STOP W10 ANNIVERSARY UPDATE CRASHES
1 Bring back lost partitions
Plenty of people have reported that their hard-drive partitions have gone missing after installing the Windows 10 Anniversary Update. This can make your system unstable, and programs may crash if they can’t find the files they need. Fortunately, restoring your data shouldn’t be difficult.
First, hold down the Windows key+x and click Disk Management. You’ll see how your drives are divided into partitions (see screenshot below). Each partition should have a drive letter in brackets after its name, such as (C:). The only exception is the System Reserved partition, which never has a drive letter.
If you see any other partition that is marked as Healthy in the Status column but has no drive letter next to it (such as the New Volume partition in the screenshot below), something has gone wrong. To fix it, you need to give the partition the same drive letter it originally had before the update, which means you’ll need to think back to how your computer used to be set up. If you add the wrong drive letter, some programs won’t work.
Right-click the partition and select ‘Change Drive Letter and Paths’. Click Add, select the correct drive letter and click OK, then OK again (see screenshot below). If the drive letter you want to use isn’t available, it’s been taken by another drive - perhaps a USB or optical drive. Scroll through the list to find the drive that’s using the letter you need. Right-click it and select ‘Change Drive Letter and Paths’ again. Select the drive letter in the box and click Remove. Then click Add, and choose a different drive letter from the menu – making sure ‘Assign the following drive letter’ is selected – and click OK. Now, you can go back to your lost partition and follow the steps above to give the partition its original drive letter.
2 Fix Windows Update errors
In Issue 484 of Computeractive we explained what to do if Windows 10 Anniversary Update gets stuck while installing (see page 58), but you may still experience a problem where regular updates don’t work. If Windows can’t receive updates, your computer is likely to suffer from further problems in the future, because it won’t be able to receive the regular security patches that fix them. Even worse, you might be missing out on a fix for a problem that’s crashing your PC right now.
Before you rush to the conclusion that your updates aren’t working, give them some time, as big updates take a while to install. But if they’ve been stuck for over two hours without any sign of progress, something is wrong. One of the first things to try is to repair any corrupt system files (see tip 11, page 55).
If Windows still won’t download updates, use the Windows Update Troubleshooter ( www.snipca. com/21699). Download and run the tool and it will automatically scan your computer. Note that when you first run the troubleshooter, it may tell you that it’s more likely to find fixes if it runs as an Administrator. Click Yes to restart the program in Administrator mode and start again. When it finds a problem, it will ask you if you want to ‘Apply this fix’ (see screenshot above left). We recommend applying any fix it suggests by clicking this’.
3 Stop Windows apps crashing after an upgrade
Windows apps are the programs you download from the Windows store. They work in a slightly different way to desktop programs, and a major system update can break one or all of them. On affected computers, apps will often open but then crash immediately. As a last
resort, you can uninstall and reinstall each app, but you should try these solutions first.
Press Windows+x and click Command Prompt, then type wsreset and press Enter. This will reset the Windows Store and its cache. If that doesn’t fix the problem, you’ll need to reset affected apps to their default settings. Click Settings, System and ‘Apps & features’. Select an app that’s currently crashing and click ‘Advanced options’. Click Reset (see screenshot on page 51) and Reset again to confirm. This should restore the app to its working condition. Repeat the procedure for any other broken apps.
4 Refresh your Windows installation
Many new PCS are stuffed with software you neither want nor need. In many cases, this clutter can cause problems with your computer, including crashes. The good news is that Microsoft has added a tool to the Anniversary Update that wipes your PC and lets you start again from scratch without all the unnecessary programs – except those that Microsoft itself has added to Windows 10.
Before you start, back up all your data and make sure you have installation discs and licence keys for any critical software. Laptop owners should visit the manufacturer’s support site and download any Windows 10 drivers for touchpads, keyboards and so on, saving them to an external hard drive or USB drive for safe keeping. This is because you may need to reinstall some software and drivers to get your computer running smoothly.
When you’re ready, click Start, then Settings, and click ‘Update & security’ followed by Recovery. At the bottom of the next screen, click ‘Learn how to start fresh with a clean installation of Windows’. Clicking this link takes you to a website where you can download a file called Refreshwindowstool.exe. Run the Refresh Windows Tool and choose ‘Keep personal files only’ (see screenshot above). This is the best option for most people, but if you’d rather wipe your PC of all files and data, choose Nothing. Click Start when you’ve made your choice and the tool will display a message that says ‘Getting a few things ready’. It will then download a fresh copy of Windows 10, restart your PC and install it. If you suddenly have a change of heart, you can safely shut down the tool at any point while it’s downloading Windows.
5 Prevent your Kindle from crashing Windows
Of all the devices that are likely to crash your PC, we would have put a Kindle at the bottom of the list. Yet, with the Anniversary Update, PCS have been showing the Blue Screen of Death when a Kindle is connected to a USB port. The problem seems to mainly affect the Kindle Paperwhite and Voyage, but other models have caused the same problem. Microsoft is working on a fix, but in the meantime there are a few solutions.
First, try using a different USB port. Some people have found that switching from a USB 3.0 port (which has a blue connector to identify it – see screenshot below) to a USB 2.0 port, or vice versa, fixes the problem. Others have reported that using a USB hub instead of plugging the Kindle directly into a USB port on their PC has stopped the crashes. Turning your computer off, connecting the Kindle and turning the computer back on can also work. Be careful if you try this fix, though, because disconnecting and reconnecting the Kindle while your PC is on will cause it to crash again.
6Fix Microsoft Office errors
Fixing Windows 10 can solve many stability problems, but the programs you use can cause your PC to crash too. Microsoft Office in particular can be a major source of frustration – whether it closes itself when you’re in the middle of working or freezes your entire PC.
Office is a large and complicated suite of programs, so diagnosing the exact problem can be tricky. Thankfully, Microsoft has released a handy tool that does the diagnosing and fixing for you. To download the Microsoft Office Configuration Analyzer Tool, go to www.snipca.com/21687 and click the Download button, then tick the box next to Offcat.msi and click Next, then click Save File. Double-click the OFFCAT.MSI file to install it, following the step-by-step instructions, and open the program using the shortcut that appears in the Start menu. A notification will open: tick the ‘I’ve read this notification’ box and click Continue.
Select the Office programs you want to scan (Word, Excel and so on), and click the ‘More programs’ link to see any of the less well-known programs you have installed, such as Onenote and Publisher. Click ‘Click to scan’ to start the process. The tool will scan your Office installation and highlight any errors it finds. Click on a problem to see more information about it. Then click ‘Download the update for this issue’ and follow the instructions (see screenshot below). If there is no option to download an update, use the link ‘Click here to see possible online solutions to this issue’. This will open Microsoft’s online help website in your browser, which will have instructions to help you correct the problem.
7Stop your browser crashing
Chrome is our browser of choice, but it can be unreliable and prone to crashing, depending on which extensions you’ve added. Removing extensions, clearing your browser data and upgrading to the latest version of Chrome are the obvious fixes, and you should certainly try those first.
If the problem persists, the most likely cause is corrupted user data. Resetting this information can get Chrome working again – but be warned: if you don’t synchronise your data with a Google account before resetting, these steps may permanently wipe out your bookmarks and internet passwords.
You can check that your data is synchronised by opening Chrome, clicking the Settings icon in the top-right of the window (three horizontal lines) and clicking Settings. At the top of the screen, under ‘Sign in’, you will either see a ‘Sign in to Chrome’ button or, if you’re already signed in, details of your Google account. If you see the ‘Sign in’ button, click it and enter your Google username and password. Once you’ve signed in, click ‘Advanced sync settings’, tick all the boxes and click OK (see screenshot above right).
To reset your user data, head back to Settings and click ‘Show advanced settings’ at the bottom of the page. Scroll down and click Reset settings. A warning will appear, telling you that this will remove all extensions, browser files, cached data and bookmarks, and that your Google Account will be disconnected. Click Reset. Once the reset process finishes, you can return to the settings menu and restore your passwords, history, bookmarks and everything else. Just click ‘Sign in to Chrome’ and enter your Google account details.
8Fix Skype crashes
One instant way to reduce Skype crashes is to stop using the Skype Windows 10 app (that comes with a fresh installation of the operating system). It’s just too unreliable and prone to errors. To remove it, open the Start menu and select Settings, then System and ‘Apps & features’. Click Skype in the list and select Uninstall. Once you’ve done that, download the Skype program instead. Do this from Skype’s website ( www.skype.com), but make sure you untick the boxes that make Bing your default search engine and MSN your default homepage.
If it’s the desktop version of Skype that’s crashing, clearing out its cached data should help. To do this, first quit Skype to make sure its files aren’t locked, then hold down Windows key+r on your keyboard to open the Run command box. Type %appdata% and click OK. Open the Skype folder in the list and open the My Skype Received Files folder (see screenshot below). Any files you have been sent through
Skype will be in here, so take this opportunity to save those you want to keep by copying them into another folder. After that, return to the main Skype folder, select everything in it (by using your mouse to drag a box around the files and folders), and press the Delete key (press Yes when prompted). Then restart Skype and sign in again.
If Skype continues to crash, it could be that the drivers for your webcam are out of date. Try unplugging your webcam. If this fixes the problem, visit the manufacturer’s website and download the latest drivers for your webcam.
9 Stop graphics card crashes
Graphics cards are often to blame for PC crashes, which is why updating their drivers is often the first thing we try when faced with an unstable computer. However, Windows’ power management can also play havoc with graphics cards and cause a host of problems, particularly with Windows 10. The answer is to change the way power management works.
Click the Start button followed by Control Panel, then ‘Hardware and Sound’, and finally Power Options. The power option you’re currently using is the one with the black dot beside it. Click ‘Change plan settings’ next to your current power plan, then click ‘Change advanced power settings’. In the next box, expand the PCI Express section by clicking the ‘+’ icon, then do the same to expand the Link State Power Management section. Use the drop-down Setting menu and select the Off option (see screenshot below left). Click OK to apply the changes.
10 Repair broken network settings
If your computer crashes when you’re trying to browse the internet or use a program, such as a video player, that streams data from the web, this fix could be the answer to your prayers. Windows uses an internal system called Winsock to control how programs access the internet.
Unfortunately, Winsock can become corrupted, which causes problems including freezing and random network faults. To restore it to health, click the Start button and type command. Command Prompt will appear in the list of search results. Right-click it, select ‘Run as administrator’ and click Yes. In the Command Prompt window, type netsh winsock reset and press Enter. You’ll see a message telling you to restart your computer. Before you do, it’s worth resetting your computer’s networking settings too. Do this by typing netsh int ip reset into the same Command Prompt window and pressing Enter again. Windows will display further warnings on the screen. Dismiss these and restart your computer.
WINDOW STARTUP AND FILE SYSTEM PROBLEMS 11 Repair corrupt startup files
Corrupt startup files tend to be easy to diagnose because your PC will crash whenever you switch it on. It may even get stuck in an endless loop of starting, crashing and then restarting.
Windows automatically loads the Startup Repair tool after two failed attempts to boot. But if the repair doesn’t work, or your computer boots but is unstable, you can repair your system manually by making a recovery drive. If you can’t do this because your computer isn’t working, you can create the recovery drive using a friend’s PC, provided they use the same version of Windows as you.
For Windows 10, you need a blank USB stick or one that you’re happy to erase. The size of stick (also called a drive) you need depends on what you want to do. To install a clean version of Windows, you need at least an 8GB drive, but if you just want to repair Windows (as we do here), you need only a 512MB drive.
Plug your USB stick into the PC and check that Windows Explorer has detected it, noting down its drive letter, (such as F:). Click Start, type recovery drive and select ‘Create a Recovery Drive’, clicking Yes when prompted. When the program opens, you will see a tickbox next to the option ‘Back up system files to the recovery drive’. Leaving this ticked will install a fresh version of Windows but, as we’re looking to only repair the
PC, we’ll untick the box and click Next (see screenshot below). Click Next again and select your USB stick from the menu. Click Next and a message will appear warning you that all data on the chosen stick will be deleted. Click Create.
Windows 7 has a similar option, although you will need to insert a blank CD into a disc writer. Click the Start menu, type create and select Create a System Repair Disc. Follow the instructions to create the disc.
Put the recovery USB stick or CD into your computer and turn it on. Your BIOS is probably set up to boot automatically from the new drive. But if you reset your PC and the recovery process doesn’t run, restart your computer and go into the BIOS. Your computer or motherboard’s manual will tell you which key you need to press, but it’s typically Del, F2 or F10.
Inside the BIOS, you should see a menu called ‘Boot priority’ or similar. If you’re booting from a CD, make sure the CD drive is selected as the first boot device. If you’re booting from a USB drive, it also needs to be the first item in the list (see screenshot above right). Use the cursor keys to select an entry and press Enter to choose a boot device. Save your settings and exit the BIOS – there will usually be a keyboard shortcut, such as F10, for this. Your computer will then reboot.
The recovery drive (or disc) should now load and you’ll see a menu with various choices. Choose Startup Repair from the menu. This tool will automatically scan your PC for problems, and will overwrite any corrupted startup files. Your PC will restart when it’s finished. Remember to remove the recovery drive so that your computer loads Windows rather than opening the recovery drive menu again.
12Fast startup crashes
Fast startup was first introduced with Windows 8 but has continued into Windows 10. The option is enabled by default and supposedly makes your PC boot faster by saving device drivers and part of the main Windows system to your hard drive when you shut down. In theory, it makes your computer switch on faster because it can refer to this list of settings as it loads.
However, many people have noticed that it makes their computer slow to shut down, slower to boot up and, in some cases, causes it to freeze or crash on
startup. If your PC has trouble starting up when you first hit the power button, but boots up perfectly after a subsequent reboot, fast startup could be the culprit. To disable it, click the Start button and select Control Panel, then ‘Hardware and Sound’ and Power Options. Click ‘Choose what the power buttons do’, and click ‘Change settings that are currently unavailable’. Untick the ‘Turn on fast startup’ box (see screenshot left) and click ‘Save changes’.