Startup

[Recon 0]

I read this in the 'Tweaking XP for performance with Ghost Recon' thread:

When you go into msconfig, you want to ignore all the tabs, except the Startup Tab.

Click on it and it will open up a box that has a list of programs in it that are check marked. Uncheck all of these items. Doing this does not uninstall the program, merely keeps them from running at startup as TSR's (Terminate and Stay Resident Programs), which load up your memory on startup.

Is it OK to disable everything? Surely some of these are needed. Which of these processes are needed by Windows XP Home (if any)? (I will still leave my firewall and anti-virus scanner on.)

[Rocky 1,224]

Before removing any of them I would run a search on google groups for the filename to see what it is. That's what I do anyway

And yeh, be sure not to touch your firewall and AV items.

[Recon 0]

Good idea. Would it be possible to mess your computer up with this? Or is it easy to correct any mistakes you make?

[Recon 0]

Process File: ctfmon or ctfmon.exe

Process Name: Alternative User Input Services

Description: Handles Alternative User Input Text Processor (TIP) and the Microsoft Office Language Bar. Ctfmon.exe provides text input support for speech recognition, handwriting recognition, keyboard, translation, and other alternative user input technologies

Common Errors: N/A

System Process: No

I don't need this one do I?

[Specter 0]

Windows XP isnt like Win9x/ME in that it actually doesnt include important System files in the startup group.

It is perfectly safe to disable everything under the startup tab. Dont mess with the other tabs though. Those are things that can mess up WinXP, if you dont know what you are doing.

If you disabled something you arent sure of, or want enabled, just recheck it on the reboot.

[Dannik 43]

I wouldn't disable ctfmon.exe through msconfig. It's an installed component of Office XP, and Microsoft recommends not trying to disable it, but instead removing it completely, if it's not being used.

Microsoft's article regarding ctfmon removal is here.

@Phantom: Although you are likely correct in that it won't be problematic to disable ctfmon through msconfig, M$ asserts that doing so won't actually have any effect on whether ctfmon runs or not. There are detailed instructions on how to actually remove the task properly, as most users don't need it, in the article linked.

[Rocky 1,224]

Like any other Windows process - it's never straightforward, check this out.

About the CTFMON.EXE that comes along with the office xp. Removing from the start-up ctfmon.exe puts itself back onto the startup again. When you do end-task to it, it closes temporarily. Whenever you start any program and internet explorer, it runs again. Searching ctfmon.exe and deleting it along with a .pf file related to it, never works. Immediately when you run Internet explorer or any program, it regenerates itself very quickly and runs. If this kind of sophisticated facility was there for the operating systems files, the system would never have crashed (and we would have been happy forever). Try deleting some important files from system32 and system folder. What will happen is they wont regenerate themselves like this(adopting martial law), and the system will crash or malfunction with errors.

Secondly, why does ctfmon.exe have to work so hard along with such trickfull operations? If it really works so hard for the Office program, it is suppose to have develloped an awesome several MBs and GBs of artificial inteligence databace on our Hard drive!! Where is it??

The procedure of removing the CTFMON.EXE is kept far away from us on the website of microsoft. Unless we knew about it and go there, we would have not known the procedure.

Taken from http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/content/topic/6509/

[Specter 0]

Anything in the startup tab when unchecked, is NOT, I repeat NOT deleted. It is just kept from running when the machine starts and loading down your memory. All programs remain unchanged, it just means that you go to the Program menu and run them when you want to use them.

Also, the programs in the Startup Tab arent processes. In XP it is setup differently. What is in the startup tab are the .exe's for those programs.

That's why they use so many resources. It loads entire .exe's into RAM for faster access when you want to start them up.

Edited July 29, 2003 by SOTOPhantm

[Rocky 1,224]

And here is how to remove it properly.

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?...&NoWebContent=1

Woops Dannik beat me to it.

Edited July 29, 2003 by Rocky

[Specter 0]

Thanks Dannik for the info. I made a note of it, as Im not totally familiar with Office XP yet. Thanks for the info bro.

Most of the clients and such I work with are still using Office2K because Office XP is a system hog, or so I have heard.

[Recon 0]

Before I had 16 items in the startup thing. Is this a lot? I now have disabled 4 (rest I'm not sure about) leaving 12. Is this still too many?

[Specter 0]

That just depends on how much memory you want to sacrifice for a few miliseconds savings on starting up a program bud.

Why dont you list for us what you left checked, then we can advise better.

[Recon 0]

OK. Left I have:

• Anti-virus
  
• Firewall
  
• NvCpl.dll
  
• NeroCheck.exe
  
• MMKeybd.exe
  
• dumprep 0 -k
  
• taskswitch.exe
  
• NVMCTRAY.dll
  
• ctfmon.exe (too much trouble)
  
• Adobe Gamma Loader (ADOBEG~1.exe)
  
• EPSON Status Monitor 3 Enviroment Check 2 (E_SRCV02.exe)
  
• Microsoft Office (OSA.exe)
  

Disabled:

• nwiz.exe
  
• qttask.exe
  
• SWTrayV4.exe
  
• PowerReg Scheduler.exe
  

Edited July 29, 2003 by [TCS]Recon

[Dannik 43]

dumprep can be safely disabled, as it's a memory dump recovery tool in case of system crash... and not really of use to a home user.

NeroCheck.exe could be disabled safely, but only if Nero is your only CD burning software installed or in use, as it's designed to ensure that Nero is accurately configured, in case another application tries to take over the CD burning settings.

Taskswitch.exe is the part of the Windows XP Power Tools that allows you to get a small preview of what you are switching to when you Alt-Tab. It can be left off or on based purely on your preference. I would leave it active unless you don't really care for it.

[Recon 0]

Thanks, disabled those two (not TaskSwitch) now.

[Avey 0]

I just got rid of everything apart from my anti virus stuff

[Specter 0]

All can be safely turned off. Its a matter of preference now.

[snakebite1967 0]

you can also go to www.blackviper.com he has comprehensive how tos for most o/s including startup guides for gamers and other users

[Specter 0]

Just remember this about black Viper - He is hell bent on security. He has some awesome tips, but not all work for all machines and all circumstances.

Stay away from the memory tweaks.

If you have any questions about something he recommends, please ask, because on some of the stuff he recommends, if it picks yyour machine to not work on, you may not be able to reboot, even into Safe Mode. Just a caution here is all. Like I said, he has some great tips. Just please ask about something you want to try if you arent 100% sure about it.

And some of his security stuff is awesome, but it can interfere with game and app access to the net.