OK. My spidey senses are telling me that my OS needs replacing. I keep getting random stops, error messages and unexpected shutdowns. I'm about to start backing everyting up in anticipation for the reinstallation and i have Nero back it up but i dont want to back everything up. I know how to back up selected files etc but i have no clue how to back up programs so that i dont have to install everything seperately. (i have a ton of programs and i dont have a serial written down for ANY of them) what to do?
You seem to be in quite a pickle here... It might be more worth your while to find out what's causing the shutdowns...like heat, bad drivers, malware...etc. Unfortunately due to registry entries and settings, it's not really possible to just copy over programs from one installation to another.
You can use Everest Ultimate Edition (dianostic and benchmarking program) not only to troubleshoot many problems with your computer, but also view many of the serials registered with the programs. The trial version is free, but not all features (possibly not the serial viewing feature) are availible in the trial, but I'm not sure which... http://www.lavalys.com/products/overview.php?pid=3&ps=UE&lang=en
I have tested temperature inside the case etc and thats all fine and there is no sign of malware but bad drivers could be a possibility. I think that all other problems are stemming from the unexpected shutdown issue. i had a problem a while back where windows would not start due to a missing or corrupt file and i think that was due to a shutdown damaging the file on the hard drive. I've also come across this click Here they claim thati can reinstall windows without using recovery console and without losing data or programs. This seems a bit optimistic to me! is it possible?
Yes, that's called a Repair Installation. It's not by using the recovery console to replace files or fix the boot record. Repair installations only remove Windows' core files and replace them with fresh ones from the CD. After that install, you'll need to reinstall your chipset/video/sound drivers (in that order)..and about 100+ Window's updates. This also resets the theme in Windows back to Luna....so if you're using theme software, you'll have to reset that as well.
