No More Morning Coffee While Your Computer Boots

[Hooch Tan]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/search_sub30_second_boot' target='_blank'>http://www.maximumpc.com/article/fe...b30_second_boot</a><br /><br /></div><p><em>"Microsoft&rsquo;s claim that Windows 7 could boot (from the BIOS) in 11 seconds first gave us the hope that such idle time might be lessened dramatically, but being Maximum PC we wanted to take the idea even further. We sought to not only replicate Microsoft&rsquo;s claim, but to see how much time we could shave prior to the OS loading, with a combination of hardware and BIOS tweaks."</em></p><p><img src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com/resizer/thumbs/size/600/dht/auto/1266589431.usr20447.jpg" style="border: 1px solid #d2d2bb;" /></p><p>A faster boot time is an admirable goal, and yes, most modern OSes do boot much faster.&nbsp; That is partially due to optimizations, but also due to faster hardware.&nbsp; Maximum PC tries a variety of tweaks, both in the BIOS and in Windows 7 to get to the desktop as quickly as possible.&nbsp; All the effort is great, but I am not sure if it really applies in the real world.&nbsp; Most brand new computers I come across boot in wicked fast times, only to turn into incredible sloths six months later as it is burdened with 50 toolbars, 25 memory resident updaters and less than 20MB free.&nbsp; Aside from the regular suggestions of using standby, the best way to have a computer that says how high when you say jump is regular maintenance.&nbsp; Clean out things you do not need or use.&nbsp; Defragment the hard drive (unless you have an SSD) on a regular basis and have it optimize the placement of files.&nbsp; And never completely fill up your hard drive.&nbsp; Those are the best general performance tips I know of.&nbsp; Anyone have their own tricks of the trade?</p>

[ptyork]

Great post, Hooch. I have little to add other than my agreement. My PC does boot to a login screen pretty fast regardless. Say 20-25 seconds. However, if I log in immediately, it can be as much as a minute before everything calms down enough to get a responsive experience. Delaying the login shaves a bunch off of this number, as all of the background services start without requiring login, but it is still another 20+ seconds to get logged in and happy the first time.

In some ways, I'd almost prefer that it NOT allow for user input so quickly. Or at least prioritize the UI WAY above everything else. I can log in and click on Firefox and wait a minute for it to come up. Annoying to say the least, especially since it doesn't give feedback that the app is starting (at least beyond the first few seconds of color change). I've definitely been guilty of clicking the icon multiple times and having 3 or 4 browser windows suddenly pop into existence. Definitely one of the few things I prefer about the Mac with the bouncing icon indicating startup activity and something for SP1.

The only real advice I'd have is to make MSConfig.exe your friend. Uncheck those startup items and set to manual start those services that you don't need. Even better, get one of the great free system tools out there that make this even easier. Also, be wary of the resident sync tools like Windows Live Sync or Live Mesh. They are great and I use Live Sync, but it does make a big difference in startup times. If you don't need to sync PCs remotely (i.e., outside of your home network), you may be better served with SyncToy and a daily, scheduled sync. And if you're a developer and have SQL Server installed locally, set it to start manually and turn it on only when you need it. It's a hog.

[Reid Kistler]

Interesting article, but would agree with ptyork's comments that APPARENTLY having control (you can Click on something on the desktop) and ACTUALLY having control (How long it takes Post-Click for the app to open) are often two entirely different things!

One thing I may have missed skimming through the article: Recall a Utility that purported to RE-organize items on your HD to facilitate faster booting (by, in essence, providing that Nearly One Large File for Windows to read from while starting up) - ??

Another trick, besides Disabling auto-start apps, is to use a utility that puts them on a DELAYED start basis. Had some moderate success with such a utility a while ago (don't recall how LONG of a while....), but also found that many apps that I wanted to delay kept insisting that they NOT be delayed....

[NeilE]

People still boot computers??? I can't remember the last time I actually booted or rebooted my machine. It goes to sleep when I stop using it, and wakes up when I whack the keyboard.

Neil

[Jason Dunn]

People still boot computers??? I can't remember the last time I actually booted or rebooted my machine.

Heh. Yeah, day to day most of us sleep our PCs, but unless you're ignoring Windows Update, your computer is rebooting once every week or two - although if you have it set to full auto, it's happening late at night and you don't notice it happening...