Troubleshooting and Maintaining Your PC All-in-One For Dummies. Dan Gookin

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      3. Click the Remote tab in the System Properties dialog box.

      4. Ensure that the first item is unchecked: Allow Remote Assistance Connections to This Computer.

      5. Choose the option Don’t Allow Remote Connections to This Computer.

      This item is located in the dialog box’s Remote Desktop area.

      6. Click OK.

      You can also close the System window.

      If you need remote assistance in the future, you can reenable this feature. Otherwise, by following the steps in this section, you ensure that remote desktop access isn’t something that can automatically happen to your computer. Even then, a prompt first appears, where you must grant permission to the remote party for desktop access.

Book 2

      O, We Got Trouble!

Chapter 1

      Startup Problems

      IN THIS CHAPTER

      If this book were about troubleshooting a computer that isn’t turned on, it would be a very short book. That’s because, when a PC is turned off, it performs quite reliably. After power is supplied, however, trouble looms like a flatbed truck loaded with loosely packed logs on a bumpy road.

      To best understand PC startup problems, this chapter walks you through the power-on process, from electronic slumber to electron-invigorated operation. When you appreciate the computer’s power-on sequence, though it may be technical, you can better pinpoint a problem and address specific issues.

      The Onset of PC Heartbreak

      Nothing beats that feeling when you arrive at your desk, set down a hot cup of delicious something, take your seat, and get ready to start a fresh, productive day. That feeling is destroyed when the PC decides to take a detour from your planned route.

      ❯❯ Initial computer woe is almost always a sign of hardware trouble. Replacing the bad part fixes the problem.

      ❯❯ The change that causes computer startup trouble is most often due to time: Parts grow old and fail, most frequently when you turn on a computer. Even so, consider what you’ve changed or modified on your PC or added to it. Have you installed new hardware, modified a software setting, or updated Windows? One of these issues may have caused the problem.

      ❯❯ If the problem isn’t with the PC’s mass storage system (hard drive), your data is probably safe. Replacing bad hardware, such as a video card or power supply, fixes the problem without damaging your data. However:

      ❯❯

You risk losing your data by taking your PC into the shop for repair. That’s because sometimes the technicians replace or erase the hard drive or primary storage media. Of course, when the hard drive is the problem, it needs replacing anyway. That’s why I recommend backups; see Book 4, Chapter 3.

      Phase I: Power On

      During the initial power-on phase, the computer transforms itself from a chunk of quite useless expensive electronics into a chunk of quite useful expensive electronics.

      You press the Power button. When the PC is off, pressing the Power button turns on the PC. It works that way whether the computer was properly shut down, was put into hibernation, or has met an untimely or inopportune demise.

      The computer’s power supply does its job: It starts converting alternating current into direct current. Alternating current comes from the wall socket. Direct current is used inside the computer to power its circuitry and motors.

      The computer fails to receive power. This issue could lie with the electrical supply, a defect in the building’s wiring, or the PC’s power supply.

      The loud sound of nothing when you turn on a PC means that it has a power supply issue. Check the following items in this order:

      If you complete these steps and still cannot pinpoint the origin of the nothingness, the issue is most likely too large for you to resolve on your own. Before toting the computer into the shop, however, consider its age. Old computers die. They don’t start. (Dead computers have a habit of not starting.) If your PC is more than eight years old, it might just have expired. To fix that problem, buy a new computer.