Cool Tools, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, Troubleshooting, WED Blog, Windows 10, Windows 11

Repair Install Fixes Instability

February 20, 2024 Ed Tittel 2 Comments

At the beginning of this month, I performed an in-place upgrade repair install on my Windows 10 production PC. It’s now running Build 19045.4046. You can see that this repair install fixes instability on the PC in the lead-in graphic. Over the past 20 days I’ve had only one critical event — mostly self-inflicted when testing winget Chrome update behavior (see last Friday’s post for details). Otherwise, this 2016-vintage system has been rock solid of late.

When in Doubt, Repair Install Fixes Instability

Gosh! I’ve long been a believer that an in-place upgrade repair install (IPURI) is something of a Windows cure-all. Reminder: an IPURI runs setup.exe from a mounted ISO for the same version of Windows that’s currently running on a PC. Thus, it requires the host OS to be running well enough to replace itself. See these terrrific TenForums.com and ElevenForum.com tutorials for all the details…

Thus, you can’t use this technique if you’re having boot problems, or the OS isn’t running well enough to get through the GUI phase of a Windows upgrade. But for situations where the OS is running (but most likely, not as well as you might like) this technique works extremely well. My earlier Reliability Monitor trace, before the February 1 IPURI, looked something like a sawtooth wave on an oscilloscope. Ouch!

How to Get the Right ISO

I still use UUPDump.net to match build numbers between what’s running and the ISO I have it build for me. Then, I mount that ISO, and run setup.exe from the virtual DVD drive ID Explorer puts out there for me. Lately it’s been showing up as the E: drive; but this morning it comes up as P:. But you’ll most likely see it labeled with the initial characters of the image label like this:

Here’s what Explorer shows me when I mount the ISO I used on February 1 for an IPURI: Virtual DVD Drive P:

For the record, I also use the excellent Ventoy project software to boot into my various ISOs when an IPURI won’t do. Admins and power users will want to keep a USB handy with their fave ISOs for repair and recovery scenarios. I do that on a 1 TB NVMe SSD inside a USB3.2 drive enclosure. Lets me keep dozens of ISOs around, ready to boot into any of them on a moment’s notice. Good stuff!

Cool Tools, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 10, Windows 11

Winget Browser Updates May Be Curious

February 16, 2024 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

As far as I can tell, I’ve been blogging here about the Windows Package Manager — Winget, that is — since May 2022. Indeed it’s received regular mention ever since (nearly a third of all posts). I finally observed the other day that winget won’t update a browser with any of its processes running on the target PC. Also the browsers I use (Chrome, Firefox, Edge) still make you “Relaunch” to complete any update. This includes instances when Winget updates them successfully. Hence my assertion: Winget browser updates may be curious. And I mean both in terms of effect and outcome.

If Winget Browser Updates May Be Curious, Then?

It doesn’t stop me from trying, but the update doesn’t happen at all when any related process is running. Thus, for example, if any chrome.exe items show up in Task Manager>Details view, winget breezes past the update package and does nothing. Ditto for Firefox and Edge. But it’s a good flag for me to jump into each one’s Help>About facililty which is usually more than happy to update from insider the browser itself. And again, to request a “Relaunch” when that process comes to its conclusion.

It’s all part of the learning process in working with winget to keep Windows up-to-date. Sometimes — indeed nearly all the time — winget handles update packages quite nicely on its own. At other times (less often) winget acts as a sentinel to warn me that an update is available, which I then must figure out how to install.

Here’s a short list of such programs above and beyond the browsers already mentioned: Kindle for Windows, Discord, certain EA game executables, Teams Classic, Windows Terminal (now fixed), and even Winget itself from time to time. But gosh, it’s always fun to see what’s out there and what happens when winget wrangles update packages. It’s made my life ever so much more interesting (and updates easier) since it emerged in 2022.

Cool Tools, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, Updates, WED Blog, Windows 11

Build 26058 Explorer Brings Button Labels Back

February 15, 2024 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

It’s a small change but a helpful one. In Canary Channel Build 26058 Explorer brings button labels back. That is, instead of simply showing labels and forcing you to do one of these:

Remember what they are and what they do
Mouse over the label icon and read the text tip
Pick one and hope for the best

Explorer once again shows text to accompany the icons so users know what they’re doing. These show up at middle in the lead-in graphic, with icon buttons above and text below. To wit: Scissors button/Cut, overlaid pages/Copy, Text “A”/Rename, Block with pointer/Share, and Trashcan/Delete. Good stuff!

You can see what the old way looks like in the production Windows version (Build 22631) below where the icons appear at the bottom of the Explorer right-click context menu for files inside a folder. Much less intelligible, IMO.

Notice the line of icons at the bottom of the content menu. Mouseover will show tip text.

Rejoice When Build 26058 Explorer Brings Button Labels Back

It’s not a huge change to see text show up with a button, unprompted. But it is a comforting usability improvement. I’d always wondered why MS adopted this ultra-compact approach. But given the presence of tip text on mouseover, I’d always been able to suss things out if I wasn’t 100% what was what.

This latest improvement saves the time and effort involved in mousing over. I definitely appreciate it. On the one hand: thanks! On the other: Why’d it take so long?

And if those aren’t among the major dueling dualities here in Windows-World, I haven’t been paying attention for the past 30-plus years. Yeah, right…

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

PS Update Orphans PowerToys CNF

February 14, 2024 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

Here’s an interesting one. I’ve noticed recently that when PowerShell gets an update, the next time it launches PowerToys “Command Not Found” (CNF) drops an error message. Hence this post’s title: PS Update Orphans PowerToys CNF.

You can see how this story starts in the lead-in graphic. It shows the error message that CNF.psd1 did not load “because no valid file was found in any module directory.” Seems like an impasse, don’t it?

NOTE Added February 15: It’s the profile not the PowerShell!!! The following observations are correct — the profile and the reference to CNF are indeed mismatched — but it’s NOT PowerShell’s fault. It’s because I’m backing up my profile stuff in OneDrive and the location in the profile is incorrect. Uinstall/reinstall fixes that issue until the next time OneDrive replaces the (correct) local profile copy with the (incorrect) cloud-based one. Sigh. I’ll write about this on Monday, Feb 19, after I’ve had time to figure all the angles!

PS Update Orphans PowerToys CNF Easily Fixed

I superimposed the CNF panel from PowerToys Settings for a reason, though. Even though its status messages and detections all show green, it turns out the real problem is that PowerShell itself can’t find the CNF module.

Here’s the easy fix. Uninstall CNF (click the Uninstall button at center right). Then it changes to an Install button. Now, click that and CNF gets reinstalled. Now, the next time you open PowerShell everything is copacetic, with CNF back at work, as shown in response to my now-standard “vim” test string:

After uninstall/reinstall CNF in PowerToys, close and then re-open PowerShell. [Click image for full-size view.]

Sometimes, when certain little things get you, other little things can set them back to rights. In this particular case, that’s how I’d generally describe the path to an error-free PowerShell startup after update, with a working PowerToys CNF as well. Cheers!

Insider stuff, Recent Activity, Thoughts & concerns, WED Blog, Windows 11

POPCNT Fuss Is More Fizzle

February 13, 2024 Ed Tittel 6 Comments

OK, then: the ‘net has been abuzz since last week as upcoming Windows 11 24H2 requirements come clear. Indeed, that OS won’t run on processors that don’t support the POPCNT instruction . IMO this POPCNT fuss is more fizzle than it is a major obstruction. Let me explain…

Why Say: POPCNT Is More Fuss than Fizzle

The POPCNT instruction has nothing to do with stack processing as its name might suggest. Rather, it counts up all 1-values in a binary sequence. It’s part of the SSE4.2 instruction set. These were introduced in 2008 to both AMD and Intel processors — namely:

AMD K10 (codename Barcelona), released in April of that year
Intel (codename Nehalem), released in November same year

That means the oldest processors that DON’T support SSE4.1 (and POPCNT) are more than 15 years old. Not terribly suitable for running Windows 11 anyway and likely to fail owing to lack of support for TPM, Secure Boot, and other reasons as well.

You can use Franc Delattre’s excellent CPU-Z tool to check your CPU to see if it supports SSE 4.2 or not. Check the lead-in graphic next to “Instructions.” It pops right up even on my 6th-gen 2016 vintage Skylake CPU (still running Windows 10 BTW).

For all but the most diehard long-haul PC users running a machine more than 5 years old is pushing things (and 15-plus years is highly unusual). This very Skylake is my oldest at 8 years, and it’s due for retirement soon, soon, soon.

WTFuss? No Workaround

The problem with POPCNT is that it’s absolutely, positively mandatory for 24H2 to work. Whereas the other impedimenta — e.g. TPM, Secure Boot, UEFI and so forth — have all been cleverly worked around, there’s no known (or likely) workaround for this gotcha. Thus, older PCs that have been shoehorned into Windows 11 upgrades will not be able to advance past the 23H2 upgrade level. Hence such fuss as has emerged in the blogosphere since this news came out last week.

My best guess that that less than 1% of PCs in the US (and perhaps 5-8% of PCs elsewhere, mostly outside the first world) might be subject to the POPCNT limitation. Just another sign that even here in Windows-World, time keeps marching on.

Insider stuff, Recent Activity, Troubleshooting, USB devices, WED Blog

Wired Mouse Means No Stutter

February 12, 2024 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

Remember that scene near the end of The Incredibles where one older cop says to the other “No school like the old school?” That snippet of wisdom crossed my mind as I decided to switch from an MS wireless Mobile Mouse 4000 to an MS Basic Optical Mouse 2.0. Why? Because a wired mouse means no stutter, lag, or hesitation when working on my desktop (or playing Gnu Backgammon or MS Solitaire, two of my fave diversions). Sigh.

Why Wired Mouse Means No Stutter?

I’m pretty sure the fault is mine for the wireless mouse issue. I had its transceiver mounted on my Luxo lamp, right next to a couple of monitors and less than 2 feet away from my Asus 802.11ax router. Not to mention further, it’s in close range of 3 laptops and my desktop as well. Your basic signal-rich, if not downright noisy, wirelesss environment. That said, I didn’t have these problems with the older MS Mobile Mouse 3000 (but alas, they don’t make them anymore).

But now that I’ve got a more isolated communications channel between desktop and mouse, there’s no more stutter or delay. Sometimes, the old school is the only school that works without issue. I have a feeling this may be one of those times. Plus: it was really bugging me. Go figure!

While you’re doing that, I’ll be taking the occasional break for backgammon or solitaire, content in believing that my ancient but unhampered wired mouse will remain snappy enough for my needs. Thank goodness!

Cool Tools, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 10, Windows 11

Microsoft PC Manager Makes Store Debut

February 8, 2024 Ed Tittel 2 Comments

They used to call it Microsoft PC Manager (Beta). Now, not only is the beta designation gone, Microsoft PC Manager Makes Store debut. And when you install it from the download, the program flashes this screen to confirm that change of status:

What do YOU think? Official it is!

Easy Pickings As Microsoft PC Manager Makes Store Debut

I’ve written a couple of prior stories about the Beta version so I’m fairly familiar with this program:

This blog “Introducing MS PC Manager” (July 24, 2023)
This AskWoody story “Introducing Microsoft PC Manager” (Oct 23, 2023) [Subscription required for access]
TekkiGurus “Introducing PC Manager (Beta)” (Dec 18, 2023)

I can say this much right away: with its release into the MS Store, installing MSPCM (as I like to abbreviate Microsoft PC Manager) has become a LOT easier. If you didn’t realize how the download button worked in the beta version you could easily be fooled into thinking installation didn’t work. Happened to me, anyway. And of course, installing via the Store means you can skip all the steps I depict in the afore-linked TekkiGurus story (as well as the ones I just skip over).

OK, Then: What’s Changed?

Other than dropping the (Beta) from the end of its name and popping up in the Store, I haven’t found that much different about the program just yet. Looks like I need to spend more time noodling around. Good thing that’s one of my favorite ways to spend time with Windows.

On the plus side, MSPCM is losing a lot of its rough edges. It still shows some signs that non-native English speakers put the text together, but it’s getting better, e.g.:

PC Manager will automatically boost your PC when high usage of RAM or there are 1GB of temporary files

Cleanup your system and free up spaces.

Built-in a variety of Windows tools.

The first of these items comes from the UI itself, the latter two from the PC Manager web pages. Still a bit of Chinglish in there, but they’ve come a long way since I started playing with this tool last fall. Check it: search for Microsoft PC Manager at the Microsoft Store, or follow its Store Link. Cheers!

Note: here’s a shout-out to Abishek Misra at WindowsLatest, whose February 6 story clued me into this new step in MSPCM evolution.

Device drivers, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, Troubleshooting, WED Blog

Keyboard Driver Issue Kills Productivity

February 7, 2024 Ed Tittel 2 Comments

Think about how you type on a keyboard. Now, consider these words: fully, password, assign, connect. What they have in common is doubled letters. When I type them, I strike the doubled key very quickly then move on to the next letter. The speed at which the keyboard allows this to occur is called the “key repeat rate” aka “repeat rate.” Yesterday, some kind of keyboard driver issue kills productivity. It imposed an apparent 1-second delay between repeats. Indeed, I could barely function at the keyboard!

If Keyboard Driver Issue Kills Productivity, Then What?

A little quick online research informed me about repeat delay and repeat rate. Indeed, it came courtesy of a tutorial from long-time friend and TenForums/ElevenForum colleague Shawn Brink. It’s entitled Change Keyboard Character Repeat Rate in Windows. Its header graphic appears as the lead-in image for this blog post, too.

First, I discovered that both the repeat delay and the repeat rate weren’t working at all. I had to wait about a second to hit any key a second time, and have it show up on the display. Next, I learned that the Microsoft Mouse and Keyboard Center wouldn’t let me adjust either rate directly. And finally, upon checking existing Registry settings, they should already have been working properly.

Title Says Driver, Fix Replaces Driver

All these bits of evidence told me the driver itself was broken. So I returned to MS support to download a new version of the MKC (Mouse and Keyboard Center) version 14.41, 64-bit. After the install, I had to reboot my PC. When it came back up, I jumped immediately into Notepad. Once again I could type words with doubled letters. And when I pressed and held any letter key, it would quickly start pumping out copies until I lifted my finger. Back in business!

They say, it’s the little things that get you in the end. Here in Windows-World they also get you at odd and random times, too. Like yesterday when MKC went south. So it goes…

Insider stuff, Recent Activity, Thoughts & concerns, WED Blog

MS Provides “Complete” CPL File List

February 6, 2024 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

“What,” you may ask, “is a CPL file?” It stands for control panel item or component, and maps to something you can run inside the Control Panel hierarchy. You can see the top level of my Windows 10 hierarchy above, and a corresponding one from Windows 11 below. Though MS is working to replace CPL items with Settings elements, there are still a lot of CPLs around. In fact, MS provides complete CPL file list on one of its support pages. It’s called “How to run Control Panel tools by typing a command.”

Click image for full-size view (Windows 11 CP).

MS Provides “Complete” CPL File List: Use It!

Upon closer examination of this list, and comparisons with voidtools Everything output (search on “*.cpl”) I can see several limitations of this list. But for most of the items that do appear therein as actual .cpl references, they do provide quick access via PowerShell or the Command Prompt. That said two of the items — namely, the Fonts Folder and the Printers — simply tell readers to use corresponding folder structures.

OTOH, there are numerous items that aren’t on the list that do appear in the Control Panel window. That makes things interesting. You can also see that third parties can and do register items in the Control Panel. And the list is neither complete nor accurate when it comes to Windows 10 and 11. Let me lay things out, then explain…

Get It from a Table…

I built a table that shows item names, cpl file names (when present), and the name of the software item that launches. Some may surprise you: they sure surprised me!

Control Panel Item	CPL filename	Result in Windows 10/11
Accessibility options	access.cpl	not found (use Settings > Ease of Access)
Add New Hardware	sysdm.cpl	System Properties CPL (computer name tab)
Add/Remove Programs	appwiz.cpl	Add/Remove programs CPL
Date/Time Properties	timedate.cpl	Date and Time CPL
Display Properties	desk.cpl	Opens Settings > System > Display
Findfast control	findfast.cpl	Defunct (no longer available)
Fonts folder	==none==	Visit C:\Windows\Fonts
Internet Properties	inetcpl.cpl	Opens Internet Properties (General tab)
Joystick Properties	joy.cpl	Opens Game Controllers CPL
Keyboard Properties	main.cpl	Opens Mouse Properties CPL
Microsoft Exchange	mlcf632.cpl	Defunct (no longer available)
Microsoft Mail	wgpocpl.cpl	Defunct (no longer available)
Modem Properties	modem.cpl	Defunct (no longer available)
Mouse Properties	main.cpl	Opens Mouse Properties CPL
Multimedia Properties	mmsys.cpl	Opens Sound CPL
Network Properties	netcpl.cpl	Not found (use Settings > Network & Internet)
Password Properties	password.cpl	Not found (use Settings > Accounts > Sign-in…)
PC Card	main.cpl	Opens Mouse Properties CPL (but defunct)
Power Management	powercfg.cpl	Opens Power Options CPL
Printers Folder	==none==	Use Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Printers…
Regional Settings	intl.cpl	Region CPL
Scanners and Cameras	sticpl.cpl	Not found (use Settings > Bluetooth… > Printers…)
Sound Properties	mmsys.cpl	Sound CPL
System Properties	sysdm.cpl	System Properties (computer name tab)

What’s Interesting Here?

This file clearly shows its age with some items (especially Exchange and Mail stuff) long, long gone from Windows. The need to use Settings elements instead of CPLs shows the gradual shift-over from the latter to the former. It’s also interesting how many still work just as they always did.

Ahhhh, Windows. It’s always an education to dig into the details and see how older versions still have influence. But new forces (and designs) will inexorably push old stuff out of the way (e.g. PCMCIA or PC Card stuff). Interestingly the meta-data says this file was created in 2017 and last updated in 2021. That shows, and explains why some of its info is just plain out of date and thus, wrong.

Enjoy!

Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 11

Windows 11 24H2 = Next Release?

February 5, 2024 Ed Tittel Leave a comment

There’s been a lot of flap and guff in the rumor mill about how “Windows vNext” will be labeled. Some have said “Windows 12;” others, “Windows 11 24H2.” Strong evidence that Windows 11 24H2 = next release popped up last Friday. This WindowsLatest story Microsoft document confirms Windows 11 24H2 update includes a link to a Windows App Development support note that uses this very nomenclature. It reads:

Starting in Windows 11 Version 24H2, EnumDeviceDrivers will require SeDebugPrivilege to return valid ImageBase values.

If Windows 11 24H2 = Next Release, Then?

I guess this should ease off the WTF factor that seems to explode whenever Windows 12 comes up. My best guess is that MS still wants to slide as many business users over from Windows 10 to 11 as it can. Thus, it’s always seemed a little whacky for insiders and pundits to freak out over Windows 12. With EOL still more than a year in the offing for Windows 10 (October 14, 2025 is 617 days away as I write this, says TimeandDate.com).

I’m just glad to believe if only for a while that the 4 channels of Windows 11 Insider Previews and a single such channel for Windows 10 will be all I have to follow. Plus the production versions of each OS, of course. It manages to keep me reasonably well-occupied. Who knows how the channel count will change when MS does get into Windows 12 releases? Not me! Stay tuned, though: when I find out, I’ll tell you…

Nomenclature Confirmed

After installing the latest Canary Build 26052 on February 8, here’s what came up in Winver on that test PC (Lenovo ThinkPad X12 Hybrid Tablet). It’s also explicitly stated in the release notes as well [General section] (emphasis in bold is Microsoft’s):

Starting with Build 26-xx today, Windows Insiders in the Canary and Dev Channels will see the versioning updated under Settings > System > About (and winver) to version 24H2. This denotes that Windows 11, version 24H2 will be this year’s annual feature update.

So indeed, Windows 11 24H2 it is for sure, straight from the source