Lately , Cortana has been been MIA and I have seen nothing as to what is happening or how to fix it . Inexplicably today it has reappeared and all systems seem normal . Just the fact that Cortana is missing doesn't bother me but along with that it also means I can not access Control Center or apps . When shutting down , the only option is to CTRL - ALT - Delete to shut it down and this can take a few tries sometimes which is hugely frustrating , especially when you are in a hurry to leave and don't want to leave things running . Does anyone either , know why this ? Or has it happened to you in the past ? It seems very odd that it goes missing for over a week and then just magically reappears like nothing ever happened . Anyone ?
Hello, erratic problems can be much harder to track down, and ones with no error message or precise and consistent symptoms very difficult to research.
So there was a time in the past when all was well.
Had you periodically used disk imaging, you could have restored an image from a date at which you didn't have the problem, so I'm assuming you haven't yet 'graduated' to using that invaluable tool, which allows you to restore your PC without technical help. (Hint )
So: some basic possibilities:
- corruption (disk/files)
- some change you've made which interferes with the OS
- settings
- sthg installed
So, I suggest you establish a base line:
1. Run
chkdsk C: /F
from an admin command prompt (Windows key + X, Command prompt (admin) )
(It's essential to know your disk is ok before undertaking repairs).
If that's ok
- Try a clean boot.
If the symptoms remain,
- See what happens in Safe Mode
Please report what you find with those.
Thanks for the reply Dalchina , very much appreciated . Some of what you have suggested I have never tried before , especially Disk imaging . Settings should be all default as I am certain I haven't changed anything . I will look into the other possibilities . As you may have guessed , I am fairly novice , but learning , when it comes to computers and how to keep them healthy ....any and all advice is definitely appreciatedHello, erratic problems can be much harder to track down, and ones with no error message or precise and consistent symptoms very difficult to research.
So there was a time in the past when all was well.
Had you periodically used disk imaging, you could have restored an image from a date at which you didn't have the problem, so I'm assuming you haven't yet 'graduated' to using that invaluable tool, which allows you to restore your PC without technical help. (Hint )
So: some basic possibilities:
- corruption (disk/files)
- some change you've made which interferes with the OS
- settings
- sthg installed
So, I suggest you establish a base line:
1. Run
chkdsk C: /F
from an admin command prompt (Windows key + X, Command prompt (admin) )
(It's essential to know your disk is ok before undertaking repairs).
If that's ok
- Try a clean boot.
If the symptoms remain,
- See what happens in Safe Mode
Please report what you find with those.
Hi, Here's how to do a clean boot (a normal diagnostic procedure built into Windows, but rather clumsily - especially in Win 10)
How to perform a Clean boot in Windows 10 - TechNet Articles - United States (English) - TechNet Wiki
Disk imaging - rather than use windows tools, most people prefer 3rd party tools
- the more technical Macrium Reflect
- the easier to use Aomei Backupper
Some comment that Macrium is the most reliable in different hardware configurations and mix of disk formats.
I use Aomei on an old laptop and have used several other programs previously.. on my new laptop I'll find out if the above comment is true.
Disk imaging has saved me a huge amount of time and difficulty, sometimes after the most innocuous change.
Thank you Dalchina for that invaluable info .....I assume I would only do a clean boot if I am experiencing problems at startup and that link takes me right to the finish . One thing that puzzles me though ,you mention my best friend should be either a search engine or a disk imaging program . Isn't Google Chrome a search engine ? Sorry for being technologically stunted , I'm 62 and only started using a computer about 3 1/2 years ago . I do okay with it but there are some things that are beyond what I can take in I did do a chkdsk diagnostic and it found no problems . Thank you for the great response to my question , I am very appreciative of the wisdom .
Hi, the idea of doing a clean boot is to start to eliminate possible conflicting programs. That is, get nearer to how Windows was when it was first installed - you said Cortana reappeared, which suggests there's not a hard fault (unless it's somehow been magically repaired).
After you tried that you need to manually reverse those changes to boot normally.
Chkdsk checks there's no disk corruption, a basic start, so it's good that's fine.
Next to do is SFC /scannow which checks your system files.
Google Chrome is a browser, like Firefox, Edge, Internet Explorer, Safari and many others.
Browsers use one of many search engines at a given time.
Search engines include e.g. Bing, Yahoo, Google, DuckDuckGo (which is anonymous) and more.. you can choose which you use.
If - as is quite likely- none of the above solve the problem, there is one good repair technique new in Win 10 which should (provided it's not a program conflict- hence we try the clean boot).
It's a question of logical progression from the easier and shorter onwards.
