What is QoS Packet Scheduler?

(#3688)

 Note. This only effects LAN traffic and not Internet access
speeds. Also, in order for this to work, QoS Packet Scheduler
must be supported on both sides of the connection.

QoS Packet Scheduler is a method of network bandwidth

management that can monitor the importance of data packets and
depending upon the priority of the packet, give it higher or lower
priority or bandwidth levels.

Normally, if your system's LAN cards don't support QoS Packet

Scheduling, you don't have to worry about it.

But, if you want to disable it, you can change it by doing the
following. Note, this is not available in Windows XP Home
Edition.

Start Menu --> Run --> gpedit.msc

Expand Administrative Templates under Computer Configuration
Expand Network
Click QoS Packet Scheduler
You will find an entry in QoS Packet Scheduler called "Limit
Reservable Bandwidth". Double-click it, enable it, and set it to 0%.

More information on QoS can be found at these links:

Windows Platform Development -- Quality of Service (QoS)
Microsoft Knowledge Base -- Windows XP Quality of Service (QoS)
Enhancements and Behavior

by trparky

Windows Shortcut Keys

By Joshua Erdman & Travis Hasson
Digital Foundation, inc.

Let's face it, using the mouse for command is SLOW. With these shortcut keys, you will
be the most keyboard efficient user in the office.

o Windows-M
Minimizes all windows
o Windows-E
Opens File Explorer
o Windows-F
Find Files
o Windows-R
Opens The Run Dialog Box
o Windows-L
Instantly Locks your Computer
 o CTRL-Esc
For those poor souls that do not have the a Windows Key on their keyboard, this
combination will open the start menu.
o Windows-Pause
Opens System Properties Dialog Box.
o Alt-Tab
Switch between running applications
o Alt-Enter
Open properties of the selected item.

Many thanks to the digg users who 'dugg' our site and care to leave comments of
helpful commands that we have left out!

o at (windows XP/2000)
Scheduling utility.
o bootcfg (XP only)
This utility allows you to set up your boot options, such as your default OS and other
loading options.
o cacls (XP, 2000, & NT4.0)
Changes the ACLs (security Settings) of files and folders. Very similar to chmod in Linux. 
o comp (XP & 2000)
This utility is very similar to diff in Linux.  Use the /? switch to get examples of command
usage.
o contig (works with NT4.0 and newer)
A great defrag utility for NTFS partitions.
o control (XP only) - unpublished!
Allows you to launch control panel applets from the command line.  control
userpasswords2, for example will launch a helpful local user admin utility.
o defrag (XP only - NT4.0 and Win2k use contig)
Yes, XP comes with a command line disk defrag utility. If you are running Win2k or NT4.0
there is still hope. Contig is a free defrag program that I describe on the defrag page.
o diskpart (XP only)
Use this command to manage your disk partitions.  This is the text version for the GUI
Disk Manager.
o driverquery (XP only)
Produces a list of drivers, their properties, and their versions. Great for computer
documentation.
o eudcedit (XP only) - unpublished!
Private Character editor.  Yes with this program built into Windows XP you can create
your own font!
o findstr
Find String - similar to Linux's Grep.
o fsutil (XP only) - unpublished!
This is a utility with a lot of capability.  Come back soon for great examples.
o getmac (XP & 2000)
This command gets the Media Access Control (MAC) address of your network cards.
o gpresult (XP & 2000)
This generates a summary of the user settings and computer group policy settings.
o gpupdate (XP only)
Use this utility to manually apply computer and user policy from your windows 2000 (or
newer) domain.
o ipconfig (XP, 2000 & NT4.0)
This handy tool displays IP settings of the current computer and much more.
o MMC (XP, 2000 & NT4.0) - Microsoft Management Console
This is the master tool for Windows, it is the main interface in which all other tools use
starting primarily in Windows 2000 and newer systems.
o more
Utility used to display text output one screen at a time. Ex. more c:\windows\win.ini
o msconfig (XP only)
The ultimate tool to change the services and utilities that start when your Windows
machine boots up. You can also copy the executable from XP and use it in Win2k.
o msinfo32 (XP &smp; 2000)
An awesome diagnostic tool. With it you can get a list of running processes, including the
residing path of the executable (great for manually removing malware) and get detailed
information about hardware and system diagnostics.
o narrator (XP only)
Turns on the system narrator (can also be found in accessibility options in control panel). 
Will will allow your computer to dictate text to you.
o netsh (XP & 2000)
A network configuration tool console.  At the 'netsh>' prompt, use the '?' to list the
available commands and type "exit" to get back to a command prompt.
o nslookup (all)
A DNS name resolution tool.
o openfiles (XP Only)
Allows an administrator to display or disconnect open files in XP professional. Type
"openfiles /?" for a list of possible parameters.
o Pathping (XP & 2000)
A cross between the ping and traceroute utilities. Who needs Neotrace when you can use
this? Type "pathping <ip address>" and watch it go.
o recover (XP & 2000)
This command can recover readable information from a damaged disk and is very easy
to use.
o reg (XP & 2000)
A console registry tool, great for scripting Registry edits.
o sc (XP & 2000)
A command line utility called the Service Controller.  A power tool to make service
changes via a logon/logoff or startup/shutdown script.
o schtasks (XP only)
A newer version of the AT command.  This allows an administrator to schedule and
manage scheduled tasks on a local and remote machines.
o secedit (XP & 2000)
Use this utility to manually apply computer and user policy from your windows 2000 (or
newer) domain.  Example to update the machine policy: secedit /refreshpolicy
machine_policy /enforce
To view help on this, just type secedit.
NOTE: In Windows XP SP1 and news, this command is superceded by: gpupdate /force
o sfc (XP & 2000)
The system file checker scans important system files and replaces the ones you (or your
applications) hacked beyond repair with the real, official Microsoft versions.
o shutdown (XP & 2000)
With this tool, You can shut down or restart your own computer, or an administrator can
shut down or restart a remote computer.
o sigverif (XP only)
Microsoft has created driver signatures. A signed driver is Microsoft tested and approved.
With the sigverif tool you can have all driver files analyzed to verify that they are digitally
signed. Just type 'sigverif' at the command prompt.
o systeminfo (XP only)
Basic system configuration information, such as the system type, the processor type,
time zone, virtual memory settings, system uptime, and much more.  This program is
great for creating an inventory of computers on your network.
o sysedit (XP/2000)
System Configuration File Editor.  An old tool that was very handy for the Windows 9X
days.  msconfig is what you want to use now.
o tasklist (XP pro only)
Tasklist is the command console equivalent to the task manager in windows. It is a must
have when fighting scumware and viruses. Try the command:
tasklist /svc
to view the memory resources your services take up.
o taskkill (XP only)
Taskkill contains the rest of the task manager functionality.  It allows you to kill those
unneeded or locked up applications.
o tree (XP & 2000)
An amazing experience everyone should try!  This command will provide a 'family tree'
style display of the drive/folder you specify.
o WMIC (XP & 2000)
Windows Management Instrumentation Command tool.  This allows you to pull an
amazing amount of low-level system information from a command line scripting interface.