Reverting Back from Windows 10

As I promised before, I'll give directions here on how to revert to your previous operating system. If you're trying to Upgrade to Windows 10 or Create Recovery Media for Windows 10, the directions are in those links. These directions apply only to people who upgraded their computer from Windows 7 or 8 and have upgraded within the previous month. Now, you may have different reasons for wanting to return to your previous operating system. Maybe you don't like how windows 10 looks. Maybe some of your programs don't work. Whatever your reasons for doing so, here's how to do it.

First, you'll need to start by clicking on the start button:

Click "Settings". It'll be next to a gear icon:

In the window that pops up, click "Update & security":

Click "Recovery":

Now, on the next screen you should see something similar to this:

The middle option is what you should see if you are able to revert to your previous operating system. Obviously it will say either Windows 7 or 8 rather than 8.1 if you upgraded from either of those. If you are outside of the month, or you told Windows 10 to wipe everything during the install, you WILL NOT be able to revert to your old operating system. You will only see the other two options on this screen if that is the case.

After you click "Get started", you will see a popup similar to this:

You shouldn't have to fill in anything, but your answer doesn't change anything. From there, your computer will restart and finish the process to revert. After that, you're all set, and back with your old Operating System. Only takes about 20-30 minutes to complete the process. If you decide you do in fact want to go back to Windows 10, you certainly can. Just use that installation software you made before for ease of process.

The Brilliance of Microsoft

As I hope the title implies, this post will be a bit satirical. This occurred just a few days ago, and it left a bit of a sour taste in my mouth.

An older gentleman came up to my counter for some help, and he looked rather upset. He starts going on about how he's mad because he got this popup that said to call a number (first red flag), and they said it would cost $200-$600 to fix (second red flag), and he just got it a week ago and how come the antivirus didn't stop it, and what good is that antivirus anyway if it couldn't stop it.

For my technically minded folks, this gentleman fell victim to a redirect that was locking up his browser. Keep in mind that this gentleman has Windows 10 and is using Microsoft Edge for his browser. For the rest, this guy had basically clicked on something he probably shouldn't have, and it took him to a fake website that was telling him his computer had all these issues (which it didn't), and that the number was for Microsoft support (which it wasn't), and the people he spoke to were wildly overcharging him for a service that he gets for free with his service contract through my company if there were any actual issue. Basically, he was mad at us because he was being told by scammers that his brand new $900+ computer was broken because of something that was his own fault, and he didn't want to pay to have it fixed, which, as I mentioned earlier, he wouldn't have had to if there were any actual problem, because he has our service plan. Weird how that works, huh?

Moving on, normally when I deal with a browser-locking redirect page, I can simply end the task, reset Internet Explorer through Internet Options, restart the computer, and we're all hunky dory. Well this isn't a normal situation. Apparently Microsoft, in all their brilliance, forgot to include a way to reset Microsoft Edge, meaning it isn't affected at all be resetting the Internet Options outside of the browser. Swell. Well, if I end the task, maybe it'll just close the program and start again as it should. No dice. Instead, Edge is setup in such a way that if it is force closed, as a matter of convenience, it just opens up all your closed tabs for you! No matter what you do. It's impossible, without changing the settings before a situation like this occurs, to tell edge to start with just a single brand new tab upon starting back up after a force close. So that means that same redirect that is locking up his browser is still active! Yay! (Are you sensing the frustration yet?)

So I go searching. I start in Task Manager after reopening Edge to see if I can find all processes related to Edge that are running, not just the main task in the foreground, but in the details pane, to see if a process there is keeping that tab open even after I end what appears to be the main process. And with luck, I find there are in fact two processes running for Edge. One just says Microsoft Edge (extra stuff here), and the other says Microsoft Edge (extra stuff here)CP. Well those seem important. Lets end them. So I do. I try ending the CP one. It appears to immediately restart, so I figure it must have something to do with Edge only while it's running. In hindsight, I should have thought more on that at the time, but it didn't occur to me that it was anything special. So I turn to my next best resource. In fact, it's every techs number tool for solving any issue that they are confronted with for the first time. I'm talking about the master with the answers. The legend above them all. Google.

And I Googled the crap out of that problem. I searched every forum, looking for every conceivable way to reset Edge. Nothing. I search anything about browser redirects in Edge, and I find one post with an appropriate answer. Guy was in a similar pickle as myself, had tried resetting everything, tried ending tasks, nothing worked. A support rep chimed in with a response that basically may have been telling a guy with a broken leg to see his ophthalmologist to see if his broken leg was caused by cataracts. Finally someone towards the bottom of this posting had a solution I hadn't tried yet. Remember that process I mentioned earlier? The one that ended in CP? The one that I tried to end but it seemed to restart on its own? Yeah? Guess what? I was supposed to end that multiple times until it stops restarting, then I can close the redirect tab, close the browser, reopen it, and no more redirect. Oh joy.

So finally, after all this time, and easily 20-30 minutes have gone by with me trying to figure this issue out, I manage to end the process, close the tab, close the browser, reopen the browser, and big surprise, Edge is working the way it's supposed to. Lesson learned, if it restarts, hit it again. And a shout-out to Microsoft for once again having zero foresight for their products.


Note to anyone from Microsoft that might read this: Fix Edge, give it customizability like Firefox and Chrome, and I won't have a problem. Well... maybe.

Create Recovery Media

Yesterday I posted how to upgrade to Windows 10. I had initially said during the instructions that recovery media could be made if you need to reinstall Windows 10 later. I later realized that what's being made is in fact installation media, and is only an upgrade and cannot be used to install Windows 10 on a new hard drive if it's needed. Something to be aware of, however, is that when upgrading to Windows 10, a new product key is created for activation related to your hardware configuration. In plain English, that means that when you upgrade to 10, your hardware is like a unique lock, and the key is unique to that lock. If you change any of the hardware, you change the lock, and so need a new key to make sure you can stay activated. Whether it's upgrading your RAM, your hard drive, or even your processor, the activation key will change. That means you will need to reinstall your previous operating system from recovery media, and then upgrade to 10 again with the installation you created in the previous post.

Now, if you need to do a clean installation of Windows 10, the easiest route is to install from recovery media, if you haven't changed your hardware. In this post I will describe the process to create recovery media. In order to create recovery media, you will need to have upgraded to Windows 10 already.

To begin, click here:

Type "Control Panel" and press enter:

In the window that pops up, click "Category" and select either icon option:

On the next screen, click "Recovery":

 

 Now, click "Create a recovery drive":

Click "Yes" on the popup that comes up. From there, follow the prompts, and if all goes well, you'll have created your recovery drive.

If you have any comments or questions, feel free to leave them. I will later post how to revert to your previous operating system if you need to, which is only available for up to a month after upgrading to Windows 10.

What'd you do?

Got a short one today. Many of my stories likely will be, but I have lots of them, so you'll have plenty to read.

This one happened within a few days after Windows 10 released, so, sometime last week. I had a couple come up to me because they were having an issue logging into their computer since they upgraded to Windows 10. For anyone who hasn't upgraded yet, there is a part in the process where you have to login to your account, if there is a password, before you're allowed to continue with the process. Unfortunately, Microsoft forgot one teeny little thing when developing this upgrade. They forgot the habits of older folks. And since many older folks click every button rather than just pressing enter, this makes it difficult for them to finish the setup process, because this part of the upgrade where you have to login to the account doesn't have a login arrow or button that says "Login", or anything else similar in nature. You have to press enter once entering the password, barring an existing PIN. So these folks, once showing me they can't login after entering their password, think I'm some sort of magic man when I press enter and they're able to log in.

"What'd you do?" They ask.

"I pressed enter." I answer warily.

"Now why couldn't Raymond have told us that last night when we were on the phone. He said there must be some kind of glitch, and so we should bring the computer back to the store we bought it from."

"Nope, no glitch, just gotta press enter."

They seemed happy to have a working computer again, and I got a great review from them when they took the survey.

Upgrade to Windows 10

Important Notice: I wrote incorrectly the other day that these directions would help in creating recovery media. That is not the case. I have edited the instructions here to be more factually correct and will post new instructions later on how to create recovery media. I will try to post a link of that on these instructions once I have completed them.

Second Edit: I have now created a post for creating recovery media here.

Final Edit: If you have decided you want to revert to your old Operating System from 10, here's the post with directions on how to do so.

Hey there, I know this post isn't on the 9:30 schedule that I've done for the last two days, but for those of you who want to upgrade to Windows 10 and haven't, here's the easiest way to do so. I'll also be showing how to create installation media if you can't download Windows 10 directly onto your PC.


First, you need to go to microsoft.com. The first thing you'll see will look like this (click on any image to increase its size):

Next, click "Upgrade for free* >". The star means it's only available for those with Windows 7 (non-starter edition) and Windows 8.x.  Scroll down, not too far, and you'll see a screen that looks like this:

On the bottom of that image you'll see a line that says, "If you'd like to create a USB drive or DVD to download once and upgrade multiple PCs - click here." Click that link, and it will take you to this page:

 From there, scroll to the bottom and you'll see this:

Now click the download that you need. I personally recommend to download the 64-bit version, but if you know you need it, the instructions will be the same for the 32-bit. On Internet Explorer, I do recommend you click "Save" rather than just "Run" when the download prompt comes up, because if it doesn't download properly, you'll know right away, and not have issues later. For those using Firefox, just click "save file". For those on Chrome, it should download automatically once you click the link. After downloading the file, click on it to open it. Internet Explorer, that means you can click "Run" now once it has run its scan. Firefox, click on the blue downward-pointing arrow on the top right of your screen. Chrome, click on the download bar that popped up when it began the download.

Click yes on the prompt that shows:

You'll then get a window that looks like this:

If you need to create installation media, I highly recommend using a flash drive, because the process is much easier than burning onto discs.

Here's where we diverge on instructions. If you choose to "Upgrade this PC now", it will lead you through some prompts that you just have to click "Yes" or "Next" on. After it finishes downloading what it needs to, it will perform several restarts on your computer and then perform the upgrade. If you do not have a Microsoft account, which it will ask you for during the process, you do not have to create one or sign into one. There is an option to continue the process without one, which I recommend for ease of use. Once the majority of the upgrade is done, it will then ask you to login to your user account. This part is important, as I've had to help many older folks with this. If your user account currently has a password, enter it as normal, but then press enter to login. There will be no login arrow next to the password field during this step, but it comes back after the complete upgrade is done. Once you've logged into the user account, the last bits of the upgrade will finish, and you'll be the new owner of a Windows 10 computer.

For those of you who choose to "Create installation media for another PC", or those of you who upgraded already but want to create your installation media for another computer, these next steps are for you. After you select to create the media and click "Next", you'll see this screen:

I hope you already know what language you speak, but in the Edition and Architecture, let me give you a good rule of thumb. In the Edition, if you know you have Windows 7 or 8 Pro, select Windows 10 Pro, if you know you have Windows 7 or 8 Home, or don't know at all, it's safest to select Windows 10 Home. In Architecture, if you don't know it, select 64-bit (x64). All others will know what they need. Once you have the right information, click "Next".

The next screen you should see is this:

If you choose the option to create an ISO file, after you click "Next" your File Explorer will automatically open, asking you where your disc drive is that has the blank disc for creating the installation media. Just select the drive and follow the prompts. The method I recommend, as stated earlier, is to create the media on a flash drive, mostly because of its simplicity, but also because flash drives don't get scratched, discs do. If you select "USB flash drive", you will see a window similar to this (Note: You do need at least a 16 GB flash drive for this):

If you have more than one flash drive, select yours from the listed options.  If you only have one plugged in, like I do, simply leave it highlighted and click "Next".

A new screen will pop up that will look like this:

It will then quickly move on to a screen similar to this:

Once that is complete, you'll see this screen:

Just click "Finish", and you can either go back and re-run the download from earlier to install Windows 10, using the same steps, or you can use the installation media you just created (the easier route) to install it. To install from the installation media, just open it up in File Explorer (flash drives will usually get renamed to "ESD-USB"), double click "setup.exe", and it will run you through the same screens from earlier to allow you to now install Windows 10.

I hope this post was helpful to everyone reading it. If you have any questions or comments, absolutely leave them. I will try to answer every question I can, and will read every comment, but I am working a full-time job, and will soon be back in school, so what I will do and when I
can do it are two different things.

I think I need a new hard drive.

Howdy folks! First official post, and this one goes back a few months. As I begin posting more regularly, my posts will become more recent in memory for myself, but for now, I'll be sharing stories as they come to me from the time I've spent in IT. On to our story!

So in walks in a gentleman with his desktop computer. He sets it on my counter and I ask him, "How may I help you?" It's my standard go-to greeting, but you'd be surprised the responses I get from it. He says to me, "I think I need a new hard drive." I look at him for a brief moment because usually when someone needs a new hard drive, they generally don't need to come to me unless they had previously been in before and were just now coming back to have their hard drive replaced. So I ask him, "Were you in before with your computer?" He says no and begins to tell me what's wrong.

"You see, a couple months ago, it started blinking, but wasn't affecting anything, so I just didn't worry about it. Then a few weeks ago, sometimes it would go out on me for a couple minutes, then would come right back on. Now, whenever I try to use the thing, I can't get it to come on at all."

Now for those of you who know anything about computers, you may have an idea of what's going on. For those of you who don't, well, I'll explain in detail a little further. So I move on. I start to plug his desktop into my monitor, get it connected with mouse/keyboard/power/ethernet, and start to power it on. As the computer powers on and starts to POST, he starts speaking again.

"I figured it would probably work with yours. That's why I need a new one."

"A new one what sir?"

"Hard drive. I need a new hard drive."

"But your hard drive seems to be working just fine."

"Well yours is, but the one I've got at home isn't. That's why I need a new one."

Finally it clicks. This man had managed to find a new way to use the phrase hard drive I hadn't heard yet. He was calling the monitor his hard drive. Once I put two and two together, I got him connected to a sales associate to find one that he liked and would work with his computer. Turns out, the reason he brought his whole desktop was to make sure he got a monitor that had the right connection, which is better than the people who come in for a new monitor without a clue what connection they need.

Too Long; Didn't Read I went to the mechanic because my engine was blinking and now not turning on. He tells me my headlights are burnt out.

New Starts

I've had this blog for many years now, but I originally started it as a place to post old comics that a buddy and I had come up with, but I've since changed the name, removed the old comic posts, and will now be posting stories of my time working in IT.

I currently work as a counter tech at a large chain store, one I'm proud to be a part of. It's a lot of fun, but it's also hard work. I meet new challenges every day, encounter new names for standard hardware constantly, and always have a new story to take home with me. If I were to post a single story a day, I'd have to retire from this job before I'd run out of stories, and even then I'd likely die first.

I will soon be returning to school to earn my degree in Computer Science. I'm hoping to focus on programming, as that has been a passion of mine for a time, though unfortunately, for someone of my young age of 22, my skills are a bit lacking. Within the new school I will be attending, I have already obtained a job in the IT department, which is great, because then I'll continue to have stories to tell. I do hope to make my classmates aware of this blog, because I hope to keep it lighthearted and I want them to know I will be making fun of them on occasion, though, as with my job, I will anonymize all info about my classmates and school. Don't want somebody to misunderstand my intentions and complain to someone.

Although I am young and quite knowledgeable with computers, I have also had to work with rather elderly people on a consistent basis (read: all the time), and so I have learned how to explain things that they don't understand in a language that makes sense to them. Given that, I hope to make this a blog that is enjoyable by everyone who comes to visit, techie or not.

On occasion, because I do hope to draw in an audience of non-technically inclined people, I will explain certain concepts to make them more easily understood. I feel I have a particularly great advantage in this area as I grew up in the south originally, and besides blessing people's hearts while telling them how terrible they are, I also learned how to speak in analogies. This warning I give to IT personnel of all flavors because I will be explaining such things as hard drives and PSUs to be understood by the layman so that they can also enjoy the story, and to make this blog semi-educational. In fact, if I explain a piece of hardware or a process in a post, I will be marking it as "Educational", so that if anyone wants to go through and learn a little bit about their computer, they certainly can.

Finally, I leave you all with this: Please have fun here. I'm not here to make fun of people because I'm a mean, spiteful person. I'm here to make fun of people because I happen to be knowledgeable in an area that many people are not. If I went to a mechanic (and fair warning, I use mechanic analogies a lot without knowing much about cars), I'm sure I would seem to them what almost everyone seems like to me. Someone who just doesn't know something that I do.

P.S. If you go to anyone to have your computer fixed/looked at/worked on, please don't mention that you aren't tech literate, tech savvy, or whatever the new phrase is these days. I get maybe one person a day who doesn't say it, because somehow everyone thinks they're original for saying it. It's really my only pet peeve, and I can't publicly say anything. So just tell the person you're asking for help what your issue is, and let them try to find what level of communication you need to be on.