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Microsoft is turning Windows 11's Start Menu into an advertisement delivery system

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 21 Nov 2022 06:48:00 +0000

The days of the classic Start Menu are numbered on Windows. Previously, the Start Menu was used by users to launch programs, access system tools and settings, and run searches.

Now, with the release of Windows 10 and even more so with Windows 11, comes a fundamental change that is turning the Start Menu into a delivery system for advertisement.

The Windows 11 Start Menu displays a list of pinned apps, a search option, and a menu that displays all installed programs. There is also a recommended section available, more about it later.

Microsoft is testing several additions to the Start Menu that will introduce advertisement to it. We recently mentioned two additions that we are aware of: website listings under recommended, and an ad in the account menu when users activate it to use functions such as switch user or sign-out.

Some of these are used to promote Microsoft services, especially those linked to subscriptions or the sharing of data. Others, like the aforementioned website recommendations in the Start Menu, promote third-party services.

In the example that Microsoft provided, the websites Etsy and Twitter were promoted as "common websites" under the recommended section of the Start Menu.

Microsoft provides the following description for the feature:

"We’ve been working on adding more valuable content to the Recommended section in Start and are excited to introduce a new content type: websites.

For the first phase, we will recommend common websites based on your region or browsing history to help you easily get back to the websites you care about. This can be controlled by right-clicking on a website and choosing to remove that website individually or to stop showing all recommended websites entirely."

The company suggests that website recommendations are one type of "valuable content" that it is working on right now to improve the Start Menu of the operating system. The feature derives the sites from the user's browsing history and a list of common regional websites. While Microsoft makes no mention of it, it is likely that only Edge's browsing history is one of the sources of the feature.

Admittedly, users may remove individual websites from Start or disable the feature entirely, according to Microsoft. Microsoft refers to the current implementation as the first phase, which suggests that the company has plans to change the feature in the future. Information on how the next phase could look like is missing, however.

It is unclear for which group of users Microsoft created the website listings under recommendations. The generic listings display just the site name; users who know about them do not need them listed there, and users who don't, may not click because they do not know these sites.

It looks as if this is just another way of getting users to use Microsoft Edge, the browser that is opened when users activate the links in the Start Menu.

Closing Words

Last year, I wrote The Windows 11 Start Menu is barely usable. The launch of Windows 11 and the redesigned Start Menu reduced its functionality compared to Windows 10. Microsoft removed several features, including the ability to resize the start menu. Some, like the ability to create folders, were reintroduced in the Windows 11 2022 Update, but others won't.

The fixed design, with the pinned section at the top and the recommended section below it, is still not customizable. Users can hide all recommended items, but the recommended section remains visible, albeit with an empty region.

Microsoft's recent tests in Insider builds suggest that the company is interested in adding promotions to the Start menu and less in making it more usable to users of the Windows operating system.

Windows customers may switch to a third-party Start Menu instead. The $4.99 applications Start11 and StartAllBack restore classic versions of the Start Menu on Windows 11.

Now You: what is your take on this development?

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The big search field on Windows 11's taskbar is unnecessary

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 20 Nov 2022 13:48:00 +0000

Microsoft started to experiment with search and the search field of its Windows 11 operating system some time ago. One of Microsoft's latest addition was the display of icons in the search field that depicted a special event that Microsoft picked for the day. Microsoft calls the feature Search Highlights.

Now, more and more Windows 11 users are seeing a bigger search field on the Windows 11 taskbar. Microsoft placed it next to the Start icon and before any pinned icons. Windows 11 users who configured the taskbar alignment to be left, have the widgets icon placed on the right side of the search field.

Activation of search opens the main search interface. It is divided in two main columns: the left displays suggestions, e.g., apps to start, tips or suggestions, and the right content from the Web.

While that may be useful to some Windows 11 users, most may dislike it.

In contrast, opening Start displays pinned programs and, if still enabled, recommendations. Start includes search functionality as well, and the results window is actually using the Search interface.

In other words: it does not matter if a user searches from Start or the Search field, the resulting page is identical.

Why then keep the Search field enabled? Suggestions are basic and not useful to the majority of users. Some users may appreciate web results, but opening any browser displays similar content. Windows 11 users who like it can open the MSN website to get similar content.

It is easy enough to remove search. One additional advantage of doing so is that there is more space for icons on the taskbar.

Here is how you remove the Search field from Windows 11's taskbar:

Right-click on a blank spot on the Windows 11 taskbar and select Taskbar Settings. Alternatively, if there is no blank space left, open Start > Settings > Personalization > Taskbar to get there.
The Taskbar Items group at the top of the page that opens lists Search as one of the elements that users may display or hide. Just toggle it to off, and search is no longer displayed.

A click on Start, or a tap on the Windows-key opens the search options of the Start Menu. Just tap Windows and start to write to run a search on the system.

Closing Words

Microsoft pushes search on Windows for a specific reason, and it is not for the benefit of the user. Third party tools like the excellent Everything search or a Start replacement app, like Start11, are good options to skip the default Windows 11 search options entirely.

Now You: do you use the built-in search on Windows, or an alternative?

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VMware Workstation 17.0 Player with Windows 11 and Server 2022 support released

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 19 Nov 2022 16:48:00 +0000

VMware released new versions of its virtualization applications. The free VMWare Workstation 17.0 Player and the commercial VMware Workstation 17.0 Pro are both available for all supported operating systems.

Main new features of the releases are official support for Microsoft's Windows 11 and Windows Server 2022 operating systems, and TPM 2.0 support. These features allow users to set up Windows 11 and Windows Server 2022 virtual machines in VMware directly.

Oracle introduced support in VirtualBox 7.0.0 a month earlier, so that both solutions support Windows 11 officially now in their latest versions.

The official release notes for the Workstation 17.0 Player release is available already. Workstation 17.0 Pro customers find the release notes here.

VMware Workstation 17.0 Player supports a total of 5 new guest operating systems. These five are Microsoft Windows 11 and Windows Server 2022, Ubuntu 22.04, Debian 11.x, and RHEL 9. The new version supports a virtual Trusted Platform Module besides that, which adds support for TPM 2.0. Operating systems such as Windows 11, which require TPM, are fully supported because of that.

VMware highlights several other improvements in the release notes. Here is a quick overview of major changes in VMware Workstation 17.0 Player:

Added an option to start a local virtual machine automatically when the host machine boots up.
Encryption supports full and fast options.
Improved support for OpenGL 4.3. Requires guest operating systems with Windows 7 or higher, or Linux with Mesa 22.0.0 and Linux kernel 5.16.0.
Several libraries were updated to patch security issues in previous versions; this includes OpenSSL, Python, zlib and Libgcrypt.

VMware Workstation 17.0 Pro supports all new features and improvements of the Player version, plus support for WDDM 1.2.

The developers have fixed several issues of previous releases. Users may now run multiple virtual machines that share the same common VM directory in the Pro version. Check out the release notes for a full list of fixed and known issues in the release.

Now You: do you use virtualization software?

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Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 25247 brings some controversial changes to the Start Menu and Suggested Actions

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 19 Nov 2022 15:48:00 +0000

Microsoft has released Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 25247 for users in the Dev Channel. The update adds some new features, including a few that were introduced in the Beta channel last week.

What's new in Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 25247

Recommended websites in the Start menu

The Start Menu's recommended section will display a new content type called common websites. These are essentially trending websites based on your region or browsing history. Microsoft says that this is the first phase of testing the feature, so things could change in the future.

Users may remove a website by right-clicking on it. This feature is rolling out to users, so it may not be available for everyone.

Thankfully, Microsoft says that the feature can be disabled completely. I don't have access to it yet, but the option to turn off recommended websites should likely appear in the Settings > Personalization > Start page.

Seconds in the System Tray Clock

The System Tray Clock has regained the ability to display seconds. You may enable this option from the Settings > Personalization > Taskbar section. The improvement is rolling out to users.

New Suggested Action for searchable text

Suggested Actions will now display a pop-up when you copy a text that has search potential. When you click on the selected action, a new Edge tab will be launched to run the search for the selected words.

The new action is only be available for users in the U.S.

Cloud storage in Settings

The Settings app's Accounts page displays a new bar that indicates how much storage has been used for each Microsoft product. It shows a banner if your storage space is running low.The quota bar from the Subscriptions card has been removed to prevent duplication of the data.

The company plans to add information about Microsoft 365 apps and services data that are tied to your cloud storage.

Microsoft Store jump list in Taskbar

The jump list for the Microsoft Store in the Taskbar now lets you jump back to pages that you have recently visited. Right-click on the app's icon to navigate to specific sections in the Store, or to view products that you viewed.

The new navigation shortcuts are rolling out to users with version 22210.1401.x of the Microsoft Store and higher.

Search in Task Manager, Windows Studio Effects and Energy Recommendations

A Search bar has been added to the Task Manager, it can be used to filter the list of processes, or to search for a specific one by the process' name, PID or publisher name. It can be accessed with Alt + F hotkey. The system monitoring tool supports Light and Dark themes, and a new Efficiency mode dialog.

Windows 11 Build 25247 brings a new shortcut to access Windows Studio Effects from the Quick Settings. The latest Dev Channel build is rolling out Energy Recommendations to help users to reduce their carbon footprint.

Please refer to our previous coverage of Windows 11 Beta 22623.891, for more details about the above features.

New French keyboards

The Search tool in Windows 11 has been improved to display more types of files and content on your PC, in the results box. There are two new French keyboard layout standards (AZERTY and BÉPO). The new keyboards support all the Latin-based languages of the European Union, Greek letters and scientific, mathematical, and financial symbols. Users may enable them from the Settings > Time & language > Language & Region section.

Note: The old version of the AZERTY layout is listed as Legacy, AZERTY.

Microsoft says it has improved the Emoji search for Japanese and Simplified Chinese languages in the emoji panel, by handling Kana/Kanji and Pinyin properly.

Fixes in Windows 11 Build 25247

Microsoft has fixed a bug that was causing a SYSTEM_SERVICE_EXCEPTION bugcheck citing an error with win32kfull.sys. This issue occured when users tried to install the operating system using the Build 25227 Dev Channel ISO. A new ISO is available today which fixes this issue. An issue that was resulting in pseudolocalized text to appear across the system has been patched. The bug was also leading to garbled text in the navigation headings of Start’s all apps list for Chinese users.

Multiple explorer.exe crashes that were impacting taskbar performance have been resolved. The tablet-optimized taskbar should no longer be stuck in the expanded state when accessing the Quick Settings with the bottom right edge gesture.

There are too many fixes to list here, so I recommend reading the release notes for Build 25247 for more details.

Known issues in Windows 11 Build 25247

There are several new known issues in the latest Dev Channel Build. The Taskbar may be cropped in half when the tablet-optimized taskbar is enabled. Search may not display results for some files that end in .cmd, .exe or .bat, as a workaround Microsoft is advising users to press the backspace key after typing, to view the results.

The new Task Manager's search bar does not filter the Processes page by publisher name. The Services page may not display some services when you filter the list. Starting a new process when a filter is set may cause a split second delay in the process to show up in the list. Switching to a theme from the Task Manager's Settings page may cause some dialogs may not render in the correct theme. Changing the theme may result in the data content area of the Processes page to flash once.

The Task Manager's light and dark theme may not elements in its UI in the corresponding colors correctly, which could make it difficult to read the text. This issue occurs if you have set a custom color under Settings > Personalization > Colors. The workaround for this problem is to switch the Windows theme to Light or Dark. The Startup apps page in the Task manager may appear blank for some Insiders. Users are advised to use the Settings > Apps > Startup page, until the bug is fixed.

The Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 25247 ISOs are available for download from Microsoft's website. The company will not release a new Dev Channel build next week due to the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday.

Image courtesy: Microsoft

Microsoft needs to stop messing with the Start Menu, you could argue that the Recommended Websites experiment is just another way to display ads.

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Windows 8.1: Microsoft Store apps continue to work, but..

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 19 Nov 2022 07:48:00 +0000

Most Windows users know by know that the operating systems Windows 7 and 8.1 will reach end of support by Microsoft on January 10, 2023. The first Patch Day of 2023 is also the last day updates are released officially for these operating systems. While there is a chance that Microsoft will release a critical update to address a major security issue, as it has done in the past, it will be an exception and not the rule.

Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system was the first system Microsoft's online store launched on. Users could download and install applications and games using it, and make purchases.

Microsoft confirmed that the downloaded apps and games will continue to work. In other words: there is no killswitch that is blocking these programs from running on Windows 8.1 machines after January 10, 2023. New app purchases or in-app purchases are no longer supported after the January 2023 Patch Day. Microsoft makes no mention of free apps and games, and whether these remain available for download and installation after January 10, 2023.

"Will I be able to continue using the apps and games I have installed from Microsoft Store on my Windows 8.1 PC?"

"You can install new apps and games on a Windows 8.1 PC from Microsoft Store until January 10, 2023, and you can continue to use installed apps and games on a Windows 8.1 PC after that date. You will not be able to make any new app purchases or any in-app purchases after January 10, 2023. Installed apps and games will receive publisher updates through June 30, 2023 (or later if support is provided independently by the developer). After updates are no longer available, app quality and usability may be degraded. Customers who move to a Windows 10 or Windows 11 PC can use and reinstall previously purchased apps and games on their new or upgraded PC."

Microsoft confirmed also that apps and games will receive publisher updates until June 2023, provided that publishers produce updates for these apps and games. Some publishers may support games for longer, even, which Microsoft describes vaguely as providing updates independently.

The quality of apps may deteriorate over time, and some functions may not work properly anymore due to a lack of updates, according to Microsoft.

Customers who want to retain access to apps and games, and continue to receive updates for them, need to update their machines to Windows 10 or 11 to do so. If that is not possible, buying a new PC with Windows 10 or 11 is another option, as apps and games are tied to a Microsoft Account and not a device. Free and purchased apps and games may be installed on new Windows systems, provided that these are supported on these systems.

It is unclear how successful, or not, the built-in store was on Windows 8. Did many Windows 8 users download and install apps and games from the Store, or was it only a minority?

At least some third-party developers have already announced whether they will continue to support their programs on Windows 8.1 and 7. Google will drop Chrome support in January 2023 as well, while Mozilla may extend support for at least several months.

Now You: have you ever downloaded and installed games or apps from the Microsoft Store?

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Windows 11 to alert OneDrive subscribers when storage space runs low

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 18 Nov 2022 15:48:00 +0000

Microsoft continues to integrate its subscription services deeper into the Windows 11 operating system. The company released a new build to the Windows 11 Release Preview channel, which adds alerts for OneDrive storage to Windows 11's Settings application.

Features that are rolled out to the Release Preview channel may be introduced quickly into stable versions of the Windows operating system. Microsoft won't release preview updates in December 2022, which suggests that the feature could be rolled out starting in January 2023.

Microsoft added two new OneDrive related options to the Settings application. The first brings OneDrive storage alerts to the Systems page of the Settings app. Subscribers receive alerts when OneDrive storage is getting low. Links to manage storage and to buy more storage are provided.

The second new feature displays the full storage amount of a subscriber's OneDrive subscriptions on the Accounts page in the Settings app.

New! We gave Microsoft OneDrive subscribers storage alerts on the Systems page in the Settings app. The alerts appear when you are close to your storage limit. You can also manage your storage and purchase additional storage, if needed.

New! We provided the full amount of storage capacity from all your OneDrive subscriptions. It also displays the total storage on the Accounts page in the Settings app.

The two OneDrive related features integrate the service even deeper into the Windows 11 operating system.

Closing Words

Microsoft announced recently that Outlook.com attachment data will count against a Microsoft user's OneDrive storage quota. The increased visibility helps subscribers keep an overview of their storage, but it will certainly also drive sales. Additional OneDrive storage is available starting at $19.99 per year for 100 gigabytes.

Microsoft account customers get just 5 gigabytes of free storage when they sign-up for the service. Grandfathered accounts may have more free storage at their disposal, but new customers get 5 gigabytes. Windows customers who get the storage alert may subscribe to the standalone 100 gigabyte of extra storage plan, or sign-up for Microsoft 365 Personal or Family, which both include 1 terabyte of storage.

Now You: do you use OneDrive to store files, or another service, or none at all?

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Microsoft confirms Windows 10 desktop and taskbar issue

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 17 Nov 2022 13:48:00 +0000

Microsoft confirmed another issue affecting its Windows 10 operating system. This one may affect the appearance of the desktop or the taskbar on the Windows 10 device.

According to Microsoft, it may happen that either disappears momentarily or that the device may become unresponsive. Microsoft confirms that devices running Windows 10 version 20H2, 21H1, 21H2 and 22H2 are affected by the issue. Microsoft's newest operating system, Windows 11, is not affected by the issue.

The company has resolved the issue already using Known Issues Rollback. Known Issues Rollback is an updating feature that restores a previous state of a particular feature. Microsoft has used the functionality extensively recently.

Known Issues Rollback is supported on unmanaged devices only. Most Windows 10 users should not experience the desktop and taskbar issue at all, or should have it fixed already. It takes up to 24 hours to propagate according to Microsoft.

The situation is different for Enterprise-managed devices. These do not receive the Known Issue Rollback command automatically. System administrators need to configure the rollback using the Group Policy of the operating system.

The first step requires that administrators download the Group Policy data from Microsoft. The download link is listed on the known issues and notifications website, linked above.

This needs then be installed in Group Policy. Once that is done, administrators need to open the Group Policy Editor and visit Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> <Group Policy name listed below> to configure it. Once configured, Known Issues Rollback is applied on the device.

Windows 10 and 11 have been plagued by several issues recently. Just this week alone, Microsoft confirmed a Direct Access issue, which it resolved with Known Issues Rollback as well. There has also been confirmation of Kerberos authentication sign-in failures, and domain join processes that may fail.

Windows 11 users furthermore may experience performance issues in some games and apps that they run on their devices.

Microsoft reacted quickly to the disappearing taskbar and desktop issue, It confirmed and fixed the issue on the same day. It may still be experienced on some devices, especially if automatic updates are blocked on the device.

Now You: did you run into issues on Windows devices recently?

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Netflix's new feature lets you remove specific devices from your account remotely

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 17 Nov 2022 09:08:00 +0000

Netflix Profile Transfer began rolling out to users in October, allowing them to migrate their shared profile to a new account. Now, the streaming service has introduced some new settings to manage devices connected to your account.

Image credit: Netflix.

Netflix lets you remove specific devices from your account remotely

Netflix calls the new feature as Managing Access and Devices. You can access it from your account settings page (Menu > Your Account), or use this direct link. https://ift.tt/XwbLdCM

This dashboard shows your recently active devices. It lists the name of each device, the user's profile and image, the timestamp when they last accessed the service, and the location where they used their account from. It also displays the IP address when you mouse over the option, so you can find where the device was used to connect to Netflix.

While the service previously had an option to sign out of all devices, this one is more useful, as you could use this information to determine which devices you want to keep, and which ones to discard. It can also be handy to check if there are any unrecognized devices that are connected to the account. Click the sign-out button next to a device to remove it from your Netflix account. Here is the official support article for the feature.

The company says that these options will be of help for users who logged into their account at different places, but forgot to log out. Now you can sign out of your account remotely. Of course, you could always reset your password to forcibly kick other devices from your account. The new dashboard seems to be a simpler way to manage your devices.

That said, if you have shared your password with someone, they could just log back in, so how is this useful? If that is the case, you should change the password to prevent them from accessing your account.

You may want to check your Netflix plan's details before hitting that button, because some of them allow you to use multiple devices at the same time. So, a 2nd device seen in the dashboard could actually be in your household. For context, Netflix Basic and Basic with ads allow a single device to stream media, while the Standard plan supports up to 2 devices to connect simultaneously. The Netflix Premium subscription lets you connect up to 4 devices at once with a single account.

Netflix's new option to manage connected devices is available on the web version of the service, and its mobile apps for iOS and Android.

The change appears to line up with the company's plans to crack down on password sharing by users who buy a single subscription and share it with their friends. The company seems to view that as a business loss. The first move to counter freeloaders was the introduction of Netflix Homes, which is currently available in select regions.

The streaming service recently launched its ad-supported plan, Netflix Basic with Ads, in a bid to attract more subscribers to the plan at a slightly more affordable price. This was followed by Netflix Profile Transfer. Unlike those changes, I think that the new feature is a good improvement, it can help keep your account secure, and break ties with people whom you are no longer on good terms with. But, Netflix really needs to offer proper two-factor authentication to protect its users.

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Here is what you need to know about PayPal's Inactivity Fee

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 16 Nov 2022 06:08:00 +0000

PayPal customers who have not had any activity in the past 12 months will be charged an inactivity service fee. Inactive accounts without positive balance may also be closed by PayPal after an additional 60 days. The inactivity fee was introduced in some countries in 2021, and has now been expanded to more countries that PayPal operates in.

PayPal users who have not used the account in the past 12 months are notified by PayPal about this, according to the company. Customers have until December 13, 2022 to become active and avoid the fee.

PayPal will charge the fee automatically, provided that the inactive account has a positive balance. Accounts with a balance of zero are not impacted by the fee, but they may face closure as well. The maximum amount that PayPal is going to charge is €10, or the equivalent in another currency. If the account's balance is positive but less than €10, that amount is charged by PayPal.

Accounts that remain inactive for another 60 days after the fee has been charged face termination. PayPal explains that its User Agreement allows it to charge an annual inactivity service fee. The fee is charged "to maintain accounts that are inactive".

Here is a summary of PayPal's new inactivity fee:

Fee applies to countries that PayPal operates in, with the exception of personal accounts registered in Germany, Austria, Italy, Greece, Hungary and Poland. Customers from these countries are excluded in 2022.
The fee is €10 or less, depending on the available account balance. If a customer has a balance of €4, that amount is the fee. Charges won't result in negative balances according to PayPal.
Accounts without a positive balance after the charge has been processed may be closed after 60 days, if no activity is recorded.
To avoid the fee, PayPal customers may do one of the following activities:
- sign-in to the PayPal account.
- Use PayPal to make a payment.
- Send money to friends or family, or vendors.
- Withdraw money from the account.
- Donate to charity.

PayPal customers may want to sign in and out of their account to avoid the fee, if they want to keep the account. If they don't, withdrawing all money is the best course of action to avoid inactivity fee charges in the coming years.

Now You: do you use PayPal for online purchases?

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Windows 10 and 11: Direct Access issue confirmed by Microsoft

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 14 Nov 2022 09:48:00 +0000

Microsoft confirmed an issue affecting Direct Access on Windows 10 and Windows 11 devices recently. The issue affects devices running windows 11 version 21H2 and 22H2, in other words all release versions of Windows 11, as well as the Windows 10 versions 20H2, 21H1, 21H2 and 22H2, and the Enterprise version LTSC 2019, Windows Server 2022 and Windows Server 2019.

Microsoft describes the issue in the following way: connections to Direct Access may fail on affected systems after "temporarily losing network connectivity or transitioning between Wi-Fi networks or access points". The issue occurs after the installation of the October preview updates or newer updates on affected systems.

Microsoft notes that the issue "should not affect" other remote connectivity solutions, such as VPN and Always on VPN.

Most Home devices are not affected by the issue, as Direct Access is used primarily to access network resources of an organization remotely.

Microsoft used a Known Issue Rollback to fix the issue. It may take up to 24 hours to propagate the change to devices that are not managed. Restarting the device may help speed up the resolution of the issue according to Microsoft.

Enterprise-managed devices do not receive the fix automatically. Administrators need to install and configure special policies to resolve the issue on these devices.

Group Policy downloads are found on all support pages that provide information on the issue. You may check the Windows 11 version 22H2 support page to download the policies for all affected issues.

Direct Access, sometimes also referred to as DirectAccess by Microsoft, is a networking technology that enables remote connectivity. It enables Windows users to access network resources of organizations without using a VPN connection.

Remote clients are always connected to the organization with direct Access. Microsoft recommends the use of Direct Access only on Windows devices that run versions of Windows prior to Windows 10. On Windows 10 and later, Microsoft recommends that organizations use Always on VPN instead.

Now You: do you connect to other devices remotely?

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New Quick Assist app will soon be integrated into Windows

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 13 Nov 2022 07:48:00 +0000

Microsoft announced the retiring of the integrated Quick Assist application of the Windows operating system in May 2022. Quick Assist is a remote assistance application, which may be used to get or give assistance. It is commonly used by technicians to provide remote assistance to an organization's workforce.

Microsoft decided to retire Quick Assist and replace it with a new Microsoft Store version. Windows users who attempt to launch Quick Assist on their devices right now get a prompt stating that there is a new version available on the Microsoft Store.

Microsoft explained back then that the new application would enable it to patch security issues and other issues more quickly in the future.

Administrators were not too happy with the change. Two main points of criticism were leveled at Microsoft. First, that the installation of the new Quick Assist required administrative privileges, and second, that one could not be sure anymore if Quick Assist was available on a user device. The latter required additional assistance to get the new version of the application on the user's device.

Microsoft released a new Windows 10 version 22H2 build and a new Windows 11 build to the Release Preview Insider channel this week; these builds add the new Microsoft Store Quick Assist application as a native app back in the operating system.

The new version will replace the classic version of Quick Assist, which can't be run anymore anyway, on the target system. Quick Assist can then be launched via the Start Menu or by using its dedicated keyboard shortcut Ctrl-Windows-Q.

Release Preview indicates that the changes will land soon in stable versions of Windows 10 and 11. Microsoft has yet to announce when this will happen though. Windows users may install the Microsoft Store application manually at any time to get access to Quick Assist right away.

You can check out the Insider Preview build announcements for Windows 10 and Windows 11 here.

Now You: have you used Quick Assist or another remote assistance tool in the past?

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Microsoft Photos app with iCloud Photos integration is now available for all users

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 12 Nov 2022 18:48:00 +0000

Microsoft added support for iCloud Photos in the Windows 11's Photos app for some users in the Dev Channel last month. This feature is now out of beta, it is available for all users, including those on the stable version of the operating system.

The version number of the Microsoft Photos app is 2022.31110.2008.0. When you update to it, the app points out that it can display photos from your PC, Phone, OneDrive and iCloud Photos.

The app's interface has been redesigned, so let's take a quick tour of it. The Photos app has a sidebar with various tabs, these shortcuts allow you to navigate various sections: All Photos, OneDrive, iCloud Photos, Favorites, Folders, and External Devices.

You can expand or collapse the sidebar by clicking the hamburger menu button, to show or hide the names of the tabs. The search bar at the top allows you to find photos by their name, type, date, month, etc. Click the import button to add images from other devices to your library. The Sort button lets you browse the image gallery by date and name, in ascending or descending order.

The filter button is useful if you want to view only videos or photos. The grid icon lets you select the size of the thumbnails. The Photos app's Settings page has various options from theme colors, to account management. The Photos app creates Memories and Albums by categorizing images from your OneDrive library and auto tags them with a title. The image viewer and editor in the new app are fairly identical to the old version's. However, it does not come with the old video editor, likely because Microsoft wants to push ClipChamp as the go-to editor. Please read the Microsoft Photos Legacy app section at the bottom of this article to learn how to restore it.

There are some useful additions to the app's context menu, such as the rename option that lets you rename pictures and videos directly (without opening explorer). You can backup your images to your OneDrive from the app's menu.

Now that iCloud Photos are supported in the Microsoft Photos app, let's see how we can access them.

How to view iCloud Photos in the Microsoft Photos app

1. Open the Microsoft Photos app, and click on the iCloud Photos tab on the sidebar.

2. It will ask you to turn on iCloud Photos, which is actually a setting that needs to be enabled from the iCloud for Windows app. If you don't have it yet, you can download it from the Microsoft Store.

3. Install the iCloud app, and sign in to your Apple ID.

4. Click on the checkbox next to Photos, or the Options button next to it.

5. A small window will pop up with two options: iCloud Photos, and Shared Albums. You only need to enable the first one.

6. Click on Done, and the Apply button on the app's main page. Close the app.

7. Switch to the Microsoft Photos app, and it'll display a progress bar on the bottom that says "Getting things ready". Wait for it to finish.

That's it, you should now be able to access your iCloud Photos on your Windows 11 PC. You can use the Photos app to search through your gallery, view images, edit them, print them, copy the picture to your clipboard, etc. When you open an image from iCloud via the Photos app, it is downloaded to your PC, but you can browse the thumbnails in the app without downloading the full resolution images. This can be a handy way to view pictures taken with your iPhone, on a bigger screen and without having to transfer the files using cables or hard drives.

You can open the iCloud Photos folder in File Explorer, if you want to check which ones are available locally. The images with a cloud icon are stored on the server, while photos that have a checkmark next to their name have been downloaded to your PC, and can be viewed offline.

If you'd prefer not to view your iCloud media in the Photos app, go to the app's settings and disable the option that says "Show iCloud Photos". It doesn't actually remove the pictures and videos, it just hides the iCloud Photos tab from the sidebar.

Microsoft Photos Legacy app

The new Microsoft Photos app replaces the old version. But don't worry, Microsoft has provided a way to get the old app and its video editor back. When you update to the new app, you will see a message in the top right corner that tells you that you can download the Microsoft Photos Legacy app from a link in the new app's Settings page. The Legacy app is available on the Microsoft Store. You can use it alongside the new version if you want to.

The new Photos app does seem to load faster than the legacy version, which is definitely an improvement. If you want to use the good old Windows Photo Viewer, you may find our previous article helpful.

The Apple TV and Apple Music apps are also coming to Windows 11 next year.

Do you like the new Photos app?

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Routora optimizes Google Map multi-stop routes to save gas and time

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 12 Nov 2022 08:08:00 +0000

Routora is a Chrome extension and Internet service that optimizes multi-stop routes on Google Maps to save gas and travel time.

Google Maps is a popular choice when it comes to finding the best route between two locations. Google designed its service to find the best route automatically based on traffic and other information. While that works well between two locations, Google Maps falls short when multiple stops are added.

The service finds the fastest route between each stop you make, but it does not rearrange stops if time or gas can be saved doing so.

That is where Routora comes into play. The Chrome extension calculates the best route taking all entered stops on Google Maps into account.

There is a bit of work to do before you can start using the extension though. First of all, it needs to be noted that this works only in Chrome, as it requires that you are signed in to a Google account in the browser.

Second, it requires that you link the Google account to the Routora service. Currently, there is a free plan available that makes calculations for up to 10 spots. A paid option extends the stops to 25 and adds some other features.

With that out of the way, using Routora is surprisingly simple. You may use the extension on Google Maps directly, or enter your desired stops on the Routora website instead.

On Google Maps, all you do is add stops using the service's route calculation feature. Once done, activate the Routora extension icon to have the service calculate the best possible route for that particular time. Routora is designed to save gas and time, and it may change the order of stops along the route to achieve that goal.

The optimized route is displayed in a new browser tab on Google Maps then. You may use it immediately or use the built-in sharing features to get the instructions on other devices.

Closing Words

Routora is an interesting route optimization tool for Google Maps that should appeal to drivers who make several stops regularly during the day. Whether it is for making deliveries, sightseeing or just visiting multiple people or stores.

The route optimization feature does not take other factors, such as stop priorities or deadlines, into account when calculating the best route.

The developer is working on an Android version that should improve the handling further.

Now You: which tools do you use to calculate routes?

Thank you for being a Ghacks reader. The post Routora optimizes Google Map multi-stop routes to save gas and time appeared first on gHacks Technology News.

Windows 11 Beta Build 22623.891 enables the search bar in the Task Manager

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 11 Nov 2022 11:48:00 +0000

Microsoft has released two more beta versions of Windows 11 this week. Windows 11 Beta Build 22623.891 brings a search bar to the Task Manager.

Search bar in Task Manager

The search bar was spotted recently in the Dev Channel, though users had to enable them manually. Users who are on the Dev Channel release and want to try out the feature, can follow the instructions in Martin's article to learn how to use the ViveTool utility to get the search bar.

This time, however, the search bar is official. Microsoft has enabled the feature in the Beta Channel. The search box is located at the top of the Task Manager's window, it is persistent, i.e., it appears in all tabs. You may access it quickly with the Alt + F hotkey.

In his article, Martin had mentioned that the search function only returned results for full app names, such as Microsoft Edge instead of just "edge". The latest update fixes this issue. The search bar can be used to find apps by their name, PID or Publisher name. The Task Manager will filter the list to display results that match the keyword that you enter. For instance, if I typed the word fox, Task Manager displays a match for the Firefox.exe processes.

This is one of the instances where the Beta Channel gets a feature ahead of the Dev Channel, as part of the experiments that Microsoft conducts to get feedback from users before introducing them in the stable builds.

Themes in Task Manager

The Task Manager has some other improvements, you may use the Dark or Light theme in the utility, regardless of your active theme choice in Windows. Head to the Task Manager's Settings page to set your preferred theme. The setting applies the theme for in-app dialogs too, the only elements that don't follow the theme are the “Run new task” box and the Properties dialog.

Efficiency mode

The Efficiency Mode, which was introduced in the new Task Manager in Windows 11 22H2, has a different dialog box design. The pop-up that appears when you enable the option for an app no longer uses the legacy UI. Its appearance now matches Windows 11's design standards, and it also displays an option to opt-out of the confirmation (for subsequent uses). There is a new setting called "Ask me before applying Efficiency Mode", that you can toggle to disable the warning permanently.

The Select Columns window, which pops-up when you click on the name of a column in the Task Manager's Details tab, has also been revamped.

The changes are rolling out with the KB5020040 update in Windows 11 Insider Preview Beta Build 22623.891. The other Beta release, Build 22621.891 does not have the new features enabled by default, both versions come with several bug fixes which you can learn about by reading the article on the Windows Blog.

Windows 11 Build 22000.1279 (KB5019157) and Windows 10 Build 19045.2301 (KB5020030) have been released to the Release Preview Channel, with a handful of bug fixes. Microsoft had released Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22621.885 and 22623.885 to the Beta Channel earlier this week, which introduced new options to access the Studio effects from the Quick Settings panel. The only one that hasn't been updated this week is the Windows 11 Dev Channel, and the Redmond company has confirmed that it won't be flighting a new build this week.

Thank you for being a Ghacks reader. The post Windows 11 Beta Build 22623.891 enables the search bar in the Task Manager appeared first on gHacks Technology News.

How to subscribe to custom Hacker News RSS feeds

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 11 Nov 2022 06:09:00 +0000

Hacker News is a popular social site on today's Internet. It focuses on technology and development for the most part, but you find other topics of interests posted to the site as well. Users of the site may vote for submitted items on the site to increase their visibility on it.

While most users probably access Hacker News directly in web browsers, some may prefer using RSS. The site supports RSS, but not like Reddit supports RSS. You may subscribe to the main RSS feed using the site's own infrastructure, but customizations are not supported natively. There is an open source project, however, that allows you do subscribe to various Hacker News RSS feeds to pull items of interests into your RSS feed reader automatically.

RSS does not require an account, but there is no explanation on the site on subscribing to Hacker News RSS feeds. The following paragraphs provide you with the missing information.

You may subscribe to the Hacker News main feed but also to specific keywords or users that you are interested in. Here is how that works.

Hacker News RSS feeds

If you just want the main news feed, you may subscribe to https://ift.tt/GX9wk5a. Just add the URL to your feed reader and you are done.

The open source project hnrss providers you with custom RSS feeds for Hacker News. Here is a list of example RSS feeds that you may subscribe to:

Newest posts on Hacker News: https://ift.tt/9NOAn0i
Newest comments on Hacker News: https://ift.tt/zyxDsF7
Best comments RSS feed on Hacker News: https://ift.tt/wvDB9VK
Keyword-based RSS feeds on Hacker News (searching titles only): https://ift.tt/vFj1nZc
RSS feeds for posts with X-number of points and/or X-number of comments: https://ift.tt/VxHuP8R
Show HN RSS feed: https://hnrss.org/show
RSS feeds for the most active posts with ongoing discussion: https://ift.tt/7zjYXk9
Hacker News Jobs feed: https://hnrss.org/jobs
Posts by a specific user: https://ift.tt/BYsifGh
Comments by a specific user: https://ift.tt/xiBocZ8
All by a specific user: https://ift.tt/bC4dB9E

You may use the examples above to create custom RSS feeds for Hacker News. Here are some real world examples:

https://ift.tt/GSR07CI -- Returns new posts about Mozilla.
https://ift.tt/NREIw4e -- Returns new posts about Windows11
https://ift.tt/WTvkYjh -- Returns all posts that reach 500 points on the site.

The ability to retrieve custom RSS feeds is excellent, as it filters out noise in the main Hacker News feed or on the site.

Now You: do you use custom RSS feeds for the sites that you visit regularly or monitor?

Thank you for being a Ghacks reader. The post How to subscribe to custom Hacker News RSS feeds appeared first on gHacks Technology News.

Windows 10 version 21H1 reaches end of support in December 2022

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 05:48:00 +0000

Just a short reminder that Microsoft will end support for Windows 10 version 21H1 on December 13, 2022. The operating system receives one final batch of security updates on December's Patch Tuesday before it is dropped by Microsoft.

Devices still running Windows 10 version 21H1 need to be updated for continued support with security updates. Released in May 2021, Windows 10 version 21H1 is probably the last "first half of the year" feature update for any version of Windows that Microsoft supports. The company switched to a yearly feature update release schedule when it launched Windows 11, and Windows 10 is getting the same treatment.

Devices will upgrade to Windows 10 version 22H2 automatically, if updated via Windows Update. Released on October 18, 2022, some users may prefer to update to Windows 10 version 21H2 instead first. The operating system was released last year in November, and is still supported until June 2023.

To do so, it is necessary to set a different target release version for the update, if performed via Windows Update, or get the hands on a Windows 10 version 21H2 ISO image. One of the best programs to set a release target is Gibson Research's InControl application.

Just run the program after download to get started. Type the desired target release version under Version/Release, and activate the take control button after you are done. To set Windows 10 version 21H2 as the target, replace the release field with 21H2.

Note that Microsoft plans to update devices "nearing end of servicing to the latest version of Windows 10". In other words, many devices will be upgraded to Windows 10 version 22H2 automatically in the coming weeks. Microsoft notes that Windows 11 may also be available as an upgrade path, but that it is optional. Windows 10 devices won't be upgraded to Windows 11 automatically when they reach end of servicing, at least not right now.

Windows 10 itself continues to be supported by Microsoft with, mostly security updates, until 2025. That's another three years of support for the operating system before it reaches end of servicing. What happens then is anyone's guess, as many devices can't be upgraded to Windows 11, due to the stricter system requirements of the new Windows operating system.

Now You: do you run Windows 10, 11, or another operating system?

Thank you for being a Ghacks reader. The post Windows 10 version 21H1 reaches end of support in December 2022 appeared first on gHacks Technology News.

Microsoft Windows Security Updates November 2022 overview

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 08 Nov 2022 20:48:00 +0000

Microsoft released security and non-security updates for all supported client and server versions of the Windows operating system on the November 2022 Patch Tuesday. The updates are available already, and most home Windows devices should receive the updates automatically starting today.

The following guide helps home users and system administrators alike when it comes to updating systems. It includes information on the released updates, links to official Microsoft support pages and manual downloads, a fully updated list of known issues for each client version of Windows, links to all other security updates and non-security updates Microsoft released, and more.,

Tip: check out our overview of the October 2022 Patch Day here.

Microsoft Windows Security Updates: November 2022

The following Excel spreadsheet includes the released security updates for Windows and other company products. Just download it with a click on the following link: security-updates-windows-november-2022

Executive Summary

Windows 10 version 22H2, aka the Windows 10 2022 Update, was released this month.
There won't be a preview update for the month of December 2022.
Microsoft released security updates for all supported client and server versions of Windows.
Microsoft released security updates for other company products, including .NET Framework, Azure, Microsoft Dynamics, Microsoft Office, SysInternals, Visual Studio.
The following client versions of Windows have known issues: Windows 7, Windows 8.1, Windows 10 version 21H2, Windows 11 version 22H2
The following server versions of Windows have known issues: Windows Server 2008, 2008 R2, 2012, 2012 R2, Windows Server 2019

Operating System Distribution

Windows 7 (extended support only): 21 vulnerabilities: 4 critical and 17 important
- Windows Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41039
- Windows Scripting Languages Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41128
- Windows Scripting Languages Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41118
- Windows Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41044
Windows 8.1: 23 vulnerabilities: 4 critical and 19 important
- Windows Scripting Languages Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41128
- Windows Scripting Languages Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41118
- Windows Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41088
- Windows Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41039
Windows 10 version 21H1, 21H2 and 22H2: 37 vulnerabilities, 5 critical and 32 important
- Windows Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41039
- Windows Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41088
- Windows Hyper-V Denial of Service Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-38015
- Windows Scripting Languages Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41128
- Windows Scripting Languages Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41118
Windows 11 and Windows 11 version 22H2: 35 vulnerabilities, 5 critical and 30 important
- same as Windows 10

Windows Server products

Windows Server 2008 R2 (extended support only): 24 vulnerabilities: 6 critical and 18 important
- Windows Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41039
- Windows Kerberos RC4-HMAC Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-37966
- Windows Kerberos Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-37967
- Windows Scripting Languages Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41128
- Windows Scripting Languages Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41118
- Windows Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41044
Windows Server 2012 R2: 26 vulnerabilities: 6 critical and 20 important
- same as Windows Server 2008 R2.
Windows Server 2016: 34 vulnerabilities: 7 critical and 27 important
- Windows Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41039
- Windows Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41088
- Windows Kerberos RC4-HMAC Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-37966
- Windows Hyper-V Denial of Service Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-38015
- Windows Kerberos Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-37967
- Windows Scripting Languages Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41128
- Windows Scripting Languages Remote Code Execution Vulnerability -- CVE-2022-41118
Windows Server 2019: 37 vulnerabilities: 7 critical and 30 important
- same as Windows Server 2016
Windows Server 2022: 39 vulnerabilities: 10 critical and 56 important
- same as Windows Server 2016

Windows Security Updates

Windows 7 SP1 and Windows Server 2008 R2

Monthly Rollup: KB5020000
Security-Only: KB5020013

Updates and improvements:

Daylight saving time for Jordan updated.
Addresses an issue where, after installing the January 11, 2022 or later update, the Forest Trust creation process fails to populate the DNS name suffixes into the trust information attributes.
Addresses a Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM) authentication hardening issue to automatically raise authentication level for all non-anonymous activation requests from DCOM clients. This will occur if the authentication level is less than RPC_C_AUTHN_LEVEL_PKT_INTEGRITY. (Monthly-Security only)
Addresses an issue where Microsoft Azure Active Directory (AAD) Application Proxy Connector cannot retrieve a Kerberos ticket on behalf of the user because of the following general API error: “The handle specified is invalid (0x80090301).” (Monthly-Security only)
Security updates.

Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2

Monthly Rollup: KB5020023
Security-only: KB5020010

Updates and improvements:

Daylight saving time for Jordan updated.
Addresses a Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM) authentication hardening issue to automatically raise authentication level for all non-anonymous activation requests from DCOM clients. This will occur if the authentication level is less than RPC_C_AUTHN_LEVEL_PKT_INTEGRITY. (Monthly-Security only)
Addresses an issue where Microsoft Azure Active Directory (AAD) Application Proxy Connector cannot retrieve a Kerberos ticket on behalf of the user because of the following general API error: “The handle specified is invalid (0x80090301).” (Monthly-Security only)
Addresses an issue where, after installing the January 11, 2022 or later update, the Forest Trust creation process fails to populate the DNS name suffixes into the trust information attributes.
Addresses an issue where the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable Runtime does not load into the Local Security Authority Server Service (LSASS) when Protected Process Light (PPL) is enabled. (Monthly-Security only)
Security updates

Windows 10 version 21H1m 21H2 and 22H2

Support Page: KB5019959

Updates and improvements:

Security updates
Changes of the preview updates, released under KB5020953

Windows 11 Release version

Support Page: KB5019961

Updates and improvements:

Security updates
Changes of the preview updates, released under KB5018483

Windows 11 version 22H2

Support Page: KB5019980

Updates and improvements:

Addresses an issue in File Explorer, which fails to localize folders.
Security updates.
Changes of the preview update, released under Kb5018496.

Other security updates

KB5019958: Cumulative security update for Internet Explorer: November 8, 2022

2022-11 Cumulative Update for Windows 10 Version 1507 (KB5019970)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for Windows Server 2016 and Windows 10 Version 1607 (KB5019964)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for Windows Server 2019 and Windows 10 Version 1809 (KB5019966)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for Windows 10 Version 21H1, Windows 10 Version 20H2 (KB5019959)

Server updates

2022-11 Security Only Quality Update for Windows Server 2008 (KB5020005)

2022-11 Security Monthly Quality Rollup for Windows Server 2008 (KB5020019)

2022-11 Security Monthly Quality Rollup for Windows Embedded 8 Standard and Windows Server 2012 (KB5020009)

.NET Framework

2022-11 Security Only Update for .NET Framework 4.8 for Windows Embedded 8 Standard and Windows Server 2012 (KB5020606)

2022-11 Security Only Update for .NET Framework 4.8 for Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2 (KB5020608)

2022-11 Security Only Update for .NET Framework 4.8 for Windows Embedded Standard 7, Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008 R2 (KB5020609)

2022-11 Security Only Update for .NET Framework 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.7.1, 4.7.2 for Windows Embedded 8 Standard and Windows Server 2012 (KB5020610)

2022-11 Security Only Update for .NET Framework 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.7.1, 4.7.2 for Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2 (KB5020611)

2022-11 Security Only Update for .NET Framework 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.7.1, 4.7.2 for Windows Embedded Standard 7, Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, and Windows Server 2008 (KB5020612)

2022-11 Security and Quality Rollup for .NET Framework 4.8 for Windows Embedded 8 Standard and Windows Server 2012 (KB5020618)

2022-11 Security and Quality Rollup for .NET Framework 4.8 for Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2 (KB5020620)

2022-11 Security and Quality Rollup for .NET Framework 4.8 for Windows Embedded Standard 7, Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008 R2 (KB5020621)

2022-11 Security and Quality Rollup for .NET Framework 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.7.1, 4.7.2 for Windows Embedded 8 Standard and Windows Server 2012 (KB5020628)

2022-11 Security and Quality Rollup for .NET Framework 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.7.1, 4.7.2 for Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2 (KB5020629)

2022-11 Security and Quality Rollup for .NET Framework 4.6.2 for Windows Embedded Standard 7, Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, and Windows Server 2008 (KB5020630)

2022-11 Security Only Update for .NET Framework 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.7.1, 4.7.2, 4.8 for Windows Embedded Standard 7, Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008 R2 (KB5020678)

2022-11 Security Only Update for .NET Framework 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.7.1, 4.7.2, 4.8 for Windows Embedded 8 Standard and Windows Server 2012 (KB5020679)

2022-11 Security Only Update for .NET Framework 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.7.1, 4.7.2, 4.8 for Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2 (KB5020680)

2022-11 Security Only Update for .NET Framework 4.6.2 for Windows Server 2008 (KB5020681)

2022-11 Security and Quality Rollup for .NET Framework 3.5.1, 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.7.1, 4.7.2, 4.8 for Windows Embedded Standard 7, Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008 R2 (KB5020688)

2022-11 Security and Quality Rollup for .NET Framework 3.5, 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.7.1, 4.7.2, 4.8 for Windows Embedded 8 Standard and Windows Server 2012 (KB5020689)

2022-11 Security and Quality Rollup for .NET Framework 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.7.1, 4.7.2, 4.8 for Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2 (KB5020690)

2022-11 Security and Quality Rollup for .NET Framework 2.0, 3.0, 4.6.2 for Windows Server 2008 (KB5020691)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5 and 4.8 for Windows 10 Version 21H1, Windows 10 Version 20H2,Windows 10 Version 1809, and Windows 10 Version 1607 (KB5020613)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 4.8 for Windows Server 2016 and Windows 10 Version 1607 (KB5020614)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5 and 4.8 for Windows Server 2019 and Windows 10 Version 1809 (KB5020615)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5 and 4.8 for Windows 11 (KB5020617)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5 and 4.8 for Microsoft server operating system, version 22H2 for x64 (KB5020619)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5 and 4.8.1 for Windows 11 (KB5020622)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5 and 4.8.1 for Windows 10 Version 21H1, Windows 10 Version 20H2 (KB5020623)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5 and 4.8.1 for Windows 11 (KB5020624)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5 and 4.7.2 for Windows Server 2019 and Windows 10 Version 1809 (KB5020627)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5 and 4.8.1 for Microsoft server operating system version 21H2 for x64 (KB5020632)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5 and 4.8.1 for Windows Server, version 21H1, Windows 10 Version 21H1, Windows Server, version 20H2, Windows 10 Version 20H2 (KB5020676)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5, 4.7.2 and 4.8 for Windows Server 2019 and Windows 10 Version 1809 (KB5020685)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5, 4.8 and 4.8.1 for Windows 10 Version 20H2 (KB5020686)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5, 4.8 and 4.8.1 for Windows 10 Version 21H2 (KB5020687)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5, 4.8 and 4.8.1 for Microsoft server operating system version 21H2 for x64 (KB5020692)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5 and 4.8 for Microsoft server operating system, version 22H2 for x64 (KB5020693)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5, 4.8 and 4.8.1 for Windows 10 Version 22H2 (KB5020694)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5, 4.8 and 4.8.1 for Windows 11 (KB5020695)

2022-11 Cumulative Update for .NET Framework 3.5, 4.8 and 4.8.1 for Windows 10 Version 21H1 (KB5020801)

Known Issues

Windows 7 SP1 and Windows Server 2008 R2

(New) After this update or a later Windows update is installed, domain join operations might be unsuccessful and error "0xaac (2732): NERR_AccountReuseBlockedByPolicy" occurs.
- Microsoft released guidance on the issue here.
(Old) Updates may show as failed and may be uninstalled because the machine is not on ESU.
- Expected behaviour.
(Fixed) File copies which use Group Policy Preferences might fail or might create empty shortcuts or files that have 0 (zero) bytes.
- To mitigate the issue, one of the following needs to be done:
  - Clear the "Run in logged-on user's security context (user policy option)" check box.
  - In the affected Group Policy, change "Action" from "Replace" to "Update".
  - If a wildcard (*) is used in the location or destination, deleting the trailing "\" (backslash, without quotation marks) from the destination might allow the copy to be successful.

Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2

(New) After this update or a later Windows update is installed, domain join operations might be unsuccessful and error "0xaac (2732): NERR_AccountReuseBlockedByPolicy" occurs.
- Microsoft released guidance on the issue here.
(Fixed) File copies which use Group Policy Preferences might fail or might create empty shortcuts or files that have 0 (zero) bytes.
- To mitigate the issue, one of the following needs to be done:
  - Clear the "Run in logged-on user's security context (user policy option)" check box.
  - In the affected Group Policy, change "Action" from "Replace" to "Update".
  - If a wildcard (*) is used in the location or destination, deleting the trailing "\" (backslash, without quotation marks) from the destination might allow the copy to be successful.

Windows 10 versions 21H1, 21H2 and 22H2

(Fixed) File copies which use Group Policy Preferences might fail or might create empty shortcuts or files that have 0 (zero) bytes.
- To mitigate the issue, one of the following needs to be done:
  - Clear the "Run in logged-on user's security context (user policy option)" check box.
  - In the affected Group Policy, change "Action" from "Replace" to "Update".
  - If a wildcard (*) is used in the location or destination, deleting the trailing "\" (backslash, without quotation marks) from the destination might allow the copy to be successful.
(New, again) Custom installations may not receive the new Microsoft Edge web browser, while the old version may be removed.
- Workaround described on the support page.

Windows 11

(New) Provisioning packages may not work as expected. Windows may only be configured partially and the " Out Of Box Experience might not finish or might restart unexpectedly".
- Provisioning the Windows device before upgrading to Windows 11 version 22H2 fixes the issue.
(New) Copying large files (multiple gigabytes) may take longer than expected.
- Use the commands robocopy \\someserver\someshare c:\somefolder somefile.img /J or xcopy \\someserver\someshare c:\somefolder /J until fixed.
(Fixed) File copies which use Group Policy Preferences might fail or might create empty shortcuts or files that have 0 (zero) bytes.
- To mitigate the issue, one of the following needs to be done:
  - Clear the "Run in logged-on user's security context (user policy option)" check box.
  - In the affected Group Policy, change "Action" from "Replace" to "Update".
  - If a wildcard (*) is used in the location or destination, deleting the trailing "\" (backslash, without quotation marks) from the destination might allow the copy to be successful.

Windows 11 version 22H2

(Old) Provisioning packages may not work as expected. Windows may only be configured partially and the " Out Of Box Experience might not finish or might restart unexpectedly".
- Provisioning the Windows device before upgrading to Windows 11 version 22H2 fixes the issue.
(Old) Copying large files (multiple gigabytes) may take longer than expected.
- Use the commands robocopy \\someserver\someshare c:\somefolder somefile.img /J or xcopy \\someserver\someshare c:\somefolder /J until fixed.

Security advisories and updates

ADV 990001 -- Latest Servicing Stack Updates

Non-security updates

Microsoft Office Updates

You find Office update information here.

How to download and install the November 2022 security updates

Most home systems will receive the updates automatically, thanks to Windows Update. Administrators have options to download updates manually, and to run manual checks for updates to install the updates as early as possible.

Note that it is recommended to create a system backup before installing any updates for Windows. A system backup gives you an option to restore a previous version.

Do the following to run a manual check for updates:

Select Start, type Windows Update and load the Windows Update item that is displayed.
Select check for updates to run a manual check for updates.

Direct update downloads

Below are resource pages with direct download links, if you prefer to download the updates to install them manually.

Windows 7 and Server 2008 R2

KB5020000 -- 2022-11 Security Monthly Quality Rollup for Windows 7
KB5020013 -- 2022-11 Security Only Quality Update for Windows 7

Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2

KB5020023 -- 2022-11 Security Monthly Quality Rollup for Windows 8.1
KB5020010 -- 2022-11 Security Only Quality Update for Windows 8.1

Windows 10 version 21H1

KB5019959 -- 2022-11 Cumulative Update for Windows 10 Version 21H1

Windows 10 Version 21H2

KB5019959 - 2022-11 Cumulative Update for Windows 10 Version 21H2

Windows 10 version 22H2

KB5019959 -- 2022-11 Cumulative Update for Windows 10 Version 21H2

Windows 11 Release version

KB5019961 -- 2022-11 Cumulative Update for Windows 11

Windows 11 version 22H2

KB5019980 -- 2022-11 Cumulative Update for Windows 11 version 22H2

Additional resources

November 2022 Security Updates release notes
List of software updates for Microsoft products
List of the latest Windows Updates and Services Packs
Security Updates Guide
Microsoft Update Catalog site
Our in-depth Windows update guide
How to install optional updates on Windows 10
Windows 11 Update History
Windows 10 Update History
Windows 8.1 Update History
Windows 7 Update History

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Microsoft adds a shortcut to access Studio effects from Quick Settings in Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22623.885

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 08 Nov 2022 15:48:00 +0000

Microsoft has released Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22621.885 and 22623.885 to the Beta Channel. The latter is rolling out with some new features, including a new way to access the Studio effects from the Quick Settings panel.

What’s new in Build 22623.885

Access Windows Studio Effects from Quick Settings

Back in April 2022, Microsoft showcased various AI enhancements for the camera called Windows Studio Effects, to improve the video calling experience. The improvements were formally unveiled when Windows 11 22H2 was released in September.

Now, Microsoft has added a new toggle in the Quick Settings panel called Studio Effects. Enabling the option displays a preview of your camera's feed along with various options right inside the Quick Settings interface. This includes some camera effects that you can configure such as Background Blur, Eye Contact, and Automatic Framing, and they will be applied automatically in video calls. You can also set up audio effects like Voice Focus to filter background noise, directly from the Quick Settings. These options are also available from the Settings app, but it's nice to have shortcuts that can be changed quickly while you are on a call.

The only catch here is that these effects require a device with a Neural Processing Unit (NPU).

Energy Recommendations

Remember the Power related settings that we first saw in the Dev Channel Build 22557 in February? They are now rolling out to users in Build 22623.885. You can access the options from the Settings app > System > Power & Battery > Energy Recommendations.

It contains various tweaks that optimize the power usage of your PC to reduce your electricity usage, which in turn reduces your carbon footprint.

(Images via Microsoft)

What’s new in Windows 11 Build 22621.885 & 22623.885

The following changes are rolling out to both builds that were released to the Beta channel, but some features are disabled by default in Build 22621.885.

Expanded View in Widgets, Tamil Anjal Keyboard, and Clipboard History

The Widgets board displays an expand button next to the add widgets button. This is identical to the feature that was introduced in the Dev Channel Build 25201 in September. Clicking on the expand button switches the widgets board from the regular view to a Full View, which is a maximized version of the panel. This can be useful if you want to see more news content and updates in the board at once. You can go back to the half view mode by clicking the expand button again. Windows 11 will remember your preference, so the next time you access the Widgets, it will open in half view or full view accordingly.

The Tamil Anjal keyboard, first seen in Build 25197 is shipping with the latest beta release. The Clipboard History now supports input in Password fields, this option was introduced in Build 25227 last month.

Microsoft has fixed some bugs in Windows 11 Build 22621.885 and 22623.885. We have reported about the fixes in our Dev Channel articles, you may refer to the recent ones, or read the release notes that have been published at the Insider Blog.

It is worth noting that users who have Build 22622 installed on their PC, will be moved to Build 22623 automatically via an enablement package.

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Some Windows users see OneDrive ads in the user session menu

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 07 Nov 2022 13:48:00 +0000

Microsoft Windows users who click on the user name in the Start Menu may see a new "Back up your files" advertisement there. Placed prominently with the only splash of color at the top of the menu, it advertises the company's OneDrive service.

First spotted by Albacore, it appears that Microsoft has found another location to advertise its services. Some might say that it is Microsoft's right to promote its own services, considering that it owns the operating system. Others may object, stating that Microsoft should not plaster advertisement across the entire operating system.

Microsoft tested ads in various locations of the Windows operating system, from File Explorer over Search to Windows Widgets and Microsoft Edge. All have in common that they advertise Microsoft services and products; some free and some paid.

In this particular case, it is debatable whether OneDrive is the best option when it comes to backing up files. The service is integrated deeply into new versions of Windows and enabled automatically when users sign-in with a Microsoft account.

Microsoft shifted strategy regarding Windows some time ago by making it a vessel for additional revenue. Getting users to use OneDrive, and in the next step, to subscribe to a paid plan, adds to Microsoft's revenue and pushes users into the company's ecosystem even further.

Tests on several desktop systems running Windows 11 did not return the "back up your files" listing in the context menu. It is possible that this is a limited trial run or limited to certain regions or based on other information that Microsoft has at its disposal.

Closing Words

It is clear that Microsoft won't change the course in the near future. To the contrary, it may even intensify advertisement on Windows machines. News broke recently that Microsoft is working on a new product that ties Windows with Windows 365 even further. The main idea behind this is to sell or rent low-cost devices to businesses and home users, and generate revenue from advertisement and subscriptions.

It would not be that much of a problem if Windows would include an option to turn all of these ads off in the settings. Such options exist for some locations. On Windows 11, there is an option under Privacy & Security > General, to disable suggested content in the Start Menu.

Most Windows users and organizations won't switch to another operating system because of this. Migrating to Linux, which seems the only option going forward, as Windows 7 and 8.1 will run out of support in January 2023, is a daunting task for most.

Now You: what is your take on this?

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Microsoft blocks the Windows 11 2022 Update from another set of devices

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 05 Nov 2022 14:48:00 +0000

Windows 11 users who have used the Xbox Game Bar application's Capture feature won't receive the offer to upgrade to the Windows 11 2022 Update currently. Windows 11 2022 Update devices on which the capture functionality was used in the past may experience out of sync audio.

Good news is that Microsoft fixed the issue already in the preview update KB5018496, which it released on October 25, 2022. The update is not distributed via Windows Update automatically, on the other hand. The upcoming November 2022 Patch Tuesday will remove the block and correct the issue on devices that run the first feature update for Windows 11 already.

According to Microsoft's description, audio may be out of sync when Windows 11 users use the Xbox Game Bar application's capture feature. Most users may experience the issue when the "record last 30 seconds" option is used after activating "record in the background while I'm playing a game" in the application's settings.

The company notes:

"The Xbox Game Bar app might have issues in which the audio is out of sync when capturing gameplay to a video file. You are more likely to encounter this issue when using the "Record last 30 seconds" feature when “Record in the background while I’m playing game” is enabled in Xbox Game Bar. Developer Note: Apps which capture or process video files using the same underlying Windows libraries or APIs as Xbox Game Bar might also be affected by this issue."

Microsoft notes that third-party apps that use the same "underlying Windows libraries or APIs" may also be affected by the issue.

Windows 11 systems already upgraded to the Windows 11 2022 Update may be fixed by installing the preview update. If the issue is not pressing, it may be better to wait until November 8 and the release of the cumulative update for the Windows 11 2022 Update.

Windows 11 devices still running the initial version of the operating system do not face the issue. The issue may occur only on devices that are upgraded to the first feature update before the November Patch Day releases.

Microsoft plans to remove the safeguard hold in mid November according to the bug report on the known issues and notifications support page.

Now You: do you use the Xbox Game Bar app on Windows devices?

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Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 25236 displays tips about how to use Windows Search

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 03 Nov 2022 11:48:00 +0000

Users in the Dev Channel can now update their PC to Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 25236. The latest update displays tips on how to use Windows Search, improves the Microsoft Store experience, and fixes some bugs.

What's new in Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 25236

Windows 11 displays tips about how to use Windows Search

Microsoft continues to experiment with the search experience in Windows 11. It has introduced a new way to educate users on how to use Windows Search from the taskbar. For example, it shows a flyout tip on the taskbar that tells you that pressing the Win + S key brings up the search panel. This is exactly what clicking on the icon does.

Image credit: Microsoft

The experience is rolling out on a limited basis for users in the U.S.

Microsoft Store Update

The Microsoft Store app will now display offers that your new PC is eligible for, such as a free copy/subscription of Office, Games, or a subscription of Game Pass. Head to the "Included with device" section under the Library page, to check if your system is eligible for an offer. If your computer meets the requirement, the Store app will display a card that lets you redeem the digital reward through your account.

Cards that appear in the Store app's search results have been optimized. Microsoft says that the scrolling and resizing experience is now smoother on low powered devices. These improvements are available on the Microsoft Store version 22210.1401.x and above.

Image courtesy: Microsoft

Fixes in Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 25236

Closing tabs in File Explorer was making the file manager crash, Microsoft has addressed this problem. Accessing the hidden icons flyout should no longer create a File Explorer entry for it on the taskbar. The hidden icons flyout will also resize correctly as you open or close more windows. A bug that was the cause for the volume icon in the system tray to incorrectly report the status as muted has been fixed.

Switching between windows using the Win + number keys (for apps pinned on the Taskbar) will not cause the Taskbar Previews to appear blank or freeze. Several taskbar related bugs that were impacting Explorer.exe have been patched.

Users who had many notifications (in the notification center) were experiencing Explorer.exe crashes, Microsoft identified this issue as a GDI handle leak that was related to updating the notification center icon, and fixed the issue.

A bug that was preventing natural voices such as Guy or Jenny from speaking in Narrator has been patched. The accessibility service will announce the pinned and unpinned status of apps in the taskbar when you make changes to them. Microsoft has resolved an issue that was leading to a bugcheck with error SYSTEM_THREAD_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED in recent builds.

The battery graph under the System > Power & Battery section will be hidden if a UPS is connected to your computer. The inverted option in the Settings > Accessibility > Color Filters page should now work properly, instead of setting your PC to a grayscale color palette. Accessing the properties of an audio input device will not cause it to incorrectly show up in the list of output devices in the System > Sound section.

New known issues in Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 25236

Microsoft has added 2 bugs to the list of known issues in Build 25236. The Start Menu has an issue that garbles the text in the navigation headings of the All apps section.

Projection mode does not work when switching using the Win + P hotkey or the Quick Settings shortcut. Microsoft is advising users to use Win + K or the Cast icon in the System tray for Miracast or wired displays.

The release notes for Build 25236 are available at the Windows Blog. The Search bar in the Task Manger is yet to roll out to users, but you may enable it manually by following the steps described in Martin's article.

Do you think Microsoft is experimenting with Search too much?

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The Windows 11 Task Manager may soon have a search feature

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 02 Nov 2022 14:48:00 +0000

Microsoft is testing a new search feature in the Windows Task Manager that could become available to all users of the Windows operating system in the future. The feature, which third-party task managers such as MiTec Task Manager Deluxe supported for a long time, improves the usability of the Windows Task Manager significantly for certain operations.

Administrators who need to find a specific task currently need to scroll the list of processes. The new search feature filters results by name, process ID or developer.

Here is what we know so far:

The search feature is being tested in the latest Windows 11 Dev build, which has the build number 25231 at the time of writing. Microsoft could backport it to Windows 11 version 22H2, for instance as part of the next Moments update for the operating system, or it could be introduced as part of the Windows 11 2023 Update.

Windows 11 users who want to enable the search functionality need to use the open source ViVeTool for that. Note that this works only in the latest Development builds currently and not on Windows 11 2022 Update machines.

Here is how that is done:

Download the latest version of ViVeTool from the GitHub repository.
Extract the archive to the local system after the download completes.
Use Windows-X to open an elevated Terminal prompt.
Navigate to the ViVeTool folder.
Run the command .\vivetool /enable /id:39420424
Restart the PC.

Note that you may disable the feature at any time by replacing enable with disable in the command.

Open the Task Manager with the shortcut Ctlr-Shift-Esc, or by right-clicking on the taskbar and selecting Task Manager from the context menu.

The search feature needs some work, as it accepts full process names only at the time. A search for edge does not return any process, as msedge.exe needs to be entered instead. Work on the feature will likely continue and it will be interesting to see if the search functionality is going to improve in the coming weeks and months.

Microsoft added some improvements to the Task Manager in recent releases. The Windows 11 2022 Update removed the basic view mode of the Task Manager, changed the interface by moving the row of tabs to the side and removing the classic menu bar. The first Moments update restored the option to load the Task Manager from the taskbar's right-click context menu.

Now You: would you use a search feature in the Windows Task Manager? (via Deskmodder)

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Windows 11 22H2: network printing switched to RCP over TCP

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 02 Nov 2022 05:48:00 +0000

Microsoft changed the default print related communication for client server communications in Windows 11 version 22H2.

Systems use RCP over TCP by default on Windows 11 version 22H2 devices and no longer RCP over Named Pipes. The change may affect how Windows devices communicate during printing and printing related operations.

It should not have an impact on most Home setups, where printers are connected directly to a Windows PC. Windows organizations and users who print over a network, e.g., using a dedicated print server or connections to another computer for printing, may have run into issues after upgrading the client to the Windows 11 2022 Update because of the change.

Microsoft states that the switch improves the "overall security of printing in Windows" by enforcing "newer and more secure communication methods". By default, clients and servers listen for incoming connections using RPC over TCP.

Options to customize print related communications are provided for administrators. Administrators may change the default configuration using the Group Policy or the Windows Registry; this includes switching to RPC over Named Pipes for printing communication and configuring the spooler server to also listen for RPC over Named Pipes communication.

Microsoft published a support document that provides administrators with guidelines to change the default way printers communication on Windows 11 version 22H2 devices.

Here are instructions for using RPC over Named Pipes:

Use RPC over Named Pipes for client – server communication

Enable by using Group Policy:

Path: Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Printers > Configure RPC connection Settings
Enable and set to RpcOverNamedPipes.

Enable the setting by using the registry:

Run reg add "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows NT\Printers\RPC" /v RpcUseNamedPipeProtocol /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f

Enable listening for incoming connections on RPC over Named Pipes

Enable via Group Policy:

Path: Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Printers > Configure RPC listener settings
Enable and set protocols allowed to be used to RpcOverNamedPipesAndTcp.

Enable the setting via the registry:

Run reg add "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows NT\Printers\RPC" /v RpcProtocols /t REG_DWORD /d 0x7 /f

Use a specific port for RPC over TCP communication (Max port: 65535)

Enable via Group Policy:

Path: Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Printers > Configure RPC over TCP port Enable and set the port number

Enable the setting via the registry

Run reg add "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows NT\Printers\RPC" /v RpcTcpPort /t REG_DWORD /d <port number> /f

Enforce Kerberos authentication

Enable via Group Policy:

Path: Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Printers > Configure RPC listener settings
Enable and set the authentication protocol allowed to be used to Kerberos.

Enable the setting via the registry

Run reg add "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows NT\Printers\RPC" /v ForceKerberosForRpc /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f

Administrators may customize the default printing behavior to restore the status quo..

Now You: how do you print on Windows? (via Deskmodder)

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Still using Internet Explorer 11 on Windows 10? It will be disabled in February 2023

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 30 Oct 2022 06:08:00 +0000

Microsoft plans to disable the company's Internet Explorer 11 web browser from certain Windows operating systems in February 2023. The company plans to disable Internet Explorer 11 on these systems, so that it can't be reactivated and used anymore afterwards.

The cumulative security updates for February 2023 will disable Internet Explorer 11 permanently on certain Windows operating systems. The second Patch Day of the year 2023 will disable the browser on Windows 10 devices.

Internet Explorer 11 may also be used on earlier versions of Windows, but Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 will run out of support in January 2023. Without these in support, it is Windows 10 that Microsoft is focusing its efforts on.

The company confirms the decision on this website and also in the Microsoft 365 Admin Center.

The retired, out-of-support Internet Explorer 11 (IE11) desktop application will be permanently disabled on certain versions of Windows 10 as part of the February 2023 Windows security update ("B") release scheduled for February 14, 2023. We highly recommend setting up IE mode in Microsoft Edge and disabling IE11 prior to this date to ensure your organization doesn't experience business disruption.

Any calls to Internet Explorer 11 will be redirected to the Microsoft Edge web browser automatically at this point, according to Microsoft.

Internet Explorer 11 support ended on June 15, 2022 officially and the first phase of retirement began. Internet Explorer 11 remained on the system in that phase, but calls to Internet Explorer were redirected to Microsoft Edge. The second phase would see the uninstallation of Internet Explorer 11 components from the system, but Microsoft did not provide a deadline for that until now.

Microsoft plans to release an optional update for Windows 10 and Windows 11 on January 17, 2023; this optional non-security update will remove Internet Explorer 11 from the Windows machine it is installed on. Then, on February 14, 2023, Internet Explorer will be removed automatically as part of the February Patch Day. The optional update removes the components early, but the Patch Day updates will remove it for all supported systems.

Microsoft created Internet Explorer Mode in Microsoft Edge to provide organizations and home users with options to load content that requires Internet Explorer technology. Especially organizations may operate content that requires certain Internet Explorer technologies. IE Mode in Edge is designed to load that content.

The removal of Internet Explorer 11 won't remove all components of the browser from the system. While it can't be run anymore, some of its components may still be required by programs on the operating system.

Now You: when was the last time you used Internet Explorer? (via Dr. Windows)

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Windows 10: OneDrive app may close unexpectedly

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 29 Oct 2022 05:48:00 +0000

Microsoft confirmed a new Windows 10 issue this week that affects the company's own OneDrive app. The report on Microsoft's support website reveals that the issue occurs on certain actions only, and that it affects OneDrive and OneDrive for Business.

The issue affects the following client versions of Windows: Windows 10 version 20H2, 21H1, 21H2 and 22H2.

Microsoft lists two exemplary actions that may cause OneDrive to close unexpectedly. These are:

Signing out of the OneDrive app or unlinking an account.
Unlinking sites or folders from syncing from Microsoft SharePoint or Microsoft Teams sites.

The uninstallation of the Microsoft Sync app may also fail, according to the description. Users may receive an error message when the issue occurs, but Microsoft did not provide specifics.

If OneDrive shuts down unexpectedly after one of these actions, it is likely caused by the issue in question.

Microsoft published an out-of-band update that resolves the issue on affected systems. The update is not available via Windows Update, but only via the Microsoft Update Catalog website as a standalone download.

Administrators need to download the update from Microsoft's site and install it manually on the affected device to resolve the OneDrive issue.

The support page of the Windows out-of-bands update KB5020953 summarizes the issue in a single paragraph:

It addresses an issue that causes Microsoft OneDrive to stop working. This occurs after you unlink your device, stop syncing, or sign out of your account.

This is the link to the update's Microsoft Update Catalog listing. Just activate the download button next to the version that matches the operating system on the affected device, click on the download link that is displayed in a new window, and execute the file after it has been downloaded.

WSUS and Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager administrators need to import the update manually before it becomes available.

The next Microsoft Patch Day is on November 8, 2022.

Now You: do you use OneDrive or another file syncing service?

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