Speed up xp and vista: number 3 of 50

Tip One: Tweak the Index Service

Opinions abound about the Vista Indexing Service and whether or not it slows down system performance. Unfortunately, much of the discussion I’ve seen is anecdotal in nature, with some users reporting that Vista is speedier than XP, and others reporting that it is dog slow.

Personally, I like the Indexing Service. It helps quickly locate content on a Vista machine without a folder hierarchy doing the job for me. Just type what you're looking for and go. It's kinda like a desktop Google, and yes, I'm aware that Google has a similar desktop add-in.

But the Indexing Service (which is not mentioned anywhere on Microsoft's Vista website; a search produces results for outside webpages) is not something you add, as was the case with Windows XP and the Windows Desktop Search (whose full name is actually Windows Desktop Search with MSN Search Toolbar).

Instead, the Indexing Service is built into the Vista OS, and runs by default. For those who want to try out life without the Vista’s Indexing Service, here’s how to disable:

Method One:

1. Open the Control Panel and then choose ‘Uninstall a Program’ from the Programs grouping. Now, select ‘Turn Windows features on or off.’
2. From this dialog box, you can disable the Indexing Service

Method Two:

1. Disable the Windows Search service using the Services MMC snap-in. If you type ‘services’ into the Vista Start Menu, it should come up.
2. Locate the Windows Search service, then choose ‘Disabled’ as the startup type. You should also Stop the service for it to take immediate effect.

Method Three:

1. If you’d like more selecting control over the Indexing Options, open the Control Panel and locate the Indexing Options application (or you can type ‘index’ from the Start Menu – the Indexing Service should help you locate it in the list of Programs. Ironic, huh? From here, you can remove locations you use rarely, or remove all locations altogether.
2. It is also possible to disable indexing for a certain drive or enable it only for selected folders. You can do this by changing the Properties of a drive or folder (right click on drive letter in Windows Explorer).

You can always switch back later if you want.

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