Windows

Registry Edit
1. Click 'Start' and then click 'Run.'
2. Type 'regedit.' This will open the Windows Registry.

3. Navigate to 'HKEY_Local_Machine>System>CurrentControlSetup>Services>Browser>Parameters' by following each level in the navigation tree on the left of the window.
4. Right click on the key 'IsDomainMaster' in the right side of the window, click 'Modify' and set the data entry to 'False.'
5. Restart your computer.
Patch
6. Navigate to Microsoft Support article 894391 (see Resources).
7. Select the download appropriate for your computer's operating system. You will now be directed to the specific download site based on your previous selection.
8. Click 'Download' and then 'Save File.' Double click on the downloaded file to open the installation wizard.
9. Follow the steps of the installation wizard to install the patch.

1. Insert the Windows XP disc into the computer. Restart the computer, press any key when prompted to boot from CD, and press 'R' at the first screen to access the Recovery Console.
2. Type 'diskpart' and press 'Enter.'

3. Type 'select disk x' (replacing 'x' with the drive number upon which you wish to install XP) and press 'Enter.'
4. Type 'convert mbr' and press 'Enter.'

Check your printer cable
1. Make sure your printer cable is securely connected between the PC and printer. The cable should be less than 10 feet (3 m) long.
2. Check for any bent pins on the printer cable. If you find any, straighten them with needle-nose pliers.

3. If you aren't sure about your cable, try swapping it with one from another printer. If the printer suddenly starts working, you know that your original cable is defective.
4. If you're replacing a parallel cable, be sure to get an IEEE 1284 (look at the packaging label or ask a salesperson). Older cables often won't work in newer printers, even though they might look like they should.
Update and reload your drivers
5. Check the Web site for your printer's manufacturer and download the latest version of the driver software for your printer.
6. Open the Printers folder through the Start, Settings menus.
7. Right-click on the icon for your printer.
8. Choose Delete.
9. Double-click on the Add Printer icon in the Printers folder.
10. Follow the Add Printer wizard directions to reinstall the driver software.
Verify printer properties
11. Open the Printers folder through the Start, Settings menus.
12. Right-click on the icon for your printer, then select Properties.
13. Verify that all of your printer's properties are configured as recommended by your printer's manufacturer. You can look up these guidelines in the documentation that came with your printer or, if you've misplaced it, on the manufacturer's Web site.
Check your parallel port settings
14. Right-click on My Computer and select Properties (in Windows 2000, you'll need to then click on the Hardware tab).
15. Go to Device Manager.
16. Double-click on Ports (COM and LPT).
17. Double-click on Printer Port (LPT1) and select the Resources tab.
18. Check the 'Conflicting device list' box for an interrupt request line (IRQ) conflict. No other device should be using the same IRQ as the printer port.
19. If you find a conflict, disable the offending device or assign it a new IRQ. To disable a device, find it in Device Manager, open its Properties dialog box, select the General tab and check 'Disable in this hardware profile.'
Remove temporary files and spool files
20. Windows must be off, so restart your computer to a DOS command prompt. In Windows 95, press F8 when you see the words 'Starting Windows 95' appear, then choose Safe Mode Command Prompt Only from the Startup menu.
21. In Windows 98, restart your computer, press and hold down the Control key after your computer completes the Power-On Self- Test, then choose Safe Mode Command Prompt Only from the Startup menu.
22. At the command prompt, type the word 'set,' then press Enter.
23. Write down the location (the DOS file path) of the TEMP variable.
24. Change your directory to the folder you noted in step 4. For example, if TEMP is set to C:WindowsTemp, you'll type 'cd windowstemp' and then press Enter.
25. Once you're in the Temp folder, you can delete any temporary files that might be there, by typing 'del *.tmp' and then pressing Enter. Don't delete these files while Windows is running, because Windows 95/98 or a Windows-based program might be using one of them.
26. Type 'cd windowsspoolprinters' and then press Enter to switch to the spool folder.
27. Delete any spool files you find here by typing 'del *.spl' and then pressing Enter.

1. Click 'Start,' and enter 'cmd' into the search box at the bottom of the menu. When the 'cmd.exe' file appears in the search list, right-click the file and choose 'Run as administrator' from the menu. Then click 'Continue' in the window that comes up to get to a Windows command prompt.
2. Enter 'netsh winsock reset' at the prompt, and press 'Enter.' A confirmation message appears in the window, followed by a new command prompt.

3. Enter 'exit' by the prompt. Press 'Enter' to exit the window. The Winsock2 file resets itself.

Rename a Copy of the Most-Recent Adobe Flash OCX File
1. Start Windows Explorer and look for files named \'Flash*.ocx\' in the folder C:\\Windows\\System32\\Macromed\\Flash\\. (\'Flash*.ocx\' means any file whose name starts with the letters \'Flash\' followed by 1 or more digits and/or letters, such as \'Flash9.ocx\' or \'Flash10b.ocx\'). If there is more than 1 such file, identify the file with the most-recent date.
2. Click once on the file's icon and press \'Ctrl C,\' and then press \'Ctrl V.\' (This creates the file \'Copy of Flash*.ocx;\' its actual name is based on the name of the file you just copied.) Click on the new file's name (shown below its icon) and enter \'Flash\' as the new name.

3. Close all open applications and reboot your computer. Rebooting ensures all running software that's not visible to you and that relies on Adobe Flash software is restarted automatically.
4. After the computer restarts, resume running the software you believe was reporting the \'Flash.ocx\' error. If the software no longer reports that error, you have been successful and can skip the remaining steps listed below.
Uninstall Adobe Flash Player Using Its Uninstaller
5. Download the Adobe Flash Player Uninstaller (see link in Resources). Save the Uninstaller on your desktop.
6. Close all applications, including those whose icons are shown in the Windows' system tray. To ensure all applications are closed, press \'Ctrl Alt Delete.\' In the Windows Task Manager under the Applications tab, click \'End Task\' to stop any additional running applications.
7. Start the Adobe Flash Player Uninstaller. When Adobe Flash Player Uninstaller finishes, delete the Uninstaller file from your Desktop.
Install the Latest Adobe Flash Player
8. Download Adobe Flash Player Installer (see link in Resources). Save the Installer on your desktop. Start the Adobe Flash Player Installer. This installs the latest version of Adobe Flash Player on your computer. When Adobe Flash Player Uninstaller finishes, delete the Uninstaller file from your Desktop.
9. Close all open applications and reboot your computer. Rebooting ensures all running software that's not visible to you and that relies on Adobe Flash software is automatically restarted.
10. After the computer restarts, resume running the software that you believe was reporting the \'Flash.ocx\' error. If the software again reports that error, you must either upgrade the software so that it is compatible with the latest version of Adobe Flash Player, or remove it and replace it with other software that is compatible with the latest version of Adobe Flash Player.

1. Click on the 'Start' menu, then 'Settings' and then 'Control Panel.'
2. Double-click on 'System' and then 'Device Manager.' The System Properties window opens.

3. Click on the ' ' sign next to 'Disk Drives.'
4. Double-click on the first driver that appears under the Disk Drives heading.
5. Click on the 'Driver' tab and then click 'Update Driver.'
6. Click 'Next' and then click 'Next' again.
7. Check the box next to 'Microsoft Windows Update' and then click 'Next.'
8. Repeat the steps for every driver listed in the System Properties window. This should only take a few minutes.
9. Restart your computer.

1. Click the Start button in the lower-left corner of your computer screen. On the Start menu, select Run. A command screen should pop up.
2. In the command line, type the following: 'services.msc' and press Enter. The services window should now appear with programs listed in alphabetical order.

3. Look down the page, and select 'Windows Audio' and press Enter.
4. In the new window, you will see an option for 'Startup Type.' Be sure this is set to Automatic.
5. Under 'Startup Type,' you will see the line 'Service Status.' Click the Start button.
6. Restart the computer, and the sound should be working again.
7. If this did not fix the problem, there might be another program turned off that also needs to be running. The following programs may need to be started to allow the Windows Audio Service to function properly: Plug and Play, Windows Audio Endpoint Builder, DCOM Server Process Launcher, Remote Procedure Call (RPC), and Multimedia Class Scheduler. Go back and first make sure all of these programs are also running. To do this, repeat the steps listed for the Windows Audio Service for all the programs mentioned, and then restart the computer.

1. Ensure that your computer system has problems due to errors in the registry. Problems related to errors be unresponsive programs, lagging Internet service and computer lockups.
2. Download the CCleaner software (see Resources below).

3. Install CCleaner onto your computer by following the installation instructions.
4. Open and run the CCleaner software.
5. Click on the “Registry” symbol button, which is a blue cube icon on the left side of the program screen.
6. Check all of the options that you want to scan for errors under the “Registry Integrity” section.
7. Click on the “Scan for Issues” button, which is located on the bottom portion of the program screen. After the scan completes, all of the errors in your computer registry will appear in the main window displaying the “Problem,” Data” and “Registry Key.”

1. Shut off any anti-spyware programs running on your computer. If you are running Windows Defender, right-click its icon on the task bar and click 'Shut down Microsoft Antispyware.' Refer to the manufacturer's documentation to shut down other anti-spyware programs on your computer.
2. Try downloading and running Windows Live Messenger again. Move to the next step to clean your hard disk if you are still running into the 1603 error.

3. Click the Windows 'Start' button and click the 'Control Panel.' Click 'Performance and Maintenance' and click 'Free Up Space on Your Hard Disk.' This launches the Disk Cleanup utility.
4. Place a check on the following categories on the disk tab: 'Downloaded Program Files,' 'Temporary Internet Files,' 'Temporary Files,' 'Temporary Offline Files,' 'Offline Files.' Click 'OK' to delete unnecessary files from those locations and click 'Yes' to begin the disk cleanup.
5. Try performing the installation again.

1. Try to use the installer on another Windows system to see if the error is also present. If there is an error, most likely the CD is damaged or, if you downloaded the software, likely the setup file is corrupted. Obtain a new copy of the installer by downloading it from an official source. Even if you downloaded it before, there is a chance that the download finished prematurely resulting in a corrupted file.
2. If the installer runs fine on another system, the problem may be on your system. Perform a disk cleanup on your system by going to the 'Start' menu, clicking 'Run' and typing 'cleanmgr.exe.' Choose 'Drive C:' for cleanup, and check the box to clear temporary files. Restart your computer and try to run the installer again.

3. If the installer uses the Windows Installer engine, the engine may be corrupted or outdated. Obtain the latest Windows Installer.
4. If there are still problems, download a registry cleaner such as RegCure or Registry Mechanic and scan your computer for registry errors by following the interface after you install the application. Restart your computer after the registry scan is complete and test the installer to see if the error happens again.