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| The Compatibility Files toolbar button & Files Virtualization in Vista. |
| If a program does not have elevated permissions to write to C:\Program Files or C:\Windows, Windows 7 & Vista lets the program think it is writing there but actually redirects the action to a "Virtual Store" under the AppData store in your user folder. Read More. |
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| Windows Vista's MICandatory Integrity Controls |
| Space bar in Vista is the new F8 for boot options. |
| How to use Multilingual User Interface in Windows Vista to configure country, region, languages & keyboard layouts. |
| Desktop Background Positions in Windows Vista |
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| If in your Windows Vista you can see only 3 Desktop background positions, whereas you can see 5 in your friends Vista, here is the explaination. |
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| Whats new about the Windows.old folder in Windows Vista. |
| If you install Windows Vista on a computer which has Windows XP installed or if you perform a custom installation of Windows Vista instead of an upgrade installation, you will see a windows.old folder on your system drive. Read More. |
| Hit systeminfo to know when your Vista was installed. |
| If you would like to know when your Windows Vista was installed and plenty other information about your system, type cmd in Vista's start menu search bar. In the 'cmd' which appears in the results above, rt click on it and Run as Administrator. Read More. |
| How To use the sigverif utility in Windows Vista |
| A driver is a program that controls or helps operate a hardware device. When 3rd party vendors create a new driver, it can be submitted to Microsoft for "device signing". This ensure quality. To help maintain the integrity of your Vista, critical files are digitally signed so that any changes to these may be easily detected. However not all drivers are digitally signed, as a result of which some of them may cause system instability. Microsoft has a tool in place in Windows Vista called Sigverif.exe which helps you identify unsigned drivers. More Here. |
| Data Execution Prevention or DEP feature in Windows Vista |
| DEP is a security feature that can help prevent damage to your computer from viruses and other security threats. DEP can help protect your computer by monitoring programs to make sure they use system memory safely. If a program tries running (also known as executing) code from memory in an incorrect way, DEP closes the program. |
How To disable Data Execution Prevention (DEP) in Vista
How To Verify the Status of DEP Data Execution Prevention
How to turn off or on DEP for an individual program
How to Enable or Disable DEP for IE7 only
Read Here. |
| Microsoft Robocopy in Windows Vista |
| Robocopy in Windows Vista is a robust, flexible, configurable tool, with over 80 switches. It can handle any batch or synchronous copy you have in mind. Robocopy is designed for reliable mirroring of directories or directory trees. It has features to ensure all NTFS attributes and properties are copied, and includes additional restart code for network connections subject to disruption. It is not an easy tool to use. You may want to download the Microsoft Robocopy GUI. More HERE. |
| All about Windows Command Line, Batch Files, and Scripting in Vista. |
| A common home user may not be aware or familiar with the Windows Command Line; but power users & systems administrators, just cannot do without it. There are two basic features involving a command line. One is the entry 'Run" (or "Start Search" in Vista) that is in the Start menu and the other is the command prompt window. |
| Batch files provide a simple way to perform many repetitive or time-consuming tasks. While batch files can be quite sophisticated, the basics are simple enough to be useful to the average PC user with no knowledge of programming. |
| To know and learn more on this, do visit this excellant site CommandWindows. It has nice tutorials on Accessing System Folders with the Shell Command in Windows Vista, Windows Vista Command Line List and Reference, Tips for Using the Vista Command Shell, etc. More on scripting can also be found at the Microsoft Script Center. |
| Unravel Tweaks & Settings buried inside Vista's Group Policy Editor. |
| Windows Vista Group Policy Editors has plenty options which can be tweaked to suit your convenience. To know them all, one would have to wade through it all ! However, this spreadsheet from Microsoft, lists the policy settings for computer and user configurations included in the administrative template files delivered with Windows Vista. These files are used to expose policy settings when you edit Group Policy Objects (GPOs) using Group Policy Object Editor (also known as GPEdit). |
| You can use the filtering capabilities included in this spreadsheet to view a specific subset of data based on one value or a combination of values that are available in one or more of the columns. In addition, you can click Custom in the drop-down list of any of the column headings to add additional filtering criteria within that column. To view a specific subset of data, click the drop-down arrow in the column heading of cells that contain the value or combination of values on which you want to filter, and then click the desired value in the drop-down list. For example, to view a subset of policy settings that are available for Windows Vista in the “All” worksheet, click the drop-down arrow next to Supported On, and then click At least Windows Vista. Makes for a great weekend reading ! |
| Windows Vista SP1 - New Features. |
| Windows Vista Service Pack 1 has been finally released and made available to Vista users. Learn more above the features it has added ! |
UI changes visible after Vista SP1 install.
What performance and reliability improvements to expect. |
| Vista SP1 - The Day After And NEW Group Policy Preference Extensions & Other Tools for Vista SP1 may also interest you ! |
| Make your Vista send you e-mails using Task Scheduler ! |
| Windows Vista features a new Task Scheduler service that provides controlled, unattended management of task execution, launched either on schedule or in response to events or system state changes. The ability to perform actions, including sending e-mails, based on an event occurrence enables proactive, ad-hoc system management. |
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| BitLocker Feature in Vista. |
The BitLocker Feature of Vista explained;
How to prepare your computer for BitLocker Drive Encryption;
How to recover data from a corrupted disk volume, encrypted with BitLocker, can be had here. |
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| Change Vista Sounds. |
| If you are tired of hearing the same old sounds when you start Windows or when you minimize a Windows or when you simply Copy, you just might want to consider introducing a whole new set of a sound scheme to your Vista. You will get to hear a whole new set of sounds. Trust me, you will find them to be a welcome change. I always have my sounds turned off, but I am now loving the small new surprises which appear in the form of new sounds which appear when I use my Vista ! |
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| Problem Reports and Solutions Center in Windows Vista |
Windows Vista contains a nice new feature : Problem Reports and Solutions Center. This feature is used not just for reporting problems to Microsoft but to find solutions for your Vista problems. |
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| Vista's Enigmatic Cookies Folder. |
| Type Cookies in Start Menu. and it may take you to
C:\Users\Username\cookies folder. When you try to click on it, in all probability, you will be greeted with an Access Denied box. This path, however, is just a kind of a pointer. IE 7 In Vista, stores its Cookies, however, in a different folder. |
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| De-Mystifying The Windows Vista Registry. |
| This Article explains the basics of Windows Vista Registry and touches upon the Virtualization of Vista's Registry. It also explains how to edit the Registry, and provides links to the following useful tips: |
How To Back Up, Restore, Maintain the Vista Registry
How To Monitor Changes In The Registry
How To Change Registry Key Permissions
How To Restrict Access to Registry Editor
How To lock out a particular user only, from accessing regedit
How To Restore access of the User to the Registry. |
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| Understanding The "Other" Version of Windows Vista Chkdsk Utility. |
Chkdsk.exe is an utility used to check for errors in the disk media and in the file system. If you face problems ranging from blue screens to inability to open / save files / folders, you should run chkdsk.exe. There are 2 versions of this utility. One a basic version and the other a command line version, which has more set of options to customize. |
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| Understanding Windows Vista Disk Defragmenting Utility. |
| The Windows Vista Disk Defragmenting Utility is considered an improvement on its predecessor XP. The defrag engine and the manageability of fragmentation has been improved. Here are some tips which will help you operate & understand this utility better ! |
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| Why does Vista Report less RAM when 4 GB is installed. |
If a computer has 4 gigabytes (GB) of random-access memory (RAM) installed, the system memory that is reported in the System Information dialog box in Windows Vista is less than you expect. For example, the System Information dialog box may report 3,120 megabytes (MB) of system memory on a computer that has 4 GB of memory installed (4,096 MB). If a computer has many installed devices, the available memory may be reduced to 3 GB or less. |
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| The Secret Of Vista's Winsxs Folder. |
| Most of you may have noticed the WinSxS folder and been surprised at its size. For those who have not, the folder is situated at C:\Windows\Winsxs and has a whopping size ! |
So what is the mystery of this Winsxs folder in Vista?
What's the purpose of so many folders & sub folders?
What does it contain?
Can you delete this directory?
Can you atleast move it somewhere else?
Or can its size be reduced to save disk-space? |
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| 'Reset Internet Explorer Settings' or RIES feature of IE7. |
The Internet Explorer 7 in Windows Vista has many security enhancements, that make it less susceptible to malware. However one can never be too sure ! Moreover, badly written add-ons can also affect the browsing experience in IE 7. RIES or 'Reset Internet Explorer Settings' enables IE 7 to recover from such situations. |
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| Also check out IE 7 : A Power Review by an end-user on our GuestZone Page. |
| Use Explorers CheckBoxes To Select Files or Folders ! |
In Vista, you can use checkboxes to 'select' the files that you plan to copy, cut, move or delete. Here is how you can do it... |
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| Some Must-Know Features of Windows Vista. |
Improved File Re-naming in Vista : Faster & Safer !
3D Benchmarking in Vista
Vista's Symlinks
Windows Vista's Ten New Executables
Search in Vista using naturally spoken language
Security Feature : ReDirection Of Data to a Virtual Store
Security Feature : Buffer Over-run Protection
CardSpace
Vista's WHOAMI utility
Vista's Digital Locker Assistant Tool.
The Snipping Tool in Vista |
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| Windows Vista's New Run Commands. |
| Here are some new Run commands found in Vista.
Almost all of these correspond to a particular Utility or a Control Panel Item that can also be accessed through Vista. Some however can be accessed through 'Run'. |
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| Vista's Restart Manager. |
| Windows Vista has a new feature / application called as the Restart Manager. Lets say, if an application or Vista itself, needs to update itself, the Installer calls upon the Restart Manager, to see if it can clear that part of the system so that it can be updated. If it can do that, it does so, and this happens without a reboot. |
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| The Mystery Of The 'Temporary Internet' Files Folder in Vista. |
Where is the Temporary Internet Files folder located?
But ... yet cant see the index.dat file!?
Why has it been given the status of a Hidden & Protected System Files / Folder?
How to manage the Cache?
How to Control - How Internet Explorer Should Use The Cache.
What if, even after a Refresh, you still get the old web page? |
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| Vista's Program Compatibility Wizard. |
| If you are experiencing problems with a program that worked correctly on an earlier version of Windows, this wizard helps you select and test compatibility settings that may fix those problems... |
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| Windows Vista Sidebar. |
| Windows Sidebar is a pane on the side of the Microsoft Windows Vista desktop where you can keep your gadgets organized and always available. You can easily customize Windows Sidebar to suit your preferred location ... always on top or resting below maximized windows. If you don't want to keep your gadgets docked on the Windows Sidebar, you can simply move them off, hide the sidebar, and place them anywhere on your desktop. For full details about this simple to use utility, click here. |
| If you'd like to see our list of Top Ten Vista Gadgets or if you'd like to know how to use ANY gadget on Vista's Sidebar ... |
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| The Reliability & Performance Monitor. |
| The Reliability and Performance Monitor helps you in examining how programs you run affect your computer's performance, both in real time and by collecting log data for later analysis. If you type in 'relia' in the Vista search bar and hit 'enter' ... |
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| Window Vista's Explorer. |
Reviewed by : Saurav Srivastava, Microsoft MVP. |
Microsoft has completely overhauled the Windows Explorer in Vista. Not only has its look is changed, but the way you manage your files too ! By making it so power-packed, Windows has a winner in its fold ! Vista's Explorer makes is designed to make life easier ! |
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| The System Information Tools in Vista. |
You may occasionally need to know a little more about your machine...details about your hardware, software, etc. There are four ways you can get such information in Vista...The wealth of information you will be presented with, will be to say the least, overwhelming! |
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| The User Account Control |
Revere it or Revile it ! But you just can ignore Vista's stare-in-the-face feature, lovingly called as the UAC ! |
Do something and you have the UAC popping up irritatingly in your face. Well, its a Security Feature actually, (but then again you had Mark Russinovich, a Technical Fellow in Microsoft's Platform and Services Division saying that the UAC was not a security feature!), and a good one at that ! Any change to the system is closely monitored by it. So which are the actions which trigger the UAC prompt... |
 Also read How To Disable the UAC prompts for certain applications only! |
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| Also check Why does the UAC Prompt disable Aero, when it appears ? |
| The Vista ReadyBoost Feature. |
| Some facts & fiction : Vista includes a new feature called ReadyBoost (actually ReadyBoost for hard drives already exists; it's called "page files"). Please note that this does not put the paging file onto a flash disk; the file is still backed on disk; this is a cache. If the data is not found in the ReadyBoost cache, it falls back to the HDD. With this feature, you can speed up your PC, with a USB memory ... |
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| 5 Tools for Managing Vista Firewall. |
| The Vista Firewall has default outbound firewall policies in place, to prevent even Services from making outbound connections that they have no business making in the first place. Thus, not only does it run users in restricted mode, but goes as far as running all its services in restricted mode. There are 5 tools which can be used to configure the firewall.Of these, Windows has 4 in-built ones with whose help you can configure and control it. |
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| The Parental Control Feature. |
| Windows Vista makes smart use of user account to give you control of your system. To make it work for you, you’ll want to make sure that your account, which is the system administrator account, is password protected. You can set up Activity Monitoring to do your snooping for you. Parental Controls not only let you pick which games your children can play; they also give you the power to block dubious websites, set time limits, and even block specific programs on your PC to keep the youngsters from messing with your business documents. |
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| Vista's Game Explorer. |
| One of the stunning changes in Vista is its Game Explorer, targeted at Gamers. From the start menu click on the GAMES folder and u get a cool new gaming interface called as the 'Games Explorer' ! All games have been put together here in one place. |
On running a game from the Games Explorer, in case you get an error message : "This file does not have a program associated with it for performing this action. Create an association in the set associations ControlPanel", do this ... |
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