Configuring the operating system

Unit objectives:
Use system configuration tools
View system information and logs
Use Task Manager
Edit configuration files
Topic A
Topic A: System configuration tools
Topic B: System information and
monitoring
Topic C: Task management
Topic D: Configuration files
Windows system tools
Windows Explorer
Command Prompt (CMD)
Microsoft Management Console
(MMC)
Remote Desktop services
Notepad
Regedit
Msconfig
Task Manager
Continued
Windows system tools,
continued
Administrative Tools
Disk Management
Services.msc
System Information (MSINFO32)
DirectX Diagnostic (DXDIAG)
File backup and transfer tools
Control Panel
System configuration and maintenance
Computer security
Network settings
Hardware and software
User accounts
Windows appearance
Clock, language, region
Input methods
Accessibility options
Control Panel Small icons view Win 7
Control Panel in Classic View on Vista
Control Panel Category View in Win 7
Control Panel Search
System Properties
Computer Name
Hardware
Advanced
System Protection/System Restore
Remote
General Windows XP
Automatic Updates Windows XP
The System Utility in Windows 7
System Properties in Windows 7
Virtual memory
Optimizing the page file
On boot partition by default
Determined by amount of RAM
Size automatically increases or
decreases for best performance
Can manually override the settings
Page file size range:
RAM 1.5 to 3.0
Systems peak commit value
Can move file to different hard disk
Changing page file size
1. In Windows 7/Vista, click Start, right-click
Computer, and choose Properties
In Windows 2000 /XP, right-click My Computer and
choose Properties
2. In Windows 7/Vista, click Advanced system settings
In Windows 2000/XP, activate the Advanced tab
3. In the Performance section, click Settings, and then
activate the Advanced tab
4 In the Virtual memory section, click Change
5 Clear Automatically manage paging file size for all
drives
6 Select Custom Size, and set the initial and
maximum size
ReadyBoost
Uses flash storage to boost system
performance
Administrative Tools
Control Panel folder containing
shortcuts to Windows utilities
Some commonly used, some very
specialized
Tools in folder vary by Windows
edition; a tool may exist in a Windows
edition but not have a shortcut in the
folder
The Administrative Tools folder
Windows 7 Administrative Tools
Component Services
Computer Management
Data Sources (ODBC)
Event Viewer
iSCSI Initiator
Local Security Policy
Performance Monitor
Print Management
Services Continued
Windows 7 Administrative Tools,
continued
System Configuration
Task Scheduler
Windows Firewall with Advanced
Security
Windows Memory Diagnostic
Windows PowerShell Modules
Microsoft Management Console
Computer Management Console
Preconfigured MMC
Contains tools used to manage a local
or remote computer
Device Manager
Configures hardware devices and
resources
The Services console
Service properties
General
Log On
Recovery
Dependencies
Service dependencies
Topic B
Topic A: System configuration tools
Topic B: System information and
monitoring
Topic C: Task management
Topic D: Configuration files
Windows Diagnostics
Start, All Programs (or Programs),
Accessories, System Tools menu
msinfo32
Collects and displays information about
configuration of specified computer
System Information window
Hardware Resources
Components
Software Environment
Internet Settings (not in Windows 7 or Vista)
Remote computer information
1. Choose View, Remote Computer
2. Enter the name of the computer
Remote computer WMI installed
Need appropriate privileges on remote
computer
System Information window
DirectX Diagnostic Tool
DirectX Diagnostic pages
System
DirectX Files Windows XP/2000
Display
Sound
Music Windows XP/2000
Input
Network Windows XP/2000
More Help Windows XP/2000
Event Viewer
Use to monitor events
Determine cause of problems with
Application
Component of operating system
Suspected security breach
Event Viewer
Event Viewer categories
Application
Security
System
Setup (Windows 7/Vista)
Forwarded Events (Windows 7/Vista)
Event information
Level (7/Vista); Type (XP/2000)
Date
Time
Source
Task Category (7/Vista); Category (XP/2000)
Event ID (7/Vista); Event (XP/2000)
Computer
User
OpCode
Logged
Keywords
Event types
Error
Warning
Information
Success Audit (Security Log only)
Failure Audit (Security Log only)
Event Properties
Sorting events
Change sort order by clicking any
column heading
Grouping events
Choose View, Group By
Filtering events
1. In the console tree, select the log
where you want to filter events
2. Click Filter Current Log
3. Check and clear desired event types
4. Select filter criteria
5. Click OK
Managing event logs
Event logs in Windows Vista and 7
have a default size limit of 20,480 KB
Event logs in Windows XP have a
default size limit of 512 KB
Full event logs overwrite old events
Right-click logs to manually save or
clear contents
Topic C
Topic A: System configuration tools
Topic B: System information and
monitoring
Topic C: Task management
Topic D: Configuration files
Task Manager
Provides information on applications,
processes, and services running on
computer
Tabs
Applications
Processes
Performance
Networking
Users
Services Windows 7/Vista
Windows Task Manager
The Applications tab
End a running application
Switch to another application
Start a new instance of an application
The Processes tab
Use to determine if a running process
is overwhelming the processor and
slowing down the system
If a process has a high percentage of
CPU usage that doesnt return to
normal, you might have to end the
process
Also use to end an application that
wont end when you try to do so on the
Applications tab
The Services tab
Linked to the Processes tab
Highlights a services associated
process
Shows processes from all users
Also works in reverse: shows services
associated with a process
The Performance tab
CPU Usage
Memory Usage
Page file Windows XP/2000
System or Totals
Physical Memory
Commit Charge Windows XP/2000
Kernel Memory
Summary Data
The Performance Tab in Windows 7
The Networking tab
Use to view
computers
network bandwidth
Displays a
combination of the
network traffic for
all NICs
Can compare
traffic on each NIC
Can customize
data columns
displayed
The Users tab
Use to:
Monitor users logged on to the computer
Disconnect users
Send users messages
Data columns:
User
ID
Status
Client Name
Session
NET
Controls services and network shares
from the command line
Tasklist
Displays applications and services
along with Process ID number and
memory usage
Taskkill
Ends tasks from the command line
Shutdown
Shuts down or restarts a local or
remote computer
Topic D
Topic A: System configuration tools
Topic B: System information and
monitoring
Topic C: Task management
Topic D: Configuration files
Text files
Can be created or edited using any
text editing application
Use .txt extension
Notepad is the default GUI text editor
in Windows
Batch files
Contain multiple commands
The OS runs commands in the file
Used for repetitive tasks
Created in any text editor
You can enable or disable the display
of commands while batch file is
running
Echo on|off
Registry editors
Cant use text editor
View data indirectly through system
tools
regedit.exe or regedt32.exe
Windows 9x/Me: regedit.exe
Windows 2000: both versions
Windows 7/Vista/XP: combined version
Windows 7 Registry Editor
Opening Registry Editor
In Windows 7 or Windows Vista:
1. Click Start.
2. In the Search box, type regedit or regedt32.
3. Press Enter.
4. Click Continue.
In Windows XP or Windows 2000
Professional:
1. Click Start.
2. Choose Run.
3. Type regedit or regedt32.
4. Click OK.
Dynamic Link Libraries
Libraries of code and data used by
multiple programs
Multiple versions of same DLL tracked
by Registry
regsvr32 command used to add or
remove DLLs from Registry
Registry searches
1. Open Registry Editor
2. Choose Edit, Find
3. Enter text string
4. Check or clear Look at values
5. Click Find Next
Registry corruption and backups
Corruption is
uncommon
Caused by:
Power failures
Corrupted Registry
files
Hard disk errors
Editing mistakes made
directly in Registry
Back up by exporting:
Key
Subkey
Value
Entire Registry
Recovery discs
Created by system recovery utilities
that copy entire Registry
Windows 2000 Professional
Emergency Repair Disk (ERD)
Windows Vista and Windows XP
Automated System Recovery (ASR)
Windows 7
System recovery disc using Backup and
Restore
Unit summary
Used system configuration tools
Viewed system information and logs
Used Task Manager
Edited configuration files