A hard drive is basically a storage device that uses circular magnetic disks for storing digital data. Actually there is plenty of confusion over the terms hard disk and hard drive and very often they are used interchangeably. The confusion is there probably because earlier both the hard disk and the hard drive came as separate components just like we have DVD and DVD drives.

But now, both the hard drive and the hard disk are sealed together as a single unit and this is why they are now technically referred to as Hard Disk Drives (HDD). The term ‘hard drive’ has however become more popular obviously because it is easier to pronounce. So, if anyone mentions hard drive, always remember that what he or she is basically referring to is a Hard Disk Drive.

Hard drives are being used extensively and if you look around your home, you will notice that you are virtually surrounded by them. The most likely places where you will find a hard drive include everything from computers and notebooks to gaming consoles, digital audio/video players, digital cameras, digital video recorders, personal digital assistants (PDAs) and many more. You cannot see them directly in most of these, but you can be sure that they are there and are working continuously for you behind the scenes.

The earliest of hard drives just had around 2 MB of storage space, but things have changed dramatically over the years and now you can easily get hard drives of over 1000 GB, if that is you need so much storage space. The speed has also increased over the years and now you can get super fast hard drives that rotate at 7200 rpm. The more the rotating speed, the less time it takes to access data stored on the hard drive.

If you want, you can also opt for external hard drives that you can use for backing up your important files and folders. You can also use it for archiving all your favorite movies, TV serials, home videos, and songs.

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Disk defragmenter is an application that comes installed with the Windows Operating System. The main function of this software utility is to speed up the performance of your computer and also to maximize storage space utilization of your hard drive. For using this utility, you just have to click on Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Defragmenter. You can also access this utility by clicking on “My Computer” and selecting ‘Manage’ from the available options.

After this, you just have to select the Drive or Drives that you want to defrag and click on the ‘Defragment’ button. After this you just need to sit back and relax while the defragmenter does the job for you. You should do this preferably at night because Defragmentation can take several hours depending on the amount of data that you might have on your hard drive.

Using Disk defragmenter from time to time is necessary because as you continue to add and remove files and folders, your hard drive becomes a virtual war zone, scattered with bits and pieces of data everywhere. This slows down your system obviously because the operating system has to work harder to access the data stored in your hard drive.

Using an un-fragmented drive is like reading a book whose pages are strewn all over the floor. In this context, what Disk defragmenter does is that it picks up all the pages from the floor and arranges them together according to the page numbers. In real terms, the defragmenter rearranges files and folders in such a way that it helps in boosting the computer’s processing speed and maximizing space utilization.

For getting the best results, I would recommend that you close all other running programs before starting the Defragmentation process. This would help the Disk Defragmenter to make the most appropriate file allocations and last but not the least, complete the defrag in the shortest possible time.

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The term ‘defragging’ is actually a technical jargon that refers to the “Disk Defragmenter” option available in Windows Operating System. The basic purpose of defragging is to speed up the performance of your computer by arranging files and folders as stored on your hard drive in the most appropriate manner.

Defragging also helps in making the best possible utilization of storage space as might be available on your hard drive. To be able to defrag, you will have to click on Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Defragmenter. You can also right click on “My Computer” and select ‘Manage’, to get to the Disk Defragmenter option.

To understand how defragging actually works, you first need to have a look at the file allocation system as used by Windows. What Windows does is that it formats your hard drive into thousands of small data clusters that are usually 512 bytes or characters. All your files and folders are stored in these data clusters, but since Windows randomly selects the actual storage point, your hard drive ends up with files and folders that are haphazardly stored all over the place.

Just try imagining reading a book whose pages are strewn all over your home and you will know how difficult it actually is for Windows to read from an un-fragmented hard drive. Defragging in turn would represent your efforts to pick up individual pieces of the book and arrange them in a proper sequence according to the page numbers.

Defragging is something that you need to do from time to time, at least once every quarter. You can do it more frequently if you want, but since doing so every other day will not make much of a difference to your computer’s performance, I would never recommend this. Moreover, since defragging can take several hours depending on the amount of data in your hard drive, I would recommend that you start the Defragmentation process at night. Leave it overnight and when you wake up you will find a computer that’s much faster and smarter.

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An Access Violation error is the abbreviated term for what’s known as a segmentation fault. It is a problem that occurs when a program, or a piece of software, tries to access memory that it doesn’t have permission to use.

It’s the computer equivalent of walking in to a locked door, you could say. The files that you want are protected by a security layer, or are simply locked and inaccessible from your current environment.

Access Violation errors are also a very common trait of software that is configured incorrectly. While UNIX machines will receive a SIGSEGV signal about the invalid memory, users on Microsoft Windows operating systems will be presented with the STATUS_ACCESS_VIOLATION exception – better known as an Access Violation.

If, for example, you have a hardware device which is recently installed, and software which is used by other programs, it’s possible that you’ll receive an Access Violation when trying to use the new hardware device – if its drivers are being used by another source. These sort of collisions will often result in Access Violations where a piece of software is in demand from two or more pieces of hardware, and it can only feed one at a time.

The memory is thus locked, and any attempt to access the important source files will be blocked out. The Access Violation error is returned, and you – the end user- will be left to scratch your head.

You may have also received an Access Violation exception when attempting to access a typical file or folder that you wouldn’t expect to be involved with any system processes or crucial drivers. In most cases, this is down to the attribute of the file.

If you try to write to a file which is designated as Read-Only, you will be attempting to breach the security permissions of that particular file. This is blocked out by the Access Violation exception. But the good news is, such errors are easy to fix.

To resolve a permission error, we need to enter the Command Prompt and make a change to the attributes of the file. If you can’t open it, we need to make it readable. If you can’t write to it, we need to make it writeable. And so forth.

The Dos command for making changes to the attribute of a file is shown below:

ATTRIB [+R | -R] [+A | -A] [+S | -S] [+H | -H] [[drive:][path]file] [/S]

If this is no more than random gibberish to you, don’t worry. It’s quite simple when broken down.

The plus sign is used to add attributes, and the minus sign takes them away.

R is the READ-ONLY attribute.
A is the ARCHIVE attribute.
S is the SYSTEM FILE attribute.
H is the HIDDEN FILE attribute.

Obviously, if you have a file which is Read-Only, you are not going to be able to make changes or edit the contents. This is probably the number one cause of Access Violation errors.

To get rid of them, you simply need to apply the correct attribute formation so that the file is accessible to your needs.

Next Step:

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There are many kinds of login services, but some of the most problematic are those that involve connecting to a network or to an ISP for an Internet connection.

What is the point of a login service? Well, it goes beyond simply entering the correct username and password. In fact, a large portion of login service errors have nothing to do with the details. They’re caused by a failed connection or a loose configuration setting.

Of course, that’s not to say that you should rule out the possibility of a mistaken password or username altogether. Always check the details that you enter, making sure that the caps lock is turned off to prevent a system misinterpreting what is essentially the same combination through the use of different case. And check again just to make sure.

If you’re still having trouble with the login service, it’s probably down to the connection. If you enter the correct details, you will be granted access by the login service. If you enter incorrect details, obviously you won’t be. But if you enter the right details without having a working connection, you’ll receive a potentially misleading error. You must be connected to the login service to be able to reach the verification mechanism. Without verification, you’ll be locked out. Correct details or not.

If you are using the Windows Login Service and your password isn’t being accepted, you may have been the victim of a virus attacking the core of the system. Some viruses are capable of altering a system user or password to cause maximum damage and lock a user out of the operating system.

The best way to avoid such circumstances is to use the trusted road of anti-Virus protection. Always protect your machine from third party software and malicious hackers. You should have a firewall in place at all times when using the Internet, and preferably a commercial scale anti-Virus suite too.

It’s possible to reset the Login Service password by accessing your Windows registry and changing the key information. But this can be problematic if the virus has locked you out completely. A complete scan of the system with both a cleaning utility and a registry scanner will eliminate the threat of harmful viruses.

If you are having problems with the login service of a remote ISP, there could be many different causes to blame. First and foremost, check the connectivity of your hardware devices. This involves resetting modems, checking network wires and removing the static from plugs if necessary. If you can’t use the login service, it doesn’t necessarily indicate a problem with the software. You could be suffering from a hardware detection issue which happens to terminate at that particular time.

Some login services require the enabling of additional technologies. For example, web based Login Services might require JavaScript to validate details against the authorized list. In these cases, ensure that scripting is enabled in the Advanced tab of your Internet Options.

When logging in to any local network, ensure that the relevant cable is attached and working. If this isn’t correct, you might not even see a login screen. A “Page Cannot Display” message is quite common in scenarios where the login service can’t initiate – whether it be through a faulty Internet connection, a network hardware issue or even a system virus.

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If you receive an error stating “Cannot find C:\Windows\System32\System32.exe” when booting your copy of Windows XP, it’s highly likely that you’re suffering from a well documented problem associated with the W32.KWBot.C.Worm virus.

Also known as Worm.P2P.Tanked.14 and Win32/HLLW.Kwbot.C, this particular virus operates through the Kazaa and Limewire sharing environment. It’s a medium threat virus, so while it isn’t totally destructive, it can cause some significant damage to your system.

So, naturally you’re already thinking, how can I get rid of this threat? Well the good news is that it’s quite easy to remove, as long as you’re careful when working and don’t go making any brash mistakes!

The actual “Cannot find C:\Windows\System32\System32.exe” error is thrown AFTER the virus has been removed. Not a very successful removal after all, you’d think. And you’d be right. The major anti-Virus suites are all guilty of an occasional loophole. In the case of the System32.exe error, that loophole is usually an incomplete removal of all registry traces of the W32.KWBot.C.Worm virus.

If you run through a standard virus scan of your computer and delete a few troublesome looking files, it’s possible that the next time you boot Windows; you’ll be presented with this error. To get to the bottom of it, we need to access the Windows registry and make a few slight alterations to remove the last traces of the virus.

Now, as ever, you should note that using the Registry Editor requires a great deal of attention. It’s not the sort of utility that you open up and play around with callously. In fact, a single bad edit can leave you locked out of your Windows XP system!

We would suggest that you download one of the many free registry cleaners if you’re lacking confidence in the area of critical system edits. In fact, we can’t stress it highly enough. A registry cleaner will usually get rid of stray entries and you’ll notice that the errors disappear with them.

But for the sake of knowing what you’re doing to your system, here’s how you can remove the W32.KWBot.C.Worm virus entries manually.

• Go to Start, then Run, and type “regedit”.
• Locate the following keys:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\Run\SystemSAS system32.exe HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\Run\CMD cmd32.exe HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\RunServices\SystemSAS system32.exe HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\RunServices\CMD cmd32.exe HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\RunOnce\SystemSAS system32.exe HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\RunOnce\CMD cmd32.exe HKEY_Local_Machine\Software\Krypton

• Click on the Edit menu option.
• Delete each key.
• Find the HKEY_Local_Machine\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\Shell key.
• Click on the Edit menu option
• Click Modify and enter Explorer.exe as your value.

Finally, you will need to delete any of the remaining corrupted entries from the Kazaa and iMesh libraries. You will only need to do this for the program which you have installed.

Search for any values that point to C:\%Windir%\User32 or C:\%Windir%\UserTemp, and delete them.

You should then save your registry and restart Windows. In most cases, the error will have disappeared. If it remains, you will definitely need to download a comprehensive registry cleaning utility. This will search out any extra complications. As an absolute last resort, a full Windows repair may be necessary. This shouldn’t be considered until the other avenues have been exhausted. The registry edits above will fix the problem nine times out of ten.

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It’s the screen that we all dread. It nearly always means that there’s something seriously wrong with an operating system, and in many cases, fixing it can require drastic measures. Yes, of course. We’re talking about the blue screen of death!

One of the errors that you might encounter is marked as 0×00000000.

For example, you might receive an error like the one below:

STOP: 0×0000009C (0×00000004, 0×00000000, 0xb2000000, 0×00020151) “MACHINE_CHECK_EXCEPTION”

There are several different causes for the 0×00000000 error. But in most cases where you receive it, your system will be unusable. In extreme situations, you might not have any access to the Windows operating system at all. The error often triggers a system restart, and can appear without warning. Needless to say, its one of the more frustrating problems out there! It should also be noted that the error is typically found on Windows XP.

The official Microsoft documentation suggests that the error arises when the Machine Check Exception detects an unrecoverable problem with the hardware on an XP OS. This is slightly ambiguous, so how do we know where the problem is coming from?

To get to a fix, we have to look at the hardware of the system.

It’s possible that you’re suffering from a memory partition problem. A re-format of the hard drive would be the solution in this situation. But it’s much more likely that there’s a problem with the system bus.

System bus errors are painstakingly tricky to fix and you’ll need to take the computer to a technician and cough up for the full repair treatment.

It’s also possible that you’re running off higher specifications than your machine can handle. Over-clocking of the processor is a notorious problem and it is associated with the blue screen 0×00000000 error. To handle the higher performance applications, you should consider an upgrade to the processor and memory.

In most cases, you’ll be well aware if your processor is being over-clocked with unrealistic expectations. Poor performance will be noticeable long before the errors begin to crop up.

Ensure that the system has sufficient ventilation and that the fan is powerful enough to cool the CPU. This is the cause of many a system failure, but many look beyond what can be treated as basic thermal management of the computer.

It’s also important to stay up to date with the latest anti-Virus protection. If you find yourself attacked by one of the malicious shell-targeting viruses that are in circulation, it can have a crippling effect on the system resources.

Download a system cleaning utility and run a thorough check for malicious files. Remove anything that looks suspicious and you should notice an improvement in performance – which can be noted from the Task Manager.

Ultimately, if Windows is refusing to start up, or if the 0×00000000 errors are too persistent to ignore – you should take your computer to the nearest (or cheapest) repair store and ask a qualified technician to troubleshoot the actual hardware components. It’s very likely that the problem is being caused by either damaged memory or insufficient system resources, both of which can be pricey to fix.

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“A Runtime Error has occurred. Do you wish to Debug?”

If you have been receiving this message while browsing the Web, it’s likely that you’re suffering from scripting errors caused by configuration options or malicious malware.

Runtime errors can arise out of many things. Maybe you have a pop up blocker installed. When a window opens to execute a script, the pop-up blocker terminates the script before it can complete its command. This leads to what is known as a runtime error.

With every runtime error, you’ll have the chance to debug where the problem is in the code. Of course, as a casual web browser, this isn’t really any of our business. So instead we end up clicking through “OK” messages until the alerts disappear. As such, it can take several clicks to load a single page!

Another problem involves the configuration of anti-Virus software. While it’s certainly advisable to browse with protection, always make sure that you have the right permission levels within the application. If you switch off scripting, you’re likely to get quite a few runtime errors. It’s also important that your anti-Virus suite is configured NOT to scan the Temporary Internet Files. This can lead to all kinds of problems.

Some people find themselves flooded with annoying runtime errors, yet the website itself seems to function properly. To fix this, follow the steps below.

• Go to Tools and Internet Options in Microsoft Internet Exporer
• Click on the Advanced Settings.
• Disable script debugging.
• Disable the script error notification box.
• Save changes and relaunch your browser

This will prevent reports of errors being returned when you load a page. Note that it won’t prevent the actual collision. But you won’t have to click OK several times before a page actually loads.

It’s possible that runtime errors are the result of a spyware infestation. Many malicious users design software which sits under the browser and springs up pop-ups. Due to the rough cut nature of most malwares, they can lead to an unhealthy number of errors. Ultimately, they’re not designed with the end user in mind and in desperation to blitz your browser with third party ads; you’ll be fighting off many errors.

To deal with spyware, there are many excellent free system cleaning utilities available on the market. These will tear through your computer and eliminate the bad apples. They’ll also clean the registry and improve the overall performance of your computer. Most runtime errors are born from collisions with the code. If you’re getting them persistently on reputable websites, the problem is most likely spyware or a spreading virus.

It’s not out of the question, however, that the runtime error is the fault of the developer who created the page. Programming languages aren’t a walk in the park by any means and there is plenty of scope for errors. If the site is using bad code, there’s nothing you can do other than to find a different website. You can eliminate the error reporting however, as we mentioned above, and this is often enough to make a website usable.

You can usually tell when the problem is on the part of the developer. If the errors are occurring on innocuous websites designed for the masses, it’s likely a fault at your own end. Remember that most reputable businesses and organizations are forced to design tidy code that won’t clash with pop-up blockers and anti-Virus software. Still having problems? Remember the three most likely reasons;

• Spyware
• Pop-up blockers and anti-Virus software
• Script configuration settings in Internet Options

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Hewlett-Packard is widely recognised as the number one provider of printers, scanners and imaging equipment. The California-based company ships a huge stock of these items every year, and there’s a good chance that if you go out to buy a printer, you’ll be coming home with an HP product.

Given the lofty stature of HP, you shouldn’t encounter too many compatibility problems when it comes to finding the right printer or scanner for your system. The installation doesn’t always run smoothly, however, and we’re going to look at some of the most problems and how to overcome them.

First of all, it’s important to note that all HP printers come with software. It’s not possible to simply “plug ‘n play” as you might do with other hardware devices. Every HP printer, scanner or imaging device will come with a CD. On this CD, you’ll find an installation program and the drivers required to use the hardware.

It’s also important to follow the instructions explicitly and install the software BEFORE you connect the device. To do this, insert the CD and run through the installation procedure. It will copy files to your local drive before telling you when to connect the device. Most printers and scanners use a USB port these days. Once your device is connected, follow the remaining instructions and you’ll usually be asked to restart your system. This validates the new drivers and it will ensure that your hardware is detected in the future.

So what are the most common problems with the installation of a HP device? First and foremost, we have driver issues.

HP can’t release software which is customised for each user’s system configuration, and it’s possible that the printer or scanner drivers may clash. Driver issues are typically marked by a device which fails to connect. If Windows springs up a message that it cannot recognise the hardware device, it’s likely that you’re suffering from either outdated drivers or the wrong driver altogether.

Log on to the HP website and search out your device. It’s here that you’ll be able to download the very latest drivers and patches. Test the different software and attempt to connect to the device with different configurations. If you have a working driver, you’ll be able to connect to the hardware and Windows will detect it automatically.

Sometimes Window will recognise the hardware, but won’t be able to retain the connection. This is another example of a driver incompatibility issue.

Of course, it’s important to check - before purchasing a printer – that the device is compatible with your system. You’ll also need to download different software if you’re working on a Linux platform. The standard Windows package will not work on Linux, and vice versa.

Another common problem stems from wireless printer connectivity. If you’re installing a printer to work on a network, you’ll need to ensure that the computers can connect to it.

If this isn’t happening, try pinging the printer adapter. To do this, you can open up the command shell (c:\windows\system\CMD.exe) and type the following:

ping 192.168.173.1.

If no signal is returned, the printer is failing to connect with your local system. This could be for a number of reasons. You might want to try moving the printer closer to the computer, or checking that radio interference isn’t playing a role. As a last resort, consider replacing the network and printer adapters.

If you’re sure that the printer is installed, yet it fails to print, check that the device isn’t configured to work offline.

Go to Start, then Settings and finally Printers. It’s here that you’ll be able to see if the device is set to work online. It’s also possible that documents may be jammed in a queue. Restart the jobs and wait for the printer to respond.

If your printer shows no sign of connectivity at all – usually displayed by an orange or red light – you could be suffering from a connectivity issue with the hardware itself. It’s possible that the USB cable is faulty and replacing it could fix the problem.

HP provides extensive support for their products so do make sure to check the help archives on their official website. Printers and scanners can be notoriously fiddly to install and it’s likely that if you have a problem, somebody else has experienced it too.

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“Cannot Connect to ACE Runtime”

“MACE SERVICE could not connect to the ACE Runtime.”

Have you been receiving this error when loading up Windows XP or trying to access the Internet?

ACE Runtime is a service that is required in order to access the Internet and exchange data. Most ACE Runtime problems stem from a collision with either an anti-Virus program or a manual firewall which happens to be impeding its ability to access the Net.

Bizarrely enough, you’re most likely to encounter the errors if you are running a copy of Windows Media Center Edition and using an ATI graphics card. Quite why this is, we can’t begin to speculate. Part of the fault has to lay with ATI for designing a card which requires a firewall to be specifically opened to get rid of errors.

When you load your operating system, you’ll be told that the MACE Service (Managed Access to Catalyst Environment) can’t connect to the ACE Runtime. This will restrict your Internet access, so it’s necessary to manually correct the firewall in order to heal the breach.

Alternatively, you can search out the latest ATI drivers and attempt to patch over the problem by upgrading to the latest software. This should fix the problem, depending on the model of the hardware that you are using.

If a driver upgrade doesn’t do the trick, you’ll have no choice but to replace the ATI or open up your Windows Firewall by making exclusions so that the MACE Service can connect to your ACE Runtime.

To do this, you will need to navigate to the Windows Firewall settings. Once you’re there, locate the MACE folder which holds all of the MACE settings.

You should then add the MACE folder to the specific exclusion list of your Windows Firewall. It isn’t a particularly ideal solution because every exception that you add is an opening to a hacker, but it should at least allow the ACE Runtime to connect. This will, in turn, get rid of the errors and grant you Internet access.

Of course, it’s important to note that the same rule applies to other anti-Virus suites, not just the Windows Firewall. Many of these suites come with firewalls and exclusion lists of their own. You should apply the exception to whichever anti-Virus suite you have in operation on your system.

On certain occasions, you may find that the error is triggered by a virus rather than a hardware problem. If your system is inundated with spyware, viruses and malware, it’s quite possible that your ACE Runtime mechanism could be affected. But we should point out that it’s highly unlikely that you won’t have seen signs elsewhere. There are no viruses which specifically target the ACE Runtime service, although some are known to affect it indirectly.

Run a system scan to stay clear of any malicious files and hacking threats, and always use anti-Virus protection when browsing the Internet.

The problem with ATI and ACE Runtime is heavily documented. If you are using an ATI card, you can expect to receive an ACE Runtime error, no matter how new your system is. Keep your drivers upgraded and as a last resort, add an exception to your firewall to fix the problem.

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