Using
More Than One Modem at a Time
Hiding
Network Shares
Seeing
Servers Your Are Connected To When OnLine
Backing
Up Your ISP Settings
Forcing
Alpha-Numeric Passwords
Speeding
Up Internet Searches
Auto-Dial
Internet Connections (Win98)
Opening
the Make New Connection Dialog Box
Help
Stop Modem Disconnects
Speeding
Up Your Modem's Dialing
Showing
Your Actual Modem's Connection Speed
Increasing
Modem Performance
Controlling
Your Modem's Speaker
To Find Your
IP Address
Determine the
Optimal MAX MTU Setting
Faster
Access to the Network Properties Box
Using UNC
Network Names with Files
Faster Connecting
to the Internet
Changing the
Number of Rings Before Dial-Up Server Answers
Resetting
Forgotten Dial-Up Server Password
Speeding up
Dial-Up Networking for Games
Monitoring
Your Dial-Up Connection
No Network Logon
Prompt
Not
Saving your Dial-Up Password
Fixing a
problem with Shortcuts that keep network UNC connections
Changing the MaxMTU
and other Network Settings
Disable
Password Caching
Starting a
Dial-Up Connection from the Command Line
Device
Contention when trying to use a Modem
Unable to
Browse the Network
Automatic NT
Domain Log On
Auto-Dialing
for 32-bit Internet Applications
Dial-Back with
Windows95
Disabling File
and Print Sharing
Changing your
Modem's Initialization String
Easy way to
Re-Dial on busy signals
Increasing a
Modem's time-out period
Setting Automatic
Redial for Dial-up Networking
Potential
problems with 16-bit WINSOCK.DLL's
Dial-In
Scripting
Using More Than One Modem at a Time
(Win98, WinME and Win2000)
If you have two phone lines in your
home and want to use them both to dial out,
you can use MultiLink,
which will effectively double your connection speed.
- Create a dial-up connection like your normally would.
- Right click on the icon and select Properties
- Click on the Multilink tab
- Click on Use additional devices
- Click on the Add
- Click on the other modem you would like to use
- If your ISP allows, you can use the same phone number, otherwise enter an additional phone number to dial.
- You should now connect with both modems.
- You can confirm this by opening up your dial up connection in the System Tray after you connect.
Hiding Network Shares
If you want to hide your network shares from being seen by browsing, just end them with a $
Seeing Servers Your Are Connected To When OnLine
To see what servers you are connected to when on the Internet
Simply
run Netstat
Backing Up Your ISP Settings
If you want to save your ISP settings (name, phone, login id etc.) for future installations:
- Start Regedit
- Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ RemoteAccess
- Select Registry / Export Registry
- Make sure Selected branch is checked
- For the name, enter any name that will help you remember the purpose of the .reg file
- Now if you need to restore your ISP settings after a new installation of Windows, you just need to import this file
Forcing Alpha-Numeric Passwords
In order to force passwords that just use alpha-numeric characters
- Start Regedit
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Policies \ Network
- Create a DWORD entry called AlphanumPwds
- Give it a value of 1
Speeding Up Internet Searches
When you go to a web site, the first thing that happens is that a query
goes out to the DNS server for IP address of the web site.
In order to
eliminate this query, you can simply add the IP address and web name into
the HOSTS file in the Windows directory.
To find the IP address, just
PING the web name (ping www.microsoft.com)
For example, Microsoft would be:
207.46.130.149 www.microsoft.com #.url
You can do this for all the sites you regularly visit.
Auto-Dial Internet Connections (Win98)
If Win98 is not automatically dialing your Internet Connection:
- Open up the Dial Up Networking box
- Click on Connections / Settings
- Uncheck Prompt for information before dialing
Opening the Make New Connection Dialog Box
This command line will pop up the "Make new connection" window. rundll rnaui.dll,RnaWizard /1
Help Stop Modem Disconnects
If you modem goes offline frequently, it may be due to a temporary lost carrier. To lengthen the time the modem will go offline after the carrier is lost, change the modem properties.
- Open up the Control Panel
- Double click on the Modem icon
- Click on Properties / Connection / Advanced
- In the Extra Settings, enter S10=10
- This will enable the modem to stay connected without a carrier for up to 10 seconds.
Speeding Up Your Modem's Dialing
For Win95, to make that modem dial much faster:
- Open up the Control Panel
- Double click on the Modem icon
- Click on Properties / Connection / Advanced
- In the Extra Settings enter S11=x , where x is how many milliseconds each tone sounds. Try S11 = 1, then dial, you'll be surprised.
Showing Your Actual Modem's Connection Speed
Normally when you open up the modem icon in the system try, it shows
the port connect speed.
So see your actual modem speed:
- Go Control Panel
- Open up the Modems icon
- Click Properties
- Click on the Connection tab
- Click the Advanced button
- In the Extr Settings, put ATW2L0 (the last character is a zero)
Increasing Modem Performance
To increase modem performance when connecting to the Internet:
- Disable compression on your modem
- In SYSTEM.INI under 386enh section put in: COMxBUFFER=1024 (x is your modem port number )
- Add AT%C0 (that's a zero),to the extra settings line of your modem's properties.
- Wwitch errror correction off
Controlling Your Modem's Speaker
In modem settings switch to the scripting tab and where it says extra settings, type in the following to achieve the following:
- M0 : switches modem volume off completely
- &L=1,2, or 3 : changes the volume of the modem 3 being the loudest and 1 the quietest)
- By experimenting with M0, M1,2 or 3 you are able to turn the modem on during connection only, ring only etc..
To Find Your IP Address
To find your IP address when connected:
- Open Explorer
- In the Windows folder find the file WINIPCFG.
- Drag a shortcut onto your screen.
- Now when you are online you can double click the shortcut to see your IP address and other data.
Determine the Optimal MAX MTU Setting
There are several programs available that will change you MAX MTU
setting for you or you can do it by editing the registry directly
An
easy way to determine what that setting should be is to use the PING
command.
You basically want to start out with a MAX MTU of 1500 then
use the PING command as follows:
PING HOST_IP_ADDRESS -f -l PACKET_SIZE
where HOST_IP_ADDRESS is the IP address of the site you want to ping
and
PACKET_SIZE is the size of the MAX MTU setting you are trying to
test
Keep decreasing the packet size until you don't get any messages regarding fragmentation
To change the MAX MTU setting, see the section on Changing the MaxMTU and other Network Settings
Faster Access to the Network Properties Box
- Right click on the Network Neighborhood icon
- Select Properties to see network configurations.
This is the same result as click on the Start / Settings / Control Panel / Network Icon
Using UNC Network Names with Files
As already mentioned, you can use long file names in an MS DOS
Box.
But you can even use UNC-style network names.
Example: DIR file://server/share1/dir1
will
give you all files on the computer named "server", in the share named
"share1" and in the directory "dir1".
This does not work with CD, but it will work with MD, RD, DIR, COPY,
MOVE, REN, and so on.
I use this in combination with a batch file to
copy files to a number of computers on a network.
Faster Connecting to the Internet
I found that I had to wait about one
minute to get connected to the internet.
In your Dial-Up settings, make
sure you only have TCP/IP checked and that Log on to Network is not
checked.
Changing the Number of Rings Before Dial-Up Server Answers
To change the number of rings before Dial up Networking Server answers:
- Find the INF file for the modem in the \WINDOWS\INF directory. The filename will begin with "mdm" and end with characters desciptive of the manufacturer, ie. "supra" for Supra Express modem.
- Make a copy of this file.
- Edit this file with notepad and look for a string "HKR, Answer, 1,, "ATA<cr>".
- Change to HKR, Answer, 1,, "None".
- A few lines up from this should be the line HKR, Monitor, 1,, "ATS0=0<cr>" Change the value of the S0 register to the number of rings you would like to have the modem answer on.
- Remove the modem by using the Control panel | System | Device Manager.
- Reinstall the modem using the REFRESH Button.
- This should install the modem using the updated INF file.
Resetting Forgotten Dial-Up Server Password
If you forget the password you set for you Dial-Up Server
simply
delete (or rename) the RNA.PWL file in the WINDOWS directory
Speeding up Dial-Up Networking for Games
To reduce lag on a dial-up connection, ie: for multiplayer network games:
- Go to Dial-Up Networking
- Right click the connection you use to play network games
- Select Server Types & look in the Advanced Options window
- Uncheck the Enable Software Compression option.
- Also, in the General tab, look in the Connect Using box, where your modem should appear
- Click the modem's Configure button.
- Go to: Connection, Advanced (at the bottom of the Connection window)
- Make sure that error control is on, but is not set to compress data.
NOTE: This type of connection isn't optimized for browsing, but will work in most cases.
Monitoring Your Dial-Up Connection
There are some system checks you can use to see how good your ISP and
Phone lines are.
You either net OEM SR2 or the ISDN
Accelerator Pack 1.1 installed
- Make sure SYSMON is installed. You can add this through the Control Panel / Add New Programs
- Run SYSMON
- Select Edit / Add Item
- Click on Dial-Up Networking Adapter
- Select CRC Errors
- Click on OK
If you have lots of CRC errors, either the phone lines or your modem is having problems.
You can also add Framing Errors and Timeout Errors if you are still having problems and your phone line appears ok.
If you are not being prompted for a logon when starting
Windows95,
and you need to be, there are some possible solutions:
1. Your password may be set to be blank
To correct this:
- Open up the Control Panel
- Open up Passwords
- Click on Change Windows Password
- Your Old Password is blank
- Enter your password in the New Password and Confirm New Password boxes
2. Registry Setting
You may have an AutoLogon key set in the
Registry which needs to be removed
- Start Regedit
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Network \ Real Mode Net
- If the key AutoLogon=x appears, delete it
Not Saving your Dial-Up Password
If and when dial-up networking won't remember your passwords anymore , you can have a corrupted password list file.
Either restore your PWL files from a backup or :
Do a file find on
*.PWL and rename them to another extension (*.bak)
This will force
dial-up to create a new password file
Notes from Bob: There are a few other possibilities:
1. You need to install Client for Microsoft Networks as part of your network setup.
2. You may have an entry in the registry that is causing problems:
- Start Regedit
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Network \ Real Mode Net \
- Either delete the key autologon or change the value from 0 to 01
3. If deleting the PWL file did solve the problem, you can also download the Password List Update (278 K) program from Microsoft to prevent it from happening again..
Fixing a problem with Shortcuts that keep network UNC connections
By default, when you create a shortcut to a network application, both
the Drive letter and UNC connection are stored as part of the
shortcut.
The reasoning that if the drive letter gets reassigned or
deleted, the UNC connection will serve as an additional way to ensure that
the application is available.
This can also be a problem because when
you want to re-assign the drive to a new server, it will still make the
connection to the old one through the UNC
To disable this feature, there is a program called SHORTCUT.EXE
in the Admin / Apptools / Envvars directory.
Execute the program with a
-? to see a description of the available switches.
Changing the MaxMTU and other Network Settings
There are four network settings that can be configured so when dialing
to an ISP, you should get somewhat greater throughput.
They are the
MaxMTU, MaxMSS and DefaultRcvWindow, and DefaultTTL
MaxMTU and MaxMSS
- Start REGEDIT
- Go to Hkey_Local_Machine / System / CurrentControlset / Services /
Class / netTrans / 000n
(where n is your particular network adapter binding.) - Right click on the right panel
- Select New / String Value
- Type in MaxMTU
- Double click on it and enter then the number you want. The usual change is to 576
- Similarly, you can add MaxMSS and give it a value of 536 (or 40 less that your Max MTU setting)
DefaultRcvWindows and DefaultTTL
- Start REGEDIT
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ System \ CurrentControlSet \ Services \ VxD \ MSTCP
- Add a new string DefaultRcvWindow and give it a value of 2144 (or 4 times your MaxMSS setting)
- Add a new string DefaultTTL and give it a value of 60-64
To find out the optimal setting, go to Determining Optimal MaxMTU Setting to Use
As in Windows for Workgroups, when logging on to an NT Domain, it is
preferable to disable password caching.
This allows for the single
NT Domain login and eliminates the secondary Windows logon
screen.
It also eliminates the possibility of the respective passwords
to get out of sync.
To disable password caching on the workstation, a one-line addition to
the registry needs to be made.
To make the change, create a ASCII text
file called DISABLE.REG with the following lines:
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Network]
"DisablePwdCaching"=dword:00000001
Open up a DOS box and type REGEDIT DISABLE.REG
You can also download the DISABLE.REG file.
If you need to re-enable password caching, download ENABLE.REG and repeat the process just with the different file name
Starting a Dial-Up Connection from the Command Line
You can dial your ISP from a command line. This can make it easy to
create a batch file that will
do things like dial, start your e-mail
and web browser.
The syntax is:
rundll rnaui.dll,RnaDial connectoid
Note: The RnaDial and connectoid components of the command line are case sensitive
Device Contention when trying to use a Modem
Occasionally, when trying to use your modem, you might get the following errors:
Another program is using the selected Telephony device. Try again after
the other program completes.
or
Cannot initialize port
The state of Windows 95 device contention is determined by the value
for the "COM n AutoAssign=x"
setting in the [386Enh] section of the
System.ini file,
where n is the number of the serial port and
x is a value from -1 to 1000.
The default setting in Windows 95 is -1. This setting causes Windows 95
to not release a serial port previously used
by a non-Windows-based
program.
If you need hot-swapping capability between an MS-DOS-based
communications program and a Windows-based communication program,
add
the following entry to the [386Enh] section of the System.ini file:
Com n AutoAssign=0
If you do not have a logon password, Windows95 might have problems when
you try and browse the network.
Try the following steps to solve the
problem.
- Start REGEDIT
- Go to Hkey_Local_Machine \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ Current_version \ Network \ Real mode net
- Delete the line that says AUTOLOGON=0
- Save the changes and reboot the system
When you need to logon to an NT Domain, Windows95 prompts you for you
User ID, Password, and Domain Name
To have Windows95 automatically log
you on:
- Make sure Password Caching is Enabled, No Minimum Password Length has been set, and User Profiles is not enabled
- Open the Control Panel
- Double click on the Network icon
- Change the Primary Network Logon to Windows Logon
- Click on the OK button
- Do not restart the computer when prompted
- Double click on the Passwords icon
- Click on the Change Windows Password button
- Do not check the Microsoft Network box
- Type in your old password and nothing for the new and confirmation password
- Click on the OK button
- Restart Windows95
- Don't type any password for your Windows password. This is what you just set it for.
- When the Domain Login screen comes up, check Save this password in your password list
- The next time you start Windows95, you will be automatically logged into your NT Domain.
NOTE: This bypasses the security that logging into an NT Domain
is used to provide.
Do not use in areas where security is critical.
You can also download the new Tweak
from Microsoft which will also allow you to do the same function.
This
will work for Windows95 as well as NT 4.0
Auto-Dialing for 32-bit Internet Applications
If your 32-bit Internet applications do not automatically invoke
your
Windows 95 Dialer, here is a way I found to enable this
feature.
- First, bring up an internet application such as Netscape or Internet Explorer.
- Next, manually dial into your internet provider by double-clicking your connection icon.
- Once connected, go to the Control Panel and double-click on the Internet icon.
- Once the window open, uncheck the checkbox titled "Dial whenever an Internet Connection is needed".
- Click the check box again and make sure there is a check in the checkbox.
- Next, click the APPLY button.
- Finally , click the OK button.
Once you do this, close your internet application and disconnect from
your internet provider.
Re-start your Internet application and the
Windows 95 dialer should start up.
NOTE: From my experience, all
Internet applications will be effected and will automatically start the
Windows 95 dialer.
Some servers use dial-back as a security feature. How this works is
that after you connect to the server
it automatically dials you back
for verification.
To get Windows95 to hang up the phone and not end the PPP client:
- Open the Control Panel
- Double Click on the Modems icon
- Select your modem
- Click on the Properties button
- Select Connection tab
- Click on the Advanced tab
- In the Extra Settings area enter &C0 S0=1 - They are zeros not "o's"
The S0=1 sets your modem for Auto-Answer after 1 ring
The &C0
avoids ending the PPP client.
Disabling File and Print Sharing
- Start Regedit
- Go to HKLM,SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Network
- Add a new DWord Value
- Rename it to NoPrintSharing or NoFileSharing
- Assign it a value of 1
Changing your Modem's Initialization String
- Start REGEDIT
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ System \ CurrentControlSet \ Services \ Class \ Modem \ 0000 \ Init
- Change the settings to the values for your modem
Easy way to Re-Dial on busy signals
If the line is busy to your provider and you don't want to *wait* until
your dialer will re-dial,
just press ESC key and then press enter key
or click on connect - meaning it will dial-up again immediately.
If your modem it timing out during file transfers or loading Web
Pages,
you might try increasing the timeout period.
To change it:
- Start Regedit
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE / System / CurrentControlSet / Services /
Class / Modem / XXXX / Settings
Where XXXX is the number of your modem - Move to the right panel and double click on Inactivity Timeout
- The number of minutes for a timeout should be entered between the brackets.
- For example, a US Robotics Sportster could have S19=<30> to set it to 30 minutes.
Automatic Re-Dialing for Dial-Up Network
- Open up My Computer.
- Open up Dial-Up Networking.
- Go to the Connection Menu then Settings.
- Make sure Redial is checked.
- Set the number of times you want to redial, up to 100 times.
- Click Ok and your off !
Potential problems leaving 16-bit winsock.dll's
If you re having problems getting some of your winsock
applications
to work under Win95, make sure you delete any old 16-bit
winsock.dll's.
If this file is in the directory were the application resides, it
could
cause problems. Programs that could have problems like this
are:
- Ewan.exe (Telnet app)
- WSIRC.exe (IRC app)
- WSGopher.exe (Gopher app)
- NX.Exe (NewsXpress)
- Netscape v.1.0
We found that if the software listed above is in the same directory as
the
Trumpet Winsock.dll file, then they will NOT work under the
MS-TCP/IP stack.
Dial-Up Scripting
The Internet Jumpstart Kit that comes with the Plus! Pack allows you to
script your Dial-Up Connections
- Open up Programs / Accessories / Dial-Up Scripting Tool.
- Select the provider (if you have more than one).
- Type in the name of the script (end with
.scp).
Outlook
Shortcut Keys
Front Page
Shortcut Keys
Fast Access
to the Desktop
Opening
Up the Task Manager in NT 4
MS-Natural
Keyboard Shortcuts
Getting
to My Computer from the Control Panel
Undo
Minimizing all
windows
Shortcut to
System Properties
Duplicating
the Right Mouse Click
Accessing
Programs from the Start Button
Quickly
Starting Explorer
Remapping the
Keyboard
Internet
Explorer Shortcuts
Bringing up
the Properties Window
Resizing or
Moving a Window
Keystroking is
faster the using the mouse
Explorer
Shortcut Keys
Searching for
files
Copy files with a
Mouse/Keyboard combo
Outlook 2000 Shortcut Keys
| Go to the Inbox | CTRL+SHIFT+I |
| Go to the Outbox | CTRL+SHIFT+O |
| Check for New Mail | F5 or CTRL+M |
| Start a New E-mail message | CTRL+SHIFT+M |
| Open the address book | CTRL+SHIFT+B |
| Start a New appointment | CTRL+SHIFT+A |
| Start a New contact | CTRL+SHIFT+C |
| Start a New meeting request | CTRL+SHIFT+Q |
| Start a New a task | CTRL+SHIFT+K |
| Make the Find a Contact box active | F11 |
| Open the Advanced Find dialog box | CTRL+SHIFT+F |
| Mark an e-mail message as read | CTRL+Q |
| Delete an e-mail message, contact, calendar item, or task | CTRL+D |
Front Page 2000 Shortcut Keys
Front Page has quite a few shortcut keys. My favorites are:
| Center a paragraph | CTRL+E |
| Left align a paragraph | CTRL+L |
| Right align a paragraph | CTRL+R |
| Display HTML tags | CTRL+ / |
| Apply the Heading 1 style (ect.) | CTRL+ALT+1 |
| Apply the Normal style | CTRL+SHIFT+ N |
| Not listed in their help is: | |
| Cycle through Normal / HTML / Preview | Ctrl-PgUp/ Down |
| If you are at the last row in a table, the TAB key will add a new row below the current one. | |
Fast Access to the Desktop
To get an Explorer view of the Desktop
- Press Ctrl-Esc or click the Start button
- Press R to go to Run. Note: If you are using a Win keyboard, you can get to this point by pressing Win+R
- Type in a period
Opening Up the Task Manager in NT 4
In Windows NT 4, to quickly bring up the task manager, press Ctrl-Shift-Esc
MS-Natural Keyboard Shortcuts
| Open the start menu - Submitted by Daniel F. | Win |
| Display the pop-up menu for the selected object - Submitted by Daniel F. | Win+F1 |
| Start Explorer | Win+E |
| Find Files or Folders | Win+F |
| Find computer | Ctrl+Win+F |
| Minimizes all windows | Win+M |
| Undo Minimize All | Shift+Win+M |
| Display Run Dialog box | Win-R |
| Cycles through taskbar buttons | Win+Tab |
| Displays System Properties | Win+Break |
Getting to My Computer from the Control Panel
If you're in Control Panel, hitting the Backspace key will switch you into the My Computer folder.
Undo
Press CTRL + Z to undo things like renaming a file in Explorer
Minimizing All Windows
To minimize all windows:
- Press Ctrl-ESC to bring up the Task Bar
- Press Alt-M
This makes it a lot easier to minimize windows when all your open applications are full screen.
Shortcut to System Properties
To access the System Properties screen quickly, simply hold down the ALT key while double clicking on the My Computer icon.
While holding the windows key, press the Pause / Break
key.
This will open up the System Properties box.
From here
you can easily get to the Device Manager
Duplicating the Right Mouse Click
Pressing the Shift-F10 key will be the same as clicking the right-mouse button.
Accessing Programs from the Start Button
To access your programs more quickly
from your start button, with out aid of a mouse, hit ctrl+esc to open your
start menu.
Then, type the letter for the directory you are looking
for.
For example, to access the ever popular game of solitaire,
CTRL+ESC, then "P" for programs, "A" for accessories, "G" for games, then
"S" for Solitaire.
If there is more than one entry for the letter, keep
hitting the letter until you reach your desired location. Then, hit
enter.
Quickly Starting Explorer
You can quickly start an explorer session by holding down the Windows key on a Microsoft Keyboard and pressing the E.key
Remapping the Keyboard
You can download Keyboard
Remap (20 K) from Microsoft to reassign you keystrokes.
With this
you can also assign a key to function like the Windows key on the
Microsoft keyboards.
Internet Explorer Shortcuts
Here are a few IE keyboard shortcuts:
| Go ‘Back’ to the previous page | Alt+Left Arrow |
| Go ‘Forward’ to the next page | Alt+Right Arrow |
| Add to Favorites on the current web page | Ctrl+D |
| Open the History folder | Ctrl+H |
| Open the Organize Favorites window | Ctrl+B |
| Lets you open a new web page | Ctrl+L |
| Open a new browser window | Ctrl+N |
| Reload the current page | Ctrl+R |
| Close the active Internet Explorer window | Ctrl+W |
Bringing up the Properties Window
While holding the ALT key double click on an icon to bring up the properties.
Resizing and Moving a Window
To Resize or Move a window:
- Press Alt-Space
- Press the S key - To Resize
- Press the M key - To Move
You can now use the arrow keys to resize or move the window
Key stroking is faster than mouse moving
- In desktop you can press "m", "My Briefcase is highlighted, press "enter" will open this applet.
- If you do not press "enter",
- The next "m" key stroke will highlight "My Computer".
- "Ctrl"-"Esc", press "P" for Programs, "enter","M""enter", you get to the first program or folder that starts with "M"
- Other applets will also be opened the same way.
Explorer Shortcut Keys
- F4 - Displays the Combo Box
- F5 - Refresh the display
- Ctrl+Z - Undo last action
- Backspace - Go up one directory
Quickly Search for Files
To quickly open up the Find all Files window
- Press Ctrl+ESC ESC
- Press F3
To copy a file with a Mouse/Keyboard combo
Drag the file while holding down the CTRL key - A + will appear on the icon
To move a file with a Mouse/Keyboard combo
Drag file while holding down SHIFT key - Nothing appears on the icon
If moving a icon with the mouse and an arrow appears, it will create a
shortcut.
You can press shift or ctrl at anytime during the drag
and
it will change this little part of the icon.
Using
MSCONFIG to Change the Programs Starting Automatically
Additional
Information From the Task Manager
Enabling
DMA/UDMA
Enabling
Hibernation
Unsigned
Driver Installation
Changing
the Logon Background Color
System
File Checker
Starting
the Indexing Service to Speed Up File Searches
Automatic
File & Directory Name Completion
Moving
My Documents
Displaying
More File Information in Explorer
Running
Applications as Another User
Opening
a Command Prompt to a Particular Directory from Explorer
Removing
Personalized Menus
Display
Administrative Tools
Display
Logoff
Expand
Control Panel, My Documents, Network and Dial-Up Connections or
Printers
Displaying
Hardware Conflicts
Bring
Up Task Manager Directly
Quickly
Changing Directories
Disk
Cleanup
Using MSCONFIG to Change the Programs Starting Automatically
- If you like to use MSCONFIG from Windows98, you can still use it with Windows2000.
- Just copy the file to a place in your path (e.g. \WINNT)
- You will get an error about a file Regenv32.exe. It will work find without it but I just copied that file as well.
Additional Information From the Task Manager
You can customize some of the items you can see in the Task Manager
- In Processes, select View / Columns...
- From here you can view additional information about each process such as Page Faults, Priority, Threads etc.
Enabling DMA/UDMA
To make sure your IDE Controller is set to use DMA
- Right click on the My Computer icon
- Select Manage
- Click on Device Manager
- Expand IDE ATA/ATAPI Controller
- Right-click on Primary IDE Channel
- Click on Properties
- Click on the Advanced Settings tab
- In the Transfer Mode section, select DMA if available
- Do this for both devices in both the Primary and Secondary Controllers
- After you reboot you can go back in and see what the controller is now actually using.
Enabling Hibernation
With Windows2000 Hibernation, when you select it from the Shutdown
menu,
all your applications as well as their location on your desktop
come up the next time you start up your computer.
To enable it:
- Go to the Control Panel / Power Options icon
- Click on the Hibernate tab
- Check Enable hibernation support
- Since hibernation takes what is in memory and writes it to
disk,
the amount of hard drive space needed is the same as the amount of memory you have. - Now when you go to logoff, select the Hibernate option instead.
Unsigned Driver Installation
By default, Windows2000 will allow you to install drivers that have not
been signed and approved my Microsoft.
If you want to restrict this so
only signed drivers can be installed:
- Run the Local Security Policy MMC (Start / Run / Programs / Administrative Tools / Local Security Policy)
- Scroll down to Unsigned driver installation behavior (This is second from the bottom)
- The default is Not Defined
- You have three additional options:
Silently Succeed
Warn but allow installation
Do not allow installation
Changing the Logon Background Color
If you want to change the green logon color:
- Start Regedit
- Go to HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Colors\Background
- Change the three numbers from the default of 58 110 165 to the RGB values you want
- For example 110 110 255 is a fairly light blue, 0 0 0 would be black
- Log off and log back on again to see the change.
System File Checker
There is a command-line utility called System File Checker (SFC.EXe), which allows an administrator to scan all protected files to verify their versions.
The following shows the command-line syntax:
/SCANNOW Scans all protected system files immediately.
/SCANONCE
Scans all protected system files once at the next boot.
/SCANBOOT Scans
all protected system files at every boot.
/CANCEL Cancels all pending
scans of protected system files.
/QUIET Replaces all incorrect file
versions without prompting the user.
/ENABLE Enables Windows File
Protection for normal operation
/PURGECACHE Purges the file cache and
scans all protected system files immediately.
/CACHESIZE=x Sets the
file cache size
Starting the Indexing Service to Speed Up File Searches
You can greatly speed up searching for files, particularly files with
text in them, if you index your files.
To turn this on:
- Start a search by pressing the F3 key from the Explorer on while on the desktop
- Click on Search Options
- Click on Indexing Service
- Check Yes, enable Indexing Service
Searches should now go extremely fast. The index file is relatively
small.
For example I have about 3 gigs of used hard drive space
and this created a 20 meg index file.
Automatic File & Directory Name Completion
From the command prompt, you can list files or directories without needing to type in the entire name.
- Start a new command session with Start / Run / "cmd /f :on"
- You can scroll through files by pressing the Ctrl-F key
- You can scroll through directories by pressing the Ctrl-D key
- You can enter the first few letters of the name to make the search more specific
- You can search backwards by pressing shift key down at the same time
- To make this permanent, you can add it to any command prompt shortcuts you use
Moving My Documents
Normally the My Documents fold is in the Documents and Settings / User_Name directory.
You can change that location by:
- Start / Documents
- Right click on My Documents
- Select Explore
- Right click on My Documents
- Right click and select Properties
- Click on the Move button and select the location you want to move it to.
Displaying More File Information in Explorer
You can easily display more information than the file name, size, type and modified date in Explorer.
- Right click on any one of these headings.
- This will bring up some of the additional fields you can display.
- Items such as Attribute, Comment, Created Date, Accessed date are available.
- You can also click on More for other items as well
- Selections such as Comment can be useful for Word and Excel documents.
- You can right click on the file, select Properties / Summary.
- Select the Comment field and enter in a short description for the file.
Running Applications as Another User
With NT, you have always been able to connect to a network share as
another user.
This allowed you to not have to log off and then
back on again with a different user.
The same capability is now
available with Windows2000 for running applications.
If you need to run
an app as an administrator, you can do it without logging off and back on
as the admin.
- Select the the application you want to run.
- While holding down the shift key, right-click on the icon
- You now have the option to Run As
- You will then be prompted for the user's name, password and domain.
Opening a Command Prompt to a Particular Directory from Explorer
If you want to open a command prompt to a directory that is selected in the Explorer:
- Start Regedit
- Go to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT \ Directory \ shell
- Create a new key called Command
- Give it the value of the name you want to appear in the Explorer. Something like Open DOS Box
- Under this create a new key called command
- Give it a value of " cmd.exe cd %1 " (no quotes)
- Now when you are in the Explorer, right click on a folder, select Open DOS Box, and a command prompt will open to the selected directory.
Removing Personalized Menus
- Right-click on the Task Bar
- Select Properties
- Uncheck Use Personalized Menus
Display Administrative Tools
- Right-click on the Task Bar
- Select Properties
- Click on the Advanced tab
- Check Display Administrative Options
Display Logoff
- Right-click on the Task Bar
- Select Properties
- Click on the Advanced tab
- Check Display Logoff
Expand Control Panel, My Documents, Network and Dial-Up Connections or Printers
- Right-click on the Task Bar
- Select Properties
- Click on the Advanced tab
- Check the ones you want to expand
Displaying Hardware Conflicts
- Make sure you display the Administrative tools
- Go to Start / Programs / Administrative Tools / Computer Management
- Scroll down to System Tools / System Information / Hardware Resources / Conflicts/Sharing
- This will display and IRQ or other conflicts.
Bring Up Task Manager Directly
To start the Task Manager, simply press the Ctrl-Shift-Esc keys
Quickly Changing Directories
If you want to change directories but don't want to type in the entire
path name,
you can use the "*" at the end of a partial display.
For example to change to Program Files, you can simply enter cd pro* and it will fill in the rest.
Disk CleanUp
To clean up your drive from Temporary Internet Files, Temp files, the Recycle Bin etc.
- Click on the My Computer icon
- Right click on the drive you want to clean
- Select Properties
- Click on the Disk Cleanup button
- From here you can select the types of files you want to remove
Showing
Long and Short Filenames
DOS
Command History
Changing a
File's Date and Time Stamp
Removing
the Microsoft Copyright from a DOS Prompt
Setting the
Number of Lines in a DOS Window
Starting DOS
Fast
Using Long Filenames
in a DOS Box
Expanding Full
Path or File Name
Adding DOSKEY to
your DOS Window
Showing DOS
Error Codes
Changing
Directories in DOS
Entering Long
Paths in a DOS Window
Having DOS
Programs Prompt for Input
Verbose Directory
Listing
Easy way to open
up DOS prompt in a specific directory
Showing Long and Short Filenames
There are two additional switches that can be used when doing a DIR
- /B - Shows only the long filename, no details
- /Z - Shows the short filename, with details
- /B /Z - Shows only short filename, with no details
DOS Command History
If you use DOSKEY in either your AUTOEXEC.BAT file or as part of the
properties of your DOS
Window,
you can show and recall the history of commands you enter
and the DOS prompt.
- To recall previous commands, use the up arrow key.
- A complete list of previous commands can be shown if you press the F7 key
- To use one, press F9 and the number of the command you want to use
- To clear the cache, press Alt+F7
Changing a File's Date and Time Stamp
You can change the Date and Time stamp of a file to the current setting.
Type:
COPY filename /B + ,, /Y
Removing the Microsoft Copyright from a DOS Prompt
By default, when you open a DOS window, the Microsoft Copyright notice
shows.
To disable it, add the /K switch in the Program tab
For example: C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND.COM /k
Setting the Number of Lines in a DOS Window
To set the number of lines displayed when you open up a DOS window:
- Create a shortcut for the MS-DOS Prompt
- Right click on it
- Select Properties
- Click on the Program tab
- In the Batch file:, line enter mode con: lines=xx (where xx is the number of lines you want displayed)
- Valid numbers for xx are 25 or 43
Starting DOS Fast
Want to start DOS fast outside of the START button? Drag it to your desktop.
Want to start it even FASTER without the mouse?
- Change the shortcut properties of the DOS icon to something unique, like Ctrl-Alt-Z.
- Then to start DOS from within Win95/98?/NT just enter C-A-Z and poof! it's there.
- If you toggle away, and hit the shortcut sequence again, you'll get the "old" DOS box, not a new one.
Long Filenames in a DOS Box
More long filenames in DOS paths...
You don't need the close double quote when entering long folder names in DOS.
CD "\program files
works as well as
CD "\program files"
You can use long file names in a MS DOS Box.
All you have to do is
pu the long file name in quotes.
Example: cd "program files"
Expanding Full Path or File Name NT 4.0 Only
Expand full path/file name with defined char using Command Prompt in Win NT 4.0
You can expand the full name of a file or directory using a character of your choice.
- Close all Command Prompts
- Start the Registry Editor
- Open HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Command Processor
- If not present, add Key: CompletionChar
- If you like to use TAB-Key for expand: set value (REG_SZ): "9"
You can test it:
- Open up a DOS window
- Type: CD (followed by TAB)
- The first available directory will appear
- Press TAB again, the next one will appear
- The same can be done with the DIR command
Adding DOSKEY to your DOS Window
One way to have DOSKEY available when you open a DOS window would be to
have it in the AUTOEXEC.BAT file.
This takes away conventional memory,
even when you don't have a DOS window open.
To only use DOSKEY when you
open a DOS window:
- Right click on your DOS shortcut
- Select Properties
- Click on the Program tab
- Add DOSKEY > NUL to the Batch File field
- You can also add /INSERT if you prefer
Showing DOS Error Codes
If you want to see what error codes are being generated by DOS
programs,
start your DOS session with the addition of a /Z
parameter to the COMMAND.COM program.
Changing Directories in DOS
Normally, you can move up one directory level by typing CD
..
The DOS with Windows95 allows you to continue moving up
beyond the first directory by simply adding more periods
For example,
to move up two levels, type CD ...
Entering Long Paths in a DOS Window
If you have to enter a long path and program name in a DOS window,
- Open up the Explorer
- Go to the folder you want
- Drag it to the DOS window
- The path will be inserted into the window
This can come is useful with the long path names and all the ~'s you
would normally need to type.
If you need to change directories, type in
the CD before you drag the directory.
Having DOS Programs Prompt for Input
When you normally create a shortcut for a DOS program, it does not
prompt you for any input and just runs the program
To change that,
simply add a ? after the program name in the CMD field.
For example:
C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\EDIT.COM ?
will start the DOS
editor and prompt you for a file name to edit.
To see your free memory and other useful info in detail:
- Open a DOS box
- Go to the directory that you want to get specific info about, or if you just want to see memory info go to any directory (I use the root).
- Type DIR /V
- The /v argument stands for "verbose".
- All sorts of good information comes up.
Easy way to open up DOS prompt in a specific directory
With the advent of long directory names, it can be difficult to open up
a DOS box and CD to the directory you want
particularly if it is
several layers of long names deep.
An easy way is to:
- Open up Explorer and highlight the directory you want to be in
- Select Run / Command from the Start Menu
- Your DOS prompt will now be in the directory you highlighted in Explorer
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While these are likely not all the performance tips, they are the ones that have made significant differences on my system.I've seen a lot out there that have not made much difference. These are a few I've seen actually help.
These first two might cost you some money.On the other hand they will usually provide the most noticeable difference Here are some things you can do for free
Comparing
Registries Comparing RegistriesWhile working with changes to your system, you might want to see what
is changing in your Registry.
Note: I do the last steps so often I have a simple batch file already set up. Setting Excel 2000 High-Contrast Cell SelectionIf you want to increase the contrast in selected cells:
Changing Common IconsYou can change many of the common Windows icons.
0-13 Are the Drive and Application Icons 19-27 Are the Start Menu Icons Other Icons Prevent Changes to the Start MenuTo prevent any changes to the Start Menu, even a right click:
DOS RestrictionsThere are restrictions you can make to the ability to execute DOS programs
Networking RestrictionsThere are general restrictions you can make in Networking
Control Panel RestrictionsThere are many general restrictions you can make to the Control Panel
Restricting the Start Menu, Explorer and the DesktopThere are many general restrictions you can make to the Start Menu, the Explorer and to the Desktop itself.
Changing Office 2000's Excel Undo HistoryBy default, Excel has only approximately 16 undo's you can perform. To increase that number:
Changing the Title on Windows Media PlayerYou can change the title bar for the Windows Media Player
Eliminating the Right Click on the TaskbarTo eliminate the right click on the taskbar: Start Regedit
Eliminating the Right Click on the DesktopTo eliminate the right click on the desktop:
Turning Off the Help on Min, Max, Close IconsWhen the mouse goes over the minimize, maximize and close icons on the
upper right hand side of a window, you normally get a display telling you
want those are for.
Adding Open With to the Right Click in the ExplorerTo add the option Open With when you right click on a file in the Explorer:
Automatically Deleting a Registry KeyNormally you cannot automatically delete registry keys from reg file. But there is a way... Simply include a minus sign inside the left bracket before the main key. For example.
This would delete that key and any below it. Fixing no AutoRun for CDsIf your CDs have stop starting automatically, and you have checked everything else:
Locking File Association ChangesIf you have your file associations the way you want for a particular
file type,
Renaming the File System ProfilesIn the Control Panel / System / Performance / File System, you
can select either Desktop Computer, Mobile or docking system, or Network
Server.
Sticky MenusNormally when you move the mouse over the Start Menu / Programs, it
will automatically cascade and show the submenus.
Automatic Shutdown with Windows NTMost laptops allow the operating system to turn off the hardware after
shutdown, instead of displaying the message telling you it's now safe to
turn off your system. To enable this feature, simply add a REG_SZ value named HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\PowerdownAfterShutDown and set it to 1. Next, tell NT to shut down and see if the machine turns itself off after shutting down. If it doesn't, change the value back to 0 to restore normal operation. Kill Hung Processes When Logging Off in Windows NTWhen you tell NT to shut down, it first sends shutdown requests to any
running processes. You can force NT to kill all running processes on shutdown by adding a REG_SZ value named HKEY_USER\\ControlPanel\Desktop\AutoEndTasks and set the value to 1. You can also add this value to HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT so that all new accounts will shut down the same way. NT Crash Log FileIn addition to the crash log file, you can also enable two other
methods of crash notification and logging. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\CrashControl\SendAlert to 1. The next time the system crashes, an administrative alert will be sent that may provide the first sign of the crash. You can also make NT log the crash in the event log by changing the value of HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\CrashControl\LogEvent to 1 instead of its default 0. Now, the exact time of the crash will be permanently recorded. Changing the Location of Outlook Express Data FilesNormally Outlook Express keeps its data files in the C:\Windows\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook Express directory. To change this:
Disabling the Blinking CursorTo stop the cursor from blinking in applications such as Word:
Re-Enabling DHCP Error MessagesIf you got a DHCP error message, selected to not see DHCP errors, and now want to see them again;
Getting Rid of Schemes
When you right click on your desktop and pick properties your Display
Properties screen appears.
Hiding Any Combination of DrivesIf you want to stop a drive or any combination of drives appearing in Explorer/My Computer Add the Binary Value of 'NoDrives' in the registry at HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer Give it a value from a combination of the table below:
Where (for eg) you want to hide Drives {C,E,J,O,R,U,Y,Z} you would give
'NoDrives' the value 14 42 12 03 Creating a Legal Text Notice Before LogonYou can create a banner that will come up just before you logon to the computer:
Now before anyone logs into that computer, this banner will come up on
the screen. Removing the Hand Icon from Shared ResourcesWhen you share a local resource, Windows95 normally puts a hand in from
of that resources icon.
Enabling the Middle Mouse Button on Logitech MouseTo enable the middle mouse button on Logitech Mouses to act as a double-click button by only pressing it once: Run Regedit Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\LOGITECH\MOUSEWARE \CURRENTVERSION\SERIALV\0000 Change DoubleClick to equal 001 Easily Opening a File with NotepadThis will enable you to right click on any file and have the option to
open it with notepad.
Displaying Hi-Color Icons without the Plus Pack
Backing Up the RegistryThere are many backup programs for the registry but if the computer goes down and you can't fire off Win95 because of the registry problem. Backup to a directory the following files:
These files can be copied to the windows directory from Win95 or DOS to help correct problems. Removing Unwanted Items from the RUN Menu
Opening a DOS Window to either the Drive or Directory in ExplorerAdd or Edit the following Registry Keys [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell\opennew] These will allow you to right click on either the drive or the directory and the option of starting the dos prompt there will pop up Compacting the RegistryHow to compact the registry?
Changing Exchange's Mailbox LocationWhen you create a mailbox in Exchange for e-mail, you specify the file
where you want to mail to go. If you want to change the file name or location::
Removing Sound Events from Control Panel / SoundsWhen you view what events you can assign sounds to from Control
Panel / Sounds,
Adding an Application to the Right Click on Every Folder Here is how to add any application to the menu when you right click on
any Folder.
Now when you right click on any folder, you can have access to that
application Adding Explore From Here to Every Folder
Now when you right click on any folder, you can open up an Explorer
window of that folder. When I would go to Control Panel or Start Menu Programs, or any other Desktop window setting; meaning size, position, icon arrangement, they would never be as I set them. I found an answer: At
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer] Remember those "Tips of the day" that appeared when you first install
Win95? Changing the Location of Windows95's Installation Files If you need to change the drive and or path where Windows95 will look for it's installation files:
Creating a Network Logon Banner If you want to create a Network Logon Banner:
Creating a Default File Opener If you have a un-registered file type and want
to view it with Explorer's Right-click
In this example, when you right click on a file in Explorer, NOTEPAD will show up as an option. Deleting Registry Keys from the Command LineWith the OEM Version of Windows95, a new switch, /D, is added to
Regedit. The syntax is: REGEDIT /L:system.dat_location /R:user.dat_location /D
Reg_Key There are two requirements: When you make changes to your hard drive and use Explorer, the changes
are not usually displayed until you press the F5 key
As in Windows for Workgroups, when logging on to an NT Domain, it is
preferable to disable password caching. To disable password caching on the workstation, a one-line addition to
the registry needs to be made. [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Network] Open up a DOS box and type REGEDIT DISABLE.REG You can also download the DISABLE.REG file. If you need to re-enable password caching, download ENABLE.REG and repeat the process just with the different file name Changing the MaxMTU and other Network SettingsThere are four network settings that can be configured so when dialing
to an ISP, you should get somewhat greater throughput. MaxMTU and MaxMSS
DefaultRcvWindows and DefaultTTL
Adding Items to the Start Button To add items when you right-click on the Start Button:
Removing Open, Explore & Find from Start Button When you right click on the Start Button, you can select Open, Explore
or Find.
Note: - When you remove Open, you cannot open any folders. When you right-click on the desktop and select New, a list of
default templates you can open up are listed.
Changing the Telnet Scroll-Back Buffer Size By default, the Telnet session has a window size of 25 lines. To
increase this so you can scroll back
You can edit the Tips of the day in the Registry by going
to: Disabling Drives in My Computer To turn off the display of local or networked drives when you click on My Computer:
Not Displaying the Network Neighborhood
Disabling Run or Find from the Start Menu
Hiding All Icons from the Desktop
Get Your Folders to Open the Way You Want Every Time To get your folders to open the way you want every time:
Modifying Default Desktop Icons
Below is a reference for the icons I've been able to figure out: 0 - Default Icon 28 - Share In addition, you can change:
Clearing the Documents Menu Automatically The Documents Menu displays the last file and programs you used. You
can clear item manually but only through editing
Your Documents Menu should now be blank. This will be for all subsequent users who logon as well. Disabling the Right-Click on the Start ButtonNormally, when you right button click on the Start button, it
allows you to open your programs folder, the Explorer and run Find.
Now when you right click on the Start button, nothing should
happen. Disabling My ComputerIn areas where you are trying to restrict what users can do on the
computer, it might be beneficial to disable the ability to click on My
Computer and have access to the drives, control panel etc.
Now when you click on My Computer, nothing will happen. You can change many of the icons that are located on your desktop.
Some of the additional items that can be searched for are:
Additional icons can be found in:
Opening Explorer from My Computer By default, when you click on the My Computer icon, you get a display of all your drives, the Control Panel etc. If you would like to have this open the Explorer:
Fixing Corrupt RegistryIf your registry has gotten corrupted, and re-installing Windows95 over
your existing version does not fix the problem, To use this file:
You will need to install your 32-bit apps and any other programs or
changes that modified your system registry Recycle Bin EditsFooling with the recycle bin. Why not make the icon context menu act like other icon context menu's. Add rename to the
menu: Add delete to the
menu: Add rename and delete to the
menu: Restore the recycle bin to win 95 defaults including un-deleting the icon after deletion: .. Restore the
icon. \NameSpace\{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E}] @="Recycle
Bin" Other edits to the recycle bin
icon: I added the above edits for fun. But it gets you thinking. Setting the Minimum Password Length
Also see the Installation Section on doing this automatically during installation. Disabling File and Print Sharing
Also see the Installation Section on doing this automatically during installation. Specifying programs to run every time Windows95 startsIf you want to start programs every time Windows95 runs, but would like
to hide them from users
Removing the Shortcut Icon Arrows
Turn Off Window AnimationYou can shut off the animation displayed when you minimize and maximize windows.
Changing your Modem's Initialization String
If your modem it timing out during file transfers or loading Web
Pages, To change it:
Removing Programs listed from the Control Panel's Add/Remove Programs Section If you remove an installed program and its files by deleting the
files,
This will only delete them from the list, not delete the actual
programs.
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