Like almost everything else in this world, computers occasionally develop problems and fail to work the way they are supposed to. When this happens many people get frustrated because they have no idea how to proceed. Fortunately early troubleshooting of computer problems is much easier than most people think. We have compiled the following information in an effort to assist you in troubleshooting problems with your computer. The more you know about what is happening, the more you can share with your service tech. You might even solve the problem yourself.

So take a deep breath, grab a cup of coffee, and read on.


When you first encounter a problem or error you should exit from any programs you are in (if you can), and then turn your entire system off as you normally would by first clicking on Start and then selecting the Shut Down option, and then clicking on Shut down and then ok. Once Windows says it is ok to turn off your computer turn off the power to your computer and any peripherals such as printers, scanners, external modems, etc. Leave the power off for 15 seconds and then turn everything back on. Many problems can be solved by simply turning your entire system off and restarting. If the problem reappears it will take a little more troubleshooting to find the source of the problem.


When your computer fails you can lose data, work can get backlogged and the whole experience can be one of extreme frustration and embarrassment. And, although you may want to call up your service technician or your supplier and give him a blast, you may succeed only at alienating the one person who can help you. If you're frustrated perhaps the best advice is to go home because you will be of little help to the persons who eventually repair your system. While you may be convinced that the failure is someone's fault in most cases you really don't know this until the problem has been identified. On the other hand, a problem can be a great opportunity to learn something and to actually improve the relationship you have with your service providers.

Probably the most common mistake among new users is to exaggerate the urgency or the severity of a problem, as perhaps they feel they must do this to get serviced at all. This approach serves only to cloud the issue and to distance you from the service techs who now must assess the nature of your problem themselves. Obviously, if you are trying to service the unit yourself, you must faithfully and accurately note every symptom.

If you can report problems as they are, rather than how they make you feel, you'll be feeling better much sooner! If you have outside service technicians they will always appreciate your honesty and reliable observations and, overtime, they will get to know you and your system better. This will make future repairs proceed quicker and more pleasantly. Always remember...... Your problem more than likely isn't the only emergency they've heard in the last hour.


If your system worked well for a period of time and then suddenly began having problems there is a very good chance that your problems were caused by some recent change to the systems hardware or software. If you installed new hardware or software one day and the next day started noticing problems there is a good chance to suspect that the problem is somehow related to the new hardware or software. There are many reasons for this to happen including; your new hardware or software may have been installed or configured incorrectly, it may not be compatible with your system, you may have insufficient memory, you may need a more recent driver, or the system may have crashed during the installation leaving important files in an invalid state.

Before installing a major new business program most people would read the instructions first, and sometimes even call the manufacturer for any needed clarification. But almost no one does any research or takes any precautions prior to the installation of a game! Without really thinking, most feel that a game is innocuous therefore what harm could it do? Actually entertainment software, and this includes screen savers, are among the most demanding applications. And not only do they require a lot of computer resources, but they are not adequately tested for compatibility with other programs. Like a bull in china shop they move everything else aside, often overwriting important files needed by your business software, and do damage that can only be corrected from a tape backup.


If you're having a problem you should scan for a virus right now! Bear in mind however, that once a system is infected your anti-virus software may no longer be effective. If you suspect a virus may be on your hard disc you should boot from a write-protected floppy disk, then scan your system from a write-protected floppy disc (they can be the same disc). No virus can harm a disc that is write protected. Consult your anti-virus software to see how to do this.

It's a good idea to scan any new disk or file you haven't seen before. This includes files that have been downloaded from the internet, or may have been attached to a recent email. Advertising CDROM's, or update disks from manufacturers - all are suspect. Once infected most people don't realize what has happened for days and often unknowningly pass off copies to friends and colleagues. If you thought a virus infection was bad, this can take a distant second to an angry boss that thinks that you wiped out his computer!


There are many problems which are actually caused by the environment. Has the weather changed recently? Changes in temperature and humidity can cause many problems for computers. At T-One our equipment is in a controlled environment where we make every effort to keep the temperature and humidity the same year round. Changing conditions can effect more than just the computer also. For example, laser printers and fax machines that jam frequently can often be immediately corrected by placing a small humidifier in the room. It's interesting that the ideal humidity for people is 50%, and the ideal humidity for computer and office equipment is also 50%.


Intermittent problems can be some of the most difficult to solve, but if you can duplicate the situation it makes finding the problem much easier. Try to remember what you were doing when the problem occurred. What programs you had open or any processes you were running at the time. Once you know what events are causing the problem you're halfway home to finding the solution.

Don't just tell your tech person that your machine crashes. The more information you can give him the better his chances of fixing the problem. Imagine taking your car to your favorite mechanic and only telling him it doesn't work. After hours and hours of examining your vehicle he calls you and tells you he can't find anything wrong with the engine. It starts everytime. At that point you tell him it's the radio you're having problems with. By explaining exactly what you were doing when the system crashed you will be giving your repair person a 'heads up' toward finding the problem.

There is another less obvious reason why duplicating a problem is necessary: if you make an attempt to repair the problem then how do you know it was a successful attempt? If the problem reappears only every month, then your servicing will take a long time to complete. It is far better to determine the originating cause of the problem, such as a month end posting for example. Many of these problems are impossible for outside service personnel to repair without your willing involvement and cooperation.


Most users encounter at most one hardware problem in the life of their computer, on average, and many dozens of software problems - not all of which require the services of a professional. So, chances are, your reading this because you have a software problem even though you may feel the computer hardware itself is at fault. Also, nearly all warranties cover the hardware only, and the final determination of this is left to the manufacturer's technicians. It obviously will always help you greatly if you can prove the problem is in the hardware or in the software.

If your computer has trouble running only one program (which ran before) there is a likelihood that the problem is related to the program that won't run and not to the computer hardware. If your system has enough available RAM and hard disc space for the program you may first want to check the integrity of your hard disc (DOS and Windows users can run SCANDISK, Macintosh users can run a utility program like Norton or Apple's Disk First Aid, for example). You can then re-install the program and this time pay very close attention to all the messages you receive during the installation process. If the system crashes or hangs during the installation then you may have a bad set of installation disks.

You may not be able to tell if the problem is in the hardware or in the software unless your perform some temporary change to your system. Suppose, for example, that your printer is printing incorrectly. To prove whether or not the printer is truly the problem try connecting it to a different computer system. If it then prints OK the printer is almost certainly not at fault. For this same example another possibility would be to connect a different printer - if this new printer has the same problem then again it's likely the printer is not at fault (because it's unlikely both printers would fail at the same time with the same problem).

Another approach to problem isolation might be called "reduce andsimplify". If we temporarily remove or disable certain items, one or a few at a time, it usually takes just a few tests to isolate the problem. For example, if after installing a Virus Scanning program Windows will not run, you may wish to uninstall the virus program and see if the problem persists. You can also uninstall other hardware and software until you find the culprit. This process may seem time consuming, but it is the same method followed by your favorite computer guru.


When a computer fails there are always a wide variety of symptoms. A system crash may be accompanied by a strange noise, an error message, a blinking light on the printer, etc. All of these symptoms are important and all help steer you towards the cause of the problem. Computers are often like vehicles. If you hear or see something strange happening it very well may be a problem on the horizon.

But - and this is a big but - the particular set of symptoms you have recorded could be caused by very different problems. So, knowing the symptoms is often not enough, and further tests will often be necessary to isolate the problem.


There are countless nifty utility programs that advertise themselves as able to find and correct any problem for you. Some are better than others, but their diagnostic abilities do not always hold up to what they claim. Keep in mind while running these diagnostic checks that they are only a tool operating on an already sick computer.

With these basic limitations always in mind, diagnostics can sometimes be useful. If, for example, the program identifies certain bad sectors on your hard disc (and the diagnostic itself does not reside on these sectors!) then you can be fairly certain that the reported problems are real. Installing a replacement hard disc would be indicated here, followed by running the diagnostic on the new drive as a final confirmation.


Error messages can be very misleading. For example: You may get an error message stating you do not have a sound card installed in your computer. The real problem may be that some other program you have running is accessing your sound card and because the sound card is already "occupied" your computer believes you don't have one. Some error messages are useful, while others consistently report erroneous messages.

If you get an error message check out all available resources to track down the meaning of the error message. Don't forget to look in the manual and any other sheets of paper you received with the hardware or software causing the problem. Last but not least go to one of the search engines and enter the error message. You might be surprised how many other people have had the same problem and got their answer online. And, just because you get an error message, doesn't always mean you have a hardware problem - some errors may be caused by static or by "buggy" software.


Your operating system (most likely Windows 95, 98, ME, or 2000) is composed of hundreds or even thousands of files that are required to run your computer. Each and every piece of software or hardware you add to your system adds more and more files. For a system to fail it only takes one critical file to be overwritten or damaged to bring your computer to a halt. Files can become damaged or lost when new software or hardware is isntalled, when running diagnostic progams, or sometimes by accident.

Still, most Operating Systems try to be forgiving and users often find ways to "limp" around problems. Many users don't do anything about non-serious problems so when a major failure occurs the lucky service tech often finds himself in the proverbial hornet's nest! Important DLL files may have been overwritten or deleted, INI or preference files are completely invalid,other non - compatible programs may have been installed, or the system was resurrected from a hard disc crash, or from a viral infection, and not all configuration files were properly restored.

Re-installing Windows is very time consuming from floppy discs or from a CD, and this is made worse if every Windows installation must then be followed with the installation of all your programs, your printer, your video drivers, etc.etc. So, once you have a good Windows installation why not save it? The best protection is to save your entire hard disc to a tape drive. In the event of a failure you can then restore your Operating System and applications to a known-good state in less than an hour. If your time is at all important to you or the data on your computer cannot be lost there is no better insurance than a good tape backup.


We often read about how intimidating a new computer can be to a new user, but it can be argued that they are perhaps not intimidating enough, as most people "live dangerously" without giving any thought to a major computer failure until it occurs. If your system is used for serious work, or if you're serious about your computer, then you probably depend upon it greatly. If your computer failed today there is a good possibility you would have to reinstall Windows and all of your programs which could take many days to complete.

When should you backup your computer system? When it represents a considerable investment of your time - whether this means time installing applications or time in the preparation of your data files. Think of a backup like a photograph, and the restore as a reverse procedure kind of like making the photograph reality again. You should also backup prior to the installation of any new program as then, if the program crashes your system, you have a recourse or recovery plan ready for action.

One final word about backups. Eventually tapes wear out so you should always verify your tape backups and occassionally test them even if this means restoring them to a temporary directory. The total amount of time you invest in your backup/recovery plan should be proportional to the time you've invested in your computer. If, at the end the week, your system represents 40 hours of work it makes sense to invest another 5% of this time protecting it. These 2 hours are enough to backup and verify most systems. Backups can also be automated and, after being set up properly, will require little or none of your time.


NEVER do a backup when you experience a problem. Backups must be completed on a regular basis before the problem happens. If you do a backup after you notice you are having trouble you will only make a backup of the problems. Most businesses use several backup tapes alternating them each time they do a new backup. This way you will most likely be able to go back a few days to a good clean backup. Losing a few days of work is much better than a years worth of data.


The chart below describes the service cycle. If you recognize classic symptoms, and with a little luck, your first repair attempt may succeed. But, as many techs soon discover, the same set of symptoms can have very different causes so don't be discouraged if you have to perform additional tests. I have always felt that making all relevant observations is the same thing as repairing the system, and that tests are simply a way to dig for symptoms that lie beneath the surface.

And, even you don't succeed in your repair, you'll come away with a much improved knowledge of your system and better information for your service provider. If you have a good tape backup don't be afraid to try things. And, unless your deliberately go about deleting files you have nothing to feel guilty about. While some technicians may joke about your "foolhardy" attempts they will soon appreciate your interest in their subject and will probably become your best source of information!

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