How do you figure out if your computer is having hardware issue, operating system issue or application issue ? I have compiled following tips for you.

If the computer starts beeping at you when it first powers up, you’ve probably got a hardware problem. Check to make sure everything is plugged in correctly, at the least. If the problem persists, you may have to call a computer hardware service person. Following are some of the tips that ring my head

1) Beep Error Codes   2) Blue Screen of Death    3) Hard disk drive problem or failure    4) Numeric Error Codes (Windows stop messages) 5) Motherboard Problem

If the computer gets past all the hardware tests and begins loading Windows, but reboots and tries to load the Last Known Good Configuration, we know there’s a problem with the Windows management modules, which means some Windows configuration files have either gotten corrupted or deleted. Choose to load the Last Known Good Configuration and see if the problem resolves itself.

If the computer gets to the Windows login screen, but never loads the Windows desktop, more than likely, a Windows file has gotten corrupted. Boot the computer into safe mode with a command prompt, and run a check disk to try and fix the corrupted files. Here's a more detailed page on this.

If Windows boots up fine but then starts to act strangely once it is loaded, (slowing down, hanging, just not acting right, etc..) the cause might be a corrupted user profile, or it could be a trojan, a virus or spyware causing the problem. Run a spyware and virus scan. Make sure the anti-virus software has been updated with the latest engine and dat files.

If Windows crashes after it has loaded, and shows the "blue screen of death" (which is to say it does a physical memory dump), it could be a poorly written device driver, a corrupt registry, an incompatible Dynamic-link library file (DLL) or bugs in the Windows kernel.

You can get some great computer troubleshooting information at Microsoft’s Support Center. Search the Knowledgebase (Under Self Support) for specific error messages and resolutions.