Chuck Guzis wrote:
The big problem that I see with Windows is that any
program that's
installed insinuates itself throughout the system. It copies DLLs
into the system folder, makes changes to the registry and may even
spawn system processes. It's like crabgrass in your lawn.
{snip}
When an application is uninstalled, it almost always leaves a pile of
detritus behind in the registry.
For those that do use Windows, for whatever reason, you might want to
take a look at Symantec's Endpoint Virtualization Suite, particularly
the Symantec Workspace Virtualization (SWV) component (formerly,
Software Virtualization Solution, SVS). We all know about virtualizing
systems, basically done at the OS level using VMWare and VirtualPC, but
SWV works at the individual application level, and imposes only a <1%
performance penalty, so this works on minimal Win2K or XP systems just fine.
The SWV solution basically installs a file and registry redirector deep
into the WinNT OS, thus allowing for the creation of independent, but
integrated, sandboxes for each of your apps as you install them. The
beauty of this is manifold, but a few key benefits are: 1) Installed
apps and their offspring are completely 'trapped' inside their sandbox
which can be instantly and 100% completely hidden or uninstalled; 2)
Installed apps can be 'refreshed/reset' to their initial post-installed
'virgin' state without reinstallation; 3) Apps can be configured as
desired, then exported to another box, or held in archive, making for a
single-step and more-or-less instant future (re)installation, with all
your configurations intact.
Symantec of course wants to sell this as part of a whole enterprise
management suite, but they do allow individuals like us to use this
application virtualization component free of charge. Just go to:
http://www.symantec.com/business/endpoint-virtualization-suite
and download the trailware. You have to go through a site registration
process, but it might be worth it to you to get SWV to play with. I'm
not sure if the present download's installation key has an expiration or
not ... I use keys from way back that are unlimited.
In the spirit of full disclosure, years ago I had a hand in inventing
and producing this technology at FSLogic which was later sold to
Altiris, which later was acquired by Symantec. This is not a paid
product promotion...I am no longer part of this project. This is just a
heads-up about some no-cost tools to help maintain a 'virgin' Windows
environment over a long period of time. Frankly, the reason I got
involved with this project in the first place was as much to get the
tools I needed to solve my own personal problems as it was a general
commercial venture. So forgive me if this sounds like I'm shilling, I'm
not. But I can't imagine working in Windows without it now that I do
have it.
-- Jared