What can I do when features of Windows occasionally crash
or act unpredictably?

WINDOWS XP USERS:

Click START > Click Run > Type CMD and press Enter > Type SFC /SCANNOW And press Enter.

WINDOWS VISTA OR 7 USERS:

Click START > Type CMD > Right-click the cmd.exe icon at the top of the search results list and click Run as administrator > Type SFC /SCANNOW And press Enter.

This will run the System File Checker which analyzes your Windows installation to see if the Windows Registry or other Windows files or settings are missing or corrupt. You may be prompted to insert your XP, Vista, or Windows 7 disk as access to original files may be required.

The process may take 5 minutes or 45 minutes, depending on what is found. If you are immediately told that a restart is required due to a recent Windows Update, perform the restart and then run the check.