Re: System Maintenance and Firewall Questions
- From: Ron Martell <ron.martell@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 29 Jan 2007 21:06:20 GMT
Frog <frog@xxxxxxxx> wrote:
I have two learning questions for this group as follows:
1. Can anybody help me build an effective series of steps that will
clean up my XP computer as I did on my 98SE system?
Explanation:
I am a new user of Windows-XP (a hand-me-down computer with Windows-XP
Prof. (w/disk) installed). While using Windows-98SE, I would perform a
system "clean-up" approximately once a month. This clean-up would
involve such steps as:
-Running Ad-Aware and Spybot,
Pretty good products for Windows XP as well. If you find that these
are discovering a fair amount of spyware you might also want to
consider downloading and installing Windows Defender (free) from
http://download.microsoft.com
You did not mention antivirus software, which you also need. In my
opinion, Norton and McAfee are to be avoided but there are many other
good ones including some that are free.
-Removing items from the Recycle Bin,
Always a good practice.
-Running commands from the DOS level to delete cookies, history, and
temporary files,
For cookies and t.i.f. use Control Panel - Internet Options. Deleting
temporary files can be done from the command prompt in XP but
navigating to the correct folder is a bit more complex because of the
longer path name: C:\Documents and Settings\<user name>\Local
Settings\Temp. You might also want to consider using the Disk
Cleanup utility in Accessories - System Tools for this.
-Also while in DOS, doing a scanreg /fix (three times) and scanreg /opt
/fix (three times),
No comparable utility to scanreg in Windows XP and experience has
shown that there is little need for the /opt and/or /fix options of
this command although scanreg /restore is sorely missed.
-From Run in Windows, going to %temp% and removing all of the entries
displayed,
-Running virus scan, an then
-Running scandisk and defrag.
No Scandisk in XP. Use CHKDSK.
I believe these were the steps I took while cleaning up my 98SE system.
If not, it is a representation of those steps.
I now want to perform an effective clean-up of my XP system.
2. I have been told that Windows-XP has a built in firewall. Is this
firewall effective, and how do I access its settings? If this firewall
is not effective, can anybody identify a firewall that is effective with
Windows-XP?
The Windows XP builtin firewall is fully effective for the purpose
that it is designed for - protecting your computer from intruders over
the Internet. It does not do anything at all with regard to items on
your computer (spyware or trojans that may have gotten through, for
example) "phoning home". Most third party firewall programs do
included protection against unwanted outgoing traffic so if you desire
that level of protection then you need to consider a third party
firewall.
Good luck
Ron Martell Duncan B.C. Canada
--
Microsoft MVP (1997 - 2006)
On-Line Help Computer Service
http://onlinehelp.bc.ca
Syberfix Remote Computer Repair
"Anyone who thinks that they are too small to make a difference
has never been in bed with a mosquito."
.
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