Computer 101. The basics and what to do if things go wrong.

[Dreamrage]

Computer's are highly complicated little badgers that can freak out at any time of day, night, day, week etc. Sometimes it can be because the PC is really old and needs to come to a grinding, wheezing halt, sometimes it is because of how the computer is used. This being laptop as well as desktop.

So I thought it would be a good (ish) idea to point out a few of the more popular problems and what can be done to sort them out without losing some sleep over it all.

1.) Error Message: "NTLDR is missing, press any key to continue"

Truly one of the more common problems and it can happen to just about anyone. Some of the main reasons I have seen why this happens is because:

• Either you have lost valuable windows files and your system cannot boot windows because it needs that file, or
• you have taken a hard drive from another system that was not part of your original configuration when you installed your Operating system, and it is set as a primary master (ie. this is where you expect the computer to boot windows from.)

If you did not install another hard drive as a master, then you need to re install windows. If you did try to install another hard drive, you need to either remove it as a master, replace the original HD and then set the other as a "slave" check the jumper settings on the hard drive beforehand though, or if it was because your hard drive failed and you are replacing it with another second hand one : re install windows.

2.BSCOD: (aka the blue screen of death).

I haven't seen this happen in a while, but it generally only happens when a peripheral tanks, dies, wheezes its last breath etc. The best way to fix this is to look at what you were doing when the screen went the deadly blue. It could be graphics card related, RAM related, etc. So, if you can remove or replace a peripheral or swap it for another one of the same make, try that. By using that process of elimination, you could find the offending peripheral and replace it. if you are not sure, take it to a PC repair store.

3. PC or Laptop shuts down without you touching the power button.

Most motherboards will shut down if there is any danger to it. IF a peripheral start failing, the motherboard will shut down everytime you try use it. Generally it happens a lot with CD and DVD players, but it cold be anything connected to the board. Again, eliminating peripherals by either removing them or swapping them with another similar peripheral will help.

There is another reason, but this one could be more of the obvious one. If the PC shuts down automatically before it boots windows, it could mean that your power supply is not strong enough to power the PC with everything you have attached to it. Upgrading it to a stronger wattage might be a good idea.

4. My computer is running slow.

This has been covered before, I know, but its still a popular problem. Your Operating system runs off a Hard drive. This hard drive also helps windows assign virtual memory to the system to help speed performance. If you fill a hard drive to the point where the only space that is left is used by virtual memory, your PC is going to drag along. (You will also get a warning on your task bar.)

Another reason is having too many applications installed that are draining CPU resources. Another, more famous reason, is a virus, or two hundred.

With situations like these, its best to make sure that you create backups, archives or even install another hard drive for you to store things on. This keeps your main drive clear to run at optimal speed. In the case of too many apps, look at what you don't use and remove them in the proper manner. In XP you would use add/ remove programs. In the case of a virus? well you can use an online scanner like Kapersky, you can use an installed antivirus to remove them etc. But remember to be careful where you surf to on the net, and always scan anything you add to your PC before installing it.

5. My PC is getting hot.

Anyone that has a PC should do routine maintenance on it every 3 months (+-) to make sure that the case inside remains clean and dust free. Naturally if you want to do this with a laptop, take it to a professional. PC stores deal with cleaning cases daily and will be able to make sure your PC isn't damaged in the process. The reason I say this is because with the fans in a PC case, they pick up dust from outside the case and this coagulates inside the case and around the inner workings of the PC. This can cause it to overheat and shut down, or meltdown entirely, depending on circumstances. Also make sure that you use your PC in a well ventilated area. This can also lead to a PC or laptop overheating.

6. Installed software damaged my PC:

Your only saving grace there would be a system restore. If you cannot access windows, then boot into safe mode (usually pressing F8 while the PC boots gives you the option). Once in safe mode, go to the last system restore set, before the offending software was installed and restore.

If you do not know your way around a PC, I would not advise you to open the case and fiddle around in it. Take it to a trained professional. There are peripherals inside a PC that can easily hurt or kill you if you prod and probe in the wrong areas. If your PC is still under warrantee, take it back to the store you bought it from before even attempting to open it. It might declare the warrantee void.

I know I have left a few things out, but there are a lot of members here that probably know more than me so feel free to add anything I might have missed. (Besides, I need to make a coffee run )

I hope this helps a bit though. PC's should be looked after as well as we look after ourselves.

[gammaRascal]

Great write up Dreamrage!

Definitely worth a sticky.

[snakeair]

Good writeup indeed and sticky worthy!

For the folks who are going to respond in this thread, please make sure that you explain your tip's in great detail. Some people don't know all the computer terms.

Quality replies would be helpful.

Use the REP system to say thank you to the members who provide tips/info in this thread.

[Dreamrage]

Thank you. I was a little worried that it would be too long

[Dreamrage]

If you have no PC knowledge at all, then this could be helpful to you.

I would seriously recommend that you never touch the inner workings of a PC if you have no prior knowledge, but if you must (either to clean it or perform checks if anything fails), here are a few things to remember:

Always power a PC down the correct way before putting your hands inside the case. Sounds weird, I know, but you have no idea how many people would put their hands inside a PC case while it is still running. You could either severely damage the PC or electrocute yourself, which is the worst thing you could do.

Ok, so after powering the PC down, remove the power cables. Again, sounds silly, but you never really know. If you live in a house that is not earthed properly and you are standing in your room barefoot and touch the inside or the metal on the case while its still plugged in, you are going to learn a few shocking facts about your PC.

Ok, so you have unplugged everything and are now ready to take the leap of faith? Not so fast There is a little thing called ESD, or electrostatic discharge. You know, when you rub your socked feet along a shaggy carpet and then touch someone to shock em? ESD can damage little parts on your computer. Like the components on the motherboard, peripherals etc. Your computer has capacitors and numerous other little IC's that can be damaged by one little shock of electricity, and sometimes ESD can have a high enough voltage to do this.

Touch someone else before you touch your PC. Not only helps you work on your PC with a smile (after the prank) but keeps your PC safe at the same time.

You do get special equipment like bracelets and mats, but you don't really need them unless you plan on working on a PC day in and day out.

OK, ESD taken care of so what's next?

Steer clear (entirely) of the power supply unit. (a box, sometimes grey, at the top of the PC case, where you put the power plug into). It's one mean little mother of a power box and has an amperage that can kill you. If it fails, replace it and don't attempt to open it.

Another hands of area is the CPU (central processing unit) or your PC's "brain". It has little pins that can break really easily and render the chip useless. Usually its mounted in a "bracket" under an enormous heat sink and fan. This is to draw heat away from the chip and the fan then draws it away from the heat sink. That entire contraption is like a Chinese puzzle sometimes and can damage the chip before you even get the heat sink off.

The reason I mention it is because, depending on the age of the PC and how hot is usually gets inside the case, sometimes you need to clean the fan and fins of the heat sink and check to see if the transfer paste (whitish grey paste that helps the heat sink get rid of heat) between the CPU and heat sink is still ok and not a dried husk. This can be taken care of when you take your PC in for cleaning and I do not recommend you play around with it unless you are trained to do that.

Lastly, RAM and your graphics card. It's not a biggie but handled the wrong way, could get you in more trouble than its all worth. It seats into its slots in one way only and is usually divided somewhere along the ram stick. Make sure these are aligned with the division in the slot. If it is seated properly, the little handles on either side of the slot will lift and click when it is in position. Do not force it. Doing that can damage your motherboard and your RAM module.

The graphics card (GPU) fits in almost the same way. It has a slot and the slot is also divided. Make sure everything is aligned when you seat it and make sure the little clip on the side fits over the "lip" on the edge of the card.

[Dan Williamson]

Something to do once you shut your computer down and unplugged it, push the power button again, it ensures that all power is out of it, usually the fans will try to spin up very lightly, but if you're worried about shocking yourself this is the best way to make sure any excess crap is out of your system.

[RWenger]

Ok, so you have unplugged everything and are now ready to take the leap of faith? Not so fast There is a little thing called ESD, or electrostatic discharge. You know, when you rub your socked feet along a shaggy carpet and then touch someone to shock em? ESD can damage little parts on your computer. Like the components on the motherboard, peripherals etc. Your computer has capacitors and numerous other little IC's that can be damaged by one little shock of electricity, and sometimes ESD can have a high enough voltage to do this.

Touch someone else before you touch your PC. Not only helps you work on your PC with a smile (after the prank) but keeps your PC safe at the same time.

You do get special equipment like bracelets and mats, but you don't really need them unless you plan on working on a PC day in and day out.

You can also touch metal on the case. When working on a desktop, I tend to lean on the side of the case with one arm to keep a connection to the case. When working on a laptop I usually touch some metal part of the frame every little bit anyways trying to wiggle something out of or into it's proper spot.

Also, if you get an error message, GOOGLE IT! Don't message us computer guys on Facebook asking us what it means! We usually don't know the answer off the top of our heads (unless the message is descriptive or we've used the specific application a lot), and we'll just Google it ourselves.

[Dreamrage]

Hmmmm, its basic yes, load disc/dvd/installer and away we go? Not really. Many people just get an install over as quickly as possible without really looking at anything, sometimes, even when the software asks them a question.

Ok so, by default, almost everything installs to C -> Program Files and it will then create a folder before installing any support files in your windows files etc. Sometimes its a straight install, sometimes it asks you a few questions about where you want to install to, if you would like to create a shortcut, read the online support material, or my personal favorite, create a quick launch icon.

New programs are almost always added to the start bar for easy access, so you don't really need a shortcut or a quick launch. A lot of software doesn't ask if you want to create a quick launch, so there's pretty much nothing you can do in that case.

Why am I nattering on about the quick launch? Simple. The quick launch is just that. It takes a look at what shortcuts are on the quick launch bar (bottom right hand of your taskbar, near your time and date), and then loads the application so that you can access it if you need to. This can drag system resources quite a bit if you have too many icons loaded into your quick launch. This is an observation I have made, and other techies might argue this.

With shortcuts, eh, You don't really need them. You have a start bar, and you have a start menu. The software you use a lot is loaded to the menu as well as anything you might have pinned to the menu, besides the default software like browsers etc. Shortcuts clutter a desktop and on XP specifically, it triggers an annoying little app called the desktop cleanup wizard. Limiting the amount of shortcuts you have clears your desktop, saves you from the wizard (), and also lets you see any desktop wallpaper clearly.

To pin software to your menu, simply right click on the software and click on pin to menu, and hey presto, tis done.

So the next time you install software, saying no to adding a shortcut or quick launch icon, could be a good idea when you look at RAM and that annoyance factor.

[donquixote]

Here's a tip I learned the hard way:

1. Power down your computer.
2. Remove all cables, including the data cable linking the cpu to the monitor because if the monitor is independently powered, this cable can still bring some electrical current into the cpu even after the power cable to the cpu is disconnected. Don't just switch off. Some switches are not properly setup and are still live even in the off position. So the best bet is to physically disconnect the cable.
3. Open the cpu casing.
4. Unclip the ram and remove it.
5. Use a rubber eraser to thoroughly scrub the leads of the ram.
6. Re-install the ram. Replace the cpu cover. Re-connect all the cables.
7. Power up your computer.

This simple procedure has revived many computers that start up but refuse to boot up. At first, I thought it's a matter of removing sediment from the leads. I have experimented with cleaning fluid but the best results come from scrubbing the leads thoroughly with a rubber eraser. I believe it's some kind of static build-up that is the culprit.

Hope this is useful.

[Dreamrage]

AH by CPU case you mean the Desktop Case. For a minute there I was thinking you had your RAM in with your CPU. (my bad)

I generally use a soft bristled paint brush I buy specifically for that purpose. It also works well when you need to get stubborn dust out of the heat sink fins. (I had a PC "museum" with enough spares to build anything from a 486 to a P4. I cleaned a lot of heat sink fins )

Your screen is another matter entirely and can be really really dangerous if you still use the old CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) screens. Like a TV, they have the potential to hurt, harm or kill you as well.

I'm not sure about the build up though. I have never seen a RAM module in that condition, and I have had people in the past bring me broken PC's to fix that they found on a dump. (lol seriously). I'm going to take a closer look online and see what I can find.

[AlterMatrixe]

One of the most important things to remember before you disassemble your computer is to make sure that all the power cables are disconnected. Sometimes a computer which is only suffering a minor malfunction is totally fried because someone tried to remove a component while the power cable is still attached.

[Dan Williamson]

Originally Posted by AlterMatrixe

One of the most important things to remember before you disassemble your computer is to make sure that all the power cables are disconnected. Sometimes a computer which is only suffering a minor malfunction is totally fried because someone tried to remove a component while the power cable is still attached.

Unless of course they have hot-swap components, such as my server which has both dual-hot swap PSUs and hot swap HDDs.

[AlterMatrixe]

That's interesting news to me. I didn't know that hot-swap components are available for desktops now. Used to be that such technology is used in server machines. Are they expensive?

[Dan Williamson]

Originally Posted by AlterMatrixe

That's interesting news to me. I didn't know that hot-swap components are available for desktops now. Used to be that such technology is used in server machines. Are they expensive?

AHCI with SSDs allow for hot-swapping. Servers are computers and some people (IE me) have home-servers, but yes you could be a Xeon CPU in a desktop, just as you can put hot-swap HDDs (where they're HDDs, SSDs or whatever) so yes it's available in Desktops.

Expenses are relative, I think that a car if expensive when a £200 used car can get me from a to b in the same speed (due to road-speeds) whereas I don't think £3000 is expensive on a computer which will allow me to work quicker.

[Dreamrage]

Hard drives aren't infinite in storage space, and if you don't have a bank of terabyte sized hard drives, you're bound to run out of space.

Signs to watch for are:

1. You get a message on your taskbar,
2. Your programs run really slowly and freeze
3. It takes ages to open a file on your computer, and also tends to freeze when you do.

If a program freezes and becomes unresponsive, sometimes clicking on the 'x' to close the app just makes the computer lock up and you have to wait for it to catch up and close the application. You don't have to "soft off" your computer, there is a simpler way, but you have to be careful.

If you press control-alt-delete (in sequence), it brings up the task manager. (this works in most windows before vista and 7, but on earlier versions, that sequence would reboot your PC). The task manager has tabs, these tabs show you applications running, how much of the CPU they are using, and it shows you where you have applications that are not responding.



You only need to be looking at the first two. Tab one shows the programs, tab two shows the processes. The processes tab is the trickiest though, as everything running on your computer shows here and ending a process that is not supposed to be ended can make using your PC really tricky.

Looking at the non responsive program, it will have two processes sometimes. One will be the actual program itself, and one would be the explorer. DO NOT end the process for the explorer. You will render your PC unusable and you would have to reboot. Play it safe. Right click on the application in the first tab, and click on go to process. If it takes you to the explorer tab, then look for the .exe process in the second tab. However, if it takes you to the .exe process, right click on the process, and click end process. Click yes when its asks you if you are sure and it should immediately close the application that was unresponsive.

The best way to make sure that this doesn't happen is to make sure that you maintain your PC regularly. Using the Add/Remove utility in your control panel is the best option for this. When you double click on it, a new window shows and loads all the applications installed on your computer. You can then click to highlight an application and click remove/change, and it should launch an uninstaller. This is the safest way to remove applications from your PC because it asks before it removes shared resources between windows and the application you are trying to remove. Doing it any other way will lead to you deleting files that windows might need, and it could lead to you re installing windows completely.

Sometimes, after removing the application, not all of the files and folders are removed, you can manually remove these by going to C:/program files/ and look for the folder the application created when you installed it. You can then safely delete these folders as windows would already have taken care of the most important files.

Using clean up utilities aren't really necessary, because windows has one built in, but if you keep your PC maintained this way, it should run better without having to jump through too many applications just to get all the useless files off your computer.

A Tip:
If you can, get a separate hard drive (SATA) and install it into your PC case (or use an external hard drive). This can help a lot when you download files or get stuff from discs, as it can be used as storage.

The reason why this is the better option is because when you install windows onto a hard drive (C), it uses part of that hard drive as virtual memory for page files etc. When you have too many files on the main drive, it leads to windows running slowly and applications installed on the C drive will also run slowly and freeze often. The more you add to your main drive, the less chances windows has to use its virtual memory to run properly.

[Dreamrage]

We always need them when things go wrong, but for some its hard to get to. So here is a quick way to get to your system specs.

In your start bar, look for "my computer". Right click on it and scroll down to properties. This gives you a small pop up telling you what OS (Operating System) you are using, the amount of RAM, the name and size of your CPU, and even what service packs you have installed on Windows.

Information like this can be crucial when something goes wrong and you need to get advice from someone.

PS. It also has other tabs that you can use to navigate through the computer's various administrative areas like the device manager, setting virtual RAM etc.

With the device manager, its good to get familiar with it because it shows every peripheral you have on your computer and the status of said peripheral. If something is faulty, the device manager will show small icons next to peripherals telling you that there is a problem.

With the virtual memory and other tabs, playing around with these might not be a good idea unless you really know what's going for what there.

[MrSS]

A little additional info about the post above.
The shortcut key to view the System Information of your computer is Window key + Pause - Break key.

I will share some of my knowledge here, if permitted by topic starter, could I?

[MrSS]

These are some of useful tips I have learned and used whenever I encounter disabled Windows features caused by a virus.
You need to have Administrator's rights to perform these tasks.
I hope this can help.

We will use Group Policy Editor instead of Regedit.
To open Group Policy:

1. Click Start.
2. Click Run.
3. Type GPEDIT.msc
4. Hit Enter or click 'OK'

How to restore 'Run':

• Go to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Task bar
• Double-click Remove Run menu from Start Menu then select Disabled, then OK. Done!

How to restore 'Command Prompt':

• Go to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > System
• Double-click Prevent access to the command prompt then select Disabled, then OK. Done!

or
You can create a portable Command prompt using a notepad:

• Right Click (Desktop) > New > Text Document > Type "command.com" (without ") > save as cmd.bat then open it. Done!

How to restore 'Folder Options':

• Go to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Explorer
• Double-click Removes the Folder Options menu item from the Tools menu then select Disabled, then OK. Done!

How to restore 'Task Manager':

• Go to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Ctrl+Alt+Del Options.
• Double-click Remove Task Manager then select Disabled, then OK. Done!

How to restore 'Regedit':

• Go to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > System
• Double-click Prevent access to registry editing tools then select Disabled, then OK.. Done!

How to restore 'Search':

• Go to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar.
• Double-click Remove Search menu from Start Menu then select Disabled, then OK. Done!

How to restore Recycle Bin on Desktop:

• Go to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Desktop
• Double-click Remove Recycle Bin icon from desktop then select Disabled, then OK. Done!

How to restore System Restore

• Go to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > System Restore
• Double-click Turn off Configuration then select Disabled, then OK. Done!

Thanks,
MrSS

[Dreamrage]

You have my permission, after all, this is what the thread is for. To put together a reference for those that have problems with their PC's and laptops so that they can find solutions to problems, and learn a bit more about what goes on in computers.

[Dreamrage]

(I'm using XP here as a reference mostly...)

I have a desktop, called Phoenix. He's named that for a specific reason . This desktop has been saved so many times and had windows reinstalled so many times, I decided that he deserved his name.

I have to admit though, that I spent some time purposefully sabotaging him (In the interest of science, of course..), and have found that you don't really need to reinstall windows for every little cough or hiccup. Seriously.

Let's take a look at a few examples. XP is known to install itself around the components of your PC. Sometimes, when something tanks, you need to replace it, and sometimes, it leads to a reinstall. From "operation phoenix", I have learnt that If you replace RAM, Graphics card, Power Supplies and CD or DVD drives, you don't need to reinstall. You simply add the new components, and with graphics cards and CD and DVD Drives, Windows will automatically detect the new hardware and install drivers for them.

When you change your CPU, Motherboard and Primary Master hard drive (C Drive), then obviously you would need to reinstall.

Sometimes things just go wrong, either from shutting down the wrong way, installing software that isn't compatible with your computer (oi vey...), or the dreaded boot sector virus. Nine times out of ten, whenever you install software, Windows creates a system restore point, in case things go wrong. So if the software crashes the PC, you simply restart the PC, press F8 a few times while it boots, boot into safe mode as an administrator and proceed with the system restore.

Boot Sector Viruses are nasty little suckers that infect the boot sector of a hard drive. This is where the Windows loader and other files are kept to safely load windows everytime you start your PC. The downside is that if this happens, the only thing you can do is to take the hard drive, format it (this cleans EVERYTHING off the hard drive, so making regular back ups are always a good idea), and then installing a fresh copy of Windows on the Hard Drive. You have to format it to get rid of the virus. Sometimes this doesn't work, so you would then need to get a new Hard Drive, so a format would not be needed.

I have often said that PC maintenance is important, but never really stressed what it's all about, so here is what I do when I maintain the Phoenix.

I firstly make sure that I create backups of my files on my computer. Then I systematically take the phoenix apart and clean every component with a soft bristled paintbrush, making sure that there is no dust left on any of the peripherals / components. Then I start to put him back together again, say a little prayer and hit the power button. (trust me.....) If all goes well, he boots into windows and all is well. If not.... you go back to the drawing board and make sure everything is put into the PC as it should be.

The reason I say this is, once while performing routine maintenance, Phoenix decided to go on strike, and I got that famous message "NTLDR is missing, press any key to continue". I frantically tried everything I could and in the end tried to reinstall. It didn't work..... So out of frustration I took the Hard Drive out, intending to replace it, but in the end put the same hard drive back in and everything suddenly worked properly.

The IDE cable and power cable was not put into the hard drive properly...

So you can see that, even though everyting pointed to a reisntall, all I had to do was make sure that everything was seated properly.

If something happens, and you cannot find a reason for it happening, or don't know how to fix it, ask someone trained to fix computers first. A reinstall should always be a last resort and not the answer to everything.

(no computers were intentionally harmed in the performing of this experiment)