OK, now we know. Windows tinkerers and tweakers have often wondered why the Taskbar clock in Windows 11 shows no seconds. Nor does it provide a registry tweak to display same. Raymond Chen lays things out in an Old New Thing blog post. Entitled “Now that computers have more than 4MB of memory, can we get seconds on the taskbar?” it provides the answer: “No.” Along the way, MS explains Windows 11 Taskbar clock missing seconds. In a word: “Performance.”

How MS Explains Windows 11 Taskbar Clock Missing Seconds

As you can see in the lead-in graphic — Windows 10 on the left, 11 on the right — the 10 clock happily displays a seconds count. 11 does not, nor does  it offer controls to display same. Why that difference?

Chen’s explanation is interesting and hinges on performance issues when many clocks are involved, all in need of ongoing updates. Here’s a lengthy, but informative, quote from the afore-linked blog post:

On multi-users systems, like Terminal Server servers, it’s not one taskbar clock that would update once a second. Rather, each user that signs in has their own taskbar clock, that would need to update every second. So once a second, a hundred stacks would get paged in so that a hundred taskbar clocks can repaint. This is generally not a great thing, since it basically means that the system is spending all of its CPU updating clocks.

This is the same reason why, on Terminal Server systems, caret blinking is typically disabled. Blinking a caret at 500ms across a hundred users turns into a lot of wasted CPU. Even updating a hundred clocks once a minute is too much for many systems, and most Terminal Server administrators just disable the taskbar clock entirely.

He goes onto say that even PCs that lack a Terminal Server role are still subject to performance constraints. Indeed, “periodic activity prevents the CPU from entering a low-power state.” He also adds “Updating the seconds in the taskbar clock is not essential to the user interface. . .”

Now we know. For those still inclined to stay on top of time at the second level (performance concerns aside) check out this ElevenForum thread: Taskbar Clock Replacement. ‘Nuff said!

In other posts here, I’ve groused about AdDuplex and its (IMO) over-reporting of Windows 11 marketshare. My February 1 item is a good example. Just yesterday, I noticed that a major desktop OS marketshare tracker — namely Statcounter –registers Windows 11 amidst the versions it follows. The lead-in graphic above, in fact, refreshed just this morning (April 1) grants Windows 11 an 8.47% share of Windows desktops overall. Good-oh! Now that Windows 11 makes marketshare radar I can trust, those numbers will get increasingly real.

What Windows 11 Makes Marketshare Radar Means

This means major tracking sites (NetMarketShare, Statcounter, Statista, and analytics.usa.gov) are instrumenting their sites to track Windows 11. This is a bit trickier than it seems, because Windows 11 presents itself as Windows 10 in its basic user agent info. One must use agent-hints to pick Windows 11 out from that crowd. Indeed, some programming effort is required to make this happen.

To me, that goes a long way toward explaining why Windows 11 has been off that radar since it made its initial debut on June 28, 2021. (Its public debut occurred on October 4, 2021.) Now it’s finally on at least one real radar (I don’t count AdDuplex, as I explain in the afore-cited post) so we finally have some statistically defensible means to figure out how many Windows 11 instances might be in use.

What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?

If indeed there are 1.5B instances of Windows in use (as MS has recently claimed) and 8.47% of them are Windows 11, that’s a simple calculation. The result is 127M, give or take 50,000. I had guessed in February that the number could be between 50 and 100 million. Looks like I wasn’t too far off the mark. Using the latest AdDuplex value of 19.4 percent, that number would be 291M. I just don’t believe it’s that big: now how, no way.

As more tracking sites start reporting Windows 11 desktop share numbers — and I have to believe they will, and soon — we’ll be able to refine our understanding of Windows 11 numbers further. Stay tuned, and I’ll keep you posted.

For some time now, Windows has included a “Reset this PC” option. Among other uses, it lets sellers provide buyers with a pristine OS installation on used PCs. Or so runs the theory, when the “Remove everything” option is elected. However, researchers have observed that Windows reset data wipe sometimes falls short of this goal. Let me explain…

[NOTE: the lead-in graphic above shows what “Reset this PC” looks like in Windows 10 (above) and Windows 11 (below).]

How Windows Reset Data Wipe Sometimes Falls Short

Two data sources sometimes persist after running “Reset this PC” using the “Remove everything” option:

1. Windows.old remains behind. It includes all kinds of sensitive or interesting data about prior users.
2. When local OneDrive file copies exist, they could persist after the reset.

This info appears in the February 24 edition of Microsoft’s Windows 11 Known Issues. Indeed, there’s a section entitled “Files might persist after resetting a Windows device.” It reports which Windows versions manifest this failing: Windows 11, version 21H2;  and Windows 10, versions 21H2, 21H1 and 20H2.

What Known Issues Says

Here’s a verbatim quote from that page:

When attempting to reset a Windows device with apps which have folders with reparse data, such as OneDrive or OneDrive for Business, files which have been downloaded or synced locally from OneDrive might not be deleted when selecting the “Remove everything” option. This issue might be encountered when attempting a manual reset initiated within Windows or a remote reset. Remote resets might be initiated from Mobile Device Management (MDM) or other management applications, such as Microsoft Intune or third-party tools. OneDrive files which are “cloud only” or have not been downloaded or opened on the device are not affected and will not persist, as the files are not downloaded or synced locally.

For more information…

Use Disk Cleanup (or some useful analog like TheBookIsClosed’s Managed Disk Cleanup) or Storage Sense to remove Windows.old from a Windows PC. Indeed, MS provides a helpful how-to link for that latter operation.

Signing out of, or unlinking from, OneDrive before the reset operation prevents local OneDrive files from hanging ’round. Likewise, MS provides an equally helpful how-to link for this maneuver, too.

MS plans fixes for these shortcomings. In the meantime, if you simply disconnect from OneDrive before the Reset, then remove windows.old afterward, you’re covered. Good to know!

Note Added March 9, 2022: Issues Fixed (with Caveat)

With the release of Patch Tuesday fixes for Windows 10 and 11 yesterday (KB5011487 for 10; KB5011493 for 11) MS has fixed these “file hangover” problems. That said, both announcement include this language:

Some devices might take up to seven (7) days after you install this update to fully address the issue and prevent files from persisting after a reset. For immediate effect, you can manually trigger Windows Update Troubleshooter using the instructions in Windows Update Troubleshooter.

Thanks to Mary Jo Foley at ZDNet for bringing this to my attention.

Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve observed something odd and interesting. Many of my Windows 11 PCs were missing the Advanced Startup option. Ordinarily, it’s in Settings → System → Recovery → Recovery Options. Just yesterday, undeniable curiosity let me observe that Build 22563 makes Advanced Startup MIA again. This time, I’m NOT going to create an ISO and run an in-place upgrade repair install. Though I think it would fix it, I won’t do that this time. Instead, I’m convinced this needs reporting to Feedback Hub as a recurring problem.

Build 22563 Makes Advanced Startup MIA Again: FB Hub Report In

I upvoted and added to a thread on the Feedback Hub entitled “The Advanced Startup option is missing from the recovery menu.” I’m now convinced this is a recurring problem that can occur when upgrading an Insider Preview to a new Insider Build, or when applying a Cumulative Update to an RTM Build. I’ve had it happen on 3 of my 5 Windows 11 machines in the last week, in fact. That’s disheartening, after spending a half-day repairing the issue. See my Feb 21 post about the fix for all those gory details.

But now, I know there’s a problem across the board in Windows 11. The only thing I don’t know is if the problem is just across the board on MY Windows 11 PCs, or more of them than that. That’s why I’m reporting to Feedback Hub and hoping for results. Peferably, sooner rather than later. We’ll see.

I will observe that my lone “native Windows 11” PC seems immune to this issue. All of my other Windows 11 PCs were (a) upgraded from 10 to 11, and (b) regularly manifest this issue. I’d be curious to understand the connection, if any, that might be involved…

Just read a short and fascinating blog post from Michael Niehaus. It’s entitled The overhead of Widgets and Teams in Windows 11. In it he looks at the memory overhead from Widgets and Teams Chat. In costing Windows 11 Widgets and Teams using Sysinternals Process Explorer, he produces interesting numbers.

If Costing Windows 11 Widgets and Teams, What’s the Charge?

Numbers vary from installation to installation but his numbers are close to mine on Dev Channel, RP Channel and Production PCs. Thus, I’ll reproduce his. (Note: I show mine from a production PC in the lead-in graphic above).

Niehaus reports that the version of Teams that loads by default with Windows 11 consumes around 390MB RAM. Widgets, on the other hand, consume about 210MB RAM. Add the two together and you get around 600MB.

On my system, private bytes (memory that cannot be shared with other processes, which is what Niehaus is reporting) show up in the left-hand column. Working set (which includes page file entries touched by the process but not in active use) show in the right. The total for private on my X1 Carbon is ~485MB, for working set is ~988 MB.

Long story short: leaving those defaults alone on a Windows 11 PC will add between 0.5 and 1.0 GB to the memory overhead.

What to Do About This, If Anything

As Taras Buria observes in his WinAero reporting on this phenomenon, this doesn’t matter on PCs with plenty of RAM and sufficient CPU power. But on lower-end PCs, laptops and tablets, one need only remove the Teams and Widgets icons from the taskbar, and restart the PC to get rid of that resource drain. On a low-end i3 or equivalent, with less than 8 GB of RAM, it actually could make a difference.

All in all it’s an interesting bit of analysis, and a nice demonstration of the kinds of things that Sysinternals Process Explorer can tell you. Cheers!

I guess you could say it’s been a long time coming. With the latest Dec Channel release for Windows 11, Device Manager now defaults to the user’s current default drive. That’s instead of the mostly-absent A: drive (usually a Floppy disk) to which it has defaulted since time immemorial. See the new scheme as the lead-in graphic for this story, see the previous default from my Windows 10 production desktop below. Thus, we see that DevMgr now checks Windows drive for updates by default. Woo-hoo!

The old method goes back to earliest Windows, and defaults to drive A:. How quaint!

If DevMgr Now Checks Windows Drive for Updates, Life Gets Easier

As long as you deposit driver files of interest in the same directory as shown in the lead-in graphic on Build 22000 or higher, Device Manager will find them “automagically.” (See this WindowsLatest story for more info, with a shout-out from yours truly.) It’s a minor, minor change but one that could make life easier for admins and power users everywhere. Floppy disks are so … twentieth century. I still have a USB-attachable floppy drive in my “antiques closet” but I can’t remember the last time I used (at least 3 years ago).

From what I can see, the default directory specification may come from MS Office. On my Dev Channel PC it comes up as:

C:\Users\etitt\OneDrive\Documents

But that directory spec doesn’t show up anywhere in my environment variables, so I’m a little curious as to where and whence it originates. From experience, I know that particular Documents folder (the one inside OneDrive) is a default save folder for Office apps. Otherwise, I’m at a loss to explain it. I’ll poke around and see if I can come with a good explanation. Stay tuned for that administrivia and other burning Windows 11 details. Cheers!

OK, then, the word is out. Yes, Microsoft is permitting out-of spec PCs to install Windows 11, but that doesn’t mean a lot. In fact, they won’t promise that such PCs will keep getting upgrades — even of the security sort — once the RTM version goes live later this year. This has been widely reported in the trade press.  I found Windows Latest and Thurrott.com coverage most noteworthy on this topic. That said, MS hasn’t issued an official proclamation on this topic. So far, everything’s been communicated in press encounters. Bottom line: Yes, a Windows 11 Update allowed on Out-of-Spec PCs is true, but that doesn’t mean it will keep working indefinitely.

If Windows 11 Update Allowed on Out-of-Spec PCs, But…

Frankly, as Paul Thurrott noted, the situation is kind of a mess. Yes, users can update out-of-spec PCs to Windows 11. If that doesn’t work they can use the Media Creation Tool or a Windows 11 ISO to do a clean install instead. Thing is, there’s no telling right now how long that install will keep working. Nor can I think of a “back-to-working” path for such PCs except for a clean install of Windows 10 sometime in the future, either.

To me, this sounds like a recipe for extra work and heartache, with the bill coming due later this year. I’m still going to upgrade the hardware on the only other PC I have on which I plan to run Windows 11 that currently fails to meet its system requirements. IMO, anything less — especially taking a chance on older hardware — is simply unacceptable.

You, dear readers, can do as you see fit. Personally, I think installing Windows 11 on systems that don’t meet the system requirements is a recipe for disaster. It may work now, but MS won’t say it will keep working. Not good!

It was an interesting Saturday. My son and I started working on the rebuild of our oldest desktop PC around 10 AM that morning. He’d never built a PC before, so I had him doing most of the driving. It was an educational experience for both of us. But happily, this 5800X rebuild boots right up on the first try. In fact, we got Windows 10 clean installed with just one minor hiccup. Total time invested so far: around 4.5 hours (but plenty of software still to install).

5800X Rebuild Boots Right Up, But…

On the first go-round from my Ventoy boot disk, Windows 10 refused to allow the brand-new Sabrent Rocket 2TB NVMe to act as the boot/system drive. A quick once-over using DISKPART showed it was NOT formatted for GPT. Once I cleaned the drive then converted it to GPT, the installer was able to take it from there. First time to use an unallocated drive teaches me that GPT is now mandatory. Live and learn.

Other lessons learned during this install adventure included:
1. Always good to have a grabbing tool or clamps to use for handling small screws in tight places.
2. It’s good to have ample wiring room in which to route power and control cables.
3. The Antec 900 still makes a great PC case, but it shows its age with no front-panel USB 3 ports.
4. The CoolerMaster Hyper 212 is a TALL cooler. I had to remove the case fan from the side panel to button the case back up (fortunately it has plenty of ventilation anyway).
5. I’m missing a couple of SATA drives, because of lane conflicts from the M.2 NVMe in use. I see an easy fix in the mobo manual, tho…

Worthwhile Investment?

The parts I purchased for the rebuild cost about US$1,200. It’s still too early to tell if the upgrade is worth that price. But time will tell pretty shortly. In the meantime, stay tuned, and I’ll keep you posted.