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• Run Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor to view compatibility issues or to troubleshoot installation issues
• If you installed Windows Vista in a multi-boot configuration, you can change the order of operating systems and the defaultoperating system through the System Control Panel applet
o Click Start, Control Panel, System and Maintenance, and System
Install and configure Windows Vista drivers
• Use the Device Manager Control Panel applet to install, uninstall, enable, and disable device drivers
o Click Start, Control Panel, Hardware and Sound, and Device Manager
o A yellow question mark icon indicates that a device is not functioning properly
• The Add New Hardware wizard can now invoke custom installation programs so that you can install additional software thatcomes with device drivers
Configuring and Troubleshooting Post-Installation System Settings
• If you installed Windows Vista in a multi-boot configuration with Windows 95, and you discover that you cannot access certainfiles when logged on to Windows 95, you might need to reformat a partition
o Windows 95 can access files on FAT partitions only
• If you receive an error message indicating that there is not enough space available to copy files to a recordable CD, make surethat the drive that stores temporary recorded files has enough space
o Open the Properties dialog box for the CD drive. The Recording tab shows the drive that is used to store temporaryrecorded files
To access the Properties dialog, right-click the CD drive and choose Properties from the menu
o Make sure that the drive specified on the Recording tab has enough free space
Configure and troubleshoot Windows Aero
• Windows Aero is the name of the new visual style and technology in Windows Vista
• The video card must be WDDM-compatible
• The video card must support at least 32 MB of graphics memory
• The color depth must be set to 32-bit if the monitor supports 32-bit colors
• The monitor refresh rate must be greater than 10 hertz
• The theme must be set to Windows Vista
Configure and troubleshoot parental controls
• The Parental Controls applet allows you to set time restrictions on a computer and block access to specific Web sites, games,and programs
o Click Start, Control Panel, User Accounts, and then Parental Controls
o Only standard users are affected by Parental Controls
• Popup Blocker allows you to block popup windows from Web sites except those that you allow
• You can zoom in and out of Web pages
o Zooming affects both text and images
• Phishing Filter allows you to determine whether an illegitimate Web site is faking the identity of a legitimate Web site
o Microsoft relies on users to report phishing
o Internet Explorer uses an online service to determine whether a Web site has been reported as a phishing Web site
• With Internet Explorer 7, you can delete your entire browsing history from one place
o Choose Delete Browsing History from the Tools menu
• You can open multiple browser tabs in a single instance of Internet Explorer 7
o You can create multiple Home pages so that each one opens in its own tab
Configuring Windows Security Features
Configure and troubleshoot User Account Control
• UAC is a new security feature that prevents unauthorized configuration changes and silent installations
• Some applications are configured as administrator-only applications. UAC determines whether the current security context canrun these types of applications
o If a standard user is attempting to run an administrator-only application, UAC by default will prompt the standard userfor administrator credentials
o If an administrator is attempting to run an administrator-only application, UAC by default will prompt the user forconfirmation
• Enable UAC through Control Panel, Local Security Policy, or Group Policy
• The following UAC security policy settings are common:
o User Account Control: Behavior of the elevation prompt for administrators in Admin Approval Mode
This setting determines whether a UAC message is displayed
o User Account Control: Behavior of the elevation prompt for standard users
This setting determines whether UAC prompts users for administrator credentials
o User Account Control: Run all administrators in Admin Approval Mode
If this setting is disabled, UAC is turned off by default for all users
UAC can be turned on for individual users through Control Panel
Configure Windows Defender
• Windows Defender helps you defend your computer against spyware and other malware
o Click Start, Control Panel, Security, and Windows Defender
• Windows Defender uses an online definition database to determine whether spyware or malware exists on your computer
•
Software Explorer lists start-up programs, programs currently running, and network-enabled programso You can remove or disable start-up programs
o You can end programs that are currently running
• You can quarantine programs to prevent them from running without removing them
• You should perform a quick scan to have Windows Defender scan only folders where spyware or malware is known to beinstalled
• You should perform a full system scan to have Windows Defender scan your entire hard drive
• You can configure default actions to be suggested or applied to software that Windows Defender treats as spyware or malware
• You can improve disk performance by defragmenting the hard disk
Troubleshoot reliability issues by using built-in diagnostic tools
• Use Reliability Monitor to graphically view a computer’s stability
o Open Performance Diagnostics Console and select Reliability Monitor
o The reliability chart shows a historical view of software installations and uninstalls, application failures, hardwarefailures, Windows failures, and miscellaneous failures
Select a specific date to view installations, uninstalls, and failures for that date
A red X icon indicates one or more failures for a specific date
• The system stability index is a weighted measurement of system stability over time
o The more failures that occur, the more weight a failure carries
o As failures occur, stability of the system declines
Configure Windows Update
• Windows Update allows you computer to stay up-to-date with the latest system and security updates
• The Windows Update service must be enabled for Windows Update to work
• You can configure automatic updating as follows:
o Automatically download and install updates
o Download updates but allow the user to choose whether to install them
o Check for updates and allow the user to choose whether to download and install them
o Never check for updates
• To prevent Windows Update from displaying an available update that you do not want to install, you can hide the update
o Click the View available updates link
o Right-click the update and choose Hide from the context menu
Configure Data Protection
• You can encrypt all files on an operating system partition by using BitLocker Drive Encryption
• BitLocker Drive Encryption requires at least two NTFS partitions
• BitLocker Drive Encryption requires that the BIOS be configured to boot from the hard drive
• If a TPM is installed in a computer, the TPM secures an encryption key that is used to encrypt and decrypt files
• If a TPM is not installed in a computer, you can store encryption keys on a USB flash drive
• If a TPM error occurs that prevents the computer from starting, you can use a recovery password to recover the operatingsystem files and start the computer
• The TPM Management Console allows you to test recovery before a TPM failure occurs
o Open Tpm.msc
Configuring and Troubleshooting Mobile Computing
Configure Mobile Display Settings
• If a computer supports multiple monitors, you can configure the desktop to be displayed in one of three ways:
o On one monitor only
o Extended to a secondary monitor
o Mirrored on both monitors
• The Monitor tab of Display Settings shows icons that represent the monitors that are connected or can be connected to yourcomputer
o Click Start, Control Panel, Appearance and Personalization, Personalization, and Display Settings
o If a laptop computer has an S-Video output connection, then two icons will be displayed
One icon represents the laptop screen
The other icon represents the S-Video display when it is connected
• Only one monitor can be designated as the primary monitor, which is identified by the number 1
o Choose the primary monitor by selecting the This is my main monitor option
o Choose whether to extend the desktop to a monitor by selecting the Extend the desktop onto this monitor option
• For each monitor, you can change the screen resolution, color depth, and screen refresh rate
• Windows Mobility Center allows you to access mobile PC settings
o Click Start, Control Panel, Mobile PC, and Mobility Center
o Brightness tile
Allows you to adjust the brightness of your display
o External Display tile
Allows you to connect to and change display settings for an external display device
o Presentation Settings tile
Allows you to turn on, turn off, and change presentation settings
Presentation settings apply only when turned on
You can change presentation settings to temporarily turn off the screen saver, change the volume, andshow a different desktop background
Configure Mobile Devices
• You can use Sync Center to synchronize files between a mobile device and a computer
o Click Start, Control Panel, Mobile PC, and Sync Center
• To synchronize files by using Sync Center, you must set up a sync partnership
o If a mobile device is not listed to be set up, it is either not turned on or not compatible with Sync Center
Try turning on the device if it is turned off
You might be able to download updated device drivers that are compatible with Sync Center
You might be able to use synchronization software that comes with the device
o To stop Sync Center from synchronizing files, remove an existing sync partnership
o To stop synchronization in process, select the sync partnership and choose Stop from the menu
• Windows Mobility Center allows you to access mobile PC settings
o Click Start, Control Panel, Mobile PC, and Mobility Center
o The Sync Center tile allows you to synchronize files and change synchronization settings
Configure Tablet PC software
• Windows Vista can run on Tablet PCs
• Input Panel provides a writing pad that can recognize your handwriting, convert it to text, and copy it to the active application
• Stick Notes provides a writing pad that allows you to quickly create notes in your handwriting
• Windows Journal provides a notebook that allows you to write in your handwriting on your choice of stationary
• Tablet PC software that comes with Windows Vista allows you to enable scratch-out gestures, which indicates whether certainhandwriting gestures deletes handwriting
• Use Pen and Input Devices to change pen and pen flick settings
o Click Start, Control Panel, Mobile PC, and Pen and Input Devices