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The following instructions are given to continue my previous boost-up Windows XP tweaks, but before starting the procedure below, you will have to save your current configuration by setting up a System Restore Point. This way can revert back to that point if anything goes wrong. It’s kind of like a BIG UNDO button.

To set a Restore Point:

• Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > System Restore
• On the welcome screen, choose Create a Restore Point
• Give a description, such as “Before Changes.”, click Create

Now, you have just created a Safety point. So, Let’s tweak.

Make your menus load faster
Open up a new menu would have taken very little times but open up more than 10 would have added up waiting time. To get rid of waiting time by doing this:

• Start > Run > enter regedit
• Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER / Control Panel > Click on Desktop
• On the right panel, double-click MenuShowDelay and change the Value data to 0
• Click OK

Free up memory from closed programs
Windows usually store part of closing program in memory even if it’s not being used. Called dynamic link libraries (DLLs), they take up memory and sometimes cause other problems. To prevent this, tweak by chaging a Registry key.

• Start > Run > enter regedit
• Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE / SOFTWARE / Microsoft / Windows / CurrentVersion
• Under CurrentVersion > right-click on Explorer > then choose New->Key
• In the box that appears (”New Key #1?), change the name to AlwaysUnloadDLL
• Hit Enter. On the right side, double-click the word (Default)
• For the value data, enter 1
• Click OK

Speed program startup
Windows can be set to load information about some applications to make them start up faster by changing how much work a program called the Prefetcher does.

• Start > Run > enter regedit
• Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE / SYSTEM / CurrentControlSet / Control / Session Manager / Memory Management / PrefetchParameters
• Click on PrefetchParameters, on the right panel > double-click Enable Prefetcher > value data to 5 (in decimal, not hexadecimal)
• Click OK

Reduce Windows’ workload
If you have many folders and subfolders, every time you access one, Windows will spend a lot of time updating the “last accessed” time for that folder and all its sub-folders. Stopping that process will buy you some time.

• Start > Run > enter regedit
• Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE / System / CurrentControlSet / Control
• Under Control, right-click on FileSystem > choose New > then DWORD Value
• Replace “New Value #1? with NtfsDisableLastAccessUpdate and hit Enter
• Double-click NtfsDisableLastAccessUpdate and change the Value data to 1
• Click OK

Improve Swapfile performance
Many programs use a lot of memory, and if you run more than one or two at once, Windows might run out of RAM. In that case, it will start using a section of your hard disk called the “swapfile” to store information. It’s a lot slower than RAM, but it beats not being able to run a program. But sometimes Windows uses the swapfile before it has to. This tweak will tell it to wait ‘till the last moment before doing that.

• Start > Run > enter msconfig
• Tab to System.ini > click the plus “+” sign next to 386enh
• Click New, then type “ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1? in the box that appears
• Click OK

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