Dave's Computer Repair Blog – Why is a simple reboot the most effective computer repair?
Ask any computer repair technician about any kind of computer issue and the first thing out of their mouth will be, ‘have you rebooted?’ While it may not be what you want to hear, there is a good reason why this is the first thing we ask, because that reboot is so effective at fixing many issues. If it doesn’t fix it, the slate is wiped clean for more effective troubleshooting which we also like.
The reboot works across operating systems and devices too. Whether you run a Windows desktop, an Android cellphone, MacBook or something else, a reboot fixes a multitude of errors. But why?
There are a couple of reasons why, one is mainly software and the other is hardware.
Software issues
An operating system is essentially a set of instructions that tells all your computer what resources it has, how to use them, how to access them and what it can do with them. Once loaded, all an operating system does is sit in an infinite processing loop waiting for instructions and managing resources.
While program code is static, it depends on the right resource being accessed at the right time with the right instruction. The same for all programs on your computer. Much like a highway depends on the free flow of traffic to be efficient, your computer needs all its instructions to be processed quickly to keep the instructions flowing.
If something happens as an instruction is being read, things can go wrong. Like if a driver is distracted and crashes their car it causes a tailback on that highway, slowing or stopping traffic. The same happens in a program.
That ‘something’ can be a voltage spike, an error in memory, a memory leak or something else. The program cannot cope when something isn’t right so freezes or slows down. A reboot resets that program so it can try again.
Hardware issues
In hardware, these issues are called an SEU or Single Event Upset. Again, it could be a power spike, clock error or other physical interruption. A modern computer processor calculates millions of 1’s and 0’s per second and billions per minute, if just one of those is incorrect, something goes wrong.
Devices are designed to cope with these kind of errors to a degree. If too many of them happen or a critical 1 is read as a 0, the code being processed doesn’t always know what to do which is where a freeze happens. A reboot resets everything so it can begin from scratch.
This blog post on power supply design explains SEUs nicely.
A reboot clears the device of any errors and any locked programs so it can try again. Like a good night’s sleep resets your brain for the new day, a reboot of any device of any kind does much the same thing.
Thank you for reading Dave's Computer Repair Blog, if you ever need computer repair or data recovery assistance give us a call or fill out the contact form on the bottom right of the website.
Dave's Computer Repair Blog – Do you really need to backup your data?
I was asked this question last week and it got me thinking. A client came into the store and asked about data recovery and how effective it was. We discussed hard drive reliability, MTBF (mean time before failure) and a range of other subjects and then he asked, ‘if hard drives are so reliable, why do I need to backup my data?’
While on the surface that seems a simple question, it is actually not so simple to answer. Yes, hard drives are reliable. Yes they last longer than ever now. If you use a UPS or other power filtering system they can literally last decades. So why bother backing them up?
If you want the short version, it is – how important is your data? How would it feel if you lost all your photos, emails, copies of letters or company accounts? How would you react if I told you our data recovery failed and it was all gone forever? If you think you would experience any negative emotion, you need to backup your data.
There are four main threats facing your data.
- Hardware failure
- Deliberate tampering
- Malware and viruses
- Accidental deletion
Hardware failure
While hard drives are reliable, they will fail. Hardware of any kind fails. It is inevitable. Whether it is down to excess heat, becoming worn out, manufacturing faults or something else, all man-made objects fail at some point.
Deliberate tampering
You cannot ignore the human element in computing as it is usually the weakest link. A hacker or disgruntled employee could delete your critical records in seconds. Then what?
Malware and viruses
Instances of malware and viruses are increasing all the time. If you have adequate defenses you can protect yourself from the majority of risks, but can you guarantee that nothing will ever get through?
Accidental deletion
That other human element that is the bane of computer owners everywhere. The accidental deletion. If you notice you can quickly recover it yourself. If you don’t notice until much later it might be impossible to recover your data.
Backup your data
With cloud storage being offered for free with most email accounts and USB or external hard drives very cheap, there really is no excuse. You can automate backups for a little extra safety and it only takes a few minutes to set up. So why would you not backup your data? It is certainly faster and cheaper than bring it to Hillsborough for us to fix!
Dave's Computer Repair Blog - Ten ways to troubleshoot your internet connection
We take the internet for granted and for good reason. We can access it anywhere, at any time from just about any device. Why would we not take it for granted? How about when it goes down or when your computer cannot connect to the ‘net?
There are a range of steps you can take to troubleshoot your internet connection. I shall list the most effective ones here for you to try. As always with my guides, try each step, retest and only move on to the next one if you’re still seeing problems.
Troubleshoot an internet connection
There are many things that can interrupt your service so we require a process of elimination to identify exactly what is wrong. I’m using a Windows 10 PC as an example, but many of these steps will be relevant to a whole range of connected devices. Adapt them as you see fit.
- Check the connection light on your router or modem as the fault might be on your connection.
- Reboot the router by switching it off at the mains and leaving it off for 60 seconds before switching it back on.
- Reboot your computer.
- Right click the Windows Start button and select Device manager. Make sure your network adapter doesn’t have a red X or yellow triangle next to it.
- Right click your network adapter and select Disable. Leave it a few seconds and then select Enable. This will force Windows to reload the configuration.
- Open a CMD window and type ‘ipconfig /all’. Make sure you can see an IPv4 address that doesn’t begin 169 and a default gateway.
- Type ‘ping www.google.com’ in the CMD window. You should see a reply if the network is up.
- Right click the Windows Start button and select Network connection. Right click your network card, select Properties, select IPv4 in the window and click the Properties button. Select ‘Obtain and IP address automatically’.
- Select IPv6 in the same window and uncheck the box.
- In Network Connections, click ‘Diagnose this connection’ and let the wizard troubleshoot.
Those are my top ten ways to troubleshoot your internet connection. One of these steps is sure to have your internet running again!
Thank you for reading Dave's Computer Repair Blog, if you ever need computer repair or data recovery assistance give us a call or fill out the contact form on the bottom right of the website.
The Windows 10 Anniversary Update arrived a few weeks ago. It’s a large download that takes quite a while to install. So far, it seems not everyone has had the seamless upgrade experience we would have hoped. Here at Dave’s Computers, we have seen a few users experience ‘Failure To Complete The Anniversary Update Installation’ errors.
It is a frustrating error as you have waited ages for the download to finish and then waited more while the update installed only to have it fail. The full error syntax is ‘Error: We couldn't complete the updates. Undoing changes. Don't turn off your computer’. While it tells you exactly what’s happening, it doesn’t tell you why. Fortunately, there’s a simple fix.
Troubleshoot ‘Failure To Complete The Anniversary Update Installation’ errors in Windows 10
Before making any big changes to your computer, it’s always a good idea to make a backup of your data and to create a system restore point. While Windows usually creates one automatically, that is never guaranteed.
Then:
- Turn off your computer and switch it off at the mains.
- Leave it for a couple minutes for all the power to dissipate.
- Turn your computer on once more and allow it to boot.
- Navigate to Settings, Update & security and click Check for updates.
Windows should now download and/or install the Windows 10 Anniversary Update as normal. I’m not entirely sure why this works, but we have used this trick successfully on desktops and laptops in the store.
If that doesn’t work, try this:
- Navigate to ‘C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download’.
- Delete everything in the Download folder.
- Reboot your computer.
- Navigate to Settings, Update & security.
- Select ‘Check for updates’ and run the process again.
This final method will mean downloading the entire Anniversary Update again but it should also mean that the upgrade works this time.
If you can’t get it working or need help with any aspect of computer maintenance or troubleshooting, Dave’s Computers can help. Visit our store or call us today for expert assistance with every aspect of computing.
Major updates don’t come around very often in Windows but when they do it pays to prepare properly for them. The Windows 10 Anniversary Update is a case in point. Released a year after Windows 10 and just after the free upgrade period expired, the Anniversary Update is a major update that every computer will need to install at some point. To ensure it goes smoothly, here’s how to prepare Windows 10 for major updates.
When they released Windows 10, Microsoft said that this was the last complete version of an operating system they would release. Future releases would be as updates to the Windows core. While nobody actually believes that, it makes sense to get into the habit of preparing for major updates just in case it’s true. Here’s how.
Prepare Windows 10 for major updates
Essentially, what we need to do is make sure we have backed up our data, fixed any existing issues, cleared any faults and performed all the updates necessary for the upgrade to work.
Perform each of these steps in turn to prepare your system for an upgrade. Do this every time there is a major update for Windows.
- Type ‘event’ into the Search Windows (Cortana) box on your desktop.
- Select Windows Logs from the left pane and check Application and System logs.
- Check for red errors and troubleshoot them as much as possible. Read the error text and use Google to find out how to fix the error.
- Right click the Windows Start button and select Device Manager.
- Upgrade all major device drivers such as graphics, sound, network and motherboard. Either let Windows take care of it or download the drivers directly from the manufacturer’s website.
- Open a Command Prompt window as an administrator.
- Type ‘sfc /scannow’ and let the System File Check process complete.
- Check event viewer once more for any new errors.
This is a typical process for preparing any computer for a major update. Feel free to print this and keep it somewhere safe as you will likely need it in the future.
If you’re not comfortable performing computer troubleshooting or would rather let the experts take care of it, contact Dave’s Computers today. We’re here to help!
The Automatic Startup Repair loop in Windows 10 is a frustrating place to find yourself. Your computer reboots constantly and doesn’t let you interrupt it or find out what’s wrong. It seems an endless cycle that you can only interrupt by powering off. Fortunately, there is a way round it.
There are a few simple techniques you can use to interrupt the cycle and troubleshoot it. I’ll show you how.
Fix the Automatic Startup Repair loop in Windows 10
To be able to troubleshoot the Automatic Startup Repair loop, we need to get the computer working and interrupt the cycle. For that we’ll use your Windows 10 installation media. If you bought your PC with Windows already installed or upgraded to Windows 10 from a previous version, download the Windows 10 Media Creation Tool and create one.
Then:
- Set your computer to boot from the media you just created in the BIOS.
- Once the installer reaches the window that says Install, select Repair your computer in the bottom left corner.
- Select Troubleshoot, Advanced options and Command Prompt. This will take you to the Windows Recovery Environment.
- Type ‘chkdsk /f /r’ into the Command Prompt window and hit Enter.
- Allow the process to complete.
This will check your hard drive for errors. Once the process has completed, try this:
- Go back to the Command Prompt window.
- Type ‘sfc /scannow’ and hit Enter.
- Allow the process to complete.
This will utilize the built-in System File Checker to verify your Windows 10 boot files. If it finds any issues the process will automatically fix them. Reboot your computer and retest.
If that doesn’t work, try this:
- Set your computer to boot from the media you just created in the BIOS.
- Once the installer reaches the window that says Install, select Repair your computer in the bottom left corner.
- Select Troubleshoot, Advanced options and Startup Repair. The reason we don’t do this first is that it can be a little hit and miss.
- Allow the process to complete. If it finds errors, reboot and retest.
Those steps should have your computer booting into Windows 10 as normal. If it doesn’t, call us here at Dave’s Computers on 908-428-9558 and we’ll take care of everything for you.
If you see the Inaccessible Boot Device error when booting your computer, it means Windows cannot find your drive or the file that tells Windows where to find critical resources it needs to load. While it may seem like a serious problem to be faced with, it can actually be very straightforward to fix.
The issue is usually one of three things. Windows cannot find the hard drive, Windows cannot find the partition it is loaded onto or it cannot find the index that tells it where to find boot files. The first issue is a hardware issue and the other two are software. Let’s deal with software first.
Fix Windows 10 ‘Inaccessible Boot Device’ errors
As Windows cannot tell us exactly what’s wrong, we need to perform a series of tests to find out what is causing the error.
- Start your computer with your Windows 10 installation media inserted and boot from it.
- Select Troubleshoot instead of Install in the bottom left of the new screen.
- Select Advanced Options and Safe Mode. Press F5 for Safe Mode with Command Prompt and let Windows load.
- Type ‘Chkdsk /f /r’ into the CMD window that is open on the desktop. Let the process complete.
If Checkdisk finds any drive errors it will automatically repair them. Reboot your computer and retest if it makes any changes. Otherwise, move on.
- Load into Safe Mode once more, only this time, select Safe Mode with Networking.
- Right click the Windows Start Button and select Device Manager.
- Click IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers, right click the hardware listed below it and select Update Driver Software.
- Select Automatic and let Windows download and install the latest driver for your hard drive. If automatic download doesn’t work, navigate to your motherboard manufacturer’s website and update your motherboard software manually.
- Reboot and retest.
Finally, if none of those methods work, let’s check hardware. Perform a reboot and retest after each step.
- Boot into your system BIOS by hitting Delete or Backspace when you first turn your PC on. The key you need differs depending on motherboard manufacturer but is usually displayed on screen.
- Check that your hard drive is set up correctly. It should be set as AHCI for an SSD or IDE for an HDD.
- Change the cable connecting your boot drive to your motherboard for one you know works.
- Change to a different connector on the motherboard for one you know works.
- Try a different hard drive in place of your boot drive to see if your BIOS picks it up.
If none of the software fixes work, the hardware checks will tell you something. If you change the cable and your computer boots, you know it was a faulty cable. The same for plugging in your boot drive to a different slot on your motherboard and trying a different hard drive.
If none of these work or you are uncomfortable trying them, contact us here at Dave’s Computers. We’ll take care of everything for you!
Having trouble connecting to the internet? Want to know how to troubleshoot a slow connection? Both today and tomorrow, we are going to outline five home network troubleshooting tools every computer enthusiast should know how to use. They will help you diagnose a network issue quickly and efficiently and get you connected in no time!
Each of these home network troubleshooting tools are built into Windows and uses the CMD window. They offer an insight into how your network is set up and provide excellent tools to begin troubleshooting connection problems. I use them all the time.
Ipconfig
Ipconfig is a very informative tool that can tell you the IP address(es) of a computer, the hardware address (MAC) and other network information useful for troubleshooting.
- Open a CMD window as an administrator.
- Type ‘ipconfig /all’ and hit Enter.
- The results will show you what network hardware is on the computer, what IP addresses are assigned and whether it is behind a router or using a virtual network interface.
Ipconfig is usually your first port of call when troubleshooting any network as you need the information it returns to take any further steps.
PING
Packet Internet Groper (PING) is usually the first port of call for any IT pro troubleshooting network issues. It is a simple ICMP tool that sends a network packet between computers. It is a quick and easy way to see if a guest or host machine is up and running.
- Open a CMD window as an administrator.
- Type ‘ping and the IP address of the machine you want to contact’. For example, ‘ping 192.168.0.1’.
- You should see something like ‘Reply from 192.168.0.1: bytes=32 time=1ms TTL=64’. You’re interested in the fact you got a reply and the time it took. The lower the number, the faster the connection.
If you get a reply with a ping, you know there is a physical connection between the two computers. If you don’t get a reply, there is likely a disconnection or misconfiguration between the two.
Tracert
Tracert or traceroute is the next step in troubleshooting a network. Once we know a physical link between two computers is up, we need to find out what route traffic takes to get there. That’s where Tracert comes in. Tracert is more useful when troubleshooting networks with multiple machines or if you’re trying to connect to a computer somewhere else.
- Open a CMD window as an administrator.
- Type ‘tracert and the IP address or URL of the host you want to contact’. In the example in the image, I traced the route from my PC to Google servers by typing ‘tracert www.google.com’.
- The results will show the exact route and IP addresses of all hops on the route. You can then see where any delays or stops occur along the route.
Join us tomorrow for the second part of Five diagnostic tools for home network troubleshooting! Don’t forget to add any comments or further tips below!
There is nothing worse than rebooting your computer or starting it up and seeing an ‘Inaccessible Boot Device’ error. It’s something most Windows users will have come across at some point or other and sounds serious. Potentially it is, but equally likely is that it’s an easy fix or may need computer repair.
When you see ‘Inaccessible Boot Device’, it means your computer cannot read the Windows partition on the hard drive it boots from. It could mean total hard drive failure. It could also be a simple driver or boot record failure too. Fortunately, a few simple troubleshooting steps can tell you exactly which cause is most likely.
Troubleshooting the ‘Inaccessible Boot Device’ error
Like many computer troubleshooting tasks, fixing this error is a process of elimination. We begin with the simplest steps and work towards the more complicated. As always, retest between each step and once things are working normally there is no need to continue.
- Boot Windows into safe mode by using Windows installation media and selecting troubleshoot instead of install. Once Windows is fully loaded, try to reboot as normal. This simple fix addresses more occurrences of this error than you might imagine!
- Boot once more into Windows safe mode with command prompt and type ‘Chkdsk /f /r’. This will check the disk for errors. Then reboot and retry.
- Remove any extra hard drives you may have and just boot using the drive with Windows installed.
- Boot Windows into safe mode, find the IDE ATA/SATA drivers for your motherboard online, download and install. Reboot and retry.
- Check your BIOS/UEFI settings to make sure IDE is selected if you use a HDD and AHCI is selected if you use an SSD. Also check the computer is set to boot from the drive containing Windows. If your boot drive is not listed in the BIOS/UEFI, check cables and power.
- Swap cables and power to the boot drive to test for potential failure. If the hard drive isn’t listed in your BOIS, it could have failed. Perform further steps before ordering a new one though, just in case.
- Boot into Windows 10 Advanced Boot Options and select ‘Last known good configuration’. Perform a system restore to roll back any Windows updates or drivers that may be causing the error.
- Assuming your boot drive is listed in your BIOS/UEFI, i.e. physically present, try a fresh install of Windows.
- If your boot drive is not listed in your BIOS, it may have failed. Try another drive in its place to check cable/power/connector. If the other drive shows up, it’s probably drive failure. If it doesn’t show up, try a different IDE or SATA port, cable and power connector. Worse case you may need data recovery from an recovery lab.
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If your Windows computer keeps waking itself up during the night or when you’re not there, you’re not alone. It is a common issue with Windows. Many owners find both laptops and desktop computers waking up when they aren't there. Fortunately, as common as it may be, it is also easy to fix.
Having your computer wake up when not in use wastes power, drains a laptop’s battery and leaves it exposed to attacks from the internet if connected. If you’re troubleshooting seemingly arbitrary restarts, we’re here to help.
Usually, a computer waking itself up is either Windows update doing its thing or a device that has a wake timer enabled. We can quickly find out exactly if it’s your hardware with a console command.
Find out what's behind you computer waking
- Open a CMD window as an administrator.
- Type ‘powercfg -lastwake’ into the window.
- Look for the Wake History Count.
The wake history count lists the hardware device causing your system to wake up. Once you know what is waking up your computer, let’s stop it.
- Type ‘powercfg -devicequery wake_armed’. This will identify which devices are able to wake your machine.
- Open Device Manager and right click the devices noted in the steps above.
- Click Properties and Power Management.
- Uncheck ‘Allow this device to wake the computer’.
- Repeat for all devices identified in the first step.
Check Windows Update
Next let’s check Windows Update and switch it from doing whatever it likes to doing what we want. Windows Update has always been something of a law unto itself. Let’s change that.
- Navigate to Settings, System and Update & Security.
- Select the Advanced Options text link.
- Change the drop down box at the top from Automatic to ‘Notify to schedule restart’.
Performing both of those tasks will ensure your computer stops automatically starting up when you’re not there.
If you have anything to add or other useful tricks to stop Windows starting by itself, let us know below.
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