Windows 2000 Pro












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-Well here it is, my Win2k Pro Tweaking section! This guide will focus more on single player gaming, but I will still give my recommendation for those who play online so they can enjoy better gaming experience with this OS as well.
 
-Those who are not having any problem/s with driver support on Win98/se OS is probably better off sticking with that OS. I only recommend switching to Win2k as a gaming OS if ur hardware/s are no longer receiving any more updates on their Win98 OS. The performance penalty is quite neglable IMO but will be noticeable on low memory machines (below 256mb systems). If u want to dual-boot (Win2k/XP), partition ur HD, install Win2k ... followed by XP. Follow this tweaking guide ... then my Dual-Boot 98/XP tweaking guide (read only the XP tips on the said section ... duh). That way u will have Win2k optimized for gaming purposes, and XP for apps/softwares/multimedia stuffs.
 
-Those who have already read my previous Win98/se and WinXP tweaking guides will probably be able to tweak this OS w/o any problem b'coz Win2k is basically a mix of Win98 and XP. If u already know how to tweak 98 and XP, then u probably no longer need to read this tweaking guide (lol!), but for those who needs a guide or just wants to be sure they're doing the right thing ... read on!
















 
=Service Pack=
Right after installing Win2k, I highly recommend that u install the latest Service Pack (ver. 4). The service pack will fix bugs that is present on the OS. It is also recommended (if not required) by most games. U can download it via Windows Update or by ordering the MS Security Update CD for FREE (link inside my Tech News section).
 
 
 
 
=Control Panel=
 
Accessibility:
Remove any tick marks inside this service. Leaving any of the features within it enabled will only cause ur games to minimize (on the taskbar) while playing or ur PC speaker to beep while holding down keys on ur keyboard.
 
Add/Remove Programs:
Windows Components: I recommend removing/uninstall everything except IE and WMP.
 
Display:
Screensaver tab: select "none"
Effects tab: under visual effects I recommend removing all the tick marks. u may leave the "show icons using all possible colors" if u wish (if the butt ugly icons makes ur eyes sore).
 
Power:
Select "never" on all the last 3 drop down menu boxes.
 
Scheduled Tasks:
I recommend disabling all enabled tasks inside this service window (if there are any). Right-clicking them and selecting properties will enable u to disable them by removing the tick mark on the "Enabled" box.
 
Sounds and Multimedia:
Sounds Tab: remove all sound associated with any program events.
Audio Tab > Sound Playback > Advanced Button > Speakers Tab: select the proper speaker configuration on ur system. Remember that selecting a surround setup without the proper hardware will do u no good.
 
System:
Hardware Tab > Device Manager button: double click IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers. On the Advanced Settings tab, select "DMA if Available" on both devices. Select "none" on the Device Type if there's no drive connected on the controller. Do this on both Primary and Secondary Channels.
 
I also recommend disabling (right-click and select disable) any device that u do not need while playing games. Eg: webcam, IEEE port, legacy joystick port etc etc.

 
 
 
=Run=
Go to start, select "run" then type the following:
 
=MSConfig=
*For some strange reason MSConfig is not present on a Win2k OS, good thing WinXP's MSConfig file (not sure 'bout Win98's) also works with the said OS. U can copy and paste MSConfig.exe from WinXP and paste it anywhere on Win2k's partition.
 
I recommend that u disable everything except the ff:
-Updreg
-Symtray
 
The rest are optional but may just use up memory/resources that can otherwise be used by games.
 
 
=Services=
I recommend that u "Disable" all the other running (started) services except the ones listed here. Yellow colored services should be the only services left with their default settings if the pc is a single player only (no online gaming) system. Otherwise all the listed services should be left with their default settings.
 
DHCP Client
Event Log
Network Connections
Plug and Play
Remote Access Auto Connection Manager
Remote Access Connection Manager
Remote Procedure Call
Telephony
 
 
 

= CachemanXP =

Information Tab: I recommend that u disable "Auto Recover Ram" along with the "Load Cacheman XP Tray" under Options Tab. Why? B'coz although Outertech assured us that CachemanXP uses very low resources and almost zero cpu utilization, the effect when the program is enabled can still be easily noticed. Hiccups often times occur when I have this program running on background.

On the right hand side, there is a list of running processes. Looks pretty much like Window's Task Manager huh? But there is an extra feature added there when u right click a process. U have an option to "lower RAM usage" on a process of ur choice. This will temporarily lower the RAM usage of the given process by moving it to pagefile. The length of lower RAM usage varies per softwares though. And I only recommend using this feature on background apps.

Cache Tab > File Cache Management: I recommend setting this to "CachemanXP Controlled".

Misc > Icon Cache: If u have less than 256mb RAM, set this to 100 (or lower). Only increase if displaying becomes slow or if wrong icons gets used on shortcuts. If u have 256mb or more RAM, set this to 200 (or higher).

Cache File Timeout: the default value of "10" should be enough. Only decrease the value if u only have 192mb RAM (or lower) on ur system.

Tweaks Tab: Only put a check mark on the ff boxes (for optimal perfomance): Creation of short filenames (can be disabled if ur no longer using 16bit apps, Norton Systemworks, and/or Catalyst drivers); Font Smoothing; Windows key (unless u don't want to use it); Autoend tasks; Defragment HD while idle; Unload Dll's from memory.

**The rest can be enabled/disabled depending on the users preference.

Hung and Wait to Kill Application Timeout: I recommend giving them both a value of "3".

Wait to Kill Service Timeout: I recommend a value of "2".

Last Updated: 060904
















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***I will not be held responsible to any damage this tweaking guide might cause your system.

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