Microsoft has released the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor, which scans your PC to see if it’s ready for Windows 7, and tells you about any known compatibility issues.
The tool’s documentation states its “report will let you know if your PC meets the system requirements, if there are any known compatibility issues with your programs and devices, and will also provide guidance on your upgrade options to Windows 7.”
Upgrade Advisor can run under Windows 7, Windows Vista or Windows XP Service Pack 2. It is available for download from Microsoft’s download center.
Filed under News, Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP by on May 8th, 2009. Comment. 
Microsoft has identified an issue with the Windows 7 RC1 (7100) build in which the folder that is created as the root folder of the system drive (%SystemDrive%) is missing entries in its security descriptor. The company says that this problem can cause the following to occur: “applications that reference folders under the root may not install successfully or may not uninstall successfully. Additionally, operations or applications that reference these folders may fail. [...] some specific operations, such as deleting the folder, will fail when they are performed from a non-elevated command prompt.”
Fix
Microsoft has released a hotfix for this problem, but it should only be applied to systems that are experiencing this specific problem. The fix is available through Windows Update.
Filed under Windows 7 by on May 8th, 2009. Comment.
We previously published a series of methods for preventing and eliminating Internet Explorer crashes. These include disabling add-ons and resetting the browser. We’ve now identified two additional procedures that can, in many cases, prevent crashes from reoccurring.
Kill IEUSER.EXE task Launch the task manager by pressing control-alt-delete, then launch Internet Explorer. Immediately after the browser launches, end the process “IEUSER.EXE” in Task Manager.
Turn off protected mode While this shouldn’t be your first course of action, as it could create serious vulnerabilties and open your system up to attack, several users have reported that turning off Internet Explorer’s protect mode resolves persistent crashes. To do so, click the Security tab, select a Web content zone, and then change the “Enable Protected Mode” check box to disabled for the desired items.
Filed under Internet Explorer 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP by on May 8th, 2009. Comment.
In a press release issued today, Microsoft announced that Windows 7 will likely be ready in time for the 2009 holiday season. Bill Veghte, senior vice president of the Windows Business at Microsoft, “With early RC testing and extensive partner feedback we’ve received, Windows 7 is tracking well for holiday availability.”
A follow-up post on Microsoft’s Windows Team blog reads:
“If the telemetry we receive from the Windows 7 RC meets our expectations in terms of quality, then we expect to hit RTM in 3 months or so”
Filed under News, Windows 7 by on May 11th, 2009. Comment.
Almost two weeks ago, Microsoft posted the final release of Windows Vista SP2 to its private servers. The only users able to download the service pack are Microsoft Connect subscribers (members of the closed beta program) and Technet and MSDN subscribers (paid account holders–accounts start in the $2500-range). The company has not released word on when the Vista SP2 release will be made available to all other users, but some reports indicate that the security and feature enhancement pack may not debut until June.
The gap between the private and public releases begs a nagging question: why is Microsoft withholding a significant update, which includes security enhancements relevant to all, in addition to functionality enhancements, from general users?
Not only does this delay keep the vast majority of systems vulnerable to exploits and deprive users of useful new features and performance enhancements, it also creates the potential for worse security exploits when the update is publicly released. Those with malicious intent will have likely already gained access to the final release, and found new methods of working around its more stringent security standards before users have even had a chance to update.
As written by “Colonel Michael,” a poster to Microsoft’s TechNet forums:
“It has been going on 2 weeks already since its release, and news articles are stating the probability that you will not release it to the public until June. The “leaked” product is already in the hands of those with malicious intent. By the time it reaches the large masses, the hacked computers, the zombie computers, will have already been updated with the “zombie fixes”. So when SP2 does get installed, the zombie masters will still maintain control of the computers”
What’s your take? Let us know in the comments below or at info@windowsfixup.com.
See our previous coverage on preparing your system for Windows Vista SP2 and what’s new in the release.
Filed under News, Viruses/Malware, Windows Vista by on May 11th, 2009. Comment.
(See more fixes here)
Early-access users who installed a pre-release version of Windows Vista SP2 are experiencing some issues with installation of the final release. Users may receive the message “Service Pack Installation Cannot Continue: One or more of components that the service pack requires are missing.”
Fix
Try deleting the file vLite key from the registry. To do this:
- Click Start
- In the search box, type regedit then press enter.
- Navigate to HKLM\Software\
- Select vLite
- Choose Edit and then Delete from the Registry Editor menu.
- Restart your computer and try the Windows Vista SP2 update again
Filed under Windows Vista by on May 11th, 2009. 4 Comments.
Several users have reported an issue in which Google Chrome will not display Adobe PDF files in the browser. Users experiencing this problem may receive the error message: “The Adobe Acrobat/Reader that is running can not be used to view PDF files in a Web Browser. Please exit Adobe Acrobat Reader and exit your Web Browser and try again.”
Fix
This problem can generally be easily fixed by copying the Adobe PDF plug-in to the Google Chrome Plugins folder. You may need to create the Plugins folder yourself if one does not already exist. Follow these steps:
- Go to Program Files\Adobe\Acrobat(version number)\Acrobat\Browser
- Copy the file nppdf32.dll
- If you are using Windows XP, go to C:\Documents and Settings\(username)\Local Settings\Application Data\Google\Chrome\Application\(Version Number)\. If there is not a Plugins folder there, create a new folder with the name “Plugins.” Paste nppdf32.dll into the Plugins folder. Quit and restart Google Chrome and retry PDF access.
- If you are using Windows Vista or Windows 7, go to (username)\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\Application\. If there is not a Plugins folder there, create a new folder with the name “Plugins.” Paste nppdf32.dll into the Plugins folder. Quit and restart Google Chrome and retry PDF access.
Failing the above, use an alternative reader. One good choice is the free Foxit Reader. It tends to use fewer resources than Adobe Reader, and works well in Windows 7.
Filed under Google Chrome, Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP by on May 11th, 2009. 40 Comments.
Several users have experienced an issue in which Windows 7 hangs at shutdown, either with or without an error message.
Fixes
Uninstall drivers Try uninstalling any recently installed third-party drivers then restarting. To do this, click the Start button then navigate to Control Panel > System and Security > Device Manager. Right-click any recently installed third-party items and select “Uninstall” then restart.
End processes Processes spawned by some third-party drivers can also hang the shutdown process. Try opening the task manager (control-alt-delete) and ending any processes related to third-party devices or other hardware connected to your computer, then re-attempt the shutdown.
M-Audio audiophile Delta 249 conflict Joepsz, a poster to Microsoft’s TechNet forums, has discovered a fix that involves stopping the “Audiosrv” and “AudioEndpointBuilder” processes associated with the M-Audio audiophile Delta 249, which exhibits a conflict with Windows 7. The fix is as follows:
- Create a .bat file (create txt file and change extention to .bat)
- Right Click on file > “edit” and enter following info:
- net stop “Audiosrv”
- net stop “AudioEndpointBuilder”
- Save file as “Audio stop”(or whatever you want) to your main drive ie: C:\Audio stop
- Open “run” from start menu and enter “gpedit.msc” (without quotes) and hit “OK”
- Now navigate from right pain of window “User Configuration” > “Windows Settings” > “scripts (Logon/Logoff)” > “Logoff”
- From window that opens from clicking “Logoff” Click “Add” then browse to where you saved “Audio Stop.bat” earlier and double click on it.
- Hit “Apply” and close.
Filed under Windows 7 by on May 14th, 2009. 15 Comments.
Users have reported a variety of local networking issues under Windows 7. These include an inability to see or exchange files with Windows Vista or XP systems, inability of other systems on the LAN to see Windows 7 systems and more.
Fix
Some networking issues may be related to mismatched authentication settings. Make sure that local area network authentication settings are the same on all computers on the network. To check this setting on, click the start button, then enter secpol.msc in the search field (use “Run:” in Windows XP) and press enter.
Navigate to Local Policies > Security Options and find “Network Security: LAN Manager authentication level.”. Make sure it carries the same settings on all systems and the server, if one exists.
Alternative fix
Some users have also had success with temporarily turning off the Windows 7 firewall, allowing other machines on the network to be discovered, then turning the firewall back on.
To turn the firewall on or off, open the Control Panel then the click the Windows Firewall icon and modify the setting on the left.
Filed under Windows 7 by on May 14th, 2009. 2 Comments.
Some users have received a black screen when attempting to connect to various systems (primarily those running Windows Vista) via the Remote Desktop protocol (RDP). In some cases, the host machine may crash when this problem occurs.
Other users have reported receiving the error “atbroker.exe crashed” or “Transitions Accessible technologies between desktops has stopped working”
Fixes
Make sure updates are installed, not waiting It appears that, in some cases, this problem may occur when updates are downloaded, but not installed in Windows Update on the host machine (the one receiving the connection). Try installing any pending updates then restarting the system.
Uninstall drivers Try uninstalling any recently installed third-party drivers, or drivers that you installed right before the problem started to occur, then restart. To do this, click the Start button then navigate to Control Panel > System and Security > Device Manager. Right-click any recently installed third-party items and select “Uninstall” then restart. Some users have reported that the Logitech QuickCam driver may be to blame.
Update to Windows Vista SP2 Some Windows Vista SP2 beta testers have reported that updating to the new release resolves this issue. Unfortunately, SP2 is not yet publicly available, but is available in final form to TechNet subscribers.
Filed under Windows Vista by on May 15th, 2009. Comment.