Registry DataBase : File System
FAT or FAT32 - CD-ROM - Disk space threshold - File names - File access - User folders
Common folders - Most recently used lists - Allocation - Performance\File System
HPFS file system - Installed applications - No ScanDisk in Win ME - Defrag menu
See also Characters allowed in file names
 
Top FAT or FAT 32
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME
After converting a 1.6Gb FAT partition into FAT32, allocated disk space changed from 45Mb to 33Mb, which meant that 25% disk space had been freed.
Also, although a shortcut for a folder requires only 210 bytes according to its properties, it will actually require the size of a cluster. Instead of 210 bytes, 32Kb will be used on a 2Gb FAT partition and 4Kb on a FAT32 partition. Thus, for 100 shortcuts, 3Gb will be used on a 2Gb FAT partition and 400Kb on a FAT32 partition.
The cluster size depends on the file system and the size of partitions :
  FAT       FAT32  
  Partition size   Custer size       Partition size   Custer size  
  <= 128Mb   2Kb       < 260Mb   0.5Kb  
  128-256Mb   4Kb       260Mb-8Gb   4Kb  
  256-512Mb   8Kb       8-16Gb   8Kb  
  512Mb-1Gb   16Kb       16-32Gb   16Kb  
  1-2Gb   32Kb       32Gb-2Tb   32Kb  
 
Top CD-ROM
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Services \Cdrom
Entry : Autorun
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME, NT, 2K
Type : REG_DWORD
Range : 0 or 1
Default : 1
0 : Disables the CD-ROM autorun feature, more precisely, does not execute the file Autorun.inf located in the root path of the drives indicated in NoDriveTypeAutorun.
 
Key : HKCR \AudioCD \shell
Entry : Default (play)
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME, NT, 2K
Type : REG_SZ
Suggested : play
Default : 1
play : Enables the Audio CD-ROM autorun feature if Autorun is enabled.
 
Key : HKCU \Software \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Policies \Explorer
Entry : NoDriveTypeAutorun
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME, NT, 2K
Type : REG_BINARY
Usual values : 95 00 00 00 and B5 00 00 00
Bits   Bin   Hex   Dec   Effect
7, 4, 2, 0   1001 0101   95 00 00 00   149   Executes the Autorun.inf file of RAM drives, CD-ROM drives, harddrives and unknown drive types if Autorun is enabled.
7, 5, 4, 2, 0   1011 0101   B5 00 00 00   181   Does not execute the Autorun.inf file of CD-ROM drives, executes the Autorun.inf file of RAM drives, CD-ROM drives, harddrives and unknown drive types if Autorun is enabled.
Indicate the total of the selected values below :
0 : Autorun.inf will be executed for tyhat type of drive.
1 : Autorun.inf will not be executed for tyhat type of drive.
Bit   Bin   Hex   Dec   Disk type
7   1000 0000   80 00 00 00   128   Réserved
6   0100 0000   40 00 00 00   64   RAM
5   0010 0000   20 00 00 00   32   CD-ROM
4   0001 0000   10 00 00 00   16   Network
3   0000 1000   08 00 00 00   8   Harddrive
2   0000 0100   04 00 00 00   4   Removable
1   0000 0010   02 00 00 00   2   NO_ROOT_DIR (undocumented)
0   0000 0001   01 00 00 00   1   Unknown drive type
 
Top Disk space threshold
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Services \LanmanServer \Parameters
Entry : DiskSpaceThreshold
System : NT, 2K
Type : REG_DWORD
Range : 0 to 99
Default : 10
Minimum free disk space under which Windows NT will warn the user.
 
Top File names
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : NtfsDisable8dot3NameCreation
System : NT, 2K
Type : REG_DWORD
Range : 0 or 1
Default : 0
1 : Disables 8.3 file names in NTFS.
 
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : NtfsAllowExtendedCharacterIn8dot3Name
System : NT, 2K
Type : REG_DWORD
Range : 0 or 1
Default : 0
1 : Enables using characters foreign to the ASCII printable set when opening documents saved in a foreign language for 8.3 file names in NTFS.
 
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : Win31FileSystem
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME, NT, 2K
Type : REG_DWORD
Range : 0 or 1
Default : 0
1 : Deletes long file names. Only 8.3 file names are allowed. Last access and modification time are no longer updated.
 
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : Win95TruncatedExtensions
System : NT, 2K
Type : REG_DWORD
Range : 0 or 1
Default : 0
1 : Deletes the characters contained in file extensions located after the 3rd one, if any.
 
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : NameNumericTail
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME, NT, 2K
Type : REG_BINARY
Range : 00 00 00 00 or 01 00 00 00
Default : 01 00 00 00
00 00 00 00 : No longer adds the ~ + number instead of the 7th and 8th letter in file names. If 2 files start with the same 8 characters, the system restores the ~ + number scheme.
 
Top File access
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : NtfsDisableLastAccessUpdate
System : NT, 2K
Type : REG_DWORD
Range : 0 or 1
Default : 0
1 : Disables last access date update of folders and files. May help disk access if you do not need it. This modifcation has no consequences on last update date and time.
 
Top User folders
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME
Key : HKCU \Software \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Explorer \Shell Folders
Key : HKCU \Software \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Explorer \User Shell Folders
The REG_SZ entries below contain the paths to Windows 95/98/ME user folders. Update both keys to enable.
Folder Entry Default Path
Cookies %WinDir%\\Cookies
Desktop %WinDir%\\Desktop
Favorites %WinDir%\\Favorites
Fonts %WinDir%\\Fonts
History %WinDir%\\History
NetHood %WinDir%\\Network Neighborhood
Personal \\My Documents
Programs %WinDir%\\Start Menu\\Programs
Recent %WinDir%\\Recent
SendTo %WinDir%\\SendTo
Start Menu %WinDir%\\Start Menu
Startup %WinDir%\\Start Menu\\Programs\\Startup
Templates %WinDir%\\ShellNew
 
System : NT, 2K
Key : HKCU \Software \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Explorer \Shell Folders
Key : HKCU \Software \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Explorer \User Shell Folders
The REG_SZ entries below contain the paths to Windows NT/2K user folders. Update both keys to enable.
Folder Entry Default Path
AppData %USERPROFILE%\\Application Data
Cache %USERPROFILE%\\Temporary Internet Files\\Temporary Internet Files
Cookies %USERPROFILE%\\Cookies
Desktop %USERPROFILE%\\Desktop
Favorites %USERPROFILE%\\Favorites
History %USERPROFILE%\\History
NetHood %USERPROFILE%\\Network Neighborhood
Personal %USERPROFILE%\\My Documents
PrintHood %USERPROFILE%\\Printer Neighborhood
Programs %USERPROFILE%\\Start Menu\\Programs
Recent %USERPROFILE%\\Recent
SendTo %USERPROFILE%\\SendTo
Start Menu %USERPROFILE%\\Start Menu
Startup %USERPROFILE%\\Start Menu\\Programs\\Startup
Templates %USERPROFILE%\\Templates
 
Top Common folders
System : NT, 2K
Key : HKLM \Software \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Explorer \ Shell Folders
The REG_SZ entries below contain the paths to Windows NT/2K common folders.
Common Desktop %SystemRoot%\\Profiles\\All Users\\Desktop
Common Programs %SystemRoot%\\Profiles\\Start Menu\\Programs
Common Start Menu %SystemRoot%\\Profiles\\Start Menu\\Programs
Common Startup %SystemRoot%\\Profiles\\Start Menu\\Programs\\Startup
 
Top Most recently used lists
The keys below contain REG_SZ entries (a, b, c, etc) corresponding to the character strings most recently typed by the user as well as an MRUList-like REG_SZ entry indicating in which order those strings have been typed.
 
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME, NT, 2K
Key : HKCU \Software \Microsoft\ Windows \CurrentVersion \Explorer
Doc Find Spec MRU Start Menu Find option
FindComputerMRU Find computer option
RunMRU Start Menu Run option
RecentDocs Start Menu Documents option
Note : The 15 (+1 for MRUList) entries contained in this subkey are never deleted by the system, even if instead of erasing shortcuts from %WinDir%\Recent you use the Delete button of the Start Menu Programs tab in the Taskbar properties.
OtherFolder PowerToys menu
PrnPortsMRU Recently used Printers
 
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME, NT, 2K
Key : HKCU \Software \Microsoft \Internet Explorer \TypedURLs
REG_SZ values numbered from url1 to urln corresponding to the history of addresses entered in Internet Explorer's address bar.
 
Top Allocation
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : ContigFileAllocSize
System : 95, 95+IE4.x
Type : REG_DWORD
Default : 512
By default, Windows 95 will look for a contiguous space of at least 500Kb on your drive to write a new file. If there is no such big space, or if the size of your file is greater, it will be fragmented. Increase the value of ContigFileAllocSize to tell the system to try to find bigger spaces in order to minimize fragmentation and to enhance file management for applications requiring a lot of disk space.
 
Top Performance\File System
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : SoftCompatMode
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME
Type : REG_DWORD
Range : 0 or 1
Default : 1
1 : Enables file sharing and locking rules. Corresponds to the 1st option in the tab Troubleshooting of the dialog box Performance\File System in My Computer's properties.
 
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : PreserveLongFilenames
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME
Type : REG_DWORD
Range : 0 or FF FF FF FF
Default : 0
FF FF FF FF : Preserves long file names even for files opened and saved by an application which does not recognize long file names. Corresponds to the 2nd option in the tab Troubleshooting of the dialog box Performance\File System in My Computer's properties.
 
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : VirtualHDIRQ
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME
Type : REG_BINARY
Range : 00 00 00 00 or 01 00 00 00
Default : 01 00 00 00
01 00 00 00 : Prevents Windows from taking into acount interrupt requests coming from the disk. Corresponds to the 3rd option in the tab Troubleshooting of the dialog box Performance\File System in My Computer's properties.
 
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : AsyncFileCommit
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME
Type : REG_DWORD
Range : 0 or 1
Default : 0
1 : Enables asynchronous file commitment. Corresponds to the 4th option in the tab Troubleshooting of the dialog box Performance\File System in My Computer's properties.
 
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : ForceRMIO
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME
Type : REG_DWORD
Range : 0 or 1
Default : 0
1 : Forces disk input/output to be made in real mode, thus disabling 32 bit disk access in protected mode. Corresponds to the 5th option in the tab Troubleshooting of the dialog box Performance\File System in My Computer's properties.
 
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : DriveWriteBehind
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME
Type : REG_BINARY
Range : 00 00 00 00 or 01 00 00 00
Default : 01 00 00 00
01 00 00 00 : Enables cache background writing for all drives, thus continuously dumping caches to the disk. Corresponds to the 6th option in the tab Troubleshooting of the dialog box Performance\File System in My Computer's properties.
 
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : ReadAheadThreshold
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME
Type : REG_DWORD
1 : Cache read ahead threshold. Corresponds to the related gliding button in the Disk tab in My Computer's properties. If an application requests some data, Windows will automatically read the data ahead until it reaches the value indicated in ReadAheadThreshold.
 
Top HPFS file system
Windows NT 3.51 used to support HPFS, which is not the case with Windows NT 4.0. However, Windows 3.1's HPFS driver can be used to read HPFS partitions with Windows NT 4.0.
1.   Copy the file Pinball.sys from Windows 3.51 in %SystemRoot% \System32.
2.   Create the following service in the registry in HKLM \System \CurrentControlSet \Services \Pinball and restart your computer.
ErrorControl   REG_DWORD   0x1
ImagePath   REG_EXPAND_SZ   Bootvrfy.exe
ObjectName   REG_SZ   LocalSystem
Start   REG_DWORD   0x1
Type   REG_DWORD   0x2
Group   REG_SZ   Boot File System
 
Top Installed applications
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME, NT, 2K
The subkeys in HKLM \SOFTWARE \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Uninstall contain the references to the uninstallers as well as the names of the applications which can be uninstalled with the Control Panel Add/Remove Programs icon.
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME
The HKCU \InstallLocationsMRU contains the list of the last 5 Windows components installed..
 
Top No ScanDisk in Windows ME
Key : HKLM \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Control \FileSystem
Entry : DisableScandiskOnBoot
System : ME
Type : REG_BINARY
Range : 00 00 00 00 or 01 00 00 00
Default : 00 00 00 00
01 00 00 00 : Disables scandisk at startup after incorrectly closing Windows ME. In Windows 95/98, you must use the file MsDos.sys.
 
Top Defrag menu
Here is how to create a Defrag option for drive context menu :
1. Create a first subkey :
Key : HKCR \Drive \shell \Defrag
Entry : Default (Menu Defrag)
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME, NT, 2K
Type : REG_SZ
Suggested : Quick defrag
Name of the option in the drive context menu. Insert an & before the keyboard shortcut letter, for example Quic&k defrag.
 
2. Create a second subkey :
Key : HKCR \Drive \shell \Defrag \command
Entry : Default (shell Defrag)
System : 95, 95+IE4.x, 98, ME, NT, 2K
Type : REG_SZ
Suggested : Defrag.exe
Starts defragmenting selected drive.

 

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