The Perfect Installation of Windows

[hjf288]

I guess ive just been lucky enough touch wood to realise when my HDDs are going down and buy a new one to replace...

My Seagates got over 7 years (!!!) worth of data and still going strong..

[Yusuf M. Veteran]

Bookmarked, bookmarked, and bookmarked again. This truly is the definitive guide to a perfect Windows installation. Great job Neillithan. (Y)

[nXqd]

It's really a good guide :)

Thanks man

nXqd

[Youdontknowme]

Thanks good guide :D

[legendz411]

I don't see why people do this. The programs in the Program Files directory are tied to the install of windows due to the registry and other such things. If you reinstall windows you wont be able to use the same data from the Program Files directory. Putting user data on another drive, on the other hand, makes perfect sense as that data can be reused from install to install.

Daniel

Won't the programs simply reinsert the needed registry files.

That is how I assumed it worked when you did this.

[wsmacsl]

Maybe i should write a Guide like this, takes me hours and hours to do mine, and if i wrote it down and had a hard copy, maybe i could do it faster, have loads of other tweaks i do, which arent on this list, but good job anyway

[Andre S. Veteran]

Good job on this guide. From my experience I would add:

1) The first you must do after installing Windows is downloading and installing all updates. This is the most crucial step. This must be stressed: don't try doing ANYTHING before the updates are installed. Browsing the web, even to get drivers, if your WindowsXP is not up-to-date, can easily lead to quick invasion of the computer by viruses, spyware, and neither Spybot nor AVG can rescue you. This has happened to me twice, and I was forced to reinstall Windows from start.

2) Media Player Classic is hands-down the best video player. It does everything, and it's as lightweight and intuitive as you could imagine. It is included with the K-Lite K++ Codec Pack, which I highly recommend for highest compatibility and quality in multimedia.

3) Spybot is great, but Ad-Aware does a better job at removing spyware. What makes Spybot shine is its prevention measures for IE, which makes IE pretty much as safe as a browser can get. Get both. I'd also get Spyware Blaster which further enhance ActiveX protection. Having the three programs causes no slowdown whatsoever.

Also check out this other really well done guide: http://mywebpages.comcast.net/SupportCD/OptimizeXP.html

[Taco bender]

Thanks for the help!!!!

[whocares78]

first question - why not use the windwos installer to do the partitioning

issue - 10 - 15 gig is not enough, unless you are only installing windows

comment - generally i set up a third partition for applications, so my data drives only have data on them, makes it easy for backups etc

second question - is there a reason you make so many backups. yet don't make one before putting it on the net, while it is downloading the updates is when it is most likey to get hit

comment - generally i install everything before i plug the net cable in, especially AV software adn i will generally downlaod the latest definitions on another machine to update them before i add it to the net

comment - firefox is not necesarily safer, and i alwasy stick vmware on my machines, adn div x you can't survive without divx

issue - you mention setting the paging file to custom sie but do not mention how big//small that shoudl be. maybe in the past it was useful, but i have found you are better off lettgin windows handle it for XP

one thing you missed, is after installing windows and updating do a defrag, you r partition will be a mess

but generally pretty good, there is a hell of a lot more tweaking that can make it play lots nicer though. but for a noobs giude to makng windwos play nice, this is a good start

I don't see why people do this. The programs in the Program Files directory are tied to the install of windows due to the registry and other such things. If you reinstall windows you wont be able to use the same data from the Program Files directory. Putting user data on another drive, on the other hand, makes perfect sense as that data can be reused from install to install.

Daniel

for me this is the reason, once i have everythign installed i make an image of C, registry and all. most games nowdays take up ridiclous ammounts of space so you really don't want them in your image, hence install the games to d:\ when you need to rebuild, all you do is reimage adn all your reg and settgins are put back to original on c:\ and you have a clean machine again still having all the install apps working.

Won't the programs simply reinsert the needed registry files.

That is how I assumed it worked when you did this.

generally yes, saves lots of time if you have huge installs cause it does not necessarily ccopy over all the data again

[carmatic]

imho, the perfect install for me would be having everything slipstreamed into the install cd itself, like the raid drivers, the updates, everything... or having a distributable bunch of updates in a usb disk or something when you reinstall windows, that will make it less hairy compared to going online with a fresh install of xp and waiting a whole night for the updates to come in...

[raskren]

My "perfect" installation of Windows XP will work on any computer and retain all functionality. This, obviously, will not (see disabling hibernation).

[Neillithan]

Maybe i should write a Guide like this, takes me hours and hours to do mine, and if i wrote it down and had a hard copy, maybe i could do it faster, have loads of other tweaks i do, which arent on this list, but good job anyway

Let me know! :) I'm always looking for ways to improve my guide. Afterall, this is a work in progress.

@Dr_Asik,

I certainly did suggest getting Windows Updates. "Proceed to Windows Updates and get all of the critical Windows Updates... complete this grueling process." Although this is Step2, technically it is Step1 if you read my guide closely.

I recently added MPC to the list of alternative video players. I would suggest getting ONLY the essential codecs like xvid, x264, divx. Otherwise, VLC is great. Installing every codec known to man is nice, but can potentially impair your system over time just for the sake of installing a billion codecs. That's never a good thing.

@whocares78

The point of the guide is to create 2 partitions and use only the C: when it's absolutely necessary. Otherwise, all programs, data, miscellaneous files, even temporary files should be saved or stored on a separate partition. The reason it's best to do this is because in the event one decides to restore or recover their C: partition using one of the backup files they made, they won't have to worry about making backups of important data on their C: partition.

There's a reason for my backup strategy.

1. Backup Windows just after you've installed Windows XP, with or without drivers. This makes it simplistic to rollback if you need to upgrade drivers or want to forgoe the grueling reinstallation process of Windows XP.

2. Backup Windows after all of the drivers, essential programs, and settings are configured to ensure an easy rollback without the loss of installed programs and settings. Rollingback is less cumbersome when you know your programs will already be installed and configured properly.

3. Rollback and Rebackup. Say for example you want to install a program or a video game, but always have it in a backup, then rollingback to your most recent backup is the safest, most efficient way. This ensures that viruses, spyware, adware or other installed programs that are making your computer sluggish will be nuked clean from your system. After you have installed the program or the game of your desire, making another backup will ensure that it is always installed and fast.

second question - is there a reason you make so many backups. yet don't make one before putting it on the net, while it is downloading the updates is when it is most likey to get hit

At one point in time, I did have a reference in my guide for the user to make a backup of their system before they installed drivers or anything. The problem was, it was inconsistent with the rest of my guide. It would require the user to either install Acronis before even the chipset drivers are installed and that is an absolutely terrible thing to do. The other possibility is to have the Acronis BOOTABLE CD, which would allow the user to make a backup from dos... You need to install Acronis to make the CD... you should be able to see how this complicates things for my guide.

comment - generally i install everything before i plug the net cable in, especially AV software adn i will generally downlaod the latest definitions on another machine to update them before i add it to the net

Absolutely. Why should anyone do it any other way? The truth is, it doesn't really matter if you install the latest drivers before or after you've installed Windows. I am connected to a router and I have SP2 with a firewall enabled because my installation disk is already up to date as of June 2007. The more recent the install disk of Windows XP, the less Windows Updates you have to download and the more safe you are due to the Firewall and SP2 preinstalled.

issue - you mention setting the paging file to custom sie but do not mention how big//small that shoudl be. maybe in the past it was useful, but i have found you are better off lettgin windows handle it for XP

I simply suggest moving it to another harddrive. Letting the average user determine the size of the page file could lead to performance issues if they set the size too low. It's best just to let Windows XP determine the size for you unless you know better.

one thing you missed, is after installing windows and updating do a defrag, your partition will be a mess

A defrag should be absolutely unnecessary. I suggest making the partition between 10-15 gigs. If you follow my guide word for word, then the C: partition should be around 10% full. If not, then you probably installed lots of things on the C: partition, which will only serve to complicate things for you in the future when you decide to restore your PC using Acronis. Remember to install everything on the D: partition and your C: partition will stay small and lickity split. No defrag necessary. Sorry if I sound like I'm barking at you.. Defrag is certainly a good thing, but we're talkin "Fresh" install of Windows here.

@ carmatic

imho, the perfect install for me would be having everything slipstreamed into the install cd itself, like the raid drivers, the updates, everything... or having a distributable bunch of updates in a usb disk or something when you reinstall windows, that will make it less hairy compared to going online with a fresh install of xp and waiting a whole night for the updates to come in...

That's one way to do it, but wouldn't the drivers on your slipstreamed CD quickly become outdated? If that's the case, wouldn't that make your install "imperfect"? lol Just messing with you. You're right, slipstreaming is great if you know how to do it, but most of the time people just don't do that or need to for that matter.

And I whole heartedly agree about putting your drivers on a USB thumb drive before attempting to install Windows XP. I don't know if it's possible to put Windows updates on a USB thumb drive, but that sure would be nice to know how! :)

Thanks for everyone's feedback! Please, if you have a suggestion, speak up! :)

Edited September 11, 2007 by Neillithan

[carmatic]

@ carmatic

That's one way to do it, but wouldn't the drivers on your slipstreamed CD quickly become outdated? If that's the case, wouldn't that make your install "imperfect"? lol Just messing with you. You're right, slipstreaming is great if you know how to do it, but most of the time people just don't do that or need to for that matter.

And I whole heartedly agree about putting your drivers on a USB thumb drive before attempting to install Windows XP. I don't know if it's possible to put Windows updates on a USB thumb drive, but that sure would be nice to know how! :)

Thanks for everyone's feedback! Please, if you have a suggestion, speak up! :)

well i said a usb hard disk, not one of those flash dongles... like , as in hundreds of GB's and needing a seperate power supply and stuff

im pretty sure there is such a thing as saving updates to a computer to be used later, i remember doing it... i searched for something like 'windows update distributable' or something, which is in fact how i first learned about autopatcher, almost a year ago... but we can all take for granted that it is not the only way to roll out updates to computers...

hmm seems that im wrong on this one, the only way i could find is to download each and every update since sp2 for my 64bit xp seperately from microsoft... well at least its safer than downloading the updates unprotected

Edited September 12, 2007 by carmatic

[koftheworld]

If you look at my guide, then you will see a solution for updating your Windows cd with all available updates ... also, I do mention using external hard disks as a backup solution. While I don't include Windows tweaks, I've found that keeping it simple is the best way to go.

I'm sure that there are flaws in my guide (btw Neillithan, this was an excellent guide too!), and I would appreciate any feedback that you guys may have.

Thanks!

[whocares78]

@whocares78

The point of the guide is to create 2 partitions and use only the C: when it's absolutely necessary. Otherwise, all programs, data, miscellaneous files, even temporary files should be saved or stored on a separate partition. The reason it's best to do this is because in the event one decides to restore or recover their C: partition using one of the backup files they made, they won't have to worry about making backups of important data on their C: partition.

There's a reason for my backup strategy.

1. Backup Windows just after you've installed Windows XP, with or without drivers. This makes it simplistic to rollback if you need to upgrade drivers or want to forgoe the grueling reinstallation process of Windows XP.

2. Backup Windows after all of the drivers, essential programs, and settings are configured to ensure an easy rollback without the loss of installed programs and settings. Rollingback is less cumbersome when you know your programs will already be installed and configured properly.

3. Rollback and Rebackup. Say for example you want to install a program or a video game, but always have it in a backup, then rollingback to your most recent backup is the safest, most efficient way. This ensures that viruses, spyware, adware or other installed programs that are making your computer sluggish will be nuked clean from your system. After you have installed the program or the game of your desire, making another backup will ensure that it is always installed and fast.

At one point in time, I did have a reference in my guide for the user to make a backup of their system before they installed drivers or anything. The problem was, it was inconsistent with the rest of my guide. It would require the user to either install Acronis before even the chipset drivers are installed and that is an absolutely terrible thing to do. The other possibility is to have the Acronis BOOTABLE CD, which would allow the user to make a backup from dos... You need to install Acronis to make the CD... you should be able to see how this complicates things for my guide.

Absolutely. Why should anyone do it any other way? The truth is, it doesn't really matter if you install the latest drivers before or after you've installed Windows. I am connected to a router and I have SP2 with a firewall enabled because my installation disk is already up to date as of June 2007. The more recent the install disk of Windows XP, the less Windows Updates you have to download and the more safe you are due to the Firewall and SP2 preinstalled.

I simply suggest moving it to another harddrive. Letting the average user determine the size of the page file could lead to performance issues if they set the size too low. It's best just to let Windows XP determine the size for you unless you know better.

A defrag should be absolutely unnecessary. I suggest making the partition between 10-15 gigs. If you follow my guide word for word, then the C: partition should be around 10% full. If not, then you probably installed lots of things on the C: partition, which will only serve to complicate things for you in the future when you decide to restore your PC using Acronis. Remember to install everything on the D: partition and your C: partition will stay small and lickity split. No defrag necessary. Sorry if I sound like I'm barking at you.. Defrag is certainly a good thing, but we're talkin "Fresh" install of Windows here.

Firstly, you didn't answer the question 'why do you not use the windwos installer to create the partitions' seems to me you are adding unnessecary steps

secondly- i use imaging software that just works in dos so i boot to cd which is my imagin software and make an image, burns it straight to DVD, whcih makes it really easy to restore, i.e boot to cd and follow the prompts i sugest you look for alternatives to acronis. i can't remmerb what the stuff i used is called. but if you really want to know i can find out.

just becasue your disk is up to date doesn't mean everyones is and the guideyou have writen is for others to folow not just you and i would make sure i created an image befroe adding it to the net

read what you wrote about hte page file, you said to set it to custom "Select "D: [Doc]" (or whatever) and press "Custom Size" The initial size will be the first part of the number beneath "Paging File Size (MB)" "

i can't believe you don't think it nesecary to defrag, installling windows updates is goign to frag your c drive big time, you might want to chek next time you install windwos befroe you say it is not nesecary. i know everyone i know defrags after install

[Neillithan]

Firstly, you didn't answer the question 'why do you not use the windwos installer to create the partitions' seems to me you are adding unnessecary steps

To be honest, the ability to create multiple partitions from the Windows XP install process has never immediately stood out to me. I usually just select a partition that I've already made using a partition program, format it and be on my way... If Windows XP installer lets you create, split, resize, or merge partitions, I would surely like to know how. Otherwise, Gparted or some other partition program will do a better job I think.

just becasue your disk is up to date doesn't mean everyones is and the guideyou have writen is for others to folow not just you and i would make sure i created an image befroe adding it to the net

I'm still trying to mend changes to my guide to better explain how to get drivers and Windows updates safely. If you take a peek at my google doc, you'll see that I've already attempted to put a caution message in Step 2. I do understand what you're trying to tell me though. In order for someone to backup their installation using Acronis before plugging their computer into the net would require them to install Acronis before they've installed drivers or Windows Updates. If you think about it, that's not very wise. The other option would be to use the bootable Acronis to backup their PC... but how do they "get" that bootable disk? They would have to install Acronis in order to make and burn the bootable disk... and you should be able to see the dilemma.

secondly- i use imaging software that just works in dos so i boot to cd which is my imagin software and make an image, burns it straight to DVD, whcih makes it really easy to restore, i.e boot to cd and follow the prompts i sugest you look for alternatives to acronis. i can't remmerb what the stuff i used is called. but if you really want to know i can find out.

If you can find a free alternative to Acronis True Image, let me know! I would gladly change the focus of this guide to suit a FREE backup/recovery program rather than a PAYFOR backup/recovery program. I would very much appreciate it if you enlightened me on this possibility. :) To be honest, I use the Acronis True Image bootable CD. I don't actually install Acronis True Image.

[whocares78]

When you choose the partition to install windows to it has a number of options, including delete create, it does not resize but how often do you need to do that, especially when your installing for the first time. i have never had any problems and if i ever need to resize i just use partition magic. when you create a partition in XP you just select the size you want, too easy.

personally i do not see how that is "not wise" unless acronis has some major issues (i never used it so don't know) why would you have any trouble imaging when drivers and windwos updates are not installed ??? can you enlightlen me?

i do see your dilema, acronis does not do what you want it to do. P.S acronis is not free. we use terabyte image creation software, it s absolutley brilliant adn cheaper than acronis although still not free. and will allow you to make images whenever you want.

[Neillithan]

It's not that you'll have problems installing Windows Updates and drivers, it's just that to the average user, they're gonna want to "install" Acronis to make backups of their PC. Sure, installing software before drivers or Windows updates are installed is possible, it's just not really a good thing to do.

Instead of explaining how to make a backup using the boot cd, which can be tedious and confusing for most people, I simply skip covering how to make a backup before drivers or windows updates are installed. It's not even necessary for most people.

You said the software you use is cheaper than Acronis True Image? I am pretty sure Acronis is $50. I would prefer using a completely free bootable backup program to be honest. As soon as I figure out how, I will do it that way instead.

Edit: I just took a look at the Image program from Terabyte Unlimited. If this is what you are referring to, then Acronis is certainly more feature rich. Acronis has everything plus more. Terabyte seems to choose settings for you that you may not necessarily want.

Edited September 13, 2007 by Neillithan

[whocares78]

It's not that you'll have problems installing Windows Updates and drivers, it's just that to the average user, they're gonna want to "install" Acronis to make backups of their PC. Sure, installing software before drivers or Windows updates are installed is possible, it's just not really a good thing to do.

Instead of explaining how to make a backup using the boot cd, which can be tedious and confusing for most people, I simply skip covering how to make a backup before drivers or windows updates are installed. It's not even necessary for most people.

You said the software you use is cheaper than Acronis True Image? I am pretty sure Acronis is $50. I would prefer using a completely free bootable backup program to be honest. As soon as I figure out how, I will do it that way instead.

Edit: I just took a look at the Image program from Terabyte Unlimited. If this is what you are referring to, then Acronis is certainly more feature rich. Acronis has everything plus more. Terabyte seems to choose settings for you that you may not necessarily want.

ok i restate my question, why is it "not really a good thing to do"? i don't understand why you think this causes issues, it's fine to say it does but i want to know why? what issues and what are your reasons for thinking that. it makes no sense to me.

ok i am over the backup software you use, i was trying to be helpful but hey you seem to be set on what you wan to use, but yes terabyte is cheaper, it's like $10 for 1 license. and all you want to do is make an image of your HDD, why do you need any options at all, and what setting would you not want. what options are even useful for this kind of stuff? where i work we live on images, i reimage a machine at least twice a day, adn throughout the compnay i woudl say at least 20 times a day , we can't work without them, this software is simple and easy to use, and just works. i agree free is nice but 10 bucks is not bad, and better than 50. try it before you bag it.

i think you are overcomlicating things but hey, do what you want it's your article

[Neillithan]

ok i restate my question, why is it "not really a good thing to do"? i don't understand why you think this causes issues, it's fine to say it does but i want to know why? what issues and what are your reasons for thinking that. it makes no sense to me.

It's not a good thing to do because it's not a good thing to do. For 1, there are chipset drivers, graphics drivers, audio drivers. All of this stuff is necessary and if you think installing a program before you've installed these things won't hurt a thing, then you're just playing with fire. This is why I don't suggest it. There may be some conflicts within the programs you choose to install and I'd rather not find out. Drivers before programs. That's all you have to remember.

why do you need any options at all, and what setting would you not want. what options are even useful for this kind of stuff?

I looked up your program. It said $50 when I looked at it and the screenshots of the program were not very good. Acronis lets you mount your image within Windows so that you can explore and copy files out of the backup file. It has ways to protect your backup image from being tampered with by Windows. You can make incremental and differential backups. You can choose compression settings, you can split the image into multiple custom sized parts. The interface for the bootable version of Acronis is identical to the installable version of Acronis, which stands out above those crappy DOS versions. Acronis has pretty good hardware support and looks very professional compared to every other backup utility I've seen and used.

I'm not bagging anything. I've stated multiple times within this thread that I would prefer a free alternative to Acronis so long as it does relatively the same things. So far, free alternatives don't strike me as suitable alternatives due to a lack of features. Prove me wrong please. I'm just trying to answer your questions to the best of my abilities without becoming frustrated. I'm sorry if you are not satisfied with my answers.

[whocares78]

It's not a good thing to do because it's not a good thing to do. For 1, there are chipset drivers, graphics drivers, audio drivers. All of this stuff is necessary and if you think installing a program before you've installed these things won't hurt a thing, then you're just playing with fire. This is why I don't suggest it. There may be some conflicts within the programs you choose to install and I'd rather not find out. Drivers before programs. That's all you have to remember.

I looked up your program. It said $50 when I looked at it and the screenshots of the program were not very good. Acronis lets you mount your image within Windows so that you can explore and copy files out of the backup file. It has ways to protect your backup image from being tampered with by Windows. You can make incremental and differential backups. You can choose compression settings, you can split the image into multiple custom sized parts. The interface for the bootable version of Acronis is identical to the installable version of Acronis, which stands out above those crappy DOS versions. Acronis has pretty good hardware support and looks very professional compared to every other backup utility I've seen and used.

I'm not bagging anything. I've stated multiple times within this thread that I would prefer a free alternative to Acronis so long as it does relatively the same things. So far, free alternatives don't strike me as suitable alternatives due to a lack of features. Prove me wrong please. I'm just trying to answer your questions to the best of my abilities without becoming frustrated. I'm sorry if you are not satisfied with my answers.

well i guess i play with a hell of a lot of fire, yet i have never been burned, and we will have to agree to disagree on that one

your answers contradict themsleves whihc his why i am questioning them, you early on mentinoed you make backups so you can roll back eetc etc, i even read something about rolling back drivers, whci unless your making the image beforew insatlling them is impossible. going back to your first reply to me

cut adn pasted

"There's a reason for my backup strategy.

1. Backup Windows just after you've installed Windows XP, with or without drivers. This makes it simplistic to rollback if you need to upgrade drivers or want to forgoe the grueling reinstallation process of Windows XP."

just make up your mind

[Neillithan]

That was not "in" my guide. Are you arguing or are you actually pointing out flaws in my guide?

That's "my" strategy. The strategy in the guide skips a backup, and that is the backup before installing drivers. If you have the bootable image program, you can make a backup from dos... but like I have stated a hundred times now... That is not covered in my guide for simplicity reasons. Obviously you have a business method to your backup strategy that is probably more well suited for you, but this guide is meant for everyone. I have tried to simplify things for that purpose.

So I'm done answering your questions. I've tried very hard to answer your questions. As you can tell, I put the extra effort towards proper capitalization, grammar, and punctuation.. all the while answering your vague and effortless questions. If you want to continue this further, private message me or something.

[whocares78]

That was not "in" my guide. Are you arguing or are you actually pointing out flaws in my guide?

That's "my" strategy. The strategy in the guide skips a backup, and that is the backup before installing drivers. If you have the bootable image program, you can make a backup from dos... but like I have stated a hundred times now... That is not covered in my guide for simplicity reasons. Obviously you have a business method to your backup strategy that is probably more well suited for you, but this guide is meant for everyone. I have tried to simplify things for that purpose.

So I'm done answering your questions. I've tried very hard to answer your questions. As you can tell, I put the extra effort towards proper capitalization, grammar, and punctuation.. all the while answering your vague and effortless questions. If you want to continue this further, private message me or something.

i am not arguing i am tryiong to understand why you do what you do in your guide and i even tried to make some suggestions for you to make life easier for everyone using it. your guide is basically OK you just missed the 'as far as i am concerned' critical backup, but hey if you don't want to backup or explain to the user how to backup befroe connecting to the net then i really don't care. but i believe you shoudl cover it as that is when you are going to get infected by worms and viruses.

the problem is you havent really answered any of them, you just danced around them. but hey i am over the whole thing. p.s. my keyboard batteries are dying so my spelling and grammer tend to go out the window.

if you don't want people to comment on your articel and tell you what they think then don't post it saying what do you think

[Neillithan]

If it makes you happy, I've mended changes to my guide as a result of your feedback. I believe I told you this earlier, maybe you noticed. I don't know.

I do want people to comment on my articles, but not when the comments become chaotic and full of a drama. Take a look at my guide and you will see where I made the changes.

[whocares78]

If it makes you happy, I've mended changes to my guide as a result of your feedback. I believe I told you this earlier, maybe you noticed. I don't know.

I do want people to comment on my articles, but not when the comments become chaotic and full of a drama. Take a look at my guide and you will see where I made the changes.

it doens't make me happy or sad i am not trying to annoy you or deliberatly point out flaws, i am simply trying to help.

I do like the changes you have made, i did notice you have not ammended the virtual memory (it still mentions settgting it to a custom size, when we discussed this earlier i thought you agreed setting it to system managed size is the better option.)

i woudl maybe add under the warning you have placed for pre sp2 machines, that a backup at this point may be useful. but i don't want to get in a argument again about pre internet backups.