System Information Concepts

Updated: January 21, 2005

This section provides general background information about System Information:

System Information overview
Managing System Information from the command line
Understanding System Information

System Information overview

System Information collects and displays system configuration information for local and remote computers. This includes information about hardware configurations, computer components, and software, including signed drivers and unsigned drivers. You can use System Information to quickly find the information that you need to resolve a system problem.

System Information saves data files in a native (.nfo) format. By default, system data is automatically saved in an .nfo file format that is compatible with the current version of System Information. You can also save data as a Version 5.0/6.0 System Information (.nfo) file, which is compatible with older versions of System Information.

You can use System Information to view system history. System history is collected when changes are made to certain system devices and settings. This system history data is compared periodically to the previous system settings, and if there are any changes, those changes are saved in the System History view. Only the most recent changes are compared against previous settings; therefore, it is possible to make multiple changes to a certain device or driver and have only one of the changes appear in the System History view. For more information, see View system history .

You can also open .cab files and .xml files in System Information. When you open .cab files, you can view the contents of those files by using the Tools menu.

Return to Top

Managing System Information from the command line

In addition to the System Information support tool in Help and Support Center, you can use the msinfo32 command to view information about a computer that you are managing. With this command, you can:

Use System Information from a batch file.
Create .nfo files or .txt files that contain information from specified categories.
Open System Information, displaying only specified categories.
Save a System Information file without opening the System Information tool.
Start System Information for a remote computer. (You must have the appropriate permissions.)
Create a shortcut that opens System Information in a commonly used configuration.

For more information about the msinfo32 command, see Msinfo32 . For information about other command-line utilities, see Command-line reference A-Z . For information about manageability, see Management Strategies and Tools .

Return to Top

Understanding System Information

System Information is a support tool that you can use to quickly locate information about your computer and its operating system. The category tree in the left pane contains items in a folder view that is similar to Windows Explorer. The details pane on the right side of the window displays information about the items that you select in the category tree.

This section covers:

System Summary
Hardware Resources
Components
Software Environment
Internet Settings

Return to Top

System Summary

System Summary is the first category in the System Information category tree. The details pane displays general information about your computer and its operating system. You can view information about the operating system name, version, manufacturer, and directory location. You can verify the version of the BIOS or EFI, the processor type, and memory information.

You can use System Summary to:

Check the BIOS or EFI version and date.
Determine the directory in which the operating system is installed.
Verify that new memory is installed correctly by checking Total Physical Memory and Available Physical Memory.
Check the Page File Space value if the computer is having memory problems. Page File Space is the physical space on the hard disk that the operating system uses to increase the apparent size of RAM.
Check your activation status. This information appears only if you have not activated the product. For more information, see Windows Product Activation .

For more information about updating your system BIOS or EFI, or about installing new memory, refer to your hardware manufacturer's documentation.

Return to Top

Hardware Resources

The Hardware Resources category in System Information displays information about resource assignments and possible sharing conflicts among DMA, Forced Hardware, I/O, IRQs, and Memory resources.

For more information about these items, see the following:

Return to Top

Components

The Components category in System Information contains information about the various components and devices on your system. Most of the subcategories contain an Item column, which identifies the component, and a Value column, which provides additional information about the component, such as drive location or version number.

For more information about these items, see the following:

Return to Top

Software Environment

The Software Environment category in System Information contains information about your system configuration, including details about system drivers, environment variables, and current print jobs. In Software Environment, you can view information about the following items:

Return to Top

Internet Settings

The Internet Settings category in System Information contains information about Internet settings on the computer. The information in this category is provided by the browser, and it includes information about the browser version, network connections, and cache summary, as well as certificate settings and security settings.

For more information about Internet settings and connections, see Network Connections .

Return to Top