0 (zero).
-To enable automatically running CD-ROMs, change the Autorun value to 1.
Restart your computer.
(NOTE : This method disables automatically running CD-ROMs.If you want to disable automatically running CD-ROMs depending on the CD-ROM that you insert in the CD-ROM drive, you can press and hold down one of the SHIFT key while you insert the CD-ROM.)
Disable error reporting
One feature that I can do without is error reporting. Every time a program crashes I do not want to send a report to microsoft. Read below to find out how to disable this stupid feature.
Open Control Panel
Click on Preformance and Maintenance.
Click on System.
Then click on the Advanced tab
Click on the error reporting button on the bottom of the windows.
Select Disable error reporting.
Click OK
Display message on startup
If you would like to display a legal message or any other message in a pop-up window when windows starts :
Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WindowsNT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon
Modify the key legalnoticecaption with what you want to name the window.
Modify the key legalnoticetext with what you want the window to say.
Reboot..
Turn off system beeps
If those beeps annoy you there is a way to turn them off.
Start Regedit. Navigate to
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Sound
Once there, locate Beep on the list on the right. Right click on it and select Modify Change the value equal to no Reboot your computer and the beeps will be gone!
Internet, I.E & Connectivity Tweaks
Clear temp files on close
The latest versions of internet explorer include some great new security improvements. For this tweak I will talk about the feature that clear the temporary internet files each time you close internet explorer. Launch Internet Explorer. Select the Tools from the menu bar. Then select Internet Options... from the drop down menu. Once the internet options has loaded click on the advanced tab. Under security find where it says Empty Temporary internet files folder when browser is closed and check it. Click OK
Speeding up browsing of Microsoft networks
1. Go to
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Current Version\Explorer\
RemoteComputer\NameSpace
2. Find a key named {D6277990-4C6A-11CF-8D87-00AA0060F5BF}.
3. Right click on it and delete it.
4. Restart
Easily Disable Messenger
Go into C\Program Files\Messenger rename the Messenger folder to something like "Messenger OFF" This does not slow down Outlook or hinder system performance
Allow more than 2 simultaneous downloads in IE 6
This is to increase the the number of max downloads to 10.
1. Locate the following key in the registry:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\
InternetSettings
2. On the Edit menu, click Add Value , and then add the following « Dword » values:
"MaxConnectionsPer1_0Server"=Dword:0000000a
"MaxConnectionsPerServer"=Dword:0000000a
3. Quit Registry Editor.
4. Reboot
Disable Schedule Task in IE
IE 6.0 wants to run a schelduled task everytime it connects to a server. This results in slower browsing.To disable this delete the following key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\
Explorer\RemoteComputer\NameSpace
-> {D6277990-4C6A-11CF-8D87-00AA0060F5BF}
Get rid of Internet Browsing history
Launch Internet Explorer. Select the Tools from the menu bar. Then select Internet Options... from the drop down menu. Once the internet options has loaded click on the general tab. Under the history section change the days to keep in history to 0. I would also click the clear history button to get rid of everything else.
Click OK
Change Web Page Font Size on the Fly
If your mouse contains a wheel for scrolling, you can change font size on the fly when viewing a Web page. To do so: Press and hold Ctrl. Scroll down (or towards yourself) to enlarge the font size. Scroll up (or away from yourself) to reduce the font size.
You might find it useful to reduce font size when printing a Web page, so that you can fit more content on the page.
Adding .com easily - Quick URL's
Just type cnn in the address bar
Now press Ctrl + Enter
This adds the http:// and the .com to the site name
Browsing speed tweak
When you connect to a web site your computer sends information back and forth. Although WinXP and win2000 has a pretty efficient DNS cache, you can increase its overall performance by increasing its size.
You can do this with the registry entries below:
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services
\Dnscache\Parameters]
"CacheHashTableBucketSize"=dword:00000001
"CacheHashTableSize"=dword:00000180
"MaxCacheEntryTtlLimit"=dword:0000fa00
"MaxSOACacheEntryTtlLimit"=dword:0000012d
Uninstall MS Messenger
Click Start \ Run Then type the following:
RunDll32 advpack.dll,LaunchINFSection %windir%\INF\msmsgs.inf,BLC.Remove
Press ENTER
Restart Windows
Bandwith Limit
(Warning : It’s been suggested that this tweak does nothing, and is in fact but a myth. In any case, applying it doesn’t appear to harm the system…)
1. Make sure your logged on as actually "Administrator". do not log on with any account that just has administrator privileges. To log in as an administrator:
-click on start->logoff->logoff
-in the logon screen hold Ctrl+Alt+Del.
-in the user field type 'Administrator' <-case sensitive.
-in the password field type the password for the administrator (if you don't have one leave blank)
-press ok
2. Start - run - type gpedit.msc
3. Expand the "Computer configuration" branch
4. Expand the "Administrative templates" branch
5. Expand the "Network" branch
6. Highlight the "QoS Packet Scheduler" in left window
7. In right window double click the "limit reservable bandwidth" setting
8. On setting tab check the "enabled" item
9. Where it says "Bandwidth limit %" change it to read 0-- Click apply, OK, exit gpedit.msc
10. Go to your Network connections (start->my computer->my network connection-> view network connections). Right click on your connection, choose properties then under the General or the Networking tab (where it lists your protocols) make sure QoS packet scheduler is enabled.
11. Reboot, and you’re done !
Web Browsing Tweak
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\
Services\Tcpip\ServiceProvider
On the right change these entries (ALL values are HEXIDECIMAL) :
DnsPriority - " 7 "
HostsPriority - " 6 "
LocalPriority - " 5"
NetbtPriority - " 8 "
Default Values (for restoring purposes...)
DnsPriority – " 7d0"
HostsPriority – " 1f4"
LocalPriority – " 1f3 "
NetbtPriority – " 7d1 "
Add Folders to "Save As" choice
In WinXP Pro, just open the Group Policy (type gpedit.msc in the Run command), go to :User Configuration / Administrative Templates / Windows Components / Windows Explorer / Common Open File Dialog and Enable the "Items Displayed in the Places Bar" option.
You can set any location, and it also offers you the most commons places by only typing i.e. My Music, instead of the full path.
Remove Shared Doc's from My Computer
Start regedit Navigate to :
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\Explorer\MyComputer\NameSpace\DelegateFolders
Locate the key {59031a47-3f72-44a7-89c5-5595fe6b30ee}.
Right click on it and select delete.
Reboot !
Show hidden files
In any folder that contains files. Click on the tools menu and select folder options.Then click on the view tab. Locate where it lists Hidden files and folders and select Show hidden files and folders.
Click OK.
Create your own popup menu in the taskbar
You can create your own popup window other than START MENU in the taskbar. Put all the shortcuts to the applications that you want to popup in a folder .
Then you right click on taskbar ->toolbars ->new toolbar -> and select the folder
Enable Hibernation
Click on the start button and select turn off computer.
Then hold down the shift key and the hibernate button will be shown.
Click it and your computer will enter into hibernation.
Create a shortcut to lock computer
Right click on desktop and select new -> shortcut.
Then copy and paste this in the program location box
rundll32.exe user32.dll,LockWorkStation
Click next and enter a name for you shortcut and then click finish.
Now you can copy and paste that shortcut anywhere you want on your computer.
Use the group policy tool to restrict access
If you would like to play computer god and limit or control just about every aspect of your computer you can use a great tool called the group policy editor.
Click Start and select Run
Type gpedit.msc in the text box and click on OK. The group policy editor will load. Navigate through the folders and you will discover hundreds of items that you can limit access to and control
Shortcut to send e-mail
Here's how you create a shortcut that lets you automatically begin a new message, addressed to that person, with just one mouse click! ! Right-click on any empty space on the desktop, and choose New, Shortcut from the menu. In the Command Line box, type mailto: and then enter the intended recipient's email address. To create a shortcut to me, for instance, you would enter mailto:
[email protected].
Save the shortcut on the desktop, or in the start menu, or quick launch