How to Make Windows XP Startup Faster

Do you get frustrated while you wait around for your slow Windows XP computer to startup?
Windows XP will automatically load and startup any program that is in the startup folder whether you intend to use it or not.
These steps will show you how to speed up the bootup process of your PC by removing the programs that bog it down.

Steps

1. Click on Start, then Run, and type "msconfig". Wait for a new window to pop up.

2. Look under the "BOOT.INI" tab. You will see a box labeled "Timeout:", and a numerical value. By default, it's 30, which means 30 seconds of wait time before boot. This can be changed, using 3 seconds. (Note: if you have more than one operating system, this means the wait time to startup to the highlighted OS. you might want a bit more than 3 seconds)

3. Delete the temporary files periodically from your computer to make the applications run faster. Type %Temp% in the run dialog box by clicking on Start -> Run, and click on "OK". You will see an open folder with many files. Click on the Edit menu and click on Select all and then click on the File menu and select Delete. Note: Always confirm that the folder which is opened has a temp on the top of menu bar and the folder indicates that it is a temporary folder.

4. Perform a scandisk to see that your computer hard drive is in healthy condition and it helps your computer run faster.

5. Always perform a disk defragmentation at least once in a month. start the disk defragmentation from the system tools available in the accessories from the start menu. it takes a longer time and it is advised not to run any applications in the computer including the screen savers, while running disk defragmentation.


Hibernation

After you have done all this, another method you can do is to allow the computer to hibernate. Hibernation closes and opens Windows faster than normally. However, Hibernation is not a good long-term solution, as it continues to waste electricity.

1. Go to Start->Control Panel->Power Options. Click on the Hibernate tab.
2. Click on the box that says "Enable hibernation" to check it.
3. Click on the Advanced tab and change the Power buttons options if you want to hibernate by pressing the sleep button or the power button. Otherwise, holding the Shift key while in the Turn Off Computer menu will give you the option to hibernate.
4. Restart your computer every week or so to clear your computer.

The power can then be completely turned off, even at the socket so that no power is wasted.


Prefetch

1. Simply browse to the windows folder (Ex: C:\Windows) and under there you should see the prefetch folder. Go into the prefetch folder and delete all the files (Careful! It should look like this c:\windows\prefetch). We need to edit a registry key to tweak it. Open regedit and browse to this key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management\PrefetchParameters

Under this key you should see a value named: EnablePrefetcher

It has 4 possible values:

0 - Disabled : The prefetch system is turned off.

1 - Application : The prefetch only caches applications.

2 - Boot : The prefetch only caches boot system files.

3 - All : The prefetch caches boot, and application files.

We don't want to disable it entirely. This would actually make boot times *longer*. This is because this feature is also used to speed up the loading of boot files. That is why we are going to pick the number 2 option. It allows us to keep the advantage of caching system files, without continually clogging the system up with applications.

Set the value to 2 and reboot.

The 2nd time you boot it should boot much faster. Remember that the side effect is that launching individual applications once windows has loaded will now be slightly slower.

Tips

* When installing new software choose not to add the program to the startup folder.

* Regularly check to see what programs are running from your startup folder as malicious programs such as spyware may have installed itself without your knowledge.

* If you accidentally uncheck a program, just retrace the steps above and recheck the program and restart your computer.

* Adding more RAM to a Windows XP computer helps it boot faster, and since RAM prices are very low these days, it's an easy way to boot faster.

* Visit http://www.Sysinfo.org and look up the program and its details you don't know what one of the listed programs do. Alternative sites: CESAM Startup Files Database, Bleepingcomputer Database.

* uncheck system startup unneccessary startup programs*

Warnings

* Save any open work before making changes.
* Shut down all applications before making changes.
* Don't uncheck anything from Symantec or any other anti-virus or anti-malware software.
Doing so may disable or hinder the protection of your PC.