System Resources listing in Windows XP?

I'm using XP-Home Edition and have not run across a listing of "System Resources" anywhere. In 98se you could drop the "Help" menu and click on "About Win 98" and it would show your "System Resources" available. Has this feature been eliminated in XP? TIA

 

XP doesn't have the resource limitations that the win9x OS's had. They are unlimited so there's no need for a resource meter or any other resource reporting method.

 

Huh?

In XP, hit CTRL+ALT+DEL and you get the task manager, with 4 tabs. Tells you everything you need to know.
If you're referring to devices, control panel, hardware, device manager has everything there.

 

You can right click in your taskbar, bring up the task manager and click on the performance tab if you want to see some detailed info about memory and cpu usage.

Johanna

 

I suppose it depends on what sort of resources we're talking about.
Are we into ram and cpu usage, or are we into IRQ's and memory allocation?
More confusion about what "resources" really are...

 

I took it dennisneff was talking about System, User and GDI resources. If you check Arie's link you'll see what I'm thinking of. Personally, when I hear resources, that's always what I think of. I don't consider IRQ's, ram etc. to be the same thing. Resources are resources. IRQ's are IRQ's and ram is ram.

 

Although I agree, this has been a long ongoing debate on the internet. There's a thread at another bbs with 856 posts debating the issue. 3 schools of thought:

1.) Resources are system, user and gdi.
2.) Resources are irq's and memory allocation.
3.) Resources are a combination of the above.

I like to break it down thus:
1.) There are Windows (operating system) resources.
2.) There are hardware resources.

No matter how you define it, Arie is right, and so am I.
Just because an OS (XP) doesn't have a limit on resources, does not mean that it can't use up what's available.
Your RAM is a finite amount. It can be used fully. It can be used far more efficiently in XP than in 9x, but it still can get used up.
IRQ's are finite. There are 16 of them. Period. Hardware won't let you change that, no matter what (in current home PC's), however, XP (with APIC) will allow you to have up to 255 IRQ's. Thank goodness for smart OS's.

Anyhow, I hope dennisneff got the answer he needed

 

It is quite confusing; isn't it? My way stills seems best to me. Think about it.... if everybody thought about it my way, there'd be no disagreement at all.

 

System Resources

Thanks Everyone,

The answer to my question, from what I read in the reply, seems to be, "NO, XP does not show available system resources as a percentage of total system resources, of the machine in question's specific configuration, as Win98 did. "

Am I correct in this assumption?

 

System Resources

Arie,

Thanks for your first mention of "Task Manager ", it really does give me the specific information on what the programs I have, active and in the background, are using.

I wanted to mention that my OEM Win XP-Home, does not have the view option you mentioned in the last post. Is this a difference between OEM and Retail, or Home and Professional?

TIA - Dennis

P.S. The reason I'm asking is that I've noticed that my OEM XP-Home doesn't have System File Checker (I have to run it off the CD), and some other features that I ocassionally need, and I'm considering an upgrade to XP-Pro should the opportunity arise (at a reasonable rate

 

I'm using XP Home and while on the processes tab in task manager, clicking view gives an option 'Select Columns'.

For more info on SFC in XP see start>all programs>accessories>system tools>system information>help>contents>index tab>command-line utilities>highlight system information>display and click 'command-line reference A-Z' link

 

In XP Pro, sfc requires the cd to fix corrupted files, as well.

from my notes:
Parameters
/scannow
Scans all protected system files immediately.
/scanonce
Scans all protected system files once.
/scanboot
Scans all protected system files every time the computer is restarted.
/revert
Returns the scan to its default operation.
/purgecache
Purges the Windows File Protection file cache and scans all protected system files immediately.
/cachesize=x
Sets the size, in MB, of the Windows File Protection file cache.
/?
Displays help at the command prompt.
Remarks
You must be logged on as a member of the Administrators group to run sfc.
If sfc discovers that a protected file has been overwritten, it retrieves the correct version of the file from the %systemroot%\system32\dllcache folder, and then replaces the incorrect file.
If the %systemroot%\system32\dllcache folder becomes corrupt or unusable, use sfc /scannow, sfc /scanonce, or sfc /scanboot to repair the contents of the Dllcache directory.

Also from my notes XP Pro over Home:

Remote Desktop "“ you don't get Remote Desktop with Windows XP Home
Domain Membership "“ you won't ever be able to join a Windows domain with XP Home
Encrypting File System (EFS)– you don't get EFS with Windows XP Home
File level access control "“ file level NTFS permissions can't be set in Home
Multiprocessor support "“ Windows XP Home supports only a single processor
Internet Information Services "“ You can make Windows XP Pro a Web or FTP server, not Windows XP Home
ASR "“ the Automated System Recovery feature is included in Pro, in addition to System Restore (which is also included in Home)
Dynamic disk support "“ you can't make spanned or striped volumes in Windows XP Home Edition, as you can in Pro
The Network Monitor "“ this handy tool for capturing data packets that are sent to or from your computer isn't included in Home



OKAY
Me, again. I pointed you to the Task Manager in the fourth post to view your "resources ". Before using sfc, remember to try System Restore. SR should be enabled, (and is by default) but you'll need to change the setting to just your OS partition yourself. (Hey, we know we don't want to waste resources, right?) Since it only affects System Files, and not Data, it won't do anything if your corrupt your music library on D, for example. SFC has an arbitary relationship with Windows updates and patches- some will stay, some will need reinstalled. Before you make a mess of your System Files, try the Restore option.

If any of the above features of Pro over Home appeal to you, upgrade if you can. If nothing seems relevant, stay with Home and save some cash. XP Home has a few less options, but ii is adequate for most people, and the OS is just as stable and convenient as Pro. Both XP versions are a huge improvement over earlier Windows versions and much more reliable. XP is not DOS based, so forget everything you know about DOS. XP works better with an NTFS file system instead of FAT 32. The only good reason for using FAT 32 is dual booting. Dual booting is with prior versions of Windows is rarely necessary because of XP's backward capability. XP is also constantly fixing itself on the fly. XP has a ton of generic drivers on board, as well, and can usually find and run hardware until you get the optimal software. An XP computer, protected by a strict internet security policy, and protected from unremorseful tweakers, is the most functional OS available now. It also looks beautiful in Luna Blue. You can dump the ugly Classic mode and rest your eyes on a warm and friendly GUI. You can fix all of WE and the Control Panel to look "normal" and still retain the lovely Luna Blue.

Johanna

YMMV