ADS Computers

07/04/2026

It's not just us mere mortals that have issues with Microsoft Outlook!

Out in space, even Artemis II astronauts have Microsoft Outlook problems. Astronauts have been struggling to send images home from space because they have "two Microsoft Outlooks [on the PCD], and neither one of those are working.” PCD stands for “Personal Computing Device”

We are just waiting for the support call from NASA.......

Read the full story here -

The mission commander’s email inbox failed during the journey to the moon. Have they tried turning the computer off and back on again?

28/01/2026

28/01/2026 - Scam/Fake Microsoft email.

We have had dozens of calls and emails regarding this, and even had a few customers lose money to it.

The email concerned is attached below. There are other similar varieties of it appearing too.
Before I break it down, the moral of the story here is never, ever, ever, click on a link in an email. Even the email is from a trusted source, treat it with scepticism.
The main aim of this post is to point out that companies such as Microsoft, your bank, your ISP (broadband supplier) and any other service you subscribe to, will never send you a generic deadline email like this. If it's important news about your account, they will send details in the post. Or if they do email, it will be addressed to you, using your name, along with at least some account detail as proof, and will ask you to log on via a browser and NOT via a link.
If it isn't addressed to you in person, it's an advert or a scam.
DON'T CLICK THE LINK!

As for the one below that has caused all the upset recently.
It is worded in such a way that it induces a sense of urgency regarding your account. They claim they want you to click the link to avoid the claimed cut off. In reality they want to harvest the details that will be required of you once you have clicked on the link. Once they have that, they take over your email account and will wreak havoc. At worst they will get enough data to clone your identity. One customer only yesterday had a loan taken out in their name as a result, along with several expensive purchases. In this case the customer had followed the link to "update their direct debit details". The fallout from this is far reaching. Cards needing to be cancelled, bank accounts suspended, having to inform friends and family, having personal data deleted online..... Not too mention the hours we spend helping them out.
All because they clicked the link.
DON'T CLICK THE LINK!

Look at the email in the image below. This is exactly the email that led to the financial loss mentioned. Look at the email address it's from. Would Microsoft really use an AOL email address? Look at the word Micr0s0ft. It's got zeros instead of the letter "o". Look at the wording. It's poor grammar and vague. There is no genuine logo, no GDPR related gumph at the bottom. It just looks unprofessional.

If you use us for your renewals, and you are paying us for your IT support, why click on a random email for help? Why not just email or ring us for advice instead. If in doubt, forward the email to us. Just please, DON'T CLICK THE LINK!

15/12/2025

Christmas and New Year trading hours.

Here are our revised hours for the Christmas break. On all but the three main days, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and News Years Day we will still be replying to URGENT and EMERGENCY voicemails and emails only. One of us will be checking during normal office hours for anything urgent, and we will get back to you.

Saturday January 3rd is highlighted as this is our first normal trading day following the break. It just happens to be a day that we only open in the mornings, so was added for clarity.

In the meantime, we wish everyone a very Happy Christmas and a less apocalyptic New Year.

05/12/2025

Action Fraud is now called Report Fraud. Everything else is the same, just a new name.
If you suspect you have been scammed, or need official advice about online fraud, contact Report Fraud.

04/12/2025

PlayStation 4 for sale.

This isn't something I normally would do, but this is my PlayStation 4 that I need to sell. It's Christmas soon so I thought I'd see if any customers of ours are interested before it goes on eBay.

It's a 4 year old PS4. It only gets used for 4 hours once every fortnight. It is then only ever used to play one specific golf game, with friends. Light use for a PS4 really then.
I am only selling as the golf game we play is now end of life. The newer version only being available on the PlayStation 5.

It comes with all the leads you will need, two controllers, and a never used car game called The Crew.

It isn't just for games, as it can be used to watch TV channels/apps such as Netflix, Disney, Amazon Prime etc.

I am after around £95.00 ONO for it. Please email me at [email protected] if interested.

29/10/2025

Yes, it’s happened again.
Microsoft services included email, NatWest, Vinted and many other sites have gone offline. More detail later……

Heathrow, NatWest and Minecraft sites down amid global Microsoft outage

Microsoft 365 and its Azure cloud computing platform are hit with DNS issues, similar to Amazon's recent outage.

27/10/2025

For Sale - Advertised on behalf of a customer.
The owner has moved into a smaller property in Yorkshire, and no longer has room for a PC. They have had a laptop instead, and so selling their PC. (if this sounds familiar, it is the third time this year a customer has done similar!)

The PC is 4 years old, built and maintained by us, running Windows 11 following a recent upgrade. This is more powerful than average PC, with an AMD Ryzen 5 3400G processor, Radeon Vega graphics and 16.0GB DDR4 memory. It has a 128GB NVMe SSD main drive, and a 3.0TB mechanical drive for data storage.
This is just a base unit, but we can help with a monitor etc if needed.
Fresh installation of Windows 11 with all updates.
Owner wants £225.00 ono for the PC.
Collection only.

Please ring us on 0115 849 8919, or email us if interested.

20/10/2025

Monday 20th October 2025.

Massive internet outage.

EDIT 2 - The problem was in something called DNS (Domain Name Sever). DNS settings are fundamental to how the internet connectivity works. The trouble with DNS is that once broken and then fixed again it can take up to 24-48 hours to "resolve" worldwide. In reality some services will work again very soon, others will follow in time.

EDIT - More detail - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/c5y8k7k6v1rt

Huge internet outage knocks out Snapchat, Amazon and multiple other websites and apps
A major internet outage is affecting dozens of websites, online games and apps including Amazon, Snapchat and Vodafone.

We will post more when more information is available.

Many of the world's biggest apps including Snapchat, Duolingo and Roblox have gone down, in what appears to be an issue affecting Amazon Web Services.

13/10/2025

Monday 13th October 2025

Massive Vodafone outage. Mobile and home broadband.

Thousands of Vodafone customers across the UK have reported its services are down.

According to its website, the firm has more than 18 million customers in the UK, including nearly 700,000 home broadband customers.
Vodafone said in a statement it was aware of a "major issue on our network affecting broadband, 4G and 5G services".
"We appreciate our customers' patience while we work to resolve this as soon as possible," the company said.

Full story here-

Vodafone claims to have more than 18 million customers in the UK, including nearly 700,000 home broadband customers.

01/10/2025

**** NOW SOLD ****

For Sale - Advertised on behalf of a customer.

This owner has moved into warden accommodation and no longer has room for a PC, so has gone to a laptop instead, and so selling the old PC.
The PC is 4 years old, built and maintained by us, running Windows 11 following a recent upgrade, with an Intel i3 8th Gen CPU, 8.0GB memory and a 480GB M.2 SSD storage drive.
There is a monitor, but it is an older Samsung monitor connected via VGA (not pictured).
Fresh installation of Windows 11 with all updates.
Owner wants £185.00 ono for the PC and monitor.
Collection only.
We already have an offer of £155.00 on it, but seller wants more than offered.
Please ring 0115 849 8919 if interested.

13/08/2025

🚨 Your bank or the police will never ring you to tell you they are coming to your home to pick up money or your card. Never hand these over to anyone who comes to collect it.

ℹ️Need to check if the call is genuine? Contact the organisation directly using contact details you know are correct, such as those on a bank statement, the back of your card, or by calling 159 for your bank

Find out more about how to spot phone fraud: https://stopthinkfraud.campaign.gov.uk/how-to-spot-fraud/how-to-spot-phone-fraud/