This blog is a short guide to provide some basic info regarding Boot Configuration Data Editor (BCDEdit), and present a collection of useful links where more detail is available. Boot Configuration Data (BCD) provides a store that is used to describe boot applications and their settings. These objects and elements effectively replace Boot.ini. The data…
Tag: Windows Vista
New program highlighting in the Start menu
Ever wonder why some programs are highlighted in the “All Programs” list of the Start menu? Start by reading this fine MSDN blog: http://blogs.msdn.com/oldnewthing/archive/2005/11/24/496690.aspx Even though it is written prior to Vista, it basically holds true for Vista as well. There are some exceptions, however. On Windows Vista: 1. Apps installed within 5 hours of…
Running Microsoft Management Console (MMC) snap-in’s from the Start menu.
Items that end in an extension with .msc are Microsoft Management Console Snap-in’s, but did you know that you can run most of these directly from either the RUN line or the Search Bar in Vista? My personal favorites to run in this fashion are the Device Manager, Event Viewer and the Disk Management Snap-ins…..
DPI Scaling (font size adjustment) does not work on some displays in Vista
You have your nifty new hand-held ultra mobile PC running Windows Vista, but you wish your font size was a little larger so you could read the text. You hunt around and find that you can modify just the font size (from the classic view of Control Panel -> Personalization -> Adjust font size (DPI)),…
Using Resource Monitor to see impact of changing the Maximum Processor State
So you have a system with a processor with performance state control running Windows Vista/SP1/Server 08. On such systems, in the Control Panel “Power Options”, in “Change advanced power settings” under your selected Power Plan (for example: “Balanced”), you’ll see an expandable “Processor Power Management” setting, under which there is a “Minimum Processor State” and…
Resolving issues with the Windows Media Center Store Update Manager and a corrupt data store.
If you’ve experienced an error just like this when using Windows Media Center you may have some issues with a corrupt data store and may need an additional hotfix. “Windows Media Center Store Update Manager Has Stopped Working” Problem Details:Problem signature: Problem Event Name: APPCRASH Application Name: mcupdate.EXE Application Version: 6.0.6001.18061 Application Timestamp: 480ea322 …
Why it takes a very long time to turn on Windows features in Vista through control panel.
So you pick up your new machine and start it up. During the initial screens you may be asked to select the language of your choice and then you are warned that the selection is not reversible. This usually occurs on computers that were built to be shipped to multiple countries. Some manufacturers usually load…
How to separate out .DLL based services that use a shared generic service host process name (svchost.exe) for troubleshooting…
Have you ever had system resource issues where checking Task Manager in Vista seems to point to an instance of SVCHost.exe? Well, the difficulty here is that multiple dynamic link library (.DLL) based services can be hosted within a single SVChost.exe, and there can be multiple SVCHost.exe open simultaneously. How can we possibly sort out what…
What is hybrid sleep in Windows Vista?
Hybrid sleep is a new power saving state for desktops running Windows Vista. Hybrid sleep is designed to give users a fast on and off experience similar to an appliance yet save energy. It accomplishes this by saving user documents and programs to memory and also to your hard disk then sending the computer to…
Updated OCUR tuner support after applying the Media Center TV Pack for Windows Vista.
Many of the OEM’s are shipping the latest update to the Windows Vista called the Media Center TV Pack for Windows Vista. This brings a host of updates and new features to Media Center PC’s. Windows Vista SP1 Media Center, supported two OCUR tuners out of the box for Home Premium and Ultimate. However, now with…