In many of the tweaks around and about VistaBase, you sometimes need to delete or replace a system file. In Windows Vista this is not always as easy as it sounds since the system files are protected better by the file system than in XP. There are two steps that you need to do in order to be able to replace or delete a system file:

1. First you need to take ownership of the file. At the Run command (press Windows key + R), type in:
         takeown /f  “path and file name”     to take ownership from a command prompt.
2. Next, you need to give your account full control permissions on the file. Run from the same command prompt:
         cacls “path and file name” /G <your username>:F     to get full control from a command prompt.

Source: TweakVista

Instead of showing the green loading bar whilst Windows boots up, you can change it to more relevant boot information. This gives crash analysts a better idea of what might not be loading or working when a computer stalls whilst bootup.

1. Go to Start, and in the Search bar, type in msconfig then press Enter.
2. Click on the Boot tab and tick the box which says OS boot information.
3. Close the program, and select Don’t restart.

Next time you restart, it’ll show you vital boot information of whats loading and when.

Internet time servers keep your Windows clock up to date and almost perfect with international standards. Vista has 4 preset Internet time servers, one hosted at Microsoft. To synchronise, you need an Internet connection at any speed.

1. Click once on the clock in the notification area of your taskbar.
2. Click on Change date and time settings.
3. On this new dialog, select the Internet time tab, then click Change settings.
4. Tick the first box on the screen, then select the Update now button to update your time.

   If one sever doesn’t work, then try selecting a different server from the drop down menu.

5. Once it works, it’ll tell you that your time has been updated.
6. Close all your open windows.

When you rename a file in a folder full of files, instead of hitting Enter or clicking off the file when you’ve finished renaming,    simply press the Tab key to jump to the next file to begin renaming the next one. Keep hitting Tab to get to another file in that folder!

The simple answer is no. Screen savers will actually increase the energy used by your PC compared to idle or screen blanking modes. If you want to personalize your PC, a good alternative is to use photographs or other images as wallpaper, not as a screen saver.

With early generation personal computers and displays, screensavers were introduced to avoid permanent imprinting of images on displays during long periods of non usage.  Over time screensavers have taken on more of a personalization role and the need for them has become obsolete due to improvements in display technology.  Screensavers run when a PC is not in use thus they are also energy inefficient as opposed to putting the PC to Sleep or simply using display blanking.  Keep in mind the PC is not in use thus there is no one there to see the screensaver.

Source: Views on Vista

If you are using the sleep feature, you do not need to turn off the PC each night. The majority of computers will use less than four watts of energy in overnight sleep mode and a little less than 2 watts if it is shutdown all the way. However, if you are taking an extended vacation, you may want to turn your computer off and also unplug the AC power adaptor. Even in off mode, most power adaptors will continue to draw around a half a watt of power.

Source: Views on Vista

 OK this article shows you how to see the files which can seriously screw up your Windows Vista machine if they are played around with. This is only for advanced people who know what they are doing.

The protected operating system files are really important to Windows for it to run properly, and by defauly are hidden so they can’t be accidentally deleted or modified. However if you need to modify them or delete them or tinker around with them for whatever reason, here’s how to show them off.

1. Open Windows Explorer (or just go to  Start then Computer).
2. Press Alt to show the menu bar, then select View, then Folder and Search Options.
3. Click the View tab, and search for the section marked Hidden Files And Folders.
4. Remove the tick mark from the option saying “Hide protected operating system files (recommended)”
5. Click OK when the warning box displays.
6. Press Apply, then OK.

To reverse this, simply follow the same procedure and ensure that the tick box is filled.

The Welcome Center appears for the first two times you boot up Windows until it gives you the option in form of a checkbox to never show it again. This is in fact by design to help you get Windows Vista customised and setup to the way you want it.

To stop the Welcome Center from ever appearing:

1. Go to Start, Run (or press Windows key + R) and type in regedit then press OK.
2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER > Software > Microsoft > Windows > CurrentVersion > Run.
3. Right click in the right hand pane and select New > DWORD.
4. Enter in WindowsWelcomeCenter then press OK.
5. Double click on it and set the value to a - (minus simple/hyphen) then press OK.

Viola - the Welcome Center will never bother you again.

If you’ve had Windows XP SP2 running on your machine for a while, you may not want to backup everything and perform a clean install - it’s much easier to simply upgrade your operating system to Windows Vista. This article will guide you through it. The upgrade can take a long time to complete, as little as 35 minutes but as long as 12 hours and it is a very hefty but visually simple process, so make sure you do this when you’re not so busy.

 Ensure you have a backup on external disks of everything you have just to be safe.
 When you see this icon, there is a screenshot which will open up on-screen.

1. Insert your Windows Vista DVD disk (or set it up using the final ISO image in a virtual emulator).
2. At the  initial setup screen, click on Install now. If you wish to read more information about the setup process, you can click the What to know before installing Windows link at the bottom.
3. The first screen you should see is the  Installation Update screen. Firstly, click the I want to help make Windows installation better checkbox, as this helps the setup process get better for future versions of Windows. If you have no Internet connection, click the second option, but if you have an active broadband connection, select the first option. This ensures you have the latest updates and files before Windows Vista is installed for the first time.
4. Enter in your product key in the  Product Key screen then select Next. If you don’t have a product key yet, you can actually skip this stage without entering anything in - if so, ensure you select the correct version of Windows Vista at the next screen.
5. Scroll down and read the  Terms and Conditions of using Windows. Click the I accept the license terms then select Next.
6. When selecting the  type of installation, select the Upgrade option. This lets you keep your files and settings for when Windows Vista first starts up.
    Not everything will appear the same once the upgrade is complete - new themes will be applied depending on your system specification, but application settings and software as well as your files should remain intact once the upgrade has finished.
   
7. The next screen should be the  Compatibilty Report. This screen will tell you which drivers are not compatible with Windows Vista and will help you take steps to rectify problems once the operating system has finished upgrading.
8. The next step is the  installing phase where this part could take hours to complete, so go and get a cup of coffee and relax for a bit.
    The computer will restart, the installing phase will continue for a little while longer. Eventually a black and grey screen will appear with the text “Please wait a moment while Windows prepares to start for the first time…”
   
9. The  Out of Box Experience program will begin, and you’ll be asked for your country and region, your computer’s language, and your keyboard layout. Select them from the lists given, then hit Next.
10. Choose your  username and password at the next screen - type in your desired username, enter your new password twice and then a password hint if you wish to. From here you can also select the display picture of that user account. Once you’ve done, click Next.
11. The next screen allows you to  change your computer name and your user account’s wallpaper. Your computer name should be something simple but tells other computers in the house or on the network which computer it is - I’ve named this machine VISTARTM because it is! Choose your wallpaper (you’ll see it previewed in the background) then click Next to continue.
12. A simple option to  configure your Automatic Updates - it is highly advised you select the top option Use recommended settings as this will automatically fix your firewall, set your Internet settings, update and install programs automatically and check for solutions to problems straight away.
13. The next stage is to  set your computer clock and your time zone. Simply select your timezone from the list, alter your clock accordingly then select Next to continue.
14.  That’s it - you’ve completed the configuration stages!
     The Out of Box Experience is not quite over yet - the system will perform some final configuration tasks and will take a little longer. The computer may restart, but eventually you’ll get to the login screen. Type in your username and password, and you’re using Windows Vista
    

Some screenshots courtesy of ActiveWin - thanks for the permission Bob.

Because Windows Vista is still a beta product, not all the wallpapers, sounds and other graphics are not quite in place yet. Say for example the sounds and the wallpapers - we have some very simple basic wallpapers of which will satisfy the beta tester for the time being, until a public beta is available then a lot more wallpapers will be released. In the latest build, 5342, there are some wallpapers there which literally say “placeholder” and the file name of that wallpaper as the image - these are only here because they will be replaced at a later date when the more important bits of the operating system are finished.

At the moment, we see the same with sounds. Because the sounds of Vista haven’t been woven into the operating system, we still here Windows XP sounds. However, this is very much expected to change by the time that Vista becomes a public beta preview in April/May 2006.

Updated for Windows Vista 5365 and above
These placeholders have been filled! That’s right - the pictures have been filled and all the wallpapers have been added to the system. Beta 2 is now graphically complete, however we may see some more wallpapers being added in the near future.

With a beta operating system, you will usually get two formats of the beta product - staged and unstaged. These are the types of installation they have, and they are very different and should be treated differently.

 Unstaged installations are how Windows installs itself previously. You start the setup, enter in your product key and leave it going. The installation copies the files from the CD/DVD onto the hard drive, and then the registry is installed and configured, and then the files are all registered and Windows kicks up. If you will, call an “unstaged installation” a “standard installation”.

 Staged installations are different to unstaged installations. These types of installations are simply images of which directly gets unpacked onto a machine without any of the registry building. Some people call this “ghosting”, but it’s the same thing. It comprises of very basic configuration, and drivers and settings for common hardware types, but always directly comparable to the hardware of which the ghosted staged image was collected from. For example, if the ghosted staged image was created on a 64-bit machine, it could only be installed then on another 64-bit machine. These installations take much lesser time to install and can normally be installed within about 65% of the time of an unstaged installation.

Microsoft announced Windows “Vienna” formerly codenamed “Blackcomb” some time ago just before Windows Vista Beta 1 was released to developers. “Vienna” is to be the next operating system to be released after Windows Vista ships later in 2006.

They told us in a press release statement that “Vienna” will support 32 bit machines, and was expected to be released between 2010 and 2012. So the simple answer is, Microsoft should be writing 32 bit operating systems till about 2012, which means you will only have to worry about upgrading to a 64 bit machine in 2015 when they release the operating system after Windows “Vienna”.

Confusing, I know - but that really is the simplest I can explain it!

As Windows Vista, Windows Server “Longhorn” and Windows Internet Explorer 7 are all beta products, it is difficult to work out what the final system requirements are needed to run them properly. However, from various Microsoft sources, I’m happy to produce a preliminary idea of what you might need on your computer to get either Windows Vista, Windows Server “Longhorn” and Windows Internet Explorer 7 running properly. Also please note, that Windows Vista Starter Edition will be distributed as Windows XP Starter Edition did - to emerging economies and will not be sold in Europe, Australia and North America.

 Windows Vista (Ultimate Edition)
This is the most feature-packed version, this is the maximum of what you should need for anything below Ultimate Edition.
32/64-bit processor, 2.4Ghz minimum AMD or Pentium 4
512MB memory minimum
30GB minimum, anything more than 60GB should be fine.
128MB graphics card minimum, that qualifies for LDDM drivers (see specific manufacturers)
32MB sound card minimum
Monitor that views 1024×768 desktop resolutions at minimum
TV tuner card (optional)

 Windows Vista (Home Basic Edition)
This is the least feature-packed version, this is the minimum of what you should need for anything above Home Basic Edition.
32-bit processor, 2.0Ghz minimum AMD or Pentium 4
512MB memory minimum
30GB minimum, anything more than 60GB should be fine.
128MB graphics card minimum, that qualifies for LDDM drivers (see specific manufacturers)
Onboard sound card minimum
Monitor that views 1024×768 desktop resolutions at minimum

 Windows Server “Longhorn”
This is more difficult as by standard, no Glass is used and also the release date is further away.
32/64-bit processor, 3.0Ghz minimum AMD or Pentium 4, dual core optional
1GB memory minimum
60GB minimum (file servers: 200GB minimum, but replication needed to other servers if any less)
Onboard graphics card minimum (Aero Glass: 128MB graphics card minimum with LDDM drivers)
Onboard sound card
Network capabilities - wireless or Ethernet recommended
Monitor that views 1024×768 desktop resolutions at minimum

 Windows Internet Explorer 7 (for Windows XP SP2/Windows Server 2003 users)
It won’t not install if it’s not up to spec, but it’s recommended that you have a machine the same or better below.
32/64-bit processor, 500Mhz minimum AMD or Pentium 2
Windows XP Home/Professional/Tablet Edition SP2 or Windows Server 2003 Standard/Enterprise/R2
128MB memory minimum
10GB minimum, anything more than 20GB should be fine.
Onboard graphics card minimum
Onboard sound card minimum
Monitor that views 1024×768 desktop resolutions at minimum

DEP (Data Execution Protection) is a software and hardware “layer” of security which prevents certain malware from running bad code to a non-executable memory section of the computer. It also protects against the bad code affecting programs or files from being messed around with and altered whilst they’re being stored in memory. However, DEP in all it’s goodness can sometimes cause problems with programs running such as Virtuozzo and other programs. To stop this:

1. Click on Start , type in cmd in the search bar, hold Ctrl+Shift then press Enter.
2. At the command prompt, type in bcdedit.exe /set {current} nx AlwaysOff
3. You should receive a message saying Operation Completed Successfully
4. Restart your computer; DEP should now be disabled

5466.5.x86fre.winmain.060627-2030
5421.3.x64fre.winmain.060428-1903
5231.6.winmain_idx03.051004-2120

Do any of those make sense? To a lot of people, they don’t and it’s understandable. These are build strings, of which are seen in each build of Windows Vista in the About Windows dialog (Start , Run, type winver then press OK). Here’s how to dissect and understand what the build string means in it’s different sections. Each part of the string’s colour coordinates with the same colour below with the explanation for what that particular bit means.

5472.5.winmain_idx01.060713-1900

Build number - how many “compilations” of the operating system’s different bits from the original build. For example, Vista started out as Windows Server 2003 originally which has a build number of 3790, which means there have been 1,682 compilations since that including build 5472.

Sub-build number - Essentially it means the number of times that the particular build has been compiled. This can be for a number of reasons such as something was missed out, or there was a bug which was obvious and needed to be fixed before release.

Build branch - The main branch of builds. Imagine this - loads of teams working on separate things within Vista, but they all come together as “winmain”. Essentially where the build came from.

Sub-build branch - In this particular build (5472) and most other Vista builds, the idx is a special set of branches which comes off the winmain one - it basically means that it’s reached a quality of which it can be released to testers. Just another extension of where the build actually came from.

The date built - This comes in the format of YY/MM/DD (US standard), which basically means 2006 July 13th.

The time of the build - This comes in international 24-hour clock standard - 19:00 hours (7pm) Redmond time.

The answer is technically yes, but also no. In order to make sure that Vista runs correctly when a new service pack is announced, they have to test future functionality for it. So in Vista 5342 when it says there is Service Pack 0 installed, this is because it has a patch within the operating system to make it think there is - and also to provide the beta team with functionality to test further patches.

Some people have been experiencing difficulties activating their copies of Vista. These might include error codes which relate to Windows Update, or Windows Server Update Services or error codes which actually have nothing to do with activation whatsoever. However, there are a few workarounds which you can try which will help you overcome the 14-day grace period of not activating.

 Workaround 1
   1. Click Start , go to Run and type in services.msc and press OK.
   2. Make sure that the Background Intelligent Transfer Service as well as Windows Activation is running by double clicking on them, selecting Automatic from the startup-type, and click Start if the service is stopped.

 Workaround 2
As with MSDN and technical testers via Microsoft Connect, you can generate up to 10 activation codes. If you get to the end of your 14 day grace period for activation, right click on Computer, select Properties, then change the product key using a newly generated key from the website. Overall, using 10 keys over 14 day periods, you’ll have about 140 days or so to run Vista, of which a new build would have probably been released anyway.

 Workaround 3
You may not have the Windows Activation installed. Install the components by going to Start , Control Panel, Programs, Windows Features, and make sure that the Windows Activation box is checked. Apply and OK, then restart the activation wizard. A restart may be required.

 Some people have noted that Daemon Tools can sometimes cause activation to fail. Check whether Daemon Tools is installed, and try activating after uninstalling and restarting.

The Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor Tool (VUAT) is a new beta program of which helps work out what your general system specification is so that it can determine whether Vista can run on your machine, whether drivers will be available, and which edition will suit you best.

The options that you can select include:

 Strengthen security with Windows Vista
Protect against spyware, worms, and other malware, and also have up to date information on how to protect against vulnerabilities
 Search and organise
Be able to instantly find files on your computer and search from anywhere within the operating system
 Elegant user interface with Windows Aero
More dynamic and realistic views as well as a much more stable, smoother and clear desktop experience
 Work anywhere
Easily detect and connect to wireless hotspots, with Tablet PC input support to write notes anywhere
 Watch and record TV
Record television programs and watch them in other rooms in your home
 Premium photo, music and video experiences
Share media using the Media Center and burn movies and media to DVD’s
 Connect to corporate or campus networks
Easily remotely access other network locations, and have network backups of your computer
 Simplify business
Integrated faxing and scanning abilities, and have full volume encryption to safely secure your data

The download is available for users now from the Microsoft Windows Vista pages. It’s been reported that it cannot run on Windows XP x64 Edition, nor can it run on Windows Server 2003 SP1 - however it does run on Windows XP SP2 as well as Windows Server 2003 R2 (because I’ve tried it) so expect more operating systems supported when the next Upgrade Advisor build is available.

 Download the Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor Tool now. 

Any new computer that has the Windows Vista Capable sticker (seen to the right) will be able to run a version of Windows Vista. All the editions available will be able to run the new features such as security, the new searching features and all the other things like family settings and the new version of Windows Internet Explorer. However, the more advanced the edition may require better hardware to run advanced features such as Windows Aero, of which will need a newer graphics card 64MB or above with compatible WDDM drivers.

A Windows Vista Capable PC requires at least:     A modern processor (at least 800MHz)     512 MB of system memory     A graphics processor that is DirectX 9 capable

If you want a better computer that offers more than just the core features, and supports Windows Aero Glass and other features you could get a computer marked as Windows Vista Premium Ready. These work with Windows Vista Home Premium and above, which supports Windows Aero as standard. Other features that show in higher editions such as Media Center may require additional hardware like TV tuners. 

A Windows Vista Premium Ready PC includes at least:
    1 GHz 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
    1 GB of system memory
    A graphics processor that runs Windows Aero (check here)
    128 MB of graphics memory
    40 GB of hard drive capacity with 15 GB free space
    DVD-ROM Drive (internal or external drive)
    Audio output capability
    Internet access capability

You can now enable the new bootup screen in Windows Vista 5365 by following these steps.

1. Boot into Vista
2. Once it’s started, press Windows key+R to open the Run dialog, and type in msconfig then press OK.
3. Once it’s opened, switch to the Boot tab and make a tick to No GUI Boot.
4. Click on Apply and OK and reboot your PC.

People refer to “LDDM drivers” as the drivers which enable Windows Aero to work on your Vista computer. However some people refer to them as “WDDM drivers”. Just wanted to clarify, that WDDM is now the new acronym for LDDM.

LDDM was the acronym for Longhorn Display Driver Model but seeing as that “Longhorn” was the codename for Windows Vista, they thought it was only appropriate to change the acronym slightly. So now instead of being LDDM, it’s now WDDM which stands for Windows Vista Display Driver Model.

The boot sequence is the part of which is displayed before Windows Vista starts loading. You will usually have options there such as “Legacy (pre-Longhorn) Microsoft Windows Operating System” and “Microsoft Windows”. These enable the user, if installed, to load up two or more different operating systems, so if you feel like an XP-mood, then you can load it up, whilst if you feel like a Vista-mood, you can load that up instead.

In the later builds of Vista, especially 5231 and 5270, they have abolished the boot.ini file to determine what operating system loads up and from where - now they are using an executable file instead called bcdedit.exe. If you go into the boot.ini file now (located on the C: drive, but usually hidden so you can just type it in from the Run command), it will display the following message:

;Warning: Boot.ini is used on windows XP and earlier operating systems.
;Warning: Use BCDEDIT

This basically means that the boot.ini file is now totally redundant and will not do anything! To set about editing your bcdedit.exe file and therefore your boot sequence, try the following.

Updated for Windows Vista RTM:
There’s now a brilliant program which does all the complicated work for you - download VistaBoot Pro.

In Windows Vista, as the technology gets better and more applications require more services to run properly, you’ll probably see a whole load of new services available for use. However, firstly some of them do not have names yet and just appear as something like service.xd.main.105 if you catch me. This is either a bug (of which has been noted many times over) or it is because they haven’t matched the full name with the service yet.

Some of these new services you may not quite understand what they are, so here’s a rundown of some of the new services. Not all of them are listed, just the most common ones that all users should be using or integrating with.

 Application Experience
Processes and checks compatibility for programs before they are launched and makes sure that their running properly under a different operating system.

 Certificate Propagation
This service is there to broadcast certificates from smart cards. If you don’t use smart cards to gain access to the system, just disable this one.

 Desktop Windows Manager Session Manager
Provides the system with support for the new interface as well as startup and maintenance services.

 Diagnostic Policy Service
This service provides diagnostic support for Windows components and support for when they go wrong then tries to fix it without having to close the application.

 Digital ID Management Service
This service listens in on the computer for Digital ID’s and calls upon the specific provider that it uses to perform that task. Unless you use specific Digital Rights Management technologies or software, you won’t need this running.

 Distributed Link Tracking Client
This service maintains the links between files on an NTFS partition over a network.

 External Memory Devices Management Service
Enables Windows to manage your external memory devices such as external hard drives, USB flash drives, and also enables you to run ReadyBoost which helps page-file your computer to run faster.

 File Replication Service
This enables files that are saved on the server to be copied and maintained on other servers as a form of backup. This is useful if you want to backup on other servers as well as quick access to your files.

 IKE and AuthIP IPSec Keying Modules
This looks confusing and bewildering, however to cut a long story short – it maintains VPN (virtual private networking) and stuff like that. Most computers nowadays don’t use VPN so unless you are, don’t worry about it.

 Infrared Monitor Service
This service monitors all infrared ports on your computer for connecting devices. However, it’s unlikely you’ll have any infrared devices left so you could disable this to free up a few bytes.

 Intersite Messaging
This new service enables messages to be sent and received between computers running Windows Server. This might be a replacement for the Messenger service, or maybe used for Exchange Servers; we’ll just have to wait and see.

 Microsoft PXE Service
The PXE service is the “Pre-Boot Execution Environment”. This is great because now with this service, you can remotely install Windows and use Windows Deployment Tools from a remote workstation.

 Media Center Extender Service
Enabling your Media Center device to connect to another computer in the house or office.

 Media Center Receiver Service
Enabling your Media Center device to receive TV and FM signals to your machine to either watch television or to listen to the radio.

 Media Center Scheduler Service
Enabling your Media Center device to schedule a time to record television or a radio program for later watching.

 Media Center Service Launcher
Starts all the Media Center services on Vista bootup.

 Multimedia Class Scheduler
This enables prioritising of system wide tasks but generally for multimedia devices and applications. It means that if you are using audio software, it will prioritise that and set aside memory for it and processing power above other applications which are not being used as much.

 Network Access Protection Agent
This service allows clients to participate in NAP access over a network. NAP is Network Access Protection (hence the name of the service) and allows you to protect parts of the network from “unhealthy” computers. If you don’t use NAP or have Windows Server Longhorn on your network, there’s no need to have this service enabled.

 Peer Name Resolution Protocol
This service enables peer-to-peer computer name resolution without a server. It translates IP addresses into a more common format… without a DNS server. Quite cool.

 Peer Networking Identity Manager
This service provides identities to those using peer-to-peer networking. Unless you are using peer-to-peer regularly and with the advanced features, you won’t need this running. I’m running it though, I think it’s cool!

 Pen Service
This is the Tablet PC inputting service which enables those on a Tablet PC to input using a stylus. For some reason even on a desktop, this is enabled by default. However unless you have a Tablet PC, there is no point in having this service on.

 Remote Registry
This is a feature taken from Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 R2. It enables the user to edit and change settings on the specific computer of which the Remote Registry service is running. This service however is only for networks with hundreds of computers in as it’s meant to save the network administrator’s time. Small business and home users may as well disable this.

 Smart Card Removal Policy
This has been boosted into a service rather than in Windows XP under the Group Policy Settings. This enables certain tasks to be executed when the smart card (if you use one) to logon with is removed, such as locking the computer.

 Software Licensing Service
Not many applications out there at the moment are configured with the Software Licensing Service, but you can bet that Office 12 and other Microsoft software will. It’s meant to be a service which maintains all your product keys and making sure you’re not breaching license limits.

 Special Administration Console Helper
This allows administrators to remotely access from another computer the command prompt on the computer running the service using Emergency Management Services.

 SSDB Discovery Service
This service will let you discover Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) devices over the network and devices that use the SSDP Discovery Protocol. If you disable this, you might not be able to see a specific flash drive on another computer, for example.

 System Maintenance Service
This service performs crucial maintenance tasks over time to provide you with up-to-date, temporary files removed, nicely defragmented and malware free machine.

 UPnP Device Host
Basically lets your computer discover, detect, and run Universal Plug and Play devices on the computer the service is running on. If you don’t have any UPnP devices, disable this to spare some memory.

 User Experience Session Management Service
This provides graphics and a beautiful user interface for the user, such as Aero Glass and other graphical maintenance services.

 Windows Error Reporting Service
This is the service which displays the “Report this error to Microsoft” screen when something goes on. My advice is, is that you leave this running because Windows Vista is still in beta, and the product teams need to know what goes wrong and why so they can fix it.

If you already have a version of Windows Vista installed, you can upgrade it to any better edition of Vista really easily. If you are running Windows Vista Home Basic, Home Premium or Business, using the Windows Anytime Upgrade you can update to the Ultimate Edition and get every single feature that Vista has to offer, plus more with Ultimate Extras.

 Upgrade to a higher and better edition of Windows Vista (doesn’t apply to Vista Ultimate users)

1. Go to then Control Panel.
2. You may need to switch to Classic view in the left hand pane, then click Windows Anytime Upgrade.

 It is highly recommended that before you jump in straight away and upgrade to a new edition of Windows Vista, that you Compare the editions of Windows Vista just so you can make a thorough decision of what you need and don’t need, thus saving you money.

3. Check through the comparison matrix and decide what you need in an operating system, and then select one of the options at the bottom of the screen.
4. If Windows isn’t already activated, click the Activate Windows now button to activate online.
5. Click on the Begin upgrade process button at the bottom to go to one of Microsoft’s certified retailers websites and purchase a new edition of Windows Vista. 
6. Once you have bought the upgrade, you will need to download a small program which helps you upgrade your system before the upgrade. 
7. You will need a Windows Anytime Upgrade disc. This will probably be in the same box of which you originally bought Windows Vista in. Search around for it and keep it to hand. If you don’t have it, you may have bought it along with the upgrade.
8. Let the program you downloaded run, and follow the instructions on from there.