Windows 7 disables the AutoPlay feature which has been abused by malware (like Conficker). Now, Microsoft provides this same functionality for Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista, and Windows Server 2008.
Download Disable AutoPlay for Windows
As an administrator, I like to have FULL control of the computer that I use everyday. Most companies deploy group policies that will set defaults to your computer, and not allow you to change those settings. This will require that you are an administrator of the computer that you are using.
Open Regedit, and navigate to HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\gpsrv. Right click on the gpsrv key, and select Permissions. Go to Advanced, and the Owner Tab. Change owner to your account, and click OK. Next, select Administrators, and check the Full Control box.
Click OK to close the permissions window, and look on the right hand section of Regedit. Look for this start key. Double click the Start DWORD, and change the value to 4 – this disables the service.
Reboot, and you will not get any group policies assigned to your computer. Note, that every time you log in, you will get a message, warning you that Windows cannot connect to the Group Policy service. Just click the X, and ignore. 
It is best to do this before you have joined your computer to the domain. Do it with a local account that has administrative rights, reboot, then join the domain. This will ensure that you do not get any policies applied to your machine.
Microsoft released Service Pack 2 today for Windows Server 2008, and Windows Vista (all versions). With performance enhancements, and other bug fixes, this is a must have update. Make sure you have Service Pack 1 installed already, as it is a prerequisite.
Download Vista/Server 2008 SP2 32bit
Download Vista/Server 2008 SP2 64bit
A friend of mine, Scott, works at Microsoft, and he sent me this KB article today, and a note:
One of the guys on my new team does the "Fix it" links. I stumbled on this one a few days back and might come in handy if you think your Vista logon time has started to slow down a bit.
Thanks for the lookout Scott!
The KB Article is here: KB958909
Vista’s UAC can be annoying, and although I’ve shared with you how to make it less annoying, Norton (Symantec) has come up with a replacement UAC that is makes it much better!
With one BIG feature – “Don’t ask me again” I think I’m in love! There are several programs I run during the course of the day that the UAC prompts me. I run them every day I don’t need to be prompted to open the command prompt, or and administrative mmc window! Also, it’s fast! Much faster than the default Windows UAC.
Thanks to Norton UAC Replacement, I’m running UAC-less on the daily apps that I use, but still have the protection from of UAC for everything else! Although it is in Beta, Norton UAC Replacement is solid, and I have had no issues so far – I’ve been running it for about two weeks now.
Link: http://www.nortonlabs.com/inthelab/uac.php
