PC Users Bible

If you can't find any other solution to a problem, the System Restore tool included in Windows can often return the computer to its condition before the event that caused the problem occurred. Windows automatically creates restore points on a regular schedule and after certain important events (such as upgrades and other software changes).

When a problem appears, you can use System Restore to choose a restore point without affecting your documents, e-mail, favorites list, or other data files. However, it does remove all the changes you might have made since the restore point was created, including automatic updates to Windows and your security programs, so you might want to consider some other methods first.

Specifically, try these things first:

• Restart the computer. This clears any residual junk from the memory, which is often all it takes to fix a problem.

• If the problem appeared in mid-session, return to the Last Known Good Configuration. Last Known Good Configuration clears out all the changes that might have been made since the last time you started Windows, including new or updated programs and device drivers.

• To return to the previous configuration, restart the computer and immediately press the F8 key, which takes you to the Windows Advanced Options Menu; choose the Last Known Good Configuration from the list of startup options and press Enter to let the computer start up again.