KenB

Hi Karlos This is very odd. Boot up normally. Windows Key + S Type in .... services .... click on "View Local Services" Scroll down the list. It should look like this ( some running etc ) This is a selection from mine.

Hi Karlos Strange. Please enable "Normal Startup" - then boot up in Safe Mode with Networking. Let me know if you can access the net now please.

Hi Norman If it is showing "Unallocated" as Nev suggests - do nothing with it. There should be a way of expanding the existing partition into the unallocated space directly Another screen shot would be useful :)

Hi again Try this: Go back to msconfig - and tick the box next to "Diagnostic Startup" > Apply > OK Reboot. This will load essential services and startup items.

Sorry Nev - I jumped in with both feet before you had a chance to add your post :) Norman - I will leave Nev to continue.

Hi Norman Thanks for the screen shots - most helpful :) You have a 232 GB Partition ......and 405 GB "Unallocated" on the same drive. Basically this is part of the disk that is unable to be read as it is not in a formatted state. We can correct this. Try this: Go back to Disk Management. Right click on the "Unallocated" part and select "New Partition" Now select ...."Logical Drive" or "New Simple Volume" .....whichever is given as an option. Click Next until you are given the option of selecting a drive letter. Let Windows do this for you ( it will be going later anyway ) Click Next again and then select "Format this partition" Select NTFS as the file system type click Next Click on "Finish" .....this should format the 405 GB partition and it should show in "Computer" as a drive letter with 405 GB available. We will need to expand the small partition into the 405 one but for the moment let me know how you get on with this. Your Drive C: is almost full. Windows needs about 10-15% free space to function properly.

Hi Norman If I understand correctly - you formatted this drive on a Win7 machine. If this is correct - attach the drive to the machine again then Start > type in .......diskmgmt.msc ......Enter You will get information on all connected drives. Your main drive will be "Disk 0 " What does it say regarding the attached 700GB drive ?

Hi Karlos, I was hoping to avoid additional services but this is obviously not the case. Put a tick by these as well. Then restart and see if you can connect. DHCP Client Network Connection Device Auto-Setup uPNP Remote Procedure Call Workstation Network Location Awareness Re the updates - It may be better if you did these manually a bunch at a time. Very often - if there are lots of updates - installing all at once can cause problems for some reason.

Nev wrote this: What Nev says is correct. However, more recent OS's are a little more tolerant and may - and I stress "may" - boot up from the imported drive. It all depends on the motherboard and if it is nearly compatible. Older OS's ( XP for instance ) were very intolerant to change and the MB had to be exactly the same. Basically it is pot luck - and if you were buying a MB you obviously would not wish to chance it. If it did boot up there would ,more than likely, be driver issues anyway that would need sorting.

Let us know if it happens again. As I said - if it is an irregular occurrence it will be difficult to track down. :(

Just in case our members think the staff here are ignoring Nev - we were made aware of Nev's problem some time back in the Moderator's Forum, which is not public. We have made all of our comments there. We wish you well Nev and hope that the coming months bring better news. Thank you for bringing this subject ( which some find difficult to discuss ) to our attention.

Has it happened since Ray ?

Hi Ray Have you run Malwarebytes ......just to check? Don't forget to update it before you run the scan. erratic problems are always the most difficult to pinpoint.

Hi blkbrd37 - you started a thread here; http://extremetechsupport.com/threads/16824-Solved-Screen-Background?p=111604#post111604 It's exactly the same. :) Post in Windows 8 - we can always move it if necessary.

Hi Ray Give it a go and keep us informed :)

Hi Ray This could be a corrupt cookie. Try the following: Windows Key + S ...........type in ...... internet options .............hit Enter Click Internet Options again if you get further options. On the screen that shows after this make sure the "General" tab is selected. Then click "Delete" The default should be the top three boxes selected. [ one of which is "Cookies" ] Delete these 3. You will find that if you use auto-login on sites like this one for instance, you will need to sign in again with your username and password. Cookies are small scripts that websites use to speed things up for you when you are accessing the site.

Hi Sorry for the slow response. When you say "reset the SD-Card" do you mean .....formatted ? What command did you use at the command prompt ? Does it show up in Disk Management? Windows Key + S .....type in .....disk management .... Return. The main hard-drive will be Drive 0 The CDROM Drive will be shown too. A screen shot or photo of Disk Management would be good if you can provide this.

Hi Karlos Try enabling WLAN Auto Config from Services [ or Wired AutoConfig if not using wireless ] In msconfig you may need to click on the Services button and put a check against WLAN Auto Config. You will probably need a restart. It could be a service that is causing your problem.

Hi Nuley, If your laptop has Windows-8 or 8.1 on it you do have an AV on the system. It is called Defender. It is inbuilt into Windows. To check - Windows Key + S ...........then type in .....defender ..... You should be able to tell from here if it is enabled. ....which it is by default. This is the old Security Essentials updated. One of our security team may add to this - but for the time being it is good enough if it is enabled.

No problem - glad it was an easy solution :)

Hi From what you describe it sounds as if the image of the letter has been set as the Desktop Background. If you right click on the Desktop area ....then click on "Personalise" The Desktop Background can be set from here. ( if unsure just ask )

Hi Sara and welcome to ExTS :) I am not a user of the named software so I don't know how much help I can be. I did find this - click here Do you get an error code ?

Hi again It must be either one of the Services or something in the Start-up causing the system to slow down. It is a long process to find what it is I am afraid. Take a look here - click here You need to look at "Selective Startup" There are 2 boxes that will be ticked at the moment. 1. Load System Services 2. Load Start-up Items. Uncheck "Load Start-up Items" and leave "Load System Services" ticked. Now restart normally. Try the problem websites again. If they are ok then it is an item in the Start-up causing the problem. [ not Services ] If there is a problem with the websites go back to msconfig and swap the ticks over [ just to check that we are correct ] Restart normally. If the machine is slow now then you have confirmed where the problem lies. The link explains better than I can. Once you have decided where the problem lies then you have to locate the specific item ............this is the slow bit. Speccy showed the Services that were running when you provided the details. Task Manager [ CTRL+ALT+DEL] will tell you which Start-up Items are ticked at the moment. You may want to make a note of these before you start the elimination process. Let me know how you get on.

Hi Peter and welcome to ExTS :) I have split your post from the other thread as it is simpler to have your own - less confusing. Could you give us specific information on your printer please [ make and model number ] And also the particular problems you are having. Many thanks.

You are welcome - glad that it was that simple :)