Showing posts with label Tips n Tricks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tips n Tricks. Show all posts
Feb 2, 2011
Absolutely Free PC Tool To Delete Files And Folders Permanently
0 comments Posted by Rajat at 9:45 PMJunk files and folders needs to be deleted from time to time on a Windows PC. If the user deletes the files/folders by pressing Delete command, then files and folders are transferred to Recycle Bin and not deleted permanently. These files and folders can be Undeleted or Restored back to the PC from the Recycle bin by selecting these files or folders from Recycle bin and then using Restore feature in the Recycle bin.
After selecting the junk/not needed files and folders, if the Windows computer user presses Shift+Delete (press Delete key after keeping the Shift key presses) the files and folders are deleted and not available in Recycle bin also. Can these files and folders deleted by Shift+Delete be restored back? Yes!
There are various free software that can restore files and folders deleted by Shift+Delete. A simple google search for
Shift+Delete files restore freeware
would list some of the no cost programs that will undelete the files and folders deleted by Shift+Delete.
The question relevant to the post is how to delete files and folders permanently so that they cannot be restored back at all. One case where this would absolutely be needed would be of a work from home person who sells his/her old PC because he/she bought a new faster PC. As the buyer wants OS to be there on the sold PC, the seller has to only delete his/her personal files/folders.
If confidential files and folders are left in a state where they can be restored back by someone else and seen then you can easily imagine the risks involved. No one would ever want this to happen, even format command that does high level format does not delete data permanently.
To delete files and folders permanently to a state that they cannot be restored back again, a freeware tool is: CyberShredder.
It can be downloaded from:
To test it, I made some test files and folders on my Windows Vista Business PC, deleted them by dragging them to CyberShredder and then tried recovering through the Free files and folders restore tools but couldn’t do so.
Free Undelete tools that I tried for recovering the files and folders deleted by the CyberShredder were:- Recuva File Recovery at:
The direct download link:
- Brain Kato File recovery downloaded from:
(Was checked in Administrator mode as it didn’t work in normal user mode. Found thousands of files and folders in seconds that could be restored by it.)
- Pandora Free File recovery program downloaded from:
(Read the description and review of the software and then click on Download Now)
- Tokiwa Free DataRecovery program from:
http://tokiwa.qee.jp/EN/DataRecovery_EN.zip
(Used full scan to search the deleted files and folders, the scanning took a lot of time – few hours)
(Used full scan to search the deleted files and folders, the scanning took a lot of time – few hours)
Well, I installed these above mentioned four data recovery programs one by one and did the respective testing for data recovery after deleting with CyberShredder. None of these four free data recovery programs could recover any of the data deleted by CyberShredder. Thus, according to my testing, files and folders deleted by free program CyberShredder cannot be recovered.
Caution: Use CyberShredder with utmost care as data deleted once by CyberShredder cannot be recovered. The best would be to initially make some dummy files and folders yourself for having hands on of this tool. In Cyber Shredder, check Confirm File Deletion in Settings to get a warning before permanent deletion of files and folders dragged in CyberShredder. Once you are familiar with using CyberShredder, have backed up your data and then verified its integrity, then go ahead with permanent deletion of files and folders with CyberShredder.
In addition to my testing, I also researched on the Net and found that files/folders deleted using CyberShredder cannot be undeleted using any of the commercial data recovery tools as CyberShredder uses unbreakable writing algorithm for deleting data that makes recovery impossible.
I am sure that this post of mine would definitely help some of the computer users to permanently delete files and folders from their PC using CyberShredder – A Free, permanent file and folder delete tool.
PC Tips To Keep You And Your Online Computer Secure And Problem Free
0 comments Posted by Rajat at 9:43 PMI have been using computer for years, here are some of the maintenance tips to take care of your PC/Computer/Laptop/Server so that it works without problems.
On Software Front:
1. Install an Antivirus – freeware or paid one, lots of them are there. Use virustotal.com service if you want to be almost 100% sure that the new file being used on your PC is virus free. Also keep your antivirus updated.
2. Install a Firewall – Free or commercial version, which ever you can afford, it will keep your PC safe from outside online attacks from hackers. Also keep the
3. Install Antispyware – Everyone hates being spied and so should your PC too. Better have two antispyware with one active at a time. Here I am referring to spyware that can do harm do your PC by monitoring your surfing habits, usernames and passwords, snooping your confidential data on your PC and then sending it all to someone without your knowledge. Don’t forget to keep your antispyware updated.
4. Install Antitrojanware – Hidden malicious program inside an attractive one to give remote access to someone, grab your password to allow someone to break in to your computer. Sometimes a single software pack can do most of the things, i.e. keep viruses, spyware, malware and trojans (hidden harmful codes that get activated on a particular day) away.
6. Install Application Software (browsers, FTP – File Transfer Client, Image editors, Word processors etc.) from reputed sources and not from any source as the file being installed can be infected.
7. Don’t use P2P and torrent clients to download illegal stuff from Net. There is something hidden in these files mostly to cause harm to your PC.
8. Be alert and don’t open emails and attachments from unknown persons.
9. Always buy licensed system software which the base for letting other software operate on it.
10. Ensure you have a backup software to take backups of your files. Also have your PC Create System Restore point automatically whenever installing something new. This will help you in coming back to a working computer state in case the new software malfunctions.
11. Defragment your hard disk to improve the rate it provides data from it. Defragmentation arranges the similar data in continuous way on your hard disk so that hard disk reading process doesn’t have to work a lot searching for the information to load a program or file etc.
12. Install screen savers or switch off monitor when you are not using it (going for half an hour break with some downloads happening in the background), use optimized setting for hard disk (should become idle when not in use) and other devices available in the CMOS setup. This will increase the life of the respective hardware as they should be used only when needed.
On Hardware Front:
1. Keep your computer clean externally – This will keep insects, flies away. Avoid drinking tea, coffee etc. while working on your PC.
2. Make sure that there are no gaps big enough in your PC for lizards, cockroaches etc. to go inside and piss on your PC electronics
3. Ensure that the interiors of PC are clean, i.e., dust free. If you can do the cleaning yourself do it at average of once in three months or get it done. The more the dust on the chips etc., the more are the chances of their failure!
4. Ensure computer back is at least 3 to 4 inches away from the wall so that its fans can throw out heat. Your computer must remain cool!
5. All the fans of the computer must work, use a software provided by the PC manufacturer to do so. Sometimes a fan that is making noises is likely to be fail soon, get it rectified soon.
6. If the place where the computer is being used is hot (above 25 degree Celsius), use an air conditioner. Don’t use a water cooler as water moisture can short circuit the electronics of PC.
7. Use a cable fixer to route cables properly, they should not hang and obstruct the way of the passers. Oh! it also makes your PC aesthetics good and less dust accumulation compared to them lying on the floor.
8. Use UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) to protect PC from over voltages and brownouts etc.
9. Use spike busters for the interfaces such as Ethernet cable and telephone cables etc. as they can sometimes carry high voltages due to some or other problem. None of the external interface can be trusted for always having a safe voltage, to be directly connected to your PC’s port.
10. Make sure that the power to the PC is correct (right earthing with leakage not more than 5V between Neutral and Earth) and provided via good quality of wires, sockets, plugs etc. If these are of bad quality then it can lead to electrical sparks and even fire.
11. Don’t fiddle with your PC components to repair a fault if you don’t know ABC of computer repair. Call someone who is Expert! I personally know of cases where people not knowing much about repair of PC have messed with their computer thinking that it’s minor problem and can be repaired easily. One of my friend burnt his PC CPU as he forgot to put back heat sink and fan on the CPU, It hardly took 5-10 seconds for CPU to get heated and give smoke. He finally ended in spending about $100 on its repair.
12. Buy quality repair parts and get repair done from professionals. Cheap computer parts can definitely save you money but can cost you more in the long run.
Buy ergonomically designed computer furniture and chair and have a proper posture, take breaks when working for hours continuously.
If you have some other tips to share with me from your experience, let me know as there are still many left, have covered only the main ones
Hope that these experienced tips helps some of my friends in keeping their PC healthy and secure online!
A laptop can be conveniently carried and used anywhere – on a beach, in a restaurant, in a flight and a park etc. It’s a light computer and thus extremely portable. When you are lazy and tired after a day hard work, you may generally use it on a bed also in a relaxed position – lying or sitting in a quilt etc. While using a laptop, you may unknowingly sleep with laptop powered on the bed. Happens in everyday life?
Yes, it’s normal.
The situation of hot air being blocked from your laptop due to unnoticed stuff lying close to your laptop on your bed is extremely dangerous as it leads to overheating of the inner parts of the laptop. I am sure this is not a very technical thing to realize. This overheating of the electronic parts in the laptop can definitely damage the parts of the laptop or cause a fire too if it continues for a long time (few minutes to hours – depends on how compact your laptop is and how much heat is being blocked). I have heard of cases of start of fire due to laptop getting overheated due to blocking of the released heat, when used on a bed having stuff obstructing the intake and throwing of heat.
Thus my advice to all laptop users would be to avoid using laptop on a bed. If you have to use your laptop on bed, then make sure that the laptop fans passage for exhaling hot air and inhaling air is clear. Also use a laptop inner temperature monitoring software which is normally supplied by the laptop manufacturer. You can also download it from Internet. Using the computer temperature monitoring software will let you know the audio or visual alarms in case of a condition where the temperature of the inner parts of your computer increases too much. Using a laptop inner temperature monitoring software can help you in taking a corrective action in case it is needed. One such free software that monitors the temperature of various parts of computer is SpeedFan. You can also use a laptop Fan Control software. Do a Google search for the mentioned keywords and download the relevant software that suits your laptop model.
If you still want to use your laptop on the bed, then use a laptop stand or make sure that the fans of the laptop are getting a clear path for air (intake and exhale).
I am sure that laptop users will find this post on avoiding the use of a laptop on an uneven and soft bed extremely useful! Even using a hard board below the laptop when using it on a soft bed would help. It would help in passing of the heat through the vent and the air gap between the hard board and the laptop bottom (good word – Isn’t it?)
Take care of your laptop and don’t ever let it overheat. Take care that the vents of your laptops are never ever blocked otherwise it can become a frying pan and go up in flames. I know that no one sane enough would like it to happen ever! Right?
Password resetting consists of 5 simple steps.
1. First reboot Windows XP in safe mode by re-starting the computer and pressing F8 repeatedly as the computer boots up. If you missed the right moment, you will need to repeat the attempt.
2. Then (in safe mode) click Start and then click Run. In the open box type the words exactly as following (without quotes) - control userpasswords2.
3. You will now get a pop-up window with full access to all the user accounts, including the administrators account. From here, you will be able to reset the lost or forgotten password.
4. Just click the administrator's user account, and then click Reset Password.
5. At this moment, you will have to add a new password in the New password field, and the Confirm new password as well. Confirm the new chosen password by clicking OK.
1. First reboot Windows XP in safe mode by re-starting the computer and pressing F8 repeatedly as the computer boots up. If you missed the right moment, you will need to repeat the attempt.
2. Then (in safe mode) click Start and then click Run. In the open box type the words exactly as following (without quotes) - control userpasswords2.
3. You will now get a pop-up window with full access to all the user accounts, including the administrators account. From here, you will be able to reset the lost or forgotten password.
4. Just click the administrator's user account, and then click Reset Password.
5. At this moment, you will have to add a new password in the New password field, and the Confirm new password as well. Confirm the new chosen password by clicking OK.
Want to hide any partition of your hard disk just follow these simple steps.
1. Goto Start > Run and type diskpart
A DOS window will appear with following description
DISKPART>
2. Then type list volume
All partitions will be listed, there will be also a volume number for each partitions
3. Suppose you want to hide drive E:, type select volume 3 (Here 3 is the volume number of E:, in your pc it may vary). A message will now appear in the window saing "Volume 3 is the selected volume".
4. Now type remove letter E . You may have to reboot the computer. Diskpart will remove the letter. Since Windows XP doesn't have the capability to identify the unknown volume, it won't display or show results from it. To access the content of the hidden drive, repeat the process, but in the foruth step, replace remove to assign, ie., assign letter E
1. Goto Start > Run and type diskpart
A DOS window will appear with following description
DISKPART>
2. Then type list volume
All partitions will be listed, there will be also a volume number for each partitions
3. Suppose you want to hide drive E:, type select volume 3 (Here 3 is the volume number of E:, in your pc it may vary). A message will now appear in the window saing "Volume 3 is the selected volume".
4. Now type remove letter E . You may have to reboot the computer. Diskpart will remove the letter. Since Windows XP doesn't have the capability to identify the unknown volume, it won't display or show results from it. To access the content of the hidden drive, repeat the process, but in the foruth step, replace remove to assign, ie., assign letter E
Here are Registry Tweaks and Scroll down to see Patches
1.Increase bandwidth by tweaking QoS in Windows XP Pro
The following tweak applies only to Windows XP Professional edition.
The default system behavior is that all 100% bandwidth is available, however, if there is a running application that indicates to the OS it needs to send high priority/real time data, then as long as it has the socket open, Windows XP will restrict “best effort” traffic to 80% of the bandwidth so that high priority traffic can be accommodated. Basically, applications can make this request to the operating system for QoS support using the QoS application programming interfaces (APIs) in Windows and this only applies if a specific app is requesting QoS.
If you'd like to change how much bandwidth is reserved for QoS (the default is 20% of the total bandwidth), do the following:
1. Make sure you're logged in as "Administrator" (not just any account with admin privileges).
2. Navigate to START>Run and type: gpedit.msc
3. Navigate to Local Computer Policy > Administrative Templates > Network > QOS Packet Scheduler
4. In the right window, double-click the limit reservable bandwidth setting
5. On the setting tab, check the enabled setting.
6. Where it says "Bandwidth limit %", change it to read 0 (or whatever percentage you want to reserve for high priority QoS data)
7. Click OK, close gpedit.msc
Under START > My Computer > My Network Connections > View Network Connections, right-click on your connection and under Properties (where it lists your protocols), make sure QOS Packet Scheduler is enabled.
The tweak desribed below helps boost priority for DNS & hostname resolution in general. What this means is, it helps web pages load faster, and has negligible effect on downloads (not counting the couple of ms gain with the host resolution at connect-time).
Applying this tweak assumes some proficiency in editing the Windows Registry using Regedit (Start > Run > type: regedit). As always, backup your Registry before making any changes so you can revert to the previous state if you don't like the results.
2.Host Resolution Priority Tweak
host name resolution priority
Windows 2k/XP
First, open the Windows Registry using Regedit, and (after backing up) navigate to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\ServiceProvider
Note the following lines (all hex dwords):
Class = 008 (8) - indicates that TCP/IP is a name service provider, don't change.
LocalPriority = 1f3 (499) - local names cache
HostsPriority = 1f4 (500) - the HOSTS file
DnsPriority = 7d0 (2000) - DNS
NetbtPriority = 7d1 (2001) - NetBT name-resolution, including WINS
What we're aiming to do is increase the priority of the last 4 settings, while keeping their order. The valid range is from -32768 to +32767 and lower numbers mean higher priority compared to other services. What we're aiming at is lower numbers without going to extremes, something like what's shown below should work well:
Change the "Priority" lines to:
LocalPriority = 005 (5) - local names cache
HostsPriority = 006 (6) - the HOSTS file
DnsPriority = 007 (7) - DNS
NetbtPriority = 008 (8) - NetBT name-resolution, including WINS
Windows 9x/ME
The tweak is essentialy the same as in Windows 2000/XP, just the location in the Registry is slightly different. For a more detailed description see the Windows 2000/XP section above.
Open the Windows Registry using Regedit, and (after backing up) navigate to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\VxD\MSTCP\ServiceProvider
You should see the following settings:
Class=hex:08,00,00,00
LocalPriority=hex:f3,01,00,00
HostsPriority=hex:f4,01,00,00
DnsPriority=hex:d0,07,00,00
NetbtPriority=hex:d1,07,00,00
The "priority" lines should be changed to:
LocalPriority=hex:05,00,00,00
HostsPriority=hex:06,00,00,00
DnsPriority=hex:07,00,00,00
NetbtPriority=hex:08,00,00,00
Reboot for changes to take effect.
In addition to the tweaks already covered in Win 2k/XP Registry Tweaks and More Win 2k/XP Tweaks, the Windows XP Service Pack 2 introduces a few new issues covered in the article below. Please make sure you understand what you are doing before making any changes to your Operating System. Note the information below only applies to Windows XP Service Pack 2.
3.Remove the limit on TCP connection attempts
Windws XP SP2 introduces a few new twists to TCP/IP in order to babysit users and "reduce the threat" of worms spreading fast without control. In one such attempt, the devs seem to have limited the number of possible TCP connection attempts per second to 10 (from unlimited in SP1). This argumentative feature can possibly affect server and P2P programs that need to open many outbound connections at the same time.
Rant: The forward thinking of Microsoft developers here is that you can only infect 10 new systems per second via TCP/IP ?!?... If you also consider that each of those infected computers will infect 10 others at the same rate:
second 1: 1+10 computers
second 2: 10+10*10 computers (110 new ones)
second 3: 10+100*10 computers ( 1110 new ones)
second 4: 10+1000*10 computers (11110 new ones)
....
all the way to 10*60 + 10^60 computers in a single minute (that's a number with 60 digits, or it would far exceed Earth's population). Even if we consider that 90% of those computers are unreachable/protected, one would still reach ALL of them within a minute.
In other words, even though it is not going to stop worm spreading, it's going to delay it a few seconds, limit possible network congestion a bit, and limit the use of your PC to 10 connection attempts per second in the process ! I have no problem with the new default setting limiting outbound connection attempts. Still, users should have the option to easily disable or change this setting. I might be going out on a limb here, but ever since the introduction of Windows XP I can't help thinking that I dislike all the bult-in Windows "wisardry" in a sense that the system also limits user access. That irritating trend to ease the mental load on end users is somewhat insulting, considering that Windows is to make the more "intelligent" choice instead of the end user, as well as limit their access to tuning such settings...
End of rant.
With the new implementation, if a P2P or some other network program attempts to connect to 100 sites at once, it would only be able to connect to 10 per second, so it would take it 10 seconds to reach all 100. In addition, even though the setting was registry editable in XP SP1, it is now only possible to edit by changing it directly in the system file tcpip.sys. To make matters worse, that file is in use, so you also need to be in Safe mode in order to edit it.
You only need to worry about the number of connection attempts per second if you have noticed a slowdown in network programs requiring a number of connections opened at once. You can check if you're hitting this limit from the Event Viewer, under System - look for TCP/IP Warnings saying: "TCP/IP has reached the security limit imposed on the number of concurrent TCP connect attempts". Keep in mind this is a cap only on incomplete outbound connect attempts per second, not total connections. Still, running servers and P2P programs can definitely be affected by this new limitation. Use the fix as you see fit.
To change or remove the limit, you can use the following program:
Event ID 4226 Patcher v2.11
http://www.speedguide.net/files/xp_sp2/EvID4226Patch211a-en.zip
- A patching program for removing or changing the limit imposed on connection attempts in SP2. The patcher has the ability to restore tcpip.sys back to the original... Still, you might want to back up tcpip.sys, use it at your own risk. The author of this patch can be reached @ http://www.lvllord.de/
4. Recommended settings for Windows 2000 / XP
Windows 2000 & XP, unlike NT supports large windows as described in RFC1323 ( the 'RcvWindow' has a maximum value of 2**30 rather than 64K), and includes some other improvements over its predecessors you can use to speed up any TCP/IP transfers. , the descriptions and other options are added to provide you with better understanding and enable you to customize your settings.
All the following entries, unless otherwise noted should be placed in the Windows 2000/XP Registry under the key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
TCPWindowSize
The value of TCP Window in the Windows 2000 Registry is DWORD, representing number of bytes, with range from 0 to 2^30. The recommended values (in red) optimize TCP for any high speed Internet connection and work best in most cases, however if you'd like to use a custom value follow these guidelines:
For best results, the TCPWindow should be a multiple of MSS (Maximum Segment Size). MSS is generally MTU - 40, where MTU (Maximum Transmission Unit) is the largest packet size that can be transmitted. MTU is usually 1500 (1492 for PPPoE connections). To determine the MTU value of your ISP, check out the Advanced Registry Editing section of our site.
There are three places in the Windows 2000 Registry where you can add the TCP Window parameter.
HKLM/SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
GlobalMaxTcpWindowSize="256960" (DWORD, number of bytes) Valid range is from MSS to 2^30. Add the value as a decimal. Note: For best results RWIN has to be a multiple of MSS lower than 65535 times a scale factor that's a power of 2, i.e. 44 x 1460 = 64240 x 2^2 = 256960. If you choose to use a RWIN lower than 65535, you can simply make it multiple of MSS and turn scaling off (Tcp1323Opts=0)
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
TcpWindowSize="256960" (DWORD, number of bytes) Valid range is from MSS to 2^30. Add the value as a decimal. TcpWindowSize can also exist under TcpipParametersInterface - if added at this location, it overrides the global setting for this particular . Note (10/20/00): Seems MS has found another bug in Windows 2000, the TCPWindowSize should be configured with the global setting (GlobalMaxTcpWindowsSize) rather than this one - Q263088
Note: For best results RWIN has to be a multiple of MSS lower than 65535 times a scale factor that's a power of 2, i.e. 44 x 1460 = 64240 x 2^2 = 256960. If you choose to use a RWIN lower than 65535, you can simply make it multiple of MSS and turn scaling off (Tcp1323Opts=0)
Tcp1323Opts
Tcp1323Opts is a necessary setting in order to enable Large TCPWindow support as described in RFC 1323. Without this parameter, the TCPWindow is limited to 64K.
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
Tcp1323Opts="1" (DWORD, recommended setting is 1. The possible settings are 0 - Disable RFC 1323 options, 1 - Window scaling but no Timestamp options, 3 - Window scaling and Time stamp options.)
Note: Tcp1323Opts="3" might help in some cases where there is increased packet loss, however generally you'll achieve better throughput with Tcp1323Opts="1", since Timestamps add 12 bytes to the header of each packet.
DefaultTTL
DefaultTTL determines the time in seconds and the number of hops a packet lives. While it does not directly affect speed, a larger value increases the amount of time it takes for a packet to be considered lost, discarded and retransmitted. A value that's too small can cause packets to be unable to reach distant servers at all.
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
DefaultTTL="64" (DWORD, recommended setting is 64. Other settings that are widely used are 128 and 32)
EnablePMTUDiscovery
When set to 1 (True), TCP attempts to discover MTU automatically over the path to a remote host. Setting this parameter to 0 causes MTU to default to 576 which reduces overall performance over high speed connections. Note that this setting is different than our Windows 9x recommendation.
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
EnablePMTUDiscovery="1" (DWORD - boolean, valid settings are 0-->False and 1-->True. Many connections perform better with this entry at 1, however, if you prefer to set your upstream to send fixed 1500 packets, you might want to use 0 instead). When set at 1, establishing connections and initial transfer speed might slow down a bit, however you will get better throughput if somewhere in the path large packets need to be fragmented.
EnablePMTUBHDetect
Setting this parameter to 1 (True) enables "black hole" routers to be detected, however it also increases the maximum number of retransmissions for a given segment. In most cases you'd want to keep BHDetect to 0 (False).
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
EnablePMTUBHDetect="0" (DWORD - boolean, valid settings are 0-->False and 1-->True. Recommended setting is 0)
SackOpts
This parameter controls whether or not SACK (Selective Acknowledgement) support is enabled, as specified in RFC 2018. SACK is especially important for connections using large TCP Window sizes.
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
SackOpts="1" (DWORD - boolean, recommended setting is 1. Possible settings are 0 - No Sack options or 1 - Sack Option enabled).
TcpMaxDupAcks
This parameter determines the number of duplicate ACKs that must be received for the same sequence number of sent data before "fast retransmit" is triggered to resend the segment that has been dropped in transit.
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
TcpMaxDupAcks="2" (DWORD - range 1-3, recommended setting is 2).
Patches
This Includes
1. sguide_tweak_2k.zip
Description: Generic patch for Windows XP and Windows 2000 (all versions). This patch will optimize your TCP/IP Registry settings for high speed Internet connections. To install, extract the .inf file first, then double-click (or right-click on filename and choose install from the pull-down menu) and reboot for changes to take effect.
http://www.speedguide.net/files/sguide_tweak_2k.zip
2.sguide_tweak_2k_pppoe.zip
Description: Generic patch for Windows XP/2000 and DSL connections using PPPoE. This patch will optimize your TCP/IP Registry settings for high speed Internet connections. It is specifically designed for PPPoE DSL connections. To install, extract the .inf file first, then double-click (or right-click on filename and choose install from the pull-down menu) and reboot for changes to take effect.
http://www.speedguide.net/files/sguide_tweak_2k_pppoe.zip
3. winxp_dnscache.zip
Description: Patch Windows 2k/XP not to cache failed DNS entries. By default, when a DNS lookup fails (due to temporary DNS problems), Windows still caches the unsuccessful DNS query, and in turn fails to connect to a host regardless of the fact that the DNS server might be able to handle your lookup seconds later. This patch fixes the problem by configuring the DNS client to continue sending queries to an unresponsive network. To install, save to your HD, unzip the .reg file, then double-click the filename.
Web Patches - faster loading of Web Pages
The following patch increases Web page loading speed, by doubling the number of possible concurrent open connections. For example, imagine a web page has 20 images and some text - in order for your browser to get all these files, it opens 2 or 4 concurrent connections, depending on the Web server. Increasing the number of open connections allows for faster retrieving of the data. Please note that the patch sets some values outside of the HTML specs. If you decide to install it, backup your Registry first. Changes will take effect after you reboot. Download the patch appropriate for your OS:
OS: Windows 9x/ME
http://www.speedguide.net/files/sg_webtweak_9x.zip
OS: Windows 2K/XP/2k3
http://www.speedguide.net/files/sg_webtweak_2k.zip
TCP OPTIMISER
1.Increase bandwidth by tweaking QoS in Windows XP Pro
The following tweak applies only to Windows XP Professional edition.
The default system behavior is that all 100% bandwidth is available, however, if there is a running application that indicates to the OS it needs to send high priority/real time data, then as long as it has the socket open, Windows XP will restrict “best effort” traffic to 80% of the bandwidth so that high priority traffic can be accommodated. Basically, applications can make this request to the operating system for QoS support using the QoS application programming interfaces (APIs) in Windows and this only applies if a specific app is requesting QoS.
If you'd like to change how much bandwidth is reserved for QoS (the default is 20% of the total bandwidth), do the following:
1. Make sure you're logged in as "Administrator" (not just any account with admin privileges).
2. Navigate to START>Run and type: gpedit.msc
3. Navigate to Local Computer Policy > Administrative Templates > Network > QOS Packet Scheduler
4. In the right window, double-click the limit reservable bandwidth setting
5. On the setting tab, check the enabled setting.
6. Where it says "Bandwidth limit %", change it to read 0 (or whatever percentage you want to reserve for high priority QoS data)
7. Click OK, close gpedit.msc
Under START > My Computer > My Network Connections > View Network Connections, right-click on your connection and under Properties (where it lists your protocols), make sure QOS Packet Scheduler is enabled.
The tweak desribed below helps boost priority for DNS & hostname resolution in general. What this means is, it helps web pages load faster, and has negligible effect on downloads (not counting the couple of ms gain with the host resolution at connect-time).
Applying this tweak assumes some proficiency in editing the Windows Registry using Regedit (Start > Run > type: regedit). As always, backup your Registry before making any changes so you can revert to the previous state if you don't like the results.
2.Host Resolution Priority Tweak
host name resolution priority
Windows 2k/XP
First, open the Windows Registry using Regedit, and (after backing up) navigate to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\ServiceProvider
Note the following lines (all hex dwords):
Class = 008 (8) - indicates that TCP/IP is a name service provider, don't change.
LocalPriority = 1f3 (499) - local names cache
HostsPriority = 1f4 (500) - the HOSTS file
DnsPriority = 7d0 (2000) - DNS
NetbtPriority = 7d1 (2001) - NetBT name-resolution, including WINS
What we're aiming to do is increase the priority of the last 4 settings, while keeping their order. The valid range is from -32768 to +32767 and lower numbers mean higher priority compared to other services. What we're aiming at is lower numbers without going to extremes, something like what's shown below should work well:
Change the "Priority" lines to:
LocalPriority = 005 (5) - local names cache
HostsPriority = 006 (6) - the HOSTS file
DnsPriority = 007 (7) - DNS
NetbtPriority = 008 (8) - NetBT name-resolution, including WINS
Windows 9x/ME
The tweak is essentialy the same as in Windows 2000/XP, just the location in the Registry is slightly different. For a more detailed description see the Windows 2000/XP section above.
Open the Windows Registry using Regedit, and (after backing up) navigate to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\VxD\MSTCP\ServiceProvider
You should see the following settings:
Class=hex:08,00,00,00
LocalPriority=hex:f3,01,00,00
HostsPriority=hex:f4,01,00,00
DnsPriority=hex:d0,07,00,00
NetbtPriority=hex:d1,07,00,00
The "priority" lines should be changed to:
LocalPriority=hex:05,00,00,00
HostsPriority=hex:06,00,00,00
DnsPriority=hex:07,00,00,00
NetbtPriority=hex:08,00,00,00
Reboot for changes to take effect.
In addition to the tweaks already covered in Win 2k/XP Registry Tweaks and More Win 2k/XP Tweaks, the Windows XP Service Pack 2 introduces a few new issues covered in the article below. Please make sure you understand what you are doing before making any changes to your Operating System. Note the information below only applies to Windows XP Service Pack 2.
3.Remove the limit on TCP connection attempts
Windws XP SP2 introduces a few new twists to TCP/IP in order to babysit users and "reduce the threat" of worms spreading fast without control. In one such attempt, the devs seem to have limited the number of possible TCP connection attempts per second to 10 (from unlimited in SP1). This argumentative feature can possibly affect server and P2P programs that need to open many outbound connections at the same time.
Rant: The forward thinking of Microsoft developers here is that you can only infect 10 new systems per second via TCP/IP ?!?... If you also consider that each of those infected computers will infect 10 others at the same rate:
second 1: 1+10 computers
second 2: 10+10*10 computers (110 new ones)
second 3: 10+100*10 computers ( 1110 new ones)
second 4: 10+1000*10 computers (11110 new ones)
....
all the way to 10*60 + 10^60 computers in a single minute (that's a number with 60 digits, or it would far exceed Earth's population). Even if we consider that 90% of those computers are unreachable/protected, one would still reach ALL of them within a minute.
In other words, even though it is not going to stop worm spreading, it's going to delay it a few seconds, limit possible network congestion a bit, and limit the use of your PC to 10 connection attempts per second in the process ! I have no problem with the new default setting limiting outbound connection attempts. Still, users should have the option to easily disable or change this setting. I might be going out on a limb here, but ever since the introduction of Windows XP I can't help thinking that I dislike all the bult-in Windows "wisardry" in a sense that the system also limits user access. That irritating trend to ease the mental load on end users is somewhat insulting, considering that Windows is to make the more "intelligent" choice instead of the end user, as well as limit their access to tuning such settings...
End of rant.
With the new implementation, if a P2P or some other network program attempts to connect to 100 sites at once, it would only be able to connect to 10 per second, so it would take it 10 seconds to reach all 100. In addition, even though the setting was registry editable in XP SP1, it is now only possible to edit by changing it directly in the system file tcpip.sys. To make matters worse, that file is in use, so you also need to be in Safe mode in order to edit it.
You only need to worry about the number of connection attempts per second if you have noticed a slowdown in network programs requiring a number of connections opened at once. You can check if you're hitting this limit from the Event Viewer, under System - look for TCP/IP Warnings saying: "TCP/IP has reached the security limit imposed on the number of concurrent TCP connect attempts". Keep in mind this is a cap only on incomplete outbound connect attempts per second, not total connections. Still, running servers and P2P programs can definitely be affected by this new limitation. Use the fix as you see fit.
To change or remove the limit, you can use the following program:
Event ID 4226 Patcher v2.11
http://www.speedguide.net/files/xp_sp2/EvID4226Patch211a-en.zip
- A patching program for removing or changing the limit imposed on connection attempts in SP2. The patcher has the ability to restore tcpip.sys back to the original... Still, you might want to back up tcpip.sys, use it at your own risk. The author of this patch can be reached @ http://www.lvllord.de/
4. Recommended settings for Windows 2000 / XP
Windows 2000 & XP, unlike NT supports large windows as described in RFC1323 ( the 'RcvWindow' has a maximum value of 2**30 rather than 64K), and includes some other improvements over its predecessors you can use to speed up any TCP/IP transfers. , the descriptions and other options are added to provide you with better understanding and enable you to customize your settings.
All the following entries, unless otherwise noted should be placed in the Windows 2000/XP Registry under the key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
TCPWindowSize
The value of TCP Window in the Windows 2000 Registry is DWORD, representing number of bytes, with range from 0 to 2^30. The recommended values (in red) optimize TCP for any high speed Internet connection and work best in most cases, however if you'd like to use a custom value follow these guidelines:
For best results, the TCPWindow should be a multiple of MSS (Maximum Segment Size). MSS is generally MTU - 40, where MTU (Maximum Transmission Unit) is the largest packet size that can be transmitted. MTU is usually 1500 (1492 for PPPoE connections). To determine the MTU value of your ISP, check out the Advanced Registry Editing section of our site.
There are three places in the Windows 2000 Registry where you can add the TCP Window parameter.
HKLM/SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
GlobalMaxTcpWindowSize="256960" (DWORD, number of bytes) Valid range is from MSS to 2^30. Add the value as a decimal. Note: For best results RWIN has to be a multiple of MSS lower than 65535 times a scale factor that's a power of 2, i.e. 44 x 1460 = 64240 x 2^2 = 256960. If you choose to use a RWIN lower than 65535, you can simply make it multiple of MSS and turn scaling off (Tcp1323Opts=0)
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
TcpWindowSize="256960" (DWORD, number of bytes) Valid range is from MSS to 2^30. Add the value as a decimal. TcpWindowSize can also exist under TcpipParametersInterface - if added at this location, it overrides the global setting for this particular . Note (10/20/00): Seems MS has found another bug in Windows 2000, the TCPWindowSize should be configured with the global setting (GlobalMaxTcpWindowsSize) rather than this one - Q263088
Note: For best results RWIN has to be a multiple of MSS lower than 65535 times a scale factor that's a power of 2, i.e. 44 x 1460 = 64240 x 2^2 = 256960. If you choose to use a RWIN lower than 65535, you can simply make it multiple of MSS and turn scaling off (Tcp1323Opts=0)
Tcp1323Opts
Tcp1323Opts is a necessary setting in order to enable Large TCPWindow support as described in RFC 1323. Without this parameter, the TCPWindow is limited to 64K.
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
Tcp1323Opts="1" (DWORD, recommended setting is 1. The possible settings are 0 - Disable RFC 1323 options, 1 - Window scaling but no Timestamp options, 3 - Window scaling and Time stamp options.)
Note: Tcp1323Opts="3" might help in some cases where there is increased packet loss, however generally you'll achieve better throughput with Tcp1323Opts="1", since Timestamps add 12 bytes to the header of each packet.
DefaultTTL
DefaultTTL determines the time in seconds and the number of hops a packet lives. While it does not directly affect speed, a larger value increases the amount of time it takes for a packet to be considered lost, discarded and retransmitted. A value that's too small can cause packets to be unable to reach distant servers at all.
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
DefaultTTL="64" (DWORD, recommended setting is 64. Other settings that are widely used are 128 and 32)
EnablePMTUDiscovery
When set to 1 (True), TCP attempts to discover MTU automatically over the path to a remote host. Setting this parameter to 0 causes MTU to default to 576 which reduces overall performance over high speed connections. Note that this setting is different than our Windows 9x recommendation.
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
EnablePMTUDiscovery="1" (DWORD - boolean, valid settings are 0-->False and 1-->True. Many connections perform better with this entry at 1, however, if you prefer to set your upstream to send fixed 1500 packets, you might want to use 0 instead). When set at 1, establishing connections and initial transfer speed might slow down a bit, however you will get better throughput if somewhere in the path large packets need to be fragmented.
EnablePMTUBHDetect
Setting this parameter to 1 (True) enables "black hole" routers to be detected, however it also increases the maximum number of retransmissions for a given segment. In most cases you'd want to keep BHDetect to 0 (False).
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
EnablePMTUBHDetect="0" (DWORD - boolean, valid settings are 0-->False and 1-->True. Recommended setting is 0)
SackOpts
This parameter controls whether or not SACK (Selective Acknowledgement) support is enabled, as specified in RFC 2018. SACK is especially important for connections using large TCP Window sizes.
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
SackOpts="1" (DWORD - boolean, recommended setting is 1. Possible settings are 0 - No Sack options or 1 - Sack Option enabled).
TcpMaxDupAcks
This parameter determines the number of duplicate ACKs that must be received for the same sequence number of sent data before "fast retransmit" is triggered to resend the segment that has been dropped in transit.
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters
TcpMaxDupAcks="2" (DWORD - range 1-3, recommended setting is 2).
Patches
This Includes
1. sguide_tweak_2k.zip
Description: Generic patch for Windows XP and Windows 2000 (all versions). This patch will optimize your TCP/IP Registry settings for high speed Internet connections. To install, extract the .inf file first, then double-click (or right-click on filename and choose install from the pull-down menu) and reboot for changes to take effect.
http://www.speedguide.net/files/sguide_tweak_2k.zip
2.sguide_tweak_2k_pppoe.zip
Description: Generic patch for Windows XP/2000 and DSL connections using PPPoE. This patch will optimize your TCP/IP Registry settings for high speed Internet connections. It is specifically designed for PPPoE DSL connections. To install, extract the .inf file first, then double-click (or right-click on filename and choose install from the pull-down menu) and reboot for changes to take effect.
http://www.speedguide.net/files/sguide_tweak_2k_pppoe.zip
3. winxp_dnscache.zip
Description: Patch Windows 2k/XP not to cache failed DNS entries. By default, when a DNS lookup fails (due to temporary DNS problems), Windows still caches the unsuccessful DNS query, and in turn fails to connect to a host regardless of the fact that the DNS server might be able to handle your lookup seconds later. This patch fixes the problem by configuring the DNS client to continue sending queries to an unresponsive network. To install, save to your HD, unzip the .reg file, then double-click the filename.
Web Patches - faster loading of Web Pages
The following patch increases Web page loading speed, by doubling the number of possible concurrent open connections. For example, imagine a web page has 20 images and some text - in order for your browser to get all these files, it opens 2 or 4 concurrent connections, depending on the Web server. Increasing the number of open connections allows for faster retrieving of the data. Please note that the patch sets some values outside of the HTML specs. If you decide to install it, backup your Registry first. Changes will take effect after you reboot. Download the patch appropriate for your OS:
OS: Windows 9x/ME
http://www.speedguide.net/files/sg_webtweak_9x.zip
OS: Windows 2K/XP/2k3
http://www.speedguide.net/files/sg_webtweak_2k.zip
TCP OPTIMISER
A nice post I came across while finding a resolution to error 4226 - limiting TCP/IP connections
For Vista
A simple entry in the registry that lets you disable the half-open Tcp connection limit
t
Simply open regedit and go here:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\Tcpip\Parameters\
There, change the value of "EnableConnectionRateLimiting" to '0' to disable it. reboot after the change.
If anyone finds about a similar solution for XP then please let me know. I dont want to install any patch on my computer.
For Vista
A simple entry in the registry that lets you disable the half-open Tcp connection limit
t
Simply open regedit and go here:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\Tcpip\Parameters\
There, change the value of "EnableConnectionRateLimiting" to '0' to disable it. reboot after the change.
If anyone finds about a similar solution for XP then please let me know. I dont want to install any patch on my computer.
Open your command prompt. Type ‘cmd’ in the run box or on the search panel if you are using vista In the command prompt type the drive letter of your usb device and press enter. ex. C:\F: <— then press enter
Type dir /w/a and press enter. ex F:\ dir /w/a <— then press enter
This will display a list of the files in in your flash drive. Check if the following files present on your USB device.
* Autorun.inf
* Ravmon.exe
* New Folder.exe
* svchost.exe
* Heap41a
* or any other exe file that you find suspicious.
After Detecting Second Step Is Removing That Virus.
First run your system in safe mode, then go to your my computer properties and enable the system restore function.
then restart your computer and run in command prompt mode. in the command mode type the following.
ATTRIB virus name(ex:Autorun.inf) -H -S -R.
if the file is found in the Drive then give.
DEL Autorun.inf.
Hope It Helps For Someone Out here.
Type dir /w/a and press enter. ex F:\ dir /w/a <— then press enter
This will display a list of the files in in your flash drive. Check if the following files present on your USB device.
* Autorun.inf
* Ravmon.exe
* New Folder.exe
* svchost.exe
* Heap41a
* or any other exe file that you find suspicious.
After Detecting Second Step Is Removing That Virus.
First run your system in safe mode, then go to your my computer properties and enable the system restore function.
then restart your computer and run in command prompt mode. in the command mode type the following.
ATTRIB virus name(ex:Autorun.inf) -H -S -R.
if the file is found in the Drive then give.
DEL Autorun.inf.
Hope It Helps For Someone Out here.