The Advanced tab of the Performance Options dialog box allows you to adjust the application response, which is the priority of foreground programs versus background programs, and virtual memory.

  Windows XP Home uses the Processor Scheduling settings to distribute microprocessor resources between running programs. Selecting Programs assigns more resources to the foreground program (the active program that is responding to user input). Windows XP Home assigns more resources to the foreground program by allocating short, variable time slices, or quanta, to running programs. A time slice, or quantum, is a brief period of time during which a particular task is given control of the microprocessor. When you select Background Services, Windows assigns an equal number of resources to all programs by assigning long, fixed quanta instead.

  Windows XP Home uses the Memory Usage settings to distribute memory resources between running programs. Select Programs if your computer is being used primarily as a workstation. With the Programs option, your programs will work faster and your system cache will be the default size for Windows XP Home. Select System Cache if you are using your computer as a server or if the programs you are running require a large system cache.

   For virtual memory, Windows XP Home uses a process called demand paging to exchange data between random access memory (RAM) and paging files. When you install Windows XP Home, Setup creates a virtual-memory paging file, PAGEFILE.SYS, on the partition where you installed Windows XP Home. The default or recommended paging file size for Windows XP Home is equal to 1.5 times the total amount of RAM. For best results, never set the value of the paging file size to less than the recommended amount. Typically, you can leave the size of the paging file set to the default value. In some circumstances, such as when you run a large number of applications simultaneously, you might find it advantageous to use a larger paging file or multiple paging files. To configure the paging file, in the Performance Options dialog box, click Change. The Virtual Memory dialog box identifies the drives on which the paging files reside and allows you to modify the paging file size for the selected drive.

   Only users with administrative rights can use the Performance Options dialog box to increase the paging file size. Paging files never decrease below the value found in the Initial Size text box that was set during installation. Unused space in the paging file remains available to the internal Windows XP Home Virtual Memory Manager (VMM). As needed, a paging file grows from its initial size to the maximum configured size, which is listed in the Maximum Size text box. When the paging file reaches the maximum size, system performance might degrade if you place additional demands on the system by running more applications. When you restart a computer running Windows XP Home, the system resizes all paging files to the initial size.

   You can enhance system performance in several ways. First, if your computer has multiple hard disks, create a paging file for each disk. Distributing information across multiple paging files improves performance because the hard disk controller can read from and write to multiple hard disks simultaneously. When attempting to write to the paging file, VMM tries to write the page data to the paging file on the disk that is the least busy.

   The System Properties dialog box also controls the startup and recovery settings for a computer. The System Startup options control the behavior of the Please Select The Operating System To Start menu. The Recovery options control the actions that Windows XP Home performs in the event of a stop error, which is a severe error that causes Windows XP Home to stop all processes. Stop errors are also known as fatal system errors or blue screen errors.

   When you first turn on the computer, the system displays the Please Select The Operating System To Start screen, which lists the available operating systems. By default, the system chooses one of the operating systems and displays a countdown timer. If you do not choose another operating system, the system starts the preselected operating system when the countdown timer reaches zero or when you press Enter. Modify the options under System Startup to determine which operating system is preselected, how long the countdown timer runs, and whether to display the boot menu. You are also given the option of modifying the BOOT.INI file manually, but you should allow Windows XP Home to modify the file rather than attempting to do so manually.

   The four recovery options that Windows XP Home provides to assist users in the event of a system failure are described in the table below.

  The following requirements must be met for the Write Debugging Information recovery option to work:

  Error reporting assists Microsoft in improving future products and in resolving any difficulties you might encounter with Windows XP Home. To configure error reporting, in the Advanced tab of the System Properties dialog box, click Error Reporting. This displays the Error Reporting dialog box. Notice that Enable Error Reporting is selected. To turn off error reporting, click Disable Error Reporting. If you do not want to turn off error checking, you can configure reporting to indicate which errors to report. Under Enable Error Reporting there are two check boxes selected by default. Clear the Windows Operating System check box if you do not want errors in the operating system to be reported. Clear the Programs check box if you do not want errors in any of the programs running on your system to be reported. If you want to specify the programs for which Windows XP Home reports errors, click Select Programs.

  If a system or program error occurs and you have configured your system to report it, Windows XP Home displays a dialog box that allows you to indicate whether you want to send the report to Microsoft.

  The Windows XP Home System Restore feature allows you to track and reverse harmful changes made to your system. In the System Properties dialog box, click the System Restore tab

  If you want to configure the status of System Restore on a drive, select the drive and then click Settings. The Settings dialog box for a drive allows you to turn off System Restore monitoring for the drive and to configure the amount of disk space reserved for System Restore. You cannot turn off System Restore on the drive on which Windows XP Home is installed without turning off System Restore on all drives. System Restore monitors and restores only the partitions and drives that it is configured to monitor. It doesn't monitor partitions of drives that are redirected or excluded from System Restore monitoring. System Restore also doesn't monitor or restore the contents of redirected folders or any settings associated with roaming user profiles.

  Automatic Updates (AU) is a proactive service that allows users with administrative privileges to automatically download and install critical operating system updates such as security fixes and patches. You are notified before the installation takes place and given the opportunity to postpone the download operation. Updates are downloaded in the background so that you can continue to work during downloading. To configure AU, click the Automatic Updates tab of the System Properties dialog box

  Under Notification Settings, you can select one of the following three options:

  AU uses the Windows Update control to scan the system and decide which updates apply to a particular computer. AU employs its innovative bandwidth-throttling technology, which uses only idle bandwidth for downloads so they do not interfere with or slow down other network activity, such as Internet browsing. Only one administrative user at a time can run the Automatic Updates feature.

  If you choose not to install an update, Windows XP Home deletes it from your computer. If you decide you want to install a previous update, in the Previous Updates box, click Restore Hidden Items. Any previous updates that are still applicable to your computer appear the next time Windows XP Home notifies you that updates are available.

  If you have a computer problem, the Remote Assistance feature allows you to invite another person, a remote assistant, to help you over the Internet. The remote assistant can accept your invitation, chat with you about the problem, and view your desktop. He or she can also transfer any files required to fix the problem. To configure the Remote Assistance feature, click the Remote tab in the System Properties dialog box.

  Under Remote Assistance, you can configure your computer to allow or prevent remote assistance invitations to be sent from your computer. Click Advanced to display the Remote Assistance Settings dialog box. To allow the remote assistant full control of your computer, ensure that the default option, Allow This Computer To Be Controlled Remotely, is selected. To allow the assistant to view but not take control of your computer, clear the check box. You can also control the number of days, hours, or minutes before the invitation expires. In the Remote tab of the System Properties dialog box, under Remote Desktop, you can configure your computer so that remote computers can make a connection to it. This allows you to leave an application running on your office computer, for example, and then connect to your computer from home. The Remote Desktop feature allows multiple users to have active sessions on a single computer. You can also configure which users can have remote access to your computer. Click Select Remote Users to configure the users that can access your computer remotely in the Remote Desktop Users dialog box. All users that are listed, as well as all users that are members of the Administrators group, have remote access. You can add other users to this list by clicking Add and supplying the complete user name when prompted.