Creating Shutdown, Restart and Logoff Icons

To create the icons, create a shortcut on the desktop.

For Shutdown, the command is C:\WINDOWS\RUNDLL.EXE user.exe,exitwindows

For Restart, the command is C:\WINDOWS\RUNDLL.EXE user.exe, exit windows exec

For Logoff, the command is C:\WINDOWS\RUNDLL.EXE shell32.dll,SHExitWindowsEx 0

Increasing the Size of the Scroll Bar

How to adjust the width of the scroll bar:

1. Right Click with Mouse on Desktop Area.
2. Select Properties
3. Select the Appearance tab
4. Go to the item list and find scrollbar.
5. Increasing the value in the Size field will increase the scrollbar width.

Unable to Create Shortcuts on the Desktop

If you can't create shortcuts on your Desktop, you might have a corrupted registry.

1. Start Regedit
2. Go to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.lnk\ShellNew\Command
3. Make sure it has a value of:
4. RunDLL32 AppWiz.Cpl,NewLinkHere %1 if you don't have IE 4
5. or RunDLL32 AppWiz.Cpl,NewLinkHere %2 if you have IE 4.0 or IE 4.01

Problem with Show Hidden Files & Folders

Fixing "Show Hidden Files & Folder" Problem

1. Go to the following registry key: (go to Start >> Run >> type “regedit” and then press “ok”)
2. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced\Folder\Hidden\SHOWALL
3. DELETE the value CheckedValue in the right window. (Its type should be REG_SZ and data should be 2.)
4. Now create a new DWORD value called CheckedValue (same as above, except that the type is REG_DWORD).
5. Modify the value data to 1 (0×00000001).

This should let you change the “Show Hidden Files and Folders” option now.
Be safe, be careful, use protections, ensure prevention and avoid cure hassles.

Change the amount of space used by System Restore - Vista

In order to configure the amount of space used by System Restore, you need to use a tool called Volume Shadow Copy Administrative Command-Line Tool (or vssadmin.exe).

1. To access vssadmin.exe we will have to open the command prompt with administrative rights. In order to do that, type "cmd" or "command" in the Start Menu search field. The first result should be cmd.exe or the Command Prompt. If you have UAC turned on, right click on it and select Run as administrator.



2. The Command Prompt will open. The Volume Shadow Copy Service offers several configuration option. Type vssadmin /? and press Enter to see the list of available options.
3. If you want to know how much space has been allocated and the maximum amount of space that can be used by System Restore, type vssadmin list shadowstorage and then hit the Enter key.



4. If you want to change the amount of space used by System Restore, you should use the following command:
5. vssadmin resize shadowstorage /on=[drive letter]: /For=[drive letter]: /Maxsize=[maximum size]
6. MaxSizeSpec must be 300MB or greater and accepts the following suffixes: KB (for kilobytes), MB (for megabytes), GB (for gigabytes), TB (for terabytes), PB (for petabytes) and EB (for exabytes). If a suffix is not supplied, MaxSizeSpec is in bytes. If MaxSizeSpec is not specified, then there will be no limit to the amount of space it may use.
7. For example, if you want System Restore to use a maximum of 1GB of space for the restore points on drive "C:", you should type the following:
8. vssadmin resize shadowstorage /On=C: /For=C: /Maxsize=1GB



9. The maximum space used by System Restore has now been resized.

Windows Vista keyboard shortcuts

General keyboard shortcuts

• F1 - Display Help
• CTRL+C - Copy the selected item
• CTRL+X - Cut the selected item
• CTRL+V - Paste the selected item
• CTRL+Z - Undo an action
• CTRL+Y - Redo an action
• DELETE - Delete the selected item and move it to the Recycle Bin
• SHIFT+DELETE - Delete the selected item without moving it to the Recycle Bin first
• F2 - Rename the selected item
• CTRL+RIGHT ARROW - Move the cursor to the beginning of the next word
• CTRL+LEFT ARROW - Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous word
• CTRL+DOWN ARROW - Move the cursor to the beginning of the next paragraph
• CTRL+UP ARROW - Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous paragraph
• CTRL+SHIFT with an arrow key - Select a block of text
• SHIFT with any arrow key - Select more than one item in a window or on the desktop, or select text within a document
• CTRL with any arrow key+SPACEBAR - Select multiple individual items in a window or on the desktop
• CTRL+A - Select all items in a document or window
• F3- Search for a file or folder
• ALT+ENTER - Display properties for the selected item
• ALT+F4 - Close the active item, or exit the active program
• ALT+SPACEBAR - Open the shortcut menu for the active window
• CTRL+F4 - Close the active document (in programs that allow you to have multiple documents open simultaneously)
• ALT+TAB - Switch between open items
• CTRL+ALT+TAB - Use the arrow keys to switch between open items
• CTRL+Mouse scroll wheel - Change the size of icons on the desktop
• Windows logo key + TAB - Cycle through programs on the taskbar by using Windows Flip 3-D
• CTRL+Windows logo key + TAB - Use the arrow keys to cycle through programs on the taskbar by using Windows Flip 3-D
• ALT+ESC - Cycle through items in the order in which they were opened
• F6 - Cycle through screen elements in a window or on the desktop
• F4 - Display the Address bar list in Windows Explorer
• SHIFT+F10 - Display the shortcut menu for the selected item
• CTRL+ESC - Open the Start menu
• F10 - Activate the menu bar in the active program
• RIGHT ARROW - Open the next menu to the right, or open a submenu
• LEFT ARROW - Open the next menu to the left, or close a submenu
• F5 - Refresh the active window
• ALT+UP ARROW - View the folder one level up in Windows Explorer
• ESC - Cancel the current task
• CTRL+SHIFT+ESC - Open Task Manager
• SHIFT when you insert a CD - Prevent the CD from automatically playing

Dialog box keyboard shortcuts

• CTRL+TAB - Move forward through tabs
• CTRL+SHIFT+TAB - Move back through tabs
• TAB - Move forward through options
• SHIFT+TAB - Move back through options
• ALT+underlined letter - Perform the command (or select the option) that goes with that letter
• ENTER - Replaces clicking the mouse for many selected commands
• SPACEBAR - Select or clear the check box if the active option is a check box
• Arrow keys - Select a button if the active option is a group of option buttons
• F1 - Display Help
• F4 - Display the items in the active list
• BACKSPACE - Open a folder one level up if a folder is selected in the Save As or Open dialog box

Windows Sidebar keyboard shortcuts

• Windows logo key Picture of Windows logo key + SPACEBAR - Bring all gadgets to the front and select Sidebar
• Windows logo key Picture of Windows logo key +G - Cycle through Sidebar gadgets
• TAB - Cycle through Sidebar controls

Windows Explorer keyboard shortcuts

• CTRL+N - Open a new window
• END - Display the bottom of the active window
• HOME - Display the top of the active window
• F11 - Maximize or minimize the active window
• LEFT ARROW - Collapse the current selection (if it is expanded), or select the parent folder
• ALT+LEFT ARROW - View the previous folder
• RIGHT ARROW - Display the current selection (if it is collapsed), or select the first subfolder
• ALT+RIGHT ARROW - View the next folder
• CTRL+Mouse scroll wheel - Change the size and appearance of file and folder icons
• ALT+D - Select the Address bar

Windows Help viewer keyboard shortcuts

• ALT+C - Display the Table of Contents
• ALT+N - Display the Connection Settings menu
• F10 - Display the Options menu
• ALT+LEFT ARROW - Move back to the previously viewed topic
• ALT+RIGHT ARROW - Move forward to the next (previously viewed) topic
• ALT+A - Display the customer support page
• ALT+HOME - Display the Help and Support home page
• HOME - Move the to beginning of a topic
• END - Move to the end of a topic
• CTRL+F - Search the current topic
• CTRL+P - Print a topic
• F3- Move to the Search box

Desktop Tab Missing from Display Properties

Display Properties is accessed by right clicking on an open area of the desktop and selecting Properties.

Fig 01

Default [Display Properties] Tab Arrangement

If the system Display Properties appears without the Desktop tab (Fig 02) it's likely due to a Group Policy Setting.

Fig 02

Modified [Display Properties] Tab Arrangement

To restore the Desktop tab:

• Open Group Policy Editor by typing "gpedit.msc" in the Open: line of Run on the Start Menu.

Fig 03

Group Policy Editor

1. Navigate to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Explorer
2. In the right pane, double click on Turn on Classic Shell
3. Set the radio button to Not Configured then click OK

How to create CON folder?

You know that we can’t create a folder named CON, NUL, and COM1 to COM9 and LPT1 to LPT9 in Windows XP
But here is an amazing trick for creating the folders with these reserved system names.

1. Right Click in Desktop and do create folder process. (New >> Folder)
2. While naming the folder, type ‘CON’ and type 255 or 0160 in numpad holding the Alt button.

Using BCDEDIT.EXE to Clean Up Windows Vista Boot Manager

How to clean up the Windows Vista Boot Manager using the command line tool called BCDEDIT.EXE located at C:\Windows\System32 assuming Windows Vista is installed on Drive C.
You may have installed another operating system earlier on another drive and you now have formatted this drive. When you boot your computer, you are presented with a choice of what operating system to start with but one of the entries do not work because you have removed the operating system. BCDEDIT.EXE is a command line tool to manage the BCD store (Windows Vista Boot Manager). For a list of complete commands that BCDEDIT.EXE offers, open a Command Window and type bcdedit /?.
NOTE: To enlarge the images, simply click on the images you would like to view. With Internet Explorer 7, you can right-click on the image to select Open in New Tab.

Removing invalid entries in the Windows Vista Boot Manager

1. Type: bcdedit > c:\users\yourusername\desktop\bcd.txt NOTE: A file called "bcd.txt" should now be on the desktop.
2. Open "bcd.txt" and note the "identifier" value for the invalid boot entries.
3. Type: bcdedit /delete {identifiler}
4. To remove the timeout of the Windows Boot Manager, type: bcdedit /timeout 0

Platforms Tested

• Microsoft Windows XP Editions x86 Versions