Error 233011

[pr0p5man]

the new speeds are pretty much on par with the previous one.
and yes they can vary from hour to hour, all depends on how many users are on your network, how many connections in the neighbourhood are on the same node, how that node connects to the local exchange, and so forth - in short, an absolute mine-field of variables, with everyone vying for top spot.

wireless anything (TV , radio, internet) always works best pointing down, that’s why they always put antennas on top of things like buildings and mountains.
so having your PC almost directly above the transmitting modem is probably the worst location. instead of direct signals, it would be getting bounce-back signals of walls and the like.

how long as this video blurring issue been going one?
any connection with extra users on the network, or new devices in the house?
is it only the one web site with the video course giving you issues? if so, see if they have a support page and contact them, maybe they have made soem changes recently.

to rule out connection speed (or lack of) being your root cause, temporarily moving the PC to the modem and connecting via an ethernet cable would verify that.

the MBT report shows system file corruption.
try these from an elevated command prompt;
[ul]
[li]chkdsk c: /r[/li][li]sfc /scannow[/li][li]dism /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth[/li][li]dism /online /cleanup-image /startcomponentcleanup /resetbase[/li][/ul]

still waiting on the Speccy report.

I’m not sure how long the video blurring issue has been going on. I’ve been really aware of it relatively recently, as the intensity of the blurring has worsened, if not the duration of it. The failure of the videos is more recent, which is where the Error code “this video file cannot be played” comes in. There’s no connection with extra users, or new devices. The art school website was my first port of call, but they were unable to help, apart from a suggestion to change browser, but that made no difference. They are, primarily, a bricks and mortar art school, and host live art classes. The video subscription service was set up during the pandemic, and subscribers are from all parts of the UK, with some in the USA, Canada, and Western Europe.

If it’s possible, could I not temporarily move modem to PC?

I’m sorry, but what is an elevated command prompt?

The Speccy report is on the clipboard. How do I get it to you? The only options appear to be Delete, Pin, or Clear All.

[Bruce]

moving the PC to the modem is best as that is the point where the modem joins the outside world via the phone cable.
if there is a phone point upstairs near the PC, then yes, you could instead move the modem to the PC, and connect the PC straight to the modem.

an elevated command prompt is what used to be called the DOS prompt, and you want ‘g o d mode’ to get more privileges.
easiest way is to click on the Start button, on the keyboard, just start typing cmd, under Best Match will be Command Prompt, in the right column, hit Run As Admin.

as to Speccy, click File > Publish Snapshot (hit Yes if prompted to proceed with publish) > Copy to Clipboard > Close.
now you can paste that link into your next post.

[pr0p5man]

http://speccy.piriform.com/results/QkyXIlREEXdGKzlX3puOOWG

[pr0p5man]

OK, command results as follows:-

chkdsk - type of file system is NTFS. Cannot lock current drive. Cannot run because volume is in use by another process (it then prompted me to schedule this volume to be checked the next time the system restarted (Y/N), to which I answered “N”)

sfc - Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files and successfully repaired them.

Both dism queries returned Error 87, as both options were unknown.

Haven’t had a chance yet to move modem to PC.

[Bruce]

nothing major stands out from the Speccy report.
your BIOS is very old and a newer version may have bug fixes, security patches, and better support for GPU’s.

with the chkdsk command, answer Y and reboot.
if SFC found system file corruption, it’ll be good to check the drives integrity as well.

as to the DISM commands, make sure to copy each one, and paste that into the command prompt window.

[pr0p5man]

thanks for the info. I appreciate what you’re trying to do for me.

going over the points made, which confirms my ignorance of this subject, I googled “updating BIOS in an old computer” and the reply indicated that there is little point, unless a specific feature is required.

with regard to SFC, how would I check the drive’s integrity?

I realised that I had not spaced out the DISM commands appropriately, and tried again, using (Admin) Powershell. It worked, and the restore operation concluded successfully.

the second command concluded successfully, but I had two readings; the first stopped at 10%, the second at 100%.

I’ve had problems with the chkdsk command. After rebooting, it started up, but 40% or so through “Stage 4” (after successfully concluding Stages 1 to 3), the monitor went blank, and “no signal” came up on the screen.
I turned the PC off/on again, the monitor sprang into life, and the disc checking restarted, until it reached “Stage 4”, when the same thing happened.
I turned the PC off/on again, the monitor responded, and I stopped the disc checking; decided to report this on the forum, and the monitor crashed again.
this time, after turning PC off/on again, there was a message “Automatic Repair” followed by another screen “Diagnosing PC”, followed by another screen, stating that “Automatic Repair” had failed to start the PC correctly, and I was prompted to either Restart or choose Advanced Options. I chose the former, and so far, all is OK.

[Bruce]

a little background…

SFC stands for System File Checker and looks for corrupted Windows files - which it found.
CHKDSK stands for Check Disk and looks for errors with the drive, things like, lost file fragments, bad sectors, broken indexes, corrupted File Allocation Table or Master Boot Record or partitions, etc.

since CHKDSK failed at what looks like the same point every time, my guess is you have an issue with your Samsung 1TB hard drive.

going forward, I would be backing up while the sun shines and considering getting a new drive, might as well upgrade to a Solid State Drive and get some speed back into the old gal.

[pr0p5man]

Having taken on board what you say, my immediate thoughts are:- is the issue with the HD (which there certainly appears to be), the potential cause of the problem with the video blurring and, latterly, failure, or is that too big a leap?

certainly a good idea to back up while I can, but to what, exactly?

should I consider an external HD to back up to, but if so, do they work with USB 2.0 ports?

not sure if it’s worth investing in a new internal drive, given the age of the other components.

maybe I should perhaps bite the bullet, and invest in a new PC, not least because this one cannot support Windows 11, and that eventually, support for Windows 10 will be turned off.

[Bruce]

you have made all valid points and something I wanted to suggest myself, but wanted you to get there on your own! (y)

YES - for me, it’s new PC time. for many reasons, but mainly the current age!
and yes, there is a good chance that 6 months after replacing the current drive, something else craps out.
that’s computers.
so why not go straight for the big hammer approach and get a new PC.
more space, more speed, more security - win, win, win.

either way though, you should be backing up. I list some backup software in my signature.
don’t care how, just have your precious data in more than one spot.
so Cloud, or external drive are the main contenders.

yes, new external drives are backward compatible, so an external USB3 drive will work off a USB2 port, just at USB2 speeds.

[pr0p5man]

OK, well, it’s been a bit of a journey for me, but I’ve learnt some things on the way, thanks to you, and much appreciated.

more recently, funnily enough, I had considered a new PC, for the reasons you mention, but put off the inevitable until now.

a couple of supplementary questions, if I may:-

I’m assuming that the software you mention is used in conjunction with an external drive, i.e. the software enables the drive?

I had a look at the Cobian Reflector software, and the YouTube video tutorial, and it looked impressive, even at my basic level of understanding.

my reluctance to move on, and get a new PC, is partly because everything was still working well, and apprehension in transferring everything from old to new.

I’ve considered transfer cables, and commercial software: both relatively expensive, and with mixed reviews on their performance and ease of use.

I’ve come across something called ‘EaseUS Todo PC Trans.’ which is free to download, and appears straightforward in use.

Would you have a view on how best to transfer all this stuff (successfully)? I’d welcome your advice. Thanks.

[pr0p5man]

OK, thanks again!

I’ve applied the big hammer, and a ubiquitous Dell Inspiron 3020 is on its way. Not to everybody’s taste perhaps, but the spec. is probably more than adequate for my needs.

Have considered various external HDDs, and am leaning towards a Toshiba or Seagate 1TB drive with a removable USB cable, rather than those with embedded cables.

I’m grateful for all your help, it’s much appreciated.

[Bruce]

sounds like a positive move forward. (y)

let’s close this for now.
feel free to have it re-opened when the new unit arrives if you need assistance with the the setup, transfer, or backups.

good luck.