The purpose of this page is to act as a sitemap for Vista Configuration. Topics include the new Windows Explorer, finding your way around the Vista Control Panel and mastering the UAC (User
Account Control).
Security is rarely a glamorous topic, yet it may be the killer reason to persuade the financial director to loosen the purse strings so that you can upgrade from XP to Vista. The wide ranging and
detailed measures that Microsoft have take to make the operating system secure, underpin every aspect of Vista. From controlling actions with UAC (User Account Control), through 'service hardening' to registry restriction, Windows
Vista offers top to bottom security. Not only has each component been created from scratch, but also Microsoft have redesigned each component with security in mind. More on Windows Vista Security
Vista AERO Graphics
Aero Graphics is hard to define, but fortunately it's easy to use. From one perspective, AERO is Vista's replacement of XP's Luna desktop. Others define AERO as Windows Graphics Foundation 2.0
and the GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) combining to deliver stunning visual displays. Microsoft would like to emphasis that AERO is the most efficient and intuitive front end to date. For me, I would cast aside the hype and
ignore the jargon
and say, 'Vista is fun to learn and gives me more information than any other Version of Windows Explorer'. See more on Vista's Aero Graphics
Vista Control Panel
The Vista Control Panel shows its XP roots, in fact, the Control Panel is a good barometer for comparing the new features of Vista with the old features of XP. One new element is 'Solutions to Problems',
which you find under Performance and Maintenance. Solutions to Problems evolved from XP's troubleshooters and they illustrate how advances in Vista's artificial intelligence provide a more productive and
less frustrating computing experience.
Some of the old Control Panel items have been re-arranged, for example, I found the Add or Remove Programs under Additional Options. One Control Panel section that has mushroomed
is
networking, in particular, the Network Center caught my eye. See detail of the Vista Control Panel
Guy Recommends: A Free Trial of the Network Performance Monitor
(NPM)
Solarwinds'
Orion performance monitor
will help you discover what's happening on your network. This
utility will also guide you through troubleshooting; the dashboard will
indicate whether the root cause is a broken link, faulty equipment or
resource overload.
Perhaps the NPM's best feature is the way it suggests solutions to network
problems. Its
second best feature is the ability to monitor the health of individual VMWare
virtual machines. If you are interested in troubleshooting, and creating
network maps, then I recommend that you take advantage of Solarwinds' offer.
Although they now have the same look and feel, Vista's Windows Explorer and IE7 are distinct programs launched by different executables. Indeed, it is this similarity which helps to make the Vista interfaces
more consistent than those in XP. Perhaps the most interesting new feature is the 'Searches Folders', otherwise known as Virtual Folders. These folders, which are color coded blue, literally open up a new dimension for
Explorer. What the blue Searches folders do is enable you to display data from different physical areas in one virtual folder. Vista Explorer also
Virtual Folders (Searches)
Vista Tips - NCPA.CPL (Network Connection Shortcut)
For years I wished that
Microsoft would make a keyboard shortcut for the Network Connection. The nearest I have found is Start Search : ncpa.cpl. Try this combination and see the network connections appear by magic.
Note: Mr Angry wrote saying ncpa did not work for him, what Mr Angry was missing was the .cpl, you must type the full name ncpa.cpl.
Reverting to my keyboard shortcut idea, what I did was to make a shortcut to
ncpa.cpl, and assign it to a keyboard combination, for example Ctrl +Alt +n.
Encouraging computers to sleep when not in use is a great idea -
until you are away from your desk and need a file on that remote sleeping machine!
Wake-On-LAN really will save you that long walk to awaken a hibernating
machine; however my reason for encouraging you to download this utility is
just because it's so much fun sending those 'Magic Packets'. As Wake-On-LAN (WOL) is free, see
if I am right, and you get a kick from arousing those sleeping machines.
WOL also has business uses for example, wakening machines so that they can have
their patches applied.
Before you make any changes to the registry settings, get into the habit of exporting at
the branch of the registry that you are working with.
Backup the system state before you try anything radical in the registry.
Check out the .sav files in the \system32\config folder.
Research Volume Shadow Copy, and test how it restores a previous version of your registry files.
If your computer has a serious problem, which requires pressing F8 at boot-up, remember to try Last Known Good as your first recovery option.
Seek alternative methods; think laterally. Instead of risking making changes with your registry editor, what else could you do? I urge you to consider configuring a Group Policy rather than
tweaking the registry. Occasionally
Vista may provide a new GUI to configure a setting, for
example, instead of launching regedit and changing the value for AutoAdminLogon, you could launch the Control Panel --> Users and un-tick the setting called, 'Users must enter a user name and password.'
Learn how to perform a remote registry edit with: Connect
Network Registry.
As you work through my registry examples, make a point of studying each page's 'Key Learning Points'.
