Computer errors can be divided into two distinct categories, application errors and hardware-related errors. The former forms the basis of our discussion.

The following topics are covered in this tutorial:

• Common causes of application errors
• Guidelines for troubleshooting common application errors

Causes of application errors

Application errors occur due to a variety of reasons, the most common ones are:

• Malware infection.
• Missing or corrupt files.
• Outdated files.
• Corrupt registry.

Steps for resolving application errors

Shared below are the steps that you may perform to resolve common application errors, such as the iexplore.exe application error.

Step #1 – Perform a malware scan

A large number of application errors, including the svchost.exe application error are caused due to malware infection. If your Windows screen is suddenly being engulfed by random application error messages, run a malware scan to ensure that malicious programs are not the cause of your troubles.

Step #2 – Install the required software

Do you have the software required to run a particular file?

If not, then immediately install the required software to repair the error. For instance, if the Flash software is not installed on your computer then you may receive a missing flash.ocx file error while opening a website that contains flash-based applications. To fix the error, simply download the Flash software from the Adobe Support website.

Step #3 – Update Windows, software and 3rd party device driver files

Outdated files are a common cause of recurring application errors. To update your files, perform the following steps:

• Windows files – Windows computers, since the Windows ME edition include a feature, named Automatic Update that lets you automatically install new Windows updates as and when they are released by Microsoft. Keep this feature enabled on your Windows computer for automatic installation of new Windows updates.
• Software files – Most software, under their Help menu contain an option, such as Check for Updates that lets you check and download new available updates. In case this option is not available, you may visit the software manufacturer’s website and manually download the new available updates.
• Third-party Driver files – To keep your third-party device drivers up-to-date, install the new available updates directly from the driver manufacturer’s website.

Step #4 – Run the System File Checker (SFC) command

SFC is a command-line utility that allows Windows users to fix issues pertaining to missing, corrupt or damaged core Windows files. When you run the SFC command, it scans the Windows protected files and if it finds one or more core files to be missing or of an incorrect version, it replaces the file with a correct version either from the Windows Cache folder or the Windows installation CD.

To run the SFC command, perform the following steps:

1. Click Start and then select Run.
2. In the Run box, type sfc and press Enter.

Step #5 – Clean your registry

Last, but by no means least, clean your registry to fix various application errors. Cleaning the Windows registry is easy.  Simply install a reliable Windows registry maintenance software and use it to perform essential registry-maintenance tasks. Our absolute favorite Registry cleaner is RegistryBooster from Uniblue. RegistryBooster is best purchased as a component part of Uniblue’s PowerSuite.

©2012 Bill Hely's "Computer & Online Security" Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Microsoft has just released a critical patch that is applicable to all currently supported versions of Windows.This is a must-install for all Windows users!

Each month, on the second Tuesday of the month (fondly ????  known in the industry as Patch Tuesday) Microsoft releases a series of patches and updates for their various products. But occasionally something comes up that won’t wait until the next Patch Tuesday. They call these “out-of-band security bulletins”.

If you have Automatic Updates enabled in your Windows version, you should already have this critical out-of-band patch installed — or at least downloaded and awaiting installation. Either way, check now to see that you have it.

If you don’t have Automatic Updates enabled you should take steps to download and install this update immediately. There’s a reason it is classified as CRITICAL.

The Microsoft Update process will automatically determine if you have the patch installed, so it’s easy enough to sort out. If you want more information on this patch click here.

Often a Microsoft patch or update will close a vulnerability that, if left un-addressed, could allow an attacker to take complete control of your computer.

And that’s something you REALLY don’t want!

Keeping your installation patched up-to-date is so important that, whether or not you have Automatic Updates enabled, at this time of each month it’s still wise to manually double-check that everything that matters has been installed. Don’t be put off by the word “manually” — it’s a quick and easy process.

HERE’S HOW…

• Point your web browser to: http://www.update.microsoft.com
• Click the Custom button.
• Install any high-priority updates that are reported.

But Don’t Stop There!

In the column on the left-hand side you will see links for:

• Software, Optional (n)
• Hardware, Optional (n)

The number in brackets indicates how many updates of that type are applicable to your computer. If the number is anything other than (0) then click that link and investigate, installing the update if necessary (or if in doubt). Similarly, you may find relevant updates in one of the links under “Select by Product”, so do the same with any of those.

Did you know…

Many of the malware threats that you are frequently warned about in the various news and information media, on and off-line, should never be the slightest threat to you.

How come? Well, because…

If you made a habit of applying the patches & updates that are issued by Microsoft every month, you would be IMMUNE from infection by many of the tens of thousands of threats currently circulating on the Internet, with more being churned out by the cyber-grubs on an almost daily basis.

The vast majority of these threats get into your computer by exploiting some known vulnerability in Windows. When one of these vulnerabilities is patched by Microsoft, the threat becomes benign — but only if you have applied the free patch to your version of Windows.

So remember…

You Ignore Patches & Updates at Your Peril!

PS: You will often encounter the recommendation “Microsoft recommends updating Internet Explorer to version 8″ and “Microsoft recommends avoiding blah blah blah” and etc. Listen up! You’ll be orders of magnitude safer if you take my advice instead — download the free Firefox browser and give Internet Explorer the flick. IE has been a real security problem for a long time and it’s going to continue to be so well into the future. Firefox is a far better browser in every respect.

PR: wait… I: wait… L: wait… LD: wait… I: wait… wait… Rank: wait… Traffic: wait… Price: wait… C: wait…

©2012 Bill Hely's "Computer & Online Security" Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Yes folks, it’s Patch Tuesday again! On the second Tuesday of each month Microsoft releases software patches & updates for their various products, so this is a very important day for all Windows users who care about their privacy and security [full summary here].

Why? Well..

Often a Microsoft patch or update will close a vulnerability that, if left unaddressed, could allow an attacker to take complete control of your computer.

And that’s something you REALLY don’t want!

Keeping your installation patched up-to-date is so important that, whether or not you have Automatic Updates enabled, at this time of each month it’s still wise to manually double-check that everything that matters has been installed. Don’t be put off by the word “manually” — it’s a quick and easy process.

HERE’S HOW:

• Point your web browser to: http://www.update.microsoft.com
• Click the Custom button.
• Install any high-priority updates that are reported.

But Don’t Stop There!

In the column on the left-hand side you will see links for:

• Software, Optional (n)
• Hardware, Optional (n)

The number in brackets indicates how many updates of that type are applicable to your computer. If the number is anything other than (0) then click that link and investigate, installing the update if necessary (or if in doubt). Similarly, you may find relevant updates in one of the links under “Select by Product”, so do the same with any of those.

WEBCAST:
Each month, in association with PatchTuesday, Microsoft presents an online Webcast to address customer questions on the bulletins for that month. Webcasts are usually initially presented on the Wednesday, the day after Patch Tuesday, at 11:00 AM Pacific Time (US & Canada). They are also recorded and available for later viewing. To register for a Webcast or to view Webcasts that have passed, click this link.

By the way… SymmTime is a great on-screen world time utility for anyone who needs to check or convert times around the world. It’s free and highly configurable.

Did you know…

Many of the malware threats that you are frequently warned about in the various news and information media, on and off-line, should never be the slightest threat to you.

How come? Well, because…

If you made a habit of applying the patches & updates that are issued by Microsoft every month, you would be IMMUNE from infection by many of the tens of thousands of threats currently circulating on the Internet, with more being churned out by the cyber-grubs on an almost daily basis.

The vast majority of these threats get into your computer by exploiting some known vulnerability in Windows. When one of these vulnerabilities is patched by Microsoft, the threat becomes benign — but only if you have applied the free patch to your version of Windows.

So remember…

You Ignore Patches & Updates at Your Peril!

PS #1: When you read some of the related articles below you will encounter numerous instances of “Microsoft recommends updating Internet Explorer to version 8″ and “Microsoft recommends avoiding blah blah blah” and etc. Listen up! You’ll be orders of magnitude safer if you take my advice instead — download the free Firefox browser and give Internet Explorer the flick. IE has been a real security problem for a long time and it’s going to continue to be so well into the future. Firefox is a far better browser in every respect.

PS #2: Users of Microsoft PowerPoint need to be alert to the situation revealed in this article.

Related articles:

• Patch Tuesday sees new fixes and warnings
• Microsoft warns of new IE bug; attacks under way
• Microsoft skips patch for PowerPoint add-on
• Office updates patch Excel security flaw
• Microsoft warns of zero-day IE hole on Patch Tuesday

©2012 Bill Hely's "Computer & Online Security" Blog. All Rights Reserved.

This is Microsoft’s biggest batch of patches & updates in a long time, and you really MUST pay due attention.

Yes folks, it’s Patch Tuesday again! On the second Tuesday of each month Microsoft releases software patches & updates for their various products. This month there are something like 13 updates addressing a total of 26 potentially harmful vulnerabilities, so this is a very important day for all Windows users who are concerned with their privacy and security.

Why? Well…

Often a Microsoft patch or update will close a vulnerability that, if left unaddressed, could allow an attacker to take complete control of your computer.

And that’s something you REALLY don’t want!

Keeping your installation patched up-to-date is so important that, whether or not you have Automatic Updates enabled, at this time of each month it’s still wise to manually double-check that everything that matters has been installed. Don’t be put off by the word “manually” — it’s a quick and easy process.

HERE’S HOW:

• Point your web browser to: http://www.update.microsoft.com
• Click the Custom button.
• Install any high-priority updates that are reported.

But Don’t Stop There!

In the column on the left-hand side you will see links for:

• Software, Optional (n)
• Hardware, Optional (n)

The number in brackets indicates how many updates of that type are applicable to your computer. If the number is anything other than (0) then click that link and investigate, installing the update if necessary (or if in doubt). Similarly, you may find relevant updates in one of the links under “Select by Product”, so do the same with any of those.

WEBCAST:
Each month, in association with PatchTuesday, Microsoft presents an online Webcast to address customer questions on the bulletins for that month. Webcasts are usually initially presented on the Wednesday, the day after Patch Tuesday, at 11:00 AM Pacific Time (US & Canada). They are also recorded and available for later viewing. To register for a Webcast or to view Webcasts that have passed, click this link.

By the way… SymmTime is a great on-screen world time utility for anyone who needs to check or convert times around the world. It’s free and highly configurable.

Did you know…

Many of the malware threats that you are frequently warned about in the various news and information media, on and off-line, should never be the slightest threat to you.

How come? Well, because…

If you made a habit of applying the patches & updates that are issued by Microsoft every month, you would be IMMUNE from infection by many of the tens of thousands of threats currently circulating on the Internet, with more being churned out by the cyber-grubs on an almost daily basis.

The vast majority of these threats get into your computer by exploiting some known vulnerability in Windows. When one of these vulnerabilities is patched by Microsoft, the threat becomes benign — but only if you have applied the free patch to your version of Windows.

So remember…

You Ignore Patches & Updates at Your Peril!

Related articles:

• Microsoft planning major security update
• Microsoft Finally To Patch 17-Year-Old Bug

©2012 Bill Hely's "Computer & Online Security" Blog. All Rights Reserved.

It’s Patch Tuesday again, that day each month when Microsoft releases software patches and updates for their various products.

Patch Tuesday is a very important day for all Windows users who are concerned with their privacy and security.

Not infrequently a Microsoft patch or update will close a vulnerability that, if left unaddressed, could allow an attacker to take complete control of an affected system.

And that’s something you REALLY don’t want!

Keeping your installation patched up-to-date is so important that, whether or not you have Automatic Updates enabled, at this time of each month it’s still wise to manually double-check that everything that matters has been installed. Don’t be put off by the word “manually” — it’s a quick and easy process.

HERE’S HOW:

• Point your web browser to: http://www.update.microsoft.com
• Click the Custom button.
• Install any high-priority updates that are reported.

But Don’t Stop There!

In the column on the left-hand side you will see links for:

• Software, Optional (n)
• Hardware, Optional (n)

The number in brackets indicates how many updates of that type are applicable to your computer. If the number is anything other than (0) then click that link and investigate, installing the update if necessary (or if in doubt). Similarly, you may find relevant updates in one of the links under “Select by Product”, so do the same with any of those.

WEBCAST:
Each month, in association with PatchTuesday, Microsoft presents an online Webcast to address customer questions on the bulletins for that month. Webcasts are usually initially presented on the Wednesday, the day after Patch Tuesday, at 11:00 AM Pacific Time (US & Canada). They are also recorded and available for later viewing.  To register for a Webcast or to view Webcasts that have passed, click this link.

By the way… SymmTime is a great on-screen world time utility for anyone who needs to check or convert times around the world. It’s free and highly configurable.

Did you know…

Many of the malware threats that you are frequently warned about in the various news and information media, on and off-line, should never be the slightest threat to you.

How come? Well, because…

If you made a habit of applying the patches & updates that are issued by Microsoft every month, you would be IMMUNE from infection by many of the tens of thousands of threats currently circulating on the Internet, with more being churned out by the cyber-grubs on an almost daily basis.

The vast majority of these threats get into your computer by exploiting some known vulnerability in Windows. When one of these vulnerabilities is patched by Microsoft, the threat becomes benign — but only if you have applied the free patch to your version of Windows.

So remember…

You Ignore Patches & Updates at Your Peril!

Related articles:

• Adobe patches PDF zero-day, other critical bugs
• Microsoft urges Windows XP users to ditch old Flash version

©2012 Bill Hely's "Computer & Online Security" Blog. All Rights Reserved.

It’s Patch Tuesday again, that day each month when Microsoft releases software patches and updates for their various products.

Patch Tuesday is a very important day for all Windows users who are concerned with their privacy and security.

This month Critical Security Bulletins/Patches have been issued affecting the following products:

• Windows 2000
• Windows XP
• Windows Vista
• Windows Server 2003
• Windows Server 2008
• MS Project 2000, 2002, 2003
• Internet Explorer – versions 5-8

Bulletins/patches classified as Important have also been issued for most of the above, and also for:

• Microsoft Office Word 2002
• Microsoft Office Word 2003
• Microsoft Works
• Microsoft Office Converter Pack

And there’s an update available for the Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool

There may also be non-security updates relating to your operating system version. To have your system is scanned for relevant products & updates, and to receive update recommendations customized to your installation click here.

WEBCAST:
A webcast to address customer questions on these bulletins will be presented on:
Wednesday, December 9, 2009, 11:00 AM US Pacific Time
Click here to register

By the way… SymmTime is a great on-screen world time utility for anyone who needs to check times around the world. It’s free and highly configurable.

Did you know…

Many of the malware threats that you are frequently warned about in the various news and information media, on and off-line, should never be the slightest threat to you.

How come?

Well, because…If you made a habit of applying the patches & updates that are issued by Microsoft every month, you would be IMMUNE from infection by many of the tens of thousands of threats currently circulating on the Internet, with more being churned out by the cybergrubs on an almost daily basis.

The vast majority of these threats get into your computer by exploiting some known vulnerability in Windows. When one of these vulnerabilities is patched by Microsoft, the threat becomes benign — but only if you have applied the free patch to your version of Windows.

So remember…

You Ignore Patches & Updates at Your Peril!

©2012 Bill Hely's "Computer & Online Security" Blog. All Rights Reserved.

It’s Patch Tuesday again, that day each month when Microsoft releases software patches and updates for their various products.

I’s a very important day for all Windows users who are concerned with their privacy and security. This month there are patches/updates that address problems with:

• Windows 2000
• Windows XP
• Windows Vista
• Windows Server 2000/2003/2008
• Microsoft Office

Some of the patches/updates are classified as Critical. There’s also a new version of the Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool.

There may also be non-security updates relating to your operating system version. To have your system is scanned for relevant products & updates, and to receive update recommendations customized to your installation click here.

Will the fun never end?

On the day after patch Tuesday Microsoft usually hosts a Webcast “to address customer questions on these bulletins”. Details for this month’s Webcast:

Date: Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Time : 11:00 AM Pacific Time (US & Canada)
Registration: click here

By the way… SymmTime is a great on-screen world time utility for anyone who needs to check times around the world. It’s free and highly configurable.

Did you know…

Many of the malware threats that you are frequently warned about in the various news and information media, on and off-line, should never be the slightest threat to you.

How come?

Well, because…If you made a habit of applying the patches & updates that are issued by Microsoft every month, you would be IMMUNE from infection by many of the tens of thousands of threats currently circulating on the Internet, with more being churned out by the cybergrubs on an almost daily basis.

The vast majority of these threats get into your computer by exploiting some known vulnerability in Windows. When one of these vulnerabilities is patched by Microsoft, the threat becomes benign — but only if you have applied the free patch to your version of Windows.

So remember…

You Ignore Patches & Updates at Your Peril!

©2012 Bill Hely's "Computer & Online Security" Blog. All Rights Reserved.

In my last post I alerted readers to the existence of a couple of out-of-band updates released by Microsoft. I purposely didn’t go into a lot of detail — I just urged everyone to apply the updates ASAP.

But judging by some of the correspondence I’ve received at least some readers still do not understand what a broad-based impact the mere presence of Internet Explorer has upon your Windows system taken as a whole.

One version or another of Internet Explorer exists in all Windows installations, and component parts of IE may well be in use by other applications that you do use, whether you use IE itself or not. So the claim “But I don’t use Internet Explorer” is no defense, and therefore no excuse if you get zapped.

Sometimes you might even have difficulty figuring out how an announced Microsoft update that mentions Internet Explorer even relates to IE. For example…

There’s a very popular Microsoft product called Visual Studio. It’s a development environment used by thousands of programmers all over the world to develop all types of Windows applications (programs). And a component part of Visual Studio is something called the Active Template Library – the ATL. Put very simply the ATL is, as the name suggests, a library of program code that can be called upon by Windows programs.

When a program developed within the Visual Studio environment makes use of the Active Template Library, a library file called atl.dll is provided and installed as part of the finished program. If you install said program then atl.dll is stored on your computer along with other miscellaneous program files.

The ATL is also frequently used to create “objects” that can be called from an Active Server Pages (ASP) script. ASP is a common programming language used by Web developers.

If you search your entire hard drive(s) for the existence of atl.dll, there’s a good chance you might find several instances of it.

In other words, the influence of atl.dll is pervasive and widespread, and cannot be ignored, no matter what browser you prefer to use on a day-to-day basis.

OK, so clearly I must have been telling you all that for a reason. Yep, you guessed it… one of the out-of-band updates that I wrote about in my previous post is a patch for a very dangerous vulnerability recently discovered in atl.dll. This is not a theoretical danger. It has already been practically demonstrated that a bad guy can exploit this vulnerability and take control of your PC.

So if you were working on the “I don’t use Internet Explorer” defense, I strongly suggest you rethink your position and refer back to my previous post for the relevant update links.

©2012 Bill Hely's "Computer & Online Security" Blog. All Rights Reserved.

As regular readers of this blog will know, every month I post a reminder of Microsoft’s “Patch Tuesday” release of patches and updates.

Every once in a while Microsoft also releases what they call out-of-band security bulletins. Out-of-band bulletins are occasionally released at times of the month other than Patch Tuesday to address vulnerabilities that demand immediate attention.

Today’s out-of-band releases pertain to:

• Security Bulletin MS09-034 – CRITICAL – Cumulative Security Update for Internet Explorer.

• Security Bulletin MS09-035 – MODERATE – Vulnerabilities in Visual Studio Active Template Library Could Allow Remote Code Execution.

In your own best interests PLEASE
attend to these important patches ASAP

©2012 Bill Hely's "Computer & Online Security" Blog. All Rights Reserved.

Did you know that the next version of Windows, after Vista, will be the seventh in the Windows stable‡? Not that it’s a terribly significant factoid, but it may explain the reason that the next version is codenamed simply “Windows 7″, as opposed to the fancier code names of the past such as Snowball, Daytona, Longhorn, etc. Something else you may not know is that a public beta-version of Windows 7 is slated for release as near as January 2009.

“The decision to use the name Windows 7 is about simplicity. Simply put, this is the seventh release of Windows, so therefore Windows 7 just makes sense.”

Mike Nesh, Microsoft VP of Windows Product Management

Microsoft gave the first public demonstration of Windows 7 at their Professional Developer Conference in October 2008, and although they have not yet committed to a date for release to market, insider speculation… has it at late 2009 to January 2010. Website InternetNews.com claims June 3, 2009 is the release date internally planned at Microsoft, but it’s not clear whether this date refers to the “Release Candidate”, “Release to Manufacturing”, or public availability — individual events which could be fairly widely spaced in time.

But whatever the fine detail, we could be looking at a successor to Windows Vista in as little as 9-12 months time.

So is it surprising that even now, some 22 months after the general release of Windows Vista, I’m still getting questions from Windows XP users regarding the advisability or otherwise of upgrading to Vista?

For a number of reasons I don’t make blanket recommendations when asked this question (there’s a degree of “personal situation” involved), but I do think it might help to offer a few thoughts for your consideration.

There’s no question that Vista is more secure than its predecessors, but you still won’t find many professionals deeming it a secure operating system. There’s still a lot of work to be done from a security perspective, as evidenced by the stream of patches and updates that issue from Microsoft every month.

Probably the most disappointing thing about Vista was how – after all the time, money, effort and testing that went into it pre-release – in many ways it looked and performed like a beta release when it finally hit the shelves.

It’s no secret that corporate America (and hence corporate-everywhere-else as well) has really been dragging its collective heels upgrading to Vista. All over the Web you can find analysts and commentators discussing the slow uptake of Windows Vista by the corporate sector.

On the home front it’s a different story, and that’s not at all surprising. Let’s face it, the average home PC user doesn’t know one operating system from another. I don’t mean to belittle anyone with that statement, but it’s just a fact. In the mind of the tyro “latest” equates to “greatest”, and who wants last year’s model?

Home users, and to a certain extent smaller businesses, are buying whatever is put in front of them by their retailer, and what the retailers are offering is dictated by the manufacturers.

Many manufacturers stopped providing XP machines not long after the release of Vista, but quite a few of them were forced to back-pedal in the face of buyer resistance and repeated requests for new machines loaded with Windows XP.

The main problem complicating the decision of upgraders and new buyers has been Microsoft’s decision to stop sales of Windows XP by June 30, 2008. Although copies of Windows XP are still available from retailers and OEMs long after that date, there is the added complication of maintenance. Microsoft will no longer issue patches and updates that aren’t security-related after April 14, 2009.

And then there’s the matter of product activation. There is some speculation as to whether or not Microsoft will prevent product activation after one of those dates. While it is possible that product activation for Windows XP will be terminated at some point, I think it unlikely that’s a move Microsoft would make in the foreseeable future. If such a move were on the cards the earliest likely date would be April 8, 2014 — the so-called end-of-support term, at which point all support contracts and agreements expire.

Many professionals and experienced users are still questioning why they should be forced away from the Windows XP with which they are now comfortable, know quite well, and which does everything they require of it. For many, Vista is a confusing and high-priced range of different versions that don’t seem to offer anything they need, and that introduces compatibility problems they never had to deal with under XP.

Even technology-oriented organizations that you would expect to be heavily biased towards the cutting edge are expressing reservations. Back in April 2008 the tech Web site InfoWorld started a “Save XP” campaign.

http://weblog.infoworld.com/save-xp/archives/2008/01/save_windows_xp.html

The best advice I can give to anyone intending to purchase a new computer in the near future is to do your research. If at all possible, decide what software applications you need to run and what additional hardware you wish to support. Then spend some time on appropriately filtered searches to see what’s being said by people with similar requirements to yours. Also, locate articles discussing the Windows XP vs Vista situation. The many comments at the InfoWorld site (see URL above) may give you some ideas,  and here is another example from the CIO Web site:

http://www.cio.com/article/176150/Why_Save_XP_Infoworld_Readers_Speak_Out

So where do I stand personally on the issue? Well, I’ll just say that I’m a signatory to the InfoWorld campaign.

Having countered Vista’s security advantage by securing our XP installations according to the practices laid out in my books “Seven Steps to a Clean PC“ and “The Hacker’s Nightmare“,  we continue to fail to find any compelling reason to switch to Windows Vista for our typical small office situation.

But you really have to make your own decision based on your hardware and software needs and the results of your own research.

©2012 Bill Hely's "Computer & Online Security" Blog. All Rights Reserved.