Power tools for IT pros

Everyday tasks and information

This book includes full chapters on File Explorer (a tool you probably use many times a day) and Event Viewer (which performs tasks on your behalf all day, even though most people rarely open it).

Elsewhere in Windows 10, you’ll find simple dashboards that can provide information about the current configuration. For example, in the Search box, type About and then, from the results that appear, click About Your PC to see details such as the name of the PC on which you’re running the command, the current Windows version, the system type (64-bit or 32-bit), the processor, and the amount of RAM that’s installed on your device. Click System from the same results list to see some of the same details in classic Control Panel.

One related tool that deserves a quick shout-out is the System Information accessory, MsInfo32.exe. (Yes, that’s the correct executable name, even if you’re running a 64-bit Windows version.) Figure 1-4 shows the main page, which contains a wealth of information about the current system. One of the most important details it offers is one that you can’t easily find elsewhere: the current version of the system BIOS or UEFI firmware.

FIGURE 1-4 To open System Information, use the command Msinfo32. One normally hard-to-find detail it offers is the current BIOS (or UEFI firmware) version.