CompTIA A+ Complete Study Guide phần 9 doc

714 Chapter 14  Installing, Configuring, Optimizing, and Upgrading OSs Debugging Mode A sort of advanced boot logging. It requires that another machine be hooked up to the computer through a serial port. The debug information is then passed to that machine during the boot process. This option is rarely used and should not be bothered with in most cases. If it comes to this, reinstalling is far faster! Boot Normally (Start Windows Normally) Continues the boot normally. Reboot (Windows XP Only) As the name implies, reboots the computer (warm boot). Return To OS Choices Menu (Windows XP Only) Self-explanatory; returns you to the choice of installed OSs. Using Boot Disks, Emergency Repair Disks, and Automated System Recovery If you find yourself in a situation where the system won’t boot up anymore, or where you are expe- riencing some other type of critical error, you might need to use boot disks. In Windows 2000 we use an Emergency Repair Disk, and in Windows XP we use Automated System Recovery (ASR). To use boot disks, an ERD, or ASR, you must have first created the appropriate disks. Chapter 5 walks you through the procedures on how to create these disks. Windows 2000 Boot Disks and ERD To recover from a Windows 2000 emergency, you need four OS boot disks (or a Windows 2000 bootable CD), as well as an Emergency Repair Disk (ERD). If Windows won’t boot, you need to boot to either the boot disks or the Windows 2000 CD. This will start the Windows 2000 Setup program. At an early point in the Setup program, you’ll be asked whether you want to install or repair Windows 2000. Choose Repair. Windows 2000 Setup will continue and at a later point ask you for the ERD. Emergency Repair Disks are computer-specific. Using an ERD created on one computer to fix another computer generally does not work. Automated System Recovery in Windows XP Windows XP introduces Automated System Recovery (ASR) as a replacement for the ERD. ASR creates a backup of your system partition and then creates a recovery disk. Using these two components, you can recover from a system crash and restore the system back to a functional state. To use ASR to recover from a system failure, run Setup from the Windows XP CD. During the text portion of the Setup program, you’ll see a message to Press F2 to run the Automated System Recovery Process; do so, and you’ll be prompted to insert the ASR disk. The system then guides you through the rest of the process. 4831xc14.fm Page 714 Thursday, September 14, 2006 5:37 PM Troubleshooting Windows 715 To obtain setup boot disks for Windows XP, you have to go to Microsoft’s download website at http://www.microsoft.com/downloads and download them. These disks can be used to install XP if you can’t boot from CD-ROM. You’ll need six floppy disks during the download; they should be formatted and blank. Using the Recovery Console If Windows is not booting properly and safe mode and other startup options don’t work, you might want to try the Recovery Console. The Recovery Console is a command-line utility you can use to format drives, read data from and write data to local hard drives, stop and start services, and perform several other administrative tasks. You can run the Recovery Console directly from the Windows installation CD, or you can install it on your hard drive and run it as one of the advanced boot options. Here’s how to install the Recovery Console: 1. Put the Windows installation CD in the CD-ROM drive. 2. Click Start and then Run. 3. In the Run box, type D:\i386\winnt32.exe /cmdcons (where D:\ is your CD-ROM drive letter). 4. Follow the instructions on screen. In order to run the Recovery Console, you must be an administrator or have administrative privileges. Once you are logged in, the Recovery Console will allow you to perform activities such as changing directories or viewing files, as well as administrative duties such as trying to repair the boot sector of the hard drive. The Recovery Console is a command-line interface; much like in a Windows command prompt, you can type help at the Recovery Console prompt to get a list of available commands. Table 14.8 lists the available Recovery Console commands and a brief description of their functions. TABLE 14.8 Recovery Console commands Command Function ATTRIB Changes the attributes of a file or folder. BATCH Runs the commands specified in a text file so that you can perform many tasks in one step. CD or CHDIR Changes directories. CHKDSK Runs the hard-disk checker. CLS Clears the screen of previous output. 4831xc14.fm Page 715 Thursday, September 14, 2006 5:37 PM 716 Chapter 14  Installing, Configuring, Optimizing, and Upgrading OSs COPY Copies files from removable media to the system folders. (Note: With the Console, you cannot use wildcards!) DEL or DELETE Deletes files. DIR Lists the contents of a directory. DISABLE Disables a specified service or driver. DISKPART Creates or deletes disk partitions. ENABLE Enables a specified service or driver. EXTRACT Extracts compressed installation files (ones with .CAB extensions) to the system partition. This command only works if you run the Console from the installation CD. FIXBOOT Writes a new boot sector on the system partition. FIXMBR Writes a new master boot record for the partition boot sector. FORMAT Formats the selected disk. HELP Displays a list of available Recovery Console commands. LISTSVC Lists all services and drivers running in Windows. LOGON Logs on to Windows. MAP Displays the drive letter mappings currently recognized. Can be helpful to use before DISKPART. MD or MKDIR Creates a directory. MORE or TYPE Displays the contents of a specified file. RD or RMDIR Deletes a directory. REN or RENAME Renames a file. SYSTEMROOT Makes the current directory the system root of the drive you are logged in to. TABLE 14.8 Recovery Console commands (continued) Command Function 4831xc14.fm Page 716 Thursday, September 14, 2006 5:37 PM Troubleshooting Windows 717 While the Console can do many things, it’s important to note the things that the Console can’t do. Most notably, it can’t be used to back up files. Files can be copied from media to the local hard drive (specifically, to the system partition), but not the other way around. In addition, although you can change to partitions other than the system partition, you can’t read files on them. So the Console is handy, but it’s not a save-all; don’t think of it as a dupli- cate of the command prompt. The key functions of the Recovery Console are to be able to repair your sys- tem partition or make minor tweaks to Windows to get the operating system functional. Recognizing and Resolving Common Operational Problems and Error Messages Earlier I said that it was impossible to know all possible fixes. Although this is true, there are issues that are more common than others. Having a good grasp on how to begin fixing these common issues can greatly speed up your troubleshooting processes. Fixing Boot Errors If the files that are needed to boot the operating system aren’t present and accounted for, you will get an error message at boot. But not all files are needed for every boot situation. For example, if you don’t use a SCSI boot drive, you don’t need the NTBOOTDD.SYS file. Let’s take a brief look at some common Windows 2000/XP boot errors, what might be causing them, and how to solve them: Invalid Boot Disk You get the Invalid boot disk error when the BIOS finds a partition that could be bootable but is missing the essential system files. You can correct this problem by reinstalling the OS. Operating System Not Found This error means exactly what it says. Essentially, the system BIOS could not find an OS, or even a valid boot partition, on any of the boot devices (floppy, hard disk, or CD-ROM). You will get this error on a brand-new computer that you have just built, until you install the OS. Other causes are a corrupted boot sector or boot files. There are a couple of solutions to the Invalid Boot Disk and Operating System Not Found prob- lems. First, if the file or files are missing, copy them from the original setup diskettes or CD-ROM, or copy them from a backup (assuming you have one). The same holds true if you have a corrupt file, except you must delete the corrupt files first, and then replace them with new copies. Inaccessible Boot Device If, on bootup, you receive an error that states STOP: 0x0000007B inaccessible boot device, you may have one of several problems. The most common is that Windows could not load the driver for the disk controller on the boot device. This could be because it is the wrong driver or because the disk controller is conflicting with some other hardware in the system. 4831xc14.fm Page 717 Thursday, September 14, 2006 5:37 PM 718 Chapter 14  Installing, Configuring, Optimizing, and Upgrading OSs This issue could also be caused by a unique installation procedure. If you are trying to run Windows 2000/XP Setup from a SCSI CD-ROM, Setup will not allow you to install a third-party SCSI driver when you boot from the SCSI CD-ROM. You will have to try using the boot disks to install 2000/XP. Missing NTLDR or Missing or Corrupt NTOSKRNL.EXE As you’ve learned, NTLDR is relied on heavily during the boot process. If it is missing or corrupted, Windows NT will not be able to boot, and you’ll get an error similar to Can’t find NTLDR. On the other hand, if you get an error such as NTOSKRNL.EXE missing or corrupt on bootup, it may be an error in the BOOT.INI file. This is a common occurrence if you have improperly used the multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional" syntax for partition entries or had the partition table modified in a multidisk setup. If these entries are correct, the NTOSKRNL.EXE file may be corrupt or missing. Boot to a startup disk and replace the file from the setup disks or CD-ROM. Solving Auto-Restart and Startup Errors Sometimes you will have a computer that won’t get past the Windows splash screen (the screen that tells you Windows is loading, but it’s not yet to the screen that lets you log in). The splash screen will load, and the computer will sit there for a bit and then reboot itself. This process repeats itself over and over. This can mean that there is a corrupt driver or an error in the Registry. If you can get the system to boot into the advanced options, you can try to resolve the problem by using an ERD or ASR. Other causes of auto-restart errors could be an overheating computer, power supply problems, bad RAM, and viruses. You will also sometimes see the system booting into Windows, but it will give you an error message such as The xxxx device/service has failed to start or A device/program referenced in the Registry cannot be found. Generally speaking, these errors are not fatal, but they are annoying. If it’s a device that’s not starting, check Device Manager to see whether there are problems with the device driver. If so, uninstall and reinstall the device. If problems persist, it might be a defective device. If you have just updated the driver in Windows XP and problems started, you can use a feature called driver rollback to uninstall the driver and restore a previous version. Exercise 14.10 walks you through this process. For failing services, check the Services applet in the Administrative Tools in Control Panel (or in Computer Management). Some services are dependent on other services, so having one fail to start could cause a chain reaction. If the service failed, you can try start- ing the service manually and ensuring that the service and its upstream services are sched- uled to start automatically. 4831xc14.fm Page 718 Thursday, September 14, 2006 5:37 PM Troubleshooting Windows 719 Errors involving the Registry are generally cause for concern. The most common cause of a computer telling you that a Registry reference can’t be found is that someone tried to unin- stall a program or device but did so improperly. You can try to remove the device through Device Manager, or remove the program through Add/Remove Programs. If that doesn’t help, you can always edit the Registry manually, searching for entries that match the device or pro- gram causing the error. Resolving Printing Problems Another major category of problems you might be asked to troubleshoot are those problems that occur during printing. If a printer is not printing at all, always check the cables first and reseat them. If they appear okay and the printer is online but still will not print, then you will want to look in the direction of the printer driver. One common source of printer-driver errors is corruption of the driver. If a printer doesn’t work, you can delete the printer from the printer settings (Printers and Faxes) window and reinstall it. If this method fails, the problem may be that related printer files were not replaced. Delete all printers from the computer and reinstall them. If this second method fails, the printer driver is not compatible with Windows or with the printer, and you will need to obtain an updated driver. A quick way to test the printer functionality is to use the Print Test Page option. This option is presented to you as the last step when setting up a new printer in Windows. Always select this option when you’re setting up a new printer so you can test its functionality. To print a test page for a printer that’s already set up, look for the option on the Properties menu for the particular printer. EXERCISE 14.10 Rolling back a device driver Maybe you wanted new features or you were having compatibility issues, so you installed a new device driver. For whatever reason, your system seems to be worse off than it was before. One way to help solve this new problem is to roll back the device driver with the device driver rollback feature in Windows XP. Here’s how: 1. Open Device Manager. 2. Navigate to the device you’re having problems with. 3. Right-click on the device and select Properties. 4. Go to the Driver tab, and click the Roll Back Driver button. 5. The system will ask you, Are you sure you would like to roll back to the previous driver? Click Yes. The previous driver will be restored! 4831xc14.fm Page 719 Thursday, September 14, 2006 5:37 PM 720 Chapter 14  Installing, Configuring, Optimizing, and Upgrading OSs After the test page is sent to the printer, the computer will ask whether it printed correctly. The first few times, you’ll probably want to answer no and use the troubleshooting wizard that appears; but after you have troubleshot a few printer problems, you may prefer to answer yes and bypass the wizard. For steps on how to stop and restart the print spooler, see Exercise 14.7. Resolving Device, Application, and Other Failures Some common Windows problems don’t fall into any category other than “common Windows problems.” They include the following: General Protection Faults (GPFs) A general protection fault (GPF) happens in Windows when a program accesses memory that another program is using or when a program accesses a memory address that doesn’t exist. Generally, GPFs are the result of sloppy programming. To fix this type of problem, a simple reboot will usually clear memory. If GPFs keep occurring, check to see which software is causing the error. Then find out whether the manufacturer of the software has a patch to prevent it from GPFing. Illegal Operation Occasionally, a program will quit, apparently for no reason, and present you with a window that says This program has performed an illegal operation and will be shut down. If the problem persists, contact the program vendor. An illegal operation error usually means that a program was forced to quit because it did something Windows didn’t like. Windows then displays this error window. The name of the program that quit appears at the top of the window, along with three buttons: OK, Cancel, and Details. The OK and Cancel buttons do the same thing: dismiss the window. The Details button opens the window a little further and shows the details of the error, including which module experienced the problem, the memory location being accessed at the time, and the registers and flags of the processor at the time of the error. System Lockup It is obvious when a system lockup occurs. The system simply stops responding to commands and stops processing completely. System lockups can occur when a computer is asked to process too many instructions at once with too little memory. Usually, the cure for a system lockup is to reboot. If the lockups are persistent, it may be a hardware-related problem instead of a software problem. Dr. Watson Windows 2000 and Windows XP include a special utility known as Dr. Watson. This utility intercepts all error conditions and displays a slew of information that can be used to troubleshoot the problem. The information is typically more useful to programmers than it is to technicians. Failure to Start GUI Occasionally, the Windows GUI won’t appear. The system will hang just before the GUI appears. Or sometimes the Blue Screen of Death (BSOD)—not a technical term, by the way—appears. The BSOD is another way of describing the blue-screen error con- dition that occurs when Windows 2000/XP fails to boot properly or quits unexpectedly. Because it is at this stage that the device drivers for the various pieces of hardware are installed, 4831xc14.fm Page 720 Thursday, September 14, 2006 5:37 PM Troubleshooting Windows 721 if your Windows GUI fails to start properly, more than likely the problem is related to a mis- configured driver or misconfigured hardware. Try booting Windows in safe mode to bypass this problem. Option (Sound Card, Modem, SCSI Card, or Input Device) Will Not Function When you are using Windows, you are constantly interacting with pieces of hardware. Each piece of hardware has a Windows driver that must be loaded in order for Windows to be able to use it. Additionally, the hardware must be installed and functioning properly. If the device driver is not installed properly or the hardware is misconfigured, the device won’t function properly. Cannot Log On to the Network (Option—NIC Not Functioning) If your computer is hooked up to a network (and more and more computers today are), you need to know when your computer is not functioning on the network properly and what to do about it. In most cases, the problem can be attributed to either a malfunctioning network interface card (NIC) or improperly installed network software. The biggest indicator in Windows that some com- ponent of the network software is nonfunctional is that you can’t log on to the network or access any network service. To fix this problem, you must first fix the underlying hardware problem (if one exists), and then properly install or configure the network software. Networking software is covered in Chapter 8. Applications Don’t Install We’ve all experienced this frustration. You are trying to install the coolest new program, and, for whatever reason, it just won’t install properly. It may give you one of the previously mentioned errors or a cryptic installation error. If a software program won’t install and it gives you any of the errors we’ve mentioned (such as a GPF or illegal operation), use the solutions for those errors first. If the error that occurs during installation is unique to the application being installed, check the applica- tion manufacturer’s website for an explanation or update. These errors generally occur when you’re trying to install over an application that already exists, or when you’re trying to replace a file that already exists but that another application is using. When you’re installing an application, it is extremely important that you first quit all running programs so the installer can replace any files it needs to. Application Will Not Start After you have an application successfully installed, you may run across a problem getting it to start properly. This problem can come from any number of sources, including an improper installation, a software conflict, or system instability. If your application was installed incorrectly, the files required to properly run the program may not be present, and the program can’t function without them. If a shared file that’s used by other programs is installed, it could be a different version than should be installed that causes conflicts with other already-installed programs. Finally, if one program GPFs, it can cause memory problems that can destabilize the system and cause other programs to crash. The solution to these problems is to reinstall the offending application, first making sure that all programs are closed. 4831xc14.fm Page 721 Thursday, September 14, 2006 5:37 PM 722 Chapter 14  Installing, Configuring, Optimizing, and Upgrading OSs Invalid Working Directory Some Windows programs are extremely processor intensive. These programs require an area on the hard disk to store their temporary files while they work. This area is commonly known as a working directory, and its location is usually spec- ified during that program’s installation. However, if that directory changes after installation and the program still thinks its working directory is in the same location, the program will issue an error that says something such as Invalid working directory. The solution is to rein- stall the program with the correct parameters for the working directory. To avoid Invalid working directory errors, many programs use the Windows Temp directory as their working directory. You will see this error only if the programmer chose to use a working directory that could be set by the user. Remember that there are two universal solutions to Windows problems: rebooting, and obtaining an update from the software manufacturer. Using Windows Diagnostic Utilities Microsoft provides several tools with Windows to help troubleshoot problems. These resources are the best to use if you have no other troubleshooting tools available, or they can also be used Always Reboot First… Troubleshooting software problems can be tricky. There are so many files that could be caus- ing the problem, and it’s often hard to know where to start. If you are having a software prob- lem, such as specific error messages, or worse yet the Blue Screen of Death, the first step should always be the same: Save your work (if you can) and reboot. To reboot, turn the computer completely off. Wait 10 seconds (it gives the hard disk time to stop spinning, which is important), and power the system back on. Performing a hard reboot does two things. One, it clears the memory, which could have caused the problem. Two, it should clear out temporary files, which are a common culprit as well. After you reboot, try the application again. If the error doesn’t come back, and you can’t make it happen again, it’s not a problem. If it comes back, you have something to fix. This “solution” frustrates a lot of end users, but it’s the absolutely critical first step to solving software (including operating system) problems. 4831xc14.fm Page 722 Thursday, September 14, 2006 5:37 PM Troubleshooting Windows 723 as a starting point for troubleshooting a computer. Here are the diagnostic utilities you can expect to see on the A+ technician exams:  Bootable media  Startup modes  Documentation resources  Task Manager  Device Manager  Event Viewer  MSCONFIG  Recovery CD / recovery partition  Remote Desktop Connection and Assistance  System File Checker (SFC) Several of these resources are covered in this section. Startup modes are discussed in the “Advanced Startup Modes” section earlier in this chapter. Task Manager, Device Manager, Event Viewer, and MSCONFIG are talked about in the “System Management Tools” section earlier in this chapter. Remote Desktop Connection and Assistance is covered in the “Remote Desktop Connection and Assistance” section earlier in this chapter. Bootable Media In the old days of computer troubleshooting, one of the items that every technician needed to carry was a bootable floppy disk. When CD-ROMs became common, you made sure that your floppy had the CD-ROM drivers on it too, because operating systems (and their installation files) were being offered on that media as well. Today it seems fewer and fewer computers even have floppy disk drives. And most, if not all, of today’s computer BIOSs are capable of booting from the CD-ROM or DVD drives. The moral of the story is, even though technology has changed, the fundamental reason we carried and still need to carry bootable media has not. If the operating system won’t start but the computer appears to POST just fine, you need to somehow find a way to figure out exactly what’s wrong. Booting to a command line or to an installation program gets you a step closer to solving the problem. I would still recommend carrying a bootable floppy disk, just because you never know when you’ll need it. It’s also a good idea to carry bootable CD-ROMs of popular operating systems, such as Windows 98, Me, 2000, and XP. Documentation Resources Whenever troubleshooting, always consider the use of the following resources. User/Installation Manuals Technicians are the most guilty of not using this readily available resource when troubleshooting a system. In fact, most often, a technician will rely on their own experience and try to install a 4831xc14.fm Page 723 Thursday, September 14, 2006 5:37 PM [...]... partition to NTFS 19 You are at a command prompt Which utility can you use to see whether you have a network connection to another computer? A IPCONFIG B CONNECT C PING D IP 20 You are at a command prompt You want to make a file called WORK .DOC a read-only file Which command do you use to accomplish this? A ATTRIB +R WORK .DOC B ATTRIB +RO WORK .DOC C ATTRIB WORK .DOC D READONLY WORK .DOC 4831xc14.fm Page... You cannot convert NTFS to FAT, however 19 C The PING command tests to see whether you can reach a remote host on the network 20 A The ATTRIB command is used to set file attributes To add attributes, use the plus sign (+) To remove attributes, use the minus sign (–) The Read-Only attribute is designated by R 4831xc15.fm Page 7 39 Wednesday, September 13, 2006 9: 56 AM Chapter 15 Installing, Configuring,... magnet Test patterns 4.4 Perform preventative maintenance of printers and scanners Perform scheduled maintenance according to vendor guidelines (e.g install maintenance kits, reset page counts) Ensure a suitable environment Use recommended supplies THE FOLLOWING COMPTIA A+ REMOTE SUPPORT TECHNICIAN EXAM OBJECTIVES ARE COVERED IN THIS CHAPTER: 3.1 Identify the fundamental principles of using printers... before taking your A+ elective examination LED Laser Printer Print Process The other major category of laser printer is the light-emitting diode (LED) page printer This technology is primarily developed and used by Okidata and Panasonic Because the A+ exam does not currently cover LED page printers, we will discuss only the differences between them and laser printers 4831xc15.fm Page 7 49 Wednesday, September... gotten the information you needed to pass the A+ exam Now ask yourself: Did I learn anything? Will the information I learned be able to help me troubleshoot a computer problem? Recovery CD / Recovery Partition Many times a computer will have more problems than can be fixed easily, or the fix may result in only a temporary solution Usually such a case calls for a complete formatting and reinstallation of... your computer If system files are corrupt, the SFC will replace the corrupt files with correct versions The syntax for the System File Checker is as follows: SFC [switch] Table 14 .9 lists the switches available for SFC TABLE 14 .9 SFC Switches Switch Purpose /CACHESIZE=X Sets the Windows File Protection cache size, in megabytes /PURGECACHE Purges the Windows File Protection cache and scans all protected... Read-Only attribute is designated by R 4831xc15.fm Page 7 39 Wednesday, September 13, 2006 9: 56 AM Chapter 15 Installing, Configuring, Optimizing, and Upgrading Printers and Scanners THE FOLLOWING COMPTIA A+ IT TECHNICIAN EXAM OBJECTIVES ARE COVERED IN THIS CHAPTER: 4.1 Identify the fundamental principles of using printers and scanners Describe processes used by printers and scanners including laser,... continue 3 Choose Back Up Files And Settings and click Next 4 Choose what you want to back up (as shown in the following graphic), and click Next 4831xc14.fm Page 7 29 Thursday, September 14, 2006 5:37 PM Performing Preventative Maintenance 7 29 EXERCISE 14.12 (continued) 5 Confirm the backup type and destination, and give the backup file a name (it will have a BKF extension) For the destination, you can... printer/ scanner problems Troubleshoot a print failure (e.g lack of paper, clear queue, restart print spooler, recycle power on printer, inspect for jams, check for visual indicators) THE FOLLOWING COMPTIA A+ DEPOT TECHNICIAN EXAM OBJECTIVES ARE COVERED IN THIS CHAPTER: 3.1 Identify the fundamental principles of using printers and scanners Describe the processes used by printers and scanners including... 3.4 Perform preventative maintenance of printer and scanner problems Perform scheduled maintenance according to vendor guidelines (e.g install maintenance kits, reset page counts) Ensure a suitable environment Use recommended supplies 4831xc15.fm Page 743 Wednesday, September 13, 2006 9: 56 AM There’s definitely been a movement in modern society to avoid the use of paper when possible Many office environments . computer. Here are the diagnostic utilities you can expect to see on the A+ technician exams:  Bootable media  Startup modes  Documentation resources  Task Manager  Device Manager  Event Viewer  MSCONFIG  Recovery. a good idea to carry bootable CD-ROMs of popular operating systems, such as Windows 98 , Me, 2000, and XP. Documentation Resources Whenever troubleshooting, always consider the use of the following. syntax for the System File Checker is as follows: SFC [switch] Table 14 .9 lists the switches available for SFC. TABLE 14 .9 SFC Switches Switch Purpose /CACHESIZE=X Sets the Windows File Protection