Disable the Turn off computer button on the Welcome screen

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By default, the Microsoft Windows XP logon screen displays a Turn off computer button. This display seems convenient, until one of your kids happens to shut down your computer and close all your programs. To prevent this from happening, you can disable the Turn off computer button. You can still shut down your computer; you just have to log on with a computer administrator account first.

To disable the Turn off computer button on the Welcome screen:

1.	Log on to your computer as an administrator. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
2.	Click Performance and Maintenance.
3.	Click Administrative Tools.
4.	Double-click Local Security Policy.
5.	Expand Local Policies by clicking the plus sign next to it, and then click Security Options.
6.	In the right pane, double-click the Shutdown:  Allow system to be shut down without having to log on policy.
7.	Click Disabled, and then click OK.

Windows XP removes the Turn off computer button from the Welcome screen—so no more shutting down without logging on!

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By default when you start up Windows XP you will receive the "Welcome Screen". Each account then has an image next to the name etc...
If you have ever used a PC with Windows 2000 Professional then you will have used the "Logon Screen"
This same screen is an option to users of Windows XP. Here the user types in both the account name and password into a small dialog box.

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I personally prefer the "Log On" screen - (NB - If you are using Windows XP Professional on a "domain" based network then the "Welcome Screen" is not an option for you to use...)
If you wish to turn off the "Welcome Screen"
1) Start > Control Panel > User Accounts
2) Select "Change the way users log on or off"
3) Uncheck the "Welcome Screen" option
4) Click "Apply Options"
5) The settings will take effect when you log off.
The "Log On" option also changes the way "Ctrl Alt Del" works...
Under the "Welcome Screen" option you are taken into the "Task Manager" dialog box.
Under the "Log On Screen" you are given the Windows Security dialog box, which gives you far more options!
The "Log On Screen" also renames "Turn Off Computer" on the Start menu to "Shut Down".
The other main feature you get is the ability to log on to ANY user account, whereas under the "Welcome Screen" you can NOT access hidden users.
So, as you can see there are benefits to using the "Log On Screen" over the "Welcome Screen" option.
Please check out the other Windows XP Tips ...

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The Windows XP Welcome screen vs logon screen

If your Windows XP welcome screen won't come up when you start your computer, your Windows is probably set to show the "logon screen" at startup.

You can easily switch between the welcome screen and the "logon screen" :

• Click the Start button
• Select "control panel"
• Select "user accounts"
• Select "Change the way users log on or off"
• (Un)check the "Welcome Screen" option
• Click "Apply options"

The next time you log on to your computer, you will logon through the welcome screen.
Note : if your computer is a member of a domain, you won't be able to use the welcome screen option.
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Windows XP welcome screen

• When you hit ctrl-alt-delete, you invoke the Windows XP Task Manager
• Windows shows "turn off computer" on the Windows XP start menu
  
• You can not use "hidden" user accounts to log on

Windows XP logon screen

• The ctrl-alt-delete keyboard combination brings you to the Windows security dialog box
• Windows shows "shut down" on the Windows XP start menu
  
• You can enter ANY user/password combination in the logon screen, including hidden user accounts
• You can customize the Windows XP logon screen

Customize the logon screen ?

Yes, when you have your Windows set up to use the logon screen, you can customize the background color. Or you can personalize some more by giving it your favorite image or picture as background image.

To change the background color :

• Right-click an empty spot on your desktop
• Select "properties"
• Click the "appearance" tab
• Click the "advanced" button
• Click on the "color1" drop-down list and select "other"
• Pick the color of your choice and make a note of the red, green and blue values in the lower-right corner of the color dialog box (for instance 128 64 64)
• Click "cancel"
• In the "advanced appearance" dialog, also click cancel
• In the "display properties" dialog, click cancel once more
• Then, click the Start button and select "Run"
• In the "open" field, type regedit and click ok
• In the registry editor, navigate to HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\CONTROL PANEL\COLORS and double-click the "background" string. The default value should be 0 78 152, but you can now change it to the values for red, green and blue that you wrote down previously (e.g. 128 64 64). Enter the values in the correct red-green-blue order, separated with a space.
• Close the registry editor

The changes take place when you log off.

To put your favorite image or picture in the background of the logon screen :

• Click the Start button and select "Run"
• In the "open" field, type regedit and click ok
• In the registry editor, navigate to HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\CONTROL PANEL\DESKTOP and double-click the string "wallpaper"
• Enter the full path and filename of the .bmp image that you want to use as background (the image must be in .bmp format)
• Click "ok" and close the registry editor

The changes take effect as soon as you log off and on again.

A customized Windows XP logon screen

If you change the string HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\CONTROL PANEL\DESKTOP\TILEWALLPAPER to 1 instead of 0, you will get a tiled effect with the bitmap :

Return from "Windows XP Welcome Screen" to the other Windows XP tips and tricks.
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