Game CD Gets Booted

I installed the soccer game EA Sports FIFA Football 2002 using my external CD-ROM drive, but that drive is now failing. I want to run the game from my DVD-ROM drive, but the system tells me that I have to put the CD in the correct drive. What can I do?

This problem is common to games that require the installation CD whenever you play. The game can work with the CD only if it's in the drive from which you performed the installation. Other than reinstalling the game from the other drive (which can cause you to lose your saved games and seasons), the best solution is to swap the drive letters for the two CD drives manually.

In Windows XP, go into the Control Panel, click on the Performance and Maintenance icon, select Administrative Tools, then launch the Computer Management applet. Select Disk Management from the Computer Management pane on the left, then find the CD drives in the graphical view on the right. Right-click on each drive in turn and select Change Drive Letter and Paths, giving the new drive the letter originally held by the game's installation drive.

Get more information from Task Manager

Windows XP's Task Manager is a very useful tool when it comes to troubleshooting problems. Not only does it help you terminate hung applications, but it also provides you with detailed information about all the processes currently running on your computer.

When you select the Processes tab, the default detail view displays four columns of information about each process:

• Image Name: The name of the process.
• User Name: The user who started the process.
• CPU: The percentage of the CPU's capacity that a process is currently using.
• Mem Usage: The amount of memory the process requires to perform its job.

If you're unsure of the type of information that a particular column displays, access Task Manager Help Topics from the Help menu and search for the term "Process counter column headings." This will open a page with detailed descriptions of each column.

Get rid of a jammed print job

As you know, print jobs occasionally become jammed in the print queue. You can see the print job in the queue by going to Start | Printers And Faxes and double-clicking the appropriate printer. While the queue lists Printing as the status, the job never prints, and other print jobs begin to stack up behind it.

If you cancel the jammed print job, the Status column indicates that you've deleted it. However, it never completes the delete operation, and the jammed print job remains right where it is.

When you encounter a jammed print job, your first instinct may be to reboot the system, which will flush the jammed print job from the queue. But there's an easier way.

Follow these steps:

1. Open Control Panel, and double-click Administrative Tools.

2. Double-click Services.

3. Scroll through the list of running services, and select the Print Spooler service.

4. Click the Stop Service button on the toolbar.

5. After waiting a moment, click the Start button on the toolbar.

6. Close Services, and close Administrative Tools.

When you return to the print queue, the jammed print job should no longer be there. If it is, you should now be able to delete it normally. Keep in mind that you may have to manually update the queue by selecting Refresh from the View menu.

Get the Complete Picture

IE 6 has a new feature that automatically resizes large images to fit in your browser window. You expand an image to full size by hovering your pointer over it and clicking on the button that appears in the lower-right-hand corner of the image.

If the shrinking images have you headed for your shrink, disable the feature. Select Tools on IE's menu bar and click on the Advanced tab. Scroll down to the Multimedia options and uncheck Enable Automatic Image Resizing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Halt Unnecessary Programs and Set Priorities for Processes

The Windows Task Manager (which you can access by pressing Ctrl-Alt-Del or right-clicking in an open space on the taskbar) lets you end programs or processes that may be locking up your system. This is a fairly well-known fact. But if you click to the Processes tab, you can also set priorities to limit various applications. This is useful, for instance, if you are running a noncritical program that is taking up a lot of resources.

Hide drive letters in My Computer

Have you ever needed to hide a drive on a system? For example, suppose you manage a system shared by multiple users in a public area, and you keep diagnostic and management applications on a separate drive.

Wouldn't it be nice to be able to hide that drive from users to prevent any mischievous exploration? You can do so with a simple registry edit.

Follow these steps:

1. Launch the Registry Editor (Regedit.exe).

2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer.

3. Right-click the Servers key, and select New | DWORD value.

4. Name the value NoDrives.

5. Press [Enter] twice to open the Edit DWORD Value dialog box.

6. Using the list below, type a number that corresponds to the drive you want to hide in the Value Data text box, and click OK.
A: 1
B: 2
C: 4
D: 8
E: 16
F: 32

7. Close the Registry Editor.

Note: Editing the registry is risky, so be sure you have a verified backup before making any changes.

How to Log On to Windows XP If You Forget Your Password or Your Password Expires

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition

Microsoft Windows XP Professional

This article was previously published under Q321305

SUMMARY

This article describes how to log on to Windows XP if you forget your password, or if your password expires and you cannot create a new one.

NOTE: If you have not created a password reset disk and you have also forgotten your Administrator password, you cannot log on to your existing Windows installation for security reasons. This information applies to starting Windows XP typically, to Safe mode, and to Recovery Console. In this case, you must perform a "clean" installation of Windows XP, re-create all user accounts, and reinstall all of your programs.

MORE INFORMATION

To log on to Windows XP, use any of the following methods:

Method 1: Use a Password Reset Disk

If you created a password reset disk for Windows XP, reset your password by using the password reset disk. For additional information about how to use a password reset disk, click the article numbers below to view the articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

305478 HOW TO: Create and Use a Password Reset Disk for a Computer That Is Not a Domain Member in Windows XP

306214 HOW TO: Create and Use a Password Reset Disk for a Computer in a Domain in Windows XP

Method 2: Log on as Administrator and Reset the Password

If you cannot change the password for the default user account, log on to the computer as Administrator, and then reset the password on the user account.

WARNING: If you reset the password for a user account in this manner in Windows XP Professional, the following types of information for that user will be no longer available:

E-mail messages that are encrypted with the user's public key

Internet passwords that are saved on, or remembered by, the computer

Any files that the user has encrypted

Windows XP Home Edition or Windows XP Professional in a Workgroup

To log on as Administrator and reset the password:

Restart the computer. After the Power On Self Test (POST), press the F8 key.

On the Windows Advanced Options menu, use the ARROW keys to select Safe Mode, and then press ENTER.

When you are prompted to select the operating system to start, select Microsoft Windows XP edition (where edition is the edition of Windows XP that is installed), and then press ENTER.

On the To begin, click your user name screen, click Administrator.

Type the administrator password, and then press ENTER.

NOTE: In some cases, the Administrator password may be set to a blank password. In this case, do not type a password before you press ENTER.

Click Yes to acknowledge that Windows is running in Safe mode.

Click Start, and then click Control Panel (or point to Settings, and then click Control Panel).

Click User Accounts.

Click the user account whose password you want to change.

Click Change Password if you want to keep a password, or click Remove password if you do not want to use a password. If you remove the password, skip the next step.

Type the new password for the user, and then click Change Password.

Quit the User Accounts tool, and then restart the computer.

Windows XP Professional in a Domain

To log on as Administrator and reset the password:

In the Welcome to Windows dialog box, press CTRL+ALT+DELETE.

Type the logon information for the Administrator account, including the password, and then click OK.

NOTE: In some cases, the Administrator password may be set to a blank password. In this case, do not type a password before you click OK.

Click Start, click Run, type compmgmt.msc, and then click OK.

In the Computer Management (Local) box, expand Local Users and Groups.

Click the Users folder.

In the right pane of the Computer Management window, right-click the user account whose password you want to reset, and then click Set Password.

Click Proceed.

In the New password box, type the new password for the user account.

Type the same password in the Confirm password box, and then click OK.

Click OK to acknowledge that the new password has been set.

Quit the Computer Management snap-in, and then restart the computer.

Last Reviewed: 8/6/2002

Keywords: kbenv kbinfo KB321305

HOW TO: Set, View, Change, or Remove File and Folder Permissions in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/defaul...kb;en-us;308418

HOW TO: Take Ownership of a File or Folder in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/defaul...;308421&sd=tech

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Improve ZIP drive performance

Are you using a ZIP drive that's connected to your Windows XP system via a USB port? If so, you may have noticed that it's a bit sluggish when transferring large groups of files to or from your hard disk.

To improve performance, you can change the default Optimize For Quick Removal setting to the Optimize For Performance setting. Follow these steps:

1. Press [Windows]E to open My Computer.

2. Right-click the ZIP drive icon, and select Properties.

3. Select the Hardware tab in the Properties dialog box.

4. Select the ZIP drive in the All Disk Drives panel (if it's not already selected), and click the Properties button.

5. Select the Policies tab in the Device Properties dialog box.

6. Select the Optimize For Performance radio button.

7. Click OK twice to close both dialog boxes.

Here's something to keep in mind: While this process helps improve disk performance by enabling write caching on the ZIP drive, it also means that you must use the Safely Remove Hardware icon in the taskbar notification area in order to disconnect the drive from the computer.

Improvements help increase boot speed

Windows XP contains several improvements that help increase its boot speed. In fact, XP boots and loads faster than any other Microsoft OS.

One of the improvements is XP's optimization of disk reads. Ntldr, the boot loader, minimizes disk seeking by caching large amounts of file and directory metadata.

A second improvement is disk enumeration, which now takes only two seconds to complete. In addition, XP can initialize several drivers simultaneously, instead of waiting for each consecutive device.

Major performance increases continue with the hibernation process. In hibernation mode, XP writes the memory contents to the disk in a Hiberfil.sys file. However, it writes only the used portion of the memory and compresses the memory pages before writing them. Since compressed memory pages take less space, writing performance is greatly improved. Furthermore, XP can compress memory pages and write to the disk at the same time.

Initiate a continuous Ping operation

Windows XP's Ping command-line utility helps verify IP connectivity to another computer or device on a TCP/IP network. When you issue the Ping command, it attempts to connect to the target device four times, and then it terminates.

In many troubleshooting situations, pinging the target device four times isn't enough. You may find yourself issuing the Ping command multiple times, which is time-consuming and frustrating.

However, the Ping command provides you with a parameter that configures the command to continuously ping the target device until you manually terminate the operation:

Ping -t xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx

In this command, xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx is the IP address of the target device.

To temporarily interrupt a continuous Ping operation and display the statistics, press [Ctrl][Break]. To completely terminate a Ping operation, press [Ctrl]C.

Install NetBEUI For Compatibility With Older LANs

Previous versions of Windows automatically installed Microsoft's NetBEUI protocol whenever you installed a LAN card. Windows XP, however, doesn't do this. If you want to share files and printers with older Windows systems that don't have IP installed, you'll need to install NetBEUI manually.

Although NetBEUI is not officially supported, the files needed to install it are on the Windows XP CD. To install NetBEUI:

 Browse to the Valueadd\ MSFT\Net\NetBEUI folder on your Windows XP CD.

 Copy Nbf.sys to the C:\ Windows\System32\Drivers directory.

 Copy Netnbf.inf to the Windows\Inf directory.

Once you've copied these files to the proper directories, you can add NetBEUI to most network connections using the Install... button on each connection's Network Connection Properties display. Unfortunately, you can't install NetBEUI on a FireWire connection.

NetBEUI doesn't require any addressing, routing, or other configuration information, so it is very handy for file sharing between laptops. If you have NetBEUI installed on two computers, you can simply connect them together (using an Ethernet hub or crossover cable) to share files and printers.

Internet Connection Firewall

Microsoft added a firewall to Windows XP called Internet Connection Firewall (ICF). To enable it, go to Control Panel | Network Connections and right-click on a connection name. Select Properties, then click on the Advanced tab for each of your connections, and enable Protect my computer and network by limiting or preventing access to this computer from the Internet. Unfortunately, ICF doesn't provide nearly as much protection as tools like Symantec's Norton Internet Security. ICF examines only inbound network traffic; it can't control programs on your system that are sending information out to the Internet.

Internet Connection Sharing: Don't Bother.

Internet connection sharing: Don't bother. All versions of Windows released since Windows 98 SE include a feature called Internet Connection Sharing (ICS) that lets you share a dial-up, cable, or DSL Internet connection with multiple PCs. Though it sounds good on paper, ICS can be difficult to configure and manage.

First of all, ICS requires that you designate one computer as the gateway PC through which all your Internet traffic passes, and this PC must be powered on for the other computers to connect to the Internet. Second, unless you're sharing a dial-up connection, you'll need to install two network cards in the gateway: one that connects to the broadband modem and one that connects to your LAN.

In most cases, you'll be far better off with an Internet gateway router, such as those sold by D-Link and Linksys. These devices provide a connection between your LAN and the Internet. They're inexpensive (they're available for as little as $49) and easy to install, and they use very little power. Virtually all gateway routers use Network Address Translation, or NAT, to share your DSL or cable modem's single IP address with all the PCs on the LAN. Better still, most routers include a firewall feature that helps protect your LAN from hackers and intruders.

Don't have a broadband connection? In some cases a gateway device includes a serial port or an internal modem so that you can use it to share a dial-up or ISDN connection. Some models include 802.11 wireless network access points; others have built-in print servers; and almost all include three- or four-port 10/100 Ethernet switches.

Investigate changes with the System Information tool

Have you ever been in the process of troubleshooting and needed to know what configuration changes the system has recently experienced? Knowing this kind of information can go a long way in helping track down the cause of the problem you're investigating.

Windows XP's System Information tool takes a daily snapshot of your system's configuration, and it records all changes to key elements. In fact, System Information compiles and stores a month's worth of data in its history file. As such, System Information provides a beneficial troubleshooting database.

You can easily investigate System Information's configuration change history. Follow these steps:

1. Open the System Information tool by typing Msinfo32.exe at the command prompt. (You can also access it by going to Start | All Programs | Accessories | System Tools | System Information.)

2. From the View menu, select System History.

3. Select a category from the System Summary tree on the left.

4. Select a date from the View Changes Since drop-down list.

If you know what you're looking for, you can use the System Information tool's Find feature to quickly scan through the listing.