XP Tweak Tools and Problem Solving Tools

Tweak UI

TweakUI for XP is contained in the Power Toys for XP. This version of Tweak Ui is different from the previousversions of Tweak Ui that were control panel applets. This Tweak UI is a separate program that you can paste into the Administative Tools folder.

Tweak Ui allows you to configure many aspects of XP's functionality.

Even more can be configured from the Tweak UI menu About > Policy. Click on the Run Group Policy Editor button and run hundreds of other functions. (But, be careful!!!)

PowerToys are presently no longer available as Microsoft says they are currently being improved, and will be available for download in April 2002.

When they are available again you can download them from:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/home/downloads/powertoys.asp

Note about Regclean:

Regclean is a great tool to remove faulty or defunct registry entries. However, it is no longer available from the Microsoft website.

Office 2000 and Office XP have functions that can prompt you to install programs that you have not yet installed. If you try to open a Power Point document and Power Point is not installed you will be prompted to install it. This prompting will not occur if you use Regclean.

If you know that you will not need, for instance, Outlook, or you will install it when the need arises on your own, you can continue to use Regclean. Regclean is still available from many locations.

Bootvis

http://www.microsoft.com/hwdev/platform/performance/fastboot/default.asp

Bootvis is a tool that can enhance your XP boot time. Use the "optimize system" function in the Trace Menu and you can achieve significant improvement of your boot speed.

The design goals for Windows XP on a typical consumer PC are:

Boot to a useable state in a total of 30 seconds
Resume from Hibernate (S4) in a total of 20 seconds
Resume from Standby (S3) in a total of 5 seconds


XP Application Compatibility Toolkit (this is NOT the XP Application Compatibility Wizard that is already installed with the system!)

http://download.microsoft.com/download/whistler/act/2.0/WXP/EN-US/act20.exe


The Microsoft® Windows® XP Application Compatibility Toolkit includes new compatibility tools, such as Application Verifier and the Compatibility Administration tool. These tools enable you to create and distribute custom compatibility fixes for applications on Windows XP and profile existing applications for known compatibility problems.

WindowsUpdate

When using Windowsupdate, click the menu item "Personalize Windows Update ". Choose the Windows Update Catalog option. Now you can DOWNLOAD the updates and keep them for future use. When you use the Qfecheck and/or Hfnetchk tool, you might discover you need to re-install an update. this cannot be done from Windowsupdate normally if it has already been installed.

The QFECHECK tool for Windows XP

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q282784

The QFECHECK tool for Windows XP helps customers who thought they had properly installed an update, but had not, and are now experiencing a problem. Previously, it was somewhat difficult to identify which fixes were installed on a computer. This simple tool easily enumerates all of the installed fixes by Microsoft Knowledge Base article number. Customers can then confirm that they have installed the appropriate set of fixes before using a valuable support incident and potentially experiencing unplanned down time.

The Hfnetchk tool

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q303215

The Hfnetchk tool is a command-line tool that administrators can use to centrally assess a computer or group of computers for the absence of security patches. The Hfnetchk tool uses an Extensible Markup Language (XML) file that contains information about which hotfixes are available for each product. The XML file contains security bulletin name and title, and detailed data about product-specific security hotfixes, including: files in each hotfix package and their file versions and checksums, registry keys that were applied by the hotfix installation package, information about which patches supersede which other patches, related Microsoft Knowledge Base article numbers, and much more.


http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q306794

How to Install the Support Tools from the Windows XP CD-ROM (Q306794)

The Windows Support Tools for Windows XP Professional and Windows XP 64-Bit Edition are intended for use by Microsoft support personnel and experienced users to assist in diagnosing and resolving computer problems. For individual tool descriptions, see the Windows Support Tools online tool documentation (Suptools.chm) when you install the Support Tools package.

Many of these Support Tools are difficult for all but very experienced users to use, but several are quite useful for intermediate users. Depends, Dupfinder, Pviewer and Windiff are all quite useful.

Test your XP PC Security:

Microsoft Personal Security Advisor (MPSA)

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/mpsa/start.asp

MPSA will scan your system and build a customized report on items such as: missing security patches, weak passwords, Internet Explorer and Outlook Express security settings, and Office macro protection settings. More details on the specific tests performed by MPSA are available by clicking on the "Features" menu option above.

For each weakness identified on your computer, MPSA provides easy to understand information on the security issue at hand, how to fix it, and links to additional information about the issue. Once you correct a reported deficiency, you can run the scan again and see the results of the change. Running MPSA on a regular basis will help ensure that your system stays up to date and secure.


Microsoft's Tool is nearly identical (as MPSA was developed in conjunction with Shavlik) with:

Shavlik Personal Security Advisor - Desktop vulnerability scan tool

http://www.shavlik.com/security/scan/start.asp

 

Wow!! Nice list! Thanks for the info.
Decon