How to View Hidden and System Files and Folders in Vista

Seeing your hidden files and system files in Vista is not much different than in XP. Here are the step-by-step directions. Remember that system files are hidden for a reason. Don’t go messin’ around with stuff.
1. Click the round blue Start thing in the left corner
2. Click Control Panel
3. Click Folder Options
4. Click the View tab
5. Click Show hidden files and folders
6. If you want to see system files as well, unclick Hide protected operating system files (Recommended)
7. Click OK

10 Ways To Improve Performance in Windows XP

Personally, I don’t see the point in upgrading your hardware if your computer does everything you need it to. However, sometimes it’s nice to improve what you already have. In this guide we will learn how to make the most out of the hardware you have and make windows XP run faster.

1. Defragment Your Hard Disk

Imagine you are in a shopping mall, and the person you are with wants to visit fifteen different shops. However, this person ends up walking you up and down the mall six times. Does that make sense? Of course not – as human beings, we like to do things in order to save time.
When your hard drive becomes fragmented, it is literally wasting time by looking in all kinds of places on the disk for all of the pieces of one file. Defragmenting your drive is a great solution to speed up your computer as it puts all the files together in order.
• Click Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Defragmenter
• Click the drives you want to defrag and click Analyze
• Click Defragment

2. Defragment you Hard Disk on Boot

To make windows XP start more quickly, you can defragment your boot files. This will decrease the time it takes for your computer to boot.
Boot defragment should be enabled by default; however, it might not be enabled on your computer. To ensure that boot defragment is enabled:
• Hold the Windows Key and press R.
• Type in Regedit
• Go to
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Dfrg\BootOptimizeFunction
• Ensure the Enable string value is set as Y
• Exit the Registry
• Reboot

3. Detect and Repair Disk Errors

Over time, your hard disk develops bad sectors. Bad sectors slow down hard disk performance and sometimes make data writing difficult or even impossible. To detect and repair disk errors, Windows has a built-in tool called the Error Checking utility. It’ll search the hard disk for bad sectors and system errors and repair them for faster performance.
• Follow Start > My Computer
• In My Computer right-click the hard disk you want to scan and click Properties
• Click the Tools tab
• Click Check Now
• Select the Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors check box
• Click Start

4. Use a Flash Memory to Boost Performance

Windows Vista comes with ReadyBoost; Windows XP does not have a tool like this – that’s why we’ll need eBoostr. eBoostr uses a USB thumb drive to create an extra cache of the most commonly used data.
Solid state memory (what your USB drive uses) has excellent transfer speeds; therefore, it can be used to store and access data that is needed quickly. Unlike RAM, the data is stored on your thumb drive and can be used next time you use your computer — a great time saver.
• Plug in a flash drive
• Windows XP will use eBoostr to utilize the flash memory to improve performance.
• Your drive will be configured and you are good to go. Don’t expect miracles – but stick with it and your computer will begin to perform more efficiently.

5. Optimize Your Pagefile.sys

The pagefile is used as another cache as well as RAM. The pagefile stores data on commonly used applications. If you have less than 512mb of ram, then your page file will be automatically configured. If you have more than 512mb of ram, please continue.
• Right click on My Computer and select Properties
• Select the Advanced tab
• Under Performance choose the Settings button
• Select the Advanced tab again and under Virtual Memory select Change
• Highlight the drive containing your page file and make the initial Size of the file the same as the Maximum Size of the file.
Windows XP sizes the page file to about 1.5X the amount of actual physical memory by default. While this is good for systems with smaller amounts of memory (under 512MB) it is unlikely that a typical XP desktop system will ever need 1.5 X 512MB or more of virtual memory – so change the ratio to 1:1 page file size to physical memory size.

6. Disable Indexing Services

Indexing Services is a little application that uses a lot of CPU. By indexing and updating lists of all the files on the computer, it helps you to do a search for something faster as it scans the index list. But if you know where your files are, you can disable this system service. It won’t do any harm to you machine, whether you search often or not very often.
• Go to Start
• Click Settings
• Click Control Panel
• Double-click Add/Remove Programs
• Click the Add/Remove Window Components
• Uncheck the Indexing services
• Click Next

7. Speedup Folder Browsing

You may have noticed that every time you open My Computer to browse folders that there is a little delay. Windows XP automatically searches for network files and printers every time you open Windows Explorer. To turn this off, do the following:
• Go to My Computer, click Tools > Folder Options…
• Click the View tab.
• Now find Automatically search for network folders and printers and uncheck the box.
• Press OK
• Problem solved!

8. Disable Performance Counters

Windows XP has a performance monitor utility which monitors several areas of your PC’s performance. These utilities take up system resources so disabling is a good idea.
• Download and install the Extensible Performance Counter List
• Then select each counter in turn in the ‘Extensible performance counters’ window and clear the ‘performance counters enabled’ checkbox at the bottom button below.

9. Optimize Display Settings

If you are happy to remove some of the flashy looks of Windows XP, do the following.
• Right click on the desktop and click Properties…
• Click on the Appearance tab.
• Click Effects
• Uncheck the following:
• Show shadows under menus.
• Show windows contents while dragging.
You may see other options you feel you can disable.

10. Remove Unused Fonts

Fonts, especially TrueType fonts, use quite a bit of system resources. For optimal performance, trim your fonts down to just those that you need to use on a daily basis and fonts that applications may require.
• Open Control Panel
• Open Fonts folder
• Move fonts you don’t need to a temporary directory (e.g. C:\OLDFONTS) just in case you need or want to bring a few of them back. The more fonts you uninstall, the more system resources you will gain.

11)

 

Performance Options

Right click on your "My Compooter" icon, and click "Properties". Click the "Advanced" tab. Click the "settings" button under the section called "Performance". Select the item that says "Adjust for best performance". Click "Apply". Your screen will flash a second or two and you'll immediately notice some differences in not only the look but of the speed of Windows

Change your Internet Explorer home page

1. Open Internet Explorer by clicking the Start button , and then clicking Internet Explorer.
2. Navigate to the webpage you would like to set as the home page.
3. Click the arrow to the right of the Home button , and then click Add or Change Home Page.
4. In the Add or Change Home Page dialog box, do one of the following:
   • To make the current webpage your only home page, click Use this webpage as your only home page.
   • To start a home page tab set or to add the current webpage to your set of home page tabs, click Add this webpage to your home page tabs.
   • To replace your existing home page or home page tab set with the webpages you currently have open, click Use the current tab set as your home page. This option will only be available if you have more than one tab open in Internet Explorer.
5. Click Yes to save your changes.

Attach a file or other item to an e-mail message

Attachments are files or items (item: An item is the basic element that holds information in Outlook (similar to a file in other programs). Items include e-mail messages, appointments, contacts, tasks, journal entries, notes, posted items, and documents.) that can be sent as part of an e-mail message. This article explains how to send attachments.
For information about receiving attachments in e-mail, see View, open, change, and save attachments.

In this article

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• Attach a file to a message

• Attach a message or other item to a message

• Where do attachments appear in my message?

Troubleshooting

• Attachment size limitations

• Problems with .zip files

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Attach a file to a message

1. On the File menu, click New, and then click Mail Message.
2. On the Message tab, in the Include group, click Attach File.
3. In the Insert File dialog box, browse to and select the file that you want to attach, and then click Insert.If you don't see the file that you want in the appropriate folder, make sure that All files (*.*) is selected in the Files of type box, and that Windows Explorer is configured to show file name extensions.

 Tip   You can also attach file from the new message's Insert tab.
 Important   By default, Outlook blocks potentially unsafe attachments (including .bat, .exe, .vbs, and .js files) that might contain viruses. If you attach such a file to an e-mail message, you will be asked whether you want to send a potentially unsafe attachment. If you answer Yes, Outlook will send the attachment. If you answer No, you can then remove the potentially unsafe attachment.

 Tip   You can attach multiple files simultaneously by selecting the files and dragging them from a folder on your computer to an open message in Outlook.
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Attach a message or other item to a message

You can attach items (item: An item is the basic element that holds information in Outlook (similar to a file in other programs). Items include e-mail messages, appointments, contacts, tasks, journal entries, notes, posted items, and documents.) and other messages to a new message:

1. On the File menu, click New, and then click Mail Message.
2. On the Message tab, in the Include group, click Attach Item.
3. In the Look in list, click the folder that contains the item that you want to attach.
4. Click the item that you want, and then click OK.

 Tip   You can also attach an item from the new message's Insert tab.
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Where do attachments appear in my message?

Where attachments appear in your message depends on the format in which you compose the message:

• If the message format is HTML or plain text, attachments appear in the attachment box below the Subject line.
• If the message format is Rich Text, attachments appear in the body of the message. Even though the file appears to be embedded in the message, it is actually still a separate attachment.

The format in which a message is composed is indicated in the title bar at the top of the message.

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Attachment size limitations

Outlook does not impose any size limit on attachments. However, most e-mail server administrators and Internet service providers (ISPs) do set limits on the overall message size, which is the sum of all attachments plus the content of the message itself. Typically, premium-level services provide more e-mail file storage space and allow larger messages than standard-level services. For more information on the maximum allowed message size, contact your ISP or the e-mail server administrator in your organization.
If you are attaching a very large file, you should first compress the file by using a zip program. Outlook files that are saved in the default Open XML Formats with the following file extensions are automatically zipped: .docx, .dotx, .xlsx, .xltx, .pptx, .potx, and .ppsx.
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Problems with .zip files

If files that you attach are zipped when you do not expect them to be, check to see whether a .zip utility has been installed in Outlook as a COM add-in. You can disable this sort of add-in by doing the following:

1. On the Tools menu, click Trust Center, and then click Add-ins.
2. In the Manage list, click COM Add-Ins, and then click Go.
3. In the COM Add-ins dialog box, clear the check box next to the add-in name, and then click OK.

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/HP012319501033.aspx?mode=print

Unable to Log You on Because of an Account Restriction

This behavior can occur if the account you are using to connect with has a null (blank) password. You cannot establish Remote Desktop connections when you are using an account with a null password.

You can disable blank password restrictions by using a policy. To locate and change this policy:

1. Click Start, point to Run, type gpedit.msc, and then click OK to start the Group Policy Editor.
2. Open Computer Configuration\Windows Settings\Security Settings\Local Policies\Security Options\Accounts: Limit local account use of blank passwords to console logon only.
3. Double-click Limit local account use of blank passwords to consol logon only.
4. Click Disabled, and then click OK.
5. Quit Group Policy Editor.

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;303846

Disable USB Removable Mass Storage Device Drive Access in Windows

It’s possible to simply disable USB ports support in PC BIOS in order to prevent and forbid computer user from using USB removable flash drive or mass storage device (portable hard disk drive) to copy and transfer data and files. However, disabling USB ports totally also shutdown the ability for system to use USB based keyboard, mouse, webcam, printer, scanner and etc, which has become a common connectivity norm in modern computer.

As a workaround, use the following registry hack to stop USB Mass Storage Device drivers from starting when the system boots up.

1. Run Registry Editor (regedit).
2. Navigate to the following registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\UsbStor
3. In the right pane, double click on the Start value name.
4. Change the value data to 4 to disable the removable USB mass storage device drive access.
5. To revert and re-enable the drive access for removable USB mass storage device driver, change back the value data for Start to its original default of 3.

The change will take effect immediately to block any USB mass storage device such as USB flash drive, USB key and portable harddisk from been used in the system, while still allowing hardware components to work properly via USB connection. The hack works in most Windows operating system such as Windows Vista, XP, Windows Server 2008, 2003 and 2000.

For user who dare not to modify the registry manually, simply download the following registration entries file to enable or disable the USB drive. Extract the downloaded content in .ZIP format, and then double click on the .REG file to open and apply or merge the registry values to system.

Download DisableUSBDrive.reg

Download EnableUSBDrive.reg

IntelliAdmin also has a free tool named USB Drive Disabler that automatically change the registry key value accordingly to enable or disable the USB drives on Windows 2000, 2003, 2008, XP and Vista system with just one click. In Windows Vista, the program has to be run as administrator.

Select Disable USB Drives or Enable USB Drivers and then click on Apply to set the registry setting accordingly.

Download IntelliAdmin USB Drive Disabler: DisableUSB_Free.exe

Disable and Stop Restart or Reboot After Installing Windows Update

Set Automatic Updates to “Download updates for me, but let me choose when to install them”. Go to Control Panel > System > Automatic Updates tab.
Disable auto restart for automatic updates in Group Policy..
Disable Permanently – Using Group Policy

1. Head to Start >> Run >> type gpedit.msc >> hit Enter
2. Above step will open group policy editor
3. Now go to Computer Configuration >> Administrative Templates >> Windows Components >> Windows Update
4. On the right hand side pane, double click on No auto-restart with logged on users for scheduled automatic updates installations and enable it

network ok but no internet

OpenDNS servers:
DNS1: 208.67.222.222
DNS2: 208.67.220.220
Turn off your firewall
2) Open your "wireless adapater" properties, make sure your "TCP/IP properties" have "Automatically assigned by DHCP" everywhere
3) If the above steps didn't bring any light, then open "Status" for your "Wireless connection", write down your IP address (the first line), network mask, gateway address and DNS servers addresses
4) Disable your "wireless adapter", open its properties, change "TCP/IP properties" to the written down information, change the places of DNS server with written one, so that DNS1 will be DNS2 and DNS2 will be DNS1
5) Enable your "wireless adapter" and try google
ipconfig /releasel
ipconfig /all
ipconfig /flushdns
ipconfig /renew

netsh int ip set dns

netsh int ip set dns
netsh winsock reset
------ reinstall service pack also

solved: found problem with IPSEC service. after stopping the service internet started working.