Windows Updates
The Windows
Update Corporate Site is a Web site for users who
need to find and
download all fixes and updates for all the Windows
OSs.
Windows Information and Support info on Microsoft's Web Site
Information presented by David Chernicoff, News
Editor, of Windows 2000 magazine:
Microsoft has
included the most useful and popular help links on its
Product Support Services Web site (
http://support.microsoft.com ).
The two sections of the site I've found most useful are the Windows XP
Support Center (
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=fh;en-us;winxp )
and the Windows 2000 Support Center
(
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=fh;en-us;win2000 ).
These product support sites provide links to other locations within
the Microsoft Web world. I often use the Windows 2000 Top Issues and
FAQ site (
http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/support/issues/default.asp )
to keep an eye on problems that I need to report on. The Win2K product
support team updates this site weekly, and I recommend that Win2K
administrators check it on a regular basis.
These product support sites also include canned Knowledge Base
searches that return all related Microsoft articles about the listed
topic. I've been pointing friends and coworkers to the canned search
for articles about installing XP to prepare them for the installation
process. The search isn't perfect (it also returns information about
installing other Windows versions), but it does return quite a few
useful articles, including a personal favorite, "How to Multiple Boot
Windows XP, Windows 2000, Windows NT, Windows 98, Windows 95, and MS-
DOS," which recently helped me solve a multiboot configuration problem
for a client.
A sharp reader sent me this little tip to help your Microsoft Web site
search needs: If you know the Knowledge Base article number, simply
enter it into the Internet Explorer (IE) address bar in the format
"MSKB Q162928," where the Q number is any valid Knowledge Base
article. The browser will search for the article and automatically
open it.
Readers were pleased with the research tools I presented in my column
about Internet FAQ sites, so here's a link to all the Microsoft
product FAQs in one place (
http://support.microsoft.com/faqs/default.aspx ).
Each of the 27 links on the page opens the Product Support Center site for
that product.
In the Product Support Center or the Microsoft Developer Network home
page (
http://msdn.microsoft.com ), you can find links to 90 percent
of the available information from Microsoft that can help you solve
problems and troubleshoot your systems. I visit both sites almost
daily to keep track of potential trouble spots that Microsoft has
identified. Add the Microsoft Security Web site to your list of
regular links (
http://www.microsoft.com/security/default.asp ), and
you have an arsenal of weapons that every administrator responsible
for Microsoft applications needs.
Windows NT
THE SHUTDOWN UTILITY
Use the Shutdown.exe utility that's shipped with the Windows NT
Resource Kit to reboot the local machine. An example of the usage
is
Shutdown /l/r/c/y. The command line arguments add flexibility to
the
utility. Use /l to shut down the local machine, /r to reboot, /c
to
close all programs, and /y to avoid having to answer Yes to
prompts.
You can also use this utility in conjunction with the AT command
to
schedule a shutdown at specific times. An example of this is:
AT 23:59 /every:M,T,W,Th,F shutdown /l /r /c /y
Floppy drive tries to open when you access the C drive? Delete
or rename the Drvwq117.vdx found in the C:\Windows\System\IOsubsys
(Do not delete this file if you use a tape drive that is connected to the floppy
drive.... otherwise, have at it.)
Startup Locations of programs:
Here are some places to look:
* The Startup folder for the current user and all user groups
* The %systemroot%\win.ini file
* The registry:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServices
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServicesOnce
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\
Winlogon\Userinit
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServices
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServicesOnce
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows
(the run and load keys)
Customize the ctr-alt-del Message:
If you're looking for more ways to personalize computers
to either an
individual or corporate standard, here's how you can add a custom
string to the title bar on the Windows Security Screen that you see
when you invoke the Ctrl+Alt+Del keystroke:
1. Launch regedit.
2. Open HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows
NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon.
3. Add a new value named Welcome as a REG_SZ data type, and enter
the text that you want displayed. You can't get rid of the Windows
Security title, but the text you enter will appear to the right of it.
* PowerToys for Windows XP *
10 great ways to make your Windows experience better.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/downloads/powertoys.asp
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