Dennis Faas

Infopackets Reader Frank C. writes: " Dear Dennis, Thanks for your excellent articles on Windows 10. A few weeks ago I upgraded to Windows 10 32-bit, but now I want to upgrade to Windows 10 64-bit. I read your article, ' How to Upgrade from Windows ... 10 32-bit to 64-bit ', but I don't understand why I am receiving the error 'this app can't run on your PC' when attempting to run the Windows 10 Media Creation Tool. I have verified that my processor supports 64-bit, so I don't understand why I am being plagued by this error message. Do you have any idea how I can ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Pam C. writes: " Dear Dennis, I recently purchased an SSD (solid state hard drive) and wish to transfer my existing copy of Windows (from a standard hard drive) onto the SSD. I used Acronis True Image to clone the hard drive to ... SSD, but when I try and boot from the SSD, I receive the error message that 'BOOTMGR is Missing'. I have also tried creating an archive backup of the original hard drive and then restored that to the SSD, but I have the same problem. How can I fix the 'BOOTMGR is Missing' error? " My response: This is a very common problem ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Jeff P. writes: " Dear Dennis, I have the 'get windows 10' app on my PC, however, when try and install Windows 10, I get multiple error codes and it won't upgrade my system to Windows 10. Is it possible for me to reformat my hard ... drive, then reinstall Windows 7 (clean), download all my windows updates, then use the Windows 10 media creation tool and install Windows 10 from that? My major concern is that I will lose my reservation for Windows 10 after I format my hard drive. Can I reserve my Windows 10 upgrade again later, especially after I format my hard drive? " My ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Susan K. writes: " Dear Dennis, I recently upgraded to Windows 10. When my computer booted into the desktop for the first time, I immediately unpinned the Windows Store and Microsoft Edge icons from my taskbar; the reason being is ... that I prefer to have my taskbar completely empty and reserved only for running tasks. Anyhow, the problem is that now I can't seem to find Microsoft Edge using the Start Menu (I'm using Classic Shell). Ideally I'd like to have a shortcut to Microsoft Edge on my desktop. Any ideas how to achieve this? " My response: I was wondering the same thing ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Jan G. writes: " Dear Dennis, Thank you so much for your article on How to Fix: Windows Update Using an In-Place Upgrade . I have the dreaded 80070490 windows update error and can't seem to get past it. That said, I tried to do an ... in-place Windows Repair (as per your guide) but am having another problem. As Windows is getting ready to reinstall, the Windows Compatibility Report is blank, and won't let me proceed with the repair. I have tried doing a repair install on another machine and it works fine. Any ideas as to why the Compatibility Report window is blank and how I ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Alice G. writes: " Dear Dennis, I have not been able to download any Windows Updates for a few months now. I stumbled across your guide on ' How to Fix: Windows Update won't Update ', but when I try and run 'sfc /scannow', I ... receive an error message that 'Windows Resource Protection could not perform the requested operation.' I am basically stuck at this step and am not sure what to do. Researching Google on the Windows Resource Protection error comes up with extremely confusing and conflicting jargon. Can you please tell me how to fix this ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Tim S. writes: " Dear Dennis, I am trying to play Netflix on my computer, which requires Microsoft Silverlight. Every time I try and play a movie, I get an error stating that Silverlight is not installed on the system. But when I ... check in my Control Panel via Add / Remove programs, Silverlight says it's installed. I have tried to install the latest version of Silverlight from the Internet but it won't install. I don't get it. Can you help? " My response: I knew this problem would require some troubleshooting, so I contacted Tim and he agreed to let me access his computer ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader John P. writes: " I just upgraded to Windows 10. Yesterday I went to go use the Edge browser, but it immediately opened with window stating that my computer has a serious virus and then asked me to call 866-628-4936 to remove the ... virus. The whole time the window was open, there was a computer-generated voice speaking to me. I realize this is a scam, but there is no close button to shut it off. [Other numbers associated with this scam include: 1-866-928-0684, 1-866-436-9418, 1-866-978-1337, 1-866-560-5093, 1-866-362-8280, 1-866-453-2895, 1-866-594-0204, and 1-866-582- ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Vince C. writes: " Dear Dennis, Every time I try to upgrade to Windows 10, I receive an error message stating that 'We couldn't update the system reserved partition'. My Windows 7 is on an SSD (solid state hard drive) with 62.2 GB ... free space. According to the 'Disk Management' utility, my System Reserved partition is 99.9 mb with what looks to be 65 mb free space. How can I increase the size of the System Reserved partition so that I can upgrade to Windows 10? " My response: You can use a partition editing tool to increase the size of the System Reserved partition. That ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Gail N. writes: " Dear Dennis, I have two HP laptops: one that came with Windows 7 and the other with Windows 8. I have already upgraded both laptops to Windows 10 using the 'get Windows 10 app' via the desktop. My question is: ... what happens if Windows 10 fails and I need to factory restore my laptop? Will I get back Windows 10 or will it reload the original operating system (Windows 7 or 8)? I ask because both my HP laptops have a 'factory restore' partition which I can access by pressing F11 on my keyboard during bootup. Also, is there any way to fix my laptop without ... (view more)