Msg "Hacked By Pokemon"

Description
-This thread will infected every of your partition including removable drive.This is because the script was written to generate bha.vbs.dll and autorun.inf. This thread can spread via removable drive such as pendrive or other storage device because of its capability to generate dll file using vbs script.

This thread also will generate new registry value in your windows registry that is:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\MS32DLL - winpath&"\Bha.dll.vbs
HKCR\vbsfile\DefaultIcon - shell32.dll

And also modify this registry value:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main\Window Title","Hacked by pokemon"

-All your partition cannot open normally if your PC infected because the authority was given to the 'autoplay' option not 'open' option if normal condition.To ensure this,just right click one of your drives and see the first bolt option,is it open or autoplay.

Did your pc infected by these thread?
-Just right click any of your hard disk partition drive or removable disk, if the AutoPlay is the main authority of your right click popup, you PC might be infected but not confirmed yet because these symptom cause by autorun.inf file.

In normal windows operation, the ‘Open’ option always on top not ‘AutoPlay’

-To confirmed that your PC infected by this thread, you will see these word on top of your Internet Explorer bar:


This thread caused by these two files: Autorun.Inf and bha.vbs.dll as seen on figure below.

-This file is a system file, you cannot see this file until you unhidden this file. So, how to unhidden this file?

Step to unhidden
Firstly, open My Computer, click tools and choose Folder Options…


-This Window will popup:


Uncheck Hide protected operating system files (Recommended) and Use simple file sharing(Recommended)
-Click Apply and Close the window.
-Then open any of your drive and you may see the file.Don’t delete it first because you may find an error that the file is in use.To stop the process, open windows task manager by press CTRL+ALT+DELETE.

-Select wscript.exe and click End Process. Continue the step by clicking OK. After that you may delete that file in every partition of your drive including removable drive.
WARNING: When you open your drive partition, MAKE SURE you open by right clicking it and choose Open, IF NOT,the thread will RUNNING again.
Is your PC free from this thread after you delete all that files?
Not yet,why?Because the generated script file still in the system volume!System volume is the placed that windows will save their system restore file.Every partition has its own system volume file.But you cannot access the folder because access to the are denied by windows security.To access this folder you must get permission from windows security.How?

Enable the access
Right click System Volume Information and choose Sharing and Security...

Cleaning the registry
-After clean and delete the file, now you must clean the windows registry because this thread generate new registry value after they were activated.
-Run registry editor:START--->Run (type regedit)
-Open this location:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\MS32DLL
Delete registry named MS32DLL
-And open this location:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main

Speed up Windows XP application launching with the Run command

The Run command isn't just for file searches and application shortcuts in Windows Vista—you can also use it in Windows XP. Here's how to use the Run command to easily access and open the resource of your choice.

Windows Vista's Start menu contains an integrated search feature that, in addition to searching for files on the hard disk, can also search for application shortcuts nested within the Start menu. For example, the Windows Explorer shortcut is nested in the All Programs Accessories folder, but you can get to it very quickly by typing exp in the Start Search text box and pressing [Enter].
You can emulate the same type of timesaving search capability in Windows XP by using the Run command and taking advantage of its history listing. Here's how:

1. Press [Windows]R to open the Run dialog box.

2.Type the path and executable filename of an application in the Open text box and click OK to launch the application.

Once you do so, the Run command will remember the name and location of the executable file in its history. Now, the next time that you need to run that application, you can simply press [Windows]R and type in the first few characters of the executable filename in the Open text box. When you do, the full executable filename will appear in the Run command's history. You can then launch the application simply by pressing the down arrow followed by [Enter].

Note: This tip applies to both Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional.

Launch Windows Explorer with administrative privileges on Windows XP Pro

Do you ever need to perform an on-the-fly administrative task, but you're not on your computer? If the computer runs Internet Explorer 6 or 7, here's how you can launch Windows Explorer with administrative privileges on a Windows XP Pro limited user machine.

When you're working on a user's computer and need to perform an administrative task from within her Windows XP Pro limited user account, you can use the Run As command to launch certain utilities with administrative account privileges.

However, if you try to use Run As to launch Windows Explorer with administrative privileges, nothing happens. This is because Explorer.exe is already running and only one instance of Explorer can run at a time. More specifically, when you launch Explorer.exe, the first thing it does is check to see if it is already running. When the second instance of Explorer.exe sees that the first instance of Explorer.exe is already running, the second instance of Explorer.exe closes without

Internet Explorer 6
Internet Explorer 6 will work with Run As and will allow you to tap into Windows Explorer. Here's how:
1. Right-click the Internet Explorer icon in the Quick Launch toolbar and choose Run As. (Keep in mind that you cannot access Run As from the Internet Explorer icon that appears on the desktop or on the Start menu.)

2. Fill in the appropriate administrative account credentials in the Run As dialog box.

3. When Internet Explorer launches, type C:\ in the Address bar.

After you follow these steps, Windows Explorer will appear in the same window, and it will be running with administrative privileges.

Internet Explorer 7
If you're using Internet Explorer 7, the steps for Internet Explorer 6 won't work because, as part of the new security features in version 7, Internet Explorer is no longer integrated with Windows Explorer. You must use the standard method for launching Windows Explorer with administrative privileges. Here's how:

1. Log on to the computer with the Administrator account.

2. Access the Control Panel and launch Folder Options.

3. When you see the Folder Options dialog box, select the View tab.

4. Scroll down the Advanced Settings list and select the Launch Folder Windows In A Separate Process check box, click OK, and then log off.

The next time you work on that user's computer and need to perform an administrative task from within her limited user account, you can use Run As to launch Windows Explorer with administrative privileges.

Note: This tip only applies to Windows XP Professional.

Import the results of Windows XP's Tree command into Word

Takeaway: Using the Tree command to research your folders on your Windows XP hard disk can give you results fast—too fast for your eye to catch. Here's how to use Word to create a Tree you can read in detail and at your own pace.

To find out how many folders there are on your Windows XP hard disk, you can open a Command Prompt and use the Tree command. You'll get a very nice looking graphical tree structure showing all the folders on your hard disk. The only problem is that the display will scroll by your screen so fast and exceed the buffer size, so you'll never be able to see it.

Instead, try using the old MS-DOS pipe to funnel the output of the Tree command to an RTF (Rich Text Format) file. You can then import that RTF file into a specially formatted Word document and have the same graphical tree structure showing all the folders on your hard disk in a document.

Here's how:
Open a Command Prompt window.
Use the CD \ command to access the root folder.
Type Tree > Tree.rtf
Close the Command Prompt window.
Launch Word and open a new document.
Go to File Page Setup.
In the Page Setup dialog box, choose the Landscape Orientation, and set the left and right margins to 0.
Click OK and click the Ignore button in the margins warning dialog box.
Go to Insert File.
In the Insert File dialog box, locate the Tree.rtf file and click the Insert button.
In the File Conversion dialog box, select the MS-DOS option and click OK.

You can save the document and then scroll through the graphical tree structure showing all the folders on your hard disk.

Note: This tip applies to both Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional.

Forcing Windows XP's Disk Cleanup To Delete All Temporary Files

You may have found that Windows XP's Disk Cleanup utility misses a spot from time to time, retaining temporary files most recently accessed. Here's how to perform a clean sweep of your Windows XP files by forcing Disk Cleanup to get rid of all your temporary files.

If you've ever run the Windows XP's Disk Cleanup utility, you probably discovered that your temporary files occupy a significant amount of space. You might select the Temporary Files check box in order to allow the Disk Cleanup utility to delete the files in the Temp folder, but the Disk Cleanup utility will not remove all of the files.
The reason for this oddity is that the configuration for the Disk Cleanup utility does not allow deletion of files accessed in the last seven days.

By altering the LastAccess value in the registry, you can configure the Disk Cleanup utility to delete all the files in the Temp folder regardless of the last accessed date.
Here's how: Launch the Registry Editor (Regedit.exe).
Go to :
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion
\Explorer\VolumeCaches\Temporary Files.

Locate and double-click the LastAccess value.

When you see the Edit DWORD Value dialog box, change the Value Data setting from 7 to 0 and click OK.

To complete the operation, close the Registry Editor and restart Windows XP.

Changing the value to 0 will force the Disk Cleanup utility to delete all the files in the Temp folder every time that you select the Temporary Files check box.

Notes: Since editing the registry is risky, be sure you have a verified backup before saving any changes. This tip applies to both Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional.

Use screen savers to keep track of multiple Windows XP Computers

Takeaway: If you use multiple Windows XP computers from a single monitor, here's how to work with the screen saver icon to avoid headaches and keep your systems straight.

If you regularly work with multiple Windows XP computers using a Keyboard Video Mouse (KVM) switch, you may get confused about which computer you currently have on the screen. But if you don't need all the features of the BGInfo utility, there is a simple method that you can implement using either the 3D Text or Marquee screen saver.

Launch Windows Explorer and locate either the sstext3d.scr file or the ssmarque.scr file in the C:\WINDOWS\system32 folder.

Right-click the file and select Send To Desktop (create shortcut).

On the Desktop, right-click the shortcut, select the Configure command, type the name of the computer in the Text box, and click OK.

Drag the shortcut to the Quick Launch toolbar.
Now to find out the name of the computer you just switched to, click the screen saver icon on the Quick Launch toolbar.

Note: This tip applies to both Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional.

Viewing non-present devices in Windows XP's Device Manager

Takeaway: Find out how Windows XP's Device Manager can help you track down non-present devices, which may still cause problems even though they're not physically attached to your machine.

When troubleshooting driver problems in Windows XP, one of the first places you may look is Device Manager, which provides detailed information about every piece of installed system hardware. In light of devices such as removable USB drives becoming more and more common, you may need information about devices that are not currently connected; Device Manager recognizes these as non-present devices.

Here's how to get information about these devices:
Go to Start, right-click My Computer, and select Properties.
In the System Properties dialog box, select the Advanced tab and click the Environment Variables button.
In the Environment Variables dialog box, locate the System Variables panel and click New.
In the New System Variable dialog box, type DEVMGR_SHOW_NONPRESENT_DEVICES in the Variable Name text box and type 1 in the Variable Value text box.

Click OK twice.
To view the non-present devices, go to Start, right-click My Computer, and select Manage.
Click Device Manager, pull down the View menu, and select Show Hidden Devices.

Note: This tip applies to both Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional.

Understanding USB topology in Windows XP

Ever wonder how many USB devices your Windows XP system can handle? The answer may surprise you. Here's how your machine organizes all its connections and how you can evaluate the Device Manager's total running capacity.

As long as you have enough power, attaching many USB devices to your Windows XP system can't cause degradation in performance -- even if you attach as many as 127 USB devices at one time.

While it's unlikely for that many devices to be connected at a time, that number is made possible by Windows XP's seven-tiered USB topology. The top, or tier number one, consists of the host controller or root hub, which is the USB hub built into the computer's motherboard. Tiers two through six are equipped to consist of a series of USB hubs (two or more at each tier) daisy chained together. Tier seven consists of any devices attached to the USB hub(s) at tier six.

While USB hubs can draw power from the root hub, the amount of power is limited to 100 milliamperes per port, and the hub can only have four ports. However, most USB hubs have their own external AC adapter and can provide up to 500 milliamperes of power per port on more than four ports.

Follow these steps to learn more about the root hub and the USB hubs attached to your system in Device Manager:
Go to Start, right-click My Computer, and select Manage.
Click Device Manager in the left pane.
Click Universal Serial Bus Controllers in Device Manager.
Double-click each root and USB hub and check the information on the tabs.

Note: This tip applies to both Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional.

Speed shutdown of Windows XP Pro by disabling Terminal Services

If your Windows XP Pro system slows or even stops when you shut it down, there's a good chance that Terminal Services is the reason. Users often overlook Terminal Services as a possible source of shutdown problems because it works quietly in the background.

Terminal Services is the brains behind such things as Remote Desktop, Remote Assistance, Fast User Switching, and Terminal Server. If you're not using any of these programs, you can disable Terminal Services. If you are using any of these programs, you can stop Terminal Services and reconfigure it to start up manually. Here's how:

Right-click My Computer and select Manage.
In the Computer Management window, open the Services And Applications branch in the left pane and click Services.
In the Services pane, locate and double-click Terminal Services.
In the Terminal Services Properties dialog box, click the Stop button and then set the Startup Type setting to either Disabled or Manual.

Click OK and then close the Computer Management window.

Restart Windows.

If you don’t find Terminal Services in the Services pane, or if it is there but is already disabled, or Windows still hangs during shutdown even after you change the Startup Type setting, then the source of your shutdown problem is not related to Terminal Services.

Create a temp file with VB.NET

Temp files are generally used for temporary storage and data manipulation. This is often necessary for storing user data, user preferences, session information, application cache, and many other types of information.
In order to get the name of the file that you can use as a temp file in VB.NET, I suggest using the GetTempFileName method of the Path class.

While there are multiple approaches to creating a temp file, it's really helpful to use the System.IO.Path because it returns a unique file name in the current user's temporary directory; you can use that file name to create a file for storing temporary information. Note that calling this method multiple times will result in getting a different file name each time even if you don't use that name to create a file. This behavior prevents name collisions between multiple applications.

In my sample code (below), I define the string variable, sTempFileName, and assign the System.IO.Path.GetTempFileName method's return value to it. This produces a temp file name that I can use. I then create a FileStream object, fsTemp, and request that the system create a file with the filename, sTempFileName. Once the file is created, I add data to it (this code is omitted in the example). After that, the temp file is closed.

Private Sub TempFile()
Dim sTempFileName AsString = System.IO.Path.GetTempFileName()
Dim fsTemp AsNew System.IO.FileStream(sTempFileName, IO.FileMode.Create)

MessageBox.Show(sTempFileName)

'write data to the temp file

fsTemp.Close()

System.IO.File.Delete(sTempFileName)

End Sub

Detect Drive Failure Before It Happens

Roughly 60% of all disk drive failures are mechanical in nature from spindle bearing wear to read/write heads banging into delicate disk platters and now technology built into the drives can report anticipated and specific failures to give you a chance to rectify the situation, hopefully before it is too late to retrieve your data.

In addition to monitoring a variety of parameters related to mechanical events (disk platter RPM, time to spin up, motor current, head seek failures,and sudden shock to the drive chassis), S.M.A.R.T. (Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology) can report read and write retry attempts necessary due to defective areas on the disk or head failure or drive temperature. Many S.M.A.R.T.-enabled drives can also report how many times they have been turned on and off and the number of hours the drive has been on.

If S.M.A.R.T. is enabled in your system BIOS, the BIOS will check and report any early or permanent signs of disk failure. You can also monitor your drive's condition with a S.M.A.R.T.-aware disk monitoring program.

To view all available S.M.A.R.T. information about your drive, try the free DiskCheck utility from http://www.passmark.com/products/diskcheckup.htm.DiskCheck is a nonresident utility that will show you exact drive informa- tion and all of the supported S.M.A.R.T. statuses from your drive. There's also Ariolic Software's ActiveSMART (http://www.ariolic.com/activesmart/) resident monitoring tool, which provides a wealth of detail on drive statusand notification of potential failures. If you get a S.M.A.R.T. warning about a drive failing, back up your data immediately and replace the drive.

Hacking the Hack
A failing disk drive is no fun. A failed disk drive is even less so. In my work in various IT shops, I've encountered a lot of grieving "Have I lost all of my data?" looks from end users. It is indeed a sad time, but an opportunity to become a hero. If you can spend the time with various tools to attempt, and even better succeed, at saving someone else's work, you can feel like you actually accomplished something in the course of your day besides resetting some forgetful user's password or plugging their mouse back in.

A plethora of disk drive repair and data recovery tools are available to help you emulate that fictional superhero "Super
DataMan." (OK, he doesn't really exist, I made him up...)

I've long since given up on the pedestrian Norton Utilities like Norton DiskDoctor because it does not do enough to spend the time running it, espe-cially for those really cranky lost partitions, erratic mechanical problemsinside the drive, and when S.M.A.R.T. says the drive is bad or going to be bad soon.

When it's time to recover partitions and data I unlock my arsenal of seriousdisk recovery tools, which are:
· Steve Gibson's SpinRite 6.0 (http://www.spinrite.com) for finding and fixing or moving bad data blocks on FAT, NTFS, Linux, Novell, Macin- tosh, and even TiVo volumes

· Ontrack's Easy Data Recovery (http://www.ontrack.com) for digging deep inside a drive and extracting recovered data to other media · Symantec's GHOST (http://www.symantec.com) to "peel" data off a bad drive to a disk image for replacement onto another drive, or to extract individual datafiles with Ghost Explorer

· Kurt Garloff's dd_rescue (http://www.garloff.de/kurt/linux/ddrescue/) to image Linux partitions to other media for later recovery use (see http:// www.oreillynet.com/pub/wlg/5205 for an excellent write-up and tips)If your own data recovery efforts fail, you can always resort to a data recov-ery service like Ontrack (http://www.ontrack.com) or ActionFront (http://www.actionfront.com).

Find A Lost Windows Product key

Problem
In order to install or reinstall Microsoft Windows you must have access to a Product Key for that version of theoperating system. The product key can typically be found on a yellow sticker on the CD case of the installationCD, or on a small Microsoft sticker on the outside of the PC's case (if the OS came preinstalled on the machine).If you no longer have access to the product key then you will effectively "lose" a Windows license if you ever haveto reinstall the operating system.

Solution
There are several methods you can use to uncover a lost product key for a version of Windows that you currently have installed.

For older versions of Windows you can extract the product key from the Windows Registry.
Click Start Run and then type Regedit and click OK.

For Windows 95 and Windows 98, browse to this key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ProductIDFor Windows NT 4.0,
browse to this key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProductIDAlternatively

There are also some free scripts and freeware software programs that can help you:
· Magical Jelly Bean Keyfinder: This is probably the best tool for this task. In addition to finding and identifying product keys for Windows 95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP, it can also uncover product keys for installed versions of Microsoft Office.

· Windows Key Finders: This is actually a group of tools that can be used for unearthing product keys for different versions of Windows.

· Belarc Advisor: This free utility builds a detailed profile of your installed software and hardware. (As suggested in the discussion thread by ShadyHouse).Whichever method you use, make sure you write down the product key and put it in a safe place for futurereference.

10+ Things You Should Know About Troubleshooting A Slow PC

1. Spyware and viruses ­
Spyware and viruses pose a significant security threat, and they can also dramatically decrease computer performance. The first step when combating spyware should always be to scan the machine with updated spyware detection/removal and antivirus software. Use theseapplications to remove any detected infections. If the software scanners don't work, here are a few other steps to try.
To remove spyware:
· Identify and end suspicious processes with Windows Task Manager.
· Identify and disable suspicious services with the Management Console.
· Identify and disable suspicious services and startup items with the System Configuration Utility.
· Search and delete registry entries associated with suspicious services or startup items.
· Identify and delete suspicious files.
· Install and use multiple spyware detection and removal utilities.

Note: If the above techniques fail, start Windows in Safe Mode and retry.

Virus removal techniques depend heavily on the specific virus variant. You must therefore tailor your removalefforts to each virus. Here is a list of TechRepublic resources for removing common viruses and worms:
· Identify/React Chart: Sober.P
· Identify/React Chart: Cabir
· Identify/React Chart: Mugly
· Identify/React Chart: Atak
· Identify/React Chart: Maslan
· Identify/React Chart: Anzae/Inzae
· Identify/React Chart: Zafi
· Identify/React Chart: Netsky
· Identify/React Chart: Sober.I/Sober.J
· Identify/React Chart: Bofra
· Identify/React Chart: Bagle.AZ (Beagle.AR Symantec)
· Identify/React Chart: Korgo.A (aka Bloodhound or Padobot) and variants
· Identify/React Chart: Lovegate
· Identify/React Chart: MyDoom
· Identify/React chart: Bagle virus

2. Processor overheating
Modern processors generate a lot of heat. That's why all processors require some sort of cooling element, typically a fan of some type. Machines used for gaming or other processor-intensive activities often use more sophisticated water cooling or refrigerant systems.Whenthe processor temperature goes over spec, the system can slow down or run erratically. Modern motherboardscan monitor the processor temperature and report it through the system BIOS.

The processor fan may fail for several reasons:
· Dust is preventing the fan from spinning smoothly.
· The fan motor has failed.
· The fan bearings are loose and "jiggling."

Often you can tell if there is a fan problem by listening and/or touching the computer. A fan that has loosebearings starts jiggling and vibrates the case, making a characteristic noise. You may barely notice the noise atfirst, and it's common for even the experienced computer pro to overlook this change. But as time goes by, thesounds and vibrations will become so prominent that you'll change the fan out just to stop the racket!You don't always need to replace the fan. If it is covered with dust, you can often spray away the dust withcompressed air. Note that even though you might get the fan running again, its life span has likely been reducedbecause of the overwork. You should keep an extra fan in reserve in case of failure.There are a number of software utilities that will track the temperature of your processor and case. If you want totry some of these utilities, check out CNET's Download.com and use the search term "temperature."

3. Bad RAM ­
Several situations can lead to a bad RAM relationship with a particular machine:
· RAM timing is slower than optimal machine spec.
· RAM has minor flaws that only appear on detailed testing.
· RAM is overheating.

In the "old days" of Fast Page RAM, buying new RAM for your computer was a pretty simple affair.
You justneeded to know what speed your motherboard supported and the maximum each slot would take.
Today, thereare many different speeds and types of RAM, and the better motherboards may be tolerant of using RAM thatdoes not match the motherboard's maximum specs. For example, your motherboard may support ECC RAM butwill still work with non-ECC RAM, or may support both PC2700 and PC3200 DIMMs. But be aware that you mayneed to change BIOS settings and you may see performance decreases if you install RAM that is slower than themaximum spec.

Minor flaws in RAM chips can lead to system slowdowns and instability. The least expensive chips often haveminor flaws that will cause your system to slow down or Blue Screen intermittently. Although built-in mechanismsmay allow the system to keep working, there is a performance hit when it has to deal with flawed RAM chips.

In the past, no one worried about RAM chips getting hot, because they didn't seem to generate much heat. Butthat's changed with newer RAM types, especially SDRAM. To check for overheating, open your computer's case,power down, and pull the plug out. Ground yourself and touch the plastic on one of your RAM chips. Ouch! Theyget pretty hot. If you find that your RAM chips are overheating, you should consider buying a separate fan to coolyour memory. If your motherboard doesn't support a RAM fan, you might be able to get enough additional coolingby installing a fan card that plugs into a PCI slot.
You can also buy copper "heatspreaders" or RAM heatsinks that improve heat dissipation and help preventproblems caused by overheated RAM.

Tip: Some motherboards will even allow you to mix speeds but will default to the slowest RAM installed.

4. Failing hard disk ­
There may be many signs of imminent failure before a hard disk finally gives up,depending on the type of failure (mechanical, electronic, logical or firmware failure). Some of these signs include:
· Slow access times on the affected drive.
· An increasing number of bad sectors when running scandisk and chkdsk.
· Unexplained Blue Screens.
· Intermittent boot failures.

Detecting a failing hard disk can be tricky because the early signs are subtle. Experienced computer professionalscan often hear a change in the normal disk spin (often manifested as a clicking or crunching noise or a highpitched whine). After the disk deteriorates further, you'll see the system crawl to a standstill. Write processes willtake a long time as the system tries to find good blocks to write to. (This will occur if you're using a robust filesystem such as NTFS; other file systems will likely Blue Screen the computer.) You may get error messages suchas "Windows delayed write failure" on Windows computers.

When you notice the system slow down, run scandisk or chkdsk, depending on your operating system. If younotice a bad sector where a good sector existed earlier, that's a clue that the disk is going bad. Back up the dataon the disk and prepare for it to fail soon. Make sure you have a spare disk ready so you can replace it when itfails, or replace the disk as soon as you notice the early signs of failure.

Disk noise and scandisk/chkdsk are your best indicators for identifying a failing drive that's leading to a systemslowdown. However, if you are managing a system remotely, or you can't take the system down for a fullchkdsk/R, you can use tools that monitor disk health, such as Executive Software's DiskAlert.

5. BIOS settings ­
One often-ignored culprit of system slowdown is the machine's BIOS settings. Most people accept the BIOS settings as they were configured in the factory and leave them as is. However,slowdowns may occur if the BIOS settings do not match the optimal machine configuration. Often youcan improve machine performance by researching your motherboard's optimal BIOS settings--which may not bethe same as the factory defaults.There is no centralized database of optimal BIOS settings, but a simple Web search on your motherboard nameand BIOS as keywords should yield the correct settings.You may also be able to increase performance by updating or "flashing" your BIOS. Check with yourmotherboard's vendor for the software and instructions to do this.

6. Disk type/controller compatibility ­
You've just purchased a new UDMA-100 disk drive, and it doesn't seem any faster than any of the other drives in your machine. You do some benchmark testing,and the new disk tests the same as the other drives in your system. So what's the problem?
It could be that your motherboard doesn't support the UDMA 100 specification. Check your manual to determinewhat type of IDE interface it supports. If the motherboard only supports UDMA 33 or 66, then your UDMA 100throttles down for backwards compatibility. You can get around this problem by installing a PCI UDMA 100 add-oncard and plugging the new drive in to that interface.

Another potential problem may be the cable type you are using. UDMA 66+ drives require a different cable thanolder drive types.The drive may not work at all with the old cable type. Aged cables will break down over time,especially if they are tightly folded and the temperature of the case remains consistently high. It's alwaysworthwhile to change out the drive cable to see if performance improves.

Also keep in mind that over the course of a year to 18 months, hard disk technology improves so thatperformance of newer disks is substantially greater (and so are disk capacities). Replacing older disks, even ifthey are not at risk of failure, can give you a big performance boost. New Serial ATA (SATA) disks are faster thanold Parallel ATA types.

7. Windows services ­
Many Windows services are enabled by default. Many of these services, however, are not required for your machine to run properly. You should review the services running on your Windows 2000/Windows XP computer and disable those that you don't need.

One way to see what services are running is to use the Services applet found in the Administrative Tools menu.Right-click My Computer and select Manage. Important information contained in the Services console includesthe service Name, Status, and Startup Type. You can get more details on a service by double-clicking on it tobring up the service's Properties.

You can stop the service by clicking the Stop button. If you are sure that you don't need the service, click thedown arrow in the Startup Type drop-down list box and set the service to Disabled. If you are not sure if you need the service, change the Startup Type to Manual. Then you'll have the option of manually starting the service if youfind that you need it.

Another way of controlling which services start is using the msconfig utility. Open the Run dialog box and typemsconfig in the Open text box. The Essential column shows services Microsoft considers essential to running thecomputer. However, note that many required services are not defined as essential in the System ConfigurationUtility window. You can prevent a service from starting at bootup by unchecking the check box to the left of the service.

One service that is well known for slowing down Windows 2000/Windows XP systems is the Indexing Service.This service indexes the content of each hard disk and makes it easier for the Search utility to find files. Unlessyou are running a Web site that uses the indexing service, you may want to disable it to improve performance.

8. Runaway processes ­
Runaway processes take up all of the processors' cycles. The usual suspects are badly written device drivers, and legacy software installed on a newer operating system. You can identify a runaway process by looking at the process list in the Windows Task Manager. Any processthat takes almost 100 percent of the processing time is likely a runaway process.

There are exceptions to this rule. On a smoothly running system, the System Idle Process should be consumingthe majority of the processor cycles most of the time. If any other process were to take up 98 percent of theprocessor cycles, you might have a runaway process.
If you do find a runaway process, you can right-click the process and click the End Process command. You mayneed to stop some processes, such as runaway system services, from the Services console. If you can't stop theservice using the console, you may need to reboot the system. Sometimes a hard reboot is required.

9.Disk fragmentation ­
As files are added, deleted, and changed on a disk, the contents of the file can become spread across sectors located in disparate regions of the disk. This is file fragmentation. Some older operating systems, such as Windows NT, don't have a built-in defrag utility; you must obtain athird-party solution, such as Executive Software's Diskeeper.

Disk fragmentation can significantly slow down your machine. The disk heads must move back and forth whileseeking all the fragments of a file. A common cause of disk fragmentation is a disk that is too full. You shouldkeep 20 percent to 25 percent of your hard disk space free to minimize file fragmentation and to improve thedefragmenter's ability to defrag the disk. Thus, if a disk is too full, move some files off the drive and restart thedefragmenter.In Windows XP, you can use the defrag.exe command line tool to schedule defragmentation on a regular basis.For Windows 2000, you can use a program such as AutoDefrag to schedule defragmentation.

10.Background applications ­
Have you ever visited an end-user's desktop and noticed a dozen icons in the system tray? Each icon represents a process running in either the foreground or background. Most of them are running in the background, so the users may not be aware that they are running 20+applications at the same time.
This is due to applications starting up automatically in the background. Look first for such programs in the Startupfolder in the Start menu. Many applications place components in the Startup folder to run in the background.Some of these, such as the Microsoft Office Findfast, can really chew up processor and disk time and noticeablyslow down a system. Review each of the entries in the Startup folder and delete any that are unnecessary.

Not all programs that run at startup appear in the Startup folder. Another place to look is the following registrykeys: HKEY_ LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run and HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnceIn

Windows XP, run msconfig and check the Startup tab to view startup programs. You can uncheck the boxes tokeep individual programs from running at startup.


11. File system issues ­
Some file systems work better than others for large disk partitions. If the machine runs Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000, or Windows XP, you should use the NTFS file system for best performance.

File system performance is closely related to cluster size and the number of clusters on the disk. NTFS filesystems will bog down if you have a 60-GB hard disk configured with a cluster size of 512 bytes. This creates anenormous number of clusters, which the file system must track and seek. This becomes especially problematicwhen the drive is highly fragmented. One solution is to use larger cluster sizes. If you set the cluster size to 4K or larger, you will see noticeable improvement in file load times. Please note, however, that large clusters cansignificantly increase the amount of cluster slack space and lead to a lot of wasted disk space.

Another trick to alleviate file system issues involves tweaking some Registry values (Start MenuRunRegedit):
· The first Registry value you can tweak is NtfsDisable8dot3NameCreation, which can be found at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Filesystem. When you set this value to 1, it stops NTFS from generating the 8.3 file-naming convention used for backward compatibility. If you do not need these old filenames, you can improve performance by preventing NTFS from creating them.

· Another useful NTFS entry is the NtfsDisableLastAccess value, which can be found at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Filesystem. This is a REG_DWORD entry, and when it is set to 1, it will prevent NTFS from updating the date and time stamp of directories after they are browsed. However, this does not prevent an update to the file-access information when a file is opened or changed

.If you are not using the NTFS file system, you may be able to improve performance by moving files and foldersout of the root directory. With FAT partitions, you may notice a big slowdown in system performance after runningscandisk because a large number of .chk files are placed in the root directory. Users sometimes fill their rootdirectories by making it the default file storage location. Move as many files and folders as possible out of the rootdirectory, and performance should improve significantly.

10 Things You Can Do When Windows XP Won't Boot

1.Use a Windows startup disk
One of the first things you should reach for when troubleshooting a Windows XP boot problem is a Windowsstartup disk. This floppy disk can come in handy if the problem is being caused when either the startup record forthe active partition or the files that the operating system uses to start Windows have become corrupted.To create a Windows startup disk, insert a floppy disk into the drive of a similarly configured, working Windows XPsystem, launch My Computer, right-click the floppy disk icon, and select the Format command from the contextmenu. When you see the Format dialog box, leave all the default settings as they are and click the Start button.Once the format operation is complete, close the Format dialog box to return to My Computer, double-click thedrive C icon to access the root directory, and copy the following three files to the floppy disk:· Boot.ini· NTLDR· Ntdetect.com After you create the Windows startup disk, insert it into the floppy drive on the afflicted system and press[Ctrl][Alt][Delete] to reboot the computer. When you boot from the Windows startup disk, the computer will bypassthe active partition and boot files on the hard disk and attempt to start Windows XP normally.

2.Use Last Known Good Configuration
You can also try to boot the operating system with the Last Known Good Configuration feature. This feature willallow you to undo any changes that caused problems in the CurrentControlSet registry key, which defineshardware and driver settings. The Last Known Good Configuration feature replaces the contents of theCurrentControlSet registry key with a backup copy that was last used to successfully start up the operatingsystem.To use the Last Known Good Configuration feature, first restart the computer by pressing [Ctrl][Alt][Delete]. Whenyou see the message Please select the operating system to start or hear the single beep, press [F8] to display theWindows Advanced Options menu. Select the Last Known Good Configuration item from the menu and press[Enter].Keep in mind that you get only one shot with the Last Known Good Configuration feature. In other words, if it failsto revive your Windows XP on the first attempt, the backup copy is also corrupt.

3.Use System Restore
Another tool that might be helpful when Windows XP won't boot is System Restore. System Restore runs in thebackground as a service and continually monitors system-critical components for changes. When it detects animpending change, System Restore immediately makes backup copies, called restore points, of these criticalcomponents before the change occurs. In addition, System Restore is configured by default to create restorepoints every 24 hours.To use System Restore, first restart the computer by pressing [Ctrl][Alt][Delete]. When you see the message Please select the operating system to start or hear the single beep, press [F8] to display the Windows AdvancedOptions menu. Now, select the Safe Mode item from the menu and press [Enter].Once Windows XP boots into Safe mode, click the Start button, access the All Programs Accessories SystemTools menu, and select System Restore. Because you're running in Safe mode, the only option on the openingscreen of the System Restore wizard is Restore My Computer To An Earlier Time, and it's selected by default, sojust click Next. Then, follow along with the wizard to select a restore point and begin the restoration procedure.

4.Use Recovery Console
When a Windows XP boot problem is severe, you'll need to use a more drastic approach. The Windows XP CD isbootable and will provide you with access to a tool called Recovery Console.To boot from the Windows XP CD, insert it into the CD-ROM drive on the problem system and press[Ctrl][Alt][Delete] to reboot the computer. Once the system begins booting from the CD, simply follow the promptsthat will allow the loading of the basic files needed to run Setup. When you see the Welcome To Setup screen,shown in Figure A, press R to start the Recovery Console.You'll then see aRecovery Consolemenu, like the oneshown in Figure B. Itdisplays the foldercontaining the operatingsystem's files andprompts you to choosethe operating systemyou want to log on to.Just press the menunumber on thekeyboard, and you'll beprompted to enter theAdministrator'spassword. You'll thenfind yourself at the main Recovery Console prompt.

5.Fix a corrupt Boot.ini
As the Windows XP operating system begins to load, the Ntldr program refers to the Boot.ini file to determinewhere the operating system files reside and which options to enable as the operating system continues to load.So if there's a problem rooted in the Boot.ini file, it can render Windows XP incapable of booting correctly.If you suspect that Windows XP won't boot because Boot.ini has been corrupted, you can use the specialRecovery Console version of the Bootcfg tool to fix it. Of course, you must first boot the system with the WindowsXP CD and access the Recovery Console as described in #4.To use the Bootcfg tool, from the Recovery Console command prompt, typeBootcfg /parameterWhere /parameter is one of the required parameters listed in the table below.

6.Fix a corrupt partition boot sector
The partition boot sector is a small section of the hard disk partition that contains information about the operatingsystem's file system (NTFS or FAT32), as well as a very small machine language program that is crucial inassisting the operating system as it loads.If you suspect that Windows XP won't boot because the partition boot sector has been corrupted, you can use aspecial Recovery Console tool called Fixboot to fix it. Start by booting the system with the Windows XP CD andaccessing the Recovery Console as described in #4.To use the Fixboot tool, from the Recovery Console command prompt, typeFixboot [drive]:Where [drive] is the letter of the drive to which you want to write a new partition boot sector.

7.Fix a corrupt master boot record
The master boot record occupies the first sector on the hard disk and is responsible for initiating the Windowsboot procedure. The master boot record contains the partition table for the disk as well as a small program calledthe master boot code, which is responsible for locating the active, or bootable, partition, in the partition table.Once this occurs, the partition boot sector takes over and begins loading Windows. If the master boot record iscorrupt, the partition boot sector can't do its job and Windows won't boot.If you suspect Windows XP won't boot because the master boot record has been corrupted, you can use theRecovery Console tool Fixmbr to fix it. First, boot the system with the Windows XP CD and access the RecoveryConsole as described in #4.To use the Fixmbr tool, from the Recovery Console command prompt, typeFixmbr [device_name]Where [device_name] is the device pathname of the drive to which you want to write a new master boot record.For example, the device pathname format for a standard bootable drive C configuration would look like this:\Device\HardDisk0

8.Disable automatic restart
When Windows XP encounters a fatal error, the default setting for handling such an error is to automaticallyreboot the system. If the error occurs while Windows XP is booting, the operating system will become stuck in areboot cycle--rebooting over and over instead of starting up normally. In that case, you'll need to disable theoption for automatically restarting on system failure.When Windows XP begins to boot up and you see the message Please select the operating system to start orhear the single beep, press [F8] to display the Windows Advanced Options Menu. Then, select the Disable TheAutomatic Restart On System Failure item and press [Enter]. Now, Windows XP will hang up when it encountersthe error and with any luck, it will display a stop message you can use to diagnose the problem.

9.Restore from a backup
If you can't seem to repair a Windows XP system that won't boot and you have a recent backup, you can restorethe system from the backup media. The method you use to restore the system will depend on what backup utilityyou used, so you'll need to follow the utility's instructions on how to perform a restore operation.

10.Perform an in-place upgrade
If you can't repair a Windows XP system that won't boot and you don't have a recent backup, you can perform anin-place upgrade. Doing so reinstalls the operating system into the same folder, just as if you were upgrading fromone version of Windows to another. An in-place upgrade will usually solve most, if not all, Windows bootproblems.Performing a Windows XP in-place upgrade is pretty straightforward. To begin, insert the Windows XP CD intothe drive, restart your system, and boot from the CD. Once the initial preparation is complete, you'll see theWindows XP Setup screen (shown earlier in Figure A). Press [Enter] to launch the Windows XP Setup procedure.In a moment, you'll see the License Agreement page and will need to press [F8] to acknowledge that you agree.Setup will then search the hard disk looking for a previous installation of Windows XP. When it finds the previousinstallation, you'll see a second Windows XP Setup screen, as shown in Figure C on the next page.This screen will prompt you to press R to repair the selected installation or to press [Esc] to install a fresh copy ofWindows XP. In this case, initiating a repair operation is synonymous with performing an in-place upgrade, soyou'll need to press R. When you do so, Setup will examine the disk drives in the system. It will then beginperforming the in-place upgrade.Keep in mind that after you perform an in-place upgrade or repair installation, you must reinstall all updates toWindows.

10 things You Should Do Before Installing Windows Vista On A computer

1.Analyze your machine for upgrade readiness
Before doing anything else, you should download and run the Windows Upgrade Advisor utility. This software willexamine your computer and provide you with a summary of what versions of Windows Vista the computer iscapable of running. Note that the Upgrade Advisor only indicates whether or not the PC will run Windows Vista. Itdoes not indicate which requirements the PC doesn't meet.

2.Check the CPU
The CPU requirements for Windows Vista are not earth shattering by any means. To be considered Vista Capable,the computer must have a CPU of at least 800 MHz. Those that are Premium Ready require a processor of at least1 GHz. Most computers that have been sold in recent years will meet this requirement with ease.

3. Make sure you have enough memory
Memory is another fairly easy-to-meet hardware requirement for Windows Vista. To be considered Vista Capable,the PC must have at least 512 MB of RAM. Premium Ready machines must have a minimum of 1 GB of systemRAM. Most modern PCs will either meet this requirement or be capable of a relatively inexpensive upgrade.

4.Evaluate your graphics adapter
Those of you looking forward to the new 3-D Aero Glass graphics will need to make sure that your graphics adapteris DirectX 9 capable. WDDM (a Windows display driver model for writing drivers) compatibility is alsorecommended. To be considered Premium Ready, the graphics adapter must have a minimum of 128 MB of videoRAM. Vista Capable cards require only 64 MB of video RAM. Unless you plan on using the Aero Glass graphics,there is no reason to upgrade your existing video adapter if it's Vista Capable.

5.Verify that you have sufficient hard drive space
With hard drive capacity constantly increasing, available space is usually not a major concern. However, you shouldstill be aware of the minimum space requirements for Windows Vista. Take a moment to verify that your system has enough free space. To install Windows Vista, the hard drive must beat least 40 GB in size and have a minimum of 15 GB of free space.

6.Make sure you've got a DVD drive
Windows Vista ships on a DVD, so to install the new operating system, the computer must have a DVD drive. Thisis another requirement that should be fairly easy to meet, since DVD drives have become commonplace or requireonly a fairly inexpensive upgrade.

7.Sort out the versions
Determining which version of Windows Vista to install can be a bit more complex than it was with previous versionsof Windows. Windows Vista will have five editions:

Windows Vista Home Basic. This version of Vista provides basic operating system functionality. If you don't need advanced features, such as Aero Glass, this is the choice for you. Average home users will choose this version, although stepping up to Windows Vista Home Premium will offer more functionality.

Windows Vista Home Premium. This version is sort of a cross between Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional. It offers much more functionality than the Vista Home Basic edition and is probably the version that most average to advanced home users will install.

Windows Vista Business. This version is comparable to Windows XP Professional. It offers standard business functionality and will be a staple on the corporate desktop.

Windows Vista Enterprise. The Vista Enterprise version offers advanced functionality such as BitLocker Drive Encryption for laptops, application compatibility tools, and multi-language support.

Windows Vista Ultimate. The Vista Ultimate version combines the best of the home and business editions into one feature-rich operating system. This version also includes the Windows Media Center.

8.Check application compatibility
To make your Windows Vista installation go as smoothly as possible, you should ensure that your existingapplications will run under Vista before installing it. You can download and run the Application Compatibility Toolkit tohelp you identify applications that may not run under Windows Vista.

9.Don't overlook data backups
Backing up your data is one of the most critical steps in upgrading your operating system. Unfortunately, this step isoften overlooked in the excitement of installing the latest operating system. In addition to backing up your data, it'sbest to verify that you have all of the installation media from your existing software and the appropriate licensinginformation before you start the installation.

10.Remember the notebooks
Notebook computers must meet all of the same hardware specifications as desktop PCs. The one problem withnotebooks, however, is that If the graphics card isn't compatible, there is little that you can do to upgrade thesystem.

The 10 Worst Ways To Communicate With End Users

By Becky RobertsYou think you're a good communicator: You keep your users informed and you listen to their problems. So why isit that no one appears to baca your e-mails or seems capable of following your instructions? Are you surprised tolearn that the users have been living with computer issues rather than ask you for help? These are all signs of abreakdown in communication--which we, as support techs, frequently misinterpret as user indifference or evenstupidity. Before long, we find ourselves on a downward spiral toward complete communications failure. Even withthe best intentions, it's possible to sabotage our own attempts to communicate with the users by inadvertentlycommitting one or more of the following deadly sins of miscommunication.

1.Inappropriate nonverbal communication
Our words may say "Absolutely, yes, of course I don't mind helping you change the toner cartridge," while ourfacial expressions, tone, and body language simultaneously scream, "You complete and utter gimboid, do youhonesty think that I spent four years in school, have an IQ of 167, and earned 53 technical certifications just so Icould change your toner cartridge? Would you like me to breathe for you too?"It's not necessary to be a behavioral psychologist to know that tutting under your breath, rolling your eyes, andsuppressing little smirks combined with your apparently kind words, sends a patronizing, insulting message to theuser. Instead, if you are frequently asked to perform such seemingly menial tasks as changing toner cartridges,turn it into an opportunity to educate and empower the user.

2.Showing off
Just because we happen to know all the correct technical terms and concepts does not mean we should use themwhen communicating with users. Providing instructions that are overly technical and contain far more informationthan users need is not the most effective means of conveying our message. Instead of impressing a user with oursuperior knowledge, it alienates and belittles them and makes us seem supercilious and pompous. For example,telling users to clear their cache and delete their objects to solve a browser issue may be technically correct. Butthe chances are, if a user knows how to carry out these instructions, he or she has already done it. Try giving theuser click-by-click instructions on how to perform these tasks, perhaps accompanied by a single line ofexplanation in terms the user can relate to. Aim to impress with your attitude instead of your knowledge.

3.Losing patience
If William Langland had not coined the expression "Patience is a virtue" in 1377, I am firmly convinced that itwould have been invented by an enlightened support tech sometime during the latter half of the twentieth century,just as humans were being introduced to computers in the workplace. Even though the computer literacy of thegeneral working population has steadily improved over the intervening years, there always seems to be at leastone user who simply doesn't get it, and whose persistence in demanding help for the same problem stretches ourpatience to its breaking point. Calling the user a brainless twit and bashing him or her over the head with a gelwrist relief may provide a moment of immense satisfaction, but it's likely to result in a miffed user and anunemployed support tech and should, therefore, be avoided at all costs. A better alternative is to developtechniques for (a) preventing such situations and (b) handling them appropriately when they do occur.

4.Being dismissiveImagine
going to see your doctor because you have a mysterious green knobbly growth in your arm pit and all hedoes is pat you reassuringly on the back and tells you not to worry but do come back in a month or two if it hasn'tgone away. How would this make you feel? What if the doctor didn't even look at the growth? This is preciselyhow we make the users feel when we fail to engage with their problems, dismissing them with platitudes and vacuous reassurances. Even though we may be 100 percent certain that Bob's computer isn't really taking twiceas long to boot up and that Marcie must be imagining that high-pitched whine, telling them not to worry about itand to let you know if the problem doesn't go away achieves absolutely nothing except to make them feel stupidand insignificant.Whether a computer problem is real or perceived makes little difference to users. All they know is that they have aproblem that needs to be resolved. Even merely perceived problems can be fixed with some sensitivity and a littlecreativity. However insignificant the issue, by engaging in the problem and treating users with respect we increasetheir confidence in us and open the lines of communication.

5.Failure to inform
This may seem like stereotyping, but in general geeks are not natural communicators, at least not when it comesto communicating with members of our own species. Unfortunately, the ability to meaningfully communicate withfellow human beings is a prerequisite for being effective in our role as support techs. In many organizations, thesupport tech is the user's prime interface with the IT department. Support techs function as Babel fish, translatingbetween geek and human, and are ultimately responsible for ensuring that users are kept informed and up todate.Constant communication is a critical part of fulfilling any work order, from acknowledging its receipt all the waythrough the process to a follow-up phone call to make sure the user is satisfied with the work performed. Often, auser can accept a delay provided he or she knows about it in advance and can plan accordingly.

6.Lack of documentation
Not providing the users with consistent, clear, and easy-to-follow instructions is another way in which wefrequently fail to communicate. Various aspects of our jobs require us to write user-consumable documentation,such as instructions for new procedures, explanation of corporate computer-usage polices, and manuals for newemployees. Before distributing new documentation, test it out on a few users. Well-written documentation, keptorganized and up-to-date, should ultimately save you time, as it provides users with an immediate resource foranswering their questions.

7.Lying
What should you do if you're asked to perform a task you find laborious or boring? Or what if you're asked aquestion to which you don't know the answer? What if the answer to a user's inquiry is something that will makethem unhappy or that they don't want to hear? In such circumstances, bending the truth or misrepresenting thefacts can be alluring, especially if the lie seems harmless and the chances of being caught are small. Is lying tothe user ever justified?Sometimes it's necessary to simplify the facts to give users an explanation they can comprehend, but this isdifferent from deliberately lying to avoid work or save face. Many years ago, I worked with a senior support techwho was in the habit of blaming Microsoft for everything. When users came to him with a problem he could notimmediately resolve, he would tell them it was a Microsoft issue and they just had to live with it. After awhile,users stopped going to him with their problems and he took to bragging about what a great job he was doing, ashis users had so few issues. This situation continued until the next IT reorg, when he was assigned to a differentgroup of users who were more computer-savvy and accustomed to being treated with more respect. A few weekslater, the tech was out of work due to the high level of complaints and his declining skills.In short, when presented with a problem we can't resolve, for whatever reason, it's far better to be direct withusers and help them find a resolution by some other means rather than mask our ignorance or unwillingness asan insoluble technical issue.

8.Giving too much information
Honesty may be the best policy, but this does not mean it's appropriate to overburden the users with too muchinformation. A mother of five grown-up boys once told me that in her experience, the average teenager will tuneout all but the first three sentences of any lecture... so you want to pick those sentences carefully. It may be unfairto compare users with teenage boys, but the principle still applies: Limit communication to what's absolutelyessential and don't expect users to absorb too much information at once.It's possible to fail to communicate by overcommunicating, in terms of both frequency and detail. If we e-maileveryone in the company every time the slightest imperceptible change is made to the users' environment, manyof the users will simply ignore the messages. Before long, work orders to set up inbox rules deleting messagesfrom the IT department will start flowing in to the help desk.Limit mass e-mail to the users who will actually be perceptibly affected by an upgrade, downtime, or some otherchange. If the impact is for a limited period of time, such as a lunchtime reboot of the e-mail server, set anexpiration date and time on the message. Be careful not to overwhelm users with details or explanations thataren't relevant to them. For example, if the e-mail server needs an unexpected reboot at midday, give the usersthe time, expected length of outage, what it means for them, and what--if anything--they need to do. Users don'tneed to be given full explanation of why the reboot is necessary, although a single sentence summarizing theproblem may help them appreciate the urgency and is more likely to elicit their cooperation.

9.Not providing training
Training is not restricted to sitting in a classroom for three days learning how to create a PowerPoint presentation.Support tech-provided training can be as simple as a 30-second demonstration to a single user on how to add acontact to his or her address book or as complex as a multi-day onsite class on advanced report writing in Crystal.Even if providing training is not part of the support tech's formal job description, it's almost impossible toeffectively fulfill the job function without training users. Some techs deliberately avoid educating users becausethey regard knowledgeable users as a threat to the integrity of the network or to their jobs. Although theseconcerns should not be dismissed as mere paranoia, they aren't valid reasons for failing to improve the computerliteracy of users.

10.Failing to listen
Communication is a two-way process. As support techs, we need to actively listen to our users. By definition, ourrole is to support our users, to enable them to perform their job functions, something we can hope to do only if wehave a thorough understanding of their needs. As time allows, listening can be a proactive process, with thesupport tech spending time with users to learn their routines and to see where technology can be applied toimprove productivity or safety.Opportunities for user feedback can be created through feedback forms, satisfaction surveys, follow-up phonecalls, and even brown bag lunches. Although it may not be possible or even desirable from a business standpointto implement all of the users' requests, without making a concerted effort to align the IT function with the businessdirective, it's all too easy for the IT department to become wholly self-serving and to perceive the users as littlemore than an inconvenience.

Hide Drives and Partitions

Do you have data on a partition or hard drive that you don't want tampered with or easily accessible to other users? Well, you can hide any drive/partition in Windows XP, NT, and 2000. That means that they won't show up in Explorer or My Computer.

If you want access to that drive from your user account you should create a desktop shortcut before proceeding. Once hidden, you can still access by typing the drive letter and a colon in Start/Run—for example, "D:" will bring up a folder of the contents on your D drive.

The easiest way with Win XP is to use the TweakUI power toy from Mcft. Go to Start/Run and type in "tweakui" (without the quotes). Go to My Computer/Drives and uncheck the drive/partition(s) you want hidden. Click "Apply" or "OK" when finished.

If you have XP but not Tweak UI you can download it here... http://www.Mcft.com/windowsxp/downloads/powertoys/xppowertoys.mspx

For Win NT, 2000, and XP you can use the following Registry edit:
*Be sure to back up the Registry before proceeding
http://www.worldstart.com/tips/tips.php/401

Open the Registry Editor by going to Start/Run and typing in "regedit" (without the quotes). Find your way to... HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Mcft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies Click on "Explorer". Double-click the "NoDrives"

key in the right column. If you don't find a "NoDrives" registry key, just right-click in the right pane and choose "New/DWORD Value" then name the key "NoDrives".

You'll see a value like "0000 00 00 00 00". This is where the fun starts. The four sets of double zeros (after the "0000") are where you'll enter the values for the drive/partitions. Now, stay with me on this—it's not as complicated as it sounds: The first column is for drives A-H, the second for I-P, the third for Q-X, and the fourth for Y-Z.

The values for each drive are as follows:
1 - A I Q Y
2 - B J R Z
4 - C K S
8 - D L T
16 - E M U
32 - F N V
64 - G O W
80 - H P X

So, let's say you want to hide drive D. In the first column you would put "08". For drive K you would put "04" in the second column. But what if you want to hide more than one drive in a column? Simply add the values together: D+E = 8+16 = 24. So in the first column you would put "24". Still baffled? If you have XP then go get TweakUI and save yourself the math. Whichever method you use, you can rest easy knowing that the files on that drive or partition are less accessible to other users.

10 Things You Should Know About Working With The Windows Registry

The Windows registry is essentially a database of all the configuration settings in the Windows operating system. It contains profiles for every user who has an account on the local system, information about all internal and external hardware connected to the computer, information about all of the applications installed in the operating system, and the details about every configuration setting made throughout the operating system. Because the Windows registry is like the brain of the operating system, you need to be extremely careful anytime you make a change to it. To help you work effectively with the registry and avoid the potentially dire consequences of an editing mistake, we've put together this list of things you should know when working with the Windows registry.

1. The lay of the registry
Before you begin any journey, a map is a helpful tool. Not only will it help you plan your route, but it will also help you to get a feel for the environment you're about to encounter. The same thing can be said for the Windows registry. The Windows registry is made up of five main sections, called keys, each containing specific types of information about the operating system. Microsoft also uses the term hives to refer to these five sections. Regardless of which name you use, each section resembles a nested folder structure containing files of settings called values. These are the five main keys in the Windows registry:

• HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT – This key represents information about file types. • HKEY_CURRENT_USER – This key contains copies of data stored in HKEY_USERS about the user who is currently logged on. • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE – This key represents information about all the hardware and software installed on the computer. • HKEY_USERS – This key represents information about all the users who have accounts on the system. • HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG – This key essentially contains copies of the information from all the other root keys that pertain to the currently running session.

2. Backing up the registry
Before you ever make any changes to the registry, you should make a backup copy of it. That way, should you make a critical mistake, you have a way to return the system to a viable state. Here are several methods that you can use to backup the registry:
• Use Windows XP's Backup Utility and select System State. • Create a Restore Point. • Launch the Registry Editor, select the key you plan to edit, pull down the File menu, and choose the Export command.

3. The Registry Editor
To manually view and modify the registry, you can use the Registry Editor. You launch the Registry Editor by accessing the Run dialog box (Start Run), typing Regedit in the Open text box, and clicking OK. When using the Registry Editor, be careful that you don't change a key or value not related to the change you want to make.

4. Using REG files
If the registry edit you want to make is a fairly common one, and you don't want to manually edit the registry with the Registry Editor, perform a Google search for a REG file that will perform the edit for you. (Be careful that the site you choose is a reputable one.) A REG file is a special text file, exported from the Registry Editor, that contains the commands to perform the registry edit. You simply double-click the REG file, and it will automatically import the edit into your registry.

5. Using a GUI tool
Since the registry is the main repository for the majority of the configuration settings in the operating system, chances are good that there is a GUI tool you can use to make your registry changesy. Of course, just about all of the tools in the Control Panel make changes to the registry. Another native operating system tool you can use to make registry changes is the Group Policy editor. (Just type Gpedit.msc in the Run dialog box.). To make changes to the registry that are not found in native tools, you can download the Microsoft TweakUI PowerToy.

6. Searching the registry
If you know the name of the subkey or value you want to edit in the registry, but you don't know exactly where it's located, keep in mind that the Registry Editor has a nice little Find tool. To access it from within the Registry Editor, just press [Ctrl]F. When you see the Find dialog box, type the name of the subkey or value you want to search for in the text box and then select or clear any of the check boxes in the Look At panel (Keys, Values, or Data) to better target your search.

7. Taking advantage of Favorites
If you find yourself regularly editing the registry from within the Registry Editor, you can use the Registry Editor's Favorites menu to save yourself time tracking down a deeply nested subkey you edited previously. As with Internet Explorer, the Registry Editor's Favorites menu allows you to bookmark locations—but in this case, those locations are in the registry. When you make a registry change you'll want to return to at a later date, just pull down the Favorites menu and select the Add To Favorites command. Then, you can use the Favorites menu to quickly return to that exact subkey whenever you need to.

8. Working around the Registry Editor's LastKey feature
The Registry Editor comes with a feature called LastKey. This feature saves the path to the key that's open when you close the Registry Editor. The next time you launch the Registry Editor, it automatically displays that key. Although this feature is designed to make it easier for you to make changes to a specific key without having to drill down through the registry tree each time, it can be annoying when you need to edit a different key. You're forced to close all the open branches before you can drill down to the new key. To work around this feature when it's inconvenient, you can use the RegEd Launcher, which is available as a free TechRepublic download. When you run the RegEd Launcher, it displays a dialog box that asks you whether you want to open the Registry Editor at the last edited key or start a new editing session.

9. Ceaning the registry
Over time, the registry can become bloated with orphaned or corrupt keys and values, yet still function. However, this bloat can make the registry inefficient and slow. Microsoft used to provide a tool called RegClean that was specifically designed to analyze the registry and remove orphaned and corrupt keys and values. Unfortunately, the tool was never updated to run with Windows XP. However, there are many commercial and shareware registry cleaners out there that perform admirably. Here are a few to investigate:
• Registry Clean Pro • Registry Mechanic • TweakNow RegCleaner

10. Monitoring registry activity
When you install a new application, the installation procedure can make a multitude of changes to the registry—all behind the scenes. If you want to keep track of how the registry is altered, you need to investigate RegMon, a freeware utility from Systems Internals. RegMon is designed to run in the background and track registry I/O operations. It will then provide a report on the status of those operations, which can come in handy should you ever have to troubleshoot registry problems that you think are related to the application.

10 Things You Can Do To Optimize & Maintain Your PCs

Everyone knows that the key to keeping equipment in peak condition—whether it's a chain saw, a motorcycle, or a desktop PC—is to follow a preemptive maintenance routine. The question is, what sort of maintenance tasks are required? In a shop full of hundreds (or thousands) of PCs, a systematic approach is essential. This list offers 10 basic measures to incorporate into your optimization and maintenance routine.

1. Regularly run Defrag and the Disk Cleanup Tool on client systems.
Disk fragmentation, especially on intensively used systems, will degrade performance over time. Just be careful about running disk defragmentation when large files are open. For example, if a transactional database (SQL or MSDE) is running, defragmentation tools can't exclusively access all or parts of these types of files to defrag the disk. If there is a service that you can stop to bring this part of the system to a zero-transaction state, you will be able to defrag the drive much more effectively. This is a good task to automate by using a third-party tool like DisKeeper. Running Disk Cleanup can optimize systems by emptying the Recycle Bin, Temporary Setup Files, Downloaded Program Files, Temporary Internet Files, Old Chkdsk Files, Temporary Files, Temporary Offline Files, Offline Files, etc. To ensure regular execution, you can run the tool as a scheduled task.

2. Keep firmware and drivers up to date.
Firmware updates can keep systems and subsystems current for the best performance. (Be sure to test the functionality before deploying firmware updates and keep a revision of the firmware distributions you're using or have previously used; you may need that archived version again.) Driver updates can also optimize performance. Keep a revision of the driver versions you use/have used. As with firmware, you may need an archived version in the future. (See "10 things you should know about device driver rollback in Windows XP" for some helpful pointers.)

3. Keep Windows and essential applications up to date.
Use Windows Update to pull down the updates (cautiously) or use Windows Server Update Services to retrieve your approved list. Be aware of potential conflicts with service packs and updates. If PCs have other critical applications running (IIS, SQL, MSDE, etc.), apply the appropriate service packs as they become available. For Microsoft applications, check the Baseline Security Analyzer to determine service pack levels.

4. Keep antivirus and anti-spyware definitions up to date.
Consider using automatic updates to pull down the latest definitions for your programs. Use tools like Ad-Aware by Lavasoft for extra protection against Trojans, browser hijacking, and other malicious activities.

5. Inspect Services configuration and Device Manager.
Open the Services applet of the Windows Control Panel to verify that the Windows-based services that are running and set to Automatic at startup are consistent with your configuration. (For more on enabling/disabling services, see "Windows XP services that can be disabled" and "Video: Disable and enable Windows XP services.")

6. Check page file configuration.
Open virtual memory configuration and make sure that the page file size and location are correct for the amount of free space on the drive and the amount of memory installed on the system.

7. Check power quality.
If you have a UPS battery, ensure that it is satisfied with the power supplied to it. If you aren't using one, check that the power source is a good circuit and is correctly grounded. Also make sure that surge suppression strips are in use.

8. Stay on top of cleaning tasks.
Perform a periodic full system cleaning by taking the system apart, removing all dust, and cleaning the external and internal surfaces of the computer. (If you don't have a cleaning solution, you can make one for external surfaces out of 1:1 rubbing alcohol and water.) Be sure to unplug the electronic components when introducing a solution and allow it to dry fully. You should also:

• Run a CD-ROM cleaner. As with audio systems, CD-ROM drives can be cleaned with special kits for disc cleaning.
• Clean the keyboard and mouse. Use a dust vacuum and the alcohol/water solution to clean these dust- and dirt-collecting components.
• Clean display devices by using a cleaner to remove fingerprints, dust, and other imperfections on the screen.
• Hit floppy drives, if you have them, with a good blast of canned air to remove dust accumulations. Use covers/panels if available to help keep dust out of the drives.
• If your systems have tape drives, run a cleaning tape through to keep the tape heads clean.

9. Ensure proper operating area environment.
Monitor the area for acceptable temperatures (somewhere between 60 and 77 degrees Fahrenheit) and good air quality. Watch out for tobacco smoke, manufacturing environments, and paper dust. If conditions are less than favorable, you might consider an environmental enclosure. Check inside and outside the computer for proper airflow. You don’t want a computer being used inside a box or pushed into a corner, and you don’t want to see a hard drive or other internal device incorrectly installed and blocking airflow to other components. While you're at it, check for all necessary screws on the case and make sure that the case lid or panels are fixed down on all sides. With some systems, case panels are critical to the internal airflow for components.

10. Check internal and external connections.
Open the system and verify that all connections feel solid and are placed correctly. Double-check any accessory cards for a snug setting and good connections. Make sure cable tensions are appropriate. Having too much strain on a cable or connection can damage the cable, device, jack/node, or the computer. Be sure that there is plenty of slack in the cables on the device and computer ends. Excess strain may cause intermittent performance issues

Turn off automated error reporting in Microsoft Windows XP Professional

In Windows XP Professional Service Pack 1, Microsoft established the Windows Error Reporting system and turned it on by default. However, there are occasions when users would like to turn it off. Here's how.

Problem: Error Reporting is on by default in Windows XP Pro Service Pack 1. The service gives Microsoft the ability to track and address errors relating to the operating system, components, and applications. The idea behind the service was that Microsoft would be able to track down bugs and fix them more efficiently and quickly.

Many users do not need or want to take advantage of this feature and would like to turn it off. Many of these users are concerned about what information is being passed on to Microsoft and about their privacy. Other users are just annoyed at how often they see the screen that asks them to submit the bug through the Error Reporting service. Is the Windows Professional Error Reporting service still active on your PC?

Figure A

The Error Reporting dialog box

Turn off automated error reporting in Microsoft Windows XP Professional

Solution 1
The controls to turn off or customize Windows Error Reporting reside in System Settings, located in the Control Panel. (You can also right-click My Computer and select Properties.) In the System Settings dialog box, select the Advanced tab and then click the Error Reporting button to reveal the Error Reporting dialog box shown in Figure B.

Figure B


Error Reporting configuration

From this dialog box, you can disable Error Reporting or customize it to work only on certain programs and/or Windows components.


Once you've disabled Error Reporting, you might as well disable the service entirely, which you can do through Administrative Tools in the Control Panel. Double-click on Services from the Administrative Tools dialog box, scroll down to the Error Reporting entry, and double-click it. From this dialog box, you can stop the service or restart it if you turned if off before.

Solution 2
Apparently, even disabling Error Reporting through the conventional means may not be enough, as VAXenGuy discovered. If you still get error messages after disabling Error Reporting, especially dubious ones, you could disable the service with a Windows Registry edit.

Open the Windows Registry with your favorite editor and navigate to this key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\PCHealth\ErrorReporting
To disable Error Reporting, make sure all of the values located in this key are set to zero.

23 Ways To Speed Up Windows XP

23 Ways To Speed Up Windows Xp
Since defragging the disk won't do much to improve Windows XP performance, here are 23 suggestions that will. Each can enhance the performance and reliability of your customers' PCs. Best of all, most of them will cost you nothing.

1.) To decrease a system's boot time and increase system performance
use the money you save by not buying defragmentation software -- the built-in Windows defragmenter works just fine -- and instead equip the computer with an Ultra-133 or Serial ATA hard drive with 8-MB cache buffer.

2.) If a PC has less than 512 MB of RAM, add more memory.
This is a relatively inexpensive and easy upgrade that can dramatically improve system performance.

3.) Ensure that Windows XP is utilizing the NTFS file system.
If you're not sure, here's how to check: First, double-click the My Computer icon, right-click on the C: Drive, then select Properties. Next, examine the File System type; if it says FAT32, then back-up any important data. Next, click Start, click Run, type CMD, and then click OK. At the prompt, type CONVERT C: /FS:NTFS and press the Enter key. This process may take a while; it's important that the computer be uninterrupted and virus-free. The file system used by the bootable drive will be either FAT32 or NTFS. I highly recommend NTFS for its superior security, reliability, and efficiency with larger disk drives.

4.) Disable file indexing.
The indexing service extracts information from documents and other files on the hard drive and creates a "searchable keyword index." As you can imagine, this process can be quite taxing on any system. The idea is that the user can search for a word, phrase, or property inside a document, should they have hundreds or thousands of documents and not know the file name of the document they want. Windows XP's built-in search functionality can still perform these kinds of searches without the Indexing service. It just takes longer. The OS has to open each file at the time of the request to help find what the user is looking for.

Most people never need this feature of search. Those who do are typically in a large corporate environment where thousands of documents are located on at least one server. But if you're a typical system builder, most of your clients are small and medium businesses. And if your clients have no need for this search feature, I recommend disabling it. Here's how: First, double-click the My Computer icon. Next, right-click on the C: Drive, then select Properties. Uncheck "Allow Indexing Service to index this disk for fast file searching." Next, apply changes to "C: subfolders and files," and click OK. If a warning or error message appears (such as "Access is denied"), click the Ignore All button.

5.) Update the PC's video and motherboard chipset drivers.
Also, update and configure the BIOS. For more information on how to configure your BIOS properly, see this article on my site.
6.) Empty the Windows Prefetch folder every three months or so.
Windows XP can "prefetch" portions of data and applications that are used frequently. This makes processes appear to load faster when called upon by the user. That's fine. But over time, the prefetch folder may become overloaded with references to files and applications no longer in use. When that happens, Windows XP is wasting time, and slowing system performance, by pre-loading them. Nothing critical is in this folder, and the entire contents are safe to delete.

7.) Once a month, run a disk cleanup.
Here's how: Double-click the My Computer icon. Then right-click on the C: drive and select Properties. Click the Disk Cleanup button -- it's just to the right of the Capacity pie graph -- and delete all temporary files.

8.) In your Device Manager,
double-click on the IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers device, and ensure that DMA is enabled for each drive you have connected to the Primary and Secondary controller. Do this by double-clicking on Primary IDE Channel. Then click the Advanced Settings tab. Ensure the Transfer Mode is set to "DMA if available" for both Device 0 and Device 1. Then repeat this process with the Secondary IDE Channel.

9.) Upgrade the cabling.
As hard-drive technology improves, the cabling requirements to achieve these performance boosts have become more stringent. Be sure to use 80-wire Ultra-133 cables on all of your IDE devices with the connectors properly assigned to the matching Master/Slave/Motherboard sockets. A single device must be at the end of the cable; connecting a single drive to the middle connector on a ribbon cable will cause signaling problems. With Ultra DMA hard drives, these signaling problems will prevent the drive from performing at its maximum potential. Also, because these cables inherently support "cable select," the location of each drive on the cable is important. For these reasons, the cable is designed so drive positioning is explicitly clear.

10.) Remove all spyware from the computer.
Use free programs such as AdAware by Lavasoft or SpyBot Search & Destroy. Once these programs are installed, be sure to check for and download any updates before starting your search. Anything either program finds can be safely removed. Any free software that requires spyware to run will no longer function once the spyware portion has been removed; if your customer really wants the program even though it contains spyware, simply reinstall it. For more information on removing Spyware visit this Web Pro News page.

11.) Remove any unnecessary programs and/or items from Windows Startup routine using the MSCONFIG utility.
Here's how: First, click Start, click Run, type MSCONFIG, and click OK. Click the StartUp tab, then uncheck any items you don't want to start when Windows starts. Unsure what some items are? Visit the WinTasks Process Library. It contains known system processes, applications, as well as spyware references and explanations. Or quickly identify them by searching for the filenames using Google or another Web search engine.

12.) Remove any unnecessary or unused programs from the Add/Remove Programs section of the Control Panel.

13.) Turn off any and all unnecessary animations, and disable active desktop.
In fact, for optimal performance, turn off all animations. Windows XP offers many different settings in this area. Here's how to do it: First click on the System icon in the Control Panel. Next, click on the Advanced tab. Select the Settings button located under Performance. Feel free to play around with the options offered here, as nothing you can change will alter the reliability of the computer -- only its responsiveness.

14.) If your customer is an advanced user who is comfortable editing their registry, try some of the performance registry tweaks offered at Tweak XP.

15.) Visit mcft's Windows update site regularly, and download all updates labeled Critical. Download any optional updates at your discretion.

16.) Update the customer's anti-virus software on a weekly, even daily, basis.
Make sure they have only one anti-virus software package installed. Mixing anti-virus software is a sure way to spell disaster for performance and reliability.

17.) Make sure the customer has fewer than 500 type fonts installed on their computer.

The more fonts they have, the slower the system will become. While Windows XP handles fonts much more efficiently than did the previous versions of Windows, too many fonts -- that is, anything over 500 -- will noticeably tax the system.

18.) Do not partition the hard drive.
Windows XP's NTFS file system runs more efficiently on one large partition. The data is no safer on a separate partition, and a reformat is never necessary to reinstall an operating system. The same excuses people offer for using partitions apply to using a folder instead. For example, instead of putting all your data on the D: drive, put it in a folder called "D drive." You'll achieve the same organizational benefits that a separate partition offers, but without the degradation in system performance. Also, your free space won't be limited by the size of the partition; instead, it will be limited by the size of the entire hard drive. This means you won't need to resize any partitions, ever. That task can be time-consuming and also can result in lost data.

19.) Check the system's RAM to ensure it is operating properly.
I recommend using a free program called MemTest86. The download will make a bootable CD or diskette (your choice), which will run 10 extensive tests on the PC's memory automatically after you boot to the disk you created. Allow all tests to run until at least three passes of the 10 tests are completed. If the program encounters any errors, turn off and unplug the computer, remove a stick of memory (assuming you have more than one), and run the test again. Remember, bad memory cannot be repaired, but only replaced.

20.) If the PC has a CD or DVD recorder, check the drive manufacturer's Web site for updated firmware.
In some cases you'll be able to upgrade the recorder to a faster speed. Best of all, it's free.

21.) Disable unnecessary services.
Windows XP loads a lot of services that your customer most likely does not need. To determine which services you can disable for your client, visit the Black Viper site for Windows XP configurations.

22.) If you're sick of a single Windows Explorer window crashing and then taking the rest of your OS down with it, then follow this tip:
open My Computer, click on Tools, then Folder Options. Now click on the View tab. Scroll down to "Launch folder windows in a separate process," and enable this option. You'll have to reboot your machine for this option to take effect.

23.) At least once a year, open the computer's cases and blow out all the dust and debris.
While you're in there, check that all the fans are turning properly. Also inspect the motherboard capacitors for bulging or leaks.