Protestware, what it is, and why it is a bad thing
The author of the famous software library mode-ipc that gets over a million downloads per week found that it has some questionable code inside. The code itself behaves like this: if it finds out that your location is within Russia or Belarus it will try to replace the contents of all files on the computer with a heart emoji.
One important thing is that we here are not supporting the current Ukrainian situation and are against any type of violence or war but we also do not support this kind of behavior as well. If we look at this only from a technical perspective, we would then classify the mode-ipc library as malware and a harmful piece of code no matter the motivation behind it.
So this so-called protestware is well basically malware, but not always, it will protest when certain conditions are met. The issue with this is that companies and users should not be placed under harm if they do not share the personal view of the code author. Imagine if, for example, I would publish code to delete all pictures from your computer if my code found out that you do not like metal music. I guess you not liking metal music and war in Ukraine are two very different things but the source is the same, unreliable code that invades your privacy in order to serve one purpose, punishment for disagreeing with my personal views and that should not be allowed.
Not all protestware are equal, some will not harm your computer on purpose, they will just annoy you with some messages like viruses did in their infancy stages, others might place some developer sanctions but no matter the outcome basic principle is the same, it does something without user consent and without informing the user that something like that might happen.
On the internet, many blog posts and discussions were open about this issue and its morality. Discussion is still active with different takes on the situation and how to prevent it. Our take on this matter is that professional developers should have standards and not submit to doing harm for the sake of personal views and feelings.
In the long run, this kind of behavior and practice can only harm developers involved in this kind of entanglement. Infected libraries will in time stop being used since people would not trust them and authors will have a stain on their name as impulsive or not trustworthy.
While browsing the internet, if you suddenly encounter a warning with an error message saying, “Server certificate has been revoked ERR CERT REVOKED” then it indicates that the SSL certificate used by the website has been revoked by its issuer. This kind of problem can only be fixed by the website owner but that does not mean that you can’t do anything about it. In fact, you have the option to bypass this error as well as contact the certificate issuer – all this and more.
Just a reminder, if a website that accepts payment, its passwords don’t have SSL or has some certification issue, you should never trust it. For instance, if you are trying to purchase something online and you’re on the payment stage but you encounter the “Server certificate has been revoked ERR CERT REVOKED” error, you must not proceed.
To resolve the “Server certificate has been revoked ERR CERT REVOKED” error, here are some things you can do.
Option 1 – Try contacting the Certificate Issuer
If you are the website owner, of course, the best thing you can is to get in touch with the Certificate Issuer in order to resolve the problem.
Option 2 – Try fixing the Date and Time
You have to check your computer’s Date and Time. There are cases when this simple setting causes a connection problem. So if your computer Date and Time is set to date or time that this after the certificate expiration date, then you have to make sure that you set it to automatically configure time. To do so, just open Settings > Time and Language. From there, turn on the toggle for “Set time automatically” and “Set time zone automatically” options. After that, check if it fixes the error, if not, you need to check if the manual selection is correctly set or not.
Option 3 – Bypass the Certificate Revocation Check
As pointed out earlier, you have the option to bypass the Certificate Revocation check. All you have to do is follow the steps below.
In the search box of your browser, type “internet options” and open it once it appears.
After that, go to the Advanced tab and navigate to the Security subheading.
Next, uncheck the “Check for publisher’s certificate revocation” option as well as the “Check for server certificate revocation” option.
Now restart your computer. Upon the next startup, try opening the website again. This time, your browser will stop checking it for certificate issues. However, it’s not safe to leave those options unchecked so make sure that once the website’s SSL certificate is fixed or once you no longer have to visit that website, you recheck those options.
To make the Windows 10 operating system a lot more user-friendly, Microsoft introduced the Tablet Mode for Windows 10 devices, especially the 2-in-1 devices like Surface Pro and Surface Book. Despite the Tablet Mode’s efficiency, it also encounters some errors from time to time. One of the issues users reported about tablet mode is that they can’t turn off or exit tablet mode. If you are one of these users, read on as this post will guide you in what you can do to fix the issue.
To fix the problem with Tablet Mode, there are several suggestions you can check out. You can try to check the full-screen setting, or perform a full shutdown or perform two buttons to restart the Surface devices. You could also disable Tablet Mode via Registry Editor or perform System Restore or change the settings in the System tab or the Action Center.
Option 1 – Try to check the full-screen setting
Tap the Win + I keys to open the Windows Settings app.
Then navigate to this path, Personalization > Start.
Next, scroll down to toggle off the “Use Start Full Screen” option.
After that, restart your computer and see if the problem is fixed.
Option 2 – Perform a full shutdown
Open Command Prompt with admin privileges first.
Next, execute this command to perform a full shutdown: shutdown /s /f /t 0
The command you entered will shut down your computer and once it’s turned off, wait for a couple of minutes and then turn it back on.
Option 3 – Try to perform a two-button restart on your Surface device
Tap and hold the power button for about 30 seconds.
Then release them after 30 seconds.
After that, tap and hold the volume up + the power button for 20 seconds. This will cause the display to flash a few times but you have to keep those buttons pressed until your Surface device is turned off.
Wait for a couple of minutes and your Surface will turn back on. This should resolve the problem.
Option 4 – Try to disable the Tablet Mode via Registry Editor
In the Start Search, type “registry editor” and right-click on the Registry Editor from the results, and then select the Run as administrator option. This will open the Registry Editor with admin privileges.
Next, navigate to this registry key: ComputerHKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionImmersiveShell
From there, look for the DWORD named “SignInMode” and double click on it.
Set its value to “1” and its base as hexadecimal.
After that, click on OK to save the changes made. This will make sure that you are signed in to the desktop mode when you log into your account.
Now look for the DWORD named “TabletMode” and double click on it and set its value data to “0” and it's base as hexadecimal.
Click on OK to save the changes made and then restart your computer.
Option 5 – Run System Restore
Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box.
After that, type in “sysdm.cpl” in the field and tap Enter.
Next, go to the System Protection tab then click the System Restore button. This will open a new window where you have to select your preferred System Restore point.
After that, follow the on-screen instructions to finish the process and then restart your computer and check if the problem is fixed or not.
Option 6 – Try changing the settings in the System tab or the Action Center
Go to Settings and navigate to System > Tablet Mode.
After that, scroll down to set the “Use desktop mode” from the drop-down menu under the “When I sign in” section.
Now restart your computer and see if the issue is fixed.
The win32kfull.sys file is one of the kernel-mode device drivers in your Windows 10 operating system. In case you don’t know, there are two kinds of device drivers – the first ones are the normal drivers that communicate between your hardware and the operating system while the second ones are the kernel-mode drivers. The latter is necessary for booting your OS. And there are times when you encounter the win32kfull.sys error while booting your PC. Here’s the full context of the win32kfull.sys error:
This error could be caused by corrupted or outdated drivers with incomplete files or it could be caused by some driver or software installed on your computer. To fix this error, here are some troubleshooting options you need to check out.
Option 1 – Try updating all the Drivers
As pointed out, the win32kfull.sys error can be due to outdated or corrupted drivers that are not compatible with your hardware. These drivers include but are not limited to display, network, sound, hard drive, and more. If you are not able to access the internet, you can just manually download the update using another PC.
To update your drivers, here’s what you need to do:
Tap the Win + R keys to launch Run.
Type in devmgmt.msc into the box and tap Enter or click OK to open the Device Manager.
After that, a list of device drivers will be displayed. If you see a red or yellow sign that shows up against the driver, right-click on the driver’s name and select “Update Driver Software” or “Uninstall”. And if you find any “Unknown device”, you need to update it as well.
Select the “Search automatically for updated driver software” option and then follow the instructions to complete the process.
Restart your PC.
Note: You also have the option to go directly to the website of your graphics card manufacturer and check if there’s a new update – if there is, download it. After that, you could also check if there’s a new update of the game you’re getting the issue of the black bar.
Option 2 – Identify and uninstall problematic programs by putting your PC in a Clean Boot State
One of the main causes of BSOD errors like win32kfull.sys is a problematic program that could clash with your existing operating system as well as computer architecture. There are tons of programs that are either incompatible or conflict with the existing drivers or software in your system. To identify such programs, you need to put your PC in a Clean Boot state. How? Follow these steps:
Log onto your PC as an administrator.
Type in MSConfig in the Start Search to open the System Configuration utility.
From there, go to the General tab and click “Selective startup”.
Clear the “Load Startup items” checkbox and make sure that the “Load System Services” and “Use Original boot configuration” options are checked.
Next, click the Services tab and select the “Hide All Microsoft Services” checkbox.
Click Disable all.
Click on Apply/OK and restart your PC. (This will put your PC into a Clean Boot State. And configure Windows to use the usual startup, just simply undo the changes.)
After putting your PC in a Clean Boot State, try creating a system restore point and see if the problem still occurs. Clean Boot troubleshooting is designed to help you isolate the problem. For you to execute a clean boot troubleshooting, you must do a couple of actions (the steps are given above) and then restart your PC after every action. You might have to disable one third-party app after the other to really isolate the issue. And once you’ve narrowed down the problem, you can either disable the third-party app that’s causing the problem or remove it. Note that you must switch your PC back into the Normal Startup mode after you’re done troubleshooting the problem. Here’s how you can do it:
From the “Start” menu, go to System Configuration.
After that, switch to the General tab and click the option for “Normal Startup”.
Next, go to the Services tab and clear the checkbox for “Hide all Microsoft services”.
Then find and click “Enable all” and if prompted, you have to confirm.
Afterward, go to the Task Manager and enable all the Startup programs and confirm the action.
Restart your PC when prompted.
Once you have identified the program causing the problem, uninstall it right away from your Control Panel.
Option 3 – Perform an SFC scan
The SFC or System File Checker scan could detect and automatically repair damaged system files that could be causing the win32kfull.sys error. SFC is a built-in command utility that helps in restoring corrupted files as well as missing files. It replaces bad and corrupted system files to good system files. To run the SFC command, follow the steps given below.
Tap Win + R to launch Run.
Type in cmd in the field and tap Enter.
After opening Command Prompt, type in sfc /scannow
The command will start a system scan which will take a few whiles before it finishes. Once it’s done, you could get the following results:
Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations.
Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files and successfully repaired them.
Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them.
One of the most common brands of GPUs that comes in a large number of computers is AMD’s Radeon Graphics processing units. AMD included the Radeon Settings panel so that users can control how the hardware functions. However, as of late, a lot of users reported that the Radeon Settings panel throws an error that says, “Radeon Settings are currently not available. Please try again after connecting AMD graphics” when they try to use it.
This kind of error in the Radeon Settings panel is most likely caused by either corrupted drivers or incompatible drivers. If you are one of the users who are facing this problem, worry not for this post will guide you in fixing this error. You can either use the Device Driver Uninstaller or change the driver version. For more details, make use of the options provided below.
Option 1 – Try to use the Device Driver Uninstaller
The first thing you can do to fix the problem is to uninstall the AMD Radeon drivers by using the Device Driver Uninstaller software. After you’ve uninstalled the AMD Radeon drivers using this software, go to the official website of AMD to download the AMD Radeon drivers. Once you’ve downloaded them, you can install them by simply running the executable file. Once the installation of the new AMD Radeon drivers is done, try to open the Radeon Settings panel and see if the error is now fixed or not. If not, refer to the next given option below.
Option 2 – Try changing the Driver version
If you have followed the instructions in the first option then you can proceed to the next given steps below.
Now that you’ve completely uninstalled the AMD Radeon drivers and reinstalled their latest working versions, check if the drivers are still updating. If they are, you need to stop them.
To disable the drivers being automatically updated, you need to go to the Group Policy Editor by tapping the Win + R keys to open the Run utility and then type “gpedit.msc” in the field and tap Enter or click OK.
After opening the Group Policy Editor, navigate to this policy setting: Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Device Installation > Device Installation Restrictions
From there, double click on the “Prevent installation of devices that match any of these device IDs” policy setting to open a new window, and from this window, you will see the following description of the setting:
“This policy setting allows you to specify a list of Plug and Play hardware IDs and compatible IDs for devices that Windows is prevented from installing. This policy setting takes precedence over any other policy setting that allows Windows to install a device. If you enable this policy setting Windows is prevented from installing a device whose hardware ID or compatible ID appears in the list you create. If you enable this policy setting on a remote desktop server the policy setting affects the redirection of the specified devices from a remote desktop client to the remote desktop server. If you disable or do not configure this policy setting devices can be installed and updated as allowed or prevented by other policy settings.”
Now set the radio button of the policy setting to “Enabled”. This will turn off the delete confirmation prompt. Note that setting the radio button to either Not Configured or Disabled will turn off the driver being automatically updated.
Next, click on the Show button under the Options section. And in the field that pops up, type in the Hardware ID of your GPU and click OK. You can find the GPU’s Hardware ID under this location: Device Manager > <DEVICE NAME> Properties > Details > Hardware IDs
Once you’re done, click the Apply and OK buttons to save the changes made.
Close the Group Policy Editor and restart your PC and see if the “Radeon Settings are currently not available. Please try again after connecting AMD graphics” error is now fixed.
In today's world any professional, whatever be design, print, web design or similar is using one or more Adobe programs. Adobe has cemented itself as a must-have software for any kind of serious and even amateur work. Sadly in the latest Windows 11 adobe software in some instances can slow down your computer and put some hard load on the CPU. If you are one of these unfortunate users, keep reading because we have a few things you can do to solve this.
1. Run SFC scan
SFC scan is a built-in Windows tool aimed at diagnosing and repairing system files inside Windows itself. Running an SFC scan usually solves most issues of these kinds so we will try that one first.
Press ⊞ WINDOWS + S to open the Search bar and type in cmd
Select command prompt and on the right side click on Run as administrator
Inside command prompt type in: sfc /scannow and press ENTER
Wait for the whole process to finish and reboot your system
2. Update Windows
Windows updates are designed to fix issues and solve problems, check to see if a new update is available to install.
Press ⊞ WINDOWS + I to open the Settings app
Click on Windows Update in the bottom left pane
On the right check visually if there is an update pending and if there is, install it
3. Temporary turn off antivirus and firewall
Antivirus and firewall can interfere with adobe applications and background services, try turning your preferred protection software temporarily off and check if your CPU is still under high load.
4. Reinstall Adobe suite
Uninstall and install a clean version of the adobe creative suite or individual applications that you are using. Check your CPU load after reinstallation.
5. Uninstall Adobe CEF Helper
This is not a really advisable course of action but if non of the previous solutions have produced results then this might be the only option if you would like to keep using the software. Open File Explorer and paste the following line in the path box on top: C\:Program Files>Adobe Systems>Adobe CEF Helper or Adobe Creative Cloud >Adobe CEF Helper_uninstall.exe. Double click on the file and uninstall the CFT helper.
If you are trying to run a Windows Service like the Diagnostic Policy Service and encounter an error instead that says, “Windows could not start the Diagnostic Policy Service”, worry not for this post will guide you on what you can do of the Diagnostic Policy Service is not running in your Windows 10 computer.
As you know, the Diagnostic Policy Service enables problem detection, troubleshooting, and resolution for Windows components on your Windows operating system. When you encounter this kind of problem, you will also see the “Access is denied” error message. This occurs when the “MpsSvc” process does not have the permissions needed for the Registry keys. This kind of problem happens when the TrustedInstaller account is missing the permissions for a Registry key and so to fix this issue, you need to take full control and ownership of the Registry keys.
You need to create a System Restore point first before you get started. This way, you can always undo the changes you’re about to make in case anything goes wrong. Once you’re done creating a System Restore point, refer to the following instructions to fix the “Windows could not start the Diagnostic Policy Service” error.
Step 1: Tap the Win + R key combination to open the Run utility.
Step 2: Type in “Regedit” in the field and tap Enter to open the Registry Editor.
Step 3: After opening the Registry Editor, navigate to this registry path:
Step 4: After that, look for the “Parameters” registry key and select Permissions.
Step 5: Now select your account under Group or user names.
Step 6: Next, make sure that the “Full Control” and “Read” boxes are both checked, and then click on the Apply and OK buttons to save the changes.
Step 7: Afterwards, navigate to this registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetControlWDIConfig
Step 8: From there, look for the Config key and right-click on it and select Permissions and then click on Add and type “NT Service/DPS in the box and click OK.
Step 9: Now select “DPS” and check the Full control box, click OK and exit the Registry Editor.
Step 10: Reboot your computer and check if the error is now fixed.
One of the cool and interesting features in Windows is the Screensaver which allows users to display animation or change the wallpaper automatically when the computer is not being used. This feature can also time out and lock your computer when it remains idle for quite some time. However, if you notice that the screensaver of your computer turns on a lot earlier, then you’ve come to the right place as this post will guide you on how you can change the timeout settings of the screensaver of your Windows 10 computer.
Usually, the screensaver in Windows 10 is turned off by default, however, if some other user has turned it on or if you have turned it on, you can actually change the timeout settings of the screensaver using several methods. You can do it through the Personalization settings, Registry Editor, as well as the Group Policy Editor.
Before you proceed with the instructions provided below, make sure that you create a System Restore point first. Once done, follow each one of the suggestions carefully to successfully change the Screensaver timeout settings in Windows 10.
Option 1 – Modify the timeout settings of Screensaver via Personalization settings
Open the Start menu and type “screen saver” in the field.
On the search results that appear, click on the “Change Screen Saver” option.
From there, you have the option to change the screen saver type, preview, open settings, change the wait time, as well as choose to display lock screen on your resume.
Now to change the timeout settings of your screensaver, you have to increase the wait time from 1 to 15 or anything that works for you.
Once done, click OK and exit to save the changes made.
Option 2 – Try to change the screensaver time via Registry Editor
The next option you can try to change the timeout settings in the screensaver is using the Registry Editor. To get started, follow these steps:
Tap the Win + R keys to launch the Run utility and type “regedit” in the field and hit Enter to open the Registry Editor.
Next, navigate to this registry path: ComputerHKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwarePoliciesMicrosoftWindows
From there, right-click on Windows located in the right pane and select New > Key.
Name the key as “Control Panel” and right-click on it and select New > Key and then name it as “Desktop”.
Once done, click on the newly created Desktop key to highlight it.
After that, right-click on any empty space in the right pane and select New > String Value and then type “ScreenSaveTimeOut” and hit Enter to save it.
Now right-click on ScreenSaveTimeOut and select Modify and then set its value data in seconds.
Click on OK and exit the Registry Editor to save the changes made.
Option 3 – Change Screensaver timeout settings via Group Policy Editor
Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box and type “gpedit.msc” in the field and hit Enter to open the Group Policy Editor.
Next, navigate to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Control Panel > Personalization.
Then look for a policy setting named “Screen saver timeout” and double click on it and then click on the Enabled option to enable it.
Add the screen timeout in seconds and click on the Apply and OK buttons to save the changes.
Restart your computer.
Note: If you want to disable the screensaver feature in your computer, you can always do so by disabling a policy setting named “Enable Screen Saver”.
Computer voice control has moved a long way from its beginning routes and in today's age controlling your PC with voice is truly a reality and fully possible. Voice control is taking up the steam in everyday life, from simple commands in cars, Alexa, smartphones, TVs, etc. to modern computers.
Windows 10 has introduced voice control into PC with Cortana even during the installation process but a lot has changed from having a virtual assistant in begging days and in today's modern Windows 11 OS. You can now freely open apps, move, copy delete files, and even dictate in order to create a word document.
However, in order to take this advantage, you will need to turn it off first since it is disabled by default. Of course, you will need a microphone and some spare time to train Windows in understanding you properly.
Setting up Voice Control
Just like in Windows 10, in Windows 11 voice control is also in accessibility options and the first step is to turn ON Windows Speech Recognition.
Click on the Start button and type Settings into the search bar, click on Open, or press ENTER. On the left side of the settings, window locate and click on Accessibility. On the right part once Accessibility is selected scroll down and find a section titled Interaction and click on Speech. Turn on the switch next to Windows Speech Recognition.
A pop-up will appear that will lead you through the rest of the setup and that's it.
Improving Voice Control
In order to make your voice control better, if you are not satisfied with the results, you can sample more of your voice into the algorithm to tune it more to your liking. Sadly this option is still deep in Control Panel.
Click the Start button and type in Speech recognition into the search bar, look for the search result with Control Panel displayed under it, and click on Open. Click on Train Your Computer to Better Understand You and follow the instructions.
The process will probably take a few minutes. The more data you provide to the speech recognition model, the more accurate it will be when interpreting your instructions. You can train the model multiple times, and each time you do, it should improve the accuracy.
As you know, one of the basic apps in the Windows 10 operating system is the calculator and it can even be extended to a scientific calculator which makes it really useful for users. However, there are instances when you might encounter some issues while using this app. One of the issues about the Calculator app that’s been reported recently is that the Calculator app is not working. If you encounter the same problem, then you’ve come to the right place as this post will guide you on what you can do to fix the problem.
Based on the reports, users claimed that the issue with the Calculator app occurred right after they’ve installed a feature update, while other users claimed that the Calculator app never really worked on their computers and there are also cases where the app opens but it either freezes or crashes.
According to researchers, the main causes of the problem include a feature update that could’ve altered the settings. It could also be due to problems with the login account or corrupted and missing files, or the problem could also with the calculate app itself. To resolve this problem, here are some suggestions you can follow.
Option 1 – Run the System File Checker Scan
System File Checker or SFC is a built-in command utility that helps in restoring corrupted files as well as missing files. It replaces bad and corrupted system files to good system files that might be the reason why the calculator app is not working properly. To run the SFC command, follow the steps given below.
Tap Win + R to launch Run.
Type in cmd in the field and tap Enter.
After opening Command Prompt, type in sfc /scannow
The command will start a system scan which will take a few whiles before it finishes. Once it’s done, you could get the following results:
Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations.
Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files and successfully repaired them.
Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them.
Reboot your computer.
Option 2 – Run the DISM tool
You can also run the DISM Tool as it helps in repairing the Windows System Image as well as the Windows Component Store in Windows 10. Using this built-in tool, you have various options such as the “/ScanHealth”, “/CheckHealth”, and “/RestoreHealth” that could help in fixing the Calculator app.
Open the Command Prompt with admin privileges.
Then type in the following commands and make sure to hit Enter right after you type each one of them:
Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /CheckHealth
Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /ScanHealth
Dism (.)exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth
Do not close the window if the process takes a while as it will probably take a few minutes to finish.
Option 3 – Try logging into your computer using a different User Account
You might want to try logging into a different User Account since it is possible that the issue could have something to do with your log-in account. Thus, you can isolate this possibility by logging into a different user account. If you don’t have any other user account, simply create a new one by clicking on the Start icon and then go to Settings > Account > Family & other users. From there, go to the Other user's section and click on the Add someone else to this PC option, and then inputs all the needed information and restarts your computer. Once your computer has restarted, log into your computer using the newly created user account.
Option 4 – Try to reset or reinstall the Calculator app
If the first three given options didn’t work, you might want to reset or reinstall the Calculator app. To do that, follow these steps:
Click on the Start button and go to Settings > Apps > Apps and features.
Next, look for the Calculator app from the app list and click on it to see its other options.
After that, select the Advanced options and go to the Reset section and then click on the Reset button to reset the Calculator app.
Note: You also have the option to reinstall the Calculator app. All you have the option to visit Microsoft Store and from there, uninstall the Calculator app.
Windows comes with a built-in backup solution. However, if it failed because of an internal error, you will encounter an error message saying, “The backup application could not start due to an internal error, Server execution failed (0x80080005)”. When you get this kind of error, it means that it did not start and the process failed with a Server execution error. If you got this kind of error worries not for this post will guide you in fixing the problem in your Windows 10 computer.
The Windows Backup service is an excellent feature in Windows that only works on the NTFS file system and if you want to use this make sure that you have formatted your files system to NTFS. It is performed by the Volume Shadow Copy, all you have to do is right-click on any folder and if you see the “Previous versions” option, this means that a backup process runs from time to time and can bring back old files when needed.
To resolve the “The backup application could not start due to an internal error”, here are two suggestions you can check out.
Option 1 – Check if the Volume Shadow Copy service is running and restart it
The first thing you need to do is check if the Volume Shadow Copy service. To do that, refer to the following steps:
Click on Start and type “cmd” and right-click on Command Prompt from the search results.
Then select the “Run as administrator” option to open Command Prompt with admin privileges.
After that, type “net stop sdrsvc” and hit Enter to execute the command in stopping the Volume Shadow Copy service.
Next, type the “net start sdrsvc” command and hit Enter to start the service again.
Note: You can also restart the service using the Windows Services Manager.
In the Cortana search box, type “services” and click on the Services icon to open the Services Manager. Alternatively, you can also tap the Win + R keys to launch the Run prompt and then type “services.msc” in the field and hit Enter to open the Services Manager.
From there, look for the Volume Shadow Service (sdrsv) from the list of services. Its Startup type should be set to Manual by default.
Restart the service and if you don’t encounter any error while you turn it on, re-run the backup service and see if the backup process runs successfully.
Option 2 – Try to run the Volume Shadow Copy Service in a Clean Boot State
If the first option didn’t work and the service still keeps on failing even though the service is running, you can try putting your computer in a Clean Boot State and then try to run Windows Backup again.
Log onto your PC as an administrator.
Type in MSConfig in the Start Search to open the System Configuration utility.
From there, go to the General tab and click “Selective startup”.
Clear the “Load Startup items” check box and make sure that the “Load System Services” and “Use Original boot configuration” options are checked.
Next, click the Services tab and select the “Hide All Microsoft Services” check box.
Click Disable all.
Click on Apply/OK and restart your PC. (This will put your PC into a Clean Boot State. And configure Windows to use the usual startup, just simply undo the changes.)
Now try to run the Volume Shadow Copy service again and see if the process goes smoothly.
Note: You might also want to delete all the files in the backup solution if you want to start fresh with the backup solution. Just go to C:/System/Volume/Information/Windows Backup and take ownership of the folder. After that, make sure to stop the Volume Shadow Copy service and then delete all the files inside it.