Optimizing Vista for gaming tips

Optimizing Vista tips

All those tips don't improve your framerates but they reduce stuttering of your games and improve vista speed reaction.

Between () in bold there is the author of new tips!

1) Disable Windows Sidebar

2) Run msconfig from "Start Search" and go to Start. Verify that with Vista starts only essential software, you should have only the gpu,audio drivers,antivirus and few others

3) Disable Aero when launching game by right-clicking on the game icon and selecting "Disable desktop Composition "

- right click on executable program
- properties
- compatibility
- Settings -> Disable Desktop Composition

4) Run services.msc from "Start Search" with vista start some non essential processes that can be disabled without problems

- Tablet input service = if you don't have a tablet pc

- Windows Defender = Crappy software.If you have a good antivirus suite like Karsperski or Nod32 you can simple disable it,in other cases you can install Zonealarm if need it

N.B. Uninstall Norton Antivirus on your pc,its memory management sucks and slows down your cpu in a significant way

- ReadyBoost = only if you have 2gb ram.This function was born to running vista on older pc using usb pendrive.Recent tests are showing that with 2gb or more ram readyboost doesn't give significant improvement and is only a process resident in your memory

5) Forget about that automatic windows defragger and take some third party real defragger sw as Diskeeper 2008 that speed up your drive and use MBR optimization,i-fast tecnology and more

6) Download and install CCleaner,it's a free sw that clean your registry and your webcache and do a few more things.Very stable and useful to clean deeply registry after uninstalling games

7) Setting your Laptop's powerplan to Performance and always connected to AC when you're gaming (surfasb)

If you know some other tips let's collect them in this thread!

Hope helps all vista users

 

Wait, I was 110% sure Vista disables Aero automatically when a GPU-bound app starts.

 

Wrong,let's see some microsoft docs...

The DWM is the new interface that manages how the various windows that are running and rendering are merged onto the Windows Vista desktop.

http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa969538(VS.85).aspx

"Applications that take full control of the desktop, such as games that run in full-screen mode, must determine whether the DWM is enabled and if it is, disable it"

How? Disabling Desktop Composition option

So it's not true that aero turn off with full screen games...

 

Could I add a few more tips:

1) Disable the Windows Sidebar. I find that bar to be a of lot of eye candy but not much use otherwise.

2) Remove any programs that came with your laptop that are running in the background. For example, my Thinkpad X61 comes with a lot of disk defragging crap and some 'ThinkVantage' utility which I simply don't need. Disable them all in the Windows Services and prevent them from running automatically.

 

Thanks mate, always good to have some vista tips!

 

metaldeath
when i go into all programs, then to game icon-right click, i can't find "Disable desktop Composition".
any suggestions?

 

For me, this is an optimized OS.

 

We actually have a whole guide for optimizing Vista, but since you put time into this I'll leave it be.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=166532

 

Thanks Chaz the other thread is much more detailed than mine but this is focused on gaming performance

- right click on executable program
- properties
- compatibility
- Settings -> Disable Desktop Composition

 

I don't care about what the documentation says, I care about what I experiance

 

I figured this was more focused on gaming performance, thanks for clarifying. I'll alter the title of the thread slightly so it gets more attention.

 

Very nice and quick guide. I have a question: I have the AVG free edition, is this antivirus good enough for disabling the Windows Defender service?

Thanks beforehand.

 

I found it thanks! it is under Parameters, 4th box.

 

I also find setting your Laptop's powerplan to Performance helps. It at least keeps your CPU from throttling.

 

RAM, RAM... and FFS, RAM!!!

Seriously, memory is the single most useful thing for improving things with Vista. My laptop runs 2GB and I'm quite satisfied with it.

 

@lozanogo :if you can spend some money take Nod32 because it's poweful and very light for any cpu single or dual.

I have installed it on dozens of pc and all the people are still thanking me to have changed their Norton Antivirus...
If an antivirus sw is too heavy and slow down all my tasks i prefer to have a virus ... but in the free market i prefer Avast Home Edition

- complete auto-incremental updates
- Web Shield (HTTP scanner), content filtering
- Network Shield (IDS)
- Boot-time scan

With this you don't need defender...

 

Insane...you don't care what microsoft engineers say on their OS because your(?) experience is different?

Verba volant scripta manent...hope this had a sense in your language