Chapter Summary

• In Windows, you control the installation and removal of devices by using the Add/Remove Hardware tool in Control Panel. Windows XP also supports Plug and Play devices, which greatly simplify installation and configuration.

• Device Manager is the primary tool for managing and troubleshooting hardware devices. Device Manager provides a central location to view the status of hardware devices, enable and disable devices, change hardware settings, and troubleshoot hardware issues.

• System Information displays configuration information about a computer. You can document a computer’s current configuration by printing the information or by saving it to a file.

• Faulty hardware drivers can cause a computer running Windows XP to become unstable or to fail entirely. Driver signing allows Windows XP to identify drivers that have passed all WHQL tests.

• Windows Troubleshooters are special types of help files that allow you pinpoint problems and identify solutions by asking a series of questions and then providing you with detailed troubleshooting information based on your responses.

• A hardware profile is a collection of configuration information about the hardware on your computer. Within a profile, each piece of hardware (such as networking adapters, ports, monitors, and so on) can be enabled, disabled, or given specific configuration information. You can have any number of hardware profiles on a computer and switch between different profiles when booting into Windows XP.