Windows XP tweaks(PART II)- Startup Tweaks easy ones

In the last post of the series, I provided you with some advanced tweaks for your system.The tweaks that I am going to present in this part are a bit easier than the previous ones. It's not compulsory for you to perform previous tweaks,to perform these.You can start right away with these.

Optimizing Startup Programs [msconfig]
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MsConfig is a hidden application in Windows XP which allows the user to fine tune the applications that are launched at startup. To disable some of the applications launched at startup perform the following steps.

1. Go to Start->Run and enter msconfig.exe and press Ok.
2. The MsConfig window opens.In this go to the Startup tab.
3. In the startup tab, un-tick the checkbox next to the startup items which you don't want to load at startup and keep the ones you want to load at startup as it is
4. While unchecking, keep in mind not to uncheck any entry of which you are not aware of.
5. After this, press Exit and restart.
   

The nice part of MsConfig is that it does not delete any of the settings.It simply disables them.So you can go back and restart a startup application if you find that you need it.

Bootvis Application
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This program was designed by Microsoft to enable Windows XP to cold boot in 30 seconds, return from hibernation in 20 seconds, and return from standby in 10 seconds. Bootvis has two extremely useful features. First, it can be used to optimize the boot process on your computer automatically. Second, it can be used to analyze the boot process for specific subsystems that are having difficulty loading. The first process specifically targets the prefetching subsystem (discussed in the part I), as well as the layout of boot files on the disk. When both of these systems are optimized, it can result in a significant reduction in the time it takes for the computer to boot

To use the software to optimize your system startup, first start with a full analysis of a fresh boot. Start Bootvis, go to the Tools menu, and select next boot. Set the Trace Repetition Settings to 2 repetitions, Start at 1, and Reboot automatically. Then set the trace into motion. The system will fully reboot twice, and then reopen bootvis and open the second trace file (should have _2 in the name). Analyze the graphs and make any changes that you think are necessary (this is a great tool for determining which startup programs you want to kill using msconfig). Once you have made your optimizations go to the Trace menu, and select the Optimize System item. This will cause the system to reboot and will then make some changes to the file structure on the hard drive (this includes a defragmentation of boot files and a shifting of their location to the fastest portion of the hard disk, as well as some other optimizations). After this is done, once again run a Trace analysis as above, except change the starting number to 3. Once the system has rebooted both times, compare the charts from the second trace to the charts for the fourth trace to show you the time improvement of the system's boot up.