Recently I received this from a user in a forum.

“My hard drive has crashed, failed or whatever. I don't know anything about computers so if someone could help me out that would be great. I get prompts that say damaged drive cluster and one that says it has detected problems with 1 or more IDE/SATA hard disks. Also says private data is in danger.

• No new downloads or utilities

• Dell computer with windows vista

• Intel R Core 2 Duo CPU

• When I start up my computer I get

  • PC Performance & Stability Analysis report

  • The is a click here to fix

• There is a pop up that says

  • Critical error

  • Damaged hard Drive Clusters detected

  • Another that says

  • Critical Hard Disk Drive Error

  • Windows vista recovery detected a bad sector on your hard drive.

  • This error may cause the following problems.

    • Data corruption and loss

    • Hard drive inaccessibility

    • System errors and failures

I need a computer
Thanks in advance.”

My reply to this was:

You probably have some virus or spyware as I doubt these are MS Windows errors. These steps will help you find out and restore the system.

• Download Hiren's Boot CD and burn to CD
  Turn off computer and then enter settings (F2, F10, F12 depending on computer model) and make cd/dvd rom the first boot device
  Run a hard-drive test
  Keep Hiren's for future use and look around the CD to see the useful tools
  If the hard drive is bad, backup the important files and buy a new drive from a reputable vendor
  If the hard drive is fine then continue.

• Run Combofix (http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/combofi ... e-combofix)

• Install Malwarebytes (http://www.malwarebytes.org)
  Run Malwarebytes to clean the system
  Uninstall Malwarebytes

• Still infected
  Install Superantispyware (http://www.superantispyware.com)
  Run Superantispyware to clean the system
  Uninstall Superantispyware

• Update virus scanner
  schedule a boot-time scan
  no virus scanner? get Avast (http://www.avast.com)

• Still having trouble
  Backup all important files to another drive and reinstall Windows

That brand-new computer eventually becomes outdated, they all do.  At some point in time you will find yourself asking whether or not to upgrade the system or purchase a new computer and this may seem daunting.  There are a few questions to ask yourself before dropping your hard-earned money on either a new system or an upgrade:

1. Does my computer do what I want it to do?
   • Most users only utilize the internet, which does not require a brand new computer
   • Software becomes increasingly needy as newer versions come out, requiring more system resources.
2. Can I increase my RAM?
   • RAM is like a desk: The more you put on your desk the harder it is to work on anything.
   • RAM is cheap and few computers come installed with the maximum RAM the system is capable of handling.
   • Refer to your owners manual or online documentation to determine RAM capabilities.
3. Does video hang on software or online?
   • Video cards are expensive when they first hit market, but rapidly decrease in price as newer versions come out.
   • Video cards take video processing out of your RAM and place it on the card, requiring fewer system resources and greater speed.
4. Can I use my monitor/keyboard/mouse on a newer computer?
   • New systems often come with everything but you already have everything.  Save money and find a system with only a tower unless you plan on moving your computer to another room.
5. Do I find my system slow and old?
   • Run a few anti-malware programs and disk defrag before committing to spending money on a new system.  You may find you simply have a few virus or spyware programs running causing system slow-downs.

This is not an all-inclusive list, just a few simple questions you can ask before dropping coin.  If you decide to purchase a new system you should figure what to do with the old.  Craiglist is filled with people buying older computers and Goodwill can always use a system to offer to lower income families.  Remember, remove and keep your hard-drive before you get rid of any system.  That old tower could also become a network server in your home, offering the ability to back-up important documents on your systems.  Go to www.woodel.com to see a great tutorial on network servers using Debian Linux.  This website is using one right now!

How often do you ignore Adobe updates?  Probably more than you should.  When Adobe comes out with an update for a program such as Flash Player, they aren't doing it because they feel like annoying you.  They do it because of a security risk that they found and solved.  Do not ignore those pesky little updates that come out of you could find yourself the target of a virus.

http://www.us-cert.gov/current/#adobe_releases_security_advisory_for7