PCs are complex devices, and complex devices always, eventually, encounter problems. This chapter is designed to help you solve a variety of Windows problems, including startup problems, intermittent crashing, and data corruption.
If Windows won’t start, read the first section, Troubleshooting startup problems. If you’re experiencing corruption or Windows is randomly crashing, read Troubleshooting corruption and intermittent failures later in this chapter.
At the end of the chapter I describe two techniques that are useful for solving a variety of problems: refreshing your PC and resetting your PC. Refreshing your PC reinstalls Windows while keeping your files and Windows 8.1 apps intact. Resetting your PC cleans your PC completely and reinstalls Windows.
For information about troubleshooting performance problems, refer to Chapter 26. Also refer to the book Troubleshoot and Optimize Windows 8.1 Inside Out from Microsoft Press.
Windows won’t start. It’s a scary moment, but take a deep breath, because it’s often easily solved. In this section, I’ll walk you through a straightforward troubleshooting process that’s designed to solve most startup problems that people encounter. I can’t attempt to cover every problem that might occur, but I think this process will identify most problems.
First, unplug your PC and let it sit for about five minutes. If you have a mobile PC, remove the battery if you can. Now, plug it back in.
In my experience, that simple process gets Windows to start about 25 percent of the time. Of course, 75 percent of the time, I need to do more troubleshooting.
If Windows prompts you to repair your PC, allow it to do so. That often helps, but not always. If Windows doesn’t prompt you, start your PC from the Windows 8.1 DVD.
Next, unplug any USB devices and memory cards that you aren’t using. Sometimes, your PC might try to boot from a USB device, or a malfunctioning device will prevent it from starting correctly.
If you have a desktop PC, open the case and remove any expansion cards that aren’t required for startup. Sometimes, a malfunctioning expansion card can prevent your PC from starting. While you’re in there, spend a few minutes and reseat every card and cable. Reseating cards and cables is the process of unplugging them and then plugging them back in, just to make sure they have a good connection.
If you’ve recently added or replaced a hard drive, upgraded Windows, or run another operating system on your PC, that is probably the source of your problem. The steps described in the sections that follow will probably fix your problem, but there is one thing you should try first. Within your PC’s BIOS settings, make sure that the correct hard drive is configured for startup. Hard drives are usually identified by their serial numbers, which might not make any sense to you. Therefore, you might need to use trial and error to select the correct boot hard drive to start Windows.
Note
Troubleshooting startup problems Watch the video at http://aka.ms/WinIO/startup.
You can use Windows Recovery Environment (Windows RE) to solve many startup problems. To start Windows Recovery Environment, insert your Windows 8.1 DVD. When you restart your computer, your PC will boot from your recovery drive. If the Windows DVD prompts you to Press Any Key To Boot From CD Or DVD, do what it tells you to do: press a key. If your PC does not attempt to start from the DVD or flash drive, edit your PC’s BIOS settings to configure it to boot from the DVD or flash drive first.
If you’re starting from the Windows 8.1 DVD, click Repair Your Computer. Regardless of which media you use, on the Choose An Option page, as shown in Figure 27-1, click Troubleshoot.
On the Troubleshoot page, select Advanced Options. Then, on the Advanced Options page, as shown in Figure 27-2, select Automatic Repair. If the Automatic Repair page allows you to select Windows 8.1 as an option, that’s a really good sign, because that means Windows recovery can still communicate with your hard disk and can probably fix your problem automatically. Select your Windows installation.
If Automatic Repair reports that it can’t repair your PC, click Advanced Options, Troubleshoot, Advanced Options (again), and then Command Prompt. From the command prompt, run the command wmic logicaldisk get name. This command lists all the drives that are visible to Windows, as shown in this example output:
wmic logicaldisk get name
Name
C:
D:
E:
X:Normally, your system drive is your C drive. However, the drive lettering can change when you start Windows recovery. To find your system drive, run the command dir <drive_letter>: for each drive letter until you find the one that contains the Windows folder. For example, you might run dir C:, dir D:, and dir E:.
If one of the drives contains a Users folder and a Windows folder, that’s great news, because it means that your system drive is still readable.
If you have a recent system image and your files are backed up, you should attempt to restore the system image and your files. For information about restoring a system image and files from a backup, refer to Chapter 10.
I’ve been at this point in the troubleshooting process without a recent backup, too. It happens to all of us. After seeing that my files are still accessible, my first thought is usually, “Oh my goodness, glory be, my files live!” OK, I don’t actually think in the dialect of a character from Gone with the Wind, but I swear a lot when I’m emotional, and my actual thoughts wouldn’t be appropriate for print. Anyway, the first thing I always do is use the command prompt to copy my files to another drive so I can be sure I don’t lose them. After all, if Windows won’t start, it’s probably because your drive is failing, and when drives start to fail, data begins to disappear.
To copy your files to another drive, connect a USB drive to your PC and rerun the command wmic logicaldisk get name to determine its drive letter. If it doesn’t appear, then restart your computer and return to the command prompt from the Advanced Options page.
Now, run this command to copy your user profiles to the external drive: xcopy <system_drive>:users <backup_drive>:ackup /E /C /Y. For example, if your backup drive is F and your system drive is D, you might run the command xcopy D:users F:ackup /E /C /Y. If you have files stored outside your user profile, use the same command to copy those folders.
Unplug your backup drive and breathe a sigh of relief, because at least you have a copy of the files that were still readable. With your files safe, it’s time to move on to getting Windows to start. First, fix any errors that might be present on the disk by using the ChkDsk tool: chkdsk <system_drive>: /f /r. This command might just fix all your problems. If your drive is close to total failure, it might be enough to cause it to completely fail, which is why I wanted you to back up your files first.
It’s possible that ChkDsk did a good enough job of fixing your hard disk that you can now restart the automatic repair process and it will succeed. If it doesn’t, restart Windows recovery and select Refresh Your PC from the Troubleshoot page, as shown in Figure 27-3.
Inside OUT: Troubleshooting startup with a live CD
I love Windows recovery, but it’s not perfect, and I’ve encountered many different startup problems that automatic repair couldn’t fix but could be easily fixed by starting free third-party tools. However, these tools aren’t supported, and they’re not especially easy to use. Still, they might just work.
My favorite tool for troubleshooting startup is Hiren’s BootCD, available at http://www.hirensbootcd.org/. After unzipping the ISO file, insert a blank CD into your computer, right-click the ISO file in File Explorer on the desktop, and then click Burn Disk Image. If you can’t boot from a CD, use the Unetbootin tool (available at http://sourceforge.net/projects/unetbootin/) to create a bootable USB flash drive.
Start your PC from the CD or flash drive, and you’ll see the menu shown in Figure 27-4.
From here, you have a few choices for troubleshooting:
If your primary concern is rescuing your data from your drive, launch the Linux Based Rescue Environment and start File Manager from the desktop. If you can see your files, copy them to another drive. If you can’t see your files, start Partition Editor from the desktop to launch GParted, select your drive, open the Device menu, and then select Attempt Data Rescue. If this succeeds, you’ll be able to copy your files to another drive, such as an external USB drive, using File Manager on the desktop.
If your primary concern is getting Windows started as quickly as possible, start the PLoP Boot Manager and select the partition containing Windows. Selecting the right partition might require some trial and error, but it’s probably HDA Partition 1. If that fails, try the Fix NTLDR Is Missing option on the main menu of Hiren’s BootCD and work through each of the options in sequence. If you’re able to start Windows correctly, it means your disk is intact, but the boot sector has been modified. Automatic repair should be able to fix this problem, but if it doesn’t, refreshing your PC should solve it. If none of the partitions start correctly, your drive is probably corrupted.
If your primary concern is permanently solving the startup problem, launch the Linux Based Rescue Environment and start Partition Editor from the desktop to launch GParted. Right-click your boot drive (which is usually the first drive listed with a size of 350 MB) and select Flags. Select the Boot flag, as shown in Figure 27-5, and click Close. If your boot sector was corrupted, or if installing another operating system changed your boot sector, this will fix the problem.
If refreshing your PC doesn’t work, start your PC from the Windows 8.1 installation media and reinstall Windows using the Custom option shown in Figure 27-6. On the Where Do You Want To Install Windows page, select your primary drive, not the smaller drive labeled System Reserved.
If reinstalling Windows fails, your hard drive is probably too corrupted to be usable. Follow the steps in the next section, What to do if you can’t see your system drive, to replace your drive and reinstall Windows.
If you can’t read your system drive, that could mean several different things:
Your hard drive has completely failed.
The cable attaching your hard drive to your PC has failed.
The power cable attached to your hard drive has failed.
The port on your motherboard that connects to your hard drive has failed.
If your PC is under warranty, now is a good time to contact your hardware manufacturer’s technical support. If your PC isn’t under warranty, you’re not comfortable digging inside your computer, and you think your PC might be less expensive to repair than replace, you might want to hire a repair technician. For more information about technical support services, refer to Chapter 8.
Of the different components that might have failed, the hardest to fix is a failed hard drive. Therefore, I suggest taking an optimistic approach to the testing by starting with the easiest components to replace. After each step, attempt to start Windows:
Replace the cable that connects your hard drive to your PC.
Connect a different power cable to your hard drive.
Connect your hard drive to a different port on your PC’s motherboard.
If Windows still won’t start and you’ve replaced all of these components, your hard drive has probably completely failed. However, it’s worth repeating the steps in Troubleshooting startup from a command prompt earlier in this chapter to determine whether your drive might be readable.
If you determine that your hard drive has completely failed, replace your drive, which your hardware manufacturer will probably do for free if you are still under warranty. Then, install Windows on the new drive and restore your files. For information about replacing a hard drive, refer to Chapter 12. For information about installing Windows, refer to Chapter 3. For information about restoring files from a backup, refer to Chapter 10.
The most challenging problems to troubleshoot are those that are intermittent. Your PC might work great for days, weeks, or even months, and then it will unexpectedly crash. Or, even worse, you might experience data corruption issues—files that won’t open, weird sounds in audio files, jaggedness in videos, or unexpected blocks of color in image files, as shown in Figure 27-7.
Intermittent problems are usually caused by failing hardware. Sometimes, the cause of the problem is simply a loose connection. Start by unplugging and reconnecting every external adapter. If the problem persists, unplug your PC, open it, remove every card and connector, and then firmly reconnect them.
If that doesn’t solve the problem, a component of your PC might be failing. If you can identify the failing component, you can replace it and restore your PC’s reliability. The more frequently the problem occurs, the easier it will be to identify the source of your problem. The sections that follow describe different ways to test your PC for hardware problems.
Sometimes, intermittent problems are related to a change on your PC, such as updating a driver or installing a new hardware component. Wouldn’t it be nice if you kept track of every change you made to your PC and every problem you had so you could look back and see what changed right before you started having problems?
Windows actually does that for you, and you can browse the data using Reliability Monitor, as shown in Figure 27-8. To start Reliability Monitor, search from the Start screen for reliability and then click View Reliability History.
Selecting a day on the calendar shows you the events that occurred on that day, including application failures, Windows failures, warnings, and informational events such as updating drivers.
Often, Reliability Monitor will display exactly what’s wrong. For example, Figure 27-9 shows an important critical event: Video Hardware Error. This can indicate that the video driver needs to be updated or that the video adapter is failing.
Note
Troubleshooting blue screens Watch the video at http://aka.ms/WinIO/bluescreen.
If you experience a Stop error, more commonly known as a blue screen, you’ll see a Windows critical event labeled Shut Down Unexpectedly or Windows Stopped Working. Double-click it to view the details, and then identify the error code. In Figure 27-10, the error code is 27 (it’s labeled BCCode). Now, search the Internet for “stop error <error_code>” for clues about likely causes.
I dedicated entire chapters in the Windows Vista Resource Kit and Windows 7 Resource Kit to troubleshooting blue screens, and little has changed in Windows 8.1. However, most blue screens are caused by hardware and driver problems, and the other techniques described in this chapter should be sufficient for you to identify the source of those failures. If you really want to get your hands dirty and analyze the cause of your blue screen, read “Windows Bugcheck Analysis” at http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/6302.windows-bugcheck-analysis-en-us.aspx.
Figure 27-10. After a blue screen, use Reliability Monitor to identify the error code, and then search the Internet for more information about the code.
To use Reliability Monitor to identify the source of a less obvious problem, look through the calendar for the red icons that indicate some type of error. Find when the errors started, and then look for informational events that occurred that same day or just prior.
If you updated a driver a few days before your PC started crashing randomly, there’s a good chance that the driver is the cause of your problems. Visit the hardware manufacturer’s website to see if an updated driver is available. If you have the latest version of the driver, you might be able to solve your problem by rolling back the driver to the previous version. Run Device Manager from Settings, right-click the problem device, and then click Properties. If available, click Roll Back Driver.
If you installed new hardware before the problems started, check the hardware manufacturer’s website for a newer version of the driver. If one is available, install it and see if that solves your problem. If a newer driver isn’t available, or if it doesn’t solve your problem, try disconnecting the new hardware to see if your problems stop. If your problems go away when you remove the hardware, the hardware was the source of your problem.
A failing hard drive can read data from or write data to the disk incorrectly. This can lead to corrupted files. If Windows 8.1 attempts to read in data from different parts of the system, such as a system file or the page file, that corrupted data might cause Windows to display a Stop error, commonly known as a blue screen.
The easiest way to test your disk for errors is to open a command prompt and run chkdsk c:. If the output contains the phrase “Windows found problems with the file system,” shown in bold among the other ChkDsk output in the following example, your disk has some corruption.
The type of the file system is NTFS.
Volume label is OS.
WARNING! F parameter not specified.
Running CHKDSK in read-only mode.
CHKDSK is verifying files (stage 1 of 3)...
808960 file records processed.
File verification completed.
3805 large file records processed.
0 bad file records processed.
0 EA records processed.
123 reparse records processed.
CHKDSK is verifying indexes (stage 2 of 3)...
988174 index entries processed.
Index verification completed.
0 unindexed files scanned.
0 unindexed files recovered.
CHKDSK is verifying security descriptors (stage 3 of 3)...
808960 file SDs/SIDs processed.
Security descriptor verification completed.
89608 data files processed.
CHKDSK is verifying Usn Journal...
35799856 USN bytes processed.
Usn Journal verification completed.
The Volume Bitmap is incorrect.
Windows found problems with the file system.
Run CHKDSK with the /F (fix) option to correct these.
468847615 KB total disk space.
439772332 KB in 444431 files.
327964 KB in 89609 indexes.
0 KB in bad sectors.
929763 KB in use by the system.
65536 KB occupied by the log file.
27817556 KB available on disk.
4096 bytes in each allocation unit.
117211903 total allocation units on disk.
6954389 allocation units available on disk.If ChkDsk finds any errors, your disk might be in the process of failing. However, because errors can be caused by power fluctuations, power failures, and unexpected shutdowns, your disk might also be healthy. Run chkdsk c: /f /r at a command prompt and restart your computer to fix the errors on your C drive (a process that can take minutes or hours). In a few days or a week, run chkdsk c: again. If more errors have appeared, that’s a sign that your disk is failing, and you should replace it, as described in Chapter 12.
Either way, please make sure you have a recent backup, as described in Chapter 10.
Memory failures can cause intermittent, unpredictable crashes and data corruption. In fact, memory errors can show the same symptoms as a failing hard drive.
If you’re experiencing those symptoms, you should run memory-testing software to diagnose it. Windows 8.1 has memory-testing software built in. To run the memory-testing software, search from the Start screen for memory and select Windows Memory Diagnostic. Then, click Restart Now And Check For Problems, as shown in Figure 27-11.
Windows shuts down and launches the Windows Memory Diagnostics Tool within Windows Recovery Environment (RE), as shown in Figure 27-12. It’s not a touch friendly app, but you don’t really need to interact with it; just wait a few minutes for it to finish. Windows will restart and notify you whether Windows Memory Diagnostics found any problems.
Note
Testing your memory Watch the video at http://aka.ms/WinIO/memory.
Windows Memory Diagnostics tells you of the results in a notification on the desktop, but that’s easy to miss. To look up the results in Event Viewer, run compmgmt.msc from the Start screen. Select System ToolsEvent ViewerWindows LogsSystem. Then, look through the results for an event with a source of MemoryDiagnostics-Results. Select it, as shown in Figure 27-13, and view the results on the General tab of the lower pane.
If Windows Memory Diagnostics finds a problem, you definitely have failing memory. If it doesn’t find a problem, you might still have failing memory, because Windows Memory Diagnostics isn’t the most thorough testing software. I recommend getting a second opinion by running the free Memtest86+ tool.
Download the Memtest86+ Auto-installer for USB Key from http://www.memtest.org/#downiso and use it to create a bootable flash drive. If you prefer to boot from a CD, download the Pre-Compiled Bootable ISO (.zip). Extract the ISO file from the ZIP file, and then burn it to a CD. Restart your PC and boot from the flash drive or CD. Memtest86+ automatically runs its exhaustive testing, as shown in Figure 27-14, which might take an hour depending on how much memory your PC has.
Memtest86+ displays errors in bright red messages in the bottom half of the screen, and if your memory is faulty, it’ll find the problem. Memtest86+ typically does a good job of displaying precisely which memory chip is failing. However, it can be difficult to determine which of several chips is failing. If you’re not sure which chip is the problem, replace one chip and repeat the test. If you see errors again, you replaced the wrong chip. Swap the next memory chip until the errors stop.
If your PC is still under warranty, contact your hardware manufacturer’s support so they can repair your PC. If your PC isn’t under warranty, don’t worry: replacing memory is one of the more inexpensive and straightforward PC repair tasks.
On a desktop PC, memory chips are relatively easy to replace. Buy a new memory chip exactly like your original chip, shut down and unplug your PC, open the case, touch the case to discharge any static electricity in your body, and then replace the chip. Your problem should be solved.
On mobile PCs, it might be just as easy. Many mobile PCs, especially larger mobile PCs, have memory that users can replace or upgrade. More compact mobile PCs, especially netbooks, ultrabooks, and tablets, often have memory that is permanently attached to the motherboard and therefore cannot be easily replaced. Contact your hardware manufacturer or a skilled repair technician to perform the repair.
You can use Ultimate Boot CD, available at http://www.ultimatebootcd.com, to test your memory and hard disk, as well as just about every other hardware component, including your processor, video memory, and monitor pixels. Figure 27-15 shows the startup menu.
Figure 27-15. The self-proclaimed Ultimate Boot CD includes a variety of useful tools for testing your PC’s hardware.
As the not-so-humble name suggests, the Ultimate Boot CD really is quite comprehensive. In fact, it has a few too many tools for me to describe them all. The categories of tools include:
CPU. A variety of tools to give your processor an extreme workout. If your processor is overclocked or overheating, this will cause a failure. Verify that your processor fan is working properly, clean the dust out of your PC, and if you overclocked your processor, set it back to the default speed.
HDD, Diagnostics. A variety of tools for testing and diagnosing your hard drives.
Memory. Test your PC’s memory. Among other tools, this includes Memtest86+, discussed in the previous section.
Peripherals, Video Memory Stress Test. Tests the memory in your video card for errors, as shown in Figure 27-16.
With earlier versions of Windows, many people followed a two-step troubleshooting process for all problems: first, they restarted their PC. If that didn’t fix the problem, they reinstalled Windows.
That’s a rather unsophisticated approach, but it does have merit. Restarting the PC clears the memory and solves most temporary software issues. Reinstalling Windows cleans the slate completely, and usually solves all problems that aren’t hardware related.
As powerful as it is to reinstall Windows, it’s also really time-consuming. You need to reinstall every application that you use and reconfigure all your settings. The entire task can take a full day.
Windows 8.1 has a new feature: refreshing your PC. When you choose to refresh your PC, Windows 8.1 follows this process:
Starts Windows RE.
Saves user settings and files to a location on the same disk.
Reinstalls a fresh copy of Windows 8.1.
Restores user files and settings.
Restarts the new installation of Windows 8.1.
Windows does not restore all system settings when you refresh your PC. Refreshing does restore those settings that have little impact on system stability, including:
Windows 8.1 applications
Desktop wallpaper and other personalization settings
Wireless network connections
Mobile broadband connections
Drive letter assignments
BitLocker and BitLocker To Go settings
Other settings are not retained because they might have an impact on system stability and usability. These include:
Before beginning the refresh process, take the time to identify any desktop applications that you will need to reinstall afterward. If necessary, locate the installation media and determine any product keys that will be required. Some applications, such as iTunes, might need to be deauthorized before refreshing your PC.
To refresh your PC, click Update And Recovery in PC Settings and then click Recovery. Under Refresh Your PC Without Affecting Your Files, click Get Started. You might be prompted to insert your Windows 8.1 installation media. After a few minutes, Windows 8.1 will restart and refresh your PC, as shown in Figure 27-17.
Figure 27-17. Refreshing your PC reinstalls Windows while keeping your documents and most of your settings.
If there were any desktop applications installed prior to the refresh, they will not be available. However, Windows 8.1 will have created an HTML file named Removed Apps on your desktop. View this file in Internet Explorer to see a list of applications that were previously installed.
If refreshing your PC does not solve your problems, you can reset your PC. This process removes all your applications, files, and settings. This allows Windows to fix any software-related problems, but you need to have a backup of your data available to restore and be ready to reinstall any applications and drivers. Be sure to have any media and product keys required to reinstall applications.
When you choose to reset your PC, Windows 8.1:
Starts Windows RE.
Formats the system drive.
Reinstalls a fresh copy of Windows 8.1.
Restarts the new installation of Windows 8.1.
To reset your PC, click Update And Recovery in PC Settings, and then click Recovery. Under Remove Everything And Reinstall Windows, click Get Started.
When prompted to fully clean your drive, select Just Remove My Files if you are going to continue to use your PC. If you’re giving your PC to someone else, select Fully Clean The Drive to help protect your privacy. You might be prompted to insert your Windows 8.1 installation media. After you click Reset, Windows 8.1 will restart and reset your PC.
Inside OUT: Reset your PC before selling it or giving it away
Before you give your PC away or sell it, you should be sure you completely remove all your apps and files. Resetting your PC is the perfect way to do this. On the Do You Want To Fully Clean Your Drive page, as shown in Figure 27-18, select Fully Clean The Drive.
If you select Just Remove My Files, your PC’s next owner could get to your data quite easily. When you select Fully Clean The Drive, Windows writes random patterns over your data to reduce the risk of someone recovering your personal files. While this provides sufficient confidentiality for most users, you might need special software to meet regulatory requirements or to protect your data from sophisticated computer forensics.
If you really want to do everything you can to erase the contents of your hard disk, download Darik’s Boot And Nuke and create a bootable CD or flash drive from the ISO file. After downloading the ISO file, insert a blank CD into your computer, right-click the ISO file in File Explorer on the desktop, and then click Burn Disk Image. If you can’t boot from a CD, use the Unetbootin tool (available at http://www.blancco.com/us/frontpage/) to create a bootable USB flash drive. Start your PC from the CD or flash drive, and type autonuke at the prompt. Darik’s Boot And Nuke is free software, and doesn’t offer any guarantees, and neither can I. However, my experience has been that your data will be about as gone as it’s going to get. Darik’s Boot And Nuke writes over your data multiple times using cryptographic techniques, going beyond what Windows does.
If you need to remove your data in a way that complies with regulatory requirements, or you want software that really does offer a guarantee, check out Blancco, available for a fee at http://www.blancco.com/us/frontpage.