I am re-posting the question because I have a feeling something is wrong
with the original one. My question is : under" Programs and Features",
there are several options when a program is selected, i.e. "uninstall",
"change", and "repair". I used "uninstall" countless times. What I'd
like to know about is the other 2 options, specifically will a common
user like me be able to utilize them or they should be left to the
experts ? Thank you.
PS. When I checked my original post, the evelope icon in front of the
title has a black dot on it. Does that mean anything?


--
davidjchuang

"davidjchuang" wrote:

I am re-posting the question because I have a feeling something is wrong
with the original one. My question is : under" Programs and Features",
there are several options when a program is selected, i.e. "uninstall",
"change", and "repair". I used "uninstall" countless times. What I'd
like to know about is the other 2 options, specifically will a common
user like me be able to utilize them or they should be left to the
experts ?

Not all programs have these options, it depends on the features of each
program's installer.

A repair installation usually means that corrupted files and settings are
replaced with original ones from the installation media. Sometimes the
entire program is just plainly reinstalled, ie. all files overwritten and
settings returned to default.

The Change option is used for software that can be installed in modules
and/or have different setups, such as a productivity suite where you can
install applications independently. Should you decide to add or remove
components at a later time, the Change install comes in handy.

Neither of these procedures require expert knowledge, so you can safely
experiment with them if you like. Make sure you do not alter something that
you would like to keep the way it is, though.

Charlie42

Thank you, Charlie42 and Shawn. The main reason of this post is my
interest in the "repair" option. I did a sfc a while back. It went 100%,
however it also said that there are corrupted files. Mark, one of your
"resident" experts,said that since it went 100%, there shouldn't be
anythig to worry about. He also said " SFc has been reported as being a
bit flaky in reporting problems". But, that "corrupted files" still
lingers at the back of my mind. Hence this question. The thing is I
still have no idea how to isolate the corrupted files. Tried the
cbs.log, it didn't work ( don't remember exactly what it said). Thank
you again.


--
davidjchuang

davidjchuang;662471 Wrote:
I am re-posting the question because I have a feeling something is wrong
with the original one. My question is : under" Programs and Features",
there are several options when a program is selected, i.e. "uninstall",
"change", and "repair". I used "uninstall" countless times. What I'd
like to know about is the other 2 options, specifically will a common
user like me be able to utilize them or they should be left to the
experts ? Thank you.
PS. When I checked my original post, the evelope icon in front of the
title has a black dot on it. Does that mean anything?

Thank you , Charlie42 and Shawn. Reason of this post is my interest on
the "repair" option. I had done a sfc a littlewhile ago, it went 100%,
but it also reported corrupted files. Mark , one of your contributing
colleagues, said that since it went 100%, there shouldn't be anything to
worry about. He also said " SFC has been reported as being a bit flaky
in reporting problems". Yet, the "corrupted files" still lingers at the
back of my mind, Hence this post. The thing is though, I have no idea
how to isolate the corrupted files. I tried cbs.log, it didn't work (
don't remember what the system said.) Thanks for your time.


--
davidjchuang

"davidjchuang" wrote:

Thank you, Charlie42 and Shawn. The main reason of this post is my
interest in the "repair" option. I did a sfc a while back. It went 100%,
however it also said that there are corrupted files.

The System File Checker tool scans for and reports errors in your operating
system, not the installed software you find in Control Panel Programs. A
repair of one of these, ususally third party, applications is pretty
unlikely to affect what SFC reports.

If SFC picks up any errors, it normally tries to fix them. You should keep
the OS installation media at hand, since you may need to download original
files from it.

In your case, no repair has been done by SFC and from what you are telling
us about the cbs.log file, no errors have been identified either.

Your next option is to run a repair installation of Windows itself. As long
as you do not really experience any problems in day-to-day use of the
computer, I strongly recommend you do not take this step. It is a tedious
and time consuming job, that includes backing up, repairing the OS, patching
the system from scratch and rebuilding your settings. Expect to repair or
reinstall some of your third party applications and drivers as well.

Charlie42

Charlie42;662742 Wrote:
"davidjchuang" wrote:

Thank you, Charlie42 and Shawn. The main reason of this post is my
interest in the "repair" option. I did a sfc a while back. It went
100%,
however it also said that there are corrupted files.

The System File Checker tool scans for and reports errors in your
operating
system, not the installed software you find in Control Panel
Programs. A
repair of one of these, ususally third party, applications is pretty
unlikely to affect what SFC reports.

If SFC picks up any errors, it normally tries to fix them. You should
keep
the OS installation media at hand, since you may need to download
original
files from it.

In your case, no repair has been done by SFC and from what you are
telling
us about the cbs.log file, no errors have been identified either.

Your next option is to run a repair installation of Windows itself.
As long
as you do not really experience any problems in day-to-day use of the
computer, I strongly recommend you do not take this step. It is a
tedious
and time consuming job, that includes backing up, repairing the OS,
patching
the system from scratch and rebuilding your settings. Expect to
repair or
reinstall some of your third party applications and drivers as well.

Charlie42


Thank you for your in-depth explanation. No, I don't think I have
enough ambition to do a repair installation. I'll just leave it the way
it is.


--
davidjchuang