After installing Windows 10, I got the message, " * Critical Error * Start Menu and Cortana aren't working. We'll try to fix it the next time you sign in. " As directed, I logged out and back in, shut off and restarted several times, but nothing worked. Web search showed you could revert to the previous version of Windows, but the critical error message wouldn’t let me use anything. Even installed programs compatible with Win10 like Adobe InDesign weren’t working properly.
I tried a lot of the fixes on forums and finally gave up and called Microsoft. After 2 hours on the phone with a very patient tech, I was able to roll back to my previous version, 8.1. Try this:
1. In the critical error message, click to log out.
2. Don’t log in. At the bottom right, click the power symbol, then click Restart and hold down the Shift key. Keep holding Shift down while the computer goes down and restarts. This should take you to a Windows menu page with a number of options. The last option will allow you to revert to your previous version of Windows.
3. If your computer comes back to the login window, repeat hold down Shift and Restart. I had to do it 3 times before it gave me the menu.
My computer hung up during the reversion process. It looked like it was working since the cursor was spinning, but I was getting no action on my disk drive light. The tech said shut it down, so I held down the power key for a hard shutdown. Then I turned the power back on and the reversion restarted. This time I was back to my old version and everything looks fine.
I’m committed to going to Windows 10. At least now I know I can go back if it doesn’t work next time.
