Fix compatibility issues and other PC problems in Windows 8

COMPUTER ACTIVE [01/01/13]

These 14 tips show how it's easier than ever to diagnose problems and fix your Windows 8 PC.

Refresh your PC as a last resort

At first glance Windows 8 may seem like a radical upgrade, with its new Start screen, apps, Charms and more being very different to anything that’s gone before. Beneath the surface, though, the mechanics haven’t changed quite so much. So if your programs and applications were able to run under Windows 7, then there’s a good chance they’ll be compatible with Microsoft’s latest release, too.

There are no guarantees, of course. But if you do have problems running an older application then Windows 8 provides several tools you can use to try to get it working again, and we’ll be looking at these below.

The operating system can also help you understand and resolve many other annoying, intermittent problems, such as programs that crash or display error messages. And best of all, new troubleshooting tools can restore even some unbootable Windows 8 PCs back to full health at the click of a button.

Tip 1: Where’s my program?

With the Start menu no more, the first challenge in running any particular program under Windows 8 can be finding it. If you know the program’s name then you may be able to launch it from the Run box, just as before. To use Notepad, for instance, hold down the Windows key, press R, type Notepad and press Enter on your keyboard. The new Search tool is even more powerful, however. At the Start screen, simply begin typing the name of your application and Windows 8 will list all potential matches. Click the relevant tile to load your program. Alternatively, move your mouse cursor to the top-right corner of the screen and click the Search Charm (or hold down the Windows key and press Q). Again, just start typing the program name and Windows will list all your matches.

Tip 2: Run as administrator

What if you’ve tried to launch a program and it hasn’t worked? This sometimes happens with new versions of Windows. Low-level programs, such as security tools for instance, are most unlikely to run until they’ve been specifically updated to support Windows 8 (check the developer’s website for advice). And if the program performs some critical task – it’s a backup tool, say – you might not want to force it to run. If there is a subsequent problem, perhaps the backups don’t work, that could become a real disaster. If the program is something less vital, though, perhaps a game, one simple trick you could try is to run it as an administrator. This gives the program extra security rights and can solve many odd problems. Just right-click the application’s Start screen tile (or desktop shortcut), select ‘Run as administrator’ and see what happens.

Tip 3: Program compatibility troubleshooter

If your application still won’t launch, or a message appears that says it won’t run on this version of Windows, there is another option you can try: the Program Compatibility Troubleshooter. At the Start screen, type Control to launch the Search tool, and click ‘Control Panel’. Select ‘Category’ in the ‘View by’ list, click ‘Programs’ and ‘Run programs made for previous versions of Windows’. The troubleshooter will now appear, a clever wizard that can help you solve many problems. Click Next and it will start by listing your installed applications.

If your faulty program is listed, choose it and click Next. Otherwise, click ‘Not listed’, then Next, then Browse and navigate to the program’s executable file – the Program Files, or Program Files (x86) folders are good places to start looking. Highlight the program file and click OK to continue.

Tip 4: Test the program

Click ‘Try recommended settings’ on the next screen and the Program Compatibility Troubleshooter will choose the options most likely to make the program run. Will this work? Click ‘Test the Program’ to launch it. If the program starts and runs properly (test it carefully for a while) then the problem is solved. Return to the Troubleshooter, click Next, then ‘save these settings for this program’ and Windows 8 will now launch your application with these special settings. You should be able to run it from the Start screen (or anywhere else) without problems. If there are still issues, though, return to the Troubleshooter, click Next and then ‘try again using different settings’. Tell the wizard more about the problem you’re seeing and there’s still a chance it’ll be able to help.

Tip 5: Solve hardware issues

Sometimes compatibility issues extend beyond individual applications to your PC hardware. And if Windows 8 can’t work with a particular device – a graphics card, network hardware, whatever it might be – then this could affect your PC performance, cause crashes and all kinds of other odd behaviour. If that sounds familiar, then Device Manager may be able to help. Click Device at the Start screen, then Settings, Device Manager to launch it – or just hold down the Windows key, press R, type devmgmt.msc and press Enter. If all you see is a lengthy list of all the hardware attached to your PC, this should mean there are no driver issues. But if you see a device in an expanded section of the tree, highlighted with a yellow exclamation mark icon, that means there is a problem and more research is required.

Tip 6: Investigate Device Manager issues

If you’ve spotted a problem device on your PC, highlighted with the yellow icon, double-click it for more information. The best place to look for assistance is usually the Device Status box. Here, for instance, Windows 8 doesn’t just identify the problem (the device doesn’t have a driver), but it also tells you what to do about it (click the ‘Update Driver’ button). Follow the instructions to find, download and install a working driver. Once it’s finished, restart your PC and check Device Manager again to see if the problem is solved (the yellow icon should have gone). If this doesn’t work, though, or Windows doesn’t tell you anything useful, check with your device (or PC) manufacturer for more advice.

Tip 7: Use the Action Center

There are of course many reasons why your PC might be misbehaving at any one time. Microsoft understands this, and to help out it has provided a place that will list all your computer’s most significant problems: the Action Center. To locate it, type action at the Start screen, click Settings, then Action Center. And if your computer has any problems then you’ll see a message that ‘Action Center has detected one or more issues for you to review’, and scrolling down the window will tell you more. Here, for instance, the Action Center is complaining that our Microsoft account hasn’t been set up yet, and Windows hasn’t been activated – both listed as major issues. But in each case there is a button to click that will load the tool we need to resolve the problem.

Tip 8: Change the screen resolution

One new PC issue is that Windows 8 now requires you to set your display at a minimum of 1024x768 pixels for apps to run, and at least 1366x768 pixels to snap apps (run them side by side). Use anything lower and they won’t work. If you’re having app startup problems, hold down the Windows key, press R, type Control and press Enter to launch Control Panel. Click ‘Appearance and Personalization’, ‘Adjust screen resolution’. Ensure the resolution is set to at least 1024x768 (and as high as you can comfortably make it), then click OK. Finally, press the Windows key to return to the Start screen and your apps should now launch properly.

Tip 9: Find and fix

As we’ve seen, some PC problems are easy to solve. But others are more difficult so it’s important to know how to find the many specialist Windows troubleshooting tools that might be able to help. There are two ways to make this happen. Suppose you’re having problems recording audio, for instance. How might this be fixed? To find out, press the Windows key to go to the Start screen, start typing a word relating to your issue – ‘record’, say – and the Search screen will appear. Click Settings and you’ll find many matches, one of which is ‘Find and fix audio recording problems’. Click the tile for more help. And remember, Search can similarly help you find many useful Windows tools, just by typing a keyword related to your problem.

Tip 10: More troubleshooting tools

The second way to locate several useful Windows troubleshooters is to view the Control Panel applet where they’re all collected. Hold down the Windows key, press R, type Control and press Enter to launch Control Panel. Choose Category in the View By list. Click ‘System and Security’, then ‘Troubleshoot common computer problems’, and you’re there. You’ll see the ‘Troubleshoot audio recording’ tool we found previously, but that’s just the start. There are also options to troubleshoot audio playback, fix Windows Update problems, improve power usage or extend battery life, and more. And even these are just the start. Click ‘View All’ on the left and you’ll see all Windows 8’s troubleshooters, 20 tools to help you solve everything from search issues to broken networks or Windows Media Player problems.

Tip 11: Use System Restore

System Restore is another built-in Windows tool that can help repair a corrupted PC by reverting the system Registry to an earlier state. But is it enabled on your system? To find out, type restore at the Start screen, type Settings, then ‘Create a restore point’. Check your system drive in the ‘Protection Settings’ box. This should be turned On. If you suspect your Registry has been damaged, click System Restore to recover a previous version and get Windows working again. If it is turned off, though, that could be a problem. Click your system drive, then Configure, select ‘Turn on system protection’, and set the ‘Max usage’ figure to the maximum amount of disk space you can spare (20 per cent of your drive space, say). Click OK and System Restore will begin protecting your setup.

Tip 12: Refreshing Windows
If your troubleshooting efforts haven’t helped and your PC is still slow, unreliable or otherwise behaving badly, then perhaps it’s time for stronger medicine: reinstalling Windows 8. This will remove all your applications, other than those you’ve installed from the Windows App store. If an app you’ve downloaded is the source of your problems then reinstalling Windows will help. And refreshing your core Windows files will help to fix many common problems. If you’d like to give this a try, move the mouse cursor to the top-right corner of your screen, click the Settings button, then ‘Change PC Settings’. Scroll down to the ‘Refresh your PC…’ option, and click the ‘Get Started’ button immediately below.
 

Tip 13: Last resort?
Windows 8 now displays a message explaining the Refresh process. If you’re happy with this, click Next, then Refresh, and Windows 8 will reinstall its core files (usually this takes 10-15 minutes). When it’s finished, test your PC carefully. Is it working properly? If so, click the Desktop tile and double-click ‘Removed Apps’ for a list of all the applications the Refresh tool has removed, useful for reinstalling them. If there are still problems, return to the Settings, Change PC Settings screen and check the ‘Remove everything’ option. This is the most drastic step you can take, as it wipes all your data (so back up anything important first) and restores your PC to its factory settings, but it’s also the most likely to work. If you can live with wiping your PC, ‘Remove everything’ is a powerful last resort.
 

Tip 14: Repair an unbootable PC
If your PC is really damaged, of course, you may not even be able to boot Windows 8 to access the new Repair options. Don’t panic, though – there’s still hope. Just as long as you can boot from your Windows 8 DVD. Wait for it to launch, select your language and keyboard preferences and click Next, ‘Repair your computer’. Clicking Troubleshoot then reveals the options we’ve just seen. So choosing Refresh will restore Windows but keep your data and personal files, while Reset is far more drastic, removing all your applications, data and custom settings. And if that’s not enough, clicking ‘Advanced options’ reveals more tools. Click Automatic Repair and Windows will try to fix some common startup problems, while other options allow you to use System Restore or Windows Backup to get your PC working again.