You have a tweak or tips for Microsoft Windows Vista users? Post them inhere and it will be added to this post.

Enable Sidebar in Vista
Go to Program Files/Windows Sidebar/sidebar.exe

turn on file extensions contributed by FthrJACK


Enable Glass without a supported card contributed by harunaksoy
Download the file here. It just adds a key in your registry

Enabling addition Avalon effects contributed by harunaksoy


Enable DWM on None supported Video Cards contributed by gunsmokingman

Note: Open Taskmanager and set the uxss.exe to normal as this is set to high using this tweak

The Reg Tweak



Software to Tweak Vista
TweakVista: http://www.tweakvista.com/TweakVistaUtility.aspx

NOTE: This thread will be cleaned once in a while; this means that all non-relevant replies will be removed so that only the tips and tweaks stay

Why windows always comes with file extensions hidden by default i dont know.. its stupid, leaves you open to installing a virus.exe thats been given a zip icon or something then named virus.zip.exe

you just see a zip icon and virus.zip.. double click it and bam. also its a pain if you need to rename files.. change .txt to .bat or rename a file so it sends through messenger for example.

to turn it on, go to any folder, documents for example.

Layout > show classic menus -

Tools > Folder Options -

View Tab.

Untick "Hide Extensions of Known File Types"

close, go back to Layout, and put it back as it was

Enable Glass without a supported card. Download the file here. It just adds a key in your registry.

I guess you missed this thread about how to enable DWM on None supported Video Cards, I tested this
on Build 5231 only, have not tried it on earlier builds because they are old.
The Thread

Sorry i missed that one

Here's another tweak
Enabling addition Avalon effects!

Since this only works on build before 5270 I am removing the sfx files and just am
going to post the code for it.
Save as TurnOnDWM.vbs


Save as TurnOffDWM.vbs

Vista 5308:
How to disable user access protection ( UAP )-

1. While logged in with admin rights.
2. Press the key combo Win+R (the "Run command" box comes up).
3. Run "msconfig".
4. Go to the "Tools" tab.
5. Scroll down to "disable UAP", & click the "launch" button below.
6. It will execute a command & leave behind a CMD window, exit that, reboot Vista, and you're done!

Change the size of the desktop icons
Hold the Ctrl down and use your mouse scroll wheel to adjust the size.

Show Administrator on Welcome Screen

start > run = " control userpasswords2 " select administrator account, click reset password (input new pass) / Ok

start > run = " regedit " create the key below

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\SpecialAccounts\UserList

create "DWORD (32bit) Value"
Value Name: Administrator
Value Data: 1

1:\ Right Click Computer Icon Select Manage
2:\ Expand The Local User And Groups
3:\ Rename the administartor account to match the name in the reg file, you can also just leave the
name the same for the admin, but the name must match the reg file.
This is a easier a way, change the Green text to the name you want.
I posted this before in a earlier thread.
Save As AddAdmin.Reg

Open a few windows then press the win key + tab. That makes them all visible each behind the other.

Open Command Prompt Here

Right-click on any folder on your Windows Vista while holding down the shift key. You'll see an extra context-sensitive menu item there: Open Command Prompt here.


O.T.
Only tips & tweaks in here. Thread will be cleaned.

Bringing Back Start / Run

Temporary:
Win+R shortcut key

Permanently:

1. Right-click on the Start menu and choose Properties;
2. Select the Start Menu tab and click on the Customize... button;
3. Ensure the "Run command" option is checked.

Yep, the shift key method works but doesn't work every where. However, There is a registry tweak that does enable the command prompt here on the right click context menu that works every where. Make your own by using the below:

; add command prompt to right click context menu
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shell\Open Command Prompt Here]

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shell\Open Command Prompt Here\command]
@="cmd.exe /k pushd %L"

Or you can just use the cmd_prmt_here.reg file I attached to this post.

You can get rid of the shortcut arrows in vista by using an old reg tweak that still works: Open up regedit and go to:

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\lnkfile]

Then re-name 'IsShortcut' to 'AriochIsShortcut' in the right pane.

Close regedit and reboot - shortcut arrows are gone.

Here is how to get rid of the word 'Shortcut' on shortcuts in Vista. make your own with the below or use the .reg file i've attached to this post:

; get rid of the word 'Shortcut' on shortcuts
; this is the original value
; [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer]
; "link"=hex:1e,00,00,00

; this is the changed value to get rid of word 'Shortcut'
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer]
"link"=hex:00,00,00,00


Reboot after you do this. It will not get rid of the word 'Shortcut' on the shortcuts created before this reg entry, it will only not put the word 'Shortcut' on those you create after this reg entry is done. I included the original value also in case you want to go back, just comment the changed value and un-comment the original value to and merge it again and reboot.

Starting with Vista RC 2 there will be certain services that you can not disable. Lets use Task Scheduler as an example; you used to be able to just "Stop using task scheduler" by the setting in the GUI, now the setting is no longer there and you can't turn it off or change its start up status in the services. So what you will need to do is change it in the registry. Still using Task Scheduler as an example, start up reg edit and go to:

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Schedule]
"Start"=dword:00000002

You can change the startup status for a service not changeable in any other way by changing the value of the "Start" key. Its simple, just choose one of these values and change the key value;

1 = system start
2 = automatic
3 = manual
4 = disabled

You don't even need to re-boot (although i'd recommend it just to be sure), simply change the reg key.

I do not recommend you set any service to disabled if its not necessary to do so. Setting them to manual allows them to start in case they are needed instead of receiving an error about a service not starting.

BTW: I found 4 different instances of Task Scheduler running in taskman. All the things (24 of them) it was scheduling should be things starting up with Vista, why 'schedule' them? Anyway, after i set Task Scheduler to manual i noticed a little bit, slight, responsiveness in the OS at log on.

Some times in Vista you need to change the permissions of a folder but it just will not let you change any permissions. This is more than likely because the system owns the folder. Yes thats right, even logged in as the admin you may not have complete rights over certain things because the system owns them. There is a way around this that allows you to take ownership, after you take ownership you will then be able to change permissions.

You can take ownership of a folder with "takeown" command line tool. Use takeown /? in an admin CMD prompt to see full help. You will then be able to change the permissions.

You can turn Vista User Account Control (UAC) on and off by using the msconfig utility, but if you just want to do it without the start-run-msconfig - click on the tab - scroll down...yada yada yada stuff, you can use the reg entries below, or use the attached .reg files, to turn it on and off. You will need to reboot for any change to become active. These can also be used if your setting up an un-attended install and want to have UAC set on or off when the un-attend install completes.

Another way to turn off the User Account Control is:
Control Panel>User Accounts>Turn User Account Control on or Off(found on at the bottom of the window listed under Make Changes to your User Account)

I don't know about you, but I used the heck out of the old "Explore From Here" right click context menu item in Windows Explorer in Win XP and Win2000. Its like anything else, once you get used to it and its no longer there you feel sort of lost in the way you operate. I'm the same way with handy menu items. You may have noticed that just like its ancestors Vista also has explorer but also like its ancestors it falls a little short when it comes to the right click menu on folders and files in explorer. You can add "Explore From Here" to the right click context menu in Vista explorer. Start up regedit and add the below registry entries or just use the reg file attached to this post.

Its always irritated the heck out of me that Windows explorer by default always opened at 'My Documents', which is now just 'Documents' in Vista. You can make Explorer open at the root of any drive or at any folder if you wish instead of at the default Documents folder, heres how to do it by applying an old windows trick that still works in Vista;

1. Create a shortcut to explorer.exe on your desktop or anywhere else you choose.

2. Right click on the shortcut and choose 'Properties' then click on the 'Shortcut' tab.

3. You will see the default '%SystemRoot%\explorer.exe' in the 'Target:' field. This is what your going to change.

4. Delete the '%SystemRoot%\explorer.exe' in the 'Target:' field and paste in the below:

C:\WINDOWS\explorer.exe /n, /e, c:\

5. If you want explorer to open at the root of a different drive change the 'c:' of the above to the drive you want e.g... 'd:'

6. if you want to open at a different folder change the 'c:\' (or what ever drive your using) to read 'c:\your folder here' (use what ever drive you need for the 'c:' part)

7. After you have made your changes click Apply then OK.

Heres an example that opens at 'C:\Program Files': C:\WINDOWS\explorer.exe /n, /e, c:\Program Files

When you use hibernate in Vista (just like in XP) it creates a file called hiberfil.sys. This file can grow rather large, you may have noticed that its also enabled by default when you install Vista (as it was in XP). Anyway, if you don't use hibernate and turn it off this file is still left behind, and sometimes its large enough to impact the amount of drive space you have available, and guess what - you may not be able to just delete it like in winXP.

While there may be different other ways one simple and straight forward way to get rid of it is log on as the Administrator and open up a Command Prompt then type "powercfg -h off" (without the quotes), hit enter...and voila! no more hyberfil.sys.

Are you having trouble installing Vista on a Toshiba (Vista ready) notebook? One possible solution might be this. Attach a CRT monitor to the notebook and use Fn+F5 to select CRT display only, then proceed with the install. May work for other notebooks/laptops also.

Windows Internet Computer Name (WICN), This is really neat

Have you ever wanted to be able to find and connect to your computer across the Internet, but did not want the complexity and cost of buying a domain name and using dynamic DNS? With Windows Vista, you can using the Windows Internet Computer Naming.

Enabling the Service

This service can be used with two types of names, secured or unsecured. The difference is that unsecured names are simple to type, such as JohnDoe.pnrp.net, but can be spoofed, such that the computer you connect to using this name is not guaranteed to really be your computer (that is, you might not be the only JohnDoe who used that name). Secured names are more complex as shown in the following example:

p.p4562b4628ac54782dda52789038476237e7c7263.pnrp.net

To Setup an Unsecured Windows Internet Computer Name

Choose a name you would like to use. For simplicity, it should be only lowercase characters, with no special symbols. We recommend your e-mail address without the @ or '.'. For example, johndoe@microsoft.com would become 'johndoemicrosoftcom.' This name will be referred to as (peername) in the following instructions.

On the Start menu, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, and right-click Command Prompt, selecting Run as Administrator from the menu This will cause a UAC prompt which you should accept, and then you will be presented with a command window. In this application, type the following commands and press ENTER after each one.

1. Netsh
2. p2p
3. pnrp
4. peer
5. set machinename name="(peername)" publish=start autopublish="enable"

The command window should report back "Ok"

To setup a Secured Windows Internet Computer Name

On the Start menu, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, and right-click Command Prompt, selecting Run as Administrator from the menu This will cause a UAC prompt which you should accept, and then you will be presented with a command window. In this application, type the following commands and press ENTER after each one.

1. Netsh
2. p2p
3. pnrp
4. peer
5. set machinename publish=start autopublish="enable"

The command window should report back "Ok"

Getting a machine's Windows Internet Computer Name

To get the Windows Internet Computer Name of a machine after you have set up the service, follow these instructions:

On the Start menu, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, and right-click Command Prompt, selecting Run as Administrator from the menu This will cause a UAC prompt which you should accept, and then you will be presented with a command window. In this application, type the following commands and press ENTER after each one.

1. Netsh
2. p2p
3. pnrp
4. peer
5. show machinename

Machine Name: b304d5a80b1ae3a5d2d4eee783e57ed8084f1fcb
Use this format DNS name in other applications to refer to this machine p.b304d5a80b1ae3a5d2d4eee783e57ed8084f1fcb.pnrp.net
The machine name is being published.
The machine name is configured to be published automatically.

The Windows Internet Computer Name from above is:

p.b304d5a80b1ae3a5d2d4eee783e57ed8084f1fcb.pnrp.net.

Using the Windows Internet Computer Name

Windows Internet Computer Names can be used virtually anywhere in Windows that accepts an IP address. Some examples are:

Ping
At a command prompt (on either the computer with the name published or another computer) run the ping command. This ping should succeed, the same way it would if you used an IP address or a DNS name.

Remote Desktop
Remote Desktop can work with Internet Names as well. Enable Remote Desktop via the following (skip if Remote Desktop is already enabled):

Start
1. Right-click Computer and select Properties
2. Click Remote settings
3. Accept the UAC prompt
4. In the new window, click the radio button next to Allow connections from computers running any version of Remote Desktop and then click OK.
5. Close all windows opened in this process.

Now you can use Remote Desktop to connect from another computer.

Start->All Programs->Accessories->Remote Desktop Connection

1. In the Remote Desktop Connection window, type in your Internet Name for your other computer (from above) into the Computer field and click Connect.
2. Log on with your normal credentials.

Note that the above will now work from any Vista computer on the Internet that has IPv6 connectivity (this generally means any computer not in a corporate network).

Other Applications

Again, this name will work with virtually any part of Windows. If you run Internet Information Services (IIS) on your home computer, you can use an Internet Name to access a Web site on your home computer, or an FTP site. You can set up an RSS subscription to a feed from your home computer. If you have a multiplayer game where you normally type in IP addresses or DNS names, try a Windows Internet Computer Name.

To learn more about WICN, the peer name resolution protocol (PNRP) and other peer-to-peer technologies in Windows Vista, visit the Microsoft Peer-to-Peer Networking website at: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/itsolutio...2p/default.mspx.

In winXP we got rid of the Outlook Express splash screen by using the reg tweak:



With Vista its no longer called Outlook Express - its now called Windows Mail in Vista. It looks basically still the same as Outlook Express did but its improved.

With Vista the 'NoSplash' tweak still works but its eaisier to use now because you don't need the identity anymore so it lends its self a little more handy for use in un-attended installs. To get rid of the Windows Mail spash screen use the below reg entry:



Or you can use the .reg file I attached to this post.

Vista is normally fast to shutdown, takes maybe 3 seconds on my beta machine. Some configurations however may lend their selves to a longer shutdown period, some of the time the longer shutdown is due to waiting for Vista to kill some services. If your affected by this the following might help.

Start up Regedit and navigate to [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control]

On the right pane look for the "WaitToKillServiceTimeout" string and change its value to 1000 by right clicking the string and selecting Modify. However, to make sure its going to work OK for you modify the value to WaitToKillServiceTimeout=5000 first and try it out.

Modified value WaitToKillServiceTimeout=1000 (1000 is a bit much for this one so be careful)

3000 seems to work just about right but try the 5000 first.

(The default value for WaitToKillServiceTimeout=20000 in case you need to change it back)

To optimize the performance of your hard drive(s);

1. Go to the Disk Drives section in Device Manager (Control Panel - System - Device Manager) and expand it.

2. Right-click on each hard drive, select Properties, and under the Policies tab make sure "Optimize for Performance" is selected. If its available, also tick the "Enable Write Caching on the disk" and "Enable Advanced Performance"options.

This allows hard drives to use a cache (a small area of memory set aside for the hard drive) to speed up reading and writing to the drive.

If you want to keep User Account Control (UAC) on, for example to keep Protected Mode in IE running, but don't like the constant prompting from UAC (really annoying) you can keep it turned on and supress the prompts using the reg entries below:

OK, this one belongs in the 'Tip' category rather than a tweak, maybe aimed at developers and the sort. Some people think Telnet has been removed from Vista, it hasn't. Its just one of those many things in Vista that is not really visible until you do a couple of things. So if you use Telnet;

1. Go to Start - Control Panel - Programs and Features

2. Turn Windows Features On or Off (on the left)

3. Scroll down, and check the box next to "Telnet Client"

Now while I like using putty also I just can't do away with the handy telnet client.

Telnet is handy for lots of things: telnetting to port 110 to delete 'bad' messages from your POP3 server that Outlook can't cope with; telnet to port 80/119 to check HTTP/NNTP servers are working; telnet to port 25 to send an email from a system without setting up an email client; telneting to an HTTP server you're developing to check if the headers are being sent without any problems; test Exchange servers to make sure they are not relaying; very handy to test remote connectivity to a specific port, for example: "telnet <host> 1723" to see if the PPTP server is listening ... the list goes on and on...

Last Access Time (this is often confused with the Last Modified Time, which is only updated when the file changes) in Windows Vista has been disabled by default to improve NTFS performance. However, a very minor issue with this is some applications rely on the Last Access Time.

If you have one of these applications you can re-enable the Last Access Time by using the 'fsutil' utility in a command prompt. The command will be: "fsutil behavior set disablelastaccess 0" (without the quotes). You will need to re-boot for this change to take effect.

(There is also a registry entry at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem called NtfsDisableLastAccessUpdate that can be changed)

A "mysterious" problem concerning USB drives appeared in the WinXP beta 5 years ago and when it first hit the public. Suddenly, after installing WinXP, people were having problems with their USB drives not remaining active even if the power options were set to never turn off a hard drive. It seemed as if the USB drives would just go to sleep (some drives needed a lenghty wakeup period to work properly). People were complaining about it. This same "mystery" also happens in Vista.

Actually there is no mystery at all and Vista (and winXP) are functioning as intended. The solution to the mystery is quickly revealed by a quck trip to the Device Manager and doing the below.

1. Expand the 'Universal Serial Bus controllers' branch in the Device Manager.

2. Find the items called 'USB Root Hub' and right click on it, then select 'Properties'

3. Then click on the 'Power Management' tab.

4. Uncheck the box for 'Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power'

5. Click the 'OK' button.

6. Repeat 2 - 5 for each 'USB Root Hub' found.

there ya go...mystery solved.

(Of course this is not a cure all for other problems that may be present)

If you have a need to show Super Hidden files and folders in Vista just change the "SuperHidden" reg key to '1' as indicated in the registry entry below:



Or...you can use the .reg file I attached to this post. No re-boot is necessary. To see the effect you will need to open a new instance of explorer.

BTW, while your looking at that registry area you will notice a bunch of things that you can change here that will be useful for an un-attended set-up when you want to have these items configured when install is complete.

Tool Tips! Irritate the heck out of me. These are those little tips that pop up when you put your mouse pointer over something. I usually like to have them turned off when my un-attended installs complete, I use a registry entry to do this. You can get rid of them by using a registry entry too:

Start up Regedit and change the below ShowInfoTip entry value to '0' as shown:



You'll need to re-boot after the change is made. If you wish to have tool tips again simply change the ShowInfoTip value to 1.

If your dual booting Vista with WinXP and your planning on migrating to just Vista save your self some time with transfering your stuff.

Boot into WinXP as the administrator and you will have full access to the Vista partition. Since not everything needs to be transfered with a fancy built in transfer wizard you can simply copy over things like your Favorites for example.

dAbReAkA;

use: CTRL+SHIFT+ESC to get task manager to open up directly, or right click on the Taskbar and select "Task Manager" from the context menu.

But as far as changing ctrl+alt+del to do it I don't know of anything right now, but if I come across something i'll post it.

You can create your own keyboard shortcuts in Vista by doing the following:

1. Create a shortcut to the program you want to apply a keyboard shortcut to.. Right click the program, then click Create Shortcut, or use your mouse’s right button to drag the item to your desktop and select Create Shortcut Here.

2. Right-click the shortcut you just created and click Properties.

3. Click the Shortcut tab then click the Shortcut key box.

4. Using your keyboard, press the key that you want to use for your shortcut.

5. Press Apply and OK to close the dialog box. When you click the Shortcut key box it will display None until you select.

Keep in mind that the keyboard shortcut you are creating automatically starts with Ctrl + Alt keys.

Someone sends you an executable file, your antivirus tells you its safe and you were expecting the file, but when you try to run the file you receive the error:

"Windows cannot access the specified device, path, or file. You may not have the appropriate permissions to access the item."

do the following if you actually wish to run the file:

Right click on the file and choose properties. At the bottom of the General tab look for a section that says "This file came from another computer and might be blocked to help protect this computer." Click the Unblock button.

Some things you would use the command prompt for require you to run the command prompt elevated as the Administrator. If you do a lot of command prompt stuff, shell scripting for example, you may want the command prompt to always start up as an Administrator command prompt. To do this simply right click on cmd.exe and choose 'Properties' then click on the 'Compatability' tab and towards the bottom under 'Privilage Level' check the box with 'Run the program as an Administrator' next to it. This also works for other programs.

Internet Explorer complies with Internet standards (RFC 2068), so it limits by default the number of simultaneous downloads to two, plus a queued one. Sometimes it comes in handy to have more than two downloads available. The same registry tweak that worked in WinXP also works in Vista. So...to increase the amount of downloads available in IE just accomplish the below reg tweak:



The above is set for 20 simultaneous downloads but you can set it for anything you want.

An X-Mouse - Windows Follow Mouse, feature is something I miss in Windows. In WnXP we could enable this by using the Power Toys. The Power Toys don't seem to work to enable this feature in Vista, but you can still have this if you like by doing the below, but before proceeding remember to back up these registry entries first in case something goes wrong:

(This reg entry change not only makes the window active but makes it the forground window by bringing it foward on top of other windows when the mouse is over it.)

1. Open up Regedit and browse to [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop]

2. Look for the REG_Binary key "UserPreferencesMask" in the right pane. You will see its value as a string of hex numbers. Mine was hex 98,12,03,80,10,00,00,00.

3. Next you need to add the hex value '41' to the first hex value on the left in the hex string found in step 2.
Using the hex string I have as an example: 98h + 41h = d9h. You can use the Calculator (in scientific mode) in Vista to do this simple addition. My new hex value, using my example, string now becomes d9,12,03,80,10,00,00,00

4. Next, Right click on the "UserPreferencesMask" key and choose 'Modify',then alter the original value of
"UserPreferencesMask" to your new value found in step 3.

5. Next, at the same [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop] registry location right click in the right pane and choose to add a new DWORD (32-bit) value and name this value "ActiveWndTrkTimeout". Next right click on your new "ActiveWndTrkTimeout" DWORD and choose modify and put in the time (in milliseconds) that suits you for the mouse switching between windows.

6. Close Regedit and re-boot.

Now for multiple windows open on the desktop, the window the mouse pointer is on will become the active window and come to the foreground without having to click on it. You may need to play with the value for "ActiveWndTrkTimeout" a little to get it correct. These are the values (below) I used to test with and the time for the mouse to remain over a window before its bought forward is 3 seconds (3000 miliseconds). Experiment with your time and find something that suits you:

Enabling ClearType in Vista is easy, you can do it in the GUI, and besides its enabled by default anyway. However, tuning ClearType in Vista is not so easy as there is nothing exposed in the GUI for tuning. ClearType is integrated into Vista. There is , however, a way to adjust ClearType in the registry.



These settings affect ClearType 'Globally' across the entire operating system. They may not, however, have much effect for HTML as seen in Internet Explorer. For Internet Explorer you may need to turn on ClearType in the settings for IE.

The "FontSmoothingType", "FontSmoothingGamma", "FontSmoothing", and "FontSmoothingOrientation" items already exist in the registry. The settings for each important item for ClearType activation and tuning are:

"FontSmoothingType" - a DWORD value: 1 = ClearType is not used for the font smoothing, standard font smoothing is used instead - 2 = ClearType is used for font smoothing. (setting to '2' also enables ClearType)

"FontSmoothing" - a DWORD value : 1 = use font smoothing, 2 = use ClearType font smoothing. This is a REG_SZ value, not a dword. This is different from "FontSmoothingType" and is not a switch to help turn on ClearType to begin with. This tells the font smoothing to use AFTER ClearType is enabled.

"FontSmoothingGamma" - a DWORD value: Perhaps the most important setting for ClearType. Range is 1000 to 2200 (integer). Setting to 1000 (the default) produces the most readable text for most people (its the darkest against a white background with a black font). 2200 gives the lighest text. You may be able to go below the 1000 value, I haven't tried that yet since the official lower limit is 1000.

"FontSmoothingOrientation" : This is a hard one to figure out. It seems basically to determine if the display will use RGB, BRG, or a flat pixel structure. Most LCD screens are RGB so play with this one a little if your using a LCD display. The values for this dword are 0, 1, or 2. These values for "FontSmoothingOrientation" and what each does is represented below:

Flat = 0 - The display device has no pixel structure. This means that light sources for each color are spread equally on the pixel area—this is referred to as gray scale rendering. This is how a standard display device works. ClearType is never applied to the rendered text.

RGB = 1 - The display device has pixels that consist of three stripes in the following order: red, green, and blue. ClearType is applied to the rendered text.

BGR = 2 - The display device has pixels that consist of three stripes in the following order: blue, green, and red. ClearType is applied to the rendered text.

System Related
Logging on as Local Administrator If you are having trouble logging on as the built-in Administrator account under 5308, you will need to make some registry modifications to display the Administrator account.

1. Log in using the account you created during the Windows Vista setup process.
2. From the Start menu, click All Programs and then expand Accessories.
3. Right click on "Command Prompt" and click "Run as Administrator".
4. Click on "Allow" from the Windows Security dialog.
5. In the Command Prompt window, type "regedit" (without the quotes) and press Enter.
6. In the Registry Editor, browse to
   CODE
   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon
7. Add a new key called "SpecialAccounts" (without the quotes).
8. In the "SpecialAccounts" key you just made, create a sub-key called "UserList" (without the quotes)
9. Make sure you are navigated to
   CODE
   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\SpecialAccounts\UserList
10. In the "UserList" key, create a new DWORD (32-bit) item and name it Administrator.
11. Double click on the new DWORD item and set its value to 1.
12. Close Registry Editor and the Command Prompt.

Increase Performance

The February CTP is quick right from installation, however there is one bug that causes a slow down with the user interface. This bug involves the sliding buttons on the taskbar; by disabling this, performance increases a bit. It's really up to you, but the bug can be very annoying at times. To disable it, just carry out the following actions:

1. Press WinKey+R and type in "sysdm.cpl" (without the quotes).
2. Click the Advanced tab, and then under "Performance" click "Settings".
3. In the Visual Effects tab, uncheck "Slide taskbar buttons".
4. Press OK and close the Performance Options dialog.

I have also compiled a registry file that changes a few key settings involving the timings for menus, hover events, etc, which makes the Windows interface more responsive. You can download that here. This was tested and is fully working without any issues, and have also been scanned for viruses.

Also, if you are running this build with an NVIDIA WDDM supported graphics card, you may want to install the latest drivers, this should fix some of the weird issues and lag with the Desktop Window Manager (DWM) and the Aero user interface enabled.

Disable DEP / NoExecute Protection to fix Random Windows Explorer crashes

Due to the way Windows Vista's boot editor has been created, it is now harder to disable DEP / No Execute Protection. However, after some amount of research, it would seem that some of the random Windows Explorer crashes that users are experiencing is caused by this technology. You will need to disable it and reboot, which should cure some of the crashes:

1. Click Start, All Programs, Accessories, right click on "Command Prompt", and click "Run as administrator".
2. If asked for permission to run Windows Command Processor, click on Allow.
3. At the command prompt, type in "bcdedit.exe /set {current} nx AlwaysOff" (without the quotes).
4. You should receive a message saying "Operation Completed Successfully".
5. Restart the computer, DEP / No Execute should now be disabled.

Prevent network flooding and connection drops

The new networking stack contained in Windows Vista February CTP, and as with anything new (and still in beta), it has some issues. This build seems to like dropping connections and in rare cases, blocking all traffic on wireless routers, requiring a restart of the router itself. To fix these problems, complete the following instructions:

WARNING: Please note that this will disable IPv6 connectivity as well as the Windows Firewall security, and is not recommended unless you are experiencing these issues. This will also invalidate any network related bug reports you file against Windows Vista.

1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
2. LUnder "Network and Internet", click on "View network status and tasks".
3. In the left hand pane, click on "Open connections".
4. Right click on your network connection (for example: Local Area Connection 3), and then click "Configure".
5. If asked for permission to open Network Connections, click on Allow.
6. Highlight the following items and press the "Uninstall" button:
   Link-Layer Topology Discovery Mapper I/O Driver
   Link-Layer Topology Discovery Responder
7. Uncheck "Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6)"
8. Next, click on the "Configure" button under the name of your network adapter.
9. Click on the Power Management tab.
10. Disable all power management items listed on the Power Management tab.
11. Press OK.

To stop Windows Vista from flooding your network with traffic:

1. Press WinKey+R.
2. Type "services.msc" (without the quotes)
3. If asked for permission to open "Microsoft Management Console", click Allow.
4. Double click on each one of the following services and change its startup type to "Disabled".
   Base Filtering Engine
   IKE and AuthIP Keying Modules
   IP Helper Service
   IPSec
   Windows Firewall

Close the Services window and restart Windows.

Disable System Restore

In Build 5308, the System Restore service is one cause of performance issues. For some people, it doesn't even work. So to remedy this, we will need to shut down System Restore and stop it from running:

1. Click on the "Start" button.
2. Hover over "Computer", right click on it and then click "Properties".
3. On the left hand side, click "Advanced Settings".
4. If asked to permit the action, click on "Allow".
5. Click on the "System Protection" tab.
6. Uncheck any checkboxes listed for your hard drives.
7. Press OK.

Forcing Glass on Non-WDDM Compatible Cards

WARNING: This tweak may cause a blue screen loop or constant flicker depending on your video card. Use with extreme caution, this tweak is really only here for documentary purposes only.

1. From the Start menu, click All Programs and then expand Accessories.
2. Right click on "Command Prompt" and click "Run as Administrator".
3. Click on "Allow" from the Windows Security dialog.
4. In the Command Prompt window, type "regedit" (without the quotes) and press Enter.
5. Navigate to
   CODE
   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\DWM
   (if this key doesn't exist, create it)
6. Create a new DWORD (32-bit value) of UseMachineCheck, and set its value to 0.

Disable User Account Protection (UAP)

Once you have installed the February CTP and set up an every day user account, one of the first things you will notice is that you have almost no rights to do anything administrator related on your system. Disabling this is purely up to you but if you find UAP is getting in your way, or some applications refuse to run because of it, you may want to take a look at this. Here are the instructions:
NOTE: You should be logged in as Administrator to do this, or you could run the Microsoft Management Console (MMC) elevated.

1. Press WinKey (the flag key on your keyboard) + R and type "secpol.msc". (Without the quotes). If asked to permit Microsoft Management Console to run, allow it.
2. In the Local Security Settings window, in the left hand pane, navigate to "Security Settings, Local Policies, Security Options".
3. In the pane to the right, scroll all the way to the bottom.
4. Set the first two User Account Protection items to "No Prompt", and "Disabled" on the remaining three items.
5. Close the Microsoft Management Console (MMC), and if you are asked to save the settings for "Console1", press "No".
6. Reboot or log off and log back in to enforce the new settings; or alternatively open an elevated Command Prompt and type "gpupdate /force" (without the quotes), and then press Enter.

Alternatively, you can also do this to disable UAP:

1. Press WinKey+R on your keyboard.
2. Paste the following into the Run box, including the quotation marks:
   CODE
   "C:\Windows\System32\cmd.exe /k %windir%\System32\reg.exe ADD
   CODE
   HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System /v  EnableLUA /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f"
3. Press Enter. If asked for permission to perform this action, click "Allow".
4. Reboot the system.

To renable UAP after applying this method:

1. Press WinKey+R on your keyboard.
2. Paste the following into the Run box, including the quotation marks:
   CODE
   "C:\Windows\System32\cmd.exe /k %windir%\System32\reg.exe ADD
   CODE
   HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System /v  EnableLUA /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f"
3. Press Enter.
4. Reboot the system.

Shell Related

Turn on the sidebar

The long awaited Windows Sidebar, which first debuted back in the Longhorn alpha builds but was removed and remade into a seperate project has finally made its way back into Windows Vista. However, it is tucked away in 5308. To start it:

1. Click Start, and hover over All Programs.
2. Navigate to the Accessories folder.
3. Click "Sidebar".

Bring back "Run" on the Start menu

One of the most favorite functions in Windows, the "Run" function, has been moved off of the Start menu by default in Windows Vista. To access it, you could press WinKey+R on your keyboard to bring it up. Or you can use the Search functionality built into the Start menu, it also works as the run command. Or, last but not least, you could just put the Run command back on the Start menu where it has lived for years:

1. Right click on the Start button, and click "Properties".
2. In the "Taskbar and Start Menu Properties" dialog, click "Customize".
3. Scroll down and in the list you shall find "Run command". Check the box next to it.
4. Close any open dialogs by pressing OK.

Toggle DWM

If you find the Aero Glass user interface annoying, or if it is slow on your computer configuration, simply press Ctrl+Shift+F9 to turn it off. Press this key combination again to re-enable it.

Use the Search box in Windows Explorer to filter a file view

Did you know you can easily filter the list of documents and folders in a folder using the Search field in Windows Explorer? For instance if you have a folder containing a lot of folders and documents and you are specifically looking for "Vista", all you need to do is type "Vista", or even just part of the word, such as "Vis" to limit the list of files shown.

Use Flip3D
In build 5270, Microsoft had added a quick launch button to run "Flip3D", the cool new task switching mode in Windows Vista. In the February CTP however, this quick launch item has been removed. If you've forgotten the key combination to run Flip3D, it is currently WinKey+Tab. If you want to run Flip3D without it closing when you let go of the key combination, press Ctrl+WinKey+Tab.

Limit the number of windows shown in Flip3D

If Flip3D is too slow for you or if you have too many windows open, you can easily limit the number of windows displayed in Flip3D. As you tab or scroll through them, other windows will appear.

1. Press WinKey+R on your keyboard.
2. Type "regedit.exe" without the quotes.
3. If asked for permission to launch the Registry Editor, click Allow.
4. Navigate to
   CODE
   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\DWM
5. Right click on the right hand side of the registry editor, and under New, click on "DWORD (32-bit)".
6. Name the new DWORD value "Max3DWindows" (without the quotes)
7. Double click on the DWORD value and set it to the maximum number of windows you want displayed in Flip3D. A good number is 5 for low-end cards and 10 for other cards.
8. Click OK and exit the Registry Editor.
9. Press Ctrl+Shift+F9 to shut down DWM, and then press the key combination again to restart it.
10. Press WinKey+Tab to display Flip3D.

Workaround for the dissapearing start button after using Flip3D

If you use the Flip3D function in Windows Vista February CTP, you may notice that when you return from the Flip3D display screen that the blue start button in the left hand corner is missing. To fix this, simply restart DWM by pressing Ctrl+Shift+F9 twice.

Add another time zone to your clock

One nice addition to Windows Vista is the ability to display the time in other time zones.

1. Click on the clock.
2. Click "Date and Time Settings".
3. Click on the "Additional Clocks" tab.
4. Check the box labelled "Additional Clock #1″, and from the drop down menu choose a time zone.
5. Give the clock a name, such as "Microsoft" or "Texas".
6. Press OK.

You can repeat this for the second additional clock as well.




Windows Explorer

To prevent the Search box from searching sub-folders:

In the February CTP, the Search functionality has changed yet again. This time, when you type something into the search box, it will also search all sub-folders of the current folder. To disable this:

1. Press WinKey+R on your keyboard.
2. Type "control folders", and press OK.
3. When asked for permission to run "Run a DLL as an App", press Allow.
4. Click the "View" tab.
5. Uncheck "Search subfolders when typing in the Search box".
6. Press OK.

To add a location to the Places bar (left hand pane in Windows Explorer)

In Windows Vista, there is a new pane on the left hand side of Windows Explorer which contains links to items you wish to access quickly. It works a bit like the left hand pane in the Mac OS X 10.3+ Finder. In previous builds, you could not really customize the Places bar but now you can! Simply drag and drop a folder onto the plane, and voila!

Display Windows Explorer Classic Menus

If you are a frequent user of the menu in Windows Explorer, you may have a bit of a hard time adjusting to Windows Vista's new Windows Explorer window style, which doesn't include the menu.

There are two ways to bring it back, one is temporary and the other is more permenant:
If you want to view the menu but not have it always displayed, simply press the Alt key. The menu will fade into view.

If you want the menu to always be turned on, click the first button on Layout configuration button (first button on the top most bar in Windows Explorer). From the drop down list, check "Classic Menus".

Folders List Returns!
If you want to view a tree-view of your hard drive and navigational path, simply click on the arrow next to the "Folders" bar in Windows Explorer, located on the Places bar.

Windows Mail

Disable the Windows Mail Splash Screen

Using Windows Mail? If the splash screen is displayed too long for your liking or if you just want to get rid of it, this is the trick for you.

1. Press WinKey+R.
2. Type "regedit.exe" without the quotes.
3. If you are asked for permission to run the Registry Editor, click on Allow.
4. Navigate to
   CODE
   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows Mail
5. Create a new DWORD (32-bit) value called "NoSplash".
6. Double click on the "NoSplash" DWORD you just created and set its value to 1.
7. Press OK and close the registry editor.

Bring back the Outlook Bar in Windows Mail

If you are an avid fan of the Outlook Bar in Microsoft Outlook and the previous Outlook Express, then this tweak is definately for you!

1. Press WinKey+R.
2. Type "regedit.exe" without the quotes.
3. If you are asked for permission to run the Registry Editor, click on Allow.
4. Navigate to
   CODE
   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows Mail
5. Look for the DWORD (32-bit) item with the name of "Show Legacy Outlook Bar", if it doesn't exist, create it.
6. Double click on this value and set the value to 1.
7. Press OK and close the registry editor.

Start Windows Mail. You should now see the Outlook Bar on the left-hand side.

<a name="ie7">Internet Explorer 7

User Agent String

If you are having issues with certain websites (especially banking and other secure websites), you might want to try this out. It fools the websites into thinking you are running Internet Explorer 6.0.
Copy and paste the following code into Notepad, and save it to your desktop as IE7UserAgent.REG.
Double-click the file to merge it into the Windows Registry, and then restart Internet Explorer for the change to take effect. If UAP is turned on, permit the operation to take place.

If you are having issues with certain websites (especially banking and other secure websites), you might want to try this out. It fools the websites into thinking you are running Internet Explorer 6.0.Copy and paste the following code into Notepad, and save it to your desktop as IE7UserAgent.REG.Double-click the file to merge it into the Windows Registry, and then restart Internet Explorer for the change to take effect. If UAP is turned on, permit the operation to take place.You can easily undo this change by copying and pasting the following code into Notepad, and then saving it as IE7Undo.reg and merge it into the Windows Registry. If UAP is turned on, permit the operation to take place.You can test these changes using a simple page that checks the User Agent. We recommend: http://www.fiddlertool.com/useragent.aspx.

The Favorites Center

In Internet Explorer 7, the older style Explorer bars have been replaced and the menus have been hidden by default. "What happened to my favorites, then?" you may wonder. Simple. You will notice a round orange circle with a white star in the center of it. Click on it, and all of your favorites will appear. You will also find your subscribed feeds and history are available from the Favorites Center as well. To close the Favorites Center quickly just press Esc on your keyboard.

Zoom

In previous versions of Internet Explorer, you could use Ctrl+-, Ctrl++, or Ctrl+Scroll Wheel to change the zoom and text size of a page. In Internet Explorer 7, there is a new zoom function which not only allows you to zoom text, it also zooms everything else on the page; making pages, images, and items larger for those with sight problems. To use this feature, locate the little magnifying glass in the bottom right hand corner of the Internet Explorer status bar. Click on it, and select a zoom percentage.

Quick Tabs

Internet Explorer comes with a new feature known as Tabs. Other browsers have had this for a while, such as Mozilla Firefox, and now it is time for Internet Explorer to catch up. When you have multiple tabs open, instead of clicking through each tab to see what it contains, you can use Quick Tabs. To do this, you can either press the Quick Tabs button next to the Favorites Center & Add Favorite buttons, or you can press Ctrl+Q.

Printing from a USB Printer

In this build, there is a known issue that causes printing with Internet Explorer to fail when attempting to use a USB Printer. To resolve this, click Start, All Programs, right click on Internet Explorer, and then click "Run as administrator". When asked for permission to run Internet Explorer, click on Allow. Then print as you normally would.




from here
http://www.tweakvista.com/

Windows Vista: Customize the User Interface tweaks
Disable pop-up balloon tips
Enable New Boot screen in Vista Beta 2
Enable New Vista Aero Cursors
Enable Vista Glass look on Unsupported Video Cards
Fix Windows Vista Fonts
Force Vista Glass on Compatible Hardware
Kill Security Center Notifications
Show Run Command on Start Menu
Slow Motion Aero Animations on Demand
Tweak your glass window borders

Windows Vista: Usability Tips
Checkbox Select Alternative
Install Vista without product key
Launch Flip 3D Alt+Tab Replacement
Make NAS (Network Attached Storage) devices work in Vista
Missing the old File, Edit, View menu bar?
Run as administrator start menu keyboard trick
Stop autostart applications
Wireless Network Search Refresh

Windows Vista: Performance Tweaks
Disable Network Printer Search
Disable Welcome Center
Speed up Start Menu Search
Vista Beta 1 Service Guide: Part 1
Vista Beta 1 Service Guide: Part 2

Windows Vista: Software Tweaks
Add search providers to Internet Explorer 7
Create a Shortcut for Flip 3D
Enable Add-ins in Windows Live Messenger
Enable Vista Glass on Intel GMA 950 Graphics Cards
Internet Explorer 7 keyboard shortcuts
Internet Explorer 7 Privacy Tip
Internet Explorer 7 Quick reference Sheet
Internet Explorer 7 User Agent tweaking tool
Remove Windows Mail splash screen
Resize Partitions with Vista Disk Management

Windows Vista: Security Tweaks
Start Menu Privacy Tweaks
Tweak User Account Protection

Windows Vista: Links
Learn How To Add Glass to your Applications
Official Windows Vista website
Vista Blogs
Windows Vista Development Site
Windows Vista Logos
Windows Vista UX Guidelines

from here
http://www.tweakvista.com/ check for updates

===
EnJOY

You can add the 'Move To Folder' and 'Copy To Folder' right click context menu items in Vista by creating the below registry entries:



Open up Notepad and paste the above, save it as move_copy_folder.reg (or any name you choose), then right click on the file and choose Merge.

I use the heck out of Notepad. Sometimes its handy to have it open a file thats not normally associated with Notepad but can be read by Notepad. To make this more handy for me I add a right click context menu to Vista so that an 'Open with Notepad' context menu item appears if I right click on any file. I use the below reg entries to accomplish this:



Open up Notepad and paste the above, save it as notepad_right_click.reg (or any name you choose), then right click on the file and choose Merge.

(CAUTION: This reg tweak may create a conflict with Office if its installed. This reg tweak may also increase the computer shutdown time on some systems. In case of conflict the wise thing to do, as with any tweak, is remove this tweak and not try to work around it)

I use Notepad a lot, I generally use a certain type of font or something as the default for Notepad. One thing I do like is being able to set the settings I want to have Notepad use, and having Notepad ready to go for me after I finish a customized un-attended install because I already know that NotePad doesn't normally save settings between use like I want it to. To do this I use the below reg key:



In this key you can find a bunch of things that you can modify for defaults for Notepad, these are (defaults shown):



All of these can be modified to set the indicated attribute for NotePad. Sometimes you need to add an item that doesn't exist in the registry, lets say for example your working with a bunch of text files and you want Notepad to use the very last settings (font, etc...) you used when you open up the next file and you also want the next files to always open at the same position on your desktop, then do this by adding a DWORD called '"fSavePageSettings" and set its value to '1' to enable and enable the existing "fSaveWindowPositions" by making its value a '1' like the below:



There ya go...now go forth and tweak

I like having most of my own stuff set up correctly when my un-attended installs complete, with Vista its no different. One thing I do like is to have the command prompt text as another color instead of the default white color. yes, I know you can further customize the command prompt and make the text color anything you like from within Vista, but if you want it to be set up during your un-attended install you'll need to resort to using the below reg entry:



The above reg entry example uses the color green. You can make it any of several colors, where the value for the 'DefaultColor' is equal to one of the below:

Color codes to use(HEX)
0 = black
1 = blue
2 = green
3 = cyan
4 = red
5 = magenta
6 = yellow/brown
7 = white
8 = gray
9 = bright blue
A = bright green
B = bright cyan
C = bright red
D = bright magenta
E = bright yellow
F = bright white

I normally don't recommend anyone bypass the logon procedure from a security standpoint, but there are times when an auto-logon makes people happy. Someone asked me for this so might as well share it, after all its not a secret and is becoming one of the most asked for items. Here is how to enable Auto-Logon for Vista:

1. Click the Start button, type 'netplwiz' and hit enter or click that name on the Start menu.

2. In the GUI window that comes up uncheck the "Users must enter a username and password to use this computer' box, then click 'Apply'

3. In the new dialog box that opens type the name of the account you want to auto-logon by default. If the account is not normally passworded then leave the password blank, if the account is passworded then enter the password where indicated. Click OK your way out of both dialogs.

The account must already exist before you do this. I do not recommend that you create accounts without passwords. I do not recommend that you auto-logon your 'Administrator' account, use another account name with some admin privilages if you need to. Use this at your own risk, I do not accept any responsibility for anything that happens as a result of you using this.

If someone hacks your computer as a result of you following these instructions, I don't want to hear a word about "Spooky said to do this so its his fault"

Exporting your email from Outlook Express in WinXP and then importing it into Windows Mail in Vista can be confusing and full of frustration. Sure, there is an Export feature in Outlook Express and an Import feature in Windows Mail, but some may not get the expected results at times. This method assumes a clean install of Vista. Here is a fail proof method for saving all your email from Outlook Express in WinXP and getting it back into Windows Mail in Vista for any reasonable sceinario.

(this is not the only method to migrate your email from Outlook Express to Windows Mail, but this method is fail safe all the time)

1. First, In WinXP open up Windows Explorer and browse to:

C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\Local Settings\Application Data\Identities\{*your identity number here*}\Microsoft\Outlook Express

2. Right click on the 'Outlook Express' folder and choose copy (DO NOT CHOOSE CUT AS YOU MIGHT HAVE TO DO THIS AGAIN IF SOMETHING DOESN'T GO RIGHT).

3. Now paste that folder some where else. Now after the paste you have a few options for saving this folder. If you have another drive that is not going to be the install drive then paste it there. If your not that lucky to have an additional drive and everything will be lost when you reformat the drive you have to remove XP from and install Vista on then burn the folder to a CD for use later.

4. After this folder is saved to a safe place go ahead and install Vista.

5. After the Vista install is complete, set up Windows Mail with your accounts and stuff.

6. After Windows Mail is prepared, start it up and click on the 'File' menu item and choose 'Import'. Then choose 'Outlook Express 6' messages, point the import wizard to the place where you stored the Outlook Express folder from steps 1 - 3 above and select the 'Oulook Express' folder, choose next and your messages will be imported into Windows Mail intact.

7. Then simply sort out the folders in Windows Mail and your all done.

If there is a file or folder in Vista that you can not take ownership of within Vista then try the Takeown utility in a command prompt. Simply open a command prompt and type Takeown/? for details