MASTER TUTORIAL: Make Your Windows Super Fast

[Vishal Gupta]

Guys!

This tutorial is meant for increasing the performance of Windows XP, either it can be a fresh installed windows or an old windows. :)

Actually these r some tips/tricks, which I always apply whenever I do a fresh installation of windows. So here I?m sharing many of those tips-n-tricks:

1.) First I?ll tell some Registry tricks, which can be applied without any problem or doubt and I believe these tricks will surely help in increasing the performance of your windows. Copy the following code in Notepad, save the file with name "Vishal.reg" (including quotes) and then run the file:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

 [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AllFilesystemObjects\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\Copy To]
@="{C2FBB630-2971-11D1-A18C-00C04FD75D13}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\AllFilesystemObjects\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\Move To]
@="{C2FBB631-2971-11D1-A18C-00C04FD75D13}"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\Shell\DosHere]
@="Command &Prompt Here"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\Shell\DosHere\Command]
@="%windir%\\System32\\cmd.exe /k cd \"%1\""

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\Shell\DosHere]
@="Command &Prompt Here"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Drive\Shell\DosHere\Command]
@="%windir%\\System32\\cmd.exe /k cd \"%1\""

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer]
"Link"=hex:00,00,00,00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop]
"AutoEndTasks"="1"
"HungAppTimeout"="1000"
"MenuShowDelay"="8"
"WaitToKillAppTimeout"="2000"
"LowLevelHooksTimeout"="1000"

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer]
"NoLowDiskSpaceChecks"=dword:00000001
"ClearRecentDocsOnExit"=dword:00000001
"NoRecentDocsHistory"=hex:01,00,00,00
"LinkResolveIgnoreLinkInfo"=dword:00000001
"NoResolveSearch"=dword:00000001
"NoResolveTrack"=dword:00000001
"NoInternetOpenWith"=dword:00000001

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control]
"WaitToKillServiceTimeout"="2000"

[-HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\RemoteComputer]

2.) Right-click on Desktop and select Properties, Now in the new window goto Appearance tab and click on Effects button. Now in the new opened window uncheck the following options:

a.) Use the following transition effect for menus & tooltips.

b.) Show shadows under menus.

c.) Show window contents while dragging. (you may remain this option checked as I hv in my screenshot. It depends upon ur choice.)

d.) Use the following method to smooth edges of screen fonts. You may select ?Standard? for this. I hv selected ?Clear Type? coz I hv a TFT, it doesnt work properly for CRT monitors.

3.) Right-click on My Computer icon on Desktop and select Properties (or press <WIN> key + <Pause/Break> key), now goto Advanced tab in new window and click on Settings button in Performance section:

Now uncheck all the options in Visual Effects, but u can remain following options checked acc. to ur choice:

a.) Show window contents while dragging.

b.) Smooth edges of screen fonts.

c.) Use common tasks in folders (If u use the left side pane in My computer, I don?t use it.)

d.) Use drop shadows on icon labels on the desktop. (to make the desktop icons label transparent.)

e.) Use visual styles on windows and buttons. (If u use XP themes.)

4.) Open Tools -> Folder Options and click on View tab:

Now uncheck following options:

a.) Automatically search for network folders & printers.

b.) Display file size information in folder tips.

c.) Display simple folder view in Explorer?s Folders list.

d.) Show encrypted or compressed NTFS files in color. (I don?t use this option.)

e.) Show pop-up description for folder and desktop icons.

f.) Use simple file sharing.

Other remaining options are totally based upon user?s requirements, they usually don?t affect the performance! So u can enable/disable them acc. to ur requirements.

5.) Right-click on My Computer icon on Desktop and select Manage. Now goto Services & Applications -> Services. Here you can set many services to Manual, which u don?t want to start as soon as the windows starts. Following is a thread, in which I posted a small tutorial for knowing about which service should be set to MANUAL and which should be set to AUTOMATIC:

Windows XP Services that can be Safely set to MANUAL

6.) Start -> Run and type msconfig, now goto Startup tab and uncheck the entries, which u don?t want to start automatically with the windows, like u can get display settings utility entry there, and many more.

7.) Open Sound & Audio Devices in Control Panel (or type mmsys.cpl in RUN), goto Sounds tab and select No Sounds in Sound Scheme section. Or u can remain some of ur favorite sounds there but set Exit Windows, Start Windows, Windows Logoff, Windows Logon to (None).

8.) For more options/tips-n-tricks for better performance, u can use TweakUI, Tuneup Utilities 2006 and gpedit.msc (Windows XP Professional built-in tool)!

[Jokez]

Thanks man! Been looking for something like this.

[primexx]

what a horrible "tutorial"...

first of all, do you really think people are stupid enough to just apply your registry tweaks without even knowing what they do?

secondly, all you're really doing with your so-called performance tweaks is making windows less user-friendly, while not saving much actual resource usage since the pretty stuff uses very little resources to begin with.

third, changing startup via msconfig is stupid, it'll change your system into selective boot rather than normal boot. edit the startup entries with ccleaner or startup control panel, or something like that.

fourth, the programs that you recommend are all pretty crappy. TuneUp especially, which does things that you didn't tell it to do, and makes the changes that it makes irreversible. messes up your system pretty badly. There are far better programs out there.

[Vishal Gupta]

^^ Thanks for your comments.

@Jokez

Thanks. :)

[BlakByte]

Okay, give us a better tutorial Primexx.. Im waiting

Juding from VG's homepage and the fact that he is a high member on Joejoe (ithink... right?) i trust him

[Vishal Gupta]

^^ Thanks. :)

[GreatStalin]

third, changing startup via msconfig is stupid, it'll change your system into selective boot rather than normal boot. edit the startup entries with ccleaner or startup control panel, or something like that.

fourth, the programs that you recommend are all pretty crappy. TuneUp especially, which does things that you didn't tell it to do, and makes the changes that it makes irreversible. messes up your system pretty badly. There are far better programs out there.

Firstly, what's wrong with having selective startup? No need to install an additional program just to stop some services or programs loading on startup.

Secondly, TuneUp Utilities is, I find, a great program for tweaking somewhat otherwise hidden settings in XP. I've yet to find a better tweaking program! If you could provide links to these better programs that you mention, I'd be glad to check them out!

Edited November 28, 2007 by GreatStalin

[Berserk87]

we need tweaks for vista, xp is already fast enough :p

[Glassed Silver]

we need tweaks for vista, xp is already fast enough :p

faster=better

fast<faster

vista<xp<tweaked xp

assumption:

tweaked vista(sp1?)=xp<tweaked xp

ILL GO TWEAKED XP :p

Glassed Silver:mbl

[htwho]

Hmm... since registry tweaks aren't user friendly, I suggest getting a program like TuneUp Utilities. It's payware but it allows you to manage all of the tweaks you mentioned.

faster=better

fast<faster

vista<xp<tweaked xp

assumption:

tweaked vista(sp1?)=xp<tweaked xp

Same argument was and could be used with Win 98 and XP when XP was first released.

[Vishal Gupta]

Thanks guys. Approx all points will also work for Vista. ;)

[Glassed Silver]

Hmm... since registry tweaks aren't user friendly, I suggest getting a program like TuneUp Utilities. It's payware but it allows you to manage all of the tweaks you mentioned.

[...]

Same argument was and could be used with Win 98 and XP when XP was first released.

Oh, you can store your hacks in a collection of *.reg files and can also store *.reg's for their according recoveries to original state.

Often those utilities insert values that you still can optimize somewhere.

Oh, sorry, you didn't smell the scent of humor? :p

Glassed Silver:mbl

[jsz]

fourth, the programs that you recommend are all pretty crappy. TuneUp especially, which does things that you didn't tell it to do, and makes the changes that it makes irreversible. messes up your system pretty badly. There are far better programs out there.

I am interested in those far better than TuneUp programs, especially in a good registry cleaner/repairer.