MSConfig
The Microsoft Configuration utility (MSConfig), shown in Figure 1,
has been included in several versions of the Windows operating system.
It helps you work through problems with services or applications that
do not start properly, and it helps you remove items from the startup
menu to ease the troubleshooting process.
Each of the tabs in the MSConfig application covers a different
aspect of the Windows operating system. These tabs (and their options)
include:
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General
This tab covers the following startup options for the computer:
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Normal Startup Loads all drivers and services when the computer starts
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Diagnostic Startup Loads only basic drivers and services
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Selective Startup Loads system services and startup items or uses the original boot configuration
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Boot This tab
enables you to configure the startup menu; select one of the following
startup modes: Safe Boot, Minimal, Alternative Shell, Active Directory
Repair, or Network. Other options on this tab are:
-
No GUI Boot Starts Windows with the graphical user interface (GUI) disabled.
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Boot Log Logs all items during the startup process.
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Base Video Uses the lowest or most basic video configuration.
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OS Boot Information Displays startup information for the operating system.
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Timeout Specifies the number of seconds any startup menu options will be displayed; default is 30 seconds.
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Make All Boot Settings Permanent Saves the chosen selections to Windows, allowing them to be used on each successive startup.
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Services This tab
displays all the services that can start with Windows. Clearing the
check box for a service disables the service at startup. Select the
Disable All Services or Enable All Services buttons to apply a choice
to all services. The option to hide all Microsoft services removes any
Microsoft services from view and protects them from Enable All or
Disable All.
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Startup This tab has no options; these settings have been moved to Task Manager.
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Tools
This tab displays a list of tools that might be useful in troubleshooting. Select a tool from the list and tap or click the Launch button to start that tool.
The Startup
tab of Task Manager shows any items that are currently configured to
start with Windows. In addition, it provides the status and startup
impact of any listed applications. This gives you an idea of what the
application does when starting up. The Task Manager Startup tab is shown in Figure 2.
Selecting an item listed on the Startup tab and clicking the Disable
button will prevent that item from starting the next time Windows
starts.
Recovering from a bad driver installation
Microsoft includes a large number of device drivers with each new
release of Windows. Sometimes, however, devices are released after
Windows has been shipped, or the hardware manufacturers have added
other technical functions to their own drivers that operate better than
the driver included with Windows. For example, monitors have
manufacturer-written drivers that provide functionality beyond what
Windows provides. Windows might provide some of the basic features that
enable the monitor to display output, but it seldom provides extended
resolutions the device is capable of using. Refresh rate is also
usually set to a standard value if no driver is installed.
Important
MICROSOFT CERTIFIES HARDWARE FOR WINDOWS
To help ensure that manufacturers meet certain criteria for their
devices and that their drivers are included in Windows Update,
Microsoft has a certification program for drivers. Using Windows Update
to select drivers enables IT professionals to receive a more stable and
tested release than the latest version from the manufacturer.
Windows operates correctly using its own standard values, but you
might need the additional features the manufacturer included for a
certain scenario.
Sometimes drivers exhibit problems with execution and stop
functioning correctly. When this occurs, you will want to be familiar
with the driver rollback functionality.
Using driver rollback
enables you to quickly recover failed installations if a device does
not function following a driver update. You can roll back device
drivers to previously installed versions. To make these changes,
complete the following steps:
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Open Control Panel.
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Select Update Device Drivers.
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Locate the device on which you want to roll back drivers.
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Press and hold or right-click the device and then select Properties.
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Select the Driver tab and then tap or click Roll Back Driver.
Windows will roll back the new driver to the previously installed version.
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When the operation completes, tap or click the Device Properties dialog box.
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Close the Device Manager window.
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Close Control Panel.
