Windows 7 提供了一种方便的方法来帮助您查看系统状态并找到安全和维护问题(security and maintenance issues)的解决方案。促进这一点的功能称为操作中心(Action Center)，它建立在Windows 安全中心(Windows Security Center)设置的基础之上，该中心首先由Windows XP Service Pack 2引入，然后由Windows Vista进行了调整。在本文中，我将解释操作中心(Action Center)的所有功能，并展示如何对其进行配置，以便您只接收所需的通知。
行动中心解释
Action Center是 Windows 7 的一项功能，可以持续监控系统的安全状态。如果它发现任何类型的问题，例如您的防病毒软件被禁用，它会立即通知您，以便您采取纠正措施。它还监视一系列与维护相关的项目：检查您是否安排了任何系统备份、尝试找到最近计算机问题的解决方案、检查任何维护问题等。当检测到问题时，会通知用户并指导用户做什么他/她可以修复它。就个人而言，我非常喜欢这个功能，因为它涉及用户对他/她自己的系统的安全和维护做出决定。(security & maintenance)
行动中心显示消息
您可能已经注意到通知区域(notification area)中有一个小白旗图标(flag icon)。那是行动中心(Action Center)的图标。如果你不知道什么是通知区域(notification area)以及如何管理它，可以阅读之前的文章——如何自定义通知区域(Notification Area)。当有一些消息给用户时，它会被其他图标覆盖：一个红色的 x 和一个黑色的时钟。红色叠加层（带有“ x ”的那个）表示至少有一条重要消息(important message)，因此您需要注意。黑色时钟覆盖(clock overlay)意味着有一个计划任务在后台运行（例如计划的Windows Defender扫描）。
将鼠标光标(mouse cursor)悬停在标志图标(flag icon)上，您将看到如下所示的工具提示，为您提供有关系统正在发生的事情的一些简要信息。
要查看您需要注意的消息列表，请单击操作中心(Action Center)图标（白旗）。
如何查看操作中心消息(Action Center Messages)
要打开操作中心(Action Center)并查看消息，请单击“打开操作中心”('Open Action Center')链接。
另一种方法是在“开始”菜单搜索框中搜索(Start Menu)“操作”('action')一词，然后单击“操作中心”(Action Center)搜索结果。操作中心窗口向您显示与 PC 上的(Action Center)安全和维护(security and maintenance)相关的当前问题，每个问题都显示在相应的组中。它还将显示有关每个问题的详细信息以及解决这些问题的选项(issue and options)。下图显示了(image below)安全(Security)组中的三条重要(important)消息（见红色标记）和维护组中的一条(Maintenance)常规(regular)消息（黄色标记）。
所有消息都将保留此颜色编码(colour coding)：红色表示这是一条非常重要的消息，您不应忽略它，黄色表示这是一条建议，如果您认为它不重要，可以忽略它。
操作中心错误消息(Action Center Error Messages)说明
当出现以下问题时，行动中心(Action Center)会通知您：
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Windows 更新（重要）(Windows Update (Important)) - 警告您 Windows 更新设置为从不检查更新，从而使您的计算机面临各种风险。推荐的设置是自动下载和安装更新。要查看可用选项，请单击“更改设置...”('Change settings...')按钮，然后选择适当的更新选项；
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间谍软件和不需要的软件保护（重要）(Spyware and unwanted software protection (Important)) - 警告您 Windows Defender 和/或您安装的其他反间谍软件解决方案已关闭。要查看可用选项列表，请单击“查看反间谍软件程序”('View antispyware programs')；
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病毒防护（重要）(Virus protection (Important)) - 当您的防病毒软件未安装、禁用或定义过时时发生。强烈建议安装防病毒软件，打开您的防病毒软件（如果您已经安装了防病毒软件），或者更新您的防病毒软件定义；
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用户帐户控制（重要）(User Account Control (Important)) - 警告您用户帐户控制已禁用。如果您不熟悉它，请了解什么是 UAC 以及为什么永远不应该关闭它；
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网络防火墙（重要）(Network firewall (Important)) - 警告您 Windows 防火墙和/或您安装的其他防火墙（例如 ESET、ZoneAlarm、Symantec 等）已关闭。您应该确保始终打开防火墙。要查看可用选项，请单击“查看防火墙选项”('View firewall options')。如果您需要安全解决方案，请查看我们的 Security for Everyone 系列，了解适用于 Windows 7 的最佳安全解决方案；
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Internet 安全设置（重要）(Internet security settings (Important)) - 当某些 Internet Explorer 安全设置低于其默认级别时发生。您可以通过单击操作中心(Action Center)有关 Internet 安全的消息中的“恢复设置...”('Restore settings...')按钮轻松地将它们重置为所需的级别；
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网络访问保护(Network Access Protection)- 是指部署在企业环境中以集中方式管理客户端计算机的健康信息的安全功能。此设置取决于网络访问保护代理服务和其他软件设置，对于家庭用户来说不会是问题；
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设置备份(Set up backup)- 通知您应该设置备份任务。这不像上面的安全问题那么重要，尽管如果您有足够的可用存储空间，您可以将系统设置为定期备份您的文件和设置；
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检查问题报告的解决方案(Check for solutions to problem reports)- 通知您报告的软件和硬件问题并在线检查解决方案；
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检查更新(Check for updates)- 通知您有关 Windows 组件或其他 Microsoft 产品的非关键软件更新；
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故障排除：系统维护(Troubleshooting: System Maintenance)- 通知需要进行的任何维护例程，以使您的计算机运行更顺畅。
如何关闭操作中心消息(Action Center Messages)
所有列出的问题都有一个“关闭有关消息”(''Turn off messages about')链接，可让您禁用有关它们的通知。
关闭消息并(does not)不能解决问题，而只能防止消息唠叨你。因此，关闭有关网络防火墙(network firewall)或其他安全问题的消息并不是一个好主意。如果您想以更简单的方式打开或关闭(simpler manner)操作中心(Action Center)消息，请在操作中心(Action Center)窗口中单击左侧边栏中的“更改操作中心设置”('Change Action Center settings')链接。
结果窗口显示操作中心(Action Center)监控的功能列表。如果您想禁用某个功能或实用程序(feature or utility)的消息，您只需取消选中它，然后单击“确定(OK)” 。
我强烈建议您不要(not)禁用来自安全(Security)组的任何消息，原因很明显：您会错过有关计算机潜在安全问题(security trouble)的重要警报。我通常会关闭的唯一消息类型是与Windows Backup相关的消息，因为无论如何我都不使用该功能。此外，如果您不进行故障排除，您可能会关闭与Windows 故障排除(Windows Troubleshooting)相关的消息。检查更新是指为(Check for updates)Windows或各种其他Microsoft产品（如Microsoft Office ）推荐的非关键更新，最好保持打开状态。
结论
在本教程中，我描述了如何访问、使用和配置(use and configure)Windows 7 操作中心(Action Center)。尽管您可能会发现它的通知消息令人讨厌，但它们可以帮助您避免或解决计算机问题。如您所见，此功能是您的自动守卫，始终监控系统安全和维护任务(system security and maintenance tasks)的状态。保持启用意味着您始终了解可能对您的系统产生负面影响的任何重要更新。如果您对此功能有任何疑问，或者只想分享您的体验，请随时发表评论。
How to Work with the Action Center in Windows 7
Windows 7 comes wіth a convenient way to help you review the state of your system and find sоlutions to ѕecurity and maintenance issues. The feature whіch facilitates this is called Action Center and it is built upon the foundation set by the Windows Security Center, which was first introduced by Windows XP Service Pack 2 and then tweaked by Windows Vista. In this article, I will explain all the functionality of the Action Center and show how to configure it so that you receive only the notifications you desire.
Action Center Explained
Action Center is a Windows 7 feature which continuously monitors the state of your system's security. If it notices any kind of problem, like your antivirus being disabled, it immediately notifies you, so that you can take corrective action. It also monitors a series of maintenance related items: checks if you have scheduled any system backups, tries to find solutions to recent computer issues, checks for any maintenance problems, etc. When a problem is detected, the user is notified and guided on what he/she could do to fix it. Personally, I like this feature a lot as it involves the user in taking decisions about the security & maintenance of his/her own system.
Action Center Display Messages
You might have noticed a little white flag icon in the notification area. That is the icon of the Action Center. If you don't know what is the notification area and how to manage it, you can read a previous article - How to Customize the Notification Area. When there are some messages for the user, it is overlaid by other icons: a red x and a black clock. The red overlay (the one with an 'x') means there is at least one important message, so you need to pay attention. The black clock overlay means there is a scheduled task running in the background (such a scheduled Windows Defender scan).
Hover the mouse cursor over the flag icon and you will see a tooltip like the one below, giving you some brief information about what is happening with your system.
To see the list of messages you need to pay attention to, click the Action Center icon (the white flag).
How to Review the Action Center Messages
To open the Action Center and review the messages, click the 'Open Action Center' link.
Another way is to search for the word 'action' in the Start Menu search box and click on the Action Center search result. The Action Center window shows you the current issues related to security and maintenance on your PC, each shown in its appropriate group. It will also show details about each issue and options for solving them. The image below shows three important messages in the Security group (see the red marks) and one regular message in the Maintenance group (the yellow mark).
All messages will keep this colour coding: red means it is a very important message which you should not ignore, yellow means it is a recommendation which can be ignored if you do not consider it important.
Action Center Error Messages Explained
The Action Center will inform you when the following problems occur:
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Windows Update (Important) - warns you that Windows Update is set to never check for updates, leaving your computer exposed to all sorts of risks. The recommended setting is to automatically download and install updates. To review the available options click the 'Change settings...' button and then select the appropriate update option;
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Spyware and unwanted software protection (Important) - warns you that Windows Defender and/or your other installed antispyware solution is turned off. To see a list of available options, click 'View antispyware programs';
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Virus protection (Important) - occurs when your antivirus is not installed, disabled or has outdated definitions. It is strongly recommended to either install an antivirus, turn on your antivirus, if you already got one, or update your antivirus definitions;
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User Account Control (Important) - warns you that the User Account Control is disabled. In case you are not familiar with it, find out What is UAC & Why You Should Never Turn it Off;
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Network firewall (Important) - warns you that Windows Firewall and/or your other installed firewall (e.g. ESET, ZoneAlarm, Symantec etc.) is turned off. You should make sure you have a firewall always turned on. To see the available options, click 'View firewall options'. If you need a security solution, check out our Security for Everyone series for reviews of the best security solutions available for Windows 7;
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Internet security settings (Important) - occurs when certain Internet Explorer security settings are lower than their default level. You can easily reset them to the desired level by clicking the 'Restore settings...' button in the Action Center message about Internet security;
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Network Access Protection - refers to a security feature deployed in corporate environments to manage health information for client computers in a centralized manner. This setting depends on the Network Access Protection Agent service and further software settings and will not be an issue for home users;
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Set up backup - notifies you that you should set up a backup task. This is not as important as the security issues above, although if you have enough available storage space, you could set your system to do regular backups of your files and settings;
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Check for solutions to problem reports - notifies you about reported problems with your software and hardware and checks for solutions online;
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Check for updates - notifies you about non-critical software updates, either for Windows components or for other Microsoft products;
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Troubleshooting: System Maintenance - notifies about any maintenance routines that need to be carried on, in order to get your computer running more smoothly.
How to Turn Off Action Center Messages
All listed issues have a ''Turn off messages about' link which allows you to disable notifications about them.
Turning off messages does not solve the issues, but only prevents the messages from nagging you. So, it wouldn't be a good idea to turn off messages about the network firewall or other security issues. If you want to turn Action Center messages on or off in a simpler manner, in the Action Center window click the 'Change Action Center settings' link from the left sidebar.
The resulting window shows the list of features monitored by the Action Center. If you want to disable messages for a certain feature or utility, you only have to uncheck it and then click OK.
I strongly recommend you not to disable any message from the Security group, for obvious reasons: you'd miss important alerts about potential security trouble with your computer. The only type of message I'd usually turn off is the one related to Windows Backup, since I don't use that feature anyway. Also, if you are not into troubleshooting, you might turn off messages related to Windows Troubleshooting. Check for updates refers to recommended non-critical updates for Windows or various other Microsoft products (like Microsoft Office) and it would be good to keep it turned on.
Conclusion
In this tutorial, I have described how to access, use and configure the Windows 7 Action Center. Although you might find its notifications messages annoying, they are there to help you avoid or solve problems with your computer. As you can see, this feature is your automated guard, always monitoring the state of your system security and maintenance tasks. Keeping it enabled means you are always informed about any important updates which could negatively impact your system. If you have any questions about this feature or you just want to share your experience with it, don't hesitate to leave a comment.
