Re: xp updates & memory size

sera wrote:
i started with xp service pack, the installed all the xp updates,
then the xp2, now the xp 3 updates. does that occupy a lot of
memory space? now with xp3, can i safely remove xp, all the xp
updates plus xp service pack 2? also, if the automatic update
prompts to install xp updates is it still applicable to me?

Quick answers:

- Occupy a lot of "memory space"? No. A lot of drive space? Not really,
albeit that is relative to your total amount, I suppose.
- SP3 would have removed everything that was unneeded when it installed.
- SP3 is not the end-all, be all of updates for Windows XP. Each month
(usually the second Tuesday of each month) updates are relaesed to patch
problem found, etc with Windows.


More Detail:

Memory is not drive space. What you seem to be referring to is drive space.

Memory/RAM is what your computer is using more of when you are actually
utilizing it. Everything you see is loaded into the systems memory. With
Windows XP (what you seem to have) - usually somewhere between 512MB and
1024MB (1GB) is optimal for everyday users of the system (email, web
browsing, maybe some game playing, etc.)

Drive space is the 'longer term storage' for things. In most desktops -
this is a hard disk drive. Most modern systems (in the last 4 years) come
with 80+GB of space. Windows XP and dozens upon dozens of normal home-user
applications would take up between 4.5GB and 9GB of space (round up to the
nearest 10 = 10GB, meaning you have over 65GB - after marketing is accounted
for - for all of your own personal files and such.)

It is possible you have an older system - maybe an 8GB drive? 20GB drive?
40GB drive? If either of the first two - either it is time to buy a new
hard disk drive, be a lot more particular about what you keep/don't
keep/burn to CD/DVD OR time to get a used/new system that is more modern.
;-)

If you have a drive that is 40GB or greater in size and you are running out
of space - you likely just need to cleanup your stuff. You can do *some*
cleanup of the Windows XP stuff (some update uninstall files, some of the
settings can be tweaked, etc) - but the majority of space above that
4.5GB-9GB range - I assure you (as a regular home user) - is being used by
*your* files/creations. You should back them up to long-term storage if you
do not access them daily and be backing them up persistently whether or not
you access them daily.

If you are comfortable with the stability of your system, you can delete the
uninstall files for the patches that Windows XP has installed...
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/spack.htm
( Particularly of interest here - #4 )
( Alternative: http://www.dougknox.com/xp/utils/xp_hotfix_backup.htm )

You can run Disk Cleanup - built into Windows XP - to erase all but your
latest restore point and cleanup even more "loose files"..

How to use Disk Cleanup
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/310312

You can turn off hibernation if it is on and you don't use it..

When you hibernate your computer, Windows saves the contents of the system's
memory to the hiberfil.sys file. As a result, the size of the hiberfil.sys
file will always equal the amount of physical memory in your system. If you
don't use the hibernate feature and want to recapture the space that Windows
uses for the hiberfil.sys file, perform the following steps:

- Start the Control Panel Power Options applet (go to Start, Settings,
Control Panel, and click Power Options).
- Select the Hibernate tab, clear the "Enable hibernation" check box, then
click OK; although you might think otherwise, selecting Never under the
"System hibernates" option on the Power Schemes tab doesn't delete the
hiberfil.sys file.
- Windows will remove the "System hibernates" option from the Power Schemes
tab and delete the hiberfil.sys file.

You can control how much space your System Restore can use...

1. Click Start, right-click My Computer, and then click Properties.
2. Click the System Restore tab.
3. Highlight one of your drives (or C: if you only have one) and click on
the "Settings" button.
4. Change the percentage of disk space you wish to allow.. I suggest moving
the slider until you have just about 1GB (1024MB or close to that...)
5. Click OK.. Then Click OK again.

You can control how much space your Temporary Internet Files can utilize...

Empty your Temporary Internet Files and shrink the size it stores to a
size between 64MB and 128MB..

- Open ONE copy of Internet Explorer.
- Select TOOLS -> Internet Options.
- Under the General tab in the "Temporary Internet Files" section, do the
following:
- Click on "Delete Cookies" (click OK)
- Click on "Settings" and change the "Amount of disk space to use:" to
something between 64MB and 128MB. (It may be MUCH larger right
now.)
- Click OK.
- Click on "Delete Files" and select to "Delete all offline contents"
(the checkbox) and click OK. (If you had a LOT, this could take 2-10
minutes or more.)
- Once it is done, click OK, close Internet Explorer, re-open Internet
Explorer.

You can use an application that scans your system for log files and
temporary files and use that to get rid of those:

Ccleaner (Free!)
http://www.ccleaner.com/

Other ways to free up space..

SequoiaView
http://www.win.tue.nl/sequoiaview/

JDiskReport
http://www.jgoodies.com/freeware/jdiskreport/index.html

Those can help you visually discover where all the space is being used.

In the end - a standard Windows XP installation with all sorts of extras
will not likely be above about 4.5GB to 9GB in size. If you have more space
than that (likely do on a modern machine) and most of it seems to be used -
likely you need to copy *your stuff* off and/or find a better way to manage
it.

--
Shenan Stanley
MS-MVP
--
How To Ask Questions The Smart Way
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html


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