COMPTIA 1102 3.1: Troubleshooting Windows and Solutions

Bluescreens and frequent shutdowns

Startup and shutdown BSOD
- Bad hardware, bad drivers, bad application

Use Last Known Good, System Restore, or Rollback Driver
- Try Safe mode

Reseat or remove the hardware
- If possible

Run hardware diagnostics
- Provided by the manufacturer
- BIOS may have hardware diagnostics

sluggish performance

Task Manager
- Check for high CPU utilization and I/O

Windows Update
- Latest patches and drivers

Disk space
- Check for available space and defrag

Laptops may be using power-saving mode
- Throttles the CPU

Anti-virus and anti-malware
- Scan for bad guys

Can't find operating system (boot error)

- OS missing

Check boot drives
- Remove any media

Startup Repair

Boot loader replaced or changed (boot error)

- Multiple OSes installed

Modify the Boot Configuration Database (BCD)
• Formerly boot.ini
• Recovery Console:
bootrec /rebuildbcd

Startup Repair

"Missing NTLDR" (starting the system)

-the main Windows boot loader is missing

-Run Startup Repair or replace manually and reboot
-Disconnect removable media

"Missing operating system" (starting the system)

Boot Configuration Data may be incorrect

-Run Startup Repair or manually configure BCD store

Boots to Safe Mode
-Windows is not starting normally
-Run Startup Repair

Device not starting (starting the system)

• Check Device Manager and Event Viewer
• Often a bad driver

Remove or replace driver

"one or more services failed to start" (starting the system)

bad/incorrect driver, bad hardware

-try starting manually
-check account permissions
- confirm service dependencies
- windows service; check system files
- application service; reinstall app

application stops working

may provide an error message
may just disappear

check event log
- often includes useful info

check reliability monitor
- history of app problems
- checks for resolutions

reinstall app

" your computer is low on memory" (low memory warnings)

apps need ram to run
more apps = more ram

close large memory processes
- check task manager

increase virtual memory
- more room for swapping applications
- system > about > advanced system settings > performance > settings > virtual memory

USB Controller Resource Warnings

USB devices contain buffers called "endpoints"
- Different USB controllers support a different number of endpoints
- (96 endpoints, 254 endpoints, etc.)

Different devices require a different number of endpoints
- Exceed the number of endpoints and you run out of resources
- It's difficult to determine the number of endpoints used by a device

"The controller does not have enough resources for this device."
- The endpoints are these resources

Move the device to a different USB interface
- USB 2.0 interfaces might support a larger
number of endpoints
• Match the USB interface to the device capabilities
- USB 2.X devices or USB 3.X devices
- More endpoints for all devices

"The controller does not have enough resources for this device." (usb controller resource warnings)

- The endpoints are these resources

Move the device to a different USB interface
- USB 2.0 interfaces might support a larger number of endpoints

Match the USB interface to the device capabilities
- USB 2.X devices or USB 3.X devices
- More endpoints for all devices

general system failures (system instability)

software errors, system hangs, app failures

time for full diagnostic
- can be anything

hardware diagnostic
- most systems include manufacturer diagnostics
- also run storage and memory checks

check the OS
- run SFC (System File Checker)
- perform and anti-malware scan

slow profile load

roaming user profile
- your desktop follows you to any computer
- changes are synchronized

network latency to the domain controller
- slows login script transfers
- slow to apply computer and user policies
- may require many hundred or thousand or LDAP queries

client workstation picks a remote domain controller instead of a local DC
- problems with local infrastructure

time drift

computer's internal clock will drift over time

solution is to fix the symptom
- cant change design of every computer

enable automatic time setting
- settings > time and lang > date and time
- time zone may need to be configured manually if privacy settings are enabled

Reboot (Troubleshooting Solutions)

-Have you tried turning it off and on again?
• There's a reason it works

If a bug is in your router software
• Reboot the router to return to a known good state

If an application is using too many resources
• Stops the app

a memory leak slowly consumes all available RAM
• Clears the RAM and starts again

Restart services (Troubleshooting Solutions)

-Services
• Applications that run in the background
• No user interaction

-Similar issues as a normal process
• Resource utilization
• Memory leaks
• Crashes

-View status in Task Manager
• Under Services tab
• You can right-click to start, stop, or restart
• You can open service to get more info

Application issues (troubleshooting solutions)

problem with app files or config

settings > apps > apps and features
- repair, reset or uninstall

some options in the control panel
- programs and features

run the application setup again
- other options may be available from the setup program

Repair (app issues)

install missing files
replace corrupted files
fix app shortcuts
repair registry entries
update or reconfigure drivers

Reset (app issues)

remove all app data
factory reset/original install

Verify Requirements (troubleshooting solutions)

every OS and app has a set of requirements
- commonly the bare minimums

check with manufacturers

hardware and software resources
- CPU speed, total RAM, video options, device drivers, etc

Use system info

add resources (troubleshoot solutions)

check resource utilization
- task manager

consider long term analysis
- performance monitor

compare existing resources with requirements
- add/replace hardware (CPU, RAM, SSD, etc)

Free drive space
- disk cleanup

system file checker (troubleshoot solutions)

verify the integrity of the OS
- check every important system file with sfc command

>sfc /scannow

Startup Repair (troubleshooting solutions)

start from settings
- settings > system > recovery

also available from the advanced boot options
- repair windows

Windows restore (troubleshooting solutions)

start the system restore app
- system > about > system protection
- this assumes you've not disabled restore points
- install previous config of windows
- DOES NOT CHANGE YOUR FILES, JUST WINDOWS

pick a restore point and reboot
- the OS config will revert to the previous date and time
- user data not modified

reimage or reload OS (troubleshooting solutions)

Windows is big
• And complex

You can spend time trying to find the needle
• Or simply build a new haystack

Many organizations have pre-built images
• Where you don't have to waste time researching issues
• Much faster to re-image than trying to find the root cause of an issue

Windows includes a reset option if no pre-built images are available (home computers)

Update and patch (Troubleshooting Solutions)

Windows Update
• A centralized OS and driver updates

Lots of flexibility on updating Windows
• Change the active hours
• Manage metered connections where it doesnt download over slow connections

Applications must be patched
• Security issues don't stop at the OS
• Download from the publisher or within the application

roll back updates (troubleshooting solutions)

updates are installed automatically by default
- important security patches

view the history

Rebuild Windows profiles (Troubleshooting Solutions)

profiles can become corrupted
- "user profile service failed the logon"
- "user profile cannot be loaded"
- user documents may be "missing"

if a profile doesnt exist, its recreated
- delete the profile and force the rebuilding process

Deleting Windows profiles (Troubleshooting Solutions)

login to the comp with domain administrator rights

rename the \Users\name folder
- will save important files

backup users registry
-HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProfileList
- right click/export

delete the registry entry
- you have backup now

restart computer

reconstructing windows profiles

Login to the computer with the user account
- The profile will be rebuilt
- This will recreate the \Users\name folder

Login as Domain Administrator
- Copy over any important files from the old profile

Do not copy the entire profile
- Corrupted files might exist in the old profile

Logout Domain Administrator,
Login with the user account