Quick tips
Solving a variety of tech problems
Unexplainable data loss
I have an HP Elitebook that is currently fitted with a 2.5-inch SSD as the main Windows 7 drive, and a 1TB mSATA that contains working files and a majority of VirtualBox images as both VHD and VDI files.
I have recently swapped out the 2.5-inch SSD with another one and installed Windows 10 on it, which has gone very smoothly apart from one issue: When I swap back to the Windows 7 SSD I notice that I have lost some VDI files completely, and others have been corrupted.
I have managed to recover some of the lost files from backups and have tried the swap again, and the same thing keeps happening.
What is causing this, and is there anything I can do to stop this? At some point, I will permanently swap the Windows 7 SSD out and use the Windows 10 one, but I’m concerned about data loss on my mSATA. Any help is most appreciated.
STUART MACKEY
APC responds: We posit the theory that the dual-boot setup is the problem. If the problem only occurs after shutting down Windows 10, then it appears that the filesystem on your data drive isn’t being unmounted properly, resulting in file corruption. Have you run disk checks on the drive? If problems are found (and subsequently repaired) it would confirm that diagnosis.
If the diagnosis is confirmed, then there’s one possible reason: Fast Boot. Windows 8.1 and 10 both utilise this to speed up startup by only performing a hybrid shutdown that combines classic shutdown mechanisms with hibernation. Try disabling Fast Boot in Windows 10 to see if this fixes the issue: Select “Additional power settings” under “Settings > Power & sleep.” Click “Choose what the power buttons do,” followed by “Change settings that are currently unavailable,” then untick “Turn on fast start-up (recommended)” and click “Save changes.”
If this doesn’t fix the problem, then the Doc wonders if your mSATA drive configuration is to blame somehow. The port is designed for use as an optional flash cache to accelerate performance on non-SSD drives rather than out-and-out storage, so that may be a factor. Think about how you set the drive up initially – with Intel Rapid Storage maybe? If so, it will have set up a cache and then made the rest of the drive available as storage, so perhaps swapping Windows installations disrupts this process and leads to the file corruption you experience.
Again, a disk check should diagnose and clear the problem. It’s also worth visiting the drive manufacturer’s website to see if you can locate a drive utility that can be used to monitor the drive health and maybe even help reconfigure it if necessary. Ultimately, though, we recommend taking the time to migrate fully to Windows 10 now.
Windows 7 is no longer secure, so if all else fails make the switch, and see how your PC behaves with Windows 10 as its only OS.
CPU overheating
Long-time APC reader and troublemaker here. I have a question about a CPU I’m trying to use, an older Intel 4600k I recently re-seated in an old chassis (Asus H97, Corsair H100i GTX). I didn’t bother reapplying thermal paste because it was still intact with the cooler. On firing it up, my CPU temps have doubled from a cool 30/40 C to 60/80 C. All six fans are flowing correctly: Three at the front, two on the radiator, and one on the exhaust chassis. However, my cooling pumps are off – one doesn’t seem to be flowing at all, and the other is very hot. I can jiggle the suspect pump and the CPU immediately cools off but cannot correct the issue. Presumably, this rules out the thermal paste and points to a defective cooler?
RYAN PITTS
APC responds: All your symptoms clearly indicate that the cooling pump needs replacing – and the APC team have a similar experience to back up that diagnosis too. That said, while the chip is running hotter than you’d like, 60-80 C is within its normal limits – deally it’ll stay under 75 C, but unless you plan to push this PC or use it regularly, you should be able to make do with the existing cooling.
Alternatively, look to either apply new thermal paste (a tube of MX-4 costs around $15) or replace your stock cooler with a budget, but effective, alternative like Noctua’s NH-L9i low-profile cooler. One reviewer reports having used it for five years on a gaming rig with poor ventilation without ever seeing temps peak above 65 C.
M.2 NVMe vs SATA
I have a Dell 5675 with a Ryzen 7 1800X and am not a gamer. The computer came with an M.2 boot drive – I want to swap it out for an NVMe one, and there is an empty
slot. However, I can’t seem to get the computer to recognise the NVMe drive. What am I doing wrong? Maybe the bigger question is: Will I see improved start-up times? KURT WAGNER
APC responds: The Dell community forums are littered with posts about swapping out the SATA M.2 drive supplied by Dell for a faster NVMe drive. One interesting observation is that the NVMe slot found on your Dell motherboard only supports Gen2 x4 speeds (around 1.5GB/s) – significantly faster than SATA (600MB/s), but half the NVMe maximum (3.2GB/s).
Some Dell users have reported success investing in an M.2 PCIe x4 adapter – plug this into the second graphics card slot and you’ll be able to use the PCIe 3.0 bus to boost your speeds to their maximum. Other Dell 5675 users have reported success with a Mailiya model, but we suspect you’ll get the same results with the much cheaper Rivo ($15 from www.amazon.com).
Once physically fitted, boot into Windows and the drive should be physically visible in Disk Management, ready for configuration. It’s worth visiting the drive manufacturer’s webpages for any additional software – for example, Samsung Magician for Samsung drives can help you configure, update, and benchmark your new drive. Samsung also provides a data migration tool to clone your current drive to the new one.
Once cloned, you’ll need to remove the original drive temporarily before powering back up, and Windows should now boot from the newer drive. Once you’ve successfully booted once, you can refit the older drive, which will be set to offline due to a signature collision with the newer drive. You can then convert your old drive into a data or backup drive by first wiping it from the command line – see https://bit.ly/MPCseagate for a guide – and then setting it up as normal.
As for performance, you’re never going to get Chromebookstyle boot times of under 10 seconds – even with a quick POST, you’re looking at boot times of around 40 seconds to the desktop, plus however long your start-up apps take. But NVMe is significantly faster than SATA, particularly on the PCIe 3.0 bus, and you’ll definitely feel the benefit in terms of snappier performance and boot times.
InstallShield error 628
I’m running Windows 10, 1909 (updated from Windows 7 a few years back). I was trying to install an older chess game from an older laptop, and I received an error message: “Error 1628: failed to complete installation.” I’ve tried every remedy on the internet: Renamed the InstallShield folder, emptied the Temp directory. I’ve even tried ending the IDRIVER.EXE process via Task Manager, but nothing has worked. Can you help? JERRY SEMLER
APC responds: Ah, “good-old” InstallShield. The simplest thing to do here is write it off – InstallShield is old tech and a pain in the butt to troubleshoot, as APC has found to its cost over the years. Without knowing the exact game, we can’t tell you whether it runs in Windows 10 anyway, but one ancient chess game that utilises InstallShield is Chessmaster Grand Edition from Ubisoft. A search of online forums reveals it will work on Windows 10 (after upgrading from Windows 7 at least), but there are compatibility issues.
This might be one of those occasions where exploring an alternative means of running the game may be in order – for example, using virtualisation software like Microsoft’s own Hyper-V platform (Windows 10 Professional required) or VirtualBox (www.virtualbox. org) in conjunction with a copy of Windows XP, Vista, or even 7.
Ultimately, though, if you rely on InstallShield for any programs still running, then now is the time to investigate a clean reinstall of Windows (particularly if you’ve not done so since upgrading from Windows 7). InstallShield gets so messed up that it’s almost impossible to remove or fix. Then, going forward, get into the habit of taking regular drive image backups of your Windows installation using a tool like Macrium Reflect Free (www.macrium.com/reflectfree. aspx), so that when you run into a problem like this in future, resolving it involves rolling back your PC a few days or a week rather than having to reach for the nuclear option.
HDMI voltage bleed
I’ve seen videos on the internet showing arcing coming from coax, USB, and HDMI cables when they seem to get high voltage between the conductors and ground shells. What advice can you give to avoid burning up expensive equipment due to what seemed to be termed “voltage bleed over” from an offending device’s HDMI socket?
STEVE BIGELOW
APC responds: This feels like more of a question for an electrician, but it’s basically caused by faulty electronic components that “bleed” out high amounts of voltage through your display’s ports. The source may be the display itself, but it may also be caused by another device connected to your display
– for example, a TV box.
Electricians use so-called Foreign Voltage detectors to confirm the diagnosis: First, wave this close to the surface of your TV, then hold it close to the tip of an HDMI cable that’s only plugged into the TV. The issue can be fixed by installing a grounding module into your electrical outlet, then use coax wire to connect the coax screw on the back of your TV to the coax screw on the unit.