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One of the longest-running debates in computer
circles involves the question of whether or not to turn off the computer
when you’re not using it. The “off” camp believes that shutting down
the computer reduces hard disk wear and tear (because the disk’s
platter’s spin full-time, even when the computer is idle), prevents
damage from power surges or power failures that occur while the machine
is off, and saves energy. The “on” camp believes that cold starts are
hard on many computer components, that energy can be saved by taking
advantage of power-saving features, and that leaving the computer
running is more productive because it avoids the lengthy startup
process.
In the end, I believe
it’s the overall boot time that usually determines which of these camps
you belong to. If the startup time is just unbearably long, you’ll
certainly be more inclined to leave your computer running all the time.
Fortunately, Windows XP has made great strides on improving startup
times, which are now routinely measured in seconds instead of minutes.
However, if you’re convinced that turning off the computer is a sensible
move but you hate waiting even for Windows XP’s faster startup process,
the next few sections provide you with a few tips for improving startup
performance even more.
Reducing or Eliminating
BIOS Checks
Many computers run
through one or more diagnostic checks at system startup. For example,
it’s common for machines to check the integrity of the system memory
chips. That seems like a good idea, but it can take an interminable
amount of time to complete on a system with a great deal of memory.
Access your system’s BIOS settings and turn off these checks to reduce
the overall time of the computer’s Power-On Self Test.
Note
How you access your
computer’s BIOS settings (also called the CMOS
setup) depends on the manufacturer.
You usually have to press a function key (usually F1, F2, or F10), a key
such as Delete or Esc, or a key combination. During the POST, you
should see some text on the screen that tells you what key or key
combination to press. Reducing the OS Choices Menu
Timeout
If you have two or more
operating systems on your computer, you see Windows XP’s OS Choices menu
at startup. If you’re paying attention to the startup, you can press
the Enter key as soon as this menu appears and your system will boot the
default operating system. If your mind is focused elsewhere, however,
the startup will be delayed 30 seconds until the default choice is
selected automatically. If this happens to you frequently, you can
reduce that 30-second timeout to speed up the startup. There are four
ways to do this:
Edit the BOOT.INI file. In the [boot
loader] section, change the timeout value. Select Start, Run, type msconfig
-4, and click OK. In the System
Configuration Utility’s BOOT.INI tab, modify the value in the Timeout
text box. Run
Control Panel’s System icon to get to the System Properties dialog box.
Display the Advanced tab, click Settings in the Startup and Recovery
group, and then adjust the value of the Time to Display List of
Operating Systems spin box. At the command prompt, enter the following command
(replace ss with the number of seconds you want to use for the timeout):
Tip
If your system has
multiple hardware profiles, the Hardware Profile menu also appears for
30 seconds before choosing the default profile. You can reduce this
timeout by launching Control Panel’s System icon, selecting the Hardware
tab, and then clicking Hardware Profiles. In the Hardware Profiles
dialog box, activate the Select the First Profile Listed If I Don’t
Select a Profile In option and use the spin box below it to set the
reduced timeout. Turning Off the Startup Splash
Screen
In BOOT.INI, use the /NOGUIBOOT switch . This
prevents the Windows XP splash screen from appearing, which will shave a
small amount of time from the startup.
Caution
Using /NOGUIBOOT
means that you won’t see any startup blue-screen errors. In other
words, if a problem occurs, all you’ll know for sure is that your system
has hung, but you won’t know why. For this reason, the small
performance improvement represented by using /NOGUIBOOT is likely not enough to offset the lack of
startup error messages. Using an Automatic Logon
One of the best ways to
reduce startup time frustration is to ignore the startup altogether by
doing something else (such as getting a cup of coffee) while the boot
chores occur. This strategy is foiled if the startup is interrupted by
the logon process. If you’re the only person who uses your computer, you
can overcome this problem by setting up Windows XP to log you on
automatically.
If you must log on, and if
you’re using the classic logon method (that is, you’re not using
Windows XP’s Welcome screen), Windows XP usually asks you to press
Ctrl+Alt+Delete before it displays the Log On to Windows dialog box. You
can save a startup step by eliminating this usually unnecessary
procedure. Reducing or Eliminating
Startup Programs
By far the biggest startup
bottleneck is the array of programs scheduled to launch automatically
when Windows XP loads. Loading many small programs or just a couple of
large programs can slow the startup to an excruciating crawl. Use the
techniques Using Hibernation Mode
Hibernation
mode, which is supported by most new
PCs, saves the current contents of memory (running programs, open
documents, and so on) to a file on your hard disk and then shuts down
the computer. When you turn the machine back on, Windows XP bypasses the
usual startup routines and restores the memory contents from the
hibernation file. The result is that your system is back on its feet in
just a few seconds.
Before you can use
hibernation, you need to make sure that it’s enabled on your system by
first opening Control Panel’s Power Options icon. In the Power Options
Properties dialog box, display the Hibernate tab and activate the Enable
Hibernation check box.
To put the computer
into hibernation, you have two ways to proceed:
If you use
the Welcome screen, select Start, Turn Off Computer, hold down the Shift
key, and then click Hibernate. If you use the Classic logon screen, select
Start, Shut Down and then select Hibernate from the list.
Caution
The contents of your
system’s memory are stored in a file called Hiberfil.sys in the
root folder of the %SystemDrive%
(usually C:). This is hardwired into the system and can’t be changed.
Therefore, before enabling hibernation, make sure that you have plenty
of free space on the %SystemDrive%. Note that Hiberfil.sys will be as large as the amount of RAM on your
system. If you have 512MB RAM, the hibernation file will also be
approximately 512MB. Configuring the Prefetcher
Prefetching is a Windows XP performance feature that analyzes disk
usage and then reads into memory the data that you or your system
accesses most frequently. The prefetcher can be used to speed up
booting, application launching, or both. You configure the prefetcher
using the following Registry setting:
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\SessionManager\Memory Management\
PrefetchParameters\EnablePrefetcher
Set this value to 1
for application-only prefetching, 2 for boot-only prefetching,
or 3 for both application and boot
prefetching. I recommend setting this value to 2 for boot-only prefetching. This will improve boot
performance and, on most systems, have little or no effect on
application performance because commonly used application launch files
are probably in the RAM cache anyway.
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