Microsoft Windows XP Professional Resource Kit 2003
ISBN: N/A
EAN: N/A
EAN: N/A
Year: 2005
Pages: 338
Pages: 338
Windows XP Professional identifies devices and their hardware resource requirements. The operating system allocates the optimal resources and attempts to resolve conflicts when two or more devices request the same resource. Consequently, you must not manually change resource settings for a Plug and Play device unless it is absolutely necessary to resolve a problem with the device. Doing so fixes its settings, preventing Windows XP Professional from granting another device s request to use that resource. Changed resource settings can be returned to the original values by selecting the Use automatic settings check box on the Resources tab of the Device Properties Page in Device Manager. See the procedure To change resource settings for a device by using Device Manager later in this section.
| Note | Windows XP Professional might allocate a single resource to more than one device. For example, multiple PCI devices might share the same IRQ. |
During setup, Windows XP Professional detects non Plug and Play devices that have fixed resource requirements. For example, some ISA modems require fixed I/O port settings, and cannot operate at any other I/O setting. After running Setup, you can use the Add Hardware wizard to install non Plug and Play devices. This is the only instance in which you need to use the Add Hardware wizard to install a device.
Certain circumstances might require you to change resource settings after Windows XP Professional configures a device. For example, Windows XP Professional might not be able to configure one device without creating conflicts with another. Typically a message explains that a conflict exists and suggests a solution, such as turning off or disabling a device or assigning non-conflicting resources.
For more information about troubleshooting devices, see Hardware Troubleshooting later in this chapter or Tools for Troubleshooting in this book.
To manually change the configuration of a device, use Device Manager. Use the following strategies when using Device Manager to resolve device conflicts manually:
Identify a free resource and assign it to the device.
Disable or remove one of the conflicting devices to free resources.
Remove non Plug and Play hardware and device drivers.
Rearrange resources used by a device or devices to free resources that the conflicting device requires.
Use Device Manager to select non-conflicting resource values. Use device configuration software, jumpers, or DIP switches to adjust actual hardware values to match those used by Device Manager.
You can print a report about your system and device resource settings. In Device Manager, highlight the device that you are interested in. On the Action menu, select Print. In the Report Type section of the Print dialog box, select a system summary report, a report of the selected class or device, or a report of all devices with a system summary. Click Print to send the report to the printer.
The following procedure explains how to change a device s resource settings by using Device Manager.
| Caution | Change resource settings only if absolutely necessary. Changing resource settings can cause conflicts and can cause you to lose Plug and Play functionality. |
To change resource settings for a device by using Device Manager
Some devices do not have a Resources tab on their property sheet. You cannot manually change the resources for these devices.
In Device Manager, expand the device class to show the available devices.
Right-click a device, and then click Properties.
On the Resources tab, notice that the Conflicting device list shows conflicting values for resources used by other devices.
In the Resource type list, select the setting you want to change, clear the Use automatic settings check box, and then click Change Setting.
If there is a conflict with another device, a message is displayed in Conflict Information.
If an error message says, This resource setting cannot be modified, browse for a configuration that you can use to change resource settings without conflicting with other devices.
Click OK, and then restart Windows XP Professional.
Verify that the settings are correct for the device.
| Note | Many legacy devices have jumpers or DIP switches that set the IRQ, DMA, and I/O addresses. If you change these settings in Device Manager, you must also change the settings on the device to match them. |
Windows XP Professional uses hardware profiles to determine which drivers to load. A computer can have different profiles that describe different hardware configurations. Hardware profiles are especially important for portable computers that can be docked. Windows XP Professional uses one hardware profile to load drivers when the portable computer is docked and another when it is undocked. For example, a different profile is used at a customer site that has a monitor different from the one at the office.
Configurations are created when Windows XP Professional queries the BIOS for a dock serial ID and assigns a name for the docked and undocked configurations. Windows XP Professional then stores the hardware and software associated with these configurations. Applications access and store information for each hardware configuration used by the mobile user. Using multiple profiles enables applications to adapt to various hardware configurations.
Windows XP Professional prompts you for the name of a hardware profile only when two profiles are so similar that it cannot differentiate between them. If this happens, the operating system displays a Hardware Profile menu from which you can choose the correct profile.
For more information about hardware profiles for portable computers, see Supporting Mobile Users in this book.
Windows XP Professional includes a driver that provides hardware acceleration. This driver speeds up the delivery of digital audio data, which improves Microsoft DirectSound Audio performance. You can change the level of hardware acceleration available to DirectSound Audio applications by using the Hardware Acceleration option for Sounds and Audio Devices. You can use these settings for testing or to improve the stability of the system.
Hardware Acceleration for DirectSound Audio has four settings, which are described in Table 9-3.
| Setting Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Emulation | Forces emulation mode, so audio applications run as though no DirectSound Audio compatible driver is on the system, and no hardware acceleration is provided. Use this setting only if other acceleration settings do not function properly. |
| Basic | Disables hardware acceleration, so applications run as though no hardware acceleration is present. This option is useful if you want to emulate a non-DirectSound-accelerated sound card for testing purposes. |
| Standard | Enables hardware acceleration but disables any vendor-specific properties, so only standard acceleration features are used. This is the default setting for Windows XP Professional. |
| Full | Enables hardware acceleration and all vendor-specific properties, so all acceleration features are available. |
To change the hardware acceleration setting for audio devices
In Control Panel, open Sounds, Speech and Audio Devices, and then open Sounds and Audio Devices.
Click the Audio tab, and under Sound Playback, click the Advanced button.
In the Advanced Audio Properties dialog box, click the Performance tab.
Under Audio Playback, move the Hardware Acceleration slider to the desired setting.
The Display option in Control Panel allows you to change the settings on your monitor and make other changes to your desktop, including the following:
Change the display driver.
Change screen resolution and color depth (without restarting the computer when using display drivers that support this functionality).
Change color schemes and text styles in all screen elements, including fonts used in dialog boxes, menus, and title bars.
View changes in colors, text, and other elements of display appearance before the changes are applied.
Configure display settings for each hardware profile, for example, docked and undocked configurations.
Configure multiple monitors. For information about configuring multiple monitors, see Configuring Multiple Monitors later in this chapter.
Windows XP Professional also includes mechanisms to ensure that incompatible display drivers cannot prevent a user from accessing the system. If a display driver fails to load or initialize when Windows XP Professional is started, Windows XP Professional automatically uses the generic VGA display driver. This ensures that you can start Windows XP Professional to fix a display-related problem.
You can change or upgrade a display driver by using Device Manager to view the properties for the monitor. When you select Update Driver from the Driver tab, the Hardware Update Wizard installs the driver automatically, or you can choose to install a different driver from a list of known drivers for the display. For more information about adding or changing a device driver, see Windows XP Professional Help and Support Center.
If you install a new Plug and Play monitor, the system detects the monitor and the Found New Hardware wizard guides you through the installation process. After attaching the monitor, uninstall the old monitor in Device Manager, and scan for the new hardware by clicking Scan for hardware changes on the Action menu.
| Note | If a driver is not included with your monitor, check Windows Update for an updated driver for your monitor. If there is no driver in Windows Update, check the manufacturer s Web site for the most recent driver. |
If the monitor is detected as Default Monitor, either the display adapter or the monitor is not Plug and Play. If the monitor is not detected as Plug and Play Monitor, the monitor is not included in the monitor .inf files. Check Windows Update or contact your hardware manufacturer for an updated Windows XP Professional .inf file.
| Warning | Incorrect display settings can physically damage some monitors. Check the manual for your monitor before choosing a new setting. |
Windows XP Professional uses hardware acceleration to improve display performance. If using hardware acceleration causes a problem, such as mouse pointer problems or corrupt images, you can turn off some or all hardware acceleration features. By turning off hardware acceleration, you can manually control the level of acceleration and performance supplied by your graphics hardware, which can help you troubleshoot display problems.
Hardware acceleration for your graphics hardware has six settings. Table 9-4 shows the settings and their meanings.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| None | Disables all accelerations. Use this setting only if your computer frequently stops responding or has other severe problems. |
| 1 | Disables all but basic accelerations. User this setting to correct more severe problems. |
| 2 | Disables all DirectX Graphics accelerations, as well as all cursor and advanced drawing accelerations. Use this setting to correct severe problems with DirectX accelerated applications. |
| 3 | Disables all cursor and advanced drawing accelerations. Use this setting to correct drawing problems. |
| 4 | Disables cursor and bitmap accelerations. Use this setting to troubleshoot mouse pointer problems or corrupt images. |
| Full | Enables all acceleration features. This setting is recommended if your computer has no problems. |
| Note | If you use multiple monitors, changing hardware acceleration settings affects all monitors. |
To change hardware acceleration
Right-click the desktop, and then click Properties.
In the Display Properties dialog box, click the Settings tab, and then click the Advanced button.
Click the Troubleshoot tab, and then choose the desired level of hardware acceleration.
Windows XP Professional supports write combining, which improves video performance by speeding up the display of information to your screen. However, increased speed can also cause screen corruption. If display problems occur, you can disable write combining to troubleshoot this problem.
To disable write combining
Right-click the desktop, and then click Properties.
In the Display Properties dialog box, click the Settings tab, and then click the Advanced button.
Click the Troubleshoot tab, and then clear the Enable write combining check box.
You can configure the display resolution and colors, fonts, and backgrounds for your Windows XP Professional display. Right-click the desktop, select Properties, and make changes from the Settings tab on the Display Properties dialog box.
You can also adjust the refresh frequency rate for your display. A higher refresh frequency rate reduces flicker on CRT displays. On the Settings tab, click the Advanced button, and then change the refresh frequency on the Monitor tab.
Windows XP Professional allows you to change resolution and color depth without restarting the computer, if the installed display adapter is using a video driver provided with Windows XP Professional. You might have to restart the computer if you are not using a Plug and Play display adapter and driver.
The Display Properties dialog box, accessed by right-clicking the desktop and selecting Properties, allows you to set the screen saver and other desktop attributes. In addition, you can use settings in Screen Saver properties to take advantage of power management support in Windows XP Professional, if your hardware supports this feature. Windows XP Professional can support screen saver power management if your computer is Energy Star Compliant. An Energy Star compliant monitor supports the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) Display Power Management System (DPMS) specification. To determine whether your monitor is Energy Star compliant, look for the Energy Star logo on the Screen Saver tab of the Display dialog box.
The display monitor is typically one of the most power-hungry components of a computer. Manufacturers of newer display monitors have incorporated energy-saving features based on the DPMS specification. By using signals from the display adapter, a software control can place the monitor in standby mode or even turn it off completely, thus reducing the power the monitor uses when inactive.
You can adjust monitor power settings on the Screen Saver tab by clicking the Power button, and, on the Power Schemes tab, selecting the amount of time the monitor will stay on without any activity before it turns itself off.
Mode Pruning is a Windows XP Professional feature that is used to remove display modes that the monitor cannot support. Display modes are the combinations of screen resolution, colors, and refresh rates available for the selected video adapter. In Mode Pruning, the graphics modes of the monitor and the display adapter are compared, and only modes common to both the monitor and display adapter are available to the user.
Mode Pruning is available only if a Plug and Play monitor is detected or if a specific monitor driver is loaded in Device Manager. Mode Pruning is not available if the monitor driver is Default Monitor. On Plug and Play monitors, Mode Pruning is enabled by default. If Mode Pruning is disabled, you can select display modes that are not supported by your monitor.
| Warning | Choosing a mode that is inappropriate for your monitor might cause severe display problems and might damage your hardware. You must be logged on as a member of the Administrator s group to view unsupported modes. It is not recommended that you change this setting. If you choose to view unsupported display modes, consult your hardware documentation. |
To disable Mode Pruning
Right-click the desktop, and then click Properties.
In the Display Properties dialog box, click the Settings tab, click Advanced, and then click the Monitor tab.
Clear Hide modes that this monitor cannot display, and then click Apply.
Windows XP Professional supports using digital flat panel (DFP) monitors with display adapters that have the appropriate output connectors. These connectors include Digital Video Interconnect (DVI) and DFP. Most display adapters also have standard CRT connectors for more common monitors.
By using the Multiple Monitors feature you can configure up to ten monitors, so that the Windows XP Professional desktop display spreads across all of the monitors. For each monitor, you can adjust position, resolution, and color depth.
In the Display Properties dialog box, one monitor is designated the primary display. This is the default display used for prompts and pop-up windows and has full hardware DirectX Graphics acceleration. It is also the only display that can run DirectX applications in full-screen mode.
In Windows XP Professional, any supported VGA monitor can be used as the power-on self test (POST) device. The adapter that displays the system BIOS and system memory count when the computer is turned on is the POST device. This is the only device that can be used for MS DOS mode operations in full screen mode. The POST device does not have to be the same as the Primary Display, which is the default display that is used for prompts and pop-up windows. The Primary Display has full hardware DirectX Graphics acceleration, and is also the only display that can run DirectX applications in full-screen mode.
A monitor must meet the following criteria to be used as a secondary monitor. It must be a PCI or AGP device, be able to run in graphical user interface (GUI) mode without using VGA resources, and have a Windows XP Professional driver that enables it to be a secondary display. For more information about monitors that can be used as secondary monitors, see the Hardware Compatibility List link on the Web Resources page at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/reskits/webresources
| Note | To use multiple monitors a working monitor capable of VGA graphics must be connected to each installed display adapter. |
In a multiple monitor environment, only one graphics device can be VGA compatible. This is a limitation of computer hardware that requires that only one device respond to any hardware address. Because the VGA hardware compatibility standard requires specific hardware addresses, only one VGA graphics device can be present in a computer, and only this device can physically respond to VGA addresses. Thus, applications that require a full-screen view will run only on the particular device that supports VGA hardware compatibility.
If you have an on-board display device, it must be used as the VGA device. Some computers cannot activate the onboard display when a VGA-capable PCI display device is present. In this case, disable the on-board hardware VGA for the secondary devices so that the onboard device runs a POST routine.
To add a second monitor to your computer
Verify that your primary display adapter works properly.
Plug in the second monitor.
Windows XP Professional detects and installs the new monitor.
In the Display Properties dialog box, click the Settings tab.
Icons for both monitors display in the dialog box.
Click the icon for the new monitor, labeled 2.
Select Extend my Windows desktop to this monitor, and then click OK.
To adjust the color depth on the new monitor, use the Color Quality drop-down list box. To adjust the resolution, use the Screen Resolution slider.
Verify that the on-screen arrangement of the monitors matches the physical configuration of your monitors. This can be changed by dragging the icon of the monitor to the location on the screen that corresponds to the location of the monitor on your desk.
Only the primary monitor in a multiple monitor configuration can accelerate DirectX Graphics functions that use the full capabilities of the monitor. Additionally, only the primary monitor can run DirectX applications in full-screen mode. For this reason, you need to make sure that the monitor with the best DirectX Graphics performance and features is the primary monitor.
To set the primary monitor in a multiple monitor configuration
Right-click the desktop, and then click Properties.
In the Display Properties dialog box, click the Settings tab.
On the Settings tab, select Use this monitor as the primary display.
Click OK.
Dualview, another feature of Windows XP Professional, allows both portable and desktop computers to display independent output on the onboard display and an external monitor. Dualview is very similar to the multiple monitor feature, except that you cannot select the primary display. The portable computer display must be used as the VGA device.
Dualview requires that the display adapter provide dual outputs. The external VGA port on the portable computer provides the second monitor connection. Dualview can be used with docked or undocked portable computers. The display driver for the adapter must support this feature, so it is not available in all computers.
Windows XP Professional does not support hot undocking of portable computers that have an active multiple monitor configuration. To hot undock a portable computer, set up a non-multiple monitor hardware profile and log on again using that profile. You can also open Display in Control Panel to detach the secondary display before undocking.
A communications resource is a physical or logical device that provides a single, asynchronous data stream. Communications ports, printer ports, and modems are examples of communications resources.
Two types of communications resources appear as ports in Device Manager:
Communications ports. These ports, also called COM ports, serial ports, or RS-232 COM ports, connect RS-232-compatible serial devices, such as modems and pointing devices, to the computer. Several types of communications ports might be listed in Device Manager:
Serial ports. Ports, also known as RS-232 COM ports, to which external serial devices can be attached. Typically these ports require a 9- or 25-pin plug. Serial ports designed for Windows XP Professional use the 16550A buffered UART, which has a 16-byte FIFO that gives the CPU more time to serve other processes and that can serve multiple characters in a single interrupt routine.
Internal modem adapters. Internal modems are modems that are constructed on an expansion card to be installed in an expansion slot inside a computer.
Printer ports. These ports, also known as LPT ports or parallel ports, connect parallel devices, such as printers, to the computer. For more information about configuring printer ports, see Enabling Printing and Faxing in this book.
| Note | If Windows XP Professional does not detect an internal modem, the modem must be installed and configured by using the Modems option in Control Panel. |
When you install a communications device, Windows XP Professional assigns COM names to communication ports, internal modem adapters, and PC Card modem cards according to their base I/O port addresses as shown in the following list:
COM1 at address 3F8
COM2 at address 2F8
COM3 at address 3E8
COM4 at address 2E8
If a device has a nonstandard base address, or if all four standard ports are assigned to devices, Windows XP Professional assigns the modem to COM5 or higher. Some 16-bit Microsoft Windows version 3.1 based applications might not be able to access ports higher than COM4. Thus, when using the System option in Control Panel, you must adjust the base address in Device Manager or delete other devices to free a COM port at a lower address.
Also, if some devices installed on a computer are not Plug and Play, you might need to change resource settings for their communications ports. You can change communications port settings by using Device Manager, as described in Device Installation earlier in this chapter.
| Tip | For future reference, it is recommended that you record the settings that appear on the Resources sheet for each communications port. |
Configuration of scanners and cameras is completed during setup. Standard or default settings are applied when you run Setup, but you can change many of these settings by opening the Scanners and Cameras Properties dialog box in Control Panel.
For serial devices, to view the port being used by the scanner or camera, go to the Port Settings tab in the Scanners and Cameras Properties dialog box in Control Panel. On the Port Settings tab, you can configure the baud rate faster to speed image transfer or slower to accommodate hardware limitations.
| Warning | Do not set the baud rate higher than the fastest speed supported by the hardware, or the image transfer will fail. |
The standard color profile is sRGB for Image Color Management (ICM 2.0) on the World Wide Web, in Microsoft Windows , Microsoft Office, and similar display environments. However, you can add, remove, or select an alternate color profile for a device. In Control Panel, open the Scanners and Cameras Properties dialog box, and then use the Color Management tab.
Infrared Picture Transfer (IrTran P) is an image transfer protocol that sends images to Windows XP Professional by using infrared technology. On a camera that supports IrTran P, when you press the Send button, the camera sends its stored images to Windows XP Professional. The IrTran P server in Windows XP Professional then detects the connection the camera is attempting to establish, begins a session, accepts the images, and stores them in the My Pictures folder.
To use IrTran P, you need an imaging device, typically a camera that can produce infrared transmissions, and a computer that can receive infrared transmissions. Most IrTran P devices are Plug and Play and do not need any special configuration.
Pushbutton scanning allows a scanner to associate a particular application with the push button on the scanner, and is typically configured during device installation. However, you might need to associate an application with a scanner button, if this is not done automatically. In Control Panel, open the Scanners and Cameras Properties dialog box, and then use the Events tab to configure the button events for a scanner.