Windows XP Performance Tips

WINDOWS DISK INDEXING
This is a performance tip that I strongly recommend you implement. The Windows Disk Indexer constantly indexes all files on your machine to allow for faster searching using the Windows Search function for example. Since most people don't search their machine very often, having Disk Indexing enabled provides a performance hit for no good reason, and also increases fragmentation. Follow these steps to turn off the Windows Disk Indexer to improve hard drive performance and responsiveness:
1. Go to Windows Explorer, right-click on your hard drive name (e.g. C:) and select Properties.
2. Untick the 'Allow Indexing Service to index this disk for fast file searching'.
3. Select 'Apply changes to [Drive letter]\, subfolders and files' in the subsequent prompt.
4. Your system will now go through and remove all indexing on existing files, and not index any new or moved files in the future - this will speed up drive read/writes and general responsiveness. Ignore any 'errors' which are shown, this occurs simply because some files are in use or protected and can't have their properties changed to remove indexing - this is normal.

Make sure you also disable the 'Indexing Service' service as it is no longer necessary when disk indexing is removed from your hard drive.

DEFRAGMENTATION
I strongly suggest you get into the habit of defragmenting often, specifically after you delete or add large files or install software.

PREFETCH
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory
Management\PrefetchParameters]
EnablePrefetcher=3

I personally leave the Prefetcher registry setting above at its default of 3, and set the Task Scheduler service to Disabled. This means the prefetcher won't create application prefetch files under the Window\Prefetch directory. I also clear all out existing prefetch (.PF) files in that directory. I have found that this provides for the fastest Windows bootup time.

CONTROL PANEL > SYSTEM

> ADVANCED > PERFORMANCE SETTINGS
For fastest performance, I recommend deselecting everything except 'Use visual styles on windows and buttons' and 'Use drop shadows for icon labels on the desktop'. That will reduce usage of system resources for graphical effects, while still retaining the majority of Windows XP's trademark appearance.

> ADVANCED > PERFORMANCE SETTINGS > ADVANCED > VIRTUAL MEMORY

This is where you can set the size of your pagefile. To determine the optimal pagefile size you should ideally see how much memory your most memory intensive programs use and then set the pagefile to comfortably accommodate this.

Before setting a new pagefile size, first clear your existing pagefile. To do this select the 'No Paging File' option and click the Set button, then reboot your system. This step does two things: first it deletes the pagefile, fixing any potential pagefile corruption which can occur after a bad shutdown (remember this tip for future troubleshooting purposes); and secondly it ensures that any new pagefile you create will start off as a single unfragmented contiguous block on your hard drive for optimal performance, which will remain unfragmented in the future. Note that if you have any problems booting up into Windows due to a lack of a pagefile during this step, enter Windows in Safe Mode (See Backup & Recovery section) and continue the setup procedures for Virtual Memory from there.

Here is a simple general recommendation which is both safe to use on all systems, regardless of how much RAM you have, and provides good performance:
Set the Initial and Maximum pagefile sizes to 2560MB each - i.e. allocate 2.5GB for the pagefile. Whatever you do, don't set a zero pagefile.

> ADVANCED > STARTUP & RECOVERY SETTINGS
For a system with a single operating system, select '"Microsoft Windows XP [Home/Professional]" /fastdetect' in the list presented. If you only have one operating system, or you don't want to select a different operating system each time you boot up, untick the 'Time to display list of Operating Systems' option.

Under the 'System failure' section untick all three options for optimal performance, and the 'Write Debugging Information' option should be set to None. That way if you run into problems you'll see the error displayed (usually a Windows Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) message) and your system won't automatically reboot. At the same time you won't get lots of logfiles and dumpfiles of the event cluttering up your hard drive.

> ADVANCED > ERROR REPORTING
Click the Error Reporting button and select 'Disable Error Reporting' and tick 'But notify me when critical errors occur'. This will prevent your system continually informing Microsoft of errors occurring on your system, but at the same time will still show you important system messages and errors for notification and troubleshooting purposes.

> REMOTE
I strongly recommend that you disable the available options in this section for security and performance reasons.

> AUTOMATIC UPDATES
I recommend 'Turn off Automatic Updates' and instead use the manual method of regularly checking the Windows Update site for updates.

> SYSTEM RESTORE
Turn off System Restore, as it can take up a great deal of disk space

CONTROL PANEL > SOUNDS & AUDIO DEVICES
Disable as many sounds as possible as they take up system memory by being loaded into RAM at startup.

CONTROL PANEL > FOLDER OPTIONS
Use Windows Classic Folders
Open each folder in the same window
Double-click to open an item
Under View, I recommend you tick the following options:

• Display file size information in folder tips
• Display simple folder view in Explorer's folder list
• Display the contents of system folders
• Display the full path in the address bar
• Display the full path in the title bar
• Do not cache thumbnails
• Show hidden files and folders
• Show Control Panel in My Computer
• Show encrypted or compressed NTFS files in color

It is recommended that the rest are unticked for best performance and functionality.

MOUSE

• untick pointer shadow
• auto default dialog button jump
• pointer precision

SCREENSAVER
I recommend you set the screen saver to None to prevent burn-in (permanent image imprinting)

DISABLE STARTUP PROCESSES
Go to Run > msconfig and then choose the Startup tab.
Examine the list and disable any items you do not want started when your computer boots e.g. ypager, iTunesHelper etc.

DISABLE SERVICES
Go to Run > services.msc and then disable the following:

• .NET Runtime Optimization Service
• ASP.NET State Service
• Clipbook
• Error Reporting Service
• Fast User Switching Compatibility
• IMAPI CD-Burning COM Service
• Indexing Service
• Infrared Monitor
• Machine Debug Manager
• NetMeeting Remote Desktop Sharing
• Network DDE
• Network DDE DSM
• Network Location Awareness (NLA)
• Performance Logs and Alerts
• Portable Media Serial Number Service
• QoS RSVP
• Remote Desktop Help Session Manager
• Remote Registry
• Routing and Remote Access
• Secondary Logon
• Security Center
• Smart Card
• SSDP Discovery Service
• TCP/IP NetBIOS Helper
• Telnet
• Terminal Services
• Uninterruptible Power Supply
• Volume Shadow Copy
• WebClient
• Windows CardSpace
• Windows User Mode Driver Framework
• Wireless Zero Configuration
• WMI Performance Adapter

The Sudanese Girl

This is the Pulitzer Prize winning photo taken in 1994 during the Sudan famine. It depicts a famine stricken child crawling towards a UN food camp, located a kilometre away.

The vulture is waiting for the child to die so that it can eat it. This picture shocked the whole world. No one knows what happened to the child, including Kevin Carter, the photographer, who left as soon as the photo was taken.

Three months later he committed suicide due to depression.

He said: Dear God,

I promise I will never waste my food no matter how bad it can taste and how full I may be. I pray that He will protect this little boy, guide and deliver him away from his misery. I pray that we will be more sensitive towards the world around us and not be blinded by our own selfish nature and interests.

I hope this picture will always serve as a reminder to us that how fortunate we are and that we must never ever take things for granted.

Let's make a prayer for the suffering in anywhere any place around the globe and send this friendly reminder to others. Think and look at this when you complain about your food and the food we waste daily.

Adding Laptop Memory

Last week, I decided to add more memory to my Dell Inspiron 1150 laptop. Its about 3 years old now and only had 256MB RAM! To be honest, I should have added more memory ages ago, but just couldn't be bothered. I only use my laptop for email and internet anyway.

I logged onto crucial.com and ordered a 1GB 200-PIN SODIMM 128Mx64 DDR PC2700 Pb-Free upgrade for my laptop. The total cost came to £68.14 (£57.99 + £10.15 tax) and it arrived the next day - I wasn't expecting such a speedy delivery!

I shut-down my computer, disconnected all cables, closed the display and turned it upside down on my desk. I slid out the battery as shown below:


I then loosened the captive screw in the memory module cover and removed it, revealing the 256MB module and an empty slot:



I unwrapped the new module and slid it into the empty slot at a 45-degree angle until it clicked into place. It required quite a bit of force.


I then closed the cover, put the battery back in and powered up.

As the computer booted, it detected the additional memory. I then went to Control Panel > System to check me new memory which was indeed 1.25GB.

Its amazing how much difference this has made! All my applications, such as Firefox and Eclipse are so much more faster and the system as a whole is much more responsive.

Bonus Day

Feb 6th was Bonus Day - a day that everyone looks forward to with eager anticipation. However, its also a day of doom and gloom. No work gets done because people are either ecstatic or aggrieved over the size of their bonus. You're not allowed to discuss the amount of your bonus with anyone as it is a sackable offence! People try not to reveal their true emotions and when asked about it usually respond by saying that they are "content" and "not particularly happy nor particularly disappointed". Some people think they have been ripped off because they are earning a small proportion of the very large sums of money they are making for the bank.

Almost everyone in the bank gets some kind of bonus. A secretary might receive between 6-10% of his or her salary. People in back-office functions, such as public relations or IT, might get 40% to 60%. The big money, though, is "front-office" traders who make four or five times their annual pay!

So how did I do? I made AVP (Assistant Vice President). I'd just like to thank all my colleagues, friends and family for their support and kind wishes. Cheers!

Recovering Deleted Files

When you delete a file using Windows Explorer, the file is normally be moved to the Recycle Bin, unless you used "Shift+Delete". While it is in the Recycle Bin, the file can easily be restored without any problem. So the first thing to do when you want to recover a deleted file is look in the Recycle Bin.

Nothing on your drive is permanently removed when you delete it. Whenever you delete a file Windows simply marks it for deletion by changing one character in the file table. The entire file is still sitting on your hard drive, but it is hidden from view. Windows then allows other files to write over the space where it resides if required, but the file is not gone from your hard drive until it is completely overwritten at some point. This means that you can actually recover files that have been 'permanently' deleted, but you will require special software to do so.

RESTORATION

The best utility I have found to restore deleted files is a small free tool called Restoration. Upon start, you can scan for all files that can be recovered and also limit the results by entering a search term or extension. You can then select a file and click 'Restore by Copying' to recover it - however note that the file may not be complete since portions of it may have already been overwritten, so there is no guarantee you can recover an entire file this way. The chances of recovering the file intact decrease the longer you leave it - because the longer you leave it, the more likely it is that the computer will reuse all or part of the file's disk space for something else.

If you have accidentally deleted an important file, try and minimise any further disk activity. Do not start an application, save files, defragment your hard drive or even reboot Windows for example as these all aid in potentially overwriting the area where the file is sitting. Don't even leave your system idle for long periods of time either, since by default Windows XP starts defragmenting your hard drive in the background when idle. Run an undelete program like Restoration immediately.

Permanently Deleting Files

Restoration also provides the option to permanently delete files so that they cannot be recovered.


ISOBUSTER

If you want to recover deleted or damaged files on a CD or DVD, you will have to use a utility like IsoBuster. However just like hard drive data recovery, there is no guarantee that any usable data can be recovered from a damaged or deleted disk - particularly if it has been erased.