01/06/2009
Configuring a Sitecore Workstation Part 7: Configure a User Account
This post is part of a series about Configuring a Sitecore Workstation. Previous post: Image the System.
Configure each user account as follows:
- Where relevant, set the local username to the domain username, and the password to the domain password.
- The password never expires.
- Add the user to the Administrators and Remote Desktop Users roles.
- Disable the Windows Welcome Center and the sidebar.
- Select a screen saver and require a password on both resuming from the screen saver and waking from sleep or hibernate.
- Show extensions for known file types.
- Configure power settings such that the power button turns the machine off, the sleep button hibernates, and closing the lid does nothing.
- ***JW: Create the VPN connection, configure Outlook, and confirm CRM access (not for administrators).***
- ***JW: attach Outlook archive file, if any.***
- On Windows Vista, Windows 2008, and presumably Windows 7, disable User Account Control.
- For Vista, select Window Color and Appearance, and then select Windows Aero.
- Disable the Language bar, the Windows Search Deskbar, and other useless features.
- Configure Windows Taskbar and Start Menu Properties to show the quick launch toolbar and expand all menus.
- Delete unnecessary desktop and Quick Launch toolbar icons.
- Select the user’s time zone.
- Check Autoruns, Internet Explorer add-ins, and services once more (see a previous post in this series, Configure Applications).
- Empty the recycle bin and perform other cleanup operations as described in the previous post in this series, ***
To configure Internet Explorer:
- Add all local Web sites to the Trusted Sites zone in Internet Explorer.
- Delete all browser bookmarks and bookmark folders.
- Disable suggested sites.
- Choose custom settings.
- Download updates.
- Disable accelerators.
- Enable the SmartScreen (Phishing) filter.
- Disable add-ins and toolbars, show small icons, and otherwise maximize screen space without hiding the status bar.
- ***TODO: Protected mode? Tabs? Bookmarks? Trusted domains?***
- Apply everything from the summary at http://sdn5.sitecore.net/sdn5/reference/sitecore%206/ie%20configuration%20reference.aspx. Specifically:
- Install Adobe Flash (http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/).
- Install Windows Web Folders or the Windows Desktop Experience.
- Add any CMS instances to Trusted Sites.
- In regedit:
- Create 32-bit DWORD HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main\SessionMerging with value 0.
- Create 32-bit DWORDs HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\MaxConnectionsPer1_0Server and MaxConnectionsPerServer with decimal values of 10.
- Configure Trusted Sites:
- Allow script-initiated windows without size or position constraints.
- Allow websites to open windows without address or status bars.
- Disable the pop-up blocker.
- Disable the SmartScreen filter.
- Enable programmatic clipboard access.
- Enable launching programs and files in an iframe.
- On the General tab:
- Open popups in new windows.
- Clear browser cache when Internet Explorer starts.
- Delete browsing history on exit.
- On the Advanced tab:
- Enable script debugging (for developers).
- Display a notification about every script error (for developers).
- Disable reuse of windows for launching shortcuts.
- Disable friendly HTTP error messages.
- Empty temporary Internet files folder when the browser is closed.
If time permits, defragment and check the hard drive for errors.
I configure the following on my own systems:
- Show notification icons and activity animation for all network connections.
- Don’t hide inactive notification icons.
- Select the maximum pointer speed under Motion on the Pointer Options tab in the Mouse control panel.
- Firefox to prompt for a directory when downloading (Tools > Options > Main).
- Configure Windows Taskbar and Start Menu Properties to show exclude Help and Support from Windows Start menu so I don’t click them by accident, and select small icons so I can fit more on menus.
- ***JW: Additional task bar/start menu configuration***
- After installing the touchpad driver, disable the touchpad (I use an external mouse if I can, or the pointing stick if I have to, so the touchpad just causes interference). I can also do without the mouse icon in the notification area.
My Word configuration instructions may be a little detailed, but I write technical documentation for a living:
- Copy templates to \Documents and Settings\<user>\Application Data\Microsoft\Templates or \Users\jw\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Templates.
- Configure ALT-1 through ALT-4 to apply heading styles 1 through 4 (CTRL-ALT-SHFT-S, right-click, Modify, Format, Shortcut Key, Assign). I also use CTRL-T for typewriter and ALT-C for and ALT-T for fixed-width fonts (code sample and “teletype”).
- Click the Home tab, then click Clipboard dialog launcher, and then click Options. Note that I am currently evaluating http://www.cybermatrix.com/cmdownloads.html). This is what I choose, but these settings seem to cause issues for applications including Windows Live Writer.
- It might be more reliable to show these than to describe them. Click the Office button at the top left, and then click Word Options.
- On the Popular tab, show the Developer tab and disable Full Screen Reading:
![image_thumb211[1]](https://zlpvxg.bay.livefilestore.com/y1muT-VdtT6F83s1xzE8LwzFAsGd5fRNGLPZ8xloLQhBzNK7CmZ15NDfA6Akwk9J7PA7qlhBifOSfCqYFMiEcOJnPCCuHuQMvro_rc0D4n4K__zOLqHTDqEmGSu40H4g-mO0KxuTRMWMmIozUEyeMDVAg/image_thumb211[1][5].png "image_thumb211[1]")
On the Display tab, Show and print most hidden things, and update references whenever possible: 
On the Proofing tab, enable grammar strict grammar checking: 
Set AutoCorrect Options: 
And the AutoFormat at As You Type tab: 
- Still on the Proofing tab, configure Grammar checking:
- Including Use of first person:
- On the Advanced tab, don’t change Default paragraph style as I have done:
- I no longer change the options for pasting with formatting, Instead, when I need to, I CTRL-SHFT-ALT-V to paste unformatted text.
- Buy as many socks as possible of the exact same color and style. That way they’re much easier to match, and it doesn’t really matter when you lose one.
- Speaking of Word, here are some keyboard shortcuts for features I actually use (and remember to click a tab to hide or show the ribbon):
| ALT | Show keyboard shortcuts. |
| CTRL-F | Find. |
| CTRL-H | Replace. |
| CTRL-A, F9 | Update cross-references. |
| CTRL-ALT-E | Insert footnote. |
| CTRL-SHFT-8 | Show or hide formatting marks. |
| CTRL-SHFT-ALT-S | Show or hide styles. |
- Also, I typically do the following each time I open a document:
- Show styles.
- Hide the Properties pallet that Word usually opens.
- When I insert the first cross-reference, I move and resize the dialog so that it fits below the styles I use without obscuring text. For Reference type, I select Heading. Then I leave this dialog open, so I don’t have to do the same again later. I leave each Word document open and save frequently so that I don’t have to reapply such preferences.
- To find broken cross-references in the document, search for “Error! Reference source not found”.
On to the next post in the series: Turn the System Over.
Outils 
Aide
