I have noticed that my computer takes awhile to bootup. i haven't timed it but i don't think it is normal.It seems to be about 3 minutes or so Someone told me that there is a option to enable a quick bootup in Windows XP control panel but I cannot find it.Where can I find it?I do not want to edit the registry file to do as some have. How long is a normal cold boot up for windows xp. Does it hurt to leave computer in a sleep mode for days at a time. i am concerned about voltage flucuations here in California and something happeninf while it is in sleep mode. thanks in advance

3 minutes to boot up is an abnormally long time. I would check your event viewer for any problems showing red which occurred at startup. I had this problem at one time and found the Zonealarm had corrupted files. I reinstalled zonealarm and everything went back to normal. Normal bootup times should be around 30 seconds.

First, type msconfig at RUN and mkae sure the STARTUP is not starting all sorts of unnecessary programs. Also, try to find a download BOOT VIS from MS

I cannot find anything unusual in the event viewer that is red. There is an occasional yellow event in applications but i don't think that is anything to do with thsi problem. How do i enable fast bootup? Ray

You should try running Spybot Search & Destroy to eliminate spyware and do a virus scan. There are services you can stop but these shouldn't contribute to the slow bootup. One thing you should check is that if you have a network card it is not trying to obtain an IP address from a non-existant DHCP server. This can seriously slow boot time. If you have a network card manually define the IP address and DNS server settings.

How can i find out if "One thing you should check is that if you have a network card it is not trying to obtain an IP address from a non-existant DHCP server." I do not have a network card so how do I check what you suggested. I also read about unchecking all the below boxes if you not on a network...what do you think? "all you have to do is disable the network features that run at startup. To disable unneeded startup services for a safer, faster XP, use the "Services" Admin Tool (Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Services). If you are a single user of a non-networked machine, you can disable the following items, with no ill effect. Alerter Clipbook Computer Browser Fast User Switching Human Interface Access Devices Indexing Service (Slows the hard drive down) Messenger - Net Logon (unnecessary unless networked on a Domain) Netmeeting Remote Desktop Sharing (disabled for extra security) Remote Desktop Help Session Manager (disabled for extra security) Remote Procedure Call Locator Remote Registry (disabled for extra security) - Routing & Remote Access (disabled for extra security) Server SSDP Discovery Service (this is for the utterly pointless "Universal P'n'P", & leaves TCP Port 5000 wide open) TCP/IP NetBIOS Helper - Telnet (disabled for extra security) Universal Plug and Play Device Host Upload Manager - Windows Time - Wireless Zero Configuration (for wireless networks) Workstation" Thanks Ray

This page will help you speed up your PC: http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/supertweaks.htm If you need a simple solution, try mine. I try to give advise on things that have happened to my PC. Changes in registry can be FATAL!