Disk cleanup in Windows 7

This post will cover how to do some serious Disk cleanup in Windows 7 operating system.
To maintain your Computer you will have to do some disk cleanup from time to time otherwise you will end up with very slow machine. This is ultimate guide to increase some free space.

• Uninstall Unused Programs
  Delete everything you don't use, don't keep programs you don't need 
• Run Disk Cleanup in Windows 7
  This tool comes with windows and it is easy to use, this will free up some space
• Use CCleaner to clean junk files and internet history
  This is free easy to use tool that will delete all junk from your PC with just one click

Additionally you can delete download files that you don't need anymore that is located in "Documents - Downloads" also you can delete all other files that you have laying around.
You can read more about how to implement these steps by following posted links.

Keep your computer cleaned up and you will notice the difference...

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How to share wireless internet connection in Windows 7

There are many ways how to share wireless internet connection , one of the them is that your Windows 7 Computer acts as a WiFi Router. That is possible if your computer has two network cards.
First network card will be used to connect your computer to the Internet and with second we will create a new ad hoc wireless network. Your first network card depends of your  Internet connection provided by your ISP.

If you are using Laptop for this experiment and have Broadband Internet connection than you should have everything ready since all newer laptops have both LAN and WiFi.

Broadband connection - will need LAN Card - usually integrated with your motherboard
Wireless Connection    - will need WiFi Card  - laptops usually have this integrated

This is very useful if you are at work or somewhere where you have laptop connected to broadband Internet connection and your WiFi card is not in use. You can create wireless network using that WiFi card and share your wireless internet connection to other devices such as laptop computers ,smartphones, tablets etc.

We will use Windows 7 laptop and broadband internet to make wireless connection for other portable devices.

• Make sure that your laptop is connected to the Internet via LAN Cable
• Go to Control Panel- Network and Internet - Network and Sharing Center - Change adapter settings
• Now right click on the adapter that has internet in this case Local Area Connection - choose "properties" and switch to "sharing" tab
• Check box "Allow other network users to connect through this computer's Internet connection"
• If asked for "Home networking connection" choose "Wirelesses Network Connection"
• Go to Control Panel- Network and Internet - Network and Sharing Center
• Click "Setup a new Connection or network"  and choose "Set up a wireless ad hoc network"
• Type in network name, choose security type, key and your network is ready.

Now you can connect your portable wireless devices to the WiFi network you just created.
To delete saved ad hoc networks go to :

•  Control Panel- Network and Internet - Network and Sharing Center - Manage wireless networks -and delete your ad hoc network connection.

Note: 
"Please choose security type and key for your ad hoc network carefully to avoid any connectivity issues."

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Movie player software - VLC Player

If you are looking for DVD player freeware version or any other video format player than VLC is movie player software that you need. This player is open-source - freeware and it plays more video files than any other player. VLC is quick an easy to install, also for those who like portable applications you can search online for VLC portable movie player software.

This software has many built in codecs so most likely you wont need to bother with those anymore once yo decide to use it. Many features such us: graphic equalizer with many presets, interactive zoom, logos, overlays,  and some special video effects are included - water , wave , blur and mirror effects.
Besides all these cool features this software can be used for online streaming as well.

This is worth trying  - it is free and plays almost anything...

You can find out more on their Official Website under VLC - Features

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Speed Up Computer Shutdown

To Speed up computer shut down process you will have to do some adjustment in Registry Editor.
Before you change anything in registry it is strongly recommended that you back it up in case you run to any problems. To open registry Editor go to Start , type "regedit" and click on it.

If that doesn't work for you than you can follow this commands:
Start - type Run and open it , now inside run dialog type "regedit" and hit Enter.

Once you manage to open Registry editor follow this path:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE - SYSTEM - CurrentControlSet - Control
Inside Control folder find file WaitToKillServiceTimeout and change its value.

As a default mine was 12000 but I changed to 2000 and noticed difference.

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Windows 7 remote desktop connection with TightVNC

TightVNC is very small utility that allows you to do Windows remote desktop connection  to control computers on your LAN. This is easy to use and very powerful software for windows computers that will allow you access to another computer via LAN network or even through Internet.

Once you download TightVNC you will need to install it to both computers. On your side you can just install VNC Viewer to be able to see other computer. Now you will need to install VNC Server to computer that you want to have access to. Once competed you can access that computer by typing its IP address.

If you don't know how the see IP addresses from computers on your LAN please read this post.

During the installation process of VNC Server you will be asked it you want to use password protection and you should. If you don't set password than anyone having TightVNC viewer installed will be able to see your LAN computers desktop and control them.You can set different passwords for each computer. TightVNC can be set to connect silently and users wont even notice that you are watching their desktop. You can disable controls and just watch what they are doing or enable controls and work on their computers.

Remote desktop will be displayed on your computer same as you are using your desktop and you can do anything you like as on you own computer.

Search for TightVNC

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Scan WiFi - Wireless network connections

You can scan for WiFi network connections easy using your computer that has Wireless Card.
Just click on WiFi button that is located on your taskbar, however this will only scan available wireless networks and provide basic information.

If you require more information such as wireless channel, PHY Types, station MAC address's than WirelessNetView is perfect utility for you. This is very light , portable utility that will also provide you with signal strength ( last and  average signal strength ) for each network and detection count. You will be able to see if network is secured, what encryption, RSSI channel frequency, channel number and maximum speed.

I personally use this tool for long time already to check my WiFi coverage. Also it helps me out to avoid interference with other networks. Simply scan for WiFi connections and see what channel they use, than find free channel for your home network. Leave WiFi scanner opened for a while and based on detection counts, last and average signal you will be able to tell if yourWiFi signal is having issues.

Search for WirelessNetView 

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How to setup a router ?

In this post we will cover how to setup your router to work properly .
Routers are very powerful tools that let you take full control over your network.

For this purpose we will overview TP-Link router model TL-WR543G with extended range.
Default IP address for this router is 192.168.1.1, User Name: admin and Password : admin
This information is usually provided at the back of your router.

To access it you must connect your PC and router via LAN cable ,open web browser and type in the IP address where you will be sent to login page.After successful authentication you will be redirected to the routers main page. Now you can set operation mode for your router:

• AP Client Router is mode where device enable users to share internet from wireless service provider. Wireless port will work as WAN port where you will set the internet connection and LAN ports will be used to share the internet.This mode is used if your ISP provides you with WiFi connection. Ethernet WAN port is disabled automatically.

• AP router mode is where users are able to share ADSL/Cable connection.Wireless and LAN ports will share internet connection between users. WAN is connected to your ISP Modem/ cable. This is used often where you have cable connection and want to set the wireless connection  Your router will be broadcasting WiFi signal inside your home as well as outside - depending on routers range. That way you can sit in your backyard and surf the net with your laptop without any cables.

Under Wireless section you can set: SSID - that will be your network name,Region, Channel - there are 11 channels, choose the free one to avoid interference. Wireless router radio should be checked if you want to use WiFi. Enable SSID broadcast should be checked if you want other devices to see your network.

Also you can Enable Wireless security protect your network. Password will  be required to connect.
Use WPA2 encryption as it is almost unable to be hacked but you must set strong password.

Under site survey you can see other WiFi networks and details.
If in AP client mode here you can connect to your ISP WiFi.

DHCP settings to set DHCP server Start and End IP address, lease time, default gateway , domain ,and DNS.
Set Address reservation, reserve certain IP's for certain MAC addresses
Devices that you set will always receive same IP address. This could be useful for statistic purposes
You can set static Routing for your devices and can use QoS (Quality of Service) for certain LAN ports or WiFi to set MAX allowed upload and download speed in Mbp/s .

Some other routers can work in bridge mode or they can be used as repeaters to extend your WiFi signal.
All WiFi Routers should have in box instructions for setup. Information above should help you through your setup process, if you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact pc-related.com for instructions.

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