Items filtered by date: December 2014

The PC is running very slow and the CPU is maxing out running a process called svchost.exe

computers stall at Windows startup (and other occasions, such as when loading IE) for minutes at a time, Mouse-clicks stack up and run all of a sudden.

Because svchost is a generic container for lots of windows services there are lots of causes of 100% CPU usage and and as many solutions.

Work throught the list below as appropiate and apply and changes where appropiate:

Unprinted document in 'Microsoft Image Printer'

open the Image printer print queue and delete any print jobs in there, if you do not use this printer, delete it to prevent any further occurance of this error.

Microsoft Update

Disabled 'Microsoft Update' (automated local sevice) via system properties and use 'Windows Update' (web based update service). This is a permenant fix which will allow normal operation to carry out the fix below.

• Windows Update is exactly what it says in the name - the site for updating Windows.
• Microsoft Update is an optional "upgrade" to Windows Update which contains all that is in Windows Update, but also includes other updates for Microsoft programs such as Office.
• Automatic Updates is the service that runs locally and checks periodically for critical updates for Windows.

1) Update to WUAgent v3

It may say "Install is not needed since Windows Update Agent is already installed." If so, then run the exe with the command line switch /wuforce

2) Run MS KB927891

3) Reboot

4) If still experiencing high CPU, run Office Update by itself from the Office support site. Install as requested, including any ActiveX.

5) Update and Reboot as necessary.

Microsoft article, (also inculdes links to other versions of V3 installer. ie 64 bit), forum 1, forum 2

Utilities

To view the list of services that are running in Svchost run the folowing in the command prompt:

Tasklist /SVC

Tasklist displays a list of active processes. The /SVC switch shows the list of active services in each process. For more information about a process, type the following command, and then press ENTER:

Tasklist /FI "PID eq processID" (with the quotation marks) 

Microsoft Article

In working with many Windows XP computers over the past couple of years in my shop, I've run across a few systems with corrupted registry files. Most of the time, I will get an error similar to the following:

Windows could not start because the following file is missing or corrupt:
\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SYSTEM
\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SOFTWARE

Other times I won't get an error and the system will just reboot continuously without a blue screen error message. One thing is for certain in all of these problems: I can't boot into safe mode to fix it!!!!

It is cases like this when we want to manually roll back the registry. Basically, this restores your system's registry files to a point where they might have actually been stable, or at least less destructive than they are now. This process is not the same as system restore, mainly because we're only replacing the registry files, where system restore also replaces other system files.

If you Turned Off System Restore, turn around and go back where you came from. There is no hope for you.

One of Windows XP's "features" is something called System Restore. I don't like to use it for reasons I do not plan to go into, but what is good news for you and me is that System Restore takes a daily snapshot of your Registry files.

The registry snapshots are kept in the System Volume Information directory, typically in the root of the C: drive. The files are difficult to access normally, even in the Recovery Console, because the NTFS security settings on these files do not allow any user except for SYSTEM access to the files. Microsoft's way of doing what I am explaining now, which is linked at the bottom of this page, explains to restore the original registry files from %Windir%\Repair\ first, then changing the security and blah blah blah eventually getting the right files in. What a crockashit... My way is much easier.

STEP 1 -> Boot your system with WinPE

In order to move these registry files around, we need full, unrestricted access to the NTFS filesystem. This can be done several ways, but the easiest and most efficient way is to use something called the Windows XP PreInstallation Environment, WinPE for short. If you are a Microsoft OEM you likely have a real Microsoft WinPE CD lying around, but if not you can build your own WinPE. I highly recommend building the PE yourself, as it is a most valuable tool as a technician. If you do not care to do this, skip everything else I'm going to say and go do it the Microsoft way.. blah.

STEP 2 -> Find a recent Restore Point Registry Snapshot

So at this point, you've fully booted into the WinPE environment and have a cmd.exe prompt open. First off, navigate to the C:\System Volume Information\ directory. Windows XP has a great thing called tab completion Type "cd \sys" and then press the tab key. Voila! press enter.

From here, do a "dir" and see what you have... You may see one or two weird directories that have Microsoft CLSID identifiers. Within one of these directories we're looking for "Restore Points" which will be directories identified by "RPxx" where xx is a number. Type "cd _restore{CDSFSD"+tab or whatever the name of the directory is and do another 'dir'. If you see nothing, "cd .." and then go into the other one.

Now you've made it into the directory with all the restore points. Congratulations! Since they're not in any order, type "dir /od" to sort them by date. Look closely at the timestamp of these directories. Your goal here is to restore the system to a point where it was working and not about to crash. You also do not want to go back so far that it affects your settings or programs that you've installed, programs you've activated, etc. I try to keep the restore over two days but within a week of when the system crashed. Let's say it's 6pm on Thursday, look for midday Tuesday or beforehand, but not much more than that. Once you have found one that you're satisfied with, change to that directory, and beneath it, change to the "snapshot" directory. Do a directory listing. This is what your registry was at that point. Chances are it isn't corrupted, and your system might boot with it!

STEP 3 -> Overwrite your corrupt registry with the snapshot

All we have to do now is get these registry files to overwrite your current registry files. Great. Wait, Backup, you say? Why? They're corrupted. Why backup a corrupted file?

Using the benefits of Tab Completion, type the following commands:

copy _REGISTRY_MACHINE_SAM \windows\system32\config\SAM
copy _REGISTRY_MACHINE_SECURITY \windows\system32\config\SECURITY
copy _REGISTRY_MACHINE_SOFTWARE \windows\system32\config\SOFTWARE
copy _REGISTRY_MACHINE_SYSTEM \windows\system32\config\SYSTEM
copy _REGISTRY_USER_.DEFAULT \windows\system32\config\DEFAULT

Done.

There is also a copy of the registry in C:\windows\repair, you could try these if you have turned system restore off. This method can be used in the recovery console see this article from microsoft

If it didn't fix, Try a repair installation or scanning your hard drive for viruses outside of your computer or in WinPE.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Tekmaven brings up a valid point -- Those that join a domain with Media Center 2005 will *not* be able to use extender devices due to the Fast User Switching dependency (who uses extenders anyway?)

UPDATE (January 8th): I have received news the Linksys MCE Extender device works fine when joined in a domain.

1. Insert Windows XP CD.

2. Start > Run > X:\i386\winnt32.exe /cmdcons

   (replace X: with the appropiate drive letter)

3. Acknowledge prompt by clicking 'Yes'.

4. Skip updating process by clicking 'Cancel' or by pressing 'Esc'

5. After installation, acknowledge success msg. by clicking 'Ok'

6. Start > Shutdown > Restart

7. At boot menu, select 'Microsoft Windows Recovery Console'

8. Select proper installation to log onto (default: 1) and press 'Enter'

   (If prompted, enter Administrator password and press 'Enter')

9. Type (without quotes) and press enter: 'cd system32\config'

10. Type (without quotes) and press enter: 'copy SYSTEM C:\'

11. Type (without quotes) and press enter: exit

12. At boot menu, select 'Windows XP Media Center Edition'

13. Log into Windows and play a game of minesweeper (very important)

14. Start > Run > Type: 'regedit' and press enter

15. Click on 'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE'.

16. File > Load Hive...

17. Browse and select C:\SYSTEM

18. Specify key name 'BANANA' and click OK

19. Expand: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE > BANANA > WPA > MedCtrUpg

20. On the right-hand side, double-click IsLegacyMCE value

21. Change selected value to 1 and click Ok. (THAT IS NOT AN L!)

22. Click on BANANA subkey (under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE).

23. File > Unload Hive. Confirm.

24. Start > Shutdown > Restart

25. At boot menu, select 'Microsoft Windows Recovery Console'

26. Take sip of Dr. Pepper (very important)

27. Select proper installation to log onto (default: 1) and press 'Enter'

   (If prompted, enter Administrator password and press 'Enter')

28. Type (without quotes) and press enter: 'cd \'

29. Type (without quotes) and press enter: 'copy SYSTEM C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SYSTEM'

  (Yes, you want to overwrite - Go ahead and do it)

30. Type (without quotes) and press enter: 'del SYSTEM'

31. Type (without quotes) and press enter: 'exit'

32. At boot menu, select 'Windows XP Media Center Edition'

33. Take a piss while you wait.

34. Join domain. What, you were expecting instructions on this too?

Mysteries Of The Favicon.ico — How To Create A Favicon In Photoshop

A Favicon is a little custom icon that appears next to a website's URL in the address bar of a web browser. And when I say little, I mean 16 pixels by 16 pixels. So if you like a good design challenge try your hand at this one.

All you need to add a Favicon to your site is a Windows Icon (.ico) file called favicon.ico that you upload to the main directory of your website.

Download The Plugin

You'll need the Windows Icon (ICO) file format Photoshop Plugin to export to the .ico file format. You can download the plugin from Telegraphics. The plugin reads and writes ICO files in 1, 4 and 8-bit Indexed and 24-bit RGB modes, and also reads and writes 32-bit "XP" icons (with 8-bit alpha channel). Make sure to install the plugin before you begin this tutorial.

Let's Begin

Because 16 x 16 is such a small canvas area, it can be very difficult to be creative. So instead start your project with a canvas set at 64 x 64 (always use even multiples when you plan on resizing files). Do this by selecting File>New, and opening a new canvas that is 64 x 64 pixels in size.

The Design

If you already have a logo you should reduce it to the 16 x 16 size to see if it holds up. If it doesn't look good at this size, work with the 64 x 64 canvas and try creating a simple design that incorporates colors from your website's palette.

When you're ready to test the design select Image>Image Size menu and enter 16 x 16. Click on Resample Image and choose "Bicubic Sharper" from the drop-down menu (CS only for this step). This is the best setting for making sure that an image doesn't blur as it's being resized.

If you feel the icon is not quite what you wanted, just keep tweaking it until it is perfect. At this tiny size it can take a few tries before you get it right.

Saving The Custom Icon

Go to File>Save As and make sure you name the file favicon.ico. Under Format you must choose Windows Icon (ICO) from the pulldown menu. This format will only be available in Photoshop after you download and install the plugin. In the next step you'll need to upload this new file to the root folder of your website, so it's a good idea to navigate and save it to that location on your hard drive now.

Uploading The Favicon.ico File

Connect to your server and upload your Favicon.ico file to your website. You must place it into the same directory as your home (index) page, and leave it loose, making sure not to put it in an images directory or other folder.

Some browsers will look for a direct link in the HTML source code to your site's favicon.ico file. You can help these browsers by adding this link in the head section of each page on which you want the Favicon.ico to appear. Here is the link code to include: <link rel="Shortcut Icon" href="/favicon.ico"> Once you've added this code, upload all of your modified pages

Testing

If your new Favicon does not show up right away, try refreshing the page — or put a '?' at the end of the url, which will trick a browser into thinking the page is new and not cached.

Troubleshooting

• Browser Issues: Microsoft IE 6 for Windows will not display the favicon until the URL has been added to the favorites, and Safari for the MAC will not display an updated favicon until the browser cache has been cleared. But choosing ‘empty cache’ from the menu won't help because Safari stores favicons in a separate cache. You must empty the icon cache yourself. Look for it in User>Library>Safari>Icons.

• File Format Not Available: The Windows Icon (ICO) file format will not be available until you have downloaded and installed the plugin, and then Quit and Restarted Photoshop

Inspiration

If you need some inspiration have a look through this nice collection of favicons. Also look at the nice categorized list of 50 remarkable favicons at Smashing Magazine. You might find something that triggers an idea for your own.

Original Article

Western Digital

"WDCWDCWDCWDCWDCWDCWDCWDCWDCWDCWD"

Seagate

"Seagate + 25 blanks"

In Vista SP1 the default Administrator account is disabled. But enabling it is a simple task.

Enable a command prompt with administrative privileges.

1. Enter "cmd" in the search box under the Start menu and press CTRL + SHIFT + Enter to launch the command prompt with administrative privileges.

or

2. Alternatively, you can also right-click the highlighted result and choose the "Run as administrator" option.

Now run the appropoiate command below.

To enable the account type the command:

net user administrator /active:yes

To disable the account, type the command:

net user administrator /active:no

This bookmarklet diables CSS on any page.

javascript:__ds=function(){var%20i,s=document.styleSheets;for(i=0;i<s.length;i++)s[i].disabled=true};__ds();

On epson injet printers after setting up a normal printer share and the appropiate permissions you cannot print even thought the print job has arrived in the queue on the host machine, though not always completely dowmloaded.

Explanation:

This is a problem caused by epson status monitor having conflicts with other programs such as antivirus and firewalls and the data not being passed to the spool queue properely.

Solution:

1. got to printer preferences

2. select maitenance tab

3. then press, speed and progress button

4. tick 'Disable EPSON Status Monitor' and enable 'Always spool RAW datatype'

Boot windows in safe mode.

Run regedit and goto:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\WindowsNT\CurrentVersion\WPAEvents

In the right pane, right-click OOBETimer, and the click Modify.

Change at least one digit of this value to deactivate windows.

Restart normally and reactivate.

This problem occurs when the Disk Cleanup Tool disables the hibernation file. The hibernation file must be enabled to access the hybrid sleep feature and the hibernation feature in Windows Vista.

When the hibernation file is disabled, and the hybrid sleep feature is enabled, a backup of open programs and open files will not be saved to the disk when you use the sleep feature in Windows Vista. Additionally, if the computer loses power while the Windows is in sleep mode, open programs and open files will not be recovered, and any unsaved work will be lost.

Also You cannot see the Hibernate option in Power Options.

Solution

access the command prompt and type the text below to turn hibernation back on.

powercfg -h on