Pages

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Microsoft Windows XP: Troubleshooting Internet Connectivity

This WebCast provides an overview of Internet connectivity support in Microsoft
Windows XP, along with information about how to troubleshoot an Internet
connection. This discussion includes the use of Modem Diagnostics, Network
Diagnostics, IPConfig, Ping, and other troubleshooting tools to test the connection,
as well as some general guidance about sharing an Internet connection with other
computers on a home or small office network.

The Owner Account Is Displayed As "Account Unknown" in Profiles on Windows XP Home Edition-Based Computers

The Owner account may not be removed correctly when you run Setup on computers
that are running Windows XP Home Edition. The Owner account is displayed as
"Account Unknown" when you view profiles on the computer. Also, the Owner folder
is not removed because the profile is not removed. Note that other problems occur if
an Owner account is used or created during the remainder of setup or Out of Box
Experience (OOBE).
This problem occurs because the OOBE code does not delete the Owner account
during Setup.

A Logon Error Occurs After an Unattended Installation Is Completed

After an unattended installation of Windows XP Home Edition is completed, Windows
may not be able to log on to the desktop the first time. When this problem occurs,
you receive an error message that indicates that "Administrator" cannot log on. An
"Owner" dialog box is displayed in the background, and you can log on as "Owner."

Msconfig.exe Stops Responding if User Is Not an Administrator

When you try to apply changes in the Msconfig.exe tool, Msconfig.exe may stop
responding (hang). However, an administrator may be able to complete the same
operation without any problems.
This problem can occur if you do not have sufficient permissions to make the change
in the Msconfig.exe tool. Msconfig.exe still tries to save the changes even if you do
not have the appropriate permissions, and then retries this process after it receives
an access denied error.

Microsoft Windows XP Fast User Switching

Microsoft Windows XP is a new operating system based on Windows 2000
technology. Fast User Switching is a new feature in Windows XP that leverages the
data separation technology of Windows NT® profiles and provides a fast and
convenient mechanism for switching between user accounts.
Windows XP is a personal system; each user of the computer gets a separate
Windows account. So, in a family of three, Mom, Dad, and Billy each get an account.
Individual Windows accounts represent a departure from Windows 95 and Windows
98, in which all users in a household typically shared one account.
Windows XP introduces the Fast User Switching feature. In Windows XP, it is not
necessary for a user to log off the computer. Instead, the user's account is always
logged on and the user can switch quickly between all open accounts. For example,
Dad comes home and starts using his machine. He opens Microsoft PowerPoint® and
starts working on a document. Billy then comes up to him and asks to use the
computer. Billy goes to the Welcome screen, clicks Billy Smith, logs on, and starts
playing a game. Meanwhile, Dad remains logged on; Dad's PowerPoint presentation
is open and his Internet connection is preserved. If Dad wants to, he can switch to
his open account without logging off Billy. In essence, with Windows XP many users
can simultaneously use the computer

Using Windows XP Visual Styles

Using Microsoft Windows XP, you can now define the visual style or appearance of
controls and windows from simple colors to textures and shapes. You can control
each defined part of a control as well as each part of the non-client (frame and
caption) area of a window. The user can then use the Appearance tab in the
Windows Control Panel to switch between the classic visual style and other available
styles.
A visual style is included with the Windows XP release. Using helper libraries and
application programming interfaces (APIs), you can incorporate the Windows XP
visual style into your application with few code changes. For more information, see
the Platform SDK documentation in the MSDN Library.

Microsoft Windows XP System Restore

The System Restore feature of Microsoft Windows XP (the operating system
previously known as Microsoft Whistler) enables administrators to restore their PCs,
in the event of a problem, to a previous state without losing personal data files (such
as Word documents, drawings, or e-mail). System Restore actively monitors system
file changes and some application file changes to record or store previous versions
before the changes occurred. With System Restore, users never have to think about
taking system snapshots as it automatically creates easily identifiable restore points,
which allow users to revert the system back to a previous time. Restore points are
created at the time of significant system events (such as application or driver install)
and periodically (every day). Additionally, users can create and name their own
restore points in Windows XP at any time. System Restore has an automatic restore
point space-management feature that purges the oldest restore points to make room
for new ones, so that a rolling safety net is always kept under the user, enabling the
user to recover from recent undesirable changes.
System Restore is enabled by default and will run upon the successful completion of
either the Windows XP Professional or Personal x86 version installation. It requires a
minimum of 200 MB of space available on the system partition. If there are not 200
MBs available, System Restore will install disabled and will enable itself automatically
once the required disk space is created.