Slimmed Down Xp Vs Beefy Xp

[SilverHaze420]

This is an interesting topic for me. I see people talking about how small you can make your XP install. When I first found msfn.org and was creating my first few unattended install CD's I made had XP slimed down with apps on them. Then I actually decided to do the exact opposite I have a XP cd that is almost 700 mgs, its slipstreamed with all the updates and installs the hot fixes and has the driver packs on them. My thinking was I would rather have a XP cd will full functionality for whatever I may use it for. I did not want to run into problems later on because of missing files for some odd device or whatever. So my CD just installs XP fully. Then when that’s done I have a CD set or a single DVD that installs all the apps I want unattended. What is the main advantage you guys have by using a slimmed down version of XP? I mean is it that big deal to carry around a CD instead of a USB thumb drive or whatever? What do you guys think am I reading this wrong or is it just me who thinks you would want to put as much comptability on the XP cd as possible.

[Noise]

Some people just like slimmed down versions of XP. It's a trade off between compatability and security/performance. In the long run, it all depends on what you use your PC for.

You can NLite the hell out of your PC and make a gaming machine noticeably faster. But you'll run into problems later if you try to, lets say, share a directory on the network.

To each their own.

[MCT]

let me add..

you only run into probs if your a n00b and randomly select crap or select stuff that u have no idea what its needed/used 4

ive been using nLite since like day1 & its made my 3Ghz perform better /faster & its made my OS more secure..

[albator]

I say that there is an fair balance between Tweaking and compatibility. For example in my first nlite release I was removing all language related options. But I had problem later on to have acces to é and è. Since I am french, it was s*** !

So now I leave it on, (only the minimum) Sometimes, creating potential problem just to save 1 or 2 meg of space it stupid.

In another way, I know That i never use printer on my computer machine, so I removed all printing stuff. And for Pdf need, since most of pdf creating software need it, I had found a free software that can work without using a virtual printer:

tomahawk pdf !

http://nativewinds.montana.com/software/tomahawk.html

So I go for it.

now I do 2 cd. One for me the core version and a 'safe version' for work and friends...

customised Xp is custom to the need of every ones. But I have a politic, C: driver should never do more than 1 gig...

For more info go to my site int he tip, to know how to keep it clean.

PS: I know that I make mucho ads for my site this time, I Plead guilty to that charge.

[sonu27]

How does nLite make your computer faster and safer?

I'm new to it.

[MCT]

by removing unneeded programs/files u dont use, thus reducing security holes

[sonu27]

Oh right.

But I do that manually anyway.

[Zxian]

Ultimately, your WindowsXP CD is your own. What you do with it (nLite, silent installers, etc) is up to you.

I've tried out nLite, but I ran into some troubles with my video drivers (of all things) for my laptop, so on my laptop, I run a full XP with all the bells and whistles.

On my desktop, however, I've got an nLited CD that I was able to cut down to about 250MB while still keeping all the networking and printing support that I needed. Like I said before, it's all what you want to do.

[SilverHaze420]

I can understand the security portion of it. The fewer things used the fewer holes. I also can tweak out my settings by stopping un-necessary services. For example albator, you could stop the spool service if you know you will never use your printer. Deleting all the drivers

MCT, can you give me an example of something you might remove to help make your computer run faster thru nLite?

[albator]

system restore (use a real backup software like acronis true image)

indexing service (slowing drives)

and 15-20 services + alot of junk...

[MCT]

i remove almost everything.. except ie core & a few other things needed for networking

but open nlite & look @ all the components u can remove.. with most of them theres been security risks in the past, thus removing them prevents further exploits

[suryad]

My install cd came down to about 130 mb and let me tell ya I have not faced any future software installation problems. I have had absolutely 0 crashes, or programs dying on me or spyware getting into my machine. I never shutdown my computer...laptop...its always on hibernate or standby if I dont use it. There is no slowdown or gradual eating away of RAM because of prolonged use...and after tweaking the registry for performance...my nLited install is just blazing fast. Splinter Cell 3 is coming out and I was able to play it with no jerkiness and I was playing it at 1280 with some anisotropic turned on. I will probably now be able to play at a higher res or maybe with higher aniso without any loss in performance.

[clavicle]

I doubt Microsoft persons were pretty sure if they could run WinXP Pro on a 450 PIII with measly 64mb shared RAM. Nlite has made it possible and I tried it on this configuration to get the things going. nLite is simply the best!

[SilverHaze420]

Actually I have worked with Windows XP Pro on a 200MHz machine with 64 Megs of RAM. Do not ask how it worked because I still do not know how. Personally I have installed XP on a 333 MHz machine with 256 Megs of ram. Thank god for my un-attended install CD's I didn’t have to sit there for countless hours installing software. You guys have convinced me. My goal for the day is to play around with nLite and see what this crazy app is all about.

[boooggy]

not crazy man, nlite is just the best app ever......