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After installing Vista SP2, hard disk’s used space increases by more than 1 GB. This is due to the fact that SP2 installation backs up the old SP1 and RTM files first and then installs SP2. You can clean up and recover up to 1 GB using these tips.

Normal way of shutting down Windows (no matter if it is XP, Vista or 7) is clicking on Start Menu button (or orb in Vista and 7) and selecting to shutdown. This way of shutting down may take a considerable time because it waits for all programs to close. You can create a shortcut on your desktop for a faster shutdown.

When you insert a removable disk like CD or USB thumb drive, Windows starts autoplay wizard. Windows searches the removable disk for its contents and suggests an appropriate action. You can disable this feature if you want to.

Windows Vista creates thumbnails of not only pictures and video files but almost all types of files when you open a folder. This may become irritating if you open a folder with thousands of pictures or videos. If you do not like Windows to start generating thumbnails each time you open a folder, here is how you can disable this

Windows Vista allows an administrator to allow only a certain amount of disk space for each user. It can come handy if a lot of people are using the same computer or network. This way each of them are allotted a fixed amount of disk space (Say 10 GB).

By default, Windows Vista gives you 30 days to activate. Once the deadline of 30 days has passed, you won’t be able to use Windows without activating it first. After the trial of 30 days Windows Vista enters RFM (reduced functionality mode) and eventually starts to disable various components. But using this trick you can extend the deadline for activation infinitely.

Sometimes Windows’ icon cache gets corrupted and you see one mixed up icons in Windows Explorer for different kind of files. The icon cache can be rebuilt using a simple method as described in this article.

When you open System Properties window in Windows Vista you can see the Windows Experience Index number. You can manually modify it to be anything you like to impress your friends about your system.

Windows Defender comes pre-packed with Windows Vista. Its a utlity to fight off malware and spywares that creep into Windows from the internet. But does it work that great? Many people prefer to use tools like Malwarebytes’ Anti-Malware instead of Windows Defender. They can remove Windows Defender using these steps.

By default ZIP files are opened using compressed folders in Windows Vista. Even if you install a 3rd party software like 7-Zip or WinRAR and set the zip files association with these applications, Vista continues to open zip files using the inbuilt compressed folders. If you want 7-Zip or WinRAR or your favorite zip program, you can follow these instructions.