Table of content
Windows Operating System
WinOS
TOC-
OS-Update
Updating Hard and Software?
I've refrained from using any upgrading with my recent installs, in fact I've downgraded, in using 98lite with the 95shell.
The latest 98lite even allows for dedicated strip down of everthing like media-player, direct-something and so on. When you have down the system to the naked needs, start to reinstall one app after the other, see what it is missing and reinstall from windows-setup only what is needed.
Control each step with Inctrl4 and make a complete system backup, this allows to easily revert to a previous state. Ok, it's time consuming, however it's much easier to identify any culprit driver or whatever file, which hampers the system.
Always be careful when replacing a flagged corrupted file with original win98 CD version, the version file needed may be from an update/patch. If the system is complaining, SFC.EXE appears to be a poor thing, as it doesn't give you much information about what to do in fact, stick with the old or chose the new file. One must use it often; after each install of both software and especially updates choose to have sfc update it's nfo on the file.
I've found, it's better to revert from previous backups.
I've been trapped 3 times now, by upgrades which were not really necessary, however tried them and whoop system messed up.
The old rule, install always the latest drivers, is crap. The same is valid for win98 updates. 90% of it isn't needed for standard users, most of it is only pushed out reflecting latest HW/SW configurations thus messing up older ones.
I've been a happy user of 95A for 4 years on a P90, no upgrades.
3 years now 95B on aP75 notebook, no upgrades.
Over 1 year 98lite on a PII/400, no upgrades, but a number of 64 configurations I can recall any time on 3 boot partitions.
The only mess I had last year was related to my ancient Netscape3.01 for a period of 2 month but I've managed it somehow, I can't recall excactly how. I'm still working with it now, why shall I upgrade.
The point with upgrading is, because it's available you've to use it. Wrong!
You wouldn't drive a Ferrari, just because it's available, even for free?
You usually decide, for what reason, you get something to your needs in the first place.
If you've no use for it, you sell it or throw it away.
- An general advice I'd give:
- if you buy a new system, buy an "ancient" one, half year back state of the art
- get it stuffed up with everything you need within latestly half a year
- keep it running and don't change HW or sytem until you can't live with it anymore
- rely on little nifty, separate, transparent freeware tools and apps, they cope most of the mishaps of basic problems
- avoid any bloated complex SW-packages, you'll use anyway less than 10% of it's functionality
- don't trust any advice given you via the internet, test it yourself in a protected environment
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Win at any place
I posted this at http://mb.nowonder.com/ultimate/Forum2/HTML/009575.html [link is dead]
Windows on any disk, how simple it goes
Note: this is just a cheep way to circumvent any hassles with primary partitions and bootmanagers
Preparations:
- hdd space somwhere 384MB free assumed, 256 should go already in most cases (fat16 would be also a nice draw)
- Drag and drop your complete windows directory to the v: drive
- Export a registry, load it into an powerfull text-editor (not notpad), save it as c:\standard.reg and replace any occurrances of c:\\windows with v:\\windows (regard the double-slash), save it to v:\virtual.reg where v: is the target drive of your choice, even on the same drive, but than chose a different directory name and adapt the autoexec.bat accordingly.
REM add this to your autoexec.bat
choice /cyn/tn,10 Windows On V ?
if errorlevel 2 goto OVER
REM you may enter other choices too
REM you should assign the swap-file already to somewhere else in advance
if exist %winbootdir%\win386.swp del %winbootdir%\win386.swp
path=v:\windows;v:\windows\command
set winbootdir=v:\windows
regedit /c v:\virtual.reg
REM you may rem out the last line after the first run but keep it for modifications from your standard setup
OVER
REM just in case you want to save some registry setting to your standard setup revert the registry update process any time you want and remove the REM
REM c:\windows\regedit /c c:\standard.reg
%winbootdir%\win
REM EOF(autoexec.bat)
CloseOut:
You have to run a little nifty FixReg utility in windows afterwards, as Regedit /c has a BUG in reading back LineFeed control characters in registry values. These values are almost related to modem initialization strings, but not only. The utility fixes this, you find it on http://www.users.dircon.co.uk/~flibble/regsmall.html with further information also on http://www.users.dircon.co.uk/~flibble/regcheat.html
You've to point to the standard.reg file with the utility and it will check for corrections and tell you if any happened. If none found, you can forget the utility for the future, newer equipment doesn't use any LF's anymore.
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Start
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DOS Memory
You need more free conventional memory?
You have to create individual startup files to circumvent win9x default settings and also load high devices and programs under dos
Example for Config.sys
DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYS
DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE NOEMS
DOS=HIGH,UMB,AUTO
FILESHIGH=70
BUFFERSHIGH=40
DEVICEHIGH=filespec\any_driver_else_you_need
If you need ems memory eg. if a game requires it change the line to
DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE 4096 RAM
(4096=Size parameter. Increase or decrease by multiples of 1024, this example reserves an additional 4MB of XMS for EMS emulation, the maximum is 64MB)
Example for Dosstart.bat/Autoexec.bat with the usage of LoadHigh=LH
@ECHO OFF
LH c:\windows\command\MSCDEX.EXE /D:gem001
LH c:\mouse\MOUSE.exe
This principles save as much as possible conventional memory for DOS-operations.
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HighEndTweak
This is given only for pure information and to be checked thoroughly for your configuration, there are a number of good clues in it as well as additional utilities and proggies. Make your own selections, some of them are risky
Axcels MS-DOS 7.10 + MS Windows 98 SE CONFIG.SYS file:
; Skip 2 seconds boot delay [/F] + load part of IO.SYS high [/E:xxx] SWITCHES line:
SWITCHES=/F /E
; Load DOS HIGH + enable DOS UMA (Upper Memory Area):
DOS=HIGH,UMB,AUTO
; UMBPCI.SYS v3.07 Upper MEMory Extender [enables UMA and unloads]:
DEVICE=C:\MAX\UMBPCI.SYS
; HIRAM.EXE v1.9 Upper MEMory Provider [maps UMA and loads HIMEM.SYS high]:
DEVICE=C:\MAX\HIRAM.EXE
; HIMEM.SYS v3.95 HIGH + Extended MEMory Manager [MANDATORY for Windows 9x!]:
DEVICEHIGH=C:\W95\HIMEM.SYS /NUMHANDLES=128 /TESTMEM:OFF /Q
; Optimal BUFFERS line when using SMARTDRV:
BUFFERS=10,0
; Optimal FILES line:
FILES=80
; My LASTDRIVE line:
LASTDRIVE=I
; Disable old FCBS support:
FCBS=1,0
; Disable DOS STACKS support:
STACKS=0,0
; VIDE-CDD.SYS v2.14 "universal" MS-DOS mode CD-ROM driver:
DEVICEHIGH=C:\CDROM\VIDE-CDD.SYS /D:IDECDROM
; Enable MS-DOS mode NANSI.SYS v3.4 CONsole accelerator driver:
DEVICEHIGH=C:\MAX\NANSI.SYS /K /X
; Enable MS-DOS support for Windows 32-bit Disk Access [MANDATORY for Windows 9x!]:
DEVICEHIGH=C:\W95\IFSHLP.SYS
; Increased COMMAND environment SHELL line:
SHELL=C:\COMMAND.COM C:\ /E:1280 /L:128 /U:128 /P
; Enable %WINDIR% variable in native MS-DOS mode:
SET WINDIR=C:\W95
; TEMPorary files path [next 2 lines]:
SET TEMP=H:\TEMP
SET TMP=H:\TEMP
; Disable last typed command in DOS:
SET CMDLINE=
My MS-DOS 7.10 + MS Windows 98 SE AUTOEXEC.BAT file:
:: Disable CONsole display [similar to using > NUL]:
@CTTY NUL
:: Load Quantum3D Raven PCI 3Dfx Banshee 2D+3D video card VESAFIX v1.8 TSR:
LOADHIGH=C:\3D\VESAFIX.COM -M8
:: Enable FastVid v1.10 DOS/Windows video acceleration [Pentium Pro/II/III ONLY!]:
C:\3D\FASTVID.EXE 1X1 -16 E4000000
:: Disable Sound Blaster Live! PCI sound card SB16 FM emulation in MS-DOS mode [next 5 lines]:
SET MIDI=SYNTH:1 MAP:E MODE:0
SET BLASTER=A220 I5 D1 H5 P330 T6
SET CTSYN=C:\W95
C:\LIVE!\DOSDRV\SBEINIT.COM
C:\LIVE!\DOSDRV\SBESET.EXE -d1 -j0 -w0 -A220 -I5 -D1 -H5 -J200 -P330
:: LFNs [Long File Names] DOS BATch support:
LFNFOR ON
:: MicroSoft CD-rom EXtensions driver v2.25 [using VIDE-CDD.SYS in CONFIG.SYS]:
LOADHIGH=C:\W95\COMMAND\MSCDEX.EXE /D:IDECDROM /M:16 /L:G
:: MS-DOS SmartDrive v5.02 disk cache driver:
LOADHIGH=C:\W95\SMARTDRV.EXE 6144 16 A- B- C+ D+ E+ F+ G H- /N
:: DOS Mouse driver INItialization path [location of MOUSE.INI]:
SET MOUSE=C:\MAX
:: Logitech Mouse INItialization path [location of MOUSEDRV.INI]:
SET LMOUSE=C:\MAX
:: Cute Mouse v1.6 DOS PS/2 driver:
LOADHIGH=C:\MAX\CTMOUSEP.COM /R4
:: Fastest MS-DOS mode Keyboard response:
C:\W95\COMMAND\MODE.COM CON: RATE=32 DELAY=1
:: DOS Recall v1.2 driver [DOSKEY replacement]:
LOADHIGH=C:\MAX\RECALL.COM -I
:: TheFast v1.06 DOS text mode VGA BIOS accelerator:
LOADHIGH=C:\MAX\THEFAST.COM
:: XMSDSK v1.9i RAM Disk driver [RAMDRIVE.SYS replacement]:
LOADHIGH=C:\RAM\XMSDSK.EXE 24576 H: /T /Y
MD H:\TEMP
:: Quantum3D Obsidian2 X-24 PCI TV 3Dfx Voodoo2 SLI 3D video card SET <variable> [next 7 lines]:
SET FX_GLIDE_NO_SPLASH=1
SET SSTV2_GRXCLK=100
:: Quantum3D Raven PCI 3Dfx Banshee 2D+3D video card SET <variable> [next 6 lines]:
SET SSTH3_GRXCLOCK=100
SET SSTH3_MEMCLOCK=110
:: My PATH line:
SET PATH=C:\;C:\W95;C:\W95\COMMAND;C:\W95\SYSTEM;C:\BAT;C:\MAX;C:\ZIP;C:\3D;C:\QEMM;
:: Disable COPY/MOVE/XCOPY commands confirmation prompt:
SET COPYCMD=/Y
:: DIR command sort settings:
SET DIRCMD=/A /O:GEN /P
:: MS-DOS + Windows PROMPT [next 2 lines]:
SET PROMPT=UMBPCI: DOS 7.10 + Windows 98 SE$_$P$G
SET WINPMT=DOS Box: Hit Insert 2 return 2 Windows!$_$P$G
:: Reenable CONsole display:
CTTY CON
:: F1-F12 remapped keys [using NANSI.SYS in CONFIG.SYS]:
@TYPE C:\MAX\KEY.TXT
My MS-DOS 7.10 + MS Windows 98 SE MSDOS.SYS file:
; MSDOS.SYS [Paths] section:
[Paths]
; Set Windows 9x OS Directory:
WinDir=C:\W95
; Set Windows 9x OS Boot Directory:
WinBootDir=C:\W95
; Set Host Windows 9x OS Boot Drive:
HostWinBootDrv=C
; MSDOS.SYS [Options] section:
[Options]
; Disable ScanDisk check after system lockup [OSR 2.x + Win98/98 SE ONLY!]:
Autoscan=0
; Skip 2 seconds boot delay [In Win98/98 SE defaults to 0!]:
BootDelay=0
; Boot to MS-DOS mode:
BootGUI=0
; Enable Startup Menu keys:
BootKeys=1
; Display Windows 9x Startup Menu:
BootMenu=1
; Select Normal boot option [loads Windows 9x]:
BootMenuDefault=1
; 5 seconds boot delay:
BootMenuDelay=5
; Enable Dual-Boot:
BootMulti=1
; Enable Windows 9x as OS:
BootWin=1
; Disable DoubleSpace:
DblSpace=0
; Disable BOOTLOG.TXT creation:
DisableLog=1
; Disable Double Buffer:
DoubleBuffer=0
; Disable DriveSpace:
DrvSpace=0
; Disable loading of COMMAND.COM at top of conventional RAM:
LoadTop=0
; Display bootup Logo:
Logo=1
; Enable boot with Network/TCP/IP support:
Network=1
; Disable System Registry scan:
SystemReg=0
; Windows 98 SE version check [Win98 SE ONLY!]:
WinVer=4.10.2222
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Maintenance
This is a model how cyclic system maintenance from DOS-level can be accomplished.
Write such lines at the end of your autoexec.bat
echo.|date |find "." >dat.bat
REM Interim-Batch for actual.bat, verify if it looks like this or accomodate it
REM Format= Actual Date: Mo 02.11.1998
CALL dat.bat
DEL dat.bat
Write a batch file called ACTUAL.BAT
REM This would start every Friday or whatever other you want
If %2==Fr CLEAN.BAT
Write a batch file called CLEAN.BAT with the following principle operations
Deltree /y your_temp-folders
Deltree /y whatever_others
SCANREG /fix /opt
scandisk
Regedit /c import a regkey for RUNONCE defrag
Regedit /c import a regkey for RUNONCE regclean /a/s
etc.
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Startmenu
Tired of navigating always from the startbutton again?
Hold down the Shift key when you chose an item to start and the menu stays open for the next choice:
TOC-
Startup
Here's a fairly complete listing of places to look for programs that seem to be self loading:
Stuff can be loaded at startup from:
1) Config.sys
2) Autoexec.bat
3) Winstart.bat
4) the load= and run= lines in win.ini
5) the [386enh] and [boot] sections of system.ini (this includes the scrnsave.exe= line in SYSTEM.INI which can be used to run things on your system (like the infamous McafeeScreenScan), it includes also secondary program calls eg. like shell=explorer.exe killall.bat)
6) the VMM32 folder (drivers that take precedence over those built into VMM32.VXD
7) the IOSUBSYS folder (drivers)
8) subkeys (Static VxDs) under
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\VxD\
9) The Run, RunOnce, RunOnceEx,RunServices and RunServicesOnce keys under
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion
10) The Run and RunOnce keys under
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\
11) the startup folder
TOC-
System.Ini
SYSTEM.INI TWEAKS from Axcels but modified for my purposes
SYSTEM.INI is a Windows 9x/3.xx INItialization text file and resides in your Windows directory/folder.
First, let's see the Windows .INI files editing rules:
You can replace "no" with "0", "off" or "false". Similarly, "yes" has the same effect as "1", "on" or "true" (but don't type the quotes). This applies ONLY to <boolean> entries (yes/no, 1/0, on/off, true/false), NOT to numeric (decimal/hex) or string (text) values (i.e. DMABufferSize = 0 - 64 KB), which have different measuring units, ranges or characters (exemplified below).
Windows loads its built-in/default values (shown below) for all .INI settings that are not present.
All Windows .INI lines are case insensitive.
You can comment (remark, disable) any Windows .INI entry (instead of deleting it) by preceeding it with a semicolon (;). Example:
; DMABufferSize=64
Windows .INI file maximum allowed size is 64 KB, which is an annoying limitation. Anything above that is not processed. :(
You need to restart Windows every time after modifying ANY System.ini settings!
CAUTION: BACKUP your .INI files BEFORE making ANY changes!
If you don't know what these lines do, YOU MUST READ your Windows help files/documents/manuals BEFORE altering ANY configuration files, and BEWARE that if you enter invalid values you may experience data loss and/or unexpected machine lockups !!!
The following are helpful lines to add/modify (using Notepad or Sysedit for editing) under the [386enh] section of your SYSTEM.INI, valid for ALL Windows 9x/3.xx releases if not specified otherwise.
And now that we've cleared it all up, let's have some fun... :)
32BitDiskAccess=ON ;Turns on 32-bit disk access in Windows 9x/3.1x for maximum performance. To disable 32-bit access ONLY for troubleshooting purposes (NOT recommended), replace ON with OFF
WIN /D:F ; equivalent to starting windows with this parameters
COMBoostTime=1 ; To speed up keyboard buffered operations (decrease character download time) at high speed modem transfers (above 9600 bps), using communications/internet applications. Affects the time (in milliseconds) the Operating System processes a COM port interrupt. Default value is 2. If you notice any loss of keyboard characters while using internet/communications apps, increase it to 4 or higher. Experimenting may be necessary to determine your optimal setting.
COMxBuffer=1024 ; To increase the buffer size (in Bytes) for characters sent/received by your communications device (modem) on a specific COM port. Replace x with the COM port number used by your modem. Valid COMx values: 1, 2, 3 and 4. Default Buffer value is 128. High values will decrease modem transfer speed slightly, but might prevent loss of characters at high baud rates (above 9600 bps). Experimenting may be necessary to find your "sweet spot". NOTE: BEFORE increasing the COMx Buffer value, you need to add a COMxProtocol= line (see setting below):
COMxProtocol= ; To specify whether Windows should stop simulating characters in a Virtual Machine (VM) after the VM sends an XOFF character, if a communications/internet application loses characters while performing text transfers at high baud rates (above 9600 bps), on a specific COM port. Replace x with the COM port number used by your modem. Valid COMx values: 1, 2, 3 and 4. Valid values: XOFF (to stop) or blank (to continue). Default is any value other than XOFF. Set this line to blank when performing binary transfers.
DMABufferSize=64 To increase your 16-bit Direct Memory Access (DMA) channel buffer to maximum size: 64 (in KiloBytes). Affects ALL I/O (Input/Output) DMA operations: sound card FM/wavetable, MIDI playback/recording, disk buffered reads/writes. Default value is 16.
DualDisplay=on ;Mandatory for compatibility with 3rd party memory managers (QEMM, NetRoom, 386MAX etc), to allow Windows to use the B000-B7FF Upper Memory Area (UMA) on VGA, Super VGA (SVGA) and eXtended VGA (XVGA) monitors, ONLY if NOT using a secondary display adapter/monitor. Default value is off.
EMMExclude=A000-FFFF ;To prevent Windows from searching the Upper Memory Area (UMA) for unused memory (RAM) upon startup. Safer if you use any 3rd party memory managers (QEMM, NetRoom, 386MAX etc), or any real MS-DOS mode devices/drivers/TSRs in CONFIG.SYS/AUTOEXEC.BAT. This is equivalent with starting Windows by running: WIN /D:X
KeyBoostTime=0.1 ;To increase keyboard response (in seconds) to keystrokes with several background Windows programs running. Default value is 0.001 (1 millisecond = 1/1000 of a second).
LocalLoadHigh=1 ;To allow maximum conventional (low) DOS memory (RAM) in a DOS session/box. Default value is 0. Read the "LOCALLOADHIGH" topic, also in MYTIPS95.TXT, part of my Win9x/DOS7 Tricks + Secrets files [W95-11D.ZIP] for more details.
MaxBPs=1024 ;Maximum size in Bytes for break points used by Windows Virtual Memory Manager (VMM). Windows allocates memory space for break points in 4096 Bytes (4 KB) blocks. Default Win31 value is 200, which is actually rounded up to 370, to fit into the first 4K block. If you increase this number to 400, Windows opens a second 4K block, and if raised to 800, a 3rd block is allocated etc. Windows 95 B/C OSR2 and 98/98 SE recommended values: 16384 or 32768.NOTE: Windows 95 retail and OSR1 deletes the MaxBPs line upon loading. [Thank you Gary Moore (sailaway@hcnews.com)!]
MinSPs=4 ;Windows 9x ONLY: To increase the spare stack pages, to prevent possible stack fault situations. Read the "MINSPS" topic, also in TIPS95.TXT, part of my Win9x/DOS7 Tricks + Secrets files [W95-11D.ZIP] for more details.
MinTimeSlice=40 ;To increase the minimum time (in milliseconds) a Virtual Machine (VM) is allowed to run before other VMs can take over. Default value is 20. Smaller values (i.e. 10) make multitasking smoother, but decrease overall system performance.
PageBuffers=32 ;To increase the 4K page buffers number for storing asynchronous read/write pages, and thus Windows performance. Works ONLY if using 32-bit disk access AND a permanent swap file. Default value is 4. Maximum allowed is 32.
WindowUpdateTime=200 ;To decrease the time (in milliseconds) between display updates for slower non-Windows (DOS based) programs running in a DOS session/box. Default value is 50.
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WinScreens
Installing alternate logo's is easy.
Logo.sys (startup screen) goes into c:\
Logow.sys ("shutting down" screen) and Logos.sys ("now safe" screen) goes into Windows folder (usually c:\windows)
Before you install the new files, backup the old ones first (just rename them to something like logo.old, logow.old etc).
If there is no logo.sys in c:\ don't worry, this just means that its included in the io.sys file.
If windows finds a seperate logo.sys (ie: the one you copy there) then it'll use that instead.
The files have to be in 320x400x256 (8bit)colour mode:
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Desktop
-
CustomFolder
http://www.regedit.com/cgi-bin/wwwthreads/showpost.pl?Board=brdQuestions&Number=3981&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5#Post3981
Add a Custom Folder to My Computer or the Desktop (Windows 9x and NT) Create your own custom system folder on the desktop or in My Computer, that can't be deleted or renamed.
Add the following series of keys and values to the registry at ([HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID] or [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\CLSID]). The entry can be a random number. In this example 'FD4DF9E0-E3DE-11CE-BFCF-ABCD1DE12345'
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{FD4DF9E0-E3DE-11CE-BFCF-ABCD1DE12345}]
@="My Menu"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{FD4DF9E0-E3DE-11CE-BFCF-ABCD1DE12345}\DefaultIcon]
@="c:\winnt\myicon.ico"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{FD4DF9E0-E3DE-11CE-BFCF-ABCD1DE12345}\InProcServer32]
@="shell32.dll"
"ThreadingModel"="Apartment"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{FD4DF9E0-E3DE-11CE-BFCF-ABCD1DE12345}\Shell\Open My Menu\Command]
@="c:\winnt\explorer /n /root,c:\MyFolder"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{FD4DF9E0-E3DE-11CE-BFCF-ABCD1DE12345}\ShellEx\PropertySheetHandlers\{FD4DF9E0-E3DE-11CE-BFCF-ABCD1DE12345}]
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{FD4DF9E0-E3DE-11CE-BFCF-ABCD1DE12345}\ShellFolder]
"Attributes"=hex:00,00,00,00
To place the folder (which is now a system folder) on the desktop and in My Computer, add the following keys:
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace\{FD4DF9E0-E3DE-11CE-BFCF-ABCD1DE12345}]
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\MyComputer\NameSpace\{FD4DF9E0-E3DE-11CE-BFCF-ABCD1DE12345}]
The folder cannot be deleted from the desktop or My Computer, nor can it be renamed other than removing the CLSID and the entries under NAMESPACE.
Registry Settings:
Key: [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID]
Value Name: CLSID
Data Type: REG_SZ
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Explorer
Shortcut to open explorer at root
C:\WINDOWS\EXPLORER.EXE /e,/select,\
The same not expanding all folders at c:
EXPLORER /n, /e, /select, c:\
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Left Overs
right-click leftovers in Explorer
Look in the subkeys of these two keys:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\CLASSES\Directory
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\CLASSES\Folder
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NoNameIcon
You like a no name icon on your desktop?
Use this keys (numeric keypad) Alt+160 or Alt+255 pending from you default font, one of them will just leave a blank space with your default background colour
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OEMLogo
You can put any picture on System Properties.
Picture has to be Width=180, height=114 pixels. Name that file OEMLOGO.BMP and copy to C:\Windows\System folder.
Next, you can create file OEMINFO.INI using notepad:
[General]
Manufacturer=Me
Model=Pentium 9
[Support Information]
Line1=When System gets messed up
Line2=it fixes himself
Line3=With the help of format c:
Line4=
Line5=
Line6=
copy that file oeminfo.ini to C:\Windows\System folder
From Savatage member of Host-Club
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Preview Videos
In web-view you can see the startpicture of a video in preview if they are marked and a single click runs them.
Edit \window\web\folder.htt and look for "var wantMedia". Replace "False" with "True"
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Quickres
A little known fact is to start the old win95 Powertoy Quickres from command or batchlines with parameters for a given resolution.
Example batch for temporarily running in a lower resolution:
Start /w quickres.exe 800x600x16
Start /w Netscape.exe
quickres.exe 1024x786x256
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RecentDocuments
NoRecentDocsHistory = Dword hex 1 freezes your Documents history.
What's that good for??
You modify the links in the recent directory according to your needs and have an immediate second level menu in documents at hand (works only with IE4 and higher)
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SearchMenu
Have a look in the [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\FindExtensions\Static] key.
It contains a sub-key for each search type, so to remove a search type simply delete the appropriate sub-key (remember to make a backup first!).
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System Menus
Insert one of those to your Startmenu-Folder to get cascaded access to it. This may not work on every machine and is related to installed software eg. Internet Explorer
Control Panel.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}
Dial-Up Networking.{992CFFA0-F557-101A-88EC-00DD010CCC48}
Printers.{2227A280-3AEA-1069-A2DE-08002B30309D}
Inbox.{00020D75-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}
My Computer.{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}
Recycle Bin.{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E}
Network Neighborhood.{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}
Desktop.{00021400-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}
Briefcase.{85BBD920-42A0-1069-A2E4-08002B30309D}
Fonts.{BD84B380-8CA2-1069-AB1D-08000948F534}
Web Folders.{BDEADF00-C265-11d0-BCED-00A0C90AB50F}
Scheduled Tasks.{D6277990-4C6A-11CF-8D87-00AA0060F5BF}
User Internet History.{FF393560-C2A7-11CF-BFF4-444553540000}
Offline Web Pages.{F5175861-2688-11d0-9C5E-00AA00A45957}
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Fixes
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GrafViewFix
Solution 1:
Lost preview of *.JPG in Windows Explorer
If you lost the ability to preview your *.JPG files in Windows Explorer (when using viewed as Web Page):
Click Start > Run, and type the following command in the Open box:
regsvr32.exe /i shdocvw.dll - If you have Internet Explorer 4 installed
regsvr32.exe /i shdoc401.dll - If you have Internet Explorer 5 installed
Solution 2:
more information for those who lost the ability to preview certain file types:
For this to work, the folder where you want to preview the images has to have View as Web page enabled.
There's the folowing registry fix:
Verify that the following entries exist in the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ registry key for the type of file you are trying to preview:
Registry Key: [HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\\ShellEx]
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\\ShellEx\{BB2E617C-0920-11d1-9A0B-00C04FC2D6C1}]
@="{7376D660-C583-11d0-A3A5-00C04FD706EC}"
The following file types use the registry values listed above:
.art
.bmp
.dib
.gif
.jfif
.jpe
.jpeg
.jpg
.png
.wmf
---
Or
if the above didn't do it try keys/strings:Note*(not sure why the value strings are different for the two references here (the above and the below) perhaps has something to do with ver of win9x or difference between an upgrade or fullgrade ver. But have included both because when above didn't work for some the below did.)
REGEDIT4
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.bmp\ShellEx]
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.bmp\ShellEx\{BB2E617C-0920-11d1-9A0B-0C04FC2D6C1}]
@="{1AEB1360-5AFC-11d0-B806-00C04FD706EC}"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.jpg\ShellEx]
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.jpg\ShellEx\{BB2E617C-0920-11d1-9A0B-00C04FC2D6C1}]
@="{1AEB1360-5AFC-11d0-B806-00C04FD706EC}"
Copy above in a new textfile and name it (whatever).reg , ensure at least one blank line at the end with carriage return.
Double click it in explorer. This will enter the settings in registry automatically with out having to self edit.
Solution 3:
If you upgraded win95/ie4 to win98 and have updated to ie5 since, your desktop may be culprit; The reason why thumbnail view fails for some file types:
http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q178/7/46.asp
To correct this problem: http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q165/6/95.ASP
If you started with win98 use the ie5 self_repair method to troubleshoot desktop.
On the View menu, click Folder Options.
Click the View tab, and then click Like Current Folder.
Tip
To return the settings for all folders to the settings that were in effect when Internet Explorer was installed, click Reset All Folders.
Solution 4:
Resetting Internet Explorer Web settings
If you installed another Web browser after installing Internet Explorer and Internet Tools, some of your Internet Explorer settings may have changed. You can reset your Internet Explorer settings to their original defaults, including your home page and search pages, and choice of default browser, without changing your other browser's settings.
On the Tools menu, click Internet Options.
Click the Programs tab.
Click the Reset Web Settings button.
Solution 5:
Try an ie5 repair using it's "fix" option:
Cure What Ails IE5 ; IE5 is the first Microsoft app that can fix itself without a complete reinstallation when things go wrong. If the browser is acting strangely, head for the Control Panel (Start, Settings, Control Panel) and open Add/Remove Programs.
Select Microsoft Internet Explorer 5 and Internet Tools and click Add/Remove (don't
worry, you won't uninstall anything). In the next dialog box, click Repair Internet Explorer, then click OK.
Follow the prompts to let IE figure out what's gone wrong:
http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q194/1/77.asp
Solution 6:
If all else fails here's an alternitive viewer that falls into the "must have" category:
What is IrfanView ?
IrfanView is a fast FREEWARE image viewer/converter for Win95/NT.
Supported file formats:
JPG/JPEG, GIF, BMP, DIB, RLE, PCX, DCX, PNG, TIFF, TGA, RAS/SUN, ICO, CUR, ANI, AVI, WAV, MID, RMI, WMF, EMF, PBM, PGM, PPM, IFF/LBM, PSD, CPT, EPS, CLP, CAM, MPG/MPEG, MOV, LWF, AIF, G3 and
Photo-CD(Overview Photo-CD support).
Some features of IrfanView:
Preview option, Drag&Drop support, fast directory view (fast moving through directory), slideshow, audio CD player, batch conversion, print option, change the color depth, scan support, cut/crop, capturing, many effects (sharpen, blur, photoshop filter factory)
The first graphic viewer WORDLWIDE with Animated-GIF support.
The first graphic viewer WORDLWIDE with Multiple-ICO support.
One of the first graphic viewers with Multipage-TIFF support.
FREEWARE for use at home.
http://stud1.tuwien.ac.at/~e9227474/english.htm
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HelpFileFix
REGEDIT4
;Fix broken CHM Helpfile behaviour, special for 98lite users
;Disclaimer: this is continously removed by regclean4.1a
;reinvoke it and it still works by whatever reason
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\CLASSES\CLSID\{25336920-03F9-11cf-8FD0-00AA00686F13}\ProgID]
@="htmlfile"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\CLASSES\CLSID\{3050F3D9-98B5-11CF-BB82-00AA00BDCE0B}\ProgID]
@="mhtmlfile"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\CLASSES\CLSID\{25336921-03F9-11CF-8FD0-00AA00686F13}\ProgID]
@="htmlfile_FullWindowEmbed"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\CLASSES\CLSID\{05f6fe1a-ecef-11d0-aae7-00c04fc9b304}\ProgID]
@="MSHTML.IntDitherer.1"
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IconCache
REGEDIT4
;if you've continously in trouble that your desktop icons don't seem to reappear
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\explorer]
"Max Cached Icons"="2048"
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Kernel32
The following has solved many people's Windows Explorer KERNEL32.DLL crashes. It is given solely as information.
In the root directory of C:\, modify or create a CONFIG.SYS file to include the following lines:
DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYS /TESTMEM:ON
REM to check if bad memory
FILES=65
BUFFERS=40
STACKS=64,512
If the error persists, try adding this line to your SYSTEM.INI file in the [386Enh] section:
; Increases default stack pages from 2 to 6
MinSPs=6
(The default is 2. If required, increase by increments of 4 until you find a value that solves the problem. The ; [semicolon] works the same as REM works in AutoExec.Bat.)
Click Edit, Save, Edit, exit. Shut down and restart for the changes to take effect.
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ScrollMenu
REGEDIT4
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\explorer
"StartMenuScrollPrograms=FALSE"
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\explorer\Advanced
"StartMenuScrollPrograms=FALSE"
Fix for not working Scroll Menu under Win98
Use SFC and Extract MARLETT.TTF to C:\Windows\Fonts.
Extract the following to C:\Windows\System:
Hh.exe
Hhctrl.ocx
Hhupdcab.inf
Itircl.dll
Itss.dll
Extract and Register the following at Run:
regsvr32 /i mshtml.dll
regsvr32.exe /i shdoc401.dll
regsvr32.exe /i shdocvw.dll
IE5 Solution to toggle
REGEDIT4
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\explorer\Advanced\Folder\StartMenuScrollPrograms]
"Type"="checkbox"
"Text"="Multi-Column Start Menu Style"
"HKeyRoot"=dword:80000001
"RegPath"="Software\\Microsoft\\Windows\\CurrentVersion\\Explorer\\Advanced"
"ValueName"="StartMenuScrollPrograms"
"CheckedValue"="false"
"UncheckedValue"="true"
"DefaultValue"="true"
"HelpID"="update.hlp"
Undo it
; INF File to remove 98to95ToggleFolderOptionsCheckbox.reg customization
; Right-click on this file and choose Install to remove the Registry edits
[version]
signature="$CHICAGO$"
[DefaultInstall]
AddReg=ByeBye
DelReg=SeeYa
;
; The [ByeBye] section removes the specified String Value created when
; 98to95ToggleFolderOptionsCheckbox.reg was double-clicked
; It was this string value's data that got toggled from true to false
; producing the desired result
[ByeBye]
HKLM,"Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\explorer\Advanced","StartMenuScrollPrograms",4,
HKCU,"Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced","StartMenuScrollPrograms",4,
;
; The SeeYa section removes the specified Key created when
; 98to95ToggleFolderOptionsCheckbox.reg was double-clicked
; It was this key that added the checkbox in the View tab
[SeeYa]
HKLM,"Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\explorer\Advanced\Folder\StartMenuScrollPrograms"
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SendToDesktopFix
REGEDIT4
;corrects the power toys malfunction of "send to desktop"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.DeskLink]
@="CLSID\\{9E56BE61-C50F-11CF-9A2C-00A0C90A90CE}"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\CLASSES\CLSID\{9E56BE61-C50F-11CF-9A2C-00A0C90A90CE}]
"NeverShowExt"=""
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\CLASSES\CLSID\{9E56BE61-C50F-11CF-9A2C-00A0C90A90CE}\InProcServer32]
@="C:\\WINDOWS\\SYSTEM\\SENDMAIL.DLL"
"ThreadingModel"="Apartment"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\CLASSES\CLSID\{9E56BE61-C50F-11CF-9A2C-00A0C90A90CE}\DefaultIcon]
@="C:\\WINDOWS\\explorer.exe,3"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\CLASSES\CLSID\{9E56BE61-C50F-11CF-9A2C-00A0C90A90CE}\shellex]
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\CLASSES\CLSID\{9E56BE61-C50F-11CF-9A2C-00A0C90A90CE}\shellex\DropHandler]
@="{9E56BE61-C50F-11CF-9A2C-00A0C90A90CE}"
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Win95-Y2K
For win95 users without IExplorer make the command to read:
W95y2k.exe /C:"y2ksetup /ii"
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Ramdisk
-
Win98 OnRAMdisk
::Windows on any (Ram)disk how simple it goes
::this is all an extension to AUTOEXEC.BAT
::Requirements:
:: 1. sufficient RAM (windows dir size + 80 MB) or hdd space here 384MB assumed, 256 should go already in most cases
:: 2. XMSDSK.EXE eg. C:\TOOLS\Xmsdsk (if you want it on a ramdisk)
:: 3. 4DOS eg. C:\Tools\4DOS or any other DOS-LFN copy supporter
:: 4. Export a registry, load it into an editor, save it as standard.reg and replace any occurrances of c:\\windows with v:\\windows, save it to virtual.reg wher v: is the target drive of your choice
choice /cyn/tn,10 Windows On RAM ?
REM you may enter other choices too
if errorlevel 2 goto OVER
c:\tools\xmsdsk\xmsdsk /t /y 300000 v:
REM assuming a ramdisk, if not, just rem out the line
md v:\windows
c:\windows\regedit /c c:\virtual.reg
copy %winbootdir%\win.com v:\windows
copy %winbootdir%\system.ini v:\windows
xcopy %winbootdir%\system\*.* v:\windows\system\
xcopy %winbootdir%\system\vmm32\*.* v:\windows\system\vmm32\
xcopy %winbootdir%\system\iosubsys\*.* v:\windows\system\iosubsys\
REM this allows already LFN support on winstart
REM one should assign the swap-file already to somewhere else in advance
if exist %winbootdir%\win386.swp del %winbootdir%\win386.swp
path=v:\windows;v:\windows\command;c:\tools\4dos
REM for another hdd install just drag and drop the whole thing once and skip the winstart.bat operations
REM one can copy also a ready made winstart.bat from somwhere
echo c:\tools\4dos\4dos.com /c copy /s /u /k /h %winbootdir%\*.* v:\windows\ > v:\windows\winstart.bat
echo del v:\windows\system\*~?.* >> v:\windows\winstart.bat
set winbootdir=v:\windows
%winbootdir%\win
:OVER
c:\windows\regedit /c c:\standard.reg
REM you will like it
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Ramdisk Win95
This description is obsolete, as the above mentioned win98 method would apply as well for win95
Take it only as reference.
This is an older E-Mail I gave to some people which were interested in getting out the most of a RAM-Disk installing Windows there.
First: I'm not going to test it on my own, as I'm very busy in applying my pc with standard work.
Second: Most of the information I found was in german, I'll give my very best to translate it.
Third: While searching the web, I encountered certain times the "boot from cd" issue with really tricky setups by substituting drives, which should work in principle also with a ramdrive, and solve the long filename problem.
PC-World (german version) tested it with win95 but claimed the method is not possible for win98.
Preparatory work
They created an logical drive in an extended partition at the last position of drive letters, which need to be kept stable, as this letter will be used for the ramdisk later on.
Remind that this partition must start physically below the 8GB border, howerver it's needed only temporary
They renamed the complete windows on c: to something and rebooted.
As windows is complaining on boot, a new windows is to be installed on the last logical drive.
A lot of error messages have to be ignored going that way.
They have recommended? to remove all drivers from the system.ini to prevent from further windows complaints.
For a clean windows installation now physically 240MB RAM is required.
For installation of all the MS-Office common parts 389MB RAM are required.
So all programs laying down significant parts in windows should be installed, however the programs folder themself may reside on a separate Partition if too big.
This needs to be verified against the space usage and the RAM, unfortunately no information was given how much overheading free space of RAM against windows directory size were given.
Workaround could be to estimate a minimum of 64MB RAM more than the complete windows directory is in size.
Windows needs to be adjusted to all necessary drivers etc. and no swap!
When done xcopy32 /s /i /e /h e:\*.* c:\ramwin where e: is the last logical drive windows is installed on
Circumventing the Longfilename problem
They copied vmm32.vxd and krnl386.exe in a separate directory, thus providing a naked 32-bit dos commanding, but this is limited to win95 only.
cd c:\ramwin\windows\system
copy vmm32.vxd c:\tools\vmm32.exe
copy ..\command.com c:\tools\krnl386.exe
xcopy iosubsys\*.* c:\tools\iosubsys\
copy ..\system.ini c:\tools
copy ..\command\attrib.exe c:\tools
With a circumventing solution of a readers letter, it's possible to do it also under win98:
One need a utility from pure dos-level cabable for long names copying inclusive attributes, there are some in the web.
If you find any useful you can also circumvent a complex batching process now.
As the command.com can only process internaly longfilenames you need do create a batch like:
dir /s/b/ad c:\ramwin > c:\tools\winstart.bat
Edit now with clever search and replace the complete batch to a structure as:
copy "c:\ramwin\windows" "e:\windows"
To avoid a boot up failure you need to rename now SYSTEM.DAT and USER.DAT to something like SYSTEM.xyz and USER.xyz
Search the lines in the winstart.bat and change them to:
copy "c:\ramwin\windows\system.xyz" "e:\windows\system.dat"
copy "c:\ramwin\windows\user.xyz" "e:\windows\user.dat"
Copy can't deal with attributes for that a first line in this batch must be implemented as:
attrib /s -r -s -h c:\ramwin\*.*
For reverting this you need to get a list of the attributed files by:
attrib /s c:\ramwin\*.* > att.tmp
Add the file to the end of winstart.bat and edit them according structure as appropriate:
attrib +r +s +h E:\filespec
Now edit autoexec.bat as, where size is allocated RAM in kB:
<Path>xmsdsk /y /t xxxxxx e:
cd c:\tools
vmm32.exe
e:
e:\windows\win
Before you reboot delete now partition e: with fdisk !!!!!!!
One problem is left, vmm32 has to be finished with exit manually during boot.
As said, try to find a good utility for the copying stuff and it's easier.
http://www.opus.co.tt/dave/index.htm (UPDATE: the link seems to be dead) is a good starting point for looking to all that questions.
When you intend to increase your installations or modify your setup on the ramdisk, use from windows:
xcopy32 /s /h /i /e e:\*.* c:\ramwin\*.*
Don't forget to rename SYSTEM.DAT and USER.DAT in c:\ramwin
Now for the motivation:
Performance increase allover is between 5 to 50 times!!
Without backwriting you have an absolute stable configuration perfect for testing new programs.
Provoking GPF's, delete actions in windows absolute no problem.
The startup will be about double the time as normal.
TOC-
Ramdisk Infos
http://odi.webjump.com/ LFN-copier freeware
http://www8.pair.com/dmurdoch/programs/doslfnbk.htm circumventing the longfilenames problem freeware/shareware
http://www.simtel.net/simtel.net/msdos/ramdisk.html go for file fu_rd19i.zip together with the previous tool you have full freedom from DOS-level freeware
http://www.jlajoie.com/ramdsk98/ also one for win2K available fully GUI supported shareware.
http://www.virtusoft.com/ cleverst concept, full32-bit dynamic under windows, no dos-hassels, shareware.
At all this links or in the readme's of the tools you'll find very good information about the subject.
TOC-
Swap
-
Basics
Ever come across the big Swap-file discussion?
"Multiply by 2.5 rule" forget it. This was a dumb rule made up without thinking about the subject.
The purpose of a swap file is to take the overflow from RAM when Windows needs more room than it has. It therefore uses a LRU algorithm to determine what in RAM was Least Recently Used, and it pages it out to the swap file, freeing the RAM for more pressing needs. When the RAM is no longer used, it goes through a reverse procedure to page it back in. With certain software this reverse process doesn't work correctly, however this is due to bad programming the application and not windows fault.
Obviously, the more RAM, the less often this process is needed, and the smaller the paged file size. I run 128 megs, and keep the swap file at 12 megs, cuz it never even approaches that. Experience indicates that assigning a total of 100-150MB virtual RAM is more than adequate for any amount of physical RAM and for most application purposes.
Win98 memory is internally always allocated in "pages" of 4KB each ( the infamous "Page Fault" error). If some information in memory is not being used, and the space is needed for new information, it is swapped to the Virtual Memory (on the hard drive) and will stay there until called again. So the first sign of requiring more memory (RAM or Virtual) is when you hear the hard drive being used a lot. This is known as "Thrashing." It can happen even when your system is doing nothing. This more than anything, determines how much space to allocate.
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Location
1. As to where it should go... it just seems to make sense to put it at the front - very beginning of a drive, for fast access.
2. I've read an unproven recomendation to place it physically to the end of a disk and the performance increase shall be 5% against the very beginning of a drive.
3. Another idea recently made in a discussion at nowonder, asked for having it in the middle of a drive, as the average movement of the head, would result in faster total access time.
Ok, I actually don't know what's the best place, as my personal settings have never reached a swapping anyway, therefore I had no need so far to fiddle around with this. Just some generic clues to this:
- To place it in the physical beginning, you need to have Nortons SpeedDisk. You need to assure the partition is always visible. This would hinder a proper use of a multi-boot environment.
- To place it to an dedicated area, it's necessary to give it a dedicated partition, which physically starts at the place where you want to have it. This might be tricky for a middle position, because it may rearange your drive letters.
- To place it at the physical end is the easiest for a controlled placement, just to add a logical drive to the extendend partition. Hint with this - leave some MB at the end unused, some disk above 8GB don't like to be eaten up completely.
Placing it on another hdd makes only sense, if the second drive uses another IDE-Chanel or is SCSI, as data-transfer can go only in one direction on a single IDE-Chanel at a point in time.
TOC-
Own Partition
Controvers discussions are going on this matter.
I see only advantages for having it on it's own logical drive (no order of importance):
- No defragging problems with a single file on one logical drive
- Simple accessability from a multi-boot environment
- Easy changing all size definitions without harming anything else, even dynamic handling by windows.
- Choice of FAT16, with small fast fat-table (the accesability is about 30% faster than FAT32), the 4kB memory blocks don't matter as it's handled file internally. The file can be used by any Win-OS.
- Allocation to a physical place is easy
- On ever happening mishaps with the swap-file, just kill the partition, the swap will be automatically recreated in the boot-drive, if the file-spec can't be retrived by windows.
TOC-
SwapSize
Generally it's depending from the usage of your system. If you use space hogging programs, you need to monitor the usage of your swap and adjust the settings some 10MB above what you've detected over a certain period of monitoring.
Aside Windows internal Sysmonitor, which uses an own window I've found http://users.iafrica.com/d/da/dalen TCLOCKEX to be the best for continous watching what's going on with the swap-size.
1. Creation of a permanent swap file.
As for Win98's virtual memory management, you will get an improvement fixing the swap file size.The Min/Max should be the same, to prevent major disk fragmentation and provide the fastest access possible. The performance increase results mainly from just switching off any internal file-size-management. As said before a fixed setting in totaling up to 120-150 MB is sufficient for standard applications. I've found setting it in total to zero is not a move windows likes, so give it at least some MB.
2. Minimum file-size fixed, Maximum open
Such a setting can have advantages, if you have to deal only occasionally with space-hogging applications, which exceed your normal swap-settings. On boot the minimum swap-file is generated new, everything else from the last session above the min-file-size is being dropped.
3. Let Windows manage the swap-file
If you have sufficiant physical ram and swapings take only rarely place, leave it alone as it is, why fiddle around it for a few seconds improvement over a year. Don't even start to think about it. Leave it to the speed-freaks like me :-)
TOC-
MemManagers
They do almost a good job if you're equipped with low physical RAM.
There are numberous around, the best I've tested was http://www.sci.fi/~borg/rambooster/index.htm Rambooster.
In fact if your swap-file constantly is touched, they increase the performance of the pc in that they force not relevant parts of the ram to be placed to the drive, when the system is in idle mode.
In some cases space hogging applications which do not like to release their memory, get just the right kick to release it by applying a mem-manager.
Have a look here http://radsoft.net/resources/software/reviews/blacklist.htm for those space hooging applications
However you might find that they eat up some ressources, than better switch them off if you go along the critical border. They all behave a bit different in releasing memory, one have to find out yourself, how they mishappen on certain configurations.
TOC-
SwapBoost
System.ini
[386Enh]
ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1
Things just get better all around.
This tweak will force the W98 Memory Manager to use your available chip memory for its functions first, and all uses of chip memory are *much faster* than any use of read-write HD file memory.
However this tweak is only recommended for low equipped RAM up to 64MB
I've applied that some time ago, but the performance was not different to my settings I'd so far 128MB-Ram/12MB-Swap fixed.
On a 64M-RAM/90MB-Swap fixed there was no difference with using RamBooster, without Rambooster it was a good thing. But I wasn't able to determine the difference in terms of values.
Having set the Swap dynamic doesn't make any difference, as the memory rearrangements eat up any performance increase towards the hdd.
I think everybody has to findout himself for his specific configuration.
TOC
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