Articles about How To

While I've been running Windows 10 for what seems like forever now, a desktop computer sitting in my office running Windows 8.1 has been crying out for an upgrade for some time. Having had a problem-free upgrade on three other machines, I expected nothing out of the ordinary with this computer. I was wrong.

Initially I left Windows Update to do its thing, but this failed on countless occasions. The error message suggested that a problem with my internet connection had interrupted the download, but this seemed unlikely. After numerous attempts, I decided to opt for a USB-driven installation. This also failed, this time with error 0xc0000017: "There isn't enough memory available to create a ramdisk device". Thankfully, the problem can be fixed -- here's what you need to do.

Continue reading →

All good things must come to an end. But the same can be said about bad things, and many people will be pleased to hear the death knell sound for Internet Explorer 8, 9, and 10. While Microsoft may be keen for people to use Edge or -- if they must -- Internet Explorer 11, not everyone feels the same.

With the likes of Firefox, Opera, and Chrome available, it might seem like madness that anyone would like to stick with an ancient version of Internet Explorer instead, but choice is everything. A patch that is due to be delivered to Internet Explorer 8, Internet Explorer 9, and Internet Explorer 10 in the coming day will introduce a nag screen that will pester users into upgrading. If you're happy with your decision to stick with an older version of IE, here's a hack to banish the pestering.

Continue reading →

Flash is undoubtedly considered a superhero within the world of storage. However, it is unlikely to save the day all on its own. Whilst playing an important role, flash is just one of multiple solutions required to address the most common storage pain points in the data center.

Just like any superhero, it needs to work as part of a team in order to save the world or at least save you time. And in that respect, there is an underlying problem (or villain) that needs to be fought off. After all, without villains, there would be no need for superheroes in the first place.

Continue reading →

The aim of a paperless office was coined years ago, but is only slowly becoming a reality. Research by AIIM to mark 2015’s World Paper Free day in November found that the use of paper at offices is declining with solutions for a paperless office becoming cheaper, better and faster.

While many organizations still have difficulties becoming more sustainable and efficient, the survey shows that only 35 percent of organizations developed a policy on the use of paper.

Continue reading →

So many stores, service stations, coffee shops, pubs and so on offer free Wi-Fi that you probably have countless networks saved on your phone or laptop. Having a password saved on your computer is great, but how can you get the password so you can use it on your phone as well?

Rather than trying to hunt down a member of staff to ask, or hunting high and low for that tiny sign that shares the password, you can instead view the wireless passwords you have saved. Read on to find out how to retrieve these passwords in both Windows 10 and Android.

Continue reading →

If you've signed up to the Windows Insider program, you're enjoying preview builds of Windows 10 before the vast majority of people. Whether you are on the Fast or the Slow Ring, getting hold of Insider preview builds is a great way to stay on the cutting edge -- but it comes with its drawbacks.

One of these -- aside from the need to download gigantic updates from time to time -- is that Windows 10 will constantly pester you for feedback. While it could be argued that this is very much the point of the preview program, some of you will almost certainly just want to get on with using Windows 10 without being asked 'Would you recommend this build to a friend?' or 'What do you think of the latest features of Windows 10?'. If you want to kill the feedback popups, here's how to do it.

Continue reading →

Check the system requirements for a Windows application and you’ll often find it needs some minimum version of Microsoft’s .NET Framework.

.NET doesn’t provide any obvious way to discover which versions you have installed, unfortunately, but there are several workarounds you can try.

Continue reading →

Windows 10 is still very much a work in progress, as are the apps that come as part of it. The November Update (aka Theshold 2) introduced some cosmetic changes throughout, and there have been other changes made in the many other updates.

The Films & TV app recently gained a new Dark Mode which improves things greatly, but it’s disabled by default. Here’s how to turn it on.

Continue reading →

Microsoft is doing some great things lately. Between Windows 10, Xbox One and its embrace of open source, you would think the company would be put on a pedestal by its users. Unfortunately, the company acted more like Scrooge than Santa Claus when it announced it was taking away cloud storage capacity from all of its users citing abuse by a few. Not cool.

Today, however, Microsoft is righting this wrong -- at least partially. While unlimited storage is still dead and buried, it is now possible to prevent the decrease from 15GB to 5GB. Shockingly, you can even keep your 15GB camera roll bonus too. How do you achieve this awesomeness? Just use the special link below.

Continue reading →

Christmas time is a time for presents! As in years before, mobile devices like smartphones, tablets and notebooks are expected to top the Christmas gift charts, bringing joy to young and old throughout the world. While the older generation is enjoying the unwrapping and thinking about best installation practices, the younger "generation digital" has already set up their smartphones and shot selfies in front of the Christmas tree. But, no matter if young or old, digital-advanced or computer-basic, every one of them has precious and unique digital data on their devices that has a high personal value to them, like rare family photos with the grandparents, videos of a child’s first steps or the first date SMS by the beloved husband. Alas, all this precious data can easily fall victim to data loss, if the device gets stolen, broken or damaged.

To make sure that all your data stays safe and sound -- wherever it resides and whatever happens to the mobile device -- it is important to always backup your data. Follow these six easy steps to be prepared for the worst:

Continue reading →

The days and weeks after a major security breach can be trying, even for veterans of the security field. Chaos inevitably erupts as the organization attempts to assess and contain the damage. Often far down the list of priorities is the disclosure of the breach, but this can be one of the most critical steps for an organization to get right.

It is vital for financial reasons, to the recovery of the brand and for the viability of the company. It is not an easy task when customer’s personal information has been stolen. The reaction from customers is almost always the same: swift and highly critical of the organization and how it manages the aftermath.

Continue reading →

Enterprise users are always looking for ways to protect their systems, and Microsoft recently unveiled a new opt-in feature to protect against Potentially Unwanted Applications (PUA). PUA is a broad term that covers everything from adware to browser extensions, and users of Windows 8 and Windows 10 can enable the feature to block such nasties at a download level.

PUAs are described by Microsoft as "a threat classification based on reputation and research-driven identification", and includes unwanted components bundled with legitimate software. Venture into the registry, and a tweak can be used to enable protection against such unwanted elements.

Continue reading →

Microsoft’s decision to make Windows 10 a free upgrade means that, according to industry analysts, more than 350 million Windows machines are expected to be on Windows 10 within the next 12 months. This can create a huge gap between enterprise IT teams and employee devices.

While "free" has accelerated the adoption of Windows 10, what truly sets this release apart from others is that Microsoft plans to expand Windows 10 to an unlimited number of devices via the Internet of Things (IoT). IoT is becoming an increasing topic of conversation both in and outside of the workplace, in particular in discussions around how to secure these connected devices.

Continue reading →

Application installers are supposed to save you time, automatically configuring your PC to properly run their host application.

Unfortunately, many setup programs only exist as a way to get adware onto your system, sometimes without you even noticing.

Continue reading →

Every month we see another story hit the headlines of how a household name has lost customer data. These type of incidents can cost millions to put right, not just in updating the IT systems, but in terms of lost revenue due to loss of good reputation, and potentially punitive fines.

When the new EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) comes into force, expected during 2017, fines for non-compliance could be five percent of global turnover. This is a significant sum for any size of organization and deserves serious consideration.

Continue reading →