1. Right Click on the My Computer icon on the desktop and select Properties It opens a window as shown in this figure. 2. Click on Hardware, Click on the Device Manager. 3. Window opens up showing all the devices connected to the computer.4, Click on the + beside the ports to see the list of ports. 5. Click on the COM port and then click on the properties. 6. The Properties dialog box gives all the details of the COM port. Clicking on the Resources displays the Interrupt (IRQ) settings and the Address settings for this COM port.# Default Port Settings On Any Computer Port IRQ 1/O Address (Hex) ype {Serial {Serial ‘COM3 TRQ4 0358 — 03EF Serial [coma IRQS ‘O2E8 — 02EF Serial LPTL IRQ7 (0378 037F Parallel LPT2 IRQS 0278 — 027F ParallelWeek 2 This Week Learning Outcome To Understand: > Diagnostic Software Software Diagnostic Failure to Start GUI Safe Mode In some cases, Windows 9x or 2000 could simply fail to load the graphical user interface. This problem might occur due to a missing or corrupted display driver. To determine if this is the cause, restart the computer and boot in Safe mode. A standard VGA driver will be loaded, bypassing potentially problematic third-party, 32-bit video drivers. If the system will boot in Safe mode, use the Device Manager to locate and/or reinstall the nonfunctioning video adapter. If the display driver is not the problem, turn your attention to other potentially corrupt drivers. Devices with corrupt drivers will be indicated in the Device Manager by a warning icon. Another, more serious cause of a failure to load the GUI is a missing or corrupted GUI file. That is, during startup, Windows could simply be unable to load a file responsible for producing the interface, such as GDIEXE or the Windows kernel. If you are using Windows 2000, restart the computer with the boot disks and try to repair the problem using the emergency repair process. If the problem persists or if you are using Windows 9x, reinstall the operating system. To do this, boot from the Windows startup disk(s) and install the OS in the same location as the nonworking OS. Setup will overwrite the Windows system files while leaving other files and applications intact, Note that you will lose all OS-related configurations such as sereen colors and Windows network settings. As discussed in Chapter 9, both Windows 9x and Windows 2000 can run in Safe mode. This is an excellent diagnostic tool, and you can use it by selecting Safe Mode from the Windows Startup menu (Windows 9x) or advanced startup options (Windows 2000). However, if Windows detects a potentially fatal driver error on startup, it might boot in Safe mode automatically. This action is typically accompanied by a message indicating the source of the problem. Use the Device Manager to find nonfunctioning hardware and to replace bad drivers. If you are using ‘Windows 9x and suspect a problem with a 16-bit driver, use the System Configuration utility to bypass suspect 16-bit drivers, then restart thecomputer. Windows Protection Errors Windows protection errors occur during startup, before the GUI is loaded, when a 32-bit virtual driver fails to load. The failed driver will typically be indicated along with the error message. Restart the computer in Safe mode. If the OS loads properly, use the Device Manager to reinstall corrupted or missing drivers. If you are using Windows 9x and cannot determine which driver is at fault, restart the computer using step-by-step confirmation. This choice will allow you select which drivers to process and will allow you to view the success or failure of each. Once you have determined the source, replace the driver. If the OS will not load in Safe mode, there could be an error with the standard VGA driver or other Safe mode device driver. You will need to replace the driver by copying it from the installation disk into the WINDOWSISYSTEM folder. If you are using Windows 9x, you can do this using the EXTRACT command from the boot disk. If you are using Windows 2000, boot from the startup disks and select the Repair option. A Device Referenced in SYSTEM.INI or Registry Could Not Be Found During Windows 9x startup, you could receive a message stating “ device referenced in SYSTEM.INI or registry could not be found” or “The Windows registry or System.ini file refers to this device file, but the device file no longer exists.” These messages indicate that a file or device is listed in the SYSTEM.INI file or registry but Windows could not find it. For example, the SYSTEM.INI file could refer to a driver called DRIVER.DRV. If Windows cannot find DRIVER.DRV, one of these messages will be generated. The most common cause of this problem is that an application or device has been removed fiom the system, but references to it have been left in either the SYSTEM.INI file or the registry. ‘These errors are typically nonfatal, meaning that the computer will continue to boot after the error. When the error occurs, note the referenced file or device. If this file is required for a device or application in Windows 9x, use SYSEDIT or Notepad to open SYSTEM.INI. Determine where the referenced file should be located. Next, check for the presence of that file in the proper location. If it doesn’t exist, reinstall or copy it. If it does exist, it might be corrupted and will have to be replaced, When you are finished, restart the computer. If the problem persists or if the referenced file is not needed, open the SYSTEM.INI file and place a semicolon (;) in front of the line referencing the problem file. This symbol instructs Windows to skip over that line during startup. If the problem still persists or if you are using Windows 2000, you might need to look at registry entries. Before you open theregistry and remove or change entries, make a backup copy of the registry that you can restore if more serious problems occur. Use the Registry Editor to search for and remove the referenced entries. One of the most common causes of this referencing error is deleting an application rather than uninstalling it. When you uninstall an application, its files are removed from the computer, its references are removed from the registry and SYSTEM.INI files, and its listing in the Programs menu is removed. If you simply delete an application's files, these references remain in the system. You should always remove applications using the manufacturer’s uninstall utility or the Windows Uninstall utility, located in the Add/Remove Programs dialog box. Corrupted Swap File Recall that Windows 9x and 2000 can use space on the hard drive to store temporary data that will not fit in regular RAM. This space is the swap file, and it can become corrupted just like any other file on the hard drive When there is a swap file problem, you will typically be notified by a “Swapfile Corrupt” error message. However, swap file problems can also manifest themselves as other problems, such as a system that frequently “hangs,” or locks up. Fortunately, corrupt swap file problems are easy to resolve, If Windows is configured to use a swap file but one doesn’t exist, Windows will automatically generate it at startup. To force Windows 2000 to generate a new swap file, simply reboot the system. In Windows 9x, boot the computer using a boot disk (so that Windows doesn’t load), locate the existing swap file, and delete it. This file is called WIN386.SWP in Windows 9x.Once the file is deleted, restart the computer. Note that corrupted files sometimes indicate a failing hard drive. Run Scandisk to locate and eliminate other disk-related problems. It might seem like a trick, but it really is this simple: All you have to do to resolve a swap file error in Windows 9x or Windows 2000 is delete the existing swap file and restart the computer. Don't dismiss “Delete the swap file” as the correct answer on the exam simply because it sounds too easy. Your knowledge of the information presenting in the preceding subsections should allow you to provide solutions to the following Scenario & Solution questions Software DiagnosticFailure to Start GUI Safe Mode In some cases, Windows 9x or 2000 could simply fail to load the graphical user interface. This problem might occur due to a missing or corrupted display driver. To determine if this is the cause, restart the computer and boot in Safe mode. A standard VGA driver will be loaded, bypassing potentially problematic third-party, 32-bit video drivers. If the system will boot in Safe mode, use the Device Manager to locate and/or reinstall the nonfunctioning video adapter. If the display driver is not the problem, turn your attention to other potentially corrupt drivers. Devices with corrupt drivers will be indicated in the Device Manager by a warning icon. Another, more serious cause of a failure to load the GUI is a missing or corrupted GUI file. That is, during startup, Windows could simply be unable to load a file responsible for producing the interface, such as GDLEXE or the Windows kernel. If you are using Windows 2000, restart the computer with the boot disks and try to repair the problem using the emergency repair process. If the problem persists or if you are using Windows 9x, reinstall the operating system. To do this, boot from the Windows startup disk(s) and install the OS in the same location as the nonworking OS. Setup will overwrite the Windows system files while leaving other files and applications intact, Note that you will lose all OS-related configurations such as screen colors and Windows network settings. As discussed in Chapter 9, both Windows 9x and Windows 2000 can run in Safe mode. This is an excellent diagnostic tool, and you can use it by selecting Safe Mode from the Windows Startup menu (Windows 9x) or advanced startup options (Windows 2000). However, if Windows detects a potentially fatal driver error on startup, it might boot in Safe mode automatically. This action is typically accompanied by a message indicating the source of the problem. Use the Device Manager to find nonfunctioning hardware and to replace bad drivers. If you are using Windows 9x and suspect a problem with a 16-bit driver, use the System Configuration utility to bypass suspect 16-bit drivers, then restart the computer. Windows Protection Errors Windows protection errors occur during startup, before the GUI is loaded, when a 32-bit virtual driver fails to load, The failed driver will typically be indicated along with the error message. Restart the computer in Safe