Task Manager Path In Windows Vista
Stay on top of the latest Windows Vista tips and tricks with our free Windows Vista Report, delivered each Friday.In this edition of the Windows Vista Report, I’llinvestigate Windows Vista’s new Task Manager and allow you to quickly reap thebenefits of my detective work. Accessing the Windows Vista Task ManagerYou can access the Task Manager in Windows Vista in the sameways you can in Windows XP with a few slight differences.
For example, you canright-click on the Taskbar and select Task Manager from the context menu or youcan press Ctrl+Shift+Esc. You can also call upTask Manager by launching its executable file; however, rather than having touse the Run dialog box, you can do it from the Start Search box-just accessthe Start menu, type taskmgr, and press Enter. Now,if you press Ctrl+Alt+Delete, you’ll see a fullscreen menu, as shown in Figure A, and can click Start Task Manager.Figure APressing Ctrl+Alt+Delete will bring up afull screen menu with an option to Start Task Manager.Applications tabWhen you access the Applications tab, as shown in Figure B,you’ll discover that it operates exactly the same in Windows Vista as it doesin Windows XP.
Task Manager Path In Windows Vista Free
It allows you to determine the status of a task as well as end,switch, or create a new task.new column header features make it easy to sort the list onApplications tab. When you’re troubleshooting Windows Vista, you’ll discoverthat the Processes tab provides you with more detailed information. Forexample, when you access the Processes tab, shown in Figure C, right off thebat you’ll notice the new Description column which identifies each process.Description column proved very useful information in a troubleshootingsituation.If you need even more information, just pull down the Viewmenu and choose the Select Columns command to reveal the Select Process PageColumns dialog box, as shown in Figure D. You can then get more descriptivedetail by selecting the Image Path Name or Command Line check boxes. The ImagePath Name setting shows the full path to the file behind the running processwhile the Command Line setting shows the full command line, including theparameters or switches used to launch the process.Figure DYou can get even more descriptive information by adding the Image Path Nameand Command Line headers to the Processes tab.You can glean other useful information about a particularprocess by right-clicking on it and selecting the OpenFile Location or Properties command, as shown in Figure E.When you select theOpen File Location, Windows Explorer opens the folder containing the file. SelectingProperties opens the file's standard Properties dialog box.Figure EYou can right click on a process and select the Open File Location orProperties commandsServices tabThe Services tab shown in Figure F is completely new to theTask Manager in Windows Vista.
This provides you with a convenient way toquickly view the Services that are running while you're troubleshooting.Figure FThe Services tab is completely new to the Task Manager in Windows Vista.If you want to investigate whether a running service is tiedto a particular process, you can right-click on the service name and select theGo to Process command, as shown in Figure G. When you do, Task Manager willthen switch to the Processes tab and highlight the associated process.Figure GUsing the Go to Process tab makes it easy to identify services running asprocesses.Keep in mind that If you click Go to Process and no processis highlighted in the Processes tab, the process is not running under your useraccount. To view all processes you’ll need to click Show processes from allusers button and go through the UAC. Performance tabThe most changed tab in Windows Vista’s Tack Manager is the Performancetab, shown in Figure H. While at a quick glance it may appear to be the same,upon closer inspection you’ll see that the bottom graphs and the majority ofthe statistics now measure actual memory usage rather than page file usage. Italso displays system uptime as well as provides a link to the full blownResource Monitor.Figure HThe Performance tab now provides information on actual memory usage.Networking and Users tabWhen you access the Networking and Users tabs, shown inFigures I and J, you’ll see that they are essentially the same as in WindowsXP. On the Networking tab you can view network status and see how your networkis functioning.
On the Users tab, you can see who is logged on to the system. ConclusionIf you’ve become accustomed to using the Task Manager inWindows XP for troubleshooting, then you’re really going to love the newfeatures in Windows Vista’s Task Manager. If you have any information orcomments to share about Windows Vista’s Task Manager, please stop by theDiscussion area and let us hear from you.