Hi,"In short, it appears 1984 was written about my laptop." (see later in this document) There is only one account on my laptop - assumedly with administrator privileges. However, recently almost every major system task refuses to function properly. For instance - I cannot access 'documents and settings' because access is denied.It asks if I want to change permissions so I can, but I cannot change the privileges on my account in the security menu, even though all but 'special privileges'.I have Norton 360 installed, and recently tried to uninstall it thinking it may be causing some problems - and has replaced the windows firewall (not to mention it runs in the background constantly).However 'imagehlp.dll' is missing - and thus I cannot uninstall it.This 'imagehlp.dll' is missing thing has caused issues before - such as when trying to play a game I've installed. When I use control panel to try uninstall the program, clicking 'uninstall a program' simply does nothing. No menu opens.The same thing happens when I try to add or remove a user account from the system, clicking the link does nothing. User account control has recently become incredibly obnoxious regarding opening any .exe file, and doesn't appear to recognize windows/microsoft as a publisher anymore. For instance, the 'Turn windows features on or off' link (next to 'uninstall a program') has a blue and yellow shield. Opening it brings up the 'do you wish this program to be able to make changes to your computer' message, and clicking yes brings up an error message regarding the file 'special features' not being found in system32.I was first alerted to these problems when trying to run ccleaner (a program that deletes temp. int. files and cookies etc). The message regarding making changes to the harddrive of the computer always appeared (understandably), but now when clicking yes a message is displayed saying 'internet security settings do not permit this program from running'.Low and behold, when I open my default browser to check security settings (firefox), it is apparently no longer my default browser and I need to log in as administrator or under my profile to change it. (I can't get the password for the administrator account, as I only use mine - which assumedly has the same privileges and password). When I use my profile login to change it to default, the message goes away, but the same thing happens when I open my browser again.Checking the windows security and systems tab in control panel won't allow any blue and yellow shield operations to occur (I click the link for 'change user settings' for example - and nothing happens as mentioned before. The screen simply stays at the same menu).I have tried to install steam several times, and errors occur with it's installation. Installing games also creates many errors."Imagehlp.dll is missing" or "the was a problem with your steam installation (during the update platform stage) - please reinstall steam". In short, it appears 1984 by Orwell was written about my laptop. A kind of big brother seems to hold all my privileges restricted and doesn't allow programs to make changes necessary to the computer for it to run (e.g. steam). I presume this is a security measure of some sort gone wrong. Help would be much appreaciated. I am considering reinstalling windows all again - but I'm not sure if the manufacturer supplied the installation CD, and obviously the process of re-installing and registering microsoft products is long and tedious and preferably avoided. Thanks a lot,Mic---mac 1 person needs an answerI do too

You've posted in a forum for the Windows XP operating system. Further questions about Windows 7 should be posted in one of the Windows 7 forums.http://social.answers.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/category/windows7As a comment, you can't access Documents and Settings because that is not a real directory in Windows 7. It is a virtual directory called a "junction" there only for backwards compatibility. The correct path to user profiles is C:\Users.That said, it does seem like your computer is messed up and you certainly don't have your users set up optimally with only one account. Personally I think it would be quickest to simply back up your data and do a restore to factory condition using whatever method the computer mftr. provided (see below). But you may wish to get a hands-on diagnosis from a reputable local professional instead. Don't use a BigComputerStore/GeekSquad type of place.If you want to continue the "conversation", please make a new post in one of the Windows 7 forums. Thank you.Factory Restore - Most laptops and many OEM (HP, Sony, etc.) desktop computers come with a factory restore image on a special partition on the hard drive. The factory restore process is normally invoked by pressing a Function key (like F11) at computer startup. There will be a message as to which Function key to press on the screen when you first start your computer. You can also refer to your computer manual, or the computer mftr.'s website, or contact its tech support to see how to restore your computer to factory condition since each computer mftr. does it differently - sometimes even between models.These machines also usually have a utility with which to create physical recovery discs in case the hard drive needs to be replaced or the factory restore image is somehow damaged. If you did not create the physical recovery discs and/or damaged the recovery image, contact the computer mftr.'s tech support to order a recovery disc set. This is normally very inexpensive, around $25-50.User accounts - Recommended Setup (Vista andWindows 7 ) You absolutely do not want to have only one user account. Like XP and all other modern operating systems, Vista and Windows 7 are multi-user operating systems with built-in system accounts such as Administrator, Default, and Guest. These accounts should be left alone as they are part of the operating system structure.You particularly don't want only one user account with administrative privileges on Vista and Windows 7 because the built-in Administrator account (normally only used in emergencies) is disabled by default. If you're running as Administrator for your daily work and that account gets corrupted, things will be Difficult. It isn't impossible to activate the built-in Administrator to rescue things, but it may require more work than you want to do. Best not to get into a bad situation to begin with.The user account that is for your daily work should be a Standard user, with the extra administrative user (call it something like "CompAdmin" or "Tech" or the like) only there for elevation purposes. Running as a Standard user is best practice for security purposes and will help protect your computer from infection. After you create "CompAdmin", log into it and change your regular user account to Standard. Then log back into your regular account.If you want to go directly to the Desktop and skip the Welcome Screen with the icons of user accounts, you can do this:Start Orb>Search box>type: netplwiz [enter]Click on Continue (or supply an administrator's password) when prompted by UACUncheck the option "Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer". Select a user account to automatically log on by clicking on the desired account to highlight it and then hit OK. Enter the correct password for that user account (if there is one) when prompted. Leave it blank if there is no password (null).MS-MVP - Elephant Boy Computers - Don't Panic!