Category Archives: Insider stuff

Cool Tools, Insider stuff, PowerShell, Recent Activity, Updates, WED Blog

Powershell Update Goes Sideways

October 14, 2026 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

Interesting doings in the Windows Terminal PowerShell world. Running WinGet in that environment just now, I updated PS. Not only did that activity produce an “Installation abandoned” error msg, it initially threw up cmd prompt instead of PS when I clicked the plus sign to launch a new WinTerm session. Alas, it looks like this PowerShell update goes sideways (and more so on some PCs).

Ways PowerShell Update Goes Sideways

First, let’s survey the landscape. Windows PowerShell 5.1 is built into Windows and goes nowhere. It is a system component, not something you update through a package manager. PowerShell 7.x is a completely separate, side-by-side install. It lives in its own directory and uses its own executable, pwsh.exe.

The standard command for updating PowerShell 7.x is clean and simple. You open a terminal and run winget upgrade --id Microsoft.PowerShell. However, what looks simple on the surface can hide a lot of failure modes underneath.

Updates can stall mid-stream, roll back without a clear explanation, or appear to succeed while doing nothing at all. That last scenario is especially maddening. You see a success message, then run pwsh --version and get the old build number staring back at you. Something broke during the install, and winget did not catch it.

Oh No! Installation Abandoned…

I’ve seen this error message (see lead-in graphic) before. Normally, that means the PS installer has lost its connection to Winget via PowerShell and WinTerm. You can often see the PS installer window open, still running, and finishing its work. Closing, then re-opening WinTerm usually sets things back to rights.

Not this morning, on my Flo6 desktop (B550 mobo with AMD Ryzen 7 5800X CPU). After the upgrade, a new PS session launched cmd prompt instead. WinTerm lost its path to the pwsh.exe executable. When I went to look at its profile, it showed as empty. So I had to delete it, and recreate it, then point to the PowerShell 7 icon. That fixed things right up.

That Worst Case Isn’t Ubiquitous

When I updated PS on the Lenovo ThinkPad P16 Gen 1 mobile workstation, I got the same “installation abandoned” error message. But when I opened a new PS session (using the menu bar “+” control) the new version popped right up in a proper PowerShell pane.

I’m not sure why some machines act out more than others when the PS install goes sideways. Shoot! It could have been cosmic rays. But whatever happens, you can fix it if you check the profile and make sure it’s properly defined. Here in Windows-World knowing what to fix and how to fix it goes a long, long way. This morning, it went far enough to set things back up properly on Flo6. May it do the same for you, should you need it to!

Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 11, Windows Update

26H2 Installer Upgrades Insider Previews

October 13, 2026 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

Here’s something weird and interesting. In the wake of yesterday’s actions around updating the Installation Assistant, I discovered that 26H2 installer upgrades Insider Previews. At least, I’ve tried it on Beta and Insider Preview channel PCs and it’s worked. Thing is, those machine now show up as both 26H2 and still enrolled in the Beta channel, as you can see in the lead-in graphic.

Once 26H2 Installer Upgrades Insider Previews, Then What?

Good question. WU isn’t handing them the 2026-09 Preview Update (KB5124010) (26200.9550). They don’t show up under WU > Advanced Options > Optional Updates, either. I’m starting to wonder if my experimental maneuver might not have orphaned these Windows images.

BUT: today is Patch Tuesday. Copilot thinks that today’s mandatory CU will “take” on these installs. I won’t know until noon, local time (10 AM PDT, GMT -07:00). If it works, these installs aren’t orphans. If it doesn’t I may have to visit UUPdump to build a custom ISO to try another in-place repair install to catch up again.

I’m hoping I haven’t painted myself into another corner. That’s not an unfamiliar place for me to find myself, here in Windows-World. I’ll find out later today, and update this post accordingly. Sigh: it’s always something, right?

Après moi, le déluge…

Looks like WU is working the same on the updated Insider Preview PCs as on the mainline production models. All are offered the same four updates: KB5127694, MSRT, KB5130036 and KB5130034. So they’re not stuck. What they are, exactly, is still TBD. Interesting!

Now I know: KB5127648 is the key ingredient. WU doesn’t proffer it to my holdout PCs (the X12 and X380 upgraded to 26H2 thru in-place repair install). But I can grab it from the Update Catalog. Applying on both PCs right now (it’s a big’n: ~4.5GB). Takes a while to complete, But then “Something didn’t go as planned” and back into the previous state. Something ain’t right: I’ll be digging in.

Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 11, Windows tools, Windows Update

Updated Installation Assistant Covers 26H2

October 12, 2026 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

On the still-working 2018 vintage Lenovo ThinkPad Yoga X380, WinGet delivered a new Windows 11 Installation Assistant this weekend. “Hmmmm,” I wondered to myself, “does this version incorporate the latest release?” It doesn’t really say in the update info shown in the lead-in graphic. But yes, this updated Installation Assistant covers 26H2. I’ll show you visual proof.

QED: Updated Installation Assistant Covers 26H2

And indeed, WinGet itself provides the proof. Notice the ID for this tool is “Microsoft.WindowsInstallationAssistant.” By happy chance, using that string with WinGet show includes “26H2” in its “Release Notes” field, to wit:

Release Notes identifies the installer as 26H2. {Click image for full-size view]

Copilot Leads Me In Another Direction

Officially, the Installation Assistant isn’t compatible with Insider Builds. And, as fate would have it, the X380 was running a 25H2 Beta build. Interestingly, the Installation Assistant runs: it downloads and installs 26H2 (and hangs forever at the 46% complete mark. but completes OK).

At first, Copilot says it doesn’t work “Assistant refuses all Insider builds.” But for both Beta and Insider Preview builds (26220.xxxx branches), it ran on both my X380 and on my Lenovo ThinkPad X12 Hybrid Tablet Gen 1. But first, I had to run PC Health Check even though both PCs were already running Windows 11. But in continuing along the install path after that detour, Installation Assistant showed me a new way to work around the typical bar on upgrading Insider builds using Production Windows images.

I’ll blog again tomorrow, and explain what happened on each machine, and where I wound up. It’s a surprising turn of events — to me, at least — here in Windows-world. Normally, this bar holds hard and fast. But the latest 26H2 installer may be an exception. Stay tuned: should be fun!

AI, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog

Mismatch Mars Surface Laptop Ultra

October 9, 2026 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

I’m chuckling — and the whole situation genuinely appalls me. If you want to spring for the top-of-the-line Surface Laptop Ultra, you can ONLY get it with a 1 TB SSD. IMO, this mismatch mars Surface Laptop Ultra offerings. Surely those who want 128 GB of RAM and the 20-Core Grace RTX CPU also want more solid-state disk storage? So, what was MS thinking?

The Ferrari with a 10-Gallon Tank

Think of it like equipping a Ferrari with a 10-gallon gas tank — that’s exactly what Microsoft did by pairing 128 GB of RAM and a 20-core CPU with a mere 1 TB of SSD. ASUS and HP already offer 2 TB configurations (and the ASUS ProArt P16 throws in a second M.2 slot for good measure). Dell, Lenovo, and HP haven’t yet revealed their planned configurations, but I’d find it shocking if any of them failed to offer at least 2 TB SSDs.

Wow! The whole thing stuns me. Maybe MS simply couldn’t source bigger drives. Nevertheless, configuration data confirms that models up to 4 TB from multiple vendors will likely run on top-end RTX Spark machines, to wit:

Drive	Capacity	Interface	Notes
Samsung 9100 Pro	Up to 4 TB	PCIe Gen 5	Top tier, excellent thermal profile
WD Black SN850X	Up to 4 TB	PCIe Gen 4	Gen 4 will work but won’t hit Gen 5 speeds
Crucial T705	Up to 4 TB	PCIe Gen 5	Strong value option
Seagate FireCuda 540	Up to 4 TB	PCIe Gen 5	Competitive sequential speeds

Buy2Replace!

In fact, Copilot recommends that anyone buying the MS top-end model for US$5,899 MSRP should immediately upgrade to a 4 TB SSD from the table above. I now lean toward models that come with 2 M.2 slots — they push the storage ceiling even further.

After all, if you’re going “all the way,” you don’t want the vendor holding you back from wretched excess. But here in Windows-World, what you want and what you get often fail to coincide. So it goes!

Cool Tools, Insider stuff, Updates, WED Blog

Another OOO, Another Catchup

October 8, 2026 Ed Tittel 1 Comment

OK then, I’ve been away from home since October 1. Sorry to report it was to attend a memorial service for my brother-in-law, Mike Carey, who succumbed to lung cancer on September 19. Now that I’m back in the saddle, my first task was to check and apply all outstanding updates to the Windows fleet here at Chez Tittel. That sort of make my marching orders read “Another OOO, another catchup.” Let me tell you what that meant this morning…

Working Through Another OOO, Another Catchup

There are 8 PCs in the fleet at present. Two AMD, one Snapdragon X, the rest Intel. I ran through the gamut of update checks on each one and did the necessary.

Name	WinGet	DSA	PMP	Other	Total
X12	5	3	2	0	10
P16	2	0	1	0	3
X380	9	0	1	1	11
Flo6	4	0	1	2	7
P3Ultra	4	1	3	0	8
AsusA14	5	0	1	0	6
Ryzen	11	0	1	1	13
D7080	3	0	3	3	9
Totals	43	4	13	7	67

In the column heads PMP = Patch My PC Home Updater and DSA = Intel Driver & Support Assistant. As you can see, I had a decent number of updates to handle (67 for 8 machines averages between 8.0 and 8.5). Under “Other,” I accessed Lenovo Vantage, Dell Command Update and the ASUS update facility, on related systems. And both of my NVIDIA-equipped PCs (RyzenOfc and Flo6) got GPU updates. But it’s all taken care of now.

Now What’s Next?

I keep up with WinGet on a more or less daily basis. The other stuff falls into the “as I read about it in the news” or “once a week” category. So I should be good until next week for now.

It’s good to be back. I look forward to catching up and commenting on recent Windows news, updates and introductions. Stay tuned, and I’ll tell you more.

Insider stuff, Networking, Recent Activity, Troubleshooting, WED Blog

Router Management By iPhone…NOT

September 30, 2026 Ed Tittel 1 Comment

This morning started with a simple task. I needed to RDP into TSP3Ultra2, one of my local Windows machines. The connection failed. Machine name resolution was broken. My first instinct was to check the DHCP table on the Spectrum router. I pointed my browser at 192.168.1.1. Instead of a login page, I got a Cauzin barcode page. It told me to download the My Spectrum app. That was not helpful. Indeed, Router Management By iPhone…NOT is not just a clever headline today. It describes exactly what happened to me.

I turned to Advanced IP Scanner. It found TSP3Ultra2 on the network immediately and showed its current IPv4 address. From there, I used Advanced IP Scanner’s Tools menu to launch an RDP session directly to that IP address. That worked. The underlying name resolution problem still exists. I just bypassed it.

Router Management By iPhone…NOT:
My Spectrum Story

Spectrum’s current Advanced WiFi routers do not support local browser-based administration. The 192.168.1.1 address exists. It just redirects to a barcode page instead of showing a login form. That page pushes you to install the My Spectrum app.

This is intentional. Spectrum manages router firmware remotely. A mobile app is their chosen support interface. The side effect is that you lose access to your DHCP table, your device list, and your network diagnostic tools at the router level. When name resolution breaks, you are left to improvise.

Advanced IP Scanner filled the gap this morning. It is a free tool. It scans your local subnet and returns device names, IP addresses, and MAC addresses. Its Tools menu lets you launch RDP, open a shared folder, or connect via HTTP directly from the scan results. It is not a router admin panel. But today it was close enough.

The Spectrum App: I Want My MTV

The My Spectrum app covers the basics. You can change your WiFi name and password, see connected devices, or run a speed test and restart the router. What you cannot do is adjust DHCP settings, configure port forwarding, tweak firewall rules, or see detailed device data. The app gives you a simplified view. Simplified is another word for limited. Indeed, the web interface thru spectrum.net not only looks the same, it’s subject to those same limitations. Sigh.

BYOR?

If you need real control, one reliable option exists. Buy your own router. Connect it to the Spectrum modem in bridge mode. You bypass the Spectrum router entirely. Because it’s yours, you get full admin access through the manufacturer’s local web interface. This brings the familiar controls through 192.168.1.1 back.

This costs money upfront. It removes you from Spectrum’s managed WiFi ecosystem. You give up app-based parental controls and Spectrum’s network management tools. For some power users, that trade may be worth making. Personally I’m only provisionally interested in that level of network management for the Chez Tittel agglomeration of Wi-Fi and GbE network segments.

Spectrum made a deliberate choice to move router management into a controlled mobile app environment. That choice works for many customers. It does not work for every customer. If you expected a classic browser-based admin page, you will be disappointed. If you’re comfortable with a simplified app interface, you will get by. But for real control, plan to spend money on your own hardware. I’m learning to live within the limitations of what I’ve got. That’s not unfamiliar to us wizened denizens of Windows-World!

Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 11, Windows Update

WU Offers Win11 26H2

September 29, 2026 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

OK, then. After reading numerous Windows rumors that the latest Windows version might drop today, I just ran the update check on WU. As you can see in the lead-in graphic, it’s offering qualified systems (including Flo6, P16, RyzenOfc and D7080) this item as the “Windows 11 2026 Update .” As WU offers Win11 26H2, that info provides the lead-in graphic for this very blog post.

When WU Offers Win11 26H2, Then What?

If you’re like me and love living on the edge, you’ll install it right away. If you’re in a corporate or other gated environment, you’ll bring up in a testbed first to see if it breaks anything. Given that this is another “enablement package” most of what’s coming is already here. And if last year’s 25H2 eKB (enablement package KB update) is any indicator, the whole experience should be pretty fast and painless.

Today’s Windows Experience blog post, from MS Product Mgmt VP John Cable, is entitled “How to get the Windows 11 2026 Update.” Appearances to the contrary in the title aside, it basically says “Comes to eligible devices via WU.” No download links, or anything like that. Fortunately, Shawn Brink’s covering post at ElevenForums provides x64 and ARM64 links to the eKB. Good enough for me!

The eKB Experience on AsusSnap

Because WU didn’t offer the eKB to my Snapdragon X Asus Zenbook A14 (aka AsusSnap), I grabbed the ARM64 download to try it out. It’s zipped and tiny (172KB compressed; 175K for .msu file). It completed in under 30 seconds on the target PC, and the reboot was pretty speedy, too. Shows up as Build 26300.9550 after the update:

Seems like mostly a no-brainer. Thus, I’m bidding adieu to 25H2 and saying hello to 26H2. Check it out: you may decide to do likewise!

Copilot+ PCs, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 11

Bye-Bye Copilot+ PCs

September 28, 2026 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

Looks like MS is retiring the Copilot+ PC branding and nomenclature. Why? As Trusted Reviews puts it “Microsoft dropping Copilot+ PC branding makes sense when every machine is AI-capable.” Or as more cynical observers might put it, If few people care, why bother? Even in September 2026, only 2-5% of PC sales fit the label anyway. With such a small market slice in play, no wonder MS isn’t shy about saying “Bye-bye Copilot+ PCs!”

A New Generation Also Says
“Bye-Bye Copilot+ PCs”

As I observed in last week’s Googlebook post, that company is entering a crowded field for AI-ready platforms, along with NVIDIA’s more formidable RTX Spark platform (both due week after next, Google’s on 10/4 and NVIDIA’s on 10/7). With all the hoopla for newer, different AI PCs could it be that Copilot+ PCs simply lost their shine? Methinks that is at leastly partly the case.

Looking at the proud branding from a May, 2024 article (appears as the lead-in graphic here), it now seems somewhat behind the times. Given the RTX Spark and Googlebook offerings, not to mention a new generation of AMD, Intel and Qualcomm 64-bit machines (laptops mostly, with a desktop or mini-PC here and there) the language seems over the top.

Indeed, I’ve got an ASUS Zenbook A14 here at Chez Tittel. While it is a real, honest-to-gosh Copilot+ PC, nobody would characterize it as one of “The fastest, most intelligent Windows PCs ever built.”

Usefulness Outlived: Time to Move On

With only a small sliver of the PC market covered, and a whole new set of AI-ready (and more capable) PCs in the offing, I guess Copilot+ PCs are simply passe. Time for the next big thing. MS has a Surface event coming up on the day of the RTX Spark on October 7. Perhaps the company will share a new vision for PC computing then?

Here in Windows-World, the more things change the more they stay the same. AI is still a happening thing for PCs in general (and laptops in particular). But it’s happening under a different umbrella (or set of umbrellas) soon. Should be interesting to see what happens next, and what MS has to say about it. Stay tuned…

Copilot+ PCs, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, Thoughts & concerns, USB devices, WED Blog

Looks Like USB4 = PC Bandwidth Backbone

September 25, 2026 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

With all the new PC architectures proliferating, I’m thinking about the future role of the USB-C port. I see interesting stuff in NVIDIA RTX Spark, GoogleBook, post-Copilot+ PCs (especially Snapdragon X2) and top-of-the-line X64 AMD and Intel boxes. Especially, it looks like USB4 = PC bandwidth backbone for externals going forward. Let me explain…

Why Assert USB4 = PC Bandwidth Backbone?

USB is the central nervous system for personal computing. Most keyboards, drives, displays, and docks eventually trace back to this standard. USB4 Version 2.0 raises its bidirectional bandwidth ceiling to 80 Gbps. A single USB-C cable now handles data, video, and up to 240 W of power. That combination isn’t incremental, it’s more. The whole PC peripheral ecosystem is being rebuilt around USB4, and IT professionals need to understand what that means today.

The Big 5 External Device Categories

USB now dominates five distinct external device categories. Each one benefits directly from the 80 Gbps headroom that USB4 v2 provides. Here are the five categories driving that shift:

External storage: NVMe SSDs, traditional HDDs, and USB flash drives all benefit from faster sustained throughput and lower latency over USB4 v2 links.
Displays and docking stations: DisplayPort 2.1 tunneling over USB4 v2 enables multi-monitor 8K setups and single-cable desk configurations.
Networking adapters: USB4 v2 makes 2.5 GbE and 10 GbE Ethernet adapters practical for home labs, creative workstations, and remote offices.
Peripherals: Keyboards, mice, webcams, audio interfaces, and MIDI controllers all connect reliably with lower latency and higher headroom than before.
External GPUs and compute accelerators: The newest category, enabled by PCIe Gen4 tunneling over USB4 v2, opens the door to external graphics and AI inference workloads.

USB4 External Storage: Real-World Speed

USB4 v2 enables external NVMe SSDs to reach up to 3,800 MB per second in sequential read speeds. That figure rivals many internal M.2 drives installed directly on the motherboard. PCIe Gen4 tunneling over the 80 Gbps link makes this possible. The tunnel carries four lanes of Gen4 PCIe traffic inside the USB4 protocol stack. Earlier USB4 v1 devices topped out around 2,000 MB per second under real-world conditions. Version 2 represents a meaningful and measurable leap. For video editors ingesting 4K or 8K footage, the difference is felt immediately. A 1 TB file transfer that once took ten minutes now completes in roughly five.

Displays and Docking Stations

DisplayPort 2.1 tunneling over USB4 v2 supports dual 8K displays at 60 Hz. A single 12K display is also within reach for demanding visualization workflows. The asymmetric bandwidth mode pushes 120 Gbps in the display direction. That frees up the remaining 40 Gbps for simultaneous data and peripheral traffic. A single cable dock can now replace a tangled collection of adapters and separate power bricks. USB Power Delivery 3.1 adds up to 240 W of charging capacity through the same cable. A 16-inch laptop with a discrete GPU charges fully through the dock connection. For IT departments standardizing workstation setups, the cable reduction alone justifies the upgrade.

External Networking and Peripherals

USB4 v2 makes 10 GbE Ethernet adapters a practical upgrade for home labs and creative workstations. The bandwidth headroom is sufficient to sustain full 10 Gbps network throughput alongside active display and storage connections. Webcams, audio interfaces, and MIDI controllers all benefit from lower latency and higher sustainable throughput. A USB audio interface running at 192 kHz with low buffer sizes is far more stable over USB4 v2 than over older USB 3.2 connections. USB4 v2 also maintains backward compatibility with USB 3.x and USB 2.0 devices. Existing peripheral investments are protected. Nothing on your current desk becomes obsolete when you move to a USB4 v2 host.

Why Thunderbolt 5/USB5 Faces an Uphill Road

Thunderbolt 5 sits atop the USB4 v2 physical layer. It delivers the same 80 Gbps bidirectional bandwidth with stricter mandatory certification requirements. That certification is Intel-controlled, and it adds cost to both host silicon and peripheral hardware. Most Windows OEMs are shipping USB4 v2 ports labeled simply as “USB 80 Gbps,” without full Thunderbolt 5 certification.

Indeed, AMD platforms have broadly adopted USB4 v2 across their Ryzen and EPYC product lines. The installed base of USB-compatible devices vastly outnumbers the catalog of TB5-certified accessories. For most enterprise and prosumer buyers, USB4 v2 is the practical mainstream choice today. Thunderbolt 5 remains the right answer when maximum certified performance and guaranteed interoperability are required. Both standards deserve consideration. They are not adversaries; they share the same physical foundation.

Looking Ahead: USB5/Getting Past 80 Gbps

USB5 is not yet finalized as of late 2026. The USB Implementers Forum is actively working on specifications that could reach 120 Gbps or higher. Realistic consumer hardware availability is unlikely before 2028 or 2029. Silicon development cycles, platform integration, and ecosystem buildout all take time. Plus, Gen 5 tunneling remains an open issue.

Thus, Thunderbolt 5 is likely to remain the top certified performance ceiling through at least 2027. That makes USB4 v2 the right infrastructure investment right now. Cables, docks, enclosures, and adapters purchased today will carry forward into USB5-era systems. Building on USB4 v2 now means you are not starting over when the next generation arrives.

That’s Why USB4 Is THE Bandwidth Backbone

USB4 v2 at 80 Gbps now handles storage, displays, networking, peripherals, and power from a single port and a single cable. All five of the Big 5 external device categories are well-served at this bandwidth tier. This is not a niche technology for early adopters. It is the connective tissue of the modern PC, shipping in mainstream laptops, desktops, and docking stations from every major OEM. The gap between USB4 v2 capability and USB 3.2 era infrastructure is real and growing.

Here is a call to action: audit your current ports and cables this week. Identify every system still running USB 3.2 Gen 2 or older Thunderbolt 3 connections. Prioritize USB4 v2 or Thunderbolt 5 ports at your next system refresh. The bandwidth backbone is already here. Make sure your infrastructure is built on it. Cost and availability appear to put USB4 as “king of the hill” for the next 3-5 years. Let’s see how it turns out, shall we?

Hyper-V and VMs, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, Troubleshooting, WED Blog, Windows 11

Bitten: Sandbox Network Access Bug

September 24, 2026 Ed Tittel 1 Comment

Windows Sandbox is supposed to be a clean, disposable environment that “just works.” But every so often, it bites back. In the past few days I’ve hit a recurring issue where Sandbox loses network access, stalls, or refuses to start after a failed session. The symptoms vary, but the root cause keeps pointing to the same culprit: corrupted HNS state. This post walks through what happens, why it happens, and how to fix it without drama. Alas, it means I’ve been bitten by the Sandbox network access bug widely reported these days (see Windows-Sandbox and Windows-Containers issues in GitHub; 131 and 128 for the former, and 631 for the latter).

Sandbox Network Access Bug — TLDR Summary

When Windows Sandbox suddenly loses network access or fails to relaunch, the underlying HNS (Host Networking Service) stack gets stuck in a half‑deleted state. Resetting the HNS networks and rebooting sometimes restores normal behavior. But it keeps coming back with each use, and the fix doesn’t always work.

How the Bug Shows Up

The first sign is usually a sudden loss of connectivity inside Sandbox. A browser tab stops loading, a site hangs, or a download stalls. Closing Sandbox seems harmless enough, but reopening it often triggers a second symptom: the app refuses to start. Sometimes it crashes, after which Windows throws error 0x80370106. Other times it simply flashes “connection lost” and drops you back to the desktop.

On my Flo6 machine, the failure pattern became predictable. Sandbox would run normally for a while, then lose network access. After closing it, the next launch attempt failed. Meanwhile, my P3 Ultra Gen 2 workstation ran Sandbox without complaint. That contrast made the diagnosis easier: the problem wasn’t the workload, the site, or the browser. It was the host’s virtualization networking stack.

Why HNS Gets Stuck

Windows Sandbox relies on a lightweight virtual switch managed by HNS. When Sandbox closes cleanly, HNS tears down the temporary network and resets its internal tables. But when Sandbox crashes or loses connectivity mid‑session, the teardown doesn’t complete. HNS keeps references to a dead network, and the next launch attempt hits a corrupted state.

Stopping HNS with net stop hns rarely works in this scenario. The service stays in a running state even while trying to unwind stale entries. The fix requires removing the broken networks directly.

The Reliable Fix

The repair workflow is simple and safe:

1. Remove the stale HNS networks using PowerShell:
Get-HNSNetwork | Remove-HNSNetwork

2. Reboot the system. This step matters because HNS rebuilds its network tables only after a restart.

3. Launch Windows Sandbox again. In most cases, network access returns immediately and the environment behaves normally.

This reset does not affect standard networking. Windows automatically recreates the default switch, NAT configuration, and Sandbox virtual network during startup.

Why This Keeps Happening

Sandbox is lightweight by design, but its networking stack depends on the same components used by Hyper‑V, WSL, and container workloads. Any hiccup in those layers can leave HNS in a confused state. Heavy browser workloads, WASM execution, or aggressive site behavior can push Sandbox into a crash that leaves the network half‑torn‑down.

Because the bug lives in the host’s virtualization plumbing, toggling Sandbox on and off in optional features doesn’t fix it. Only a full HNS reset clears the corrupted entries.

Final Thoughts

Windows Sandbox remains one of my favorite tools for quick testing, but the network access bug is an annoyance. The good news is that the fix is consistent and non‑destructive. If Sandbox bites you with a sudden loss of connectivity or a refusal to start, resetting HNS is the fastest way to get back to work.

Good thing it works just fine on the ThinkStation P3 Ultra Gen 2. When I hit issues with Sandbox on Flo6, I just remote into the P3 and keep going. Here in Windows-World, it’s always good to have an alternative workaround.