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Tip: New Ways to Maintain your PC and Solve Common Problems on Windows

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Windows 7 offers new ways to manage your system and troubleshoot common problems. Two key components are the new Action Center and the new Windows Troubleshooting Platform.

Action Center
You can easily check the status of your PC by going to the new Action Center (Control Panel | System and Security | Action Center). Here you can check the status of your antivirus software, set up a backup schedule, check for updates, and view solutions to problems your PC has experienced. In addition, the Action Center provides direct access to the Windows Troubleshooting Packs.

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Windows Troubleshooting Platform
The Windows Troubleshooting Platform offers a variety of troubleshooting packs for solving a host of problems (issues connecting to the Internet, hardware devices not working properly, poor system performance, and so on). These automated packs check for common issues—for instance, if you choose to “Troubleshoot audio playback,” the tool will check for common configuration settings that might be causing the problem, such as whether the device is disabled, if the volume is low or set to mute, whether the speakers are unplugged, and so on. Besides troubleshooting packs, this windows offers quick access to initiating the remote help and system restore tools. You can also access the troubleshooters by typing “fix” or “troubleshoot” in the Start Menu.

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Tip provided by Jason Leznek, a Group Product Manager at Microsoft.

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