Logging Logging and Reporting Enhancements

Software Settings for Troubleshooting Software

Show Computer Manufacturer and Support Information (All Versions) Popular
This tip lets you include company and support information on the System Properties page in Control Panel. This is especially useful if you run a computer store and want your customers to be reminded where they bought their PC and where to get technical support.

PCMCIA Network Adapter Problems (Windows 95/98/Me)
When using a PCMCIA network adapter under Windows 98 you might not be able to connect the computer to the network, and under Control Panel > System there is a yellow exclamation mark "!" next to the card.

Stop Error Messages When Booting (Windows NT)
Stops the annoying Windows pop-up messages notifying you a device is not functioning when you boot-up Windows.

Enable User Environment Debug Logging in Windows (Windows 2000/XP)
This setting enabled debug logging of user profile and system policy processes which may be helpful in troubleshooting problems.

MS-DOS Compatibility Mode Problems with PCI IDE Controllers (Windows 95/98/Me) Popular
If your computer contains a PCI IDE hard disk controller that employs serialization between the two IDE channels, this tip may help you resolve a MS-DOS compatibility mode problem in Device Manager.

Has Your Taskbar Disappeared? (All Versions) Popular
If your taskbar has disappeared from the desktop or becomes hidden when you move your cursor near, it may be due to a corrupt registry key.

Specify the Small Memory Dump Directory (Windows 2000/XP)
This setting is used to specify the location of the small dump directory which stores a small set of useful information when a system stops unexpectedly.

Stop Popup Error Messages When Booting (Windows 2000/XP)
This setting can be used to disable the default Windows popup messages notifying you when a device or service is not functioning correctly at startup.

Debug the Windows Update Process (All Versions)
This setting is used to enable a debug function, called Stepping Mode, which causes Windows Update to prompt during each step of the installation process.

Change the Active Desktop Safe Mode Background (Windows 98/Me/2000/XP)
This setting is used to change the image or web page that is shown when the active desktop is disabled due to a system error.

Enable Manual Crash Feature (Windows 2000) Popular
Microsoft Windows 2000 includes a feature that enables you to have the system stop responding and generate a Memory.dmp file (crash to blue-screen) by using a button combination on the keyboard.

Send Administrative Alerts of System Crashes (Windows NT/2000/XP)
This setting controls whether Windows should send an alert to the Administrator when a system crashes.

Control Whether Windows Logs a System Crash (Windows NT/2000/XP)
This setting controls whether Windows logs a system crash to the event log, this will allow the exact time of the crash to be permanently recorded.

Create a System Crash Dump File (Windows NT/2000/XP)
This setting controls whether Windows creates a dump file of the computer memory when a system crashes.

Specify the System Crash Dump File Location (Windows NT/2000/XP)
This tweak is used to specify the location where the dump file should be written after a system crash.

Control the Dump Creation Method (Windows NT/2000/XP)
This tweak controls whether the system should create a new dump file and overwrite the existing file or whether it should append data to the old dump file when a system crash occurs.

Fix AMD Athlon AGP Paging Issue (Windows 2000) Popular
Windows 2000 based computers may stop responding when you use an Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) program with an AMD Athlon processor. This is due to the memory allocated by the video adapter driver becoming corrupted. This registry tweak will fix the problem.

'Failure Writing to the System Registry...' Error Message (Windows 95) Popular
When you run a setup program that was created using the Application Setup Wizard, you may receive an error message indicating the registry may be corrupt or you do not have the required permissions to write to the registry.

Items in Dialog Boxes Sorted Incorrectly (Windows 98)
When viewing files and folders from a Windows dialog box the items may be sorted incorrectly. For example, files may be listed before folders, items may be sorted in descending order, and so on. This tip should resolve this problem.

Are You Missing Fonts from the Fonts Folder? (All Versions)
A font may seem to be installed correctly but does not appear in the Fonts folder because the Fonts key in the registry is missing or damaged.

Unable to Connect More Than 10 Clients (Windows NT)
If you have a retail version of Windows NT server, and you are still unable to connect more the 10 users concurrently, then have a look at this tip.

Addition of New LAN Interface in RRAS Causes Event Message (Windows NT)
When you install an additional network interface card (NIC) and the Routing and Remote Access Service (RRAS) is already installed, you receive an error 20101 in the System Log in Event Viewer.

Delay Occurs When Unlocking Workstation (Windows NT/2000)
Sometimes a noticeable delay occurs when the logged on user or an administrator attempts to unlock a workstation. This because when you unlock the workstation Windows will update the domain list if the cached list's age exceeds two minutes (by default). This age limit can be modified.

Changing the Default State of the NUMLOCK Key (Windows NT/2000) Popular
The NUMLOCK key is usually only turned on before the user has logged into the computer, this can cause problem for people with portable computers that do not check the status of the NUMLOCK key before typing their password. The default behavior can be changed with this setting.

New Command Missing in Windows Explorer (All Versions)
After you install Internet Explorer with the Windows Desktop Update component you may notice that the New command is missing from the right-click context menu. This tip will help you fix the problem.

Long File Names Need to be Enabled (Windows 98)
If you are receiving an error when installing Windows 98 that long file names need to enabled in order for Windows 98 to install successfully try this.

CD-ROM Does Not Run Automatically When Inserted (Windows 95/98/Me) Popular
When you insert a CD-ROM into the CD-ROM drive, it may not be run automatically, changing this registry key should correct the problem.