Workers' Edge

The consensus of experts is that Windows 7 is the best operating system Microsoft has ever released. I managed to perform a clean install of Windows 7 Ultimate on an XP PC with no problems whatsoever, but not all Windows 7 upgrades go so smoothly.

In fact, I was getting ready to install Windows 7 Home Premium on a blank partition of my Sony Vaio laptop so I could dual-boot Vista and Win7 but was scared off by a handful of reports of serious upgrade problems. Call me chicken, but I count on my notebook PC and don't want to risk breaking it. (And besides, I don't dislike Vista near as much as many other people do.)

Some veteran PC users postpone upgrading to a new Windows version until the first service pack is released. Unfortunately, service packs often cause problems of their own. Back in 2008, glitches with Vista SP1 caused Microsoft to offer free support, as Suzanne Tindal reported. Microsoft provides the System Update Readiness Tool designed to resolve update problems for Vista, Windows Server 2008, and Windows 7.

You can minimize the chances that you'll encounter upgrade woes by doing two things beforehand: back up your data and save the Windows 7 drivers for your hardware to a removable medium. This applies whether you're doing an in-place upgrade (which preserves your data and settings) or a clean install (which wipes out the current Windows installation).

That's the theory, anyway. There's no guarantee that the official Windows 7 drivers will work without a hitch on your system. Paul Mah of the IT Business Edge reports success rolling back to the Vista driver for a device that balked under Windows 7.

Some Vista users fall into an infinite loop when attempting to install the Windows 7 upgrade. Microsoft provides a Fix-it for the problem on its Support site. Seth Rosenblatt describes in the CNET Download Blog two Win7 upgrade gotchas to avoid.

Microsoft's guide to upgrading to Windows 7 relies on the Easy Transfer wizard, but ZDNet UK's Adrian Bridgwater points out the risks of trusting your data and software settings to an automated process that can be "easy" to derail. (The wizard doesn't bring over the applications themselves, which have to be reinstalled separately.)

I may eventually upgrade my Vista notebook to Windows 7—probably long before Win7 SP1—but only after the early adopters have cleared a path.

Our family PC gets quite a workout. It's a five-year-old machine that runs Windows XP and is used primarily by my daughter and teenage grandson for instant messaging, e-mail, social networking, and downloading audio and video files. Since I rarely use the system, I didn't notice that its antivirus subscription had expired.

Which explains why I was a bit surprised when my grandson called when I was out of town to tell me that the PC was acting strangely. Ads appeared on the desktop as soon as Windows started and Firefox and other programs would occasionally close without warning or fail to open at all.

I immediately suspected a virus and instructed my grandson to perform a virus scan. Unfortunately, the machine's antivirus app had gone AWOL. I talked him through the process of using System Restore to revert the PC to an earlier time. This improved matters somewhat, but the system continued to act flaky.

When I returned from the trip, I started the troublesome machine and attempted to open the Microsoft Update site to make sure its copy of XP was up-to-date. But the malware had managed to disable several Windows services intermittently, including Services.msc, so Internet Explorer would shut down repeatedly.

At this point, I was seriously considering a hard-disk reformat and XP reinstall. I even had the XP installation CD in the drive and was ready to begin the process. But even though my daughter and grandson assured me that they had backup copies of all their personal files, I decided to try one more time to salvage the existing setup.

I'm very glad I did, because it turns out there were lots of vacation and holiday images and videos on the machine that hadn't been backed up. First, I installed a free copy of Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware antivirus program on the infected PC, updated the app's virus definitions, and ran a complete scan.

The initial Malwarebytes Anti-Malware scan detected 104 separate infected files and folders.

(Credit: Malwarebytes)

That first scan turned up a mere 104 infected files and folders. Here's a list of the nasties the machine had picked up:

• Trojan.Vundo
• Troja.Vundo.H
• Trojan.FakeAlert
• Rogue.Installer
• Trojan.Downloader
• Trojan. Dropper
• Trojan.Agent
• Worm.KoobFace
• Rogue.AdvancedVirusRemover
• Rogue.SystemSecurity
• Adware.BHO
• Rootkit.Agent
• Spyware.Agent
• Trojan.BHO
• Hijack.LSP
• Rogue.Multiple
• Disabled.Security

After viewing the report, I rebooted the PC and ran another malware scan. This time, Malwarebytes' app found only nine infected files.

The second Malwarebytes Anti-Malware scan detected only nine infected items.

(Credit: Malwarebytes)

I rebooted once more and ran yet another scan, which indicated that the PC came up clean.

The third Malwarebytes Anti-Malware scan indicated that all viruses and other malware had been removed from the infected PC.

(Credit: Malwarebytes)

Once I was assured that the PC was malware-free, I revisited the Microsoft Update site to download and install all the XP security patches the machine required. Then I sprang for the $25 version of Anti-Malware to get the program's real-time virus scanning and automatic updates.

I knew all attempts to alter the user behavior that led to the infections would be futile, so instead, I instructed my daughter and grandson to run Malwarebyte's scanner each time they start the system and just before each shutdown. That was a little over two weeks ago, and so far, the PC remains free of infection. Still, you can bet I'll be paying much closer attention to that machine from now on.

"I am elated with the results of the Microsoft Automated Troubleshooting Services' Fix it. Have you ever run across this service? After 8+ months without a CD/DVD player—and weekly efforts to remedy the situation—I googled my problem once again and this time came up with a link to MATS.

"After several tries (not compatible with Firefox, open Internet Explorer, won't download, try again later) finally it loaded onto my computer and gave me some options to check off. Within 5 minutes, my CD/DVD was humming again."

Microsoft announced MATS last month. The service requires the PowerShell utility and uses an ActiveX control that it downloads to your system, so as my friend John noted, it works only with Internet Explorer. On the Operations Manager Support Team blog, Microsoft Manageability Knowledge Engineer J.C. Hornbeck outlines the troubleshooting steps MATS takes.

At present, there are only six automatic fixes offered by the service in three categories: "Appearance and personalization," "Hardware and sound," and "Print." You might think that's pretty slim pickings when you consider the range of PC problems, but if your PC's malady has been as thorny as my friend John's balky CD/DVD drive, MATS is worth a try.

Recently, my Vista notebook has been popping up an error message about not finding a Bluetooth driver when it boots. I don't use any Bluetooth devices, so I haven't worried about it. But I thought that was a good enough excuse to take MATS out for a test drive.

It took several minutes for the PowerShell and ActiveX control to download and install, after which I was presented with two options: identify and fix problems automatically, or detect them and let me decide what to fix.

The Microsoft Automated Troubleshooting Services' Fix it feature lets you find and repair Vista problems.

(Credit: Microsoft)

I chose to detect but don't fix because I wasn't convinced there was really a problem. The only thing the scan came up with was the possibility that recent hardware changes hadn't been detected.

Review fixes MATS detects before beginning the repair.

(Credit: Microsoft)

The resulting "Troubleshooting is complete" screen was ambiguous in this instance. It indicated that the issue of hardware changes not being detected was "Detected," according to the "Fix status." I assume that means the issue was detected, not the hardware changes themselves, but I'm not sure.

The result shown in the "Troubleshooting is complete" screen is ambiguous for this test.

(Credit: Microsoft)

Before the troubleshooter closed, it offered three resources for further research into my problem: search Microsoft Answers communities, search Microsoft Help and Support, or open a Microsoft support request, which would send the test results to a "support professional." I chose to leave well enough alone.

MATS gives you three options for further research into your problem before closing.

(Credit: Microsoft)

I wouldn't hazard a guess at the odds of your particular Vista problem being addressed by one of MATS' automatic fixes, but running MATS beats a call to a "support professional" by a country mile.

A reader named Eric found himself locked out of his Vista administrator accounts:

"Somehow, my account and my son's accounts were downgraded to standard user on his new computer using Vista Home 32-bit. I cannot seem to log in to make any changes to the accounts now. It prompts me to enter a password but no password box is available to type it in. How can I log in to change my account back to administrator?"

In a post last year, I described how to enable Vista's hidden administrator account and password-protect XP's default administrator account. Of course, this tip works only if you use it before you actually need it because it requires administrator privileges.

I found another approach described by Microsoft MVP Ronnie Vernon on the Soft32 forum. Here it is in a nutshell:

• Restart your PC and press F8 repeatedly before Windows loads to open Vista's Advanced Boot Options screen.
• Use the arrow keys to select Safe Mode and press Enter.
• On the low-res Windows Welcome screen, choose the Administrator account, which by default has no password.
• click Start > Control Panel > User Accounts and either change your standard account to an administrator one or create a new administrator account.

Choose Safe Mode on the Vista Advanced Boot Options menu to restore or create an administrator account.

(Credit: Bert Kinney)

When you restart the machine normally, you'll have access to the administrator account you just restored or created. (Note that I wasn't able to verify this tip because I'm not willing to risk losing the administrator accounts on my Vista PC just to test it.)

Gmail encrypts transmissions, not messages
Another reader named Ian contacted me about some misinformation in a post from last month entitled "Five simple PC security tips":

"In this article, you refer to 'encrypting Gmail' where you urge people to turn on the https: feature when using Gmail. Technically, while any e-mail read/written is encrypted in transit between your browser and Gmail's server, the e-mail is nevertheless still stored in the clear.

"Perhaps you could clarify the wording somewhat so people might potentially avoid interpreting your remarks so as to conclude that their stored e-mail is somehow encrypted on Gmail's servers."

Right you are, Ian, which is why you want to think twice about storing confidential information on Google's servers or any other Web servers that don't support encryption. Google is reportedly considering changing Gmail to default to encrypted sign-ins, as explained by Brian Krebs on his security blog earlier this week.

This doesn't affect your stored messages, however, nor the files you share via Google Docs & Spreadsheets, nor any of your other personal data accessible through Google free services. That's the best reason I know not to keep any sensitive information in Gmail or any other Google app.

In a future post, I'll describe secure online services. You can bet none of them will have "Google" in their name.

Windows XP users can't get no respect. A couple of weeks ago, Microsoft announced that it would no longer offer free support for XP, apart from critical security patches. XP machines are much more likely than Vista systems to be infected with a virus, according to a recent Microsoft Security Intelligence Report.

And dis of disses, Microsoft delayed patching the AutoRun glitch in XP (and Windows Server 2003) until last February, more than six months after the same hole was plugged in Vista and Server 2008.

But just because Microsoft believes XP has outlived its usefulness doesn't mean you have to find a fresher OS. There's plenty of life left in your XP machines, though keeping XP hale and hearty is now up to users more than ever.

Get help with XP security
Usually, I would direct you to Microsoft's XP Security and Privacy page, but frankly, there's not much there besides ads for Microsoft security products. The company hasn't even bothered to update the page since Service Pack 2.

You'll find a much more comprehensive look at XP security issues at the Secure XP guide provided by Comcast. (Just be sure to skip the ads that appear at the top of the page.) The guide includes links to such useful free utilities as GRC Shields Up!, Autoruns, TCPView, and Process Explorer.

Find answers to XP-related problems
Your first stop when seeking solutions to Windows XP glitches is Kelly's Korner, which features extensive FAQs, performance tweaks, and links to several support sites and forums. I tend to shy away from the site's Registry tweaks and other scripts, but if you're more adventurous than I am, you'll find hundreds of ways to customize your XP configuration. Just remember to back up (there's information on that, too).

The Microsoft Help and Support site provides help diagnosing XP start-up problems. The page includes about a dozen links to other Knowledge Base articles on solving XP problems, including identifying mystery Device Manager entries and curing standby, hibernate, and shutdown woes.

Another great resource for anyone trying to get XP back on track is the CNET Windows XP forum, which you can browse for posts relating to your particular problem. However, considering that there are close to 33,000 separate threads on the forum, you may want to use its search feature instead. Just enter your term in the search box at the top of the screen and choose either All CNET Forums or within this forum in the drop-down menu to the right.

Improve XP's performance
An operating system as old as XP is bound to get a little crotchety in its old age. You can bring back some of the OS' youthful vigor by clearing out the cobwebs. Unfortunately, many so-called XP performance tweaks are more trouble than they're worth. The How-To Geek debunks many of the so-called speedup tips that are anything but.

As you might expect, Microsoft provides advice on enhancing XP's performance on its Help and Support site. The page includes a Guided Help download that promises to automate the tweak process. I prefer the page's manual instructions, myself. There's another nice collection of XP speedup tips on BlackViper.com's Super Tweaks for Windows XP.

One debatable performance tweak for XP and every other operating system is defragmenting your hard disk. Just last week, I received yet another pitch from a disk-defrag vendor promising faster disk accesses. Is the time spent running a disk-defragger utility worth it? That's a subject for a future post.

PCs do the darnedest things. When a program crashes, your system slows down, or a file or program refuses to open, it's probably due to a problem with an application or device. But not always. Computer viruses and worms will cause your PC to exhibit many of the same symptoms as a failed or failing component or program.

Here are some of the primary indicators that your system is infected:

• Your system slows to a crawl for no apparent reason.
• The machine crashes, with or without an automatic restart.
• Error messages pop up repeatedly.
• Programs or files open slowly or not at all (especially security apps).
• You can't access drives or other storage media.
• Certain Web sites won't open in your browser, especially those of security software vendors.
• You can't download updates for your antivirus software.
• You can't print.
• A program disappears from your system.
• Strange icons are added to your desktop, or programs appear that you never installed.
• The unused space on your hard drive disappears (which could mean a worm is making copies of itself).
• People in your contacts list receive e-mail from your account, often with a virus attached.
• There's a big jump in the amount of traffic on your network, especially outbound.

How to disinfect a PC
Whenever your system starts acting funky, the simplest remedy is to use Windows' System Restore feature to turn back the clock to a time when the machine worked. (Note that many viruses and worms can outsmart System Restore, so this is far from a cure-all.)

Microsoft's Help and Support site offers step-by-step instructions for using System Restore in XP (which also describes how to undo a restoration). Vista users will find information on System Restore and other system-recovery options for that operating system on the company's Windows Help and How-to site.

Even if System Restore appears to fix your PC, update your antivirus software's definitions and do a full system scan with the program. If you don't use AV software, download and install a copy. You'll find a list of free and low-cost antivirus programs on this Download.com page. Two freebies that get rave reviews from most users are Avira AntiVir Personal and Avast Home Edition.

Another option for virus and worm removal is Microsoft's own Malicious Software Removal Tool, which can disinfect a PC but doesn't prevent infections. Note that if your system is set to receive automatic Windows updates, it probably already has the tool installed. You can read more about MSRT on the Microsoft Help and Support site.

Of course, if the virus or worm has blocked your PC's access to the Internet or is preventing your security software from running, you'll have to use another system to download and install an up-to-date antivirus program on a flash drive, optical disc, or other external storage device. Then plug or insert that device in the infected machine and run the AV program from there. One option is the free ClamWin Portable, though many other free AV programs can be installed and run off external media.

Where did the virus/worm come from?
When you're in the midst of a PC disinfection, the source of the virus may not be your first concern. But once your system is working again, you want to avoid whatever action caused the problem.

In the past, most viruses and worms traveled via e-mail and latched themselves onto your hard drive when you clicked to open an attachment, or sometimes when you merely viewed a message. Now infections are more likely to occur after you browse to an infected Web site or download and open a file.

The recent Conficker worm takes advantage of Windows' Autorun feature that allows programs to open simply by plugging in the USB flash drive, CD, or DVD on which it's stored, sometimes even if you thought you had disabled Autorun and AutoPlay on the machine. Microsoft released a patch that closed this hole late last year, though you still must disable these features manually. You'll find instructions for doing so on this site.

Your best virus/worm-prevention strategy is to keep Windows and your antivirus/antispyware/firewall software up-to-date, don't open e-mail attachments you weren't expecting (even if they appear to be from someone you know), and avoid file-sharing and other dicey Web sites. This is no guarantee of keeping your PC virus-free, but it will keep the odds in your favor.

The other day, my friend Howard asked me about an error message that appeared whenever he tried to open Internet Explorer on his aging Windows XP machine. After a little basic long-distance troubleshooting (Howard lives on the other side of the country), we determined that it wasn't a problem with his network connection.

Howard isn't very tech-savvy, unfortunately. (He's a handicapping wiz, though, which explains why he needed to get back online--he had a longshot lined up at Gulfstream.) My brother Larry, who lives in the same town as Howard, restored his Web access by logging him into another user account on the PC. But that didn't fix the original problem.

I suspected it was because of a bad memory module. Normally, I would recommend downloading the free, open-source MemTest86+ memory-testing utility to a floppy disk or CD and then booting from that disk or CD to test the machine's memory modules. (MemTest86+ is actually donationware, so if you find it useful, consider tossing a couple of ducats into the virtual hat.)

Memory-testing utilities are a challenge to use
This would be a relatively easy procedure for anyone with more-than-average PC experience, but it takes a little more technical background than Howard possesses. The first problem is talking Howard through the process of downloading the program to a removable, bootable medium. A floppy we might manage, but I doubt Howard has ever burned a CD.

Next is ensuring that his PC's BIOS is set to allow booting from either a floppy or a CD. I could probably talk Howard through the process of entering his PC Setup program, but having him navigate and alter its settings is too perilous for me. The chances of rendering his PC unusable are too great.

Even if we got the program onto a floppy or CD and managed to boot the machine from the disk, Howard would have to run the memory-testing utility and make sense of the results. MemTest86+ is not known for its crystal-clear interface, and the program's documentation is nearly nonexistent.

There are some alternative memory-testing utilities. DocMemory from SimmTester.com is similar to MemTest86+: it's free (at least for a limited time), it runs off a floppy, and it's a challenge to use, though it's better documented than MemTest86+.

Another option is Microsoft's Windows Memory Diagnostic, which is offered through the company's Online Crash Analysis site. Windows Memory Diagnostic works much like the other two memory testers, but its tests are more basic. The program is well documented, and its test results are easy to find.

Skip the testing and just swap out the modules?
Ultimately, it would be simpler and less time-consuming for Howard to open his PC's case, remove the existing memory modules one at a time, and restart the machine to determine whether the problem recurs. If it doesn't, he can take the bad module he just removed to his local electronics store and buy a new one of the same type--though maybe with a larger storage capacity.

If Howard's PC has only one memory module, he can simply try placing it in another memory slot on his system board just in case the problem is the slot rather than the module itself. If changing the slot doesn't solve the problem, Howard can buy a new module of the same type, put the new stick in the memory slot, restart the machine, and see if that works.

If the new module doesn't change anything, Howard will have to make another trip to the store to return it. He'll be back at square one, though he'll know memory modules aren't the source of the glitch. What really bugs me about the situation is how difficult it is to determine whether your PC's memory has gone bad. Why can't our systems diagnose themselves and help us fix them? OK, I'm dreaming, I know. But some day....

Some memory-troubleshooting helpers
A great resource for diagnosing your PC's memory woes is on the PCStats site. The Microsoft Developer Network offers a comprehensive description of system error codes. And one of my favorite diagnostic utilities is the free Error Messages for Windows by Gregory Braun.

I'll continue the saga of Howard's error-code-generating PC in a future post--if I can ever get him off the handicapping pages.

On Saturday afternoon, my Hewlett-Packard notebook computer was working fine. On Sunday morning, the machine wouldn't start. The power would blink on and go off just as quickly.

If I held the power button in the on position, I could keep the power indicator and other of the machine's LEDs lit, but nothing would happen: no power-on self-test, no BIOS message, and definitely no Windows.

My first thought was that it was a power glitch. I unplugged the machine and tried starting it on battery power, but no go. I removed the battery and tried using just AC power, but that didn't help. I replaced the battery and tried again. Still nothing.

Next on my list of suspects was a bad memory module. The machine was only 18 months old, but it has been on a couple dozen road trips already, so it has been jostled and exposed to temperature changes quite a bit. Installing a new memory module had no effect.

I turned my attention to the hard drive. I was unable to boot from my system CD, nor from a Windows installation DVD. I went so far as to order a replacement drive, but unfortunately, the notebook remained inert, even with a new drive in place.

I wasn't quite ready to accept the fact that this machine was toast, though that conclusion was becoming more and more difficult to deny. I took the laptop to my local PC repair shop--definitely a last resort for me. The repair person disassembled the machine and concluded that the system board was fried.

It doesn't help to learn that HP tablets are prone to motherboard failures. My machine is well out of warranty, and at 18 months old it's probably not worth spending $350 for a new system board. I travel quite a bit for my job, so I rely on my notebook. That's why I bit the bullet and bought a new machine (a Sony).

What bugs me more than seeing a year-and-a-half old laptop turn into a doorstop is how difficult notebooks have become to repair. In fact, I'm beginning to think of the machines as closed-box systems. In the past, I've replaced several notebook hard drives, memory modules, and other components, but troubleshooting this HP tablet was a real challenge.

Ultimately, I needed the assistance of a PC professional to diagnose the problem. That doesn't mean you should throw in the towel when you experience technical difficulties with your laptop, though.

You'll find a great notebook-troubleshooting guide on the Developer Shed site. The InformIT site has a useful section on troubleshooting portable PCs. Finally, there's a tremendous amount of technical detail on laptop problems in this excerpt from the Laptop Repair Workbook by Morris Rosenthal.

I just hope your search for a solution to your notebook woes has a better outcome than mine did.

Sometimes, it pays to go with your first instinct.

For the last couple of weeks, every time I opened the Firefox browser on my PC, the program attempted to update but failed. I didn't sweat the error message at first, thinking that it was likely a widespread problem that the good folks at Mozilla would address soon enough. And besides, version 3.0.4 opened right after I closed the error message, and everything appeared to be working normally.

I kept, however, getting that same error message every time Firefox loaded. It struck me that one of the things viruses do is block your security and other programs from updating. I didn't think that this failure was a sign of a virus, but I couldn't be sure.

Opening Firefox 3.0.4 generated this cryptic error message after failing to update to version 3.0.5.

(Credit: Mozilla Foundation)

My first inclination was to uninstall version 3.0.4 and then install Firefox 3.0.5 manually. But on second thought, this struck me as too extreme. After searching the Internet for information about failed Firefox updates, I chased many a wild goose as I disconnected my Webcam, rechecked my firewall, and followed many other useless pieces of advice recommended by reputable Web sites.

All to no avail. So I opened Vista's Programs and Features (the equivalent of XP's Add or Remove Programs applet) by pressing the Windows key, typing appwiz.cpl, and pressing Enter. I uninstalled Firefox 3.0.4, closed the applet, and opened the Opera browser so I could visit Mozilla.org to download Firefox 3.0.5.

This is where things took a slight detour. I don't use Opera very often, so it wasn't a surprise to see a prompt to download the latest version 9.63. I'm sure that Opera 9.62 would have downloaded the Firefox 3.0.5 executable just fine, but I figured that I might as well keep the update thing rolling.

But then Opera wouldn't update. The error message said something about my G: drive. I opened Windows Explorer and saw that I had no G: drive. Then I remembered that I set Opera to run off a USB thumb drive, which I had recently disconnected. I retrieved that drive and tried the Opera update again. This time, version 9.63 installed without a hitch.

And wouldn't you know it, so did Firefox 3.0.5, once I downloaded it from the Mozilla Foundation site. I suppose that I should be curious about why the browser wasn't able to update itself in the first place, but I'm satisfied just to have the latest version in place.