Optimize XP - A Windows XP Optimization Guide

Clean Spyware and Viruses + Optimize Windows XP to improve home, work and gaming performance safely. Windows XP's default configuration is far from optimized. This Free guide will help you improve your overall system performance without having to manually edit the Registry. I avoid using or recommending "all-in-one" Windows XP Tweak programs since many blindly adjust settings that have no affect on performance and can cause future problems. This guide is designed to be performed top to bottom, in sequence since some steps are required to be performed before others. Before using this guide make sure your system meets the Windows XP System Requirements.



Read and follow the instructions carefully. This guide is not designed to be used in combination with other Windows tweaking guides or other Windows tweaking software. Before using this guide make sure all of your data is backed up. Viruses and Spyware can cause service pack installations to fail, make sure you have run through Step 1 completely before proceeding.

Legal Notice - Reproduction of this guide in whole or in part is strictly forbidden. This guide and ALL versions thereof are protected by copyright under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Feel free to link to this Guide.

Step 1 - Malware Removal

Malware Infection which includes Viruses, Worms, Trojans, Spyware, Adware and Rootkits are the #1 cause of system slowdowns. These must be cleaned for optimal system performance.

FACT: 89% of consumer PCs are infected with spyware

Malware Removal 1-2-3 Guide - Malware is short for "Malicious Software". It is a general term that refers to any software or program code designed to infiltrate or damage a computer system without the owner's informed consent. This includes Viruses, Worms, Trojans, Spyware, Adware and Rootkits. This 3 step guide will show you how to remove these infections and protect yourself from future infections for free using free software.

Step 2 - Windows Update

- Steps to take before you install Windows XP Service Pack 3


Windows Update - Home Page
Install All of the updates. Not just the critical ones. This may have to be run multiple times. Run it over again until it says 0 updates available. Non-critical updates are essential for improved performance, compatibility and enhanced features. They are all very safe to install.

Notes - Windows Update requires the following services be enabled in Windows XP:

- Automatic Updates - Automatic
- Background Intelligent Transfer Service - Manual or Automatic

Driver Notes - If a Driver issue arises that Windows Update insists upon installing a Driver version older then one you have updated, do not install the one from Windows Update. Use the manufacturers latest version instead and just ignore that Windows Driver Update. With Drivers, the Hardware manufacturer is the one who is correct not Microsoft. Windows Update will sometimes show a Driver is outdated if it is not "Microsoft Certified". It is quite ok to use non-certified drivers. Official non-certified driver versions will have been thoroughly tested by the component manufacturer.

Update - Microsoft Windows Journal Viewer can sometimes conflict with Adobe Acrobat Reader when you open .PDF files, Error: "An installation package for the product Microsoft Windows Journal Viewer cannot be found." If this is happening uninstall The Microsoft Windows Journal Viewer, go to "Start", "Settings", "Add or Remove Programs". The Journal Viewer is only needed to read Journal files created on a Windows XP Tablet Edition PC. It is highly unlikely you will ever need to read these.


DirectX - Download
Windows Update will install the latest version of DirectX. It is still a good idea to check what version you are running and make sure you have the latest version of DirectX installed prior to installing any Drivers. Got to "Start", "Run", type in "Dxdiag" and select "OK". Under the "System" tab, "DirectX Version" check that you have the latest version that is available for Windows XP. - Source

Notes - DirectX 10 is only available for Windows Vista.

Step 3 - Drivers

Installing the latest Drivers improves system performance and application compatibility. Updated drivers include numerous bug fixes as well as system optimizations. It is recommended for optimal system stability to only use Official drivers and not Beta or Prerelease versions. Performance differences between driver versions including Beta or Prereleased drivers is negligible. The only time Beta or Prerelease drivers should be considered is when a serious application bug is fixed in the Beta or Prerelease version and the component manufacturer has not yet released the Official driver version that includes the bug fix.

Driver XP - Home Page
A Windows Driver Guide that includes component links and instructions.

Notes - Windows Update will install very common driver updates, however these will not always be the latest versions and sometimes can even be an older version of one you have already updated, example: nVidia forceware drivers. It is perfectly safe to install the Windows Driver Updates but if you want the very best system performance you have to check for and install the latest drivers manually.

Step 4 - Tweaks

Visual Effects
Default Windows XP visual settings may look nice but they slow down system responsiveness. Here is how to keep the "look" of Windows XP while losing the sluggish feel.

Instructions - Go to "Start", "Settings", "Control Panel", "System", "Advanced" tab, in the "Performance" section select "Settings". Leave only the following checked:

√ Show shadows under menus
√ Show shadows under mouse pointer
√ Show translucent selection rectangle
√ Smooth edges of screen fonts
√ Use drop shadows for icons labels on the desktop
√ Use visual styles on windows and buttons

Then select "Apply" and "OK". - Source

ClearType - If you have a Flat Panel Display (Notebook, LCD, Plasma) you will notice improved font display quality enabling ClearType over traditional forms of font smoothing or anti-aliasing. ClearType improves readability on color LCD displays with a digital interface, such as those in laptops and high-quality flat panel displays.

Instructions - Go to "Start", "Settings", "Control Panel", "Display", "Appearance" Tab, "Effects" button, check "Use the following method to smooth edges of screen fonts", select "ClearType".


The Paging File
Windows XP by default uses a System managed paging file that works well and it is highly recommended to leave it alone.

"In modern operating systems, including Windows, application programs and many system processes always reference memory using virtual memory addresses which are automatically translated to real (RAM) addresses by the hardware. Only core parts of the operating system kernel bypass this address translation and use real memory addresses directly. Virtual Memory is always in use, even when the memory required by all running processes does not exceed the amount of RAM installed on the system. All processes (e.g. application executables) running under 32 bit Windows gets virtual memory addresses (a Virtual Address Space) going from 0 to 4,294,967,295 (2*32-1 = 4 GB), no matter how much RAM is actually installed on the computer. In the default Windows OS configuration, 2 GB of this virtual address space are designated for each process' private use and the other 2 GB are shared between all processes and the operating system. Normally, applications (e.g. Notepad, Word, Excel, Acrobat Reader) use only a small fraction of the 2GB of private address space. The operating system only assigns RAM page frames to virtual memory pages that are in use. RAM is a limited resource, whereas virtual memory is, for most practical purposes, unlimited. There can be a large number of processes each with its own 2 GB of private virtual address space. When the memory in use by all the existing processes exceeds the amount of RAM available, the operating system will move pages (4 KB pieces) of one or more virtual address spaces to the computer's hard disk, thus freeing that RAM frame for other uses. In Windows systems, these "paged out" pages are stored in one or more files called pagefile.sys in the root of a partition." - Source

Default - Windows XP will automatically set the paging file to the following size based on how much RAM is in your system. - Source

Less than 1GB of RAM
- Initial size (MB): 1.5 x the amount of RAM in your system
- Maximum size (MB): 3.0 x the amount of RAM in your system (32-bit PF Size Limit = 4095 MB)

More than or equal to 1GB of RAM
- Initial size (MB): 1 x the amount of RAM in your system
- Maximum size (MB): 3.0 x the amount of RAM in your system (32-bit PF Size Limit = 4095 MB)

Notes - A properly configured paging file will not resize (increase) so long as the Initial size is set large enough and you have not run out of available RAM. Allowing the paging file to resize is recommended for unforeseen memory intensive situations and will prevent "Out of Memory" error messages from occurring. Any resizing will reset to the default Initial size upon reboot and will not cause any permanent fragmentation of the paging file. Setting the Initial size too large has no negative impact on system performance except to waste disk space if it is not used. Since disk space is usually plentiful it is safer then setting it too small. All arguments about setting the paging file smaller are to conserve disk space and have nothing to do with performance. A permanent solution to this is to add more RAM to your system. It is a good idea to have at least 1 GB to 2 GB of RAM in a PC today. A simple test to determine if you need more RAM is to use you PC for a whole day without rebooting, then look at the Task Manager (Ctrl-Alt-Delete), Performance tab. If the "Commit Charge - Peak" is ever higher then the "Physical Memory - Total" your system could benefit from adding more RAM. When you change the amount of RAM in your system with a System managed paging file, Windows XP will automatically adjust the paging file size for you.

Optimization - If you have more then one Harddrive in your computer you can create a second paging file on the other physical Harddrive, which will increase paging file performance. Windows uses an internal algorithm to determine which paging file to use for optimal virtual memory management. - Source


Disable Indexing Service
The Indexing Service in Windows XP indexes your files presumably to shorten the time needed to search your hard drive if you are looking for a specific file or part of a phrase inside a file. However, the constant indexing of files actually slows down system performance by using a lot of pagefile space and CPU time. - Source

Instructions - To disable the Indexing Service go into "My Computer", right-click on all your hard drive partitions one at a time, left-click "Properties". Uncheck "Allow Indexing Service to index this disk for fast file searching". Select "Apply changes to subfolders and files". If any files cannot be updated select "Ignore All".


Instructions - Go to "Start", "Settings", "Control Panel", "System", "System Restore" tab, for each drive partition highlight it then select "Settings", under "Drive Space Usage" adjust the slider so System Restore is only using roughly 5% or a minimum of 1000 MB of disk space per partition and select "OK".


Increase the Mouse Pointer Speed
By default Windows sets the Mouse Pointer Speed to an average speed, which can slow down the time it takes to move the cursor around the screen. Increasing this will allow you use your computer quicker and more efficient with less mouse movement.

Instructions - Go to "Start", "Settings", "Control Panel", "Mouse", "Pointer Options" tab, under "Motion" adjust the slider 1 to 5 steps closer to "Fast". Only 1 to 3 steps is recommended. Then check "Enhance pointer precision" and select "OK".

Notes - This is a personal preference and should be decided by the user. The tab that the Motion setting will be under can change with third party mouse drivers. Novice Windows users or users with Motion Disabilities will not want to adjust this much, if at all. Cheap and worn out mice can give poor responsiveness, it is recommended to be using a precision optical mouse. Microsoft Optical Mice are highly recommended.


Prefetcher Fix - Download
Prefetching is a new feature in Windows XP that dramatically improves initial application load times and Windows boot times automatically. The slower your system and the larger an application, the more Prefetching helps. Even high end systems benefit from prefetching with large, slow loading applications, such as large games. By default Prefetching is enabled in Windows XP and already configured optimally. However there is a lot of misinformation regarding this feature and bad "tweak" programs on the internet that can disable prefetching and cripple your application load times. Find out more in XP Myths. Windows Prefetching requires that the Task Scheduler service be running and set to Automatic. The other Prefetcher settings have to be set in the Registry, this file will do this all for you. - Source

Instructions - Download, unzip and run the "Prefetcher Fix.reg" file and reboot. This will restore the Windows Prefetcher to it's default and optimal state. It will also set the Task Scheduler Service to Automatic.

- Task Scheduler - Automatic

Then use Windows Explorer and look in the C:\WINDOWS\Prefetch folder. You should see a file name for any application you have started since Prefetching was enabled. Never clean this folder or disable Windows Prefetching with any "tweaks" as you will cripple your application load times and Windows boot times by as much as 100%. The Prefetch folder and layout.ini files are self-cleaning when it reaches 128 entries. No user intervention is ever necessary. Once you have confirmed it is running leave it alone. Anyone who claims otherwise does not understand how Windows XP Prefetching works.

Step 5 - Utilities

Autoruns - Download - Home Page
Utility to display and control startup applications. Disabling unnecessary startup applications improves boot up time and overall system performance.

Instructions - Unzip and launch Autoruns.exe, wait until it says "Ready" in the bottom left corner, then select the "Logon" tab. Next select "Options", check "Hide Microsoft Entries" and press the refresh button or press the "F5" key. The remaining items are third party applications. Uncheck all that are not needed, this will disable them from loading at Windows startup. AntiVirus and Firewall applications are necessary applications that should be running on startup. If you are unsure of what something is, highlight it, select "Entry" then "Google" to launch a search for more information regarding the highlighted application. You can permanently remove items by deleting them. Do not "Delete" anything unless you are 100% positive you do not need it. Disabled (Unchecked) items can be activated again by rerunning Autoruns, checking the item and restarting Windows.

Notes - You can control the startup applications for separate user accounts by selecting "User" and the account you want to edit. This is a much more powerful tool then the built-in System Configuration Utility (msconfig).

Disk Defragmenter - Home Page - (Unnecessary if Diskeeper is installed)
Built-in Windows defragmenter, a lite version of Diskeeper. File system performance is maximized when files are contiguous on the disk. This means that all of the data in each file would be located consecutively on the Hard Drive. Instead of fragmented into separate parts all over the disk surface, causing the Hard Drive to work harder (slower) to read and write your files. While "Disk Defragmenter" is better then nothing it does not fully optimize your hard drive performance, runs 300-500% slower, cannot be scheduled without a third party application and includes no advanced features. Since the built-in "Disk Defragmenter" is very I/O intensive your system is not usable while it is running. There are no Free Defragmenters that do a better job, in which case you have to purchase a Commercial Defragmenter such as Diskeeper.

Instructions - Double-click "My Computer", right-click the local disk volume that you want to defragment, Example: Local Disk (C:), and then left-click "Properties". On the "Tools" tab, select "Defragment Now", then "Defragment". The following service needs to be enabled:

- DCOM Server Process Launcher - Automatic

Alternate - Go to "Start", "Run", type "Dfrg.msc". Select the volume that you want to defragment, then select "Defragment".

+ StartDefrag - Download - Home Page - (Unnecessary if Diskeeper is installed)
Automates the scheduling of the built-in Disk Defragmenter to run at a set time everyday or once a week.

Instructions - Install and run. Select the "Configuration" tab, under "Scheduled Day" either select a specific day during the week or "Everyday". Then under "Scheduled Hour" select a time when you will not be on the computer but the computer will be on. This is important since the built-in Disk Defragmenter will consume most of the system's resources while running and will not be usable until it is finished. Finally select "Save Changes" and "Exit".

Notes - Do not use this with Diskeeper, which includes a much more advanced and efficient real-time scheduling option. If you install Diskeeper delete the StartDefrag scheduled task and uninstall StartDefrag. To delete the scheduled task, go to "Start", "Programs", "Accessories", "System Tools", "Scheduled Tasks" and delete the task. If it is the only scheduled task listed it will be called "AT1".

+ PageDefrag - Download - Home Page - (Unnecessary if Diskeeper is installed)
Defragment the paging file and the Registry. "One of the limitations of the Windows 2000/XP defragmentation interface is that it is not possible to defragment files that are open for exclusive access. Thus, standard defragmentation programs can neither show you how fragmented your paging files or Registry hives are, nor defragment them. Paging and Registry file fragmentation can be one of the leading causes of performance degradation related to file fragmentation in a system."

Instructions - Download, Run, Look at the "Fragments" column if any of the items is in more then one fragment select "Defrag at next Reboot", than "Ok" and Reboot.

Notes - If you readjust the paging file size, rerun PageDefrag, otherwise this only needs to be run once. On badly fragmented hard drives with a lot of files, PageDefrag may take a long time to run, be patient and let it finish.


Diskeeper - Comparison Chart / $29.95 Home / $49.95 Pro / $99.95 ProPremier / Purchase


Diskeeper is the full, automatic version of the limited built-in "disk defragmenter". Now over seven generations newer, it includes enhanced features that Defragment your computer automatically, faster and more thoroughly. The High Speed Defragmentation Engine runs 300-500% faster than the built-in "disk defragmenter". Real-Time Defragmentation automatically handles fragmentation as it occurs with no drain on system resources. InvisiTasking technology allows Diskeeper to run invisibly, keeping your PC defragmented while you are using it - you will never even know Diskeeper is running. Power Management for laptops prolongs battery life by suspending background defragmentation while on battery power. Diskeeper offers the best performance of all commercial defragmenters. Hard Drives are the slowest component in your PC, do not let Disk Fragmentation slow it down even more.

"If you want increased disk performance and speed, install Diskeeper on all your systems."
- John Iasiuolo (Computer Outlook Radio Show) - Diskeeper Testimonials

This graph shows how fragmented your Harddrive can get after just two weeks of using only Internet Explorer and Microsoft Word.




IZArc - Download - Home Page
A 100% Free archive utility that supports many archive formats like: 7-ZIP, A, ACE, ARC, ARJ, B64, BH, BIN, BZ2, BZA, C2D, CAB, CDI, CPIO, DEB, ENC, GCA, GZ, GZA, HA, IMG, ISO, JAR, LHA, LIB, LZH, MDF, MBF, MIM, NRG, PAK, PDI, PK3, RAR, RPM, TAR, TAZ, TBZ, TGZ, TZ, UUE, WAR, XXE, YZ1, Z, ZIP, ZOO. With a modern easy-to-use interface, IZArc provides support for most compressed and encoded files, as well as access to many powerful features and tools. It allows you to drag and drop files from and to Windows Explorer, create and extract archives directly in Windows Explorer, create multiple archives spanning disks, creating self-extracting archives, repair damaged zip archives, converting from one archive type to another, view and write comments and many more.


TweakUI - Download + Control Panel - Home Page
This Windows XP PowerToy gives you access to system settings that are not exposed in the Windows XP default user interface, including mouse settings, Explorer settings, taskbar settings, and more.

Instructions - Download, install, add to the Control Panel and run. Under "Mouse" slide "Menu Speed" to "Fast", under "Explorer" check "Use Classic Search in Explorer" (Gets rid of the Dog).


XP-AntiSpy - Download - Home Page
Disables all the known 'Suspicious' Functions in Windows XP.

Instructions v3.96-4 - Install and run. Go to "Profiles", select "Neutral", then check most of the boxes and select "Apply". Leave the following unchecked:

[MediaPlayer Functions]
_ Do not acquire licenses automatically - This prevents Windows Media Player from downloading any necessary licenses.
_ No automatic updates - This prevents Windows Media Player from automatically updating.
_ Disable automatic codec downloads - This prevents Windows Media Player from downloading required codecs.
_ Don't get meta data from the internet - This prevents Windows Media Player from getting CD/DVD information.
[Miscellaneous Settings]
_ Don't synchronize with internet time - This prevents Windows from automatically keeping your clock accurate.
_ Clear pagefile at shutdown - This will cause Windows XP to take much longer to shutdown but increases security for the paranoid.
_ Deny starting regedit.exe - This prevents future use of the very useful regedit tool.
_ Deactivate Scripting Host - This will cause features to stop working in web browsers and e-mail.
_ Always show *.lnk suffixes - This adds .lnk to desktop shortcuts.
_ Always show *.url suffixes - This adds .url to web browser bookmarks.
_ Don't autostart CD's - This prevents CD's from running automatically when put in the CD/DVD drive.
[Network]
_ Disable integrated Firewall - This will disable the Windows XP firewall.
_ Hide Computer in Network - This prevents your Computer from showing up in Network Neighborhood.
_ Disable Network crawling - This prevents Windows from searching your network for network resources.
[Internet Explorer 6] (This will not show up if IE7 is installed)
_ Disable automatic updates - This prevents Windows Update from checking for and downloading updates.
_ Disable scheduled updates - This prevents Windows Update from installing updates.
_ Disable Javascript - This will cause some web pages to lose their menus or functionality completely.
_ Disable ActiveX Controls - This will cause some web pages to lose their menus or functionality completely.
_ Clean website cache on shutdown - This will cause Windows XP to take longer to shutdown but is a good idea for security.
[Services]
_ Disable auto-updates service - This prevents Windows Update from running Automatically.
_ Disable time server service - This prevents Windows from automatically keeping your clock accurate.
_ Disable task-scheduler service - The Windows Prefetcher, BootVis and Norton AV require this service to be running.
_ Disable firewall/connection sharing service - This will disable the Windows XP firewall.
_ Disable Security Center - This prevents necessary security warnings.
[Microsoft Messenger]
_ Uninstall completely - If you use or plan on using Microsoft's Instant Messenger leave this unchecked.
[Regsrv32 dll's]
_ licdll.dll - Only select this if Windows is already activated.
_ Disable ZIP Functionality - Only select if you have another .Zip program installed such as IZArc or WinZip.

- It is highly recommended to leave the profile on "Neutral" and adjust the values manually. The presets included such as the "Suggested" profile will disable important Windows features such as Windows Updates, the Security Center and Internet Explorer settings like Javascript and ActiveX. This will break common web page features such as menus and forms and prevent critical security patches from being applied. The color coding of check boxes can be further explained in the Help file under "Signs and Symbols".

Step 6 - Services

Windows XP has some extra services running by default that most people will never use. By disabling these services you will improve Windows boot time and security. Other performance related claims to disabling services are Myths.

Shoot The Messenger - Download - Home Page
Disables Windows Messaging service. This will prevent online spammers from abusing this and causing non browser related message Pop-ups during normal system operation. Installing SP2 or higher will disable the messenger service for you.


Unplug n' Pray - Download - Home Page - Details
Disables Windows potentially dangerous and exploitable Universal Plug and Play networking capability. UPNP allows software applications to automatically open ports on a UPNP router without your permission.


Windows XP Services Guide - Home Page
Run XP-AntiSpy, Shoot The Messenger and Unplug n' Pray first since those utilities will disable some of these services for you. If you are not 100% sure about a service leave it on its default state. The goal is not to turn off as many services as possible but rather to disable only unneeded services.

Instruction - Go to Start, Run, type "services.msc" and press enter. Left-click on the status bar twice to filter all the started service to the top. Double left-click on the Service Name you wish to change. Change the "Startup Type" to either Automatic, Manual or Disabled then select "Apply" and "OK", repeat for all of the following:

Disabled - The following is a list of Services that you can disable on most systems:

Alerter
Distributed Link Tracking Client
Help and Support - (If you use Windows Help and Support leave this enabled)
Indexing Service
IPSEC Services
Messenger - (Shoot the Messenger and installing SP2 or higher will disable this)
Portable Media Serial Number - (Leave enabled for use with security dongles)
Remote Registry Service
Secondary Logon
SSDP Discovery Service - (Unplug n' Pray will disable this)
Telnet
Upload Manager
Wireless Zero Configuration - (If you are on a wireless network leave this enabled)

Automatic - The following is a list of Services that should always be set to automatic:

Application Layer Gateway Service - (Required by the Windows XP Firewall)
Automatic Updates - (Required by Windows Updates)
Background Intelligent Transfer Service - (Required by Windows Updates)
COM+ Event System - (Required by BootVis and other applications)
Cryptographic Services - (Required to confirm the signature of Windows system files, protected root services and key services)
DCOM Server Process Launcher - (Required by the Disk Defragmenter)
DHCP Client - (Required for Cable/DSL connections and routers)
DNS Client - (Improves internet performance)
Event Log - (Required by Windows and cannot be stopped)
Logical Disk Manager - (Required to manage and update your harddrives)
Network Connections - (Required by network connections)
Plug and Play - (Required by your system hardware, Never Disable This!)
Print Spooler - (Required by printers)
Protected Storage - (Required to protected sensitive data and to prevent access by unauthorized services, processes, or users.)
Remote Procedure Call (RPC) - (Required by Windows, Never Disable This!)
Security Accounts Manager - (Required to store security information for local user accounts)
Security Center - (Notifies you of you Firewall and AntiVirus status)
Shell Hardware Detection - (Required by the AutoPlay feature)
System Event Notification - (Required by various applications)
System Restore Service - (Required by the System Restore feature)
Task Scheduler - (Required by the Windows Prefetcher, BootVis and Norton AV, Never Disable This!)
Themes - (Required by the new look of Windows XP)
Windows Audio - (Required for sound)
Windows Firewall/Internet Connection Sharing (ICS) - (Required by the Windows XP Firewall)
Windows Management Instrumentation - (Required by Windows, Never Disable This!)

Network Services - The following is a list of Services that are required on home networks and LANs:

Computer Browser - (Locates local computers and resources on a LAN)
DHCP Client - (Required for Cable/DSL connections and routers)
Network Connections - (Required by network connections)
Server - (Required for network shares and managing local user accounts)
TCP/IP NetBIOS Helper - (Required for NetBIOS name resolution)
Wireless Zero Configuration - (Required if you are on a wireless network)
Workstation - (Required for access to LAN shares and servers)

Notes - Windows Updates can enable services that you have previously disabled. Check which services are running after a future Windows Update is completed. If applications stop working after this it is usually due to being to aggressive with disabling services. Enable the services you disabled one at a time until the application works. In the future leave this service on automatic. If you run into any problems set all services back to their Defaults and start over.

Step 7 - Internet

TCP/IP Optimizer - Download - Home Page - Speakeasy Speed Test
Application to optimize your Internet connection.

Instructions - Download and run. Under the "General Settings" tab select your Connection Speed (Kbps), which is your Maximum Download Speed. If you do not know what it is, contact your ISP and ask them. Make sure the value you get is in Kbps. (Exact capitalization is important, uppercase K, lowercase b ect...) Otherwise use the Speed Test and select the Closest City to get a rough idea of what it should be, then round this value (Download Speed) up to the closest size in TCP/IP Optimizer. Under "Network Adapter" choose the Network interface you use to connect to the Internet, select "Optimal settings", then "Apply changes" and "Yes" to Reboot.

Notes - Setting the Connection Speed higher then your Maximum ISP Download Speed will NOT improve performance and may actually hurt performance. Whatever your ISP claims is your Maximum Download Speed should always be used regardless of what the Speed Test shows. Maximum Download Speeds are theoretical and not always attainable for various reasons. It is normal for them to fluctuate. However, drastic differences in what your ISP claims you should get and what you are actually getting should be brought up with your ISP. It is your money after all and I would want to get what I paid for.


TCP/IP Slowdown Fix (Event ID 4226 Patcher) - Download - Mirror - Home Page - Forums
Windows XP SP2 or higher limits the number of simultaneous incomplete outbound TCP connection attempts per second to 10 from an "unlimited" number (16777214) in SP1. With the new implementation, if a P2P or some other network program attempts to connect to 100 sites at once, it would only be able to connect to 10 per second, so it would take it 10 seconds to reach all 100. In addition, even though the setting was registry editable in SP1, it is now only possible to edit by changing it directly in the system file tcpip.sys. Keep in mind this is a cap only on simultaneous incomplete outbound connect attempts per second, not total connections. Servers and P2P programs can definitely be affected by this new limitation. The purpose of this is an attempt to limit the speed at which Viruses and Worms spread. However this does absolutely nothing to improve YOUR security. It merely attempts to slow the spread of a Viruses and Worms from your computer to others AFTER you have been infected. Remember it is a limit on OUTBOUND not Inbound connections. I recommend installing this patch for optimal network and Internet performance.

Instructions - Download, unzip and run. Press "Y" and then Enter. A "Windows File Protection" window will come up, ignore this by selecting "Cancel" then "Yes" and Reboot. This warning is normal since you are editing a protected system file.

Notes - Various Windows updates resets the simultaneous incomplete outbound TCP connection attempt limit to 10.

Notes - AntiVirus programs may incorrectly detect the EvID4226Patch.exe file as a virus. This is a False positive. The file is perfectly safe but being incorrectly identified by your AntiVirus program as malicious. First make sure you are using the very latest version of your AntiVirus program and pattern file, if it does not go away contact the makers of your AntiVirus programs so they can resolve the error.


WEB BROWSERS
Despite all the online hype, the far majority of users are best served using Internet Explorer 7 for maximum webpage compatibility. Advanced users may want to try out Opera for maximum performance.

Internet Explorer 7 - Home Page - Features - Download
Internet Explorer 7 maintains the most webpage compatibility of any browser and adds Tabs, Integrated Search and a much needed Anti-Phishing feature. Pop-up Blocking support was first added in Windows XP SP2 for Internet Explorer 6 and is built-in to Internet Explorer 7. Since the single most important feature of a browser is webpage compatibility, this is an excellent choice for most users.

Opera 9 - Home Page - Features - Download - Betas - Customize
Opera invented Tabbed like browsing and was the first web browser to include an Integrated Search feature and Pop-up Blocking. Other unique features include an integrated BitTorrent Client and Voice control. Opera is the Fastest, most Secure and most Compliant (Acid2) Graphical Web Browser for Windows. An excellent choice for advanced users.

Notes - Opera is not compatible with all webpages.

Firefox Myths - Firefox Myths
Firefox is not being recommended here for many reasons. Some of those reasons are that it is slower than Internet Explorer, insecure and not completely compatible with 10-15% of all web sites. Get the facts.

Step 8 - Boot

Everything needs to be installed and updated before you proceed for optimal results. Many previous steps also improve boot times, such as the Prefetcher Fix, disabling Services except Task Scheduler, using Autoruns and Defragmenting.

BootVis - Download
BootVis is a boot performance trace visualization and optimization tool. This tool invokes the built-in Windows XP boot time optimization process when you run it, instead of waiting for it to be scheduled by Windows (roughly every three days and after the system has been idle 10 minutes). You will notice immediate improvement in boot performance for this reason. It is not necessary to run BootVis again unless something has been added or removed from the boot sequence (Drivers, Startup Applications ect...)

Instructions - Download and Run. In the menu go to "Trace", select "Next Boot and Driver Delays". A "Trace Repetitions" screen will appear, select "Ok" and Reboot. Upon reboot, BootVis will automatically start, analyze and log your system's boot process. When it's done, in the menu go to "Trace" and select "Optimize System" and Reboot. This time when your system comes up, wait until you see the "Optimizing System" box appear, continue to wait until the process is complete.

Notes - BootVis requires the following services be enabled and the system rebooted before using the "Optimize System" function:

- Task Scheduler - Automatic
- COM+ Event System - Automatic

If you are running a performance trace on a Pentium 4 system with Hyper-Threading enabled you need to have SP2 or higher installed (821581). Unfortunately BootVis is not publicly supported by Microsoft anymore.

Errors - Since BootVis is not publicly supported anymore, the last public release version has various compatibility issues with certain IDE/SATA/RAID devices and drivers with no official documentation on how to resolve them. One of the most common errors is "Number of physical drives in the trace file is 0". In which case you will be unable to use BootVis and should uninstall it. To manually perform the same optimization follow these instructions:

Manual Instructions - Reboot Windows XP two times, each time wait one full minute after the desktop appears to allow Windows time to fully write to the NTOSBOOT-B00DFAAD.PF file before proceeding, then go to "Start", "Run", Type Rundll32.exe advapi32.dll,ProcessIdleTasks. This can take 10-15 minutes to run but no notification will be given when it is finished. You will notice increased Harddrive activity while it is running wait until this stops. When this is finished in the "Run" box Type defrag c: -b and wait until the command prompt window disappears. It is not necessary to do again unless something has been added or removed from the boot sequence (Drivers, Startup Applications ect...) and you do not feel like waiting 3 days for it to be automatically optimized by Windows.

Step 9 - Shutdown

User Profile Hive Cleanup Service - Download
A service to help with slow log off and unreconciled profile problems.

Advanced

Disable NTFS 8.3 Filenames - Home Page
The creation of 8.3 filenames and directories for all long filenames and directories on NTFS partitions may decrease directory enumeration performance.

[HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem] "NtfsDisable8dot3NameCreation"

Instructions - Go to "Start", "Run", and Type: fsutil behavior set disable8dot3 1

- Some 16-bit (DOS) applications may not be able to find files and directories with long filenames.


Disable NTFS Last Access Time - Home Page
Disabling the Last Access Time improves the speed of folder and file access.

[HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem] "NtfsDisableLastAccessUpdate"

Instructions - Go to "Start", "Run", and Type: fsutil behavior set disablelastaccess 1

- This can affect programs such as backup and Remote Storage that rely on this feature.

Freeware

Stop paying for software you can get for free! Using the following two guides you can get everything you need from expensive Office Suites and Photo Editing software to over 100 Games for free:

XP Freeware - This guide will show you the best Freeware Applications for Windows. From expensive Office Suites to Photo Editing software. Why are you paying hundreds of dollars for software that you can get for free?

XP Games - This guide covers the better Freeware games from Independent Developers and Commercial Publishers. These games are 100% free full games, not Demos or Shareware. None have any Adware, Spyware or Viruses. Get over 100 quality games without having to spend a dime.

Archive

SP1 Slowdown Hotfix

End

This guide is under constant revision as new optimizations are uncovered and evaluated. Feel free to submit suggestions or comments to OptimizeXP@comcast.net. Do not send Technical Support Questions.

XP Myths - Make sure to read this before submitting suggestions since this explains why some optimizations are not listed here.

Diagnose XP - Use this guide to troubleshoot any system problems.