Need help from some serious geeks - not that that is a bad thing

G'day,

When I received the PC (portable Dell Inspiron) it would not access the internet and would try (but fail) to run CHKDSK /f everytime it rebooted - each time it would try it would fail with an "unexpected error" and indicate that a recently installed program was the cause of the error. After quite a few hours of trouble shooting i have gotten it to the point that CHKDSK runs OK, the system boots without message and , obviously, I can connect to the internet.

I was about turn give the portable back to its owner but decided to run a windows update. When Update tried to run I received an error code 800B0100 which, according to Micorsoft, means "a file needed by Windows Update is corrupted or missing" and recommends running the SYSTEM UPDATE READINESS TOOL (What is the System Update Readiness Tool?) The tool runs and the output is attached.

Now, this is not my first rodeo when it comes to PC troubleshooting but I'm a bit out of my eliement here so I'm looking for some help. The log shows that I have four "(f) CSI Manifest Failed Catalog Check" files. I've been able to locate one of the "manifest" files on line (the first one listed x86, not WOW) but have no idea what to do with the manifest file.

SO, long post made short:
1) Do I need any of these files? The PC owner uses it for email, browing and some light editing - and that's it. Can I delete some unused software and get rid of this problem? Which programs actually use these files?
2) How can I find the rest of the .manifest files and what do I do with them if I find them?
3) Any recommendations on how I can repair this installation without doing a total rebuild?
4) What is the meaning of life? 42?


Thanks for any help,
Ski

I see it's been a few days. I always start at plan (A) before doing anything else. Lets make sure your system files are okay. Start/cmd/admin and type in sfc /scannow and see it their is anything going on there. A lot of things don't work properly if their is a problem there. sfc= system file checker. I have never been to a rodeo.