5 tips for running Windows XP relatively safely

A Guy

A Guy

Righteous Dude
Guru
VIP
SF Team
Local time
7:01 PM
Messages
33,043
Location
Bay Area
Microsoft no longer supports Windows XP, an OS still used by approximately 20-25% of Windows customers. That means one in four PC users must upgrade to a more secure, supported version of Windows or risk their un-updated, un-patched version of Windows XP catching a virus or other Internet bug. As a rule of thumb, we always recommend upgrading your OS and then updating it as often as possible to protect your system. If you're switching to a new OS, read how to migrate easily from Windows XP. However, if you're a die-hard who wants to keep a Windows XP machine, here are five tips for keeping it running as safely and smoothly as possible until you upgrade.
Click to expand...

Source

A Guy
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
OS
Windows 10 Home x64
CPU
INTEL Core i5-750 Quad-Core 3.37GHz
Motherboard
ASUS P7P55D
Memory
HyperX Fury Black Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 1866Mhz
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA GeForce GTX 750 Superclocked 1GB 128-Bit GDDR5
Monitor(s) Displays
LG 32MA68HY 32" IPS
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080
Hard Drives
Samsung 840 Evo 120GB, SEAGATE 500GB Barracuda® 7200.12, SATA 3 Gb/s, 7200 RPM, 16MB cache
PSU
ANTEC TruePower New TP-550, 80 PLUS, 550W
Case
ANTEC Three Hundred Illusion
Cooling
COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus, 4 x 120mm 1 x 140mm Noctua's
Internet Speed
85 + Mbps
Antivirus
Avast
Browser
Vivaldi
Hi there

I can't believe that article didn't mention running it as a VM although it did mention it's best not to connect it to a network or the Internet.

Running as a Stand alone machine though should be 100% safe - especially if the machine is dedicated to a single set of tasks - for example connected to lab test gear.

Cheers
jimbo
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom built, several laptops HP/ASUS
OS
Linux CENTOS 7 / various Windows OS'es and servers
CPU
Intel i7 Intel i5
Memory
8GB, 16GB
Graphics Card(s)
On Motherboard
Sound Card
Realtek HD audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Apple Cinema display, Samsung LCD
Screen Resolution
1920 X 1080
Hard Drives
4 X 1TB SATA
Mouse
Toshiba wireless laser
Internet Speed
> 20MB up
I can't believe this irresponsible article was even published! What a load! Only the fourth suggestion was even close to being accurate; it should have just said to completely disconnect from the internet instead of suggesting to limit internet use.
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom Build
OS
Win 7 Ultimate 64 bit
CPU
Intel i7-3930K
Motherboard
ASUS P9X79 WS
Memory
Kingston HyperX Genesis 32GB Kit (8x4GB Modules) 1600MHz DDR
Graphics Card(s)
MSI R7850 Twin Frozr 2GD5/OC Radeon HD 7850 2GB 256-bit GDDR
Sound Card
Asus Xonar Essence STX
Monitor(s) Displays
3x Asus VG248QE 24", Vizio 32" TV
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080, ?
Hard Drives
Samsung 128GB 840 Pro SSD (1),
Samsung 4TB 850 EVO SSDs (4)
Samsung 4TB 850 EVO SSDs (16) external backup drives used in 2.5" hot swap bays in the computer.
PSU
Corsair HX750w
Case
Antec Two Hundred v2 (modified)
Cooling
Cooler Master GeminII S524 120mm (fan replaced with a 140mm)
Keyboard
Logitech G510s
Mouse
Logitech M525 (two in use)
Internet Speed
=< 32Mbps down, 8Mbps up
Antivirus
AVAST!, MBAM, SAS, Spybot S&D (all but MBAM free) Glary Util
Browser
IE11
Other Info
LSI 9211-8i HBA card (8 SATA III ports), 2.5" & 3.5" Hot Swap Bays, HooToo HT-CR001 PCI-E to USB 3.0 Internal Hub + 6 Slot Card Reader, and LG Model CH12LS28 BD-ROM Optical Drive. Also, ScanSnap S1500 ADF duplexing scanner, Canon 9000F flat bed scanner, Corsair SP2500 2.1 speakers, Samsung CLP 415nw laser color printer, Cyberpower PP2200SW UPS
The first thing wrong with XP, was that with the standard default builds "loading XP' is that the generic user has admin rights...
meaning that anything the user does, has no restrictions on what is done or loaded..
On the generic XP load (O/S) the user can do anything.

This also means that any web pages visited also gets run with the user rights that the person is logged in as.

The first rule should be, never surf the net in an admin account, always use a normal user account.
 

My Computer

OS
Win7 64

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom assembled by me :}
OS
Win-7-Pro64bit 7-H-Prem-64bit
CPU
i7-5930K 2nd i9-9940x both water blocked VRM's too
Motherboard
ASUS SABERTOOTH X99 2nd ASUS x299 Apex
Memory
Trident-z 3200C14 2nd Trident-z 3600C16
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA 1080ti ftw3 2nd Titan Xp both water blocked
Sound Card
Built-in Realtek
Monitor(s) Displays
1-AOC G2460PG 24"G-Sync 144Hz/ 2nd 1-ASUS VG248QE 24" 144Hz
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080 144Hz
Hard Drives
2-Samsung M.2 Evo & Evo Plus
2-Samsung 850 EVO 500GB SSD's/ 3-2.5 W.D. Black 1tb-&3-1tb/3-3.5 WD Black 1tb hdd's
PSU
EVGA SuperNOVA 1000-P2 2nd 1200-P2
Case
2-Corsair Obsidian Series 450D Black ATX Mid Tower
Cooling
Custom water loops
Keyboard
Logitech G710+/ 2nd Logitech G910
Mouse
2-RedDragon M901 Perdition 16400 dpi Gaming mouse = wired
Internet Speed
Comcast Ping 19ms 89.31mbps download speed 6.12mbps upload
Antivirus
Malwarebytes Pro/ Superantispyware Pro
Browser
FireFox & Pale moon
Other Info
2nd ASUS X299 Apex/Intel i9-9940x with Custom water loop/7H-Prem-x64/Corsair 450D case/Ram Trident-z 3600C16 4x8gb / Samsung970Evo plus 500gb SSD/Dual ssd EZ swap evo/PSU EVGA SuperNova 1200w-P2 80+Platinum/GPU Titan Xp /8-ML-140 on push-pull on 2-280GTX rads
Iforgot said:
The first thing wrong with XP, was that with the standard default builds "loading XP' is that the generic user has admin rights...
meaning that anything the user does, has no restrictions on what is done or loaded..
On the generic XP load (O/S) the user can do anything.

This also means that any web pages visited also gets run with the user rights that the person is logged in as.

The first rule should be, never surf the net in an admin account, always use a normal user account.
Click to expand...
I agree with your "first rule", but...

All Windows, including 8.x, installs with an account with admin rights, not just XP. Vista and later versions have added UAC to warn users of the pending system changes, even with the account having admin rights. Since Vista, people have been asking how to disable UAC... :rolleyes:

What MS should've done starting with Vista is to run the installation with admin rights, force the installer to create a user account with no admin rights, and prevent logging in with the admin account. You know, more like how Linux does it...
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom built at Home
OS
Windows 7 64-bit, Windows 8.1 64-bit, OSX El Capitan, Windows 10 (VMware)
CPU
Intel i5-3350P 3.1 GHz
Motherboard
Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UP5 TH
Memory
16 GBs GSkill Sniper
Graphics Card(s)
Radeon HD 7850
Sound Card
VIA HD Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell U2410 24"
Screen Resolution
1920x1200
Hard Drives
1 x Intel 520 240 GBs
1 x Seagate 1TBs SATA 2.0,
1 x Seagate 1TBs eSATA 2.0
PSU
Thermaltake 850W
Case
Antec P183
Cooling
Noctua NH-D14 Heatsink 2 x 120mm fans, 4 x 120mm case fans
Keyboard
Dell Multimedia keyboard
Mouse
Logitech Trackball
Internet Speed
28.5 Mb/s
Cr00zng said:
Iforgot said:
The first thing wrong with XP, was that with the standard default builds "loading XP' is that the generic user has admin rights...
meaning that anything the user does, has no restrictions on what is done or loaded..
On the generic XP load (O/S) the user can do anything.

This also means that any web pages visited also gets run with the user rights that the person is logged in as.

The first rule should be, never surf the net in an admin account, always use a normal user account.
Click to expand...


What MS should've done starting with Vista is to run the installation with admin rights, force the installer to create a user account with no admin rights, and prevent logging in with the admin account. You know, more like how Linux does it...
Click to expand...

Nothing controversial there :zip:
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom assembled by me :}
OS
Win-7-Pro64bit 7-H-Prem-64bit
CPU
i7-5930K 2nd i9-9940x both water blocked VRM's too
Motherboard
ASUS SABERTOOTH X99 2nd ASUS x299 Apex
Memory
Trident-z 3200C14 2nd Trident-z 3600C16
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA 1080ti ftw3 2nd Titan Xp both water blocked
Sound Card
Built-in Realtek
Monitor(s) Displays
1-AOC G2460PG 24"G-Sync 144Hz/ 2nd 1-ASUS VG248QE 24" 144Hz
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080 144Hz
Hard Drives
2-Samsung M.2 Evo & Evo Plus
2-Samsung 850 EVO 500GB SSD's/ 3-2.5 W.D. Black 1tb-&3-1tb/3-3.5 WD Black 1tb hdd's
PSU
EVGA SuperNOVA 1000-P2 2nd 1200-P2
Case
2-Corsair Obsidian Series 450D Black ATX Mid Tower
Cooling
Custom water loops
Keyboard
Logitech G710+/ 2nd Logitech G910
Mouse
2-RedDragon M901 Perdition 16400 dpi Gaming mouse = wired
Internet Speed
Comcast Ping 19ms 89.31mbps download speed 6.12mbps upload
Antivirus
Malwarebytes Pro/ Superantispyware Pro
Browser
FireFox & Pale moon
Other Info
2nd ASUS X299 Apex/Intel i9-9940x with Custom water loop/7H-Prem-x64/Corsair 450D case/Ram Trident-z 3600C16 4x8gb / Samsung970Evo plus 500gb SSD/Dual ssd EZ swap evo/PSU EVGA SuperNova 1200w-P2 80+Platinum/GPU Titan Xp /8-ML-140 on push-pull on 2-280GTX rads
ThrashZone said:
Cr00zng said:
Iforgot said:
The first thing wrong with XP, was that with the standard default builds "loading XP' is that the generic user has admin rights...
meaning that anything the user does, has no restrictions on what is done or loaded..
On the generic XP load (O/S) the user can do anything.

This also means that any web pages visited also gets run with the user rights that the person is logged in as.

The first rule should be, never surf the net in an admin account, always use a normal user account.
Click to expand...


What MS should've done starting with Vista is to run the installation with admin rights, force the installer to create a user account with no admin rights, and prevent logging in with the admin account. You know, more like how Linux does it...
Click to expand...

Nothing controversial there :zip:
Click to expand...


Really?

It's certainly not something I'd want.


Wenda.
 

My Computer

Computer type
Laptop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Acer AS5735
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 32-bit; Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit (VM).
CPU
Intel T6500 Core 2 Duo@2Ghz.
Motherboard
Acer
Memory
3GB DDR2
Graphics Card(s)
Intel 4500MHD
Sound Card
Realtek onboard
Monitor(s) Displays
Built-in, no touch
Screen Resolution
1366x768
Hard Drives
250GB SATA in two equal partitions.
PSU
Stock
Case
Laptop
Cooling
Stock
Keyboard
Full 101-key
Mouse
USB cordless IR
Antivirus
MSE
Browser
IE9, Firefox.
Other Info
A top little machine that hasn't let me down once since the day I removed it from its packaging over four years ago. It's done everything I could want, and more, all without a single issue. 10/10, Acer!!
LOL definitely the socialist version :D

Not sure it would be all that popular in a free country,
Possibly Russia or North China....:roflmao:
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom assembled by me :}
OS
Win-7-Pro64bit 7-H-Prem-64bit
CPU
i7-5930K 2nd i9-9940x both water blocked VRM's too
Motherboard
ASUS SABERTOOTH X99 2nd ASUS x299 Apex
Memory
Trident-z 3200C14 2nd Trident-z 3600C16
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA 1080ti ftw3 2nd Titan Xp both water blocked
Sound Card
Built-in Realtek
Monitor(s) Displays
1-AOC G2460PG 24"G-Sync 144Hz/ 2nd 1-ASUS VG248QE 24" 144Hz
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080 144Hz
Hard Drives
2-Samsung M.2 Evo & Evo Plus
2-Samsung 850 EVO 500GB SSD's/ 3-2.5 W.D. Black 1tb-&3-1tb/3-3.5 WD Black 1tb hdd's
PSU
EVGA SuperNOVA 1000-P2 2nd 1200-P2
Case
2-Corsair Obsidian Series 450D Black ATX Mid Tower
Cooling
Custom water loops
Keyboard
Logitech G710+/ 2nd Logitech G910
Mouse
2-RedDragon M901 Perdition 16400 dpi Gaming mouse = wired
Internet Speed
Comcast Ping 19ms 89.31mbps download speed 6.12mbps upload
Antivirus
Malwarebytes Pro/ Superantispyware Pro
Browser
FireFox & Pale moon
Other Info
2nd ASUS X299 Apex/Intel i9-9940x with Custom water loop/7H-Prem-x64/Corsair 450D case/Ram Trident-z 3600C16 4x8gb / Samsung970Evo plus 500gb SSD/Dual ssd EZ swap evo/PSU EVGA SuperNova 1200w-P2 80+Platinum/GPU Titan Xp /8-ML-140 on push-pull on 2-280GTX rads
Hi there

Using XP in the UK wouldn't be a problem --they've BLOCKED so many sites that using a NORTH KOREAN or CHINESE Gov't sponsored proxy would probably grant you more Internet access -- and therefore sites from which you could get a virus would be Non existant. :devil::mad:


Cheers
jimbo
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom built, several laptops HP/ASUS
OS
Linux CENTOS 7 / various Windows OS'es and servers
CPU
Intel i7 Intel i5
Memory
8GB, 16GB
Graphics Card(s)
On Motherboard
Sound Card
Realtek HD audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Apple Cinema display, Samsung LCD
Screen Resolution
1920 X 1080
Hard Drives
4 X 1TB SATA
Mouse
Toshiba wireless laser
Internet Speed
> 20MB up
Cr00zng said:
Iforgot said:
The first thing wrong with XP, was that with the standard default builds "loading XP' is that the generic user has admin rights...
meaning that anything the user does, has no restrictions on what is done or loaded..
On the generic XP load (O/S) the user can do anything.

This also means that any web pages visited also gets run with the user rights that the person is logged in as.

The first rule should be, never surf the net in an admin account, always use a normal user account.
Click to expand...
I agree with your "first rule", but...

All Windows, including 8.x, installs with an account with admin rights, not just XP. Vista and later versions have added UAC to warn users of the pending system changes, even with the account having admin rights. Since Vista, people have been asking how to disable UAC... :rolleyes:

What MS should've done starting with Vista is to run the installation with admin rights, force the installer to create a user account with no admin rights, and prevent logging in with the admin account. You know, more like how Linux does it...
Click to expand...


M$ should have left the "administrator" account active, then prompt the user for a normal usage account.
also the installers should have advised there clients as to why.
Maybe explain what "runas" is and why.
 

My Computer

OS
Win7 64
Wenda said:
ThrashZone said:
Cr00zng said:
What MS should've done starting with Vista is to run the installation with admin rights, force the installer to create a user account with no admin rights, and prevent logging in with the admin account. You know, more like how Linux does it...
Click to expand...

Nothing controversial there :zip:
Click to expand...


Really?

It's certainly not something I'd want.


Wenda.
Click to expand...


Wenda ???
why?

Thrashzone
Come on unzip it :)
 

My Computer

OS
Win7 64
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top