Smart IT Skills

What is the Recovery Console ? The recovery console is a windows command line diagnostic feature of the newer windows operating systems. It can be found in operating systems Windows XP and later. It can be used to repair major windows problems. It is mainly used for computer repair by restoring or fixing system files. When there is a problem with the system files, the operating system (OS) in most cases, cannot boot. The system files are crucial for the proper functioning of the OS. In this case the 'recovery console' comes to the rescue so you can restore the system files as needed to get your system functioning properly again. With the recovery console you will have limited access to the NTFS file system, FAT32 and FAT file systems. The recovery console can be pre-installed so that it can be accessed from the boot-up menu. Uses of the console: 1. Create or format disk partitions. 2. Repair corrupted system files. 3. Repair the MBR. (Master Boot Record) 4. Control services fro...

1. Power button default action The default action for the Power button on the start menu in Windows Vista is Sleep, which isn’t necessarily useful for everybody. You can configure this setting easily by using the advanced power settings panel, which is a little tricky to get to normally, but we’ll take the shortcut. Open a command prompt (type cmd into the start menu search bar), and then type in the following: powercfg.cpl,1 . You could also take the long route (Control Panel Power Options Change Plan Settings Change Advanced Power Settings) Once you get to this dialog, browse down as shown to “Power buttons and lid” From here, you can change the options: Power button action - Changes the hardware power button action Start menu power button - Changes the power button on the Start Menu You can change the power button to either Sleep, Hibernate or Shut Down, or even nothing for the hardware power button. 2. Hide Desktop Icon Text on Windows Vista Some icons are just obvious enough that...

Cleaning your registry is a very vital process. It's the bread and butter of your maintenance and repair tasks. Reason being is because it hold data to every single program and even your operating system that's installed on your computer. But how to clean the registry you ask? Well it's pretty simple actually. All you have to do is find a registry cleaner and it can do all of this for you. Trust me you don't want to do this manually. Even computer technicians don't manually edit the registry for registry cleaning. Maybe for one or two entries that involve a virus or spyware but certainly not for cleaning. It's too hectic to try to do this manually thus that's why we have programs that have been dedicated to handling this for us. Remember the registry is very delicate and if you delete or edit the wrong data entries in it then you could ruin your programs and even your operating system. There are many registry cleaners available but there's only a rare fe...

Are you tired of asking the question, why is my Internet Explorer so slow? You are asking this question because you know that you have a high-speed internet connection and there was no power interruption, yet a single web page takes minutes to load. Believe me, this is a very typical concern of every Internet Explorer user. But don't worry because after you read this, you will be able to find out the answer to your question, why is my Internet Explorer so slow? Let us first know why Internet Explorer runs slow. The most common reason of having a slow Internet Explorer is because cookies and browsing history has never been deleted. Also a probable reason is that maybe the version of the Internet Explorer you are using is not up to date. Another reason is that the settings may have been modified in the wrong way. Having an unmaintained computer could also cause your Internet Explorer to slow down. Perhaps there are Trojans or viruses that affect your connection or maybe some of your ...

The best intentions and advice could actually be the worst because it will mislead you and maybe make you spend more than you have to. What am I talking about? Computer problems. We all have them, and boy, do they happen at the most inopportune times. The most common complaint I hear is "what's with my computer? Its very slow to start and it tends to freeze every so often." This is a situation that will happen to all computers that are used on a regular basis because registries tend to get bloated, and when it does, your computer's performance will be affected. A registry is a database in your Windows operating system that stores all the files needed to run the computer and all its software, hardware, and applications. This registry will keep getting bigger the more you use it, and it ends up with errors, duplicate or obsolete files that get in the way of the computer's performance. There's a very simple, inexpensive solution to this problem. You need to find ...

Over the years as a mobile PC technician I have received so many calls from customers telling me that their PC or notebook will simply not turn on. In many of these cases the problem was quickly resolved over the phone or a quick on-site visit if the customer was not comfortable to try a few suggestions. The issues can obviously either be categorized as hardware or software related. Here are a few steps you can follow that don't require a technician service which in many cases will resolve your problem. Software: - If you received a windows file or boot sector error, or windows hangs or does not completely boot here is what you can try: In XP and Vista simply start taping the f8 key when you hit the power button. You should then come to a list of options to choose from. The option you then need to select is this one: Start windows with Last known good configuration. - If this does not work the next thing you can try is the windows fix boot utility. To run this you will need a XP o...

Troubleshooting computer network is among the most important job descriptions of the network administrators, system administrators, network technicians and the IT consultants. A computer network can have different kinds of problems such as it can be infected with virus and spyware, attacked by hackers, accessed by unauthorized users and may face connectivity failure issues due to the faulty network devices or configurations. Following is a list of the basic network troubleshooting commands that are built-in the Windows based operating systems and UNIX etc. The right use of these troubleshooting commands can helps a lot in diagnosing and resolving the issues with your computer network. PING Ping is the most important troubleshooting command and it checks the connectivity with the other computers. For example your system’s IP address is 10.10.10.10 and your network servers’ IP address is 10.10.10.1 and you can check the connectivity with the server by using the Ping command in following ...