One of the most troublesome issues of troubleshooting is to find out exactly how it happened and for what. Obviously, some processes are non-recoverable. For them you cannot repeat the process and risk hardware just because a troubleshooter wasn't able to understand where it had error. Here is a wonderful tool for Windows 7. A feature new to Windows 7, called Problem Steps Recorder looks to be the missing tool for documenting where it all goes wrong.
The tool is just an advanced version of the screen capture software but with other in-depth functionalities. It is kind of an automated Print Screen plus background documenting all the mouse clicks, key strokes and gathering some technical reading material, which are stored and saved as the results.
You get them stored in a zipped MHTML report page which can be sent off directly to the help desk.
How to Use Problem Steps Recorder
- Go to Start Menu -> Run.
- Type and select psr.exe and ENTER.
- Now press Start Record and do whatever made you upset. You can add a comment to crucial moments by pressing Add comment.
- When you are done - press Stop Record, choose a name for the archive and save it.
MHT document would contain all the screenshots recorded at particular events.
Apart from Screenshots additional details which describe each and every event including the programs and UI are stored in the MHT file which can be later on used to troubleshoot the problem.