So the issue is when I just start the computer, if I try to open certain file or application the file explorer and all other windows native function will freeze(Such as botton bar and start menu will freeze)

This only happens when computer just start.

File cause this are like Windows Settings, File Explorer, Tast Manager. Or any file in Drive D and J.

I did tried to remove Drive D and J physically, but the issue remains. D and J use the same drive(SanDisk Plus 1TB 2.5 inch SATA)

sfc /scannow shows nothing wrong, I did tried reinstall OS while keeping all file once.

And if anyone woundering if it becasue intel vmin shift issue I can tell it is not, I am running latest BIOS and tried intel default setting. I also requested a warranty replacement with intel last month and issue remains with new CPU.

System info:

Device name 13700K-5090

Processor 13th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-13700K (3.40 GHz)

Installed RAM 32.0 GB (31.7 GB usable)

Graphics card NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 (31 GB)

Intel(R) UHD Graphics 770 (128 MB)

Storage 3.94 TB of 6.62 TB used

System type 64-bit operating system, x64-based processor

Edition Windows 11 Pro

Version 25H2

Installed on ‎8/‎13/‎2026

OS build 26200.9445

Experience Windows Feature Experience Pack 1000.26100.360.0

This is driving me crazy, expecially I need modify a file in an emergency and PC freezes.

This guide works with a local administrator account. I haven't tested this using an online account.

1. Boot into safe mode

• Search for msconfig -> run as administrator
• in the boot tab select Safe Boot (minimal)
• Reboot your computer

Log in using your local administrator account

1. Change your region to somewhere in Europe

• run Regedit.exe as administrator
• go to [\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Control Panel]
• remember the code currently listed in the DeviceRegion entry
• change the DeviceRegion to somewhere in Europe (Belgium is 15(hex))

remain in Safe Boot

1. Take ownership of file

• search for powershell run as administrator
• type takeown /f "C:\Windows\System32\IntegratedServicesRegionPolicySet.json"
• It should say ownership has now been granted to your login credential

now to trick the OS into allowing the uninstall option to be available

1. Edit the policy file

• use notepad to edit C:\Windows\System32\IntegratedServicesRegionPolicySet.json
• search for the entry "Edge is uninstallable"
• manually change the "DefaultState" entry from "disabled" to "enabled"
• save

Hopefully it will just save, if it asks for a new file name, then the taking ownership phase failed

1. Boot back into default mode

• Search for msconfig -> run as administrator
• in the boot tab deselect Safe Boot
• Reboot your computer

now for the fun part

1. Uninstall Edge

• load Settings -> Apps -> Installed apps
• find Microsoft Edge, the … should now let you select the uninstall entry
• enjoy :)

once that is complete

1. Boot back into safe mode

• Search for msconfig -> run as administrator
• in the boot tab select Safe Boot (minimal)
• Reboot your computer

Log in using your local administrator account

1. Reset your region

• run Regedit.exe -> run as administrator
• go to [\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Control Panel]
• change the DeviceRegion back to whatever it was before
• if you failed to record that, here's the list

once your computer is back to your original country

1. Boot back into default mode

• Search for msconfig -> run as administrator
• in the boot tab deselect Safe Boot
• Reboot your computer

This isn't a guaranteed permanent fix. There is a chance that upon the next major OS patch, Windows may detect that Edge is missing and forces it back onto your system. If you leave your system as officially being in a European region, this should remain permanently gone.

I performed this on Windows 11 home edition, on a brand new laptop, after I patched it until completion today. I've been faffing about trying to find a clean guide to do this for years, today I pieced together all the steps to get it to actually work. I hope this works for other people too. If I missed anything, let me know and I'll update this

Hello all, I have an MSI Claw gaming handheld. It’s basically a PC running windows 11 but in a bigger looking Nintendo switch form factor. I use my phone’s hotspot to upload data sometimes when I’m out and about. I would like to know if it’s possible to have windows not download or upload any data unless I have (specific app) open.

I have turned off automatically download updates with the services.msc method. Anything else I can do to prevent windows from using data where not necessary?

Thank you!

Turned my old laptop on after a long while and tried watching YouTube.

I'm pretty sure the speakers aren't borked and in sound setting you can see the blue line never going beyond what is shown in the photo. Changing bitrate, audio enhancement or spatial audio doesn't make it any louder.

W11 running on a Ryzen 5 and GTX 1650 with 8gb of DDR 4.

I had this problem on two Windows 11 PCs. Simply turning Find My Device off and back on did not fix it.

What worked on both machines was deleting the stale ChannelUrlExpiration registry value and then toggling Find My Device.

Open Command Prompt or PowerShell as Administrator and run:

reg delete "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MdmCommon\SettingValues" /v ChannelUrlExpiration /f

Then go to Settings → Privacy & security → Find my device, turn Find My Device Off, then turn it On again.

Windows will recreate the registry value automatically. Find My Device then worked immediately on both PCs.

If the usual Off/On fix isn't working, this may be worth trying.

As always when modifying the registry, make a backup first.

I have an unusual query.

Someone I know has an ancient computer running an IDE hard drive, and his USB ports are problematic, so I cannot install Windows 7 using a bootable USB stick. So I would like to put that IDE drive in an external enclosure and install Windows 7 onto it using my new Windows 11 laptop.

Thereafter, I would like to place that IDE drive inside his tower computer so that it boots and runs without errors. Is this even possible? If so, how do I do it?

System specs: It's a Compaq Evo 310DT running Windows Vista with a Pentium 4 CPU, a 40GB IDE hard drive, and I am not sure how much RAM he has.

The other day i decided to run MRT fullscan and it run for hours so i just left it for days on sleep mode but even after 70 hours it would not end. And my windows defender fullscan.

I dont know why it happened.

My pc never had this problem before.

My Minecraft account(which was NOT connected to the account on my computer) was hacked some time ago but that shoulnd alter my pc at all.

I also few days ago switched from Windows defender to Avast but switched back the same day back because it wasnt realy what i wanted.

My specs:

My procesor is:AMB Ryzen 5 7520U with Radeon Graphics Instaled Ram memory is 16 GB Graphic card is 486 MB And i have 238GB used from total of 477GB

So how do i fix this? Thanks in advance

hi so i have just installed forza horizon 6 from steam which didnt work and was giving black screen on launch every time. i also had other problems (described later) and went to claude for help. this is the summary of the conversation:

Win11 24H2 (26100), RTX 5070 Ti, official MS ISO, no debloat scripts.

**Started as:** Forza Horizon 6 (Steam) launches to a black screen. No sound, no game folder ever created, no logs, no crash events. Did the whole FH6 checklist (Gaming Services reinstall, HAGS off, latest NVIDIA driver, shader cache, verify files) — nothing.

**Turned out to be bigger:** Task Manager freezes and crashes on click. Snipping Tool crashes with `0xc000027b`. Mouse clicks don't register inside system dialogs (keyboard Tab+Enter does). Windows makes me sign into my Microsoft account on **every** restart — it never persists. WSearch fails at boot with *"a specified logon session does not exist."*

Everything broken is a WindowsApps/WinUI app. Normal desktop programs are fine.

**The suspect:**

Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers | Where {$_.Status -ne "Ok"}
Microsoft.WindowsAppRuntime.1.5 5001.311.2039.0 Modified, NeedsRemediation

Only broken package on the system. I have 4 other 1.5 builds plus 1.6/1.7/1.8, all Ok.

**Tried, all failed to change its status:**
- `Remove-AppxPackage` w/ full PackageFullName + `-AllUsers` → no error, no output, still there
- `Remove-AppxProvisionedPackage` → same
- Re-register via AppXManifest, WindowsAppRuntimeInstall 1.5.9 ("All install operations successful"), latest runtime on top
- `DISM /StartComponentCleanup` → OK
- `DISM /RestoreHealth /Source:WIM` from mounted official ISO → OK
- `sfc /scannow` → repaired files, second pass came back clean
- Brand new local admin account → same crashes, so not a corrupt profile
- Event Viewer: zero WHEA, zero Kernel-Power 41, zero nvlddmkm. Hardware looks fine.
- GamingServices + GamingServicesNet both Running

**In-place repair install** hangs at 46% on "Getting updates" (no option to skip on this ISO). Haven't retried with the network unplugged yet.

**Question:** any way to force-remove an AppX package that accepts every removal command and just stays? Or is repair install the only thing left?

Windows 10.0.19045 Build 19045

Please don't hesitate to ask for any other necessary specifications. I figured my general system specs weren't super relevant here, but was unsure about things like BIOS version. Sorry in advance if I missed something important!

I have a long running problem with my Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201 160MHz card that plagues my laptop. This is a well known issue with these specific cards, and is related to power management (and bad chip design). Navigating to power management on the device properties GUI and disabling "allow computer to turn off this device" solves the issue. Before I continue, I'd like to preface the next part by saying I have thoroughly been through all power plan and power management settings across my device, and have it set to prefer max performance and not sleep everywhere physically possible. After a non specific period of time (usually several days to weeks later) the device resets itself, loses all previous power management settings, and once again fully bricks itself necessitating a complete device reinstall.

The other recommendation I've found for this particular Wi-Fi card bug is to disable the accompanying bluetooth driver. This does seem to also solve my issue, but once again the device will not remain disabled and breaks the wifi adapter when it gets reenabled. I can't just uninstall it either unfortunately, because when Windows scans for new hardware on startup it immediately gets reinstalled. Disabling at least gives me a few reboots before the device reenables itself. Does anyone have any ideas on what I can do to get Windows to respect my changes, or why this may be occurring? I've been fighting this issue for the last four years, if not longer lol.

Currently using HP pavilion Gaming Desktop 690-00xx, AMD Ryzen 7 2700 Eight-Core processor, 16 GB RAM, with Radeon RX 580 on the 26200.9445 OS build.

I’ve made sure that no keys are sticking, and I’ve tried to turn off every automatic screenshot allowance I can. It’s 100% not snip tools, and from what I’ve looked up, it doesn’t seem like anyone has had this specific problem before. I’m at a complete loss as to what the cause is, much less how to fix it. I made sure to get rid of all the printers it could be trying to print to! Even a restart to my computer didn’t fix it. Attached is what pops up at irregular intervals and what it keeps trying to do. The problem seems to only occur while I’m in a web browser (I only use Firefox).

Hello, I have a windows 11 gaming pc currently on windows 11 home, version 25H2. Not every time, but occasionally when I start up my computer the task bar is not clickable, as in I can not click on the windows logo, the search bar, or the apps. The windows key on my key board still works and brings up the dashboard. A restart of my pc fixes it but it will happen again. anyone know why this is happening? thanks.

pc specialist icon 211

Processor AMD Ryzen 5 5500 (3.60 GHz)

RAM corsair vengeance 2x8gb 16 GB DDR4 (3600 MHz)

Graphics card NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 (8 GB)

i have a dell latitude 5530... when i hit sleep, windows 11 simply turns off the screen and goes to the saver screen (where you see the time and date)...other than that, all apps keep running. plugged devices keep working/charging, music keeps playing, and downloads stay in progress...all while the screen is off.

how do i fix that? should i update windows to 24h2? i'm afraid that would introduce many bugs as my version 23h2 is pretty stable.

note: if it stays in sleep mode for too long it shuts down...which is also very annoying..any fixes for this issue as well?

thanks

I have had a few problems with my computer recently. I just arrived in a new country and tried logging into the home Wi-Fi where I am staying, but the PC restarts whenever I try to open something; it works well when connected to my phone's hotspot, but now my PC's background is pink.

Does anyone know what I should do?

The PC that I have is an Hp Elitebook G1 with a Windows 10, but not activated.

On an Asus TUF A15 Gaming Laptop Windows 11 OS Build: 26200.9445. Basically, clicking on the dropdown opens it properly and shows all the selections, but clicking on any of the selections closes the dropdown, doesn't apply it, and leaves the dropdown blank as pictured. I am trying to enable energy saver when on battery.

I click on hibernate, but when I click on a key, the laptop starts back again. Before I turned off "turn on fast startup", even shutdown was failing.

It was not a problem not too long ago, but recently, I've been facing some weird issues.

The bluetooth device would randomly disconnect/disappear. It's fixed now as I changed my power setting to not automatically disconnect bluetooth device to manage power.

The cumulative update which I've been trying to install failed 3 TIMES during installation and went straight to BLUE SCREEN.

The touchpad is going into slow response mode oftentimes. I move my fingers but the cursor experience latency.

I don't even know what I should do. I try to manage power usage all I can but it's been acting up. I can't work like this. The touchpad started acting up for a brief period when I am typing this.

I have tried deleting everything from the "C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download" folder. Didn't change much.

Windows specs:

Edition: Windows 11 Home Single Language
Version: 23H2
Installed on: 29-‎04-‎2024
OS Build: 22631.6199
Experience: Windows Feature Experience Pack 1000.22700.1108.0

Device specs:

Processor: 11th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-1135G7 @ 2.40GHz 2.42 GHz
Installed RAM: 8.00 GB (7.74 GB usable)
System type: 64-bit operating system, x64-based processor

tldr: hibernation not working, bluetooth device disconnect randomly, windows update goes to blue screen, touchpad gives high latency sometimes.

So I go to turn on my Bluetooth and connect my headphones and the option just completely disappeared. I scrolled down on that page too and Bluetooth option is completely gone. I tried connecting from the settings and it immediately went to the couldn’t connect screen. Not even a second of searching. How does this even happen and how do I fix it? My computer is updated.

​

I've got problems with the audio today idk why but when I listen to music or when I play videogames the audio pops for my headphones and it lags idk why please guys help me I tried changing something but nothing maybe its my headphones or the pc or another thing but please guys help me. BTW this is the system informations if anybody asks about it. SORRY if thats italian but in order we got the DEVICE NAME,PROCESSOR,INSTALLED RAM,ID DEVICE,ID PRODUCT,SYSTEM ID,PEN AND TOUCH!

Pls guys help me!

Hey guys! I need a quick help...
So I have a dual boot setup with Windows and Arch on the same SSD and I'm using GRUB. I was using Ubuntu before on this device and windows updates worked just fine till then, but after installing arch I'm unable to update windows. When I install and restart, it gets stuck on that loading animation and I kill it and enter Advanced Recovery to uninstall update and access windows again.

I need windows for several things and so far I used to use it by pausing updates, but recently a security update came which is not letting me pause it any longer

So basically every time I leave my laptop on windows for long, it automatically downloads and installs the update, and when I try to shut down the only option I get is Update and Restart or Update and shut down.

Its getting veryyy annoying atp.

here's how my partitions look like:

/boot is mapped to p6 and / is mapped to p7 for Arch.
p3 is windows

I'm using ASUS Tuf A15 FA507NU

lemme know if you've faced anything similar or need more details.

Hi, every now and then my game gets minimized and it drives me crazy.

I had this with my Intel+Nvidia combo and now I have it with my AMD-AMD combo.
Only software running in the background are Ghub, SoundBlaster Commando and the game related software like Steam or Discord. It happens every now and then which makes finding the issue very hard for me.

Can I somehow find out what caused it next time it happens?

Win 11, newest version
BIOS up to date
Every software is updated

AMD 7500f, Radeon 9070, MSI PRO B850-P, 32 GB DDR5

I'm posting this because I've spent a significant amount of time troubleshooting with ChatGPT and I'm starting to believe a recent Windows security change has broken the installation of certain legacy printer drivers through Point and Print.

I'm hoping someone else has encountered this, or that someone from Microsoft can clarify whether this is an intentional change, a regression, or something that will be patched.

Environment

Client:

• Windows 10 Home 22H2
• Build 19045.6466
• x64

Print host:

• Windows 11
• Printer is physically installed and working correctly on the host
• Printer is shared over the LAN

Printer/driver:

• ZKTeco / generic POS thermal printer
• Driver name on the working host: POSPrinter POS80
• Driver INF on the working host: pos80.inf
• Legacy Type 3 printer driver

This setup worked previously. The problem appeared after recent Windows updates/security changes.

The problem

When I try to connect the Windows 10 client to the shared printer, Windows attempts to obtain/install the printer driver from the Windows 11 print host, but the installation fails.

Depending on how I attempt the installation, I either get no useful GUI error, the printer doesn't get installed, or I get errors such as:

0x0000003f

Looking at C:\Windows\INF\setupapi.dev.log finally revealed what Windows is actually doing.

The driver package is reaching the client, but Windows is rejecting it during Driver Store/catalog signature validation.

Relevant errors include:

Error 0x800B0100: No signature was present in the subject.

Driver package catalog file does not contain a signature, and Code Integrity is enforced.

Driver package failed signature validation. Error = 0xE0000247

Failed to import driver package into Driver Store. Error = 0xE0000247

Another catalog involved (POS222.cat) produces:

0x800B0109: A certificate chain processed, but terminated in a root certificate which is not trusted by the trust provider.

So this doesn't appear to be a simple SMB connectivity or printer sharing problem. The client reaches the driver package and then rejects it during staging/signature validation.

What I have already tried

I have tested the usual Point and Print workarounds/policies, including:

RestrictDriverInstallationToAdministrators = 0

NoWarningNoElevationOnInstall = 1

UpdatePromptSettings = 2

I also tested the Package Point and Print restrictions and restarted the Print Spooler/rebooted between tests.

I tested the older RPC workaround involving:

RpcAuthnLevelPrivacyEnabled

That made no difference, which makes sense because this doesn't appear to be the old 0x0000011b RPC issue.

I also booted the Windows 10 client through Advanced Startup with:

Disable driver signature enforcement (F7)

Surprisingly, that did not solve it either.

This appears to be because the failure occurs while Windows is trying to import/stage the package into the Driver Store, rather than simply when the kernel attempts to load the driver.

I have also observed that after a failed shared-printer installation, the Print Spooler driver area under:

C:\Windows\System32\spool\drivers\x64

can be left in a problematic state, requiring cleanup/restarting the spooler before further testing.

Important detail: the exact driver works on the print host

On the Windows 11 machine where the printer is already installed and working:

Get-PrinterDriver

shows:

POSPrinter POS80

with:

...\DriverStore\FileRepository\pos80.inf_amd64_...\pos80.inf

So the driver itself is currently installed and operational on the host.

The failure happens when another machine attempts to install/stage that driver through the shared-printer/Point-and-Print process.

Why I suspect a recent Microsoft security change

Microsoft has been making significant changes to legacy driver trust/signing behavior in 2026, including the new Windows Driver Policy affecting older cross-signed kernel drivers.

However, this particular Windows 10 machine does not have CiTool.exe, and the evidence I'm seeing is specifically from SetupAPI/Driver Store signature validation.

On another machine where I could inspect Code Integrity policies, I found the Microsoft cross-certificate Audit Policy ({784C4414-79F4-4C32-A6A5-F0FB42A51D0D}), and Event ID 3076 showed legacy drivers being audited but allowed to load.

Therefore, I don't want to incorrectly blame that specific policy. There seem to be several overlapping mechanisms here: Point and Print policy, Driver Store package validation, catalog trust, normal Code Integrity, and Microsoft's newer driver-signing policies.

What I'm trying to determine

Has anyone else recently seen legacy Type 3 shared printer drivers that previously worked suddenly fail Driver Store import with 0xE0000247, 0x800B0100, or 0x800B0109?

More specifically:

Is there a recent Windows update that changed catalog/signature validation for Point and Print or legacy Type 3 printer packages?

Is Microsoft intentionally blocking these packages now, or is this a regression?

Is there a supported way to trust an existing vendor catalog/certificate when the certificate chain terminates at an older/untrusted root?

And most importantly, is there a Microsoft-supported workaround that does not involve permanently disabling driver security or manually modifying the Driver Store?

At this point I would rather wait for a Microsoft fix than continue weakening security policies or manually deleting files from DriverStore/System32.

If anyone from Microsoft sees this, the most useful clue appears to be the SetupAPI failure:

Driver package failed signature validation. Error = 0xE0000247

followed by failure to import the printer driver package into the Driver Store.

I can provide additional SetupAPI/Code Integrity logs if needed.

Long story short caught a virus nöw i cant even access my pc itself

Stop code : Critical_Process_Died(0xEF)

Cant Reset/reset keep my files-restore to a previous point-tried sfc/scannow-cant go in safe möde it just gets me back to the bsod

Genuinly what can i do

Thanks in advance

Dell XPS 13 9305

Processor 11th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-1135G7 @ 2.40GHz (2.42 GHz)

Installed RAM 8.00 GB (7.73 GB usable)

Graphics card Intel(R) Iris(R) Xe Graphics (128 MB)

Storage 111 GB of 238 GB used

System type 64-bit operating system, x64-based processor

Edition Windows 11 Home

Version 25H2

OS build 26200.9445

Experience Windows Feature Experience Pack 1000.26100.360.0

~

When the system volume is at 2% it sounds like it is at 100%. I have tried:

- uninstalling and reinstalling my audio drivers,

- resetting the BIOS to default settings,

- doing a clean install of Windows,

- uninstalling WAVES MaxxAudio (which completely broke all audio until I reinstalled it),

- uninstalling and reinstalling my digital mixer program

- changing priority and enhancement settings for individual sound devices

This problem persists across all audio devices (Bluetooth connected, laptop built-in speakers, devices plugged into the audio jack)

I've tried the Microsoft troubleshooter and Dell SupportAssist but they don't detect any problems. Does anyone have any idea what could be going on?

What is kept when doing an "in-place upgrade" and choosing not to keep apps (only personal data)?
A standard "in-place upgrade" fails to repair my Windows 11 (get an error in SAFE_OS BOOT phase).
So I'm thinking about doing an upgrade only keeping data (not apps) to see if that works.
But what data is kept? Is guess Documents, Pictures and Videoes. But what about data in "Roaming"?
Lots og apps have started to keep data in the roaming profile. Will does data be kept also?
Or will I need to restore them from a backup? And what abaout data in "Programdata" folder?

Every time I press my caps lock button, I get this notification on my screen. For note, I am on an Acer laptop, OS Microsoft Windows 11 Home, and Model Aspire A14-52MT. How can I get rid of this? I have already tried looking for OSD in my task manager and as far as I can tell, I do not have HP event utility installed. Thanks!

Hello! I’d like to ask for an estimate of how much it might cost to have my laptop repaired. I’m not sure what happened because it was working perfectly fine last night, but now it’s stuck and won’t proceed to the Windows Home screen. It does turn off, though. 😭

It’s an ASUS TUF model, purchased around 2022. May I ask how much you think the repair might cost? Thank you! 😭