Use Task Scheduler to schedule necessary maintenance utilities to run at specific times.

The registry is a hierarchical database that stores Windows 2000 hardware and software settings. The registry controls the Windows 2000 operating system by providing the appropriate initialization information to start applications and load components, such as device drivers and network protocols. The registry contains a variety of different types of data, including the hardware installed on the computer, the installed device drivers, applications, network protocols, and network adapter card settings.

A hive is a discrete body of keys, subkeys, and entries. Each hive has a corresponding registry file and a .LOG file located in systemroot\System 32\Config. Windows 2000 uses the .LOG file to record changes and to ensure the integrity of the registry.

Regedt32.exe is the recommended editor for viewing and modifying the registry.

Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious, system wide problems that could require reinstallation of Windows2000. When using Registry Editor to view data, save a backup copy of the registry file before viewing and click Read Only Mode on the Option menu to prevent accidental updating or deleting of configuration data.

You can leave the disk as a basic disk  and than create a combination of primary partitions (up to three) and logical drives in an extended partition;  or, you can upgrade the disk to a dynamic disk and create five 2-GB simple volumes.