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Windows XP Tweaks Directory

Disable Windows Messenger.

1. Go to START > RUN


2. Type RunDll32
advpack.dll,LaunchINFSection%windir%\INF\msmsgs.inf,BLC.Remove and
press enter.
3. Restart and Windows Messenger will never be seen again.

Getting Rid of Accessibility Tools.

1. Go to START > RUN


2. Type RunDll32
advpack.dll,LaunchINFSection%windir%\INF\optional.inf,BLC.Remove
3. Restart and you will never see Accessibility Tools again.

Turn Off Indexing to speed up response time.

1. Open My Computer
2. Right click on C:\ drive and choose properties
3. Uncheck box that says “Allow Indexing Service To…”
4. Click OK and files will be removed from memory. This removal takes up to a
few minutes to complete, but its worth it.

You will also need to disable the indexing service here too:

1. Go to START > RUN


2. Type “services.msc” and then press enter
3. Scroll down to “Indexing Service” and double click
4. If the service status is “Running”, then stop it by pressing the “Stop” button
5. To make sure that this service does not start again, under “Startup Type:”,
choose “Disabled.

Turn Off Hibernation Option.

1. Right click on desktop and click “Properties”


2. Hit the “Screen Saver” tab
3. Click the “Power” button under “Monitor Power”
4. Click the “Hibernation” tab, then uncheck the box next to “Enable
Hibernation”
5. Press “Ok” and you have just saved a load of hard drive space

Turn off Auto Restart.

1. Go to “Control Panel”
2. Click on “System”
3. Select “Advanced” tab
4. Select “Startup and Recovery”
5. Uncheck “Auto restart”
Repairing Corrupt Files.

1. Go to START > RUN and type sfc /scannow (space between the sfc and /)
2. You will then be prompted for you XP installation CD
3. Go to START > RUN and type chkdsk /r /x (again, note the spaces)

Disable Startup Programs.

1. Go to START > PROGRAMS > STARTUP

Or you can go to:

2. START > RUN and type msconfig and press OK.


3. When that loads, open the “Startup” tab and select program(s) to disable

Change Icon for File Type.

1. Go to START > CONTYROL PANEL > FOLDER OPTIONS > FILE TYPES
2. Scroll down the list to select the file type that you wish to use.
3. Click the “Advanced” button.
4. Press “Change Icon” in new window.
5. Go to C:\Windows\System32\shell32.dll
6. Click OK to close

Shutdown and Restart Icons on Desktop.

1. Right click on desktop


2. Select “New Shortcut”
3. Type shutdown.exe –s –t 00 in the box
4. Click NEXT
5. Type a name for the shortcut

The icon will now be visible on your desktop.

In order to create icons for reboot and logoff replace –s with –r or –l respectively. If
you want your machine to wait a certain amount of time before it shuts down then
change the 00 value to whatever time you desire. Example: shutdown.exe –s –t 10.
This means that the machine will wait for ten minutes after you clicked the shut
down icon.

Shortcut for Fast User Switching.

1. Right click on desktop.


2. Select “New Shortcut”
3. Type Rundll32.exe User32.dll, LockWorkStation
4. Click NEXT.
5. Type a name for the shortcut.

The icon will now be visible on your desktop.


Shortcut for System Hibernation/Standby.

Repeat the process above except that when you choose the “New Shortcut’ option
type:

%windir%\system32\rundll32.exe PowrProf.dll,SetSuspendState

Clean out the Prefetch folder.

It is a good idea to clean out the Prefetch folder ever few weeks to improve system
performance. This folder contains files that help programs load quicker, but after a
few weeks or more it fills up with things that are no longer in use and this can slow
your computer noticeably. So I delete every thing form this folder every few weeks.
The only problem is that deleting the layout.ini file (which also files up with things no
long in use) in this folder will slow the computer down for the next few times you
start it up, The workaround for this to to use a command to recreate it. Most people
here will never remember the command or to clean out the Prefetch folder as
regularly as they should.

So to help remember both open notepad and enter:

del C:\Windows\prefetch\layout.ini
del C:\Windows\prefetch\*.pf
Rundll32.exe advapi32.dll,ProcessIdleTasks

Save it as Prefetch.bat making sure the save type is all files. If you put it some
where like the desktop or start menu you will remember to use it.

Repair/Reinstall Windows Components.

Often part of Windows start messing up and not working, this is often because the
files belonging to that component are missing or corrupt. The good news is that often
these components can be reinstalled with out reinstalling XP. It is best that you run
Tweak #6 first but it some times dose to repair some components of Windows XP

The way to do this is first put in you Windows XP CD then go to the folder
C:\Windows\inf and right click the .inf file that belongs to that component of
Windows that you what to reinstall and press install.

Accessories - accessor.inf
Communications - communic.inf <-- the components in the Communications folder.
COM+ - comnt5.inf
Windows Defragmenter - dfrg.inf
Distributed Transaction Coordinator - dtcnt5.inf
Fax Services - fxsocm.inf
Windows Fonts - font.inf
Windows Games - Games.inf
Internet Explorer - ie.inf
Internet Explorer Short Cuts - ieaccess.inf
Windows Internet Games - igames.inf
Web Tools - iis.inf <--Includes FrontPage
Windows Messenger - msmsgs.inf
Multimedia - multimed.inf <--Volume control and Sound Recorder and Media Player
Network Management and Monitoring Tools - netoc.inf
Outlook Express Shortcuts - oeaccess.inf
Out of Box Experience - oobe.inf <--oobe folder in C:\Windows\System32
Pchealth - pchealth.inf <-- Pchealth folder in C:\Windows
Pinball - pinball.inf
Indexing Service - setupqry.inf
Search - srchasst.inf
Terminal Server - TsOc.inf
Windows Management Instrumation - wbemoc.inf
Windows Messanger Shortcuts - wmaccess.inf
Windows Media Player Shorcuts - wmpocm.inf
Tour XP - wmtour.inf
Wordpad - worpad.inf
Accessibility Tool - optional.inf

One .inf file of importance that dose not install any thing is sysoc.inf, it controls what
you see in "Add/Remove Windows Components." If you open it you will so that most
lines end with ,,7 (or some other number) and ,hide,7 (or some other number)
adding hide hides it, removing the hide shows it. This can be useful for
administrators that what to stop components being installed or removed.

Remove Entries from Add/Remove Programs.

Sometimes after uninstalling a program the entry is still left in the Add/Remove
Program, to the frustration of some users, so here is how to fix it.

First start Registry Editor

Then Locate the following key(folder):

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall

I recommend that you backup this whole Key(folder) by right clicking it and pressing
Export and saving it some where, where you can find it should some thing go wrong.

Locate the key to be deleted by locating the key name created by the program. If the
name of the key is not apparent, browse through each key and note the value for
DisplayName. This is the viewable string in the Add/Remove Programs tool. It is best
to double check that you have the right one by having Add/Remove Programs open
as you do this.

Delete the selected registry key(folder) and its values(files). Do not delete the
entire Uninstall key.

Quit Registry Editor.


Add Another Menu to the Task Bar

The first step in doing this is to make a new folder, to do so in explorer go to where
you what to store the tool bar's folder you can make it any ware.

Now in the right half of explorer's window right click and then New > Folder. Now
name the folder what you what, remember that this is going to be the name of the
menu so make sure that it is a name you what it to be. Now in to this folder add
what you what in the menu, it can be Short-Cuts, Documents, pictures, music, etc.
anything that you what to be able to get to quickly.

Now Right click the Task Bar in the context menu find "Toolbars" and then "New
Toolbar". In the Window that open find the folder that you made, then press "OK"
You will now have a new Toolbar on your Task Bar.

Folder Options.

To get to Folder Options go


Start > Control Panel > Folder Options

In the General tab there are three sections, “Tasks”, “Browse Folders”, and “Click
items as follows”.

Under “Tasks” chose “Use Windows classic folders” to remove the side panel of
common tasks that are not use are needed, the choice it yours, but that is what I
recommend. Under “Browse folders” chose “Open each folder in the same window” to
stop too many explorer windows opening. Under “Click items as follows” select
“Double-click to open an item (single-click to select)’ to keep the normal double click
an icon to open a program, this stops accidents.

In the View tab there are two sections “Folder views” and “Advanced settings.”
Under “Folder views” you can set the current folder view (details, list, icons, tiles,
thumbnails) if you press “Apply to All Folders”. You can also restore the default
settings if you press “Reset All Folders”

Under “Advanced Settings” Do’s

• Do not show files and folders <--This is under hidden Files and folders, this
prevents files that have been set to hidden form showing. This is best
because they have been hidden for a reason.
• Hide protected operating system files (recommended) <-- You don’t need to
see these files.
• Remember each folder’s view settings <--This mean if I set a folders view
(details, list, icons, tiles, thumbnails) it will be the same next time I come
back to that folder
• Show Control Panel in My Computer <---Just another way to get to the
control panel.
• Show encrypted or compressed NTFS files in color. <--Means I know if some
thing is encrypted because it is green or compress because it is blue.
“Advanced Settings” Do Not’s

• Automatically search for network folders and printers <--This is what adds to
the list of shared folders in My Network Places < Entire Network < Microsoft
Windows Network I don’t like it doing so, and this adds to network traffic.
• Display file size information in folder tips <--This is a matter of personal
preference, if you look at folder tips tick it.
• Display simple folder view in Explorer’s Folder list<--Dose not seam to do
anything.
• Display the contents of system folders<--Unless you know what you are doing
you should not be looking in system folders.
• Display the full path in the address bar <--Matter of preference, I normally
un-tick it.
• Display the full path in the title bar <--Matter of preference, I normally un-
tick it.
• Do not cache thumbnails <--This makes thumbnails load slower.
• Show files and folders <--This is under hidden Files and folders, this makes
files that have been set to hidden show. This is not advised they have been
hidden for a reason.
• Hide extensions for know file types <--If you tick this a file could show up as
filename.bmp in stead of filename.bmp.vbs, and you would think that the file
is a picture when it could really be a virus.
• Launch folder windows in a separate process <--It starts another process
which is undefined.
• Restore previous folder windows at logon <--Means all the Explorer Windows
that I forgot to close open when I start my computer.

Show pop-up description for folder and desktop items <--This annoys me, if you like
it keep it, it dose not make much of a difference.

Changing User Passwords

This option enables a user to change anyone’s password without knowing their
existing password. The procedure is carried out as follows:

1. Click START > RUN and then type cmd.


2. From the command prompt window, type net users. This will show you every
user account on the computer whether it is hidden or not.
3. Make sure that you are logged into a computer with admin rights.
4. Type in net user followed by the name of the account and then press enter.
5. From there it should ask you whether you want to input a new password.
6. Enter a new password of your choosing.

Applying a Password to the Guest Account

The default password for the guest account is blank. Many Microsoft reps say that
adding a password the guest account is not an option but they are wrong.

To apply a password to the guest account, do the following:


1. Make sure that you are logged into your machine with an admin account.
2. Click START > RUN and then type cmd and click OK
3. Input the following command: net user guest password
4. Go to Control Panel > User Accounts
5. Click on ‘Guest’
6. You should now be able to configure a password for the guest account.

Increase Security by Disabling Services

Go to START > RUN and then type services.msc

1. Messenger – Home/Pro/SP2 = Disable


2. NetMeeting Remote Desktop Sharing – Home/Pro/SP2 = Disable
3. Protected Storage – Home/Pro/SP2 = Disable
4. Remote Desktop Help Session Manager – Home/Pro/SP2 = Disable
5. Remote Registry Service – Pro/SP2 = Disable
6. Routing and Remote Access – Pro/SP2 = Disable
7. Security Accounts Manager – Home/Pro/SP2 = Disable

How to Reinstall PCHealth

To reinstall PCHealth, do the following:

1. Click START > RUN and then type the following:

%systemroot%\inf

2. Click OK to open the .inf folder


3. Locate the file pchealth.inf
4. Right click the file and then click “install”
5. Insert Windows XP installation CD when prompted

Preventing Slow Domain Log In

1. Right click on network connection icon.


2. Select “Properties”
3. Click the properties button for TCP/IP
4. Click the “Advanced” button
5. Click the WINS tab
6. In the NetBIOS settings, select “Enable NetBIOS over TCP/IP”
7. Reboot and try to login again.

In most cases, login time is greatly reduced.

This tweak only works with XP machines running off of an NT 2000 domain.

Faster Icons

In Windows XP, when My Computer browses for files, XP automatically searches for
network files and printers. This causes a delay in displaying your icons. To combat
this, do the following:

1. open My Computer
2. Click on the Tools menu and select Folder Options
3. Under Folder Options select the view tab
4. Uncheck the box that reads “Automatically Search For Network Folders and
Printers”
5. Click Apply or Ok

You should see a dramatic increase in speed when Windows displays your icons.

Remote Shutdown computers on Your Network

1. Right click on desktop


2. Select “New Shortcut”
3. Type shutdown.exe –i
4. Click Next
5. Type a name for your new shortcut
6. Click Finish

You can now browse the network for computers to shutdown and reboot or just type
the IP/Name of the computer. You can even broadcast a message and schedule a
shutdown.

Note: This will not work with machines that have admin access enabled.

System Info

Instead of typing systeminfo in a DOS box you can simply do it in Windows too.

1. Start
2. Select Run
3. Type winmsd

Reinstall TCP/IP

To reinstall TCP/IP, do the following:

1. Navigate to C:\Windows\inf
2. Find the file: nettcpip.inf
3. Right click the file and choose install

With regard to the speed of executing the command, it is instantaneous which makes
it seem as though you did nothing at all.

Shortcut For Closing All Network Connections

To close all connections using a shortcut do the following:

1. Find RASDDIAL.EXE in Windows\System32


2. Right click on it and create “New Shortcut”
3. Right click on shortcut and click “Properties”
4. In the target field type (space)/disconnect at the end of the path. In full:
C:\WINDOWS\System32\rasdial.exe /disconnect
5. Click once on the shortcut key field and press the key combination you wish
to use for closing the connection.
6. Apply

Slow Network Browsing

Create a text file using Noteppad and input this:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\lanmanserver\parameters]
“SizReqBuf”=dword:0000ffff

Save the file as ‘WHATEVER.REG’ then double click the file to apply the setting (on
the server only).

Disable CD Burning

This is a registry hack which can be used to disable the CD-R drive.

1. Open Notepad
2. Type the following:

Windows Registry Editor


Version 5.00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer]
“NoCDBurning”=dword:00000001

If you wish to enable CD burning, change 1 to a 0.

Display Message On Startup

If you would like to display a legal message in a pop-up window when Windows
starts, do the following:

1. Click START > RUN and then type regedit


2. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows
NT\CurrentVersion\WinLogon
3. Modify the key “Legal Notice Caption” with what you want to name the
window.
4. Modify the key “Legal Notice Text” with what you want the window to say.
5. Restart

Your message will be displayed once Windows boots.

Delete Hidden Devices

You can view or modify hidden devices by:

1. Open Device Manager


2. Select “View” and check “Show Hidden Devices”
3. Hidden devices will appear and be available for modification.
Defrag Status Icon

You can create a DOS display screen which shows you how fragmented your drive is.
This can help you ascertain as to whether your machines drive needs to be defragged
or not. To create this icon, do the following:

1. Open Notepad
2. Type the following:

cd\
c:
cd windows\system32
defrag c: /f
chkntfs c:

Save as maint.BAT and run. Command Prompt will now display a dialog box giving a
read out of how much the drive has been fragmented.

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