Optimization Guides

[Street_Spirit]

I just wrote a few guides on optimizing XP, Optimizing Vista and Optimizing your internet connection...You can get them view them at the links below...no need to download

http://karma--police.deviantart.com/art/Op...-Vista-80308963

http://karma--police.deviantart.com/art/Optimize-XP-79687970

http://karma--police.deviantart.com/art/Op...-Speed-78189274

Thanks

[Coded Matrix]

Can you post them here please? dA is blocked on my computer.. :(

Thanks,

-Coded

[solardog]

This does not compute:

Right click your drive with windows vista on it. Right click it properties and untick index files for faster files searching.

Indexing is for speeding up file searches. Turning it off will slow your searches.

*****

Ignore that, I see you werent saying speed up your searches by unticking file indexing, you were saying speed you system up by unticking it. Saturday morning pre-coffee, brain not on yet.

[TheDreamX]

This does not compute:

Right click your drive with windows vista on it. Right click it properties and untick index files for faster files searching.

Indexing is for speeding up file searches. Turning it off will slow your searches.

Ya, but what's more important, faster overall speed (and more drive space) during normal operation or faster searches? Personally, I run searches once every blue moon, so I've been doing this step since XP.

[episode]

Ya, but what's more important, faster overall speed (and more drive space) during normal operation or faster searches? Personally, I run searches once every blue moon, so I've been doing this step since XP.

And people that do run searches will be slowed down.

Also, once the indexing has occured and completed, you won't see performance hits.

As far as disk space. You can get a 500gig HD for under $100. Crying about the minuscule amount of space that the indexing service uses is just dumb.

[primexx]

Ya, but what's more important, faster overall speed (and more drive space) during normal operation or faster searches? Personally, I run searches once every blue moon, so I've been doing this step since XP.

the indexer only uses noticeable resources when it's building the database, after that it doesn't dent your performance, and makes your searches much faster. Considering that every time you type something in the start menu it's using the index, it really does improve your system's performance (saving you time, increasing efficiency).

[+Gary7 Subscriber²]

And people that do run searches will be slowed down.

Also, once the indexing has occured and completed, you won't see performance hits.

As far as disk space. You can get a 500gig HD for under $100. Crying about the minuscule amount of space that the indexing service uses is just dumb.

It indexes after every restart so it is not dumb. It is not the amount of hard drive or storage space it takes , it is the amount of memory it uses to run the service.

[SakuraKira]

Well, after recently getting rid of my Symantec products, I needed something to help clean out the guts of my PC. CCleaner and Defraggler are fantastic. Thank you so much for recommending them.

Nicely written guides btw :D.

[matty93]

Indexing is good, and i never EVER noticed a performance decreasing while my pc has been indexing, maybe thats just because i am on a quad pc.

[Street_Spirit]

http://karma--police.deviantart.com/art/Xp...zer-V2-81595279

Second version of the guide....i was saying turn off the indexing service because it uses a process which uses up resources..If you search alot then by all means dont tick it....The second version has more tweaks etc and is better layed out

[waruikoohii]

It indexes after every restart so it is not dumb. It is not the amount of hard drive or storage space it takes , it is the amount of memory it uses to run the service.

It only re indexes the drive if you delete the index. It does not re-index each reboot.

Disabling the indexing service (which is the only way to gain enough performance to make this worth while) only saves you maybe 20MB of RAM. That's pretty much the only thing you gain from disabling it.

Indexing is good, and i never EVER noticed a performance decreasing while my pc has been indexing, maybe thats just because i am on a quad pc.

The indexing service will stop the indexing process (if it is in progress) if you so much as move the mouse, so even on an old machine, you wouldn't notice the service indexing the drive.

[+Gary7 Subscriber²]

It only re indexes the drive if you delete the index. It does not re-index each reboot.

Disabling the indexing service (which is the only way to gain enough performance to make this worth while) only saves you maybe 20MB of RAM. That's pretty much the only thing you gain from disabling it.

The indexing service will stop the indexing process (if it is in progress) if you so much as move the mouse, so even on an old machine, you wouldn't notice the service indexing the drive.

There are hundreds of sources that tell you to disable this service. I spend <2 minutes a month searching for files on my PC. I am somewhat organized so I know where I put the ones I need. But you don't have to take my word for it just Google Indexing Service and look at the results. Here is one from an MS MVP Click here .

[+Nik Louch Subscriber²]

There are hundreds of sources that tell you to disable this service.

There are hundreds of stories about knights fighting dragons. Doesn't mean they are true!

XP and Vista (to a greater extent) were built to use the Indexing service (in different ways on different platforms). Sorry but to me, turning it off seems pointless. Once an index is built - maintaining it takes little resources.

And I am very anal in how I organise my files, I stick to the same conventions all the time. And yet Indexing still helps me greatly.

[+Gary7 Subscriber²]

There are hundreds of stories about knights fighting dragons. Doesn't mean they are true!

XP and Vista (to a greater extent) were built to use the Indexing service (in different ways on different platforms). Sorry but to me, turning it off seems pointless. Once an index is built - maintaining it takes little resources.

And I am very anal in how I organise my files, I stick to the same conventions all the time. And yet Indexing still helps me greatly.

If you perform a great deal of file searching then by all means keep it. To each his/her own. Sorry but I will take the word of a MS MVP. This subject can get as long as the UAC thread. :)

[WastedJoker]

I always disabled Indexing Service on XP but the Vista Indexing is amazing.

[Rudy]

indexing for me is useless, i don't remember last time i did a search in Windows. Even though I have lots of files (most likely more than most people here), it's organized so well I can find anything in a snap

[iZoom]

Ditto. I tend to delete a lot when I don't find a need for a game or some program that I won't use anymore.

I keep my files organized to the T and generally can click on my User folder and then Downloads or Documents within seconds...rather than opening the taskbar, hitting search, etc.

Everyone's habits are different, some prefer to use Search because its just how they were used to using computers and some have never touched it in months or even years.

[baloo32]

Not putting a downer on this, but some of the info in it (XP optimization version 2) may not be applicable, or just plain wrong.

The Services - Black Viper's site is indeed the best resource to find out what you do and don't need; but to wildly claim you can use either Safe or Power User is misleading. You should rather invest the time investigating what the services do; and then work out if you need the functionality they drive. Point in case is things like File and Printer sharing - if you don't run a "TRUE" home network, likely you have a printer attached to a single machine and have other boxes printing to it. Without this service, you would only be able to print to the local machine attached printers; again depends on your setup and what you need it to do.

Boosting SATA drives - very dependent on hardware. I've a Gigabyte X38 Mobo, and with the Intel SATA drivers, the "Enable write caching to disk" option is unticked and GRAYED OUT. It doesn't mean the write caching is disabled though (after much searching!) - just that the default Windows caching is overriden and handled by the SATA native driver.

Hibernation - useful, but this is usually unticked for desktop computers. It is only enabled by default on laptops (because they have specific power saving facilities in the processor which indicate to Windows that hibernation is a "good" thing)

Paging file - the worst option. This figure has been kicking around since the days of Windows 95 (and probably before on Win 3.1). A paging file will be used when the available physical RAM has been expended, and you are running lots of tasks/processes. It doesn't make sense to increase the size of the paging file as you increase the available RAM; indeed it is better to decrease it.

With systems with 2 Gb of RAM, you should be able to operate with a page file of 1 Gb or less. With 4 Gb RAM, you shouldn't need one at all - HOWEVER, note some applications will require the presence of the paging file regardless of the available RAM; you should be able to get away with a 512Mb file. For systems with LESS RAM you want MORE paging file, as it is more likely Windows will have to page applications from memory to disk when multi-tasking.

Better to locate the paging file on a secondary device away from the System (OS) device. For IDE devices it was recommended to put on the secondary channel; however SATA interface negates that and it is sufficient to locate just on a seperate HDD.

That is all.

Baloo

[+Nik Louch Subscriber²]

Sorry but I will take the word of a MS MVP

You know MVP isn't really the most amazingly qualified person ever. Why not take the word of the windows developers? The ones who leave it ON as default.

[HawkMan]

You know MVP isn't really the most amazingly qualified person ever. Why not take the word of the windows developers? The ones who leave it ON as default.

that'd make way too much sense when you could instead listen to someone who thinks he's improtant and wants recognition by becomign an improtant internet person with his mvp :p

I don't search a lot but I definately don't turn it off, makes no sense as real time indexing after it makes the initial indexing has virtually no overhead, and it's worth it just for searhing the start menu, or quickly getting to control panel items and whatnot.

[RedDevil99]

I always disabled Indexing Service on XP but the Vista Indexing is amazing.

Ccleaner is good at removing stuff from your hard disk, but there are better. Glary's is far better.

Ccleaner is no good at cleaning the registry. Glary's and registry cleaner expert are far better.

Ccleaner is free though and the others I mentioned are not free.

As for the rest of the info, thanks for sharing but I dont thing many will do it. Especially with Vista. Why disable the graphics functions, thats what one of the main attractions are in Vista.

Thanks for sharing anyway. well done.

[shakey_snake]

If services had to be on in XP, then Server 2003 would make no sense, since it ships with a buttload of services off by default.

That said, most people are going to be best off not messing with the out-of-box defaults, because they don't know what can and can't be turned off, and will ultimately create more headaches than they save.

But if you want to tinker, pick a guide (I use blackviper's) and go for it. Just be prepared for potential bizarre consequences.

And the Indexing Service should almost always be turned off. There's a reason they completely overhauled it for Vista: it sucks. :p