System restore

Hello,
I used to be able to start my computer and I didn't have to wait for a screen to click on my as a user to log on or put in a password it would just start up. I did do a few updates and downloads for Microsoft and Internet Explorer and since then I have to wait for me to appear to click and then it will boot up all programs. I tried to do system restore which I'm very familiar with but each time I try it it lets me choose a date and it looks like it's doing it but the end result is it says system restore was unable to restore and no changes have been made. What do you suggest?