How To: Parental Controls in Windows Vista

The integration of the parental control system within Windows Vista makes it possible to control and limit the activities of children on the family computer.

Step 1: Create a user account for each child

The parental control system does a very good job of controlling users within Windows. You must first create an account for each child who uses the family computer. This allows you to customize the protections: a teenager does not need the same rules that a child of 6 years old does! Go to the Windows Control Panel and select "Add or remove user accounts". Click on "Create a new account." Specify the child's name and select the "standard user" (such an account prevents the child from changing security settings or installing anything on the PC). Click on "Create account".

Step 2: Enable Parental Control

In the list of accounts, click "Set Parental Control" and select the user account you just created. Click on the current settings to validate parental control on this account. This activation causes new options to appear. The settings applied to the account are displayed under "Current Settings". As you can see, Vista offers 4 categories: time, web-sites, programs and games.

Step 3: Web Filtering

This is the ability to filter what each user account can view on the web. It operates on three principles: the green list (the child can only access a list of sites you've previously defined), the red list (the child can access any of the sites you enter in this list), two modes that can be coupled to the automatic lists. The system is based on a classification of sites conducted by Microsoft in cooperation with associations of child protection. But this filter has a drawback: it may stop any file from being downloaded.

Step 4: Managing Time

The time setting manages whatever the user may be doing, and can make sure the child is not playing computer games all night long. It is the role of setting "Limitations" on various programs according to what time of the day it is.

Step 5: Games Control

This is one of the most original settings, it features a mechanism taken from the lastest Xbox 360. All games bearing the label "Games for Windows" are now assigned to an age (from 3 years, 7 years, 12 years old, 16, etc). The option allows you to specify the age of your child, and therefore block some games based on their content (violence, sex, adult-themes etc.).

Step 6: Program Control

The option "Allow and block specific programs" is complementary to the previous one. Just like Games Control this instead focuses on the applications. For each program, you can specify whether the child can access it or not. The programs are even hidden in the eyes of the child (not shown in menus) so that it appears to not even exist. If you do not want your kids to pirate software/music/films, simply block their access to P2P software like eMule.

Step 7: Continuous Monitoring

If you select "On" under "Activity Report" Vista will generate a weekly report indicating the sites most visited by the child, those whose access was denied, the hours at which he "is connected" and applications used by him, not to mention the contacts to whom he sent e-mails or instant messages. To obtain this information, use messaging software suitable for Vista (Yahoo Messenger, Live Messenger) and a compatible email client (Windows Mail). The report indicates how the child uses the computer on a day-to-day basis. Thus allowing you to configure more rules if you find out he has bypassed a particular setting/filter.