PCSTATS     
[X]   Directory of
Guides & Reviews

Beginners Guides
Motherboards by Brand
Weekly Newsletter
Archived Newsletters

+70 MORE Beginner GUIDES....
Beginners Guides: Little Known Features of WindowsXP
Beginners Guides: Little Known Features of WindowsXP - PCSTATS
We will explore the features and abilities of WinXP, with an eye towards providing a better understanding of the capabilities of the operating system, and the options available to the user.
Filed under: Beginners Guides Published:  Author: 
External Mfg. Website: PCSTATS Jul 30 2007   M. Dowler  
Home > Reviews > Beginners Guides > PCSTATS

The Windows XP Event Viewer

The event viewer is simply an easy interface to view the various logs that Windows XP keeps by default. Any program or system errors are recorded here in the application or system logs, and they can be an invaluable source of information if you are having recurring problems.

The security log is inactive by default, and is only used if you decide to enable auditing on your XP system. More on this later.

As the application and system logs record all programs and procedures started by Windows, this is an excellent place to start if you want to know more about what is going on behind the scenes.

Shared Folders

The shared folders heading contains a simple but useful list of all the folders that have been enabled for sharing, or in other words folders that are available to a remote user who may connect to your system over a network or the internet. Another list, known as a Sessions List shows all remote users currently connected to your computer, while the Open Files List illustrates which files are currently being accessed by the remote users in question.

I don't have to tell you that this is an important set of screens if you are concerned about security, as the sessions and open files lists can easily tell you if you have an uninvited guest in your system.

Note that the list of shares contains two or more shares denoted by a $ (ADMIN$ and C$). These are the administration shares that are installed by default when you load XP. The dollar sign indicates that they are hidden shares that will not show up in an explorer window, but can be accessed directly (try going to 'start/run' and typing '\\(yourcomputername)\c$').

What this means is that every file in your C: drive is shared by default, which should illustrate the importance of using a password on ALL your user accounts. If you do not, every file on your system is essentially wide open. Now one thing to keep in mind as you pour through the lists of shared folder is that you cannot create or remove shares from this interface; this has to be done on the properties of the individual folders.

You do have the option of disconnecting remote users from the sessions list, however.

That task can be accomplished by highlighting the user, going to the 'action' menu and selecting 'disconnect session.'

< Previous Page © 2023 PCSTATS.com
Please respect the time and effort that went into creating each PCSTATS Beginners Guide, do not illegally copy. Thank you.
Next Page >

 

Contents of Article: PCSTATS
 Pg 1.  Beginners Guides: Little Known Features of WindowsXP
 Pg 2.  — The Windows XP Event Viewer
 Pg 3.  Local Users and Groups
 Pg 4.  Hard Disk Management
 Pg 5.  Mounting Drives as Folders
 Pg 6.  To Mount a Partition as a Directory
 Pg 7.  Operating System Restore
 Pg 8.  System Restore Continued
 Pg 9.  Windows Services
 Pg 10.  How to Disable a Service
 Pg 11.  Accessibility Options
 Pg 12.  Built in Backup Utility
 Pg 13.  Files and Setting Transfer Wizard / Local Computer Policy Settings
 Pg 14.  Windows Task Manager / Enabling Firewall

 
Hardware Sections 


 
PCSTATS Network Features Information About Us Contact
FrostyTech
PCSTATS Newsletter
Tech Glossary
Technology WebSite Listings
News Archives
(Review RSS Feed)
Site Map
PCstats Wallpaper
About Us
Privacy Policy
Advertise on PCSTATS

How's Our Driving?
© Copyright 1999-2023 www.pcstats.com All rights reserved. Privacy policy and Terms of Use.