Fixing System Problems

An invaluable feature of Windows Vista is the System Restore tool, which makes it possible for you to undo whatever changes you or various programs have made to your computer system. Periodically, and also whenever you make changes to the system, Windows Vista records all the system information. If you've made changes to the system but the effect isn't what you wanted, you can tell Windows to revert to the previous settings.

Restore the System

Close all your running programs, and make sure that no one else is logged on to the computer.

Click the Start button, type restore in the Search box of the Start menu, and click System Restore to start the System Restore Wizard.

Specify how you want to restore the settings:

• Recommended Restore to undo only the last change

• Choose A Different Restore Point to select a previous Restore point

Click Next. If you chose Recommended Restore, click Finish.

If you chose a different Restore point, select it, click Next, and then click Finish.

Tip

A Restore point contains a record of the system settings when the Restore point was created, and you can use the Restore point to restore the system settings to the way they were then. Most Restore points are created automatically, but you can create your own Restore points and can modify which hard disks use the System Restore tool. To do so, open the Control Panel, and, in the System And Maintenance section, click System, and then click System Protection in the Tasks list.