All posts by Ed Tittel

Full-time freelance writer, researcher and occasional expert witness, I specialize in Windows operating systems, information security, markup languages, and Web development tools and environments. I blog for numerous Websites, still write (or revise) the occasional book, and write lots of articles, white papers, tech briefs, and so forth.
Cool Tools, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 10, Windows 11, Windows Update

DISM /Add-Packages Loses Windows 11 Mojo

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This week, I’ve been updating a story for ComputerWorld. Along the way, I learned a little about .msu files for the Microsoft Update Standalone Installer. They differ widely between Windows 10 and 11. TLDR version: it’s pretty easy to extract a usable .cab file from Windows 10 .msu from Microsoft Catalog downloads. For Windows 11 .msu, it’s not. That’s why I observe that DISM /Add-Packages loses Windows 11 mojo. Let me now explain…

Why Say: DISM /Add-Packages Loses Windows 11 Mojo

The contents of .msu files for Windows 10 versus 11 updates reveals some stark differences. For recent such updates  I chose KB5066791 for Windows 10, and KB5067036 for 11.

Turns out you can open .msu files in 7-Zip to examine their contents. The two files couldn’t be more different internally. The latest 10 update includes 5 files and is just over 700MB in size. The latest 11 update includes over 100K files and comes in at just under 3.5 GB.

The really big difference is that DISM /Add-package /online (the incarnation of that command that permits working on a running Windows image) REQUIRES a .cab file to do its job. Simply put: Windows 10 makes that easy to find, extract, and use; Windows 11 makes it pretty much impossible.

Where the Mojo Went…

That means you can use DISM /Add-Package on Windows 10 to apply updates to a running image, when Windows Update isn’t working or something goes sideways with some particular update. But if you want to use DISM to add a package to a running Windows 11 image, you must take that image offline, apply the update, then bring the image back online.

The net effect is that a quick and handy alternate update technique that works fine for Windows 10, turns into a slow and cumbersome slog for Windows 11. Better to try something else, instead. I’m sorry to lose a helpful tool from my Windows fixes and workarounds toolbox, but that’s the way progress sometimes works in Windows-World.

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Backup/Restore, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, Troubleshooting, WED Blog, Windows 10, Windows 11

Update Gotcha Highlights BitLocker Key Backup

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Recent updates have triggered news and warnings that some PCs will request a BitLocker key upon restart. Reports from Windows Latest and Neowin confirm that KB5066835 (Win11) and KB5066791 (Win10) trigger such behavior for Windows Enterprise and Microsoft 365 Business editions. Apparently, as Copilot says of this issue “Intel-based PCs with Modern Standby are most susceptible.” But this update gotcha highlights BitLocker key backup and recovery techniques for all Windows users. Let me tell you about that…

New Update Gotcha Highlights BitLocker
Key Backup and Recovery

The easiest way to backup and use a BitLocker recovery key is to type Bitlocker into Settings, then select the resulting “Manage BitLocker” item that pops up. This takes you to the Control Panel pane for BitLocker Drive Encryption shown above, where you can click the entry labeled “Back up your recovery key.”

Resulting options read:

  • Save to your Microsoft account
  • Save to a USB flash drive
  • Save to a file
  • Print the recovery key

As something of a belt-and-suspenders guy, I usually save to a file named <machine-name>blrk.txt AND I print a copy that I stick in a folder in my filing cabinet labeled “PC Recovery Stuff.” Saving to a file means loss of access to its drives and backups could stymie recovery in some circumstances, so I like to have the hard copy as a fallback.

Of course, you can also register your PCs into your MSA (Microsoft Account) and get it online as well. The URL for that specific purpose is https://account.microsoft.com/devices/recoverykey. I’ve pretty much got that memorized because I do use it multiple times a year, every year, like clockwork.

Here in Windows-World, if you use BitLocker it’s wise to ensure you can access the recovery key when and as you need it. The techniques I’ve described will get you where you need to go, should that need arise. Cheers!

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Hardware Reviews, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, WED Blog, Windows 11

ThinkStation P3 Ultra SFF G2 Intake

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A couple of weeks ago, the nice folks at Lenovo Reviews contacted me by email. “How would you like to try out the newest ThinkStation P3?” they asked. I already had the first generation model in house, so I boxed it up and sent it back. A few days later the new model arrived, and I got going on ThinkStation P3 Ultra SFF G2 intake. Here’s what I’ve learned so far…

Working Thru ThinkStation P3 Ultra SFF G2 Intake

At first glance, there’s no obvious difference between the Gen1 and Gen 2 models in this series. But I show the back of the unit because it’s immediately obvious that Lenovo made some substantial changes there. Let me list them out:

  • Went from side-by-side 2.5 GbE & 1 GbE RJ-45 ports to a single 1 GbE port
  • Switched from 8 mini-DP ports for video to 3 full-size + 4 mini DP ports
  • Changed the interior layout so it’s even simpler to switch out SSDs and RAM modules without using (too many, or any) tools

Of course, as you’d expect the innards got a bit of a facelift in climbing the generational ladder. That said, this compact workstation, while powerful, is NOT a Copilot+ PC. Here’s a list of key components:

  • Intel Core Ultra 9 285 (Arrow Lake, 8 P & 16 E cores: 24 total)
  • 64 GB (2×32) DDR5-5600 RAM
  • Graphics: Intel Arc Xe-LPG & RTX 4000 SFF Ada Generation NVIDIA GPU (20 GB RAM)
  • Single 1 TB Samsung OEM SSD, to which I added a Samsung 950 EVO 4TB SSD (Higher speed options, including 10 GbE, available)
  • Wi-Fi: Intel Wi-Fi 7 BE200 2×2 BE vPro & Bluetooth 5.4
  • Ports: 2x USB-C/USB4/TB4 (front), 1x rear (top left, next to Wi-Fi antenna port), 2x USB 2 Type-A (mouse & keyboard), 2x USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) Type-A
  • Power goes to a 300W external brick (far right, top row)

As configured, the unit comes with an MSRP of $3,915. As per typical ongoing Lenovo discounts, it will cost you $3,054 at the Lenovo store. The unit is new enough that third-party resellers — and different prices — are not yet widely available.

Doing the Intake Thing

It was absurdly easy to remove the 2nd SSD from the old Gen 1 instance and install it into the Gen2. Took less than 2 minutes all told. I’ve not yet tried my 96 GB memory kit on the machine, though (Gen 2, like Gen 1, maxes out at 128 GB RAM). Getting the machine up to snuff has been a pleasure: it’s every bit as fast and powerful as its predecessor. So far, I’m loving working this beast, just as I enjoyed the older model.

Make no mistake: even though this PC is not Copilot+ capable, it’s still a powerful albeit compact (SFF means “small form factor” after all) PC. It can drive lots of monitors, handle lots of intense demanding work, and do those jobs with ease and panache. A worthy successor to the Gen 1, the Gen 2 is a kick-butt little workstation.

 

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Device drivers, Insider stuff, Recent Activity, Troubleshooting, WED Blog, Windows 11, Windows Update

Driver Upgrade Fixes 0xC1900101 Errors

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I’ve seen it  before, and I’ll probably see it again. When I first ran the Beta Channel upgrade to Build 26220.7051 on Friday, it failed during the post-GUI install (aka SECOND_BOOT) phase . Basically, it hung at 10% complete for half an hour or longer, and I force-rebooted the X380 Yoga. When the rollback process completed, WU/Update History showed me an error in the 0xC1900101 range. From long experience I recognized this as some kind of device driver issue. Fortunately, a driver upgrade fixes 0xc1900101 errors. Let me tell you more…

Why Say Driver Upgrade Fixes 0xC1900101 Errors?

Alas, I didn’t record the exact error code string yesterday. I simply grabbed the latest version of Snappy SDIO from PatchMyPC Home Updater, and used it to upgrade the drivers on the X380. (TMI: That’s version R817, as far as I can tell.) This took about half an hour, give or take 5 minutes, and replaced 17 drivers.

The next go-round on the update process took quite  a while to complete (probably a bit over an hour). But it went all the way through, and resulted in a successful installation. The table you see in the lead-in graphic here comes from Copilot after I asked it to tell me about 0XC19001… Windows 11 install errors. It’s pretty informative, so I figured I’d share it.

Here in Windows-World, when a Windows 11 install goes wonky, it’s nice when prior experience retains its relevance for current troubleshooting. Again: I’m glad the tried-and-true technique for this kind of error code still works.

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Cool Tools, Recent Activity, Windows 11, Windows OS Musings

Windows 11 ARM Gets Working MCT Back

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Phew! For a while there, ARM PCs — like my ThinkPad T14s Snapdragon model — couldn’t build a UFD or ISO using the Media Creation Tool. That said, I just confirmed that after updating with KB5067036, that issue is fixed. It’s nice that Windows 11 ARM gets working MCT back. Why? Because users expect basic MS tools to work. So I’m glad it’s fixed. Now I can use it again if I need it.

Showing Windows 11 ARM Gets Working MCT Back

If you look at the lead-in graphic it shows output for two Powershell commands. The first reads the install Windows image file (a split WIM, or .swm file) to show information about the Windows 11 Pro version on the install UFD. The second shows the current running Windows 11 ARM version on the T14s — namely, Windows 11 (shows as 10, amusingly enough) but version 25H2 (an 11-only thing) and build 26200 (again, 11-only).

It’s always interesting to get Windows to provide information about itself. For compatibility reasons, Windows 11 remains a “special kind” of Windows 10. But otherwise, it’s definitely its own thing. Here in Windows-World, it’s important to remember these quirks and oddities. Too bad there are so many of them: my head hurts sometimes…

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

WinGet Chaos Presages Changes

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Just yesterday, I was catching up over at ElevenForum.com, and read a thread entitled “Winget errors…” It talked about issues accessing the WinGet source error. It reads "Failed in attempting to update the source: winget." I’ve seen this before myself. It occurs mostly when issues involved with accessing the MS WinGet servers come up. Then it happened to me soon thereafter, for updates and for an attempted export/import operation. This kind of WinGet chaos presages changes, as it shows a shakier Internet infrastructure than normal. Let me explain…

WinGet Chaos Presages Changes in Server Access/Reliability

In working with any cloud based service — including WinGet — the presumption is that the service is “always available.” Bad things, or nothing, happens when it’s unavailable. Ditto for issues when attempting to access the Internet infrastructure and cloud that leads to said service. Things don’t work like they’re supposed to — that’s where the “Chaos” part comes in — until the service returns to normal, expected behavior.

Recently, I’ve seen reports of outages or DNS attacks that have taken AWS, Google, Microsoft and others offline. Sometimes it’s just minutes, sometimes it’s hours; rarely, it’s half a day or longer. But chaos follows in the wake of such outages when things stop working, or don’t work as they should. Perhaps the strangest recent manifestion occurred when Internet-connected beds (human sleeping platforms) got wonky during an AWS outage.

Closer to my desk, yesterday’s WinGet weirdnesses reflect the same chaos that ensues when expected information sources and handling in the cloud go away. It seems to be happening more often. I’m inclined to look for ways to fall back on local information rather than simply failing when cloud information isn’t available.

In small things, and small ways, little bits of Chaos remain unavoiodable. Chaos is seldom desirable, especially in big doses. Let’s hope the wizards who make Windows-World such a big thing feel the same way, and help us work toward failover or workarounds to keep the Chaos at bay.

Note Added 4+ Hours Later: Azure Outage

As I’m reading Windows related news this afternoon, I see ample coverage of a major Azure outage yesterday afternoon. For example, Neowin  Microsoft Azure hit by massive outage… Whaddya bet the WinGet stuff falls under that umbrella. Seems to be working fine today, though.

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Farewell AIO32i: Fast, Capable & Costly

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I’ve been messing around with the Lenovo Yoga AIO 32i (aka 9i, for some odd reason or another) since last July. It’s proven itself to be a fast and surprisingly capable Copilot+ PC. That’s nice, especially for an All-in-One — AIO, get it? Yesterday, I had to get some help and insight from “the Boss” (wife, Dina) to figure out how to get it packed in its monster shipping box (dimensions: 34″ x 26″ x13″). It’s a bit of a puzzle box to unpack and repack, in fact. Summing up this device, I say “Farewell AIO32i: Fast, Capable & Costly.” Let me explain…

I Bid Farewell AIO32i: Fast, Capable & Costly

When this model first showed up at Chez Tittel, it came with an MSRP of over US$2,800. I can’t find that same model for sale any more. But one with an Intel Core 256 (not a 258), 16 instead of 32 GB of RAM, and lacking the original unit’s Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 (6GB) currently goes for US$2,100 in the Lenovo Store.  Like I said: it’s kind of pricey.

But the display was absolutely gorgeous and the unit very nice to work on. It handled everything I threw at it without breaking a sweat. That included some pretty serious program compilations in Python, some intense and demanding Copilot and ChatGPT sessions, and more. I don’t think it’s suited for heavy development or AI work. But I do think it would make a fine office or dorm room PC, easy to set up and put to work in a flash.

Pros & Cons

I’m just going to list what I observed and enjoyed (or not) about the machine in a set of plusses and minuses to put this PC into context:

Pros
*  Gorgeous, high-res display
*  Excellent built in wireless keyboard & mouse (USB-charged)
*  Great performance and handling
*  Trouble-free Windows 11 and Copilot+ AI support (only PC I’ve ever used that fully supported Smart App Control, too)

Cons
*  Pricey when compared to similar-value desktops or laptops
*  Relatively few USB ports, kinda hard to reach on back of base (most notably: only 1 USB4 port)
*  Not much upgradeability: soldered RAM, only 1 M.2 slot

Net-Net: Copilot+ for Convenience, Not Upgrades

For those seeking a plug it in, turn it on, and let it go experience with little or nor setup or customization needed, this is a terrific and capable PC. Given that it’s Copilot+ capable, and able to handle typical tasks quickly and effectively, it’s a good choice for naive or untutored Windows users who won’t want to mess with their machines much anyway. I’d rate it very high for office workers who need to sit down and get stuff done. Likewise for students not interested in computers themselves but more for what they can do with them. And ditto for families trying to outfit seniors with a nice PC that’s easy for them to use and others to support.

IMO, what you can get for $2,100 by way of desktop or laptop PCs — including many other models from Lenovo — make me less inclined, personally, to buy such a machine. But I have monitors and peripherals galore around. Also, my baseline Windows 11 config now includes 32GB RAM (which the current AIO32i for sale falls short of by half).

That said, it is a gorgeous machine to look at and use. Not beyond the pale, and eminently suitable for some. Just not me, as it happens.

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Insider stuff, Recent Activity, Remote Desktop (RDP), WED Blog, Windows 11

Welcome RDP Session Handling Change

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I’m not sure when the change I’m about to document happened, but I just noticed it this morning. Last night before heading off to bed, I put my production desktop to sleep. At the time, I had 3 RDP sessions running elsewhere on my LAN. When I logged in this morning, instead of finding 3 Remote Desktop Connection prompts to re-establish those sessions, I found login prompts on lock screens into those sessions instead. This is a welcome RDP session handling change, as far as I can tell. I’m glad to see it.

Why Say: Welcome RDP Session Handling Change

As you can see, the lock screen snippet in the lead-in graphic shows my LocalOnly account. That’s a — you guessed it — purely local Windows account I use to establish RDP sessions into Windows 11 PCs that won’t let me log in using my preferred Microsoft Account (MSA).

When I saw that show up inside a Remote Desktop Connection session window (or three) this morning, I knew what it meant. It meant that MS kept the remote session ready to re-start, even though the client half of that session (my production desktop) had been asleep. That’s both good and convenient.

Copilot Sheds More Light

Copilot says that recent builds like 26200.6901 (what I’m running on the Flo6 right now) offer persistent RDP sessions across sleep/wake cycles. Instead of summary disconnection — the way things used to work — they now lock open RDP sessions (which is why I had to log back into them) and preserve memory state and open windows.

Good to know! This is what I call a nice surprise in Windows-World. Glad to see that MS has made this change: it makes my job easier.

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

Beta 25H2 Jump Brings Unexpected Side Effect

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When I saw the news, I had to try it. A couple of weeks back, MS announced that 24H2 users for all versions of Windows 11 except the Dev and Canary Channel could move up to 25H2. So I used the Installation Assistant, and did that very thing for my X380 Yoga install. But, as I’m learning, that Beta 25H2 jump brings unexpected side effect. Namely, as MS drops new Beta Builds (e.g. 26120.6982), my jumped-up Yoga doesn’t partake of such updates. It’s on a higher track.

Why Beta 25H2 Jump Brings Unexpected Side Effect

The base build number for 24H2 Beta versions remains 26120. For Beta installs jumped to 25H2, that base build number advances to 26200, as you can see in the lead-in graphic. Thus, for my Beta Channel test PC the unexpected side effect of the jump-up is to exclude it from updates and new versions that target 24H2 instead. I should have known, but found out when I saw last week’s announcement of Build 26120.6982, visited WU, and didn’t get anything in response to clicking the “Check for updates” button.

Only slowly did it dawn on me that my install is on a different track right now. I’m not exactly sure when I’ll see the next update for this track. I’m guessing I may have put myself on the Patch Tuesday schedule with this change, along with occasional OOB updates and 4th Tuesday items as they sometimes appear.

Here in Windows-World, it can be easy to change tracks, or even to get onto the wrong track. I know I’ve done the former, and time will tell me if I’ve also done the latter. In the meantime, I’ll just keep chugging along.

One More Thing [Added 6 hrs later]

I just ran DISM /online /analyzecomponentstore on this updated PC and guess what? the 25H2 eKB restored the spurious reclaimables that I’d hand-deleted from the 24H2 image. (See this March 21 post for details.) It worked this time, too, just as recited in that earlier post (and again, thanks to ElevenForum user @Bree for figuring this out in the first place).

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

PowerToys Fixes Random Light Switch Toggle

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Just over a week ago, the PowerToys dev team dropped v.0.95.0. Highly touted amidst its new features: a Light Switch toy, which defines the default key combo Winkey-Ctrl-Shift-D to toggle Windows desktops from light to dark mode, or vice-versa. It’s also turned on by default. As I couldn’t help but notice after that, my PC(s) started toggling between light and dark mode with no help from me. Yesterday, the team dropped a new version: 0.95.1. It’s really worth installing because in that release, PowerToys fixes random Light Switch toggle behavior. I’m glad!

Why PowerToys Fixes Random Light Switch Toggle

PowerToys are supposed to work according to the user’s direction, not on their own recognizance. It’s a little disconcerting to be plugging away on one’s desktop and have the mode change whenever it feels like it. The timing was interesting, too: sometimes, it might happen once or twice a day. Sometimes, it would switch back and forth every 30 to 90 seconds. Disconcerting!

It’s easy enough to switch back if this happens to you. Fortunately, the key combo is quick: it’s close together and easy to enter. But better to avoid spontaneous mode switching if at all possible. That’s why I’m delighted to see an update that addresses such behavior sooner rather than later.

What the Release Notes Say…

The first Highlights entry is ALL about Light Switch. It lists 6 different fixes including: turning off enabled by default, not allowing sunset calculations to over-ride Manual time schedule, and renaming “Manual” to “Fixed Hours” mode. There’s even a new off mode that disables the switchover schedule but keeps the key combo working. Here is the new control pane for Light Switch:

I’ve already turned scheduling off because I don’t switch modes by time of day. If you use PowerToys you’ll want to update to v0.95.1. I’m glad to see this fix so soon, because it was a little disturbing.

But hey! “A little disturbing” describes a pretty familiar feeling — for me, at least — here in Windows-World. How ’bout you?

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