Windows Vista disk enumeration optimizations are disabled on certain Windows Vista-based computers that are using a hot swappable drive bay. This behavior may cause some perceived decrease in performance on start times.

Microsoft released a slew of updates on Tuesday, which extended beyond security related fixes. They also made available the Release Candidate for Service Pack 1, which among other things, is said to improve performance when copying and moving files. If you’re running Vista on your production machine, you probably won’t want to install SP1 RC, as it’s not quite ready for prime time. You can now get the disk performance improvements without installing SP1 RC through an official Microsoft Update that was also released on Tuesday. Keep reading →

When you run the chkdsk /r command or the chkdsk /f command to check a hard disk that is larger than 2 terabytes on a Windows Vista-based computer, the command takes a long time to run.

This problem occurs if the disk is an Integrated Drive Electronics (IDE) hard disk or Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA) hard disk.

• Security rules for Windows Firewall and for IPsec-based connections in Windows Vista and in Windows Server 2008
  Details on security rules for the built in firewall, IPsec, and how to establish an encrypted conection between various versions of Windows.
  (tags: Firewall IPsec )
• How the default response rule for IPsec policies functions in Windows Vista and in Windows Server 2008 Beta 3
  Learn about the default response rule for IPsec policies and how to create a replacement rule.
  (tags: IPsec )

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If you like getting into the nuts and bolts of Vista, here’s details related to changes made to the file system and storage stack to restrict direct access to the disk or volume to reduce corruption or instability. Keep reading →

Consider the following scenario.

• On a Windows Vista-based computer, you install the hotfix that is mentioned in Microsoft Knowledge Base article 932626.
• You plug in an IBM MicroDrive PCMCIA device into the computer.

In this scenario, you may notice that the MicroDrive drive letter does not appear in the Disk Management node of the Computer Management console. However, the IBM MicroDrive drive letter did appear in the console before you installed this hotfix.

• Windows Vista Continues to Increase Market Share.
  Slowly but surely Vista is getting installed on more machines, and is becoming more visible through internet browsing stats.
  (tags: PR )
• PowerPlaylist for Windows Vista Media Center
  This just released application adds a custom strip to the Media Center start menu with up to five tiles that represent an audio, slideshow and/or visualization combination which will start when the tile is selected.
  (tags: Media Center )

Keep reading →

Microsoft has released a Knowledge Base article that describes the new features in Vista’s disk defragmentation utility. Keep reading →

Consider the following scenario:

• You are running a Windows Vista-based computer that has a USB card reader or a built-in card reader.
• You try to use the Computer Management tool.

In this scenario, you may receive one of the following error messages.

Message 1

Windows - No Disk
There is no disk in the drive.
Please insert a disk into drive.

Message 2

Windows - no disk Exception
processing message - 0×0000013 Parameters parameters1parameters2parameters3parameters4

After you click any of the buttons in the error message, Windows Vista appears to work correctly.

This problem occurs if the following conditions are true:

• The Removable Disks: Deny read access Group Policy setting and the Removable Disks: Deny write access Group Policy setting are enabled on the computer.
• There is no media in the card reader.

Note: This problem may also occur under other conditions. For example, this problem may occur if the GrooveMonitor.exe process is running.

In Windows Vista, when you use Windows Explorer to try to copy files to an Iomega REV drive that contains a write-protected disk, you do not receive an error message. Instead, a Mastering dialog box appears in which the Mastering option is enabled. When you click OK, and then you try to burn the files, you receive the following error message:

You can’t add files to this disc.

Then, the disk is ejected.

When you insert a disk that is not write-protected in the Iomega REV drive, and then you try to burn the files, you receive the following error message:

The disc in the drive is not a writable disc or it is full.

Then, the disk is ejected.