How to Speed Up Logon in Windows XP
- 1). Clean out your fonts folder. Windows loads all of your fonts when it starts up and if you have many, this can take some time. Click "Start," select "Control Panel," and open the "Fonts" folder. Back up your fonts in another location so you can reinstall them later, if you need them. Most programs use Times New Roman, Arial, Verdana, MS Sans Serif, Trebuchet, Tahoma, and Courier New. Leave these fonts installed. To delete others, right click on the file and select delete.
- 2). Delete shortcuts to programs that start automatically. Click "Start," select "Programs" and choose "Startup." This brings up a menu. Right-click on any programs that you do not need to run when Windows starts and select delete to remove them from startup.
- 3). Use the System Configuration Utility to weed out other programs that start when your computer does. Open the utility by clicking "Start" and selecting "Run." Type "msconfig" in the box and press "Enter." Click the "Startup" tab. Uncheck any items that do not need to start with Windows. If you are not certain what an item does, you can look it up or leave it. Be careful not to remove anything that Windows needs to function. You can restart between each change, to make sure your computer is still running correctly and keep from damaging your system.
- 4). Disable any extraneous services that run when Windows starts. In the System Configuration Utility where the Startup Configuration was, click the "Services" tab. This lists other items that start with Windows. Click the box to Hide All Microsoft Services and evaluate what remains. You can uncheck any services that are not necessary to run Windows. You should leave any firewall or anti-virus checked to protect your system. You may restart your computer after each change to make sure your computer starts correctly without those services.
- 5). Switch to another anti-virus program. Anti-virus programs start with your computer to protect it from threats the entire time it is running. Some of these programs cause a computer startup to take longer because they use a lot of system resources. If your anti-virus is the cause of exceptionally long startup times, you can find another that is less resource intensive, making your startup and perhaps your whole system run faster.
