Troubleshooting Tools and Strategies

This chapter provides information about troubleshooting some of the more commonly encountered problems with using Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional, as well as tools that you can use to diagnose and treat problems. In addition, many chapters in this book discuss troubleshooting specific types of problems. Use this guide to determine where to find the information you need to maintain and troubleshoot your system.

 You are having problems with your computer and don't know the cause.

Follow general troubleshooting procedures to isolate and repair the problem. Collect data along the way, in case you need to contact support personnel.

• See General Troubleshooting Strategy in this chapter.

 Your computer does not start.

Startup problems can be caused by a variety of factors, such as viruses, disk corruption, or missing startup files. Some startup problems can be easily resolved; others might require that you perform emergency repair procedures or recovery operations.

• See Startup and Recovery Tools in this chapter.

• See Troubleshooting Problems with System Startup and Shutdown in this chapter.

• See Disaster Recovery in this chapter.

• See Setup and Startup in this book.

• See Disk Concepts and Troubleshooting in this book.

 Your system experiences a failure and displays a blue screen error.

Stop errors, also referred to as blue screens, are kernel-level errors. The Stop message provides information about the problem that caused the error and can be used by support personnel to fix the problem.

• See Windows 2000 Stop Messages in this book.

 Your computer has been infected with a virus.

Viruses can infect the MBR or boot sector and cause problems such as preventing the system from starting up successfully. You can use tools to scan your computer for viruses and remove any that are found.

• See Maintenance and Update tools in this chapter.

• See Disk Concepts and Troubleshooting in this book.

 You cannot connect to the Internet or local network.

If you are connecting to the Internet through a modem, check your hardware and dial-up configuration. If you are connected to the Internet or an intranet through a local area network (LAN), check that the server and client are correctly configured and working properly. Make sure that you have permission or a user account to access the network.

• See Networking Tools in this chapter.

• See Using the Hardware Compatibility List in this chapter.

• See Telephony and Conferencing in this book.

• See Local and Remote Network Connections in this book.

 Your network connection is slow or unreliable.

Slow or unreliable connections can have a wide range of causes, such as problems on the remote server, with the line you are using to access the network, or with the connection hardware or software you are using.

• See Networking Tools in this chapter.

• See Using the Hardware Compatibility List in this chapter.

• See Telephony and Conferencing in this book.

• See Local and Remote Network Connections in this book.

 You are having name resolution problems.

The problem can be caused by a failure in host or NetBIOS name resolution. Check that parameters have been correctly configured.

• See Networking Tools in this chapter.

• See TCP/IP in Windows 2000 Professional in this book.

 You are having IP addressing or routing problems.

Incorrect configurations on the client computer can cause problems with IP addressing, routing, IP security, and filtering. Also, check that the remote host or resource is available.

• See Networking Tools in this chapter.

• See TCP/IP in Windows 2000 Professional in this book.

 You are connected to a non-Windows-based server, and are experiencing connection or printing problems.

Make sure that you have the correct software installed to connect to the network and that you have configured the client computers correctly.

• See Networking Tools in this chapter.

• See Printing in this book.

• See Interoperability with NetWare in this book.

• See Interoperability with IBM Host Systems in this book.

• See Interoperability with UNIX in this book.

 You cannot install a hardware device.

Make sure that you have installed devices correctly. If a device is not Plug and Play you need to configure it manually. Incompatible hardware devices or device drivers can also cause problems.

• See System File and Driver Tools in this chapter.

• See Using the Hardware Compatibility List in this chapter.

• See Checking Hardware for Problems in this chapter.

• See Printing in this book.

• See Scanners and Cameras in this book.

• See Device Management in this book.

 You cannot access a drive or other device attached to the computer.

Several problems can prevent devices from working properly. The connecting cables can become loose. A resource conflict can prevent a device from working. Missing or corrupted drivers can prevent the computer from recognizing devices that are installed. Incompatible hardware devices or device drivers can also cause problems.

• See System File and Driver Tools in this chapter.

• See Using the Hardware Compatibility List in this chapter.

• See Checking Hardware for Problems in this chapter.

• See Device Driver Problems in this chapter.

• See Multimedia in this book.

• See Printing in this book.

• See Device Management in this book.

 You installed a second monitor, but there is no display, or the display is distorted.

Make sure that you have configured the monitors correctly and that your display adapters are compatible with Windows 2000 Professional.

• See System File and Driver Tools in this chapter.

• See Using the Hardware Compatibility List in this chapter.

• See Device Management in this book.

 You cannot play audio, video, or multimedia files.

Problems with playing multimedia files can have a variety of causes, including missing or incorrectly installed sound cards, hardware or drivers that are not properly installed, or volume settings that are muted or turned down.

• See System File and Driver Tools in this chapter.

• See Applications Tools in this chapter.

• See Multimedia in this book.

• See Device Management in this book.

 Your computer will not wake up from standby or sleep mode.

Make sure that you have configured the monitors correctly and that your display adapters are compatible with Windows 2000 Professional.

• See Power Management in this book.

 You cannot print.

Printing problems can have a variety of causes, such as corrupted drivers or network problems (if you are printing to networked printer). Make sure that you have a driver installed for the printer that you are trying to access.

• See Using the Hardware Compatibility List in this chapter.

• See Checking Hardware for Problems in this chapter.

• See Device Driver Problems in this chapter.

• See Printing in this book.

• See Device Management in this book.

 Your printed files are unreadable, or your print jobs take a long time.

If text is unreadable, there might be a problem with corrupted fonts, or a problem with the application from which you are printing, or the page settings might be incorrect. If you are printing graphics, you might need to use a different printer.

• See Using the Hardware Compatibility List in this chapter.

• See Printing in this book.

• See Fonts in this book.

 The desktop does not behave as expected, or it does not appear correctly.

Check that Group Policy has not been set so that you can customize your desktop. If you use a Web page as wallpaper, make sure that the Web page can be accessed.

• See Customizing the Desktop in this book.