Guide on How to Use System Restore on Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista and XP

The System Restore tool in Windows is one of the more helpful utilities available to you and is usually a great first step when you're trying to fix a major problem in Windows.

In a nutshell, what the Windows System Restore tool lets you do is revert to a previous software, registry, and driver configuration called a restore point. It's like "undoing" the last major change to Windows, taking your computer back to the way it was when the restore point was created.

Since a majority of Windows problems involve issues with at least one of those aspects of your operating system, System Restore is a great tool to use early in the troubleshooting process. It also helps that it's really simple to do.

Follow these easy steps to return Windows to a previous, hopefully working, state using System Restore:

Time Required: Using the System Restore tool to undo/reverse changes in Windows usually takes anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes, at least in most cases.

Windows 7, 8 patches on latest AMD, Intel chips will be blocked says Microsoft

When Microsoft said last year that it would restrict the latest Intel Kaby Lake and AMD Ryzen silicon to Windows 10, enthusiasts wondered what would happen if they tried running those PCs using Windows 7 or Windows 8. Now we know: no new patches.

Word of a new Microsoft support document surfaced Thursday, applying the stick to those bold enough to try and pair an older Microsoft OS with the latest silicon. The upshot: Windows will block any updates from appearing on your PC until you upgrade to Windows 10.

Specifically, you may see one of two error messages, Microsoft said: