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Guide To Installing & Optimizing Windows® XP On Your Compatible Asus Eee Notebook Computer

Note: Not all Asus Eee Notebook computers are capable or compatible with Microsoft Windows XP.  Your Eee must have a minimum of a 4GB Solid State Hard Drive (however 8GB or 20GB are preferred).

Preparing to install Windows® XP

Before installing Windows® XP operating system to your Eee PC, you need the following items.

  • A USB 2.0 DVD-ROM

  • The official Windows® XP Service Pack 2 disc from Microsoft®

  • A USB flash disk (size larger than 1GB) or external hard disk drive

  • ASUS Eee PC support DVD

The older version of Windows® OS does not support USB DVDROM.  Ensure the disc you have is Windows® XP Service Pack 2.  Your Eee PC might not be able to detect all the USB flash disks.  If it can not detect your flash drive, we recommend you use a USB flash disk smaller than 2GB.

Installing Windows® XP SP2

Follow the instructions below to install Windows® XP service pack 2:

  1. Connect the power cord to your Eee PC.

  2. Insert the Windows XP Service Pack 2 disc to the USB DVD-ROM and connect the USB optical drive to your Eee PC.

  3. Start the system and press <F2> on bootup to enter the BIOS setup. Go to Advanced > Onboard Devices Configuration and enable all the items.

  4. Go to Advanced and set OS Installation to [Start].

  5. Press <F10> to save the configuration and reboot the system.

  6. Press <ESC> on bootup and the Please select boot device screen appears. Select USB:XXXXXX (may be labeled as the ODD brand name) to boot from the optical drive.

  1. After the Windows® XP installation screen appears. Delete any existing partitions.

You will lose all your data after deleting all existing disk partitions. Be sure to back up your important data before installing Windows® XP to your Eee PC.

  1. Press <Enter> and select Format the partition using the NTFS file system to start the Windows® XP OS setup.

  2. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation process.

  3. After the Windows® XP OS installation is completed. Restart the system and press <F2> on bootup to enter the BIOS setup. Go to Advanced and set OS Installation back to [Finish].

  4. Press <F10> to save the configuration and reboot the system.

  5. After entering Windows, insert the Support DVD to the USB DVD/CD-ROM and click Install - Drivers Installation Wizard to install all drivers.

Optimizing Windows® XP

For the best performance of your Eee PC with Windows XP operating system, follow some quick steps below to make your Eee PC run faster.

Changing Virtual Memory

ASUS Eee PC support DVD will by default set the virtual memory to
200MB. Change the virtual memory based on your needs.

  1. Go to Control Panel > System.

  2. Click the Advanced tab on the top and click the Settings button in Performance area.


     

  3. Click Advanced tab and the Change button to change the virtual memory.


     

  4. Enter the Initial size and the Maximum size based on your needs.

If you are unsure about the Virtual Memory size, set both Initial and Maximum size to 256 MB.

Turning off System Restore

Though System Restore can track and reverse changes to your computer, it consumes system resources. Follow the instructions to turn off System Restore.

  1. Go to Control Panel > System.

  2. Click System Restore tab on the top.

  3. Click the box before Turn off System Restore.

Compressing Disk Drive

  1. Go to Control Panel > My Computer.

  2. Right-click Local Disk (C:) and select Properties.

  3. Check the box before Compress drive to save disk
    space    .

If an error message appears during the disk drive compression, select Skip All.  The disk drive capacity varies depending on Eee model.

Relocating Files

My Documents

  1. Click Start, right-click My Documents and select Properties.

  2. Click Move and select a destination in another
    partition.

  3. Click OK to relocate My Documents.

IE Temporary Internet Files

  1. Launch Internet Explorer.

  2. Click Tools on the top and select Internet Options.

  3. Click Settings in Temporary Internet files area.


     

  4. Click Move Folders and select a destination in another partition.

  5. Click OK to relocate Temporary Internet Files.

Deleting unnecessary Windows Components

  1. Go to Control Panel > Add or Remove Programs.

  2. Click Add/Remove Windows Components on the left to display the component wizard.

  3. Uncheck the boxes for the Windows components you do not need.

Clearing System Backup Data

  1. Go to All Programs > Accessories > Command Prompt.

  2. Key in sfc.exe/purgecache

  3. Press <Enter> to clear the system backup data.

Deleting unnecessary document files

  1. Go to Start > My Computer.

  2. Click Tools on the top and select Folder Options.

  3. Click the View tab. Toggle the option Show hidden files and folders, and unselect Hide protected operating system files (Recommended).


     

  4. Connect a USB flash disk (size larger than 1GB) or a USB hard disk drive to your Eee PC for backing up the files you want to delete.  BE SURE YOU BACKUP THESE FILES IN CASE YOU NEED TO RESTORE THEM LATER.

  5. Refer to the table on the next page for the system files you can delete. Open Local Disk (C:) and type the directories in the address field to locate the files.

If your Eee PC malfunctions after the system file removal, use the backup disk you made in step 4 to restore the files.

You can only delete the files in italics in the table above Windows Safe Mode.  Press <F8> at bootup and select Safe Mode.
Tags: Asus EEE, Utra Light Notebook Computer

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