Windows 10 - May 2019 update 1903

With the new round of Windows 10 updates happening soon, Lamas Design is waiting.

Waiting for the update!  Waiting for the clients to call and say : "It started to update and then it came up with a picture of Grumpy Cat/dancing unicorns/Blue Screen/Automatic repair/crazy frog/(Insert problem here)..

I know which one I would prefer.

RIP Grumpy Cat 😢

I don't often get comments on this blog.  In fact, I think it is only read by one or two people as an alternative to sleeping tablets and the occasional desperate person looking on page 22 of a google search for a solution when they have tried everything else!

Imagine my surprise today when I received a comment telling me how much they enjoyed the blog.  They also included a bunch of links which led to scam websites.  No thanks - deleted.  I have email accounts to collect spam I don't need it here as well!!

The first PC has been updated, TriggersBroom, my workhorse that has recently been upgraded to a board with the Z270 chipset.  Downloaded and installed within a couple of hours without much assistance or interference from me.  That is obviously the way i like it to happen.  

My laptop however, is a slightly different kettle of fish. I did an extra special clean up on it yesterday. Including, disk cleanup, virus check, malware removal, although most of this is done on a very regular basis anyway.  It still took hours to download, install and then, subsequently, fail.  

It gave me various different error codes and in the end I have given up for the time being. The error codes as usual mean very little and do not give a clear indication of what the problem may be.

Watch this space for further updates.





   

Just a Moment... Blue Screen Windows 10 1803 installation

In this case, the answer was to use an older installation (1511) version of Windows 10.  If like me you have read extensively and rambling articles not all relevant to this issue I know how you feel and are just looking for the answer.  That was mine.

If you are interested here is the full story ....

There has been a pc in Lamas HQ this week, Core i7, 4th Generation with a Nvidia 980 Graphics card.  Not a spanking new system but old enough to be settled in.

Failed HDD.

So, I ordered a new HDD.  The existing one was a bit of a strange one.  3T Western Digital Green in a Gaming PC.  I asked if it had been upgraded but no it was the same HDD that was in there when they bought it.

I went to Amazon for a 3T WD blue, but ended up getting a 4T as the price difference was about £5!

My apprentice helped me to dismantle and install the new drive and then put he put the usb in to install Windows.

It all seemed to be installing correctly until it came to setting up the users. It did not ask for user names, it just said

Just a moment ...

With a Blue Screen, Sometimes the window filled the screen; sometimes it was just a windows in the centre of the screen or occasionally it had Network in the top centre.

If I did alt and tab, there was a Microsoft account window which was inaccessible but just "there".

I tried many different fixes, which didn't work.  I googled for more and they did not work either.

I'm not going to list all the things I tried because I would be here all day!

I was able to get a command prompt using Shift F10, but nothing I was able to do in the command line was able to help

Sometimes, it went to this as well...

This problem seems to have been around for a few years, but there are no answers to it and no explanation of the cause of it in any version that I could find.

Microsoft suggest a reset or a reinstallation (or something that needs a working windows environment), but never a "ooh this is what is wrong and here's how you fix it"   Reset or resinstallation are never going to work if you cannot install the operating software in the first place!

Everything about this problem was weird.

I had used the install USB to rescue and reinstall another laptop only a few days beforehand.  So there was apparently nothing wrong with the installation USB.

I had used a Linux mint installation running from USB to check that the other components were working.  I installed the full version to the HDD and got a working copy of Linux Mint booting from the disk not the USB.

What did this mean thou?

I attached the new HDD to a working system and, using the same windows 10 USB I was able to install Windows 10.

So I proved it was possible and that there was nothing wrong with the install USB and the new HDD was working and ok.

By this time the client PC was reduced to running Motherboard, processor, one stick of RAM and onboard, DVI graphics plus a Lamas USB mouse and USB keyboard, both which were nothing special, generic & taking no additional effort!

Well done if you have made it this far!

Windows can create its own installation media as long as the the PC creating the installation media has a valid licence. So recently, in a fit of  something like efficiency, I created a new install USB Windows 10 for 1803 to stop the need for all the updates!

This new version of installation media had worked on other systems but not on this one.

In a desperate effort, I decided to try older installation media.

1511 to be precise.

The installation worked fully right to the desktop and asked me to create not only a user but a password as well.

I was able to get to updates and updated to the most recent version (1803) of Windows so it was fully updated. Put back all the removed components of the PC.

Install anti virus

Update drivers

Install chrome

Finally return it to the client working.

Whilst, I have repaired the PC and got it back working, I'm still wondering why the more recent version didn't work and what was causing the error.

I would be interested to hear if anyone has the same problem and how they were able to fix it.


.

Windows 10 Running Slowly and showing errors

A couple of systems recently have landed on the workbench at Lamas HQ, that were recently upgraded to Windows 10 that were just not working right.  No amount of fiddling and fixing made any difference. Each time something was fixed something else showed up

Common to all of the laptops were sudden, extended and repeated hangs.  There was nothing showing up on Anti Virus, Anti Spyware, Rootkit or hardware tests.  They had all developed this issue since the upgrade to Windows 10.

I tried updating all the drivers, checking for OS updates and also running the Tweaking application. The Event View was littered with all kinds of events, errors and warnings, but nothing specific enough to give a clear picture of what the issue was exactly.

The only answer I could find to this irritating issue is a Reset.

From the Settings Menu

A full reinstall of the operating system but it keeps your documents, photos & files, although making sure you have some kind of backup is always a good precaution, but it does get rid of applications and those will need to be reinstalled.

Using Reset This PC with the Keep My Files option does not keep any desktop applications that were installed.  For example, MS Office, Chrome and iTunes would need to be reinstalled, as will your security software and printer.  The reasoning behind this is that it could be one of these applications that caused the issue in the first place.  However, once the reset is finished you will find an icon on your desktop that lists all the applications that were not reinstalled, so that you can make the decision whether you need to reinstall them.

There are many tutorials "how to use Reset for Windows 10". So there isn't one here! highlight the words in quotes, copy and paste into your web browser!

Windows 10 Parental Controls now called Family Safety

The final PC was upgraded to Windows 10 a couple of weeks ago.  Initially I wanted to have just one PC on Windows 7 to help with troubleshooting, but Windows 10 seems to be ok with this now.

I changed the existing Hard Drive to a an SSD first.  This procedure went smoothly.  There was a small problem with boot on the new drive but that was not unexpected and was quickly resolved.

Once I knew that this was working properly, I set the update to run.  It did this a lot quicker that the rest because it has the most powerful processor and has an "adequate" amount of RAM.

This is the PC that the junior Lamas use to do homework and play their online games so I wanted to be sure that they were not going to find something on the internet that was unsuitable for little eyes.

In Windows 7 it was simple, set the age range and block out the time the account was allowed to use the PC.

In Windows 10 you have to go through the Family Safety and each person signs in with a Microsoft account.  That is all very well, but my kids don't have their own emails let alone a Microsoft Account.
Even the Network Manager has escaped so far without a Microsoft Account.  I have one and have had it since the Tech Previews of 10 started appearing.

The local accounts that the kids have used up to now are not longer relevant as they are now just standard user accounts and have no indication that they are for a child.

Each child needed a MS account created before I could add them to the Family.  Then I had to "add" them to the family.  Then they had to verify that they were happy to "join the Family" by verifying the email received.  This was all actually done by me, as I mentioned before, they do not actually have their own email!  So once this had been done and I had 2 Children attached to the account, I had to set up the times when they were allowed to use the PC and for how long each day they could spend on it.

All Done.  The Network Managers account was changed to be included in the "family" and we were good to go. 

They have been using the PC now for a week or so and it has been working well.  In my opinion, that is!  The Junior Lamas have commented that they have less time on the PC than before.   Nevermind!

It is a overly complicated procedure to set up but I am getting weekly reports on their online activities.

Hardware issues.

A couple of PCs have landed on the workbench recently doing some strange things.  

A desktop that was reporting a corrupted installation of Windows 7, another Windows XP installation that was BSOD without warning and a Laptop that was just mucking about.

Sometimes I can get a bit bogged down by the Windows issues and cannot see the wood for the trees although the voices in my head are yelling at me.  

I heard RAM Issue RAM Issue with the Windows 7 desktop and although I ignored the voices initially they were absolutely correct.  

Windows 7 was erroring out with inconsistent and different error codes (which never make any damn sense in the first place) I installed Windows 10 successfully, but as soon as I tried to reinstall the Applications it all started playing games again.  Error messages and BSODs all over the place.
I set the onboard hardware diagnostics check to run and it confirmed the SMART status of the HDD as healthy and then found and issue with one of the RAM modules.  When I removed one of the RAM modules the PC started running well again.  The issue was hard to spot initially because it was the second stick of RAM.  Had it been the one in the first bay, the issue would have been more apparent as it would have crashed consistently and not every now and again when Windows was up and running. 

The Windows XP system was a duff graphics card.  As soon as another card was installed it ran ok. 

The Laptop was a HDD error.

It is the law of 3s!

I have had 2 clients this week with malware infected laptops and I  managed to infect my own windows tablet by not checking where the download came from.  The first Accept Window should have alerted me to the fact that the Google Chrome installation was not from Google and was a malware infested package, but by then it was too late and I had installed a pile of Malware.

Again, the law of 3s.

Digital Resolutions - Drivers

Before Christmas I started to do a Digital Resolutions series.  I am going back to it.  


Todays topic is Windows Drivers:  

This has come up quite often following Windows 10 upgrades.   I have found that Windows 10 does not always find the optimal drivers for the bits and pieces on your PC.  So it uses and old one that it found on the back of the shelf behind the old zip drive and the floppy drive cable on top of the XP Installation disk, that's a bit dusty.  

It is difficult to persuade Windows 10 itself that actually these “Are not the Drivers you are looking for” and it might be better to tell windows 10 rather than ask it.  

Without going all Jedi Mind trick on Windows 10 you could use a 3rd party application to update your drivers rather than letting Windows do the work.

There are many applications that will tell you that you have outdated drivers but will try to charge you to actually find, download and install the drivers.

Iobit have a suite of "free for home use" applications that includes Driver Booster.

http://www.iobit.com/en/driver-booster.php

It scans your system and locates, downloads and installs updated drivers for each component in your system.  Reboot and you are good to go.



  

Windows cannot automatically bind the ip stack to the network adapter ...part 2

In my last post I mentioned difficulties with getting back online after a Windows 10 upgrade
I have found the source for the solution

http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_7-hardware/windows-couldnt-automatically-bind-the-ip-protocol/a2f074cf-be62-435e-b951-42dfbb9351c2?page=3

Windows cannot automatically bind the IP protocol stack Windows 10 Update

Recently completed the Network Managers upgrade to Windows 10.

Dell Inspiron 1545.  It arrived with Windows 7 on it.  

The first time I upgraded it errored out, rebooted and restored Windows 7.  The reason for this was I had over estimated the battery power.  It is not as good as it used to be.  (insert Ronnie Corbett-esque anecdote about laptop batteries?...maybe another time)

I tried again with the laptop running on the mains power and it completed.

There was however, an issue with the Ethernet and Wi-Fi.

Due to the age of the laptop Dell do not provide updated drivers for Windows 10 so I reinstalled the Windows 7 drivers.  They apparently installed with no issue, but it was still not working and not making the connection to the internet.

I ran a diagnostic on the network connections and the result was:

"Windows cannot automatically bind the IP protocol stack to the network adapter"

The reason for this was, installed on the adapter configuration were some items that were not required.

Control Panel -->  Network and Sharing Centre --> Change adapter Settings --> Right Click on the adapter name and select Properties.  The window below will appear or something very much like it

The items that should be checked are:

• Client for Microsoft Networks
• File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks
• QoS Packet Scheduler
• Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4
• Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6)
• Link Layer Topology Discovery Mapper I/O Driver
• Link Layer Topology Discovery Responder.

Uncheck anything else.

The culprit, it seems, on the Dell Inspiron, was Microsoft LLDP Protocol Driver.  It was checked. 

It was then unchecked and the adapter was disabled and then re-enabled and then it was finally able to connect to the internet.

There are other reasons that it may not work, one is an unsupported VPN application or connection.  I made sure that anything of this nature was removed from the laptop, but in this case it was the MS LLDP Protocol Driver.

Sadly, I cannot remember or find the site that this useful information came from and I do like to give credit where credit is due.  If I do find it I will add the link to the site as the discussion it came from did give other solutions if this was unsuccessful.

Other reasons could include :

• the Ethernet cable may not be plugged in correctly
• Firewall or AV software may need to be temporarily disabled.
• Unsupported VPN software.

 

Windows 10 upgrade

So we were away on 29th July and I had to wait until 2nd August before I could even think about getting my grubby mitts into the Windows 10 upgrade.

The first in line for an upgrade was my faithful war horse PC.  This PC is the "Triggers Broom" of PCs.  It was first purchased in about 2000 and it had Millenium installed!  Pausing so you can wipe the tears of laughter from your eyes.

It has been upgraded through XP, Windows 7, and now to 10. (Skipped over Vista, 8 and 8.1) Over the years it has had, in no particular order, new HDD & SSD.  New Optical drive, I upgraded the Motherboard and processor at one point and I have also replaced the PSU added RAM... and a new case, but it has been with me all these years.

I am writing this blog on it and it is now working fine upgraded to Windows 10.  There is a bit of back story including me being a little impatient and not waiting for the official release and upgrading to the Insider Preview version.  This version upgraded ok, but did not like it when I tried to upgrade to the full version.  I was a victim of the "explorer and cortana is not responding" critical error.

I had to reinstall Windows 7 from scratch and then update to windows 10.  I will gloss over the fact that I have now got to install all my applications again, but sometimes that's a good thing. It was due a clean out anyway.  But that is my desktop, I accumulate applications for this and that and sometimes don't uninstall them.

My Laptop on the other hand, was a bit of a "surprise - I'm upgrading to 10"  Still not entirely sure how it started.  I really wanted the desktop working first, but my laptop decided that it had all the necessary and was going with Windows update and was going off to Windows 10 land whether I liked it or not.  I registered for the upgrade almost the second it came out so I have only myself to blame.

It is working fine.  There have been some ID 10T errors from the k2c interface, but these are slowly being resolved, as I find out new stuff.

There are other Systems here at Lamas HQ and some of my clients have asked me to "do" the upgrade for them.  I have one sitting here beside me at 18%.  This client is firmly in the Hate Windows 8 camp.  (Laptop with no touchscreen!)  She did not want to wait any longer to get rid of 8.1 and upgrade to 10.

All in all it is going well so far.  I have no wisdom to impart as I have not really had any issues, other than those of my own making, so far.  Or maybe just one.  Custom Installation or you will be furnishing Microsoft with all of your personal browsing habits and application info.  Double check all the toggle switches about sending this that and the other bits of info out to all and sundry.

There will be more on the Lamas Windows 10 journey in the future as there are more systems to go!