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What is Error Code 0xC004C003?

Error code 0xC004C003 has to do with activating Windows 10 after a clean install. This problem has been a frequent nuisance to users trying to update from Windows 7 or 8.1 following the invite path they got from Microsoft.

Solution

Error Causes

There are several problems that may have caused error code 0xC004C003. The most common of them are:

• The product key entered was invalid, and cannot be used to activate the new OS.
• The user followed the proper installation procedure, but the Windows update servers were too busy to handle the activation at that moment.
• The free upgrade invitation was followed but after the reinstallation, the copy of Windows 10 was still not activated.
• The user tried to perform a full clean install of Windows 10 instead of upgrading from Windows to Windows 10

Further Information and Manual Repair

A lot of solving error code 0xC004C003 has to do with the method in which the user has tried to update the system. If one decided to try and update the program before being invited to do so by the update manager, he must wait. Unfortunately, if one chooses to do it on his own and download a clean install, he was never given a product code to authenticate the process. There are two options to address error code 0xC004C003 — either restore to the previous Windows Operating System or call Microsoft (or visit their Website) and purchase a product key. The Windows update servers are very busy. There are lots of Microsoft users around the world, and the servers are doing their best to get to each and every one of the users as fast as possible, but they can only move at a certain speed. Your best bet is to sit back and wait a while. But what if you were invited, and properly downloaded Windows 10, then decided to do a clean install? It is advised that one do not try to enter Windows 7 or 8.1 serial code as this will not work. However, unlike the problem above, these users will NOT need to purchase a product key. According to Microsoft Support Staff, the installation servers are also very jammed because of the high numbers of installations going on right now. No matter what posts you may read, the key IS genuine, and it is NOT blocked, broken, or invalid. To check if Windows has been properly activated, open the Command Window. Make sure you are logged into an administrator profile; otherwise this check will not work. Type in “slmgr.vbs/ato” and click Enter and then wait. While waiting, the command will check on the status of the activation. Windows Script Host will open and show whether or not it is activated. A lot of users have reported that the activation did not work for the first few times. However they later reported after some more attempts, no issue was found in the way the operating system updated and that the activation process went smoothly. This is most likely due to the overload on the Windows Update servers, so bear with Microsoft. Users have reported that when trying to correct error code 0xC004C003, they have followed the upgrade path and then been told by Microsoft that the key was invalid and they had to purchase a new one. If the upgrade path provided by Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 is correctly followed then there is nothing to worry about Just wait a while and try it again. If there are prolonged issues, speak with a technician by visiting the Microsoft website and contacting the help center by calling the number provided. Give them all relevant information and they will be sure to help accordingly. The best solution to fix error code 0xC004C003 is to wait. In essence, the user will be waiting to reenter the same product key. According to Microsoft, and many user posts found online, it is recommended to wait a while and then try to activate again. This seemed to be an answer to most users' problems, and seem to work just fine. If the problem persists, take it to a windows repair technician to have it sorted out. If that does not work, use a powerful automated tool to fix the problem.

If you are trying to log into your user account on your Windows 10 computer but encountered an error message instead that says, “Your account has been disabled, Please see your system administrator”, read on as this post will guide you on how you can fix this problem. In this kind of scenario, you won’t be able to access your data unless you have access to the administrator account. This problem could be caused by several problems. It is possible that malware has infected your computer and has changed some settings in your computer, especially if your system has been under a malware attack not too long ago. The malware could’ve changed the “Account is disabled” option. The only thing you can do to resolve this kind of problem is to log into your computer using another administrator account and then change the setting. However, if you don’t have a second administrator account, you can just enable the built-in hidden administrator account on your computer. You shouldn’t have any problem enabling the hidden administrator account as it is quite easy when you can log into your account. And in this post, you will be guided on how you can enable the hidden administrator account using the Registry Editor to fix the “Your account has been disabled, Please see your system administrator” error.

To get started, follow the instructions given below.

1. First, you need to start your computer and ensure that you are on the error screen. From there, you will see the Power options located on the right-hand side.
2. Click on the Power options and tap and hold the Shift key and then select Restart.
3. After that, the Advanced Boot Options will appear and from there select Troubleshoot > Command Prompt.
4. Next, you have to select your user account and enter the user account’s password to open Command Prompt.
5. After opening Command Prompt, open your screen and type “Regedit” and then tap Enter on your keyboard.
6. Now select the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE in the Registry Editor and go to File > Load Hive.
7. Afterward, you have to open the Windows installation drive and go to the location – WindowsSystem32Config
8. From there, you should find a file named “SAM” – select this file and click the Open button.
9. Next, you have to enter a key name. You can just input whatever you prefer.
10. Once done, navigate to this path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINEkey_nameSAMDomainsAccountUsers
11. From this path, you will see a key named “000001F4” – select this key and double click on the “F” entry that you can find on the right-hand side of the screen.
12. After that, look for the value data line labeled “0038” which should show 11 in the first column. You have to replace it with 10.
13. Once done, click on the OK button and close the Registry Editor and the Command Prompt to restart your computer.
14. Now once your computer has restarted, sign in to the Administrator account and open the Computer Management window. You can just search for it using the search bar in the Taskbar.
15. After you open Computer Management, go to Local Users and Groups > Users – where you can find all the user accounts. Look for your deleted user account and right-click on it and select Properties and then unmark the checkbox that says “Account is disabled”. This should fix the problem.

Windows PowerShell is a powerful tool inside the Windows environment often overlooked by typical users which is a great mistake since it can offer a large array of functionality and usability and if used well can offer a unique working experience. Today we will be using PowerShell to turn the WEB camera off so it can not be accessed, completely disabling it for use. You might want to do this for security reasons or just want to learn few new things. Whatever your reason might be, I am welcoming you to this tutorial and please do keep reading.

Finding device ID

In order to disable the WEB camera first thing we need to do is to find a matching device ID. We will find this value inside the device manager, so press ⊞ WINDOWS + X to open the secret menu. In the menu choose device manager and click on it. When the device manager opens, expand the Imaging devices or Cameras section. Right-click Integrated Camera or the primary webcam, and click Properties. Go to the Details tab. Under the Property section, click to select Matching device ID from the drop-down. Right-click the value and select Copy The next step is to download and install Windows Driver Kit (WDK)

PowerShell script

Create and run a PowerShell script with the following parameters/values to disable the camera. Substitute the <FOLDER> placeholder with the actual name of the folder where your copy of Devcon is residing

$id = (Get-CimInstance Win32_PnPEntity |

where caption -match '<PRIMARY CAMERA>').pnpDeviceID

$ppid = "{0}{1}" -f '@',$id

Set-Location c:\<FOLDER>

Devcon status $ppid

Devcon disable $ppid

Devcon status $ppid

To enable the camera device, run the command below in PowerShell:

devcon enable $ppid

If you are using Windows PowerShell and it suddenly throws an error message saying, “File cannot be loaded because running scripts is disabled on this system”, then read on as this post will guide you on how you can fix this issue your Windows 10 computer. This kind of error in PowerShell is most likely due to the fact that your user account does not have the required permissions to execute the script. Although this does not mean that you need to have administrator-level permissions as it could also indicate that you have to be unrestricted to run these types of PowerShell scripts or cmdlets. Thus, to fix the error and carry out the task, you have to set the execution policy to be unrestricted. And to do that, you need to use the steps provided below as a reference. Step 1: To get started, you have to check what policies are set for the individual user groups on your computer by tapping the Win + X key combination or by right-clicking on the Start button and clicking on Windows PowerShell (Admin). You can also search for PowerShell in the Start Search and then right-click on Windows PowerShell and select Run as administrator. Step 2: If a User Account Control or UAC prompt appears, just click Yes to proceed. Once you’ve pulled up Windows PowerShell, type the following command to get the List of Execution Policy for all the scopes on your computer.

Get-ExecutionPolicy –List

Step 3: After you execute the command, it will give you a list of the User Groups as well as their Execution Policy status, and under the Scope column, look for “LocalMachine”. Once you find its Execution Policy you will notice that it’s either set to Undefined or Restricted. Step 4: Now that you’ve determined the Execution Policy, you need to set it to Unrestricted if it is set to Restricted. To do that, you have to enter the following command in the very same PowerShell window.

Set-ExecutionPolicy Unrestricted

Step 5: After you execute the command, you will see a message that asks for various permissions for which you either have to tap Y to say Yes to each one of the messages individually or tap the A key to say Yes to all the messages to once. However, if the command throws another error, you can just force the Execution Policy to change by executing the following command.

Set-ExecutionPolicy Unrestricted -Force

Step 6: Once you’re done, it will finally set the Execution Policy for the Windows PowerShell scripts as well as cmdlets to be Unrestricted and fix the “File cannot be loaded because running scripts is disabled on this system” error.

Having a PC is a great thing, more often we are enjoying it than we have issues, but as time passes it seems that our computer is slowing more and more as new applications and games are coming which demand more powerful computers. Before you decide to throw away your computer and buy a new one because you feel it is a bit slow, read through this guide where we will guide you to common tips & trick to make your PC run faster:

1. Keep your PC clean and tidy

   Slowdowns and many other issues, even hardware failures can come from dirty PC. Make sure your PC is clean and tidy for maximum performance.

2. Optimize airflow through PC casing

   Airflow is very important so your GPU and CPU and overall all hardware components can be kept in optimal working temperatures. If any device inside the casing is working in abnormal temperatures you will experience slowdowns and freezing on daily basis. Make sure that all fans are working and that your temperatures are in the optimal range to prevent overheating and make sure to have maximum performance.

3. Check PC for malware

   Viruses, worms, and overall all malware can drastically reduce system performance. Make sure that your protection software is up to date with the latest definitions and that you have the latest Windows updates installed.

4. Create a Hi-Performance power plan

   Windows power plans can be a very useful feature, especially if you are working on laptop but in order to boost performance and drain maximum, you will need to switch to a hi-performance power plan.

5. Free space on the system drive

   Having little to no space on your Windows system drive can lead to extreme slowdowns, make sure that your hard drive is not on red when viewed from File explorer or you will experience even 50% poorer performance.

6. Choose startup applications

   If you have many applications starting up with your Windows and many of them running in the background you will experience performance issues. Each application that runs in the background is taking RAM and CPU time for themselves which could be free and used for the program that you need.

7. Do not open too many tabs in Browser

   Having too many tabs in Browser while working on a computer can also cause slowdowns, each tab is taking RAM for itself and even can cause Browser poor performance if a tab is LIVE and refreshing with new content all the time.

8. Remove browser extensions

   Speaking of browser, having too many installed extensions which are active as soon as the browser is up and running can also lead to poor performances. Remove all which you really do not need and your computer will gain in speed.

9. Make hardware upgrade

   Sometimes your system is just a little outdated, upgrading more RAM or switching to a new SSD with the greater speed can cause a world of difference in PC performance. Check to see how RAM is standard and upgrade accordingly, you can also upgrade the CPU and other bottlenecks in your system this way instead of completely buying a new PC.

10. Format and reinstall system

    Drives, application traces, registry entries, etc. are piling up in your system over time, and if enough time is given it will clog your computer. From time to time it is a good idea to backup files and do a completely clean full format of HD and install a new and fresh copy of Windows with new and clean copies of applications and drivers.

That's it, 10 tips on how to make your Windows and PC perform better and speed it up. I hope that you found the read informative and helpful and I hope that I will see you soon.

After you fresh install Windows 10 on your computer, it allows you to set up a PIN just before you can start using it. However, a number of users reported that the Windows 10 installation gets stuck on the “Set up a Pin” phase. If you are one of the users who experience the same thing, then read on as this post will walk you through fixing the problem. As users start to use their newly installed Windows 10 computer, they reported that the screen is still stuck even after they enter the correct PIN twice and there is no way for them to go forward or backward. Note that this is a part of the account setup and that your computer must stay connected to your internet connection before you finalize everything. And even though the PIN works when the computer is offline, the account setup still needs an internet connection, at least for a fresh installation. The solution for this kind of issue is quite easy and there won’t be any problem even if your computer shuts down or restarts since the installation is already complete and all that’s left is the account setup. To fix this problem, follow the steps given below. Step 1: The first thing you have to do is to turn off your internet connection or disable all connectivity from your computer. Note: If you are using either an Ethernet cable or a Wi-Fi switch to connect to the internet, you have to disable or remove them. But if you don’t have any options, just completely turn off your internet connection. Step 2: The next thing you have to do is to force your computer to shut down and then restart your computer. The setup process will eventually pick up exactly where it left off. The only difference is that there is no connection to the internet and your screen will no longer be stuck on the PIN setup screen so you now have the option to skip it and wait until you’re logged in for the first time. Step 3: Once you’re done, you can then you can choose to Setup Pin later on and turn your internet connection back on or connect your computer with an internet connection.

0x800ccc7d - What is it?

0x800ccc7d is an SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) error message code that occurs in applications like Microsoft Outlook or Outlook Express. The error message is displayed as: ‘ unknown error 0x800ccc7d- secure sockets layer ’. Many offices use Microsoft Outlook for email communication and sending instant messages within the office. This is a highly functional application that enables users to interact with peers efficiently, manage contacts, journals, and reminders. However, the error 0x800ccc7d may hamper your ability to send and receive emails efficiently. Therefore it is advisable to repair it right away.

Solution

Error Causes

The error 0x800ccc7d is triggered by the following causes:

• Damaged profile in Outlook
• Incorrect email account settings
• The Outlook installation is corrupt and damaged. This usually happens due to issues in hard disk storage.
• The outgoing SMTP server does not support secure connections

Further Information and Manual Repair

If you come across 0800ccc7d error code while using Microsoft Outlook or Outlook Express, then don’t you worry! This problem can be easily resolved. In fact, it is so easy to repair that you can do it by yourself even if you are not a technical expert. Here are some ways to fix the 0800ccc7d SSL Outlook error:

Solution 1: Use Scanpst.exe

You may not know this but Microsoft offers an inbuilt Outlook Repair tool. This tool is technically known as Scanpst.exe. This tool is useful when you need to repair Basic header corruption. However, it may not be the best choice if the problem is big and complex.

Solution 2: Reset Your Outlook Settings

Sometimes this error message may occur when the STMP server requires authentication or does not recognize the senders' email addresses. In this scenario, you should check your Outlook settings to make sure that your STMP username and server are correct. For this follow this procedure:

• Go to the Tools menu and then click on Accounts
• Now click on your email account then check its properties
• Click general and make sure that your email address is created in your account’s control panel. If not, then edit and create.
• Next, click servers and see if the box next to the option that says My server requires authentication is checked or not. If not, then check it to resolve the error.

Solution 3: Disable any Anti-Virus

Another alternative to resolve this error is to disable any Anti-virus or Firewall you have installed on your PC. Once you disable it then try sending or receiving the email again. This usually works.

Solution 4: Download 0x800ccc7d Repair Tool

The fourth solution available to resolve this issue is by downloading the 0x800ccc7d repair tool. Though it is similar to Microsoft Outlook built-in scanpst.exe tool, but as compared to it the 0x800ccc7d repair tool is a highly functional tool. There are many 0x800ccc7d repair tools available but we recommend you to Restoro. This tool is a third-party tool that can deal, scan, and fix 0x800cc7d error in no time. What makes this repair tool an excellent choice is that it can repair all broken PST files and emails, recover Outlook items, retrieve deleted files, recover password-protected data, split files to recover oversize PST files, and more. To access and install the 0x800ccc7d repair tool all you need to do is download it here and install it on your PC. Now run it to scan errors. Once the errors are scanned, hit the repair tab to resolve. So, next time when you experience the error 0x800ccc7d, try using these solutions to fix the problem right away!

If you suddenly encounter an error message saying, “ File Record Segment is Unreadable ” on a blue screen while booting your PC, it means that your hard drive is in an error state. This particular blue screen of death error might have a lot of bad sectors or might have reached its end. The workarounds you can try to resolve the issue is by locating the bad sectors or checking your hard drive for any discrepancies in the mapping and fix them. Follow the detailed instructions laid out below for these workarounds.

Option 1 – Try to check for any bad sectors and wrong configurations in your hard drive

The first thing you have to check is the boot files on your PC. As you know, your PC boots from these files and if there is anything wrong with any one of them or if one of them ends up getting corrupted, you will most likely see the blue screen of death error or a prompt with an error message saying, “File record segment is unreadable”. According to some users who reported this issue, new hard drives aren’t exempted from this error. That’s why it is recommended that you carry out this solution no matter what kind of scenario you are in. You will have to launch the Command Prompt in recovery mode and see if you can fix the problem by executing the check disk commands.

• Upon booting, restart your PC and tap F11 to go to the recovery environment then select Troubleshoot.
• Next, click Advanced from the given options and select Command Prompt.
• After opening Command Prompt, execute the commands listed below, and don’t forget to hit Enter right after you type in each one of them and if you have installed Windows to some different directory, you must replace “C” with the name of the drive you’ve installed Windows with.
• chkdsk C: /r /x
• chkdsk C: /f

Note: The Chkdsk function might take a while before it finishes its operations so you need to be patient and wait until the entire process is completed. And depending on the situation, it might even take a day at most so patience is really the key here.

Option 2 – Try connecting the hard drive to a different computer

If option 1 didn’t work for you and you’re still seeing the error, you can try connecting the hard drive to a different computer and then copy the data first. Make it a priority to salvage the data just in case the hard drive won’t make it in the future. After replicating your hard drive, you can then try running the chkdsk commands that are listed in option 1 above in the new computer you’re connecting your hard drive to and make sure that you key in the correct drive letter that’s assigned to the hard drive you’re using. After executing the chkdsk commands, plug your hard drive back into the previous computer and then check if you can now boot it without any issues.

Option 4 – Replace the faulty hard drive

If none of the options provided above really worked out then maybe it’s time to consider getting a replacement for your hard drive. In about 50% of the cases about this error, some unfortunate users were left with no choice but to replace the hard drive since the problem is with the hard drive itself. Hard drives have a complex running mechanism which includes a head and the disk that rotates accordingly so you can check if the cables connected to the hard drive are connected properly and if it is in a correct position or not. In addition, you also have to make sure that the SATA adapters where the hard drive is connected are working properly. If the drive is showing problems in the I/O operation, there is little chance for you to use it as a normal hard drive. If the hard drive is in warranty, get it checked and replace it. If not, you might consider taking it to the service center for the specialists to take a look into it.

Keyboard shortcuts are undeniably one of the most utilized ways and are helpful in maximizing productivity through the various applications at top speed in Windows 10. It offers the option to create custom keyboard shortcuts that allow users to launch apps, and even websites, instantly. There are already tons of keyboard shortcuts that are built-in in Windows 10 but in case you don’t know, you can actually create new ones. Doing so is not a difficult task and in this post, you will be guided on how you can exactly create custom keyboard shortcuts in your Windows 10 computer. Most users would create desktop shortcuts or pin the apps in the taskbar to speed up the process of working on their computers. It is an easy task to do since you can easily do it by dragging an app from the Start Menu to the desktop or by simply right-clicking on the executable app and selecting the “Create Shortcut” option. However, doing so would take physical effort and there are times when you have to minimize all the apps to get to the desktop so you can click the shortcut and this is where the Custom Keyboard Shortcuts come in handy. You can create Custom Keyboard Shortcuts in Windows 10 for various programs – from the traditional desktop apps to the new universal apps – you can fling in a shortcut so that you can instantly open them faster compared to when doing it manually and besides this also wouldn’t affect any of the ongoing system activity. To get started, you need to follow the steps provided below carefully.

To add Custom Keyboard hotkeys to a program and website desktop shortcuts, here’s what you have to do:

Step 1: First, you have to right-click on the app or website and select Properties. Step 2: After that, go to the Shortcut tab and from there, you will see the “Shortcut key” textbox which allows you to enter a new or custom keyboard shortcut for the app or website. Step 3: In the textbox field, input your preferred letters to set up the new hotkey. Keep in mind that this custom shortcut has to be combined with the Ctrl + Alt keys which means that if you want to select “N”, you have to tap the Ctrl + Alt + N keys. Step 4: Once done, click on the Apply and OK buttons to save the changes made and then close the window. Step 5: After that, tap the newly created keyboard shortcut, Ctrl + Alt + N keys again to open the app or website you’ve set up earlier.

To add Custom Keyboard hotkeys to a desktop app or an independent program that can be installed using direct download, here’s what you have to do:

Step 1: First, open the Start Menu and look for the icon/tile of the required app in the menu. However, if you are not able to find the desired app, then just click on the All Apps option to navigate through all the apps that are installed on your PC. Step 2: Once you find the app, just right-click on it and select More and then click on the “Open file location” option. Step 3: This will open a new window with the shortcut icon. Right-click on the app’s shortcut icon and select Properties. Step 4: This will open the Properties window where you can add the shortcut combination. Keep in mind that just like the previous method, the custom shortcut has to be combined with the Ctrl + Alt keys. For instance, if you select E, then you also have to set a keyboard shortcut that includes Ctrl + Alt, so it will be, Ctrl + Alt + E. Step 5: Once you’re done, click on the Apply and OK buttons to save the changes made. You should now be able to use the custom shortcut key you’ve set.

If you encounter an error message saying, “ERR SSL VERSION OR CIPHER MISMATCH” while visiting a website, then it is not primarily your fault as an end-user. In fact, it can happen on any website like Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and even Internet Explorer. Getting this error means that the website you are visiting is using an SSL certificate which your browser seems to be rejected because there is some issue with the certificate. It is also possible that the certificate that’s downloaded on your computer is corrupted or that your computer configuration for TSL/SSL is misconfigured. Here are the complete details of the error message:

“A secure connection cannot be established because this site uses an unsupported protocol, Error code ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH”

To resolve the ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH error, refer to the options given below and see which one works for you.

Option 1 – Try to access the website with the only HTTP

The first thing you can do is to try accessing the website using HTTP instead of HTTPS. If you can open the website using HTTP then it means that the problem is in the website itself. And if you are the website owner, you can check the following:

• Check if your website’s SSL certificate name is mismatched. Here you need to ensure that the name and alias of the websites match with the actual website URL where the certificate is installed.
• Second, check if your server is using the RC4 Cipher. If it is, then you need to fix that.

On the other hand, you may also check if your CDN also supports SSL since most of the CDN nowadays supports SSL. All you have to do is configure it correctly and it should be good to go.

Option 2 – Try enabling SSL 3 / TLS and disable QUIC Protocol

If you were using Google Chrome when you got the ERR SSL VERSION OR CIPHER MISMATCH error, then you need to follow the protocol fixes for SSL3/TLS and QUIC which are usually some of the reasons that cause the SSL version / Cipher Mismatch. It also has a few fixes for Windows 10 computer where you can clear the certificates and make sure that your computer date and time is in sync with your time zone and so on. If you were using Edge or Internet Explorer when you got the error, then you have to follow the steps below.

• Type “Internet” in the search box of your browser. After that, you should see the Internet Options from the search results.
• Next, open the Internet Properties window and switch to the Advanced tab and then scroll down to the Security section.
• From there, check the “Use TLS 1.1” checkbox as well as the “Use TLS 1.2” checkbox and then click OK to save the changes made.
• Restart the browser.

On the other hand, if you were using Firefox when you go the error, here’s what you have to do.

• Open Firefox and in the address bar, type “about:config” and hit Enter.
• If a warning appears, just click on the “I accept the risk!” button to proceed.
• Next, type in “TLS” in the search field and hit Enter.
• Then look for “security.tls.version.min” and double click on it and set its integer value to 3 to force the protocol of TLS 1.3.
• Now click OK and restart Firefox and do the same thing with SSL.