The Knowhow
Sometimes the installation of software or an update causes unexpected problems with your computer. This can be caused by a number of things, most frequently software or hardware conflicts. Symptoms include your computer slowing down, giving you error messages or not loading properly.
Windows 7 uses a feature called System Protection to create and save restore points. Each restore point contains all the important settings and files needed to take Windows back to that restore point; known as "rolling back" the system.
System Restore uses one of these restore points to undo changes to your computer, without affecting your personal files such as emails, documents or photos.
Opening System Restore is easy:
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Click Start
, type System Restore into the search box and click on System Restore
- Click Next on the welcome screen and you will see a list of restore points
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Look down the list until you find a date and time when your computer worked properly. Don’t worry if you are not sure which one to choose, as you can always try another one later.
- Double-click on your chosen restore point
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Windows will run a quick check to see which, if any, of your programs will be changed by System Restore
- Once the scan is complete, click Close to continue
- With your selected restore point highlighted click Next
- Your computer will take a short time to prepare itself, then restart and begin the restore process. Depending on the number of changes it needs to undo, it could take anywhere from a few seconds to a few hours to complete. Your computer may restart a number of times to complete the restore. The process is automatic, so you can just leave it running.
- On the last restart you will get a summary screen telling you what System Restore has done
Your computer should now be back to its old self and working fine. If not, restart System Restore and use an earlier restore point.
