Windows XP

Briefcase Icon - How To Recreate It
Click 'Start' --> 'Run'

Enter the following command in the text box next to 'Open':

syncapp

Click 'OK' and the "My Briefcase" icon will appear on the desktop.

C:\ Shows As Removable Drive
 NOTE:  When instructions call for modifying the Windows Registry ensure that you take a backup of the section you are altering before proceeding with any changes.

This appears to happen on some NVIDIA nForce4 chipped motherboards causing attached SATA drives to show in 'Safely Remove Hardware', the following registry tweak should fix it.

Click 'Start' --> 'Run'

Enter the following command in the text box next to 'Open':

regedit

Navigate to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\nvata

From the main menu click 'Edit' --> 'New' --> 'DWORD Value'

Name this DWORD: DisableRemovable

Double click this new DWORD and set its value to one (1).

Close Regedit and restart the system

CTRL+ALT+DEL Log On - How To Enable
Click 'Start' --> 'Control Panel'

Open 'User Accounts'

Click 'Change the way users log on and off'

Untick 'Use the welcome screen' and 'Use Fast User Switching'

Close the Control Panel

Click 'Start' --> 'Run'

Enter the following command in the text box next to 'Open' then click 'OK': control userpasswords2

On the resulting window click on the 'Advanced' tab

Under the 'Secure login' section tick the box next to 'Require users to press CTRL+ALT+DEL'

Click 'Apply' then restart the system.

Compressed (Zipped) Folder Support - How To Disable
Click 'Start' --> 'Run'

Enter the following command in the text box next to 'Open' then click 'OK':

regsvr32 /u %windir%\system32\zipfldr.dll

Windows will display a conformation message that the operation has completed successfully, then restart the Windows for the change to be effective.

To re-enable Compressed (ZIP) Folder support in Windows:

Click 'Start' --> 'Run'

Enter the following command in the text box next to 'Open' (essentially it is the same command except without the /u switch):

regsvr32 %windir%\system32\zipfldr.dll

Restart Windows for change to take effect.

End Task - Change Timeout
Click 'Start' --> 'Run'

HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Desktop

Locate the following entry:

WaitToKillAppTimeout

Double click and alter the 'Value data' to your desired selection

All - Setting File List Viewing Preferences
Open 'My Computer' or 'Windows Explorer'

Sort the files and folders how you wish them to be viewed, i.e. by date, by size, by details view

Hold down the Ctrl key and click the X in the upper right-hand corner of the Window to close it

Now whenever you run a Windows application that uses the File Open, Save, or Save As dialog boxes, the files are listed in the manner selected above

Logon Screen Wallpaper - How To Change
This allows you to alter the default wallpaper seen at the login screen. Delete the value if you want there to be no wallpaper.

Click 'Start' --> 'Run'

Enter the following command in the text box next to 'Open'

regedit

Navigate to:

HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Desktop

Locate the following entry:

Wallpaper

Double click and alter the 'Value data' to your desired selection

Hidden Windows Components - How To Uninstall
This allows you to un-hide Windows components to make them viewable in Add/Remove Programs, e.g. Games & MSN Messanger. This is useful in a business environment

Ensure that hidden files are visible, in Windows Explorer click 'Tools' --> 'Folder Options' --> 'View' --> 'Show Hidden Files & Folders'

Navigate to:

C:\WINDOWS\inf

Open the sysoc.inf file in Notepad or another plain text editor.

Use the 'Search' --> 'Replace' feature of Notepad to remove all entries 'HIDE' (without the speech marks)

Leave Notepad open and move on the next step

Open the Control Panel --> Add/Remove Programs --> Add/Remove Components. Remove any features not required.

Close the sysoc.inf file remembering not to save changes.

Recovery Console - How To Install
To install the Recovery Console as a startup option

With Windows XP running, insert your Windows XP CD in the drive, and click Exit when the installation options are displayed.

Click Start, click Run, and then type:

D:\i386\winnt32.exe /cmdcons 

Note: Where D: is the CD-ROM drive letter, and then press Enter.

Follow the instructions on screen to install the Recovery Console, and when the installation is complete, restart your computer.

The Recovery Console will show up in the list of available operating systems in the Startup menu. You must be an administrator to use the Recovery Console.

If the i386 directory is already installed on your computer (as might be the case in computers purchased with Windows XP pre-installed), you can use the same syntax as in Step 2, using the [path]\i386 directory without having to use the CD.

An alternative method is to boot to the CD and start WINNT.EXE, then when prompted to Install or Repair, click Repair, which installs the Recovery Console for you.

If Windows XP will not start, you can run the Recovery Console from the Setup CD.

Page File - Clearing at shutdown
Start Registry Editor, 'Start (button)' --> 'Run', type 'regedit' (without the '') click 'OK'

 NOTE:  If 'Run' is not present on your start menu press and hold down the Windows key on the keyboard (usually found on the left hand side of the space bar) and press 'R'

Locate the following section of the registry:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management Locate in the right hand pane if present the entry 'ClearPageFileAtShutdown' and alter its value from 0 to 1. This is done by double clicking on it to open a dialogue box.

If the value does not exist right click on a blank are in the righthand pane and select 'New' --> 'DWORD Value adding the following value:

Value Name: ClearPageFileAtShutdown Value Type: REG_DWORD Value: 1

Search Facility - Not Working When Searching By Extension and/or Keywords
Click 'Start' --> 'Run'

Enter the following command in the text box next to 'Open':

regedit

Locate the registry key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\ContentIndex

Locate the following key:

FilterFilesWithUnknownExtensions

Change the DWORD value from 'O' to '1'

Services: Create or Delete
Services are added from the Command Prompt. You need to know the actual service name as opposed to what Microsoft calls the Display Name. For example, if you wanted to create or delete the Help and Support service, the name used at the Command Prompt would be "helpsvc" rather than the Display Name of "Help and Support". The actual service name can be obtained by typing services.msc in Run on the Start Menu and then double clicking the Display Name of the service. Once you know the name;

 To Create A Service: 

Click 'Start' --> 'Run'

Enter the following command in the text box next to 'Open':

sc create

Reboot the system

 To Delete A Service:  Click 'Start' --> 'Run'

Enter the following command in the text box next to 'Open':

sc delete

Reboot the system

If you prefer to work in the registry rather than through the command prompt to delete services;

Click 'Start' --> 'Run'

Enter the following command in the text box next to 'Open':

regedit

Navigate to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services Scroll down the left pane, locate the service name, right click it and select Delete. Reboot the system

Shutdown - Automatically Close Applications Not Responding
When an application fails to respond during shutdown a dialog box is displayed prompting the user to either end it now or to wait. Enabling the value AutoEndTasks will take care of the non-responding application without user intervention. This is often referred to as “Force Exit”.

Implement for All Users

Start --> Run --> Regedit

HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Desktop

The values are:

0 = AutoEndTasks Disabled 1 = AutoEndTasks Enabled

Winsock - How To Repair
Microsoft has a habit of putting convenience features into their operating systems that are convenient only to a small, select group of users. One such feature in XP is the automatic search for network printers and folders. Automatic search periodically polls your network to check for new shared resources and adds relevant icons into My Network Places if anything is found.

Microsoft's documentation on this feature is contradictory. In one sentence Microsoft state that the feature "does not add a great deal of overhead to your Windows XP computer's work load", implying that it does add some overhead, though they are not willing to state the level of that overhead. In the same documentation Microsoft proceed to state that if you have a small network where few resources are added or infrequent changes are made, or if you use a laptop that is regularly disconnected from the network then "...having Windows XP use any resources at all to perform this chore might be counter-productive", thus implying greater overhead than Microsoft are willing to admit to.

You can manually search your network for new printers in the Add New Printer Wizard, and you can manually locate new computers and shares on your network using standard URI notation in Windows Explorer, for example:

\\machine_name\share_name

If you wish to prevent XP from regularly searching your network and performing "counter-productive chores" then follow these simple instructions:

* Open the Control Panel and select Folder Options. If you use the Control Panel Category View you'll find Folder Options under Appearance and Themes. * Click the View tab. * In the Advanced Settings list, click to clear the Automatically Search for Network Folders and Printers check box. * Click OK.