See toward bottom for excellent FREE registry backup & optimize pgms (I was a programmer/systems designer (mainframe) before I retired, but that doesn't give me a lot of edge with Windows).
Two very good places to start disabling services:
http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/security/?p=354
http://search.techrepublic.com.com/index.php?q=Windows+XP+Services+That+Can+Be+Disabled&t=0
The second article heading here is a good sized list of services that can be disabled.
The only service I had trouble after I disabled was THEMES, so I leave it running (not sure why, I don't use themes or screensavers).
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http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/service411.htm
http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/servicecfg.htm
http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/strangeservice.htm See bottom of webpage for information
Problem is, BlackViper has apparently changed over to SP3 services - I will NEVER put SP3 on my PC - not with NAP and the other privacy-invading, big-brother-controlling additions from Microsoft. SP3 loads a lot of the very scary VISTA controls onto XP. There isn't really anything in SP3 to help you and me, the users, it's all (like NAP) geared towared helping corporations spy on us. Maybe you can find a contact on the BV site and ask them about SP2 services (they are probably pretty much the same - just more of them in SP3 - but I don't KNOW that for a fact).
I would send you my (SP2) list if there was anyway to put a screen clip in a post, but I don't think there is. If you want to send me an email address, I will send you an image of my disabled services. [log in to unmask]
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The services settings are probably in the registry, but I've not looked for them yet and I wouldn't guarantee it. You could use ERUNT to backup the registry, change a service setting, restore the ERUNT backup and see if the setting remains as you changed it or has been restored to what it was when you made the ERUNT backup. If it was restored to the original setting, then the setting is in the registry.
If you want to backup ONLY your registry, you can use ERUNT (even set it to automatically make a backup each day that is accessible in Recovery Console - the backups can be created with their dates attached, retaining the last x backups). ERUNT is VERY fast. You can use NTREGOPT to optimize/defrag your registry (does NOT clean it). Both are free and absolutely safe and reliable.
However, the registry is so closely tied to installed programs that in my opinion they should be backed up as a unit (everything on drive C, except My Documents and email-related files). For example, if you restored a version of the registry that believed you had program xyz installed, but you had since uninstalled it, it would leave trash in the registry. If you restore a version of the registry that does not know that you have installed program abc, then you should uninstall that program before restoring that registry. See what I mean - better they (OS+Pgms) are imaged as a unit.
I want more than a free app will do, so I use (with System Restore disabled on all drives)...
1) Acronis True Image to create partition image files of my C partition (WinXP & programs only) -and-
2) SecondCopy to maintain an exact duplicate of D partition (My Documents, Email, Icons, and application data that allows data folder reassignment) and certain files cherrypicked from the C partiton (normal.dot, a few profiles, current desktop & quicklaunch folders, etc. current application data that does not provide for re-location) -and-
3) ExpressAssist for my email (everything, folders, signatures, rules, addresses, etc.). This is a great program. It will even completely set up your internet and email on a new machine and transfer everything. It is for Outlook Express.
I keep C partition images and D partition backups on a second hard drive (with occasional backups to DVD).
This is the beauty of Acronis, each of the C-drive images will completely restore the operating system and programs partition to some given point in time (such as BEFORE you installed that wacky program that messed everything up) without affecting "My Documents" or email (since they have been moved to a different partition). Even so, if even they were on the same partion, these items could be re-restored OVER the restored IMAGE from SecondCopy and ExpressAssist backups. It's much easier with them on a different partition however, and it also makes the C-drive images much smaller, since you are not backing up things that you don't want restored/overwritten (My Documents, etc) .
These (above) are three applications I would not consider doing without. I can wholeheartedly recommend them. Add in: Spywareblaster, Comodo Firewall, Avast Antivirus, and WinZip 11.2 Pro (simply the best - has its own full-size image viewer and can display folder contents as thumbnails) and you have my basic maintenance setup (plus a BUNCH of disabled services and ports, of course).
AnnaSummers
----- Original Message -----
From: Don Penlington
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Thursday, May 01, 2008 12:14 PM
Subject: Re: [PCBUILD] disabling services in Vista
Phil wrote:
>Can someone point me toward it or give me an
>idea of what can be disabled as well as how to accomplish it?>>
This site has long been considered to be the "Bible" of which services
should be enabled/disabled:
http://www.blackviper.com/
While we're on the subject, does anyone know of an easy way to back up your
service settings? Does a registry backup do it? Is there any other way
apart from the unreliable System Restore? Maybe there's a utility somewhere
for just this purpose, but I've never seen one. Do we have any programmers
out there?
Don Penlington
The NOSPIN Group is now offering Free PC Tech
support at our newest website:
http://freepctech.com
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