Top 10 keyboard shortcuts everyone should know0

Using keyboard shortcuts can greatly increase your productivity, reduce repetitive strain, and help keep you focused. For example, highlighting text with the keyboard and pressing Ctrl + C is much faster than taking your hand from the keyboard, highlighting the text using the mouse, clicking copy from the file menu, and then putting your hand back in place on the keyboard. Below are our top 10 keyboard shortcuts we recommend everyone memorize and use.

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Windows Updates Download But Won't Install0

Microsoft releases updates to its Windows operating system as well as other Microsoft products such as their Office suite. These updates fix issues with their software and patch security holes as well as add new features and upgrades to the software. Most computers are set to download updates automatically and Windows will check for updates at set time intervals. You can have your computer download the updates and inform you that they are ready to be installed allowing you to install them manually and be able to review the updates before the installation. Or you can have them downloaded and installed automatically. If your computer is downloading Windows Updates automatically and failing on the installation or if you are manually downloading updates and they are still failing on the installation here are a few things you can try to resolve the problem.

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AD (Active Directory) Photo Edit Free1

If you are an IT admin at place that uses a Microsoft Windows Active Directory domain then you might have the need to import employee pictures into Active Directory so they can be pushed out to software programs such as Lync, SharePoint and Outlook. Since these programs are integrated into Active Directory they can pull user pictures and display them within the software.

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System Configuration Utility (msconfig) Addon0

The System Configuration Utility or msconfig as its commonly known is used to configure or fine tune your computer to change various settings related to how it boots up. Most people use it to disable certain programs or services from

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Missing Folder Options Item From Tools or View Menu0

Folder Options in Windows Explorer is where you can change how folders and files are displayed within your Windows Explorer session. Any Windows power user will customize these settings right after installing Windows to suit their needs.

There may be a time where the Folder Options menu item does not show up under your Tools menu. There can be several reasons for this and it may be difficult to figure out what caused it but most of the time it can be fixed.

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File is Missing or Corrupt: C:\Winnt\System32\Drivers\Pci.sys Error0

When you start Windows, you receive an error similar to:

File is missing or corrupt: C:\Winnt\System32\Drivers\Pci.sys

Pci.sys is a Microsoft Windows PCI driver located in the C:\Windows\System32\drivers directory and is part of the Windows operating system and needed by Windows to run properly.

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Common PC Error Messages- PC Troubleshooting Help Tips0

Fatal exception error
Fatal exception errors are codes that are returned by a program in the following cases:
• Access to an illegal instruction has been encountered
• Invalid data or code has been accessed
• The privilege level of an operation is invalid
When any of these cases occurs, the processor returns an exception to the operating system, which in turn is handled as a fatal exception error. In many cases the exception is non-recoverable and the system must either be restarted or shut down, depending upon the severity of the error.

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Windows Installer Could Not Be Accessed Error (Windows XP)0

When you are trying to install, uninstall or repair a program, you may receive an error that says Windows Installer could not be accessed and that the Windows Installer files are missing damaged or have become unregistered.

The Windows Installer is Microsoft's software installation component for Windows. It is used for the installation, maintenance, and removal of software on computers running Windows. If you have ever installed an .msi file then you have used the Windows Installer.

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Dell [USBD] Boot Error0

There is a known issue with Dell computers where you boot the computer up and it proceeds past the Dell splash screen but after that returns a black DOS type screen with a blinking cursor in the upper left hand corner. Then after rebooting several times you then get a message that says:

Previous attempts at booting this system have failed at checkpoint [USBD]
If you let the computer sit long enough (about a half hour) then it will load Windows.

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Microsoft Fix it Center0

Fix It Center was created by Microsoft to find and fix common computer issues automatically making it easier for novice users to fix problems they may otherwise not be able to fix. Of course since it was created by Microsoft it will only work for Microsoft software. It can also help prevent new problems by checking for known issues and installing updates. It does this by combining the diagnosing and repairing a problem into an easy to use automated interface.

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SQLDUMPER Library Failed Initialization Error Message0

When restarting your computer you may get a message that says "SQLDUMPER library failed initialization. Your installation is either corrupt or has been tampered with. Please uninstall then re-run setup to correct to correct this problem".

SQL stands for Structured Query Language and is a database program created by Microsoft used for business database applications. Although it's not the only database application, it's one of the most popular especially for Windows PCs and servers. SQLDUMPER.exe is used by SQL when it crashes or has an issue and needs to create a dump file for analysis by a SQL administrator. Many home PCs nowadays come with some form of SQL installed, usually the free SQL Express version and most of the time you don't need it on your computer.

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Sysinternals Autoruns Startup Information Utility0

Autoruns by Sysinternals is a free utility that can show you everything that is set to start with your computer. It’s similar to the Windows System Configuration Utility (msconfig) but shows much more information. This can come in very handy if you are trying to troubleshoot issues such as slow startup times with your computer, error messages that pop up at startup, strange programs that run on their own right after Windows starts or slow overall performance because of a program or programs using your computer's resources. Autoruns is a free download and consists of an executable file so there is nothing to install. If you are running Windows Vista or Windows 7 you should run it as Administrator to avoid any permission issues. To run the utility as administrator simply right click the executable file and choose Run as Administrator. You may get a popup asking you if this is what you want to do so just click Ok if you do.

Autoruns can show you information such as the following:

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MMC.exe – Entry Point Not Found Error0

If you are running Windows XP you may get an error that says "The procedure entry point could not be located in the dynamic link library mmcbase.dll" when trying to run a program that uses the Microsoft Management Console.

The Microsoft Management Console is used to host administrative tools which are called snap-ins, which are used to manage different aspects of an application. Many programs use the Microsoft Management Console such as Diskeeper and many Microsoft utilities such as Active Directory management tools and WSUS (Windows Server Update Service). It is a very important utility that you will use very often if you do any kind of Windows server administration so it's important that it be accessible.

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