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Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Wed Mar 06, 2019 1:53 pm
by burger2227
Microsoft introduces drastic performance fix for Spectre variant
After fixes were introduced for several variants of the Spectre speculative execution exploit, performance took a nose dive. Microsoft and many other industry giants have been working to patch security flaws for over a year now, but most fixes have degraded performance. Borrowing ideas from Google, Microsoft has now pushed out "retpoline for Windows" to improve CPU performance.

Currently, retpoline optimizations are only available as part of the Windows Insider Preview builds version 18272 and above, but will be shipping as a standard feature during the first half of this year. It can be enabled or disabled through registry tweaks and checked via a PowerShell command.
InSpectre 0.6675.8 checks system for Meltdown and Spectre protection
This InSpectre utility was designed to clarify every system's current situation so that appropriate measures can be taken to update the system's hardware and software for maximum security and performance.
Update Chrome browser immediately!
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Precise information about the Chrome CVE-2019-5786 zero-day is hard to come by at the moment

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Tue Mar 12, 2019 8:40 am
by burger2227
Microsoft Asks Users to Call Windows 10 Devs About ALT+TAB Feature
Microsoft has started to display notifications in the Windows 10 Action Center asking users to have a phone call with Microsoft developers and provide direct feedback about the ALT+TAB feature in Windows.

It is not known if this is only being shown to Windows Insiders users at this time.

When users visit this link they will be shown a Microsoft User Research page stating that a Windows 10 product team is looking to "understand our customer needs" and would like to have an anonymous 5-10 minute phone call with the user.

According to the web site, Windows engineers will be available on 3/11/2019 between 11:15 AM and 1:00 PM PST and on 3/12/2019 between 9:30 AM and 11:30 AM PST to schedule a call. The page goes on to say that users can expect a 5-10 minute call, but that it could last longer if there is more to discuss. They also state that the calls are not being recorded, are anonymous, and the content of the call will not be stored.
Chrome browser froze and would not start from Taskbar on 32 bit laptop after several clicks.
Finally 8 separate instances piled up on desktop with none asking to load previous tabs...

Exactly WHAT do notifications on right panel do? Clicking them just makes them disappear...
What is the sense in loading news stories if we cannot read the full articles by clicking them?

Annoying popup ads on right may interrupt or stop games even when not full screen.

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Get used to seeing this screen too! M$ garbage browser wars...

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Windows 10, the Waiting Circle jerk!

Windows 10 can automatically uninstall updates with serious bugs
You can install updates manually if you think Windows shouldn't have removed them, but your system may still nix them if they stop your computer from starting up properly. This is a welcome feature (first spotted by Windows Latest) that could help people avoid having to resort to more drastic measures, such as formatting hard drives, to solve major issues.
Seriously contemplating removing last update after power button reboot...

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Fri Mar 15, 2019 7:13 am
by burger2227
Laptop Updates 1803 with Chrome browser started asking to resume previous tabs...
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No notification about new updates. Just woke up with login screen.

Microsoft launches Game Stack, brings Xbox Live to Android and iOS
It’s worth noting that developers can pick and choose which of the services they want to use. While Azure is part of Game Stack, for example, the overall stack is cloud and device agnostic. Undoubtedly, though, Microsoft hopes that developers will adopt Azure as their preferred cloud. These days, after all, most games feature some online component, even if they aren’t multiplayer games, and developers need a place to store player credentials, telemetry data and other info.

One of the core components of Game Stack is PlayFab, a backend service for building cloud-connected games, which now falls under the Azure family. Microsoft acquired the service early last year and it’s worth noting that it supports all major gaming platforms, ranging from the Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch to iOS, Android, PC and web.
When will Windows 10 ever run the better Android and IOS apps?

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Tue Mar 19, 2019 7:48 am
by burger2227
Google, Microsoft work together for a year to figure out new type of Windows flaw
Microsoft is strongly recommending that third-party driver developers make the same changes, and the company considered making it so that Windows itself would automatically set the Object Manager flag whenever the I/O Manager's flag is set. However, Microsoft was concerned about compatibility issues that this might cause.

Windows 10 version 1903, with most of these fixes, is likely to ship next month. Microsoft says that a few fixes have been held back pending additional compatibility testing or because they're in disabled-by-default deprecated components. With Microsoft's code substantially fixed, the scope for a third-party driver to form part of a dangerous Initiator/Receiver pair becomes that much lower.
I thought they were pretty good at coming up with those on their own

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Wed Mar 20, 2019 10:40 am
by burger2227
When Windows 10 feature upgrades collide next month
Windows 10 1809 was initially released on Oct. 2, 2018, but within days Microsoft purged it from the distribution pipeline after reports of upgrade-caused data loss. Although the company returned 1809 to testing that same month, it wasn't until Nov. 13 that it announced the upgrade was again available to the general public. However, automatic dissemination didn't resume until Jan. 16.

The late start of 1809 and Microsoft's caution in re-releasing it meant that the upgrade now boasts the slowest adoption of any Windows 10 version recorded by AdDuplex.

But 1809's follow-up, designated 1903 and likely named "Windows 10 April 2019 Update," is nearing release, according to both clues in the code and the accepted schedule. Unless Microsoft purposefully delays 1903, it should begin rolling out to customers no later than the middle of April.
Thus my 32 bit laptop is still version 1803...UT OH...

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1. Run 1809 for a short time, maybe for a very short time. Assuming Microsoft wants to make up for lost time, it will serve 1903 faster than it did the problem-plagued 1809. Based on past adoption trends as described by AdDuplex, the top 50% - the first half of Windows 10 users who were given the upgrade - will run 1809 for as few as two months, getting onto that upgrade by the end of March 2019 but forced to move to 1903 by the end of May.

A greatly reduced span between 1809 and 1903 - two months rather than the promised six - would almost certainly anger the Windows 10 users already sensitive to the upgrade cadence. In their minds, Microsoft would be making them deal with two upgrades, two system reboots and twice the possibility of show-stopping bugs, in quick sequence.

2. Just skip 1809. There's nothing to stop Microsoft from halting distribution of 1809 as 1903 clears its coding finish line - the Redmond, Wash. company controls the upgrade schedule, after all - so that those PCs not yet migrated to 1809 are upgraded from last spring's 1803 directly to this year's 1903. Skipping an upgrade is, after all, a crucial option for businesses running Windows 10 Enterprise.

Customers running Windows 10 Home, however, have never had that option.

Forgetting 1809 would be the quickest way for Microsoft to get the release schedule back on its rigid track. But it might cause users to ask uncomfortable questions: If the sky doesn't fall when Microsoft skips an upgrade, why won't it let customers make the same decision for themselves?
The 1809 upgrade has already taken 9 hours (7:15 PM) and still is not ready to reboot...

Settings window keeps closing and after a reboot, the Windows Update page displays nothing...
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Finally got Update content which says it is downloading ALL OVER AGAIN...

installed in 4 hours, rebooted with W10 logo and no busy circle...
Power button press rebooted to W10 logo with a busy circle for 10 minutes to logon.
Reverted back to 1803...1809 failed TWICE! How many more times will it try?


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A result code of 0xC1900101 is generic and indicates that a rollback occurred. In most cases, the cause is a driver compatibility issue."

Windows 10 1803 update fails with message 0xc1900101.

Check C Drive for errors: My laptop time went up to 2 hours and 20 minutes...done in 3 minutes

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Third Upgrade check offers 1803 Update:
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Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Thu Mar 21, 2019 9:46 am
by burger2227
Latest laptop 1803 Update displays this in Windows Update:
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Guess I won't get any more eh?

Had to run Troubleshooter for Windows Update and apply first fix:

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Did not apply fix for waiting updates as it would likely be the 1809 upgrade again...


Latest update info for March. Non-2nd Tuesday only come if you look for them:
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Got one yesterday(never noticed) and today for 1803

WuShowHide application never found updates to Hide!
Even when run during update downloads and installations...

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Sun Mar 24, 2019 6:43 am
by burger2227
64 bit Desktop is running bad so I tested it in PowerShell:
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Copy and paste into title bar rclick menu in two steps:

Code: Select all

wmic 

diskdrive get status
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"Pred Fail" means a S.M.A.R.T (Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology) error has occured. There are many reason for failing SMART. Usually a drive fails SMART for bad sectors which is probably your case. Your drive may have too many bad sectors and it may be time to replace it.
Windows Update was blank and had to fix in Troubleshooter tab...
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Note the dots moving across way up top...

I'm going to wait for the April Windows Upgrade to see if that helps

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Fri Apr 05, 2019 7:06 am
by burger2227
Microsoft is making big Windows 10 update changes starting with the May 2019 release
Next week, Microsoft will make Windows 10 19H1 available to Release Preview testers. It will also get a round of additional broader testing among employees at Microsoft, along with Microsoft's OEM and ISV partners. After these groups have a chance to bang on it for the rest of April, Microsoft plans to begin rolling it out to the mainstream some time in "late" May, according to Microsoft's April 4 blog post about its new update experience plans. As it has been doing recently, Microsoft will roll out the 19H1/1903 update gradually, providing it to devices where data indicates the update will have the fewest issues first.

As rumored earlier this year, Microsoft will enable Windows 10 Home users to pause feature updates for up to 35 days. They will be able to do this in increments of seven days, five times. Up until now, Home users only had the option of choosing a time to install or "snoozing" updates. (Windows 10 Pro, Enterprise and Education users already had the option to pause updates.) There also will be a 35-day pause window for all security updates.

There's only one exception to Microsoft's new, less-pushy update policy. If customers are running a variant of Windows 10 that is close to its end-of-support date, "Windows will automatically initiate a new feature update." (I'm not sure how "close" a user has to be to end of support for this to happen, but Microsoft says users will get some kind of notifications for some period of time before this occurs.)
Meanwhile, laptop got another unlooked for Update:
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Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Tue Apr 09, 2019 9:05 am
by burger2227
Microsoft changed how Windows 10 disconnects USB storage devices
But with Windows 10 v1809, the default state for all USB and Thunderbolt storage devices has become "Quick removal," which is a state where external storage devices can be disconnected without following the "Safely Remove Hardware" process.

But there are inconveniences to switching to "Quick removal" as the default setting. The first is that Windows won't cache disk writes anymore, meaning that data moved to an external storage device might take longer to transfer.
Naturally this makes the USER do more work to fix that...
The procedure is as follows, but users need to be aware that once a USB/Thunderbolt storage device is set back to "Better performance," they will also need to follow the "Safely Remove Hardware" process.

1. Connect the device to the computer.
2. Right-click Start, and then select File Explorer.
3. In File Explorer, identify the letter or label that is associated with the device (for example, USB Drive (D:) in the image below).
4. Right-click Start, and then select Disk Management.
5. In the lower section of the Disk Management window, right-click the label of the device, and then click Properties.
6. Select Policies, and then select the policy you want to use.
Microsoft’s Chromium Edge browser is now officially available to test
Both Microsoft and Google engineers have been working together to improve the underlying Chromium project so that Chrome and Edge run better on Windows. Microsoft has had around 150 commits accepted into Chromium, paving the way for improvements to Edge and Chromium on Windows 10. That includes improving accessibility, smooth scrolling support, Windows Hello integration, and things like ensuring the touch keyboard shows up reliably.
Sure hope Edge takes 2 clicks to startup 2 instances and it has to restart every day...

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Thu Apr 11, 2019 6:37 am
by burger2227
Laptop got second 1803 update of the month last night:
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Login took a while to wake up before mouse clicks brought up password box...

Chrome was already started with previous tabs restored upon login...

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Mon Apr 15, 2019 7:26 pm
by burger2227
Windows is Slower After April 2019 Updates According to Users
Users are reporting that after installing this week's Microsoft's April 2019 Patch Tuesday updates, Windows has suddenly become slow and programs are taking forever to open.

Yesterday, we reported that there is a conflict between the latest Windows updates and Sophos, Avast, and Avira antivirus software that is causing Windows to freeze or updates to not finish installing.

Since then, we have received emails and seen reports from users who have stated that this week's updates are also causing Windows to become very slow. The reports we have seen have been from users running Windows 7 and Windows 10.
Microsoft makes Windows 10 1903 available on MSDN
On April 18, some tech pros began noticing that Microsoft had made its Windows 10 1903/May 2019 Update release available on MSDN for download. If Microsoft hadn't changed its Windows 10 servicing cadence a couple weeks ago, this would be business as usual. But, in early April, Microsoft officials said the plan was to make Windows 10 1903/May Update available to consumers and business users starting in late May, not in mid-April.

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Fri Apr 26, 2019 6:31 am
by burger2227
Microsoft blocks Windows 10 May 2019 Update on PCs that use USB storage or SD cards
Fortunately, there's a quick and simple workaround for this issue. Microsoft recommends that users remove any external USB or SD media and restart the May 2019 Update installation.

This includes USB thumb drives, USB-based external hard-drives, or SD cards inserted into card reader devices. Unless users are running Windows 10 from one of these devices --which is highly unlikely-- most users will be able to work around this issue.
Windows 10 PC with under 32GB storage? No 1903 update for you, says Microsoft
The company also recently updated its minimum processor requirements for Windows 1903. However, these remain unchanged from Windows 1809.

It's not known why Microsoft has now raised its minimum storage requirements, but coming with Windows 10 1903 is Microsoft's 'reserved storage', which Microsoft expects will keep about 7GB of disk space so that updates can be installed smoothly.

Reserved storage will be assisted by Microsoft's Storage Sense utility, which will manage the removal of temporary files. Users will have the option to manage how much reserved storage is available.

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Fri May 03, 2019 9:57 am
by burger2227
Windows 10 Security Feature Slows Launching of Large Programs
The Windows 10 Control Flow Guard security feature has been discovered to contain significant performance issues when launching large executables. Microsoft has since created a fix and it is ready to go for release in a few weeks.

After reading this, you may be wondering if you should disable Control Flow Guard to increase performance. The answer is no.

Windows 10 is much more secure than previous versions of Windows due to the security features that Microsoft has built into it. One of these features is Exploit Protection, which prevents your processes from being exploited by a variety of vulnerabilities, even 0-days.

While this performance issue was noticed in the Chromium unit tests, this was because numerous large processes were being repeatedly launched during the tests. For normal every day use, even if your applications contain large executables, they do not repeatedly launch processes where you would notice a performance hit.
Well I still have to relaunch the Chrome browser daily...1809 is waiting for reboot...FAILED

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So it is back to 1803 updates...
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Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Sun May 05, 2019 6:34 pm
by burger2227
Free Windows 10 has no expiration date until it kills your PC or updates end!

Windows 10: Microsoft lists the processors you'll need for the May 2019 Update
For Intel, Windows 10 1903, as with Windows 10 1809, now requires, "Up through the following 9th Generation Intel Processors (Intel Core i3/i5/i7-9xxx), and Intel Xeon E-21xx, Intel Atom (J4xxx/J5xxx and N4xxx/N5xxx), Celeron and Pentium Processors".

For AMD, this release requires, "Up through the following AMD 7th Generation Processors (A-Series Ax-9xxx & E-Series Ex-9xxx & FX-9xxx), and AMD Ryzen 3/5/7 2xxx, AMD Opteron and AMD EPYC 7xxx Processors".

And on the "always-connected" mobile PC front, Windows 10 1903 needs to have a Qualcomm Snapdragon 850.
Latest May 2019 update for version 1803 (NOT 1903) does not allow other windows on top of Chrome...
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Resized one Explorer window on its own. Have to minimize Chrome to use them.

Fixed with Chrome browser update: Version 74.0.3729.131 (Official Build) (32-bit)

Took 10 minutes to wake Chrome up and then W10 ignored typing in Google search box

Java update listed in taskbar hidden icons failed to install 2 days in a row

Why is Skype listed as running? I have never used it.

End to surprise Windows 10 updates? New 'download and install now' option rolls out
As Microsoft promised in early April, Windows 10 is gaining a new option that gives users better control over when its twice-yearly major feature updates are installed.

That option is called 'Download and install now' and should help Windows 10 users avoid unintentionally accepting a feature update after using Windows Update to check for new patches.

While clicking 'Check for updates' could mean checking for monthly or security updates, historically it's also triggered the installation of a feature update, which can be a major disruption.

For now, the option has started turning up on preview versions of Windows 10 1903 and the May 2019 Update.

Choosing to download and install when offered a feature update is taken as confirmation that the user wants that update. From that point on, the feature update can then only be paused for up to 35 days.

By not clicking on 'Download and install now', the new feature update can be avoided so long as the version of Windows 10 currently running is supported and not nearing end of support.

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Thu May 16, 2019 7:13 am
by burger2227
Avast antivirus program refused to run Wednesday...

Laptop rebooted last night and posted following notice in Notifications bar at 12:35 AM:

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Clicking on Restart Now sent me to Settings Update page with no updates...

So far all successful updates are for 1803:
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Saved from obsolescence, Microsoft is now making Paint better
Paint has been updated to include keyboard support. More explicitly, Paint can now be controlled through the keyboard exclusively. The cursor can be moved with the cursor keys while the space bar is used to activate tools. There are keyboard bindings to control selections, switch between resize handles/control points, and generally do all the things that currently use the mouse.

The keyboard work isn't the only change; Microsoft says that it has made Paint work better with screen readers.

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Tue May 21, 2019 9:07 am
by burger2227
Had to reboot the 1803 laptop to restore WIFI for internet...

Windows 10 Won't Boot When Using System Restore After Updating
To be able to circumvent the restart failures caused by this known issue, users may have to either restart two times in a row or use a hardware restart switch.

Once the Windows Recovery Environment is on the screen, follow these steps:

Select Troubleshoot > Advanced options > More recovery options > Startup settings, and then select Restart now.
In the list of startup settings, select Disable driver signature enforcement. (Note: You may have to use the F7 key to select this setting.)
Allow the startup process to continue. As Windows restarts, the system restore process should resume and finish.

Following the steps listed above will allow users to restore the computer to the restore point chosen before the Stop error (0xc000021a) was triggered.
Microsoft’s next major Windows 10 update is now available
Microsoft is releasing its Windows 10 May 2019 Update to everyone today. The Windows 10 May 2019 Update includes a new light theme for Windows 10, alongside Kaomoji support, a Windows sandbox feature, and the separation of Cortana and Windows search. Microsoft first released this to testers last month, giving the company plenty of time to avoid potential issues. Today marks the official release to all existing Windows 10 users.

Alongside the release, Microsoft is also launching a new Windows release health dashboard that offers status on the rollout and any known issues for the May 2019 Update and other monthly updates. This is all part of Microsoft being more careful with its last-minute testing and being more transparent on issues after the previous October 2018 Update hit some file deletion issues.

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Fri May 24, 2019 9:05 am
by burger2227
Windows 1803 32 bit laptop takes up to 20 minutes to wake up...like a teenager

Chrome browser is almost useless and spends lots of time posting Wait or Close tab messages...
Browser often highlights red X close while not responding. REBOOT often!

Right click copy paste menu's are slow or non-existent.


Microsoft publishes list of features removed with the Windows 10 May 2019 Update
Taskbar settings roaming: Roaming of taskbar settings is no longer being developed and we plan to disable this capability in a future release.

Wi-Fi WEP and TKIP: In this release a warning message will appear when connecting to Wi-Fi networks secured with WEP or TKIP, which are not as secure as those using WPA2 or WPA3. In a future release, any connection to a Wi-Fi network using these old ciphers will be disallowed. Wi-Fi routers should be updated to use AES ciphers, available with WPA2 or WPA3.

Windows To Go: Windows To Go is no longer being developed. The feature does not support feature updates and therefore does not enable you to stay current. It also requires a specific type of USB that is no longer supported by many OEMs.

Print 3D app: Going forward, 3D Builder is the recommended 3D printing app. To 3D print objects on new Windows devices, customers must first install 3D Builder from the Store.

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Sat Jun 01, 2019 10:33 am
by burger2227
Chrome browser goes to sleep when not used and is hard to wake up...

Link clicks can take up to 5 minutes to load pages fully...lots of swirling circles!

Chrome asks to restore on reboots and never does...


It’s time for Microsoft to kill the Microsoft Store — or else fix it
It's time for Microsoft to give non-gaming Windows users the same kind of support. The company should open up the Microsoft Store to all kinds of Win32 software, not just games. That would turn the store into a thriving marketplace, where people would go whenever they were looking to download Windows software. Isn’t that the point of a download store?

If it doesn’t do that, Microsoft should just kill it. There’s no reason for the Microsoft Store to live if it only carries the kind of software no one wants to use.
Bug Breaks Internet Explorer 11 on Some Windows 10 Versions
While this bug is probably not affecting too many people at this point, Internet Explorer 11 is still used in the enterprise to access legacy applications.

To resolve this issue, users will need to launch Internet Explorer with an URL as an argument in order to bypass the default search provider and get Internet Explorer launched again. Once properly launched, the user can then go into the Internet Explorer settings to configure a new default search provider.
How will I download Chrome then?

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Mon Jun 17, 2019 8:35 am
by burger2227
Laptop 1903 Upgrade settings lets me decide? ...
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Latest updates for 1803:
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Note that 1809 upgrade has already failed...

Re: Windows 10 news

Posted: Fri Jun 21, 2019 10:00 am
by burger2227
Windows 10 problems? Feedback Hub now shows you similar bugs others have found
Microsoft is making improvements to the Windows 10 Feedback Hub that should reduce duplicate reports and make it easier for users to group their problems with other similar issues.

The new Feedback Hub is rolling out to Windows Insider testers as an app update in the Microsoft Store. It will feature a new section called 'Find similar feedback' beneath the section where users report feedback.

Microsoft populates the field with similar sounding issues that users can select and link to their own feedback, rather than creating a new piece of feedback.

SEE: 20 pro tips to make Windows 10 work the way you want (free PDF) MUST REGISTER FAILED

The new feature is available to Insiders with version 1.1904.1584.0 of the Feedback Hub.