Solving PC Errors

PC errors can occur at any time—during system boot up before Windows even starts loading, while Windows is loading, and while your computer is operational. These errors occur due to many different reasons. Let’s investigate some of the common causes of these errors and what you can do to prevent or fix these errors.

Errors At System Boot Up

PC errors during system boot up usually occur if there is some problem in the BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) settings. BIOS is a chip on your PC’s motherboard. This chip comprises commands and instructions that help in operating your PC.

Note: To view the BIOS settings, press the Del or the F2 key—whatever your PC supports—at the boot screen.
These errors may also occur if essential hardware, such as the mouse or keyboard, are not connected to the PC or are malfunctioning.

Errors When Windows is Loading

If your system freezes while Windows is loading, an error in the registry is most likely the cause. An error in the registry may occur if:

• There is some problem with the application or update that you have installed before restarting your PC.
• A hardware device or its driver has gone faulty.
• You have recently performed system changes that are either not working properly or are not compatible with your hardware. For instance, you may change the display settings to something your monitor does not support.
• A recently installed driver or software is conflicting with already existing software on your PC.

If the problem has occurred soon after you made a configuration change, try to restart your PC with the last known good configuration. To do this, restart your PC and press F8 as soon as the boot screen disappears—and before Windows starts loading. Use our Down Arrow key to move down and select the “Last Known Good Configuration” option.

If the problem has occurred soon after you have installed an application or have updated a driver or software, then you may try to uninstall this application or update and reinstall it once again. However, if the error is not allowing you to reboot in Normal mode, you will have to start in Safe Mode. In Safe Mode your system loads only the essential services and processes; this makes the uninstallation process simple and efficient. After you have uninstalled the software, it is recommended that you use a registry cleaner tool to scan and remove any related left over or erroneous entry from the registry. Once the uninstall is complete, you may restart your PC in Normal mode to reinstall your software.

If the above two steps do not fix your PC, then you may choose to perform System Restore—a feature in Windows XP enables you to rollback your PC to last known good configuration in case of a problem. You can start System Restore from Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > System Restore.

Errors While the System is Running

Many types of errors may occur when your system is functional. For instance, an OCX error may occur, if an OCX file is incorrectly registered or is corrupt, and a code 10 error may occur due to problems with a device driver.

To prevent these problems:

• Ensure that your system is updated with latest software patches, updates, and service packs.
• Regularly scan and repair registry errors—you may use a registry cleaner tool to perform the task quickly, easily, and efficiently.
• Perform regular antivirus and antispyware scan to ensure that your PC is free from malware, such as viruses, spyware, and Trojans.
• Keep your hard disk free from errors and unwanted files, by using the tools such as Disk Cleanup and Disk Defragmenter.

Above all, to prevent PC errors, be a vigilant user, be careful about the Web sites you browse, email—and email attachments—you open, and software you install on your PC. Additionally, perform regular preventive PC maintenance and ensure yourself a healthy, error-free PC.