Okay, my friends, once again I have some questions. My laptop froze up today for no particular reason that I could discern, although I suspect it was a corrupt file in Windows 8.1. After much trial and error and blank screens, I had to tell the computer to “refresh Windows”. So after a lengthy wait, it reinstalled Windows 8.0, not 8.1.
Now I have my laptop back, but when I checked for updates, there are 160 important security updates. :smack:
I’m assuming that if I try to update 8.0 back to 8.1, it’s going to want me to download at least some, if not all, of those. Is this a correct assumption? So far, I’ve had no luck getting any of them to download.
On the plus side, it gave me back a year and a half worth of guitar lesson videos.
Did you originally have Windows 8 on it, and recently updated it to 8.1? I’m guessing that’s the case if the restore point took you back to 8.
Anyway, there isn’t much to be gained from installing the updates before you install 8.1. The 8.1 installation will include some of those updates and some will no longer be applicable because they apply only to 8. Run the 8.1 upgrade first, then install any security updates after that.
As for the cause of the freeze, it’s usually a bad driver. Was there any new hardware you added recently?
Nope. This computer is used for surfing and for storing my guitar lesson vids. Luckily, I didn’t lose those (and am backing them all up to a thumb drive as I type this). But there isn’t any external hardware other than a wireless mouse, which has been on here since I bought the thing, connection to the router, and wireless connection to the printer, both of which have been connected for at least a couple of years.
I’ll give the 8.1 update a shot and see if it balks. And thanks for the help. 8.0 reloaded with Norton, so I’ve got to unfuck that. Luckily, I wasn’t using many programs on this other than Skype and AVG, which I can get back.
I just tried to download the upgrade to 8.1, but got a message to download and install all the 8.0 updates first. No freaking way is that happening with 160 updates. I guess the alternative now is to buy 8.1 and do a full install, yes?
If you do a full (clean) install of 8.1, you’ll wipe out any other software and files you have on there. Maybe that’s not a big deal if your files are all backed up and you don’t have a lot of other software.
If it were me, I’d just bite the bullet and install the updates it wants. 160 isn’t that many - a lot of those are little 300 KB patches. Start it off in the evening, check it every so often to make sure there isn’t some prompt it’s waiting on, and you’ll be done tomorrow.
Just run Windows update, reboot, and repeat. They won’t all install successfully the first time because some updates require others to be installed (and system rebooted for it to take effect) first. But if you repeat this a number of times, they’ll all get installed.
In my opinion, you should hold on and wait until Windows 10 comes out. Anyone with a windows 7 or 8 computer will be able to upgrade to 10 for free for the first year.
I would try and get those updates put on first though. If you want to put 8.1 on, that’d also be better than just having 8, but the best solution is to get 10 when it comes out.
I went through the same thing a few weeks ago. If you want 8.1 back, you’ll need to install those updates. It took a few hours to do those updates and a few more to get 8.1 back. So fucking annoying!
Yes, you have to download all the updates before downloading 8.1. (this may also eliminate the error message.)
Windows 10 will also be released later this month, for free for Windows 8/8.1 users. (if your laptop can handle Windows 8, it can handle Windows 10). Maybe you will want to wait.
For some reason I’m under the impression that you can only get the free upgrade if you have Windows 7 or 8.1? I thought I saw that here on the board (that W10 won’t upgrade 8.0). In any case, hopefully W10 will not require the fucking updates for 8.0.
Anyway, the problems I was having before, that occurred after I uninstalled Norton’s crapware and Windows installed two updates that I didn’t ask for, are now gone. I reverted to an earlier stable state, which got rid of the updates, but sadly brought back Norton, but at least I can now see the SDMB again. Also downloaded Malwarebytes and cleaned out 79 problems that had magically accrued since this all started. Total PITA. I should have just dished out the cash for a Mac years ago.
So I’ll have to do a complete clean install, I guess. It’s just not worth it to me to fart around with all of these updates, only to have the computer lose it’s mind again. After two days, I’m sick of it. It’s stable now, so screw it.
