Final answer:
To enable or disable autoplay in Windows XP, open the Run dialog through the Start menu, type 'gpedit.msc', and in the Group Policy Editor navigate to the appropriate setting under Computer Configuration. You can choose to enable or disable autoplay for all drives or specific ones and must restart the computer to apply changes.
Step-by-step explanation:
Enabling or Disabling Autoplay in Windows XP
To enable or disable the autoplay feature in Windows XP, perform the following steps:
- Open the Start menu and click on Run.
- Type 'gpedit.msc' into the dialog box and press Enter. This opens the Group Policy Editor.
- Navigate to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System.
- Scroll down to find and double-click on Turn off Autoplay.
- In the settings window that opens, select Enabled to disable Autoplay, or select Disabled to enable it.
- Under 'Turn off Autoplay on', you can choose whether to disable Autoplay on all drives or only specific ones.
- Click OK to save your settings.
Make sure to restart your computer for the changes to take effect. Disabling autoplay can enhance security by preventing the automatic execution of potentially malicious software from removable drives.