Symptoms When you examine the size of the C:\Windows folder, you may notice that the C:\Windows\winsxs directory seems to use lots of disk space. Cause The Windows component store (C:\Windows\winsxs) directory is used during servicing operations within Windows installations. Servicing operations include, but are not limited to, Windows Update, service pack, and hotfix installations.  The component store contains all the files that are required for a Windows installation. And, any updates to those files are also held within the component store as the updates are installed. This causes the component store to grow over time as more updates, features, or roles are added to the installation. The component store uses…

To perform a repair installation of Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2, follow these steps:   Close all the running  applications. Insert the Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2 DVD in the computer’s DVD drive. In the Setup window, click Install Now.  Note If Windows does not automatically detect the DVD, follow these steps:  Click Start, and then type Drive:\setup.exe in the Start Search box. Note The  Drive placeholder is the drive letter of the computer’s DVD drive. In the Programs list, click Setup.exe.  In the Setup window, click Install Now.  Click Go online to obtain the latest updates for installation (recommended). Type the CD key if you are prompted to do this.…

Disk cloning has become common as IT professionals virtualize physical servers using tools like Sysinternals Disk2vhd and use a master virtual hard disk image as the base for copies created for virtual machine clones. In most cases, you can operate with cloned disk images unaware that they have duplicate disk signatures. However, on the off chance you attach a cloned disk to a Windows system that has a disk with the same signature, you will suffer the consequences of disk signature collision, which renders unbootable any of the disk’s installations of Windows Vista and newer. Reasons for attaching a disk include offline injection of files, offline malware scanning , and – somewhat…

Windows Server Troubleshooting link

For more Microsoft troubleshooting articles, see the Microsoft Support site (http://support.microsoft.com/  ). Table of Contents Active Directory Azure Backup BizTalk Server Data Deduplication Forefront Group Policy Hyper-V Message Analyzer MSDN/TechNet Social Apps Print and Document Services Security SharePoint SQL Azure SQL Server Visual Studio Windows Windows Firewall with Advanced Security Windows Server AppFabric Workflow Manager Configuration Manager Operations Manager Virtual Machine Manager Data Protection Manager Lync Server See Also Other Languages Active Directory Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS) Troubleshooting Survival Guide and Content Map Troubleshooting Domain Join Error Messages Active Directory: Requirements for Creating Objects Root Causes for Slow Boots and Logons (sbsl) Basic Method for Troubleshooting a Domain Controller Group…