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Fix: The chain of virtual hard disks is inaccessible

September 16th, 2014 by Admin

I have Hyper-V running on a Windows 8 laptop. Within Hyper-V is a Windows 7 Pro virtual machine for test purpose. Everything was working fine until I mounted the VHD file using Disk Management so I can browse the virtual drive in Windows Explorer. I didn’t make any changes and then just dismounted it. Afterwards when I tried to turn on the virtual machine I got an error saying “The chain of virtual hard disks is inaccessible. There was an error opening a virtual hard disk further up the chain“.

hyper-v-error

This should be a known issue with Hyper-V and we can reproduce the error by doing the same things with one of your .vhdx file. Here is how I fix the error:

  1. In the Hyper-V Manager, right-click on the problematic virtual machine and select Settings.

    hyper-v-manager

  2. The Settings dialog for the VM will appear. Under IDE Controller 0, select the Hard Drive. Click on Inspect on your virtual hard disk.

    hyper-v-vm-settings

  3. In the Virtual Hard Disk Properties, you’ll see the error which prevents your VM from powering on. Click Reconnect button.

    virtual-drive-properties

  4. When the Edit Virtual Hard Disk Wizard appears, click on Next.

    reconnect-virtual-drive

  5. Click the Browse button and locate the VHD file for your Hyper-V VM. Check the Ignore ID mismatch checkbox, then click Next.

    reconnect-to-parent-vhd

  6. Click on Finish.

    virtual-drive-wizard

    This should fix your problem. I hope this helps you out if you run into the same problem.

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How to Downgrade from Windows 8 Pro to Windows 7 for Free

August 25th, 2014 by Admin

After the release of Windows 8, most of the new laptops and desktops are shipping with Windows 8 pre-installed. If you’ve become accustomed to Windows 7 and don’t like Windows 8’s new Metro UI, you can downgrade to Windows 7. Windows 8 Pro comes with a feature called Downgrade Rights, which means you can downgrade from Windows 8 to Windows 7 without paying a penny or having to format the hard drive.

If you want to try this, just make sure your new computer has downgrade rights because not all Windows 8 computers are on the list. These rights are available to PCs which come with Windows 8 Pro pre-installed and not for users who have upgraded to Windows 8 using the promo offer. So it is basically only Windows 8 Pro OEM users. You can only downgrade to Windows 7 Professional or Windows Vista Business, not Windows XP. To learn more about downgrade rights, please check out this complete guide from Microsoft.

Tips: You might need to provide your Windows 8 license key for validating your purchase during exercising your Windows 8 Pro downgrade rights. If you’ve lost the key, you can use KeyFinder Plus to recover it from your current Windows 8 installation.

How to Downgrade from Windows 8 Pro to Windows 7 Pro?

The actual downgrade process is tricky and not a straight forward one. You first need to create a recovery drive for your existing Windows 8 in case you want to bring it back to Windows 8 in future. Once done, you need to disable UEFI and enable Legacy/CSM boot support. You will need a Windows 7 Professional DVD. Insert the Windows 7 installation DVD and boot to it. During the Windows 7 setup, you might need to enter the license key to go past the installation. Here you can enter any used Windows 7 key since activation does not happen here.

Now wait for the install process to complete. Once the process is complete, your PC might show activation failed message or it will not be activated. This is because you have used a key which is already in use. For getting a new key, you need to call up Microsoft support and explain to them about your downgrade rights. Have your Windows 8 Pro key ready which you’ll need to prove your PC has downgrade rights.

Once this is validated, you will receive a new activation key for Windows 7. You will need to do this for all PCs which you have downgraded. You can install back Windows 8 anytime using the recovery drive.

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Posted in Others, Tips & Tricks, Windows 7, Windows 8

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Bypass Windows 8 Login Screen on Wake up from Sleep

August 20th, 2014 by Admin

In my previous post I’ve covered how to disable the password login screen in Windows 8, so the computer will automatically logon to Windows 8. Though when you put your computer to sleep, the login screen might pop up after wakeup. In this article I’ll show you 2 methods to bypass Windows 8/8.1 login screen on wake up from sleep or standby.

Method 1: Disable Require Password on Wakeup in Control Panel

  1. Press Windows key + X and select Control Panel.
  2. Set your View by option to Small icons. Then select Power Options from the list of computer settings.

    control-panel

  3. From the Power Options window, click the link labeled Require a password on wakeup on the left-hand side.

    power-options

  4. Click the “Change settings that are currently unavailable” link. Now, you can select Don’t require a password under Password protection on wake up. Click on Save changes.

    require-password-on-wakeup

Method 2: Disable Require Password on Wakeup in Charms Bar

  1. From the Start Screen, open the Charms Bar (Windows key + C).
  2. Go to Settings -> Change PC settings.
  3. Go to Accounts -> Sign-in Options.

    change-password-policy

  4. Under the Password Policy section, click on the Change button to get “Password is not required when waking this PC from sleep”.
  5. Reboot your system and it won’t ask you for a password next time you wake it up from sleep.

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3 Options to Disable “Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to Log on” in Windows

August 19th, 2014 by Admin

How to bypass the Ctrl+Alt+Del logon prompt? One way of adding an additional layer of security to your computer is by enabling secure logon. By enabling secure logon, users are required to press Ctrl+Alt+Del before they can enter their credentials and log on. However, if you’re tried of pressing Ctrl+Alt+Del every time you turn on the computer, there are 3 easy options to disable the secure logon.

Option 1: Disable Secure Logon in the User Accounts Applet

  1. Press Windows key + R to bring up the Run box. Type netplwiz or Control Userpasswords2 and press Enter.
  2. When the User Accounts applet opens, click on Advanced tab.

    secure-logon

  3. Uncheck the Require users to press Ctrl+Alt+Delete checkbox. Click OK. The next time you start the computer it will boot directly to the login credential dialog box, without prompting your to press Ctrl+Alt+Del.

Option 2: Disable Secure Logon through Group Policy

  1. Press Windows key + R to bring up the Run box. Type secpol.msc and press Enter to open the Local Security Policy Editor.
  2. Navigate to Security Settings -> Local Policies -> Security Options.
  3. In the right pane, double click on Interactive logon: Do not require CTRL+ALT+DEL.
  4. Select and set the radio button of Enabled.

    disable-ctrl-alt-del

  5. Save the policy change by clicking OK.

Option 3: Disable Secure Logon through Windows Registry

  1. Press Windows key + R to bring up the Run box. Type regedit and press Enter to open the Registry Editor.
  2. In the left pane of Registry Editor, navigate to the following key:

    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System

  3. You should see a DWORD (32-bit) entry named DisableCAD in the right pane. Double-click it and change its value from 0 to 1.

    DisableCAD

  4. Close Registry Editor and you’re done!

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Posted in Others, Tips & Tricks, Windows 10, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows Vista, Windows XP

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How to Fix the Error: Outlook data file cannot be accessed

August 12th, 2014 by Admin

When you try to send or to receive email in Outlook 2010 or 2013, you may receive one of these error messages:

0x8004010F: Outlook data file cannot be accessed.
or
0x8004010F: The operation failed. An object could not be found.

This proved to be a profile issue with Outlook application, which can be resolved by re-creating your Outlook profile and re-configuring the email accounts. However, some of you might have multiple accounts and the thought of re-creating each one is just far too much. Here is an easier trick to fix this issue.

Tips: If you forgot your PST file password, or need to retrieve email account passwords that are stored locally, the Outlook Password Recovery program can be of help!

How to Fix the Error: Outlook data file cannot be accessed?

A missing or corrupt Outlook data file (also known as PST file, Personal Folders File) can also result in the 0x8004010F error when attempting to send and receive emails. Simply set your problematic email account to use a new PST file for storing emails and this would fix your issue. Here are step-by-step instructions:

Go to the Control Panel and clicking on Mail.

control-panel

In the Mail Setup window, click on E-mail Accounts to open the Account Settings dialog box.

mail-setup

If you have multiple accounts in Outlook, you may notice several email accounts listed. In the E-mail tab, select your problematic email account and click on Change Folder button at the bottom.

outlook-email-accounts

Select the Inbox folder under a different personal folders (PST) file. If there is only one PST file out there, click on New Outlook Data File button to create a new one. Then select the Inbox folder in the newly created PST file. Click OK.

new-delivery-location

Close the Account Settings window and attempt to “Send/Receive All Folders”, it should be working now! Hope this trick helps whoever gets this issue in the future.

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How to Reset or Change Outlook PST Password with Ease

August 7th, 2014 by Admin

When you add a password to a PST file, every time you start Outlook, a dialog box will ask you for the password. Without entering the password correctly, you will not be able to see any information in Outlook at all.

It’s a good practice to change your password regularly. In this article we’ll show you how to reset or change Outlook PST password, if you know your current password. If you can’t remember the password, see Recover forgotten PST password for instructions.

How to Reset or Change Outlook PST Password?

First of all, you need to open the Account Settings dialog in Outlook application. In Outlook 2007, you can access it by clicking on Tools menu and then select the Account Settings option. In Outlook 2013 or 2010, click on the File tab, and then click on Info. On the right hand side of the screen, click on the Account Settings button.

outlook-account-settings

When the Account Settings dialog opens, click on the Data Files tab. It will show you a list of the PST files that are in use by MS Outlook. Make sure that you highlight the PST file that you want to change the password for and then click on Settings.

The Outlook Data File screen opens. Click Change Password. A new window will appear asking you for three pieces of information. If your PST file is not password protected, just leave the old password blank. If you already have a password for your PST file but want to remove it, enter the current password in the “Old password” field and leave the other two fields blank.

changepstpassword

Make sure that the checkbox for “Save this password in your password list” is left unchecked. This will ensure that a password will always have to be entered when you start Outlook. Click OK and close out of the remaining open screens. You’ve now successfully reset / changed your Outlook PST password!

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3 Methods to Disable NumLock on a Laptop Keyboard

July 21st, 2014 by Admin

Due to their compact size, many laptops don’t include a dedicated numeric keypad on the right side of the keyboard like a desktop computer. To conserve space, the keys of numeric keypad are shared keys with a block of keys in the center of the keyboard.

To use the numeric keypad on a laptop, you need to enable the NumLock key on your keyboard. NumLock key is used to convert part of the main keyboard to act as a numeric keypad rather than letters. When enabled, NumLock lets you use the 7-8-9, u-i-o, j-k-l and m keys as a numeric keypad.

numlock

However, most people do not realize the NumLock key is on their laptop keyboard, and sometimes this will only cause confusion once it’s activated accidentally. For example, this may cause you to enter your password incorrectly at Windows login screen. So here I’m going to show you 3 methods to disable NumLock on a laptop keyboard.

Method 1: Disable NumLock with Fn key

Most laptops have a Fn key you can press in conjunction with other keys to turn off the NumLock feature. But the precise way to disable NumLock varies depending on your laptop model. The Number Lock indicator will light up when the NumLock is enabled and will be unlit whenever the NumLock is disabled. Here are the most common keyboard shortcuts to enable/disable NumLock:

Fn + F11 (Acer, Toshiba, Samsung)
Shift + Num Lock
Fn + Num Lock (Sony, Gateway)
Fn + F11 + Scroll lock
Fn + F8 (HP)
Ctrl + F11
Fn + Shift + Num Lock
Fn + F4 (Dell)
Fn + Nmlk (Lenovo, ASUS)

After pressing the keyboard shortcuts to enable the NumLock, press the shortcuts again and it will disable NumLock.

Method 2: Disable NumLock with a Registry Fix

The status of the NumLock key is specific for each user, and NumLock is disabled by default. If you want the NumLock key enabled for use before a user presses CTRL+ALT+DEL to log on, you must use Registry Editor to change the default behavior.

Here is a simple registry fix to disable the NumLock key at startup:

  1. Press Windows + R to bring up the Run box. Type regedit and press Enter to open the Windows Registry Editor.
  2. In the Registry Editor, open the following registry key.
    HKEY_USER\.Default\Control Panel\Keyboard\
  3. Within the keyboard folder, you should have a string value named “InitialKeyboardIndicators” with a value of 0, 1, or 2. Change the value to 1, and you’re done. Below is the explanation of each of these values:

    0 = Num Lock is turned OFF after the logon.
    1 = Disable Num Lock.
    2 = Numlock is turned ON after the logon.

    disable-numlock

Method 3: Disable NumLock in the BIOS

In addition to the above methods, users can also change how their computer handles the NumLock when the computer first boots up through the BIOS.

  1. Turn on your computer, and as soon as you see the initial POST boot screen, press the designated key for entering the BIOS Setup.
  2. Locate the the “NumLock State,” “NumLock Key“, “Boot Up NumLock Status” or a similar option and change the value to Disabled or Off. In my example, there is a option labelled “NumLock Key” under the Boot tab, select it and press Enter to select Off.

    turn-off-numlock

  3. Save your changes and exit the BIOS.

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