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Why is a simple reboot the most effective computer repair?

Why is a simple reboot the most effective computer repair - Why is a simple reboot the most effective computer repair?

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.

Do you really need to backup your data?

Do you really need to backup your data - Do you really need to backup your data?

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.

  1. Hardware failure
  2. Deliberate tampering
  3. Malware and viruses
  4. 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!

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.

Ten ways to troubleshoot your internet connection

How to troubleshoot your internet connection - Ten ways to troubleshoot your internet connection

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.

  1. Check the connection light on your router or modem as the fault might be on your connection.
  2. Reboot the router by switching it off at the mains and leaving it off for 60 seconds before switching it back on.
  3. Reboot your computer.
  4. 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.
  5. 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.
  6. 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.
  7. Type ‘ping www.google.com’ in the CMD window. You should see a reply if the network is up.
  8. 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’.
  9. Select IPv6 in the same window and uncheck the box.
  10. 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.

How to fix ‘Failure To Complete The Anniversary Update Installation’ errors in Windows 10

 

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:

  1. Turn off your computer and switch it off at the mains.
  2. Leave it for a couple minutes for all the power to dissipate.
  3. Turn your computer on once more and allow it to boot.
  4. 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:

  1. Navigate to ‘C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download’.
  2. Delete everything in the Download folder.
  3. Reboot your computer.
  4. Navigate to Settings, Update & security.
  5. 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.

How to prepare Windows 10 for major updates

How to prepare Windows 10 for major updates - How to prepare Windows 10 for major updates

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.

  1. Type ‘event’ into the Search Windows (Cortana) box on your desktop.
  2. Select Windows Logs from the left pane and check Application and System logs.
  3. 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.
  4. Right click the Windows Start button and select Device Manager.
  5. 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.
  6. Open a Command Prompt window as an administrator.
  7. Type ‘sfc /scannow’ and let the System File Check process complete.
  8. 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!