Installing Windows Updates

Windows update is a very important tool to keep your computer safe and running smoothly. Too often people neglect to use this very important tool. As time goes by defects and vulnerabilities are found in the code that is used to write the Windows operating systems software and these updates are the fix to these issues.

Downloading and installing these updates is very easy and should be done at least once a month. I usually check for updates at least once a week. Microsoft releases operating system and security updates on the second Tuesday of each month. This is what is known in the IT world as "Super Tuesday". Of course critical updates will also be released whenever the need arises.

You can configure how you want updates for your computer to be handled and I have included the steps below to accomplish this task, I have also included screenshots to give you a visual display of what you will see.

1. Click the "Start" button
2. Click Control Panel
3. Click System and Security
4. Click Windows Update
5. Click Change Settings
6. Click drop down menu to Select Download and Installation Options then click OK
7. Click Check for Updates
8. Click check boxes for Important and Optional Updates that you want to install
9. Click Install Updates
10. You may be prompted to restart you computer after the installation has finished.

Click Start Button

Click Control Panel

Select System and Security

Select Windows Update

Select Drop Down for Important Updates and Select Recommended Updates then click OK

Select Check for Updates

Check the Important and Optional Updates you want to install

Click Install Updates

Updates will install and then you may be prompted to restart your computer

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/help/windows-update

http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_other-windows_update/microsofts-patch-tuesday-vs-super-patch-tuesday/f2b4f0f0-f497-462d-96b9-e22c7df21873

Installing a New Hard Drive

Installing a new hard drive is not very complicated and need not be intimidating. You may one day be faced with having to replace a failing hard drive, installing a Solid State Drive or you may want to just add an additional hard drive to increase storage.

The most important thing once you decide to add or replace a drive is selecting a drive that will meet your needs now and into the future. Your needs should include how large of a drive you will need, the read/write speed of the drive and obviously the cost.

This article only covers the physical removal and/or installation of different drives and it does not discuss Operating System installation or user/data migration.

I have outlined step by step how to remove and install a new HDD or SSD. There are several things that you will need to complete this task.

1. New HDD or SSD ***
2. Sata Data Cable ***
3. Drive Bay Converter (if needed) **
4. Phillips Screwdriver
5. Grounding Strap *

Sata Hard Drive:

1. Power off computer and unhook all attached cables, keyboard and mouse.

2. Open up computer case. * see below

3. Locate an available 3.5" drive bay (if adding an additional drive).

4. Disconnect the power cable and data cable from the existing drive.

5. Locate and remove the screws holding the drive in the bay.

6. Slide drive out and set to the side.

7. Remove the new drive from its packaging, being careful to avoid touching any of the circuitry located on the underside of the drive.

8. Slide the drive into the bay with the power and data connectors facing inboard and the circuit board facing down.

9. Secure the drive in place with the retaining screws.

10. Connect the power and data cables to the drive.

11. Inspect the inside of the casing for cables that may have shifted and come in contact with one of the multiple system cooling fans.

12. Close up the case.

13. Reconnect all the cables, monitor and mouse and reattach the power cable.

14. Power the computer back up.

Sata Solid State Drive

The steps for installing an SSD are the same as above, but you will want to secure the drive into the bay adapter first and then install it as a single unit.

Sata Data Cable

2.5" to 3.5" Bay Adapter

Windows Stop Error (Blue Screen)

One of the most annoying things with a Windows based computer can be the "Blue Screen of Death" formally known as the "Windows Stop Error" This can be caused by numerous computer issues but is more often than not caused by a bad device driver.

A device driver is a small amount of computer code that allows the operating system (Windows) to recognize and communicate with all the hardware devices installed in your computer. Sometimes this code can become corrupted or if a new device driver is installed it may be incompatible with your system.

I have included a graphic of what a typical "Blue Screen" looks like below.

Blue Screen:

Recovery from a "Blue Screen" can range from relatively easy to fairly complicated. I have outlined below the initial steps you need to take to correct this error on your own and get your computer running normally again.

I have also included an image of a typical boot menu that you will encounter during the recovery process. You can use this as a guide as you navigate through recovering your computer. Once you initially get a "Blue Screen" you may or may not have the option to reboot from the error screen, if not you will have to do a "hard boot" of the computer (hold the power button between 5 and 10 seconds until it powers off). Once the computer starts the reboot process then follow the steps below to begin recovery.

1. Reboot computer as described above.
2. Locate and press the F8 key during the reboot process.
3. Review the boot option menu as shown below.
4. Select a boot option to correct the error. (My recommendation is to select "Last Known Good Configuration" before you attempt any other options.
5. If this doesn't correct the problem after the reboot then boot into "Safe Mode w/Networking".
6. Once the computer successfully boots into "Safe Mode" then you can start to troubleshoot what is going on.
7. If you know that a particular device driver is causing the problem then you can attempt a rollback of that driver. This will restore the original driver and should correct the problem. If this doesn't work then you will have to review the event logs to pinpoint a cause.

Recovery Mode Boot Options Menu:

Press F8 during reboot

Select Boot Option

I have included several screenshots of the device driver menu and Windows event logs and the steps you need to follow to find these:

Computer Management:

Right click My Computer

Select Manage

Device Manager:

Right click My Computer

Select Manage

Select Device Manager

Right Click specific device

Select Driver Tab

Windows Event Logs:

Right click My Computer

Select Manage

Select Event Viewer

Select Windows Logs

Select System

I have also included some links below to give you a more detailed explanations of the recovery process.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/start-computer-safe-mode#start-computer-safe-mode=windows-vista

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/start-computer-safe-mode#start-computer-safe-mode=windows-7

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/windows-startup-settings-including-safe-mode

Introduction

My name is John. I am new to blogging about anything but felt that this would be a great forum to share my knowledge about computers and networks with folks that may feel that they are technologically challenged. Hopefully this blog will provide easy to follow steps to help resolve the many issues that can be encountered by everyday technology users.

I am CompTia A+ Certified and have spent many years in Windows Server and Client Support. I also have a great deal of experience with Cisco Networking and basic networking in general.

I will gladly accept any constructive and useful critiques of the content that is posted to this blog and openly solicit helpful tips from followers who have experienced many of the issues discussed here.

I only have a few rules (This may expand in the future) for posting to this blog site and they are as follows:

1. Only post content that is relevant to the current discussion.
2. Keep the conversation respectful.