It’s not often that the promises of a software company actually live up to the software they publish, so it was nice to see that the new version of Reimage System Repair actually works. The $70 program Reimage—which claims to provide hassle-free relief for damaged Windows .dll files—delivers on its promise (www.reimagesystemrepair.com).

Reimage works by scanning for the causes of PC problems and then, with a click of a mouse, fixes them for you. The program is easy to use. You simply go to their website and click “Start Scan.” Then install the program as instructed and run it. The program is small—only about 7.2MB—so it will only take a few minutes to download. The download is free, as is the scan, but the advanced repair features require an upgrade.

During the scan, Reimage thoroughly goes over every element of your computer. In addition to looking for missing .dll files, it will also show you any damaged Windows files and registry entries. There’s more:  it also looks at how much available room is on your hard drive, how much memory is installed, the running temperature of your processor, and which programs are crashing and how often. Once it’s done, Reimage will report back to you in an easy-to-read report.

Reimage will also check your system for malware and viruses. In fact, it is the only program in the world that has the capacity to either replace or repair files damaged by a malware or virus attack, thanks to its patented technology which allows it to download replacement files directly from Microsoft. The malware scanner is powered by several systems, including the  powerful Avira platform, which is one of the most widely-used antivirus programs on the planet.

Once you’re ready to repair your computer, Reimage will repair any damaged or missing files it finds—including active x errors, .dll problems, and wonky files that are causing programs on your system to crash. Prior to your next start up of your PC, Reimage will finish repairing and replacing any damaged files it discovered during the scan. When that’s complete, your computer finishes loading Windows and displays your newly-repaired desktop.

When we tested Reimage on our office PC, running  Windows 7 , the entire scan and repair took about a half hour. Reimage was able to detect four crashing programs including the iTunes Helper that was freezing the entire system up. It also found 235 .dll errors that it was able to fix at the end of the scan without us having to do anything extra. After a quick reboot, the program was finished and in two weeks we haven’t experienced a crash or freeze up. The .dll errors we were receiving previous to installing Reimage System Repair had vanished and the computer was running noticeably faster. In fact, we were so impressed with the program that we installed it on all of the computers in our office.

If a Reimage operation happens to cause a program to stop working on your computer, you can undo the changes. That said, I performed several scans on multiple computers, running a wide variety of software and never experienced any unexpected “breakage.”

While some might consider the annual $70 price tag of Reimage’s professional version a negative, there’s logic in the investment. For a typical home user who simply wants their computer to run properly, it works out to just $6 per month. That’s a low price to pay, to have a program keep your computer completely optimized and running smoothly—as well as protect you from malware and other threats. A single trip to the computer repair shop would cost you more than that, and this software will definitely prevent those visits. Two more PCs can be covered for an additional $30—which is an absolute steal, if you have a close friend or family member that gets stung by the periodic computer repair bill.

All in all, Reimage is a fantastic repair utility that can fix some of the nastiest Windows problems out there. It won’t totally replace the tech guys at your local computer repair shop, but it definitely has the potential to save you a lot of frustration, time, and money.

You can visit their site at Reimage System Repair (www.reimagesystemrepair.com).