Archive for the “Vista” Category

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28 11 2011

Windows performance matters!

Posted by PSlijkhuis in General, Server 2008, Vista, Windows 7, tags:

Windows 7 is often initiated for its performance like XP and unlike Vista. Too often the actual performance is measured by hand. By stopwatch! Please stop doing this and start reading this inventive blog post.

Microsoft provides a free tool to measure the performance automatically. An improved toolkit is coming with Windows 8. For now we can perfectly live with the current toolkit. Let’s get started.  

In this post I will explain how easy it can be to measure the performance of any Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2 system. I will also provide some practical advice how to create a report that adds value.

Note: Because of the Prefetch feature of Windows 7 it is highly recommended to prepare your test machine (referred to as ‘prepsystem’).

Start measuring

Your system needs to have installed: 

  • Windows Vista or higher (Windows XP does work but shows fewer results). Server system 2008 or higher.
  • .NET framework 4
  • Local admin priveliges

Now start with installing the magic tooling:

  • Download the WPA toolkit
  • Install ‘xbootmgr’ and ‘xperf’ (x86 or x64)
  • Create a temporary folder (c:\temp)
  • Open a CMD with admin priveliges

Copy and past the following line in the CMD window:

xbootmgr -trace boot -traceFlags DiagEasy -resultPath C:\TEMP -numruns 10 rebootCycle –prepSystem

This will happen:

  • Perform a trace for the time the pc boots (-trace boot)
  • Specificy the info details measured (-traceflags –diageasy)
  • Copy the results to ‘c:\temp’ (the .elt files)
  • Do this 10 times (reboot will go automatic, login by hand unless you specify / a number of 10 is a best practice average)
  • (option) Prepare yout test system 6x (2 times 3 with a break) 

 

Create results

Create a XML summary file:

  • For every .ETL file run this command:

xperf /tti -i c:\temp\YourFile.etl -o summary_boot.xml -a boot

Write down the values for 1) bootDoneViaExplorer, 2) bootDoneViaPostBoot and 3)

  1. PreSMSS
  2. SMSSInit
  3. WinlogonInit
  4. ExplorerInit
  5. PostExplorerPeriod
  6. TraceTail

All values in milliseconds, so x100 for seconds.

Time to logon

Now what is the measured value for the logon time? This is the sum of the values : WinLogonInit, ExplorerInit and PostExplorerPeriod. The value of bootDoneViaExplorer indicates the total startup time.

However, the value of WinloginInit start counting on the moment that the login screen is shown. Meaning that typing userID and password is measured too as part of logon. This is why autologon is preferrred. On a domain joined machine this can be automated too (just Google)

Summary

  • Install the WPA toolkit on your Windows 7 test machine
  • Run a performance test and create a report
  • Give me some results!

 

This post is inspired on the following websites:

http://www.msfn.org/board/topic/140247-trace-windows-7-bootshutdownhibernatestandbyresume-issues (generic guide)

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/ff191001(v=vs.85).aspx (xbootmgr)

http://www.computerperformance.co.uk/windows7/windows7_auto_logon.htm (autologon)

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27 05 2008

The Power of Group Policy Preferences

Posted by Erik Luppes in General, Server 2008, Vista

LaSNAG-0005st month me and some collegues went to MMS2008 in Las Vegas were I saw a cool demo of Group Police Preferences. The name Group Policy Preferences did ring a bell with me and suddenly I remembered. A few weeks before MMS I saw a Windows Update that was called Group Policy Preferences Client Side Extensions, but I did’nt know what it was.

So now that I’m a few weeks back home I finaly had some time to play with it on my Demo Domain that I setup last week using CoreConfigurator. To use Group Policy Preferences you must have a few things in place:

            • A Windows Server 2008 or Windows Vista SP1 machine (only needed for managing Group Policy Preferences)
          • RSAT Installed on the management machine
          • Deployed the Group Policy Preferences Client Side Extensions to your Desktops/Servers (XP SP2 or higher)
          • Active Directory

Note : You don’t need a 2008 DC or Windows Vista SP1 client to use Group Policy Preferences !!

On the left screenshot you can see all the different options that can be managed using Group Policy Preferences. There ar too much settings to show them all on this blog, but I realy like to show you some nice things. I made some screenshots of some common things you normaly do in loginscripts or kix scripts, but that are now possible in Group Policy. (click on the images to see it full size)SNAG-0011

SNAG-0006

With Group Policy Preferences it is easy to map networkdrives. Not only you can map a drive for all users in a generic user policy, but it is also  possible to target this mapping to no more then 27 targeting rules. (Image on the right)

Most common is to map a network share based on group membership or IP subnet. This way way it is possible to map a share witf for example application data to a server that is on the same geographical location as the user without the need of using DFS or site loginscripts.

SNAG-0010An other example is setting up how users (or administrators) see their files in Windows Explorer. In this screenshot I set it up so that the user will see the file extentions for known files and also shows hidden & system files, this is a setting that most admins will set if they logon to a new machine. This is also the power of Group Policy Preferences, the most settings an administrator will have to manualy do if he is building a new image for deployment can be managed by Group Policy Preferences.

As you can imagine there are hundreds or maybe thousends of possibilities that you use in solving those anoying problems you usely have to solve using scripts or other tools.

Next thing I have to do is migrating my loginscript at home to Group Policy Preferences.

 

Have fun with it.

Erik Luppes

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06 02 2008

Why Linux will not displace Windows

Posted by Wiebe Niehof in General, Linux, Vista, tags: , , ,
I found this post on ZDNET and it totally convinced me! 

===========================

“You are kidding arent you ?

Are you saying that this linux can run on a computer without windows underneath it, at all ? As in, without a boot disk, without any drivers, and without any services ?That sounds preposterous to me.

If it were true (and I doubt it), then companies would be selling computers without a windows. This clearly is not happening, so there must be some error in your calculations. I hope you realise that windows is more than just Office ? Its a whole system that runs the computer from start to finish, and that is a very difficult thing to acheive. A lot of people dont realise this.

Microsoft just spent $9 billion and many years to create Vista, so it does not sound reasonable that some new alternative could just snap into existence overnight like that. It would take billions of dollars and a massive effort to achieve. IBM tried, and spent a huge amount of money developing OS/2 but could never keep up with Windows. Apple tried to create their own system for years, but finally gave up recently and moved to Intel and Microsoft.

Its just not possible that a freeware like the Linux could be extended to the point where it runs the entire computer fron start to finish, without using some of the more critical parts of windows. Not possible.

I think you need to re-examine your assumptions. ”

http://talkback.zdnet.com/5208-12355-0.html?forumID=1&threadID=31199&messageID=579806&start=-9530

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25 09 2007

Microsoft Releases Windows DreamScene (Final)

Posted by Erik Luppes in Vista

Today Microsoft has resleased Windows Dreamscene to all Windows Ultimate customers. To install Dreamscene simply run Windows Update.

As most of you already know, Windows DreamScene transforms your desktop from a static wallpaper image into a full-motion video. In conjunction with Stardock, we’re pleased to also offer a number of cool, new animated DreamScene desktops, including “Aurora�. Additionally, you can use your own videos as DreamScene desktops or visit Stardock’s Dream.WinCustomize.com website to download Stardock’s DeskScapes (an add-on to DreamScene) as well as a collection of fabulous content created by Stardock and members of the Ultimate community.

More @ Source

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13 03 2007

WinHelp for Windows Vista!

Posted by Marco Nielsen in Vista

Microsoft decided not to include a copy of the old WinHlp.exe in the Windows Vista RTM and wanted some time to update/redo it for security reasons.  Not a bad idea..

See the breif  http://support.microsoft.com/kb/917607 article for more information.

But it appears that the updating work is over and it is now available for all those older .HLP files you can’t open on Vista unless you copy over your old Windows XP version.. :-)

Download it here:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=6ebcfad9-d3f5-4365-8070-334cd175d4bb

|\\arco..

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