Download Free Windows Media Center Diagnostic Tools

Updated versions of the Media Center Diagnostic Tools for Windows are now available to the general public as free downloads. Microsoft has made the tools available in the past, however, with the latest release the company has taken the Build number up to 6.1. According to the Redmond giant, and in the context of the official label, the Media Center Diagnostic Tools are designed to streamline the process of troubleshooting problems associated with the Windows Media Center component of the Windows client. The tools will provide an in-depth analysis of the Windows OS they are installed on, helping narrow down potential issues.

“The Media Center Diagnostic Tool gathers a lot of pertinent information very useful to the team in troubleshooting issues with Windows Media Center. If you ever file a bug report during the beta or are working with someone at Microsoft to determine what's happening, it's a good idea to have these tools installed and take a snapshot of your system to share with the person helping you,” Charlie Owen, product manager on the Media Center team, revealed.

Microsoft is offering for download both the x86 and x64 versions of Media Center Diagnostic Tools, for integration with 32-bit and 64-bit Windows operating systems. The tool can be accessed through the search box under the Start Menu in Windows Vista. Simply type MCDiag and launch the tools via the highlighted result.

MCDiag is capable of providing a complex overview of a system starting with the specific rating associated with the hardware resources available and the Windows platform installed. However, MCDiag goes, at the same time, beyond the hardware, to software components such as DirectX, Multimedia components, Services, and of course Windows Media Center. All the while, the tools centralize application logs, window logs, processor layout, registry captures, and the problems flagged by Windows Error Reporting.

Windows Media Center Diagnostic Tools are available for download here.