How to Troubleshoot Unpredictable Symptoms

Hardware, driver, and disk problems can cause unpredictable symptoms when Windows is running, including:

• Failing applications and services
• Stop errors
• System resets
• Accessories that behave unreliably

Many different types of problems can cause these symptoms. To identify the source of these problems and possibly fix the issue, follow these steps. After each step, determine whether the problem continues.

1. If Windows will not start.
2. Use Reliability Monitor to determine how long the problem has been occurring and what other related symptoms might be occurring. For more information, read the section titled "How to Use Reliability Monitor" later in this tutorial. Then use Event Viewer to find any related events that might provide useful information for diagnosing the problem. Typically, drivers will add events to the System Event Log. However, drivers could add events to any log. For information about using Event Viewer, see the section titled "How to Use Event Viewer" later in this tutorial.
3. Install any updates available from Windows Update.
4. Install updated drivers available directly from the hardware manufacturer, including BIOS and firmware updates for all hardware accessories and your computer.
5. Roll back any recently updated drivers. For more information, see the section titled "How to Roll Back Drivers" later in this tutorial.
6. Troubleshoot disk problems by using ChkDsk to identify and possibly fix disk-related problems. To resolve problems related to low free disk space, run the Disk Cleanup Wizard. For more information, see the section titled "How to Troubleshoot Disk Problems" later in this tutorial.
7. Test your memory for problems by using Windows Memory Diagnostics. For more information, see the section titled "How to Use Windows Memory Diagnostics" later in this tutorial.
8. Remove unnecessary hardware features one by one. If the problem disappears after removing a hardware feature, that feature likely is causing the problem. Continue troubleshooting that specific feature by following the steps listed in the section titled "How to Troubleshoot Problems with Existing Hardware" earlier in this tutorial.
9. Perform a system restore to attempt to return the computer to the latest state when it was functioning correctly. To use System Restore, see the section titled "How to Use System Restore" later in this tutorial.
10. Contact your computer manufacturer for support. You might have a hardware or software failure, and your computer manufacturer can assist with additional troubleshooting.