What antivirus/antispyware/security products do you have on machine? Include any you have EVER
had on this machine including those you uninstalled (they leave remnants behind which can cause
strange issues).

Do these :

Try these to clear corruption and repair/replace damaged/missing system files.

Start — type this in Search Box -> COMMAND find at top and RIGHT CLICK — RUN AS ADMIN

Enter this at the prompt — sfc /scannow

How to analyze the log file entries that the Microsoft Windows Resource Checker (SFC.exe) program
generates in Windows Vista cbs.log
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/928228

Also run CheckDisk so we can rule out corruption as much as possible.

After the above :

How to troubleshoot a problem by performing a clean boot in Windows Vista or
Windows 7
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929135

Optimizing Microsoft Windows Vista Performance
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/959062

To see all that is loading bootup — wait a few minutes without doing anything — then Right Click
TaskBar — Task Manager — take a look at Appplications — Processes — Services — this is a quick
reference (if you have a little box on Lower Left — Show for All Users then check that).

A quick check to see which are loading is Method 2 there — using MSCONFIG then post a list of
those here.
———————————————————————

Tools that should help :

Process Explorer — Free — Find out what files, registry keys and other objects processes have open,
which DLLs they have loaded, and more. This uniquely powerful utility will even show you who owns
each process.
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb896653.aspx

Autoruns — Free — See what programs are configured to startup automatically when your system boots
and you login. Autoruns also shows you the full list of Registry and file locations where applications can
configure auto-start settings.
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb963902.aspx

Process Monitor — Free — Monitor file system, Registry, process, thread and DLL activity in real-time.
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb896645.aspx

WhatsInStartUP — Free — This utility displays the list of all applications that are loaded automatically
when Windows starts up. For each application, the following information is displayed: Startup Type (Registry/Startup Folder), Command -Line String, Product Name, File Version, Company Name,
Location in the Registry or file system, and more. It allows you to easily disable or delete unwanted
programs that runs in your Windows startup.
http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/what_run_in_startup.html

There are many excellent free tools at NirSoft
http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/index.html

Window Watcher — Free — Do you know what’s running on your computer? Maybe not. The Window
Watcher tells all, reporting every window created by every running program, whether the window
is visible or not.
http://www.karenware.com/powertools/ptwinwatch.asp

Many excellent free tools and an excellent newsletter at Karenware
http://www.karenware.com/

Consider this an absolute must — manually updating your drivers.

Vista and Windows 7 love updated drivers so here is how to update the major ones.

This is my generic how to for proper driver updates :

This utility makes it easy to see which versions are loaded :

DriverView — Free — utility displays the list of all device drivers currently loaded on your system.
For each driver in the list, additional useful information is displayed: load address of the driver,
description, version, product name, company that created the driver, and more.
http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/driverview.html

For Drivers check System Maker as fallbacks and Device Maker’s which are the most current.
Control Panel — Device Manager — Display Adapter — write down the make and complete model
of your video adapter — double click — Driver’s tab — write down the version info. Now click UPdate
Driver (this may not do anything as MS is far behind certifying drivers) — then Right Click —
Uninstall — REBOOT this will refresh the driver stack.

Repeat that for Network — Network Card (NIC), Wifi, Sound, Mouse and Keyboard if 3rd party
with their own software and drivers and any other major device drivers you have.

Now go to System Maker’s site (Dell, HP, Toshiba as examples) (as rollback) and then Device
Maker’s site (Realtek, Intel, Nvidia, ATI as examples) and get their latest versions. (Look for
BIOS, Chipset and software updates at System Maker’s site while there.)

Download — SAVE — go to where you put them — Right Click — RUN AD ADMIN — REBOOT after
each installation.

Always check in Device Manager — Drivers tab to be sure the version you are installing actually
shows up. This is because some drivers rollback before the latest is installed (sound drivers
particularly do this) so install a driver — reboot — check to be sure it is installed and repeat as
needed.

Repeat at Device Makers — BTW at Device Makers DO NOT RUN THEIR SCANNER — check
manually by model.

Manually look at manufacturer’s sites for drivers — and Device Maker’s sites.
http://pcsupport.about.com/od/driverssupport/ht/driverdlmfgr.htm

Installing and updating drivers in Windows 7 (updating drivers manually using the methods above
is preferred to ensure the latest drivers from System maker and Device makers are found)
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/43216-installing-updating-drivers-7-a.html

If you update drivers manually then it is a good idea to disable Driver Installations in Windows
Updates, this leaves Windows Updates ON however it will not install drivers which will usually be
older and cause issues. If Updates suggests a new driver then HIDE it (Right Click on it) and then
go look for new ones manually if you wish.

Refer to these threads for many more excellent tips however be sure to check your antivirus
programs, update major drivers and BIOS, and also troubleshoot with the cleanboot method
first.

Hope this helps.

Rob Brown — MS MVP — Windows Desktop Experience : Bicycle — Mark Twain said it right.

Windows registry information for advanced users

This article describes the Windows registry and provides information about how to edit and back up it.

Original product version: В Windows 10 — all editions, Windows Server 2012 R2
Original KB number: В 256986

Description of the registry

The Microsoft Computer Dictionary, Fifth Edition, defines the registry as:

A central hierarchical database used in Windows 98, Windows CE, Windows NT, and Windows 2000 used to store information that is necessary to configure the system for one or more users, applications, and hardware devices.

The Registry contains information that Windows continually references during operation, such as profiles for each user, the applications installed on the computer and the types of documents that each can create, property sheet settings for folders and application icons, what hardware exists on the system, and the ports that are being used.

The Registry replaces most of the text-based .ini files that are used in Windows 3.x and MS-DOS configuration files, such as the Autoexec.bat and Config.sys. Although the Registry is common to several Windows operating systems, there are some differences among them. A registry hive is a group of keys, subkeys, and values in the registry that has a set of supporting files that contain backups of its data. The supporting files for all hives except HKEY_CURRENT_USER are in the % SystemRoot%\System32\Config folder on Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Vista. The supporting files for HKEY_CURRENT_USER are in the %SystemRoot%\Profiles\Username folder. The file name extensions of the files in these folders indicate the type of data that they contain. Also, the lack of an extension may sometimes indicate the type of data that they contain.

In Windows 98, the registry files are named User.dat and System.dat. In Windows Millennium Edition, the registry files are named Classes.dat, User.dat, and System.dat.

Security features in Windows let an administrator control access to registry keys.

The following table lists the predefined keys that are used by the system. The maximum size of a key name is 255 characters.

The registry in 64-bit versions of Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Vista is divided into 32-bit and 64-bit keys. Many of the 32-bit keys have the same names as their 64-bit counterparts, and vice versa. The default 64-bit version of Registry Editor that is included with 64-bit versions of Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Vista displays the 32-bit keys under the node HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\WOW6432Node . For more information about how to view the registry on 64-Bit versions of Windows, see How to view the system registry by using 64-bit versions of Windows.

The following table lists the data types that are currently defined and that are used by Windows. The maximum size of a value name is as follows:

• Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows Vista: 16,383 characters
• Windows 2000: 260 ANSI characters or 16,383 Unicode characters
• Windows Millennium Edition/Windows 98/Windows 95: 255 characters

Long values (more than 2,048 bytes) must be stored as files with the file names stored in the registry. This helps the registry perform efficiently. The maximum size of a value is as follows:

• Windows NT 4.0/Windows 2000/Windows XP/Windows Server 2003/Windows Vista: Available memory
• Windows Millennium Edition/Windows 98/Windows 95: 16,300 bytes

There is a 64K limit for the total size of all values of a key.

Back up the registry

Before you edit the registry, export the keys in the registry that you plan to edit, or back up the whole registry. If a problem occurs, you can then follow the steps in the Restore the registry section to restore the registry to its previous state. To back up the whole registry, use the Backup utility to back up the system state. The system state includes the registry, the COM+ Class Registration Database, and your boot files. For more information about how to use the Backup utility to back up the system state, see the following articles:

Edit the registry

To modify registry data, a program must use the registry functions that are defined in Registry Functions.

Administrators can modify the registry by using Registry Editor (Regedit.exe or Regedt32.exe), Group Policy, System Policy, Registry (.reg) files, or by running scripts such as VisualBasic script files.

Use the Windows user interface

We recommend that you use the Windows user interface to change your system settings instead of manually editing the registry. However, editing the registry may sometimes be the best method to resolve a product issue. If the issue is documented in the Microsoft Knowledge Base, an article with step-by-step instructions to edit the registry for that issue will be available. We recommend that you follow those instructions exactly.

Use Registry Editor

Serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly by using Registry Editor or by using another method. These problems might require that you reinstall the operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that these problems can be solved. Modify the registry at your own risk.

You can use Registry Editor to do the following actions:

• Locate a subtree, key, subkey, or value
• Add a subkey or a value
• Change a value
• Delete a subkey or a value
• Rename a subkey or a value

The navigation area of Registry Editor displays folders. Each folder represents a predefined key on the local computer. When you access the registry of a remote computer, only two predefined keys appear: HKEY_USERS and HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE.

Use Group Policy

Microsoft Management Console (MMC) hosts administrative tools that you can use to administer networks, computers, services, and other system components. The Group Policy MMC snap-in lets administrators define policy settings that are applied to computers or users. You can implement Group Policy on local computers by using the local Group Policy MMC snap-in, Gpedit.msc. You can implement Group Policy in Active Directory by using the Active Directory Users and Computers MMC snap-in. For more information about how to use Group Policy, see the Help topics in the appropriate Group Policy MMC snap-in.

Use a Registration Entries (.reg) file

Create a Registration Entries (.reg) file that contains the registry changes, and then run the .reg file on the computer where you want to make the changes. You can run the .reg file manually or by using a logon script. For more information, see How to add, modify, or delete registry subkeys and values by using a Registration Entries (.reg) file.

Use Windows Script Host

The Windows Script Host lets you run VBScript and JScript scripts directly in the operating system. You can create VBScript and JScript files that use Windows Script Host methods to delete, to read, and to write registry keys and values. For more information about these methods, visit the following Microsoft Web sites:

Use Windows Management Instrumentation

Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) is a component of the Microsoft Windows operating system and is the Microsoft implementation of Web-Based Enterprise Management (WBEM). WBEM is an industry initiative to develop a standard technology for accessing management information in an enterprise environment. You can use WMI to automate administrative tasks (such as editing the registry) in an enterprise environment. You can use WMI in scripting languages that have an engine on Windows and that handle Microsoft ActiveX objects. You can also use the WMI Command-Line utility (Wmic.exe) to modify the Windows registry.

Use Console Registry Tool for Windows

You can use the Console Registry Tool for Windows (Reg.exe) to edit the registry. For help with the Reg.exe tool, type reg /? at the Command Prompt, and then click OK.

Restore the registry

To restore the registry, use the appropriate method.

Method 1: Restore the registry keys

To restore registry subkeys that you exported, double-click the Registration Entries (.reg) file that you saved in the Export registry subkeys section. Or, you can restore the whole registry from a backup. For more information about how to restore the whole registry, see the Method 2: Restore the whole registry section later in this article.

Method 2: Restore the whole registry

To restore the whole registry, restore the system state from a backup. For more information about how to restore the system state from a backup, see How to use Backup to protect data and restore files and folders on your computer in Windows XP and Windows Vista.

Backing up the system state also creates updated copies of the registry files in the %SystemRoot%\Repair folder.

References

For more information, visit the following Web sites:

The Windows Server Catalog of Tested Products is a reference for products that have been tested for Windows Server compatibility.

Data Protection Manager (DPM) is a key member of the Microsoft System Center family of management products and is designed to help IT professionals manage their Windows environment. DPM is the new standard for Windows backup and recovery and delivers continuous data protection for Microsoft application and file servers that use seamlessly integrated disk and tape media. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, see How to back up and restore the registry in Windows XP and Windows Vista.